daynight Review and Giveaway

On Tour with Prism Book Tours...

It's time to leave Earth and cross over to the other side... it's not as far away as you think!!

daynight
by Megan Thomason
Paperback, 324 pages
Published November 26th 2012 by Creatspace

Meet The Second Chance Institute (SCI): Earth’s benevolent non-profit by day, Thera’s totalitarian regime by night. Their motto: Because Everyone Deserves a Second Chance™. Reality: the SCI subjects Second Chancers to strict controls and politically motivated science experiments like Cleaving—forced lifetime union between two people who have sex. Punishment for disobeying SCI edicts? Immediate Exile or death.

Meet Kira Donovan. Fiercely loyal, overly optimistic, and ensnared by the promise of a full-ride college scholarship, Kira signs the SCI Recruit contract to escape memories of a tragedy that left her boyfriend and friends dead.

Meet Blake Sundry. Bitter about being raised in Exile and his mother’s death, Blake’s been trained to infiltrate and destroy the SCI. Current barrier to success? His Recruit partner—Miss Goody Two Shoes Kira Donovan.

Meet Ethan Darcton. Born with a defective heart and resulting inferiority complex, Ethan’s forced to do his SCI elite family’s bidding. Cleave-worthy Kira Donovan catches his eye, but the presiding powers give defect-free Blake Sundry first dibs.

Introducing...  the new Novella:  FREE for the Tour!
On Smashwords!

clean slate complex

by Megan Thomason

Meet The Second Chance Institute (SCI): Worldwide non-profit and do-gooder organization. Their motto: Because Everyone Deserves a Second Chance at Life(TM). Reality: hidden behind every kind act is a dark agenda designed to gain control and force societal and moral extremes. Currently, the SCI’s pushing Project Liberate, a program to woo the poor and downtrodden into their Clean Slate Complexes—where “everything is provided” from jobs to food, shelter, clothing, and education. Unfortunately, as with all things that sound too good to be true, there’s a catch…

Meet Alexa Knight. Feisty, tough and currently homeless in Los Angeles, Alexa agrees to help the SCI in return for medical care for her sick mother. When she starts to suspect there’s more to the SCI than meets the eye will she believe Adam—the boy who saved her life and the SCI’s biggest champion, or Joshua—the attractive enigma who sings about conspiracy theories and pretends to be someone he’s not?

Full of action, humor, romance, twists and turns, clean slate complex is a companion story to the highly-praised dystopian novel, daynight. It can be enjoyed before or after readingdaynight.

LINK: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CFQY0JY

daynight Review

“Hello, my name is Dorothy, and I'm an emotional reader.”

Above all else—grammar, style, plot, or even characterization—I depend on emotional connections to the characters I follow. I want to giggle as the protagonist gets flirted with by the cute guy, and cry with her when he inevitably breaks her heart. Hate, joy, anger, contentment—all are welcome, which is why I write this review with a heavy heart. I was anxious to dig into the world of daynight by Megan Thomason, the concept of an alienesque sister planet to Earth drawing on my love for Sci-Fi, but my hopes for a new obsession were shattered by poor editing and a shallow depiction of humanity.

The opening prologue was hilarious. I don't think I've ever laughed so hard so soon when reading a book, so my already high expectations were sky-rocketed by some pretty fantastic writing. I even noted how the semi-colon was used correctly, a nitpick of mine. As I was thrust into Kira's first person perspective my fascination waned, which is acceptable for the setup of a story. What was not acceptable were the repetitive and overabundant details, overuse of narration to dialogue, and inconsistent tense participles. When I saw another semi-colon in the beginning of the book, this time used incorrectly, I should have taken it as an omen.

