It’s time for another Bookanistas Review!!!! As you guys know, I’ve moved recently and all the moving related stuff has tried to cut into my reading time, but I am still listening to audio books in the car and while I’m unpacking and of course I’s still crawling into bed each night with my book light. I just finished PUSHED by my friend and fellow Class of 2k12/Apocalypsies author, Corrine Jackson. Just in time for her Valentines Blog Tour.
She didn’t know how far she’d go—until she was pushed.
Remy O’Malley was just learning to harness her uncanny healing power when she discovered the other, darker half of her bloodline. Now she lives trapped between two worlds, uneasy among her fellow
Healers—and relentlessly hunted by the Protectors.
Forced to conceal her dual identity, and the presence of her Protector boyfriend Asher Blackwell, Remy encounters a shadow community of Healers who will put her loyalties to the test.
Pushed to the limit, with the lives of those she loves most on the line, Remy must decide whether to choose sides in a centuries-old war—or make the ultimate sacrifice and go to a place from which she may never return…
This is Book Two in the Sense Thieves trilogy.
Publisher: Kensington/KTeen
ISBN-10: 0758273347
PUSHED EXCERPT
Gabe Blackwell never saw me coming.
In the tick of a hummingbird’s wings, I had launched myself at his back, taking him down in a tangle of arms and legs. Our bodies hit the blue mat in the middle of the Blackwells’ gym with a thud that shivered from my teeth to my backbone.
Gabe’s breath hissed out when Asher, leaning against a rack of weights, laughed at his older brother’s defeat at the hands of a gangly girl half his size. I took advantage of Gabe’s distraction to wrap an arm around his neck, putting the whole of my weight into pinning him. My height rivaled his, with me close to six feet and him just over, but he had a good sixty pounds of muscle on me. Unwilling to loosen my hold for even a second, I considered biting him in retribution for the thousand times he’d insulted me. And then I wondered if I might have given away my abnormal speed. I really hoped not.
“What is it you’re always yelling at me?” I pretended to think about it, enjoying my little victory over my boyfriend’s brother. With his sculpted features, Gabe never lacked for company, and he never let anyone forget it. I savored any opportunity I had to take his ego down a notch. “Oh right. I remember now. Never turn your back on the enemy, Protector.”
Gabe cursed and cut my amusement short when his muscles tightened and gathered under me. He might look twenty to my eighteen, but Gabe had lived more than a century, and his experience with our powers surpassed mine. Too late, I tried to strengthen my grip. The thought had scarcely occurred to me when I found my face planted in the mat with his knee bending my spine like a bow.
“I also told you to concentrate instead of getting cocky.” The cheer in Gabe’s proper British voice grated on my nerves. “Now, be a good little mortal, and say it.”
His humiliating version of saying “uncle,” he meant. Ten minutes ago I’d bet him that I could take him down in a fair fight, and he’d agreed with terms of his own if I lost.
“Come on, Healer. Say it. Tell me I’m the greatest Protector who ever lived.”
His knee pressed harder, as he settled in with more of his weight. Grunting, I tested my range of motion and felt an electric storm of agony gathering inside my body. Powerful energy, but not enough to turn the tables. Almost there, you smug jackass.
“All right.” Defeat colored my tone, and my body went limp. “You win. I’ll say it.”
I could picture the smirk on his carved, handsome face, and I used the anger to steel myself against the coming pain. In an explosion of movement, my body jerked backward, forcing his knee to dig in that little bit more I needed. A disk popped in my spine and slid sideways. The tempest exploded out of me, firing my pain into Gabe. Another pop and he collapsed with a thump next to me, his back now screwed up, too. Poetic justice. In the quiet that followed, I pressed my cheek into the cushioned mat and studied my nemesis, curled up in the fetal position next to me.
My voice came out weaker than I intended when I declared, “I am the greatest Protector who ever lived.”
I don’t say this very often, but this is one of those occasions where I liked the second book in the series even more than the first. (And I really enjoyed TOUCHED) Jackson has gone out of her way not to rush the development of the characters and the storyline as she dolled out the first two books in the Sense Thieves trilogy, but she also hasn’t wasted my time or dangled me over any unnecessary cliffs to wait for the next installment. You get both satisfaction and anticipation.
