Interview + Giveaway: From What I Remember!

Hi, everybody! :)

Last week, I was lucky enough to recieve a copy of From What I Remember by Stacy Kramer and Valerie Thomas... and I loved it so much that I wrote a review for it ASAP! (You can read my review HERE.) It was fun, and hilarious, and sweet, and everything you could ever want in a contemporary book. I would recommend it in a heartbeat!

So I'm really ecstatic that the two amazing, sweet, quirky, and brilliant authors are offering up two SIGNED copies of From What I Remember for you guys! It's international, so anyone can enter. :) And Stacy also agreed to play a last minute game of THIS or THAT with me!

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From What I Remember
By Stacy Kramer and Valerie Thomas
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | The Book Depository

KYLIE: MEXICO WHAT? I should be putting the finishing touches on my valedictorian speech. Graduation is TODAY, and is this a wedding band on my finger??

MAX: It all started with Kylie's laptop and a truck full of stolen electronics. Okay, it was kind of hot, the way she broke us out like some chick in an action movie. But now we're stranded in Tijuana. With less than twenty-four hours before graduation. Awesome.

WILL: Saving Kylie Flores from herself is kind of a full-time occupation. Luckily, I, Will Bixby, was born for the job. And when I found out she was stuck in Mexico with dreamy Max Langston, sure, I agreed to bring their passports across the border -- but there's no reason to rush back home right away. This party is just getting started.

LILY: I just walked in on my boyfriend, Max Langston, canoodling with Kylie Flores, freak of the century. Still, I can't completely hold it against him. He NEEDS me. It's even clearer now. And I'm not giving him up without a fight.

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THIS or THAT interview with Stacy Kramer

Chocolate or vanilla?

Chocolate all the way. Not a vanilla girl, I'm just not drawn that way.

Paperbacks or ebooks?

Ebooks.

Summer or winter?

Summer.

School or work?

Work.

Good boys or bad boys? 

I married the good boy. I dated the bad boys.

Books or movies?

Hmmm. I really can't choose here. I write movies and books. It's like asking me my left arm or my right. 

Paranormal or contemporary?

Contemporary. The awful truth is i really don't get paranormal. 

Best friend or soul mate? 

Soul mate.

Spaghetti or lasagna?

Neither. Sorry, I'm going to have to bail on this one too. I'm not a pasta girl. I'll take a good loaf of bread and a hunk of cheese over pasta any day.

Going to graduation or being kidnapped to Mexico? ;)

Kidnapped to Mexico. You never know what will happen. ;)

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Giveaway

Now it's time for the giveaway! Two people can win a SIGNED copy of From What I Remember. And because they're even more awesome, they're willing to ship internationally! (I would beam if one of the winners lived in Mexico LOL ♥)

If you haven't read this book before, then why wouldn't you enter?? This book is absolutely worth having on your shelf — I'm SO happy to have this book on my shelf! And if you've already read it... why wouldn't you want to own a beautiful signed copy? :')

Just fill out the form below: 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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And that's everything! A million thanks to Stacy Kramer for taking the time to answer my (very random) questions and for the lovely giveaway. And thanks to Valerie Thomas for co-writing the book with Stacy as well —they both rock so much! :)

Have an amazing weekend, guys! I hope you don't get kidnapped by random thugs and get taken over to Mexico without your passport like Kylie and Max did... yet at the same time, wouldn't that be SO COOL?? :') ♥

-Mimi

This Is Not a Test Blog Tour: Interview + Giveaway!

Hi, everyone! 

What do you think of this: Zombie Friday? Staying in and watching a good zombie movie, reading a good zombie book, and thanking all things holy that the zombie apocalypse hasn't happened yet... Wouldn't that be super cool? x)

Okay, so maybe that's not a thing yet. But I'm still lucky enough to be a part of a mini Canadian tour for the zombie book, This Is Not a Test by Courtney Summers, organized by the ever-amazing Crystal at Raincoast Books! I finished (and loved) this book not too long ago, and trust me when I say you don't want to miss it! :)

So without further ado...

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Interview with Courtney Summers

Quick! If a zombie came knocking on your door, what would you do?

I wouldn't answer it, I can tell you that much!  If a zombie came knocking on my door, probably a search for firearms would quickly commence.  :)

If you had to be stuck in a school with 5 other people during a zombie apocalypse (like what happens in your book) and you could choose them, who would they be and why? 

