Super Six Sunday: Love Stories

Inspired by Top Ten Tuesday from The Broke and The Bookish, Super Six Sunday, a new feature from the fabulous ladies at Bewitched Bookworms, has different book-related topics each week and asks participants to address each topic in the form of a list of six. Obviously.

This week's topic is love stories, and given how much I love romance, it's both an awesome and a terrible prompt for me. Awesome because there are so many amazing love stories out there that have made me swoon, and terrible because it was nearly impossible to narrow it down to just six. I had to limit the topic even further in my head in order to choose books, so I went with love stories that feature really strong heroines, emotionally and physically, who aren't afraid to challenge the men in their lives. I think all six of the below women push buttons, question, and frustrate their men, but they are also loyal, powerful in their own ways, and are absolute equal partners in the relationship. Love them.

KISS OF SNOW (Psy-Changeling #10)

Nalini Singh • Adult Paranormal Romance

Nalini Singh is one of my very favorite authors, and her Psy-Changeling paranormal romance series has been one I've been obsessed with for years. We meet Hawke and Sienna in book one, but it takes another 8 books–yes eight, I died a little inside when each book that released wasn't theirs–before they finally get together. To be fair, they need all that time as Sienna is significantly younger than Hawke, but their journey in this book is one I've taken with them over and over again and will continue to do so for years to come.

DARKFEVER (Fever Series)

Karen Marie Moning • Adult Urban Fantasy

I'm sure many of you have heard the word Barrons uttered (or exhaled on a shaky breath full of longing) even if you haven't yet read this series. Jericho Barrons is not your typical romance hero. He's often neither romantic nor heroic. He's downright cruel at times and the force of his personality can be overwhelming. It's as easy to hate him as it is to love him, but Mac holds her own and never takes a step back when he takes a threatening step forward. Instead, she meets him with a step of her own, and the two of them fight, taunt, argue and then explode romantically as the series continues, and I just can't recommend their story enough. It's definitely NOT a conventional love story in any way, and that's part of what I like so much about the two of them.

TRUE

Erin McCarthy • Contemporary New Adult

True came to be in my hands just at the moment when the New Adult genre got to be at its most frustrating for me, the angst and drama of the relationships starting to test my patience and grate on my nerves, but then along came Rory. Rory wouldn't know how to play a game romantically with a guy if someone gave her a series of directions to review beforehand, and her honesty with everything she's feeling quickly led her to the top of my favorite heroines list. Tyler is a bit more cliched - a bad boy with a difficult past, but he's not nearly as superficial as labeling him a bad boy makes him seem, and I couldn't have loved him with Rory any more if I'd tried.

FOR DARKNESS SHOWS THE STARS

Diana Peterfreund • Young Adult/Dystopian

This story is one of the most romantic stories I've read where the hero and heroine don't even do so much as kiss on page. Elliot and Kai are all tension and hurt, dancing around one another as they search desperately in each other for the person they knew when they were younger, but whereas Kai takes his opportunities to land his emotional punches, Elliot always pulls hers, earning my respect and her place on this list. Despite all the lingering pain between them, there are such beautiful moments in this tale, and I always look forward to going back and spending time with Elliot an Kai on a re-read.

UNRAVELING

Elizabeth Norris • Paranormal Young Adult/SciFi

Unraveling is one of those books that took me by complete surprise, the blurb initially one that held no interest for me, but when I was lucky enough to get a review copy I decided I might as well give it a try. I fell in love with Janelle on nearly the first page, her sense of humor and low tolerance for the petty games of the popular crowd winning me over immediately. When Ben enters the picture there is no swooning (except on my part), and their relationship is one of tentative friendship and wary attraction for a long time before it becomes something much more heartwarming.

ANGELFALL

Susan Ee • Paranormal Young Adult

Like Unraveling, Angelfall was a complete surprise for me, a story I entered into not really knowing what to expect but I quickly found myself blown away. Penryn is fiercely protective of her younger sister, and when she gets taken, embarks on a long and terrifying journey with the dubious help of wingless angel Raffe to find her again. I loved everything about this book and the relationship between Penryn and Raffe, the antagonism and distrust between them ever-so slowly fading to leave genuine affection in its place. Again, a bit darker and less traditional of a love story, but strikingly memorable and beautiful just the same.

Those are six of my very favorites, what love story would top your list?