By the end of TOUCHED, I’d become attached to not only Remy and Asher, but also to her family. Reading PUSHED, I was very happy to see Jackson hadn’t sacrificed all the things I love about her new family just to create drama. By adding a new twist, there was lots of brand new action and nail-biting involved and it was interesting and fresh–nicely weaving in the world building for healers and protectors.
Remy continues to be a well created mix of confidence and insecurity. She’s not too strong and not too weak–a really great balance in my opinion. She’s refreshingly honest for a heroine and that comes across the clearest in her devotion to her boyfriend Asher. They are a great couple.
BUT…it’s time to get to the part I LOVED about PUSHED…Gabe. I ended TOUCHED with negative/ambivalent feelings about Asher’s older brother, Gabe, but I LOVED him in this story. I want more Gabe and I want it now. I also want to write more and more sentences about him, but if I do I will spoil all your reading fun and I’m determined not to do that. So…*zips lips*
Young adult author Corrine Jackson lives in San Francisco and has over ten years experience in marketing. She has bachelor and master degrees in English, and an MFA in Creative Writing from Spalding University. Her novels include If I Lie (Simon Pulse) and the Sense Thieves trilogy (KTeen), comprised of Touched,Pushed, and Ignited (5/27/14). Visit her at CorrineJackson.com or on Twitter at @Cory_Jackson.
Want to win 20 signed copies of PUSHED or 2 signed copies of IGNITED? Enter to win at this Rafflecopter giveaway…
I hope I’ve pushed you into reading PUSHED! *grin* As you might have guessed from my review–I wouldn’t mind having Gabe as my Book Boy Valentine this year. Who would be your Book Boy/Girl Valentine?
Tuesday came and went with no blog post from me. Maybe last Thursday too. LOL! I’me in a haze of bleach and card board boxes and I’m only crawling out of my moving hole to do this post/blog tour because I absolutely love this book. #2 in the Nogiku Series. Wait–you didn’t take my advice and read REMOVED? Go back and check it out, fall in love with this quirky, exciting, romantic series and then check out RELEASED.
This is my stop during the blog tour for the Nogiku series by SJ Pajonas. This blog tour is organized by Lola’s Blog Tours. The blog tour runs from January 20 till February 2, you can view the complete tour schedule on the website of Lola’s Blog Tours: http://lolasblogtours.com/2013/11/21/blog-tour-nogiku-series-by-sj-pajonas/
So far this series contains two book: Removed (Nogiku series #1) and Released (Nogiku series #2).
Released (Nogiku series #2)
by SJ Pajonas
Genre: Science Fiction Romance, Post-apocalyptic
Age category: New Adult
Release Date: December 17, 2013
Blurb:
**Contains spoilers for those who have not read REMOVED (Book 1) Left in the desert to recuperate from her injuries, Sanaa Itami paces the floors and contemplates her mistakes. She trusted too easily, and now people she loved are dead, killed at the hands of men coming to assassinate her. Sanaa feels beaten, but life awaits her at home. While Nishikyo recovers from the earthquake, negotiations for Sanaa’s eventual rule on Yusei continue. New allies must be made, new friendships brokered, new skills acquired — at all costs. Life at the top of the chain is complicated and lonely, though. With relations in Sakai clan rocky and uncertain, Sanaa must learn to trust others again more than she’s willing. Who amongst the clans is left holding a grudge? And will the new family Sanaa has found with Jiro support or betray her? From Nishikyo to Yusei, RELEASED, Book TWO of the Nogiku Series, is the second book in a captivating New Adult post-apocalyptic romance series that harnesses the cultures and traditions of Japan and sweeps them into the future between Earth and a faraway land.
Now that NA (New Adult) has taken off, I find myself listening to lots of people wanting NA but “different.” Different is what the Nogiku series is all about. And I’m saying that in the very best of ways. There is something in it for everyone, but there are also things in this series that I didn’t know I wanted out of a book until I was immersed in it. Unique world building, romance without a frustrating love triangle, action and adventure, interesting science fiction, suspense, friendship, diversity and girl power. And while all of that is fabulous on its own–this book is ALL ABOUT THE ENDING!
