Booksparks #PopUpBlogTour: The Midnights by Sarah Nicole Smetana

HI there!
Welcome back to Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.
Booksparks is at it again with another....



#PopUpBlogTour!


That's right!
It's time for another FABULOUS #PopUpBlogTour thanks to the wonderful folks at Booksparks who are eager to put YOU right there with the best of the best of recently released titles...or in this case, PRE-RELEASE titles!  That's right.  Today's Young Adult pick hits bookstore shelves THIS TUESDAY (03/06/18) via HarperTEEN, so at least once we stoke the fires of interest, you won't have that long to wait.  You're welcome.  ^-^  Anywho, let's get this party started as we introduce today's #PopUpBlogTour title... 

The Midnights

by

Sarah Nicole Smetana

9780062644626

HarperTEEN

About the book...

This voice-driven coming-of-age YA novel is perfect for fans of Katie Cotugno and Playlist for the Dead.

Susannah Hayes has never been in the spotlight, but she dreams of following her father, a former rock star, onto the stage. As senior year begins, she’s more interested in composing impressive chord patterns than college essays, certain that if she writes the perfect song, her father might finally look up from the past long enough to see her. But when he dies unexpectedly, her dreams—and her reality—shatter.

While Susannah struggles with grief, her mother uproots them to a new city. There, Susannah realizes she can reinvent herself however she wants: a confident singer-songwriter, member of a hip band, embraced by an effortlessly cool best friend. But Susannah is not the only one keeping secrets, and soon, harsh revelations threaten to unravel her life once again.

Set against the scintillating landscape of Southern California, The Midnights is an evocative coming-of-age debut about loss, creativity, and finding your voice while you’re still finding yourself.

IndieBound | Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble | Books-A-Million | Book Depository | Target

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This is a story about midnights...that mysterious time between morning and night that often gets wiled away as we slumber between the sheets.  That's the norm for most, but what if it wasn't?  What if during that magical in-between, where you have one foot in nighttime and one foot in morning, you were spending time with those you love, making memories to cherish, and impressions you'll need to hold on to all too soon? What if you were not only able to reach out to someone who is more desperately lost than they realize, but also continue the journey of finding your self?  THAT'S what this book is about.

Susannah had a tumultuous relationship with her parents, I mean what teen doesn't to some degree, but hers wasn't so much about HER but about HIM...her dad.  Once upon a time, he was a great rocker, but the free spirit and drive to the top also came with some pretty bad habits.  One ultimatum later and all that talent ended up on the sidelines, but so did most the dangers clinging to his back...until they weren't, leaving him for days in its manic grip and his loved ones on the outside looking in.  It wasn't always that way, and he did love his family, he just couldn't seem to balance the two all the time, and when tragedy struck, it threw things off kilter even more.  The spillover tapped into Susannah's spirit, leading her on a search for answers that just might never come, but it also brought her and her mother closer, removed the shroud over long kept secrets, and ultimately allowed her to spread her own wings and fly.

In the end, it was an interesting YA story about finding ourselves, giving ourselves room for error, and realizing that those bumps along the way go into making us who we are. No one is perfect, but it's what we do after the southward turn that shows our true character.

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About the author...

Sarah Nicole Smetana received her BFA in Creative Writing from Chapman University and her MFA in Fiction from the New School. Originally from Orange, California, she now lives in Brooklyn with her husband and their three-legged cat.

SITE  |  FACEBOOK  |  TWITTER  |  INSTAGRAM

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Special thanks to Leila at Booksparks and the HarperTEEN team for the chance to bring this title to you as well as the copy for review! (THANKS!) For more information on this title, the author, the publisher, or the promotion team, feel free to click through the links provided above. This title is set to hit bookstore shelves THIS TUESDAY, so pre-order your copy now or mark your calendar!

Until next time, remember...if it looks good, READ IT!



BLOG TOUR: Too Many Rock Stars by Candy J Starr

HI there!

Welcome back to Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.

Today, we're playing host to a stop along the Reading Addiction Book Tour promotion for a hot and spicy musically infused New Adult release that is definitely not one for younger readers.  *ahem*  We're not talking the big "E" but there's definitely more steam than blush.  So, my fair readers, I must ask.  ARE YOU READY TO ROCK?  *smirk*  Then here comes today's blog tour guest and ebook of choice...

Too Many Rock Stars

Access All Areas, Book 1

by

Candy J Starr

About the book...

I don’t date rockers. Don’t sleep with them. Don’t even swap spit. I’ve been working as a band booker at Trouble -- the coolest indie rock club in town -- long enough to know what a bunch of screwed up, egotistical jerks they are.

That would be fine if Razer didn’t keep popping into my office, making himself so annoyingly attractive. And he only gets more insistent when the mysterious, leather-clad Alex hits town.

