The Truth About You And Me by Amanda Grace

* * * * 1/2

Madelyn Hawkins is super smart. At sixteen, she's so gifted that she can attend college through a special program at her high school. On her first day, she meets Bennet. He's cute, funny, and kind. He understands Madelyn and what she's endured - and missed out on - in order to excel academically and please her parents. Now, for the first time in her life, she's falling in love.

There's only one problem. Bennet is Madelyn's college professor, and he thinks she's eighteen - because she hasn't told him the truth.

The story of their forbidden romance is told in letters that Madelyn writes to Bennet - both a heart-searing ode to their ill-fated love and an apology.

I was taken with Amanda Grace last year after I read But I Love Him, a blunt look at an abusive relationship told through the eyes of the victim.  That book was an absolute stunner. So when the opportunity came along to read The Truth About You And Me, I knew perfectly well that I’d be placing my trust in her once again to take me to that very edge where the characters are teetering on self-destruction before they finally reel themselves back in.

At first glance, Madelyn doesn’t strike you as a delinquent. Her excellent grades, model behavior and responsible nature would lead anyone to believe that she has it all together. That is far from the truth. Madelyn feels the mounting pressure from her parents’ high expectations to surpass even their own achievements. She has endured this quietly throughout high school. When she begins the Running Start program as a high school student taking college level courses, she seizes the opportunity of a being in a different environment to rebel against those expectations.

The trouble starts when she arrives at her biology class and meets her teacher Bennet and they experience one of those "instant connection" moments. There on out Madelyn engages in a dangerous game. On a chance meeting outside of the classroom, Bennet assumes that she is 18 and she allows him to think so. The sequence of events is mapped out through letters Madelyn writes after an unfortunate turn of events. Through these letters, you can follow her as she weaves her first lie and then each lie thereafter. The thing is, she is perfectly aware of what she’s doing and why.

Let me say that I love that this book is in letter format. It made the story even more personal. The letters manage to root through all the emotions to arrive at the motivations behind the actions or the impulses.  I was able to understand Madelyn’s mindset. I was dragged in but not dragged down.  A lot of her issues stem from her parents’ high expectations and no room for failure attitude. With Bennet the irony is that she feels more like herself even though she’s being dishonest with him. They do develop a friendship that’s cozy and reliable with both of them counting down the days til they can officially be together. 

I’ll tell you what, throughout the letters, Madelyn keeps hinting at that day when everything fell apart and as I got closer to that point, I grew more and more uneasy. My imagination was all over the place wondering what on earth could have happened. Did someone walk in on them? Did she let slip something? Did he see her at her high school? I couldn’t wait to find out yet at the same time I wanted to remain in that happy little bubble that Madelyn and Bennet had created.  I swear I could feel my heart thumping madly. But that’s great storytelling when you’re drawn in and can feel that clock ticking to the penultimate moment.

So how did I feel after I was finished? I felt a myriad of emotions from sadness to anger to happiness, to disappointment and finally I felt relief. Considering how this one stayed with me the rest of the day after I’d finished it, I’m quite certain that The Truth About You and Me will be in the running for my Top 10 of 2013!

~ Bel

Demon Eyes Blog Tour - Scott Tracey Guest Post and Giveaway!

Today is our stop on the Demon Eyes Blog Tour!

 

Demon Eyes (released October 8, 2012) is the second book in the Witch Eyes Trilogy.  We are celebrating the release of Demon Eyes with an awesome guest post by author Scott Tracey and a giveaway of Witch Eyes AND Demon Eyes!   

Scott Tracey is the author of Witch Eyes and the newly released Demon Eyes.  Phantom Eyes, the last installment in the Witch Eyes trilogy ,will be released in the fall of 2013.  The first book in Scott's new Moonset series will be released April 8, 2013

We have been following Scott on Twitter almost as long as Bibliojunkies has been in existence.  In addition to some wonderful fun and snark, our favorite Scott Tracey tweets have been those that contain the hashtag #actualhouseconversations.  Scott has graciously agreed to share with us the history and hilarity of these conversations and at the same time makes us wish that we could hang out with him and his friends. 

DON'T TWEET THAT!
by: Scott Tracey

So for those of you who don’t know, Leah Clifford and I started this game a few years ago on Twitter, called #actualhouseconversations. Basically, what we would do is take our actual conversations out of context and tweet them. Because there are so many times where we say things, and one of us realizes just how that sentence sounds out of context. Here’s a few examples:

 

"You can wiki-wiki-wiki down the stairs." #actualhouseconversations
 

“I think you’ll feel much better after you have some sleep. Or slaughter.” #actualhouseconversations
 

“Stop tazing your boyfriend!” #actualhouseconversations

 

And my personal favorite:
 

“Don’t tweet that!!!” (which gets said ALL THE TIME around my house – and basically just ensures that whatever it is WILL get tweeted).

This is actually something that started between Leah and I almost *mumbles an inarticulate number* years ago at college. We’d randomly hear things that people were saying, and be captured by the beauty of the sentence, and be forced to write it down for posterity. We had sheets of legal paper filled, both sides, with these choice quotes, many of which are not safe for work. ;)

Unfortunately, not many of those overheard quotes are fit for public consumption (mostly because many of them aren’t PG-13), so I can’t give you many of them, but here’s one memorable one.

“Wow, it looks like someone sneezed in your pile of blood!”
 

Which honestly is just better out of context.

