In Between Days by Anne Jamison (VET, excerpt, and GIVEAWAY) GFT

In Between Days

by

Anne Jamison

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GENRE: Young Adult

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BLURB:

Chicago suburbs, 1985. The high school. The mall. The blood-stained Mercedes. Misogyny. Homophobia. Class warfare. Cocaine.

(And the first semester isn’t even over yet.)

The Jocks with their pastel Izods. The Barbies. The loser Burnouts.

High school in the 1980s had rules. Barbies and Jocks can mix. Barbie cheerleaders steer clear of the losers. Punks want to burn it all down.

Samantha Ward doesn't love the rules, but she plays to win. So when a snarky Burnout goes after her in a face-off, of course she fights back. Of course she fights mean. She may not get his sex joke, but she knows he made one. About her. In front of the entire cafeteria. And what's worse, she feels a tingle when she looks at bad-boy Jason.

How could she know her mean girl put-down would launch a war? Or that the school she knows hides a darker world she never even dreamed of?

In Between Days is a pitch-perfect story of first love, friendship, and enemies; of loyalty, betrayal, and the power of secrets. This darkly funny, suspenseful tale is perfect for fans of The Outsiders and The Breakfast Club.

"GRIPPING AND UNPUTDOWNABLE." --Christina Lauren, international bestselling authors of Dating You/Hating You “THIS WAS a bittersweet tumble into eighties high school nostalgia, with all the angst, sexual tension and emotional confusion involved with first love, and so well done it was a non-stop read to the end.… (Oh, and one of the best first kisses I have EVER read...),” says one reviewer

Author's Note:

This is a historical novel that contains period language that is, and was then, and should be, offensive.

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Exclusive Excerpt

”So who the hell are you, anyway?”

Everyone laughed. Dylan Dougherty totally lost it, stoned off his ass as usual. Bogart just looked confused. Jason hoped he didn’t look as confused as Bogart. Ever.

 ”I’ll give you a clue. Seventh grade homeroom. Two seats over. One seat back.” Blue-haired girl made each word a revelation.

Jason stared, blank to incredulous. “Prissy all-my-clothes-are-pink-and-monogrammed-and-no-way-in-hell-are-you-her Hines?”

 ”The same. And that is the last time you ever call me Prissy if you want to keep your balls somewhere in the vicinity of your body, Jason Devlin.”

Jason put his hands up in surrender. “Dude.”

“Wrong again. Just Pris.”

Dylan’s eyes widened. “Like from fuckin’ Bladerunner? That is so awesome. Like, dude. Not like I’m calling you that, but with the neon, and those robots and time to die with the dove? Like, ‘Hi Roy,’ and Daryl Hannah goes all apeshit on Han Solo’s ass?”

“I couldn’t have said it better myself.” Pris’s eyes narrowed at the end of sentences like punctuation.

Dylan looked at Pris like she was an angel come to speak only to him.

Jason shook his head. Prissy in Pink to blue-haired freak. His mom used to work in the same office with her dad. Yeah, well. Things change a lot in a few years.

First bell rang and the group started moving towards the entrance. Jason whispered in Shelly’s ear. “Behind the bleachers. After school. Bring a Coke.” She’d understand he’d have something to go in it. She nodded and took off with Dylan to their lockers. Skinny and Not-Prissy turned with Jason.

They passed a knot of jocks and Barbies, no doubt planning some after-school pep enhancement. Typically Jason ignored these kids, but he caught a look off one of them, some muscly dude in a pink polo shirt, that made his blood boil. The kid actually put his arm around one of the girls and steered her protectively out of Jason’s path. Which she wasn’t in.

The vibe the dude was putting out wasn’t even like they were a couple. He was just taking care of a pure young girl whose shadow needed to be kept free of burnout footprints.

Turned out it was very thing Jason needed to focus his free-floating morning rage outwards on a worthy target. I don’t wanna hang with you either, dude, but I don’t feel the need to let you know you’re scum first thing on a Monday morning. Maybe that was part of the problem. Maybe he should feel that need.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Anne Jamison is the author of three critical books, including Fic: Why Fanfiction is Taking Over the World. She lives in Salt Lake City with her dogs, her son, and an avant-garde poet. She is an English professor, but not the kind that corrects your grammar (unless she is actively grading your paper). In Between Days is her first novel. 

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The Green Soldier by J. Edward Gore (Spotlight, excerpt, review, and GIVEAWAY) GFT

The Green Soldier

by 

J. Edward Gore

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GENRE: YA Historical fiction

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BLURB:

John Gore is eighteen years old in 1862 rural Kentucky. He has struggled his entire life with stuttering and the ridicule associated with it. Unable to speak well, he has focused on writing. Seeing the opportunity for advancement in the military—and with it, respect—John joins the Union army. Unfortunately, his stuttering prevents him from warning a friend of an enemy attack and John watches his friend die. He is racked with guilt and the fear that others saw him fail at the key moment . . . a fear that proves prescient.

John soon meets a girl but they must forge a friendship and then courtship through letters, allowing him to express to her what he can’t say in person. Meanwhile at home, John’s impetuous younger brother causes trouble with garrisoned Union troops angry at Southern sympathizers.

