Simon Pulse Guest Post: Unhooked (Lisa Maxwell)

Title: UNHOOKED
Author: Lisa Maxwell
Release Date: February 2, 2016
Pages: 352
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Formats: Hardcover & eBook

From “talented wordsmith” (Publishers Weekly) Lisa Maxwell comes a lush, atmospheric fantasy novel filled with twists and turns about a girl who is kidnapped and brought to an island inhabited by fairies, a roguish ship captain, and bloodthirsty beasts.
For as long as she can remember, Gwendolyn Allister has never had a place to call home. Her mother believes they are being hunted by brutal monsters, and those delusions have brought them to London, far from the life Gwen had finally started to build for herself. Gwen’s only saving grace is that her best friend, Olivia, is with her for the summer.
But shortly after their arrival, the girls are kidnapped by shadowy creatures and dragged to a world of flesh-eating sea hags and dangerous Fey. And Gwen begins to realize that maybe her mother isn’t so crazy after all…
Gwen discovers that this new world she inhabits is called Neverland, but it’s nothing like the Neverland you’ve heard about in stories. Here, good and evil lose their meaning and memories slip like water through your fingers. As Gwen struggles to remember where she came from and tries to find a way home, she must choose between trusting the charming fairy-tale hero who says all the right things and the captivating pirate who promises to keep her safe.
Caught in the ultimate battle between good and evil, with time running out and her enemies closing in, Gwen is forced to finally face the truths she’s been hiding from all along. But can she save Neverland without losing herself?

Find it: 

Goodreads | Amazon | B&N |iBooks

Lisa Maxwell is the author of Sweet Unrest, Gathering Deep (Flux, Fall 2015) and Unhooked (Simon Pulse, Spring 2016). When she's not writing books, she's an English professor at a local college. She lives near DC with her very patient husband and two not-so patient boys.

Find Lisa:

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Hi, Beth! And thanks so much for having me on the blog today to recommend a YA Book.

I’ll be honest—this is was a difficult post to write, mostly because there are so many great books and picking one was really, really hard. But I finally decided on one that’s stayed with me for a while now—BONE GAP.

If your readers haven’t heard, it won the 2016 Printz award, so there are plenty of people who would agree that it’s a great book. I absolutely loved the writing in it—I’m a sucker for gorgeous, lyrical writing like you find in Laini Taylor or Nova Ren Suma’s work. It also has a twisty plot that keeps you guessing until the very last about what is actually going on in the story. 

The story of Finn, a boy who saw his brother’s girlfriend, Roza, taken. Everyone else in the town believes that the girl only ran off, because the boy can’t actually describe the person who took her. They all believe that he’s lying. As the story unfolds in a magical, unreal way, the reader also has to question whether Finn imagined the whole thing, or whether Roza really is waiting somewhere, waiting to be saved.

5 Star Review: Compulsion (Martina Boone)

Hardback, 320 pages
Expected publication: October 28th 2014 by Simon Pulse

ARC Provided by Publisher in Exchange for an Honest Review

Three plantations. Two wishes. One ancient curse.
When loss is all you know, how do you find true love?Beautiful Creatures meets The Body Finder in this spellbinding new trilogy.
All her life, Barrie Watson has been a virtual prisoner in the house where she lived with her shut-in mother. When her mother dies, Barrie promises to put some mileage on her stiletto heels. But she finds a new kind of prison at her aunt’s South Carolina plantation instead--a prison guarded by an ancient spirit who long ago cursed one of the three founding families of Watson Island and gave the others magical gifts that became compulsions.Stuck with the ghosts of a generations-old feud and hunted by forces she cannot see, Barrie must find a way to break free of the family legacy. With the help of sun-kissed Eight Beaufort, who knows what Barrie wants before she knows herself, the last Watson heir starts to unravel her family's twisted secrets. What she finds is dangerous: a love she never expected, a river that turns to fire at midnight, a gorgeous cousin who isn’t what she seems, and very real enemies who want both Eight and Barrie dead.

