Cover Reveal: Alone Together by Sarah J. Donovan @MrsSJDonovan

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Alone Together by Sarah J. Donovan

Publication date: May 1st, 2018

Sadie Carter's life is a mess, as wavy and tangled as her unruly hair. At 15, she is barely surviving the chaos of her large Catholic family. When one sister becomes pregnant and another is thrown out, her unemployed dad hides his depression, and her mom hides a secret. Sadie, the peacekeeper and rule-follower, has had enough. The empty refrigerator, years of hand-me-downs, and all the secrets have to stop. She longs for something more and plans her escape.

However, getting arrested was not her plan. Falling in love was not her plan. With the help of three mysterious strangers--a cop, a teacher, and a cute boy--maybe Sadie will find the strength to defy the rules and do the unexpected.

Told in verse, Sarah J. Donovan's debut Alone Together has secrets, romance, struggle, sin, and redemption, all before Sadie blows out her 16 candles. It's a courageously honest look at growing up in a big family.

 

Available at:

Message from Author

About the Author:
Sarah J. Donovan is the author of Alone Together and Genocide Literature in Middle and Secondary Classrooms. A junior high English teacher by day and college education professor by night, she spends every other moment reading young adult novels and writing. She lives with her husband in Downers Grove, Illinois in a condo so she can write instead of mowing the lawn and shoveling snow. When she is not teaching, reading, or writing, she can be found playing sand volleyball with amazing Chicagoland women. (Yes, even in the winters.) You can see all her "shelfies" on Instagram @donovan_sd or tweet @MrsSJDonovan.

Website / Goodreads / Twitter / Facebook

Top Ten Tuesday (3)

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Artsy Reader Girl and features different book related themes each week. This week the theme is:

Top Ten Favorite Book Quotes

"Shadows" by Paula Weston
"I know exactly who I am. It's everyone else who seems to be having a problem."

"Uniquely Unwelcome" by Brandy Nacole

"Everyone looks at me like I'm stark naked standing on a glacier petting a penguin."

"Beautiful Disaster" by Jamie McGuire
"Make way! Move it, people! Lets make room for this poor woman's hideously disfigured, ginormous brain! She's a fucking genius!"

"Rule" by Jay Crownover

"Opposites don't just attract they freaking catch fire and burn the entire city down!"

"Deeper" by Robin York
"My heart is so light, I think it might be made out of air. It might float up and escape through the gap between my front teeth."

"Forgiving Lies" by Molly McAdams

"'I forgine you, but no more lies.'"

'None.'

She leaned away and propped herself up on an elbow. 'I'm serious, Kash. Not even the forgiving lies to save me from getting my feelings hurt. If I ask you if my butt looks big, you can't lie.'

'Woman, you barely even have an ass. that was the worst example you could have used.'"

"Hard As It Gets" by Laura Kaye
"Happiness wasn't something you found, happiness was something you made--by living in the moment, by cherishing the people in your life right now, by finding the courage to change those things you didn't like."

"Invisibility" by Andrea Cremer & David Levithan

"People say that time slips through our fingers like sand. What they don't acknowledge is that some of the sand sticks to the skin. These are memories that will remain, memories of the time when there was still time left."

"Spark" by Brooke Cumberland
"You are going to experience hurt, fear, pain, and possibly even heartache, but that's life. You stand back up, and you begin again. It's not easy. It sucks. And it might damage you, but that's how you build a thick skin. You take what life hands you, and you do your damn best to survive."

"Red Rising" by Pierce Brown

"Man cannot be freed by the same injustice that enslaved it."

Next week's theme:

Top Ten Books That Surprised Me (in a good or bad way)

Thrifty Thursday (2)

A meme created to share ongoing book deals on Amazon. Enjoy!

Freebies

Three Nights with a Rock Star by Amber Lin & Shari Slade (Half-Life #1) - Goodreads / Amazon

Prisoner by Annika Martin & Skye Warren (Criminals & Captives #1) - Goodreads / Amazon

Demon Ember by M.J. Haag & Becca Vincenza (Resurrection Chronicles #1) - Goodreads / Amazon 

$.99

Damaged Locke by Victoria Ashley & Jenika Snow (Locke Brothers #1) - Goodreads / Amazon

Wanted by the Devil by Joanna Blake (Devil's Riders #1) - Goodreads / Amazon

Queen of Gods by Scarlett Dawn & Katherine Rhodes (Vampire Crown #1) - Goodreads / Amazon

What thrifty goodies have you gotten recently?

