Review: Mortal Gods by Kendare Blake

Title: Mortal Gods
Author: Kendare Blake
Source/Format: Won; Hardcover
More Details: Young Adult; Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Tor Teen; October 14, 2014

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

Ares, God of War, is leading the other dying gods into battle. Which is just fine with Athena. She's ready to wage a war of her own, and she's never liked him anyway. If Athena is lucky, the winning gods will have their immortality restored. If not, at least she'll have killed the bloody lot of them, and she and Hermes can die in peace. Cassandra Weaver is a weapon of fate. The girl who kills gods. But all she wants is for the god she loved and lost to return to life. If she can't have that, then the other gods will burn, starting with his murderer, Aphrodite. The alliance between Cassandra and Athena is fragile. Cassandra suspects Athena lacks the will to truly kill her own family. And Athena fears that Cassandra's hate will get them ALL killed. The war takes them across the globe, searching for lost gods, old enemies, and Achilles, the greatest warrior the world has ever seen. As the struggle escalates, Athena and Cassandra must find a way to work together. Because if they can't, fates far worse than death await...

I won a copy of Mortal Gods a while ago, and until recently it’s been sitting on my shelf unread. I’m not very familiar with Blake’s work, but I’ve heard no shortage of glowing praise about Anna Dressed in Blood. I also haven’t read books that involved Greek mythology in a long time. So, I was really looking forward to getting to Mortal Gods.

The first thing that struck me about the story was the premise, which is basically along the lines of: the gods are mysteriously dying out, and the main character, Cassandra, is caught up in the middle of it. There’s a lot of action, internal conflict amongst the gods, and all the while sides are being chosen. Sounds interesting, right? Well, Mortal Gods was pretty fantastic. I really did enjoy the book. It had a lot going for it, from the mythology aspect, to the utterly normal moments amongst the chaos. All in all, the combination had a cool effect.

The plot in itself was enough to carry the novel—it was interesting, and the early introduction of the conflict raised enough questions to keep me reading. I did enjoy Blake’s take on Greek Mythology. There were familiar names like Ares, Aphrodite, Athena, and Hermes—just to name a few. The roles they occupied were as their mythology dictates with some minor changes to accommodate the plot. Then there was Cassandra. She wasn’t a bad main character, but sometimes I felt like her decisions were getting clouded by her grudge against certain characters. Other than that, she fit seamlessly into a story with Athena and Co.

I’ve read books where things rapidly unfold, but there’s never much of a reaction to it. It’s like, okay, this thing went down. So, tell me how this impacts the characters. How do they feel about it? How are they going to deal with the consequences and emotional impact? That wasn’t a problem here. There was an emotional aspect to Mortal Gods that I particularly enjoyed. There were a lot of relationships, friendships, current love interests, and even ones who were previously lost. Blake dealt with the fallout of these things in a way that blended it with the present story, without having it take over the plot entirely—yet the characters were certainly influenced by it.

I never considered reading Anna Dressed in Blood before, but after reading Mortal Gods, I’m curious to see if all that glowing praise is true. Two thumbs up for this one.

ARC Review: Thieving Weasels by Billy Taylor

Title: Thieving Weasels
Author: Billy Taylor
Source/Format: First to Read; eARC
More Details: Young Adult; Contemporary
Publisher/Publication Date: Dial Books; August 23, 2016

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

Skip O’Rourke is dragged into one last con . . . but he doesn’t know the con’s on him in this funny, page-turning debut YA for fans of Winger and Ocean’s Eleven... 

Cameron Smith attends an elite boarding school and has just been accepted to Princeton University alongside his beautiful girlfriend, Claire. Life for Cameron would be perfect, except that Cameron Smith is actually Skip O’Rourke, and Skip O’Rourke ran away from his grifter family four years ago…along with $100,000 of their “earnings” (because starting a new life is not cheap). But when his uncle Wonderful tracks him down, Skip’s given an ultimatum: come back to the family for one last con, or say good-bye to life as Cameron. “One last con” is easier said than done when Skip’s family is just as merciless (and just as manipulative) as they’ve always been, and everyone around him is lying. Skip may have given up on crime, but there’s one lesson he hasn’t forgotten: always know your mark. And if you don’t know who your mark is . . . it’s probably you...

