Title: Consent
Author: Nancy Ohlin
Publisher: Simon Pulse, (November 10th 2015)
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: Bea has a secret.

Actually, she has more than one. There’s her dreams for the future that she can’t tell anyone—not her father and not even her best friend, Plum.

And now there’s Dane Rossi. Dane is hot, he shares Bea’s love of piano, and he believes in her.

He’s also Bea’s teacher.

When their passion for music crosses into passion for each other, Bea finds herself falling completely for Dane. She’s never felt so wanted, so understood, so known to her core. But the risk of discovery carries unexpected surprises that could shake Bea entirely. Bea must piece together what is and isn’t true about Dane, herself, and the most intense relationship she’s ever experienced, in this absorbing novel from Nancy Ohlin.

Author Guest Post:

          I knew I was taking a major risk writing a novel about a teacher-student romance.  Many people are uncomfortable with this subject, and for good reason; do a search for “teacher,” “student,” and “sex” on the Internet, and the result is way too many disturbing links about teachers being arrested for preying on their students.

          So this happened to me in high school.  It was not a romantic or sexy experience.  Years later, I decided that I wanted to write a novel about the topic so that I could warn and enlightenreaders.  That’s how Consent was born.

          But Consent changed radically along the way.  While writing, I realized that the issue of sexual consent was way more complicated than I was making it out to be, at least with regards to age.  Laws exist that dictate how old a person has to be to legally consent to sex, and they differ from state to state.   These laws are intended to protect; they can also be perceived as being arbitrary and overly restrictive.  Is it fair for a seventeen-year-old boy to be arrested for having sex with his fifteen-year-old girlfriend?  Shouldn’t it be okay if the parties involved are in love?

          Consent is about all this.  It’s about a teacher who should know better than to have a relationship with his student.  It’s about a damaged girl who needs a mentor so she can move forward in life.  It’s about two people in love.  It’s about laws being broken.  It’s about consequences and finding the truth.

I want to be clear.  In no universe do I think that teachers should have relationships with their students.  Consent laws are vitally important—not just the so-called “age of consent” laws but the laws that spell out when “no means no” and “yes means yes.”

But.  Real life is not so black and white, and I wanted to explore all the grayness, the nuances, through the lens of a teenager—a fictional teenager—who is in love with a man she thinks of as her hero andsoulmate.

          Consent may unleash a maelstrom of public outrage.  In a way, I hope it does.  We need to keep talking about the issue of consent:  what it means, how to regulate it, and how to bind it inexorably to the very idea of sex.  Consent is my humble contribution to that conversation.

About the Author:

I am the author of BEAUTY, a YA retelling of the Snow White tale, and ALWAYS, FOREVER, a YA retelling of Daphne du Maurier's REBECCA. ALWAYS, FOREVER was originally published in hardcover as THORN ABBEY.

I've also contributed to several celebrity novels, including a New York Times-bestselling YA trilogy.

I'm currently hard at work on my next YA novel, which will be as mind-bending as ALWAYS, FOREVER (I hope!).

My favorite cures for writers' block are long walks, long showers, popcorn, chocolate, and really expensive coffee. I talk to myself a lot while I write (you know, to make sure the dialogue zings).

Find Nancy Online:

Website | Twitter| Facebook | Goodreads

"Waiting On" Wednesday is an event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. The purpose of this weekly event is to spotlight a soon-to-be-released book that you are very much anticipating. "Waiting On" Wednesday will also give bloggers an opportunity to share ideas for our TBR lists.

Title: Reaper's Fall (Reapers MC #5)
Author: Joanna Wylde
Publisher: Berkley, 384 Pages (November 10th, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

NOTE: This is a "Adult/New Adult" novel. Due to mature content this title is recommended for ages 18+

Synopsis: He never meant to hurt her.

Levi “Painter” Brooks was nothing before he joined the Reapers motorcycle club. The day he patched in, they became his brothers and his life. All they asked in return was a strong arm and unconditional loyalty—a loyalty that’s tested when he’s caught and sentenced to prison for a crime committed on their behalf.

Melanie Tucker may have had a rough start, but along the way she’s learned to fight for her future. She’s escaped from hell and started a new life, yet every night she dreams of a biker whose touch she can’t forget. It all started out so innocently—just a series of letters to a lonely man in prison. Friendly. Harmless. Safe.

Now Painter Brooks is coming home… and Melanie’s about to learn that there’s no room for innocence in the Reapers MC.

Title: When I Was Yours
Author: Samantha Towle
Publisher: (November 10th, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

NOTE: This is a "Adult/New Adult" novel. Due to mature content this title is recommended for ages 18+

Synopsis: “Marry me.”

“What?” I stared back at him, unblinking.

He moved closer, taking my face in his hands. “I love you, Evie. I look into the future, and the only thing I see clearly is you. Marry me.”

