Review: Uncharted

When twenty-three-year-old dot-com millionaire Owen Sparks walked away from his charmed life, he had one goal in mind: get as far away as possible from the people who resented his success, or had their hand out for a piece of it. A remote uncharted island halfway around the world seemed like a perfectly logical place to get away from it all.

Calia Reed wasn't part of Owen's plans. The beautiful British girl - on holiday in the Maldives with her brother, James - made Owen wonder if getting away from it all might be a lot more enjoyable with a carefree girl who didn't know anything about the life he left behind.

But Owen had no idea how much his carefully detailed plans would go awry. Nor did he realize that a decision he made would have such a catastrophic effect on two passengers who boarded a plane in Chicago.

And when Owen shows up at Anna and T.J.'s door with an incredible story to tell, everyone involved will learn just how much their lives are intertwined.

Title: Uncharted (On the Island ~ Book 1.5)
Author: Tracey Garvis Graves | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Website
Publication Date: July 8 2013
Publisher: Penguin
Length: 160 Pages
Add it to your TBR Pile: Goodreads
Buy It: Amazon US | Amazon UK

Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Cover Love: Simple and fitting
Point of View: Alternating 1st person between Owen, Anna and T.J. - But mostly Owen

My Rating: 5 Stars

I was so very happy to be able to dive right back into the world that Tracey Garvis Graves had created in On the Island.  I knew going into Uncharted that it was a novella, and I attempted to lower my expectations.  It is difficult to get a story told in so few pages.  And although I was sad when it ended, and could easily have seen this turned into a full length novel, Graves was still able captivate me from the beginning to the end.

“When you have nothing, everything feels like something.”

In On the Island, we met Bones, a skeleton that Ann and T.J. came across in a small cave.  We also know that there was a run down shack on the island, along with a variety of other items.  Ever wonder who Bones was, or who built the shack and left those items?  Well wonder no further...

Uncharted takes place shortly after On the Island's epilogue ended.  Owen goes to Anna and T.J. to explain his story and to offer to T.J. a chance to face his demons.

I really liked Owen, I liked the simpleness of what he was trying to accomplish in his life and to see how through his eyes the island took on a whole new persona.  In book one, the island quickly becomes your enemy.  It is what is killing Anna and T.J.  But for Owen it was sought out as a place of refuge and self-discovery.  I also really enjoyed seeing his own love story unfold with Calia.

This is truly Owen's story however, and even though Anna and T.J. are a witness to the telling there is not a lot of character development with them.    Which I am perfectly fine with.  It was brilliant to see them again, even if only for short moments.  Their story has been told with the most beautiful happy ever after, it was time now for us to see if Owen could also get his.

I know some people are put off by novellas, but please read this if you read Uncharted.  Yes, it has a completely different feel to it but it was still wonderful.

“Why are you crying?” he asks.

“Don’t worry, she says.  “They’re happy tears.  There’s nothing I love more than a good happy ending.”

MORE QUOTES FROM UNCHARTED

Review: On the Island

When thirty-year-old English teacher Anna Emerson is offered a job tutoring T.J. Callahan at his family's summer rental in the Maldives, she accepts without hesitation; a working vacation on a tropical island trumps the library any day.

T.J. Callahan has no desire to leave town, not that anyone asked him. He's almost seventeen and if having cancer wasn't bad enough, now he has to spend his first summer in remission with his family - and a stack of overdue assignments - instead of his friends.

Anna and T.J. are en route to join T.J.'s family in the Maldives when the pilot of their seaplane suffers a fatal heart attack and crash-lands in the Indian Ocean. Adrift in shark-infested waters, their life jackets keep them afloat until they make it to the shore of an uninhabited island. Now Anna and T.J. just want to survive and they must work together to obtain water, food, fire, and shelter.

Their basic needs might be met but as the days turn to weeks, and then months, the castaways encounter plenty of other obstacles, including violent tropical storms, the many dangers lurking in the sea, and the possibility that T.J.'s cancer could return. As T.J. celebrates yet another birthday on the island, Anna begins to wonder if the biggest challenge of all might be living with a boy who is gradually becoming a man.

