Harrow by Amanda Troyer + GIVEAWAY

So, the author contacted me and asked me if I would like to review her book. I agreed because I haven't read much thriller this year and I have no regrets whatsoever.

Synopsis:

Sixteen-year-old Brenna doesn’t believe her vivid imagination
can hurt her, until she wakes up in a church, covered in blood.
Blood that isn’t hers.

She thinks her life can't get much worse, but when she finally
finds a way to escape her abusive home, her imagination turns
to nightmarish hallucinations.

Niven likes staying inside the abandoned church, hiding from his
violent father. The two bond through art and misery, but Brenna
knows good things in her life don’t last long.

Her delusions take a horrific turn when she thinks she sees two men
gruesomely murdered by a monster in the church basement, but in
the end, she’s the one with blood on her hands.

Review:

The book starts off introducing Breena, the girl with the vivid imagination and her troublemaking sister Mabel. Brenna wants to live on her own because of her family. She doesn't like it. You get sucked in by her and start sympathizing her. Just you are put through whatever she is.  Later on she meets this boy at the abandoned church she ends up in - Niven, who plays a big role in the plot later on. All of the characters were developed.

I wish I could say something about the plot but I would giveaway too much. I will just mention that there are a lot of totally unexpected twists and turns.

The writing was really good food a new author. However, at certain places I was irritated by the monologue and the descriptions. I am not saying they were bad or anything but just that it was little overdone. 90% percent of the time the descriptions are incredibly easy-imaginable. It was overall fast-paced just little slow in the beginning.

"Harrow" was a gripping read, which will keep you tensioned until the very end, shock you with the twists and turns. In addition, it will make you double check if you've locked your door. The writing is really good and grabs you from the beginning. 

The book comes out on August 27th.

This is a debut novel which may have a sequel.

GIVEAWAY:

I am giving away 3 eBook copies of "Harrow" and

10 signed bookmarks.

This giveaway is international. If a winner doesn't reply to the email sent to him in 48 hours, another one will be chosen.

Complete this Rafflecopter contest and win:

Winners:
Rebeca - a signed bookmark of HARROW and an e-book copy
Veronica - a signed bookmark of HARROW and an e-book copy
Alyssa - a signed bookmark of HARROW and an e-book copy
Kelly - a signed bookmark of HARROW
Sami - a signed bookmark of HARROW
Lori - a signed bookmark of HARROW
Maria - a signed bookmark of HARROW

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Amanda hasn’t always been a reader, but she’s always been a daydreamer.  Once her sister started giving her young adult books, she realized books fuel her daydreams and has since become an avid reader and a writer as well.  You can connect with her online here: 

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                                                         My rating 
                                  4.5 out of 5 stars

Secrets - Outcast by John R. Little&Mark Allan Gunnells (Spoiler free)

I want to thank Librarything for sending me a review copy of this book.

This is my first experience with JournalStone's DoubleDown Series. Basically, it's a book with too alternative storylines. The only common thing about the two story-lines
is the two main characters. Everything else is completely different.

Here's a summary of the two books:

The Double Down series continues with two stories
that explore the very different realities of Karen
Richard’s life. The common prologue springboards
two talented authors into alternate realities.
In John R. Little’s Secrets, Karen Richardson can
occasionally stop time.  She is free to move around
while others are frozen in time.  She finds the hidden
truths of those around her, including her new friend,
Bobby Jersey, who may not be all that he seems.  At
first it seemed fun, powerful, exhilarating, but in the
end Karen’s power may cost her everything she’s ever
cared about.

In Mark Allan Gunnells’ Outcast, Karen Richardson is
a college freshman dealing with a non‐existent social
life, a difficult roommate...and the power of
telekinesis.  As her powers grow, Karen begins to lose
control.    Her new friend Bobby Jersey offers his
assistance.  But is he somebody that Karen can trust,
or will her abilities destroy everything and everyone
she knows and loves.

The first story is called "Secrets" and it was the shorter one. I am sad to be saying this but this book was the less enjoyable. It was kind of depressing, dark and way too explicit. Ithad some interesting moments but I am just not into this type of stuff. There was a lack of character development but it's understandable considering the length.

The storyline follows a girl named Karen, which has the ability to stop time but she doesn't know why and cannot control it. She meets another guy named Bobby, who can do the same and the story gets tangled. Throughout I was expecting to find out more about the abilities but unfortunately I didn't. The last few chapter were the thing I mostly enjoyed because it had a goal and it was achieved. I would rate this book 3/5 stars.

Little about the author:

John R. Little is the Bram Stoker Award winning author of Miranda, The Memory Tree, Ursa Major, and many other books.  He has been publishing his unique brand of fiction formore than 30 years and has been nominated for major awards multiple times.  Little loves to hear from his fans and his web site is www.johnrlittle.com

The second story I found more interesting and yet not compelling enough. It had a different, better plot about telekinesis and I can't tell anything more without spoiling. There was more character development and more details. This time around I was able to relate to the characters but there was something that didn't fit there... I don't know what it was. Overall I enjoyed this book and my rating is 3.5/5 stars. I will definitely keep an eye on Mark Allan Gunnels's other works.

Little about the author:

Mark Allan Gunnells is the author of such books as Tales
from the Midnight Shift, The Summer of Winters, Asylum, and
the forthcoming Welcome to the Graveyard. He has been
writing since the age of ten, and publishing since 2005. He
lives in Greer, SC, with his partner, and he loves to set his
stories in the surrounding areas.

Once again, I want to thank the publishers for sending me the book and I am sorry I didn't enjoy it enough. I am just not into this kind of stories. If you are, you will enjoy it more than I did.

                                                     

                                        Final rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton review(SPOILER-FREE)

First off, I want to thank edelweiss and HarperCollins for sending me this book. It is my first ARC ever.

I really cannot say anything different than what the other reviewers already have. The book is very well-written and quite catchy after the first 60 pages. It had a slow start - at least for me but once I got into the story, I couldn't stop reading until the very last page. It is told from 3rd person's view in present tense.

The story follows a young woman - Nella, whose father died and he has left leaving the family with debts so her marriage to a wealthy Amsterdam merchant is arranged. She arrives at his home and meets his sister Marin, who is not happy to see her, and no husband. As she waits for Johannes to appear she has to content with Marin, and the strange and unfriendly servants Cornelia and Otto.  Soon Johannes appears and with him he brings his wife a spectacular gift - a miniature of the house she now lives in. But as she engages the services of a miniaturist to furnish the house Nella discovers that the inhabitants of the house are not all they seem. 

The book is, in fact, beautiful. It is reasonably paced and the world-building was so well-done that even a person like me, who's never been to Amsterdam, nor is into historical fiction could get pulled into this 17th century Amsterdam. As I am accustomed to electricity it was little weird for me to read this book.  

The book has everything I like - fiction, suspense and drama. I liked that there were many twist and turns, which were unexpected but also some were foreshadowed. The main characters are interesting,realistic and very-well developed. The novel circles around the true meaning of liberty, the place of women in society and their potential, the corrosive effects of secrets and of suppressing your true identity. One of the best things about this book is that it had some questions left for us to resolve.  The ending is really good and I do recommend everyone into (historical)fiction go and buy this book when it hits the stores on August 25th. This is Jessie Burton's debut novel.

                                                                 Verdict: 

                                     4.5 out of 5 stars