What’s an eighteen-year-old girl who was madly in love with her nineteen-year-old boyfriend say?

Of course, I said yes.

Twenty-four hours later, I married Adam Gunner at a Vegas chapel to the sounds of “Livin’ on a Prayer” by Bon Jovi. Not the best omen. I get that now.

Then, exactly one week later, I left him. I walked out, leaving behind my wedding ring, annulment papers, and my heart, and he never knew why.

I haven’t seen him since. Not in ten long years.

Now, he’s here, standing before me. Looking at me with nothing but hurt and hatred in his eyes, he wants answers.

Answers I can’t give. 

Title: Consent
Author: Nancy Ohlin
Publisher: Simon Pulse, 288 Pages (November 10th, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: In this sexy and intriguing novel, an intense—and passionate—bond between a high school senior and her music teacher becomes a public scandal that threatens the reputation of both.

Bea has a secret.

Actually, she has more than one. There’s her dream for the future that she can’t tell anyone—not her father and not even her best friend, Plum.

And now there’s Dane Rossi. Dane is hot, he shares Bea’s love of piano, and he believes in her.

He’s also Bea’s teacher.

When their passion for music crosses into passion for each other, Bea finds herself falling completely for Dane. She’s never felt so wanted, so understood, so known to her core. But the risk of discovery carries unexpected surprises that could shake Bea entirely. Bea must piece together what is and isn’t true about Dane, herself, and the most intense relationship she’s ever experienced in this absorbing novel from Nancy Ohlin, the author of Beauty.

Title: For the Record
Author: Charlotte Huang
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers, 320 Pages (November 10th, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: If Almost Famous were a YA novel... a raw, honest debut celebrating music, friendship, romance, and life on the road.

Chelsea thought she knew what being a rock star was like... until she became one. After losing a TV talent show, she slid back into small-town anonymity. But one phone call changed everything

Now she’s the lead singer of the band Melbourne, performing in sold-out clubs every night and living on a bus with three gorgeous and talented guys. The bummer is that the band barely tolerates her. And when teen heartthrob Lucas Rivers take an interest in her, Chelsea is suddenly famous, bringing Melbourne to the next level—not that they’re happy about that. Her feelings for Beckett, Melbourne’s bassist, are making life even more complicated.

Chelsea only has the summer tour to make the band—and their fans—love her. If she doesn’t, she’ll be back in Michigan for senior year, dying a slow death. The paparazzi, the haters, the grueling schedule... Chelsea believed she could handle it. But what if she can’t?

*covers are always subject to change.

"Waiting On" Wednesday is an event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. The purpose of this weekly event is to spotlight a soon-to-be-released book that you are very much anticipating. "Waiting On" Wednesday will also give bloggers an opportunity to share ideas for our TBR lists.

Title: Tough Enough (Tall, Dark, and Dangerous #2)
Author: M. Leighton
Publisher: Berkley, 336 Pages (November 3rd, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

NOTE: This is a "Adult/New Adult" novel. Due to mature content this title is recommended for ages 18+

Synopsis: From the author of the New York Times bestselling Bad Boys novels comes the second book in a dark, sexy contemporary trilogy.

He’s a fighter who never loses, but is he tough enough to win her heart?

There was a time when I had everything–a wonderful family, a bright future. Love. But all that was taken away in a single night, torn from me like flesh from bone. Since then, I’ve hidden away in my second-choice job as a makeup artist. But I prefer it that way, actually. I’m comfortable in the shadows, where no one can see my scars.

Kiefer Rogan literally took my breath away the moment I met him. MMA champion-turned-actor, notorious playboy, charming to a fault—he’s everything I vowed to avoid.

But he just wouldn’t stop until I opened up and let him in. Maybe I should’ve tried harder to resist him. Maybe I shouldn’t have fallen in love with him. Because I, of all people, know that everyone has secrets. Scars. And that they’re usually ugly and painful and destructive to the people we love most.

I just never guessed that they could be deadly, too.

Title: Cam Girl
Author: Leah Raeder
Publisher: Atria Books, 320 Books (November 2rd, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

NOTE: This is a "Adult/New Adult" novel. Due to mature content this title is recommended for ages 18+

Synopsis: Vada Bergen is broke, the black sheep of her family, and moving a thousand miles away from home for grad school, but she’s got the two things she loves most: her art and her best friend—and sometimes more—Ellis Carraway. Ellis and Vada have a friendship so consuming it’s hard to tell where one girl ends and the other begins. It’s intense. It’s a little codependent. And nothing can tear them apart.

Until an accident on an icy winter road changes everything.

Vada is left deeply scarred, both emotionally and physically. Her once-promising art career is cut short. And Ellis pulls away, unwilling to talk about that night. Everything Vada loved is gone.

She’s got nothing left to lose.