I can’t wait for book #3. I have a sneaky suspicion this series has just gotten ready to hit it’s sweet spot. Trust me–get invested in the Nogiku series.
About the Author:
S. J. Pajonas loves all things Asian and has been in love with Japan for as long as she can remember. Writing about Asia and Japan came naturally after studying the culture and language for over fifteen years. She studied film and screenwriting first and eventually segued into fiction once she was no longer working a full-time job.
Released is S. J. Pajonas’s second work, book two of four in the Nogiku Series. The first book in the series, Removed, is described as “a wonderful story” with “engaging characters, seamless world building, and an action packed plot.” It’s an “up-til-3am-because-I-read-it-in-one-sitting book.” She also writes contemporary romance and her upcoming first book in the Love in the Digital Age series will be published in 2014.
S. J. lives with her husband and two children just outside of New York City. She loves reading, writing, film, J- and K-dramas, knitting, and astrology. Her favorite author is Haruki Murakami and favorite book is The Wind-up Bird Chronicle.
There is a tour wide giveaway for the blog tour of the Nogiku series. These are the prizes you can win: Amazon Gift Cards, copies of REMOVED, and eBook copies of two fantastic Japanese books: JAPANESE SOUL COOKING and THE SAKE HANDBOOK. Both will be gifted through either Amazon (kindle) or Barnes&Noble (nook).
It’s a brand new year and I’ve got more great books that you might be missing. Time to kick of 2014 with something to keep your pulse racing.
Here’s a little bit about BREAKING GLASS by Lisa Amowitz…
BREAKING GLASS
by Lisa Amowitz
On the night seventeen-year-old Jeremy Glass winds up in the hospital with a broken leg and a blood alcohol level well above the legal limit, his secret crush, Susannah, disappears.
When he begins receiving messages from her from beyond the grave, he’s not sure whether they’re real or if he’s losing his grip on reality. Clue by clue, he gets closer to unraveling the mystery, and soon realizes he must discover the truth or become the next victim himself.
Kimberly’s Review of BREAKING GLASS:
There is so much to love about this book!!! It was a thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat from cover to cover. I was trying to guess plot right up until the end, but it was hard because there were tons of twists and turns to keep me on my toes. But even though there was lots of nail biting and adrenaline flowing through BREAKING GLASS, there was also a wonderful sense of balance because of the romance. Interesting relationships occurred in more than one thread of the story and while the “best” relationships were fabulous, some were dysfunctional, but in a great way. I also really enjoyed Jeremy Glass’ voice. I think Amowitz has a natural talent for writing teenage boy. There were multiple times through out the book where I muttered “stupid boy” under my breath, while acknowledging how spot-on my aggravation with Jeremy was. Additionally, I really loved the small town dynamics that were at play during the entire novel. While not every small town has all the politics, social hierarchy issues and corruption that Jeremy’s town does, I certainly could see more than a few truths about human nature breaking through.
And when you rush right out to pick up your copy of Amowitz’s debut novel, don’t forget to ogle and admire the fabulous cover for BREAKING GLASS, designed by the author herself. You can check out more of her fabulous design work HERE.
Lisa Amowitz was born in Queens and raised in the wilds of Long Island, New York where she climbed trees, thought small creatures lived under rocks and studied ant hills. And drew. A lot. She is a professor of Graphic Design at her beloved Bronx Community College where she has been tormenting and cajoling students for nearly seventeen years. She started writing eight years ago because she wanted something to illustrate, but somehow, instead ended up writing YA. Probably because her mind is too dark and twisted for small children. Lisa is represented by Shannon Hassan of Marsal-Lyon Literary Agency. shannon@marsallyonliteraryagency.com
You can find out more about Lisa Amowitz and BREAKING GLASS here…
I LOVE it when I get the opportunity to write a FABULOUS Bookanistas review for a member of Michelle Wolfson’s Wolf Pack. I can’t begin to tell you how amazing it is to be one of Michelle’s pups. Not only are my pack sistahs sweet and fun people, but they are fabulous authors too. Ahwooooooooo…..
