Cover Reveal: Release

I've been a big fan of M.R. Merrick's books, a fantastic self-published Canadian author. His books are true gems in the YA world and I sing their praises at every chance I get!

I was super excited to hear that there was more information about the final book in the trilogy, Release, including a cover reveal and I'm so happy I get to share it with all of you today!

Synopsis:
After uniting the shifters and calling in reinforcements, Chase has to face his toughest challenge yet: learning to control his emotions. But as tensions rise and his powers grow, controlling his emotions becomes the least of his problems. Terrorized by a multi-shifter who is hell-bent on turning him, Chase questions just how far he’s willing to go to stop his father. Meanwhile, Tiki’s virtuous nature has placed him in the middle of Vincent’s past, leaving Chase to oppose a senate of vampires and defend a demon he hates. Trying to balance his friends, his enemies, and his inner demons, Chase is left searching for answers about the Mark, his destiny, and where he can find the next soul piece. Stopping Riley is his top priority, but as more obstacles arise, he finds himself doubting all the decisions he’s made - especially regarding Rayna. One thing is for certain: Chase has finally realized that he doesn’t know anything. The light doesn’t always quell the darkness, the monsters don’t always stay in the shadows, and the past doesn’t always stay in the past - sometimes, the demons inside are the hardest to fight.

I love all Matt's covers, but this one is a perfect addition. It will look fantastic with the other two, and I love that they're all gender-neutral. I love a gorgeous, female-oriented cover as much as the next person but these covers do such a great job on completely capturing the feel of the books and definitely wouldn't isolate either gender.

For more info, make sure to check out:

M.R. Merrick | Goodreads | Exiled (Protector #1) | Shift (Protector #2)

So tell me, what do you think - good cover? Good fit for the series?

Indie Author Giveaway Hop

There are some REALLY amazing indie/small press books out there, so I knew I wanted to sign on as part of I Am A Reader, Not A Writer's giveway hop highlighting some of these in support of some of the awesome books I've read!

You can find the full list of blogs participating here - good luck entering the giveaways in the hop :)

There are so many awesome indie/small press books that I've read, and as much as I wish I could highlight all of them here, I'm giving away the first two books in a series I've enjoyed reading so much <3 Plus, the author's Canadian and he gets bonus points just for that.

Exiled (The Protector #1) by M.R. Merrick
Chase Williams is a demon hunter in the Circle, or at least he was supposed to be. On his fifteenth birthday, Chase stepped up to the altar to claim his elemental power, but it never came. Elemental magic is passed down to a hunter through the bloodline, but on Chase's birthday, the bloodline stopped.

Exiled without the Circle's protection, Chase has spent two years trying to survive a world riddled with half-demons and magic. When he has a run in with a frightened and seemingly innocent demon, he learns the Circle's agenda has changed: the Circle plans to unlock a portal and unleash pure-blood demons into the world. Vowing to stop them, and knowing he can't do it alone, Chase forms a reluctant alliance with Rayna — a sexy witch with an attitude and a secret.

In their attempt to stop them, Chase and Rayna find themselves in the middle of the Circle's plan, leaving one of them to decide what their friendship is worth, and the other's life depending on it.

The sequel to Exiled is Shift.

To find out more, you can find my review for Exiled here and read my review for Shift here.

(If you're interested in some other well done, interesting indie books to read I would also recommend Descended by Blood by Angeline Kace, Pyxis by K.C. Neal, Tangled Tides by Karen Amanda Hooper, and Witch Song by Amber Argyle to name a few. )
Make sure to take note of the giveaway policy for this blog, and fill out the Rafflecopter form below to enter (take note of the rules in the form). And yes, this one's open internationally :) one winner will win the books from The Book Depository.




a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour: Shift

Not too long ago, I discovered a real gem in the world of self-published books. Exiled is such a fantastic book and it has easily crept onto my list of favourite books! I want ALL of you to read this one, because it's a real gem :)

And in case you're curious, you can read my review for Exiled here, and check out my author interview with M.R. Merrick here! Finally, at the very end of this post there's a giveaway for a copy of SHIFT!

But today I'm lucky enough to be one of the stops on the blog tour for the sequel to Exiled - Shift! Shift was released on February 1, 2012 and I have to say that I loved it even BETTER than the first.

For my stop today, I have a short & exciting, SPOILER-FREE teaser for you! And yes, you can read this teaser even if you haven't read Exiled :) and then I'll share my review for Shift with you.

My eyes tore open to the sound of screaming. The drywall rattled and Rayna’s voice raged through the wall. My pulse jumped as panic set in and I leapt from my bed moving straight for the door. I ran through the archway, pants tangling on my legs as I tried to pull them up. Marcus, Willy, and Tiki were halfway down the hall, their faces owned by fear. 

