Blog Tour: Transfusion(Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, #1) by Nikki Jefford

Hi everyone. So today I have a book tour to share with you all. I am including my review, giveaways, and other tour stops along the way. I hope you enjoy!

Transfusion(Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, #1) by Nikki Jefford

Page Count(E-book Edition): 231 pgs
Publisher: Nikki Jefford
Released: December 9th, 2012
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal
My Rating: 4/5 stars
Read: March 18th-26th, 2013
Source: Xpresso Book Tours

Synopsis: 

If there is one thing eighteen-year-old Aurora Sky wants, it's to get off the iceburg she calls home. Being kissed before she graduates wouldn't hurt either.

Then a near-fatal car wreck changes everything. Government agents step in and save Aurora's life in exchange for her services as a vampire hunter. In Alaska. Basically, she's a glorified chew toy. All thanks to her rare blood type, which sends a vampire into temporary paralysis right before she has to finish the job.. by hand.

Now, Aurora's only friends are groupies of the undead and the only boy she can think about may very well be a vampire. And if she's a vampire, will she be forced to kill him?

Transfusion was a very enjoyable read. Nikki Jefford was able to break all the vampire stereotypes, and make her own new vampire species. She was able to piece together Aurora and Fane's love, while adding in the vampire hunting with danger.

Obviously, Aurora and Fane were my 2 favorite characters, while Noel came in close 3rd. Aurora is this witty, comical, sarcastic senior in high-school that made me chuckle and smile while I turned the pages. Even though she has been through quite a lot, she made the best of every situation with her side comments. Fane is this mysterious,(SPOILER ALERT!) charming vampire that I came to love as he interacted with Aurora. He stole my heart from the beginning, and  had me swooning every time he is mentioned. Noel is a character I adored. She is part of this "groupie" at their high-school and has just become friends with Aurora. Not only did she really care for Aurora like a sister, she really helped her out in the end like any close friend would have done. Noel was like a little kitten; I just wanted to hold her and hug her tight! Oh, and yes, Dante. Boy, he was scrumptious! I actually imagined him looking like Emmett Cullen(Kellan Lutz) in The Twilight Saga. For all you twilight lovers like me, you may get the comparison I'm trying to make: Dark hair, skin, big and muscly ;) I could have cried with happiness when Jefford added this little part in the book when Dante was interested in Aurora. You could probably hear me chanting TEAM DURORA! TEAM DURORA! Sadly, Nikki chose not to commit to their possible love :(

When Aurora became a Vampire Hunter, her whole demeanor changed, in a good way. She became tougher and a better fighter than before. Aurora was very calm in most of the vampire killings throughout the book, which is a trait that I admire. I know that if that was me, I'd probably either go crazy or break down and cry.

All in all, Transfusion was a great jump start to Nikki Jefford's new series, and I can't wait to read the next book in the series, Northern Bites.

Tour Stops:

If you are interested, I am linking the tour schedule here for you to check out as well. Have fun!

Where to Purchase:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

About The Author:

Nikki Jefford is a third generation Alaskan who loves fictional bad boys and heroines who kick butt. She is the author of the Spellbound Trilogy and upcoming Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter series. Nikki married Sebastien, the love of her life, while working as a teaching assistant in France. They now reside in the not-so-tropical San Juan Islands, 70 miles northeast of Forks, Washington.

Author Links:

Website

Goodreads

Facebook

Twitter

Book Trailer:

Giveaway Time!:

Rules:

• To enter, simply fill out the Rafflecopter forms below
• When the top giveaway's winner is chosen, it will be announced here and the winner will be emailed by me. Please check your email, because I am only giving the winner 48 hours to respond. Another winner will be selected if this occur's.
• Please enter your email address in the form below, and not in the comments please!(:
• I ask that all entrants be 13 years or older.
• The first giveaway is INT(international)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This Tour Grand Prize includes everyone that has entered throughout the tour. Feel free to enter!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hope you enjoyed! See you soon!

