Blog Tour: The Cupcake Witch by Poppy Lawless (Book Review + Giveaway)

Hello everyone! Welcome to the review tour for The Cupcake Witch! I hope you all enjoy reading my review and be sure to enter the giveaway below to win some sweet prizes! 

Title: The Cupcake Witch (novella)
Author: Poppy Lawless
Release Date: 2015
Number of Pages: 151Genre: YA > Contemporary Romance, Paranormal, Witches, Magic
Source: Author (ebook)

Julie - 

Buttercream. Vanilla. Fondant. Dark chocolate. Brown sugar. Molasses. Baking has always been my true love, but it wasn’t until my mother’s death, and the unexpected inheritance of Serendipity Gardens, that my bliss called me. Bittersweet. But Serendipity Gardens has more to offer than just a potential shopfront. An unusual recipe box left to me by a distant relative might be the key to unlocking my dreams.

Too bad the most powerful family in Chancellor has plans that could turn those dreams to ruins—literally.

Too bad the son of that powerful family is just the kind of guy I’ve been looking for.

Horatio - 

I suppose being heir to the Hunter family’s Blushing Grape Winery should make me happy, but nothing could be further from the truth. With my mother gone, my father has taken me under his wing, and I despise everything about the way he does business. Sour grapes, indeed. Instead of raising money for charitable causes, my true passion, I’m chasing my father’s manifest destiny.

Too bad his dream includes paving paradise.

Too bad the property owner is the sweetest woman I’ve ever met.

They say the course of true love never runs smooth.

But that’s nothing a magical cupcake can’t solve. 

Purchase at: Amazon

If I had to pick two words to summarize The Cupcake Witch, it would be short and sweet, quite literally. While the story was short I found was very well written and was very lovely and has such a sweet romance. I've never read a book before where the main character was a baker so I really enjoyed seeing what desserts she made throughout the book. It actually made me start craving a cupcake myself. ;)

Julie lives with her Dad in a new town called Chancellor. Her Mother passed away in the Summer and since then Julie has decided to quit school to become a dentist like her Mother wanted her to be and fulfill her dream of being a baker. When the home of a recently deceased relative of Julie's become vacant she goes over to check out the place and finds an old recipe box. The recipes inside all have a magic spell written on them....and after trying one Julie realizes they REALLY work!

She sees this as an opportunity to turn the old but quaint house into a bakery and tea shop. Sounds like a dream, right? 

While in town, Julie meets a guy named, Horatio. Horatio is the son of a money hungry powerful man who thinks he owns the town. After Horatio's mother passed away, his father has been angry all of the time and mean to his children. He tries to force Horatio into buying the property that Julie now owns. Horatio is tired of living under his father hand and decides he rather follow his heart, which is leading him to a girl who make one heck of a cupcake! 

To find out what happens you're going to have to read the book...

I can't tell you how utterly sweet this book was. The romance between Julie and Horatio was so adorable! I do feel it was kind of rushed, so that is one of the reasons I didn't give it 5 stars. I guess it would have to be since the book is only 150 pages but I would have liked to have seen them grow more as friends before love was ever written into the story. Besides that, I do feel the author did a wonderful job of developing the characters throughout the book even though the book was a quick read. 

There are a few quick laughs tosses in which I liked and pinch of magic throughout the book. The story was not solely based on magic and witches but more so the magic between Julie and Horatio and how they both overcame their difficulties in life. One thing though I wish the author would have added in is more details on the witches, where their magic came from and why Julie now possess the powers as well. The ending is great but I feel it was a bit rushed but still it was quite magical. I definitely love happy endings!

Short and Sweet, The Cupcake Witch leaves readers feeling much like a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie, all warm and gooey. If you're looking for a quick read with a sweet romance and dash of magic than this book is perfect for you!

 Totally Awesome! I loved it, would read again.

Romance author. Cupcake connoisseur. Certified herbalist. Beach bum. Fan of all things Starbucks. Holistic healing advocate. Surfer girl wanna-be. Lost guru. Maker of dandelion wine. Counselor. Paranormal buff. Etsy addict. Secretly Jedi. So not a geek girl. Gifted in sarcasm. Hot wife. Ninja mom. And now, I'm ready to share a whole head full of witty, mouthy, smart, lovely, heart-warming, and hot characters with the world. Are you ready?

