Waiting On Wednesday - April 18th

My WOW pick this week is

What I Didn't Say

by Keary Taylor

Available - May 11th

Synopsis via Goodreads

Getting drunk homecoming night your senior year is never a good idea, but Jake Hayes never expected it all to end with a car crash and a t-post embedded in his throat. 

His biggest regret about it all? What he never said to Samantha Shay. He's been in love with her for years and never had the guts to tell her. Now it's too late. Because after that night, Jake will never be able to talk again.

When Jake returns to his small island home, population 5,000, he'll have to learn how to deal with being mute. He also finds that his family isn't limited to his six brothers and sisters, that sometimes an entire island is watching out for you. And when he gets the chance to spend more time with Samantha, she'll help him learn that not being able to talk isn’t the worst thing that could ever happen to you. Maybe, if she'll let him, Jake will finally tell her what he didn't say before, even if he can't actually say it.

Trailer:

Why I'm waiting on this book? I love Keary's writing and can't wait to see what she can do with contemp fiction. I'm sure it will be fabulous because just the synopsis has me teary eyed :)

What are you waiting on?

Meme details: Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine. Don’t forget to stop by her blog and share your WOW pick for this week.

Character Interview: Eve from Eden by Keary Taylor

I’m so very excited to have the chance to interview Eve from Eden by Keary Taylor today. Hi Eve and welcome! 

Can you provide a brief summary of the events that caused survivors to join and create the safe haven known as Eden. 

After the technology that later became known as the infection took over, people realized they had to get away from the cities.  A lot of people were on the run and eventually they started finding each other.  Gabriel and his family found Avian, Sarah, and Tye, other's found them.  As the infected started pushing further and further out, the people had to push further into the country.  


You have no memories of your life before the Fall. Do you feel this gave you an advantage over others living in Eden? Or do you feel your lack of memories were a disadvantage? 


It made me feel like an outsider, that's for sure.  But I think it was nice to not have any experience before the world fell apart.  It was easier for me, not to have to miss electricity and telephones and whatnot.    


When the other members of Eden reminisced about life before the Fall is there anything they mentioned that you wish you could have experienced firsthand? 


Others have talked about music players and how there was thousands and thousands of songs. There's something about music that gets to me like nothing else does.  It's a rare occasion for me to get to experience it.  Regular hot showers would be nice to...  


I imagine living with so many people can be difficult at times. Where do you go when you need time alone? 


I'm alone most of the time while I'm on scouting duty.  The balance is good.  Being around others makes me feel normal, but when the pressure of not being like others gets to be too much the trees don't seem to care about that.  


What is your favorite part about living in Eden? 


The members of Eden are my family.  They have been for as long as I can remember and they always will be.  We share a bond that people didn't use to have before all of this happened.  


What is your most prized possession? 


Most valued would have to be my pack.  Everything I need to survive is in that thing.  Most valued though... that would have to be the necklace Avain gave me for my eighteenth birthday.    


What is your favorite food? 


Not long after I was found outside of Eden, Gabriel gave me this thing he called a Snickers.  He said it was one of only two he had left and he shared it with me.  Pure heaven.  


Is there anything else you would like to share with us? 


Never take advantage of the things you have.  Your roof over your head, a safe place to live, the ones you have around you.  And careful what you let doctors put into your body...  Who knows how things could evolve...  

Thanks for the chance to get to know you and your world better, Eve!  

Read my review of Eden.

Keary Taylor on the web:

Website | Blog

Buy Eden:

Paperback: Eden

Or for Kindle: Eden

Review: Eden by Keary Taylor

Title: Eden
Series: Standalone (as far as I know)
Author: Keary Taylor | Author Website
Available: Now
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Dystopian/Sci-Fi
Source: Received from author












Description via Goodreads:


Eve knew the stories of the Fall, of a time before she wandered into the colony of Eden, unable to recall anything but her name. She's seen the aftermath of the technology that infused human DNA with cybernetic matter, able to grow new organs and limbs, how it evolved out of control. The machine took over and the soul vanished. A world quickly losing its humanity isn't just a story to her though. At eighteen, this world is Eve's reality. 

In their Fallen world, love feels like a selfish luxury, but not understanding what it is makes it difficult to choose between West, who makes her feel alive but keeps too many secrets, and Avian, who has always been there for her, but is seven years her senior. 

