Saturday, March 15, 2014

1 Year Blogiversary & Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott Giveaway

     

     Yep, that little picture above tells the truth and nothing but the truth. Our Thoughts Precisely turns 1 today! Can you believe it? A whole year of blogging down the drain already. So, let me start off by thanking all of the readers who have stuck around this long. Time really does fly when you're blogging. It's been fun discovering authors and books I never would have thought about reading. There have been ups and there have been downs, but to say the least, its been an interesting year.
     So to say thank you to our followers and celebrate Our Thoughts Precisely's blogiversary, we've got something to give away. So below you'll find a Rafflecopter widget where you can enter to win a Kindle copy of Victoria Scott's latest YA novel, which I absolutely  loved & reviewed not that long ago: Fire & Flood. The giveaway will run from today, March 15th, to March 22nd. Winner will be announced some time shortly after.

The Fine Print:
US only
Entrants must be 16 years of age or older, or have permission from a parent or guardian to enter
You must be a follower of the blog (email, Bloglovin, or GFC)
One entry per household
All entries will be verified, failure to follow the rules will disqualify all of your entries
Must be able to accept Kindle books 
Void where prohibited
Now, go forth and enter!

Thursday, March 13, 2014

Movie Review: Need for Speed directed by Scott Waugh

Director: Scott Waugh
Producer (s): John Gatins, Patrick O'Brien, Mark Sourian, Shane Black
Rating: PG-13
Release Date: March 14, 2014
For more on the move visit the Official Site

My Thoughts:

     I was lucky enough to get tickets to see an advanced screening of Need for Speed back in February—yeah, I saw it kind of early, and I was glad for it too—so I decided to do a bit of a review for it.

     Judging by the trailer it seems almost…I don’t know lackluster. But don’t judge it by how that trailer looks. Need for Speed was something else, something I hadn’t even expected. For starters, I found the movie surprisingly good, it was very entertaining. And for someone who likes car movies then this is it folks—this movie should be on your radar. Despite a seemingly slow beginning where the key players of the movie are introduced and the plot is initially set up, once the whole thing got rolling—literally—well it had me on the edge of my seat. It was surprising. Really, you seriously never knew what was going to happen next, and eventually I found myself rooting for the characters to succeed. There were so many unexpected moments that by the end I was almost wishing for a sequel. Really, it was like watching a Need for Speed game come to life! But Need for Speed wasn't all about cars and races, there was a story to it. There were some very emotional moments in movie, most of them surrounding Tobey Marshall and his friends—Benny, Pete, Joe Peck, & Finn. I can’t reveal anything about certain incidents but it really set up the course for the movie. I liked how the directors and the screenwriters decided to portray Tobey’s determination to succeed. New bonds were formed, while old ones faded away, and there were high-stake races to be had—losses and victories to happen. I do have a bit of a warning: there was one instance of nudity. But all in all, it was a good movie. (Actual rating is 4.5)
Check out the Trailer Below!



And this video about multimillion dollar sports cars.  I think if I had a car that was THAT expensive, I'd cry if someone scratched the paint...I think I really would.



So, are you planning on seeing Need for Speed, or are you going to skip it?

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Cover Reveal & Giveaway: Collide by Melissa West

Today Melissa West and Entangled Teen are excited to reveal the cover for Collide, the thrilling conclusion to The Taking series releasing in December 2,2014! Check out the gorgeous cover, exclusive excerpt, and enter to win an eARC! I do have to admit that out of all three covers, Collide's cover has to be my favorite. The color combination and overall design really work. So if you want to know what I mean, scroll down to see the cover!



About the book:
Collide by Melissa West (The Taking #3)
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Publication date: December 2, 2014

Military legacy Ari Alexander has survived alien spies, WWIV, and a changing world order. But when the new leader of Earth uses Jackson—the only boy she's ever let herself care about—to get to her, Ari has no choice but to surrender. To free Jackson, she agrees to travel to the national bases to train others to fight. 

What she discovers is a land riddled with dying people. Ari has the power to heal by turning the fighters into aliens—half-breeds like her. If she succeeds, together, they have a chance at overthrowing the alien leader, Zeus. But if she fails, everyone she holds dear will be wiped away forever.

Once again, everything Ari’s come to believe is thrown into question. In a world of uncertainty, loyalties are tested, lies are uncovered, and no one can be trusted. If Ari and Jackson have any hope at survival and at preserving a life for the future, they must fight the final war with their eyes wide open.

Find Collide Online:

Keep reading for the Exclusive Excerpt below!

“Wake up!”

I feel as though someone has pinched my mind, shaken my brain around, and asked it to work again. I try to open my eyes, but they’re heavy and clouded and I begin to worry that maybe they are open. I just can’t see. 