While they compete for both rock glory and my affection, I get stuck in the middle but all I really want to do is save the club from financial ruin. That means I have to play along with their stupid games.

That’s the trouble with my life: too many rock stars.

AMAZON  |  B&N  |  ITUNES  |  KOBO

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Alrighty guys, first things first.  Seeing as I run a site that caters to a wide variety of readers and reading tastes, I must first impart these words of wisdom...

...this is not for the kiddos.  From the language (holy heck the LANGUAGE!) to the descriptions to some situational content, it's just meant for the adult reading audience as a whole.  Got it?  Okay...so you, over there trying to melt into the background because you're still a teenager, back away from the computer.  You'll have plenty of time to read whatever you wish once you've reached adulthood, kay?  Kay.  Now, moving on...

The thing I struggled with most was the LANGUAGE.  Yes, I realize I just mentioned it in the opening paragraph, but it needed mentioning again to ease my psyche.  I'm not talking about errors or what not, but the usage.  I'm an adult.  I get it, people can have potty mouths and everyone utters something south of pseudo-swearing once in a while, but man alive, these folks are working their way to Ice-T (in the movie Trespass_ levels at some points!  I seriously had to focus on just the story to push through this initial barrier, and you know what?  I'm glad I did.

I don't know about you, but I LOVE learning where the title fits into a story and in this one, we uncover it's origin early on.  (Plus!)  No, I'm not telling you what it is, but start to read it for yourself and you'll see, about 10 pages or so in, BOOM....explanation central...not that it was that mysterious. *ahem*  Anywho, where we have plenty of club life and room for rockin' musical interludes, we also have humorous alpha male showdowns as they jockey for position in Violet's bed/heart (hey, two fellas, two agenda...at least!), a secret about the club that's about to blow the lid off all their dreams, and some soul searching that's gonna uncover explosive results.  In short, the makings of a FAB story with alternating chapters that allow you to get to know each of the characters in a far amount of detail considering the shorter length of the work.  Speaking of those characters...

Violet is our kick butt leading lady.  She won't rock a mic thanks to a nasty past experience (take that as you will), but give her a club to fill, and stars to intro to the masses, and she'll knock your socks off.  Some things don't come down to strictly her own talent though, and I gotta say, I respected her for holding out on the competition despite it being the easy way out.  Hey, some things aren't able to be bought or bartered, a heart should be one of them.  As for our two dueling, guitar wielding dudes, Alex and Razer, I will say this...still waters run deep and sometimes those that you would least expect to blow your mind will in all the best ways possible.  I had my own first impressions of both fellas, Alex was all suave and devil-may-care, Razer spent WAY to much time with guitars (see approximately page 9) but seemed to have good intentions under the macho guy exterior, but in the end, there could be only one...and what a one it is!

To conclude, it was short and... okay, not so sweet (they are ROCK STARS!) but it had its moments and regardless of the crass verbiage/descriptions, or editorial misses, you'll be glued to the story like a groupie to a stage...I know I was.  One comment though...the series promises "no cliffhanger endings" which I totally like the sound of and yes, it is true for Violet's story, the intro to the next one shared on the final page left me SCREAMING for more... no cliffhangers but patootie!

Need a little more convincing?

Here's a sneak peek inside...