Unbreakable Blog Tour: Interview, Mini-Review + Giveaway

Today I'm positively giddy to be a part of the promotional tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours for Elizabeth Norris's outstanding young adult sci-fi novel, Unbreakable (releases today!). I couldn't have loved book one, Unraveling, any more if I'd tried, so I was a little nervous entering into this sequel that it wouldn't live up to the extraordinarily high bar set by its predecessor. I shouldn't have worried in the least though, as Unbreakable is every bit as epic as Unraveling was, and I'm thrilled to welcome Elizabeth Norris back to the blog today to answer a few questions!

When traveling to another universe, it’s entirely possible to run into your own double – someone who could simply look exactly like you but not share any of your personality traits, or they could be nearly identical to you in every way. What’s one trait or quirk you possess that would instantly tip your family and friends off that your double wasn’t the real you should they not have it? 

I have a couple things that I say quite often. They’re not quite catch phrases but they’re definitely me. One is “shocking!” which I say sarcastically when I am most definitely not shocked. (Yeah, so that piece of Janelle is completely me). I also am incredibly shy in front of people I don’t know, but really outgoing with my friends and family. But actually the dead giveaway, I think, would be my dogs. I have a lab mix—or a brown dog, as we refer to her—and I found her when she was just a few weeks old. I even fed her a bottle the first few weeks I had her, and she’s insanely attached to me (she lies by the door when I’m gone and waits for me to come back, even if I’m gone for a week or more). I think somehow she would just know that my double wasn’t me.

If you were to come face to face with one of your doubles, what’s the first question you would ask them? 

I would want to know everything about them, but specifically everything about their family. My family went through a lot of struggles when I was growing up, some of them tougher than others, and I spent a lot of time (especially as a teenager) wishing little things had been different. I’m not close with my dad, and that’s something that I’ve struggled with. I would want to know how my double’s childhood had taken shape, what her relationship with her dad was like and then I’d try to figure out if she made different choices that resulted in a different outcome.

You’re helping Cecily to organize movie night. What are your top two choices for the showing? 

Pride and Prejudice because it’s one of those movies I can watch over and over again, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower because I just got it on Blu Ray.

A portal is opening next to you right this second and you decide to be adventurous and step through despite not knowing the destination. Describe what you hope to find when you emerge on the other side. 

Right this second, I’d be hoping to end up somewhere warm, where people are friendly and I can get really good food. In fact, in my idea portal jumping experience, I’d end up here.

Janelle is loyal, fiercely determined, and extraordinarily strong emotionally. What has writing her character taught you about yourself? 

She definitely gets her loyalty and fierce determination from me. I’m not that tough emotionally—or at least I didn’t think I was when I started writing. So Janelle was tough when I couldn’t be. While I was writing Unraveling and Unbreakable, I was diagnosed with a (thankfully) very treatable form of cancer. (I’m totally healthy now). Writing Janelle and forcing her to be strong while saving the world, helped me become a stronger person in a way.

Given Unbreakable is written from Janelle’s point of view, we get to see the various ways she envisions her reunion with Ben going, but we don’t have that same access to him. During the months of their separation, what did Ben dream the first words out of his mouth would be when he saw her again? 

In his heart, Ben always knew he’d see her again. He knew he would get back to her somehow. Even though he didn’t know exactly how he’d manage that, there were never any doubts that he’d make it happen. Because he was a little more in control of the situation, he missed her, but he wasn’t quite as stressed. Because he’s a guy, he didn’t really think about the specifics of what he’d say—more that he’d just pull her into his arms. If things had played out differently in Unbreakable (as in, less stressful), he would have kissed her first and then said, “Hi, I’m back.”

• • • • • • • • • •

UNBREAKABLE
Unraveling #2
Elizabeth Norris
Young Adult/Sci Fi
496 pages
Balzer + Bray
Releases Today!
Received from publisher for review

THE STORY
Four months after Ben disappeared through the portal to his home universe, Janelle believes she’ll never see him again. Her world is still devastated, but life is finally starting to resume some kind of normalcy. Until Interverse Agent Taylor Barclay shows up. Somebody from an alternate universe is running a human trafficking ring, kidnapping people and selling them on different Earths—and Ben is the prime suspect. Now his family has been imprisoned and will be executed if Ben doesn’t turn himself over within five days.

And when Janelle learns that someone she cares about—someone from her own world—has become one of the missing, she knows that she has to help Barclay, regardless of the danger. Now Janelle has five days to track down the real culprit. Five days to locate the missing people before they’re lost forever. Five days to reunite with the boy who stole her heart. But as the clues begin to add up, Janelle realizes that she’s in way over her head—and that she may not have known Ben as well as she thought.

Can she uncover the truth before everyone she cares about is killed?