So when she meets some smooth-talking entrepreneurs who offer to set her up as a cam girl, she can’t say no. All Vada has to do is spend a couple hours each night stripping on webcam, and the “tips” come pouring in.

It’s just a kinky escape from reality until a client gets serious. “Blue” is mysterious, alluring, and more interested in Vada’s life than her body. Online, they chat intimately. Blue helps her heal. And he pays well, but he wants her all to himself. No more cam shows. It’s an easy decision: she’s starting to fall for him. But the steamier it gets, the more she craves the real man behind the keyboard. So Vada pops the question:

Can we meet IRL?

Blue agrees, on one condition. A condition that brings back a ghost from her past. Now Vada must confront the devastating secrets she's been running from—those of others, and those she's been keeping from herself...

Title: Hotel Ruby
Author: Suzanne Young
Publisher: Simon Pulse, 288 Pages (November 3rd, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: Stay Tonight. Stay Forever.

When Audrey Casella arrives for an unplanned stay at the grand Hotel Ruby, she’s grateful for the detour. Just months after their mother’s death, Audrey and her brother, Daniel, are on their way to live with their grandmother, dumped on the doorstep of a DNA-matched stranger because their father is drowning in his grief.

Audrey and her family only plan to stay the night, but life in the Ruby can be intoxicating, extending their stay as it provides endless distractions—including handsome guest Elias Lange, who sends Audrey’s pulse racing. However, the hotel proves to be as strange as it is beautiful. Nightly fancy affairs in the ballroom are invitation only, and Audrey seems to be the one guest who doesn't have an invite. Instead, she joins the hotel staff on the rooftop, catching whispers about the hotel’s dark past.

The more Audrey learns about the new people she's met, the more her curiosity grows. She’s torn in different directions—the pull of her past with its overwhelming loss, the promise of a future that holds little joy, and an in-between life in a place that is so much more than it seems…

Welcome to the Ruby.

*covers are always subject to change.

Book Wars a weekly feature hosted between two book review blogs – A Life Bound By Books & Much Loved Books!

It’s a fact that book lovers know all about the covers of the books they covet. Often when a title is released here in the UK, it’s sometimes vastly different across the pond in the US. So, Michelle from Much Loved Books and I have come together to create Book Wars to talk about the difference in covers when it comes to the US vs. UK versions.

We hope from time to time authors will chime in with their thoughts as well. We welcome everyone to comment and share their thoughts too! The more the merrier!

Before we get to this weeks Book Wars, we have a winner to announce.The Book Wars winner for Captive by Brighton Walsh is...!!!!!! Thank you to everyone who voted for both books, and for picking a winner.

Also, there's a poll at the bottom of the post that we'd love to hear your input for the two covers! Tell us which one YOU love the most.

Left: US - Right: UK

Title: Zeroes
Series: Zeroes #1
Author: Scott Westerfeld, Margo Lanagan, Deborah Biancotti
Publisher: US - Simon Pulse, 560 Pages, (September 29th, 2015), UK - Simon & Schuster Childrens Books , 546 Pages, (September 24th, 2015)
Add to Goodreads: USA Version | UK Version
Order online here: USA: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository UK: Amazon UK, Waterstones, W H Smith, The Book Depository

Synopsis: Don't call them heroes. But these six Californian teens have powers that set them apart

Ethan aka Scam has a voice inside him that'll say whatever people want to hear, whether it's true or not. Which is handy, except when it isn't - like when the voice starts gabbing in the middle of a bank robbery. The only people who can help are the other Zeroes, who aren't exactly best friends these days.

Enter Nate, aka Bellwether, the group's 'glorious leader.' After Scam's SOS, he pulls the scattered Zeroes back together. But when the rescue blows up in their faces, the Zeroes find themselves propelled into whirlwind encounters with ever more dangerous criminals. At the heart of the chaos they find Kelsie, who can take a crowd in the palm of her hand and tame it or let it loose as she pleases.

Filled with high-stakes action and drama, Zeroes unites three powerhouse authors for the opening installment of a thrilling new series.

About the Author:

To find out more about the authors of Zeroes, click on their names below to be taken to their websites. Scott Westerfeld - Margo Lanagan - Deborah Biancotti

Let the Wars Begin: Its now time to make our decision, let's see what we think about the covers and pick our favorite cover.

Lisa I'm not sure where I've been, but I haven't heard about this book yet and I can't wait to read it! Sounds pretty amazing... as for the covers, the UK one just doesn't do anything for me. It's kind of blah and tells nothing of the story itself.

That happens from time to time, but when you look at these two side-by-side you really get a feel for the book when looking at the US cover. I can't wait to check this one out in person because I'm sure it's one of those covers that the more you look at it, the more you see.

And I really like how it's done in black and yellow. It doesn't take away from the small pieces of images you see.

This week I'm voting fo the UK cover. Which one will get your vote? Cast it below!

