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YABooksPodcast's podcast

I interview Young Adult, YA, authors about their books. YA novels may be Science Fiction, Fantasy, Romance, Adventure, Action, Horror, or General Fiction. We talk about the author's lives, locations, work, careers, training, education, inspiration, writing methods and routines.
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Jan 4, 2018

To the Falls Book one of the falls trilogy

Heather Renee

https://www.amazon.com/Falls-Trilogy-Book-ebook/dp/B06XX6FYB7/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1514851955&sr=1-1&keywords=to+the+falls

4.6 stars on 120 reviews
Published April 29, 2017

Book 2 From The Falls, Published on August 4th and has 4.7 stars on 94 reviews

Book 3 Embracing the Falls, Published on on December 29th, just a few days ago. It has a 4.9 star average on 56 reviews.

This author has her street team in place to get that many reviews up so quickly. Good for her. She appears to be a self published author and making smart moves. She has published her entire trilogy in one year and all three books are in the top 55K for the paid kindle store. That means she is selling at least one of each book a day. That may not sound like a lot, but for an indie author, it's a good start.

Heather Renee is an indie author that lives in the gorgeous Pacific Northwest in Oregon. She writes YA Fantasy that has a mixture of suspense, humor and a little romance.

When Heather's not writing, she is spending time with her beautiful daughter and amazing husband. Two cats, and a dog who loves the snow, complete their household. On weekends if she doesn't have a book in her face, you can find Heather going on different adventures with her family. Her favorite being hiking to the top of Multnomah Falls.

 

Kaliah "Kali" Atwater is awaiting two things, finishing sophomore year in college and her upcoming twentieth birthday. The day before Kali’s birthday, she finds out that the dream she's had every night for almost a year of a beautiful land, isn't a fantasy at all. It's her birth place.

Every twenty years a new generation of Guardians return to Arvata to bring life back to their world and renew the magic of the Falls. Now it’s Kali’s turn, but dark magic has made its way into her new home preventing the Falls from replenishing.

Kali must accept the role assigned to her by the Fates or let Arvata crumble. Can she and her friends save Arvata in time? Will new love make her stronger? Or will the darkness finally win?

Only the Fates know for sure...


Things that pulled me out of the story. It was hard to read out loud. Some of the sentences seemed inside out to me. I had to record some of them four times to get them to flow right. I don't know if that is a local way of speaking where the author comes from, but, as many great authors do, she might want to read her writing out loud to see how it flows, or maybe have her editor do it.

I wasn't sure out some of the tenses she used. She talked about how the dream had changed "this night" when I felt like she was relating something that had happened in the past. To me it should have been, "last night". No biggie, I know, but it pulled me out. Also, she talks about how she will have her last final that day, and later she said she didn't have a chance to eat between finals. Again, no big deal, but it pulled me out to wonder how that worked.

She also spoke about how relieved she was once her final was over, how her whole body showed it, then she says she can't wait to get back into the water to relieve some of the stress she is feeling. That left we feeling ambiguous.

The parents are young without a wrinkle on their faces, but a few pages later they have worry lines. I think the author was saying they were frowning in worry, but having worry lines, in my mind, is something more akin to wrinkles, which they didn't have. Maybe I'm picking nits, but it took me out of the story and I think a more astute editor should have caught the contradiction in words.

Again. The story sounds familiar. A person coming of age to find that they are a guardian over a people or a planet. The writing was good enough to keep me interested, though, I would have liked a reason to keep reading earler on. If this is your type of story, it looks like the author has a strong following and then there are two more books to enjoy.

 

Oct 19, 2017

Bianca Rowena is the author of the Gift Stone Series and the Virgin Diaries. She was born in Romania, Transylvania and now lives in Southern Alberta with her husband, daughter and little dog Molli. Bianca graduated from Film Studies at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology. You can check out her website at www.biancarowena.com or follow her on Twitter (@biancarowena) or Facebook www.facebook.com/biancarowena

Aug 17, 2017

Before I get to the story I want to update, "One of us is Lying". I'm almost done listening on Audible, I have 56 minutes to go out of about 11 hours total. It's well recorded switching the point of veiw between the four main characters, each one narrated by a different actor. We've figured out who the murderer is and were in kind of a bonus thriller type ending. I still give it five stars for the writing and characterization, even though I was able to guess who the murder was about half way through. Try it, though. I think you'll like it, even if you figure it out like me.
Today's episode...
17 Marigold Lane, Prudence Penderhaus
R.M. Gilmore
4.7 Stars 26 reviews
Published in September of 2015
Here is the blurb:
I was just an ordinary weirdo until the day one word changed the course of my life forever.