SPLIT SECOND — February 11, 2014
Life can change in a split second.
Addie hardly recognizes her life since her parents divorced. Her boyfriend used her. Her best friend betrayed her. She can’t believe this is the future she chose. On top of that, her ability is acting up. She’s always been able to Search the future when presented with a choice. Now she can manipulate and slow down time, too . . . but not without a price.
When Addie’s dad invites her to spend her winter break with him, she jumps at the chance to escape into the Norm world of Dallas, Texas. There she meets the handsome and achingly familiar Trevor. He’s a virtual stranger to her, so why does her heart do a funny flip every time she sees him? But after witnessing secrets that were supposed to stay hidden, Trevor quickly seems more suspicious of Addie than interested in her. And she has an inexplicable desire to change that.
Meanwhile, her best friend, Laila, has a secret of her own: she can restore Addie’s memories . . . once she learns how. But there are powerful people who don’t want to see this happen. Desperate, Laila tries to manipulate Connor, a brooding bad boy from school—but he seems to be the only boy in the Compound immune to her charms. And the only one who can help her.
As Addie and Laila frantically attempt to retrieve the lost memories, Addie must piece together a world she thought she knew before she loses the love she nearly forgot . . . and a future that could change everything.
Kasie West did everything right! SPLIT SECOND is a fabulous and worthy follow-up to her first book. I really loved PIVOT POINT for it’s thoughtful and exciting creativity. I get really pumped about a well executed book with a great premise–especially if it has characters that really work. I love books that make me think long after I’ve closed the cover. Without a doubt, PIVOT POINT delivered everything I wanted in a debut novel, but not all second books know the secret to taking characters and plot to the next level.
Kasie West has it all figured out. SPLIT SECOND gave me all of the things I loved about PIVOT POINT, but didn’t rest on the familiar. She expanded the plot, extrapolated on earlier characters, brought in new ones and gave me Connor to swoon over. (In my humble opinion, that boy stole the show and I want more of him and Laila ASAP!) Additionally, I was also really impressed with the twists and turns involving Duke. I like my characters a little messy. And then West’s world building makes me want to crawl into her head to see what’s really going on in there. I love the way she thinks. I’m hoping that someone makes a TV series out of PIVOT POINT/SPLIT SECOND so I can see everything come to life on the screen.
While I hated flipping to the last page, at the end of SPLIT SECOND, West left me blissfully satisfied while still wanting more. *sigh* I can’t wait to read what she writes next. If you haven’t read PIVOT POINT, don’t waste a split second because SPLIT SECOND is almost here and it’s a must read!
You can find out more about Kasie West and SPLIT SECOND here…
I love to write–too much. It’s a sickness really. My debut novel, PIVOT POINT, is out now with HarperTeen. (And will be followed by its sequel, Split Second on February 11, 2014.)
THE DISTANCE BETWEEN US, my contemporary YA novel, was published July 2, 2013 (HarperTeen).
My agent is the talented, funny, and sometimes crazy, Michelle Wolfson.
Looking for more amazing BOOKANISTAS REVIEWS? Don’t worry, I’ve got them right here…
Today’s Bookanistas Review comes to you with a side dish of local author love. Jennifer Castle lives pretty darn close to me, so we get lots of opportunities to hang out at author and writer events together. Yay me!!!! I love Jennifer and adore her books. Today I’m reviewing YOU LOOK DIFFERENT IN REAL LIFE.
For the rest of the world, the movies are entertainment. For Justine, they’re real life.
The premise was simple: five kids, just living their lives. There’d be a new movie about them every five years, starting in kindergarten. But no one could have predicted what the cameras would capture. And no one could have predicted that Justine would be the star.
Now sixteen, Justine doesn’t feel like a star anymore. In fact, when she hears the crew has gotten the green light to film Five at Sixteen, all she feels is dread. The kids who shared the same table in kindergarten have become teenagers who hardly know one another. And Justine, who was so funny and edgy in the first two movies, feels like a disappointment.
