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Thursday, August 29, 2013

BOOKANISTAS REVIEW: BY BLOOD by Tracy E. Banghart










It's another two-for-one review!! Today we feature Tracy E. Banghart.


For 17-year-old Emma Wong, spending a summer in England should be a dream come true. Gorgeous scenery? Check. Lots of hot guys with accents? Yes, please. 

Throw in an estranged mom, annoying new stepdad, and drooling baby half-brother, and it's a disaster even her favorite cherry red leather jacket can't fix. Even worse, there's (hot) live-in research assistant Josh to contend with. The only thing more embarrassing than drunk-kissing him hours after they meet? Knowing he'll be witness to her family's dysfunction all. summer. long.

But when Emma meets a mysterious girl who happens to be a Druid, her vacation suddenly promises to be far more intriguing than she anticipated. Powerful rituals, new friends, an intoxicating sense of freedom...and Simon, the sexy foreign stranger she was hoping for. It's all a perfect distraction from dirty diapers and awkward family dinners.

Trouble is, intriguing doesn't often mean simple. And Emma is about to discover just how not simple her life really is.

By Blood is a novel about the ways that blood can bind us to others - or tear us apart.
Wanna get away? Take a trip to Oxford and hang out with a couple of mysterious guys? Yes. Yes, you do.
This was such an intriguing book. I'm not sure if I should label it as YA contemporary or YA Paranormal because for me it was both. Emma is such a passionate character that everything she feels is right out there in the open for everyone to see. But as the drama unfolds she is faced with some pretty intense realizations that will change her forever.

Now the fun part about reading BY BLOOD is that there is a companion novel as well. YES! Two books for you to read!

If you love BY BLOOD you should definitely check out Tracy's newest, MOON CHILD.



Before Emma's adventures in Oxford, her best friend Diana came face-to-face with a killer...

Diana Calvert is so over high school. Who cares if Olivia hates her? And David needs to forget about having a crush on her STAT. Even Emma’s crazy fashion choices can’t keep Diana entertained. All she can hope for is a dance scholarship to a college as far away as possible from too-small, too-boring, too-nothing-ever-happens New Freedom, PA.

Then Diana meets Nicholas Woodhaven. He’s pale, angry…yet weirdly charming. The more time they spend together, the more she wonders who – or what – he really is. Because he isn’t anything like the other guys she knows. Not with the whole only-going-out-at-night thing. And living with his creepy aunt. And not going to school.

Just when Diana thinks she’s got Nicholas all figured out, people in her small, nothing-ever-happens town start dying. She has to wonder – can she trust him? And even more alarming – could she be next?

A murder mystery with a paranormal twist, Moon Child is best read under the covers with a flashlight...if you dare!

 This companion novel gives us a taste of Emma before her adventures in Oxford and introduces us to her best friend, Diana. 

 I have to say, this one is best read on a rainy night with some candles lit. It's spooky, romantic and it will keep you reading!
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See what the other Bookanistas are raving about this week!

Posted by Shari Arnold at 9:13 AM 0 comments

Thursday, August 22, 2013

BOOKANISTAS REVIEW: HYSTERIA By Megan Miranda


Sooo... scary really isn't my thing. I dig paranormal but I usually stay away from thrillers or any kind of novel that would throw the word horror into the description. But I had to read this one. I read Megan's debut novel, FRACTURE, a few years ago and loved it. She is definitely someone who keeps you on the edge or your seat. I wouldn't exactly describe HYSTERIA as a horror novel, but if they ever make it into a movie there will be a scene or two where I'll have to cover my eyes. Like, for real.
 Here's what Goodreads has to say:
 
Mallory killed her boyfriend, Brian. She can't remember the details of that night but everyone knows it was self-defense, so she isn't charged. But Mallory still feels Brian's presence in her life. Is it all in her head? Or is it something more? In desperate need of a fresh start, Mallory is sent to Monroe, a fancy prep school where no one knows her . . . or anything about her past. But the feeling follows her, as do her secrets. Then, one of her new classmates turns up dead. As suspicion falls on Mallory, she must find a way to remember the details of both deadly nights so she can prove her innocence-to herself and others.

In another riveting tale of life and death, Megan Miranda's masterful storytelling brings readers along for a ride to the edge of sanity and back again.

This book was intense. If you don't believe me check out the first few lines from chapter one: 

"My mother hid the knife block. In hindsight, that was the first sign. And then, two nights ago, she locked her bedroom door."

Like I said. Intense. The mood is set — dark and foreboding — and I was hooked. From the very beginning there is a feeling to this book. A sense that something isn't quite right. And yet I never doubted Mallory. I believed in her. And her best friend, Colleen. Everyone else? Not so sure.

I love the way Megan Miranda tells a story. She is poetic and real. Her first novel brought me to tears while I was riding on a train. And this one? Well... I didn't read it at night. That's for sure.

 If you're looking for an awesomely well done psychological thriller, this is it. It will keep you reading.
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See what the other Bookanistas are raving about this week!
Posted by Shari Arnold at 10:27 AM 0 comments
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