Michelle This is an easy choice for me. While I do like how dramatic and eye catching the UK cover is, I much prefer the cover for the US version. I like the symbol on the front and how it fits in with the title. I like the broken effect of this cover and how its not busy or too dramatic. To me if feels like it's blending in, which I hope is the theme of the book. It's a US won for me this week, don't forget to cast your vote below.

VOTE for YOUR favorite cover Zeroes NOW!

"Waiting On" Wednesday is an event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. The purpose of this weekly event is to spotlight a soon-to-be-released book that you are very much anticipating. "Waiting On" Wednesday will also give bloggers an opportunity to share ideas for our TBR lists.


Title: The Boy Most Likely To
Author: Huntley Fitzpatrick
Publisher: Dial Books, 416 Pages (August 18th, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: A surprising, utterly romantic companion to My Life Next Door—great for fans of Sarah Dessen and Jenny Han

Tim Mason was The Boy Most Likely To find the liquor cabinet blindfolded, need a liver transplant, and drive his car into a house

Alice Garrett was The Girl Most Likely To . . . well, not date her little brother’s baggage-burdened best friend, for starters.

For Tim, it wouldn’t be smart to fall for Alice. For Alice, nothing could be scarier than falling for Tim. But Tim has never been known for making the smart choice, and Alice is starting to wonder if the “smart” choice is always the right one. When these two crash into each other, they crash hard.

Then the unexpected consequences of Tim’s wild days come back to shock him. He finds himself in a situation that isn’t all it appears to be, that he never could have predicted . . . but maybe should have.

And Alice is caught in the middle.

Told in Tim’s and Alice’s distinctive, disarming, entirely compelling voices, this novel is for readers of The Spectacular Now, Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, and Paper Towns.

Title: The Creeping
Author: Alexandra Sirowy
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 400 Pages (August 18th, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: Twelve years ago Stella and Jeanie vanished while picking strawberries. Stella returned minutes later, with no memory of what happened. Jeanie was never seen or heard from again.

Now Stella is seventeen, and she's over it. She's the lucky one who survived, and sure, the case is still cloaked in mystery—and it's her small town's ugly legacy—but Stella is focused on the coming summer. She's got a great best friend, a hookup with an irresistibly crooked smile, and two months of beach days stretching out before her.

Then along comes a corpse, a little girl who washes up in an ancient cemetery after a mudslide, and who has red hair just like Jeanie did. Suddenly memories of that haunting day begin to return, and when Stella discovers that other red-headed girls have gone missing as well, she begins to suspect that something sinister is at work.

And before the summer ends, Stella will learn the hard way that if you hunt for monsters, you will find them.

Title: Until Friday Night (The Field Party #1)
Author: Abbi Glines
Publisher: Simon Pulse, 352 Pages (August 25th, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: To everyone who knows him, West Ashby has always been that guy: the cocky, popular, way-too-handsome-for-his-own-good football god who led Lawton High to the state championships. But while West may be Big Man on Campus on the outside, on the inside he’s battling the grief that comes with watching his father slowly die of cancer.

Two years ago, Maggie Carleton’s life fell apart when her father murdered her mother. And after she told the police what happened, she stopped speaking and hasn’t spoken since. Even the move to Lawton, Alabama, couldn’t draw Maggie back out. So she stayed quiet, keeping her sorrow and her fractured heart hidden away.

As West’s pain becomes too much to handle, he knows he needs to talk to someone about his father—so in the dark shadows of a post-game party, he opens up to the one girl who he knows won’t tell anyone else.

West expected that talking about his dad would bring some relief, or at least a flood of emotions he couldn’t control. But he never expected the quiet new girl to reply, to reveal a pain even deeper than his own—or for them to form a connection so strong that he couldn’t ever let her go…

*covers are always subject to change.

"Waiting On" Wednesday is an event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. The purpose of this weekly event is to spotlight a soon-to-be-released book that you are very much anticipating. "Waiting On" Wednesday will also give bloggers an opportunity to share ideas for our TBR lists.

Title: Scorched (Frigid #2)
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Publisher: Spencer Hill Press, 320 Pages (June 16th, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

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

Synopsis: Sometimes life leaves a mark…

Most days, Andrea doesn’t know whether she wants to kiss Tanner or punch him in the gut. He is seriously hot, with legit bedroom eyes and that firefighter body of his, but he’s a major player, and they can’t get along for more than a handful of minutes. Until now.

Tanner knows he and Andrea have had an epic love/hate relationship for as long as he can remember, but he wants more love than hate from her. He wants her. Now. Tomorrow. But the more he gets to know her, the more it becomes obvious that Andrea has a problem. She’s teetering on the edge and every time he tries to catch her, she slips through his fingers.

Andrea’s life is spiraling out of control, and it doesn’t matter that Tanner wants to save her, because when everything falls apart and she’s speeding toward rock bottom, only she can save herself.

