Dystopian

The Dociles by Valerie Puri – New Release & Excerpt!

The Dociles by Valerie Puri

Walls are meant to keep the monsters out…

Deep in the forest there is a wall where no wall should be. Behind it live the people of the Commune, the last remnant of human kind.

Jennie Caraway has lived behind the wall her entire life, certain that it protects her and her brother from the lemerons, ravenous undead monsters whose only desire is to kill – and feed.

Jennie’s peaceful existence is shattered when she uncovers a secret organization whose purpose threatens to destroy not only Jennie, but her entire world. The Order has a deadly mission, and they will stop at nothing to see it completed.

Jennie and those closest to her must expose the evil truth before they are killed – or worse.

Buy – Amazon

Exclusive Excerpt

– Sash

Sash smiled as he recalled his transition into adulthood. He’d chosen his own path and proved how useful he could be to the Order. He had been doing this work ever since the day he walked away from the burning remnants of his past life. His technique had been polished over the years. He learned how to control his rage and do less conspicuous work. After all, he couldn’t burn down every building he did a job in just to cover his tracks and make it look like an accident.

Some of his targets were not so lucky as to be killed. What awaited them was something worse. Eleanor Townsend was one such target. His usual sneer crept over his lips as he thought about the hell she would soon be trapped in. She hadn’t screamed when he bagged her, though. Pity, he thought. Sash loved when they screamed.

He reached the end of the long dark tunnel. He stood before a thick steel door with a single, dim light flickering above his head. He made a fist and banged on the cold metal two times. He heard shuffling behind the door, and a strip of metal at eye-level slid away to reveal a small, rectangular window. A set of eyes masked behind tinted, round goggles peered out at him, surveying the load hoisted over his shoulder.

“I’ve got another one for processing,” Sash said.

The metal strip slid back into place covering the tiny window. Sash heard the grinding sound of metal scraping against metal as the gears were engaged to unlock the door. It swung inward to grant him entrance.

About The Author

Valerie Puri has always had a lifelong interest in all forms of artistic expression. She has tried her hand at many things, yet she always found her way back to reading and writing. With inspiration everywhere, she finally put pen to paper (or rather, fingers to keyboard) with the intent of publishing her stories.

Writing has always come naturally to Valerie, and for a time she even worked as a technical writer. She continues to hone her skills by having at least one writing project in the works at any given time. Her true passion lies in the freedom that comes with writing the stories that pour from her imagination and real life inspiration.

Valerie believes that the experiences we have in life are just stories waiting to be written.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

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#Review – Fiat by Jeffery D Schlaman – #Financial #postapocalyptic #thriller.. Definitely something new!

Fiat  by Jeffery Schlaman

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Synopsis:

By the fall of 2016, the country is already on the verge of financial collapse, despite the most aggressive actions conceivable by the Federal Reserve. When foreign debt-holders suddenly dump their debt in an act of aggression against the United States, hyper-inflation ensues, bringing the government to its knees.

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Fiat-Jeffrey-D-Schlaman/dp/149356093X

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20296598-fiat

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fiat-jeffrey-d-schlaman/1117760935

 

Review:

** Review done in conjunction with SayWhatSavannahMae, check out her site for more info**

** I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, all opinions are my own**

 5 stars

Something I completely love? Books with post-apocalyptic/dystopian themes and undertones. I adore being terrified of what the future may hold for me, what technology will bring us, when the government will cause. This genre is one that allows so many authors the chance to predict the future in a way, so I hold it to pretty strict standards, because if you’re going for that genre, you need it to be a believable course of action that leads us there. Which brings me to this book… Fiat..

This book addresses a terrifying future that hits home, a little too hard considering the current economic issues our country faces. I don’t think a book with financial implications has every scared me before this novel, but this one did give me a bit of fear. Things you don’t take a lot of time to think about sometimes have a way of creeping up, and I feel that way about this book. I don’t really think too much about our economics and financial issues as country, but as I was reading this book, things started feeling more and more realistic. Look what a ruined economy did during the great depression.. Materialism is a running theme in this novel. Humankind and our need for things, newest and best.