Pre-Order Links

Amazon * Barnes & Noble 

Martina Boone was born in Prague and spoke several languages before learning English. Her first teacher in the U.S. made fun of her for not pronouncing the "wh" sound right, so she set out to master "all the words”—she's still working on that! In the meantime she’s writing contemporary fantasy set in the kinds of magical places she'd love to visit. 
If you like romance dripping with mystery, mayhem, Spanish moss, and a bit of magic, she hopes you'll look forward to meeting Barrie, Eight, Cassie, Pru, Seven and the other characters of Watson Island.

Website * Twitter * Facebook 

Adventures in YA Publishing * Tumbler 

"Barrie shook her head. Now that she was here, she couldn't leave. Her aunt was undeniably strange,but Pru's features added up to familiarity, to family. And the house, while rundown was magnificent. It was Watson's landing. Lulu's history. Barrie's own history." 

OK...Seriously...this book is I N C R E D I B L E. I saw reviews about this book on Goodreads and could not wait to get my hands on it. I literally read this book in three days and it took my breath away. 

Compulsion is a compelling, emotional debut YA novel set in a Southern Gothic atmosphere and revolves around a young girl whose mother passes away and she is sent to live with her only surviving relative, her mother's sister Lulu in South Carolina. Barrie knows that her mother ran away years ago from her family home but does not know the reason why.

Barrie arrives at the plantation that is also known as Watson's Landing and immediately feels drawn to it. Watson's Landing is one of the first pieces of this amazing story that grabbed me immediately. I am from Alabama so I could immediately imagine the scenery and feel what Barrie was feeling when she first experiences the plantation. I could imagine the trees covered in moss and the river gurgling that surrounds the home. I felt as though I was right there with Barrie as she experienced Watson's Landing for the first time. 

Barrie moves to South Carolina with little information about her history and her family so she immediately begins to investigate and learn about her family. She has heard the stories about Watson's Landing that say it is cursed but doesn't know the details surrounding the myth. She searches the plantation to see if she can uncover any truth to the stories and find out the real reason why her mother left so many years ago and never came back. 

Barrie meets a young man named Eight and learns that he is also a part of the curse that surrounds Watson's Landing. Barrie has always known that she is gifted. She has a gift for finding things that are "lost". She feels drawn to items and is compelled to find the lost items. Little does Barrie know but Eight is also gifted and always seems to know what Barrie is thinking before she even speaks. Barrie and Eight begin to realize that they connected in a supernatural way and that the must work together to uncover the mystery that surrounds their families. I love Eight's character and his immediate need to protect Barrie and care for her. He always seems to be there just when she needs someone. 

So when Barrie first experiences the ancient spirit that cursed her family and lights the river on fire each night she is scared but also curious. She knows that somehow this spirit holds the key to the answers she is looking for. Barrie begins to ask questions and her questions draws the attention of enemies that want to harm both Eight and Barrie. This begins an incredible journey for Barrie and Eight and I was completely absorbed in each and every twist and turn...

"Not only was it strange to have anything lost at Watson's Landing, but also there was something strange about how and where things were lost. Why was the locked drawer the only pull of loss in the library?" 

I just cannot explain how intense this book is. I literally could not put the book down. Each chapter had a new unexpected surprise. The characters are so wonderfully written and just grab you and take hold. Compulsion took me on an intense and emotional roller coaster ride. The southern charm and atmosphere of the book was the perfect setting to go along with the mysteries surrounding Watson's Landing. 

I literally CANNOT wait to read the next book in the series! Fans of YA novels, swoony-worthy romance, and spell-binding mystery are absolutely going to fall in love with Compulsion. 

Martina Boone is a phenomenal writer and Compulsion has been the first book in a while that when I was through reading it....I was literally IN AWE...I wanted more...I wanted more of the amazing characters, the setting, and the mystery. I cannot wait to see what the future has in hold for Barrie and Eight and what other dangers they are going to face in the future.....