Sometimes life makes you work for that happily ever after…

Title: Every Last Word
Author: Tamara Ireland Stone
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion, 368 Pages (June 16th, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: If you could read my mind, you wouldn't be smiling.

Samantha McAllister looks just like the rest of the popular girls in her junior class. But hidden beneath the straightened hair and expertly applied makeup is a secret that her friends would never understand: Sam has Purely-Obsessional OCD and is consumed by a stream of dark thoughts and worries that she can't turn off.

Second-guessing every move, thought, and word makes daily life a struggle, and it doesn't help that her lifelong friends will turn toxic at the first sign of a wrong outfit, wrong lunch, or wrong crush. Yet Sam knows she'd be truly crazy to leave the protection of the most popular girls in school. So when Sam meets Caroline, she has to keep her new friend with a refreshing sense of humor and no style a secret, right up there with Sam's weekly visits to her psychiatrist.

Caroline introduces Sam to Poet's Corner, a hidden room and a tight-knit group of misfits who have been ignored by the school at large. Sam is drawn to them immediately, especially a guitar-playing guy with a talent for verse, and starts to discover a whole new side of herself. Slowly, she begins to feel more "normal" than she ever has as part of the popular crowd . . . until she finds a new reason to question her sanity and all she holds dear.

Title: After Hours
Author: Claire Kennedy
Publisher: Simon Pulse, 256 Pages (June 16th, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: Isa, Xavi, Peter, and Finn know that a job at the high-end Waterside Cafe isn't just about waiting tables. It's about the gossip, the hook-ups, the after-hours parties and, most of all, it's about Tips.

Tips--the high-stakes game based on dares. Whoever completes the most dares wins the collected money. A sum that could change a wasted summer into a Summer to Remember.

Isa is the new girl with an embarrassing secret, and as long as she stays on top of her game, she sees no reason why anyone could ever find out.

Xavi will do anything for the money...absolutely anything.

Peter, Xavi's stepbrother, has been in love with her for years, and he thinks the game is the perfect time to confess his feelings.

Finn is in the game just for the thrill. He has enough tips coming in to keep him happy...even if those tips come with some conditions.

From seduction to stealing to threats, the dares are a complete free-for-all, and only the best can win.

The sophisticated Waterside Cafe is anything but classy behind the scenes...and things are about to get dirty.

*covers are always subject to change.

Title: Out of Control
Author: Sarah Alderson
Publisher: Simon Pulse, (May 12th 2015)
Genres: Thriller, Young Adult
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: A girl looking to escape her past in New York City ends up on the run from a dangerous conspiracy in this sizzling, high-stakes novel.

When seventeen-year-old Liva came to New York City, all she wanted was to escape the painful memories of her past and finally find a fresh start. Her hopes for a new future were dashed the moment she became the sole witness to a brutal murder. When she’s taken into police custody—supposedly for her own protection—she realizes something isn’t right, but it’s too late. Soon, bullets start flying, and Liva realizes that she is not just a witness, but the target—and she needs to escape before it’s too late.

With the help of a sexy car thief that she met at the station, Liva manages to get away from the massacre unharmed, but now the two of them are alone in New York, trying to outrun and outwit the two killers who will stop at nothing to find them. Liva and Jay are living on the edge, but when you’re on the edge, there’s a long way to fall.

Review: 3.5 Stars - Out of Control by author Sarah Alderson is a story that’ll leave readers on the edge of their seats as two characters run for their lives throughout New Your City. It’s a dangerous 24 hours, a whirlwind of a read and an end that you’ll never see coming.

Liva is looking to start over and get away from her painful past. No matter where she goes it follows her, but she’s hoping a fresh start in New York City living with her dad will give her the peace she needs. She’s back in the city – staying with family friends until her father’s back in town – then her world is turned upside down in the worst possible way.

After the events of the night come crashing down around her, she’s taken into police custody and while there, her night gets even worse. Believe me, it get worse, and then worse and.. yep, you guessed it, worse until she’s living in a nightmare and running for her life.

With the help of a boy who was in police custody for stealing a car, the two make a pact to stick together until she’s able to meet with her dad the following morning.

Jay and Liva have grown up totally different and come from two different worlds, yet they work together well, pooling their resources and fighting to survive in what has to be the worst 24 hours of their lives.

The writing of this title is only half of what makes this a fast read. The story flies by as it’s fast paced and kept me holding my breath often and scared to blink for fear of missing something important.

There’s enough twists and turns and shocking truths that come out along the way to keep readers off balance and I could easily see future readers sitting down and not getting back up until they’ve turned the last page.

The characters have other issues that they are dealing with and it was great to see how two strangers could not only work together through their current trouble but also that they were affected by each other’s world and life enough to see things with a different point of view. The landscape of New York City was also the perfect backdrop for Liva and Jay to get lost within as they run for their lives.