- - - - - - - - - - -

~~~ EXCERPT ~~~

Our bodies almost touched. I waited for him to try to kiss me again. I prepared to fight. I didn't want to kiss him. I didn't want him to make those kinds of moves. I sure didn’t want him to make me feel those kinds of feelings. Our breathing fell into time with each other. My heart still beat so hard. I wanted to move away from him but my legs had turned to jelly. From that ride on the back of the bike, of course. I'd been clenching my muscles so hard they no longer worked.

A bird squawked in the distance somewhere. The wind blew through the trees. The smell of eucalyptus filled the summer air. I stayed perfectly still. The moment drew out and he didn't move. He just stood beside me until my anticipation turned to disappointment.

I didn't want him to kiss me but he could at least try. Maybe he'd lost interest in me and only saw me as a friend. That's what I wanted. That's the only thing I wanted. So why did my heart feel like a big, heavy stone weighing me down? I couldn't handle this tension and walked away from the bike, my footsteps crunching on the gravel.

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About the author...

Candy J. Starr used to be a band manager until she realized that the band she managed was so lacking in charisma that they actually sucked the charisma out of any room they played. “Screw you,” she said, leaving them to wallow in obscurity – totally forgetting that they owed her big bucks for video equipment hire.

Candy has filmed and interviewed some big names in the rock business, and a lot of small ones. She’s seen the dirty little secrets that go on in the back rooms of band venues. She’s seen the ugly side of rock and the very pretty one.

But, of course, everything she writes is fiction.

SITE  |  TWITTER  |  FACEBOOK

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Special thanks to Cami at Reading Addiction Virtual Book Tours for the ebook for review and chance to bring this tour to you.  (THANKS!)  For more information on this title, the author, THIS TOUR, or those forthcoming, feel free to click through the links provided above.  This title is available now, so be on the lookout for it on a virtual shelf near you.

Until next time...ROCK ON...and happy reading!

^-^

One Helluva Gig by Kevin R. Doyle

HI guys and gals!

Welcome back to Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.

Today, we're going live a bit late but for a fairly valid reason...I didn't have a post pre-scheduled and it's my birthday so I was having a quiet day with the family.  Don't worry though, there was reading and now there will be blogging.  In honor of my day, I have chosen a novella length title for today's spotlight that features an aging (no jokes) rock star discovering that the path paved with platinum records and champagne isn't always what it's cracked up to be.  Ladies and gents, please join me as we welcome today's ebook of choice...

One Helluva Gig

by

Kevin R. Doyle

Vagabondage Press

About the book...

What if Elvis never left the building, but instead made a living as an impersonator of himself? 

“One Helluva Gig” chronicles several years of the life of newspaper reporter Frank Peters who comes to prominence through a series of associations with the major recording star, Rob Jeffers, who Peters first interviewed when Jeffers was still paying the college circuit. 

When Jeffers dies midway through his stratospheric career, Peters own career takes a downward spiral that ends with him working for a tabloid newspaper chasing years of supposed sightings of Jeffers, still alive. As Peters is sent once more to the middle of nowhere to investigate a Jeffers sighting, he discovers something unexpected - not only about the dead singer, but also about himself.

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Alright guys, so honesty wins as always with me.

It's not the most earth shattering of stories but it was moving nonetheless.  It's a quick and slighty crazy ride from start to finish but with life lessons you weren't expecting along the way.  The takeaway for me included several messages though, the likes of which I shall divulge now.  Let the lessons begin...

...be careful what you wish for - you never know that the rainbow you see is going to end in a pot of gold.  It may simply be a slide into the abyss, an evil leprechauns lair, or some other fated place.  The point is, no wish is perfect nor life without strife.  Rob Jeffers certainly didn't see that one coming when he started on his path to musical fame.

...the grass is not always greener on the other side - Peters saw this for himself.  He saw ups and downs in his own career and that of his "friend".  That third meeting with the man of the hour was rather emotional though not a tear was shed.  You could feel the precipice that Jeffers was standing on and despite the millions surrounding him, how much of an island he truly was...not the easiest pill to swallow.  I'm not sure what would be worse though, recognizing the loneliness or walking around oblivious to the truth?

...make the most of every moment - Peters didn't really execute this philosophy in his younger days but then again I respect him all the more for it.  Later in life he once again makes a judgment call that could change his career and while not the life altering decision you might anticipate, it showed his true character.  In the moment, those closing scenes, we see that "making the most" doesn't have to create chaos and scrambling; sometimes it's just realigning what we thought we knew into a more appealing light.

...and it is possible to be alone in a room full of people - again witnessed first hand by both gentleman time and again.  Jeffers had it all and yet he didn't; Peters could have tasted the same fame but chose not to.  Was either man better off for their decisions?  Maybe yes, maybe no.  One small change could have affected the whole outcome for them both but then again, if they never found peace within themselves, what would it have mattered?

In the end, while not a read for all, it's certainly a read for some.  It shows the power that music has to transform all of us.  It reminds us that every meeting, every moment can be monumental in its own right.  It tells us to never stop trying to be all that we seek to be even if it means upsetting the whole apple cart and starting again.  Recommended read for adult readers not for any questionable content but simply for the mindset of the story.

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About the author...

 A high school teacher and fiction writer living in central Missouri, Kevin R. Doyle has seen his short stories, mainly in the horror and suspense fields, published in over twenty-five small press magazines, both print and online. In 2012 his first e-book, a mainstream novelette titled One Helluva Gig, was published by Vagabondage Press. 

     Doyle earned a B.A. in English and an M.A. in communications from Wichita State University. He teaches English and public speaking at a high school in rural Missouri and has taught English, journalism and Spanish at a number of community colleges in both Kansas and Missouri.   

    In January of 2014, The Group, a suspense novel concerning political advertising and serial murder, was published in e-book form by Barbarian Books and February of 2015 will see the publication of his new horror/suspense novel, The Litter, by Night to Dawn Magazine and Books.

SITE    |    FACEBOOK

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Special thanks to author Kevin R. Doyle for the ebook for review.  (THANKS!)  For more information on this title, the author, or the publisher, feel free to click through the links provided above.  This title is available now, so be on the lookout for it on a virtual shelf of your choosing.

Until next time...happy reading!