MY THOUGHTS
Unbreakable is the literary equivalent of a roller coaster, the first chapter or so a slow build as we try and remember all the details of Unraveling, stomachs fluttering with nervous anticipation before we suddenly top the crest of the hill, hover briefly, and then plummet. From the minute Barclay shows back up in Janelle’s world we barely get a moment to breathe, hearts pounding and breaths coming out in shallow pants as our fear for Janelle’s safety is matched only by our desire to see her reunited with Ben, the two feelings combining to ensure our fingers fairly vibrate with the need to turn the pages faster.

Janelle is as capable and level-headed as we remember, never prone to bouts of dramatic behavior or great emotional fluctuations, instead she remains steadfast and strong, aware of her ultimate goal and willing to do whatever needs to be done in order to achieve it. Though Ben is absent for the first half of this book, we don’t feel any flashes of the frustration that sometimes arises when a couple is separated in a sequel (though we certainly want them together), a surprising reaction due in large part to the beauty of Janelle’s character. She doesn’t need Ben in order to function, nor is she incomplete without him, and while her love for him is a rich and palpable thing, we are content to spend our time simply with her because she is so comfortable in her own skin.

Ms. Norris delights yet again with Unbreakable, the action of Janelle’s desperate search for information to help clear Ben’s name perfectly balanced with quiet and deeply heartbreaking moments as she has no choice but to question the love she thought to be impervious to any doubt. I honestly can’t recommend this series highly enough.

Rating: 4.5/5

Goodreads • Amazon • Barnes & Noble • The Book Depository

• • • • • • • • • •

ELIZABETH NORRIS

Elizabeth Norris briefly taught high school English and history before trading the southern California beaches and sunshine for Manhattan's recent snowpocalyptic winter. She harbors dangerous addictions to guacamole, red velvet cupcakes, sushi, and Argo Tea, fortunately not all together. Her first novel, UNRAVELING (Balzer+Bray, April 2012), is the story of one girl's fight to save her family, her world, and the one boy she never saw coming. Also the film rights to Unraveling have been optioned by MTV!

Website • Blog • Twitter • Facebook • Tumblr • Goodreads

• • • • • • • • • • 

GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Don't forget to check out the rest of the stops on this tour for more interviews, reviews and guest posts!

4/15/2013 - All Things Urban Fantasy

4/16/2013 - Two Chicks on Books

4/17/2013 - A Book and a Latte

4/18/2013 - Magical Urban Fantasy Reads

4/19/2013 - Shortie Says


4/22/2013 - Katie's Book Blog

4/23/2013 - Supernatural Snark

4/24/2013 - Justin's Book Blog

4/25/2013 - Tales of a Ravenous Reader

 4/26/2013 - Fiktshun

Waiting on Wednesday: Unbreakable

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking The Spine and is a fun way to see what books other bloggers just can't wait to get their hands on!

UNBREAKABLE (Unraveling #2)

Elizabeth Norris

Young Adult/Sci-Fi

Balzer + Bray

Releases April 23rd, 2013

From Goodreads:

Four months after Ben disappeared through the portal to his home universe, Janelle believes she’ll never see him again. Her world is still devastated, but life is finally starting to resume some kind of normalcy. Until Interverse Agent Taylor Barclay shows up. Somebody from an alternate universe is running a human trafficking ring, kidnapping people and selling them on different Earths—and Ben is the prime suspect. Now his family has been imprisoned and will be executed if Ben doesn’t turn himself over within five days.

And when Janelle learns that someone she cares about—someone from her own world—has become one of the missing, she knows that she has to help Barclay, regardless of the danger. Now Janelle has five days to track down the real culprit. Five days to locate the missing people before they’re lost forever. Five days to reunite with the boy who stole her heart. But as the clues begin to add up, Janelle realizes that she’s in way over her head—and that she may not have known Ben as well as she thought. Can she uncover the truth before everyone she cares about is killed?  

The first book in this series, Unraveling, was one of those books I picked up without really knowing all that much about it, and as a result, not really expecting all that much from it. Let me just say there's nothing better than cracking a spine and discovering unexpected book brilliance, and that is exactly what happened for me with Unraveling. It just blew me away. I put it down when I finished and immediately ran to my computer (no joke, I frightened my dogs with my mad dash through the house) to make sure there was going to be a sequel. Now I'm just a few short months (okay, 5 long months, but in my head I have to tell myself release day is almost here so I don't go crazy) away from holding it in my hands. I. Cannot. Wait.

