Sabrina's Paranormal Palace: March 2017

Chris Miles has written several books for young readers in Australia. His short fiction and other writings have appeared in publications throughout Australia. He works as a website designer and developer, and in his spare time he indulges his love of Doctor Who, LEGO®, Dungeons & Dragons, and anchovies. He is a dog person (though not literally).

Guest Post:

Ten random things about me

I once lost a game of Connect Four in four moves
I changed schools quite a lot when I was a kid
I first tasted anchovies at the age of 6 and loved it so much that I’ve dedicated myself to eating half a jar of anchovies each day ever since
One of my high school teachers was bestselling author Andy Griffiths, who wrote The Day My Butt Went Psycho
I’m a self-taught guitarist and computer programmer
I spend too much of my disposable income on LEGO®
My first dog was half-dingo
I’ve never had a drivers license
Before writing Spurt I wrote for a junior fiction series called Zac Power under a pseudonym
That previous fact about anchovies is only partly true

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Thank you for stopping by my blog today. I would also like to say Thank you to Chris for letting me review your book and say Thank you to Jean for letting me participate in this blog tour. Don't forget to enter the giveaway below.

~Sabrina

Friday, March 17, 2017

Heroes & VIllains Nerd Blast

Today on my blog I have the Heroes & Villains nerd blast.

Heroes and Villains, the seventh volume in Jon Scieszka’s Guys Read Library of Great Reading, is chock-full of adventure featuring an array of characters—with and without capes.

Featuring ten all-new, original stories that run the gamut from fantasy to comics to contemporary adventure to nonfiction, and featuring eleven of the most acclaimed, exciting writers for kids working today, this collection is the perfect book for you, whether you use your powers for good—or evil.

Authors include Laurie Halse Anderson, Cathy Camper and Raúl Gonzalez, Sharon Creech, Jack Gantos, Christopher Healy, Deborah Hopkinson, Ingrid Law, Pam Muñoz Ryan, Lemony Snicket, and Eugene Yelchin, with illustrations by Jeff Stokely.

Book Links:

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Book Depoitory

Jon Scieszka is the National Ambassador for Children's Literature emeritus and the bestselling author of more than twenty-five books for kids, including The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales, Math Curse, Robot Zot!, and the Time Warp Trio series. Jon founded Guys Read to encourage a passion for reading among young boys, with the philosophy that boys love to read most when they are reading things they love. A former elementary school teacher, Jon lives in Brooklyn with his family. For more great books, more great facts, and more about your favorite authors, head over to www.guysread.com. You'll be glad you did.

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Thank you for stopping by my blog today. I would also like to say Thank you to Jean for letting me participate in this nerd blast. Don't forget to enter the giveaway below.

~Sabrina

Chasing Brynn Nerd Blast

Today on my blog I have the Chasing Brynn nerd blast.

Witty and blunt blogger, Brynn Harper, has a knack for incredible sex. As a graduate student studying to be a sex therapist, Brynn’s heard her fair share of intimate horror stories. Starting an anonymous blog offering naughty advice changes her life. When a competitor tries to "out-blog" her with equally risqué posts from a male perspective, Brynn vows to shut him down.

But as she gets to know the mystery man on the other side of the keyboard, her interest piques. Smart and funny, the man might be able to charm her pants off—if she ever meets him in person. Brynn’s not interested in relationships though, which is exactly what she keeps telling sexy, confident, and persistent law student, Cade Brett, her walking fantasy with a fondness for handcuffs. She can’t get him out of her mind, but he won’t give her what she wants—unless she agrees to date him first.

Torn between the alpha mystery man, and the infuriatingly enticing Cade, commitment-phobic Brynn is in over her head. But one of them could be the love of her life if Brynn can relinquish control and give in to her heart.

Book Links:

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As a child, Angela Corbett’s most prized possession was a set of read- along books. She used to follow along with the narrator on the stereo dream of when she would be able to read by herself. Her childhood reading habit led her to consider her future career. However, after consulting with her parents, she realized she had already exceeded hobbit height and since fairies and dragonslayers were tricky jobs to get, she decided she wanted to create worlds of her own.