“Wake up!”

I flinch at the sound, so close to my ear, yet far away. Or maybe it’s my understanding that’s far.

“Ari. We’re out of time. Wake up!”

My mind flashes into focus, but I don’t open my eyes. I can feel, sense, everything around me. The beeping sounds that alternate in succession. The breathing in and out of the person beside me, yet I can’t make out who the person is. Even if it’s a he or she. But what I can sense is danger, danger so intense that the hairs on my arms are at full attention and the xylem in my body has sparked, causing me to instantly want the person beside me dead. If he or she—it—is dead then I am free to escape, even if I have no idea what or who I am escaping from.

“Fine. Just call this payback.”

I have one second to realize that the person is Cybil, before a gut wrenching pain slices through my left arm. My eyes snap open and she’s in front of me, so pale and rattled that she looks like a ghost of herself. I glance down at my arm to see that Cybil ripped out my IV and is now holding it in her hand like a toy.

“I warned you. Look. This likely triggered an alarm. We have to get out of here. Right now.”

I try to nod, but my body is sluggish and I’m not sure that I’ve moved at all. Cybil loops her arm under my back to help me sit up, and instantly the room begins to move in and out of focus. “What happened to me?”

“They happened. Now move.”

I start to climb off the table I’m on, when Cybil’s eyes round out and her body begins to quake. “Cybil? What is it?” I reach out for her, just as her body collapses to the ground and a metal door behind her slides open. Two men dressed in thick white suits rush in, followed by a shorter man. A man I recognize.

“Hello, Ari. Nice to see you awake,” Kelvin says. Kelvin Lancaster. I remember him from the talks with Earth, how he seemed to be in control, how everyone around him acted uneasy in his presence. Like he was more enemy than friend. I start to respond to him, when I feel a sharp pinch in my arm. I look up to see another white-suited person behind me, syringe in hand. I try to push the person away. I try to open my mouth to scream. But suddenly my lips feel tingly, my arms limp. I focus back on Kelvin, on the grin on his face, and then the world around me disappears, and I’m once again alone in the darkness. 


About Melissa
Melissa West writes young adult and new adult novels for Entangled Teen and Embrace and Penguin/Intermix. She lives outside of Atlanta, GA with her husband and two daughters and spends most of her time writing, reading, or fueling her coffee addiction.
She holds a B.A. in Communication Studies and a M.S. in Graphic Communication, both from Clemson University. Yeah, her blood runs orange.

Connect with Melissa Melissa Online

Website | Twitter | Facebook 

Giveaway

 Alright, now onto the giveaway.  Up for grabs is and eARC of Collide. All you have to do is follow the instructions on the rafflecopter form. Good luck everyone!
 Rafflecopter giveaway.  
 

Thursday, March 6, 2014

Cover Reveal: Stone Cold Touch by Jennifer L. Armentrout

So, it looks like it's that time again, for another cover reveal I mean. Today on the blog we're hosting the cover reveal for Jennifer L. Armentrout's upcoming book, Stone Cold Touch, the second book in her The Dark Elements series, that's being published by Harlequin Teen. So, without further ado, check out the cover below!

Cold Stone Touch
You can Pre-order it right now!

**Amazon** **Barnes & Noble** **iTunes** **Kobo**

STONE COLD TOUCH Synopsis: Every touch has its price Layla Shaw is trying to pick up the pieces of her shattered life—no easy task for a seventeen-year-old who’s pretty sure things can’t get worse. Her impossibly gorgeous best friend, Zayne, is forever off-limits thanks to the mysterious powers of her soul-stealing kiss. The Warden clan that has always protected her is suddenly keeping dangerous secrets. And she can barely think about Roth, the wickedly hot demon prince who understood her in ways no one else could. But sometimes rock bottom is only the beginning. Because suddenly Layla’s powers begin to evolve, and she’s offered a tantalizing taste of what has always been forbidden. Then, when she least expects it, Roth returns, bringing news that could change her world forever. She’s finally getting what she always wanted, but with hell literally breaking loose and the body count adding up, the price may be higher than Layla is willing to pay…
  "Constantly entertaining...the narrative sizzles with as much tension as romance." Kirkus Reviews on White Hot Kiss
And...Don't forget to check out the first book in The Dark Elements Series, White Hot Kiss.