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EXCERPT

There’s been some light fighting every day with the rebels close behind us, and especially once we settled into Knoxville. There were some rebel sharpshooters who dug a rifle pit just outside our walls and they were picking off some of our soldiers now and then. A boy would be talking or looking around and then he’d either scream or just fall back dead. A regiment with the Second Michigan was ordered to take care of those sharpshooters. Our men ran out, but they were fired upon, and when they got to the pit they found more than they’d bargained for. The Johnnies were in the woods waiting for them and fired without mercy. Less than half of our soldiers came back alive. Now their sharpshooters target our officers. Three days ago a lieutenant was giving out orders and in the middle of his talking he just fell over. Graveyard dead. He never knew it.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Edward purposely avoided history classes in college because he felt they were boring. Years later he read the Shaara trilogy, opening his eyes to how fascinating the Civil War could be. He recalled as a boy his grandmother telling him of his ancestor, John Gore, who fought for the Union. Visiting battle sites and participating in reenactments has made the Civil War more than just pictures and words. Instead he could feel the fear, excitement, grief and anger.

Born and raised in central Kentucky, not far from John’s birthplace, Edward currently lives outside of Nashville, TN with his wife, two kids and a goldendoodle.

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My review:


 

3.75 out of 5 stars

The Green Soldier by J. Edward Gore is an epistolary novel that tells of young John Gore’s experiences as he joins the Union army and learns to be a soldier in the war between the States. Hampered by his stutter, John strives to advance, but the realities of war force him to reevaluate his goals.

This historical novel is told completely through letters between the main character and his younger brother as well as a young woman he develops a relationship with. The three viewpoints of the Civil war give different perspectives on the privations, dangers, and horrors attendant on war and humanize the struggle. The realism portrayed is gut-wrenching as the author conveys some of the price paid by so many, who often had no personal understanding of the plight of those they are fighting to free. This is a very dark and sobering tale, and I was very unhappy with the ending, although I know it is realistic. It is a tribute to the author’s technique that I became invested in the main characters and winced as I turned the pages, fearing the worst at every turn. The author’s disclaimer at the end is a bit confusing, especially in light of the picture that comes before it but I think that those who are in search of a stark story that brings to life the Civil War from the perspective of Union supporters should consider this one.

A copy of this title was provided for review

West from the Cradle by Brigid Amos (Spotlight, excerpt, review, and GIVEAWAY) GFT

West from the Cradle

by Brigid Amos

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GENRE: YA Historical Fiction

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BLURB:

Travis Cooper was not meant to be a prospector. Small for his age, he has never been much help on the family farm in Missouri. How could he survive the journey west to take up such backbreaking work? But when he sees a copy of the California Star in the fall of 1848, everything changes. One shining word jumps off the page: GOLD! Now staying alive is a struggle. Keeping his partner from getting himself killed is even harder!

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EXCERPT

Travis paid for the nails and was almost out the door when Hillerman called to him and beckoned for him to come back to the counter. “Come here a second, son. I want to show you something.” Reaching down behind the counter, the shopkeeper pulled out a stack of newspapers. “Melvin Ellerbee brought me these newspapers from St. Joe. It’s this one I wanted you to see.” Hillerman handed Travis the newspaper on the top of the stack.

“California Star,” Travis murmured. “This newspaper’s from California?”

“It’s from San Francisco to be precise. That newspaper was sent out this way by the editor, a Mr. Brannan of San Francisco, to recruit new American Californians. Clever fellow, that Brannan. What I wanted you to see was this article by Victor something or other. His name’s French I guess. Here, look!” Hillerman pointed to an article on the front page.

As Travis skimmed the article, one shining word jumped right off the page. “Gold?” he asked, looking up at the shopkeeper for confirmation.

“Gold!” Hillerman said. “They found gold in the American River. I figure there’s more where that came from, and there must be plenty of other rivers and streams out there that have it in them.”

“Those folks are lucky, aren’t they? I’d call that being in the right place at the right time.”

“They’re lucky all right. But so will be those who emigrate out there this spring. It sounds like there’s plenty to go around.”

Travis put the newspaper down and searched Hillerman’s face. “Is that what you’re thinking of doing? Going out there to California?”

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Brigid Amos’ young adult historical fiction has appeared in The MacGuffin, The Storyteller, Wilderness House Literary Review, and Words of Wisdom. Her first novel, A Fence Around Her, was published by Clean Reads in 2016. A produced playwright, she co-founded the Angels Playwriting Collective and serves on the boards of Angels Theatre Company and Women Writing the West. She is also an active member the Nebraska Writers Guild. Although Brigid left a nugget of her heart behind in the California Gold Country, most of it is in Lincoln, Nebraska where she currently lives with her husband.

Connecting with Brigid Amos:

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a Rafflecopter giveaway


The tour dates can be found here


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My review:

 

3.75 out of 5 stars

West From the Cradle by Brigid Amos is a young adult historical novel that provides a glimpse of the sacrifice and determination that characterized the exodus to participate in the California Gold Rush. Young Travis Cooper gets caught up in the frenzy and has to cope with remarkable changes that he will need to adapt to or be chewed up by the craziness.

There are fascinating aspects to this story that gives a different perspective on the sacrifices, harsh life, and difficult choices that characterized life during this time. The author offers several examples of the way life changes in an instant and gives insight into the highs and lows that accompany the arduous process of gathering gold from the barely civilized region of California. I was particularly entertained to learn the implications of the phrase, "Watching the grass grow." The casual bigotry demonstrated is heartbreaking and it was eye-opening to be reminded what a precarious position women could occupy. The points of view hop around and there are sometimes abrupt shifts in time and scene which I found disconcerting but I was particularly frustrated by the end because it is somewhat of a cliffhanger.

I think this is a fun story that will help youngsters understand a bit more about our amazing history and the fever that struck and changed so many lives.

A copy of this title was provided to me for review