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Tag Archives: Giveaways

14th YAppiest Giveaway! “Rootless” by Chris Howard

15 Friday Nov 2013

Posted by Elizabeth Fais in Book Reviews, Giveaway, YA, YAppiest, Young Adult

≈ 2 Comments

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Book Review, Chris Howard, Dystopian, Elizabeth Fais, Giveaways, Rootless, YA, YAppiest Day on Earth, YAppiest Giveaway

17 YA AUTHORS + DISNEYLAND = THE YAPPIEST DAY ON EARTH!

YAppiest Day on Earth icon

If you couldn’t make The YAppiest Day on Earth, never fear! The YAppiness keeps rolling with epic read giveaways by each of the 17 authors.

This is the 14th YAppiest Giveaway! for Rootless, by Chris Howard. For a chance to win a FREE copy of this book, see the “Here’s How” section below. For a complete list of upcoming giveaways, go here.

Brutally gritty … yet fueled with hope

Cover for "Rootless" by Chris Howard17-year-old Banyan is a tree builder. Using scrap metal and salvaged junk, he creates forests for rich patrons who seek a reprieve from the desolate landscape. Although Banyan’s never seen a real tree—they were destroyed more than a century ago—his father used to tell him stories about the Old World. But that was before his father was taken . . .

Everything changes when Banyan meets a woman with a strange tattoo—a clue to the whereabouts of the last living trees on earth, and he sets off across a wasteland from which few return. Those who make it past the pirates and poachers can’t escape the locusts—the locusts that now feed on human flesh.

But Banyan isn’t the only one looking for the trees, and he’s running out of time. Unsure of whom to trust, he’s forced to make an uneasy alliance with Alpha, an alluring, dangerous pirate with an agenda of her own. As they race towards a promised land that might only be a myth, Banyan makes shocking discoveries about his family, his past, and how far people will go to bring back the trees. [Synopsis]

When you lose everything, you’ll try anything…

Banyan’s post-apocalyptic world is as brutal as it is desolate. The people who survived the Darkness, and later the flesh eating locust, are desperate and borderline feral. So when Banyan loses his father in a dust storm, he is driven to search for him; the only family he’s ever known. Luckily, serendipity is in his favor. Banyan takes on a construction project for a despicable man that uncovers secrets to the location of the last living trees on earth, and evidence that his father is there. If he’s still alive.

Banyan’s harrowing journey to find his father and the last living trees on earth, throws him together with unlikely comrades who prove their worth as friends when the going gets ugly. And trust me, “ugly” is an understatement. Howard doesn’t pull any punches with this fully realized view of what our world could become. The characters are drawn with realistic brush strokes as well, revealing the harshness of their flaws. This is not a “light” read. But the ugliness of the world makes the threads of hope and humanity woven through the main characters shine all the brighter. I can’t tell you much more about the plot without spoiling this monumental story for you.

What continues to resonate with me long after finishing the last page of Rootless, are its thematic questions: “What defines family?” and “Where do you draw the morality line?”

But that’s just my interpretation. Which is what’s great about a good story — it touches each of us on a personal level. Here’s what Chris Howard says about Rootless on his blog:

In ROOTLESS I tried to draw an analogy between human creativity with the forces of nature and the cycle of life.

Rootless is the first book in a series.  For more information about Chris Howard and the upcoming books in this series, visit his web site: chrishowardbooks.com

Here’s how to win…

NOTE: The FREE giveaway of a copy of this book is open to residents of the United States only, due to shipping costs. My sincere apologies.

  1. Leave a comment on this blog–explaining WHY you want to read this book— by midnight, November 22nd (1 entry).
  2. Tweet about this giveaway, including #yappiest in your tweet (1 entry).

I’ll tally the entries and choose a winner, then announce it on this blog on Monday, November 25th. Good luck!

Stay tuned for the next YAppiests Giveaway!