Overall, I thought the author has a very strong skill for the technical part of the novel. Written well, flows good, and interests you pretty quickly. As for the plot, it’s good. It is set in the near future, which makes it a bit improbable, I admit, but none the less, it’s a frightening concept to think of food going up to $100 for some things. We don’t deal with one main character in this novel, rather a variety of people at all different stages in their lives. We get some high powered (or used to be) people like Chairman of Federal Reserve or a Bishop, but we also meet a stripper, police officer and some others. All these people trying to survive, and some trying to fix things, and not always honestly. I have to say, I normally don’t like books with multiple characters, because things get muddled, but in this one, I have to say it worked, and really tells the story how it needs to be told.

So, would I recommend this book?  Yes, fans of thrillers, political novels, and even some dystopian would probably enjoy this book, or at least be a little shaken up by it, and that does seem to be the author’s point, and a point well achieved.

 

What do you think?  Are you interested in picking this book up?

Blog Tour: Sanctuary by Pauline Creeden – Wonderful Dystopian with a twist!
SANCTUARYTOUR
 
 
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Release date: September 30th 2013
Publisher: AltWit Press
Purchase: Amazon
 
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BOOK DESCRIPTION:

In a heart-racing thriller described as Falling Skies meets The Walking Dead, Jennie struggles to find a safe place for what’s left of her family. But it seems as though there is no place sacred, no place secure. First the aliens attacked the sun, making it dimmer, weaker, and half what it used to be.
 
Then they attacked the water supply, killing one-third of Earth’s population with a bitter contaminate. And when they unleash a new terror on humankind, the victims will wish for death, but will not find it…When the world shatters to pieces around her, will Jennie find the strength she needs to keep going?
 

Review:

Grade: A

I love dystopian novels, and I love zombie novels, and when I read that this book seemed to have a way with both styles, I was excited to start reading my ARC! Pauline Creeden has written a wonderfully imaginative book that pulls readers into the story, and keeps them running to keep up. It’s perfect, realistic, and griping. I’d suggest it to anyone.
There are 3 characters which we really get to know, Hugh, a teacher, Jennie the main girl, and Brad the brother that stole Hugh’s girlfriend. These three weave the tale for us, and it works so well. I thought they were all realistic characters, with logical thoughts and actions. Nothing seemed contrived or forced at all, though Brad didn’t seem to serve a big point in this book, but maybe that’s for a reason.
The story was a great read. It had a great level of suspense; it keeps you on the edge of your seat. This is a YA book, so the zombie gore factor isn’t as bad as something you’d see of walking dead, or the like, it’s toned down a bit, but still present. There’s also a bit of religion in this book, but no it’s not a book that only religious people can read, and it’s not preachy or over the top, it’s barely noticeable, and it’s mentioned in the same way other authors use religion to help them weave a story, and it works, in a weird perfect way.
This book has zombies, it also holds aliens, and it’s the end of days, Revelations time has come and brought zombies and aliens. You’d think you need to suspend disbelief a lot in order for this story to work but you’d be surprised, you don’t have to, you just read and you get pulled in.

I loved this story, it’s a great YA read, and it doesn’t pander to anyone! Check it out!

**I was given an ARC in return for an honest review

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

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In simple language, Pauline Creeden breaks down Biblical stories and applies them to real life in new ways. Her methods of teaching have brought new light to old scriptures. Pauline is a horse trainer from Virginia, but writing is her therapy.In her fiction, she creates worlds that are both familiar and strange, often pulling the veil between dimensions. She becomes the main character in each of her stories, and because she has ADD, she will get bored if she pretends to be one person for too long.
 
 
 
 

Book Trailer:

 
 
 

Giveaway

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 
 

Jump Zone -Release Day Blog Tour – Quiz and Giveaway!
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Jump Zone: Cleo Falls by Wylie Snow
(Jump Zone #1 )
Publication date: September 9th 2013
Genres: Dystopia, New Adult

I’m so glad to be a part of this tour! This book sounds awesome and cannot wait to pick up a copy! I’m so glad It’s live now!

