Obsessed With Covers #6: The Ward, Even in Darkness, Through the Zombie Glass

Y'all know how much I love a pretty cover. I think about...40% of the books that end up on my shelves (be they physical or digital) do so because of the covers. Call me shallow but you have to admit that a pretty, shiny cover will catch your eye faster than a dull, boring one. Two, simple rules that I'll follow:

• 1, 2 or 3 (no more than 3, though) covers per week;
• books should be new-ish; no more than 2 years old.

Oh, before I share the covers that made me drool or want to stare at them for hours and hours, I have to say something. This is a semi-original idea. Why semi? Because almost every book blogger has something similar. The only thing I came up with was the title. If by any chance there's another blogger with a similar feature with the same title, I assure you I'm not stealing your idea. I'm just THAT bad with titles. Believe me, I'd love to be smarter and have a witty name for this feature, but I don't. So, no copyright infringement/theft/steal or anything of the sort was desired. 

*all links and covers go to the Goodreads page of each book.

This cover reminds me of those 3D street paintings. The person (or people) who made this cover is a genius (or are). It's so beautiful and creepy and terrifying. I keep seeing the seemingly calm waters reflected in the title and I think "Boy, this has to be an awesome read". I added it to my TBR just because I'm curious to see if the book is as scary as the cover.

The Ward - Jordana Frankel

I think it's pretty impossible not to pick up this book if you're in a book shop/library and you're just browsing the shelves. The dancer made out of flames and smoke is so beautiful. And the cover fits the title perfectly, in my opinion. Sort of like her soul is so bright, you can see it everywhere and at any time. 

Even in Darkness - Cyndi Tefft

I adore this cover! I like that it's in the same creepy, scary note as the cover for the first book in the series. I love the chess pattern on the floor, I love the broken mirror behind her and how each shard shows a different side of her. Yes, they might look the same, but I have a feeling that each shard tells a different story. And I love the blue dress and the rabbit and the hat. I love it all. 

Through the Zombie Glass - Gena Showalter

Cover Reveal: Eyes of Ember by Rebecca Ethington

Paperback, 380 pages

Expected publication: April 6th 2013 by Imdalind Press
Eyes of Ember is the second book in Ethington's Imdalind Series.

Joclyn is in hiding, hunted by the man she still desperately loves. Ryland is gone, his mind erased, no memory of Joclyn remains. But, Joclyn’s heart desperately begs her to hold out hope. While, in reality the black eyed monster that possesses him, attempts to kill her over and over.

If it wasn’t for Ilyan, Joclyn would be dead by now.

Ilyan. The man who once stalked her, is now Joclyn’s protector, the only thing she has left. He protects Joclyn from the men who seek to end her life, and while she is haunted by dreams where Ryland begs her to break the bond between them.

Ilyan is there. Always there.

Ilyan trains and prepares her, teaching her everything she needs to know in the hope that one day she can avenge Ryland, if not protect herself from him.

And then there is her father.

The man who has never been there, is suddenly responsible for everything. And who he is has made Joclyn into something she never wanted to be.

The Silnỳ.

Kiss of Fire (book #1)

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Find Rebecca Ethington...

Twitter, Facebook, and Website

Books Available at Amazon and Barnes and Noble

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Sunday Book Soundtrack #8: Spider's Web by Jennifer Estep

Sunday Book Soundtrack is a weekly feature at Ruby's Books, where I share some of my bookish soundtracks. Since I discovered my passion for reading years ago, I've discovered that more and more of the songs I loved remind me of certain books. So I thought I'd share my playlists with you. If you want to listen to the songs, I'll post a link to a Youtube videos for each and every title. No copyright infringement intended! I'll try to find the official videos for each song. There's no set number for each playlist, sometimes I might have 10, sometimes 5, sometimes if I'm one of my moods I'll have 15. If you want to read more about this feature, click the "show more" button below. 

I read with music. If there's no music, I can't read. And not just read, but almost anything, like studying of cooking or doing chores around the house. The only time I don't have music is when I sleep. And during exams, but that's a different story.

Sometimes it happens that a certain song and a book or a scene from the book I'm reading sort of... click. It's like they were made for each other. At least for me. And so I will almost always think of that particular book when hearing that song. I thought I'd share my book soundtracks with you.

Keep in mind that I have a very... weird taste in music. You'll find mostly rock music, country or the 80s-early 90s music in these lists. I might use some "contemporary" songs from now and then, but don't bet on it being something other than those particular genres. Also, not always the songs will be in English. If I have a link to a translation for the lyrics, I'll post it. If you like a song I'm using, that's fine. If not, that's fine too, just don't say I didn't warn you.

The songs aren't always on a book's playlist for their lyrics. Sometimes they're there for an instrument or for a feeling I get when hearing them. Also, I won't always mention what scene I used them for. If it's not a spoiler, I'll share the scene, if it is a spoiler, I'll let you guess.