♦Haley♦

Review of: Mister Death's Blue-Eyed Girls by Mary Downing Hahn

Mister Death's Blue-Eyed Girls by Mary Downing Hahn

Page Count(Hardcover Edition): 330 pgs
Publisher: Clarion Books
Released: April 17th, 2012
Genre: Young Adult Historical Fiction
My Rating: 4/5 stars 
Read: February 3rd-19th, 2013
Source: Library

Synopsis:

Based on an actual crime in 1955, this YA novel is at once a mystery and a coming-of-age story. The brutal murder of two teenage girls on the last day of Nora Cunningham's junior year in high school throws Nora into turmoil. Her certainties, friendships, religion, her prudence, her resolve to find a boyfriend taller than she is - are shaken or cast off altogether. 

Most people in Elmgrove, Maryland, share the comforting conviction that Buddy Novak, who had every reason to want his ex-girlfriend dead, is responsible for the killings. Nora agree's at first, then begins to doubt Buddy's guilt, and finally comes to believe him innocent - the lone dissenting voice of Elmgrove.

Told from several different perspectives, including that of the murderer, Mister Death's Blue-Eyed Girls is a suspenseful page-turner with a powerful human drama at it's core.

I was shocked, scared and provoked after reading this book. I can say that Mister Death's Blue-Eyed Girls is the first book to make me think: HOW AND WHY?!?!? After I discovered that it was based off a true story back in the 50's, it became even creepier than the synopsis had made it.

Throughout the story, you are taken on this ride of who killed those 2 poor girls(not a spoiler), why they did it, and how these killings have taken a toll on Nora. This book was so much more than 2 murders of teenage girls. This book was and inside look of the author's actual experience with these murder's and the murderer's possible point of view. I think the perspectives were spot on with emotion, facts and truth.

Back in the 1950's and into the 1960's, family values and religious practices were stricter and taken more seriously. Nora is struggling with her faith as her world is tumbling down around her. She begins to experiment more, with boys and alcohol. Every time she gets close to breaking even more rules within her religion, she questions herself, but then basically ignores the warnings and jumps in full force. Though this all happened, I still see Nora as one-dimensional, almost incapable of emotions. But hey, who can blame her? I would be too if 2 of my friends were murdered when I was no less than 15 minutes away from them.

The plot progressed at a fairly good pace. Every chapter was from either Nora or Mr. Death's point of view, and sometimes Buddy was thrown in there as well. I liked the way the book was split into 10 parts, with Cheryl's and  Bobbi Jo's diary's added. At the end, the author adds her  personal touch to the story with the afterword, explaining the tragedy in her own words. She tells how this story has been haunting her for many years, and the only way to release it was to write a book about it.

I really, really enjoyed Mister Death's Blue-Eyed Girls. It was haunting, creepy and thought-provoking, but the story will stay with me for a long time.

♦Haley♦

Blog Tour: Ever(Ever, #1) by Jessa Russo

Hi guys! So today I have my first blog tour of Ever by Jessa Russo. I will inlcude my review with all of the information you will want/need on Jessa. Enjoy!

Ever(Ever, #1) by Jessa Russo

Page Count(E-book Edition): 295 pgs
Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press
Released: October 1st, 2012
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal
My Rating: 4/5 stars
Read: March 18th-25th, 2013
Source: Review copy provided by Jessa/Curiosity Quills Press

Synopsis: 

Seventeen-year-old Ever’s love life has been on hold for the past two years. She’s secretly in love with her best friend Frankie, and he’s completely oblivious.

Of course, it doesn't help that he’s dead, and waking up to his ghost every day has made moving on nearly impossible.

Frustrated and desperate for something real, Ever finds herself falling for her hot new neighbor Toby. His relaxed confidence is irresistible, and not just Ever knows it. But falling for Toby comes with a price that throws Ever’s life into a whirlwind of chaos and drama. More than hearts are on the line, and more than Ever will suffer.

Some girls lose their hearts to love.

Some girls lose their minds.

Ever Van Ruysdael could lose her soul.

(from Goodreads)

Ever, for me, was a semi-hard book to get into. It was almost as if something was holding me back, and I think that the lack of plot movement until about halfway through was it. In the beginning, I was waiting for something to happen, something to unfold. I was happy with Toby and Ever canoodling and such, but I wanted action, cliffhangers and all the good stuff if you get my drift. Boy, was I in store for all of that plus more..