Review: Unraveling

UNRAVELING

Elizabeth Norris
Paranormal Young Adult
445 pages
Balzer + Bray
Available Now
Received from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)

Two days before the start of her junior year, seventeen-year-old Janelle Tenner is hit by a pickup truck and killed—as in blinding light, scenes of her life flashing before her, and then nothing. Except the next thing she knows, she's opening her eyes to find Ben Michaels, a loner from her high school whom Janelle has never talked to, leaning over her. And even though it isn't possible, she knows—with every fiber of her being—that Ben has somehow brought her back to life.

But her revival, and Ben's possible role in it, is only the first of the puzzles that Janelle must solve. While snooping in her FBI agent father's files for clues about her accident, she uncovers a clock that seems to be counting down to something—but to what? And when someone close to Janelle is killed, she can no longer deny what's right in front of her: Everything that's happened—the accident, the murder, the countdown clock, Ben's sudden appearance in her life—points to the end of life as she knows it. And as the clock ticks down, she realizes that if she wants to put a stop to the end of the world, she's going to need to uncover Ben's secrets—and keep from falling in love with him in the process. 

MY THOUGHTS

Unraveling is a gloriously unexpected read, one where the synopsis is specific enough to pique our curiosity and inspire us to break the spine, but at the same time vague enough to have us flipping that first page with a fair amount of trepidation given we’re not exactly sure what type of paranormal or inhuman element we might be dealing with. That initial hesitancy fades away quickly as we’re immediately introduced to a female protagonist who embodies many of the characteristics we as readers love best—strength and intelligence paired with a quick wit and down-to-earth personality–and very few of the ones that have us curling our fingers into fists out of sheer frustration. Our introduction to her is the beginning of a marathon that feels much more like a sprint, Janelle’s already complicated and difficult life becoming even more so when the weight of the world is literally placed on her shoulders and the unstoppable ticking of a clock haunts her every waking moment.

Janelle is one of those rare characters who seems utterly perfect from the minute we meet her. Not so much in the sense that she’s physically flawless or a paragon of everything good and wholesome and pure, but in the sense that we feel no desire to change anything about her and can simply appreciate her faults because they’re part of a whole we can’t imagine being any other way. She absolutely makes mistakes, but she often knows she’s making them and admits them to herself before we even have the chance to open our mouths and tell her to change her course, and even though we may disagree with her on occasion, we can’t help but recognize that without the gift of outside perspective we might make the exact same choices.

Many times with young adult novels, the romantic element seems to be tossed into the overall story arc more because it’s almost a criteria that one be in place for the book to be appealing to the target market, and thus many romances come across as rather superfluous rather than intrinsic. With Unraveling however, Ms. Norris does a truly impressive job of crafting a complex plot with an otherworldly mystery that is only enhanced by the presence of a romantic relationship rather than encumbered by it. We get the distinct pleasure very early on in the story of not only seeing how Ben feels about Janelle but actually experiencing his emotions briefly as she glimpses herself through his eyes, and from that moment on we get the deliciously slow building of a relationship that was previously non-existent and completely unacknowledged become something beautifully important. There’s a special headiness to their connection, one stemming from the collision of new and old feelings as Janelle begins to truly comprehend the extent of Ben’s feelings, and nothing is more satisfying than watching what Ben never thought possible come to life.

The story itself is a perfect combination of simple and complex, giving us just enough scientific information to create genuine plausibility, but not throwing so many technical terms and complicated theories at us that we get ejected from the story due to incomprehension. Those who enjoy stories like those presented in Fringe will revel in this tale, enjoying the juxtaposition of reality and science fiction while remaining completely grounded in heartfelt human emotion.

Rating: 4.5/5

Interview: Elizabeth Norris + Unraveling

Today I'm thrilled to welcome young adult author Elizabeth Norris to the blog to answer a few questions about her upcoming novel Unraveling. Unraveling is a book I hadn't heard much about when I picked it up, so I wasn't entirely sure what to expect when I cracked the spine. Color me pleasantly surprised and thoroughly impressed! I fell in love with this book and devoured it one sitting despite its 450 page length. I couldn't really feel my butt or my legs when I was finished, but it was definitely worth it. I think maybe that could be a new rating for me: butt-numbingly good. Win.

When Janelle gets hit by the truck, she flashes on one of her happiest memories of her and her mother. If you had to pick a favorite memory right this minute, what would it be? 

In October 2010 I went to a writing conference in San Francisco and met and fell in love with my boyfriend. The writing conference was awesome—I met so many wonderful writers and had a great time. I saw several friends who lived in the area that I hadn’t seen in a while. And of course I met this guy who I just clicked with. We liked the same things, had endless interesting conversations, and on the last day, after the conference was over, we went around and toured San Francisco for the day.  It was one of those weekends where everything went right, and at the end of it when we both went to the airport to go to different cities, I knew that I loved him.

