Thoughtful: What does Time feel like?

PHOTO CREDIT

For my English class this semester, we're currently reading Ray Bradbury's short story "August 2002: Night Meeting." I love Bradbury's style over all and always have. After a few years of not reading him, this piece feels like coming home. One quote early on in the story caught my attention though;

"What did Time smell like? Like dust and clocks and people. And if you wondered what Time sounded like it sounded like water running in a dark cave and voices crying and dirt dropping down upon hollow box lids, and rain. And going further, what did Time look like? Time looked like snow dropping silently into a black room or it looked like a silent film in an ancient theater, one hundred billion faces falling like those New Year balloons, down and down into nothing."

Do you agree with Bradbury? I do, to an extent, but I feel there are a million other ways to explain Time. The real question, which Bradbury doesn't explain is what does Time feel like? Not the passing of time, but the feeling of Time itself.

I think time feels like a rabbit's fur tickling across your face as the summer heat sets in, like the massaging of the one stubborn tense muscle that hurts too much to continue and feels to good to stop, like the air of the night when you reach up toward the stars and just, for a moment, grasp the light of the moon only to have nothing to show for it.

What do you think Time feels like?

Let's Talk: Reading Slumps

Today is the last day of my first week back at school. Last week, however, was the Bout of Books 11.0, as many of you may already know. I posted my TBR for the week and finished a whopping 24 pages of A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan and an amazing 30 minutes of the Stardust audiobook. Over the entire summer, I read a total of 2 books and started somewhere around 15 books. It's official, I'm in a reading slump.

I think I've been falling into this slump for a while now. And every time I read a really good book I think I've cured my slump. I've read some absolutely astounding books in the few I've read this year. The beautiful narrative of Mr. Penumbra's 24-hour Bookstore kept me spellbound and the NovelTea Book Club kept me motivated. Enchanted left me eager for the next book and to devour every fairytale within reach. Cress left me longing for Winter and the final two Gallagher Girls books I read back to back! Somehow though, my good intentions to find another book to love have not come to fruition. I suppose we'll see how September deals with this slump.

How do you handle a reading slump?

Bout of Books 11.0 // TBR

I promise I'm just going to just re-post my videos here! This one is actually relevant to a previous post! For those who don't care, check out the other links below the Bout of Books things!

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Books Mentioned:

A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan

The Buddha in the Attick by Julie Otsuka

Legend by Marie Lu

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Burn this Book edited by Toni Morrison

Stardust by Neil Gaiman

The Indigo Notebook by Laura Resau

~ Links ~

Bout of Books Read-a-thon: http://raegoesaway.blogspot.com/2014/08/bout-of-books-11.html

Jean // BookishThoughts: https://www.youtube.com/user/bookishthoughts

Rosianna: http://youtube.com/rosianna

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• Thanks to Kristin over at My Life as a Teacup I've become a little obsessed with the idea of a capsule wardrobe. 
• Here's some good food for thought as I find myself less and less in the college world and more and more in the "real," "grown-up" world.
• I've loved the YouTube channel Geek & Sundry for a while now, especially Table Top, but the web series Spooked has definitely caught my attention. 

Other than that, the last week has been crazy and this week is looking even crazier!

What are you reading (for Bout of Books or otherwise)? How was the last week in your life?

Bout of Books 11.0

That's right! I'm getting back into reading with a read-a-thon! Get excited and keep up with me during the read-a-thon on Instagram (all of which will also be posted on twitter and tumblr).

If you're wondering what the heck I'm talking about, here:

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 18th and runs through Sunday, August 24th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 11 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

Are you going to do the read-a-thon? What's your plan of action?

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: Not A Book Review

At the beginning of this semester, in January, I read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo for a class. I was very excited to read a contemporary novel in a class and I just knew I'd be dying to review it. About 3 months later, that review hasn't happened. So what did happen?

I didn't love it. I didn't hate it. I was a good book, but that's all I have to say about it. It is outside of my normal genre, but that shouldn't mean I can't review it. I have, in the past, reviewed novels of all different types, so why not this one?

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is about a journalist, Blomkvist, who is called to an island by a rich, old company head. His formal reason for being on the island is to write Mr. Vanger's biography. In reality, Mr. Vanger has asked Blomkvist to use his investigative techniques to look for the person who killed his granddaughter, Harriet. In the course of thinks Ms. Salander comes to work with Blomkvist and the two find a few too many skeletons in the closets of the Vanger family.

This book really didn't make me have any lasting feelings. It sounds enthralling, and it is. The beginning is kind of miserable because of the vast amount of exposition and the lack of action, but it's survivable  When the action picks up, the action is fun. I felt satisfied with the climax and resolution and the ending is perfect for a sequel. These are the types of books I love, surprising, well-developed, and well-written. But this one just didn't do it for me. I don't know why, but I simply do not and have not felt moved to review or even write about this book.

Perhaps you've had better luck with this novel or series. Have you read this book/series? What did you think? Did it make you feel anything?

Blog Tour: How Fostino became... Fostino by Sara Celi (The Undesireable)

Author Sara Celi has stopped by today with a guest post for The Undesirable Blog Tour!

How Fostino became...Fostino

Naming a character might be one of the best parts of writing a book, but it can also be one of the hardest. You want to get the character names just right because (if readers are anything like me) impression are sometimes created by the name of character. When it came to Fostino, the male love interest for The Undesirable, I had a really hard time naming him. I kicked around about ten different names for him, and not one of them felt right. I could see him in my head, and almost hear him speaking in my mind, but I didn’t think any name I tried out for him worked. Would you believe an early name for this character was Derek? Yes, friends, it was. Fostino needed a certain name--an unusual name, a name that would immediately put him at odds with a community hellbent on conformity and “fitting in.” But after several weeks of trying on different names, I just couldn’t figure out a name that fit. In short, I was stuck. Enter my friend Jacob. He works with me at my day job as a photographer (I’m a TV anchor and reporter) and we sometimes work on stories that take up several hours of our day. It’s the kind of work environment that allows you get to pretty close to your co-workers. After almost two years of working together often, he and I are pretty tight.

By the time we got in a car one day on the way to Ft. Sill from Oklahoma City, he knew I had started writing a book. He knew about where I was in the story. And he even know how much anguish the male lead’s name had been causing me.

So, he did what he usually does. He forced me to talk about it. He asked probing questions and even teased me a little until I opened up.