Ever, Toby and Frankie. The perfect stereotypical love triangle. Actually, I wouldn't really consider it a love triangle until the last 10-15 chapters or so. It was really Ever and Toby, with Frankie as a ghost, and then something happens to Frankie that I shall not mention for the sake of those who want to read this book. I actually didn't mind their love triangle, because it wasn't forced, but I did have one problem with it because Ever kept mentioning it. She kept fluctuating between Toby and Frankie, and kept going over the same exact points every time. For Frankie, she knew he was a ghost, and there would be no way to act on her feelings for him and vice versa. For Toby, she felt guilty for dating him, because she felt like she was betraying Frankie by being happy with Toby. It's all confusing, I know. It got quite irritating after a while, but it soon dwindled down into nothing.

I absolutely loved Jessie! She is the perfect best friend for Ever, and a sister that I would love to have. She protected, defended and stood up for not only Ever, but occasionally Frankie and Toby, and Ever's mom. With her, I adored Greg. He seemed super cute and friendly with Ever and Jessie. In Ever's time of needs, he was there for her, by either having a hand on her shoulder, or on the small of her back, guiding her in moments of need. He seemed like the perfect guy best friend or big brother for Ever.

Man oh man, can Jessa Russo write some steamy makeout sessions! My eyes were glued to the page, oh my. She made it seem as though you were in the room as it was happening, no matter how weird and awkward that sounds, haha(:

My heart started beating so fast when every. single. part/secret to the story unfolded in Ever's kitchen. In the span of about 2 minutes, plot twist after plot twist after plot twist unveiled itself on the story, and left my mind going WHAT JUST HAPPENED :OOO. I'm pretty sure my mouth gaped open, due to the amount of information that was let out. Then, it got even better near the end when even more plot twists and secrets were revealed. I can honestly say I was super surprised at the end. I was left with a huge cliffhanger!

Ever was a hard book to get settled into, but once I was totally indulged, I was thrown around on a major roller coaster of events. I was honestly shocked near the end, but I'm excited to read the next in the series, Evade.

*A big Thank You to Jessa Russo and Curiosity Quills Press for providing me a review copy. Thanks for letting me participate in this book tour!*

About the Author:

I'm an unashamed super fan of all things paranormal romance. I read, write and breathe paranormal YA, rarely straying from my comfort zone. Seriously. I love the stuff.

When not writing or reading, I'm out and about making memories with some seriously awesome people - for an introvert, I'm pretty extroverted. ;-) You can bet that I'm also ALWAYS secretly planning my next trip to New Orleans. (If my eyes glaze over, I'm in one of my stories, or NOLA.)

I have a husband I love as much now as I did when we first fell in love over ten years ago, and a daughter we're doing our best to raise with manners, values, and spunk.

Southern California will always be home, but I'm open to suggestions.

Links:

Jessa's Website

Jessa on Twitter

EVER on Amazon

On Barnes & Noble

Goodreads/EVER

Goodreads/EVADE

On Jessa's Website, she is hosting a giveaway of one signed paperback copy of EVER, and one signed paperback copy of EVADE(coming soon). Please click the link and enter if you are interested! I know I am! ;)

Well, that wraps up today's post! I hope you enjoyed it, and I thank Jessa Russo and Curiosity Quills Press for giving me this chance to participate! I had fun(:

♦Haley♦

Showcase Sunday, #3: The Anne Eliot Edition!

Showcase Sunday is a wonderful meme hosted by the lovely Vicki @ Books, Biscuits and Tea. If you would like to join, please click HERE.

So, last weekend or so, I received a ginormous package full of goodies from one of my best-author friends, Anne Eliot, author of Unmaking Hunter Kennedy and Almost. Over the past couple months, we have become really close after I reviewed Unmaking Hunter Kennedy. Click the name to see the review,if you wish(: She was so generous and kind enough to send me her two books, a coffee mug, and plenty of other book-related swag + Rio 2016 Olympics swag! 

