Tag / YA

by Erik McManus | Breakeven Books

Book Spotlight: The Wrongful Death

How exciting! We’re now on book #3 of The Great Devil War multi-book tour — The Wrongful Death by Kenneth B. Andersen. Let’s see what epic adventure Philip embarks on in this exciting instalment!

The Wrongful Death Cover - Book 3

The Wrongful Death (The Great Devil War #3)

Publication Date: April 19th, 2019

Genre: YA Fantasy

An unfortunate chain of events makes Philip responsible for the untimely death of the school bully Sam—the Devil’s original choice for an heir. Philip must return to Hell to find Sam and bring him back to life, so that fate can be restored. But trouble is stirring in Lucifer’s kingdom and not even Philip can imagine the strange and dark journey that awaits him. A journey that will take him through ancient underworlds and all the way to Paradise.

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Excerpt

The Garden of Eden

The darkness of night turned into the light of morning, and although Philip did what Lucifer recommended and pulled his hood over his eyes, he was momentarily dazzled by the light. Slowly his eyes grew accustomed to the change, and out of the blinding whiteness, the Garden of Eden emerged in all its splendor.

Philip felt something pulling at his soul, even though all he saw was an ordinary forest. That’s because it wasn’t just an ordinary forest.

Not at all.

First of all there were the colors. The green moss that lay like a thick carpet on the floor. The blooming flowers. The luscious tree canopy overhead and fruits hanging in bunches. The sky that was more blue than Philip had ever seen. The sunlight that fell between the leaves in warm streams of gold.

Secondly there were the smells. So many, and so clear, that Philip became dizzy and had to hold onto Satina so he didn’t stumble.

Then there were the sounds. A storm of bird songs, monkey cries, and distant, thundering waterfalls, and yet… quiet, so quiet.

Then, to top it off, the atmosphere—the feeling of the place… It carried him off his feet. The forest, the air, it inspired a feeling of pure joy that Philip had never known before. It made the hair on his arms rise with delight and made his heart, yes, his very soul, feel like laughing. It felt like… Well, like he was in Heaven.

“Horrible place, right?” Lucifer said, closing the door to the rock wall. “Too cold and much too bright in my opinion. Come on, it’s this way.”

Philip and Satina followed the Devil, who with long, decisive steps led them through the summer forest.

“We’re in Heaven,” Philip whispered as he heard the mild breeze softly stirring the leaves in the canopies overhead. “I can’t believe it. We’re in Heaven!”

“Not quite,” Lucifer corrected. “It’s merely the earthly Paradise that lies between Earth and Heaven. This is where the saved souls go after they die. They help tend the garden.”

“Between Earth and Heaven?” Philip said, confused. “I thought you went to Heaven when you died. If you’re good, that is.”

“No. You get this far and no farther. I realize a lot of people think that, Philip. There are even more who think Paradise is about lying in a hammock all day and letting God’s angels attend to your every need. But it’s never been like that. It would quickly lead to many of the seven deadly sins—laziness, gluttony, and greed, just to name a few—and that doesn’t exactly harmonize well with this place. No, living in Paradise means hard work. Of course, it’s nothing compared to working conditions down where we are.”

“What is Heaven, then?”

“Heaven is home to Jehovah and the angels. The angels come to Paradise, but they don’t live there. They live in Empyrean, the city of light. It’s even worse than this place. It makes my eyes itch and my nose starts running like a faucet. I’m definitely more comfortable here.” Lucifer plucked a flame-red rose, and it immediately lost its color and shriveled up. He smelled it and tossed it aside, the now metallic-gray flower disintegrating to ash as it hit the ground. “I have some good memories from this place.”

There was a subtle snap on their right as something in the forest stepped on a branch.

Philip turned his head and froze in his tracks.

It was a tiger. It ran toward them, its giant paws soundlessly bounding through the forest, and its amber eyes locked on Satina, who hadn’t noticed the wild animal.

“Watch out!” Philip shouted and pulled her toward him as the animal came bursting out of the brush, a cascade of yellow and black and teeth and claws.

“Philip, take it easy!” Beyond the rush of blood roaring in his ears, he heard Lucifer laughing. “It wouldn’t harm a fly.”

Fear turned into confusion and then amazement when he saw the tiger had stopped and just stood there, curiously watching them. Curious and…friendly?

