'Be Careful What You Witch For' by Thomas Hoobler

*This review will contain spoilers!* 

First things first, I need to say a huge thank you to Booktrope, for allowing me to view this title on NetGalley, and to NetGalley for the service that they provide.

I was actually really excited to read 'Be Careful What You Witch For', because I read Thomas Hoobler's 'Come Sit By Me' last year and really enjoyed it. 'Come Sit By Me' was a contemporary based on a school shooting, so I thought I'd like this magical novel even more.
However, I ended up hating it. Olivia is the stuck-up daughter of two movie stars, and when they go overseas to film a movie she ends up going to New York to stay with her Aunt Tilda (Aunt Tilda, who is an awful lot like Aunt Hilda from 'Sabrina the Teenage Witch'...).
First things first, Olivia's a racist. She lands in New York, takes one look at the taxi driver and observers 'he was wearing a turban and some kind of long striped shirt and baggy pants that made Olivia think of terrorists' - great way to really reinforce some degrading stereotypes. She then encounters another taxi driver, René, and comments 'he had an accent that Olivia thought sounded French, though of course he couldn't be French' because - you probably guessed it - René is black. And it's completely unbelievable to have a black Frenchman, isn't it?
Secondly, Olivia's a homophobe. She makes a friend called Paul, and when she finds out he likes men she's understandably shocked. When she discovers the power of spell-casting and Wicca, she contemplates whether she can change Paul into a 'real boy' and then there's 'a daydream she was having - trying to decide whether she would dump Alex if Paul turned into a real boy'.
This sickens me. I was already utterly bored by the book, but this little section is what really pushed me over into the I DESPISE THIS BOOK WITH ALL OF MY GODDAMNED BEING. Being gay does not make you less of a real person. You shouldn't fantasize about what it would be like to date your gay friend if you turned him straight. Yes, Olivia doesn't end up going through with it (only because Paul completely dismisses it and tells her she should like him for who he is - she doesn't even decide by herself that it's wrong!) but the fact that it was included... It's just disgraceful. This is the 21st Century, and attitudes have changed enough that this kind of thing shouldn't make it into books that get published - it's discriminatory, dismissive and, quite frankly, homophobic. If she had gone through with it, it would have been as bad as using exposure therapy in mental asylums.
Even dismissing that irritant, this book was bad.
Olivia moves to New York, where she's surrounded by mysterious things happening. She's fourteen, but she's never heard of reincarnation, or levitation, or pretty standard witchy things that most girls of fourteen would have at least encountered in books or on TV by that point of their lives. This means it's extremely unrealistic (I'd go so far as to say you could tell it was written by a male, but there are a lot of male authors who can write female characters well... It just feels as though the author didn't particularly put in a lot of research for this book).
More things that make it unrealistic? Well, other than the fact that it seems as though Olivia's never encountered a gay man before - come on, her parents are Hollywood movie stars, she really should be a bit more open-minded about things! - she also gets very upset when the girl at school she hates doesn't invite her to her party (okay, this wouldn't happen - it's so unbelievable, because no one expects to be invited to the party of their sworn nemesis) and she's extremely rude to most of her classmates as soon as she joins the school, not giving them a chance to show her their personalities but just being instantly judgmental of their looks (for example, her school guide is Muffin, and the first thing she says to her is "You could get contacts, you know". No one is that horrible on their first day at a new school).
There's a lot of generic teen worries about school and friends and boys, but there's not a lot of magic until the last half of the book. Aunt Tilda tries to keep things on the down low, but her next door neighbour Eva delights in teaching Olivia how to cast spells. This would have been better if there had been more interactions between them (and less of a focus on the kinds of teas that Eva was serving) but the magic is so scattered throughout the first half of the book that it's not cohesive in the slightest.
The relationship between Olivia and Alex was bordering on abusive: she places a spell on him to make him fall in love with her, then proceeds to spend his money and order him to do things that he's uncomfortable with throughout the entirety of the novel. She insists that she's not thinking of him as a familiar, then three pages later tells herself 'He's my familiar' to somehow make her attitude towards him completely acceptable.
They still end up together at the end of the novel, even after she takes the spell off of him, which I assume is supposed to show us that he was truly in love with her and the magic didn't cause that much of a change in him. However, when you consider the fact that Olivia states "I don't really love him, but it was nice to think somebody loved me", it makes you feel very sorry for Alex - she's using him, so if he genuinely does have feelings for her it's even worse.
I just thought his portrayal was very stereotypical (hottest guy in school with no brain cells) and the fact that Olivia thought throughout that she 'wanted to dump him entirely, but he was too useful'... No.
The ending is rushed, with Olivia thinking it's a super smart idea to summon seven demons to roam the school "until all within it are deceased" - it really hits home what a self-obsessed and immature child she really is. It also doesn't make much sense: she summons the demons, but for some reason all of the people in the school get turned into animals? What sense does that make? There's no explanation for why there was this side effect, so it just left me with a huge question mark hanging over my head. The story is left open to allow a potential second book: all I can say is PLEASE GOD NO.
I'm not even judging this book so harshly because I don't like the characters (well, I don't, but sometimes I hate all of the characters and still really love the book e.g. 'The Great Gatsby') it's just that I don't think it was written well. The characters were very weak and the interactions between them were so simple and stereotypical that I felt as though I'd read this book many times before. There wasn't even really a plot line, because the focus switched from high school drama to magical disaster extremely quickly, and then was wrapped up in record time... It just didn't really give you a chance to get into the story. There was nothing new or unique to add to the witch mythology, so I just wish it had been left alone.
I could go on but, quite frankly, I don't want to. If you like witches, you might like this book - all of the other reviews I've seen are raving about how good it is - but if you hate racism and homophobia I would shy away from this one. 