Poppy Lawless is the author of the forthcoming series Love & Chocolate releasing in 2015 and The Glass Mermaid. Poppy holds degrees in English and Psychology. She is a counselor in the field of mental health and is a trained herbalist. Poppy's new series blends the best of romance with a Practical Magic or contemporary Bewitched appeal.

Author Links:

Website│Goodreads│Twitter│Facebook

 

You can win the prizes above! Enter the rafflecopter from below. ;)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Tour Organized by:

YA Bound Book Tours

Blog Tour: Seriously Wicked by Tina Connolly | Author Interview + Giveaway!

Hello everyone! 

Welcome to the SERIOUSLY WICKED by Tina Connolly blog tour!

Today is my post day and I will be sharing with you all an author interview I've done with Tina and there is a giveaway below. Enjoy!

Title: SERIOUSLY WICKED
Author: Tina Connolly
Pub. Date: May 5, 2015
Publisher: Tor Teen
Pages: 384
Formats: Hardcover, eBook

Genre: YA - Paranormal, Fantasy

The only thing worse than being a witch is living with one.

Camellia’s adopted mother wants Cam to grow up to be just like her. Problem is, Mom’s a seriously wicked witch.

Cam’s used to stopping the witch’s crazy schemes for world domination. But when the witch summons a demon, he gets loose—and into Devon, the cute new boy at school.

Now Cam’s suddenly got bigger problems than passing Algebra. Her friends are getting zombiefied. Their dragon is tired of hiding in the RV garage. For being a shy boy-band boy, Devon is sure kissing a bunch of girls. And a phoenix hidden in the school is going to explode on the night of the Halloween Dance.

To stop the demon before he destroys Devon’s soul, Cam might have to try a spell of her own. But if she’s willing to work spells like the witch...will that mean she’s wicked too? 

Purchase @ Amazon | Barnes & Noble

1. Tell us a little about yourself?

Sure! I live with my family in Portland Oregon, but I’m originally from Lawrence, Kansas, which is a lovely little college town. I used to do a lot of theatre, and I still occasionally work as a face painter (a really fun job!) but mostly these days I focus on writing and podcasting and small children-wrangling.

2. When and how did the idea for Seriously Wicked come about?

I started this book pre-children, at a time when I had a goal to write 500 words every day. Ideally the words would be on a current project, but they could also be on some random new project. One day I sat down and this Rapunzel-ish story about a girl who lives with a *seriously wicked* witch just jumped onto the page.

3. What was your favorite part about writing the book and is there a character you had the most fun with?

I loved getting to write a book that was just flat-out fun. So my favorite parts all had to do with that. I loved thinking up the funny-horrible stories about terrible things the witch does to Cam (like turn her fingers into noodles) and I loved writing all the side characters. One of my favorite side characters is Kelvin, my sweet, clueless 4-H boy who tries to tutor Cam in math.

4. Personally I love books about teen witches, are there any you enjoyed reading and what ones are they?

I also love teen witches! One of my all-time favorite books is probably technically about pre-teen witches – Diana Wynne Jones’ Witch Week is so lovely and hilarious. Also I have to give props here to the movie Teen Witch, which my friend and I watched obsessively one summer (dancing around to all the songs.)

5. Will Seriously Wicked become a series or is it a stand-alone book? If a series, can you tell us more about it and what plans you may have for them?

It is both a stand-alone and the first in a series! I really loved these characters and wanted to tell more stories about them, so I was pretty excited when my editor felt the same way. Wicked witch Sarmine always has a new clever plan to take over the world, and my heroine Cam has to stop her. So each story is a complete stand-alone story, and so much fun to write. I’m working on the second story right now and I can’t say much about it because I’m still in the middle of it, but I will say I’m having a lot of fun writing it and cackling gleefully. Oh, and I’m working on a Seriously short story as well, about a disastrous pool party full of witches. Hopefully we’ll see that later this year. :)

6. How long did it take to write the book and tell us a little about your writing process?

This book wrote itself very quickly! I think I wrote the first few chapters in a couple weeks, and then it was summer and I had a busy face painting season that year, so the book got put down for a bit. I came back to it in fall and finished it up in a month. So the first draft was really very fast, during the times I was working on it. It was really my first full-length finished novel. But then, it went through a LOT of drafts. And in between those drafts I wrote what would be my first published novel, Ironskin, and sold that trilogy to my publisher...and then did some more drafts on this book... So the answer is both very quickly, and a very long time.