DISCLAIMER: These book prices are subject to change before the blog post so please check the price before you make your purchase. 

Waiting On Wednesday (5)

Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine. This is a once-a-week look at the book(s) we are anxiously awaiting release.

"High Voltage" by Karen Marie Moning

This book is to be released March 6th, 2018. It is the tenth book in the Fever series.

There is no action without consequence...

Dani O'Malley was nine years old when the delusional, sadistic Rowena transformed her into a ruthless killer. Years later, she's tough, hardened, yet achingly vulnerable and fiercely compassionate, living alone by her own exacting code. Despite the scars on her body, driven by deeper ones carved into her soul, no one is more committed to protecting Dublin. By day, she ensures the safety of those she rescues, by night she hunts evil, dispensing justice swiftly and without mercy, determined to give those she cares for the peace she has never known.

There is no power without price...

When the Faerie Queen used the dangerously powerful Song of Making to heal the world from the damage done by the Hoar Frost King, catastrophic magic seeped deep into the earth, giving rise to horrifying, unforeseen consequences--and now deadly enemies plot in the darkness, preparing to enslave the human race and unleash an ancient reign of hell on Earth.

There is no future without sacrifice...

With the lethal, immortal Ryodan at her side, armed with the epic Sword of Light, Dani once again battles to save the world but her past comes back to haunt her with a vengeance, demanding an unspeakable price for the power she needs to save the human race and no one--not even Ryodan who'd move the very stars for her--can save her this time...

What are you "waiting on" this Wednesday?

Top Ten Tuesday (2)

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Artsy Reader Girl and features different book related themes each week. This week the theme is:

Top Ten Books I Could Re-Read Forever

"Lover Eternal" by J.R. Ward
I love all The Black Dagger Brotherhood books but Rhage will always have a special place in my heart. I could read his love story with Mary over and over again without ever tiring of it and I have. I have read the series 3 times now and am hankering for another go through.

"The End" by G. Michael Hopf

I read this on a whim for a book tour and absolutely fell in love with the series. The author even read my review and thanked me for my positive feedback. Not only did that make me feel appreciated as a reviewer but also just hammered home the fact that the book was astonishing. I am normally a romance buff but this book made all the mushy books pale in comparison to it's might.

"Feed" by Mira Grant 
 This was one of the first books I openly reviewed (I think, it's been a while...). It took the token dystopian zombie novel and incorporated the blogging world. The only way to transmit information in this new world is through blogs and news stories. This made my little blogger heart pitter-pat with how much importance was placed on something I am so passionate about. It's really am amazing read if you love zombie novels.

"After the Ending" By Lindsey Fairleigh & Lindsey Pogue

This was my first dabble into the New Adult genre after a long stint of never wanting to touch a romance novel. I didn't really thing there WOULD be any romance what with zombies running around but there seemed to be a small dose of it underlying. That small taste of romance made me want to read more of the swoon-worthy love stories in that particular genre.

"Jet" by Jay Crownover
Another book given to be for a book tour that I fell in love with. I have read this series 2 times now and Jet was by far my favorite Marked Men in the series. Maybe it's the rock star aspect of him that gets me a bit twitterpated. Who doesn't love a hot man with tattoos and a guitar?

"Wait for You" by Jennifer L. Armentrout

I got into Jennifer L. Armentrout with her young adult Lux series. When she announced that she was going to start writing New Adult I had to try it out to see if she could hack it in a more mature genre. Not only did she do so with this book series, but she far exceeded the love I had for her with her young adult writing.

"The Queen of the Tearling" by Erika Johansen
My taste in genres tend to change with the seasons. I did have a phase where I would read nothing by Fantasy novels. This was one of them. It was also a book given to me for a book tour. I seem to find all my hidden gems I love on book tours. Definitely need to do more of them.

