Thanks for stopping by. I’m pretty excited to be hijacking A Life Bound by Books! Lisa is on vacation – I’m so jelly!

Click to add to: Goodreads. This is an Adult title.

I receive questions all the time about The Beaumont Series, some I answer and some I give very vague yes or no responses too, but not this time. I asked fans to chime in and a few did, so hopefully your questions are answered.

Jennifer O asked: Will there be a story about Mason and Katelyn or at least about Katelyn moving on since there’s a one about Nick?

Let me tackle the first part – yes, Mason will have a story. I don’t have a release timeline on when this will be done, but I do plan to give Mason his story.

The second part – My Unexpected Forever is Katelyn’s story.

Katelyn W asked: Will there be a Beaumont #3, and what will the POV’s be?

Yes, there will be a Beaumont #3 and the male lead is JD aka Jimmy. Female is under wraps for now.

Greydaysohmy Fanfiction asked: Are Liam and Josie finally going to tie the knot and are there going to be more little rockstar Westbury’s?

Liam and Josie will tie the knot despite what was said in My Everything. You know how vague women can be when their ex starts asking personal questions. As for a baby… maybe.

Alana asked: Will Liam confront his father?

No, he won’t. He doesn’t feel there is a relationship to fix and he’s doing just fine with Noah on his own. There aren’t any daddy issues to deal with.

Jackie O asked: Will there be a story about Josie and Liam when they were in high school where we get the chance to meet Mason and everyone and see how they’re story really began?

Definitely for Mason, I haven’t decided if Liam and Josie will tell their story from their POV or if it will just be Mason.

Natasha D: Will we get to see some on the road/tour scenes?

Yes, the there’s a tour in My Unexpected Forever.

Thank you for stopping by today. I hope some of your questions have been answered. Please don’t forget to visit my website for more information or find me on Facebook.

If you have time, check out Lost in You, my newest release. My Unexpected Forever will be out September 1st, unless of course you’re heading to Vegas for The Naughty Mafia Rocks Vegas – check my website for more details.

Title: Lost in You
Author: Heidi McLaughlin
Publisher: May 2013
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis: Ryan Stone is a less than average teenager. He doesn't have fancy clothes. He doesn't carry around the latest smartphone and he definitely doesn't have an MP3 player. Instead, he goes to school, does his chores and dreams of a new life away from Brookfield where he’s expected to follow in his blue collar family’s footsteps.

Hadley Carter is America’s Pop Princess. A successful recording artist living her dream with a sold-out tour and a handful of Grammy’s there isn't much that she wants for, except love. But finding love on the road is near impossible when all she longs for are romantic dinners, a nighttime stroll on the beach and holding hands with someone who isn't going to exploit her.

When a chance encounter introduces Ryan to Hadley, will he be like her adoring fans looking for a way in, or will it be Hadley who pursues Ryan even though it might cost her the only career she's known.

Lost in You is a story about following your dreams, taking risks and getting lost in love.

About the author:

Heidi is the author of USA Today, Digital Book World, Amazon and Barnes & Noble Bestselling novel, Forever My Girl

Originally from the Pacific Northwest, she now lives in picturesque Vermont, with her husband and two daughters. Also renting space in their home is an over-hyper Beagle/Jack Russell and two Parakeets.

During the day Heidi is behind a desk talking about Land Use. At night, she's writing one of the many stories planned for release or sitting court-side during either daughter's basketball games.

Find Heidi Online:

Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest | Goodreads

Order Heidi's Books Online:

Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository

How I Found My Way Into New Adult Books

I didn't even realize that there weren't books about people between the ages of say 19 and 25 until New Adult books burst onto the scene a couple of years ago.  And then I was all “where were these books all my reading life!”

Maybe the first New Adult book I read was “Anne of Avonlea.”  She was only sixteen but she began working as a schoolteacher at the Avonlea school which is pretty new adult in my book. Plus, Gilbert goes from being the horrible boy who torments Anne to the one who can’t stop looking at how awesome her red hair is.

Another classic New Adult book is Daddy Longlegs by Jean Webster written in 1912.  It’s an epistolary novel and I bring this up for a calculated reason. There are letters in my book, Undeclared, too!
Okay, enough self pimpage.  In Daddy Longlegs Jerusha Abbott is an orphan whose post secondary education is funded by an anonymous benefactor.  The story is told almost entirely through letters Jerusha writes to her benefactor whom she calls “Daddy LongLegs”.  She ultimately falls in love with him and reveals that his anonymity was revealed to her much earlier than he thought.  I first read this book after I watched the 1955 film with my mother starring Fred Astaire  and Leslie Caron.  My mother was a big fan of these black and white films and would rent them during the holidays.

 Fast forward many years (not revealing how many) until the summer of 2013 when I read “Easy” by Tammara Webber.  The sweet romantic tale of a young college girl suffering a bad breakup and an assault on her college campus was a story that I couldn't get enough of.

I went on a tear and read Colleen Hoover’s “Slammed” and “Point of Retreat.” My goodness, who knew I was a slam poetry fan? “Something Like Normal” by Trish Doller, narrated by a 19 year old Marine back on leave and having to attend his best friend’s funeral broke my heart and then knitted it back together. (*cough* like my book *cough*)

There are the super angsty reads like J. Lynn’s “Waiting for You” and Jessica Sorenson’s “The Coincindence of Callie and Kayden” and the heart wrenching emotional trilogy by S.C. Stephens “Thoughtless, Reckless, and Effortless.”

One of my favorites, though, is “Sea of Tranquility” by Katja Millay.  If you told me I would love a book wherein the heroine doesn't say a single word for the first third of the book, I would have laughed at you. But Millay writes a powerful narrative about a girl who suffered a terrible random assault that crushed her dreams. It is all she can do to wake up and move each morning, let alone talk.

One thing I love about New Adult books is that it is a time that we can give our characters a little more leeway. They are learning to be responsible. They make a lot of mistakes.  But they also form lasting relationships with boys and girls that will carry them into the next phase of their lives.

New Adult books are rocking my world.  I've named a few of my favorite. Why don’t you recommend some for me?

Title: Undeclared (Woodlands #1)
Author: Jen Frederick
Publisher: (May 1st, 2013)
Add to: Goodreads

NOTE: This is a "New Adult" novel. Due to mature content this title is recommended for ages 17+

Synopsis: For four years, Grace Sullivan wrote to a Marine she never met, and fell in love. But when his deployment ended, so did the letters. Ever since that day, Grace has been coasting, academically and emotionally. The one thing she’s decided? No way is Noah Jackson — or any man — ever going to break her heart again.

Noah has always known exactly what he wants out of life. Success. Stability. Control. That’s why he joined the Marines and that’s why he’s fighting his way — literally — through college. Now that he’s got the rest of his life on track, he has one last conquest: Grace Sullivan. But since he was the one who stopped writing, he knows that winning her back will be his biggest battle yet.

This is a mature New Adult book. I see that it is classified as YA - not sure how to change that - but I wanted to be clear that it has explicit love scenes in the story.

About Jen:

Jen Frederick lives in the Midwest with her husband, child, and one rambunctious dog.  She's been reading stories all her life but never imagined writing one of her own. Jen loves to hear from readers so drop her a line at jensfrederick@gmail.com.

Find Jen Online:

Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Purchase Undeclared Online:

Amazon | Barnes and Noble

***BREAKING NEWS***

This is a breaking news announcement by your very own X at Wanless Wanderer Radio covering Wanless, California and the surrounding areas.

According to multiple sources, over forty Union meetings have been cited across the west coast over the past few days and a warning from President Seamus Kendrick himself was issued only moments ago. In that warning, President Kendrick reminded America’s citizens of their obligation to serve, saying conspiracies were by no means proof of anything solid. He also bridged the topic of recent fires igniting in towns across the state, including Perrierre and Hudsonville to the east, and acknowledged that hiding will ultimately do no one any good and the last thing he wants to do is ...harm anyone.

This will be the second time Unions have been reported as going into hiding in the past so many months, which leaves locals wondering if there is more going on than meets the eye. One anonymous source informs us here at the Wanless Wanderer that Unions are receiving leaked information from somewhere at the Capitol quarters, though no one, from the Capitol on down, is willing to say who from. If this is indeed true, it would explain the lack of willingness of volunteers for the previous years’ drafts, as Union members still hold quite a bit of clout even while they are in hiding.

Sacramento officials have been questioned regarding this matter by WW reporters but the bigs in Sacramento deny anything is going on and suggested listening more to Kendrick Radio and less to the whacko conspiracy ones.

Beyond whisperings that something else unofficial might be coming into the play over the next few weeks (an assumption many here in Wanless and other local towns have been wondering about), nothing appears to be in concrete. President Kendrick’s right hand man in our area, Mr. Tuscon Olive, affirmed during a recent interview that the only reason things appear to be worse is because people have stopped being together. That is what President Kendrick designed Markets for: a place for families to spend time with their loved ones and boost the economy by supporting local vendors.

When asked how the support appeared to be racking compared to last year’s pre-holiday season, Mr. Olive assured us that though Wanless’ finances were slightly down, it was, quote, nothing to worry about.