Anyway, I hope you like my playlists :)

This week's book soundtrack is for Spider's Web by Jennifer Estep

1. Kid Rock - So Hott
2. Creedence Clearwater Revival - Jambalaya - This is the song I think fits the Pork Pit. For some reason, whenever I picture that bar, I hear this song.
3. Evanescence - Call Me When You're Sober
4. Nickelback - Burn It To The Ground 
5. Alice Cooper - Welcome To My Nightmare

Reading Blogs & Eating Popcorn #2

Reading Blogs & Eating Popcorn is a weekly feature here at Ruby's Books, in which I share some of the posts written by other fellow book bloggers over the last week, posts that I loved so much I have to share. 

The first post comes from JoV from JoV's Book Pyramid. If you haven't heard yet, Google Readers will become history after July 1st. I was sad and disappointed and a little panicked to be honest. If you're wondering "what now?" JoV shares a few alternatives to Google Reader. 

The next post is from Debbie from Snuggly Oranges. It's about social awkwardness and it actually hits right in the center of my being. Here's the thing. I'm not antisocial. I love talking and socializing and meeting new people and everything socializing implies. But when I have to choose between going out on a Friday night with friends and stay at home and read, the second option wins almost every time. I said once that I'm not a picky reader. I'm not and I think if you check the books I've reviewed, you can see that. When it comes to music though, the subject changes. If I go out, the music has to be perfect. I have to like the music in order to feel good. If I don't like the music, the night is pretty much destroyed for me. I'm weird that way, yes *blush*

Michelle from Pink Polka Dot Book Blog (along with other bloggers) talks about DNFs and how books end up in that pile. It's always difficult to DNF a book, at least it is for me. It's also very difficult to specifically define what it takes for me to say "Ok, I can't read this book, I give up". Sometimes it's bad grammar that even I can spot, sometimes it's the fact that things are so weird, I'm cross-eyed trying to figure it out and understand it. I don't care about historical accuracy. If I want that, I'll go read a text book. It has nothing to do with accuracy, but sometimes the plot, subplots, mini-plots and everything in between are just so tangled, nothing makes sense. Or I have those "Oh, come on!" moments, when even I wouldn't buy half of the things that happen. Again, nothing to do with historical accuracy. And it happens in SciFi/fantasy, paranormal, contemporary, any genre. So the fact that it's all real or in another universe has nothing to do with that. Other times it's just a... sort of emptiness. I can't connect with the characters or the story. They're just not for me and that's that :P

Other posts:

• Nyx @ Nyx Book Reviews: The Truth About Blog Tours
• Rachel @ Fiktshun: Performance Anxiety

Cover Reveal: Her Loving Husband’s Return by Meredith Allard

Her Loving Husband’s Return
Book Three
The Loving Husband Trilogy
Meredith Allard 

“I need to get home,” James said aloud.
He heard shuffling behind the wooden plank that separated his quarters from the rest of the barrack. “We all need to bloody well go home,” he heard. 

What would you do to return to the only one you have ever loved?

James Wentworth’s secret is no longer a secret, and now he and his beloved wife, Sarah, have been separated. While suffering his own internment, James is reminded of his time with Japanese-Americans in the Manzanar Relocation Camp during World War II, and he cannot allow the past to repeat itself. With the help of his friends—Chandresh, Jocelyn, Timothy, even the irreverent Geoffrey—James learns what it means to return, and he is determined to return to his Sarah no matter the challenges—or the consequences. Will James and Sarah be reunited once and for all despite the madness surrounding them? Will James’s most fervent wish be granted? The changes in store for the Wentworths may be irreversible.

Her Loving Husband’s Return

Prologue

  In seventy years so little has changed. Then, the gate was taller than the tallest person, electrified, eager to shock to the death. Looming above the fence were eight high-standing towers with armed guards with submachine guns who looked down upon the people as though they could be, should be shot for amusement’s sake. They were at one with the enemy across the Pacific Ocean, many decided. They had to be. They were traitors. They were spies. How else can we separate the good ones from the bad ones? How else can we know the loyal ones from the conspirators? We must round them up like cattle and pen them here where they’re safe from us and us from them.

Looming above the barracks, higher than the gates, beyond the guard towers, were the mountains. Always the mountains. They encompassed everything within their distance—one vast, jagged, granite wall stretching toward the heavens from the deepest valley in the Americas, cascading Vs flecked with icy snow, unmistakable even through the wintry clouds. The mountains were everything everywhere. If the gates, the guard towers, and the armed military police weren’t enough to remind you that you were a prisoner here, the mountains shouted your helplessness. You are here, the mountains said, and we will trap you here forever.

I remember when the bus stopped near the guard station, a lonely shack at the edge of the camp, one window on either side, misshapen rocks slapped together with mortar, a pagoda-style roof. The guards spoke to the bus driver and barked directions as though the people inside were orange-clad prisoners linked by irons, but they were only families—fathers, mothers, children, grandparents. I remember the anxiety in those inside the gate, their quick-scanning eyes wide as they drew as close to the barbed-wire fence as they dared, searching those on the other side for missing family or friends. I remember the fear in those outside as they stepped off the bus and shivered in the bitter desert cold. Their clenched hands grabbed hold of family members and they stared without seeing the nighttime landscape of brush and tumbleweed that promised blinding dust storms, the horizon flat until the mountains. Always the mountains. The bewildered people outside clutched their bundles of luggage, all that was left of their former lives. The people from the buses were herded inside, shouted at, tagged and numbered. Already they were losing themselves. When the gate slammed and locked behind them they looked toward the outside as though they would never be free again.

So, yes, I have been here before. I have walked this arid wilderness. I have heard the sand blow a maddened howl in the night. I have seen the white-glow moonlight reflect the saw-toothed horizon. Through it all, the mountains have remained the same. After all, what is seventy years to a mountain range that has watched millennia pass away? Now, the gates are taller since they guess we can jump anything less. Now, the gates have silver coating, the barbs deemed no longer necessary since they guess the barbs cannot pierce our preternatural skin. Now, the military police carry guns with silver bullets, which we secretly laugh at. Now, I am the one who has been carted away, considered too unpredictable to be out among polite society. Yet the barracks, the mess halls, the natural barrier of the mountains between us and everyone else in the world…so much of it is the same. There are nights when I cannot make the distinction between then, when I was here from compassion, and now, when I am the one encaged. But do not worry for me, my love. Now, with this silver-coated gate and these imposing mountains between us, I am reminded all too strongly how I cannot be without you. Soon, Sarah. I will hold you in my arms soon. Be patient this little longer, my love, and I will return to you. I will.

Her Loving Husband’s Curse
Book Two
The Loving Husband Trilogy
Meredith Allard

How far will you go to protect the one you love?

Finally, after many long and lonely years, James Wentworth’s life is falling into place. Together with his wife, Sarah, the only woman he has ever loved, he has found the meaning behind her nightmares about the Salem Witch Trials, and now they are rebuilding the life they began together so long ago.

But the past is never far behind for the Wentworths. While Sarah is haunted by new visions, now about the baby she carried over three hundred years before, James is confronted with painful memories from his time with the Cherokee on the Trail of Tears. Through it all, the persistent reporter Kenneth Hempel reappears, still determined to prove that the undead walk the earth. If Hempel succeeds in his quest, James and Sarah will suffer. Will the curse of the vampire prevent James and Sarah from living their happily ever after?

Her Dear and Loving Husband

The Loving Husband Trilogy
By Meredith Allard

James Wentworth has a secret. He lives quietly in Salem, Massachusetts, making few ties with anyone. One night his private world is turned upside down when he meets Sarah Alexander, a dead ringer for his wife, Elizabeth. Though it has been years since Elizabeth's death, James cannot move on.

Sarah also has a secret. She is haunted by nightmares about the Salem Witch Trials, and every night she is awakened by visions of hangings, being arrested, and dying in jail. Despite the obstacles of their secrets, James and Sarah fall in love. As James comes to terms with his feelings for Sarah, he must dodge accusations from a reporter desperate to prove that James is not who, or what, he seems to be. Soon James and Sarah piece their stories together and discover a mystery that may bind them in ways they never imagined. Will James make the ultimate sacrifice to protect Sarah and prevent a new hunt from bringing hysteria to Salem again?

Part historical fiction, part romance, part paranormal fantasy, Her Dear & Loving Husband is a story for anyone who believes that true love never dies.

About the Author:

Meredith Allard is the author of The Loving Husband Trilogy, Victory Garden, Woman of Stones, and My Brother’s Battle. She is the executive editor of The Copperfield Review, an award-winning literary journal for readers and writers of historical fiction. She lives in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Links:
Website
Twitter
Facebook
Amazon—Her Dear & Loving Husband
Amazon—Her Loving Husband’s Curse
Smashwords
BN—Her Dear & Loving Husband
BN—Her Loving Husband’s Curse
The Copperfield Review

Cover Reveal & Giveaway: Stripped by Brooklyn Skye

Hey everyone!! I have a very, very pretty cover to share with you AND a giveaway! Ready? Here it is:

Stripped

by Brooklyn Skye 

Release Date: 05/14/13

Cover designed by: Lisa Poff Photography

Cover reveal organized by: YA Bound

Summary from Goodreads:

“I like you.” His voice is low and soft, which I don’t deserve. I look away, down the rutted parking lot.

“Don’t…waste those words on me.”

He touches my cheek. “You just need someone to show you.”

“No.” I ease back again. “I don’t. So please, Torrin, stop trying to swoop in and save me. I don’t need saving.”

College freshman Quinn Montgomery will do anything to avoid the mistake her sister made—killing herself over a boy. But when she is forced into nude modeling at a local college to support her family after a bankruptcy, she begins to crack, just enough to let Torrin, the university’s top varsity oarsman, see that the real Quinn is not as feisty and unapproachable as she wants everyone to think. But letting someone in comes at a steep cost and, it turns out, Torrin is connected to Quinn’s family in more ways than she could ever imagine.

About the Author

Brooklyn Skye is an author, editorial intern, and just your average awkward girl (especially on the phone!). Her new adult debut, STRIPPED, releases May 2013!

Follow Brooklyn at:

Website * Twitter * Goodreads

Click HERE to sign up to participate in the blog tour for Stripped.

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Enter below to win a signed hardcopy of STRIPPED (if U.S. winner) or an e-copy with Authorgraph (if international winner)

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