2014 is finally here if you can believe it (I can’t!). In some ways, 2013 was the longest year and in others it flew by. It was definitely a year of challenges, but it ended a lot better than it started.
PLUS, I found my place in the world when I came into this blog. So, I can’t help but be thankful for that. Here’s a little review about 2013, as well as my look forward to 2014!
Super Six Sunday is an original bookish meme created by Bewitched Bookworms and inspired by “Top Ten Tuesday” from The Broke and The Bookish . Today’s topic is:
And killer in “I want to kill this book by throwing it at a wall” kind of endings. Cliffhangers. We love to hate them don’t we? They can make for a spectacular ending, but then we have to wait on pins and needles for the next book to come out. So what are six of my favorite killer endings? Let’s see…
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
I mean who wasn’t just left with.. WHAT? written all over there faces at that end?
City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
Umm, Jace’s who now?
Across the Universe by Beth Revis
This book starts off slow, but once it gets going it doesn’t stop, that is until it SLAMS into that ending. You.will.not.see.it.coming.
Everbound by Brodi Ashton
I suffered from slack-jawed at the end of this book. COLE!
Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
Actually, Goblet of Fire and Order of the Phoenix could fit in this category too. But this one, this one stabbed me in the heart. I’m pretty sure I suffered a bout of depression for days after finishing HBP.
Solitary by Travis Thrasher
This was one of the most unprecedented, shocking endings I’ve ever read. I raged and raged at Travis Thrasher for a few days. Then, I begrudgingly picked up book two and moved on. In hindsight, I’ve come to accept the ending, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it!
So, those are my six? What are some books you love to rage about when it comes to the end?
Aberrant by Ruth SilverIn the future Dystopian society of Cabal, the government instills equality for all and offers its citizens the perfect system. There is food, shelter and jobs for everyone. The one requirement is to follow the rules without question, including the government’s match in marriage and “The Day of the Chosen”, a lottery that randomly selects families to conceive children as natural means hasn’t existed in generations. Following her eighteenth birthday, Olivia Parker accepts her requirement to marry her childhood best friend, Joshua Warren, and is eager to start her work assignment and new life when it all comes abruptly to an end as she’s arrested and thrown in prison. The only crime committed, her existence. Olivia is unlike the rest of the world born not from “The Day of the Chosen.” The truth haunts the government and puts her life in grave danger as one simple fact would destroy the perfect system.
With Joshua’s help, Olivia breaks free of prison and is forced on the run. Together they set out to find the promised rebel town in search of a new home and new life together. Their situation seems less than promising as they reach the town of Haven. New rules and customs must be adhered to in order to stay. Leaving would mean most certain death in the large expanse of the Gravelands. Time is running out as the government mounts an attack to destroy Olivia and bury her secret with her. Thrown into a world unlike their own, they must quickly adapt to survive.
Ruth Silver is the best-selling author of Aberrant. The Young Adult/New Adult Romantic Dystopian Adventure, Aberrant is the first in a trilogy, released April 17th, 2013. Silver first began writing poetry as a teenager and reading heaps of fan fiction in her free time. She attended Northern Illinois University in 2001 and graduated with a Bachelor’s in Communication. While in college she spent much of her free time writing with friends she met online and penning her first novel, Deuces are Wild, which she self-published in 2004. Her favorite class was Creative Writing senior year where she often handed in assignments longer than the professor required because she loved to write and always wanted to finish her stories.The hardest part was writing the characters suffering. I know that they will get through the pain – physical or emotional – and it will make them stronger, but it’s still hard to torture your favorite character.
Who was your favorite character to write in Aberrant?
I had the most fun with writing Olivia. She’s full of so many mixed emotions and traits that we’re always learning something about who she is. She’s not complacent. She has a mind of her own and likes to explore the world around her. She’s curious by nature and it has the tendency to get her into trouble. She’s complex, which makes her three-dimensional, but also incredibly caring and supportive of those she loves.
Why did you decide on making Aberrant into a series?
I felt like I had a huge story to tell. Something that would span across hundreds of thousands of words. That may not seem like a lot but when sending your novel to agents and publishers, there’s a certain word count they’re looking for in new authors and in young adult/new adult titles. The only way to properly tell the story, was to turn it into a trilogy.
Do you have the second and third book planned already?
Without getting into any specifics, yes! The next book, Moirai, will be available sometime in 2014. The first draft was finished last December but with the edits and some significant changes in Aberrant, I need to make the story flow a little smoother.
Can you tell us about one of these changes in Aberrant? What was added to the story?
Down to the final edits, I was adding details and shaping each character just a little bit more. I wanted the world that they’re in and the cities to feel real. I wanted you to experience it, just as Olivia has for the first time. The very end of the Aberrant, I added a glimpse at what we can expect in the second novel. That was one of the final edits that was added, among many others.
…I sighed softly and did something I’d only read about in forbidden novels. I leant in, brushing my lips against his. The kiss was soft and chaste. It lasted no more than a mere second before I pulled back.
“What was that, Olive?” He gave me a horrified look and all I could feel was my stomach somersault. I knew romance and love weren’t ever spoken of in Genesis. There was no need when the government knew who was perfect for one another, and children were won by lottery and conceived in a lab. Intimate acts were considered unnecessary.
“I read about it in a book,” I whispered, afraid I’d done it all wrong. “It was a kiss,” I breathed, chewing on my bottom lip nervously. I’d never kissed anyone before and worried he thought it was terrible. I’d never seen two people share a kiss, I didn’t quite know what it was supposed to look like, but I thought I’d done it right after reading about it. My hand reached out, grabbing his arm. “Please don’t be mad at me.” I breathed. “You have to swear you won’t tell anyone!” Joshua hesitated for only an instant before he leaned in, taking another taste from my lips trying again. The second kiss was softer and satisfied both of our curiosities. My heart raced and my skin warmed to his touch. “I thought today was going to turn out so much worse,” I confessed.
Joshua laughed as he pulled back slightly, staring at me. His eyes had darkened a deeper richer shade of blue. I’d never seen his eyes change colors before. His fingers moved to tickle my stomach with a grin. “Worse? Really? You’re not happy you married me? You’re just relieved it wasn’t someone worse?”
“No!” I shrieked, “That’s not what I meant!” I tried to catch my breath, but he hardly gave me a second more than necessary. I pulled from his ticklish grasp, jumped from the couch and ran across the room in a fit of laughter. He quickly followed, jumping over the sofa as he was just inches from me. He was close now, smiling and trailing behind me as I ran toward the bedroom. It was probably the worst place I could go, trapped between Joshua and a mattress. I felt him tackle me down onto the plush bed, his hands skimmed my stomach but he was no longer tickling me. The laughter still hadn’t subsided.
“Breathe,” Joshua said, staring intently at me.
“Trying,” I gasped between fits of laughter. Lying down helped settle the feeling of my racing heart, and after a moment I shifted along the mattress, reaching out to him. “I want to tell you a story,” I insisted as my fingers found his cheek. “One I read in a book.” I wanted him to learn the things I had about love and romance. I couldn’t help but feel my body stir with a strange fire and warmth as he loomed just above me. Staring up at him I froze on the mattress hearing the latch click on the front door. I knew it had been locked.
Now comes the fun part! Today’s giveaway is for $25 Amazon giftcard, signed copy of Aberrant, and a character named after you in the sequel, thanks to the author. Please be sure to complete each item on the list BEFORE you click it, as they will be checked prior to giving out the prizes. Good luck!
There is no purchase necessary and the contest is void where prohibited. Open to & US/Int!
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This promotional post is affiliated with Xpresso Book Tours
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