Instead of picking close friends or family members — lest I offend anyone I don't include — I shall choose celebrities, instead!  I'd pick Louis CK, because he's funny, but not the kind of funny that ends up grating.  It's so important not to lose your sense of humor during the zombie apocalypse!  I think after that, I'd pick Jeff Probst because he probably knows survival tricks from Survivor and also he's Jeff Probst.  Florence Welch because that girl can sing and while I don't know how useful that would be in the zombie apocalypse, it'd make being stuck in a school more entertaining.  Ed Begley Jr. because I think he is awesome and finally, Paula Deen because I bet she could make cafeteria food pretty tasty, though probably not very healthy.  But healthy eating would likely be the least of my concerns during a zombie apocalypse.  I also like how I just assume these people would all perform and/or cook for me to make the experience more bearable.

Who was your favourite character to write in the book?

Sloane, because I couldn't have written from her POV if she hadn't been.  But a very, very close second to Sloane was Trace.  I really liked writing him because he was brash and angry.  I think he could've said anything and gotten away with it and I always like characters like that.

Do you think you could survive trapped in a school for weeks?

If there was food and running water, probably.  Otherwise, probably not!

And for everyone who wants to know (and I think that everyone who reads your book definitely will!): Will there be a sequel to This is Not a Test?

At the moment, I have no plans for a sequel though I can't rule out the idea of revisiting zombies someday.  :)

Thanks so much for having me on your blog, Mimi!

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This Is Not a Test by Courtney Summers
Release Date: June 19, 2012
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon CA | The Book Depository | Chapters

It’s the end of the world. Six students have taken cover in Cortege High but shelter is little comfort when the dead outside won’t stop pounding on the doors. One bite is all it takes to kill a person and bring them back as a monstrous version of their former self. 

To Sloane Price, that doesn’t sound so bad. Six months ago, her world collapsed and since then, she’s failed to find a reason to keep going. Now seems like the perfect time to give up. As Sloane eagerly waits for the barricades to fall, she’s forced to witness the apocalypse through the eyes of five people who actually want to live.

But as the days crawl by, the motivations for survival change in startling ways and soon the group’s fate is determined less and less by what’s happening outside and more and more by the unpredictable and violent bids for life—and death—inside. When everything is gone, what do you hold on to?

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Giveaway

And because I loved This Is Not a Test so much — it's one of my FAVOURITE zombie books to date! — I'm going to be giving away a beautiful finished copy of it to anyone who wants the chance! The giveaway is open internationally (as long as The Book Depository ships to you). It will end on June 19th which is when the actual book comes out so you can get it as soon as possible! :)

Just fill out the Rafflecopter form below: 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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And this is why I think that Canadian authors are some of my favourites! Michelle Rowen, Kathleen Peacock, Ada Adams, and now Courtney Summers... They're all authors worth reading something by! Didn't her zombie-awesome answers make you smile? :)

My review for This Is Not a Test should be up sometime next week, if you're interested. (And just so you know: It's amazing!) Have a fantastic weekend, you guys! ♥

-Mimi

Guest Post & Interview with Jessica Shirvington + GIVEAWAY!

Hi, everybody! :)

Today I'm going to be a part of the long-running but still completely fun blog tour for Embrace by Jessica Shirvington! (You can read my review for it here.) And I just have to say that the main reason why this blog tour is still so much fun is because Jessica is a really sweet, genuine person. I hope you enjoy learning more about her as much as I did!

The Guest Post — Falling in Love at 17

Falling in love is easy. Staying in love … more complicated.

At 17, life is about new experiences. It is about self-discovery, friends, adventure, mistakes, career and university choices. And let’s be honest, there are not many 17 year olds out there that aren’t interested in falling in love.

But how many are truly interested in falling in love with THE ONE at 17?

I’m not sure I was. In fact, I probably wasn’t. I was planning to take the world by storm – solo. So when I met Matt, well, actually … it was pretty darn amazing. But it was a little frightening too.

When we first got together, it was sweet and young and … perfect. I was head over heels. But things became complicated quickly. He was an up and coming athletic star and I was working in hospitality. So basically he worked hard in the day, and I worked hard at night. His lifestyle demanded routine and healthy living, mine … not so much. But we were determined to make it work.