'The Girl's Guide To The Apocalypse' by Daphne Lamb

First things first, I need to thank Booktrope for inviting me to participate in this blog tour! I'd also like to thank them for allowing me to access a copy of this book through NetGalley, and to thank NetGalley for the service that they provide. 

*This review will contain spoilers!*

I've never been disappointed in a Booktrope release, so it saddens me to say that I really, really disliked 'The Girl's Guide To The Apocalypse'. I was very excited about this one after participating in the cover reveal way back in July, but I ended up not enjoying it at all. 

I'm afraid I just really didn't like Daphne Lamb's writing style. Writing comedy is difficult, because there's a very thin line between great comedy writing and average regular narrative. At points, this book was humourous (by this I mean I enjoyed one or two of the one-liners) but for the majority of the novel it just fell short. It was attempting to be a parody, twisting aspects of multiple apocalyptic stories into one to create a smorgasbord of end of the world drama, but it just felt ill thought out and badly prepared.

Because there was so much focus on shoving as many events into the novel as humanely possibly, it meant that the characters were hardly described at all and had no personalities. If you ask me what Verdell Sonobe looks like, I can tell you she's wearing a Batman t-shirt and a UCLA sweatshirt (because, apparently, clothing associates you with gang leaders at the end of the world) but I couldn't give you a hair colour or a definitive description... Apart from the fact that everyone seems to be calling her fat. Given the fact that the other characters surrounding her are constantly complaining about their carb intakes, I'm assuming she's just a regular sized girl surrounded by irregular sized women - it just makes Verdell even more nondescript, apart from her unusual name. 

I mean, yes, Verdell had a personality, if only because we're in her head and are constantly receiving her bitterly complaint-filled internal monologue. That's more than I can say for the other characters, who were flat and one-dimensional, but Verdell's personality was so gratingly irritating that I sincerely wished that she would hurry up and succumb to her inevitable end. I know that the point of this book was that the survivor is lazy and unenthused by the whole "survival" thing, but I just assumed it was a selling point - disastrous, regular person survives apocalypse, so you can too! - and she would end up becoming a better character... Really, she didn't change at all throughout. 

The ensemble of various other characters are just as bad, if not worse. Somehow they keep splitting up and getting pushed back together again, which is logistically impossible in a situation like this, but even if I suspend my disbelief in this aspect I still can't believe how idiotic the characters were. This was because the humour wasn't coming across well - some of the idiotic comments were supposed to be hilarious, but they were just eye-rollingly cringey. It might have been okay if I'd actually liked some of the characters, but because there were so many popping in and out it was impossible to feel a connection with any of them. 

Verdell constantly thinking about how to break up with her boyfriend, her boss constantly telling her to do work-related things for him, her self-obsessed supervisor constantly getting her name wrong... These could have been hilarious, if they'd been executed in a good way. Alas, none of it worked. 

This is the first book that I've read in a completely neutral state. I had feelings of boredom and exasperation at times, sure, but that was with the writing rather than with the characters. It's quite badly constructed and it plods along - Verdell will jump from doing one thing to another thing to another thing, and the amount of dialogue included means that there's hardly any description to set a convincing end of the world scene. We get some generic mentions of crumbling cityscapes, but there's nothing specific to evoke emotion and really invest you in the characters. Yes, I read the entire book, but I didn't feel happy or sad or angry or shocked throughout... It seemed like too many things were included just to evoke a shock from the audience (such as the multiple appearances from cannibals, the multiple deaths of named characters and the multiple random gunshots ripping through the various camps where our protagonist stays) but because there was too much trying to get a reaction, it completely desensitised me to any reaction. 

I will concede to this, however - Daphne Lamb is brilliant at social commentary. Having a survivor scouring a dating app looking for fellow survivors might seem ludicrous, but it's one of the easiest ways to find people near you that you could potentially shelter with... It terrifies me to think that during an apocalypse this could genuinely become a thing, but it's scarily accurate. 

I'm not saying you won't like this book, because you might - I think it just takes a more childish sense of humour, or a more easily entertained mind. Someone else might find this the funniest book of all time, it just wasn't to my taste. The idea was great, but I think I'm going to have to look elsewhere for my sardonic apocalypse tales. 

