Cover Reveal: ONE, TWO, THREE by Elodie Nowodazkij

I am so excited to help reveal the cover of ONE, TWO, THREE by my friend Elodie Nowodazkij!

Here's a little about this amazing book...

Synopsis:

When seventeen-year-old Natalya’s dreams of being a ballerina are killed in a car accident along with her father, she must choose: shut down—like her mother—or open up to love.

Last year, Natalya was attending the School of Performing Arts in New York City. Last year, she was well on her way to becoming a professional ballerina. Last year, her father was still alive.

But a car crash changed all that—and Natalya can’t stop blaming herself. Now, she goes to a regular high school in New Jersey; lives with her onetime prima ballerina, now alcoholic mother; and has no hope of a dance career.

At her new school, however, sexy soccer player Antonio sees a brighter future for Natalya, or at least a more pleasant present, and his patient charms eventually draw her out of her shell.

But when upsetting secrets come to light and Tonio’s own problems draw her in, Natalya shuts down again, this time turning to alcohol herself.

Can Natalya learn to trust Antonio before she loses him—and destroys herself?

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20656288-one-two-three?ac=1

And now for the cover!

 

 

 

I cannot wait to read this book!

 

A little about the author...

 

The short story: Young adult author, Elodie Nowodazkij writes the stories swirling in her head during her commuting time.

The long story: Elodie Nowodazkij was raised in a tiny village in France, where she could always be found a book in hand. At nineteen, she moved to the US, where she learned she’d never lose her French accent. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Modern Language & Linguistics, and later earned master’s degrees in German Cultural Studies and European Studies. Unbeknownst to her professors, she sometimes drafted stories in class. Now she lives in Germany with her husband and their cat (who doesn’t seem to realize he’s not human), and uses her commuting time to write the stories swirling in her head. She's also a serial smiley user.
ONE TWO THREE is her first novel. 

Author Links:

http://elodienowodazkij.com/

https://twitter.com/commutinggirl

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7800147.Elodie_Nowodazkij

 

Definitely check out this book! 

Also, there's a giveaway! Hope I post this correctly...

Giveaway: The author is hosting a giveaway to celebrate the reveal!

 

<a id="rc-22b3ef3" class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/22b3ef3/" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
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My Bucket List, in Honor of the Release of SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY

In honor of the release of SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY, author Julie Murphy has asked us to post about our bucket lists. Here's mine!

 

1. Swim with dolphins. This has been my dream for as long as I can remember.

 

2. Travel the world. There are A LOT of places I want to visit! A few places at the top of my list are: Australia, New Zealand, Czech Republic, Iceland and Dubai. But really, it's easier to list the places I don't want to visit. I pretty much want to go everywhere!

 

 

3. Hold a koala. They are just so adorable!

 

4. Get a book published. Obviously.

 

5. Have my book made into a movie. (Actually, my ultimate dream is to have my book made into a tv movie for ABC Family.)

 

6. Visit all 50 states. I have been to 25 so far. I also really want to visit the 4 corners!

 

 

7. Visit all 7 continents. I have been to 3 so far. I REALLY want to go to Antarctica, despite how much I hate the cold and snow! And I really want to see penguins!

 

8. Be fluent in French. This has been one of my goals in life since high school.

 

9. Fall in love and get married. I'd be lying if I didn't put this on my list.

 

 

10. See the Northern Lights.

 

And now for a few things I have accomplished!

 

1. Get a tattoo. I have two: a star and a dolphin.

 

2. Go on a road trip. I have been on several!

 

3. Be an extra in a movie. The movie was never finished but it was still a fun experience!

 

4. See the Eiffel Tower. Amazing. However, I need to go back so I can see it sparkle at night. I went in the fall of 1999, before they started doing that.

 

5. Go to Egypt. I went in 2007 and it was incredible. I got to see the pyramids and ride a camel.

 

 

6. Go to Europe. I studied abroad in college and got to travel all over Europe.

 

Now, about the book. I'm so excited to read it!

 

 

From Goodreads:

 

What if you’d been living your life as if you were dying—only to find out that you had your whole future ahead of you?

When sixteen-year-old Alice is diagnosed with leukemia, her prognosis is grim. To maximize the time she does have, she vows to spend her final months righting wrongs—however she sees fit. She convinces her friend Harvey, whom she knows has always had feelings for her, to help her with a crazy bucket list that’s as much about revenge (humiliating her ex-boyfriend and getting back at her arch nemesis) as it is about hope (doing something unexpectedly kind for a stranger and reliving some childhood memories). But just when Alice’s scores are settled, she goes into remission.