Let me start out by saying that Thieving Weasels was not a bad book. In fact, it was actually pretty good, I liked it. The story does explore the question of morality since the characters dipped into morally gray areas—they were career criminals after all. Now one thing I do have to note is that this book wasn’t really all that humorous. There were moments that were maybe, possibly a little funny, but there was nothing that made me outright laugh. However, besides that, there were other aspects about Thieving Weasels that I did like.

Thieving Weasels was basically about Cameron Smith, a.k.a Skip O’Rourke. He was running from a life of crime, and he saw the boarding school as an exit from his old life. What I got from the story is that he wasn’t just running from his family, he was trying to find a place that made him feel like an actual person. And yeah, Taylor did show Skip’s history in a way that made his otherwise outlandish decision to take off alone, seem like a plausible thing for someone so desperate for change. That part of the story was handled well, and brought up questions about loyalty and family. In short, I could understand Skip’s feelings on the matter.

The overall plot wasn’t bad, and the story was more entertaining than anything else. The pacing was also good, and it was a light read. One of the biggest draws for me was definitely seeing how Skip would ultimately deal with his family and the situation they put him in—think meddling relatives but about a hundred times worse. That part of the story was pretty good too. Morality was a big theme in this book, and more than once Skip grappled with decisions he had made and happened to be considering at the present point in time. I did like the fact that this was an actual detail, because it made Skip more fleshed-out with faults and habits, and the like.

As far as the secondary characters go, they were just alright. A lot of the development went to Skip’s family—his mother, cousin, and uncle—since they had such prominent roles in the story. I would have liked to have seen more of what his life was like at the boarding school, but Thieving Weasels wasn’t that long of a book. And given where the story began, I didn’t expect to see much of his life outside of his family anyway.

Overall, Thieving Weasels was not a bad read. I went in not knowing what to expect from a story like this, but the book ended up being fun and entertaining.

This copy of the book was provided by First to Read (publisher) for this review, thank you!

Musing Mondays (59) Hobbies are Subjective & Random Weekly Question

Musing Mondays is a weekly meme hosted by Jenn at Books and a Beat, that asks you to muse about something book related each week.

My musings for the week...

Random weekly question from August 15th: What sequel do you have yet to read?

There aren't many books that I can think of that have sequels that I haven't read. Partly because the majority of the sequels I do want to read haven't been released yet. The wait does suck sometimes, but at least I have something to look forward to.

One sequel that I haven't read yet is the conclusion to the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series by Laini Taylor. I've put it off for a long time, and I don't know when I'll have the time to go back and finish the series.

Other Musings:

For my musings this week, I want to talk about hobbies. I rarely mention them even though I’ve previously discussed the relationships between main characters and the secondary characters—whether it was strictly platonic or romantic. I’ve even made a list of my favorite fictional friendships. Yet, I haven’t mentioned hobbies. I feel like it’s easier to get an understanding about any given character by his/her actions, combined with the dialogue and internal thoughts.

Hobbies are anything that a character enjoys doing on his/her off time, as long as it’s some kind of activity, to me, it counts. Yet, I rarely pay much attention to them. I see and remember them, but just move on when the story goes on.

I’ve seen a lot of hobbies, most noticeably art, photography, cooking, reading, writing, a sport of some kind, drama, etc.. There’s nothing wrong with seeing those in books, in fact, the majority of the time the author/authors put a good spin on them, making the hobbies unique to the character. And trust me, I have a lot of favorite characters, and some of them have similar hobbies.

I also like to see less common activities as hobbies too—and yes, I’m just waiting for Pokémon Go to make an appearance (just kidding :-p).

So, what are less common hobbies anyway?

I don’t think there’s a way to really pinpoint any one thing that’s less common than the other. I think it’s purely subjective. What might be common/less common to one person might be in reverse for another. One example of something less commonly found in books is dog grooming. I first came across that hobby in Love Fortunes and Other Disasters. That was the first that I’ve seen of it mentioned in a book, even though I know there are other works of fiction out there that have it too, but I just haven’t found it yet. See what I mean? Subjective.

What are your thoughts on hobbies and how they can build/add to the personality of a character?

The Friday 56 (74) Visual Reference Guides: Architecture by Jonathan Glancey

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Synopsis from Goodreads...

