Anna K: A Love Story by Jenny Lee Blog Tour (Excerpt)

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Anna K: A Love Story by Jenny Lee
Series: n/a
Genre: YA Contemporary, Romance
Publication: April 2nd 2019 by Wednesday Books

Every happy teenage girl is the same, while every unhappy teenage girl is miserable in her own special way.

Meet Anna K. At seventeen, she is at the top of Manhattan and Greenwich society (even if she prefers the company of her horses and Newfoundland dogs); she has the perfect (if perfectly boring) boyfriend, Alexander W.; and she has always made her Korean-American father proud (even if he can be a little controlling). Meanwhile, Anna’s brother, Steven, and his girlfriend, Lolly, are trying to weather an sexting scandal; Lolly’s little sister, Kimmie, is struggling to recalibrate to normal life after an injury derails her ice dancing career; and Steven’s best friend, Dustin, is madly (and one-sidedly) in love with Kimmie.

As her friends struggle with the pitfalls of ordinary teenage life, Anna always seems to be able to sail gracefully above it all. That is…until the night she meets Alexia “Count” Vronsky at Grand Central. A notorious playboy who has bounced around boarding schools and who lives for his own pleasure, Alexia is everything Anna is not. But he has never been in love until he meets Anna, and maybe she hasn’t, either. As Alexia and Anna are pulled irresistibly together, she has to decide how much of her life she is willing to let go for the chance to be with him. And when a shocking revelation threatens to shatter their relationship, she is forced to question if she has ever known herself at all.

Dazzlingly opulent and emotionally riveting, Anna K.: A Love Story is a brilliant reimagining of Leo Tolstoy’s timeless love story, Anna Karenina―but above all, it is a novel about the dizzying, glorious, heart-stopping experience of first love and first heartbreak.

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Editing Services Available!

Hi all!

I have started editing services, and I’d love to help with WIPs! Here’s some information about the services that I’m providing!


Beta Reading

A beta read is a critique from a professional point of view. I am not an editor, but I will point out aspects regarding content in your manuscript. This is somewhat like my full length reviews on my blog, but more in depth and how I, as a YA book blogger, perceive the story.

A beta read can take from 4-6 weeks depending on my own schedule, but mention in your email if you need it sooner, and we can discuss it.

I currently accept Young Adult, NA, and MG literature on this site. I read a wide range of genres, but I will usually not review erotica or memoirs/nonfiction. I accept digital copies, in the format of Word or Google Documents. The time I complete my read/review and critique will depend on the length of the manuscript as well as my own schedule. I will be sure to discuss my time of completion, pricing, and other necessary items.

What I will provide to you in my critique:

  • writing style
  • plot & flow
  • pacing
  • character development
  • dialogue & authenticity of voices
  • overall honest opinion on the manuscript as a whole.

Prices (All prices will be rounded to the nearest whole cent, in USD):

  • Pitch/synopsis: $25
  • 20,000 words or under: $50
  • 20,001-60,000 words: $200
  • 60,001-100,000 words: $250
  • Over 100,000 words: Subject to discussion.

PayPal to arcticbookss@gmail.com (Important: via the friends and family option to avoid fees.)

I am willing to negotiate if you are an indie author or a teen author. Prices are also subject to change depending on when the request needs to be fulfilled.

To request a beta read:

Email me at arcticbookss@gmail.com, with the subject line: Beta Reading Services: [Title of Manuscript] with the following information:

  • synopsis/summary
  • word count
  • genre
  • your social media information
  • by which date you would like the critique

Sensitivity Reading

“A sensitivity reader reads through a manuscript for issues of representation and for instances of bias on the page.  The goal of a sensitivity reader isn’t to edit a manuscript clarity and logic, although that may be an additional service offered. A sensitivity reader reviews a manuscript for internalized bias and negatively charged language.  A sensitivity reader is there to help make sure you do not make a mistake, but they are also NOT a guarantee against making a mistake.” Write in the Margins

I currently only accept Young Adult literature on this site, but I will consider reading excerpts of NA and MG manuscripts as well. I read a wide range of genres, but I will usually not review erotica or memoirs/nonfiction. I accept digital copies, in the format of PDR or Word. The time I complete my read/review and critique will depend on the length of the manuscript as well as my own schedule. I will be sure to discuss my time of completion, pricing, and other necessary items.