Where I think the emotional disconnect was the most evident was in the narration and in the characters themselves. The entire first half of the book was a vague description of the workings of Thera—rules, schedules, terminology, etc. We knew that the sun rose in the west and the heat made living a nightly affair, but we didn't know how the SCI could get away with taking kids to a different planet, threaten their lives, and reap no consequences. And Kira, after scoffing initially at the idea of being somewhere other than Earth, just seemed to accept Thera and her life there. There was no fear, no panic—nothing but curiosity. As much as the characters liked to talk inside their own heads, I didn't really learn much about them. Details, yes, but they didn't have any definable personality traits that moved them through the story. Add to robotic characters a told story instead of shown, narration being the choice instead of dialogue, and it's not surprising I couldn't invest myself in daynight.

Grammatically speaking, this book should not have been written in first person. It seems the go-to point of view for many authors, but first person is harder to pull off than one might think. It may lend itself well to witty inner dialogue, but often at the expense of giving the reader the full picture, and if you're dead set on using it for three separate voices, a lot of work must go into making each of those voices unique. From Blake to Kira to Ethan, I began only hearing Megan Thomason.

I wanted desperately to like this book. The concept even now appeals to me, and I'm all the sadder for it not having delivered. I'm locking this book up, but I'm not throwing away the key. With a heavy dose of editing—fixing consistency in the flashbacks and the past perfect/simple past mix-ups, developing the characters, cutting the fat off the narration, reblocking the plot layout—daynight could be phenomenal. It's innovative and intriguing, but it was published before it could blossom into a well-rounded story.  

Megan Thomason lives in paradise aka San Diego, CA with her husband and five children. A former software manager, Megan vastly prefers writing twisted tales to business, product, and marketing plans. When she isn't typing away on her laptop, she's reading books on her phone—over 600 in the last year—or attending to the needs of her family. Megan’s fluent in sarcasm, could potentially benefit from a 12-step program for road rage, struggles with a Hot Tamales addiction, loves world travel & fast cars and hates paperwork & being an insomniac. Daynight is Megan's first published novel, but fourth written one.

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daynight Second Chances Giveaway:

Choose what you enter to win wisely. Your stay on Thera may be extended indefinitely.

Highlighting a different giveaway every daynight of the Tour... International Winners will receive a $25 Amazon Gift Certificate and US Winners may choose $25 GC in lieu of Prize Package.

US only. International winners will receive $25 Amazon gift certificate. US winners can opt to receive $25 Amazon gift certificate in lieu of any prize package.Open only to those who can legally enter. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by Rafflecopter and announced on Rafflecopter and Grand Finale posts as well as emailed and the winner will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Burgandy Ice @ Colorimetry and Prism Book Tours and sponsored by Megan Thomason. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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Become an SCI Recruit
The Second Chance Institute (daynight's Dystopia)

April   22 - Launch!
                - My Seryniti - Review
                - Little Library Muse
           23 - Tressa's Wishful Endings
                - Buckeye Girl Reads - Teaser
                - Marked by Books - Review
                - Red Headed Bookworm

Welcome to Thera!
Building Thera

           24 - Coffee Books and Me
                  Stressed Rach
                  Snuggling on the Sofa - Review
           25 - Christy's Cozy Corner - Teaser
                - All Fantasy Words - Review

Kira * Blake * Ethan
Character Backgrounds & Posters

           26 - Susie Q-Pons and Giveaways - Review
                - My Passion for Books - Review; Ethan
                - Paranormal opinion - Blake
                - The Cozy Reading Corner - Kira
                - Book, Books, the Magical Fruit - Teaser
                - Bookaroo-Ju - Teaser
           27 - Bookworm Lisa - The Characters
                - Getting Your Read On - Review

Cleaving
daynight's Controversy of "Cleaving"

           28 - Fantastical World of Wonders - Review
                - Pause Time
                - A Backwards Story
                - Beck Valley Books
           29 - I Am a Reader, Not a Writer - Teaser
                - Books Mystify - Review
                - Mel's Shelves - Review