The technology wants to spread and it won't stop until there is no new flesh to assimilate. With only two percent of the human population left, mankind is on the brink of extinction. While fighting to keep Eden alive, Eve will discover that being human is about what you will do for those you love, not what your insides may be made of. And even if it gets you killed, love is always what separates them from the Fallen.


My thoughts:


The first thing that grabbed my attention was Eden’s cover. So creepy, but so very cool! After reading the synopsis I knew this was a book I had to read. As a huge fan of any doomsday type of premise I couldn’t pass this one up! Human beings consumed by their robot like parts who then seek out other humans until they eradicate any remaining flesh on the face of the earth. Yes, please! This is the stuff nightmares are made of and for some reason I just can’t get enough.


When I sat down to read Eden I never expected to finish it in one sitting. This is a pretty hefty piece of literature at 400+ pages. I was so intrigued by the world and characters the author created it made finding a suitable stopping place impossible. I had to know what happened next. 


Eden isn’t nearly as action packed or fast-paced as other dystopian novels I’ve read, but it moves at a smooth and steady pace guaranteed to keep you hooked. As more of a character driven reader this really worked for me. I appreciated the amount of care Keary Taylor put into creating well developed characters in a well presented futuristic world. You can tell she is an author who becomes fully invested in the characters she creates and wants readers to grow to love them as much as she does. She did an amazing job of creating a world that readers will find both engaging and entertaining. I love that she was able to combine complex world building and well-crafted characters without sacrificing the quality of either. I really liked Eve and enjoyed watching her evolve over the course of Eden. I felt for her when she lost those she cared about and didn’t envy her precarious position at the center of the love triangle involving the older Avian and reckless West. There is also an amazing cast of secondary characters who make up the world Eve is living in.


Keary Taylor is an author who I can’t help but be awed by. Not only is she able to write great books with small children in her home, but said books are then self-published. Having read my fair share of self-pubbed books over the last year I must say her work is some of the best. On that note if you haven’t checked out Keary’s books I highly recommend you do (&soon!). 

My Rating:

Follow Keary Taylor's Blog

FYI: Eden for Kindle is just 99 cents!

Teaser Tuesday - Eden by Keary Taylor

Teaser Tuesday is hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Make sure you check out her blog for all the details! My teaser this week comes from Eden by Keary Taylor.

“They were there, just as West told me they would be. Rows of Fallen inside the building, facing the windows, watching with inactive eyes. There were children with cybernetic legs, women with half faces, men with bare metallic chest. And they were just standing there inside. Waiting.”

p. 72

Author Guest Post & Giveaway: Keary Taylor talks angels.

I’m excited to welcome author Keary Taylor to the blog to discuss her thoughts on angels in Young Adult literature having the resiliency vampires have had. Welcome Keary, and thanks so much for being here!

The subject of angels is one that has boomed in a huge way over the last year.  When I first started writing Branded in January of 2009 I looked and looked for other urban fantasy’s  based around angels specifically and found next to nothing.  Just as I finished, Hush Hush and Fallen came out one month later.  It seems like a new angel book is coming out every month.  There’s Halo, Angel, Angefire, the list keeps going on and on.  Angels are making a quick rise in popular fiction.

I think part of the reason there is so much new angel fiction is because the lovers of urban/contemporary fantasy are getting a little tired of what is out there.  Vampires have dominated the field for a long time.  People are ready for something fresh.  This is a great opportunity for those of us who love to write about supernatural beings but are burned out of vampires.  I think the entire genre is evolving.  We’re seeing a lot of new or untapped into mythical creatures coming up.  There’s The Immortals series that deals with (obviously) immortals, there’s Forgive My Fins with mermaids, there’s Beautiful Creatures with a unique take on witches, there’s even a new take on aliens in I Am Number Four.  The market used to be kind of narrow in this genre.  Vampires dominated.  But the field is expanding and people are wanting more.

I suppose this could really be said with any creature but there is a wide variety of takes to be had when approaching angels.  The mythology surrounding angels is left pretty wide open for interpretation.  A LOT of the new angel books out there deal with fallen angels or nephiliam.  In fact I think most of them are based around that.  My series title is Fall of Angels.  I’ll explain a bit what I mean by that.