Falling in love so deeply at a young age made it difficult to be as reckless as our friends. We watched them coast in and out of short, fun, but meaningless relationships and it just seemed so different to what we had.

Writing the Embrace series has been an opportunity for me to pour some of the incredibly intense emotions of young love into Violet’s story. It has been important for me as a writer, and a person, to recognize that it’s completely realistic for someone at her young age to experience the full effect and heartbreak of love. Violet is one hundred percent invested with her heart. She makes bad choices, but we have to. She regrets many of her decisions, because we all do. And she fights for what she loves, because she is compelled to. Violet’s story is unique to her, I don’t pull on parallel scenarios from my own life, but I do pull on the emotion of intense love. Love that I think adults sometimes forget that 17 and 18 years-olds are very capable of feeling.

I often find one question helps a lot of adults, who maybe disagree with this view, to be more open minded: Do you remember you first true love? Do you ever wonder what your life would’ve been like if you had stayed together? For some, the answer is a resounding NOT INTERESTED, but for others … the pause says it all.

Matt and I celebrate our 11th wedding anniversary in March - I believe jewelry is in order ;)

Am I the only girl wishing I could be as lucky and blessed as Jessica?? I've still got two years left until my seventeenth birthday, but I think I know what to wish for until then! ;) Happy belated 11th anniversary, Jessica! ♥

The Interview of Awesome

(with an author of awesome)

1. Hi, Jessica! Hi, Mimi! Your series is about angels and it's probably one of the most original takes I've ever read! Thanks! Have you always believed in angels? Is that why you wrote this series about them? 

Angels haven't always played a big part in my belief system. I think I'm like a lot of people - I wonder about possibilities. I love mythology and often question where these stories have come from, and why some stories seem so similar and yet they come from different times and places. I also have a deep interest in the concepts of freewill and predetermined destiny. Many theories support one or the other - I wanted to explore the possibility that the two could exist together. Focusing on the existence of beings that supposedly have a governing interest over the universe, that seem to be able to influence will and circumstance was a great way to bring theses questions to the surface.

2. In Embrace, angels are given the free will to choose dark or light to keep the balance. If you were an angel, what would you choose: to be an angel or an exile? 

I would like to think I would choose to be an angel. Exiles are not well balanced beings (to put it mildly) and I dread to think what that could do to ones mind - even those that believe in a cause when they abandon the angel realm are not able to maintain sanity once they take a human body. It would be incredibly frightening.

3. One of my favourite things about Violet and Lincoln's relationship was how real it was. They were just a running trainer and a girl who got each other when no one else did. But that aside, do you believe in love at first sight? 

I believe in a connection a first sight. Lincoln and Violet have spent the two years, before the story of Embrace even starts, getting to know one another and learning each other's quirks. I believe it is that - the quirks - that develop the foundations of love. You have to see someone at their best and worst before you can be sure you can love them in every way. But I do believe there are some people in this world we connect to more than with others, and that when we meet them we are somehow drawn to them and know they are supposed to be in our lives.

4. The cast in your book was full of amazing characters! Thanks! Which character do you think you felt most connected with while you were writing? 

Violet. Embrace is written from her point of view so I really had to get inside her head and feel things from her point of view. I don't always agree with her decisions but I understand and sympathize with her reasoning, and her confusion. I can't wait to see her develop and become the person she is meant to be. I have to remind myself of this when I am writing her, that she is seventeen and on a steep learning curve - it is this time and these lessons that will shape her into the woman she will become.

I also adore Lincoln and Phoenix. I feel that although Embrace is written from Violet's point of view, both Lincoln and Phoenix are on just as an important journey as Violet and each for their own reason. I feel so lucky that I have discovered them.

5. Is being a published author different from what you thought it would be? 

Yes and no. I love writing stories. Like, really really love it. And when something becomes that important to you - then you tend to put everything into it. So ... I'm slightly obsessive compulsive. In a good way, I hope. But when I first started out I think my view was more along the lines of - well, if I get published and they want to make changes etc to the manuscript, sure, that will be fine. But it isn't like that. I am protective of my characters and their story and I want them to be the best they can be - sometimes that means taking advice and making changes and sometimes it means standing by what you have written. Luckily, publishers actually take that approach too (and I have amazing editors) and I've yet to hit a stumbling block in this department.

6. And because we're all avid readers and would love to know: Do you like to read in your spare time? If yes, what is a book that you've fallen in love with recently? 