GUEST POST: Melanie Surani (+ review of 'The Silent Treatment')

I'm so excited to welcome Melanie Surani, author of 'The Silent Treatment', to my blog today. I've been extremely excited about this one since I participated in the cover reveal last month, so it only seemed right to combine my review with lovely lovely Melanie's guest post. So, without further ado: 

Twenty-eight year old Katrina Jaitley is rebuilding her life after escaping an abusive boyfriend. The last thing she needs is the mystery she stumbles on during a bout of retail therapy. But she can't ignore the coil of film -- a piece of movie history -- she finds hidden inside her purchase. Unfortunately, Peter, the handsome host of the estate sale, disappears before Kat has a chance to return it to him. 

Curious, Kat watches the strip and is shocked to witness the brutal murder of a famous 1920's silent film star by a fellow actor. When a news article cites Kat as the film's owner, her already complicated life goes from bad to worse. Someone is stalking her. Are they trying to silence her or what she has discovered?

I was definitely surprised by 'The Silent Treatment' - it's one of those books where the synopsis made me expect something hugely different to the finished product. Because it mentioned Kat being stalked and a brutal murder, I was expecting something a bit more adult in content, but it feels much more like a new adult story than a murder mystery novel.
This isn't necessarily a bad thing, though! As a new adult book 'The Silent Treatment' excels. Kat has just finished her relationship with her abusive ex, Jeremy, and has moved back home. This means that a lot of the novel is focused on her finding herself again and recreating an equilibrium with her family, as they had been extremely disappointed with her when she moved away in the first place. She's just found a new job - the graveyard shift at a call centre - and is hating how her life has turned out, feeling uncomfortable in her new apartment and jumping at every noise in the night in case Jeremy has come to find her. There are very psychological aspects to the novel and Melanie does a very good job of making it easy to empathise with Kat; she is a very lovable character and it's horrendous to see her so beaten down and broken because of the actions of a horrible person.
Similarly, I really cared for Peter's character as well. We meet Peter at the estate sale at his grandmother's house, as he's needed to move her into a care home for her own well-being. He struggles with this decision, and other decisions from his family's past, but it's obvious how much he cares for the people closest to him - and to what extremes he will go to for them. Peter has a very troubled past which is also well written; his father was abusive to him, so him and Kat bond over their shared experiences of domestic abuse, and it's inspirational to see two characters who have been through hell both recovering strongly.
However, other than the extremely strong characterisation, the novel was a little bit disappointing. I hate myself for saying that, but I have to be truthful. I'd been expecting an extremely exciting murder mystery novel: with an unknown murder victim or an unknown assailant, the hunt to discover the truth and the struggle to regain contact with the mysterious Peter following his disappearance. None of these things happened, so it did feel like the book fell flat compared to my expectations - I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more if I did have preconceptions and I hadn't read the blurb.
Don't get me wrong, I did enjoy this book! It's just that I didn't fall in love with it as I had been expecting to. As a realistic portrayal of human emotions, it's brilliant. As an ode to silent film, it definitely does its job - I've never been interested in the genre before, but now I have the overwhelming desire to research it further and watch some examples of the style. As an expose on the different types of conspiracy theories it's brilliant: the murder of one silent film star, on camera, by one of his colleagues is reminiscent of 'The Crow', and events like this in history always grab imaginations. But as a mystery novel, it doesn't do the job - there's no question of who the perpetrator is, there's no real cliffhangers or brain teasers, it just keeps a steady pace and unravels steadily, coming to a perfectly wrapped up conclusion.
There is a lot more I could say if I could go into details, but I'm trying to keep this spoiler free! Just know that this is a brilliantly crafted novel - I love Melanie's writing, and she gives her characters very strong and individual voices, so the personalities are gripping and involving. I think this is much more of a piece of literature compared to a plot-based novel, so if you're looking for a quick developing and hooking book this might not be the one for you - but if you are patient I think you'll really enjoy this one by the end.
If you're interested in getting 'The Silent Treatment', you can purchase it on Amazon UK and Amazon US now.

Now, I'd like to properly welcome Melanie to my blog, and pass it over to her to let her talk about her love of silent film and the inspiration behind her novel.

The image most of us think about when someone mentions silent movies has a lot to do with railroad tracks and mustache-twirling villains. That's exactly what I thought when my mom sat a groaning tween me in front of the TV, put in a cassette of Buster Keaton's "The Cameraman", and said, "Watch this. It's funny."

Initially, I was stunned at how much the characters looked like ordinary people (with a lot of makeup on). They weren't too fast or being tied with rope - I thought "Wow, that's what the twenties look like!" And then I got caught up in the absurd story. Yeah, it was funny, and it also opened a door for me.

Some twenty years later, I've taken the love for the genre and given it to one of my characters. In my book The Silent Treatment, Katrina Jaitley finds a reel of presumed-lost film at an estate sale. Upon watching said film, she discovers it had been hidden for nearly eighty years for a damn good reason. Spoiler alert: it's murder. The director himself set out to destroy the film himself immediately after filming and just before scrapping the movie altogether. But someone saved it. 