“It won’t?” he muttered and let go of Satina. “Sorry, but I thought… Are you okay?”

She nodded.

“That’s what I’m saying, Philip. Paradise is a gruesome place. So sad and boring. Just look at this guy.” Lucifer walked over to the tiger and patted him on the back. “Tame as a lamb. Wild animals aren’t even wild here. In the afterlife they peacefully coexist.” The Devil sadly shook his head. “I get nauseous just thinking about it.”

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About the Author

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I WAS BORN IN DENMARK ON A DARK AND STORMY NIGHT IN NOVEMBER 1976 …

… and I began writing when I was a teenager. My first book was a really awful horror novel titled Nidhug’s Slaves. It didn’t get published. Luckily.

During the next 7 years, I wrote nearly 20 novels–all of which were rejected–while working as a school teacher. The rest of the time I spent writing.

In 2000 I published my debut fantasy book, The Battle of Caïssa, and that’s when things really took off. Since then I’ve published more than thirty-five books for children and young adults in genres ranging from fantasy to horror and science fiction.

My books have been translated into more than 15 languages and my series about the superhero Antboy has been adapted for film, which is available on Netflix. An animated tv series is currently in development.

A musical of The Devil’s Apprentice opened in the fall 2018 and the movie rights for the series have also been optioned.

I live in Copenhagen with my wife, two boys, a dog named Milo and spiders in the basement.

About THE GREAT DEVIL WAR: The Great Devil War was published in Denmark from 2005-2016, beginning with The Devil’s Apprentice.

Even though the story (mostly) takes place in Hell and deals with themes like evil, death and free will, it is also a humoristic tale about good and evil seen from a different perspective. A tale that hopefully will make the reader – young or old, boy or girl – laugh and think.

Welcome to the other side!

Kenneth B. Andersen | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

Giveaway: Digital copy of The Wrongful Death! Enter below!

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Blog Tour Schedule

February 24th

Reads & Reels (Review) http://readsandreels.com

I Love Books & Stuff (Spotlight) https://ilovebooksandstuffblog.wordpress.com

Turning the Pages (Review) https://turningthepagesonline.wordpress.com

February 25th

Didi Oviatt (Review) https://didioviatt.wordpress.com

Crossroad Reviews (Spotlight) http://www.crossroadreviews.com

The Magic of Wor(l)ds (Review) http://themagicofworlds.wordpress.com

February 26th

The Faerie Review (Review) http://www.thefaeriereview.com

Rambling Mads (Spotlight) http://ramblingmads.com

Phantom of the Library (Review) https://phantomofthelibrary.com/

February 27th

Breakeven Books (Spotlight) https://breakevenbooks.com

I Smell Sheep (Spotlight) http://www.ismellsheep.com/

Jessica Belmont (Review) https://jessicabelmont.wordpress.com/

Life’s a Novelty (Review) https://lifesanovelty.blogspot.com/

February 28th

I’m into Books (Spotlight) https://imintobooks.com

Entertainingly Nerdy (Review) https://www.entertaininglynerdy.com

Misty’s Book Space (Review) http://mistysbookspace.wordpress.com


Blog Tour Organized By:

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Thank you to our Patreon Supporters:

Get your name/blog added to our blog posts and Youtube videos by supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/breakevenbooks

I was tagged to do the Books and Bakes Tag !! It was so much fun and be prepared for all the randomness that is me 😜

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by Erik McManus | Breakeven Books

Book Review: The Speed Of Falling Objects

I have a new book review for you bookworms! This one was a totally random read since I picked it up off the freebie table when I was visiting Harper Collins. It is called The Speed Of Falling Objects by Nancy Richardson Fischer.

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Synopsis: Danger “Danny” Danielle Warren is no stranger to falling. After losing an eye in a childhood accident, she had to relearn her perception of movement and space. Now Danny keeps her head down, studies hard, and works to fulfill everyone else’s needs. She’s certain that her mom’s bitterness and her TV star father’s absence are her fault. If only she were more-more athletic, charismatic, attractive-life would be perfect.

When her dad calls with an offer to join him to film the next episode of his popular survivalist show, Danny jumps at the chance to prove she’s not the disappointment he left behind. Being on set with the hottest teen movie idol of the moment, Gus Price, should be the cherry on top. But when their small plane crashes in the Amazon, and a terrible secret is revealed, Danny must face the truth about the parent she worships and falling for Gus, and find her own inner strength and worth to light the way home.

I am so glad that I picked up this book from that table because it turned out to be a phenomenal read! I wasn’t expecting much going into it and was pleasantly surprised by how much I was drawn into the book.

The main character’s development from start to finish was astonishing. She reminded me of a caterpillar turning into a butterfly. She goes through so much s**t and continues to endure when even some of the strongest would struggle. The way each character was written was perfect and I wouldn’t have had it play out any other way.

It was a survival book and I found that the author definitely did their research because a lot of the survival strategies and techniques were accurate and it was a lot of fun because you get to learn about different species in the Amazon as you followed the characters in their struggle to survive.

I was on the edge of my seat reading this because I wanted to know how they were going to adapt to the situations they faced. It was a very thrilling read with some contemporary romantic bits thrown in to spice it up. I would 100% recommend this book to anyone that wants to fall into a book and not come back up to the surface until you have finished it.

Book Rating: 5/5

You can buy this book on Amazon and find it on Goodreads.

Disclaimer: I picked this book up when I was at Harper Collins. I chose to read and review it because I wanted to.


Thank you to our Patreon Supporters:

Get your name/blog added to our blog posts and Youtube videos by supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/breakevenbooks

I was tagged to do the Books and Bakes Tag !! It was so much fun and be prepared for all the randomness that is me 😜

by Erik McManus | Breakeven Books

Book Review: Infinity Son

Hey you! Yea you, bookworm over there. Guess what? I read another book. It was the one, the only, most anticipated Infinity Son by Adam Silvera. And now I am going to tell you about it.

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Synopsis: Growing up in New York, brothers Emil and Brighton always idolized the Spell Walkers—a vigilante group sworn to rid the world of specters. While the Spell Walkers and other celestials are born with powers, specters take them, violently stealing the essence of endangered magical creatures.

Brighton wishes he had a power so he could join the fray. Emil just wants the fighting to stop. The cycle of violence has taken a toll, making it harder for anyone with a power to live peacefully and openly. In this climate of fear, a gang of specters has been growing bolder by the day.

Then, in a brawl after a protest, Emil manifests a power of his own—one that puts him right at the heart of the conflict and sets him up to be the heroic Spell Walker Brighton always wanted to be.

Brotherhood, love, and loyalty will be put to the test, and no one will escape the fight unscathed.

I was a little wary going into this book because I know that Adam Silvera has been primarily a contemporary author and this was his first foray into the fantasy genre. I will say that he could use a little bit of work on his world-building because at times it felt a little rushed and thrown together when it could have used a little bit more explanation into the backstory and how characters/the world came to be in the state that it is in.

That being said, I really liked his character dialogue and interactions with each other (which probably spurs from his contemporary writing) and the feeling he put into them. I liked that things were relatable like Brighton and his Youtube channel (I also have a channel and work hard at it).

The whole power dynamic was fascinating to learn about and I thought it was very cool that they had different ways to acquire these powers. The battles were descriptive enough that they were easy for me to imagine and I felt like I was right there in the thick of it with Emil and Brighton.

I think the superhero nerd inside of me was excited to have a new take on the genre and loved it. Plus, that ending left me wanting more! it kind of sucks that this just came out because I need that next one to know what happens.

All in all, I would recommend this book if you want a new take on superpowers that ties it into the modern world and feels like it could be real.

Book Rating: 4/5

You can buy this book on Amazon and find it on Goodreads.

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by Harper Collins Canada as a physical format ARC to read and give my honest review.


Thank you to our Patreon Supporters:

Get your name/blog added to our blog posts and Youtube videos by supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/breakevenbooks

This video was so much fun to film! It’s the book version of “Kiss, Marry, Kill”. If you haven’t done this yet, I suggest you try. It was hard! So many books I love. It was like The Hunger Games book edition LOL. 

by Erik McManus | Breakeven Books

Book Review: Lucky Star

Our external reviewer Sara sent in another review. She works at a library so she is always surrounded by books (that’s the dream) and then keeps on reading books for fun at home in her free time. She also is very passionate about her yarn creature creations which you can find at AdorkableLilCrafties. Anyways, the book she reviewed was Lucky Star by Holly Curtis.

lucky star

Synopsis: Teenager Ben Somerset has three great loves in his life: Sherlock Holmes, designer clothes and a certain song by Madonna. And then Susie appears.