She is a graduate of Westminster College where she double majored in communication and sociology. She has worked as a journalist, freelance writer, and director of communications and marketing. She lives in Utah with her extremely supportive husband, Dan, and loves classic cars, traveling, and chasing their five-pound Pomeranian, Pippin—who is just as mischievous as his hobbit namesake.

She’s the author of Young Adult, New Adult, and Adult fiction—with lots of kissing. She writes under two names: Angela Corbett, and Destiny Ford.

Photo Credit: Heather Zahn Gardner

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Thank you for stopping by my blog today. I would also like to say Thank you to Jean for letting me participate in this nerd blast. Don't forget to enter the giveaway below.

~Sabrina

Thursday, March 16, 2017

A Boy Called Bat

Today on my blog I have The Boy Called Bat tour. On my stop there is a spotlight, review, guest post, and giveaway.

For Bixby Alexander Tam (nicknamed Bat), life tends to be full of surprises—some of them good, some not so good. Today, though, is a good-surprise day. Bat’s mom, a veterinarian, has brought home a baby skunk, which she needs to take care of until she can hand him over to a wild-animal shelter.

But the minute Bat meets the kit, he knows they belong together. And he’s got one month to show his mom that a baby skunk might just make a pretty terrific pet.

Review:

I really enjoyed this book. I was instantly drawn to Bat the main character as we both have a love for animals and I just loved his nickname as I am a huge lover of bats plus he gets to help care for a baby skunk which I have always wanted a pet skunk. Even though this book is for younger kids in elementary school I still very much enjoyed the story and all the characters. My niece who is eight and loves to read also kept at me to read this book and she finished it in 2 days and loved it also. She has been bugging me for a pet skunk now and wants to know when the next book will be out so she can read more about Bat and see if he gets to keep the baby skunk. 4/5 Bloody Fangs

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ELANA K. ARNOLD completed her M.A. in Creative Writing/Fiction at the University of California, Davis. She grew up in Southern California, where she was lucky enough to have her own horse--a gorgeous mare named Rainbow--and a family who let her read as many books as she wanted. She lives in Huntington Beach, California, with her husband, two children, and a menagerie of animals. She is represented by Rubin Pfeffer of Rubin Pfeffer Content.

Photo Credit Melissa Hockenberger

Guest Post:

Favorite Books Read This Year/Ever

Ah, this is a hard question, because I love so any different kinds of books. But I will make a list, mashing together fiction, nonfiction, memoirs, children’s books, and more. This is not a comprehensive list, just the books that have been important to me lately.

1. His Dark Materials, by Philip Pullman

2. Big Magic, Elizabeth Gilbert

3. Tiny Beautiful Things, Cheryl Strayed

4. My Brilliant Friend, Elena Ferrante

5. The Girl in the Flammable Skirt, Aimee Bender

6. Anne of Green Gables, L.M. Montgomery

7. The Remains of the day, Kazuo Ishiguro

8. One Hundred Years of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez

9. The Blind Assassin, Margaret Atwood

10. Beloved, Alice Walker

11. The Eyes of the Dragon, Stephen King

12. Where the Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak

13. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, J.K. Rowling

14. Bee Season, Myla Goldberg

15. The New York Trilogy, Paul Auster

16. Bridge to Terabithia, Katherine Paterson

17. Don’t Know Much About History, Kenneth C. Davis

18. Pippi Longstocking, Astrid Lingren

19. Look Me in the Eye, John Elder Robison

20. Maus I & II, Art Spiegelman

21. Born on a Blue Day, Daniel Tammet

22. A Prayer for Owen Meany, John Irving

23. Cowboys are my Weakness, Pam Houston

24. Harriet the Spy, Louise Fitzhugh

25. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Judith Viorst

26. The Princess Bride, William Goldman

27. The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Other Clinical Tales, Oliver Sacks

28. Running with Scissors, Augusten Burroughs

29. Angle of Repose, Wallace Stegner

30. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolff, Edward Albee

31. Animals in Translation, Temple Grandin

32. Bunnicula, James Howe

33. Learning All the Time, John Holt

34. The Dress Lodger, Sheri Holman

35. Bell Canto, Ann Pachett

36. Me Talk Pretty One Day, David Sedaris

37. Between the World and Me, Ta-Nehisi Coates

38. Sophie’s Choice, William Styron

39. Slaughterhouse Five, Kurt Vonnegut

40. From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, E.L. Konigsburg

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Thank you for stopping by my blog today. I would also like to say Thank you to Elana for letting me review your book and say Thank you to Jean for letting me participate in this blog tour. Don't forget to enter the giveaway below.