The idea of finding a lost film is nothing I made up. Unfortunately, because the technology to replay a film at home wasn't around in the first half of the century when silent movies were the norm, many early films were intentionally destroyed to make room for new ones, or improperly stored, which caused them to deteriorate beyond repair. 

Every now and then, one is found. Metropolis was one (existed for decades in truncated form - recently all the missing pieces were put together). The Cameraman, the first silent movie I ever saw, was another. And one of my very favourites: The Passion of Joan of Arc. 

Silent movies, like modern ones, came in all genres, from nearly every country. Watching a silent movie is almost like reading a book (maybe because there's reading involved) - you have to pay attention, and it gets to you. The stiff acting takes getting used to, but once you suspend your disbelief, they're a fantastic escape.

Before reading 'The Silent Treatment', I knew literally nothing about silent film, so I'd like to say a huge thank you to Melanie for educating me on such an under-appreciated art form. I'd never heard of 'The Cameraman' or 'Metropolis', but I'm going to look into more about them because the stories behind them intrigue me completely - the fact that they've been lost and found again is so lucky.
I'd also like to say a huge thank you to Booktrope, for inviting me to take part in this book tour! This was a very different read for me, but I had a lot of fun exploring an area I'd never experienced before. 

'Come Sit By Me' by Thomas Hoobler - SPOILER FREE REVIEW

First things first I need to say a huge thank you to Booktrope, for allowing me to participate in this blog tour and for accepting my request to review the book on NetGalley. I'd also like to thank NetGalley for the service that they provide. 

Hello, and welcome to my stop on the 'Come Sit By Me' blog tour! Because this is a blog tour I'm going to make sure this review doesn't include any major spoilers, but will instead give you more of an idea what the book is about.

The synopsis is as follows: 

The boy who shot seven people in the school library is dead. But did his secrets die with him?

Something terrible happened at Hamilton High last year, and those who survived don't want to relive the past. But Paul has just arrived, and gets the same locker that the shooter used. He wants to know what really happened...and you know what curiosity did to the cat. 

I was already intrigued by the short synopsis - it doesn't give much information away about the plot or how the story will pan out, but using such an emotive and controversial topic choice meant that this book was bound to be interesting. However, I couldn't really see it having much of a plot. I believed it would dive into the mentality of the mass murderer, understand why he did what he did and that would be all, but there is a lot more going on than just that.
When Paul joins Hamilton High, he joins up as editor-in-chief at the school's newspaper. His first assignment is to interview surviving students at the memorial service for the fallen that is being held at the start of term. It seems to him that all is not as it seems - Cale, the murderer, being able to hold off police and wipe out seven people, all by himself? Something doesn't add up. So Paul decides to start investigating the possibility that someone could have been helping Cale all along...
The novel is split into three parts - Paul's story, Caleb's story, returning to Paul's story for the final segment. The first half of the novel is definitely a slow burner, because Paul needs to settle into the school and start to learn the dynamics between the students, and he also needs to try and retrospectively understand where Cale fitted in to the hierarchy. Early on Paul talks to Cale's only friend, Cecil, and discovers that Cale used to type on his laptop all the time - attempting to understand his thoughts and feelings - and kept everything saved on a USB. This little nugget of information is given at the very start of the novel, but because Cale hid his USB it takes a long time for Paul to work out exactly where it is and how to access it, so a lot of the novel is building up to this discovery.
After Paul recovers the USB, we get to read Cale's deepest and darkest thoughts about the school and the people around him. Cale is utterly illiterate, which means that this section is ritten a bit lyk dis. It's a bit of an extreme turn around at the start, but once you settle into the flow of reading his writing, it's easier to enjoy and empathise with his character. I definitely wouldn't recommend this book if you find it difficult to empathise with villains or bad guys. Because we get to read Cale's innermost wondering, you do feel rather attached to him, and can feel completely and utterly sorry for him for his lot in life. His parents are unemotive, his grandmother dies, he's bullied at school and he's exploited in the worst kind of way. However, if you really appreciate deep, psychological writing, this will be the perfect book for you. I always enjoy novels where I can completely hate a character - have no positive inclinations towards them in the slightest - but then feel it get turned around because of the author's writing skill, and that's something that occurs during this story.
I'm not going to give any spoilers towards who Cale's accomplice could be, but I will say that I did work it out very early on in the novel. This didn't put me off but rather made me more interested to read on to find out why they did what they did. If you are like me and work out endings very easily please don't give up on this book, because the way it works out is so engrossing and horrifying that you will regret missing it. I also really enjoyed the final section of the novel when we returned to Paul; seeing him try to come to terms with everything that he learnt was written extremely cleverly and had me right on the edge of my seat.
I only have one issue with the entire novel, and that's the omittance of any mention of CCTV footage. In my experience all schools have CCTV footage, so if there was a school shooting it would be easy to watch it play out at a later date and know for sure if someone else was involved. Even if there'd just been an explanation for how this didn't happen, such as the camera getting shot out or the recording being turned off in the office, it would have satisfied me - the complete ignorance of any mention means that it seems a bit less realistic.
I haven't read any of Thomas Hoobler's novels before, but I'm definitely going to need to look up some of his other writing, because I loved his style. Generally I need to be grabbed by a book very early on so I have the inclination to continue, but even with the slow build-up my attention was still held which is very rare indeed. If you didn't feel interested by the synopsis, I would still recommend giving this novel a shot - the blurb does not do it any justice, and it's much more intellectual and involving than I'd anticipated. It's also handled very well - it's a difficult topic, but I feel as though Thomas Hoobler really took his time to build up the atmosphere and develop the characters into strong individuals.