Title: On the Island (On the Island ~ Book 1)
Author: Tracey Garvis Graves | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Website
Publication Date: June 07 2012 (first published September 3rd 2011)
Publisher: Plume
Length: 329 Pages
Add it to your TBR Pile: Goodreads
Buy It: Amazon US | Amazon UK

Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Cover Love: Absolutely beautiful, stunning...
Point of View: Alternating 1st person between both Anna and T.J.

My Rating: 5 Stars

“I was thirty years old when the seaplane T.J Callahan and I were traveling on crash-landed in the Indian Ocean ”

Beth Michele recommended On the Island to me, and I will forever be in her debt.  As soon as I read the synopsis I was intrigued, and I knew that my ever growing 'to be read' pile would be forgotten yet again.  Now that I've finished On the Island, I have a few questions.  How in the world have I not heard about this book before now?  And how in the world is this book not being talked about by every single reader out there?  I was hooked from page one to the very end.  I cried, I laughed, I cried some more, I laughed some more, and I undeniably fell in love.

As I started On the Island, I was even more excited (if that was even possible) to discover that it was told in an alternating point of view, following both Anna and T.J.  Dual POV is my one of my favorites, because it allows us into the head of both characters.  I adore a good male perspective and the author has delivered that wonderfully.

“I often caught T.J staring at me, but he'd never been so blatant about it.  He was getting bolder, testing the waters.  If he had been trying to hide his feelings before, he wasn't as concerned with that now.”

First thing I did when I was back into work was tell all of my reading friends about this book.  I was surprised that their first reaction was to screw up their face when I mentioned the age difference between Anna and T.J.  It was then that I remembered that I also went into it with the same concern over their age, but now that I have completed it, I've realized that I didn't give it a second thought once I started.

There is nothing inappropriate that occurs while T.J. is under age, and I feel it important to point that out.  There is nothing sleazy or dirty about the bond these two form while on the island.  It is a natural and beautiful connection, one that even now writing this review brings a tear to my eye when I think about it.  It is a gradual friendship that turns to love, and again the only word I can think of to describe it is beautiful.

“I love you, Anna.”
The surprised look on her face told me she hadn’t seen that coming.
“You weren’t supposed to fall in love,” she whispered.
“Well, I did,” I said, looking into her eyes. “I’ve been in love with you for months.  I’m telling you now because I think you love me too, Anna.  You just don’t think you’re supposed to.  You’ll tell me when you’re ready.  I can wait.”

I can not even put into words the love I have for Anna and T.J.  I felt as though I was right there with them during their struggles.  There were several times when I simply could not see how they were ever going to survive, and it was heart wrenching.  They showed both unbelievable strength and courage in a time of great difficulty.  I know that I would not have made it through the hardships they faced, but thankfully they had each other.

“If she had gotten sick, the only thing I could have done was watch her suffer.  Bury her next to Mick when she died.  I didn’t know if I could make it without her.  The sound of her voice, her smile, her – those were the things that made living on the island bearable.”

I think myself lucky to have been able to read some amazing books in my lifetime, and I will be adding On the Island to my list of all time favorites... without a doubt.  This is the kind of book that I will gush about forever, with anybody who is willing to listen to me.  And the most shocking discovery?  This is Tracey Garvis Graves' debut novel.  I will be on the look out for anything she publishes in the future, she has won me over as a lifelong reader of her novels.

“I don't fit in your world."

"Neither do I," he said, his expression tender yet resolute.  "So let's make our own. We've done it before.”

MORE QUOTES FROM ON THE ISLAND

Book Blogger Spotlight: The Indigo Quill

My name is Lis Ann (pronounced like Lisa without the "a") and originally I am from Battle Creek, Mi. But right now I live in Springfield, MO with my husband and our two fur babies.

My partner in crime, Carolynn, still resides in our hometown with her husband.

When and why did you become a book blogger?

Well, I've been blogging ever since like, 7th grade (OpenDiary, anyone?). I recently decided to start a Book Review blog because, well, I love books and love blogging. Apparently I should've started sooner because it's just exploded since!

How did you come up with the name of your blog?

Funny story. We have recently been decorating our house and I got a ton of cheap furniture on Craigslist to up cycle and paint. I painted our entertainment center and coffee table this rich, bluish color and looked at the name of the paint. It was called "Indigo Midnight" so when I was thinking of a name, this is how the thought process went: "Indigo. That's a cool word. Now I need something writerly. What's writerly? …a quill! Quills are writerly! We shall be called The Indigo Quill!" And thus I set forth!

