A Review of Shelley Wilson's "Blood Born"

Tween, vampire-obsessed me would have devoured Shelley Wilson’s Blood Born. I would have loved having age-appropriate vampire novels with a touch of romance then, and I was highly entertained by it now, even if I’m not part of the target demographic.

When Emma is turned into a vampire, her world is turned upside down. Her grandmother is kidnapped, a mysterious woman shows up on her doorstep promising to help her, and she meets a male vampire she has an instant attraction toward. All of this is hard to process for the loner who has always been haunted by a darkness she can’t quite explain. Now she needs to fight her own family, whom she’s only just learned about, to save her grandmother and her new-found friends at the Haven, a place for vampire half-breeds. Unfortunately, the vampire who changed her does not have Emma’s best interests in mind, and conflicting prophesies offer little guidance.

This is clearly the first in a series, as the ending is a bit of a cliffhanger. The plot has all the tropes one wants in YA vampire novel. Is the protagonist an orphan or have at least one dead parent? Check. Is the protagonist a loner? Check. Does the protagonist turn out to be a princess in hiding? Check. Is the vampire she falls for older and pretty good-looking? Check... I could go on. The romance side of the story is limited to a few kisses, so it’s not too steamy for younger readers. The biggest draw is the kick-ass main character, Emma. Despite her change and upheaval, she stays true to her values and proves to be strong and capable. She works to help and protect her friends and family.

I enjoyed Blood Born by Shelley Wilson and look forward to the sequels. I want to see how Emma confronts her future problems and learns to use her skills and strengths as a vampire.

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Book Review of "The Dare Club: Nita" by Laurie Bradach and Kim “Howard” Johnson

Laurie and Kim will be awarding a $20 Amazon Gift Card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour, so make sure to leave a comment here and visit the other stops on the tour: http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2012/11/virtual-review-tour-dare-club-nita-by.html Series: The Dare Club Format: E-book & Paperback Genre: Contemporary YA, Mystery Length: 330 pages in paperback Blurb: Nita Conroy has relocated to the most boring town on the planet. That is, until would-be boyfriend Brad Keeley spills the beans about a secret group of girls known as The Dare Club. During her subterranean initiation below the high school, Nita overhears a plan by contractors and school officials to embezzle millions of dollars in grant money. When she is betrayed, The Dare Club's pranks become deadly serious. With the clock ticking, Nita will need the help of her new friends to expose the chilling plot--and hopefully survive long enough to snag a date to the homecoming dance. Exce...

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Exposition is used in two ways when talking about fiction. First, it is the set-up at the beginning of the plot arc. Where we learn the basic who, what, when, and where. This is a necessary part of plot to ground your reader. I'm going to address the second way exposition is used in a story. This is when an author gives background information, description of characters or setting, or summarizes events that have already happened. It can happen at any point in the story. This is a necessary, key element of writing and one of the three tools an author has to tell his or her story, along with scene and dialogue. A good author does this without slowing down the forward progress of the plot. That is, the exposition makes sense in the context of the scene (or action) of the story and does not trip up the reader or bore him or her. She turned her blue gaze toward him. Here, we get the fact that she has blue eyes in the context of the action. That's the best way to give description. One...

Writer and Editor C.B. Calsing/ G.G. Royale

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