If you're interested in reading 'Come Sit By Me', it's available on Amazon UK and Amazon US now.

Once again, a huge thank you to Booktrope for allowing me to get involved in this blog tour - see you next time!

AMENDMENT: 21:05 GMT 06/08/15
Following correspondence with Thomas, it appears as though my only criticism of the novel - that it could have been viewed on CCTV footage - is incorrect, so I'd like to issue an apology. It seems as though the UK is much more flooded with CCTV cameras than the US, so this is something lost in translation across the cultures - this will mean it'll be a lot easier for American readers to relate to and understand this novel. I'd like to thank Thomas for responding to my review and correcting me, it's not something I would have thought to investigate.

COVER REVEAL: 'House of Grimm' by Ashley Dawson

Phew, another cover reveal? There are so many exciting covers being announced recently that I cannot keep track of them all! I feel like I keep repeating myself, because I'm always so excited about the books - but this is the most exciting of all, because it's based on a retelling of the Brothers Grimm! Scroll down to see the cover, and there will be more information about the book underneath...

Ah it looks so ominous, walking down the path in the middle of nowhere with the stormy sky above you! I can imagine this one is going to be creepy as heck, and it sounds even creepier after you read the synopsis:

After her best friend is the victim of a grisly murder, Dora is dragged unwillingly into a frenzied hunt for answers in this riveting young-adult debut from Ashley Dawson. 

The town of Grimsby is home to horrid secrets, including the true identity of the homicidal book writers in the old estate on the hill--the Brothers Grimm. And Dora is only the latest in a long line of their fairy tale characters destined for an untimely end. With the youngest brother taking a liking to her, she must figure out how to rewrite her story with his help, before the eldest brother writes her off for good. 

It's such a unique spin on a classic tale, and I'm beyond intrigued to see how this one plays out. To combine young adult with a murder mystery is an aspect that isn't explored as thoroughly as it could be, but this story definitely excites my imagination! If you're as interested in 'House of Grimm' as I am, watch this space for more information on the book as we near release day.

Last, but definitely not least, I'd like to say a huge thank you for Booktrope for allowing me to be involved in yet another cover reveal - all of their covers are too good to resist!

COVER REVEAL: 'Antidote' by Taylor Hondos

If you haven't guessed yet, I love creepy novels. Zombies = good. Death and destruction = good. End of the world? Pretty much my favourite thing in a book. So 'Antidote' looks like it's going to be a novel I'm going to fall head over heels in love with, meaning I am extremely excited to be involved in this cover reveal. Scroll on down to see it...

Ooh, the cover is just as creepy as I'd anticipated! But I also love how simplistic it is; the really clear, crisp font has a brilliant juxtaposition with the busier background - this is one that I could look at for hours. If you aren't completely sold on the cover, here's the synopsis: 

Life sucks, and then you rot. No one knows how Dermadecatis is contracted, but its existence has changed everything for 18-year-old Lena, in this riveting debut from Taylor Hondos.

No contact with other people. 

Masks must be worn in public at all times. 

Four months ago men, women and children alike began to rot from the inside out, and the world as we know it changed forever. Life goes on, but now everything revolves around the need to survive and find a cure for Dermadecatis, the disease that Lena Alona's father discovered. 

Unfortunately for Lena and everyone else who is desperate to survive, her father's secrets died when he did.

This appeals to me utterly and completely. The imagery that's being invoked just from the disease name - Dermadecatis - is nausea-inducing; rotting from the inside out must be one of the most inexplicable pains possible, so having this happen to a large majority of the population must cause mass hysteria. Similarly, the cure for the disease being an unknown makes this a brilliant quest novel - find the cure, save the world - and I'm already trying to work out how on earth this could be fixed. My never ending anticipated releases lists has just gained another friend!

BOOK TRAILER REVEAL: 'The Silent Treatment' by Melanie Surani (+ GIVEAWAY)

Today is the trailer reveal for The Silent Treatment by Melanie Surani. This trailer reveal is organized by Lola's Blog Tours - thank you for allowing me to be a part of it!

The Silent Treatment (Katrina Jaitley #1)
by Melanie Surani
Genre: Mystery
Age category: Adult
Publisher: Booktrope

Synopsis:
Twenty-eight year old Katrina Jaitley is rebuilding her life after escaping an abusive boyfriend. The last thing she needs is the mystery she stumbles on during a bout of retail therapy. But she can't ignore the coil of film -- a piece of movie history -- she finds hidden inside her purchase. Unfortunately, Peter, the handsome host of the estate sale, disappears before Kat has a chance to return it to him.