I’d given up on life as I knew it, and in the blink of an eye, made a decision that would turn my world, and the town of Flintlock, on its butt.

Uncovering a hidden boy and a town secret kept buried for decades, I maneuvered through my numbered days with one goal in mind, but the sheriff, life, and my body had other plans.

My name is Prudence Penderhaus. I've never done anything remarkable. Never even bothered to look up. Until the day I found out I was dying.

The Amazon preview has all of the first chapter and a bit of the second. I couldn't find a good place to cut off in the middle of the first chapter, so I'm going to read the whole thing.
Here goes me reading the part of a teenage girl again...

(Read story)

My review.
I like Prudence. I think she has a lot of characteristics that will appeal to a broad amount of readers. She's an underdog who is down on her luck having just received the bad news about cancer. When insult is added to injury and she gets bombed by the big gulp she decides to take destiny into her hands and investigates the spooky house.
If you've listened to a few of my author interviews, you probably know that I have a son with autism. Cassius sounds very much like my son, except Desmond is anything but organized. All of our dvd's end up in stacks around the living room. He does memorize and recite dialog from his favorite shows, though his favorite is knowing which studios and production companies make the movies. We were recently at Despicable Me 3 and as the theater went dark when the movie was about to start, Desmond exclaimed, "Here it comes, the Universal Logo". And he was right, the logo for Universal Studios spread across the screen.'
In this story, I'm interested to know how Prudence's desease progresses, how her friendship with Cassius progresses, and I'd like to know how they kept everyone in the house so well hidden.

Thanks for listening to the Young Adult Books podcast, this podcast is for you...

Aug 10, 2017

Brinwood
Small town cults linger around our communities. They’re hidden among us, picking up believers and working to grow strong, though most remain invisible to us. What would happen if a heavily religious cult took over one of our towns? How much damage would it cause us? Casper is an exile from his home, but when he finds out his brother has died, he returns to save his family from the ravenous followers who have taken over. Returning for his sister and mother, the young man must fight against the brainwashed folks he used to call neighbors. Can he save them? Or will his return cause the demise of the rest of his family? Welcome to the cold walls of Brinwood.
#1 in Kindle Store > Kindle Short Reads > Two hours or more (65-100 pages) > Teen & Young Adult

From the Author
When I first thought of Brinwood, I actually envisioned it as a graphic novel. I wanted to write a book someone could pick up, get hooked, and finish all in one day. My main focus was entertainment so I focused on creating engaging characters, limiting exposition, and increasing the tempo. It amazed me how quickly I finished the first draft. The characters came to life and started acting on their own. It felt like I was watching a movie and transcribing the action scenes. Of course the book would never have been completed without the help of my editor. I owe most of my success to their diligent work.
I hope you enjoy this tale.
Your support truly means the world to me.
About the Author
R.K. Gold is an internationally published poet and novelist from Buffalo, NY. He graduated from the University of Maryland with a Bachelor’s degree in English and Literature and has appeared in over a dozen publications since he began seriously pursuing writing in January 2014. His influences range from traditional American writers and poets like Ernest Hemingway, Langston Hughes, and Kurt Vonnegut, to pop icons like Alan Moore, Stan Lee, and Stephen King. A writer, an environmentalist, and a dog lover, R.K. Gold hopes to make novels and philanthropy his full time profession in the future.

Lost in the Clouds
Neville Canton was about as average as any man can be. He had a mediocre job, a pleasant wife, an on-going feud with his sister, and an average case of cancer that took his life.

But death wasn’t the end of his problems and even average people have to learn to overcome.

Now trapped in a cloud between the living and the dead, he must find his way to the afterlife.

With the help of a spiritual guide he navigates through seven challenges; seven tasks to sever his final connections to the mortal world.

If he fails, he forfeits his eternity and the consequences may be worse than death.

Jul 21, 2016

Episode 49 - First Chapter review of Varient

https://www.amazon.com/Variant-Robison-Wells-ebook/dp/B004XVN1E4/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1469072863&sr=1-1&keywords=variant#navbarVariant

Varient is written by Robison Wells and published by Harper Teen
in October of 2011
283 reviews with a 4.2 star average

Here's the Amazon book description
Benson Fisher thought that a scholarship to Maxfield Academy would be the ticket out of his dead-end life.

He was wrong.

Now he’s trapped in a school that’s surrounded by a razor-wire fence. A school where video cameras monitor his every move. Where there are no adults. Where the kids have split into groups in order to survive.