Vacation on Earth!
Escapism

           30 - The Broke Book Bank - Review

                - Letters to the Cosmos - Review

                - Arriane Cruz 

                - Candace's Book Blog

May      1 - Life of a YA Girl - Review

                - Fuonlyknew - Teaser

Risking Exile
Dystopian Survival 101

             2 - A Tiffyfit's Reading Corner - Review
                - Lovin' Los Libros - Review
                - Paulette's Papers
                - Becky's Barmy Book Blog 
             3 - Backing Books - Teaser
                - Book Snob - Review
             4 - Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
                - Living a Goddess Life - Review; Recipe

Clean Slate Complex

             5 - Mortality Bites
                - The Book Eater
                - Deco My Heart - Review
             6 - Passion and Life - Teaser
                - The Reading Diaries - Review
                - Jack's Junk Drawer - Review             7 - Grand Finale Blast!!

Prohibition….Gangsters….Bootleggers….Al Capone….and a 17-year-old girl named Eve Marryat who, in the tumultuous summer of 1931, learns the meaning of….

Sweet Mercy

Sweet Mercy
by Ann Tatlock
Paperback, 400 pages
Expected publication: May 1 2013 by Bethany House Publishers

Premise:

When Eve Marryat’s father is laid off from the Ford Motor Company in 1931, he is forced to support his family by leaving St. Paul, Minnesota, and moving back to his Ohio roots. Eve’s uncle Cyrus has invited the family to live and work at his Marryat Island Ballroom and Lodge. 

St. Paul seemed like a haven for gangsters, and Eve had grown fearful of living there. At seventeen, she considers her family to be “good people.” They aren’t lawbreakers and criminals like so many people in her old neighborhood. Thrilled to be moving to a “safe haven,” Eve is blissfully unaware that her uncle’s lodge is a transfer station for illegal liquor smuggled from Canada.

Eve settles in to work and makes new friends, including an enigmatic but affecting young man. But when the reality of her situation finally becomes clear, Eve is faced with a dilemma. How can she ignore what is happening right under their very noses? Yet can she risk everything by condemning the man whose love and generosity is keeping her and her family from ruin?

Barnes & Noble * Amazon * Bethany House

Review of Sweet Mercy

As I flipped through the first pages of Ann Tatlock's Sweet Mercy, hitting the ten percent mark, and the twenty, and then the thirty, dread snaked its way into my heart. This is the very first book I have reviewed for a tour, and I was miserable with the thought it would have to be negative. Halfway through the book, I was relieved to find my interest increasing, and by the end I was as content as hot summer days spent drinking sweet tea on the porch.

The problem with Sweet Mercy lay in the Prologue. As so many romantic stories begin, we meet Eve as an old woman, leading her grandson through a place of her past. She's searching for a box of trinkets, one of which the boy's grandfather gave her before they were married. The story of a grand love affair is obviously the next step, but my expectations would be wrong. The story of Sweet Mercy is not about seventeen-year-old Eve's romance with her future husband, but rather about all the people she meets who help her grow into the woman she becomes. Had the Prologue captured that essence instead of making me guess who Eve's mysterious sweetheart would turn out to be, I would have started enjoying the book much sooner.

Ann Tatlock's biggest strength as a writer is her ability to distinguish each character with only a few short lines. Even Cecil, a man introduced only twice in the book, was so profoundly real to me. There's a boy being beat by his bootlegging father, a girl whose only dream is to marry that boy, the shy suitor who's off to college in the fall, an angry albino who learns to care for a lonely girl, a bum searching for alcohol in the days of prohibition, and of course Eve. I was not fond of Eve to begin with. She was preachy, judgmental, and incredibly naïve. But as these characters surrounded and taught her, my feelings grew and changed. I began to understand why such an innocent soul would rebel against the very idea that good could coincide with bad.

I can't deny my disappointment at not having enjoyed Sweet Mercy as much as I could have, but the end gave me hope I might take to a second read. The history is rich, the characters fascinating, and the outcome beautiful. If you're someone who likes a good coming of age story, you might want to take a peek inside Sweet Mercy and decide for yourself if you like the gangster-ridden cities of the thirties.