What is your favorite thing about blogging?

Gosh, that's a tough one. I mean, other than the fact that I may never run out of books to read, I love all the great people we get to connect with and help out. As aspiring writers, it helps us to feel not so alone, and hopefully our fellow authors as well.

What do you find the hardest about blogging?

Turning down people's work. It breaks our hearts. I mean we want everyone to succeed and when we have to turn down an author because they didn't ensure their work was polished enough to be public-worthy, it's an email we always dread writing.

Does your blog participate in any weekly features and if so which is your favorite?

YES! Currently we do a segment every Saturday called "Cinematic Saturdays" where we compare a book to its (often tragic) movie adaptation. It's a lot of fun. Actually, we just did a video review on the Twilight series. Which, if you are a Twi-hard…you may hate us for it. lol I'm thinking of a couple more segments to add, but we are currently working on an entirely new project we can utilize to provide emerging authors help in the publishing process.

What has been your favorite moment since you became a book blogger? Which review, interview or giveaway have you been most proud of?

Well, our Twilight review was pretty entertaining. I mean, it's basically 30 minutes of a bash fest (again, sorry Twihards!!) but we had so much fun with it. Plus it was our first video so we have all those wonderfully awkward quirks in there. Like me laughing awkwardly throughout the whole video...

Other than that, I really enjoyed interviewing R.T. Kaelin for his book Progeny. He was a lot of fun to work with and I was able to have some unique moments with his interview.

What kind of genres do you enjoy reading and reviewing the most?

That's tough. I try to be a well-rounded reader, so I like a lot of them. I guess if I had to choose ONE, it would be Christian Fiction. I'm a total sucker for Karen Kingsbury. I also love classics like Jane Austen. But I also love books I can learn from, like we've done some cookbooks and even a book on interpreting Dreams. All the fun and unique ones that I think sets us apart as a blog. I really didn't answer your question…sorry…lol

What is your favorite individual book or series? What makes you love it so much?

Harry Potter. Always. J.K. Rowling is a literary genius who did endless amounts of planning and development. I mean, she created her own world. The fact that she wrote some books that were IN her books is seriously awesome (Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, Quidditch Through The Ages).

However, I REALLY wish she would write "Hogwarts, a History." Sigh. Maybe someday.

Who is your favorite fictional male character, why and from what book or series are they from?

This is tough. Umm. Michael Hosea from "Redeeming Love." Holy crap am I in love with that man!

Who is your favorite fictional female character, why and from what book or series are they from?

Hermione Granger. She is my literary parallel. Anal and obsessive compulsive just like me. In high school, my friends and I associated with the HP Trio. We even made videos…parodies…we're trying to get a hold of them so we can post them on the blog. lol!

Who are your favorite three authors and why?

Wow this is really hard! Obviously J.K. Rowling, previously stated. Karen Kingsbury because she writes things that people can really relate to. Victor Hugo. Wow. Talented and innovative. If you haven't seen/read Les Miserables, you need to. Right. Now.

If you could turn one book or series into films, what would you pick and who would you cast as the main characters?

Redeeming Love. It would be so tragically beautiful.

Cast?
Angel: Rachel McAdams
Michael: Sam Worthington
Duke: Robert Carlyle (totally creeps me out as Rumplestilskin in Once Upon a Time!)
Miriam: Camilla Belle

What has been your favorite book of 2013? Why did you love it?

Okay, it's been a little bit of a guilty pleasure, but I really enjoyed the "Blood and Snow" series by RaShelle Workman. I couldn't stop reading. It was a serious issue. That one and "Sparkly Green Earrings" by Melanie Shankle, that was good for a laugh!

What books are you most looking forward to in 2013?

Well, I've been trying to get into "The Selection" series, but I was #16 on the waiting list at the library!! Still waiting so I can read "The Elite"!

Paper books or ebooks?

PAPER BOOKS. Anyone else like to smell the pages? Or is that just me?

Where is your favorite place to read?

Anywhere in nature.

Milk chocolate, white chocolate or dark chocolate?

White chocolate! I've had this thing for cookies n cream candy lately.

Coffee, hot tea or hot chocolate?

Coffee. With lots of cream and sweetener. Really, it's my excuse to have dessert first thing in the morning.

Would you like to give any other details about yourself? How can others find you around the web? Such as Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, etc...