○○○○○

~Unmaking Hunter Kennedy~

Paperback

Unmaking Hunter Kennedy was the first book I have read and reviewed of Anne Eliot's. I was super excited when she asked me, and I was not disappointed! So happy to have this baby with me now(:

~Almost~

Getting Almost in the mail was suprising. I mean, I knew I was getting it, but it was sort of a freebie when Anne offered it! I'm super stoked to read this book, it sounds so interesting! Plus, both of these books are heavy, which is a good thing! I really like it that way(:

This was such a cool post card! As to her writing, these are ancient sand dunes turned on their side. This is all in her backyard in Colorado! Neat!

This is too cute! I mean, it sums up my life in one sentence. This may end up as my bumper sticker one day, you never know! ;)

Agh! A coffee mug! YAY! :D Even though I don't drink coffee, I can use this for lots of drinks! Plus, this is the first of it's kind, so it's awesome-er(is that even a word? lol)

I know this is hard to see, but it says Rio 2016. And some stuff on the front I don't understand, but anywhoo, this is cooool! I mean, who else has Olympics just released swag besides me and Anne?? It's pretty spanking awesome.

So that was a long a drawn out Showcase Sunday! But, I really wanted to get it out there for all you guys, and wanted to appreciate Anne for all she sent me! Thanks bunches Anne! Yes, I know this is a day late.. yada yada.. I'm busy, people! Haha just kidding(: What did you get for your Showcase Sunday? Feel free to elaborate in the comments.

♦Haley♦

Review of: Ethereal(Celestra, #1) by Addison Moore

Ethereal(Celestra, #1) by Addison Moore

Page Count(E-book Edition): 225 pgs
Publisher: Self-Published
Released: March 26, 2011
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal
My Rating: 2/5 stars
Read: from January 20th-February 18th, 2013
Source: Amazon Kindle Store

Synopsis:

Sixteen-year-old, Skyla Messenger is a dead girl walking.

When her newly remarried mother moves the family to Paragon Island, to a house that is rumored to be haunted, Skyla finds refuge in Logan Oliver, a boy who shares her unique ability to read minds.

Skyla discovers Logan holds the answers to the questions she’s been looking for, but Logan’s reluctance to give her the knowledge she desires leaves her believing Logan has a few secrets of his own.

Skyla’s bloodlines may just be connected to the most powerful angelic beings that roam the earth, and the more she knows, the more danger she seems to be in.

Suddenly an entire faction of earthbound angels wants her dead, at least she still has Logan, or does she?

(from Goodreads)

With Ethereal, I was definitely on edge with certain things. I never fully liked the plot because of how confusing it seemed to be. I felt as though there were many things going on at once, and which only about half were explained. I did like some events though, but I will explain those below.

Ethereal was about a girl who is a Celestra, or an angel. She is in danger every day because she is a "rare" one of her kind. Skyla has enemies too, like Michelle + her clique. With all of this, she has also just moved to Paragon Island, and into a haunted house. Ok,  here come my problems with this book. First off, I feel like that with all that was going on, none really connected! Every new chapter seemed to fast-forward into the future, throwing me off balance, saying "What the hell just happened?" One of the other things that bugged me was the fact that this book was super long for a self-published, e-book author. I'm not saying that there is anything wrong with that, but I couldn't understand why I at one point, was 67% done with the book, and I already was past 35 chapters?! It didn't add up.

The character's in Ethereal were pretty good. How can they not be with Logan and Gage?! I mean, come on now, you know you can't resist either of them! I personally liked Gage better because he was more mysterious and allusive, but in a I-know-I'm-sexy-I-will-seduce-you kind of way. I also really enjoyed Brielle, Skyla's new BFF once she moves in. She was quirky and funny, kinda like me(: Skyla was on the wall for me, because she sometimes seemed ignorant and idiotic to the point where she didn't think things through very well. She did end up redeeming herself though. I can't really think of anyone else I would like to mention, because those 4 characters were the most important.

I think that pretty much sums up my feelings for Ethereal. While I did semi-enjoy the plot, there was not enough support and details to keep me satisfied. I feel like I will continue to read this series, but most likely later in the year when and if the books go on sale. I got this for free!

♦Haley♦