Blog Tour Review + Giveaway: Adrenaline Rush by Cindy M. Hogan

Today, I have the blog tour for Adrenaline Rush by Cindy M. Hogan, hosted by Xpresso Book Tours, on the blog.

Adrenaline Rush

Author: Cindy M Hogan

Publisher: O'Neal Publishing

Publication Date: October 2013

Genre: Young Adult/Thriller

Source: eARC via Xpresso Book Tours

~Synopsis~

A madman with a mission is kidnapping groups of thrill-seeking high school seniors across the country, and it’s up to Christy to stop him. 

To do so, she must take on a fearless alter ego and infiltrate a group of adrenaline junkies bent on pushing life to the limit. Death-defying stunts are only the beginning: two groups fit the profile, and Christy must discover the real target before it’s too late.

If she chooses the wrong group, more people will disappear. But choosing right puts her as the prime target—with no guarantee that she’ll get out alive.

~Review~

I really loved The Watched Series so I was super excited to find out Cindy was writing a spin-off with new adventures for Christy. I love Christy and think she is such a kick-ass character. She goes on some intense missions and she handles herself super well. I like how strong she is and how brave she is for an eighteen year old spy.

Christy is coming off her first real mission as a spy and she’s headed straight into another one. Teenagers are being kidnapped from high schools and the FBI has narrowed down the next kidnapping to a high school in Oregon. Christy’s headed there to go undercover and try and get kidnapped to catch the person doing this. Christy is determined to find the other kids who’ve gone missing and stop this madman before it’s too late.

Christy is exceptional at what she does and she has no problem getting an in with the group of kids that are expected to be kidnapped. For some reason, the kidnapper likes kids who have a thing for Adrenaline and there just happens to be two groups of kids and Christy must juggle time with both groups to solve the case. I did find it a little unrealistic how quickly she was brought into both groups, especially since both groups are hostile towards one an another. She also develops a quick crush on Dakota and it kind of screamed insta-love. Even with her fast connection and feelings for Dakota, there’s something between her and Jeremy, her handler, and I found that relationship more plausible. She has known him a long time and he has always been there to save and protect her. I adore Jeremy and I would love to see more blossom between those two. What I really want to know is how Christy gets all these men to fall for her?

While I found the plot to be intriguing, especially in the beginning, it became a little far-fetched for me. It was a little more out there than the previous books and a little bit more predictable. However, it was still interesting and action-packed. There was mystery around every corner and I still found myself turning the pages to know what was going to happen next. I don’t want to say much more so as not to give away the plot but I will say that while I thought it fell a little flat compared to The Watched series, I still found myself enjoying the book overall.

PURCHASE LINKS:

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE

AUTHOR BIO

Cindy M. Hogan graduated with a secondary education teaching degree and enjoys spending time with unpredictable teenagers. More than anything she loves the time she has with her own teenage daughters and wishes she could freeze them at this fun age. If she's not reading or writing, you'll find her snuggled up with the love of her life watching a great movie or planning their next party. She loves to bake, garden and be outdoors doing a myriad of activities.

Author links:

Blog: http://cindymhogan.blogspot.ca/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/watched1

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4858618.Cindy_M_Hogan

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Watched-The-Book-By-Cindy-M-Hogan/185737298139932

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Blackbrooke II: The Guardian Blog Tour~ Character Bio & Review

BLACKBROOKE II

The Guardian

I am super excited to have the Blackbrooke II: The Guardian by Emma Silver tour on my blog today. I have a character bio for Liberty Connor that Emma pulled straight out of Liberty’s institute file. Check it out!

BLACKBROOKE INSTITUTE

CLASSIFIED INFORMATION

NAME: Liberty Connor

AGE: 17

HEIGHT: 5ft 3”

WEIGHT: 110lbs

POB: Blackbrooke

BLOOD TYPE: A positive

NOTES:

Liberty Connor was brought into the Institute on the evening of 17^th November. After refusing to comply with Institute personnel, she was sedated and taken to room BI219. She had extensive injuries to her arm and was seen by Dr Guilo Moretti on arrival (see file notes).

Her memories of the evening were sketchy, believed to be as a result of a blow to the head. Intense therapy sessions and isolation have been recommended by both Dr Rita Frank and Mr Jonathan Jones to help Liberty come to terms with the events.

Liberty is the first born of David and Elizabeth Connor. She has a younger sibling, Oscar Connor.

Liberty is an above-average student with a keen understanding of Blackbrooke, which has been brought to the attention of Dr Rita Frank when putting together the session plans.

We expect the sessions to continue with little success for the first week of Liberty’s stay in the Institute after the trauma she experienced in Blackbrooke. We believe contact with Gabriel Moretti, her friend from Blackbrooke, will help to encourage her to discuss the events in more detail. He too will be monitored throughout Liberty’s stay in the Institute.

Caution must be applied with Liberty’s contact with Mr Cassius Godwin. The pair were close in Blackbrooke and information from Liberty and Cassius must be strictly obtained individually.

UPDATE: 18TH NOVEMBER

DO NOT APPROACH LIBERTY CONNOR WITHOUT A MEMBER OF SENIOR PERSONNEL. SHE IS POTENTIALLY VERY DANGEROUS.

About Blackbrooke II

Liberty’s fight continues.

After she had discovered the truth behind ‘walk outs’ in her hometown of Blackbrooke and forced to sacrifice her best friend, Liberty Connor thought she was finally free. 

But her nightmare was only just beginning.

Taken to the Institute, a research facility dedicated to Blackbrooke, Liberty finds herself under the watchful eye of sinister Blackbrooke guardian, Mr Jones. Things aren’t as they seem. Familiar faces provide little comfort, and she soon realises the Crits aren’t the only specimens under the microscope. 

Determined to escape, Liberty is once again plunged into a world beyond her comprehension. The one thing she knows for certain is: trust no one.

Friends become strangers, but help is at hand from unexpected quarters. Forced to confront her real enemy, Liberty is left with one familiar choice. 

Fight.

~REVIEW~

*Warning: If you haven't read the first Blackbrooke book, this review may contain a few spoilers*

Blackbrooke II was even more thrilling and mysterious than the first book. This book had less romance and more thrill. Liberty was the focus of this book as she works to discover what the institute is up to and why they have taken her and Cassius.

Liberty was even more badass in this book than the first one. I felt like she really grew as a character and was so much more outspoken and bold. While she became a little crazy and frantic at times, I think it was perfectly understandable considering the situation that she was in. Cassius was what was most important and she would do anything to see him awake again. Seeing Gabriel again and reconnecting with him confused her a bit but she realized that she loved Cassius and that wasn’t going to change, though it seemed she found herself in a bit of a sordid love triangle.

“Weren’t supposed ‘love triangles’ supposed to be full of stolen kisses and ecstasy like they were portrayed in the movies? Instead, I felt like public enemy number one.”

Liberty was really what this book was all about and there wasn’t much of Cassius and Gabriel, besides the shocking twists involving each of them in the end. The institute has Liberty and they are searching for something important and they think she is the key. Her primary focus was saving Cassius and getting to the outside.  As she worked towards her goal, she made plenty of shocking discoveries and I was quite surprised about the turn of events and the things going on in Blackbrooke. There were a lot of secrets revealed in this book and I loved that there was mystery in the plot up until the very last second of revelation.

“This is some messed up Wonderland shit,” Denzil muttered after several minutes saw us edging along the walls. “Where’s the white rabbit, eh?”

I felt like this book bounced around a little, from fast paced and thrilling to a little slow and then fast paced again. However, the book was really well written and I liked the turn of events within the plot. It really revealed a lot more about Blackbrooke and answered a lot of questions from the first book. The events that unfolded at the end were very unexpected and the author did an amazing job of really throwing me off the track. I was unbelievably shocked at the end and never could have guessed what was going to happen. Emma Silver really knows how to write a thrilling mystery.

   

About the Author

Emma was born and raised in Manchester, England. Blackbrooke is her debut young adult horror novel after spending many years honing her skills drafting short stories and devouring horror through the ages from R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps collection through to Stephen King. Blackbrooke is the Part I of the Blackbrooke Trilogy. Emma is also the author of a semi-biographical account of her dad’s years in a rock band in the 1970s, Driving Exile. She gets most of her ideas and is inspired by music and also the fighting spirit of young people who aren’t afraid to challenge the norm and stand up for what they believe in. This fleeting ‘moment’ in life is what she tries to capture in her writing.

Insomnia Blog Tour: Character Profile+ Review + Giveaway

INSOMNIA

I am super excited to be a part of the Insomnia Blog Tour! This was such an exciting book! On my stop today, I have a character profile on Parker Chipp. I can't wait for you all to meet him! 

Character Profile: Parker Daniel Chipp

Age: 16

Hair color: Black

Eye color: Blue

Height: 6’0”

What you should know about Parker:

* His dad left when he was a kid. It is only him and his mom now. His mom is very important to him.

* He is a junior at Oakville High School

* He loves soccer and is really good at it. He is co-captain of the varsity soccer team.

* His best friend is Finn Patrick and he has a crush on Finn's sister, Addie. They are the only 2 people he trusts with his secrets.

* He is a Watcher which means instead of sleeping, he is forced to watch other people's dreams.

* He is afraid that he is going to go psychotic and die from the insomnia that has plagued him for 4 years from being a Watcher.

* He has started to develop headaches, tremors and hallucinations and they are progressively getting worse.

* He is misunderstood. Everyone thinks he is crazy and stalking Mia. Really, he just needs to make eye contact with her because he can only sleep at nights when he is in her dreams.

* He is kind and caring. He would do anything to protect his family and friends, even from himself.

** Funny note: In the Arc and all early versions, Parker has blonde hair. However, it was changed in the final version to black to better match the cover.

About Insomnia

Her eyes saved his life. Her dreams released his darkness.

After four years of sleeplessness, high school junior Parker Chipp can’t take much more. Every night, instead of sleeping, he enters the dreams of the last person he’s made eye contact with. If he doesn’t sleep soon, Parker will die.

Then he meets Mia. Her dreams, calm and beautifully uncomplicated, allow him blissful rest that’s utterly addictive. But what starts out as a chance meeting turns into an obsession; Parker’s furious desire for what he needs pushes him to extremes he never thought he’d go. And when someone begins terrorizing Mia with twisted death threats, Parker’s memory blackouts leave him doubting his own innocence.

Insomnia Review

Author: J.R. Johansson
Publisher: Flux
Publication Date: June 8, 2013

Insomnia was such a thrilling and intense book and I found myself biting my nails with stress and anticipation multiple times. Parker was so misunderstood and I felt so frustrated for him because he couldn't tell anyone what was really going on with him since, seriously, who would believe it. After not sleeping in 4 years, he felt himself getting closer to death and when he met Mia and was finally able to sleep in her dreams, he seemed to go a little crazy. I don't blame him, however, because he finally knew what it was like to be rested again and her dreams became a drug to him. I really liked Finn and Addie and I was glad that Parker was able to share his secret with them and that they believed him and wanted to help. A huge weight lifted off my shoulders when he no longer had to carry the burden alone. This was when the story turned for me because before that, I was way too anxious.

The writing in this book was excellent and the plot was really well thought out and flowed very nicely.The author did such an amazing job with the mystery, I was constantly second guessing Parker. One minute I was sure he was completely innocent and the next minute I was doubting my instincts and his sanity. The plot twists toward the end of the book had me on the edge of my seat and I never really could have guessed what was going to happen.The book had a satisfying conclusion but left just enough mystery to wet my appetite for the next book. I don't read many YA thrillers but this book definitely has me wanting to read more. I can't wait for the next Night Walker book and to continue on Parker's journey.

Favorite Quote:

"I shook my head as a wave of confusion and panic crossed her face. Everything came out all wrong. My addiction is you? Man, that phrase had "Things a Serial Killer Would Say" written all over it." ~ Parker (Insomnia by J.R. Johannson)

IPOD Picks:

"Look After You" by The Fray

"What I've Done" by Linkin Park

"Leave Out All the Rest" by Linkin Park

About the Author:

J.R. JOHANSSON is a young adult thriller author published with Flux & FSG/Macmillan. Her debut, INSOMNIA is coming June 2013. She has a B.S. degree in public relations and a background in marketing. She credits her abnormal psychology minor with inspiring many of her characters. When she's not writing, she loves reading, playing board games, and sitting in her hot tub. Her dream is that someday she can do all three at the same time. She has two young sons and a wonderful husband. In fact, other than her cat, Cleo, she's nearly drowning in testosterone.

Author Links:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JennJohansson

Blog: http://www.jennjohansson.blogspot.com/

Site: http://www.jrjohansson.com

Tumblr: http://jrjohansson.tumblr.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jenn.johansson

J.R. Johansson on Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5100095.J_R_Johansson

Pre-order Links –

The Book Depository - http://www.bookdepository.com/Insomnia-Johansson/9780738735931

Indiebound - http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780738735931

Books A Million - http://www.booksamillion.com/p/Insomnia/J-R-Johansson/9780738735931?id=5529587671279

Barnes & Noble - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/insomnia-j-r-johansson/1113713840?ean=9780738735931

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Insomnia-The-Night-Walkers-Johansson/dp/0738735930/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1352960177&sr=8-1&keywords=insomnia+by+j.r.+johansson

Insomnia Blurbs

“The perfect blend of everything I love in a story. I hope a sequel comes soon!” –James Dashner, New York Times bestselling author of THE MAZE RUNNER

“Completely unputdownable. I’ve decided to nickname Johansson: Scary McScarypants, because she spooked me in all the best ways.” –Carrie Harris, author of BAD TASTE IN BOYS

“Cleverly written and dangerously dark, Insomnia will take you to the brink of insanity. A must-read for thriller and romance fans alike.”—Elana Johnson, author of POSSESSION

“A riveting story of terror and despair that will keep you up long past your bedtime.”—Jennifer Bosworth, author of STRUCK

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* An e-Arc copy of this book was provided to me from the publisher through NetGalley for an honest review. All thoughts expressed in my review are my own, unbiased opinions.*

Photo source for Parker: http://www.coolmenshair.com