Rockstar Book Tour: Beastly Beauty

I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the BEASTLY BEAUTY  by Jennifer Donnelly Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!

 About the Book:

Title: BEASTLY BEAUTY

Author: Jennifer Donnelly

Pub. Date: May 7, 2024

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Formats: Hardcover, eBook, Audiobook

Pages: 336

Find it: Goodreads, https://books2read.com/BEASTLY-BEAUTY

*"A dreamy, sublimely written tale." -- Publishers Weekly, starred review

From New York Times bestselling, award-winning author Jennifer Donnelly comes a revolutionary, gender-swapped retelling of Beauty and the Beast that will forever change how you think about beauty, power, and what it really means to follow your heart.

What makes a girl "beastly?" Is it having too much ambition? Being too proud? Taking up too much space? Or is it just wanting something, anything, too badly?

That's the problem Arabella faces when she makes her debut in society. Her parents want her to be sweet and compliant so she can marry well, but try as she might, Arabella can't extinguish the fire burning inside her -- the source of her deepest wishes, her wildest dreams.

When an attempt to suppress her emotions tragically backfires, a mysterious figure punishes Arabella with a curse, dooming her and everyone she cares about, trapping them in the castle. As the years pass, Arabella abandons hope. The curse is her fault -- after all, there's nothing more "beastly" than a girl who expresses her anger -- and the only way to break it is to find a boy who loves her for her true self: a cruel task for a girl who's been told she's impossible to love.

When a handsome thief named Beau makes his way into the castle, the captive servants are thrilled, convinced he is the one to break the curse. But Beau -- spooked by the castle's strange and forbidding ladies-in-waiting, and by the malevolent presence that stalks its corridors at night -- only wants to escape. He learned long ago that love is only an illusion. If Beau and Arabella have any hope of breaking the curse, they must learn to trust their wounded hearts, and realize that the cruelest prisons of all are the ones we build for ourselves.

  My Thoughts: I do love Jennifer Donnelly's books. This was a different twist on the Beauty and the Beast story. I admit, I took me a little bit to get into it. I really liked the architecture moments. This was a really clever book. I do wish there had been a list of names because my brain doesn't work like that. There were lots of twists that I didn't see coming. The descriptions of the book were fantastic.  I loved how this book talked about female emotions and how powerful they are. I loved the message of this book - and the ending. 

About Jennifer:

Jennifer Donnelly is the author of A Northern Light, which was awarded a Printz Honor and a Carnegie Medal; Revolution (named a Best Book by Amazon, Kirkus Reviews, School Library Journal, and the Chicago Public Library, and nominated for a Carnegie Medal); the Deep Blue series; and many other books for young readers, including Lost in a Book, which spent more than 20 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. She lives in New York's Hudson Valley.

 

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Goodreads | Amazon

Meet Jennifer! 

Giveaway Details: 

1 winner will receive a finished copy of BEASTLY BEAUTY, US Only.

Ends June 4^th, midnight EST.

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Follow the Tour:

Week Three:

5/19/2024	Triquetra Reviews	Review/IG Post
5/20/2024	Country Mamas With Kids	Review/IG Post
5/21/2024	@bookish_aly_cat	IG Review/TikTok Post
5/21/2024	@dreaminginpages	IG Review
5/22/2024	nerdophiles	Review
5/23/2024	A Backwards Story	Review/IG Post
5/23/2024	YA Book Nerd	Review/IG Post
5/24/2024	@jaimes_mystical_library	IG Review
5/25/2024	@celiamcmahonreads	IG Review

Blog Tour: Our Friend Hedgehog

I am excited to be a part of the OUR FRIEND HEDGEHOG by Lauren Castillo Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. I couldn't wait to read this book and it didn't disappoint! 

Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!

About the Book:

Title: OUR FRIEND HEDGEHOG: The Story of Us

Author: Lauren Castillo

Pub. Date: May 5, 2020

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

Formats: Hardcover, eBook

Pages: 122

Find it: 
Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, 
B and N, ibooks, Kobo, TBD, Bookshop.org

From a Caldecott Honor-winning artist comes a cozy classic-in-the-making about finding your friends and sticking together through thick and thin.

"Our Friend Hedgehog feels like a modern-day Winnie the Pooh . It's so warm and full of joy and love. It's got classic written all over it." --Victoria Jamieson, Newbery Honor-winning author of Roller Girl

Sometimes you make a friend,

and it feels like you have known that friend your entire life. . . .

Hedgehog lives on a teeny-tiny island with only her stuffed dog, Mutty, for company. When a great storm carries Mutty away, she embarks on a quest to find her friend. Following the trail of clues Mutty left behind, brave Hedgehog meets a wiggly Mole, a wordy Owl, a curmudgeonly Beaver, a scatterbrained Hen and Chicks, and a girl who's new to the neighborhood, Annika May. With bravery and teamwork, there's nothing that can stop these seven from finding Mutty, but along the way they discover something even more important: each other.

The first book in a new series from Caldecott Honor winner Lauren Castillo, Our Friend Hedgehog: The Story of Us has the feel of a timeless classic, introducing an unforgettable cast of characters who will star in many more adventures to come.