Synopsis:

All Cleo wants, all she’s ever wanted, is the acceptance of her tribe and the love of her family… and she almost dies trying to earn it. But the man who saved her, who found beauty in her flaws and loved her without condition, has cruelly betrayed her, and she’s dying all over again.Was it all lies? His words, his promises, his kisses? Lost in unfamiliar territory, Cleo will fight the forces that conspire to destroy her homeland, even if she has to do it alone.

Libra longs for freedom—from prison, from pretense, and from his birthright… but he’s caught in a political game where only greed and power can win, and Cleo Rush is the pawn. How much is he willing to sacrifice for liberty? His morals, his principles, the woman he loves? No matter which path he chooses, people will die, their blood on his hands. And it could be hers.

To save themselves and their world, Cleo and Libra must overcome the double tragedy that binds their families in hatred. Together, they might live. Apart, Cleo will fall.

Purchase

Amazon eBook| Amazon Paperback | B&N | Kobo | SmashWords

JUMP ZONE SURVIVAL QUIZ

In the book Jump Zone: Cleo Falls, the inhabitants of the Taiga forests struggle to survive daily life in the northern wilds.

Take this simple quiz to find out if you’re Taiga material…The answers and what your score means will be at the bottom by the giveaway link!

Question 1

How many days can you survive without water:

  1. 1
  2. 3
  3. 5
  4. 7

Question 2

You’re lost in a northern forest and want to travel due south. Which indicator do you look to for help:

  1. moss
  2. sun
  3. anthills
  4. all of the above

Question 3

You should avoid sleeping on the ground for what reason:

  1. ouch – you’ll wake up with stiff aching joints
  2. the cold hard ground will zap your body heat
  3. avoid snake bites
  4. forest dirt leaves harsh un-washable stains

Question 4

Your weak from hunger and the insects are looking awfully yummy. Which should you avoid:

  1. slimy ones
  2. flying ones
  3. brighty colored ones
  4. ugly ones

Question 5

Thunder, lightning! How do you estimate the distance of a storm:

  1. Count the seconds between the thunderclaps and lightning strikes and divide that number by five to equal the distance in miles.
  2. When you feel the first raindrop, start counting the seconds until you hear a rumble of thunder, which equals the number of miles away.
  3. Count the number of lightning strikes in one minute to equal the distance in miles.
  4. Who cares! Get yourself under the biggest tree you can find and prepare to get wet.

Question 6

Oh no, you’re lost! But you know to implement the S.T.O.P. plan. Gosh… what do those letters stand for again?

  1. Sing Things Or Pray – when in doubt, hum a hymn
  2. Stretch Twirl Oscillate Pivot – keep moving, turn this adventure into an exercise plan
  3. Stop Think Observe Plan – don’t do anything rash, think this situation through
  4. Solo Time Operating Plan – you’re alone and it’s time to do all those crazy things you saved for when nobody was watching… yeehaw!

Question 7

You’re still lost, and night is falling. It’s time to build a shelter. Choose your spot:

  1. An open, highly visible area – the search party needs to find you.
  2. The edge of volcano – best place to keep warm!
  3. At the bottom of a dry creek bed – no hair-curling dampness to worry about.
  4. Close to a water source – you might get thirsty in the night.

Question 8

You’re stranded in a forest with only one item from your handbag. What would be the most useful thing? Choose just one:

  1. Hairbrush
  2. Nail file
  3. Lipstick
  4. Tampon

AUTHOR BIO

Almost every author says they wanted to write from a very early age. Not me. I wanted to be a detective like Nancy Drew, or a wildlife expert like Jim Fowler or an archaeologist like Indiana Jones. Or have my own island resort and make fantasies come true!I didn’t do too badly with any of those…
I married a detective, worked in a zoo, explored ship wrecks instead of old ruins, and spent 18 glorious years living on a sunny island.As for those fantasies…
I also write erotic romance as Wylie Kinson.
Happy reading!