Set in England in 1984 Lucky Star tells of Ben’s introduction to the world of shoplifting, music, politics, love and heartbreak.

This book was pretty awesome. It was sweet, authentic, engaging, and new. If you like coming-of-age novels, like those by John Green, I think you’d enjoy this.

Curtis does an excellent job of portraying a teenage boy in a way that felt so real, I was shocked to learn that the author was a woman. It felt like the perfect snapshot into a teenage boy in England in the 80s.

There’s angst, teenage antics, too-real anxiety and depression, and all in such a natural way it felt like really reading his diary. I wasn’t really sure where this book was heading when I began it, as the characters were kind of little prats; I soon realized this was the point, and I enjoyed getting to read about them growing and learning about themselves in a natural way.

The character development and plot progression felt natural and entertaining, and I was definitely engaged in where the story was going. Our narrator, Ben, took us through summer in England for a group of delinquent youths, while they tried to figure out what to do with their lives after school.

If you enjoy realistic coming-of-age novels, I think any reader would find it surprisingly easy to relate to this character, as he navigates finding himself and where he fits in in his town, including brief snapshots into what it’s like to have anxiety, without it being the focus of the novel or a deterrent to readers who aren’t comfortable discussing mental health.

Holly Curtis did an excellent job, and I was amused to read along with Ben, following his journey and learning about what it might be like to be an English teenage boy.

Book Rating: 5/5

You can buy this book on Amazon and find it on Goodreads.

Disclaimer: This book was sent to us in an e-book format by the author to read and give an honest review.


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Guys! I read so many books in January! It was a great reading month for me and now I will share it with you. Check it out if you want to and let me know what you think!

by Erik McManus | Breakeven Books

Book Review: Kingdom Of Souls

Need an intense, diverse fantasy full of magic and betrayal? Then look no further because I have just the book for you. I read Kingdom of Souls by Rena Barren and it fits all of these things.

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Synopsis: Arrah is a young woman from a long line of the most powerful witch doctors in the land. But she fails at magic, fails to call upon the ancestors and can’t even cast the simplest curse.

Shame and disappointment dog her.

When strange premonitions befall her family and children in the kingdom begin to disappear, Arrah undergoes the dangerous and scorned process of selling years of her life for magic. This borrowed power reveals a nightmarish betrayal and a danger beyond what she could have imagined. Now Arrah must find a way to master magic, or at least buy it, in order to save herself and everything she holds dear.

An explosive fantasy set in a world of magic and legend with a twist you will never see coming.

This book had a refreshing cast of all diverse characters. I think there were actually no white characters at all and that was a first for me.

I would call this a slow burn fantasy at first because there was a little bit of information dumping at the beginning as the world is being built for the readers. But it builds into a huge crescendo by the end and had me glued to the pages wanting to know how it all came to an end (at least for this one since it is the start of a series).

Arrah was a likeable character and her personal growth throughout the book was developed in such a way that you wouldn’t consider her to be the same person by the end. She puts the “strong” in a strong female character.

There were a bunch of tribes that all had unique names and they represented different parts of the nation. I found them to be a little hard to keep track of but that was only a minor detail.

I would recommend this book to anyone that wants a great, diverse fantasy full of plot twists and sacrifice.

Book Rating: 4/5

You can buy this book on Amazon and find it on Goodreads.

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in physical format by Harper Collins to read and give an honest review. 

I did my first ever reading vlog! It was a lot of fun to make and it was kind of like a review as I read the book. It was also my first ever Brandon Sanderson book!

One of my authors that I follow regularly, Lucia Mann, has put out another book called Endless Incarceration Sorrows. It will be releasing in January 2020 so keep an eye out for it!

EIS - Book Cover (Small)

by Erik McManus | Breakeven Books

Book Review: Crier’s War

I was graciously given an advanced reader copy of this book by Harper Collins and I can safely say that it became one of my favorite books of the year! This one was called Crier’s War by Nina Varela.

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Synopsis: After the War of Kinds ravaged the kingdom of Rabu, the Automae, designed to be the playthings of royals, usurped their owners’ estates and bent the human race to their will.

Now Ayla, a human servant rising in the ranks at the House of the Sovereign, dreams of avenging her family’s death…by killing the sovereign’s daughter, Lady Crier.

