Posts Categorized: Blog Tour

Friday, April 04, 2014

Sekret Dream Cast + Giveaway!

Posted by 16 Comments

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This week we’re celebrating the release of Sekret by Lindsay Smith, and today is my stop on the blog tour with a Dream Cast of Sekret along with a giveaway!

Sekret Dream Cast + Giveaway!Sekret by Lindsay Smith
Series: Sekret #1
Published by Macmillan Children's Books on April 1st 2014
Genres: Historical, Paranormal, YA
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads

An empty mind is a safe mind.

Yulia's father always taught her to hide her thoughts and control her emotions to survive the harsh realities of Soviet Russia. But when she's captured by the KGB and forced to work as a psychic spy with a mission to undermine the U.S. space program, she's thrust into a world of suspicion, deceit, and horrifying power. Yulia quickly realizes she can trust no one--not her KGB superiors or the other operatives vying for her attention--and must rely on her own wits and skills to survive in this world where no SEKRET can stay hidden for long.



Sekret Dream Cast



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Yulia, telemetrist and ration rat

Tatiana Maslany or Freya Tingley

Yulia, who can read the memories of objects and people through touch, is strong-willed, resourceful, and sometimes stubborn to a fault. I love Tatiana Maslany’s character(s) on Orphan Black, and how she convincingly slips into whatever role is required to get what she needs to survive. That definitely fits Yulia! But Freya Tingley (Hemlock Grove) also excels at just the right amount of attitude for Yulia — the one that lets you know she’ll obey your orders for now, but she won’t be broken for long.


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Valentin, jazz pianist and scrubber in training

Kit Harrington or Daniel Radcliffe by way of Dmitri Shostakovich

Valentin is a tough one—in my mind, he looks a lot like one of his classical music idols, Dmitri Shostakovich (far left). Valentin is quiet but intense, only revealing his depths when improvising on piano or being forced to use his powers to alter someone’s memories. Kit Harrington is older than Valentin, but recently demonstrated his abilities to rock the thick frames—always a plus—until Daniel Radcliffe came along with his brooding-Russian face. Well played, Comrade Radcliffe.



Alyx

Sergei, remote viewer and rising hockey star

Alex Pettyfer

Sergei would much rather be on the ice, racking up goals for the hockey team Spartak, than using his psychic powers to hunt dissidents, but he’ll play along with the KGB’s plans if it makes life easier for him. Alex Pettyfer has the right kind of easy-going nature for Sergei, quick to shrug off a defeat and charmingly sheepish when scolded.







GIfted

Larissa, gifted with foresight

Jena Malone

Larissa can see the potential futures that branch away from decisions. Jena Malone looks like she could readily handle the burden that comes from knowing your fate, and making peace with it—even if it means carrying out the cruel choices that’ll bring about the future you want.



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Colonel Rostov, ruthless KGB officer and scrubber

Timothy Dalton
Is it wrong to cast a former James Bond as a maniacal psychic KGB officer who will stop at nothing to win the Cold War? I sure hope not—the villainous Timothy Dalton we see in Hot Fuzz and Chuck looks like he’s having so much fun being bad. I’d love to turn him loose on Soviet Russia and watch him chew all the scenery.







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Major Kruzenko, KGB officer and mind-reader

Margo Martindale

Major Kruzenko tries to be the less-bad cop to Colonel Rostov’s heavy-handed tactics, but her allegiance to the Soviet Union always comes before any mothering instincts she may possess. Margo Martindale is already a masterful KGB handler on The Americans, far in over her head but fighting her way through the intricate schemes around her the best she can.

Eva

Antonina, Yulia’s mother, fallen Communist Party star

Eva Green

Clever, desperate, and more than a little unhinged—that’s Yulia’s mother, and the type of character Eva Green excels at. A former darling of the Communist Party’s scientific community, she went on the run with Yulia and her brother, but seems to be playing a far more intricate game than Yulia realizes.



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The American Scrubber, deadly and charismatic

Michael Fassbender

The American scrubber stalking the KGB team is lethal and all too genial about his grim tasks. Michael Fassbender shows just the right blend of cunning and charisma. Plus, he looks great in a beatnik turtleneck.






About the Author



Lindsay Smith’s love of Russian culture has taken her to Moscow, Saint Petersburg, and a reindeer festival in the middle of Siberia. She lives in Washington, DC, where she writes on foreign affairs. SEKRET is her first novel.






This post is part of the Sekret blog tour.


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Giveaways

Macmillan Children’s Books has generously offered one hardcover copy of Sekret for giveaway.


  • Open to US and Canada only
  • Giveaway ends April 18th, 2014
  • Full contest terms and conditions found on Rafflecopter

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review + Series Giveaway: Sunrise by Mike Mullin

Review + Series Giveaway: Sunrise by Mike Mullin

Posted by on 03/12/2014 • 18 Comments

*Spoiler free for the series*

Series that end on such a fantastic note like this one makes me want to scream and shout about how epic the ride was. Then follow that with a lot of ugly crying from it being over.