In Branded, Jessica has nightmares whenever she sleeps of standing trial before a council of angels and being judged for the deeds of real people who have died.  Whatever the outcome of the trail is, they are always turned into an angel in the end and granted wings.  So, when I say "Fall of Angels" I'm talking basically about the fall of everyone.  I'm talking about the things that make us fall, the mistakes we make, our frailties, essentially, what makes us human. No one is perfect and we all make poor decisions that affect not only ourselves but those around us.  

Now the downside and the upside.  Angels will always have a slight disadvantage by having a slightly more limited reader field than vampires for the fact that of course there is going to be a bit of religion involved.  It’s hard not to have just a little bit of religion when you’re talking about angels.  Some people aren’t going to like that, and that’s okay.  On the other side though, angels have been around for a VERY long time.  Angels crop everywhere, in the bible, on gravestones, on churches.  They have the advantage of a LOT of history and the advantage of the fact that a lot of people really believe in angels.

Do I think angels will stand the test of popularity in time?  I think yes.  I think the genre is expanding and this is a new age in the supernatural.  But only time will tell.

Branded: Fall of Angels is available now

Forsaken: Fall of Angels #2 will be available in January 2011

____________________________________________________________

Thanks for stopping by, Keary! 

I wasn’t scheduled for a giveaway, but I received two copies of Branded: Fall of Angels in the mail. The second copy is signed to me, but I promise that won’t mar your reading enjoyment ;) My review of Branded can be found here.

Rules:

Open to residents of the U.S & Canada

Ends 11/30

Fill out the form to enter

Comments are appreciated, but won’t count as entries

Guest post is part of the Branded tour via The Teen Book Scene

Review: Branded: Fall of Angels by Keary Taylor

Title: Branded
Series: Fall of Angels #1
Author: Keary Taylor
Available: Now
Reading Level: Young Adult

4 out of 5 Stars












Description from Goodreads:


Jessica’s had the nightmares for as long as she can remember. Nightmares of being judged for people who have died, of being branded by the angels. Her friends and family think she’s a crazy because of it all. Yet she carries the mark of the condemned, seared into the back of her neck, and hides it and herself away from the world. 

But when two men she can’t ignore enter her life everything changes, including the nightmares. The two of them couldn’t be more different. She will do anything to be with one of them. Even tell him the truth about angels, why she never sleeps, and the scar on the back of her neck. But one of the two has set events into motion what will puller her toward her own judgment and turn her into the object of her greatest fear.


My thoughts:


In Branded we meet Jessica. Jessica has spent most of her life suffering from nightmares starring some not so nice angels. Whenever Jessica sleeps she is forced to stand judgment for someone else’s sins. She even has scars on her back and neck from the brand they place, and the wings that painfully emerge when judgement has been made . Her family thought she was crazy and wanted to have her committed. So she ran away, and is now living a life of isolation in Washington state. She works as a caretaker for a lake front home, and the only person she considers a friend is kind of crazy neighbor, Sal. Then Alex shows up. Jessica can’t fight the draw she feel towards him, and finds herself wanting to confide all of her secrets to this beautiful boy. Then much to her surprise another man enters her life who also seems to be vying for her attention. As her nightmares begin to change from the predictability they’ve always had, she realizes life is about to get seriously complicated.


I was thoroughly impressed by Branded. The plot was gripping. The characters were likable. The bad guys were seriously bad. This book does angels like you’ve never seen them done before. The themes are darker than what I’ve experienced with other angel novels, but it worked.


I love that the author kept me guessing until the end. The last few chapters were an emotional ride, and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t have me a little choked up. Keary Taylor has mad skills when it comes to making the reader channel what the characters are feeling. I actually set it down and walked away with just a few pages left. Not out of anger or frustration, but because I was way to into it. It scares my kids a little when I’m gasping and begging the book to say it isn’t so. (I hope I’m not the only one who talks to my books) The ending was not at all what I expected, and honestly I’m still not sure how I feel about how things went down (a bizarre mixture of relief and grief). I need the next book in this series like yesterday. I also have to say the editing was so much better than what I usually expect from a self-published work. Very impressive debut, and I can’t wait to see what happens next!

Keary Taylor on the web:

Website | Blog

More stops on the Branded tour can be found here.

Keary Taylor will be here to guest post on November 17th. Make sure you stop by and say hello.

The next book in this series is:

Forsaken: Fall of Angels #2 Available January ’11

Source: Teen Book Scene