Marcus reached the door before me, turned the silver handle, and pushed through. The door creaked and the smell of blood, sweat, and something else seeped from the darkness. Marcus flicked on the light and I saw what I already feared.

Doesn't that just make you want to dive right in?? You have NO idea what you're missing by not reading these books! :)

1. Thoroughly action packed!:
   One thing that I love about Matt's books is that he totally doesn't disappoint when it comes to a lack of action; there is constant excitement going on, and he has a knack for writing gripping action sequences that leave you flipping through the pages as fast as you can, dying to know what happens!
2. Full cast of characters:
   One thing I love about The Protector series is that it has a really wide range of characters, which keeps things interesting. It's such a good mix, and everyone has their own positive and negative qualities so they're very realistic. They're each great in their own, unique way and all bring something special to the story. Chase is a great character in particular, and he definitely has some Harry Potter-esque charm to him; a misfit who just wants to fit in, seriously loyal and endearing in his own way. And he's out to save the world and all that jazz ;) Oh, and I told Matt on Twitter one day that Vincent (a vampire character) TOTALLY reminds me of Spike from Buffy. And if that isn't reason enough to read this... well, I don't know what is!
3. Well-done romance:
   If you read some of my previous reviews, you'll most likely notice a trend that I love well thought out, naturally flowing relationships. I like them to develop on their own terms, rather than feeling rushed or overly insta!love. And I love how the romance is handled in Exiled and then Shift; there's some great tension and build up to it, and even though there's initial attraction it takes time to build that sense of trust and affection.

This is a series I sincerely doubt you'll regret picking up; I highly recommend you give this one a shot if you like exciting, action-filled books!

Purchase Exiled as an e-book
Purchase Exiled as a paperback
Purchase Shift as an e-book

Make sure you stop by Matt's blog to see the rest of the tour stops too!

And lastly, I have one e-book of Shift available to give to one of you! And if the winner hasn't read Exiled yet, I'm willing to personally gift them an e-book copy of it as well :)

All you have to do is being 13 years of age or older (with parental permission) and leave a comment on the excerpt telling me what you think of it! And make sure you leave your e-mail address. Giveaway will run for one week and will end on February 10th at 11:59 p.m. EST. Good luck!

Cover Reveal: Shift

I've been waiting for this cover for WEEKS, and I was so excited when I received an e-mail announcing the cover reveal!

Exiled was a fantastic book, and I was surprised by how much I loved it and since then I've been anxious for the next book... thankfully, it's almost here! Shift is its sequel, and I love how well the two covers go together.

The synopsis below for Shift includes spoilers to the first book, Exiled. So if you're worried about some spoilers, you might want to skip reading the description. But if you want to know more about Exiled, you can check out my review for it here!

Synopsis:

Devastated by the loss of his mother, Chase is trying to balance the life he’s been left with, a family he’s still getting to know, and power he never thought he’d have. He doesn’t understand why the Goddess has named him the Protector and granted him two gifts: the Mark, a tattoo that now covers his back, and the ring. But between getting interrogated by the Circle and psychic attacks from Riley, the Mark is the least of his concern. There’s a demon inside Rayna that’s fighting to be released, and it’s not her inner witch. It’s something else–a monster threatening to tear her apart.
As Chase struggles to control his magic, his enemies are closing in. Everyone has staked a claim on his ring, and destroying it may be his only chance to stop Riley. But Chase must decide if stopping him is worth risking the lives of everyone he cares about, or if protecting the ring will be enough to save his world.

You can add Shift (or Exiled) to your Goodreads shelf here and find M.R. Merrick on Twitter or check out his blog.

P.S. He's Canadian too! As if you need another reason to read his books ASAP.

Author Interview: M.R. Merrick

Today I have the opportunity to interview the awesome M.R. Merrick, autor of a fantastic book Exiled (The Protector #1). If you haven't heard of Exiled, make sure you check it out and you can read my review of it as well. And at the end of this interview, you can enter to win one e-book copy of Exiled!

Exiled features two seriously tough characters, both of whom I adore. So tell us, in your opinion, who would win in a fight: Rayna or Chase?

That’s a really tough way to start this interview…I really don’t know. They each have such different strengths and weaknesses. Realistically, they’d both probably inflict life threatening wounds and die together, but I if I had to bet money on it, I’d go with Rayna. She’s scrappy, a natural survivor, and has more control over herself and her abilities. There’s a fire that exists within her that’s different from Chase, and right now, I think it puts her on top.