Visual Reference Guides: Architecture, the definitive visual guide, allows you to discover 5,000 years of architectural design, style, and construction, from airports to ziggurats. You'll be able to explore the world's great buildings through amazing illustrations that take you right to the heart of the world's landmark buildings. Look beyond the façades and examine the materials and technology that shape buildings, and identify the key elements and decorative features of each architectural style. It's the perfect addition to any architecture enthusiast's library, whether expert or novice...

"Egyptian pharaoh Khufu ruled 2589-66BCE, and his tomb is the largest of three pyramids at Giza, standing farther north and east than the other two."--Visual Reference Guides: Architecture by Jonathan Glancey

Comments: This week, I'm reading a book on the architecture from around the world. So far, I really like this book. The setup kind of reminds me of how Women in Science was written, with little descriptions about each each place (kind of like a profile). What are you reading this week?

Review: Women In Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers who Changed the World by Rachel Ignotofsky

Title: Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World
Author: Rachel Ignotofsky
Source/Format: Blogging for Books; Hardcover (review copy)
More Details: Nonfiction; Science
Publisher/Publication Date: Ten Speed Press; July 26, 2016
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Synopsis from Goodreads...

A charmingly illustrated and educational book, Women in Science highlights the contributions of fifty notable women to the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) from the ancient to the modern world. Full of striking, singular art, this fascinating collection also contains infographics about relevant topics such as lab equipment, rates of women currently working in STEM fields, and an illustrated scientific glossary. The trailblazing women profiled include well-known figures like primatologist Jane Goodall, as well as lesser-known pioneers such as Katherine Johnson, the African-American physicist and mathematician who calculated the trajectory of the 1969 Apollo 11 mission to the moon. Women in Science celebrates the achievements of the intrepid women who have paved the way for the next generation of female engineers, biologists, mathematicians, doctors, astronauts, physicists, and more!

Last year, I read Rachel Swaby’s Headstrong, which turned out to be a great introduction to many women scientists I was unfamiliar with. I enjoyed learning about their major accomplishments, many of which I had no idea were discovered or invented by women despite being a part of everyday life. So, when I saw Rachel Ignotofsky’s Woman in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers who Changed the World, I was pretty excited. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on a copy.

I really liked this book. It had a lot going for it. This book is a lot like Headstrong with neat profiles about each scientist; although, limited to just two pages. Women in Science mentioned women like Barbara McClintock (pioneer in corn genetics) and Patricia Bath (invented the Laserphaco Probe which is used to treat cataracts). Some of the women mentioned I already knew about, but that didn’t detract from how much I enjoyed this book since there were others still unfamiliar to me. Women in Science also acknowledged the struggles many of these women faced as it did their accomplishments. It offered a brief summarized glimpse into their work life.

One of the main things I enjoyed was Ignotofsky’s use of information and illustrations to build the profiles. The profiles were informative and accompanied by fun illustrations that were colorful and eye-catching. They depicted the subject of the profile, as well as things that directly concerned their field in science and their respective accomplishments—this was everything from corn to telescopes.

Women in Science was a fun book to read. I think it’s a great way to get introduced to some of the women pioneers in science.

Some of my other favorite profiles…

Sau Lan Wu “Made important contributions in the discovery of the Gluon.”(p.102).

Annie Easley “Helped to create software for the Centaur Rocket.”(p.88).

Vera Rubin “Discovered real proof that Dark Matter exists.”(p.86).

Alice Ball “Helped to cure Leprosy with her chemical treatment.”(p.44).

Wang Zhenyi “Accurately recorded Lunar Eclipses & Equinoxes.”(p.12).

This copy of the book was provided by Blogging for Books (Publisher) for this review, thank you!

About the author...

Rachel Ignotofsky is an illustrator and author based in beautiful Kansas City, MO. She grew up in New Jersey on a healthy diet of cartoons and pudding. She graduated with honors from Tyler School of Art's graphic design program in 2011. Now Rachel works for herself and spends all day and night drawing, writing and learning as much as she can. Her work is inspired by history and science. She believes that illustration is a powerful tool that can make learning exciting. Rachel hopes to use her work to spread her message about education, gender equality and scientific literacy...

Netflix and Books Tag

To start out this week, I’m going to do a book tag instead of Musing Mondays. Recently, I was tagged by Gennifer Eccels @Ready, Set, Read to participate in the Netflix and Books tag. It seemed kind of fun, so, I thought I’d give it a try. So, thanks for tagging me Gennifer!