But these teens have a bond that goes deeper than what’s on film. They’ve all shared the painful details of their lives with countless viewers. They all know how it feels to have fans as well as friends. So when this latest movie gives them the chance to reunite, Justine and her costars are going to take it. Because sometimes, the only way to see yourself is through someone else’s eyes.
Smart, fresh, and frequently funny, You Look Different in Real Life is a piercing novel about life in an age where the lines between what’s personal and what’s public aren’t always clear.
Kimberly’s Review of YOU LOOK DIFFERENT IN REAL LIFE:
I immediately developed a soft spot for Justine even though she’s a bit of a snarky character who has moments of being unlikable. I’m personally drawn to a character with that kind of dimension. Perhaps it’s because a flawed MC is comforting to me, I’m loaded with my own chips and cracks. Or maybe it’s the complexity of character that keeps me so interested. More likely a combination of both, which in my humble opinion is even better. Additionally, all of Castle’s supporting roles had range and depth of character that held my attention the whole way through.
But I have a favorite reason for loving this book. It made me think and rethink about reality television, particularly the role of media fame on children. In fact, I think I’m still digesting it, even though it’s been a few weeks since I turned the last page. What does it mean to grow up in the public eye of reality TV? This is a harder and harder question to answer as our media opportunities are casting an ever widening net. Maybe watching Miley Cyrus, Brittany Spears, Amanda Bynes, and Lindsay Lohan, to name just a few, really illustrates why a book like this so important. It feels to me as if those young girls are the unreliable narrators in their own life story. We only see parts of their story and some of those pieces do not give us the complete picture we need. Castle’s book gives a deeper look into what can happened when a child’s life becomes too transparent.
YOU LOOK DIFFERENT IN REAL LIFE is a fabulous, richly-textured, thought provoking read that you shouldn’t miss.
YOU LOOK DIFFERENT IN REAL LIFE is available for purchase here…
Jennifer Castle received her B.A. in Creative Writing at Brown University and worked as a celebrity publicist’s assistant, an advertising copywriter, and a struggling screenwriter (yes, that’s an actual job) before falling into a niche producing websites for kids and teens. Her first novel, THE BEGINNING OF AFTER, was a 2012 YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults selection as well as a Chicago Public Library “Best of the Best” book. Her most recent novel is YOU LOOK DIFFERENT IN REAL LIFE from HarperTeen–June 2013. She lives in New York’s Hudson Valley with her husband and daughters.
You can find out more about Jennifer Castle and her YA novels here…
Any thoughts on reality TV’s effect on today’s children? I personally think we have yet to see the full ramifications for the actors or the audience. What do you think? What should be changed? What is a positive that is often over looked? Do parents have a greater responsibility in this process? Lots to talk about with this one.
Yesterday I had this great dream and it was about today’s blog post. I remember being really excited about coming up with such a crazy awesome idea, but now…
I DON’T REMEMBER THE ACTUAL DREAM!!!!
*sigh*
So instead, I thought I’d talk about something that is not NaNoWriMo–which is hard–because when you’re focused on something it tends to be on your mind a lot. But I’m going to do it! Or not do it. You know what I mean.
Any hoo, next on my list of topics I’ve been dying to talk about is the last book in the DIVERGENT trilogy, ALLEGIANT by Veronica Roth.
BUT…
Only I have a HUGE problem. I don’t feel like I can talk to you about it the way I’d like. There are spoilers I don’t want to slip and give away. But I still want to anyway because there are so many reasons why this book is fascinating for me. There were things I loved, things I hated. Moments that were wasted and moments where I completely respected the author’s guts. Over all, the book itself had some high points and some not as high points for me. But it’s the response of the studio audience that I find the most intriguing, baffling, slightly horrifying, and completely fascinating. Readers have been up in arms about a variety of things, but particularly the ending. This passionate response raises so many questions for me. What is an author’s obligation to it’s readers? Has that changed with the accessibility of intimate contact through social media? Can anyone write a trilogy where all three books satisfy most readers? Is it the nature of the beast that some readers will always be unhappy? What does a controversial ending mean for the author’s next project? Are there “rules” that shouldn’t be broken? Will all the unrest increase sales or decrease them? Did you love it or hate it or were you somewhere in between?