Curious, Kat watches the strip and is shocked to witness the murder of a famous 1920's silent film star by a fellow actor. When a news article cites Kat as the film's owner, her already complicated life goes from bad to worse. Someone begins stalking her. Are they trying to silence her or what she has discovered?

If you're interested in 'The Silent Treatment, it's on Goodreads and is available for pre-order on Amazon UK and Amazon US.

Check out the book trailer below:

Since partaking in the cover reveal for 'The Silent Treatment' a couple of weeks ago, this one has really been playing on my mind, so I love this trailer - using all of the clips from old black and white silent films really sets the scene, and I'm anticipating the release of this book all the more now.

About the Author:
Melanie Surani is a blogger, hair stylist, and author with a heart for international travel. She grew up in Memphis, Tennessee before taking extended trips to Canada, Germany, and Philadelphia.

When she isn’t cutting hair, Melanie is thinking about ways to kill people (for mystery novels). DVDs of British comedies help keep her calm. She lives with her husband and cat in New York City, where she is hard at work on her next novel with Booktrope Publishing.

Her previous work includes 'The Morning After', 'Commanding Disappointment', 'A Body in a Seat', 'A Similar Fate', and 'The Silent Treatment', a novel soon-to-be republished by Booktrope.

Melanie is a member of the International Thriller Writers society. Her fiction can be found anywhere ebooks are sold. Follow her adventures on her tumblr.

If you'd like to tell Melanie what an awesome book trailer she has, you can contact her on Facebook or Twitter, or visit her website

Four Fun Facts About Melanie Surani:

1.  Melanie enjoys visiting museums, especially wax museums. Madame Tussauds and the films House of Wax (1933/1953) were inspirations for her thriller novel, Awake.
2. Melanie knows a lot about cats and cheetahs – like how to own one as a pet, though she’s only had house cats.
3. Melanie was homeschooled as a kid in Memphis, so she learned a lot about writing, languages, and art at a young age.
4. Melanie loves food and there’s almost nothing she won’t try once, including brains and offal. No bugs.

Giveaway: 

As well as having an exciting trailer reveal, I'm happy to offer you the opportunity to win a couple of prizes while you're here. The prize pack includes eBook copies of Melanie's books ('The Silent Treatment' and 'Awake') and a Trendimi gift voucher for a make-up artist course!
You'd be silly if you didn't want to enter this giveaway, so use the rafflecopter down below...

a Rafflecopter giveaway

COVER REVEAL: 'The Girl's Guide To The Apocalypse' by Daphne Lamb

Happy Monday! Today, I'm pleased to announce that I'm involved in the cover reveal of 'The Girl's Guide To The Apocalypse' by Daphne Lamb. Scroll down to see it...

I absolutely love this cover. The female protagonist looks like such a badass, just chilling while the explosion goes off in the background, and the colour scheme is so pleasing on the eyes. The book sounds pretty damn good too!

Welcome to the apocalypse. Your forecast includes acid rain, roving gangs and misplaced priorities, in this comedic take on the end of the world as we know it, from debut author Daphne Lamb. 

As a self-entitled, self-involved, and ill-equipped millennial, Verdell probably wouldn't have ranked very high on the list of those most likely to survive the end of the world, but here she is anyway. Add in travelling with her work addicted boss, her boyfriend who she has "meh" feelings for, and a handful of others who had no businesses surviving as long as they have, and things aren't exactly going as planned. But despite threats of cannibalism, infected water supplies, and possibly even mutants, Verdell is willing to put in as little effort as she can get away with to survive.

I like to think that in an end of the world situation I would be a badass, looking after the people I care about and saving the world - but in all reality, I'm more likely to be like Verdell, taking the opportunity to do as little as I can! I think I'll really enjoy this novel, because I definitely think the character will be easy to relate to, and how much more awkward could the end of the world get, than with your boss and a boyfriend you don't care about?!
If you're interested in 'The Girl's Guide To The Apocalypse' and you love the cover as much as I do, let Daphne know over on Twitter! 

COVER REVEAL: 'The Silent Treatment' by Melanie Surani

Another day, another cover reveal! This time it's for a book that sounds equal parts intriguing and terrifying, with an extra dose of spine-chilling right in the middle. Interested? Well, scroll down to see the cover, and I'll give you so more information about the book right after...

I have never, ever, read a book about silent film or silent film stars, but I think this cover is such a perfect portrayal of what the book is going to be about. I think it's a very well-designed cover, so kudos to the creator!

If you aren't convinced, read the synopsis - I'm sure it'll hook you:

Twenty-eight year old Katrina Jaitley is rebuilding her life after escaping an abusive boyfriend. The last thing she needs is the mystery she stumbles on during a bout of retail therapy. But she can't ignore the coil of film -- a piece of movie history -- she finds hidden inside her purchase. Unfortunately, Peter, the handsome host of the estate sale, disappears before Kat has a chance to return it to him. 