What I will provide to you in my critique:

  • portrayal of the marginalized character, whether it be the main character or side character
  • negatively-fueled language
  • harmful stereotypes
  • negative depictions of a marginalized group

I currently can sensitivity read for:

  • Chinese American characters
  • Chinese (inspired) settings
  • high school & college experience in US as a Chinese American student
  • bisexual/biromantic/pansexual/panromantic characters
  • characters with mental illness, specifically depression and anxiety
  • characters with complex relationships with parents and siblings

My experiences are not universal, so I cannot speak for everyone—I can only speak from my own experiences. A sensitivity read is also not an endorsement of your manuscript.

I will sensitivity read for any character that falls within one or more of these categories, no matter how big the character is in your story.

Prices (All prices will be rounded to the nearest whole cent, in USD)

  • Pitch/synopsis: $25
  • 20,000 words or under: $50
  • 20,001-60,000 words: $200
  • 60,001-100,000 words: $250
  • Over 100,000 words: Subject to discussion.

PayPal to arcticbookss@gmail.com (Important: via the friends and family option to avoid fees.)

I am willing to negotiate if you are an indie author or a teen author! Prices are also subject to change depending on when the request needs to be fulfilled.

To request a sensitivity read:

Email me at arcticbookss@gmail.com, with the subject line: Sensitivity Reading Services: [Title of Manuscript] with the following information:

  • synopsis/summary
  • word count
  • genre
  • your social media information
  • marginalized group in question
  • by which date you would like the critique

Blurb Editing

A blurb edit is usually for indie authors who want to feature a blurb on the cover of their book to make the novel seem more enticing to readers. I will provide you with suggestions to make your blurb(s) more intriguing!

Prices (All prices will be rounded to the nearest whole cent, in USD):

I will charge $20 for each blurb. PayPal to arcticbookss@gmail.com (Important: via the friends and family option to avoid fees.)

To request a blurb edit:

Email me at arcticbookss@gmail.com, with the subject line: Blurb Edit: [Title of Manuscript] with the following information:

  • synopsis/summary
  • word count
  • genre
  • your social media information
  • by which date you would like the critique/suggestions

Wicked Saints by Emily A. Duncan Blog Tour (Excerpt)

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36118682White Stag by Kara Barbieri
Series: Something Dark and Holy #1
Genre: YA Fantasy
Publication: April 2nd 2019 by Wednesday Books

A girl who can speak to gods must save her people without destroying herself.

A prince in danger must decide who to trust.

A boy with a monstrous secret waits in the wings.

Together, they must assassinate the king and stop the war.

In a centuries-long war where beauty and brutality meet, their three paths entwine in a shadowy world of spilled blood and mysterious saints, where a forbidden romance threatens to tip the scales between dark and light. Wicked Saints is the thrilling start to Emily A. Duncan’s devastatingly Gothic Something Dark and Holy trilogy.

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What We Buried by Kate A. Boorman Book Tour (Moodboard)

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What We Buried by Kate A. Boorman
Series:
 n/a
Genre: YA Mystery

Publication: February 26th 2019 by Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
Goodreads

Siblings Liv and Jory Brewer have grown up resenting one another. Liv—former pageant queen and reality-TV star—was groomed for a life in the spotlight, while her older brother Jory, born with a partial facial paralysis, was left in the shadows. The only thing they have in common is contempt for their parents.

Now Liv is suing her mom and dad for emancipation, and Jory views the whole thing as yet another attention-getting spectacle. But on the day of the hearing, their parents mysteriously vanish, and the siblings are forced to work together. Liv feels certain she knows where they are and suspects that Jory knows more than he’s telling . . . which is true.

What starts as a simple overnight road trip soon takes a turn for the dangerous and surreal. And as the duo speeds through the deserts of Nevada, brother and sister will unearth deep family secrets that force them to relive their pasts as they try to retain a grip on the present.

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The Cold is in Her Bones by Peternelle van Arsdale Q&A #ShelfQueens

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The Cold is in Her Bones by Peternelle van Arsdale
Series: n/a
Genre: YA Fantasy, Retelling

Publication: January 22nd 2019 by Margaret K. McElderry Books
Goodreads

Milla knows two things to be true: Demons are real, and fear will keep her safe.

Milla’s whole world is her family’s farm. She is never allowed to travel to the village and her only friend is her beloved older brother, Niklas. When a bright-eyed girl named Iris comes to stay, Milla hopes her loneliness might finally be coming to an end. But Iris has a secret she’s forbidden to share: The village is cursed by a demon who possesses girls at random, and the townspeople live in terror of who it will come for next.

Now, it seems, the demon has come for Iris. When Iris is captured and imprisoned with other possessed girls, Milla leaves home to rescue her and break the curse forever. Her only company on the journey is a terrible new secret of her own: Milla is changing, too, and may soon be a demon herself.

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White Stag by Kara Barbieri Blog Tour (Excerpt)

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White Stag_cover image.jpgWhite Stag by Kara Barbieri
Series: Permafrost #1
Genre: YA Fantasy
Publication: January 8th 2019 by Wednesday Books

The first book in a brutally stunning series where a young girl finds herself becoming more monster than human and must uncover dangerous truths about who she is and the place that has become her home.

As the last child in a family of daughters, seventeen-year-old Janneke was raised to be the male heir. While her sisters were becoming wives and mothers, she was taught to hunt, track, and fight. On the day her village was burned to the ground, Janneke—as the only survivor—was taken captive by the malicious Lydian and eventually sent to work for his nephew Soren.

Janneke’s survival in the court of merciless monsters has come at the cost of her connection to the human world. And when the Goblin King’s death ignites an ancient hunt for the next king, Soren senses an opportunity for her to finally fully accept the ways of the brutal Permafrost. But every action he takes to bring her deeper into his world only shows him that a little humanity isn’t bad—especially when it comes to those you care about.

Through every battle they survive, Janneke’s loyalty to Soren deepens. After dangerous truths are revealed, Janneke must choose between holding on or letting go of her last connections to a world she no longer belongs to. She must make the right choice to save the only thing keeping both wrlds from crumbling.

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Review: A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi

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A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi
Series:
 n/a
Genre: YA Contemporary
Publication: October 16th 2018 by HarperTeen
Format: ARC

It’s 2002, a year after 9/11. It’s an extremely turbulent time politically, but especially so for someone like Shirin, a sixteen-year-old Muslim girl who’s tired of being stereotyped.

Shirin is never surprised by how horrible people can be. She’s tired of the rude stares, the degrading comments—even the physical violence—she endures as a result of her race, her religion, and the hijab she wears every day. So she’s built up protective walls and refuses to let anyone close enough to hurt her. Instead, she drowns her frustrations in music and spends her afternoons break-dancing with her brother.

But then she meets Ocean James. He’s the first person in forever who really seems to want to get to know Shirin. It terrifies her—they seem to come from two irreconcilable worlds—and Shirin has had her guard up for so long that she’s not sure she’ll ever be able to let it down.

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The Reckoning of Noah Shaw by Michelle Hodkin Blog Tour (Playlist)

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The Reckoning of Noah Shaw by Michelle Hodkin
Series:
The Shaw Confessions #2
Genre: YA Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance

Publication:  November 13th 2018 by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Goodreads

Noah Shaw confesses all in this second novel of a chilling new companion series to Michelle Hodkin’s New York Timesbestselling Mara Dyer trilogy!

Noah Shaw doesn’t think he needs his father’s inheritance.
He does.

Noah believes there’s something off about the suicides in his visions.
There is.

Noah is convinced that he still knows the real Mara Dyer.
He does not. 

Everyone thought the nightmare had ended with Mara Dyer’s memoirs, but it was only the beginning. As old skeletons are laid bare, alliances will be tested, hearts will be broken, and no one will be left unscarred.

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Review: My Plain Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows

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My Plain Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows
Series:
 The Lady Janies #2
Genre: YA Historical, Retelling
Publication: June 26th 2018 by HarperTeen
Format: ARC

You may think you know the story. After a miserable childhood, penniless orphan Jane Eyre embarks on a new life as a governess at Thornfield Hall. There, she meets one dark, brooding Mr. Rochester. Despite their significant age gap (!) and his uneven temper (!!), they fall in love—and, Reader, she marries him. (!!!)

Or does she?

Prepare for an adventure of Gothic proportions, in which all is not as it seems, a certain gentleman is hiding more than skeletons in his closets, and one orphan Jane Eyre, aspiring author Charlotte Brontë, and supernatural investigator Alexander Blackwood are about to be drawn together on the most epic ghost hunt this side of Wuthering Heights.

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