And now I have two small children, so my current writing process is: think very hard about my next scene while pushing the baby in the stroller or making dinner or whatnot...and then, as soon as the kids are asleep, write like mad.

7. Who inspires you to write? Do you have a favorite author you look up to?

Oh yeah, let me mention Diana Wynne Jones again, as she’s one of my all-time favorite authors. And for some reason, I also always want to write directly after reading her books. Perhaps it’s because she’s one of those rare writers whose books you can enjoy at any age, and I discovered her young enough that her books are somehow inextricably tied up in my conception of what a book is.

(TL;DR: Diana Wynne Jones is marvelous and everyone should read her!)

8. Describe your book in 6 words.

In 5 words, I’ll give you the title the book had during the 2nd draft: Witch Girl Hearts Demon Boy.

Thanks for being here today on Bittersweet Enchantment. Is there any final thoughts you'd like to leave my readers?

Thanks so much for having me on the blog!

About The Author: Tina Connolly

Website  | Twitter | Tumblr | Pinterest LibraryThing | GoodReads | Facebook

Tina Connolly is the author of the Ironskin trilogy from Tor Books, and the Seriously Wicked series, from Tor Teen. Ironskin, her first fantasy novel, was a Nebula finalist. Her stories have appeared in Women Destroy SF, Lightspeed, Tor.com, Strange Horizons, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, and many more. Her narrations have appeared in audiobooks and podcasts including Podcastle, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, John Joseph Adams' The End is Nigh series, and more. She runs the Parsec-winning flash fiction podcast Toasted Cake.

She is originally from Lawrence, Kansas, but she now lives with her family in Portland, Oregon, where it is nice and green and wet. Photo credit Caroline M. Yoachim.

Giveaway Details:

5 winners will receive a finished copy of SERIOUSLY WICKED! US Only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour hosted by: Rockstar Book Tours

Tour Schedule:

Week One:

4/27/2015- Pandora's Books- Interview

4/28/2015- Bookfever- Review

4/29/2015- On Starships and Dragonwings- Guest Post

4/30/2015- GenGen's Book Blog - Review

5/1/2015- Bookhounds ya- Interview

Week Two:

5/4/2015- The Midnight Society- Review

5/5/2015- Alice Marvels - Guest Post

5/6/2015- Book Briefs- Review

5/7/2015- Bittersweet Enchantment- Interview

5/8/2015- Stories & Sweeties- Review

Top Ten Tuesday #27+ Teaser Tuesday #54 ( Sisters' Fate )

It's been a while since I've done a Top Ten Tuesday, sadly. I love this weeks theme so I decided to join in. I will say my ten choices are going to be an extremely (and maybe even crazy) mixed up group. ;) haha! 

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This meme was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists! 

This week's Top Ten is: 

Top Ten Book Characters That Would Be Sitting At My Lunch Table

1.  Anna from Anna and The French Kiss: She is so sweet, upbeat and downright totally awesome. I could see her being one of my closest friends at the table. 
2. Étienne St. Clair from Anna and The French Kiss (who saw this one coming?!) He of course would be there since, well, since he's AWESOME (and sexy as hell! - Shh, don't tell Anna I said that.) Sitting right next to Anna. :)
3. Robin Goodfellow aka Puck from The Iron Fey series. I love a man who can make me laugh, and who is definitely eye candy. I think we could get along famously. 
4. Kaylee from The Soul Screamers series. I can just see myself being a really good friend with her. She's loyal and brave. Besides having an epic power, she comes across as being helpful and selfless.
5. Roth from White Hot Kiss. Why? Because we would be dating and in love. Nuff' said. :) (hey a girl can dream right?? RIGHT?! ) 
6. Scarlet from The Lunar Chronicles. She's a totally wicked cool chick. I think she would be right next to Kaylee at the table. They both would fight for the ones they love. Also, she would bring food to share. ;)
7. Katarina Bishop from the Heist Society series. Kat would be great for sneaking us some free food or even figuring out a way to cut next period without getting caught. 
8. Patch Cipriano from the Hush, Hush series. Patch would be the protector and a watchful eye, so the group would be safe. He also being an Fallen Angel and drop dead sexy would fit in perfectly. (that's my reasons, and I sticking to them) :-P
9. +  10. Eleanor & Park from Eleanor & Park. (haha) They both would add such diversity to the group. I could see them both being close friends with me as well as Roth, Anna, and St. Clair. 

there's my list and wow, what a fun group it is. ;) 

What do you all think of my choices? 