ABOUT WHITE HOT KISS:
One kiss could be the last. Seventeen-year-old Layla just wants to be normal. But with a kiss that kills anything with a soul, she's anything but normal. Half demon, half gargoyle, Layla has abilities no one else possesses. Raised among the Wardens—a race of gargoyles tasked with hunting demons and keeping humanity safe—Layla tries to fit in, but that means hiding her own dark side from those she loves the most. Especially Zayne, the swoon-worthy, incredibly gorgeous and completely off-limits Warden she's crushed on since forever. Then she meets Roth—a tattooed, sinfully hot demon who claims to know all her secrets. Layla knows she should stay away, but she's not sure she wants to—especially when that whole no-kissing thing isn't an issue, considering Roth has no soul. But when Layla discovers she's the reason for the violent demon uprising, trusting Roth could not only ruin her chances with Zayne…it could brand her a traitor to her family. Worse yet, it could become a one-way ticket to the end of the world.

**Amazon** **Barnes and Noble** **BAM** **iBooks** **IndieBound** **Kobo** **Walmart**

White Hot Kiss


Author Photo  About Jennifer L. Armentrout:  # 1 NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY Bestselling author Jennifer lives in Martinsburg, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time reading, working out, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell Loki. Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Spencer Hill Press, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen. Her book Obsidian has been optioned for a major motion picture and her Covenant Series has been optioned for TV. She also writes adult and New Adult romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.

Website   Twitter     Facebook  Goodreads

The Dark Elements Series Website STONE COLD TOUCH Goodreads

WHITE HOT KISS Goodreads


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Saturday, February 22, 2014

ARC Review: Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott

Fire & Flood (Fire & Flood, #1)Title: Fire & Flood
Author: Victoria Scott
Age Range: YA
Source/Format: Publisher (Scholastic Press), Bound ARC
Publisher/Publication Date: Scholastic Press, February 25, 2014
Links
Goodreads   Amazon  Barnes & Noble 

Summary from Goodreads:

Tella Holloway is losing it. Her brother is sick, and when a dozen doctors can't determine what's wrong, her parents decide to move to Montana for the fresh air. She's lost her friends, her parents are driving her crazy, her brother is dying—and she's helpless to change anything.

Until she receives mysterious instructions on how to become a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed. It's an epic race across jungle, desert, ocean, and mountain that could win her the prize she desperately desires: the Cure for her brother's illness. But all the Contenders are after the Cure for people they love, and there's no guarantee that Tella (or any of them) will survive the race. Read more here

My Thoughts:

     Ok, stop the boat. Let me lie down so I can get my thoughts in order. If you’re a fan of Victoria Scott’s writing then you’re in for a real treat. Fire and Flood was absolutely amazing and by far one of the best books I've read this year. I liked everything from the characters, to the Pandora’s, and even the whole premise of the Brimstone Bleed and the circumstances surrounding it. To say that I liked this book wouldn't be accurate, I absolutely loved this book, would be more like it. 

     Fire & Flood sported a whole host of interesting characters, from the MC to the secondary characters, each one was unique, and fleshed out with such precision and expertise that there was never a dull moment to be found. Fire & Flood focuses on Tella Holloway and her journey through the Brimstone Bleed, a race that could land her the cure for her brothers’ illness. But the race is not without danger, nor is it what it seems, it is essentially a test of one’s survival skills. I liked Tella well enough, and I could understand why she took the risk she did—her family was important to her after all. Tella was aided throughout the story by her adorable Pandora with a surprising talent. Overall, I felt like all of the Pandora's were a good addition to the story and kept the plot going at a steady pace. One thing I liked about the characters in Fire & Flood was that they all had a different story to tell, which I thought made the book all that more interesting. Guy was a mystery, he just held so many secrets throughout the book that I had a hard time trying to figure out if he was to be trusted or not. And when he finally revealed those secrets I felt like it provided a nice twist and some clarification on what was really going on. I’d love to go on and on about all the characters I liked and why I liked them, but then this review would never end, so, moving on.

     The plot, oh goodness, the plot. Its kind of one of those cases where things are revealed slowly and at the right time. The plot moved along quickly with the race starting off with a few minor complications, but once everything got started I had a hard time putting the book down. Rarely am I ever compelled—lately anyway—to finish a book in one sitting, but not with Fire and Flood. I had questions, lots of them and most of them happened to do with the Brimstone Bleed itself. Like why it was created, how did they have the cure Tella was looking for, and so on and so on. Some of those questioned were answered in Fire & Flood, but the race isn't over yet. So I'm really looking forward to seeing what Scott has planned next for this series. Overall, I really enjoyed this book! As for the sequel—and there has to be one—I can’t wait to read it. So to end this review: five freaking birdcages, because I absolutely loved it.
      This ARC was provided by the publisher (Scholastic Press) in exchange for an honest review, thank you!

Don't forget to visit Victoria Scott!

Twitter    Website     Goodreads
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