Blog: http://theindigoquill.blogspot.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheIndigoQuill   @TheIndigoQuill
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheIndigoQuill
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/TheIndigoQuil

Author Spotlight: L.M. Augustine

L.M. Augustine

Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Website

So, tell us a little bit about yourself.

I'm a professional dork, a YA and NA author, a semi-talented chocolate eater, and--yes--a reader-ordained badass. (One reader said it! One! So of course I'm taking the title anyway.) I live in New England and love writing love stories about quirky characters.

Now, tell us one thing about yourself that you do not usually include in your regular author bio.

*whispers* I strongly believe that if you aren't at least a little bit weird, you have not lived. */whisper*

Who and what did you grow up reading? Do you remember the first book that you fell in love with?

I used to love reading Cornelia Funke books. I doubt they were the first books I fell in love with, but Dragon Rider is the first book I remember reading and loving, right when it first came out.

Who would you say has had the most influence over you becoming a writer?

Definitely John Green. I didn't discover him until recently, but he was one of the authors that inspired me to start writing seriously.

What made you decide to sit down and actually start something?

I have been writing forever, but never seriously until one day when I was reading a book (I think The Maltese Falcon?) and was really loving it, and then I thought, hey, I can do this, and I sat down and started a random book idea I had. I wrote really infrequently, starting and stopping on the book, but eventually, I finished!

How long have you been writing? Do you write part-time or full-time?

I've been writing seriously for about two years now, but I've been writing random, non-novel stories since I was a little kid.

I currently write part-time, but I'm hoping to one day make that full-time!

What is your normal writing style? Do you outline and plot or do you just start writing to see where the story takes you?

It really varies from book to book. Sometimes I have no outline at all, just a basic plot, and I wing the rest of the book. (Then have to do tons of revisions.) Other times I make very detailed, very meticulous planning of the whole plot. It all depends on what the individual book needs.

Do you have any quirky writing habits?

Yes! I physically cannot write fiction sitting down or standing up. I have to be reclined in some way. (Is this awful? Am I THAT lazy?)

How long on average does it take you to write a book?

Again, it really varies from book to book. I've written books that have taken six months before and some that only took a few weeks (Click, actually.) Sometimes the story flows and sometimes it doesn't; it all depends.

What would you say is the hardest and the most enjoyable thing about writing?

The hardest part about writing, for me, are the second and third drafts. Nothing drives me crazier than when I read through the mess that my first drafts leave and have to wade through and fix EVERYTHING as I go. It's tedious, but it’s also necessary.

What has been your most memorable experience since publishing your first book?

I would say, in general, meeting all of the awesome publishing people. Authors, bloggers, readers--everyone in this community is so great. I'd be nowhere without them.

If you could go back in time, what advice would you give to your younger self?

My advice would probably be not to take advice from random future versions of yourself because, you know, that'd be a little creepy for Younger Me. (I am bad at advice.)

Give us a little hint and insight into what you are working on at the moment.

Well, I'm finishing up Two Roads, my NA romance which you can find on Goodreads, but I'm also working on something that is really… REALLY… dark. That's all I'll say!

Now, let’s have some fun. What is your favorite pizza topping?

Pepperoni all the way!

Describe to me your most perfect Ice Cream Sundae.

Okay, it is black raspberry chip with hot fudge and whipped cream, and it is one of those awesomely large Styrofoam cups. I love the feeling of eating sundaes out of those.

As a reader, do you prefer ebooks or paper/hard backs?

eBooks for sure. I haven't read a print book in over a year.

Where is your favorite place to read?

I love reading in this little couch by the window at my house, especially when it's sunny out.

If you found yourself stranded on an island, what is the one book you would want with you? And why?

I would definitely bring The Fault In Our Stars by John Green, because it's the one book that never fails to make me both laugh and cry no matter how many times I read it.


And last but not least, I am an animal lover. Do you have any pets? And if so, what kind and what are their names?

I have a dog--dogs are far superior to cats, as you are well aware--and she's a black lab and her name is Pickle.


Be sure to check out all of L.M. Augustine's books!

Camp Boyfriend: Blog Tour Stop, Excerpt & Giveaway

SYNOPSIS

The summer of her dreams is about to get a reality check.

