BARNES AND NOBLE

About the Author:

Kate Avery Ellison

Category: YA Fantasy Romance
Publication date: May 3, 2012
ISBN (paper): 978-1-61213-040-8
ISBN (ebook): 978-1-61213-041-5


Book Blurb:

Chantal Breelan has spent most of her childhood as a ward of the state. She has a mysterious past and the foster system provided her with no answers. At the age of fifteen, she begins to have horrifying dreams: images of violence and death that haunt her during her waking hours. Anxious and afraid, and with no one else to confide in, she finds comfort in her imaginary friend, a shadow in the shape of a man who stands sentinel over her. She tells him of her dreams and her fear of an unknown future.


On her eighteenth birthday, she’s forced out of her foster home, but the stress and demands drive her to the edge, making her see things. A boy from her nightmares appears in a subway station, sending her life in twists of truth and lies, and darkness surrounds her from all sides. But is it only evil that hides in the shadows, or are the answers to her past lingering just beyond?

Chantal grew up with an unclear past. She has always  been bothered by strange nightmares that kept her from sleep. She's been taken from her parents when she was just a little girl and she didn't know why. After being dragged to foster homes after foster homes, she settled under the care of a heartless woman who takes care of orphans/delinquents like her in an exchange of a monthly check given by the state. The problem is she's turning 18 and she's being tossed out into the real world.


Chantal thought that turning 18 and going to a University in New York would be the new start she has been craving for all her life. She hoped for a better life, a better future for herself but she was dead wrong.


She didn't expect that turning 18 would also turn the nightmares that has plagued her everynight since she was little into a reality.


Suddenly she's being hunted. And now, she's on the run for her life.  Everything she thought real turned out to be a lie.


All will be revealed but can Chantal be strong enough to face the monsters who haunts her in her dreams.


This is the first I've read from Allie Jean and I can say that Legacy of a Dreamer is a very pleasant revelation!


When I accepted this book, I didn't know what to expect. I've read the blurb and I thought that it was interesting but it was a bit vague. All I really know about this book, is that it's a Fantasy novel. I was quite skeptical at first but then, thank God my curiosity won over my doubt. It was one of my most fantastic reads!


After I finished the book, I realized why the blurb was that vague, it was to keep the readers guessing. I realized that NOT knowing where the story is going in the first few chapters added to the thrill the readers feel while reading it.


To tell you honestly, the first few chapters spooked me. It kept me guessing and thinking on what Chantal really is and what kind of plot the book possess. There was something in the way the author wrote the first few chapters that could scare you, especially, if you read it in a very dark room the way I did! Be warned that you should be ready to feel your heart beat raise and be ready to feel the goosebumps on your skin if you decide to read this in a dark room with few little lights.


I really loved this book. The characters are very interesting. The way the author gave life to these wonderful and complex characters is pretty amazing! The author wrote Chantal in a way that a reader could relate to her. She'a very strong girl. What she's been through while growing up made her strong and yet the author didn't forgot to show the vulnerability of a girl who was left alone. Chantal might be a little jaded but she still posses a very compassionate heart. The author mixed the strength and vulnerabilty well in Chantal's character which is pretty amazing because Allie Jean succeeded in doing what most authors failed to do, making their character relatable and realistic. 
And then, there is Mathias/Nick. I know he's not on the blurb but he's an important character and I must say that I absolutely adored him. He's a brave and cool warrior. I love the way the author showed his conflicting feelings for Chantal in a way that could make the reader root for him.


Chantal and Mathias/Nick's chemistry was really good. The romance between them flowed naturally. It wasn't rushed nor slowed down. Their interactions and banters are very fun to read.


The pacing of the story is what I loved the most. Allie Jean knows the right moment to reveal certain mysteries and secrets. The pacing of the story was done in a way that would make a reader continue on reading without feeling the time pass. I actually finished reading this book in one seating and that is the proof of how good this book is.


Overall, Legacy of a Dreamer is a 100% keeper! Allie Jean wrote a book that contains the right amount of ingredients needed in a great fiction read! It has suspense and mystery that would spook you and keep the wheels in your head spinning. It has the action to keep you excited and it has the heart felt romance that everybody craves for, and most of all it has the right amount of emotions and feelings to touch your heart! If you're looking for all of this in one book then you shouldn't miss this one!

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AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

Allie Jean was born with an overactive imagination. At a very early age, her days were spent inventing stories, directing her sisters in made-up plays or telling elaborate ghost stories. Her mind never took breaks, or shutdown, even when she slept. When her eyes shut at night, she would have vivid dreams complete with extensive, elaborate plot lines, and good overcoming evil villains.