If you’ve read Allegiant and want to talk about it–please do–I’m dying over here for stimulating ALLEGIANT conversation. But please be sensitive to others and speak vaguely or clearly post spoilers in the comments. And remember that no matter what your thoughts are on the book, Veronica Roth is a fabulous human being who gives so much to the kid lit community. Please be respectful of her . Thank you–you rock!!!!
This month my Bookanistas Review is THE MOON AND MORE by Sarah Dessen. The great Sarah Dessen. The master of contemporary YA. I don’t need to review this book. It was awesome. But I want to add a little something. I want to talk about why Dessen’s novels strike a chord with her legion of readers. Her books are real and relatable. There are no fancy gimmicks to pull you in. You simply start reading and before you’ve realized it’s happened, you’ve dropped into the world of a real person. And you feel their feels. And that’s the key, isn’t it? Dessen makes you feel real things–and you become invested in her words and in her characters.
Read THE MOON AND MORE, but don’t just stop there. Read all of Dessen’s books. You won’t regret it.
Luke is the perfect boyfriend: handsome, kind, fun. He and Emaline have been together all through high school in Colby, the beach town where they both grew up. But now, in the summer before college, Emaline wonders if perfect is good enough.
Enter Theo, a super-ambitious outsider, a New Yorker assisting on a documentary film about a reclusive local artist. Theo’s sophisticated, exciting, and, best of all, he thinks Emaline is much too smart for Colby.
Emaline’s mostly-absentee father, too, thinks Emaline should have a bigger life, and he’s convinced that an Ivy League education is the only route to realizing her potential. Emaline is attracted to the bright future that Theo and her father promise. But she also clings to the deep roots of her loving mother, stepfather, and sisters. Can she ignore the pull of the happily familiar world of Colby?
Emaline wants the moon and more, but how can she balance where she comes from with where she’s going?
Sarah Dessen’s devoted fans will welcome this story of romance, yearning, and, finally, empowerment. It could only happen in the summer.
Want to check out what the rest of the Bookanistas are reading? Here you go…
I am so excited to share REMOVED (The Nogiku Series #1) by my wonderful friend S.J. Pajonas!!!!!
Duty knows no family. Love has no price. Secrets can cost you everything.
Twenty-year-old Sanaa Griffin, a sweet and smart half-Japanese girl, is about to get more than she bargained for when she wishes for love and excitement on New Year’s Eve 3103. Mark Sakai, who knows more about her than any stranger should, thinks Sanaa is the perfect person to spy on the heads of the three biggest Japanese clan leaders in Nishikyō. He wants her to gather enough evidence to keep them from going to war when they land on Earth’s colonization planet, Yūsei. Nishikyō, built by the Japanese 300 years ago to house the rest of mankind, is failing and everyone is preparing to leave.
Sakai has known Sanaa’s family all her life but she knows nothing of him! And despite all the time they spend together, he keeps his distance from her. Then one day, he brings her to Jiro, his nephew, to learn sword fighting, and it changes her life irrevocably. Between falling in love with Jiro and the information she is gathering on the clans, Sanaa realizes Sakai is holding back secrets about her family and her deceased parents, secrets as to why she was chosen for this job, and learning the truth puts her and all of Nishikyō in danger.
Kimberly’s Review of REMOVED:
Both in life and in my reading material, I haven’t done a lot of delving into the Japanese culture. I recently got my first literary taste of Japan in Daisy Whitney’s WHEN YOU WERE HERE, a YA novel that spends part of it’s time in Tokyo. If WHEN YOU WERE HERE was the appetizer for discovering another culture, the New Adult novel REMOVED is the meal and I loved what I was tasting. Both authors won me over with their cultural passion and Pajonas’ captivation with Japan is skillfully woven into her unique vision of the future. REMOVED takes place in 3103, after an environmental decline has forced the remaining 6 million people (most of them of a Japanese heritage) to live under domes in North America. In a unique twinning of the past and the future, Pajonas’ insertion of the Japanese culture is effortless.