With this series, Mullin has created an amazingly realistic, plausible, and terrifying post apocalyptic story set in the aftermath of the Yellowstone volcano eruption. Throughout the series we have seen these characters go from scared teenagers only trying to live to see the next day, to strong leaders who are being brutally realistic with the hand they were dealt and the game they were forced into. The character growth we witness is incredible. From our main characters, Alex and Darla, to the many faces that have been…

Review & Dream Cast: Deeper by Robin York

Review & Dream Cast: Deeper by Robin York

Posted by on 01/31/2014 • 13 Comments

A slow budding romance, loads of chemistry, and highly character driven; Deeper has a lot to offer. Revenge porn is something that happens all too often, and unfortunately continues to be legal in most States. Finding those sex pictures of herself after a break-up was only the beginning of a very long, very dark chapter in Caroline’s life. Not only is she plagued with the knowledge of everyone having seen her during such an intimate act, she’s ashamed, haunted by the voices of the men who call her vile names, describe the repulsive things they’d do to her in comments, making her wary of anyone that looks her way. This is not something that ever goes away.

Deeper is not a fast paced read. It’s a slow character-oriented story that…

Ruined Dream Cast by Jus Accardo + Giveaway!

Ruined Dream Cast by Jus Accardo + Giveaway!

Posted by on 01/15/2014 • 32 Comments

I’ve got the lovely Jus Accardo joining us on the blog today for a guest post and then you can enter for a chance to win! Have you checked out this book yet? Here’s what you’re missing:

Dream Cast, by Jus Accardo Like a lot of authors, I feel like it helps to have visual stimulation when creating my characters. Sometimes it helps to have physical features to help put descriptions onto the page. It can help with expressions and scene description, and makes the pictures in my head flow just a little bit smoother. A lot of work goes into this portion of writing a book. It took me long hours of grueling research to find the perfect Jax. Really. It was horrific and I in…

Stir Me Up Character Spotlight + Giveaway!

Stir Me Up Character Spotlight + Giveaway!

Posted by on 01/06/2014 • 24 Comments

We’ve got the Stir Me Up blog tour on the blog today where we’re spotlighting Julian as well as a chance for you to win! In case you haven’t heard of this book yet – have a look at what it’s all about:

Character Spotlight: Julian Wyatt CHARACTER: Julian Wyatt AGE: 20 HEIGHT: 6’ 0” HAIR: Brown EYES: Hazel

PARENTS: Father: U.S. Marine Sam Wyatt, died in a Jeep accident in Somalia when Julian was four.

Mother: Angela Wyatt, a researcher at a think tank in Washington, died from breast cancer when Julian was nine.

CHILDHOOD: Raised by his aunt Estella after his mother’s death. Considers her son, his cousin Brandon, to be like an older brother. Got in a fair amount of trouble after his…

Meet Penelope from A Breath of Frost + Exclusive Excerpt!

Meet Penelope from A Breath of Frost + Exclusive Excerpt!

Posted by on 01/03/2014 • 25 Comments

Today we all get to meet Penelope from A Breath of Frost by  Alyxandra Harvey! I love witch books and this one sounds awesome. I also have heard great things about the author’s other series so let’s see what this new one is all about!

Official Book Trailer:

An Introduction to Penelope! Penelope Chadwick Age: 18 Hair: black Eyes: dark brown Familiar: Spider Magic: Pscychometry: sensing the history of an object and the people who have touched it

Penelope is romantic and spoiled and kind and very talented at the pianoforte. She’s mad for anything Shakespearean and likes to use odd random bits of Shakespearean insults. She also has a rather prickly temper when her loved ones are insulted.

Her…

Sneak Peek + Giveaway: Heartbeat by Elizabeth Scott

Sneak Peek + Giveaway: Heartbeat by Elizabeth Scott

Posted by on 12/18/2013 • 14 Comments

I’m part of the Heartbeat blitz tour where we’re going around and celebrating the upcoming release of Heartbeat by Elizabeth Scott! If you haven’t heard about this book before here’s your chance, and you can also win an ARC of this pretty! I’ve been excited to read this myself ever since I met the author at BEA (which was awesome) and heard her talk about her book 🙂 Watch for my review after the holidays!

“An intense examination of a family coping with grief, this absorbing character study easily keeps pages turning.”

— Kirkus on Heartbeat

Heartbeat Sneak Peek

“Hey,” Olivia says, and I know it’s her because I would know her voice anywhere. We’ve been friends since fifth grade, and we’ve…

Review: Addicted to You by Becca Ritchie and Krista Ritchie

Review: Addicted to You by Becca Ritchie and Krista Ritchie

Posted by on 12/16/2013 • 35 Comments

Some might think a book about a sex addict is simply an excuse to write a “New Adult Erotica” but it’s not like that at all. These are people who are addicted to the point of self destruction, and what could have easily been a depth-less sex-oriented read becomes a true eye opener into a very tricky subject.

I’d heard of sex addiction before, but I never really thought about how intense and all empowering the addiction could be. You only need to do a quick Google search to realize it’s an addiction that is under quite the debate. Some experts even say it’s a myth. This novel, however, makes a convincing argument for it. One way it does this, and it does it brilliantly, is by creating a…