In the end I really enjoyed the book. It was so fast paced that it felt like I had this one read in no time at all and was highly entertained from beginning to end. It’s a thrilling YA title that readers of all ages will be able to enjoy. I recommend this book to everyone looking for something different and high energy. I’m looking forward to reading more from this author in the future. Enjoy!

About the Author:

Having spent most of her life in London, Sarah quit her job in the non profit sector in 2009 and took off on a round the world trip with her husband and princess-obsessed daughter on a mission to find a new place to call home. After several months in India, Singapore, Australia and the US, they settled in Bali where Sarah now spends her days writing by the pool and trying to machete open coconuts without severing a limb.

She finished her first novel, Hunting Lila, just before they left the UK, wrote the sequel on the beach in India and had signed a two book deal with Simon & Schuster by the time they had reached Bali.

A third book, Fated, about a teenage demon slayer, was published in January 2012.

The Sound, a thriller romance set in Nantucket, was published in August 2013. She has a further three thrillers due for release in the next few years.
You can find Sarah on facebook and at www.sarahalderson.com or follow her blog at www.canwelivhere.com

Find Sarah Online:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

GIVEAWAY!!!

Tour-wide giveaway (INTL)
2x signed copies of Out of Control
$25 Amazon gift card

a Rafflecopter giveaway

"Waiting On" Wednesday is an event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. The purpose of this weekly event is to spotlight a soon-to-be-released book that you are very much anticipating. "Waiting On" Wednesday will also give bloggers an opportunity to share ideas for our TBR lists.

Title: Alive
Author: Chandler Baker
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion, 368 Pages (June 9th, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: Stella Cross's heart is poisoned.

After years on the transplant waiting list, she's running out of hope that she'll ever see her eighteenth birthday. Then, miraculously, Stella receives the transplant she needs to survive.

Determined to embrace everything she came so close to losing, Stella throws herself into her new life. But her recovery is marred by strange side effects: Nightmares. Hallucinations. A recurring pain that flares every day at the exact same moment. Then Stella meets Levi Zin, the new boy on everyone's radar at her Seattle prep school. Stella has never felt more drawn to anyone in her life, and soon she and Levi are inseparable.

Stella is convinced that Levi is her soul mate. Why else would she literally ache for him when they are apart?

After all, the heart never lies...does it?

Title: Ruthless
Author: Carolyn Lee Adams
Publisher: Simon Pulse, 256 Pages (July 14th, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: A spine-tingling debut about the ultimate game of cat-and-mouse in reverse as a teen struggles to retain hope—and her sanity—while on the run from a cunning and determined killer.

Ruth Carver has always competed like her life depends on it. Ambitious. Tough. Maybe even mean. It’s no wonder people call her Ruthless.

When she wakes up with a concussion in the bed of a moving pickup trick, she realizes she has been entered into a contest she can’t afford to lose.

At a remote, rotting cabin deep in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Ruth’s blindfold comes off and she comes face-to-face with her captor. A man who believes his mission is to punish bad girls like Ruth. A man who has done this six times before.

The other girls were never heard from again, but Ruth won’t go down easy. She escapes into the wilderness, but her hunter is close at her heels. That’s when the real battle begins. That’s when Ruth must decides just how far she’ll go in order to survive.

Back home, they called her Ruthless. They had no idea just how right they were.

Title: Rook
Author: Sharon Cameron
Publisher: Scholastic Press, 464 Pages (April 28th, 2015)
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: History has a way of repeating itself. In the Sunken City that was once Paris, all who oppose the new revolution are being put to the blade. Except for those who disappear from their prison cells, a red-tipped rook feather left in their place. Is the mysterious Red Rook a savior of the innocent or a criminal?

Meanwhile, across the sea in the Commonwealth, Sophia Bellamy’s arranged marriage to the wealthy René Hasard is the last chance to save her family from ruin. But when the search for the Red Rook comes straight to her doorstep, Sophia discovers that her fiancé is not all he seems. Which is only fair, because neither is she.

As the Red Rook grows bolder and the stakes grow higher, Sophia and René find themselves locked in a tantalizing game of cat and mouse.

*covers are always subject to change.

Book Wars a weekly feature hosted between two book review blogs – A Life Bound By Books & Much Loved Books!

It’s a fact that book lovers know all about the covers of the books they covet.  Often when a title is released here in the US, it’s sometimes vastly different across the pond in the US.  So, Michelle from Much Loved Books and I have come together to create Book Wars to talk about the difference in covers when it comes to the US vs. UK versions.

We hope from time to time authors will chime in with their thoughts as well. We welcome everyone to comment and share their thoughts too! The more the merrier!

Before we get to this weeks Book Wars, we have a winner to announce. The Book Wars winner for The Girl at Midnight by Melissa Grey is..... the US COVER!  Thank you to everyone who voted for both books, and for picking a winner.