This novel has been correctly set up for a series, with a satisfying plot arc and enjoyable cliff hanger for the first book, all the while maintaining plenty of room for the larger plot lines that umbrella over multiple books. When poorly executed, this is a bit of a pet-peeve of mine and has been responsible for me leaving a series unfinished. In my opinion, Pajonas’ plotting skills are reminiscent of Marissa Meyer’s creativity and organization with the LUNAR CHRONICLES.
While REMOVED is an action-packed novel with a kick-ass heroine, it also has many sections that contain quiet, thoughtful moments. Additionally, there is a steamy, but swoony romance that doesn’t have frustrating love triangle. The sci-fi part of REMOVED is believable without being weighted down and has plenty of twists in it’s plot to keep me wanting to turn the pages. All of this combined makes REMOVED a book that will capture the interest of readers in a variety of different genres. Think of it like a hybrid of some of your favorite books.
Lastly, I simply love the character of Sanaa. She is complex and that is my favorite kind of person.
About S.J. Pajonas
S. J. Pajonas loves all things Asian but has especially been in love with Japan for as long as she can remember. Writing about Asia and Japan came naturally after studying the culture and language for over 15 years. She studied film and screenwriting first at Michigan State University and eventually segued into fiction once she was no longer working a full-time job as a website programmer for HBO.com
REMOVED is S. J. Pajonas’s debut work, book one of four in the Nogiku Series. She also writes Women’s Fiction and her upcoming Love in the Digital Age series will be published in 2014.
Stephanie lives with her husband and two children just outside of New York City. She loves reading, writing, film, J- and K-dramas, knitting, and astrology. Her favorite author is Haruki Murakami and favorite book is The Wind-up Bird Chronicles.
Also Be sure to visit S.J. Pajonas’ blog at http://www.spajonas.com for giveaways and posts on the Japanese cultures and traditions that inspired REMOVED and the entire Nogiku Series.
Looking for more Bookanistas Reviews this week? You know I’ve got them…
While flying an Allied fighter plane from Paris to England, American ATA pilot and amateur poet, Rose Justice, is captured by the Nazis and sent to Ravensbrück, the notorious women’s concentration camp. Trapped in horrific circumstances, Rose finds hope in the impossible through the loyalty, bravery and friendship of her fellow prisoners. But will that be enough to endure the fate that’s in store for her?
Elizabeth Wein, author of the critically-acclaimed and best-selling Code Name Verity, delivers another stunning WWII thriller. The unforgettable story of Rose Justice is forged from heart-wrenching courage, resolve, and the slim, bright chance of survival.
Praise for Rose Under Fire
* “Wein masterfully sets up a stark contrast between the innocent American teen’s view of an untarnished world and the realities of the Holocaust. [A]lthough the story’s action follows [Code Name Verity]’s, it has its own, equally incandescent integrity. Rich in detail, from the small kindnesses of fellow prisoners to harrowing scenes of escape and the Nazi Doctors’ Trial in Nuremburg, at the core of this novel is the resilience of human nature and the power of friendship and hope.” –Kirkus, starred review
* “Wein excels at weaving research seamlessly into narrative and has crafted another indelible story about friendship borne out of unimaginable adversity.” –Publishers Weekly, starred review
Kimberly’s REview of ROSE UNDER FIRE:
Sometimes great books are hard to review. There is just so much to love and respect you don’t know where to start. ROSE UNDER FIRE is one of those books. EVERYONE SHOULD BE READING THIS BOOK–teens, parents, grandparents, teachers. All human beings over the age of fourteen should be reading this book.
I didn’t believe that Elizabeth Wein could capture more of my respect and adoration, than she already did by writing CODE NAME VERITY, but I tip my hat and touch my heart in deference to what she has created. The world is a better place because her books are in it.
Don’t let this one pass you by. Make the effort.
You can find out more about ROSE UNDER FIRE and Elizabeth Wein HERE.
Looking for more great Bookanistas Book Reviews? Here’s what we’ve been reading…
In what capacity has the Holocaust touched your life? I read The Diary of Anne Frank many times while growing up. I also was able to visit two concentration camps (Dachau and Auschwitz) while my husband and I were stationed in Germany. These experiences have stuck with me and I am glad to be a part of the people who don’t want to forget how easy it is to lose our humanity. How do you stay connected to this piece of our history?