This tag was created by Erica from Novel Ink and Lauren from Bookmark Lit. You can find the original posts HERE and HERE. You can also find the rules for the tag on the original posts, so, if this seems like something you want to participate in, definitely check those out. And, with that out of the way, let’s get started.

Sleepy Hollow: series that should have ended earlier

Technically, Sleepy Hollow is still going but with all the recent changes I’m pretty much done with the show. Anyway, for this one, I picked the Morganville Vampire series by Rachel Caine. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the opening installments of this series. But eventually, I just sort of stalled on this one. I haven’t continued on past the last book I have on my shelf.

Doctor Who: long series you loved

Looking back, I realize that I haven’t read many series that are too long. I’ve started some, finished a few, but the majority of them were trilogies. The two that I can think of off the top of my head are Mythos Academy series by Jennifer Estep and the Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa. I liked Kagawa’s spin on the fey, and I enjoyed Estep’s take on mythology.

Friends: best cast of characters/friendships

I seriously loved the characters from The Spiderwick Chronicles by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi. I was a little sad when the series was over, but the adventures of the Grace siblings are still some of my favorites ever.

Supernatural: favorite paranormal/fantasy

For this one, I’m choosing The Cambion Chronicles by Jaime Reed, specifically the first book, Living Violet. I read that book a while ago, and it’s still one of my favorite paranormal novels.

Freaks & Geeks: left you wanting more

Rain: A Natural and Cultural History by Cynthia Barnett was thought provoking. It was a satisfying read, but I wanted more. I could read about the environment all day if it was approached in the same style that Barnett brought to the table for Rain.

Parks and Recreation: made you laugh out loud

Oh, this one is easy. Recently, there was one book that really made me actually laugh out loud. It was Wintersmith by Terry Prachett. Wintersmith had some genuinely funny moments that were unexpected and highly entertaining.

The Bernie Mac Show: best family or parents

Angel Seriki’s parents from Michelle Johnson’s Oleah Chronicles were definitely some of the best I’ve seen. Johnson did a fantastic job of setting up the relationship between Angel and her parents in a way that seemed ordinary despite the extraordinary—and supernatural—circumstances.

Liv and Maddie: should have a spin-off

I really enjoyed the Leviathan trilogy by Scott Westerfeld, the ending was a good one. It basically wrapped up the story in a way, but it was still a little open-ended. It left the characters at another beginning, and only hinted at more possibilities. I wouldn’t mind another book or two to see where the main cast ended up.

Mythbusters: couldn’t stop reading

Illuminae by Amie Kaufam and Jay Kristoff was one of the best books I read last year. I literally read it in one sitting and immediately wished I had the next book. Speaking of Gemina, I can’t wait for it to come out in October.

I only picked a couple of the prompts to do since there were a lot of them. Anyway, as usual, I’m not going to tag anyone specifically. If this seems like something you want to do, well then go for it, because I tag you….

The Friday 56 (73) Mortal Gods by Kendare Blake

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Synopsis from Goodreads...

Ares, God of War, is leading the other dying gods into battle. Which is just fine with Athena. She's ready to wage a war of her own, and she's never liked him anyway. If Athena is lucky, the winning gods will have their immortality restored. If not, at least she'll have killed the bloody lot of them, and she and Hermes can die in peace. Cassandra Weaver is a weapon of fate. The girl who kills gods. But all she wants is for the god she loved and lost to return to life. If she can't have that, then the other gods will burn, starting with his murderer, Aphrodite. The alliance between Cassandra and Athena is fragile. Cassandra suspects Athena lacks the will to truly kill her own family. And Athena fears that Cassandra's hate will get them ALL killed. The war takes them across the globe, searching for lost gods, old enemies, and Achilles, the greatest warrior the world has ever seen. As the struggle escalates, Athena and Cassandra must find a way to work together. Because if they can't, fates far worse than death await...

"They'd have to bend their heads to go inside. 

"It isn't much," he said. The wind from inside was cold, and spoke of large, black caverns.

Aphrodite squeezed his hand, and they went in."--Mortal Gods by Kendare Blake

Comments: Mortal Gods was the first book I've read by Kendare Blake. It was a fun read. 

What are you reading this week? 