And that’s when it began.

He tossed out a name. I toss out one. I pulled out my trusty Moleskine notebook and started jotting them down. He said another. I brought up two others. By about 10 miles from Ft. Sill, that notebook had a list of about 25 names.

Only one of those names had a big circle and star. It was the one that rang true.

Fostino.

Title: The Undesirable
Author: Sara Celi
Publisher: Lowe Interactive Media
Pages: 225

Book Description: *This book is Mature YA/ New Adult. It is recommended for readers 14 and over. What if everything you knew turned out to be a lie? Charlotte Walker knows how to live under the rule of The Party. She has managed for 18 years. She helps out her drunken mother and keeps life going at a familiar, steady pace. She doesn’t ask questions, even though she has many of them in her heart. Fostino Sanchez knows how to live under the rule of The Party, too. For 19 years, he’s worked to be the perfect Party member. He knows what must be done to keep Maxwell Cooper in power, and how find the The Undesirables that threaten to take away everything that matters. As the months go by, what matters most to Fostino is Charlotte Walker. While their love blooms, danger comes to Charlotte and Fostino’s small hometown of Harrison Corners, OH. Threats they never knew existed could take away all that they care about. And just when these two teens think they know what will come next, Charlotte learns the truth about a secret she has long suspected. What Charlotte finds out changes everything. EVERYTHING. THE UNDESIRABLE is Charlotte Walker’s story, from her point of view. It is a thrilling, suspenseful tale of love, curiosity, adversity, and maturity against the backdrop of a futuristic war. Should Charlotte trust Fostino with what she knows? Can she trust anyone? Will she find it in herself to rise up against terrible odds? What if the ultimate Undesirable is her?

Author’s Links
Purchase on Amazon
The Undesirable's Facebook page:
Sara Celi Facebook fan page
Goodreads
Add The Undesirable to your Goodreads list
Sara Celi Pinterest
Sara Celi Twitter: @saragceli
The Undesirable Twitter: @undesirablebook  

About Sara Celi

New Orleans born Sara Celi has lived all over the United States. She calls the Greater Cincinnati area and the Queen City home. She's currently a TV reporter and anchor in Oklahoma City, and has spent more than a decade working in journalism. She graduated cum laude from Western Kentucky University in 2004. Celi is also a contributing author to Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Power of Positive. The Undesirable is her debut novel. In her spare time, she likes to read, shop, write, travel, run long distances, volunteer with the Junior League, and fundraise for Cooperative for Education, a non-profit providing educational opportunities for Guatemalan kids.  

Blog Tour: Forbidden Forest Teaser

Title: The Legends of Regia: Forbidden Forest

Author: Tenaya Jayne

Pages: 236

Genre: YA Fantasy Romance

Book Blurb

Born in shame. Cast from society. Shape Shifter/Elf hybrid, Forest must fight for any respect she can get. Targeted in her youth by a vampire noble who placed an illegal slave mark on her, she is forced to obey him, no matter what.

Slipping the grip of her master and abandoning the prejudice of Regia, her native world, Forest takes a job on Earth, guarding the portal, using her skills as a warrior to enforce Regia's laws. Now, called home for a black ops mission, Forest must put aside her own prejudice to transport the vampire prince, Syrus, through enemy territory in a time of war.  

Prince Syrus, mage and master of the Blood Kata, wants Forest more than he's ever wanted anything. In spite of their mutual mistrust, their attraction cannot be denied. Through the danger of their mission, and the secrets they both keep, it doesn't matter what they feel. Forest is forbidden.   

About Tenaya Jayne

Hello. My name's Tenaya and I'm an addict. I mean author. When I was growing up, writing was just something I played at from time to time. I knew I wanted to be a writer, but I was one of those people who could never finish anything. When my eldest son was diagnosed with Autism, I began to write seriously. Writing became a necessity for me in the midst of my heartbreak. It was either that or take up drinking. I 'm thankful I chose writing as my escape because I discovered it truly is my thing. I want to be swept away when I read. That's what I want my books to do for you.The main goal of my writing is to entertain you. I want to help you escape everyday life for a little while. I hope you enjoy my stories as much as I enjoy sharing them with you!

I have a wonderful husband and two beautiful sons. I'm an advocate for Autism awareness, and women trapped in abusive relationships. I try to always look on the bright side and help others do so too. I've lived many places but I currently reside in Missouri. I love reading, indie and foreign films, gardening, and moody music. 

Author Links

Purchase on Amazon

Website

Book Trailer

Excerpt:

Forest pressed her back against the cool concrete wall, wanting to remain aloof from the entity of the crowd. She chose her position in the shadows, out of the paths of the roving, multi-colored spotlights. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of the undulating human pheromones flying around on the air. At the beginning of every shift, she allowed herself a few minutes of this alien/human experience, though she didn't fully comprehend the combination of dancing, drinking, and ear-breaking sound waves. They loved it, however, and never seemed to deviate from the recipe.

 These were the people she was sworn to protect. She had developed a light affection for the human race and considered them a benign, if not slightly silly, bunch of creatures. Her religious passion for her job was rooted in hatred of that which harmed the humans, not a superhero tendency to protect the weak. 

Forest opened her eyes and focused all her senses to sniff out the illegal suckers that tried to sneak through the portal. She was in the zone tonight, and not for the first time did she feel that hers was the best job in existence. It was a shame she couldn’t legally kill suckers in her native world. 

 Over the next two hours, Forest didn’t move from the wall. She monitored the light traffic through the portal: two shifters and one elf, each of which nodded to her respectfully as they passed. Yawn. The shifters left the club to enjoy the delights of Austin’s nightlife elsewhere. 

The elf would have been breaking Regia’s law had he left the club, but he dutifully seated himself at the bar and ordered a fuzzy navel. He wore a plaid, porkpie hat, pulled down over the tops of his pointed ears. Forest didn’t know him personally, but she had seen him in here before. The bartender surveyed him with narrowed eyes as the elf nervously tugged his hat down further and ordered a few more girly cocktails. 

Intent on making sure that not one sucker was able to sneak past her, Forest was blindsided by the drunk bubba who had been trying to catch her eye for the last twenty minutes. He had finally decided to stagger over to hit on her. 

“Hey babe, you’re too beautiful to look so lonely. How’s ‘bout I buy you a drink?”

“How’s ‘bout I call you a cab instead?” Forest mimicked his drawl. 

“Only if you share it with me, Darlin.” He leaned in closer, and Forest’s throat began to sting from the noxious fume of booze mixed with his natural musk. 

“While I appreciate the offer, Jethro, It seems only right to inform you that I’m not actually attractive at all. If you leaned in a little closer, you’d see that you’ve fallen victim to the effect of beer goggles. A hag like me can’t take advantage of a stud like you.”

As he leaned in, Forest instantly enlarged her nose, pockmarked her skin, evaporated her front teeth, and added a large black mole with a long hair sprouting from it for good measure.

 “You’re no hag, baby! You’re the sexiest little thing in…I…uh… ” He stumbled backward. “Good grief! Sorry, sorry…” he stammered, retreating. “I’ve gotta quit drinking,” he mumbled as he turned away.

Forest chuckled to herself once he absorbed back into the crowd. Being a shape shifter sometimes had unusual perks.

BBC's Top 200 Must-Reads

In researching for Monday's post, I learned that BBC extended their list to include 200 books. So here's the other 100 in this list.
--In this one I've italicized the books I currently own but have yet to read.


101. Three Men In A Boat, Jerome K. Jerome
102. Small Gods, Terry Pratchett
103. The Beach, Alex Garland
104. Dracula, Bram Stoker
105. Point Blanc, Anthony Horowitz
106. The Pickwick Papers, Charles Dickens
107. Stormbreaker, Anthony Horowitz
108. The Wasp Factory, Iain Banks
109. The Day Of The Jackal, Frederick Forsyth
110. The Illustrated Mum, Jacqueline Wilson
111. Jude The Obscure, Thomas Hardy
112. The Secret Diary Of Adrian Mole Aged 13¾, Sue Townsend
113. The Cruel Sea, Nicholas Monsarrat
114. Les Misérables, Victor Hugo
115. The Mayor Of Casterbridge, Thomas Hardy
116. The Dare Game, Jacqueline Wilson
117. Bad Girls, Jacqueline Wilson
118. The Picture Of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde
119. Shogun, James Clavell
120. The Day Of The Triffids, John Wyndham
121. Lola Rose, Jacqueline Wilson
122. Vanity Fair, William Makepeace Thackeray
123. The Forsyte Saga, John Galsworthy
124. House Of Leaves, Mark Z. Danielewski
125. The Poisonwood Bible, Barbara Kingsolver
126. Reaper Man, Terry Pratchett
127. Angus, Thongs And Full-Frontal Snogging, Louise Rennison
128. The Hound Of The Baskervilles, Arthur Conan Doyle
129. Possession, A. S. Byatt
130. The Master And Margarita, Mikhail Bulgakov
131. The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood
132. Danny The Champion Of The World, Roald Dahl
133. East Of Eden, John Steinbeck
134. George's Marvellous Medicine, Roald Dahl
135. Wyrd Sisters, Terry Pratchett
136. The Color Purple, Alice Walker
137. Hogfather, Terry Pratchett
138. The Thirty-Nine Steps, John Buchan
139. Girls In Tears, Jacqueline Wilson
140. Sleepovers, Jacqueline Wilson
141. All Quiet On The Western Front, Erich Maria Remarque
142. Behind The Scenes At The Museum, Kate Atkinson
143. High Fidelity, Nick Hornby
144. It, Stephen King
145. James And The Giant Peach, Roald Dahl
146. The Green Mile, Stephen King
147. Papillon, Henri Charriere
148. Men At Arms, Terry Pratchett
149. Master And Commander, Patrick O'Brian
150. Skeleton Key, Anthony Horowitz

151. Soul Music, Terry Pratchett
152. Thief Of Time, Terry Pratchett
153. The Fifth Elephant, Terry Pratchett
154. Atonement, Ian McEwan
155. Secrets, Jacqueline Wilson
156. The Silver Sword, Ian Serraillier
157. One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, Ken Kesey
158. Heart Of Darkness, Joseph Conrad
159. Kim, Rudyard Kipling
160. Cross Stitch, Diana Gabaldon
161. Moby Dick, Herman Melville
162. River God, Wilbur Smith
163. Sunset Song, Lewis Grassic Gibbon
164. The Shipping News, Annie Proulx
165. The World According To Garp, John Irving
166. Lorna Doone, R. D. Blackmore
167. Girls Out Late, Jacqueline Wilson
168. The Far Pavilions, M. M. Kaye
169. The Witches, Roald Dahl
170. Charlotte's Web, E. B. White
171. Frankenstein, Mary Shelley
172. They Used To Play On Grass, Terry Venables and Gordon Williams
173. The Old Man And The Sea, Ernest Hemingway
174. The Name Of The Rose, Umberto Eco
175. Sophie's World, Jostein Gaarder
176. Dustbin Baby, Jacqueline Wilson
177. Fantastic Mr Fox, Roald Dahl
178. Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov
179. Jonathan Livingstone Seagull, Richard Bach
180. The Little Prince, Antoine De Saint-Exupery
181. The Suitcase Kid, Jacqueline Wilson
182. Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens
183. The Power Of One, Bryce Courtenay
184. Silas Marner, George Eliot
185. American Psycho, Bret Easton Ellis
186. The Diary Of A Nobody, George and Weedon Grossmith
187. Trainspotting, Irvine Welsh
188. Goosebumps, R. L. Stine
189. Heidi, Johanna Spyri
190. Sons And Lovers, D. H. LawrenceLife of Lawrence
191. The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Milan Kundera
192. Man And Boy, Tony Parsons
193. The Truth, Terry Pratchett
194. The War Of The Worlds, H. G. Wells
195. The Horse Whisperer, Nicholas Evans
196. A Fine Balance, Rohinton Mistry
197. Witches Abroad, Terry Pratchett
198. The Once And Future King, T. H. White
199. The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Eric Carle
200. Flowers In The Attic, Virginia Andrews

I've only read 6 of these! Wow! That makes 22/200 that I've read. That simply won't do!

How do you stack up against this one? Do you feel these 200 books are "necessary" to be considered to be "well read"?

BBC's Top 100 Must Reads

This list has been going around the internet for a while. It's simply the books that BBC considers to be the top 100 books of all time. Now, the trend is to take the list and bold the ones you want to read, so that's what I shall do now.

1. The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien
2. Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
3. His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman
4. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
5. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, JK Rowling
6. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
7. Winnie the Pooh, AA Milne
8. Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell
9. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, CS Lewis
10. Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë
11. Catch-22, Joseph Heller
12. Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë
13. Birdsong, Sebastian Faulks
14. Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier
15. The Catcher in the Rye, JD Salinger
16. The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame
17. Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
18. Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
19. Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Louis de Bernieres
20. War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy
21. Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell
22. Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone, JK Rowling
23. Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets, JK Rowling
24. Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban, JK Rowling
25. The Hobbit, JRR Tolkien
26. Tess Of The D'Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy
27. Middlemarch, George Eliot
28. A Prayer For Owen Meany, John Irving
29. The Grapes Of Wrath, John Steinbeck
30. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
31. The Story Of Tracy Beaker, Jacqueline Wilson
32. One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel García Márquez
33. The Pillars Of The Earth, Ken Follett
34. David Copperfield, Charles Dickens
35. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl
36. Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson
37. A Town Like Alice, Nevil Shute
38. Persuasion, Jane Austen
39. Dune, Frank Herbert
40. Emma, Jane Austen
41. Anne Of Green Gables, LM Montgomery
42. Watership Down, Richard Adams
43. The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald
44. The Count Of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas
45. Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh
46. Animal Farm, George Orwell
47. A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens
48. Far From The Madding Crowd, Thomas Hardy
49. Goodnight Mister Tom, Michelle Magorian
50. The Shell Seekers, Rosamunde Pilcher
51. The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett
52. Of Mice And Men, John Steinbeck
53. The Stand, Stephen King
54. Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy
55. A Suitable Boy, Vikram Seth
56. The BFG, Roald Dahl
57. Swallows And Amazons, Arthur Ransome
58. Black Beauty, Anna Sewell
59. Artemis Fowl, Eoin Colfer
60. Crime And Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky
61. Noughts And Crosses, Malorie Blackman
62. Memoirs Of A Geisha, Arthur Golden
63. A Tale Of Two Cities, Charles Dickens
64. The Thorn Birds, Colleen McCollough
65. Mort, Terry Pratchett
66. The Magic Faraway Tree, Enid Blyton
67. The Magus, John Fowles
68. Good Omens, Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
69. Guards! Guards!, Terry Pratchett
70. Lord Of The Flies, William Golding
71. Perfume, Patrick Süskind
72. The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, Robert Tressell
73. Night Watch, Terry Pratchett
74. Matilda, Roald Dahl
75. Bridget Jones's Diary, Helen Fielding
76. The Secret History, Donna Tartt
77. The Woman In White, Wilkie Collins
78. Ulysses, James Joyce
79. Bleak House, Charles Dickens
80. Double Act, Jacqueline Wilson
81. The Twits, Roald Dahl
82. I Capture The Castle, Dodie Smith
83. Holes, Louis Sachar
84. Gormenghast, Mervyn Peake
85. The God Of Small Things, Arundhati Roy
86. Vicky Angel, Jacqueline Wilson
87. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
88. Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbons
89. Magician, Raymond E Feist
90. On The Road, Jack Kerouac
91. The Godfather, Mario Puzo
92. The Clan Of The Cave Bear, Jean M Auel
93. The Colour Of Magic, Terry Pratchett
94. The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho
95. Katherine, Anya Seton
96. Kane And Abel, Jeffrey Archer
97. Love In The Time Of Cholera, Gabriel García Márquez
98. Girls In Love, Jacqueline Wilson
99. The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot
100. Midnight's Children, Salman Rushdie 

Wow! I've only read 16 of the great novels! For Shame! 

How many of these book have you read?

Blog Tour: Scarlet Woods Teaser

Author Brooke Passmore has stopped by today with an excerpt from her new book Scarlet Woods!

Title: Scarlet Woods 
Author: Brooke Passmore
Publisher: Self Published
Blub: Past, future, and love all exist in the door through time. Modern and independent seventeen year old Morgan Westbrook thought she had seen all there was to her home town of Scarlet, Georgia, but one day while walking in the woods behind her house she discovers a mysterious door masked behind the trees. After admiring the door’s timeless beauty she walks through its entrance to venture into more woods, but what she doesn’t know is that the door is a gateway through time that takes her back to the year 1863 during the days of the Civil War in Scarlet. Without knowing that she had traveled back in time, she stumbles upon Danny Carson, an attractive young man who is appalled to see that Morgan is wearing skimpy modern clothes instead of a nineteenth century dress. Although they find each other completely different than anyone they’ve ever known, they cannot help but feel drawn to one another. After spending time in another century, she discovers that she's time traveled back to the year 1863 and that the door took her there. For months she and Danny journey back and forth through the door to experience the joys of traveling to both of their centuries. When dilemmas of unwanted marriage, slavery, and war are thrown at them, they must face the perils that time travel has delivered them in both the future and the past.

Excerpt

March 14, 1863, Danny Carson was riding his black horse underneath the budding trees of the woods. He heard the crackle of rushing water hit against the pebbles and sharp rocks in the creek as the orange sun descended from the face of Scarlet, Georgia. Winter had disappeared and Danny was thrilled. He hated winter; it was always a cold and lifeless season. Dull brown trails and naked branches weren’t a welcoming atmosphere, but now since spring had finally arrived, color had returned to the trees. Spring brought out so much greenery and life in the woods with its ivy spiraling up trunks, weeds and wild flowers blooming at tree roots, and the sun tanning the leaves while birds zipped through the branches. People in Scarlet didn’t dare enter the woods late in the evening. They feared the idea of foul killers or fictional monsters haunting the trees at night. But when it came to the woods Danny was fearless. He’d visit at any time of day to get away from things just for a little while. He found the depths of the trees, the forever running creek, and the prowling Spanish moss to be an escape from his regular routine. Plus, he being practically the only visitor at any time of day gave him the full run of the place. The woods were his. As soon as the sun winked at the ground and was about to depart from the sky, the storm had begun. The dark night clouds began to mix with purring thunder. Noticing how gloomy the day had become, Danny tensed up in his saddle. “Oh no…” He grumbled. His horse Nashville was a handful when it came to storms and was terrified of loud thunder. Then the lightning started ripping through the sky. Danny tightened his grip on the reins as the first set of thunder stung his ears. Nashville came to a halt on the dirt trail and let out a few worried neighs at the feel of raindrops plopping against his coat. Danny rolled his eyes. “Whiny baby,” He stroked Nashville’s neck to help calm him down. As more lightning nicked the gray sky, rain showered onto the forest floor. In a matter of seconds Danny and Nashville were drenched. Rapid rain pounded onto the creek and the thunder produced a drummed even beat that taunted the black horse. Skittish and now ill tempered from the storm, Nashville scooted his burly legs back in reverse and shuffled his hooves on the dirt path. Danny had a firm hold on the reins trying to control him. “Calm down Nash! It’s only a bit of loud noise. Toughen up!” The thunder became more prominent in the endless dark sky. Nashville gave out a loud neigh and began to buck in the air, unbalancing Danny’s weight on the saddle. “Steady! Stop it Nashville!” He said to his horse as he began to feel his feet start to slip out of the stirrups. One large wave of lightning slashed through the clouds with a bright bolt. Thunder roared out like a hungry lion about to attack its prey, nearly shattering Danny’s eardrums. Nashville couldn’t take it any longer. His front legs kicked off the ground, arching his back into the air. Danny lost his balance and accidentally let go of his reins while being thrown off his saddle. “No Nash!” He yelled as he fell into the wet mud below. The second he was out of the saddle Nashville took off running into the rain. Danny tasted chunky bits of mud as he sat up in a small pool of brown slush. He snarled seeing his horse run off into the distance. “Nashville! Come back you dumb horse!” Nashville didn’t show any signs of slowing down. Danny stood up cursing under his breath as he chased his horse down the trail he had taken. “Stop Nashville!” Danny yelled through the feverish raindrops. He darted through bushes and stepped on thorns with his wet boots. Every other step of his chase he spat out dirt that had crept in between his teeth. “Stupid horse, stupid horse!” He kept muttering to himself. With one last echoing neigh, Nashville took a sharp turn behind a hill and was out of sight. Danny ran a bit faster, hoping that he wouldn’t lose his horse’s tracks. After he took the same turn behind the hill, he came upon three possible paths that Nashville could have taken. He looked for hoof tracks in the mud but this area of the forest was rockier than the rest of the woods and left no footprints to be seen. There was no telling which way Nashville went. Placing the tips of his fingers to his mouth, Danny let out a high pitched whistle that screamed through the trees. Usually when he would whistle Nashville would instantly come to his side, but this time he didn’t show. Danny whistled three more times, but all that was around him were the trees and the rain. With his head hung low, he began to walk back the way he came, realizing that his horse wasn’t coming back to him. He was covered in mud and was expecting a plum colored bruise on his rear from being bucked off his saddle. Now that he lost Nashville in the woods, he had to walk back home soaked in the rain. Danny hoped that Nashville would be smart and find his way back home whenever the storm settled. He didn’t want his horse to go too far from home, but little did he know how far away his horse would run off to. Running as fast as his hooves could take him, neighs burst from Nashville’s lips at each strike of thunder. He dodged past the wooded trees with remarkable speed as the rain penetrated his sight. Feeling frightened, he wanted coverage from the rain and desired to escape the storm. He slowed down to a steady trot, but his legs were still fidgety. He needed to find shelter. Coming upon a hill he didn’t recognize, Nashville staggered up the hill in hopes of evading the thunder that seemed to loom over him. He came to find more green oaks and weeping willows with saggy limbs that suspended just inches off the ground at the top of the hill. His hooves left tracks in the mud as he jogged around to view his new surroundings. His hooves stomped on wild flowers that sprouted all over the ground. The rain seemed tamer up on higher ground. Even with the gloomy sky hanging overhead, this part of the woods felt like a more positive environment. The gallant trees that encircled him gave Nashville a strange comfort and made him feel safe for some reason. Nashville quickly stopped in his tracks to admire a massive object standing before him. It was a door, but not just an ordinary door. It was a rich chocolate brown that had two doors in one just like an entrance of a grand church. It didn’t belong to any building structure, wall, or fence and stood alone. One of its doors was partially open. Nashville inched up to it and nudged the opened door back further to create a bigger opening. What he saw inside the entrance was the exact same forest, or was it? The ground he stood on was wet and miserable with rain attacking the earth. On Nashville’s side of the door the sky was a lifeless color with drained out clouds, but looking through the door was the setting sun shining its warm rays on the dry ground. The grass wasn’t wet and the trees didn’t drip rain off their leaves. Everything through the door was light and calm. It was as if the other side of the forest was a completely different place and was free from the vicious storm. How was that possible? This other side of the door was definitely odd with its drastic weather differences, but since Nashville was a horse he didn’t think too much of it. He entered the peaceful atmosphere through the door’s opening. A warm wind blew a light breeze against his wet coat after his first step through to the other side. There was no harsh rain and no loud thunder ringing in his ears. He was positive that this was the better side of the woods. Nashville turned his soaked body back to face the door he came out of. It was ajar and he could see the unbearable rain continue to pour onto the grass on the side he just exited from. One final thunder erupted but it was contained inside the door sounding distant and far away, even though he stood only a few feet away from the entrance of the storm. Nashville shook his head from side to side, slapping his long mane against his neck trying to get every raindrop off of him. He neighed out a happy tune and trotted through the dryer parts of Scarlet Woods.

 

Buy Links: Amazon            
                   Barnes and Noble
Media Links: Website

About Brooke Passmore
I live in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma and am a 22 year old young woman who probably will never fully grow up. As a kid I played with Polly Pockets, swam in my swimming pool practically every day during the summer, and went on vacations to Disney World with my family (favorite days of my life). I loved telling stories as a kid by playing with my Polly’s and dressing up like princesses with my friends. Eventually everything that went on in my busy imagination I wrote down on paper in the late hours of the night. When I was in sixth grade I moved into a new house with woods directly behind my backyard. I’d walk about the woods and loved trampling through the creek or getting lost in the trees. These trips through the woods gave me my inspiration for my book trilogy Scarlet Woods. My main character in my book is Morgan who lives in a house where the woods are right behind her backyard. My love for trees and anything woodsy definitely shows in my book and I hope I painted a pretty picture in readers’ heads about what Scarlet Woods looks like. My favorite candies are Skittles and M&M’s. I put ketchup on practically anything with meat (even with chicken quesadillas). I’m a great fan of Florence and the Machine, The Beatles, Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, Birdie, and recently The Civil Wars. My favorite books are The Hunger Games, Shiver, and Wither. My favorite movies are Titanic and Gone with the Wind. The Vampire Diaries is the wonderful TV show I’m obsessed with (I’m a Delena lover!!). I hate ads on youtube that I repeatedly have to skip every single time I want to listen to the newest song from Glee. I love to smile, laugh, and purposefully sing loud and off key whenever my brother is around just to pester him. I have a cat named Phoebe who we named after Phoebe from Friends, a yorkie named Coco who we named because he likes to eat Cocoa Puffs, and a shih tzu maltese we named Indy after Indiana Jones. My favorite princess is Cinderella but I think my personality is a tie between Ariel and Belle so they’re all my ultimate faves. If I could choose a century to time travel to I’d probably choose the Victorian age, the roaring 20’s, the 1950’s, or the 1940’s. I think the Victorian age and the 1940’s were probably the most romantic eras in history and the 20’s and 50’s would probably the most fun!

This Semester in English

As an English major, I read a lot of books for classes each semester. Since I'll be taking two traditional English classes this semester and I'm attending my first in a few hours, I thought I'd share what I'll be reading.

For Intro. to Literature:

1. The Stories of Richard Bausch

   

   I have no opinion on this one. 

   
   
   
2. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
   

   

   This one's been on the my reading list for a while,
   so I'm happy to have incentive to read it.

3. Lyric poems by Keats

   

   Keats and I aren't friends, nor are poetry and I,
   so I am actually dreading this one.

   
   
4. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

   

   I love studying recently published books in classes,
   so this one should be fun!

   
   
5. The Goblin Market by Christina Rosetti

   

   I know nothing about this, but the titles is legit.

   
   
6. The Tempest by Shakespeare

   

   I love love love Shakespeare, and my professor
   is a scholar, so I cannot wait!

   
   
7. The Importance of being Ernest by Oscar Wilde

   

   Loved the movie, so lets do this!

   
   

For Literary Theory and Criticism:

1. The Stories of Richard Bausch

   

   Still no opinion. 

2. The Awakening by Kate Chopin

   

   I'm kind of excited for this one. I saw this list awhile
   ago and planned to start it on my 20th birthday,
   but I don't mind starting early.

3. Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism

   

   This looks like a text book. Meh.

4. Cane by Jean Toomer

   

   American Southern lit, not my fave,
   but I have decently high hopes.

What are you most excited to read in class this semester? What classes are you taking? What do your next 5 months look like?

Blog tour: Retribution Cover Reveal

 

  Title: Retribution (The Lost Souls #1)
  Author: Amy Thompson
  Book Description: One curse, one exception, one chance at redemption. Regan Edison has just moved from California, to enter her first year at Georgia State. Jacked up Chevy trucks and hunting were a way of life in Georgia. On the evening of her first day of school, Regan was walking back to her dorm when she was viciously attacked by three men. Regan was convinced she was going to die that night. Colter Hayes is a member of the Collectors and the first wrongfully punished soul. Colter and the rest of his team, Finn, Kaiden and Devon, work for the Requiem Council whose job it is to pass judgment onto souls and reincarnate them so that the souls may fix past indiscretions. Agro, an ex-councilman, and his soulless Exiles have other plans. Agro steals souls and hands down his own type of judgment, retribution. He punished those members of the Collectors and has now set his sights on Regan. The Requiem Council dispatches the Collectors to Georgia to work as protectors for Regan. The Collectors must fight to keep Regan safe from Agro and work to earn back their chance at redemption, but when Colter meets Regan his world changes. Everything he thought he knew about his curse is turned upside down and Regan seems to be the cause. Can the Collectors find out why Regan is being targeted in time to save her from a fate they know all too well? And is Colter’s curse as final as he thought or will Regan prove to be his exception?  

And now for the cover reveal!

  About Amy Thompson

Amy Thompson graduated from Randolph-Macon College with her B.S. in Biology. She currently works as a high school teacher and is earning her M.S. in Higher Education from Drexel University. Amy is a first time, self-published author of Retribution, a mature young adult paranormal romance novel that is the first in the Lost Souls series. She lives in southern Virginia with her family and two lazy cats. Amy Thompson is currently working on the next book in the Lost Souls series and continues to be an avid reader of young adult books. Goodreads/Website

Mockingjay: A Book Review

Mockingjay is the second book in The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins. I haven't reviewed the first book because I wasn't reviewing at the time I read it, but you can find millions of reviews on Goodreads. That being said there are spoilers to the first two books in this review!

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
Published: 2010
Format: Hardback
Source: Borrowed

If you're coming directly into this book from the last, Catching Fire, you're a little confused and completely hyped up. This book doesn't slow down too much from the ending of the last. It's nothing compared to the arena, but it remains interesting. I really enjoyed this as the finale and I was, mostly, happy with the direction Ms. Collins chose to take her trilogy.

Katniss Everdeen has survived the arena, not once, but twice. But going in, she couldn't have known how far reaching the rebellion she sparked was. Saved form the arena during her second Hunger Games, Katniss is pulled into District 13, the center for the rebellion against the Capitol. She's accompanied by a few other victors, some friends from home, her family, and Haymitch. But Peeta was left in the arena and in now being held captive in the Capitol! Katniss has a decision to make and many things to learn.

With this book, I didn't feel the initial slow, dragging feeling I did with the beginning of the second book. This one comes nicely directly out of Catching Fire. It picks up a time after Katniss is pulled from the arena, but not too long. She's still struggling with her injuries and confusion. A bit after that, action picks up a bit, but nothing to rival the action in the arena. This book is, largely, about the people in the districts and about the rebellion, not so much the war. There are a few nice "war" scenes, so that's something I liked.

The characters in this book are lovely continuations of their previous selves. I adore the development of Finnick and getting to see him and Annie. Peeta in this book, I thought, was unlikable (all be it with good reason...). I'm not a big fan of Gale, but he, eventually, turned out a bit better. Katniss, herself, is still interesting. I don't like the way her character is taken in the end, but I'll handle that issue in another post.

Despite how much I disliked the epilogue, I give this a 4 star review. The plot continued wonderfully. The characters developed interestingly. The writing was wonderful, as always. If you enjoyed the first two books, I can't see how you'd not want to finish the series! It's a wonderful end, if you ignore the painful epilogue.

How did you like the finale of this trilogy? What did you think of Peeta's character in this one? Do you think this book provided the ending the trilogy deserved?

His Black Wings: A Book Review

 

Today I'm going to tell you about and review a new, "lesser-known" author's book, His Black Wings!

His Black Wings by Astrid Yrigollen

When I received the request to be a part of this blog tour, I read through the summary and decided I'd sign up for a review. I'm happy today I do not regret that decision.The plot of this story was really original and really interesting. I found the characters interesting and individual. Sadly, there were major flaws in the style of the writing.

His Black Wings is about a young girl, Claren, whose parents have just died. The day of her funeral, some rather horrible circumstances befall Claren and she is forced to flee her childhood home and leave her inheritance behind. While running, she realizes that the money she has cannot hold her forever and she must seek work. Luckily, there is an ad in the local town's newspaper requesting a live-in secretary at a distant country estate. Seeing the perfect opportunity to get away from her troubles, Claren applies and gets the job! But her employer is quite strange and dark with many secrets. Finally leaving for the country estate of Westwind, Claren learns there may be more secrets in that house than she's ready for.

This book is set in a future neo-Victorian era. The setting is interestingly built, but I felt it was lacking in conveying the author's research of the Victorian era. The terminology and word structure were often awkward and not characteristic of the era she was trying to create. As I said, the plot was extremely interesting and original. The deformity, the cause of that deformity, the story itself, were all very nice and I liked them.

The characters were all individual. That is to say each had a voice and a personality seperate from the others. I really liked that. Many times you will find the side characters have less personality and tend to blend together, but that doesn't happen with any of the characters here. Even Timothy, a young member of the staff at Westwind who never speaks, has his own personality. I also really loved the unique relationships the characters develop. The boys, Dekker and Horace, are cute on their own, but together they make a beautiful set of friends. Etrigan is extremely interesting in that we get to actually see his character grown and learn social norms. Claren as a character is a little weak, but not enough to cause serious issues in the story. The relationship between Dekker, Horace, Claren, and Etrigan is amazing and I adore it!

Now for the main problems I have. I felt that the story was poorly edited. For instance, at one point the author writes "less," instead of "lest" and another "awaking," instead of "awakening." I also found myself wanted more comma usage than there was. The punctuation and styling and diction were all very awkward and I disliked it. Maybe they were stylistic choice made, but I disliked them nonetheless and they made the book seem unfinished and poorly edited.

Though the formatting, punctuation, style, and word choices were questionable, the story itself was very nice. I enjoyed reading it, when I wasn't mentally correcting grammar, adding punctuation, or questioning word choices. Perhaps that is just the English major in me. I would suggest this book if your like original plot lines and can easily over look strange wording and lack of punctuation. Over all, 3/5 stars.

Have you read His Black Wings? What did you think? Did the stylistic and wording choices made bother you, or was that just me?

Catch Fire: A Book Review

Catching Fire is the second book in The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins. I haven't reviewed the first book because I wasn't reviewing at the time I read it, but you can find millions of reviews on Goodreads. That being said there are spoilers to the first book in this review!

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
Published: 2009
Format: Hardcover
Source: Borrowed

Assuming you've read the first book, you have some idea of what's going on and what to expect. I adored the first book and couldn't wait to continue the series. This one slows down a bit at the beginning, compared to the first book, then picks right back up. Many people complain about the characters changing, but I didn't have a problem with it. In fact, I liked the developments between characters and seeing them change over time. Over all, I really enjoyed this book and it made a lovely sequel.

After winning the Hunger Games in the first novel, Katniss returns home to her family and settles into a new life in Victor's Village, next door to both Peeta and Haymitch. Returning home after the games is difficult on Katniss as she contends with possible feelings towards Peeta and working to understand the new relationship she has with her long time friend, Gale. Before she can really work anything out, she and Peeta are taken on their Victory tour around the districts, but it's nothing like Katniss imagined. She and a handful of berries set a spark of rebellion in the districts. Snow warned her a fire's hard to control, even for the Girl on Fire.

As I said, the beginning of this book is rather dull and it takes a while to actually get into it. I would say Collins's strongest point in the first book is the action within the games and the high stress situation. The Victory Tour is neither exciting or high stress. I suppose for Katniss it's high stress knowing a rebellion is brewing at her feet, but it isn't nearly as exciting as the first book. That being said, when the action does pick up it's great, as always. I love Collins's style of writing action scenes. The main action scene (if you've read it you know what I'm talking about ;) ) is amazingly done and I loved the new characters!

Speaking of the characters, I was happy with them. Ever present minded and caring Peeta is there in all his glory.You get to see a lot more of Gale, who is extremely interesting and one of my favorite males. The other Victors you meet are lovely. Beetee, Finnick, just, ah! I love them so much! Now Katniss, everyone says that Katniss's character changes, becomes weaker, but I kind of disagree. I'm planning a whole post on this one after my review of Mockingjay, so I'll talk more about it there.

Over all, I give this book a 4 star review. It was wonderful for a sequel, though the action was missing in the beginning, I understand the necessity of it. The new characters are beautiful and wonderful. The returning characters are as I expected them to be. The writing was very well done and I recommend it highly!

Have you read Catching Fire? What did you think? Was it a good sequel to The Hunger Games?

Blog Tour: Undertow Guest Post

Author Kiri R. Newton has stopped by today with a guest post for the Undertow blog tour.

Black, white and fifty shades of grey

Relax, this will not be about ‘that’ book or why I dislike it or anything of the sort instead more about writing entirely in grey tones. What do I mean? Well, the formula for writing a good story is actually quite simple; characters, location, conflict, villains, more conflict for extra measure and resolution. In every story you come across you will be introduced to the ‘good guys’ and the ‘bad guys’ who will spend the entire story fighting over or for something and in the end there will be a winner and the story is over. It’s the classic tale of black and white that is in every story on the face of this earth because as humans we’re wired to find the light, the dark and then expect a result. Undertow though is a little different. Ok sure, we’re introduced to the good guys and then the bad guys but are they what they seem? Dasan knew who Zoe was right from the moment he clapped eyes onto her and yet doesn’t reveal to his son at least until much later, let alone Zoe. Then when he explains Zoe’s alleged destiny to her, he skimps on details. He also skimps on the story of how the mess started in the first place, simply because it suited him. For a good guy, Dasan is awfully shady about some of this goings on in the present; let alone what he got up to in the past. Then we have the antagonist, Nesoi. Her motives are painted black by Dasan but are they really? When mer-folk set up their kingdoms, Forsthwyth in the North Sea was the centre only to be moved to the Pacific even though it was promised to be returned. Nesoi simply wants to return the throne to where she, a few others believe it belongs and carry on her father’s goal who wanted to do the same but died before seeing results. Then there’s Nesoi’s son Nox. For all its worth, he could be the legitimate heir to the throne and is being denied it by Dasan. We don’t actually know. Sure Nesoi’s manner of going about things is a little crooked but Dasan is no better. When we compare the protagonist and the antagonist they are quite similar as well. Both are leaders not followers, not afraid of treading on anyone else’s toes to get their point across and ‘means to an end’ type people. Not to mention the fact that they are both sassy chain-smokers with questionable dress sense. This then jumps down to the next generation where Nox is the polar opposite identical twin of Josiah. When you strip away the outer layers, they could be the same person just with two very different ways of doing things. And this was entirely my motive. Straight out black and white in a story is boring. When you hear the creepy music you know who is going to pop out of the shadows with a hunting knife and wreak havoc. What’s far more interesting is being told whose right and whose wrong but then finding yourself questioning it? Are they really all they make out to be? Human nature makes us question what we believe and I wanted my readers to do just that.

Title: Undertow Author: Kiri R. Newton Publisher: Bookpal Austrailia Blub: For far too long these sailor-drowning, ship-sinking sea sirens have been portrayed as happy, peaceful creatures who want nothing more than to fall in love with a prince and live happily ever after. Undertow is an unconventional twist on one of the oldest mythological creatures known to man. Buy Links: Amazon Barnes and Noble Smashwords Bookpal Media Links: Website

About Kiri R. Newton

Its weird right but as an author I could tell you about my characters inside out and yet when people ask me to talk about myself I go all quiet. Anyways, here I go. I am a child of ‘91 born in Jandowae, a tiny little town out past Dalby. When I was five my parents decided to pack everything up and move to Tonga in the South Pacific after Dad visited there and mum fell in love with the place after reading a book about it. So I grew up in a third world country, fluent in a second language by the time I was eight and lived amongst the locals who I was friends with. When I was thirteen my father passed away and due to the fact that the government refused to pay my mum a pension over there like they did my father, we were forced to move back to Australia. As for my writing career, I started writing progressively longer short stories in Grade 5 where one teacher noted on my report card that ‘I had unique ideas and an unusual talent’. By Grade 7 I had completed my first novel a post-apocalyptic fiction where cats are the highest life form and live basically as we do and follows the lives of a litter of cats, the characters based on a litter of cats belonging to my neighbour. I continued writing different things from horsey stories to Phantom of the Opera fan-fiction right through my teenage years, nothing serious, mostly just a lot of scribbling. In Grade 12 I realized that if I was going to be serious about being a writer I needed to finish stories, not just have a lot of random scribbles to my name. So forgoing all my assignments I finished my second book called Dynamite which is an Australiana tale about a racehorse. Two years later I went on holidays to Fiji, came home and three months later Undertow was completed. In the middle there I wrote a Tolkien-esque fantasy epic called The Dark Assassin with my now ex-boyfriend. The year after that I completed Hazardous, which will be my next published title.

BlogTour: Scarlet Woods Release Day Blitz

Title: Scarlet Woods
Author: Brooke Passmore
Publisher:  Self Published

Blub:
Past, future, and love all exist in the door through time.

Modern and independent seventeen year old Morgan Westbrook thought she had seen all there was to her home town of Scarlet, Georgia, but one day while walking in the woods behind her house she discovers a mysterious door masked behind the trees. After admiring the door’s timeless beauty she walks through its entrance to venture into more woods, but what she doesn’t know is that the door is a gateway through time that takes her back to the year 1863 during the days of the Civil War in Scarlet.

Without knowing that she had traveled back in time, she stumbles upon Danny Carson, an attractive young man who is appalled to see that Morgan is wearing skimpy modern clothes instead of a nineteenth century dress. Although they find each other completely different than anyone they’ve ever known, they cannot help but feel drawn to one another. After spending time in another century, she discovers that she's time traveled back to the year 1863 and that the door took her there. For months she and Danny journey back and forth through the door to experience the joys of traveling to both of their centuries. When dilemmas of unwanted marriage, slavery, and war are thrown at them, they must face the perils that time travel has delivered them in both the future and the past.

Links:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Website


About Brooke Passmore

I live in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma and am a 22 year old young woman who probably will never fully grow up. As a kid I played with Polly Pockets, swam in my swimming pool practically every day during the summer, and went on vacations to Disney World with my family (favorite days of my life). I loved telling stories as a kid by playing with my Polly’s and dressing up like princesses with my friends. Eventually everything that went on in my busy imagination I wrote down on paper in the late hours of the night.

When I was in sixth grade I moved into a new house with woods directly behind my backyard. I’d walk about the woods and loved trampling through the creek or getting lost in the trees. These trips through the woods gave me my inspiration for my book trilogy Scarlet Woods. My main character in my book is Morgan who lives in a house where the woods are right behind her backyard. My love for trees and anything woodsy definitely shows in my book and I hope I painted a pretty picture in readers’ heads about what Scarlet Woods looks like.

My favorite candies are Skittles and M&M’s. I put ketchup on practically anything with meat (even with chicken quesadillas). I’m a great fan of Florence and the Machine, The Beatles, Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, Birdie, and recently The Civil Wars. My favorite books are The Hunger Games, Shiver, and Wither. My favorite movies are Titanic and Gone with the Wind. The Vampire Diaries is the wonderful TV show I’m obsessed with (I’m a Delena lover!!). I hate ads on youtube that I repeatedly have to skip every single time I want to listen to the newest song from Glee. I love to smile, laugh, and purposefully sing loud and off key whenever my brother is around just to pester him. I have a cat named Phoebe who we named after Phoebe from Friends, a yorkie named Coco who we named because he likes to eat Cocoa Puffs, and a shih tzu maltese we named Indy after Indiana Jones. My favorite princess is Cinderella but I think my personality is a tie between Ariel and Belle so they’re all my ultimate faves. If I could choose a century to time travel to I’d probably choose the Victorian age, the roaring 20’s, the 1950’s, or the 1940’s. I think the Victorian age and the 1940’s were probably the most romantic eras in history and the 20’s and 50’s would probably the most fun!