Book Covers for Giveaways

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11th YAppiest Giveaway WINNER! “Pivot Point” by Kasie West

24 Tuesday Sep 2013

Posted by Elizabeth Fais in Giveaway, Winner!, YA, YAppiest, Young Adult

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Elizabeth Fais, Giveaways, Kasie West, Pivot Point, Winner, YAppiest Day on Earth, YAppiest Giveaway

17 YA AUTHORS + DISNEYLAND = THE YAPPIEST DAY ON EARTH!

YAppiest Day on Earth icon


The 11th YAppiest Giveaway! is for Pivot Point, by Kasie West. This epic read is off-the-charts awesome in so many ways!

Pivot Point cover

And the Lucky Winner Is…

… Drum roll …

~oOo~

Kierra

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

*** Tosses buckets of confetti! ***

~oOo~

I’ll contact you via email for your address.

Coming Up Next!

The 12th YAppiest Giveaway! for Populazzi, by Elise Allen is just around the corner, so…

Stay Tuned!

For a complete list of YAppiest Giveaways, go here.

Book Covers for Giveaways

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4th YAppiest Giveaway WINNERS!! for “Divine Intervention”

09 Sunday Jun 2013

Posted by Elizabeth Fais in Books, Giveaway, YAppiest, Young Adult

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Elizabeth Fais, Giveaways, guardian angels, Martha Brockenbrough, YA, YAppiest Day on Earth, YAppiest Giveaway, Young Adult

17 YA AUTHORS + DISNEYLAND = THE YAPPIEST DAY ON EARTH!

YAppiest Day on Earth icon


The 4th YAppiest Giveaway is for Divine Intervention, by Martha Brockenbrough. This book was so divine that it deserved two (count them, 2) winners! Each will receive a FREE copy of this amazing book!

Divine Intervention by Martha Brockenbrough

And the Winners Are…

… Drum roll please …

~oOo~

Cheryl Higashi

&

Kim Griffin

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

*** Tosses obscene amounts of confetti! ***

~oOo~

Coming Up Next!

The 5th YAppiest Giveaway! for First Day on Earth, by Cecile Castellucci is just around the corner, so…

Stay Tuned!

For a complete list of YAppiest Giveaways, go here.

Book Covers for Giveaways

1st YAppiest Giveaway WINNER!!!

27 Saturday Apr 2013

Posted by Elizabeth Fais in Giveaway, YA, YAppiest, Young Adult

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Tags

All These Things I've Done, Because It Is My Blood, BETA, Gabrielle Zevin; YAppiest Day on Earth, Giveaways, Rachel Cohn, Winner, YAppiest Giveaway

17 YA AUTHORS + DISNEYLAND = THE YAPPIEST DAY ON EARTH!

YAppiest Day on Earth icon


The first YAppiest Giveaway is for  ALL THESE THINGS I’VE DONE and BECAUSE IT IS MY BLOOD, by Garbrielle Zevin.

Giveaway Book Covers

And the Winner is…

… Drum roll …

~oOo~

Emma Snow

~oOo~

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

*** Tosses Confetti ***

The YAppiest Giveaway for BETA, by Rachel Cohn is just around the corner, so…

Stay Tuned!

For a complete list of YAppiest Giveaways, go here.

Book Covers for Giveaways


YAppiest Giveaway! “Because It Is My Blood” by Gabrielle Zevin

17 Wednesday Apr 2013

Posted by Elizabeth Fais in Giveaway, Review, YAppiest, Young Adult

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

All These Things I've Done, Because It Is My Blood, Birthright, Gabrielle Zevin; YAppiest Day on Earth, Giveaways, YA, Young Adult

17 YA Authors + Disneyland = The YAppiest Day on Earth!

YAppiest Day on Earth icon

If you couldn’t make The YAppiest Day on Earth, you can still be one of the YAppiest crowd by participating in this giveaway. The YAppiness keeps rolling with FREE giveaways of epic reads by each of the 17 authors. You can win this book by following the Sweet Rules below.

This is the first YAppiest Giveaway! For a list of the upcoming giveaways, go here.