I read a lot (unless I'm writing a first draft of one of my books - then I tend to stay in my own world).

I just read Under The Never Sky by Veronica Rossi and I thought it was a great story. I am going to read The Book of Blood and Shadow by Robin Wasserman next, I think. I'm also really enjoying books on magic at the moment. :)

Isn't she awesome? :) And because the people of Sourcebooks match Jessica's awesomeness, they've been kind enough to offer one gorgeous finished copy for one very lucky winner! It's only open to Canada and the US (I'm really sorry, international followers!), and it will close next Friday on the 27th of April.

The Gorgeous Giveaway

Just fill out the Rafflecopter form below:

Author Interview: Elisa Ludwig!!

Book: Pretty Crooked
Author: Elisa Ludwig
Series: Pretty Crooked #1
Release Date: March 13, 2012
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

Goodreads ♥ Amazon ♥ Book Depository

I'm absolutely ecstatic to have the AMAZING author Elisa Ludwig on my blog today! Her debut novel, Pretty Crooked, was a hilarious, heartwarming, and completely entertaining book that made my favouites list immediately.You can read my 5 star review here.

Pretty Crooked revolves around a girl named Willa Fox who moves to an elite prep school and tries to even out the wealth between the rich and the poor. You can think of her as a spunky, fun, and female Robin Hood! :)

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Let's meet Elisa!

1. What's the worst piece of advice you've ever received? The best? 

The worst piece of advice was "don't think about your readers when writing." It sounds very pure and lovely but I'm not one of those people who writes only for myself—and if I don't think about my readers how can I possibly entertain them? The best was probably "you should write YA," which the wonderful author Julia Glass told me about six years ago when I took her writing workshop. Otherwise, I wouldn't be here!

2. What gave you the idea to write a book that's inspired lightly by Robin Hood?

My editor was the one who suggested it to me but we were both also thinking a lot about the Barefoot Bandit because he was big on the news and still on the run when I started writing.

3. Would you ever do what Willa did (stealing from the rich and giving to the poor)?

Probably not. It's fun to think about, though.

4. I adored every single character in Pretty Crooked! Were any of them inspired by people you know in real life? 
You know, usually I do draw from people I know at least somewhat but in this case, these were just people in my head. I honestly wish Tre was a real person. I have to admit that he's my favorite character.

5. What do you like to do when you're not writing? 

I love to cook, do Crossfit, yoga, watch films, read (of course), travel, look at art and go flea marketing (I'm way more low-budg than Willa!).

6. What are some of your favourite books? Favourite authors? 

In the YA world, I love Sarah Dessen, John Green, Sara Zarr, E. Lockhart, A.S. King and M.T. Anderson. In the wider scheme of things I love Kurt Vonnegut, T.C. Boyle, Alice Munro, George Saunders, Junot Diaz, Tessa Hadley... I better stop before I fill the page.

7. Do you feel like being a writer has changed you at all?

I've always been a writer of *something* whether it was poetry (high school), short stories (college), or newspaper features (my twenties), so being a writer is just part of my life. But being published by HarperCollins? Yeah, that's kind of a dream come true. I don't necessarily feel like my essential self has changed, but it has taken over my daily life and my identity in a deeper way. I used to be afraid to tell people I was writing fiction because I felt like a poseur and now I really own it. I'm an author! (Still feels crazy to type it out.) And being part of this wonderful community of other authors, book lovers, and bloggers has been incredibly rewarding.

8. Can you give us a hint about the sequel, Pretty Sly? ;)

All of the original characters come back but it doesn't take place at Valley Prep. How's that??

 Now for a quickfire round!

1. Chocolate or Vanilla? 

OMG, do we even have to ask? Chocolate. 

2. Bad boys or good boys? 

Essentially good boys with a little streak of bad to keep it interesting. 

3. Best friend or soul mate? 

Soul mate. 

4. E-books or hard copies? 

Hard copies, though I am loving my NOOK. 

5. Vampires or werewolves? 

Neither. Minimally hairy, non-biting humans, please.

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Thank you so much for dropping by, Elisa! ♥

You can find her on her website, Goodreads, Twitter, and Facebook. Pretty Crooked hits the shelves on March 13, 2012, and let me just say that if you haven't already added Elisa's book to your TBR pile, you're totally missing out! ;)

-Mimi