Review: The Traitor in the Tunnel by Y.S. Lee

Title: The Traitor in the Tunnel
Author: Y.S. Lee
Source/Format: Purchased; Hardcover
More Details: Young Adult; Historical; Mystery
Publisher/Publication Date: Candlewick Press; February 28, 2012

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

Queen Victoria has a problem: there's a thief at work in Buckingham Palace. The Agency - the secret all-female detective unit - assigns quick-witted Mary Quinn to the case. Posing as a palace maid and fending off the attentions of the Prince of Wales are challenging enough, but when the prince witnesses a murder, Mary's case becomes anything but petty. Engineer and former flame James Easton has an assignment in the sewers, where someone is making illicit use of the tunnels. Mary will need James's help if she's going catch a thief, solve a murder - and avert disaster...

Whenever I pick up a Mary Quinn mystery I know I’m always in for a fun adventure set against the backdrop of historical London. And The Traitor in the Tunnel was no different. All my favorite characters were back and better than ever, and Mary has once again been dispatched by the Agency. Only, this time her case had landed her in the position of a maid in Buckingham Palace rather than at a dangerous construction site like the one from The Body at the Tower.

Y.S. Lee knows how to write convincing characters and has continued to develop them across the series so far. The Traitor in the Tunnel was as much about the mystery as it was an emotional journey for Mary, and Lee managed to skillfully intertwine these elements into a single story. The Agency remains one of my favorite aspects. I really like how Lee structured the organization as an all-female agency, which used the stereotypes of women during that time period as an advantage for their operatives.

Across three books, I’ve seen Mary go from giving up on life altogether—which was a pretty grim and gloomy beginning—to finding a place and occupation that suited her, and wanting to live life to the fullest. In The Traitor in the Tunnel, she had to face some hard truths and come to understand herself and her emotions. And really, it was kind of awesome. James was also back in the picture, albeit working on projects of his own. But really, they were best together. I really like his interactions with Mary. They make such a great team! They have good chemistry and the best banter.

The plot was also good and featured solid straight-forward storytelling. The mystery was intriguing and started out with a fairly mild beginning but quickly transitioned into one with higher stakes. As such, there were moments of tension and even some action thrown in. The writing was consistently good. Lee’s style is descriptive, yet gets to the point without beating around the bush with unnecessary information.

So, The Traitor in the Tunnel was an engaging and super fun novel to read. It was great to get caught up with the old characters and even those  new to the scene.

Musing Mondays (58) Favorite Fictional Friendships

Musing Mondays is a weekly meme hosted by Jenn at Books and a Beat, that asks you to muse about something book related each week.

My musings for the week...

Random weekly question: Name a book that you hope to re-read some day...

Well, I've kind of already somewhat accomplished that. This year, I've reread many of my favorite books from back before I started blogging. So, there was just never a review for them. However, there is one book I hope to have time to reread in the near future: The Iron King by Julie Kagawa. The Iron King is the start of one of my all-time favorite series that centers on faeries.

Other Musings:

I’m always looking for those relationships beyond the love interests. It’s always great to see the main character interact or have some kind of established connection to the secondary characters. So, to start out this week I want to discuss some of my favorite fictional friendships. This can include anything from magical unicorns to dogs—just as long as it’s a close friendship of some kind. Although, secondary characters are preferred for this list, I’m willing to make exceptions.

Tuesday, Baxterr, and Blake Luckhurst from Finding Serendipity by Angelica Banks: Baxterr is Tuesday’s faithful dog who was kind of magical to a certain degree, so it’s pretty easy to understand why they’re so close. But then there’s the friendship between Blake and Tuesday. They went from total strangers to close friends. Their friendship is one my favorite parts of the Tuesday McGillyCuddy series.

Fallon, Anais, and Nico from Love Fortunes and Other Disasters by Kimberly Karalius: They behaved like normal friends—concerned for each other when one of them happened to be down because of…well, circumstances, and supportive when necessary. It was the kind of easy friendship that seemed to fit naturally in the story.


Iko and Cinder from the Cinder by Marissa Meyer: There’s so much I could say about this fictional friendship, and most of it would be a spoiler for those who haven’t started the series yet. So, I’m just going to leave it at that for today.