Crier was Made to be beautiful, flawless, and to carry on her father’s legacy. But that was before her betrothal to the enigmatic Scyre Kinok, before she discovered her father isn’t the benevolent king she once admired, and most importantly before she met Ayla.

Now, with growing human unrest across the land, pressures from a foreign queen, and an evil new leader on the rise, Crier and Ayla find there may be only one path to love: war.

I loved this book so much. From the minute I picked it up, I struggled to put it down. The worldbuilding was done flawlessly with not a lot of info-dumping but more or less little bits and pieces were given to you as you learn more about the main characters and their pasts.

It was told from two different perspectives and I really enjoyed going back and forth between the two characters. It is really refreshing to see one person’s opinion and then see the other person’s opinion and how it differs. What each is thinking and wondering how it will all play out when they are on 2 different sides. The tension between these two characters is intense and it builds up as the novel progresses. One of the many reasons why I could not put the book down.

I found this book to be a perfect blend of science fiction and fantasy. It was really cool how they used magic and robots blended together. I will be anticipating the second and final book to this duology when it comes out!

Book Rating: 5/5

You can buy this book on Amazon or find it on Goodreads.

Disclaimer: I was sent an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) of this book in physical format by Harper Collins to read and give my honest review.

I did my first ever reading vlog! It was a lot of fun to make and it was kind of like a review as I read the book. It was also my first ever Brandon Sanderson book!

One of my authors that I follow regularly, Lucia Mann, has put out another book called Endless Incarceration Sorrows. It will be releasing in January 2020 so keep an eye out for it!

EIS - Book Cover (Small)

by Erik McManus | Breakeven Books

Book Review: Ashes, Ashes

Jo Tregiarri just keeps coming with these great novels! I am continually impressed with the imagination she shows in the stories she creates and the worlds she builds. This on was called Ashes, Ashes and it was great!

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Synopsis: Epidemics, floods, droughts – for sixteen-year-old Lucy, the end of the world came and went, taking 99% of the population with it. As the weather continues to rage out of control, and Sweepers clean the streets of plague victims, Lucy survives alone in the wilds of Central Park. But when she’s rescued from a pack of hunting dogs by a mysterious boy named Aidan, she reluctantly realizes she can’t continue on her own. She joins his band of survivors, yet, a new danger awaits her: the Sweepers are looking for her. There’s something special about Lucy, and they will stop at nothing to have her.

This book was a really fun dystopian to dive into. Lucy was a likable main character that was just trying to survive after mass plagues, earthquakes, tsunamis, and storms hit the Earth and wiped out a lot of the population. The survivalist in me was loving all the realistic ways that Lucy would live her day to day life and how she accustomed herself to a new way of living after everything she has known changed.

There were parts that built suspense so well that I found myself starting to sweat while reading because I was worried about what was going to happen next. The relationships built were very real and the plot felt like it flowed very smoothly.

I am a big fan of dystopian books or things to do with either the world ending or post-apocalyptic worlds where people have to learn to adapt to a new way of survival.

If I could sum this up, I would say that it was a mixture of Divergent (the social aspect) and The 5th Wave (dystopian world aspect) with a little bit of Maze Runner thrown in (villain aspect).

I would recommend this read for anyone that wants a fun dystopian adventure with a lot of stakes at hand.

Book Rating: 5/5

You can buy this book on Amazon and find it on Goodreads.

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by the author in physical format to read and give an honest review.

It’s already November! I am being pretty ambitious and will be trying to read 5 books this month. Check out what I will be reading!

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by Erik McManus | Breakeven Books

Book Review: The Revenged Queen

If any of you have been following along, then you will know that I read a book called High School Queens last year and loved it due to its sassy drama-filled plot! Well, the author was kind enough to send me the second book in the series, The Revenged Queen, and I loved it too! Thanks Zachary Ryan for sending me the book.

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Synopsis: No one knows the real Marked Queen, but now everyone wants to know her.  In this sequel to the insatiable first novel, High School Queens, you will die to know more about your favorite dirty little Queens.

As we say goodbye to the Johnson Prep Seniors, the scandals and lies that exposed them, in the beginning, are back with a vengeance.