Where breaking the rules equals death.

But when Benson stumbles upon the school’s real secret, he realizes that playing by the rules could spell a fate worse than death, and that escape—his only real hope for survival—may be impossible.

You can get the first two chapters on the Amazon preview.
Here is chapter 1.

 

If you heard my interview with Robison, you know I loved this story. It kicks of very fast at the end of the first chapter and doesn't slow down except for a few short places for the reader to catch their breath. I give this story a hearty five stars to continue reading past the first chapter.
If you've listened to the preceding two book reviews, I want to tell you that I finished "My Lady Jane" and thoroughly enjoyed it. I recommend the story with five stars. The characters are varied and endearing. I wanted to take the lot of them home with me for a big family dinner. To me it slowed down just a bit in the last ten minutes of the audio. but then, under it all, the story is a romance and it needed some romantic touches to tie the story up completely. I got used to the narrator after about an hour of the audio, and she only irritated me a few times after the first couple chapters.

Nov 12, 2015

In this episode I talk with Joana Hill about Maine, Tennessee, Nanowrimo, Scrivener, and her many manuscripts.


www.Nanowrimo.org
Scrivener
www.scribophile.com
Sarah Dessen
Gayle Foreman - If I Stay
joana@wordsandteabottles.com
http://nanowrimo.org/participants/maemi

Nov 10, 2015

We talk about getting a BA in English, Freanch, Humanities, Playing the violin and piano, her book, Ella, more books, Cedar Fort Press, and the LDStorymakers conference.


www.jotsbyjess.com for more contact
jess_peaslee Instagram
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Jessilyn-Stewart-Peaslee-890103107707130/?fref=ts


JESSILYN STEWART PEASLEE was born the fourth of seven children into a family of avid readers, music lovers, movie quoters, and sports fans. Jessilyn graduated from Brigham Young University with a BA in English, and also studied French and the Humanities. She loves playing catch with her boys, singing, playing the piano, making Orange Julius and popcorn, and watching movies with her husband and five boys. She is very grateful to them for being so supportive while Mommy wrote her “girl book.” Jessilyn grew up in the beautiful high desert of Southern California and now resides in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains. As you read this, she is probably folding laundry . . . or should be.

About Ella
As soon as I felt the warmth from the fire, I realized I was freezing. The thought of leaving the delicious heat sent chills through me and I couldn’t bear to abandon it. I stretched out my weary body on the hearth, not caring about the cinders and soot that clung to me. I untied my shawl, placed it under my head and lay down, and watched the flames dance to a song I couldn’t hear.

Without the help of mice, magic, or fairy godmothers, the reserved yet resilient Ella Blakeley must find within herself the courage to overcome almost insurmountable obstacles, combat feelings of loneliness and worthlessness, forgive the unrepentant, and open her eyes and heart to the selfless and patient nature of true love. Through sacrifice and perseverance, Ella slowly rises from the cinders in her soul to make the transformation from mere survival to truly living and loving.
Going Live November 11th
http://www.amazon.com/Ella-Jessilyn-Stewart-Peaslee/dp/1462117457/

Oct 24, 2015

Woohoo!

We just got our first 100 downloads.

Eight episodes are up.

This might not sound like much, but most podcasts don't make it past 7 episodes. I have about 10 more interviews recorded and a half dozen lined up to record.

So...This podcast shouldn't go away for a while.

Please, take a moment, go to iTunes, subscribe, and give us a rating. This will help get the podcast out to the people who can help support these wonderful authors I have had on the show.

Thanks,

Philip Carroll

Sep 29, 2015

I talk with Heather about life in the Pacific North West and about her recent novel, "Plague Master: Sanctuary Dome"

About Heather:

H.E. Roulo is the author of the Plague Masters series. Her short stories have appeared in over a dozen magazines, anthologies, and podcasts. Recent publications include Fantasy magazine's Women Destroy Fantasy special issue, Nature Futures 2, and Blood Type: An Anthology of Vampire SF on the Cutting Edge.

The serialized podcast release of her novel Fractured Horizon was a 2009 Parsec Award Finalist for Best Speculative Fiction Story. She co-hosted the author interview podcast Podioracket.com from 2009 to 2012.

She lives in the beautiful Seattle area with her husband, two children, and a fluffy dog.

Follow Heather on twitter @hroulo or visit her website heroulo.com.

Links:

 

Twitter: @hroulo

Amazon Author Page: http://amazon.com/author/heatherroulo

Website: http://www.heroulo.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/heroulo

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