Curious, Kat watches the strip and is shocked to witness the brutal murder of a famous 1920's silent film star by a fellow actor. When a news article cites Kat as the film's owner, her already complicated life goes from bad to worse. Someone is stalking her. Are they trying to silence her or what she has discovered?

I just think this sounds like such an intriguing story! I've definitely never heard of any other books like it, and that's something that already makes it stand out for me.

About the author:

Melanie Surani is a blogger, hair stylist, and author with a heart for international travel. When she isn't cutting hair, Melanie is thinking about ways to kill people (for mystery novels). She lives with her husband and cat in New York City, where she is hard at work on her next book with Booktrope Publishing. Melanie is a member of the International Thriller Writers society. You can follow Melanie's adventures on Facebook, on Twitter and on Tumblr (where she posted an awesome collection of her previous designs for the cover of 'The Silent Treatment' earlier, check that out!) 

COVER REVEAL: 'Come Sit By Me' by Thomas Hoobler

Another day, another blog tour - this time in association with Booktrope publishing, who I need to thank massively for inviting me to participate in this cover reveal. If you're ready, scroll on down...

The boy who shot seven people in the school library is dead. But did his secrets die with him?

Something terrible happened at Hamilton High last year, and those who survived don't want to relive the past. But Paul has just arrived, and gets the same locker that the shooter used. He wants to know what really happened...and you know what curiosity did to the cat. 

It's such an ominous cover and synopsis combo, reminiscent of 'We Need To Talk About Kevin', or the first (and definitely best) season of 'American Horror Story'. I find school shootings very intriguing - the psychology behind them and the psychological effects that follow on for the survivors - so I'm sure this is definitely going to be the kind of book I will fly through, even though I will find it emotionally harrowing.
'Come Sit By Me' is released in July, so keep an eye out for this one.

GUEST POST: Cait Reynolds (+ review of 'Downcast')

To celebrate the release of 'Downcast' by Cait Reynolds, I'm delighted to welcome her to my blog for a guest post! Once you've read Cait's post (on a topic I'm rather passionate about myself!) you should stick around, because I'll be giving a bit more information about 'Downcast', and writing a spoiler free review to hopefully help you make up your minds on whether it's a book for you!

I'll pass you over to Cait...

The Curse of Too Many Notebooks

I am a sucker for office supplies.

New pens, notebooks, sticky note packs, markers, journals…all of that stuff gives me a sense of empowerment and control over my destiny. It helps me feel like I’m actually in control of the chaos that surrounds me.

The only problem is…I tend to get carried away with notebooks and journals. I want to start a new notebook for every project, but then I start too many projects and have too many notebooks going at once. It makes it tricky to say, “Oh, I don’t want to lug my laptop with me. I’ll just take a notebook and work on X along the way.”

Yeah, that’s great if you have one notebook. Not so great if you have five.

But…I can’t resist. Limited edition art Moleskine? I’m a sucker. Unique vintage label notebook?  I roll over and play dead. Cute little notebook to fit in my purse? BUY THEM ALL! Smash Journals on clearance at Marshall’s? Yeah. Stick a fork in me, I’m done.

It’s awful. I try to limit myself. In January, I made a stern resolution not to buy any more journals until I’ve used up the ones I have. That’s like trying to tell a PMS’ing woman not to eat chocolate. It’s hard. So hard.

The thing is, though, the gratification I get from finishing a notebook and being able to go back through it and capture all the delicious little bits and ideas is such a rewarding experience. I can’t give it up.

So, what’s a girl to do? Well, I have whittled myself down to three notebooks and a planner for the moment. It’s kind of killing me, but I feel like a better, stronger person for it. I’ve even assigned them all different roles.

One notebook is for my Olympus Falling series. This is where I keep track of all my ideas. It’s a plain brown paper cover Moleskine that I’ve doodled “Downcast,” “Thunderstruck,” and “Sunkissed” all over.

One notebook is a Smash Journal that I use for my obsessive list making. My brain revs like a racecar all the time, and I need a place to write and rewrite lists so I feel like I’m in control and don’t have to worry about forgetting something. It’s a sickness, but I’ve learned to accept it. In some ways, seeing an unchecked-off checklist motivates me almost as much as new office supplies.

The third notebook is where I keep everything else that comes into my brain. This is where I write down character names that don’t have novels, and novel ideas that don’t have characters. I write down phrases that pop into my head. I keep notes on my freelance work. I really hope I can finish this notebook soon, though, because it’s spiral bound, and I’m just not loving the feeling of it. It reminds me too much of school.

For an actual planner, I use the Passion Planner. It’s by far the best planner I’ve found for someone who is a writer. It helps me keep track of what I need to do for my personal life and for my professional life at the same time. This is where I winnow down those giant lists from my Smash Journal and become realistic about what I can actually do in a day or a week.

Still…still, there is a shelf of empty notebooks, staring at me. Beckoning to me with their empty pages and endless potential. That shelf sits in my peripheral vision as I work. It’s torture. It’s like saying I will eat only one potato chip – which has never yet happened in the entire history of mankind.