The Marked Queen thought she had the last laugh at prom. Now, it seems a new girl is coming for her crown.  With a new title, The Revenged Queen, she was out for blood and her prime targets—the ones exposing everyone’s dark and dirty little secrets. As we dive deeper into this scandalous and humorous world of prep school teens, we learn that everyone is a hustler with a secret and a Hollywood sob story.

Can Danielle keep her new illegal activities to make money under wraps? Was Calvin going to have a warm welcome as he outs himself as gay? Was Delilah going to take the knife from Danielle out of her back and stab her with it? Was Bethany going to enjoy her rule as queen bee or fail spectacularly? And was there more to Jordan than being just a slutty, party girl?

As the scandals pile up in front of them, their secrets will be exposed… And each secret is even more delicious than the last.

This book picked up right where it left off with our dramatic cast of characters and their lives after the ending of the first book. I was excited to get back into this storyline and explore further into their dilemmas and how they were dealing with the bombs that were dropped in the first book.

In this book, the timeline is set between prom and graduation. This one definitely got a lot more savage with the drama and the revenged queen was not holding back in how she was narrating (Gossip Girl style).

It obviously didn’t have that amazing attention-grabbing style that the first one did because I had become used to the writing style. But I was very happy to be back into this high school setting and viewing the drama from the sidelines because I would definitely be a wallflower and I am ok with that if it means I avoid the crazy messes that are their lives.

There were a few spelling mistakes that kind of brought me out of the story but I sent them to the author and he said he would correct them. It comes with the territory of having advanced copies and that is why beta readers are great!

Overall, I would suggest reading this one if you have read the first one to get your fix of DRAMA and SASS! And if you haven’t read the first one, definitely go pick that one up right now!

Book Rating: 4/5

You can buy this book on Amazon and find it on Goodreads.

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by the author in physical format. I chose to read and review it because I wanted to.

You asked for a bookshelf tour and you have received a bookshelf tour! Check out all the books on my shelves and let’s see if we have any of the same ones!

ACTUAL NATURAL HEALTH & WELLNESS PRODUCTS, INC.

by Erik McManus | Breakeven Books

Book Review: Last Call At The Nightshade Lounge

Another book crushed during the NEWTS! I know that it is now September but I am just getting around to writing the reviews for the NEWTS books now because I was so busy trying to read them all before August was over. This one was called Last Call At The Nightshade Lounge by Paul Krueger.

Synopsis: College grad Bailey Chen has a few demons: no job, no parental support, and a rocky relationship with Zane, the only friend who’s around when she moves back home. But when Zane introduces Bailey to his cadre of monster-fighting bartenders, her demons get a lot more literal. Like, soul-sucking hell-beast literal. Soon, it’s up to Bailey and the ragtag band of magical mixologists to take on whatever—or whoever—is behind the mysterious rash of gruesome deaths in Chicago, and complete the lost recipes of an ancient tome of cocktail lore.

This book was so good! When I heard about it through a booktuber named “Drums Of Autumn”, I knew I needed to have it. The concept of mixing drinks that enable the person to have superpowers alone is fascinating and I was instantly intrigued.

And then I start reading and find out that it is a diverse book with a mixed-race main character named Bailey and I love it even more. It is really enriching to see more diverse sets of characters in strong leading roles. There is also a Canadian character that I absolutely loved because they didn’t exactly show a stereotypical Canadian person with the “Sorry’s” and the “I love maple syrup” but gave them a multilayered personality that was just a joy to experience.

The book would end some chapters with drink recipes explaining what powers this drink gave you and the magical history behind how it was discovered among the bartenders and mixers. They had drawings of the drinks in an old victorian sketching style.

I normally don’t gravitate towards a book with historical elements (not a fan of historical fiction) but I would love to learn all about the mixing lore and the discovery of magical drinks.

There is a lot of action, some romance and a take on superpowers that I have never experienced before. It was very easy to get through and I found myself having a hard time putting this book down! I would recommend this book to anyone that wants a fun urban fantasy book that is very well-paced and honestly should be a series….hint hint….Paul, make another book like this!

Book Rating: 5/5

You can buy this book on Amazon and find it on Goodreads!

Disclaimer: I was given this book as a gift and I read it because I wanted to. I was in no way compensated to give it an honest review.

It is finally September and I completed my NEWTS TBR but until I make that video, here is my September TBR where I talk about the books I will be reading this month and announce my giveaway winner!

