Porcelain Keys Blog Tour - A Review and an Interview!

All right everyone. Today I want to tell you about a fabulous book that will induce all the feels by a great new contemporary YA author, Sarah Beard.

First let me tell you about the book:

Porcelain Keys
By Sarah Beard

Aria's life is full of secrets--secrets about her mother's death, her father's cruelty, and her dream to go to Juilliard. When Aria meets Thomas, he draws out her secrets, captures her heart, and gives her the courage to defy her father. But when tragedy strikes and Thomas disappears, Aria is left alone to transform her broken heart's melody into something beautiful. Porcelain Keys is a captivating love story that will resonate long after the last page is turned. (description from author website)

Wow. This book was great. Lyrical, haunting, and like I said...all the feels.  Poor Aria has no way to escape the father that scares her. No way to embrace the music that brings her joy.  No true hope for the future...until Thomas.  Then when another tragic accident happens, Thomas suddenly disappears from her life and Aria finds herself broken again.  Even the music that's come back into her life may not be able to help her find solace.

So, without spoiling things for you, I will say that when I finished reading this book, all I could think was how I'd had a very similar experience when I read both Jennifer Donnelly's Revolution and John Green's The Fault in Our Stars. The emotionally-laden mix of happy moments and tragic scenes that left me with tears trailing down my face as I just kept turning pages because I COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN. 

Touching on child abuse, abandonment, alcoholism, depression, and grief, you would think that this book would just be one sad, tortured moment after the next, and yet the music that infused the story, coupled with some heady romance brought such a sense of hope that I knew Aria would somehow make it through it all. Taking the journey with her was a heady thing. 

I can't wait to read Sarah Beard's next book to see what she does next! 

And now, here's a quick interview with Sarah Beard herself!

1. How long did it take from first spark of idea to final proofs to write Porcelain Keys?

Too long! I wrote the first scene in summer 2007 and finished my final round of revisions in November 2012. I loved the story and characters so much that I wanted to tell it right. So I took the time to learn and develop my writing craft, and by the time the book was finished I think I’d rewritten it at least three times. I also took a year off while going through cancer treatment, and another six months while renovating a house. Plus, with three little kids and a part-time job, I usually only got in one or two hours of writing per day. So I like to say that technically, it took two years. It makes me feel better when I look at it that way.

*Life. Always gets in the way, doesn't it? I have massive respect for anyone that can handle it all and still produce great things.  And congrats again on beating the cancer!*

2. If you could write a book under a pseudonym that no one would ever connect to you, are there any genres you would love to secretly explore?

I have a lot of bizarre science fiction ideas, premises that my current audience might not be receptive to. But they are definitely concepts I’d like to explore someday. Of course they all involve a little bit of romance too. I don’t think I could write a story without someone falling in love. Whenever I read a book without romance, I think, “This would have been so much better if Sally and David had fallen in love.”

3. If you could cross one thing off your bucket list tomorrow, what would it be?

Hitting the NYT bestseller list, then celebrating by taking my family to Scotland. 

*Oooh! That's on my bucket list, too, LOL.*

4. Quick picks list:
Favorite vacation destination?

Isle of Skye, Scotland.
I went there with some friends before I met my husband, and it is the most beautiful, magical place I’ve ever been. It’s also where my ancestors are from, which is probably why it felt so magical to me.

Favorite childhood book?

Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell.

Favorite writing snackfood?

Anything chocolate will do, but chocolate-covered almonds seem to give me extra brain power.

Favorite clothing item?

Sweaters. I’m always cold for some reason.

*Ugh, me too. This winter's been hard!*

5. What's next on your writing horizons?
I’m working on another young adult romance right now. I don’t want to say too much about it, but it’s set on a California beach and involves chocolate, surfing, and supernatural elements. I also have detailed outlines for two more after that, both young adult romances.

I'm so excited to hear about more books in the works! I know that I'll be checking them out.  Thank you SO much Sarah, for taking the time to stop by my blog today.  It was great having you and I truly loved Porcelain Keys!

For more information about Sarah Beard, you can check out the following places:

Her website

Her Facebook

Her twitter account 

Please Ignore Vera Dietz

Please Ignore Vera Dietz
by A. S. King

Vera’s spent her whole life secretly in love with her best friend, Charlie Kahn. And over the years she’s kept a lot of his secrets. Even after he betrayed her. Even after he ruined everything.

So when Charlie dies in dark circumstances, Vera knows a lot more than anyone—the kids at school, his family, even the police. But will she emerge to clear his name? Does she even want to? (Description from Amazon.com) 

Okay, I give you this review full of trepidation.  Why, you ask? Well, not only have I been recommended A.S. King's books by, well, just about every librarian I know, but this book in particular has been lauded over and over.  It won a Printz Honor and has made COUNTLESS award nomination lists.  One of my librarian friends (Heather, you know who you are!) actually grew up with A.S. King and has been hounding me because I'd never read any of her books.  