Now Alice is forced to face the consequences of all that she’s said and done, as well as her true feelings for Harvey. But has she done irreparable damage to the people around her, and to the one person who matters most?

Julie Murphy’s SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY is a fearless and moving tour de force about love, life, and facing your own mortality.

 

About Julie:

 

Julie lives in North Texas with her husband who loves her, her dog who adores her, and her cat who tolerates her. When she's not writing or trying to catch stray cats, she works at an academic library. Side Effects May Vary is Julie's debut novel. Julie can best be found on her website (www.juliemurphywrites.com), tumblr (www.andimjulie.tumblr.com), or twitter (www.twitter.com/andimjulie).

 

 

 



Book Love: Solving for Ex by Leigh Ann Kopans

 

From Goodreads:

1 crush on your best friend +
1 gorgeous, scheming new girl +
1 Mathletics competition =
1 big mess

SIMPLIFY.

Ashley Price doesn’t have much in life after being bullied so hard she had to leave her old school to live with her aunt and uncle in Pittsburgh. But the camera she borrowed from her best friend and secret crush Brendan, and her off the charts math abilities, make things a lot more bearable. Plus, since Brendan is the captain, making the school Mathletes team should be easy.

But when gorgeous new girl Sofia rolls in and steals Brendan, Ashley's place on the team, and her fragile foothold on the Mansfield Park Prep social totem pole, it’s on. Sofia is everything Ashley left her old school to escape. The only thing Ashley didn’t count on is Sofia’s sexy twin brother Vincent.

Vincent is not only the hottest boy in school, he’s charming, sweet, and he’s got his eye on Ashley. He’s also not taking no for an answer. There's no real reason Ashley shouldn't like Vincent, but with the
battle lines being drawn between her and Sofia, Ashley’s not sure which side he’s on. Or which side she wants him to be on.

She does know Sofia is trouble with a capital T, and she’s determined to make Brendan see it.

SOLVING FOR EX is a YA contemporary romance that remixes Mansfield Park as Clueless meets Mean Girls in a crazy mix of high school society, mathletic competition, and teenage romance.

Once I saw that description: "a YA contemporary romance that remixes Mansfield Park as Clueless meets Mean Girls in a crazy mix of high school society, mathletic competition, and teenage romance" I knew I just had to read it!  I will admit, I have never read Mansfield Park but Clueless and Mean Girls are two of my most favorite movies. I knew I had to read this book, and I was lucky enough to receive an e-ARC.

I loved this book! I never really liked math in school. It wasn't that I was bad at it (I was actually pretty good) it's that I wasn't interested so I didn't care. I remember doing bad in math on purpose in junior high so that boys would like me better (oh, the stupid things we do in junior high). So anyway, math was never my favorite subject. However, my sister is a math teacher, so I'm used to fractions, and math jokes and eating pie on Pi Day. I had no clue about most of the math stuff they discussed in this book but it was okay because I still got it.

Haha ;)

Ashley is a totally relatable character. She went through some pretty rough stuff at her old school, and wants nothing more than to never deal with that again. She has this great best friend/crush, Brendan, who is adorable and sweet and made me want to go eat pancakes in a diner with him. And while I've never had the hottest guy in school after me, I could understand how Ashley felt about Vincent. Sofia was a great "mean girl" and I couldn't wait to see what would happen to her.

It's a great book. Go check it out! You can find it here:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble 

And just for fun, my favorite math joke:

End of Year Book Survery 2013

I read this on Dahlia’s blog and thought it was so much fun that I had to do it, too! Then I found out it’s part of a blog hop. Even better!

 

BEST BOOKS IN 2013

Contemporary – JUST ONE DAY by Gayle Forman, GOLDEN by Jessi Kirby, FANGIRL by Rainbow Rowell

Paranormal – SCHOOL SPIRITS by Rachel Hawkins

Dystopian – TAKEN by Erin Bowman

Historical – Didn’t read any which is not surprising since I don’t read many historical books.

Fantasy – Didn’t read any fantasy books.

BOOK I WAS EXCITED ABOUT BUT DIDN’T LOVE

3:59 by Gretchen McNeil was probably the biggest disappointment for me. I had been SO excited about it and didn’t like it at all. Also, A FIELD GUIDE FOR HEARTBREAKERS by Kristen Tracey. Two girls doing a writing program in Prague? Sounded awesome. Unfortunately I didn’t care for the characters or story at all. HOW I LOST YOU by Janet Gurtler is another I was looking forward to and didn’t like.

MOST SURPRISING (IN A GOOD WAY!) BOOK OF 2013

HOW TO LOVE by Katie Cotugno. I wasn’t sure I’d be able to relate to the main character, and I was wrong. Read this based on Katy Upperman’s recommendation and loved it.