Janelle has a slight emotional advantage over Ben given she’s able to see herself briefly through his eyes when he’s with her at the scene of the accident. Let’s say Janelle is somehow able to project similar snippets of her feelings for him after all the events of Unraveling take place, what might he learn about himself through her? 

Janelle was so afraid of opening herself up to love, and Ben really surprised her. In their English class debate (and later), he challenged her. He’s smart and because of his experiences he made her question things about herself and the world around her. He’s also so thoughtful and he makes her feel cared about. And he has a strength to him. Over the last seven years he’s been through something she can’t really imagine, and he hasn’t given up.

If there were an actual countdown to the end of the world and you had one hour left, what’s one food you would make sure you ate before the clock hit zero? 

Really spicy guacamole and tortilla chips. I have skipped dinner after eating entirely too many chips and guacamole.

There’s a science fiction element running throughout Unraveling, but luckily for us you never bombard us with technical terms or overwhelm us with various scientific theories. Is there one specific part of the science fiction aspect that was especially easy or difficult for you to wrap your head around? 

Thinking of it was really easy when I started out. I have a subscription to Scientific American so even though I made things up as I went along, certain elements were definitely inspired by articles I’d read. I love the idea of multiverse theory and parallel universes. It was after the first draft of Unraveling was done and one of my readers or my editor were asking questions, like “why does this happen?” or “can you explain this more” that I had to dig a little deeper and even reread certain articles or do some research and brainstorm some ideas.

Janelle is no stranger to loss in this story. If she caught her mom in one of her more lucid moments, do you think there is one thing in particular she’d really want to say to her? 

She would say, “I’ve missed you.” She’s really grown up without a mother figure in her life, and I think both of her parents, through no fault of their own, haven’t really been there for her the way she wanted them to. I think it’s something a lot of us can relate to. But with her mom especially, Janelle hasn’t had the chance to have mother/daughter moments. I think she’d want to share a bowl of ice cream and tell her mom about Ben and how awesome he is.

You’re sitting in your house when suddenly an earthquake hits. What one material possession do you grab and protect from being destroyed? 

My laptop for sure. It has all my pictures and all the novels I’ve started or thought about on it.

Janelle’s FBI father has one case he’s yet to solve that haunts him each and every day. Can you tell us if we’ll ever see it solved in future books? 

Yes.

Janelle shares her “ideal” marriage proposal with Ben and her entire class in probably one of my favorite moments in the book. What romantic, humorous, or blunt question might someone have to ask to get you to take a chance on them? 

I’m not sure if there’s anything specific. I dated a guy once who used to make these super romantic sweeping gestures, and at first I loved it, but then he would spend the next few months telling everyone about the wonderful thing he did for me. And it really started to bother me—those romantic gestures are romantic because it’s two people sharing them. When you start sharing that moment with everyone else, it becomes less personal. But I am a huge fan of surprises. I love when someone calls me and says, “We’re going out tomorrow night, dress warm” and then we go ice skating (or something like that).

Thanks so much for taking the time to answer my questions Elizabeth! Unraveling releases April 24th from Balzer + Bray, and I hope everyone adds it to their lists! More information on Elizabeth and her books can be found here:

Website
Twitter
Amazon
Goodreads

UNRAVELING

Two days before the start of her junior year, seventeen-year-old Janelle Tenner is hit by a pickup truck and killed—as in blinding light, scenes of her life flashing before her, and then nothing. Except the next thing she knows, she's opening her eyes to find Ben Michaels, a loner from her high school whom Janelle has never talked to, leaning over her. And even though it isn't possible, she knows—with every fiber of her being—that Ben has somehow brought her back to life.

But her revival, and Ben's possible role in it, is only the first of the puzzles that Janelle must solve. While snooping in her FBI agent father's files for clues about her accident, she uncovers a clock that seems to be counting down to something—but to what? And when someone close to Janelle is killed, she can no longer deny what's right in front of her: Everything that's happened—the accident, the murder, the countdown clock, Ben's sudden appearance in her life—points to the end of life as she knows it. And as the clock ticks down, she realizes that if she wants to put a stop to the end of the world, she's going to need to uncover Ben's secrets—and keep from falling in love with him in the process.

From debut author Elizabeth Norris comes this shattering novel of one girl's fight to save herself, her world, and the boy she never saw coming.