My Thoughts:

I was super excited to read this book because I've been a big fan of Lauren Castillo. I knew from the art work and the snippets I had seen online that I was going to love this book. And I wasn't wrong. This is story about friendship, bravery, love, and new beginnings. This is sure to be a modern classic that readers will love to share again and again. I can't wait to read more about these friends!

About Lauren:

Lauren studied illustration at the Maryland Institute College of Art and received her MFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York City. She is the author and illustrator of the 2015 Caldecott Honor winning book, Nana in the City, as well as The Troublemaker and Melvin and the Boy. Lauren has also illustrated several critically acclaimed picture books, including Kirkus Prize finalist Imagine by Juan Felipe Herrera, Twenty Yawns by Jane Smiley, and Yard Sale by Eve Bunting. She currently draws and dreams in Harrisburg, PA.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram |Goodreads

Giveaway Details:

3 winners will win a finished copy of OUR FRIEND HEDGEHOG, US Only.

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Follow the tour: 

Week Four: 5/18/2020 Adventures in Literature Review 5/19/2020 ❧Defining Ways❧ Review 5/20/2020 Two Chicks on Books Interview 5/21/2020 Lifestyle of Me Review 5/22/2020 Cindy's Love of Books Review

Blog Tour: City of Spies

About The Book:

Title: CITY SPIES

Author: James Ponti

Pub. Date: March 10, 2020

Publisher: Aladdin

Formats: Hardcover, Paperback, audiobook

Pages: 384

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, Audible, B and N, iBooks, Kobo, TBD, Bookshop.org

In this new series James Ponti brings together five kids from all over the world and transforms them into real-life spies.

Sara Martinez is a hacker. She recently broke into the New York City foster care system to expose her foster parents as cheats and lawbreakers. However, instead of being hailed as a hero, Sara finds herself facing years in a juvenile detention facility and banned from using computers for the same stretch of time. Enter Mother, a British spy who not only gets Sara released from jail but also offers her a chance to make a home for herself within a secret MI6 agency.

Operating out of a base in Scotland, the City Spies are five kids from various parts of the world. When they’re not attending the local boarding school, they’re honing their unique skills, such as sleight of hand, breaking and entering, observation, and explosives. All of these allow them to go places in the world of espionage where adults can’t.

Before she knows what she’s doing, Sarah is heading to Paris for an international youth summit, hacking into a rival school’s computer to prevent them from winning a million euros, dangling thirty feet off the side of a building, and trying to stop a villain…all while navigating the complex dynamics of her new team.

No one said saving the world was easy…

My Thoughts:
I really enjoyed this book. I loved the beginning and learning more about Sara. I enjoyed the moments when she met the rest of the team - and how they wanted to see her first. I enjoyed her interactions with the team and learning more about the FARM. I enjoyed her first mission and how it related to school and also the environment. I loved learning more about the team and how they each had their specialties but also how they came together. I loved the secret buildings. I liked how the background of each characters was interspersed throughout the book and the perspectives changed. 

I do hope this is the first book in a new series!

Cover Thoughts: Amazing. It drew me in right away.
Source: Book sent for review
Library Recommendations: Highly recommended for your school and public libraries.

And if you like spy books...

About James:

James Ponti was born in Italy, raised in Florida, and went to college in California. After receiving a degree in screenwriting from the USC Film School, he began a career writing and producing television shows for the likes of Nickelodeon, Disney Channel, PBS, Spike TV, History Channel, and Golf Channel. James loves writing, travel, and the Boston Red Sox. He lives with his family in Maitland, Florida.

Photo by Elena Seibert Photography.

Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Goodreads

Giveaway Details:

Three lucky winners will receive a finished copy of CITY SPIES, US Only.

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Follow the Rest of the Tour:

Week Two:

3/9/2020	Wonder Struck	Review
3/10/2020	fictitious.fox	Review
3/11/2020	momfluenster	Review
3/12/2020	Two Points of interest	Review
3/13/2020	Savings in Seconds	Review

Blog Tour: Sam Saves the Night

About the Book

Title: SAM SAVES THE NIGHT

Author: Shari Simpson

Pub. Date: October 1, 2019

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Formats: Hardcover, eBook

Pages: 304

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, B and N, iBooks, Kobo, TBD

What would you do if you could stay out all night and not get in trouble?

Thirteen-year-old Sam has no friends, but you can't really blame her. She lives her life in a state of chronic exhaustion thanks to her nightly sleepwalking jaunts, which include trips to the store, treehouse-building projects, and breaking-and-entering escapades-none of which she remembers in the morning. Her condition is taking its toll on her family (and her life), so when her mom takes her to see a wacky strip-mall sleep specialist, Sam is wary, but 100 percent in.