A lot of reviews (including mine) have included a mention of how Exiled is great for fans of Cassandra Clare's Shadowhunter books. What do you think about this comparison and have you read any of her books yourself?

I’ve read the first three books. I haven’t read the fourth yet though. I’ve gone out of my way to avoid spoilers, but the drift I get is that the greatness continues. As far as being compared to it, I have mixed feelings. On the plus side, it’s an incredible honor. I mean, that series is beloved by so many, how can you not be excited about that! It overwhelms me that anyone would talk about my series in the same sentence with TMI, but I definitely love hearing it. On the down side, EXILED is the first book in a new series, from a new author. I’m just starting out, and being compared to The Mortal Instruments seems like setting the bar right at the top. Not that I mind. I love a challenge, but I hope that comparison doesn’t leave readers going into my story with expectations so high; there isn’t room for me to steal them away to my world. Although readers who enjoyed TMI are likely to enjoy EXILED, I still want them to be prepared for something entirely different. All this might be a completely irrational thought, but it exists nonetheless.

Before Exiled came out, did you already have an idea of where the series would end up? If so, has your idea of the ending to the series changed at all since you've been writing?

I definitely knew where it was going – or so I thought. Right before I sent EXILED off to the editor, I had a blast of inspiration for book two, SHIFT. It was the perfect direction for the story to go, but as I was writing it, I had an epiphany of sorts, and I realized the story might be on a more epic scale than even I realized. I haven’t committed to the new idea completely yet. The Protector series was originally planned as a trilogy, I’ve had the end in mind since I finished the first draft of Exiled, but this new idea makes everything…bigger. I really need to brainstorm and explore this new idea first, before I know if I will take it to that level, or if it will remain a trilogy.

Why did you decide to write Exiled? Was there anything that inspired you in particular? Anything you hope readers will take away from reading it?

I didn’t really mean to write EXILED. I always loved writing, but I’d never tried my hand a fiction. I kind of stumbled across the idea for the story and it just slowly grew into what it is. My daughter inspired the entire process. I’ve always been all over the place career wise. I get bored easily and need a constant challenge. One thing I never wavered from was that I would always be home at night to tuck my daughter in. We’d read stories before bed, but every now and then she’d ask me to make one up, and tell her a story, and so I would. I created new worlds, new, fun creatures, and new adventures every night. It sparked a creative need inside me that I had to explore. Although my books aren’t children books, the reason Exiled exists is because of her. I didn’t write Exiled with any special meaning behind it. If there is any underlying message in it, I didn’t put it there, it happened on its own. All I want readers to do is pick it up, and disappear into my imagination, if only for a few hours. See what I saw. Feel what I felt. Explore the world, characters, and creatures, and become a part of Chase and Rayna’s journey. If nothing else, I want to provide a temporary escape from reality.

Being a self-published author, could you share with us some of the hardest and some of the best things about taking this route to get your book published?

The hardest part is getting your name out there. Marketing is a frustrating business when you don’t really know what you’re doing. Sometimes one thing will work wonders for one author, and have no results when tried by others. It’s a constant game of change. The other part is the criticism. You can’t appeal to everyone. You know this going in. Being a self-published author comes with an instant uphill battle. You don’t have a publishing house behind you, and a lot of readers are turned off by this. You have to work harder to put out a product that’s equal to something a publisher would distribute, and do it all on your own dollar. When you pick up my book, without looking at the copyright, I don’t want you to be able to tell difference between self and traditionally published. That’s not to say my book is without errors, but I really worked towards putting out the most professional product I could. On the other side of the coin, you do all the leg work. That isn’t always fun, but you have full creative control. You decide what stays and what goes. You decide on the face you give your book. You hire the artists, you hire the editors, you determine release date, promotions, etc. That part of it is great. The other part is the community. There is a massive independent author community out there, and it isn’t a cut throat one. They’re supportive, they’re encouraging, and they pick you up when you’re down. They help spread the word about your book, and some are willing to read it, even when in its roughest form, to help you make it better. I think the worst thing an author can do, is face the publishing world alone. At times, it’s a really harsh business to be in. People can attack and tear apart something you’ve spent an entire year of your life creating, and you shouldn’t have to go through that by yourself. You don’t have to tackle this industry alone, so don’t. Join all the authors and incredible book bloggers out there, and work together to make your dreams come true. It isn’t going to happen overnight, so you might as well be in good company while you wait.

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions, Matt!

And to go along with his interview, I'm giving away an e-book copy of Exiled to one of you! It's a wonderful, fabulous book and I can't wait for one of you to read it. The book will be purchased from Smashwords, so you can see which files are available on there- even if you don't have an e-reader, this one can be purchased to read on the computer.

