The Cilantro in Apple Pie by Kimberley Knights

The Cilantro in Apple Pie
by Kimberley Knights

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Just released: May 3, 2016
Publisher: Ravenswood Publishing
Genre: Contemporary YA
Paperback: 310 pages
Rating: 3

First sentence(s):
All I could think of as I felt the wheels of that Boeing 767 lift off the tarmac was that if I died, the pamphlet at my funeral service would be so lame.

Fragnut. Confused? Well so is everyone else at Lumiere Hall Prep when sixteen-year-old Rubie Keane rolls in from Trinidad and Tobago talking her weird lingo. Not that she minds the culture confusion; she's determined to leave the past behind her and be overlooked—but a certain stoic blue blood is equally as determined to foil her plans. Gil Stromeyer's offbeat personality initially makes Rubie second-guess his sanity, but she suspects his erratic outbursts of violence mask a deeper issue in his troubled, charmed life. Despite his disturbing behavior, a gradual bond forms between the two. However, on the night of the annual Stromeyer gala, events unfold that leave Rubie stripped of her dignity and kick Gil's already fragile world off its axis. Both their well-kept secrets are uncovered, but Gil's revelation proves that sometimes the best remedy for a bad case of lost identity, is a dash of comradery from an ally packed with flavor.

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My two-bits:

This is one of those stories that moves along at an even pace until a little over halfway through the book.

The story is told from two perspectives with issues of racism and classism touched upon in a high school setting.

Also, troubled family lives from both main characters create some friendship bonding.

The Trinidad and Tobago culture and language is introduced and adds a nice tinge to the story.

Interesting to note: romance is not a focus in this YA novel.


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* review copy courtesy of author

September Zombies: end credits

Thank you dear readers for joining me for this virtual book event.


THANKS TO: Authors for Book Giveaways and Guest posts:

Braineater Jones by Stephen Kozeniewski
Amazon | Goodreads | my review | guest post

Giovanni Goes To Med School by Kathy Bryson
Amazon | Goodreads | my review | guest post

Special thanks to fellow blogger(s) for guest post(s):

Sophia Rose of Delighted Reader


IF you did not already know…

Walking Dead (2015)
Creator: Frank Darabont
Based on comic book series by: Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard
Starring: Andrew Lincoln, Norman Reedus, Melissa McBride
-Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi, Zombies | imdb | my rating: 5
Sheriff Deputy Rick Grimes leads a group of survivors in a world overrun by the walking dead. Fighting the dead, fearing the living.

=====> NETFLIX has released the Walking Dead season 6 episodes! Binge time! More of the same zombie survival goodness and gore! AND, season 7 starts October 23 ;-)


BE PREPARED: more zombies may show up before the end of the year


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* image source: event badge - Once Upon a Zombie: Book One: The Color of Fear by Billy Phillips

* Ribbet was used for some graphics creations for this event.

* part of September Zombies (schedule)

Winners for September

Here are the winners for giveaways that
ended September 27, 2016
during the September Zombies event (here)

Thanks to all contestants!
~*~

Braineater Jones by Stephen Kozeniewski
Amazon | Goodreads | my review | giveaway
Winner: Sophia Rose

Giovanni Goes To Med School by Kathy Bryson
Amazon | Goodreads | my review | giveaway
Winner: Mary Preston

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* to see the original giveaway offer, click on the signup link (contest policy)

* I will email winners for mailing addresses within two weeks.
Winners, feel free to contact me with your info if you don't get my email
or if you are just too darn excited and want to let me know -- like NOW ;-D

Waiting on Wednesday - 10.5.16

Waiting on Wednesday
sponsored by Jill at Breaking the Spine (details)
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I'm waiting for...

Dear Mr. M
by Herman Koch
-Thriller
Just released: September 6, 2016
Amazon | Goodreads
Once a celebrated writer, M had his greatest success with a suspense novel based on a real-life disappearance. It told the story of a history teacher who went missing one winter after having a brief affair with a beautiful student of his. The teacher was never found. Upon publication, M's novel was a runaway bestseller, one that marked his international breakthrough.

That was years ago, and now M's career is fading. But not when it comes to his bizarre, seemingly timid neighbor who keeps a close eye on him and his wife. Why?

From alternating points of view, where no one is to be trusted, Herman Koch weaves together an intricate tale of a writer in decline, a teenage couple in love, a missing teacher, and a single book that entwines all of their fates. Thanks to M's novel, supposedly a work of fiction, everyone seems to be linked forever, until something unexpected spins the "story" off its rails.

With ever increasing tension, his signature sardonic wit and world-renowned sharp eye for human failings, Herman Koch once again spares nothing and no one in his gripping new novel, a barbed performance that suspends readers in the mysterious space between fact and fiction.

=====> Because I am always up for a good thriller and I Herman's previous book, Summer House with Swimming Pool was a good one.

Happy re-Release: Wither by Amy Miles

Wither
The Withered Book 1
by Amy Miles
-Horror, Post Apocalyptic
Amazon | iBooks | B&N | Smashwords | Goodreads
After an epidemic swept across America like a biblical plague, the government leapt into the fray with the release of a new vaccine—but what was meant to bring salvation to the survivors instead brought damnation. Mutations began within days of the drug’s release and the Withered Ones were born—those neither alive nor dead. They walked the streets, unblinking and unaware. And they were starting to evolve.

Growing up on the streets taught Avery Whitlock how to care for herself, but nothing could have prepared her for the outbreak of deadly gangs, a corrupt government bent on using her blood for experiments and the depths to which desperate people would go to survive. She soon discovered that it was not the Withered Ones that she needed to fear, but those still human. The ones who knew how to put a gun to her head when they wanted something from her.

Avery will be forced to decide how far she would will go to survive just one more day.

About the author:

Author Amy Miles has always been a bit of a dreamer. Growing up as an only child, and a military brat to boot, she spent countless hours escaping into the pages of a book, only to spend the following days creating a new idea of how to twist up the story to make it unique.

Since becoming a mother, Amy has slowly nourished her love of the written word while snatching writing time in the midst of soiled diapers, tumbling over legos and peering around mounds of laundry and dishes that never seem to go away. Once her only son started school, Amy was free to let her fingers dive into dark mythology, tales of betrayal and love, and explore human nature in its rawest form. Her love of seeing the world from a different angle bloomed.

Amy is the author of several novels, including her popular young adult immortal books, The Arotas Series, which are an Amazon and iBooks bestselling series. Unwilling to be defined by any one genre, she proceeded to flip over to a science fiction/fantasy based idea with her Rising Trilogy. She then dove into contemporary romance with her novel, Captivate and explored the depths of her own faith with In Your Embrace.

She is currently working on completing her Immortal Rose trilogy, a prequel to her Arotas novels. She has also embarked on two new journeys this year, one in the form of a co-written banshee trilogy, The Hallowed Realms, which is currently represented by GH Literary and she breached another genre with her upcoming adult horror novel, Wither.

Find out more about this book and author:
BookExcerpt
Website
Blog
Facebook
Twitter @Amy Miles

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* heads up courtesy of Red Coat PR