Saving Raine by Frederick Lee Brooke - Review Tour

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Frederick will be awarding a $25 Amazon gift card (international) and an autographed copy of Saving Raine (US only) to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Please click the banner to visit other stops on the tour and increase your chances of winning!

Matt, Raine went to California because her parents thought it was safe. It’s not. You’ve got to get her out as soon as possible. She could die, Matt.

When 19-year-old Matt Carney gets a cryptic message from his father telling him to go to California and save his girlfriend, Raine, he doesn't hesitate—he grabs his AK-47, revs up his blue pickup, and gets ready to make the 2,300-mile roadtrip.

But cross-country travel in 2021 isn't easy—or, sometimes, even possible. The U.S. has become a near-military state: 17,000 checkpoints severely restrict interstate movement, Predator drones target innocent civilians without cause, and explosions rock cities daily. Matt and his stepbrother, Benjy, face deadly attacks from a corrupt government, ruthless local law enforcement, and bloodthirsty terrorist groups as they embark on their trek. They're about to find out that their trip is much more than a private journey, and their success could change the face of the country—forever.

Can Matt and Benjy outrun the drone missiles raining down on their heads? Can they avoid assassination by government officials hell-bent on taking over what little is left of the country?

Can they outsmart the deadly schemes set in motion against them?

Break the rules.

Save the girl.

He only gets one chance before she's gone forever.

My Review:

Saving Rain is a dystopian novel set in a time not too far removed from our own. 2021 is only a week of years away. The United States as we know it has become technically advanced -- politically in chaos and the price of food is skyrocketing (sound familiar)? Drones are accessible not only for the government but also for private citizens-- privacy is virtually non-existent. The government is trying to control everything.

This book is told from various POVs-- it is similar to an ensemble book in that way (can we say "bacon"?). The book focuses mostly, however, on Matt and his quest to save his girlfriend Raine. He is traveling cross-country because of a cryptic note he received from his father.

The author has done a wonderful job in characterization, even with so many characters to deal with and hear from. The action doesn't slow down at all, and things might not work out the way you want them to. But, this is only book one of the series, so I hope some things will change (trying not to give spoilers here). Be aware, there is a cliff-hanger ending; I can hardly wait for book two to see how things resolve.

Enjoy an Excerpt:


With the pins out of the hinges, she only had to pry the door free, while making damn sure it didn’t land on her bare feet. A ticklish task even if you could see. Everything took three times as long, blind. Still, she didn’t feel quite so helpless as an hour ago.

Once out of the wood cellar, Claire quickly found a light switch. One last look into the room gave her satisfaction. One whole wall had split wood stacked neatly, the workbench was scattered with tools, and someone’s old coffee cup lay in the middle of the floor. What sat next to the cup looked more ominous. She took a step closer. A small, dark gray plastic box with a red light on the side and a timer. As the timer clicked from 14 to 13 to 12, she turned and ran.

Ignoring the pain from her puncture wound, she took the stairs three at a time, no small feat for a woman of her size, praying that the door at the top wouldn’t be locked. She blew through it, ran down a hallway and into a kitchen, looking for a door. She turned the lock in the kitchen door, and ran out into the backyard.

At that moment an explosion ripped into her from behind, throwing her fifteen feet across the grass.

About the Author

Frederick Lee Brooke launched the Annie Ogden Mystery Series in 2011 with Doing Max Vinyl and following with Zombie Candy in 2012, a book that is neither about zombies nor sweets. The third mystery in the series, Collateral Damage, appeared in 2013. Saving Raine, the first book in Fred’s entirely new series, The Drone Wars, appeared in December 2013. Inferno, the action-packed follow-up to Saving Raine, is releasing in June 2014.

A resident of Switzerland, Fred has worked as a teacher, language school manager and school owner. He has three boys and two cats and recently had to learn how to operate both washing machine and dryer. He makes frequent trips back to his native Chicago. When not writing or doing the washing, Fred can be found walking along the banks of the Rhine River, sitting in a local cafe, or visiting all the local pubs in search of his lost umbrella.

CONNECT LINKS
Website: www.frederickleebrooke.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/frederickleebrooke
Twitter: www.twitter.com/frederickbrooke
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/4856232.Frederick_Lee_Brooke

BUY LINKS:
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Saving-Raine-Drone-Wars-Book-ebook/dp/B00HBMKPSC
B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/saving-raine-frederick-lee-brooke/1117915543
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/388361

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Five Corners: The Marked Ones by Cathi Shaw: Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions.