She was encouraged by her parents, even at a young age, to write down her tales, and it has remained a somewhat secret hobby.  It became a means to escape from the drama of real life into one of the many worlds she created.

Now, living in California with her husband of ten years, her love of storytelling had taken a back seat with the arrival of their four children. Though, she always found time to write down her thoughts on whatever was handy, including a stray diaper or two while rocking a sleeping child in the middle of the night when her character's begged for attention as well.

As a busy wife, mother and working full-time outside the home, somehow she has been able to write down her relentless character's story.  Her once secret hobby and private world, is now released, for others to enjoy.  Nothing would make Allie happier that to continue writing and spend more time at home with her family on a more full-time basis.

My Thoughts:

My Only is the first book I've read from Ms. Sophia Duane and I must say that it's a revelation. This book is a bittersweet novel that will surely make you run through a roll of tissue.

I'm not gonna write anything that will spoil the story for you. Sometimes, we just need to let a book that we know little of, to take us in a journey that would let us see things in a different light because that is how real life works, and this book is all about REAL LIFE. When I accepted this book for review, I didn't know much  about it and actually I'm glad I didn't, because it's more natural that way. It'll keep you guessing and the feelings you get from reading this book were more genuine. 

The characters of the book are so complex and yet you can identify yourselves with them. On one point or another, you knew, that somehow, you've felt that same feeling. Adam and Olivia's relationship was pretty natural. It wasn't rushed and it went through some ups and downs before it became real. 

The way Ms. Sophia Duane wrote this book was really amazing because few authors would have that courage to write a book for teens with honesty and without glamouring it with beautiful lies to make it more acceptable for young readers who'd want a happy romance with a happy ending. 

Overall, I really devoured every word in this book. It was the kind of  book that will stay stuck inside your mind and your heart for a really long time. Ms. Sophia Duane wrote a book about the realities of life. It's not perfect but we live it the best way we could. Sometimes, bad things happen to make us stronger and to make us appreciate the good things. This book will make you think and would definitely make you feel and I think that's the best kind of read every reader wants.


About the Author:


Sophia Duane is a thirty-something writer from the heartland of America. She grew up telling stories and creating characters to pass the time. She enjoys books, movies, music, and yoga.  An avid lover of history, art, and people-watching, she is interested in the study what makes people tick.




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Author: Michele Richard
Category: Romance
Publication date: Feb 9, 2012
ISBN (paper): 978-1-61213-072-9
ISBN (ebook): 978-1-61213-073-6



Summary:

Just saying “I do” was only the beginning for Alexia and Justin McNear. Now when their lives, loves, and faith are left in turmoil, they will have to fight even harder to heal themselves and their faith. Can two people already struggling help heal the communities they call home?
How do you rebuild after the loss of a child? After suffering a tragedy, are these two lost to each other forever?

With all the church’s money missing, the hunt for the tyrant will take Mark, an exminister, Justin, and his twin cousins away from their secluded, gated community and into the real world while leaving their wives behind to pick up the pieces. Can Justin survive it again?

Or will returning to the retreat that once abused him be his end?

Alexia, Madison, and Ginger will need to be strong and independent with their  men gone. Left to raise their child alone,  Alexia will make decisions that will affect their marriage and lives. Will they be the right ones?
Raised in a community where the men run everything, these three families will have to fight to survive the coming changes.

The temptations run high in this sequel to Mocked by Faith, but hope is not lost, and they will learn how to heal their faith.


Michele Richard is the proud mother of 2 daughters. Married since 1997 to a wonderful husband, who for 25 years has been her best friend and supporter. Being an overly creative and caring person, she has been a volunteer co-leader for the Girl Scout Troop for five years. She takes great pride in teaching and guiding our future generations.

Her desire to continue her education drove her to attend night classes at Waltham High School. She refuse to just let life be. There is too much to learn than to stand by and watch it go by. Though she is not fluent yet in either, she has learned to speak French and Spanish in school. One day her dream is to be fluent in both.


”I supposed that makes me a lover of languages. Never stop learning is my motto.”

Travel is one of her great passions. Having seen the beaches of the Bahama’s, Aruba and Mexico to the deserts of Utah and Arizona, her personal favorite was bicycling down Mount Vail and standing on top of the Intercontinental Divide, followed closely by the Grand Canyon.

“America is truly a beautiful place to see. I recommend seeing as much of it as you can.”

Where to buy: 

The Writers Coffee Shop Publishing House http://www.thewriterscoffeeshop.com