Ann Tatlock is the author of the Christy Award-winning novel Promises to Keep. She has also won the Midwest Independent Publishers Association "Book of the Year" in fiction for both All the Way Home and I'll Watch the Moon.Her novel Things We Once Held Dear received a starred review from Library Journal and Publishers Weekly calls her "one of Christian fiction's better wordsmiths, and her lovely prose reminds readers why it is a joy to savor her stories." Ann lives with her husband and daughter in Asheville, North Carolina.

Website * Facebook * Goodreads

On this Tour... test your 1930's Gangster knowledge with our trivia quiz, a different question on every post!

Giveaway:

2 Winners, USA only: Print copy of Sweet Mercy, Ghirardelli chocolate, book themed pen & notepad.

2 Winners, world-wide: eCopy of Sweet Mercy

Open only to those who can legally enter. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by Rafflecopter and announced on Rafflecopter and Grand Finale posts as well as emailed and the winner will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Burgandy Ice @ Colorimetry and Prism Book Tours and sponsored by Bethany House Publishers and Ann Tatlock. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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On Tour with Prism Book Tours 

April 15 - May 3, 2013:

15 – Launch!

16 – I Am a Reader, Not a Writer - What was Prohibition?

17 – JoJo’s Corner – Review

18 – Letters to the Cosmos – Review

19 – The Broke Book Bank – Guest Post Meet the Lawmen

21 – The Wonderings of One Person – Molls and other Dolls

 - Books Mystify – Review

22 – Tressa’s Wishful Endings – Review, The Setting behind the Setting

-  Momma Bear’s Book Blog – Review, Meet the Cast

23 – CTF Devourer – Review

 - Christy’s Cozy Corner – Fun Facts About 1931   

24 – ADD Librarian - Review

25 – Worthy 2 Read – Review

26 – Green Mountain Couple – Just a Taste (to wet your whistle)

28 – Backing Books – Review

29 – Celtic Lady’s Reviews – Four Famous Gangsters

30 – A Year of Jubilee Reviews – Review

1 – The Jack’s Junk Drawer – Review

2 – Living a Goddess Life – Review, Recipe

3 – Grand Finale

NO JOKE! Win Big April Fools Giveaway!

No Joke - Win Big April Fools Giveaway

Kindle Fire HD 7" Giveaway

The winner will have the option of receiving a 7" Kindle Fire HD (US Only)

Or $199 Amazon.com Gift Card (International)

Or $199 in Paypal Cash (International)

Sponsoring Authors

The Breeders by Katie French

"The Breeders is a YA dystopian read that's as gritty and dark as the cover and title suggest. It takes a look at how society might devolve if females were commodities: bought, sold, stolen, and traded to keep the dwindling human race going. Frightening concept. I loved it." --A.G. Henley, author of The Scourge

 Facebook * Twitter * Blog * Purchase

Dissidence by Jamie Canosa

"An amazingly snarky protagonist, two hot boys, a mass rebellion, and an ending that will blow your mind are the perfect ingredients that will make Dissidence the next big thing in YA." --Beth, YA Sisterhood

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The Moon Dwellers and Fire Country 

by David Estes

“Fire Country is an epic start to the Country saga and left me with my heart pounding and totally breathless. Phenomenal" --K-booksxo.blogspot.com

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Blue Hearts of Mars by Nicole Grotepas

Love between humans and androids is forbidden, but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen...

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The Tale of Mally Biddle by M.L. LeGette

"To say I loved this book is an understatement." --April Holgate

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Terra by Gretchen Powell

"This could be your world... but it's definitely Terra's, and she navigates it with determination, and a longing for answers that makes her story engrossing and entertaining." -- abookobsession.com

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After the Fear by Rosanne Rivers

"The book is just breathtaking from the moment you start till the moment you put it down." -- Amazon review

Twitter * Website * Facebook * Purchase

Entanglement by Dan Rix

A YA Dystopian Romance where every human is born with a soulmate, whom they meet on their 18th birthday...and the one boy who's the exception.