---

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly meme hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.

Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

The Rules:

• Grab your current read

• Open to a random page

• Share two (2) or so “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers.

My teaser comes from the book: 

Sisters' Fate (The Cahill Witch Chronicles #3) 
by Jessica Spotswood

"Are you a witch?" he asks.

I respect him all the more for coming straight out with it. I should lie to him. For his own good. I should, but I don't. "Yes," I say quietly. 

"But I'm not the one who erased your memory. I swear it."

He leans forward, squinting. "How do you know my memory been erased, then?"

 - Taken from page 138. 

So that's all folks. Leave a comment if you'd like about my Top Ten or teaser. I love reading them all and of course if you blog leave me a link to YOUR post. I will be sure to stop by and visit you back. Promise. ;)

I ♥ my readers! 

Review by Hillary: Laila and the Witches of Kalazar by Salimah Dhanani

Title: Laila and the Witches of Kalazar

Author: Salimah Dhanani

Published: June 5th 2014 by author

Paperback, 201 pages

Genre: YA & NA > Romantic Fantasy

Source: Author/Paperback

Laila has a secret. She is the granddaughter of one of the most powerful witches of Pakistan, Shakil Kalazar. Ever since she was ten years old and the Kalazars killed her mother, Laila vowed to resist her own supernatural powers and lead a life devoid of witchcraft. She is now nineteen. Everything changes the day that her father is shot, when she realizes that her powers have become stronger and darker, now that she is able to transfer life energy using transkinesis. That is also the day that Laila meets Mark Mousakes, the young American surgeon who operates on her father. Mark is witty, thoughtful and painfully handsome. As much as Laila tries to avoid Mark, she finds their paths crossing and their mutual attraction impossible to deny. With her mother's killer in pursuit, Laila becomes embroiled in a plot of kidnapping and child trafficking, and a maelstrom of dark and dangerous witchcraft. Laila must now embrace her unique abilities as she sets off for a remote part of Pakistan to face the Kalazars in this gripping tale of magic, sacrifice, family secrets and the power of love.

Purchase @ Amazon | B&N | iTunes | Smashwords

When Laila and the Witches of Kalazar by Salimah Dhanani first came to my attention, I wasn’t sure whether I’d be able to dive into a new book with a new setting, new people, and basically a new and different culture. At the same time I realized that I needed to change my habits of sticking with stories that are always based on and/or similar to each other in characters, country, and setting. For once, I would be able to travel—story-wise—to Asia and learn the habits of a different culture. Diversity was calling me to this book and as soon as I turned the last page, I was not disappointed.

It’s the eerie silence. It makes me want to turn around and call for help. Instead, I squeeze my eyes closed as I enter the bookshop. When I open them again, my body freezes. (PROOF 2)

From the start, Laila and the Witches of Kalazar had an easy flow that made it a quick and effortless read. From the moment MC Laila Khan found her father wounded with a gunshot at his bookstore, to her first meeting with Mark Mousakes, to hanging out with her best friend Lubna and finding themselves in a dangerous situation, to learning the secrets of the Kalazars and what it has to do with her deceased mother, to meeting her grandfather for the first time, and to meeting Bakhtiar—the antagonist of the story and the man Laila must defeat with her inherited powers—were all interconnected in some way and became a whirlwind of events. It all led up to Laila either accepting herself for who she was born to be or giving it all up.

My powers frighten me sometimes. So I have tried to make myself numb against any strong-emotion—like my mother, I know what is at stake. (PROOF 12)

The story naturally had different words that pertained to the MC’s culture, so every once in a while there were a few foreign words. Thankfully, with quick notes it became easy for me to decipher the meaning of those words when I reencountered it in the text. Besides that, Salimah did an absolutely amazing job of showing, telling, and occasionally distributing feeling from Laila. The entire time I read Laila and the Witches of Kalazar, it was easy to see the events that took place like a movie in my head.