Also, there's a poll at the bottom of the post that we'd love to hear your input for the two covers! Tell us which one YOU love the most.

Left: US - Right: UK

Title: Out of Control

Author: Sarah Alderson
Publisher: US - Simon Pulse, (May 12th 2015) UK - Simon & Schuster UK, 320 Pages (May 22nd, 2014)
Add to: Goodreads USA Version | Goodreads UK Version
Order online here: USA: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository UK: Amazon UK, Waterstones, W H Smith, The Book Depository

Synopsis: A girl looking to escape her past in New York City ends up on the run from a dangerous conspiracy in this sizzling, high-stakes novel.

When seventeen-year-old Liva came to New York City, all she wanted was to escape the painful memories of her past and finally find a fresh start. Her hopes for a new future were dashed the moment she became the sole witness to a brutal murder. When she’s taken into police custody—supposedly for her own protection—she realizes something isn’t right, but it’s too late. Soon, bullets start flying, and Liva realizes that she is not just a witness, but the target—and she needs to escape before it’s too late.

With the help of a sexy car thief that she met at the station, Liva manages to get away from the massacre unharmed, but now the two of them are alone in New York, trying to outrun and outwit the two killers who will stop at nothing to find them. Liva and Jay are living on the edge, but when you’re on the edge, there’s a long way to fall.

About the Author:

Having spent most of her life in London, Sarah quit her job in the non profit sector in 2009 and took off on a round the world trip with her husband and princess-obsessed daughter on a mission to find a new place to call home. After several months in India, Singapore, Australia and the US, they settled in Bali where Sarah now spends her days writing by the pool and trying to machete open coconuts without severing a limb.

She finished her first novel, Hunting Lila, just before they left the UK, wrote the sequel on the beach in India and had signed a two book deal with Simon & Schuster by the time they had reached Bali.

A third book, Fated, about a teenage demon slayer, was published in January 2012.

The Sound, a thriller romance set in Nantucket, was published in August 2013. She has a further three thrillers due for release in the next few years.
You can find Sarah on facebook and at www.sarahalderson.com or follow her blog at www.canwelivhere.com

Find Sarah Online:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Let the Wars Begin: Its now time to make our decision, let's see what we think about the covers and pick our favorite cover.

Lisa Somethings my love of a good book cover comes down to something as simple... or not as colors. And the US one does it, at least in my opnion so much better than the UK cover.

The UK cover feels off in some way. And since I haven't read the book yet if these two were side by side I'd pick up the US cover over the UK cover first to check out what the book's about.

Once you look a bit deeper than just the colors of these two there's a lot of other things I like in the US cover from the silhouette of the couple running hand in hand. I like that you can see it's a guy and a girl but other than that, they could be anyone. And I like the hint of the cityscape in the back ground. Also, it makes you wonder if they are running away from something or to something.

This week my vote goes to the US cover. Click and vote below to tell us which one you like best.

Michelle I own the UK copy of this book and I've never really liked the cover, the style just doesn't work for me at all. The USA cover is a different story, it's a lot more basic than the UK cover, but it feels more dramatic and more eye catching.

For me it's a USA win this week, don't forget to vote for your favourite below.

VOTE for YOUR favorite cover of Out of Control NOW!

What is YOUR favorite cover of Out of Control By: Sarah Alderson?

US

UK

pollcode.com free polls

Title: Out of Control
Author: Sarah Alderson
Publisher: Simon Pulse, (May 12th 2015)
Genres: Thriller, Young Adult
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: A girl looking to escape her past in New York City ends up on the run from a dangerous conspiracy in this sizzling, high-stakes novel.

When seventeen-year-old Liva came to New York City, all she wanted was to escape the painful memories of her past and finally find a fresh start. Her hopes for a new future were dashed the moment she became the sole witness to a brutal murder. When she’s taken into police custody—supposedly for her own protection—she realizes something isn’t right, but it’s too late. Soon, bullets start flying, and Liva realizes that she is not just a witness, but the target—and she needs to escape before it’s too late.

With the help of a sexy car thief that she met at the station, Liva manages to get away from the massacre unharmed, but now the two of them are alone in New York, trying to outrun and outwit the two killers who will stop at nothing to find them. Liva and Jay are living on the edge, but when you’re on the edge, there’s a long way to fall.