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daynight by Megan Thomason

“Sure to win over YA readers looking for a dangerous, dystopian adventure story” --Kirkus Reviews

 “Gripping; page-turner” --BlueInk Review (starred review)

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Fields of Elysium by A.B. Whelan

"The novel's take on otherworldly travel is a compelling one, and the romantic plot will likely appeal to Twilight fans." - Kirkus Reviews

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Giveaway Details
1 winner will receive their choice of a Kindle Fire HD (US Only), $199 Amazon Gift Card or $199 in Paypal Cash (International).
Ends 4/15/13

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer http://iamareader.com and sponsored by the participating authors. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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Cover Reveal: Fall of Sky City by S.M. Blooding

People say, “Don't judge a book by its cover.”

It's good advice. The outer skin of a pomegranate doesn't reveal the juicy ruby beads beneath. Nor does a slim figure and flowing hair portray a woman's deep emotions or complex character.

People also say, “First impressions are important.”

Because as much as we strive to set aside appearances, appearances find a way to snake around our thoughts, spouting judgments like weeds. This was a hard lesson to learn for author S.M. Blooding, who is re-releasing her fantastical tale of bitter feuds, unwanted bonds, and the fight for right and freedom with a brand new look.

Mystical, magical, dangerous WOW. The cover of Fall of Sky City: Devices of War Trilogy, Book 1, is artful, detailed, visually stunning, and a myriad of other favorable adjectives. If you compare the new to the old (which I'll do in a moment), you can see the vast improvement, but to say this cover is merely a step up would be to take away from its stand-alone brilliance.

Our protagonist is front and center, a powerful enforcer in a city of advanced science or magic. The title and author's name are outlined and dynamic, brilliantly placed. The cover itself tells a story, has both depth of concept and visual depth. The illustrator played with lights and shadows masterfully, drawing the eye from the ship and red moon in the sky to our hero's mysterious tattoo and weaponry. All of this is a far cry from The Hands of Tarot, the original title and cover:

First thought: Not for me.

Visually, the cover is flat. The reds, oranges, and browns bleed into monotony, and there is no depth to any of the images. I doesn't grab me the way a cover should.

Conceptually, the cover is somewhat intriguing, with drawn art and a mystical steampunk feel, but I don't like my protagonists quite so dark. The Queen of Wands, supposed master of a human pet, is in some way immersed in Tarot, a magic revolving around fate and fortune that has terrible, dark consequences.

Sounds like a completely different book to Fall of Sky City, doesn't it? That's because everything this cover told me… is wrong.

In a world governed by the opposing forces of the mystical House of Tarot and the tribal Great Families, Synn is caught in the crossfire. He witnesses the slaughter of innocent people, and the devastating murder of his father. This act awakens his Mark of power, a Mark greater than any the world has seen in a very long time.

Queen Nix thought she won a great prize when she destroyed Synn’s father, the leader of the strongest Great Families. She had no idea she’d be doubly blessed by capturing his son. However, before Synn can become her treasured weapon, before she can use him to bring the rest of the world to its knees, she must break him and bind his soul to hers.

She does her job with brutal brilliance. Synn’s mind is broken and his soul is seared to hers in an unbreakable bond.That doesn’t stop him from wanting to be free. She may have broken his mind and claimed his soul, but he will find a way to destroy her.

Experience a world of ships that sail the clouds and cites buried beneath the ocean, and survive the fiery battle brought forth by those who control the forces of nature!

Now, that is a book I can sink my teeth into! I'm extremely grateful to S.M. Blooding for re-releasing this book the way it should have always been wrapped. Had she not, I would have likely passed on something I'm eager to read and enjoy. Let this be a lesson to all authors to take time and care in choosing how to display their hard work to the world, lest you end up in the same boat with a cover and title that don't do your characters or your story justice.