So, what's the problem? ...the book didn't really do it for me. *braces for shouting and slapping* 

I liked it...mostly, but I in no way experienced the deep love that I had been anticipating.  I have no idea of that's in part due to the high bar I set for the book or because I listened to it on audio, so couldn't completely immerse myself in Vera in the fifteen minutes here and there that I was listening... I just didn't get it.  

I found Vera to be a very real and fully formed character. I liked the storyline and thought that it was very thoughtful...but I was never "wowed." 

I am hoping to pick up ASK THE PASSENGERS soon. I've heard again that this is a stellar book, so hopefully that one will hit me the right way. If not, I guess it may be that A.S. King's books aren't for me. We'll have to see... 

Full disclosure: Audio book borrowed from my Library

Wonder Show

Wonder Show 
by Hannah Barnaby

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, step inside Mosco’s Traveling Wonder Show, a menagerie of human curiosities and misfits guaranteed to astound and amaze! But perhaps the strangest act of Mosco’s display is Portia Remini, a normal among the freaks, on the run from McGreavy’s Home for Wayward Girls, where Mister watches and waits. He said he would always find Portia, that she could never leave. Free at last, Portia begins a new life on the bally, seeking answers about her father’s disappearance. Will she find him before Mister finds her? It’s a story for the ages, and like everyone who enters the Wonder Show, Portia will never be the same. (description from Amazon.com) 

Okay, okay...the girl who vowed never to read circus-themed books again must change her tune... I really enjoyed this one! I liked the historical setting and the gentle way that the "freaks" are part of the story.  They each have their own issues, both physical and emotional, but they are not as blatantly "freaky," I guess you would say, as they would be in an adult book.  I loved seeing how while Portia was at first overwhelmed and intimidated by their presence, she came to appreciate them all and be folded into part of their family. In fact, I loved Portia's determination to create her own fate and to find a family, even if eventually it's not her birth family.   

I thought this book had a great tone.  Historical, yet completely relatable in theme, with a strong main character.  I can't wait to see what Barnaby writes next... 

Full disclosure: Borrowed from my Library

Raven Summer

Raven Summer
by David Almond

Liam and his friend Max are playing in their neighborhood when the call of a bird leads them out into a field beyond their town. There, they find a baby lying alone atop a pile of stones—with a note pinned to her clothing. Mystified, Liam brings the baby home to his parents. They agree to take her in, but police searches turn up no sign of the baby’s parents. Finally they must surrender the baby to a foster family, who name her Allison. Visiting her in Northumberland, Liam meets Oliver, a foster son from Liberia who claims to be a refugee from the war there, and Crystal, a foster daughter. When Liam’s parents decide to adopt Allison, Crystal and Oliver are invited to her christening. There, Oliver tells Liam about how he will be slaughtered if he is sent back to Liberia. The next time Liam sees Crystal, it is when she and Oliver have run away from their foster homes, desperate to keep Oliver from being sent back to Liberia. In a cave where the two are hiding, Liam learns the truth behind Oliver’s dark past—and is forced to ponder what all children are capable of. (description from Amazon.com)

I had a really hard time with this book. It's short and easy to read, so it wasn't a comprehension thing, really...it was that I had no connection with the characters. I would latch on to one piece of the plot and then the author would switch focus to a totally different aspect of what was going on...it was disjointed and I just couldn't make heads or tails of the real point of the book.

It was not the right book for me.

Waiting For Normal

Waiting for Normal
by Leslie Connor

Addie is waiting for normal. But Addie's mother has an all-or-nothing approach to life: a food fiesta or an empty pantry, her way or no way. All-or-nothing never adds up to normal, and it can't bring Addie all to home, where she wants to be with her half sisters. But Addie never stops hoping that one day, maybe, she'll find normal. (description taken from Amazon.com)

This book touched my heart. I really loved it and highly recommend it to everyone. Addie is one of those characters that you just root wholeheartedly for, and just cannot wait to see finally succeed. I laughed, I cried, I hooted with joy...I went through the emotional wringer and came out the other side amazingly happy.

Addie is left to take care of herself all too often. She has mastered the art of "toast meals." Concoctions that often involved toast with heated soup poured over the top because that was all that could be found in the pantry. (As much as it pained me to think of this little girl making toast dinners, as she described them I would find my mouth watering...) She misses her mother when she goes out to "job interviews," she misses her step-father and half sisters who now live without her, but what's amazing about Addie is even through her realistic life view...she shines with hope.

This is a girl that just will not let life get her down. Sure, she has her moments, I, for one could hardly blame her!, but she never stays upset for long. She has learned to take in the good in every situation and not only keeps plugging along, but draws others into her happy circle.

Without a doubt, Addie is one of my favorite characters ever.