“Because It Is My Blood” (Birthright Book 2)

YDOEG_cover1In 2083, chocolate and coffee are illegal. Anya Balachine is the teenage daughter of the most notorious (so notorious he’s dead) chocolate mafia lord. Family chocolateering aside, life was pretty normal, until she was falsely implicated in a poisoning caused by her family’s bootleg chocolate. Circumstances spiraled out of control, ending in a shooting that landed Anya in prison.

BECAUSE IT IS MY BLOOD begins with Anya’s release from Liberty Children’s Facility.  If prison’s taught her anything, it’s that she wants to be on the other side of the bars. Always. Anya Balanchine is determined to go back to her normal life, where all she had to worry about was falling in love with the wrong boy, and graduate from high school with the rest of her class.

Unfortunately, no school will to take her now that she has a gun possession and shooting charge on her record. Even more disconcerting, the people who were so important to her moved on while she was away. Her genius sister Natty skipped two grades and no longer needs her mothering supervision. Her best friend Scarlet is dating her old ex, and her used-to-be boyfriend Win is seeing someone else.

Things pretty much suck. And then they get worse when she’s driven back into the criminal world she was determined to escape. Her only hope is to leave the city and people she loves, and across the ocean to the birthplace of chocolate.

Dark and Rich, with Mysterious Undertones

Nothing is sugar-coated in Anya’s life, but her story is rich in mettle and meaning. It’s a rollercoaster ride of danger an intrigue, with friends that are enemies and enemies that  turn out to be friends.

Caught in her family’s mafia past, Anya makes a daring escape to Mexico where chocolate is still legal. On the cocoa farm where she’s taken in by plantation family, Anya learns the real truth and mystery of chocolate.  Anya discovers she can’t run from your problems, when her past seeks her out in Mexico and endangering the family who have treated her like their own.

Anya returns to New York ti deal with her mafia relations, and face the lengths they’ll go to take over the failing Balanchine chocolate empire. Her personal relationships are no less messy, and honesty and forgiveness don’t come easy for Anya. But Anya has to dig deep and realize her  convictions, and devise a plan to restore her family’s company and bring it back to the honest side of the law. The decision is the right one for Anya, but it could cost her the boy she loves and bring retaliation from family members set on keeping Balachine chocolate illegal.

Embossed cover designI love this book for its rich world-building, complex characters, mafia intrigue that kept me guessing, but most of all for its heart.

And as if that wasn’t enough… the cover underneath the dust jacket is embossed to resemble a bar of Balanchine bittersweet chocolate! 

I’m so looking forward to Gabrielle Zevin’s Birthright Book 3!

Doubly Sweet Giveaway!

BECAUSE IT IS MY BLOOD is the sequel to the first Birtright book, ALL THESE THINGS I’VE DONE. And because I LOVE these books so much, and want you to enjoy the full awesomeness of Anya Balanchine’s story, one lucky person will win BOTH Birthright books!

Giveaway Book Covers

Sweet Rules…

NOTE: This giveaway is open to residents of the United States and Canada only, due to shipping costs. My sincere apologies.

  1. Leave a comment on this blog by midnight, April 24th, telling us about your favorite type of chocolate (1 entry).
  2. Tweet about this giveaway, including #yappiest in your tweet (1 entry).

I’ll tally the entries and choose a winner at random, then announce it on this blog on Saturday April 27th. Good luck! 

Stay tuned for these YAppiests Giveaways!

Book Covers for Giveaways


The YAppiest Day on Earth!