BOOK YOU READ IN 2013 THAT YOU RECOMMENDED TO PEOPLE MOST IN 2013?

FANGIRL by Rainbow Rowell.

BEST SERIES YOU DISCOVERED IN 2013

The HUNDRED OAKS books by Miranda Kenneally. I’m not really interested in sports, but I really enjoyed CATCHING JORDAN.

FAVORITE NEW AUTHOR YOU DISCOVERED IN 2013

Rainbow Rowell. LOVE. Got to meet her in Omaha and she is amazing!

BEST BOOK THAT WAS OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE OR A NEW GENRE FOR YOU

Since I’ve been reading so much YA, it’s unusual for me to read any “grown up” books anymore. So I’d say ME BEFORE YOU by Jojo Moyes.

MOST THRILLING, UNPUTDOWNABLE BOOK OF 2013

Either UNITED WE SPY by Ally Carter or SEVEN MINUTES IN HEAVEN by Sara Shepard, because they were the final books in those series and I couldn’t wait to see how they ended.

BOOK YOU READ IN 2013 THAT YOU ARE LIKELY TO RE-READ IN THE COMING YEAR

JUST ONE DAY and JUST ONE YEAR by Gayle Forman. I rarely re-read books, but after I finished JUST ONE DAY, I regretted getting it from the library because I knew I’d want to read it again. I ended up ordering my own copy from Amazon.

FAVORITE COVER OF A BOOK YOU READ IN 2013

GOLDEN by Jessi Kirby. I just think it’s pretty.

MOST MEMORABLE CHARACTER IN 2013

Park from ELEANOR & PARK by Rainbow Rowell.

MOST BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN BOOK READ IN 2013

ME BEFORE YOU by Jojo Moyes.

BOOK THAT HAD THE GREATEST IMPACT ON YOU IN 2013

ME BEFORE YOU by Jojo Moyes.

BOOK YOU CAN’T BELIEVE YOU WAITED UNTIL 2013 TO FINALLY READ

JELLICOE ROAD by Melina Marchetta.

FAVORITE PASSAGE/QUOTE FROM A BOOK YOU READ IN 2013

"...the weird emptiness of not having a best friend to tell things to. How it's lonelier than any breakup could ever be." - HOW TO LOVE 

(I couldn't put too much of the quote because it would give away spoilers.

SHORTEST AND LONGEST BOOK YOU READ IN 2013

No idea. I don’t keep track. INSURGENT felt like the longest. Ha.

BOOK THAT HAD A SCENE THAT HAD ME REELING/DYING TO TALK TO SOMEONE ABOUT IT

HOW TO LOVE by Katie Cotugno. Couldn’t wait to email Katy about it when I was done!

FAVORITE RELATIONSHIP FROM A BOOK YOU READ IN 2013

Every relationship in FANGIRL by Rainbow Rowell. Loved the romance, loved the twin relationship, loved the family issues.

FAVORITE BOOK IN 2013 FROM AN AUTHOR YOU’VE READ PREVIOUSLY

GOLDEN by Jessi Kirby.

BEST BOOK YOU READ IN 2013 THAT YOU READ SOLELY ON A RECOMMENDATION FROM SOMEONE ELSE

HOW TO LOVE by Katie Cotugno. Thanks again, Katy!

GENRE YOU READ THE MOST FROM IN 2013

YA of course.

BOOK THAT MADE YOU CRY IN 2013

THE BOOK OF BROKEN HEARTS by Sarah Ockler. Oh my goodness, I missed something crucial when I read the synopsis. This book broke MY heart.

BOOK YOU READ IN 2013 THAT YOU THOUGHT GOT OVERLOOKED THIS YEAR OR WHEN IT CAME OUT

SOMEDAY, SOMEDAY, MAYBE by Lauren Graham.

BOOK BLOGGING/READING LIFE 2013

NEW FAVORITE BOOK BLOG YOU DISCOVERED IN 2013

Um…I'm sure there are some, but I can't think of any at the moment.

FAVORITE REVIEW THAT YOU WROTE IN 2013

N/A

BEST DISCUSSION YOU HAD ON YOUR BLOG

I talked about my own JUST ONE DAY experience I had back in college, and it was fun to tell that story again.

MOST THOUGHT-PROVOKING REVIEW OR DISCUSSION YOU READ ON SOMEONE ELSE’S BLOG

Um? I’m sure there were many but I can’t think right now.

BEST EVENT THAT YOU PARTICIPATED IN

Um? Not sure that I really participated in any events.

BEST MOMENT OF YOUR BOOK LIFE IN 2013

I traveled to Omaha to visit one of my best friends and we attended a book signing with Rainbow Rowell, Stephanie Perkins and Gayle Forman. It doesn’t get much better than that. I had the best time.