For today’s Bookanistas Review, I have fellow Bookanista Tracy E. Banghart and her very intriguing YA novel BY BLOOD.
For 17-year-old Emma Wong, spending a summer in England should be a dream come true. Gorgeous scenery? Check. Lots of hot guys with accents? Yes, please.
Throw in an estranged mom, annoying new stepdad, and drooling baby half-brother, and it’s a disaster even her favorite cherry red leather jacket can’t fix. Even worse, there’s (hot) live-in research assistant Josh to contend with. The only thing more embarrassing than drunk-kissing him hours after they meet? Knowing he’ll be witness to her family’s dysfunction all. summer. long.
But when Emma meets a mysterious girl who happens to be a Druid, her vacation suddenly promises to be far more intriguing than she anticipated. Powerful rituals, new friends, an intoxicating sense of freedom…and Simon, the sexy foreign stranger she was hoping for. It’s all a perfect distraction from dirty diapers and awkward family dinners.
Trouble is, intriguing doesn’t often mean simple. And Emma is about to discover just how not simple her life really is.
By Blood is a novel about the ways that blood can bind us to others – or tear us apart.
Kimberly’s Review of BY BLOOD:
I really enjoyed BY BLOOD because it walked the line in several unique and wonderful ways. So many books tend to sit in a predictable pocket, but this one did several things I really, really enjoyed.
*My favorite thing about BY BLOOD was that Banghart wrote an ethnic MC that was subtle and natural. We often talk about not just raising kids who are accepting of differences, but rather raising kids who are color blind because they look deeper into a person to discover who they are. In my opinion, Emma Wong was written from that beautiful color blind perspective. Banghart created a feisty, fun and flawed character that carried me through the whole story because she was simply a great character.
*Another thing I really enjoyed about BY BLOOD, was how it was a contemporary novel with a paranormal feel. I think it was very innovative for Banghart to have the depth of an emotionally darker contemporary, the heat of a steamy romance, and the magic, intrigue and mystery of a paranormal through the exploration of the druids. I would consider this a great hybrid read.
*Lastly, the setting was fabulous. You can’t read BY BLOOD and not want to go to England immediately. I wanted to visit pubs, eat the food, see the art and just walk the cobblestone streets.
Can’t wait for MOON CHILD (By Blood 2)
Coming August 2013!
Before Emma’s adventures in Oxford, her best friend Diana came face-to-face with a killer…
Diana Calvert is so over high school. Who cares if Olivia hates her? And David needs to forget about having a crush on her STAT. Even Emma’s crazy fashion choices can’t keep Diana entertained. All she can hope for is a dance scholarship to a college as far away as possible from too-small, too-boring, too-nothing-ever-happens New Freedom, PA.
Then Diana meets Nicholas Woodhaven. He’s pale, angry…yet weirdly charming. The more time they spend together, the more she wonders who – or what – he really is. Because he isn’t anything like the other guys she knows. Not with the whole only-going-out-at-night thing. And living with his creepy aunt. And not going to school.
Just when Diana thinks she’s got Nicholas all figured out, people in her small, nothing-ever-happens town start dying. She has to wonder – can she trust him? And even more alarming – could she be next?
A murder mystery with a paranormal twist, Moon Child is best read under the covers with a flashlight…if you dare!
Tracy E. Banghart is a cheesy movie–loving, fantasy football–playing (go Ravens!), globe-trotting Army wife who began “practicing” her craft at the age of five, when she wrote her first story. She loves visiting the international friends she met while pursuing her MA in Publishing and spends a portion of every summer at her family’s cabin in Canada, where she finds inspiration and lots of time to relax on the dock. She lives with her husband, son, two lazy dogs and one ornery cat. When not writing or spending time with her family, she is on a mission to bake the perfect cupcake.
You can find out more about Tracy E. Banghart and BY BLOOD here…
After reading the BY BLOOD summary and my review, what intrigues you the most about Banghart’s book? How do you feel about hybrid style books that are putting a twist on some of our favorite things. What other books have you read that have ethnic characters that in your opinion do it right?
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