05 Friday Apr 2013

Posted by Elizabeth Fais in Disneyland, Fun, YA, YAppiest, Young Adult

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

Carrie Arcos, Cat Patrick, Cecil Castellucci, Chris Howard, Disneyland, Elise Allen, Elizabeth Fais, Gabrielle Zevin, Giveaways, Gretchen McNeil, Jennifer Bosworth, Jessica Brody, Kasie West, Kevin Emerson, Lish McBride, Martha Brockenbrough, Rachel Cohen, Robin Mellom, Sean Beaudoin, Shannon Messenger, YA, YAppiest Day on Earth

17 YA Authors + Disneyland = Crazy Awesome Fun!

YAppiest Authors

3.30.13 Disneyland, Anaheim, CA

From left to right, back row first: Jennifer Bosworth, Chris Howard, Me, Lish McBride, Sean Beaudoin, Kevin Emerson, Elise Allen, Robin Mellom, Gretchn McNeil, Martha Brockenbrough, Rachel Cohn, Carrie Lawler Arcos, Gabrielle Zevin, Cecil Castellucci, Shannon Messenger, Cat Patrick, and Jessica Brody. (pic by moi)

~oOo~

The awesome Cat Patrick dreamed up this epic event: Seventeen young adult authors + bloggers, librarians, and book enthusiasts like me converged on Disneyland at 8:00 AM Saturday, March 30th.

Chris Howard, Indiana Jones Ride

The fun started as soon as we stepped through the gates of the Magic Kingdom… We rode rides, screamed, got drenched and/or stuck on rides (thanks to Tigger spilling honey on the Pooh ride), pretended we were pirates, ate chocolate, tacos, and more chocolate (though no chocolate tacos that I’m aware of). It was the best day ever! All shared with a group of amazing people who love books. (Chris Howard pic by Kasie West)

Anyone too far away to participate could (and maybe still can) order autographed books by these amazing authors through the  Mysterious Galaxy’s website.

Not to make you jealous if you didn’t know about this fab event (or couldn’t make it), but here’s a glimpse of what you missed…

Screaming, Reading, Silly Hats, and Prizes!

There was Tower of Terror screaming (pic by Jennifer Bosworth)…

Tower of Terror

Some were too busy reading to scream (pic by Kevin Emerson) … while others couldn’t help themselves (pic by moi) …

Reading and screaming on Splash Mountain

Silly hats happen to just about everyone at Disneyland, as Kevin Emerson discovered (Rapunzel pic by Cat Patrick)… Then there were the lucky dogs who won prizes (Sean Beaudoin pic by Cecil Castellucci)…

Rapunzel Hat and Hot Dog prize

And a Book Signing, Chainmail and All!

Anyone who couldn’t make it to the park could join the YAppy crowd at the 5:30 book signing at the Anabella Hotel, across the street from Disneyland. Mysterious Galaxy provided the authors’ books for sale. Autograph slinging ensued, followed by more food and drinks … and wouldn’t you know … chainmail! Compliments of a YAppiest fan who stopped by after attending WonderCon…

Chainmail Author Signing

Chainmail book signing

A sparring good time was had by all!  (pics by Cat Patrick)

More YAppiness & Giveaways Galore!

The YAppiest Day on Earth was soooo awesome, I’m going to keep the YAppiness rolling with reviews and giveaways of the books written by these crazy awesome authors — 17 in all. I’ll post two reviews per month (in alphabetical order by title), each with a FREE GIVEAWAY!

Yes, there is an ulterior motive. I’m hoping you won’t be able to resist joining the YAppiest bunch next year for even more outrageous shenanigans!

the YAPPIEST GIVEAWAY roll:

  1. Because It Is My Blood — Gabrielle Zevin
  2. Beta — Rachel Cohen
  3. Ditched: A Love Story — Robin Mellom
  4. Divine Intervention — Martha Brockenbrough
  5. First Day on Earth — Cecil Castellucci
  6. The Infects — Sean Beaudoin
  7. Let the Sky Fall –Shannon Messenger
  8. The Lost Code: Book One of the Atlanteans — Kevin Emerson
  9. Necromancing the Stone — Lish McBride
  10. Out of Reach — Carrie Arcos
  11. Pivot Point — Kasie West
  12. Populazi — Elise Allen
  13. Revived — Cat Patrick
  14. Rootless — Chris Howard
  15. Struck — Jennifer Bosworth
  16. Ten — Gretchen McNeil
  17. Unremembered — Jessica Brody

Stay Tuned for a chance to win one (or more) of these epic reads!

Book Covers for Giveaways


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