The author will be awarding a $50 Amazon/BN gift card using the rafflecopter below.

Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Balancing Life and Writing

I have to admit that it has been difficult to balance my writing life with my every day life. It shouldn’t be because I have what would appear to be the perfect job for a writer: I teach writing at college.

But the thing with appearances is that they are so often false. And teaching writing is the PERFECT excuse for procrastinating. After all there is always another pile of marking to do, lectures to prepare, writing activities to come up with. Truthfully, even if you are a full-time writer, you really need to be disciplined with your craft.

I think it’s every writer’s dream to be able to write full-time but the truth is, writing full-time is hard work. Discipline is the key. And having a schedule that is carved out just for writing. I think this is doable, you just have to have a time and place where you write every day (or almost every day – I try for every day but I’ve been known to take a weekend off).

I find I do my best writing when the house is empty. When the kids and my husband are around I just can’t seem to write a word, even if they are leaving me alone. Editing is a completely different activity. I’m fine with editing almost everywhere but when the story is flowing out, I really do need silence.

My strategy this past year, when I’ve been teaching and writing, has been to really protect my writing time. If I say I’m going to write between 2 and 4 then I make sure I do write between 2 and 4. But even with a strict schedule like that, you can get side tracked.

For example, I was supposed to be working on Book 2 of the Marked One series in December but I had to finish the final copy edits on Book 1 as it was going to press. My writing time was all gobbled up but copyediting and marketing! And I probably got only one or two good writing days in over the whole month.

I’m super excited for next year because I will not be teaching. I’m taking the whole year off to write! That means I will have to be even more disciplined and treat my writing like a full-time job. I’m excited for it but at the same time, I need to make sure I stick to a plan and protect that writing time.

Growing up in a sleepy village untouched by distant wars and political conflicts, it was easy for Thia, Mina and Kiara to forget such horrors existed in the Five Corners. That is until the dead child is found; a child that bears the same strange birthmark that all three sisters possess. A Mark their mother had always told them was unique to the girls.

Kiara’s suspicions grow as their Inn is soon overrun with outsiders from all walks of life. Strangers, soldiers and Elders who all seem to know more about what is happening than the girls do.

After Mina barely survives an attack in the forest, the sisters are faced with a shattering secret their mother has kept from them for years. As danger closes in around them, the sisters are forced from their home and must put their trust in the hands of strangers. With more questions than answers, Kiara finds herself separated from everyone she loves and reliant on an Outlander who has spent too much time in army. She doesn’t trust Caedmon but she needs him if she has any hope of being reunited with her sisters and learning what the Mark might mean.

Now, enjoy an excerpt:

"It's not a dream this time, Thia."

"I know," she admitted in a whisper. "But how is this happening?"

Teague shook his head at her, his hair falling forward over his forehead. "I know you're shocked. I was, too, when I first saw you. Then I realized that what we thought were only dreams, were just forays into a different reality." Excitement lit up his features. "A reality that, at times, feels more real than this one, don't you agree?"

Thia opened her mouth to deny what he was saying, even as a dozen memories burst to life in her head. For the first time Thia noticed he was taller than in her dreams. Not as tall as her sisters but certainly taller than she.

He looked down at her, his eyes unreadable in the fading afternoon light.

And yet the essence of him was so familiar. Before she could stop herself Thia instinctively reached out to touch his forearm, wanted to feel the warm muscles above his gloves, to reassure herself that he was real.

Teague jerked away before she could reach him and Thia felt an inexplicable sense of hurt flood through her.

"I'm real, Thia," he whispered aloud, his breath stirring the hair on her forehead. "But you can't touch me. I can't explain right now but please don't try." About the Author

Cathi Shaw lives in Summerland, BC with her husband and three children. She is often found wandering around her home, muttering in a seemingly incoherent manner, particularly when her characters have embarked on new adventure. In addition to writing fiction, she teaches rhetoric and professional writing in the Department of Communications at Okanagan College and is the co-author of the textbook Writing Today.

Twitter: @CathiShaw
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMarkedOnesSeries
Tumblr: http://themarkedones.tumblr.com/

Buy links for book:

PUBLISHER: http://ink-smith.com/product/five-corners-the-marked-one/
AMAZON: http://www.amazon.com/Five-Corners-The-Marked-Ones/dp/1939156246/ref=sr_1_1?
BARNES AND NOBLE: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/five-corners-cathi-shaw/1117922571?

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