Zara and Isabelle (Issie) from Need by Carrie Jones: In Need, one of my favorite parts of the story was the friendship between Zara and Issie. They met pretty early on in the novel when Zara moved to the area after a personal loss, and got along great throughout the rest of the story.

Gwen Frost and Daphne Cruz from the Mythos Academy series by Jennifer Estep: These two were so different that they were the least likely characters to end up as friends. But, yeah, they ended up being friends and their friendship was one of the best I’ve seen, and remains as one of my favorites. They go through some tough times, changing circumstances, emerging magic, and even a ridiculous number of life or death situations in a war against an evil god and his equally evil minions. But through it all, their friendship persisted.

Karou and Zuzana from the Daughter of Smoke and Bone Trilogy by Laini Taylor: Despite Karou’s circumstances—and frequent absences—she remained as a close friend to Zuzana, and vice versa. This friendship was just great. End of discussion.

So, that was just a few of my favorite fictional friendships, there are others, but then it would be pretty impossible to fit them onto one post and keep it a decent length. So, what are some of your favorite fictional friendships?

Pre-release Blitz, Interview, & Giveaway: The Flame Never Dies by Rachel Vincent

I'm super excited to be a part of this pre-release blitz to help spread the word that The Flame Never Dies, the second book in Rachel Vincent’s The Stars Never Rise series, is releasing on August 16th! For those that are already caught up on this series, the wait is (almost) finally over! For those that haven’t yet met Nina Kane or discovered the dark and dangerous world she lives in, there’s still time to catch up - and a really sweet deal (details below) that will make you want to move this series to the top of your reading pile! And for even more peeks at the fab content being shared throughout the blitz - shareable quotation graphics and excerpts - look for other blogger participants now through August 15th on social media #TheFlameNeverDies.

Scroll down to learn more about The Flame Never Dies, The Stars Never Rise, and the author, Rachel Vincent. Plus, check out the interview and enter the giveaway for a chance to win a signed hardback set of the books!

The Stars Never Rise goes on sale!

In anticipation of the upcoming release of The Flame Never Dies, the publisher is dropping the price for the eBook version of the first book in the series - The Stars Never Rise! So if you haven’t yet discovered this series, now is the perfect time!

Just head over to your favorite online e-tailer to look for The Stars Never Rise with its newly lowered price or visit one of these online stores:

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | iTUNES | GOOGLE PLAY | KOBO.

Please note that at the time of this post some stores may not yet have updated their sites to the promotional pricing. If they haven’t, be sure to check back for this awesome not-to-be-missed deal!

About THE FLAME NEVER DIES

Title & Series: THE FLAME NEVER DIES (The Stars Never Rise #2)
Author: Rachel Vincent
Release date: August 16, 2016
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Pages: 352
Formats: Hardcover, eBook

Description...

For fans of Cassandra Clare and Richelle Mead comes the unputdownable sequel to The Stars Never Rise, a book Rachel Caine, author of the bestselling Morganville Vampires series, called “haunting, unsettling, and eerily beautiful.”

ONE SPARK WILL RISE. Nina Kane was born to be an exorcist. And since uncovering the horrifying truth—that the war against demons is far from over—seventeen-year-old Nina and her pregnant younger sister, Mellie, have been on the run, incinerating the remains of the demon horde as they go. In the badlands, Nina, Mellie, and Finn, the fugitive and rogue exorcist who saved her life, find allies in a group of freedom fighters. They also face a new threat: Pandemonia, a city full of demons. But this fresh new hell is the least of Nina’s worries. The well of souls ran dry more than a century ago, drained by the demons secretly living among humans, and without a donor soul, Mellie’s child will die within hours of its birth. Nina isn’t about to let that happen . . . even if it means she has to make the ultimate sacrifice.

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | iTUNES | INDIEBOUND | GOOGLE PLAY | KOBO | GOODREADS

The Interview

Interview with Rachel by her sixteen-year-old daughter (Codename: Melody), who’s thinking about actually reading her mother’s book...

Melody: So, this is a series is about demons, right?

Rachel: Sort of. Not really. A century ago, Nina’s world was invaded by residents of another reality who can only remain in our world by taking over a human body. People called them demons, because that’s the only association they had for the concept of possession.

Melody: So these “demons” aren’t actually bad?