The night after the doc works his mojo, Sam wakes up outside her body, watching herself sleep. FREAKY! But once she gets over the panic attack, she realizes there's a whole world of detached-souls out there, called SleepWakers-cliques of kids like the Achieves, who use their sleep time to learn new things; the Numbs, who eat junk food and play video games all night long, and the OCDeeds who search for missing things and organize other people's stuff. And then there are the Mean Dreams, led by Madalynn Sucret, the nicest girl in Sam's school, who shows Sam that she can use her power to get back at a bully who's been tormenting her. Sam is intrigued-until it becomes clear that Madalynn is the real bully and the "tormentor" is just, well... sad. Now Sam is faced with uniting the various tribes of SleepWakers to fight back against Madalynn and the Mean Dreams in the most epic battle the night has ever seen.

My Thoughts:
I really enjoyed this book. I'm hoping it's the start of a new series because the end left us hanging - just a little bit. I loved the idea of SleepWalkers being able to do different things during the day - opposites from their daytime self. But also maybe more like their inner soul. I like how everyone found their own tribe. I felt terrible for Sam and her family for all that they had been through. I enjoyed uncovering more information about the SleepWalkers with Sam and seeing how she fit into the that world. I loved how she finally stood up for herself and pulled other people with her. 

Cover Thoughts: Cute
Source: Book sent for review
Library Recommendations: A fun middle grade read for your library.

About the Author:

Shari Simpson is a playwright and screenwriter who cowrote the off-Broadway hit Maybe Baby, It's You and the Disney Channel Original Movie The Swap, both with her longtime writing partner, Charlie Shahnaian. She also won the 2012 BlogHer Voice of the Year for Humor Writing. Shari lives in Hoboken, NJ, with a patient husband, two hilarious teenagers, a demonic cat, and her pug, Mila Kunis. This is her first novel.

Twitter | Goodreads

Follow the Tour:

10/14/2019- YA Book Nerd- Review

10/15/2019- Life Within The Pages- Review

10/16/2019- fictitious.fox- Review

10/17/2019- Fyrekatz Blog- Review

10/18/2019- The Try Everything- Excerpt

Giveaway Details:

3 winners will receive a finished copy of SAM SAVES THE NIGHT, US Only.

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Blog Tour: Love a la Mode

About the Book:

Title: LOVE A LA MODE 

Author: Stephanie Kate Strohm

Pub. Date: November 27, 2018

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook

Pages: 304

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Audible, B and N, iBooks, TBD

Take two American teen chefs, add one heaping cup of Paris, toss in a pinch of romance, and stir...

Rosie Radeke firmly believes that happiness can be found at the bottom of a mixing bowl. But she never expected that she, a random nobody from East Liberty, Ohio, would be accepted to celebrity chef Denis Laurent's school in Paris, the most prestigious cooking program for teens in the entire world. Life in Paris, however, isn't all cream puffs and crepes. Faced with a challenging curriculum and a nightmare professor, Rosie begins to doubt her dishes.

Henry Yi grew up in his dad's restaurant in Chicago, and his lifelong love affair with food landed him a coveted spot in Chef Laurent's school. He quickly connects with Rosie, but academic pressure from home and his jealousy over Rosie's growing friendship with gorgeous bad-boy baker Bodie Tal makes Henry lash out and push his dream girl away.

Desperate to prove themselves, Rosie and Henry cook like never before while sparks fly between them. But as they reach their breaking points, they wonder whether they have what it takes to become real chefs.

Perfect for lovers of Chopped Teen Tournament and Kids Baking Championship, as well as anyone who dreams of a romantic trip to France, Love la Mode follows Rosie and Henry as they fall in love with food, with Paris, and ultimately, with each other.

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book; I was hooked from the moments on the plane together. I loved exploring Paris with the characters of the book. And OMG, the food made my mouth water. I wanted crepes, fresh baked bread, and so much more. I loved the ups and downs of the school - from cooking special dishes to baking to learning how to chop vegetables. I adored the friendships in this book and how they supported each other and leaned on each other in times of trouble. And that ending is adorable! Of course I also want to jump on a plane to Paris immediately! From start to finish, Love a la Mode is adorable, heartwarming, and inspiring.

About Stephanie:

Stephanie Kate Strohm is the author of It's Not Me, It's You; The Taming of the Drew; Pilgrims Don't Wear Pink; Confederates Don't Wear Couture and the upcoming The Date to Save and Prince in Disguise (Fall 2017). She grew up on the Connecticut coast, where a steady diet of Little House on the Prairie turned her into a history nerd at an early age. After graduating with a joint major in theater and history from Middlebury College, she acted her way around the country, performing in more than 25 states.

Although she was born in New York, she currently lives in Chicago, and doesn't discriminate against any type of pizza. When she's not writing, she loves baking, walking her dog Lorelei, taking dance cardio classes too seriously, and playing board games with her husband. Photo credit: Melissa Lynn

Website |  Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest |  Goodreads 

Next Week's Tour Schedule:

12/10/2018- Eli to the nth- Review

12/11/2018- BookHounds YA- Review

12/12/2018- Savings in Seconds- Review

12/13/2018- Clarissa Reads It All- Review

12/14/2018- Kait Plus Books- Review

Enter to win a copy so you too can drool over food and want to roam the streets of Paris:

3 winners will win a signed finished copy of LOVE A LA MODE, US Only.

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