**The quotes from this book have been taken from an Advanced Reading Copy and are subject to change when the final book is printed. Please refer to the final, finished copy for exact quotes!**

Trailer Reveal & Giveaway: Compulsion (Martina Boone)

Welcome to the COMPULSION book trailer reveal & giveaway! I'm so honored and excited to be apart of today's reveal with author Martina Boone. Martina Boone is definitely one of my favorite authors and I just adore her. She has so much respect for bloggers and fans and takes time out of her busy day to respond to fan emails and messages. Authors like that make blogging absolutely worth it!!! Her er debut novel, Compulsion, is one of my favorite books of 2014. Before I share today's trailer reveal, be sure to read a little bit about the book, then watch the trailer, grab the key code below it and enter to win some amazing prizes!

Hardcover, 448 pages
Expected publication: October 28th 2014 by Simon Pulse

Beautiful Creatures meets The Body Finder in this spellbinding new trilogy.
Three plantations. Two wishes. One ancient curse.
All her life, Barrie Watson had been a virtual prisoner in the house where she lived with her shut-in mother. When her mother dies, Barrie promises to put some mileage on her stiletto heels. But she finds a new kind of prison at her aunt’s South Carolina plantation instead--a prison guarded by an ancient spirit who long ago cursed one of the three founding families of Watson Island and gave the others magical gifts that became compulsions.
Stuck with the ghosts of a generations-old feud and hunted by forces she cannot see, Barrie must find a way to break free of the family legacy. With the help of sun-kissed Eight Beaufort, who knows what Barrie wants before she knows herself, the last Watson heir starts to unravel her family's twisted secrets. What she finds is dangerous: a love she never expected, a river that turns to fire at midnight, a gorgeous cousin who isn’t what she seems, and very real enemies who want both Eight and Barrie dead.

Pre-Order Links

Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Indigo

Martina Boone was born in Prague and spoke several languages before learning English. She fell in love with words and never stopped delighting in them. She’s the founder of AdventuresInYAPublishing.com, a Writer’s Digest 101 Best Websites for Writers site, and YASeriesInsiders.com, a site devoted to encouraging literacy and all this YA Series.From her home in Virginia, where she lives with her husband, children, and Auggie the wonder dog, she enjoys writing contemporary fantasy set in the kinds of magical places she’d love to visit. When she isn’t writing, she’s addicted to travel, horses, skiing, chocolate flavored tea, and anything with Nutella on it.

Website | Blog | Tumblr | Facebook | Pinterest | Instagram | Twitter

MY KEYCODE:

WHNAKPP

Click here for the main giveaway page!!!!!

HERE’S HOW IT WILL WORK:

We’ll start with a set of prizes in the Compulsion Prize Vault. All giveaways are international.

You can grab a key code from one of the participating websites, and enter it in the Rafflecopter formon this page, or fill out the Google form to enter with additional key codes. We will combine entries from both forms to select winners.

Whichever form you complete, your mailing address will be required and will need to be correct. With this many prizes, we will not be able to email winners and wait for them to respond. We will not be responsible for lost or misdirected packages.

You’ll get extra points for adding Compulsion on Goodreads, joining the mailing list for future giveaways, and sharing the book trailer with your friends..

For each 300 views of the Compulsion book trailer on my YouTube channel before 10/1/14, we’ll randomly select winners for all the prizes in the Prize Vault and unlock new prizes at random from Prize Lockup. On 10/1/14, we’ll start unlocking additional prizes for pre-orders.

ALL prizes in both Prize Lockup and the Compulsion Prize Vault will be given away at random on or before 11/1/14. If we run out, I’ll add more to ensure that there will be a minimum of TEN book prize packs (mixed signed and unsigned) given away on 11/1/14, plus additional Compulsion swag.

Want to automatically be entered for ALL prizes left in both vaults? Every single one? 

Pre-order Compulsion.

Provide an order or receipt number when you enter, and we’ll automatically add you to EVERY giveaway from then on. Even if you’ve previously won, you will still be eligible for more prizes. So if you see a prize you want, go order Compulsion soon!

Interview & Giveaway: Compulsion (Martina Boone)

Hardback, 320 pages
Expected publication: October 28th 2014 by Simon Pulse

Three plantations. Two wishes. One ancient curse.
When loss is all you know, how do you find true love?
Beautiful Creatures meets The Body Finder in this spellbinding new trilogy.