~Sabrina

Wednesday, March 8, 2017

You Can't Hide Blog Tour

Today on my blog I have the You Can't Hide blog tour. On my stop there is a spotlight, review, guest post, and giveaway.

Shadow House will find you . . .

Poppy, Marcus, Dash, Dylan, and Azumi are all trapped within Shadow House, a sinister estate where past and present intertwine. As they fight to find a way out, the kids think the ghosts of the house are the greatest danger they face. Little do the kids know it's the secrets they're each hiding that will prove even more lethal.

They're going to have to come face to face with their fears if they stand any hope of escaping the house alive. Is there anyone or anything in the house they can trust? Or is all hope disappearing, too. . .

Enter Shadow House . . . if you dare.

BONUS: Step inside Shadow House with the free app for your tablet or phone! Each image in the book reveals a haunting in the app, where the choices you make determine your fate.

Review:

I love scary books that deal with ghosts and even though this didn't scare me I did enjoy it so much. I will admit I was a little lost as I didn't realize this was book 2 but that didn't stop me from enjoying this book. If anything it made me what to go and buy book 1 so I can read it then reread this one to have a better understanding of the characters. Even though this is aimed for young adults I really enjoyed the story line and the characters. I am waiting for book 3 now so I can see whay happens next. 4/5 Bloody Fangs

Book Links:

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Dan Poblocki is an American author of mystery and horror novels for young people. He was born in Providence, Rhode Island. During his pre-teen years, his family moved to Basking Ridge, New Jersey. Dan currently lives in Brooklyn, NY with two scaredy cats.

Dan graduated from Syracuse University with a degree in theater. Subsequently, he toured the United States playing ultra-challenging roles such as Ichabod Crane in The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and the Shoemaker in The Shoemaker and the Elves to packed houses filled with literally thousands of screaming children. (He hopes they weren’t screaming in fear.)

Dan ended his promising acting career to focus on other endeavors. While exploring various artistic options, he held a number of jobs in New York City including: a floral groomer, an audience-wrangler for a popular game show, a computer analyst, a chemotherapy-unit assistant, and a traveling bathing suit sales-dude.

That’s right. A traveling bathing suit sales-dude.

Dan now writes full time. He's probably working on something new this very minute!

Photo Credit: Nic DeStefano

Guest Post:

Favorite Books

Tell our readers about your favorite books read this year.

The year has only just begun . . . and I haven’t gotten to nearly as many books as I’ve meant to. But a few of the ones that have really stood out so far are:

· An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir – You’ve all probably read this one already. It’s about a brutal regime in which the stories of two young people (a slave and a soldier) converge. Full of intrigue and twists and heart-wrenching violence.

· Harrow County – Books 1 & 2 by Cullen Bunn and Tyler Crook – This is a relatively new comics series that I discovered in the graphic novel format. A tale set in a small creepy country town with a very dark past, starring a fierce young girl who is revered by the locals as much as she is feared.

· Sandman: Overture by Neil Gaiman – A new prequel to the phenomenal graphic-novel series starring an Endless deity who rules the Dream.

· I have many more on my to-read list! Unbecoming by Jenny Downham and Choose Your Own Autobiography by Neil Patrick Harris are next up . . . I’m also looking forward to finally picking up The Fireman by Joe Hill, Suicide Notes From Beautiful Girls by Lynn Weingarten, and soon, Diviners #3 by Libba Bray.

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Thank you for stopping by my blog today. I would also like to say Thank you to Dan for letting me review your book and say Thank you to Jean for letting me participate in this blog tour. Don't forget to enter the giveaway below.

~Sabrina

Sunday, March 5, 2017

Game of Shadows Blog Tour

Today on my blog I have the Game of Shadows tour. On my stop there is a spotlight, review, guest post, and giveaway.