Anyway, it’s something we’ve done on and off for years. It’s probably one of the best games we have, next to “the best band name ever” in which random phrases are always deemed“the best band name ever.” A bonus #actualhouseconversation for you. We were staying at a friend's lake house, and got to talking about horror movies or something, and someone said, "Now is not the time for lake house slaughter." And then the other one said, "Lake House Slaughter would be the best band name ever." And thus, two weird games were born.
 

So there you have it, the origin of the #actualhouseconversation. Just know that we’re not actual crazy people, we just have crazy conversations. ;)

Scott Tracey

 

Thanks for stopping by, Scott!  We will be keeping an eye out for more crazy #actualhouseconversations on Twitter :-) 

 

As part of this tour, we are giving away a copy of both Witch Eyes and Demon Eyes to one lucky winner.  You know the drill.  Just fill out the Rafflecopter form below.  This giveaway is open to US Residents only.
 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Demon Eyes by Scott Tracey

* * * * 1//2

Demons don't die without a fight...

After destroying the demon Lucien, Braden—son of Belle Dam’s most powerful warlock, Jason Thorpe—doesn’t need the power of his witch eyes to see that everything in his life is turning against him: friends, family, and even his visions. When disturbing nightmares of Lucien’s return haunt him, Braden discovers that the simmering feud between the city’s two witch dynasties is fast approaching its explosive boiling point.

While struggling to come to terms with his attraction to Trey, Catherine Lansing’s son who should be his mortal enemy, a diabolical plan starts to unveil before Braden’s eyes. Young women are disappearing from Belle Dam, and as he investigates, Braden is forced to explore the dangerous unknown power within himself. But when the truth about his family is revealed, Braden must pay a terrible price. 

When I reviewed Witch Eyes, I listed what I loved and didn’t love about the story.  But Demon Eyes?  I honestly can’t think of a single thing I didn’t like.  Scott Tracey really outdid himself this time.  Braden’s story continues with more action and strengthened characters which in turn gave me a story that I couldn’t put down.   

The cast of characters really won me over this time around.  If you have ever read a review of mine you will know that characters, more than anything, are what really draw me into a book.  Braden reminded me a lot of Sam Winchester from the show Supernatural.  If you have ever watched it you will understand how I can say Braden is quite angsty, a bit of a martyr and yet, at the same time, so stinkin’ loveable.  Everything he does (even when it seems misguided) is done to protect him and those that he loves. Yeah, Braden is a keeper and is quickly working his way to the Forever Boy list. 

Braden’s friends (a relative term in some cases) provide a lot to this story. My favorite this time around was Drew.  We met Drew in Witch Eyes but he plays a bigger role now that he is the only person that will openly be friends with Braden.  He is an unlikeable jerk (his usual MO) but his snark perfectly balances out the angst.   

I complained about two things when I reviewed Witch Eyes.  The first was the adults – Catherine and Jason.  I was frustrated that even at the end of Witch Eyes I knew so little about them.  But by the end of Demon Eyes I had an understanding of what made Catherine tick and what her role is in the story.  Jason was somewhat non-existent in this installment but I think we are going find out a lot more about him in Phantom Eyes and I am looking forward to it.  Just goes to show me that I need to be patient.  It’s not like I can get all the answers at once, right?   

The 2^nd thing I didn’t like in Witch Eyes was Braden’s love interest, Trey.  He came across as a controlling jerk and I didn’t feel like he was good enough for the very gentle Braden.  I want to give a huge thank you to Mr. Tracey for making me like Trey this go around.  He is still kind of a jerk…in the beginning.  But through the story you see Trey struggle with where his loyalties lie.  By the end of the book I was actually hoping that Trey and Braden would get their happily ever after.  Did they?  Yeah, like I am going to tell.  I will tell you this.  Scott Tracey yet again proves his ability to write a page-smoldering kiss.   

I enjoyed Witch Eyes.  But Demon Eyes?  I LOVED Demon Eyes.  It’s an angry sort of love, though.  Because I now have to wait another year before reading the conclusion of Braden’s story in Phantom Eyes.  Damn you, Flux! Couldn’t you put it out earlier? 

 

 

Nat

I Am (Not) The Walrus by Ed Briant

* * * 

Available July 8, 2012

As the singer and bass player for Lucky Twenty, a Beatles cover band, Toby wants to make it big. But Zach, Toby’s friend and fellow band member, is convinced there’s a problem: Toby’s utter lack of mojo. How can he croon about love when he’s never even kissed a girl?

So begins Toby’s quest for cred as a lovestruck singer. But his quest derails when he finds a note inside his old bass guitar. Who is the true owner of the bass? And can a kiss really help Toby figure out who he is?

What a delightful and uncomplicated read! When you’ve read one too many dystopian novels, it’s a refreshing change of pace to come across something where the biggest decision is agreeing on the band’s name that changes from day to day. 

Toby’s problems are pretty normal: prepping for his band's first gig as a Beatles cover band, trying to impress a very confusing girl and a possible move out of town which would mean the end of the band. However, his biggest dilemma becomes whether or not to keep his beloved p bass guitar after he comes across a hidden note within it. From the note he surmises that his older brother most likely stole the bass.  His decision to dig into the history of his p bass has him running into some interesting characters.

Being a huge Beatles fan myself (especially of the early stuff), how could I not enjoy this book? Toby is very likable – his self-deprecating sense of humor had me laughing out loud several times. I really got a kick out of how he would analyze his various situations and his clueless moments were funny!  In fact, the tone of this book reminded me quite a bit of Nick Hornby’s “Slam” which I also liked very much. 

I think if you’re someone who appreciates dry humor you’ll enjoy this charming story that will not only have you giggling but also thanks to Ed Briant, have a few Beatles tunes running through your head.

~ Bel