Excerpt:

          The boy snatches the key from my outstretched hand and jams it into the tiny hole. The cuff springs apart, freeing him.
          Instantly, he throws himself on top of me. ‘Get down!’
          A bullet smacks itself into a filing cabinet just behind us as we tumble to the ground. His chest presses down on mine, my face is buried in his shoulder. Quickly he rolls off me and pushes me towards a desk. I scoot underneath it, banging the side of my head on the sharp metal corner of a drawer unit. I let out a cry.
          ‘Shhh.’ His hand clamps over my mouth.
          I tug his arm away. ‘What’s going on? What’s happening?’ I whisper.
          Before he can answer me, the shooting stops and a silence falls that is even more terrifying than the gunfire. The boy and I both freeze, staring at each other unblinking, just a few millimetres between us. Together, enclosed in the tight space beneath the desk, we strain to listen, and over the radio static and the whir of the air conditioner overhead, I pick out faint cries coming from somewhere in the distance; the unnatural keening howl of a wounded animal.
          The boy shifts his weight. His back is pressed to one cabinet, his feet to the drawer unit. Carefully, he peers around the edge of the desk then ducks quickly back, breathing fast. A bead of sweat trickles down the side of his face.
          ‘Shit,’ he murmurs, resting his head back against the cabinet and closing his eyes.
          ‘Wh— ’ I begin, but stop when I hear the sly creak of the door being pushed open. A boot crunches on glass. The boy’s eyes flash open and lock on mine, holding me in place, silencing the scream that has risen up my throat and is threatening to tear free. My legs begin to shake from holding still in a crouching position. The boy’s right hand squeezes my knee hard – another warning, his eyes wide and burning fiercely into mine, telling me: Do not move.
          Something topples off a desk on the far side of the room and, over the boy’s shoulder, through a gap between two filing cabinets, I glimpse the back of a man’s leg. Whose? Is it a cop? Where is everyone else? What happened to the cops who ran out into the corridor?
          No. I shut off the thought, not wanting to go there.
          The man in the room is standing stock-still with his back to us. What is he doing? I can’t see. He’s facing the wall – the chalkboard with all the homicide cases listed on it. The seconds seem to extend into whole hours, days, centuries, and I’m holding my breath and the boy’s hand is still squeezing my knee and my heart is bursting, literally bursting, as though too much blood is pumping through it. My leg muscles are on fire and, without warning, my foot slips. Not far. But it bumps the edge of the desk. The man spins instantly in our direction. The air rushes from my lungs and the boy shifts beside me, a single word that I don’t catch, falling from his lips like a dying man’s prayer.
          The man starts to head in our direction, is almost on us, when someone somewhere else in the building shouts something that’s instantly swallowed in a storm of gunfire and the man rushes out into the corridor.
          The boy darts his head out and then he’s out from under the desk and reaching for me.

          ‘Move!’ he says, pulling me to my feet.

About the Author:

Having spent most of her life in London, Sarah quit her job in the non profit sector in 2009 and took off on a round the world trip with her husband and princess-obsessed daughter on a mission to find a new place to call home. After several months in India, Singapore, Australia and the US, they settled in Bali where Sarah now spends her days writing by the pool and trying to machete open coconuts without severing a limb.

She finished her first novel, Hunting Lila, just before they left the UK, wrote the sequel on the beach in India and had signed a two book deal with Simon & Schuster by the time they had reached Bali.

A third book, Fated, about a teenage demon slayer, was published in January 2012.

The Sound, a thriller romance set in Nantucket, was published in August 2013. She has a further three thrillers due for release in the next few years.
You can find Sarah on facebook and at www.sarahalderson.com or follow her blog at www.canwelivhere.com

Find Sarah Online:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

GIVEAWAY!!!

Blitz-wide giveaway (INTL)
3x signed copies of Out of Control + The Sound
$25 Amazon Gift Card

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Title: Consent
Author: Nancy Ohlin
Publisher: Simon Pulse, (November 10th 2015)
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult
Add to: Goodreads
Order here: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: Bea has a secret.

Actually, she has more than one. There’s her dreams for the future that she can’t tell anyone—not her father and not even her best friend, Plum.

And now there’s Dane Rossi. Dane is hot, he shares Bea’s love of piano, and he believes in her.

He’s also Bea’s teacher.

When their passion for music crosses into passion for each other, Bea finds herself falling completely for Dane. She’s never felt so wanted, so understood, so known to her core. But the risk of discovery carries unexpected surprises that could shake Bea entirely. Bea must piece together what is and isn’t true about Dane, herself, and the most intense relationship she’s ever experienced, in this absorbing novel from Nancy Ohlin.

About the Author:

I am the author of BEAUTY, a YA retelling of the Snow White tale, and ALWAYS, FOREVER, a YA retelling of Daphne du Maurier's REBECCA. ALWAYS, FOREVER was originally published in hardcover as THORN ABBEY.

I've also contributed to several celebrity novels, including a New York Times-bestselling YA trilogy.

I'm currently hard at work on my next YA novel, which will be as mind-bending as ALWAYS, FOREVER (I hope!).

My favorite cures for writers' block are long walks, long showers, popcorn, chocolate, and really expensive coffee. I talk to myself a lot while I write (you know, to make sure the dialogue zings).

Find Nancy Online:

Website | Twitter| Facebook | Goodreads