Links:

Website: http://www.wyliesnow.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Wylie-Snow-Author/496092523761066

Author Email:  wylie@wyliesnow.com

Quiz Answers!

ANSWERS:

1 – B

The average person needs about 2 quarts of water per day to maintain good health. Going without water for 3 days spells death!

2 – D

All of the above! Though moss will grow on the north side of trees, it will be lusher and greener on the south side. Ants frequently build their nests on the south or southeast side of trees to take advantage of the warmth, and if you walk toward the sun precisely at noon, you’ll be headed due south.

3 – B

You’ll preserve your body heat by piling up a bed of grass, leaves or bows and getting yourself a few inches off the ground.

4 – C

Stop with the ick-face. Insects can be a great source of protein (pound for pound, as much as 3 times as much as beef!), but it’s a good idea to stay away from the bright ones, which could potentially signal poison or toxin. Leave the hairy ones and the smelly ones alone, too.

5 – A

As soon as you hear thunder, start counting – one Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi, etc… until you see a strike of lightning. Divide by five and that’s roughly how many miles out the storm is. And for heaven’s sake, don’t stand under a tall tree!

6 – C

Stop moving, sit down and relax,

Think about your situation, how you got into it, how might you get out of it,

Observe your surroundings, your supplies and/or tools,

Plan your next move.

7 – A & D

Hopefully, somebody knows you’re missing (you DID tell someone about that wilderness hike, right?) so you should find or build shelter in a spot where the search and rescue team can find you. Though building too close to water can be hazardous (insects, animals coming to drink), it’s a good idea to stay fairly close as you need water to survive.

8 – D

You could probably find uses for all of those items, but surprisingly, a tampon is your best bet. The ‘Tactical Adventure Medical Preparedness Outdoors Necessity’ (see what we did there?), is a handy-dandy multi-purpose tool, summed up best by the good folks at The Art of Manliness (click the link, if only for the pictures of a man with a tampon in his mouth!): http://www.artofmanliness.com/2012/06/05/survival-tampon/

Your score:

7-8 correct – you are a survivor!

4-6 correct – you may want to brush up on your outdoor skills before you leave the beaten path.

1-3 correct – Glamping might be more your style.

0 – stay home, lock the doors, you’re not fit to go outside!

GIVEAWAY

Grand prize giveaway
Open internationally and shared by all blogs on the tour
Prizes: 2 winners for a 25$ Amazon Gift Card each
Individual Giveaway
This blog has been given one ecopy of Jump Zone to give away. Winner will be chosen from those that comment on this post. Let us know what you think of the book, if you’d read it, what your quiz score was, anything. We’ll draw one winner!

25 Perfect Days by Mark Tullis, 1 Perfect Book!

Article first published on RebeccasReads

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25 Perfect Days
Mark Tullis
Vincere Press, LLC (2013)
ISBN 9781938475030
Reviewed by Cianna Reider for Rebecca’s Reads (07/13)

Grade: A+

“25 Perfect Days” was a random choice of book for me. I knew it was fiction and set in the future. I had no idea how incredibly well crafted those 25 stories would be. The author paints a future society with an overlord of new religion, population control, impulse release options, that are frowned upon today. There is a huge class of poor, hopeless, struggling people. The stories interweave, connect and enlighten.

Dystopian tales are a dime a dozen right now, you can basically pick 5 books at random in a book store, and at least 1-2 of them will be dystopian in nature. As a society right now we are fascinated with the future and what it will look like, harking back to a later time, or jumping into a strange and terrifying reality we can barely imagine. Mark Tullis has taken his dystopian twist, and made an extremely terrifying, and disturbingly realistic look at the slippery slide of this complete and utter overall of the American culture. His book stands out to me from the other dozens of dystopian tales and novels I’ve read because we can see this future, and we can feel this future. A future of population control, hundreds of pregnant women having to pay to keep their children, of religion dictating humans place in the ecosystem, and of prisons that give you 5 minutes with the killer of your family member and turn a blind eye.

