Red Hill by Jamie McGuire

I’m not going to lie – I’m a wuss. I’m afraid of my own shadow. I’m absolutely petrified of the dark. And I have a fantastic imagination. Mix all that together, and you have someone who slapped her best friend in utter fear when that friend decided to jump out from a dark corner and ‘surprise me’.

So even though I bought Red Hill the day it came out, I waited almost 3 weeks to read it. Because it has zombies and I’m a wuss.

Leading up to the release of Red Hill, I noticed a lot of ‘ooh...it’s a zombie book’, to which the author more than once rebutted that it’s not about zombies, but so much more (this is purely paraphrasing, so don’t sue me if you think I’m mis-quoting Jamie McGuire).

Holy mother of all teds!

This is not a zombie book. This is a book set during a zombie apocalypse. The dead are walking; is that frightening? Yes. How they came to be? That scared the living beejesus out of me because it seemed so plausible.

I’m not sure what kind of review this will turn out to be, but at the moment, the best I can do is pose this question to you: in the event of catastrophe, what would you do for the ones you love, whether it be your children, the love of your life, your siblings, your parents, or even complete strangers?

This is what I was thinking about 20 pages in. And forget the fact for a moment that there are ‘shufflers’ taking over the world. I started to shake. I started to cry. I couldn’t imagine my life without the people I cherish the most. Yet this is the exact predicament that the three main characters find themselves in. Their stories are interwoven in a very intricate pattern that even skipping a few lines that you might deem inconsequential is not worth the nerve damage you will suffer later trying to piece the puzzle together.

The story is told from 3 different points of view. Scarlett is looking for her daughters. Miranda is with the people she cares most about, but desperate to get them to her father’s place. Nathan has his daughter Zoe, but with everything that’s going on, has to be brave for her.

There are so many crucial secondary characters that made this story an absolutely heartbreaking thriller for me.

“We’ll be together, and we’ll wait for you” gutted me.

My heart absolutely shredded for Ashley.

And Andrew had me believing in redemption.

This was not an easy read for me. This was beyond anything that I was expecting, and I feel quite ashamed that I waited 20 days to read it.

This isn’t a story about zombies. I’m also not going to lie and say it isn’t a tiny bit scary, because it is (but this is coming from a scaredy-cat). But in the end it’s about the absolute need to protect the ones you love. Because in the end, that’s all that matters.

Cover & Synopsis - Mud Vein by Tarryn Fisher

Title: Mud Vein

Author: Tarryn Fisher

Expected Release Date: December 2013

Cover reveal organized by: Shh Mom Reading

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18246727-mud-vein?from_search=true

Synopsis

When reclusive novelist Senna Richards wakes up on her thirty-third birthday, everything has changed. Caged behind an electrical fence, locked in a house in the middle of the snow, Senna is left to decode the clues to find out why she was taken. If she wants her freedom, she has to take a close look at her past. But, her past has a heartbeat...and her kidnapper is nowhere to be found. With her survival hanging by a thread, Senna soon realizes this is a game. A dangerous one. Only the truth can set her free.

About the Author

I am a real life villain, truly. I drink sick amounts of Starbucks. Most of the time my hair smells like coffee. I was born in South Africa, and lived there for most of my childhood. I moved to Seattle just for the rain. Rome is my favorite place in the world so far, Paris comes in at a close second. I read and write more than I sleep. When I was eleven, I wrote an entire novel about runaway orphans, using only purple ink. I am addicted to Florence and the Machine and will travel to see concerts. I love scary movies and giraffes. I spend way too much time on Facebook. Meet you there?...

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/authortarrynfisher

Twitter https://twitter.com/Tarryn__Fisher

Author website http://www.tarrynfisher.com/

Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5410816.Tarryn_Fisher

Finding Cinderella by Colleen Hoover

*NOT THE ACTUAL COVER*

>>>>>

I’ve NEVER been so angry at those little signs in my life. They’ve always behaved; minded their own business; stayed out of my books.

Until Colleen BUTTERFLYING Hoover put them in the copy of Finding Cinderella that was sent to me. And now all I want to do is kick the a** of the person that came up with them.

Now I know the novella is not out yet, you’re probably very jealous, but I got it through legitimate means, so suck it! You have two things going for you though; one – it will be out to the masses in November, and two – it’ll be FREE!

If you’re a fan of Colleen Hoover, you’ll know who Daniel and Six are. If you are a fan of Colleen Hoover and think I’m talking about Daniel Craig and the number 6, you’re nuts and shouldn’t read the rest of this...I SAID STOP!

Okay, so this a novella told from Daniel’s POV.

................................................................it’s really hard to compliment an author when your words might be misconstrued as insults to their previous works. So let’s clear the air. I adored Slammed. Fiended for Point of Retreat. Fell hopelessly in love with Hopeless. Wanted to make Losing Hope into a pillow so I could hug it every night while I slept with it.

While reading Finding Cinderella, I was like, Holder who? Will? Don’t know a Will. Now Daniel...yeah! This novella is THAT good. Screw good, it’s THAT eating-Reese’s-Pieces-on-top-on-french-vanilla-ice-cream-while-watching-a-YouTube-video-of-IandLOVEandYOU amazing!

The characters that I loved in Hopeless and Losing Hope make appearances, but to be honest, I never for a moment thought of them or their stories. This is the story of Daniel and Six, and Ms. Hoover never deviates for that.

It’s been a while since I’ve laughed so honestly while reading a book. I don’t think there’s anyone out there who can take ‘It’s a human?’ and have the reader almost pee their pants, and then subsequently get the hiccups from laughing for 5 (not six – god I’m funny!) minutes straight.

I’ve also had by heart shattered by books countless times. And this story took an over-sized sledgehammer to my ever-fragile organ. I can’t really talk about the story too much without giving stuff away. So when you get the notice that Finding Cinderella is LIVE, go and download it immediately. Then drink a large coffee with an espresso-shot so you can read it right away.

The only fault I found with this story was that it ended. And those >>>>>! GAH!