I walk into the dark house and go to the living room window to watch Mark drive away. Just before I turn away, I think that I see a movement in the bushes outside my house. I squint to get a better look. But there’s no one. (55)

As much as Laila was important to the story as a whole, the secondary characters Salimah created were also important. Characters such as Mark and Lubna helped Laila keep herself grounded and not lose herself to the darkness that lurked because of her special powers. Mark was also Laila’s love interest and seeing how their relationship developed and progressed led to a lot of cute moments. Salimah also managed to balance a lot of elements in the story. Laila’s school, home, social, and paranormal life were mostly divided, so it didn’t interfere or cross paths with each other all the time—naturally making it a lot easier to understand those different parts of Laila’s life. What I liked most about Laila and the Witches of Kalazar was the cultural difference. It’s easy to think you know about a certain place because of what you read, hear, and see but reading this story changed all of that. When I finished reading this book, I felt a certain deep respect for every place I thought I knew, but in fact didn’t. I was glad I could learn new phrases and write down what they meant or look up the styles of clothing these characters wore. It was all very humbling. I could only hope other readers would feel the same while reading this story.

 It is not how much practice I’ve had, but the amount of control that I’ve been able to exert over my abilities that makes me strong. (PROOF 105)

Laila and the Witches of Kalazar by Salimah Dhanani was overall an entertaining and unique romantic-fantasy story. Until the moment I finished turning the last page, did the story grab my interest and keep me awake into the late hours of night. From page one I was fully on Laila’s side and admired her growth as the main character of the story. Instead of writing about perfect characters with no fears or flaws, Salimah wrote exactly that; characters with fears and flaws. The cultural difference and language only helped enhance this story into what it is now—an amazing first debut. I would like to see what more there is for Laila and Mark to face together and see their relationship develop even more. Although it felt like the last few scenes of action could have been developed much more, the story left a lot open for readers to wonder about for book two. I can only hope Salimah will bring a lot more of this concept into the next book. I definitely recommend this unique story and hope other readers enjoy it as I did.

4.5 - Totally Awesome! I loved it, would read again.

Waiting on Wednesday #23 | Charmed & Silver Shadows

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event, hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week, I'm waiting on...

Charmed (The Witch Hunter #2)
by Michelle Krys
Hardcover, 368 pages
Expected publication: May 26th 2015 by Delacorte Press
Genre: YA - Paranormal Romance

Indie has spent the last few weeks frantically searching for Paige. She's tried every spell imaginable, but witchcraft has gotten her nowhere, and she's going crazy with guilt. Despite what her warlock boyfriend, Bishop, tells her, Indie knows it's her fault her best friend was kidnapped by the Priory. And with the Priory destroyed, finding Paige feels more hopeless than ever-especially when Indie discovers that Paige isn't even on Earth. She's trapped in Los Demonios, an alternate dimension of Los Angeles filled with evil paranormals. No one who has gone there has ever come out.

Fueled by terror and loyalty, Indie is desperate to find a way into the underworld prison. She'll worry about getting out later. But facing the dark world's most dangerous witches and warlocks on her own means keeping her plan hush-hush-and forging alliances with some sketchy people, including a seriously sexy sorcerer.

Sometimes a witch must keep secrets from the people she cares about most. And sometimes she isn't the only one with secrets…

I know this book is a LONGGGG way off but I couldn't help myself. I NEED it now!!! 

Once again, Hillary will be joining me for todays WOW post. YAY!

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Hillary's is waiting on....

Silver Shadows (Bloodlines #5)
by Richelle Mead
Hardcover, 416 pages
Expected publication: July 29th 2014 by Razorbill
Genre: YA - Paranormal Romance

Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets—and human lives.

In The Fiery Heart, Sydney risked everything to follow her gut, walking a dangerous line to keep her feelings hidden from the Alchemists.

Now in the aftermath of an event that ripped their world apart, Sydney and Adrian struggle to pick up the pieces and find their way back to each other. But first, they have to survive. 

For Sydney, trapped and surrounded by adversaries, life becomes a daily struggle to hold on to her identity and the memories of those she loves. Meanwhile, Adrian clings to hope in the face of those who tell him Sydney is a lost cause, but the battle proves daunting as old demons and new temptations begin to seize hold of him. . . .

Their worst fears now a chilling reality, Sydney and Adrian face their darkest hour in this heart-pounding fifth installment in the New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series, where all bets are off.

So what book(s) are YOU waiting on this Wednesday?
Leave us a comment. We would love to know. :)