Word of the Day: Juxtaposition

Juxtaposition (jək-stə-pə-ˈzi-shən) n.  1. A placing close together or side by side, especially for comparison or contrast.  2. The situation of being close together or side by side.

Am I the only person who sees or hears the word juxtaposition and immediately starts singing . . .

"Joxer the Mighty

Roams through the countryside

He never needs a place to hide

With Gabby as his sidekick

Fighting with her little stick

Righting wrongs and singing songs

Being mighty all day long

He's Joxer—he's Joxer the Mighty!"

. . . inside my head?

It's always been a funny little word for me. Juxta --- position. JUXta --- position. JuxTA --- position. Hmmm.

In a sentence:
 ~ The juxtaposition of the basketball player next to the jockey was comical, the difference in their sizes more obvious than ever.

How would you use juxtaposition in a sentence?

Word of the Day: Selfish

Selfish (sel-fish) adj. Devoted to or caring only for oneself; concerned primarily with one's own interests, benefits, welfare, etc., regardless of others.

Here's the thing. Selfish is not, in itself, a bad word. Humans, by nature, are selfish creatures. It's okay to be selfish, to think about yourself and only yourself every once in a while. Just like it's okay to have a few drinks. It's when those few drinks turn into a few more and all the sudden you're an alcoholic narcissist that we have a problem. The trick is being selfish in the right way.

In a sentence:
 ~ "A $500 pair of shoes when you haven't even paid your part of the rent? You are the most selfish person I have ever met!"
 ~ To a run-ragged mother of three, a selfish dose of bubble baths and steamy novels is just what the doctor ordered.

Help me come up with ways to be selfish! Give me a good example and a bad example.

Review: Bluegrass State of Mind

Imagine a strong, lovely character standing on top of a hill, bathed in sunlight, an intriguing plot blossoming from beautiful descriptive words all around her. When I opened my Kindle to the first page of Kathleen Brooks' Bluegrass State of Mind, I thought I might have finally found a Contemporary Romance to hold my attention. A thrilling prologue leads into a vision of our protagonist, McKenna Mason, running from and for her life on the open roads of Kentucky. She's searching for a childhood love, a Mr. Will Ashton, sexy owner of Ashton Farm and Boots, his prized race horse.

Upon meeting Will, I was smitten. He was charming, sweet, and arrogant in all the right places, with just a touch of insecurity mixed in. We also meet Will's wonderful parents, Paige Davies, a sheik named Mo, and a host of other townsfolk, including the hysterical Rose sisters, who try in equal parts to wheedle romantic gossip out of Kenna and prevent her from having any at all to tell. We then meet Whitney, as she pushes Kenna and that promising plot down a slippery slope into mediocrity.

There were several moments where I thought the story could have been saved, but Kenna continued to trip over meddling characters and her own obtuse deductions. For something that started out thrilling and mysterious, I soon became frustrated I had figured out what was going to happen before the characters ever suspected. I couldn't even fall back on the adorable country romance—Will, who I hoped would ride in on his Ford truck and save the day, was stashed away for safekeeping, only to be brought out again when Brooks was ready for for the misunderstandings to be resolved. And then BAM, relationship. There was no getting to know him past his introduction; readers are expected to fall in love with him through quick sentences and time lapses.

I wish I could say the lackluster romance and predictable plot were the only areas in which Bluegrass State of Mind fell short, but as the story evolved, the writing did the opposite. I could hardly believe a slapstick scene of fake crying and bursts of laughter came from the same author that wrote porch-sweeping old women and a cute, cocky reunion. Multiple typos and Brooks' incessant need to explain the most obvious or unrealistic scenarios made for a grimace-filled finish. Or as much of a finish as cliffhangers will allow.