Ethan Makkai thought that seeing ghosts was the worst of his problems. Between his ethereal gift and life with a single mother hell-bent on watching his every move, he feels imprisoned. When Ethan sees a chance to escape, to leave the house by himself for the first time in his life, he seizes it, unaware that this first taste of freedom will cost him everything.

Ethan is thrown into a strange and eerie world, like nothing he's ever seen. He's assaulted by dive-bombing birds and rescued by a stranger who claims to be his bodyguard. His apartment is trashed, and his mother is kidnapped to a place Ethan never knew existed—a hidden continent called Tara.

Travelling to Tara in search of his mother, Ethan discovers that everything he knows about his life is a lie. His mother is royalty. His father is not dead. His destiny is likely to get him killed.

Confronted by a vicious sorcerer determined to destroy the Makkai family, Ethan must garner strength from his gift and embrace his destiny if he’s going to save his mother and all the people of Tara, including the beautiful girl he’s fallen for.

Review:

I am not a big fan of fantasy but when I saw this had a boy who can talk to ghosts I was excited to read it and I am glad I did. The author does a good job with world building and it seemed a little like urban fantasy to me which I do love. I enjoyed all the characters. I will say at times the main characterannoyed me some but with everything he is going through it's understandable. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys fantasy or urban fantasy books. 3/5 Bloody Fangs

Book Links:

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Erika Lewis graduated from Vanderbilt University with a degree in Math. And what do you do with a degree in Math? You become a writer of course… eventually…

She moved to the west coast following her dream to work in television. And after fifteen glorious years developing and producing for truly awesome places, like Sony Pictures Entertainment, Fireworks Television, 20th Television, that’s a division of Fox if you didn’t know that, and then at G4, where she could finally be free to be the nerd she had always been. She had more collectible toys in her office than even the famed executive producers of ATTACK OF THE SHOW and XPLAY. At least that’s the way she remembers it.

So how did this circle back to the beginning of this bio? A Math major becoming a writer? Because she’d actually always been a writer, she just never told anyone. She would write and write, edit and edit, then realize that it wasn’t good enough and go back in for yet another pass. And when she finally had several projects she really loved, that’s when she knew it was time to unleash them to the world.

Her first project, a graphic novel, THE 49TH KEY, is currently being featured in Heavy Metal Magazine, and will be released in trade in summer, 2017. Along with her amazing partner, Jessica Chobot, she’s currently working with LINE Webtoon and Legendary Comics on FIREBRAND, an ongoing comic series. Her first novel, GAME OF SHADOWS hits the bookstore shelves February 28th, 2017 from TOR/Forge Books, an imprint of Macmillan Publishers.

There are several other really exciting projects that you will be hearing much more about soon, but if she leaked them now, she’d get in big, big, big trouble. She resides in the sunshine state of California. When she’s not chained to her laptop, she’s usually playing with her big fluffy Golden Retriever, or running, or at one of the bookstores or comic shops by her house. And always drinking coffee.

Guest Post:

Top 10 Ways your Get Inspired to Write

· Step 1. Hide in my office with the door locked.

· Step 2. Turn on music. The perfect song sets the mood.

· Step 3. Go for a run. When I’m stuck on a plot point, I work through it when nothing else can distract me. It’s just the story running in my head, and my feet pounding the pavement.

· Step 4. Pick up a sword. I used practice swords to work out fight scenes.

· Step 5. Get a snack. Popcorn usually. Mindlessly stuffing fluffy kernels in my mouth somehow tells my mind it’s time to work. Don’t have any idea why.

· Step 6. Read online, or non-fiction books on subjects that can be used as inspirations for new stories, or world building in the one I’m working on.

· Step 7. If I’m really stuck, I re-read the story I’m writing from the top. Once I get it pictured in my head again, then it flows out of me.

· Step 8. Watch a documentary about a subject I’m interested in.

· Step 9. Pick up a fiction book, and read for a bit.

· Step 10. When all else fails, I pet the dog.

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Thank you for stopping by my blog today. I would also like to say Thank you to Erika for letting me review your book and say Thank you to Jean for letting me participate in this blog tour. Don't forget to enter the giveaway below.

~Sabrina