MOST POPULAR POST THIS YEAR ON YOUR BLOG

 N/A

POST YOU WISH GOT A LITTLE MORE LOVE

N/A

BEST BOOKISH DISCOVERY

Getting ebooks from my library on my Kindle. Super easy!

READING CHALLENGES/GOALS

I had 2 goals: read 40 books (I set it low this year because I planned to do a lot of writing, which didn’t happen) and read 1 classic. I read 40+ books (and did zero writing) but did not read a classic.

LOOKING AHEAD

ONE BOOK YOU DIDN’T GET TO IN 2013 THAT WILL BE A PRIORITY IN 2014

All of Sarah Pekkanen’s books, TIME AFTER TIME by Tamara Ireland Stone, EXILE (Keeper #2) by Shannon Messenger, ALL THE SUMMER GIRLS by Meg Donohue (obviously I can’t pick just one book…)

BOOK YOU ARE MOST ANTICIPATING FOR 2014 (NON-DEBUT)

ISLA AND THE HAPPILY EVER AFTER by Stephanie Perkins, SINCE YOU’VE BEEN GONE by Morgan Matson, THE ONE AND ONLY by Emily Giffin, LOST LAKE by Sarah Addison Allen

2014 DEBUT RELEASE YOU ARE MOST ANTICIPATING

In no particular order… PUSH GIRL by Chelsie Hill & Jessica Love, DAMSEL DISTRESSED by Kelsey Macke, BEHIND THE SCENES by Dahlia Adler, POINTE by Brandy Colbert.

SERIES ENDING YOU ARE MOST ANTICIPATING IN 2014

ISLA AND THE HAPPILY EVER AFTER by Stephanie Perkins.

ONE THING YOU HOPE TO ACCOMPLISH IN YOUR READING/BLOGGING PROCESS IN 2014

Read 50 books, read one classic, read every book on my Nook & Kindle that I haven’t read yet, read all the books I have on my shelves that I haven’t read yet.

YA Book Club: Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson

YA book club is hosted by Tracey Neithercott. This month's book is Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson.

From Goodreads:

Taylor Edwards’ family might not be the closest-knit—everyone is a little too busy and overscheduled—but for the most part, they get along just fine. Then Taylor’s dad gets devastating news, and her parents decide that the family will spend one last summer all together at their old lake house in the Pocono Mountains.

Crammed into a place much smaller and more rustic than they are used to, they begin to get to know each other again. And Taylor discovers that the people she thought she had left behind haven’t actually gone anywhere. Her former best friend is still around, as is her first boyfriend…and he’s much cuter at seventeen than he was at twelve.

As the summer progresses and the Edwards become more of a family, they’re more aware than ever that they’re battling a ticking clock. Sometimes, though, there is just enough time to get a second chance—with family, with friends, and with love.

I absolutely loved Morgan Matson's debut,  Amy and Roger's Epic Detour, but I held off on reading this book for a long time because I knew it would be so sad. That's why I'm glad it was chosen for YA Book Club - it gave me the push I needed to read it. I loved it.

I could definitely relate to Taylor and her family. My family is similar in many ways - we get along fine, but I wouldn't say we are super close. We don't hug constantly or say "I love you" all the time, and we're not the type to sit around and talk about our feelings or sad things. 

Even though I'm the oldest in my family, I couldn't help but think of my siblings. My brother is also super smart like Warren. And I don't know if it's necessarily a talent (like Gelsey's ballet), but my sister is a teacher and everyone thinks she is really good at it. And then there's me, the unexceptional one in the family. I like to think I'm a pretty good writer (and I am a journalist on the side, although not a "real" journalist according to my dad) but until I get a book published, it doesn't count. 

There's so much more to the story than just her dad's health. There's a former best friend and boyfriend. A job at the beach. New friends. A dog. There's just so much about the book that I loved.

I enjoyed finding out what happened with Taylor's former best friend. I like stories where best friends have falling outs, having been there myself. Every YA main character has a best friend. But not every friendship is perfect! I love books that explore friendships. Also loved Henry and their relationship as well. It was really sweet. 

Despite all the sadness with her dad, it really wasn't a sad book. I loved reading about her summer adventures, especially since I've never had a summer like that - staying in a lake house, spending all summer on the beach. I liked the breakfasts between Taylor and her dad or how they'd stop for ice cream. Or the silly puns. Even though there was always that sadness in the back of my mind, it still made me smile. Everything made me think of my own dad, even though I hate the idea of anything bad ever happening to him.

This book is definitely sad. It made me cry. But I loved it.