They said it couldn't be done, but geeky sophomore Lauren Carlson transformed herself into a popular girl after moving to a new school halfway across the country. Amazing what losing her braces and going out for cheerleading will do. Only trouble is, the popular crowd is wearing on Lauren's nerves and she can't wait to return to summer camp where she's valued for her brain instead of her handsprings. She misses her old friends and most of all, her long time camp-only boyfriend, Seth. This year she intends to upgrade their relationship to year-round status once she's broken up with her new, jock boyfriend, Matt. He doesn't even begin to know the real her, a girl fascinated by the night sky who dreams of discovering new planets and galaxies.

But Matt isn't giving her up without a fight. As he makes his case to stay together, Lauren begins to realize his feelings run deeper than she ever would have guessed. What if the guy she thought she was meant to be with forever isn't really The One? Returning to Camp Juniper Point was supposed to ground her uprooted life, but she's more adrift than ever. Everything feels different and soon Lauren's friends are turning on her and both guys question what she really wants. As summer tensions escalate, Lauren wonders if she's changed more than she thought. Will her first big discovery be herself?

PURCHASE LINKS
Amazon US | Amazon UK | Barnes and Noble | Book Depository

Add the Camp Boyfriend series to your Goodreads TBR

EXCERPT

     “That’s it?”  The words were torn from the deepest part of me, my voice ragged.  No arguments to make me change my mind?
     Seth put his hand lightly on my wrist and drew in a ragged breath.  “What else can there be?  Except--” his voice grew husky, “this.”
     I only had a second to wonder what he meant before he closed his eyes and kissed me.
     My thoughts went haywire.  But the pressure of his lips against mine sent my worries packing.  He kissed differently than Matt.  Slower.  My lips parted under his, welcoming the contact that I’d been missing.
     Our First Kiss of Camp.  If he still cared about that tradition, he must still care about me.  I lifted my hands to his shoulders to pull him closer, but he eased back instead.
     “God. I shouldn’t have done that.  I’m sorry, Lauren.”  He got to his feet while I stared at him, dazed.
     The sound of his retreating steps on the dock pulled me out of my romantic fantasies.
     “Seth!”  I jumped up.
     He stopped short of the beach and turned.
     “What are you doing?”  It was a dumb question.  What I meant to ask was, why are you leaving before we settle anything?
     “I need time to… figure things out.”  He stuffed a hand in the pocket of his cargo shorts, eyes sliding away from mine.  “I can’t go back to the bonfire tonight and see you.  With him.  In fact, it might take me a little while before I can handle seeing you together in places that hold all my favorite memories of us.”
     The ache in my chest twisted.  God, I didn’t want to hurt him.  The night air felt colder all of the sudden.  I wanted him to come back.
     “I’m sorry.”  I felt so helpless.
     He backed up another step.  “Don’t worry about me, Lauren.”  The corners of his lips lifted slightly.  “I’ve just got to wrap my head around this.”  His eyes searched mine.  “Will you be okay?”
     His concern for me was a knife in my heart.  I didn’t deserve such a good guy.  Tears burned the backs of my eyes.
     I must have nodded though.  Because with a last, long look, he turned on his heel and sprinted away.
     I raced after him, but the forest swallowed him by the time I reached the beach.  My heart pounded harder than the June bugs against the dock light, a cheery campfire song reminding me how tough it would be to pretend everything was fine.  Were Seth and I over?
     I gazed skyward and spotted Jupiter, comforted by its appearance in a world changing at the speed of light.  How could I have hurt the one person who understood me best, who knew who I was underneath the new clothes and new look?  I watched the loons land gracefully in the water and resume their circular trek around the lake.  Their calls floated back to me, the lonely sound mirroring the void Seth’s absence left behind.
     My eyes closed.  What had I done?

MEET THE AUTHORS
 
J. K. Rock is the pseudonym for YA writing partners - and sisters-in-law - Joanne & Karen Rock. Although they started out sharing an annual shopping trip, they ended up discussing their favorite films and books, joining the same book club  and talking about writing... a lot. Their debut novel, Camp Boyfriend, is the first in a three-book series that was plotted during family pool parties. Their creative partnership is unique in that they enjoy passing a book back and forth, each adding a chapter and fine-tuning the chapter before. Years of friendship has yielded a shared voice and vision for their work that makes writing a pleasure.

Find J.K. Rock on:  Facebook | Goodreads | Website

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