I won't say this book is completely terrible, though. Southern charm is abundant through it's pages, and Kenna is for the most part a strong leading lady. She's feminine but tough, and fits right in with Kentucky society. The preaching that good manners weren't sexist got tiresome, but I adored the fact Kenna wasn't offended by good Southern hospitality. It was a nice change from so many books preaching independence against men opening doors.

After predicting everything that would happen in Book One, I can't imagine the next two telling me anything I don't already know, so I'm unlikely to pick them up. However, I can't regret reading Bluegrass State of Mind. It did not live up to my expectations and it disappointed more than it entertained, but a majority of the characters were rich and the relationships they formed were true. If nothing else, they were well worth my time.

Dust Collector

Word of the Day: Modicum

Modicum (mod`ə-kəm), n. A moderate or small quantity.

In the middle of an argument I was having, I flung my hands in the air and said, "You don't even have a mordicum... modicrum... whatever-that-word-is of sense!" Embarrassed, I immediately turned to my dictionary, and it turns out the 'R' I was sure was in 'modicum' was nowhere to be had, thus giving us our first Word of the Day!
     

In a sentence:

 ~ The hungry man wished he had just a modicum of food to put in his belly, so that it might stop grumbling at him.

 ~ Every city goer must have a modicum of change in their pocket, just enough to last the parking meter a few hours.

How would you use 'modicum' in a sentence?

Breaking Point by Kristen Simmons

This is a book series I've seen around the blogosphere that I cannot ignore. I've read reviews that rave, the covers look fab, and OH MY the giveaways! The series starts with Article 5:

New York, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C., have been abandoned.

The Bill of Rights has been revoked, and replaced with the Moral Statutes.

There are no more police—instead, there are soldiers. There are no more fines for bad behavior—instead, there are arrests, trials, and maybe worse. People who get arrested usually don't come back.

Seventeen-year-old Ember Miller is old enough to remember that things weren't always this way. Living with her rebellious single mother, it's hard for her to forget that people weren't always arrested for reading the wrong books or staying out after dark. It's hard to forget that life in the United States used to be different.

Ember has perfected the art of keeping a low profile. She knows how to get the things she needs, like food stamps and hand-me-down clothes, and how to pass the random home inspections by the military. Her life is as close to peaceful as circumstances allow.

That is, until her mother is arrested for noncompliance with Article 5 of the Moral Statutes. And one of the arresting officers is none other than Chase Jennings—the only boy Ember has ever loved.

The second installment in Kristen Simmons's fast-paced, gripping YA dystopian series.

After faking their deaths to escape from prison, Ember Miller and Chase Jennings have only one goal: to lay low until the Federal Bureau of Reformation forgets they ever existed.

Near-celebrities now for the increasingly sensationalized tales of their struggles with the government, Ember and Chase are recognized and taken in by the Resistance—an underground organization working to systematically take down the government. At headquarters, all eyes are on the sniper, an anonymous assassin taking out FBR soldiers one by one. Rumors are flying about the sniper’s true identity, and Ember and Chase welcome the diversion….

Until the government posts its most-wanted list, and their number one suspect is Ember herself.

Orders are shoot to kill, and soldiers are cleared to fire on suspicion alone. Suddenly Ember can’t even step onto the street without fear of being recognized, and “laying low” is a joke. Even members of the Resistance are starting to look at her sideways.

With Chase urging her to run, Ember must decide: Go into hiding…or fight back?

Here are some awesome giveaways for the book, if you're interested!

• Emily's Crammed Bookshelf (Closed)
• Book Nerd Canada (Closed)
• Live to Read (Closed)

Enjoy!!!

Holy smokes, Batman! 100 books?!

I feel like I might be writing this into the atmos, but if you've stumbled across this barely there blog, have I got news for you! Live to Read is hosting a brilliant 100+ Book Giveaway. Check it out!

And if you feel so inclined, drop me a line to let me know you stopped by!