In the end, the real questions are no different than they were two, three years ago, folks. Where have the drafted men gone and why is Market continually pushed as so important? We asked Mr. Olive this at the end of the interview and, after a moment of silence, he gave us this answer:

Our men may be gone and I may not be able to tell you where they are, but remember this: Beyond the drafts and the lack and utter devastation many feel, it’s important to focus on what you still have. Hold your loved ones. Share your food with your neighbors. I’ve heard we’re supposed to be getting a drizzle here and there which means our water allotment might be going up so take care to conserve if you plan on having a garden. The President has many things going on, some of which I am unable to speak of, but do not doubt that he wants the best for you. His way may seem cold and calloused, but it is always in our best interest.

Upon asking if Mr. Olive if he truly believed that himself, he hung up.

Reporting live with the facts of Wanless and the surrounding territories, this has been breaking news by X

Title: Pity Isn't an Option
Author: Jessica Brooks
Publisher: 325 Pages (March 8th, 2013)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords

Synopsis: Seventeen year-old Jonas Norton is trying to come to terms with what his blood disorder has robbed from him, including his two most favorite things: basketball, and competing in Hatchet Racket, Wanless’ annual hatchet-throwing contest. The facts that his father works constantly to pay for his blood tests and Jonas can actually see the disappointment in his eyes for being such a failure only make matters worse. And even worse than all of that? Jonas' own twin brother, Micah, is perfectly healthy and becoming quite the basketball player. Also, Hattie, the girl Jonas has loved for forever? She has no idea how he feels.

Sixteen year-old Hattie Akerman lives down the hill from Jonas. Though her father, Heath, tries to hide his lack of mental clarity behind the bottle and she's pretty much given up on having any kind of relationship with him, she would still rather her younger sister, Lucy, not have to deal with the consequences of his behavior. Hattie helps her mother by baking food to sell at Market and looking out for Lucy. No matter what the rest of the town says about her crazy father, Jonas sticks up for them. He is, by far, her very best friend.

As if things aren’t complicated enough already, Heath and Micah are unexpectedly drafted into President Kendrick's army (an army from which no one ever returns) just days before Thanksgiving. When Heath disappears instead of arriving at the Meeting Place to check in, Hattie and Jonas decide they’ve had enough, and take matters into their own hands. And though nothing could have prepared them for what happens next, Hattie and Jonas learn that hope can be seen in every situation. You just have to know where to look.

Find Jessica Online:

Website/Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest | Goodreads

Cats and Books – A Universal Connection

Greetings walking can openers with legs! This is your feline overlords speaking. We have highjacked this blog in order to discuss a very important subject with you. Our topic: Cats and Books. More importantly, how you cannot have one without the other.

Yes, we felines have been a part of shaping literature since the beginning of time, it’s one of the reasons we were worshiped as gods after all. When the first human created the very first story, it was with the gentle guiding paw of a feline muse. Okay, maybe it wasn't exactly “gentle.” It was more like a swat with claws extended, but you get the idea.

Don’t believe us? Check out this article that one of you wrote not so long ago about a medieval manuscript found with cat paw prints inked on the pages: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/03/130326-animals-medieval-manuscript-books-cats-history/ Now we must admit that we find the heading to be rather misleading as this particular feline wasn't “curious” about the manuscript at all. He was actually checking to make sure that the scribe was writing down the correct text as dictated by the cat himself. But this goes to show that you humans often miss the greatness that is Felis catus. =^.^= Anyways, we cats have always been there helping your favorite authors write those books that you love so dearly. We've perched on the arm chairs of some of the greatest authors the world has ever know. We've criticized the early drafts of Jean Paul Sartre, Edward Gorey (who by the way wrote an entire book dedicated to the greatness that is Cat), Neil Gaiman, and many more! Behind every great author, there’s an equally greater cat. For a list of some of our favorite authors to work with, check out this site: http://www.buzzfeed.com/summeranne/30-renowned-authors-inspired-by-cats

We've shared our story ideas with writers everywhere, and sometimes we've dictated entire manuscripts to help their cause. But do we get any of the credit? No. The glory goes to the human authors, and we don’t begrudge this lack of acknowledgement. Well, not much anyways. Sure, we've occasionally left a reminder to a few authors who have allowed their fame to go to their heads that it was one of us who made that fame possible. It’s amazing how a simple hairball inside of a shoe or the head of a mouse on the pillow next to you can remind you that we are also deserving of praise. But for the most part we are happy to provide readers with wonderful works of literature.

Yes, when we aren't planning world domination, we are helping authors write. When they agonize over a scene, we are there to help plot it out. When they stare at a blank page, we help them overcome their writer’s block and provide them with the inspiration they need to keep going. It really is the least that we can do. Another one of our little missions has been to help guide readers towards those books we feel will provide you with the most enjoyment or help aid in furthering your growth of knowledge. When we knock a book off a shelf it’s because we want you to read it. And when we lay down in the middle of whatever it is you are reading, it isn't because we are demanding attention, it’s because we want to talk with you and make sure you understand the message within that book’s pages.

So remember, the next time you get upset at one of us for chewing on your favorite copy of Pride and Prejudice or get creeped out by those long intent stares that we like to throw your way, it’s not because we are seeking to destroy things or kill you. It’s because we want you to read what we have helped bring forth into this world, because really, how else are we going to subliminally guide your entire race?

Find Cameron & her Felines Online:

Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

So the rumors are true! I really didn't believe them until I showed up here at A Life Bound By Books and saw it with my very own eyes. But they’re true!!!

Lisa’s blog has been hijacked.

Oh my gosh! I am so excited... I mean, I’m so worried about Lisa. If her blog has been taken over by a bunch of rogue book bloggers then where is she? If she were okay she never would have let us have a free-for-all on her blog. Lisa’s way too much the professional for that.

I've been told that she’s on a “family vacation” but I have my own theories about where she really is and it most certainly isn't on vacation. After all, Lisa knows that there is no such thing as a break for us tireless book bloggers. And she never would have taken a break from reading. I've seen pictures of her bookshelves, she’s way too much of a book addict for that.

And... she would never have let me take over her blog for a second, let alone a day. I do have a tendency to cause mischief. Or ramble on endlessly, much to many a reader’s chagrin.

But here I am. And here she’s not. So I’m going to take full advantage.

And I’m going to share exactly what I think happened to Lisa which led to the opening up of her book blog’s proverbial doors.

First, let me let you in on a little secret. That expression “getting lost in a book” isn't just an expression. No. It’s true. As any avid reader will tell you, every so often someone they know gets lost in a book.

That’s right. The story grabs hold and pulls them right in. Sometimes at the story’s end they’re allowed to return to their lives. Other times... well... they’re so caught up by the story that they never return. And they’re only seen again when the book goes into a second printing... or if it does.

Well that’s what I believe happened to Lisa. It was no family vacation that caused her to leave her book blog unattended. To be taken over. To be hijacked. No. Lisa is organized. She’s a planner. If she were truly going on vacation she’d have prepared and scheduled posts to cover those days of her absence. And she wouldn't truly be absent.

But to allow days and weeks to go by without even a peep... well, that’s not like Lisa at all. Which only reinforces my belief that she was swallowed up by one of the tomes she had been perusing.

As I hadn't been closely following Lisa’s reading piles immediately prior to her disappearance, I am not certain where to even begin to guess.

I can only hope she wasn't reading Julie Kagawa’s THE ETERNITY CURE. While Lisa may very well have the skills to survive as an Unregistered, things have taken a bit of a darker turn in this sequel. And I’m not confident of Lisa’s fortitude to withstand all the horrors that have befallen New Covington. Even if she does manage to make it through, the series doesn't end with this book, which means it could be awhile before she’d be allowed to return.

And I hope she hasn't gone back in time to the world of shadowhunters and downworlders in Cassandra Clare’s CLOCKWORK PRINCESS. Because there is just too much of a temptation to remain in that world with those characters. And as Lisa is quite familiar with life across the pond, she just might not want to return to reality and her book blog. She may even choose to stay lost in that world until such time as Jace, Clary, Simon, Alec and Isabelle make their appearance.




Maybe, just maybe, she’s lost in Brodi Ashton’s EVERBOUND with the Everlivings. Trapped in a maze that is fraught with peril. Or perhaps she’s decided to try and save Varen Nethers in Kelly Creagh’s ENSHADOWED, a book she’d been anxious to read. But a world that dark would be nearly impossible to escape, so I hope she’s not lost there.


Hopefully she’s lost in a romance, though her appearance would potentially turn a love story into a love triangle and that would make it a bittersweet or even tragic one. And I know Lisa wouldn't want to get in the way of anyone’s happily ever after. So, I suppose I hope she’s not lost in that type of story either.

Well... I could go on guessing, but I don’t think I’ll ever know, unless or until Lisa decides to reappear, the book decides to release her, or her name becomes etched forever on the story’s pages in a subsequent printing.

I will just keep my fingers crossed for her safety and her safe return. And I’ll grin just a little bit because I got the chance to take over her lovely blog for a day, even if it is without her permission.

And no, I am not in the least bit ashamed that I have hijacked A Life Bound By Books. It’s just so pretty here. If I could, I’d stay just a little bit longer. But there is a code amongst thieves.

Before I go, though, I just want to say one thing to Lisa...

Lisa, whatever book you are lost in, in whatever world you’re navigating, with whatever friends and foes you encounter, I hope it’s one that you are enjoying enough to make the fact that your blog has been hijacked not quite so upsetting.

And if you do return with a vengeance against those who have taken over your little space on the interwebs, I seriously hope that no one taught you how to use a katana, a broadsword or crossbow. And I really hope you know how awesome I think you are.

Find Rachel Online:

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