"Breaking Nova" by Jessica Sorensen

Jessica Sorensen is an absolute goddess of New Adult books. This one handles a very controversial subject of drug addiction and how it shapes a person's life and their relationships with people. It was the first book I had ever read that touched on such issues and it was absolutely heartbreaking, but in the best way possible. 

"Splintered" by A.G. Howard
I adore retellings. An author taking a story that everyone knows and twisting it into something completely different. This was a retelling of Alice in Wonderland which is my favorite book. Also, it doesn't really contribute to my love of this book, but this cover art is beautiful.

"Dollface: A Novel of the Roaring Twenties" by Renee Rosen

My favorite point in time was the roaring twenties. Everything that we find mainstream today was taboo back then. The desire to live one's life the way they want to live it but also abiding by unrealistic social norms? Who wouldn't love something like that? Dollface was just such a tale of a determined girl wanting to live beyond settling down with a husband who can take care of her. 

Next week's theme:

Top Ten Favorite Book Quotes

Review: Cake by J. Bengtsson

Title: Cake

Author: J. Bengtsson

Series: Cake #1

Publication date: May 14th, 2016

Pages: 610

ISBN: 9781539844570

Synopsis (according to Goodreads):

Jake McKallister might have been a rock star, but he was no ordinary one. Surviving an unspeakable crime as a young teen had shaped him into a guarded workaholic, and he now lived his life trying to forget. If it hadn't been for music and the redemption he found through it, he might not have survived. Career success came easily for him. Personal connections did not. 

When outspoken, vivacious college student Casey Caldwell was paired with the famously reserved rockstar for a friend's wedding, she was prepared for the worst. What could they possibly have in common? She was a bubbly talker; he was a reclusive loner. His life was filled with music; she couldn't carry a tune. She'd enjoyed a happy childhood; his was a well-publicized nightmare.

Yet despite their obvious differences, Jake and Casey found each other, and her light balanced out his darkness. Would their love be strong enough to survive the weight of his tragic past?

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is a *full-length* standalone romance. Cake is a love story at heart but does deal with a sensitive topic and may not be for all.

Due to strong language and sexual content, this book is not intended for readers under the age of eighteen.

*This novel was professionally re-edited on June 28th, 2016*

Review:

I have to admit something that normally reviewers keep to themselves. I am a sucker for a cover. Sometimes I won't even read the description of the book and simply go off cover appeal. This one's cover was not something I would call particularly "wow-worthy". I could tell it was about a rock star as with the guitar and silhouette of a concert at the bottom, but other than that I didn't see anything that made me perk up with interest. However, as I determined I was going to read most if not all the books available for Kindle Unlimited I decided to try it out.

Jake is a rare breed. He's a rockstar who still has a down-to-Earth personality. You won't see him marring the front pages of the latest gossip magazine with wild antics. He is from a troubled past and a popularity he had hoped would not define his entire career. His past is traumatic and his present is unpredictable. Everybody wants something from him and it gets old fast. So when he meets Casey, who doesn't seem to care much for his fame, he can't help but to get to know her. When he does, he doesn't know how he survived without her. She is the first person who doesn't seem to immediately want something from him and it's that rare quality that makes walking down the aisle at his brother's wedding with her that much more exciting.

Casey knows the newspaper's report of what happened to Jake when he was younger. She wouldn't dream of feeling sorry for him, but knowing the man, who seems so put-together and accomplished, was hurt like that makes Casey's heart ache. Casey is awkward in the most delightful way and she keeps Jake on his toes. But when Jake's past starts to bleed into their life together, Casey must find a way to weather the storm so both her and Jake make it out alive.

I loved Casey. I loved everything about her. She was the perfect female lead in this story. Jake I don't feel was as flushed out as Casey was. The situation leading to Jake dealing with his past was very true to real life with someone with PTSD. The flashbacks and the feel of those types of traumas was real and clearly well researched. I felt for Jake even while being annoyed with him for the way he would treat Casey when he was having one of his "moments". He definitely had a diva side to him and Casey's role as the complete opposite did wonders for the story. If they had both been dramatic then the story would have come off as very whiny. It was a good balance.

Cake was the real story behind rockstar fame when you remove the drugs and alcohol that seems synonymous with that career path. Rockstars have a past and it's not always pretty but sometimes, like everyone else, they find the person to pull them from their dark abyss and into the light.