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by Erik McManus | Breakeven Books

Book Spotlight: Reaper

Who doesn’t love a good Boogeyman story? Well, I have a creepy little novella to share that will make you want to check your closet before bed!

Read on for more details about Reaper by Jonathan Pongratz, and a chance to win a signed copy of your own!

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Reaper: A Horror Novella

Publication Date: April 19th, 2019

Genre: YA Horror/ Novella

THE BOOGEYMAN IS REAL

Gregory and his little sister Imogen love spending Halloween with their parents. But this year is different. If he proves he can take care of Imogen all by himself, he’ll finally have the allowance he’s dreamed of.

That was before the basement door opened on its own. Before the strange door appeared in the basement and Imogen was taken from him by the monster.

Now everyone in town is blaming him for her disappearance, but no one is listening to his story. Where did the door come from? What was that creature? And most of all, can he find his sister before it’s too late, or will he bury his memories of her along with his parents?

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Excerpt

Call me a scaredy cat all you want, but there was always something about the basement that I didn’t like. It always made me feel like I was being watched, like there was some

thing in the shadows just waiting for me to make a wrong move. Even now, the frigid air crept over me, creating more goosebumps on my arms and legs. I quickened my strides up the stairs, Imogen dragging behind.

We were halfway up the stairs when the knocks stopped. For a moment, I stopped my climb. The house was eerily quiet, and for reasons I can’t explain I felt a sudden urge to hurry back upstairs. I charged forward, trying to pull Immy along with me, but she resisted.

“Too fast!” she whined.

“If you hurry, we can play dress up sooner, now come on!” I yanked on Immy’s arm, practically lifting her into the air. Seven steps. Just seven more steps and we could look back on this night and laugh it off. Seven, six, five. Almost there.

I was just three steps away from the door when I leaped for the landing. I’ll never forget that jump. Time seemed to stand still, as if those cold icy fingers in the air had somehow found a way to slow time down. I remember that I had a smile on my face, a smile that disappeared when the door slammed shut in my face.

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Blog Tour Schedule

August 26th

Reads & Reels (Review) http://readsandreels.com

Jessica Belmont (Review) https://jessicabelmont.wordpress.com/

Loopy Lou Laura (Review) https://www.loopyloulaura.com/

Dark Reads with Toni (Review) http://darkreads826573417.wordpress.com

August 27th

Misty’s Book Space (Review) http://mistysbookspace.wordpress.com

August 28th

B is for Book Review (Interview) https://bforbookreview.wordpress.com

Reviews and Promos by Nyx (Review) https://nyxblogs.wordpress.com/

The Faerie Review (Review) http://www.thefaeriereview.com

Breakeven Books (Spotlight) https://breakevenbooks.com

August 29th

J Bronder Book Reviews (Review) https://jbronderbookreviews.com/

Musings of a Final Girl (Review) https://musingsofafinalgirl.wordpress.com/

The Bookworm Drinketh (Review) http://thebookwormdrinketh.wordpress.com/

August 30th

Entertainingly Nerdy (Review) https://www.entertaininglynerdy.com

Shalini’s Books and Reviews (Review) https://bookreviewsbyshalini.com/

The Magic of Wor(l)ds (Review) http://themagicofworlds.wordpress.com

About the Author

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Jonathan Pongratz is a writer and author of captivating horror, urban fantasy, and paranormal stories. When he’s not writing, he’s busy being a bookworm, video game junkie, and karaoke vocalist. A former resident of Dallas, he currently resides in Kansas City with his halloween cat Ajax. By day he works magic in finance, by night he creates dark and mesmerizing worlds.

Jonathan Pongratz | Facebook | Goodreads | Tumblr

Blog Tour Organized By:

R&RButto200x200

R&R Book Tours

Rapid Fire Book Tag you say? I tried to answer these questions on the fly! Thanks to Dominic from Reading Fandom for tagging me to do this.

Also for all you fantasy lovers out there, my friend Moud Adel (author of the War Remnants which I reviewed in July) has created this new game called Majority Rules where you get to decide what happens in his fantasy story. You will read the story and then vote in a poll for what you want the next scene to be. YOU take control and YOU make the decisions. Every Thursday, there will be new scene options so it is a continuous game! Check it out by clicking on the image below!

Join the game:

https://mastoperia.com/majority-rules/

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