Rachel: Oh, no, they’re totally bad. They’re entertained by the suffering of humanity. They’re just not the residents of hell most people think of when they hear “demon.” But that’s all I can say without spoiling anything from THE STARS NEVER RISE!

Melody: Okay. But if they’re not religious demons, why is the government in this world run by the Church?

Rachel: Because people assumed that only the Holy could fight the unholy. So a fictional “Church” stepped in to do just that. To fill the power vacuum, when secular government couldn’t protect the people.

Melody: So THE STARS NEVER RISE is a book about faith?

Rachel: No. It’s a book about false faith. About the frailty of untested beliefs. About how accepting everything you hear as the truth can mean living a lie. That’s true with every predatory situation, from abusive relationships to investment scams. I just chose to tell that story on a larger scale, where the entire world has accepted a lie because it was easier to believe a hero has come to save us than to stand up and fight our own battles. Take from that what you will… ;)

Melody: Wow, Mom. That was deep. (Teenage eye roll.)

Rachel: (shrugs) There’s also lots of fighting, kissing, and setting demons on fire.

About Rachel Vincent

Rachel Vincent is a former English teacher and an eager champion of the Oxford comma. She shares her home in Oklahoma with two cats, two teenagers, and her husband, who’s been her # 1 fan from the start. Rachel is older than she looks and younger than she feels, and she remains convinced that writing about the things that scare her is the cheapest form of therapy—but social media is a close second.

WEBSITE | BLOG | TWITTER | TUMBLR | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | GOODREADS

About THE STARS NEVER RISE

Title & Series: THE STARS NEVER RISE (The Stars Never Rise #1)
Author: Rachel Vincent
Release date: June 9, 2015
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Pages: 368
Formats: Hardcover, paperback, eBook

***See above for details on the promotional pricing of the eBook***

Description...

Sixteen-year-old Nina Kane should be worrying about her immortal soul, but she's too busy trying to actually survive. Her town's population has been decimated by soul-consuming demons, and souls are in short supply. Watching over her younger sister, Mellie, and scraping together food and money are all that matters. The two of them are a family. They gave up on their deadbeat mom a long time ago. When Nina discovers that Mellie is keeping a secret that threatens their very existence, she'll do anything to protect her. Because in New Temperance, sins are prosecuted as crimes by the brutal Church and its army of black-robed exorcists. And Mellie's sin has put her in serious trouble. To keep them both alive, Nina will need to trust Finn, a fugitive with deep green eyes who has already saved her life once and who might just be an exorcist. But what kind of exorcist wears a hoodie? Wanted by the Church and hunted by dark forces, Nina knows she can't survive on her own. She needs Finn and his group of rogue friends just as much as they need her...

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Courtesy of the author, there is a blitz-wide giveaway. One winner will receive a signed hardback set of The Stars Never Rise + The Flame Never Dies. This giveaway is US only. Must be 13 or older to enter, and ends on August 14th at 11:59 PM Pacific. Just enter on the Rafflecopter widget below...

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The Friday 56 (72) Women In Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers who Changed the World by Rachel Ignotofsky

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Synopsis from Goodreads...

 
A charmingly illustrated and educational book, Women in Science highlights the contributions of fifty notable women to the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) from the ancient to the modern world. Full of striking, singular art, this fascinating collection also contains infographics about relevant topics such as lab equipment, rates of women currently working in STEM fields, and an illustrated scientific glossary. The trailblazing women profiled include well-known figures like primatologist Jane Goodall, as well as lesser-known pioneers such as Katherine Johnson, the African-American physicist and mathematician who calculated the trajectory of the 1969 Apollo 11 mission to the moon. Women in Science celebrates the achievements of the intrepid women who have paved the way for the next generation of female engineers, biologists, mathematicians, doctors, astronauts, physicists, and more!

"Grace Hopper thought it would be easier to just "talk" to a computer in English. Everyone thought Grace was nuts, but she proved them wrong when she invented the first compiler. This led her to create COBOL, the first universal computer language. Thanks to Grace, just about anyone can learn to code. "--Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers who Changed he World by Rachel Ignotofsky

Comments: My 56 this week comes from page 57 since 56 was mostly pictures. Up close and personal, this book is absolutely gorgeous. The illustrations and the color used on each page were done really well. Women in Science strongly reminds me of Rachel Swaby's Headstrong, which is an extremely good thing. Have you read any nonfiction lately?