Some of my friends wonder why I don’t keep things electronically, using Evernote or some other organizational program. The answer is simple: I believe that writing should involve some writing.

In one of my former lives, I worked at an architecture and design school. Even in this age of fancy computer design and graphics, there was an endless drumbeat of reminding the students to keep an actual sketch journal. Why? Because there is a hand-to-mind connection that cannot be denied and is actually a valuable part of the creative process.

Now, I’m not saying I’m about to run off and use parchment and quills to write my next book. But, when working out ideas, there is a lot to be said for the actual time it takes to handwrite something as opposed to typing it out.

For myself, it forces me to think through my idea before I go to the effort of writing it down. Or, while I’m writing, the idea has time to mature and change. Typing happens so fast that there often isn’t that chance for an idea to refine itself before being committed to a page.

Writing in a notebook is a frustrating, engrossing, fascinating experience for me, and I value it tremendously as a part of my overall writing process. Besides, someday, I’d like to look back at a shelf of full notebooks, seeing a physical, tangible record of all the things I’ve thought and written.

But with my luck, there will be a shelf of fresh, empty notebooks right next to it, just waiting for me to jump in and start writing again. 

I don't think I can agree more! When I started doing fiction writing at the start of the year, I decided to purchase five notebooks, but I know that I'll fill them all up someday... So why not buy some to keep in reserve, for when I need them? Or what about all those writing emergencies? I've been trying to control my notepad buying, and I think Cait's advice will definitely help me with my obsessive purchasing.

About the book: 

What would you do when faced with an impossible truth? Written with heart and passion, Downcast by Cait Reynolds is ripe with twists you never saw coming and love that defies the odds in this intense new Paranormal Romance retelling of one of mythology's greatest love stories.

It's the start of Stephanie Starr's senior year of high school, but sadly, this is no life of the prom queen. Stuck at the bottom of the high school social totem pole, Stephanie is forced by her domineering mother to wear lumpy linen dresses and eat organic tofu for lunch in a world of mini-skirts and pizza. 

What Stephanie doesn't anticipate is gorgeous and cocky Haley Smith, who breaks social convention and pursues her with a determination that is both terrifying and flattering. Afraid that Haley is simply trying to set her up for massive humiliation, Stephanie does her best to push him away. But the more attention he pays to her, the more she runs, and the more everyone else begins to notice.

Instead of a loving family to support her as the mean girls make their play, Stephanie's mother begins to unravel mentally, her possessiveness of Stephanie spiraling to new and frightening extremes. Stephanie is forced to grow up, find herself, and learn the truth about her past in order to save her mother, her friends, and her town. When the truth is revealed, nothing can prepare her for the outrageous reality of her existence... and nothing can save her from her fate.

Except Haley.

A big thank you to Booktrope, for accepting my request to read and review 'Downcast' on NetGalley, and to NetGalley for the service that they provide!

I really enjoyed 'Downcast' - much more than I was expecting to, in fact. I had an idea about which mythological love story was going to be retold, and I was completely right, so I was worried that it was all going to be a bit too predictable as it is a very well-known story. However, this book wasn't predictable at all.
There were lots of surprising elements thrown in throughout, meaning that for many long sections of the novel I was finding myself rather on edge, because literally anything could have happened. Stephanie's mother's psychological deterioration was a central element to this; Stephanie was so on edge, and that paranoia and anxiety was extremely well written, meaning that you couldn't help but feel the same emotions snaking through your body while you read.
The romance is a little bit too insta-love for my tastes, but I know that appeals to a lot of people so this will definitely be a favourite among members of the 'Twilight' fandom - the story and the writing style are extremely different, but the love aspect of the plot is extremely similar. However, because it was based on a mythological romance and was going on the idea of fate sealing people's destinies together, it was almost necessary to be an insta-love, so I'm going to let it slide.
I don't want to give anything away, because I'm attempting to give a spoiler free review, but just know that despite the beginning being a bit of a slow burn and it taking quite a while to get into the main story, the actual retelling is creative and unique and will definitely entertain and intrigue you. This is the first installment in Cait Reynolds 'Olympus Falling' series, and I am definitely gonna keep an eye out for the following books.
If you're interested in purchasing 'Downcast', it's available on Amazon UK and Amazon US.

About the author:
 

Cait Reynolds lives in the Boston area with her husband and 4-legged fur child. She discovered her passion for writing early and has bugged her family and friends with it ever since. When she isn't cooking delicious meals, running around the city, rock climbing like a boss, or enjoying the rooftop deck that brings her closer to the stars, she writes. Reynolds is able to pull from real life experiences such as her kidney transplant, and her writing reflects her passion for life from having to face the darkest places and find the will to laugh.

If you want to find out more about Cait, you can visit her website or follow her on Twitter or Goodreads.

Last, but certainly not least, I'd like to say a hugely massive thank you to Kellie Sheridan at Booktrope for inviting me on this blog tour and connecting me with Cait!