FILL OUT THE FORM HERE TO ENTER.

Good luck!

Kindred Reads {5}

Kindred Reads is my weekly feature where I recommend similar books. There's a mix of popular books, and fairly unknown authors and indie books as well. This is something that I personally wish I saw more of; after reading a book I enjoy, I often want to read similar books but they can be hard to discover!
 

These books contain similar elements, whether it's content, writing style, or other themes found in the stories. They are always books which I have read, and clicking on the title of the book will take you to my review of that book (if I have reviewed it) or to Goodreads (if I have not reviewed the book).

If you liked...
The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare

You might want to read...

Exiled (Volume 1) by M.R. Merrick

Okay, so there aren't any Shadowhunters... but there is a totally hot main character GUY who's supposed to hunt demons and meets a badass female witch. And together, they're a part of an adventure to stop a really evil guy. Sounds familiar, right? Exiled is self-published but it is awesome, and you can just look it up to see all the rave reviews it's getting. Extremely well done, and Merrick writes some incredible and exciting action scenes. He's wonderfully talented, and has written something to help tide us over while we wait for Clockwork Prince and City of Lost Souls to be released.








Daimon/Half-Blood (Covenant series) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

I confess that I've only read Daimon (so far!) since Half-Blood isn't released until mid-October, but I'm confident from reading the prequel to the first book in the new Covenant series that it's going to be good (plus, I've been heard good things from people who've read ARCs of it). Similar idea to Exiled and MI that there's a demon hunter (girl, this time) who's fallen on some hard times and is just starting to unravel all the mysteries that have been hidden from her for years. More hot guys, more action, and more scary bad guys... what more are we looking for?

Exiled

Exiled (Volume 1) by M.R. Merrick
Released: August 27, 2011
ISBN13: 978-0987726216

4.5/5 Stars

Goodreads Synopsis:
Chase Williams is a demon hunter in the Circle, or at least he was supposed to be. Failing to develop any elemental magic on his fifteenth birthday left him exiled in a world full of half-demons, and no hunters to protect him.

When Chase discovers the Circle's plan to unlock a portal and unleash pure-blood demons into the world, he vows to stop them. Knowing he can't do it alone however, he accepts help from Rayna, a sexy witch with an attitude and a secret.

As the pair attempt to stop the Circle, Chase realizes working with a demon is only half the battle. When they find themselves in the middle of the Circle's plan, it leaves one of them to decide what their friendship is worth, and the other's life depending on it.

Even though I'm always willing to take review requests from anyone, I confess that sometimes I'm a little bit hesitant when it's self-published just because you never know what you're going to get. It's kind of like a grab bag, in that sense. What's inside could be really awesome, or just disappointing.

I actually requested a copy of Exiled (Volume 1) by M.R. Merrick once I discovered it, and did a little bit of research on this book. By the way, if you look up Exiled to find out more about it, you will find raving reviews.

And they are all spot on; those reviews are well-deserved.

Exiled is an exciting and riveting paranormal fantasy, and is often compared to The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare. I think that's a fair comparison.

The quality of writing is wonderful, and the story is extremely well presented. One of my favourite things is that Merrick writes such exciting action scenes! It seems to be a trickier part of novel writing for authors, but Merrick excels at it which is fortunate because Exiled is LOADED with fighting and adventure.

It's perfectly paced, laced with likeable and fascinating characters, and a thrilling wide into this new world created by Merrick. Background information was subtlely slipped in and given at the precise moment of time when it's applicable, which makes it easy to understand the world better. Chase was (somewhat surprisingly) an ideal main character; sympathetic, but less angsty than some of his typical YA MC counterparts. He doesn't just sit around and mope about the unfortunate events in his life; they affect him, and he tries to find a way to deal with them and move on with his life. And the chemistry between Chase and Rayna has such a flirtatious and witty build up that it comes across naturally, but without distracting from the bigger plot lines taking place.

The only thing I found a bit odd were the various dimensions, because I wasn't sure I saw how it fit in with the rest of the story to me. It's a creative add on for sure, but I'm not sure how it will play out in the series as a whole yet and I did find that it took a bit away from the rest of this first book.

It really is an enjoyable book, and I highly recommend it since I'm now eagerly awaiting the next book! This is the kind of book that's going to appeal to a broad audience, and in particular, I think teen boys would really love Exiled for it's perspective from a male character (and author) and thrilling action scenes.

A Kindle copy of Exiled was provided to me from the author in exchange for my honest review; no other compensation was received.