“25 Perfect Days” is well written, crafted by someone who knows how to choose the right word and craft a sentence, but there’s so much more to the collection then Tullis’s skills alone. He creates a place that makes you think, makes you question, and ultimately makes you look twice. His tales are chilling, heartbreaking. At times, the tales are also uplifting when you see the person, who despite the horrible conditions and worse future, do something to save someone else. Selfless, brave, honorable. These characteristics are prevalent throughout this collection. It allows the reader to see that even in the darkest circumstances people will rise up to attempt the right thing. Each story Mark writes doesn’t necessarily need to be read in order, but each has a numerical title, lending each story to these 25 days, and 25 individual stories of people giving in, giving up or overcoming. This collection, in my opinion is outstanding. It isn’t one of those common dystopian novels that spoon feeds you the future that you must accept. This novel will make you think, and it will make you want to fight back, and want to find a way to rise above.

Well done Mark Tullis!

Book Slut Challenge: Day 1 – Top Three Must Read Series!

So, in line with our theme for August, I’m starting Day 1! Let’s dive right into it! 🙂

Three Must Read Series!

This is tough, as I’ve done so much reading in the last year, both mainstream and indie writers!

(You can click the photos to head to their websites!)

In no particular order…

1. “The Boy” series by Meg Cabot

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These books are basically your favorite romantic comedy, put into book form ,which you can take with you and read throughout your day! 🙂 I went on a big kick earlier this year, reading all of Meg Cabot’s adult and YA books. I wanted to prove I could do it, and I always wanted to reach my goal of reading 300 books this year (Though I think I’ve got more than that on my Kindle currently!) I loved these books, Meg has a sassy, comedic style in her adult writing, and just the right amount of smart humor. Her leading ladies have real jobs and aren’t looking for a man to take them away. They love their careers, and the are just living life. I highly suggest this series to any women out there, because they are funny, smart, and cute, and just the perfect summer fun read 🙂

2.  Branded (A Sinners Series) by Abi & Missy

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So technically, this will be a series.. the second one is coming! They have promised me. I adored this book, which you can read about here.

This dystopian novel falls in a long line of similarly set novel, futures too disturbed or shocking to be real, but where society has degraded to. Abi & Missy do an amazing, wonderful, outstanding job of creating a horrible future, and making it so real and so raw and enticing. The plot centers around the 7 Deadly Sins, the way the society now convicts their criminals. In the current society, if you were accused of one of the 7 sins, you were branded, and thrown in the prison camp, The Hole. Lexi, accused of lust, has been thrown in the hole, with her personal guard Cole. This story about overcoming your reality and finding grace and hope. Lexi is a stunning character, and a real triumph of human spirit and hope. You need to start this series now so you won’t be left out when book two has us all talking! 🙂

 

3. All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness

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Not only do these books have the most wonderfully intricate covers, but the story is incredible. Don’t get me started on the whole vampire/ human thing, but this story, which has a witch/vampire love story involved. The first book is a bit slow, and has more descriptions of food then are completely needed. (Always talking about food, wine, food, wine) It’s set in Oxford, which is the most perfectly beautiful setting to imagine. But it’s the second book that really made me love this series and eagerly wait for the third one! History buffs, pay attention, they travel in time! They go and visit Queen Elizabeth I!! This for me made the book. I am a lover of Elizabethan fiction and non-fiction and enjoy seeing Elizabeth portrayed in books. This book has her cast as the jealous, vain queen that by some accounts she really was. But Matthew (vampire) and Diana (witch) really develop as characters in this second book, and give the readers waiting pains for the third one!! 🙂

If you wanna see a different take on this Day 1 Challenge, check out Tiffany’s Book Hangover, as she’s fighting her way through this challenge as well! 🙂

Love to see your thoughts in the comments as well! What are your three top series!? This one was hard, as I love so many, Harry Potter, Lord of The Rings, Hunger Games, so so many! 🙂