All her life, Barrie Watson has been a virtual prisoner in the house where she lived with her shut-in mother. When her mother dies, Barrie promises to put some mileage on her stiletto heels. But she finds a new kind of prison at her aunt’s South Carolina plantation instead--a prison guarded by an ancient spirit who long ago cursed one of the three founding families of Watson Island and gave the others magical gifts that became compulsions.
Stuck with the ghosts of a generations-old feud and hunted by forces she cannot see, Barrie must find a way to break free of the family legacy. With the help of sun-kissed Eight Beaufort, who knows what Barrie wants before she knows herself, the last Watson heir starts to unravel her family's twisted secrets. What she finds is dangerous: a love she never expected, a river that turns to fire at midnight, a gorgeous cousin who isn’t what she seems, and very real enemies who want both Eight and Barrie dead.

Pre-Order Links

Amazon * Barnes & Noble 

Martina Boone was born in Prague and spoke several languages before learning English. Her first teacher in the U.S. made fun of her for not pronouncing the "wh" sound right, so she set out to master "all the words”—she's still working on that! In the meantime she’s writing contemporary fantasy set in the kinds of magical places she'd love to visit. 
If you like romance dripping with mystery, mayhem, Spanish moss, and a bit of magic, she hopes you'll look forward to meeting Barrie, Eight, Cassie, Pru, Seven and the other characters of Watson Island.

Website * Twitter * Facebook 

Adventures in YA Publishing * Tumbler 

What gave you the inspiration to write this book?

I wrote a short story for an anthology that ended up having some characters and history that I couldn’t stop thinking about, but it wasn't until I dreamed about a ball of fire drifting through the woods and setting a river aflame that I had the anchoring visual for the book. The rest all came from asking why the river was on fire and who was doing it, which involved a lot of research and brainstorming, and some twists that I’m still discovering. The history of Watson’s Landing is truly the history of the Charleston, SC area, and the real parts are no less amazing to me than the mythology I’ve stretched and bent to create the story. 

Who is your favorite character in the book?

Truthfully, I love them all for their good parts and their failings. I love Barrie’s naive first steps beyond her sheltered existence, and I love the strength she eventually finds in herself. I love Eight because, well, he’s Eight. I love Cassie because she’s got so much below the surface, and Pru because she has so much she has yet to discover about herself. Mark, though, was the character who came out of left field for me. He was supposed to have a small part, but he ended up sticking his size fourteen Louboutins in half the chapters. I love him immeasurably.

Which came first, the title or the novel?

A: The book has had three titles, and I love them all. My working title was FIRE CARRIER, and the reason for that is clear when you read the book. My brilliant acquiring editor, Annette Pollert, who edited the book all the way up to copyedits, came up with BEHOLDEN, which everyone loved, and that also suits the book perfectly. But COMPULSION fits several themes in the book and also conveys a sense of energy that I hope I've achieved in the plot. It's by far my favorite, and it carries through into the rest of the series.

What scene in the book are you most proud of, and why?

I have a lot of favorite scenes, but I love the first beach scene with the turtle nests and that first big jump in the romance between Eight and Barrie. That's followed closely by the fountain scene. And the sandbar scene where Barrie first gets a hint of her strength. And Mark. Any scene with Mark is my favorite. I have a few that I wish I could have put in the book. I may write them someday, just for fun.

Thinking way back to the beginning, what’s the most important thing you’ve learned as a writer from then to now?

I have two things. 

First, think bigger. My first manuscript was a rewrite of books I had read before done my way. But what I needed to write was a story that was wholly mine, and that came from always asking how could I do something differently, unexpectedly, and on a grander scale. 

Second, make your protagonist active. My first attempts at writing were based on things happening to the main character and her reacting to those things. In Compulsion, things happened, but I tried to make her decisions to those events active decisions. Right or wrong, she’s pushing the action instead of letting the action push her.

Here is the link to the main giveaway!! Click here and check it out and enter to win great prizes!!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway