Cover Reveal: Before I Shatter by Mandy Peterson

Hey guys!

Today is the cover reveal for Before I Shatter by Mandy Peterson. This cover reveal is organized by Lola's Blog Tours. The cover was designed by MSN Art Studio (Maduranga Sampath).
This is an exciting rebranding of the original cover as the author prepares to release book 2 in the series.

Before I Shatter (Before I Shatter #1)
By Mandy Peterson
Genre: Science Fiction
Age category: Young Adult/ New Adult
Release Date: July 2016

Blurb:
Seventeen-year-old Vita is the next step in human evolution.

The daughter of two prominent scientists, Vita is content to live in the spotlight. After all, it affords her a lifestyle most only dream of: living in a Lunar Colony, luxurious gifts, and her unique ability to project her consciousness onto different planes without the aid of injections.
Succeeding where others have failed has a price. A growing population of Shells - people whose minds have shattered from the stress of experimentation - shows just how ruthless the Director can be in pursuit of his goal.

When Vita makes a startling breakthrough, the ambitious Director takes over her development, and he wants to see just how far she can go. It's up to Vita's young Processor, James, to catch her before she breaks.

But he's keeping a dangerous secret.
Someone is playing games with her.

A game where the loser ends up shattered.
Vita must make the choice:
Continue risking her life for a cause she doesn't believe in
or make an unprecedented escape?

You can find Before I Shatter on Goodreads

You can buy Before I Shatter on Amazon

Excerpt:
“Vita!” James is panicked, shaking my shoulders, when my eyes begin to crack open. The bright light violates my pupils, and I slam my eyes shut again. My head is pounding.
“Stop shaking her, boy. We don’t know what damage that could cause.” I relax a bit as my body takes in the grandfatherly voice of wisdom. James’s hands release me. “She’s coming around. Give her a moment.”
I moan, raising an arm to cover my closed eyes. “I’m fine.”
“She could pave a road with those words.” The Old One’s voice gets farther away.
Before I can even wonder what that means, the light mercifully wanes, and I dare to peek out from under my arm. I begin to piece together where I am. The tiny white room. Lying on my monitoring station.
A visibly shaken James is sitting next to me, tears threatening to spill out of his eyes, face ashen.
“Hey,” I coax. “It’s okay. Nothing to be worried about.”
James shakes his head and looks down. A sniffle seems to actually compose him, and he looks up at me. “Vita, I’m so sorry. If I would have known, I would have warned you.”
Still hazy, I recall my experience in the meadow with the solider boy. Before speaking, I resolve to never let myself be that helpless again. Starting right now. Just like James said, I will be the one doing the breaking. Well, maybe not right now. After I recover from whatever this is.
“Warned me about what?”
“The dazers,” he practically whispers, but I still hear the George’s tongue cluck from the computer station. His disapproval is thick. “You passed out on the steps. I couldn’t wake you up. When I brought you here, I thought you were dead.”
“Yes, the drugs caused your heart to race,” the wizard explains, less emotionally. His eyes never leave the tablet in his hands. “Your heart didn’t care for that so it shut down...for a bit.”
“It shut down?” I echo as panic begins to rise from my toes.
“Only for a moment.” His hand waves dismissively. “Everything’s fine.” The Old One smirks, finally looking up at me as he turns my own words around on me.
“I died?”
“For a second.” George holds up two fingers very close together in an attempt to keep us positive.
Whoosh. “I came as soon as I heard.” Long brown hair whirls through the room. Mom busies herself snatching the tablet and replacing James at the side of my bed. She grasps my hand, leans in, and begins examining my eyes. I have no idea what they look like, but her fear and disgust focus across the room. “George, thank the stars you are still here! How could this have happened? I’m not even sure what this means.” She shakes the tablet at him, the data revealing itself to me shortly. “Where was she? Who was with her?”
James makes a move to step forward and the Old One stops him. “She was just doing as I instructed. Taking time off. Meeting new people. Trying out a party. I’m sorry. I didn’t know she would be confronted with...substances.”
Mom visibly calms down. I guess maybe she couldn’t be too angry with the man who had just saved her daughter’s life? She lays the tablet down gently. “What can I do for her?”
“Nothing, I’m afraid. The drugs have to work their way through her system. She won’t be able to start training until they are flushed out. Her new friends just may have bought her enough time to completely restore before the next round.”
My eyelids feel as though they are made of lead. My hand is nestled between stronger ones. I fight to stay awake behind the fading light.
“What will we ever do without you?” My mother’s whisper floats across the room to me.
His firm response slices through the darkness closing in around me. “The director has plans but so do we. Stick to the plan. Thanks to your husband’s—ex-husband’s—news story, she’s about ready to enter a world where everyone knows her and what she can do. She needs you two more than ever.”
I didn’t know then that when I awoke, it would be to a new world. A world without George, without visits from my dad, and without panic attacks. A world where I was a celebrity, a scientific wonder, and no longer alone. Never mind that I put my life at risk each time I pushed one the boundaries of human capability. I lived by the words I was never meant to hear:
“Vita’s never going to be broken. She’s going to be the one doing the breaking. She’s stronger than any of us will ever know.”

About the Author:
Mandy Peterson grew up all over Nebraska and eventually settled down there with a family of her own: husband, daughter, and son.

When she isn't writing about herself in third person, Mandy the high school librarian can be found digging through young adult and new adult lit. An avid reader of all genres (but she secretly told me she loves sci-fi the most), you will usually see her with her nose in a book or face to her Kindle app, iced or blended coffee drink in hand. A former roller girl and roller derby referee, she can also be found watching roller derby online or dragging her family behind her to cheer on teams in person all over their great state.

You can find and contact Mandy here:
- Website
- Facebook
- Twitter
- Goodreads
- Amazon
- Newsletter

Giveaway
There is a cover reveal wide giveaway for the cover reveal of Before I Shatter. One winner will win a 10$ Amazon Gift Card.

For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal: The Return by Kelly St. Clare



Today is the cover reveal for The Return by Kelly St. Clare. This cover reveal is organized by Lola's Blog Tours. The cover is designed by Tracey at Soxsational Cover Art.

The Return (The After Trilogy #2)
by Kelly St. Clare
Genre: science fiction/ dystopian
Age category: Young Adult
Release Date: June 2017

Blurb:
The dystopian science fiction story continues in this action-packed novel for young adults by internationally best-selling author Kelly St. Clare.

Three months ago, Romy emerged from the cultivation tanks after a year floating inside.

Body intact. Mind broken. Memory gone.

Now she undergoes regular testing as doctors work to find out . . . well, she’s not exactly sure what.

The tests must have something to do with the reason she can’t remember her knot—the single lucid memory the other insane soldiers on Orbito Four still possess. Whatever the researchers are searching for, if it aids the soldiers in the deathly war against the lethal alien invaders—the Critamal—the excruciating pain is worth it.

But a grey-eyed man has other plans.

Boxed in and caught, Romy is taken hostage by people who shouldn’t exist! They dress in black and carry weapons she’s never seen in her genetically enhanced life.

Reunited with Knot 27. Memories returned.

Fifteen months have passed since her world shattered into bright red, ringing chaos. Things have changed—people have changed. How long until what was once as familiar as breathing is familiar once more?

Friendships. Love. Freedom.

Can the new Romy reconcile with the old, or will the two halves of herself remain locked in an internal battle?

And if a victor should arise from this silent war . . . will it be the part of her that kills without hesitation, without mercy?

All it takes is for the cracks to join and blood will pour.

You can find The Return on Goodreads

Excerpt:
Romy strained for any hint of disturbance, but an eerie calm filled the space.
The electrodes and wires covering her arms and legs suddenly felt like restraints—a barrier preventing her from leaping from the bed and protecting herself. She closed her eyes and attempted to regulate her breathing.
Everything was fine.
There was nothing to—
The space station rocked as a muted explosion emanated from the clinic door. Her stomach dropped, and she nearly sat up before remembering Electrode Slapper’s withering order to stay still.
Romy held herself immobile, eyes darting side to side, senses stretched to maximum capacity.
Was that smoke creeping along the ceiling? Not the normal smoke from her burning hair—real smoke!
Nothing good could come from a fire onboard a space station.
Unable to deny fear’s curiosity, she turned to stare at the remaining male doctor, awaiting his order to evacuate. His attention was fixed on the door, the whites of his eyes showing his terror—of something. Romy watched as he scrambled from his seat, hands raised, stammering and babbling senselessly.
Not terror of something. Someone.
Romy inhaled sharply as a dart appeared out of nowhere, sticking deep into the side of his neck. The doctor staggered and slowly keeled over next to the bed, sending a screen smashing to the ground.
She jerked violently as his body rebounded off the floor before settling into unconsciousness.
The medi-tech surrounding her beeped, high-pitched and urgent, snatching up her distress and sounding it out for all the world to hear.
So much for playing dead. She took stock. At least five electrodes and their wires hung off each limb. Another ten on her torso and five more on her head. Extracting herself in a hurry wasn’t looking like an option. Heavy footsteps approached the bed where she lay, frozen. Mind racing. Several sets of footsteps, she realised—maybe ten. Romy swallowed, palms sweating where they touched her bare thighs.
A large shadow fell across her body.
Dread settled heavy in her bones.
A man dressed in solid black leaned over the bed, blotting her view of the white ceiling. A soldier. Unlike any she’d seen. Why wasn’t he dressed in white?
The man’s face was clean-shaven and as his scent reached her, she got the oddest sense of another time. Of warmth and. . . .
She blinked into his soft grey eyes.
With careful movements, the man moved the gun he carried so it slung across his back. The weapon was small, sleek—the complete opposite of the huge laser guns fitted on the space station.
Who was this person?
He reached for her, expression impassive, a slight tremor in his hands.
And spoke a single, hoarse word.
“Romy.”

Start this series with The Retreat!

Earth is ruined. Humankind destroyed. And it’s old news.

The Retreat is the first book in the After trilogy! You can get your copy of The Retreat on Amazon

Finalist in the YA books central annual book awards for best YA sci-fi of 2016.

The Retreat was awarded a Five Star badge by Readers’ Favorite in 2016.

Praise for Book One in The After Trilogy, The Retreat:
"superbly written" - Readers' Favorite ★★★★★

"part fantasy, part sci-fi, and all cosmic-chemistry" - Amy's Bookshelf Reviews ★★★★★

"all I can say is WOW!" - Taking It One Book at a Time ★★★★★

"I had very high expectations for this one and I'm happy to say that the book met them all and more." - Bookaholic ★★★★★

"I can't start talking about this or I won't stop. This is a must read!" - Amazon Reviewer ★★★★★

About the Author:
When Kelly St Clare is not reading or writing, she is lost in her latest reverie. She can, quite literally, drift past a car accident while in the midst of her day dreams, despite the various police sirens and chaos.

Books have always been magical and mysterious to her. One day she decided to start unravelling this mystery and began writing. Her aim: To write stories she would want to read.

The Tainted Accords was her debut series, and her second series, The After Trilogy, is now available.

A New Zealander in origin and in heart, Kelly currently resides in Australia with her soon-to-be husband, a great group of friends, and some huntsman spiders who love to come inside when it rains. Their love is not returned.

You can find and contact Kelly here:
- Website
- Facebook
- Twitter
- Goodreads
- Amazon
- Instagram
- Newsletter
- Barracks group

Giveaway
There is a cover reveal wide giveaway for the cover reveal of The Return! Three winners will each win a paperback copy of the Retreat. Open International!

For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Pivot Point by Kasie West

Image taken from Goodreads

Genre: Young Adult Science Fiction
Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication date: Feb 12, 2013
I read: Kindle Edition
Series: Pivot Point #1

The Blurb:

Addison Coleman’s life is one big “What if?” As a Searcher, whenever Addie is faced with a choice, she can look into the future and see both outcomes. It’s the ultimate insurance plan against disaster. Or so she thought. When Addie’s parents ambush her with the news of their divorce, she has to pick who she wants to live with—her father, who is leaving the paranormal compound to live among the “Norms,” or her mother, who is staying in the life Addie has always known. Addie loves her life just as it is, so her answer should be easy. One Search six weeks into the future proves it’s not.

In one potential future, Addie is adjusting to life outside the Compound as the new girl in a Norm high school where she meets Trevor, a cute, sensitive artist who understands her. In the other path, Addie is being pursued by the hottest guy in school—but she never wanted to be a quarterback’s girlfriend. When Addie’s father is asked to consult on a murder in the Compound, she’s unwittingly drawn into a dangerous game that threatens everything she holds dear. With love and loss in both lives, it all comes down to which reality she’s willing to live through . . . and who she can’t live without.

The Characters:

Addison: Blond curly hair. Has super powers. Can search her future. Her parents are getting divorced.


Duke: Blond hair. Blue eyes.  Has super powers. Cocky. Football player. Popular. Persuasive. Friends with a bunch of jerks.


Trevor: He's a "norm". Keeps a messy bedroom. Injured quarterback. Long eyelashes. Beautiful. Quiet. Artistic. Sexy.

My Review:

I was blown away by the originality of the plot. The world was unique, nothing to be overly excited about, but still kept my interest. I think she could've maybe done a bit more with it, by adding a bit more description, but I don't think that was what the author was really focused on.

I really, really loved Trevor. I seriously had a new imaginary crush while I read this book, and he stayed in my mind all the next day. He was beautiful, serious, broken, and strong. I got the impression he would take care of any woman he loved. What a man!

I will definitely be reading book two!

My Rating: