I read this book while on vacation! Normally, I'll bring books that I end up not having time to read, but that wasn't the case this time. I actually borrowed the eBook from the local library's app: Libby. And I can't remember exactly how I came across it, but I'm glad I did. And I love the cover.

I received some wonderful news last week! Huge happenings are on the horizon for my books, and I'm thrilled to share the news with you readers. 

​Woohoo! It’s nearly the end of January. If you haven’t heard, this year is the year of the Water Tiger. And I thought that was relevant because there’s been a big change in my writing career. I’m back in the querying pool because my agent and I parted ways at the end of 2021. 

​It’s been years since I’ve read a book that actually made me cry. The last book was The Fault In Our Stars (TFIOS) by John Green. But Jennifer L. Armentrout’s The Problem With Forever is so deep and beautiful that it’s impossible not to be touched by Rider and Mallory’s story.

I happened to stumble on The Problem With Forever at the local library last week, and I’m glad I did!

​I’ve come to realize that I pretty much love all of Armentrout’s books. Really. This awareness began by reading Obsidian for the first time after I’d written my first alien romance and was looking for comp titles for my book. (Comp titles are what authors use to show agents how our books compare to similar titles already in the market. My books can be found here, but not my YA alien romance because that’s still with my agent.)

This month, I participated in a Q&A with our local SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators). It's a quick read, filled with a bunch of spooky book recommendations. So, without further ado, here's the Q&A!

It's official! Scythe of Darkness is available on the Scream app. I'm so excited! 

​At the end of another YA book I was reading, there was a preview of Ember of Night by Molly E Lee. The preview was good and interesting, and it contained a supernatural/paranormal element that I liked, and it was a YA too. 
 
When I finally got a chance to order it, I couldn’t wait to dive in.

​I finally watched the movie Vampire Academy the other week, and although I didn’t really like the movie all that much, it had likable parts. And that’s when I decided that the book HAD to be better, so I bought Book One of the Vampire Academy series to find out for myself.

There’s a new YA release out this week! My hardback of The River Has Teeth by Erica Waters arrived in the mail yesterday. I can’t wait to read it!

I read Ghost Wood Song (released in 2020) after it came recommended by a fellow writer/reader. And it was a fabulous book, so when I found out The River Has Teeth was soon to be released, I preordered it. As soon as I read it, I’ll come back and post a review on my blog. Until then, here’s a summary.

​I’m so excited to announce that two of my books have been signed and will be published on the new Scream app, with crossover to the Kiss app!

Hello to all of you wonderful readers! Here’s short interview I did with the podcast FROM SPARK TO SHELF.

​The host is writer Jenna DeVillier. She traces writers’ journeys from initial idea to published book, and everything in between. There are bimonthly interviews with both published writers and those still in the query trenches, providing hope to writers that, no matter how long it takes, your dream never comes too late. 

A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES BOOK REVIEW
SHADOW AND BONE BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW OF THE CRAVE SERIES 
HORRID BY KATRINA LENO -- BOOK REVIEW
YA BOOKS I'M EXCITED ABOUT READING IN 2021

Not too long ago, I wrote a review for the first book in this series: A Court of Thorns and Roses. By the end of that book, I decided to order the next book, and I'm so glad I did! Book Two is better than Book One. 

I can't say enough good things about this series! I started reading the first book after finding From Blood and Ash in a video on TikTok. At the time, I'd just finished reading the Crave series and was really wanting another book with heavy paranormal romance. However, this book series is considered New Adult, which means there's allowed to be more descriptive romance on the page. When I first started reading From Blood and Ash, I was under the impression I was reading a young-adult book, so needless to say, I was surprised during the first 50 pages. LOL!

I recently received the news that my young-adult short story is officially available on the Overdrive app (and the Libby app). So if your library doesn't have it in the catalog yet, be sure to "recommend" it by searching for the book, Touch of Darkness, then clicking "recommend."

I bought A Court of Thorns and Roses because it came highly recommended! I wanted a book with fantasy and romance mixed in one, and from reading the reviews, my expectations for romance were relatively high.
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Overall, I’m SUPER glad I read this book, and before I even finished the last 50 pages, I ordered the sequel. I def give it 4 out 5 stars.

I finally got a chance to read Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo. I’m so glad I did! I first heard about this book when my friend asked if I’d read it yet because it was being adapted to Netflix. Which totally made me curious, so I immediately bought it.
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The plot and characters are well developed, but I felt like something was missing. I can’t exactly put my finger on what it was, though. The setting takes place in a Russian-inspired land where (flying, bird-like) monsters are real and are located in a place called the Shadow Fold. 

Are you on TikTok or Instagram? Head over there, follow me, and say HELLO. I'm new to TikTok, but I'm having lots of fun creating BookToks and uploading reels to Instagram. Come hang out. And if you want me to give you a personal shout-out after following me, send me a message and let me know: "I want a shout-out." Can't wait!

Ahhh! The Crave series is so good. I couldn’t put the first book down! I’m a slow reader, so when I first bought this thick novel, I put off reading it for a few weeks. But when I finally started reading it, I devoured the story within days and immediately bought the next book—and the next. The fourth book doesn’t come out until September 2021, but I plan to grab it soon as it’s released.

A couple of weeks ago, I got an agent! I’d been querying my young-adult alien romance (PHYRE AND FLAME) since April of 2020, but this wasn’t the first time I queried a book. I started querying agents with my earlier works years ago.

Over the course of last year, I revised my query, synopsis, and first couple of pages of Phyre and Flame a few different times. In the summer of 2020, I received two full requests, but the agents ended up passing. During November/December, I revised my query again, edited the opening pages of my book, and began querying the newest version in Jan 2021. Boom! I received representation from an agent. 

​If you haven't read my post-apocalyptic book yet, it is on sale for $.99 this week (US and UK). It doesn't go on sale often, so grab it while you can! Sale ends Wednesday night.

​This title sounds pretentious, but it’s straight to the point. Have you ever wondered what an author does all day? I’m sure every author is different, but here is what my day generally looks like.

I’m having a blast reading new books from my TBR list for 2021. Meanwhile, I’m sending queries to agents, who I’m hoping will represent me and my work from here on out. The book I’m currently contacting them about is my young-adult alien romance I finished writing last year. 

The ending of this book took me by complete surprise. My review is filled with spoilers at the end, but don't worry, I warn you first.