Review and Epic Giveaway: Eve Hallows and the Book of Shivers by Robert Gray

I'm so excited to not only share my review of Eve Hallows and the Book of Shivers today, but to host the awesome giveaway courtesy of Robert Gray! There are some fantastic prizes up for grabs, so check out my review then enter below...

Eve Hallows and the Book of Shivers

(The Nightmare Series #3)

by Robert Gray

10/26/13

So far, Eve's summer vacation has been uneventful, but when her grandparents—traveling all the way from the monster world known as Gravesville—appear at her doorstep, she learns that the URNS Director has gone missing. Worse, a new director, bent on destroying humans, has taken over URNS.

Eve and her family are no longer safe in the human world, and as they race to escape this new threat, Eve stumbles into a trap, which forces her back to Gravesville along with her family and friends. But once there, everything goes adorably wrong, and her best chance to get out of this mess is to seek out The Book of Shivers and the elusive author Sedrick Creach—the only creature who knows the secrets of the Nightmare Books. Unfortunately for Eve, searching for Sedrick and the next book in the series will reveal uncomfortable details about her own murky past.

Once again, Eve and her friends find themselves on an incredible adventure—one that involves underground battles with bloodthirsty creatures, a lightning-fueled train, and some unexpected new allies.

Hilarious and bone-chilling, this third book continues the story of an unlikely hero trying to save not one, but two worlds … This time around, though, Eve's not sure she can even save herself.

Find the book: Goodreads / Amazon 

*I received an eARC of this title in exchange for my honest review*

It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of The Nightmare Series, and am always SO thrilled when a new one comes out, so I’m happy to report that author Robert Gray has done it again! He’s added a spooktacularly fun and thrilling new volume to his already awesome series. Eve Hallows and the Book of Shivers, book three in this series, joins books one and two as some of my favorite middle-grade reads!

In book three, we find the horrible (which really means awesome) Eve Hallows in some unbelievably adorable (which means awful) situations. On the run from The Source, with her three best human friends, reluctant heroine Eve must locate the Book of Shivers to save both her beloved Gravesville and the human world that's growing on her. Along the way she ends up in some pretty unexpected places and discovers some info that rocks both her worlds!

The Nightmare Series continues to have EVERYTHING I love in my middle-grade reads: fantastic world-building, unforgettable characters, stellar storytelling, and an imaginative story. Like books one and two, Eve Hallows and the Book of Shivers is a captivating and entertaining mix of laugh-out-loud humor, a whimsical macabre atmosphere, creepy fun, and clever writing. Gray expands both his Gravesville and the human world, introduces some kooky cool new characters, and takes Eve and readers on a wild ride (literally!).

I love the whimsically dark atmosphere of these books! Gray creates a setting and tone that are deliciously eerie and unexpected, with enough thrills and chills to keep readers in spine-tingling shivers, but always appropriate for its intended audience. Eve Hallows and the Book of Shivers is bursting with monster-y goodness of the classic kind (vampires, mummies, witches, and ghosts, oh my!) and the imaginative and weird kind (werebies, zompires, barf twins). We get to explore more of Gravesville in all its horrible, swampy glory (sign me up for a timeshare!) and we end up in the only place in the human world that is just as weird, strange, and outrageous as Gravesville: Hollywood!

All my fave characters from books one and two are back in Eve Hallows and the Book of Shivers, while we meet some new creeptastic friends. Eve Hallows, with her pitch-perfect teen sarcasm; unique perspective; and all around horribly awesome personality, continues to be so lovable and relatable! I love being inside her head and seeing the story unfold through her eyes and wry, honest observations. Eve’s three human BFF’s, Steve; Lucy; and Carly Beth really shine in this book and this quirky foursome friendship is one of the most genuine and fun ones in middle-grade.

A Frankentrain, with lightning and all, takes Eve and her friends on an unforgettable and crazy trip in search of the mysterious Sedrick Creach. Eve ends up discovering things about her past that will have readers exclaiming “Oh. My. Jack!”. And that ending?! Let’s just say I’m DYING for the next book!

MY FINAL THOUGHTS: Simply put, I LoveAdoreAmCrazyAbout this series! Robert Gray continues to craft wildly imaginative, wickedly fun, and highly entertaining books, and Eve Hallows and the Book of Shivers is no exception. A must read book in a must read series for both young and older readers!

MY RATING

Robert Gray

website * goodreads * twitter * facebook

Win signed copies of The Nightmare Series books and an Amazon Gift Card!

Robert Gray is offering up some awesome prizes in this giveaway and which prizes the winner gets all depends on how many total entries the giveaway receives Here's the rundown:

Prize 1: Autographed copy of Eve Hallows and the Book of Shrieks (1-300 entries)

Prize 2: Autographed copy of Eve Hallows and the Book of Shadows (301-600 entries)

Prize 3: Autographed copy of Eve Hallows and the Book of Shivers (601-1000 entries)

Prize 4: $50 Amazon gift card (1000+ entries)

So the more entries, the more prizes the winner will get! Awesome, right?! There is only one required entry (don't worry, it's a free entry) and a ton of ways to earn bonus points (like reviewing the books, adding on Goodreads, spreading the word).

DETAILS

-US only

-will end 12/1

-one free entry per person, must be 13+

-the winner will be emailed and must claim prize within 48 hours

-Word Spelunking is NOT responsible for lost, damaged, or stolen prizes

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Book Spotlight {Guest Post and Giveaway}-- Recess Rules

I'm so excited to be spotlighting the middle-grade book, Recess Rules, today! Jill Vialet, the author and founder and CEO of Playworks, is here with a guest post. Plus, I have three copies to give away...

Recess Rules

by Jill Vialet

11/7/13

After losing her parents in a car crash at age 8, life just hasn't been the same for Cassie Murphy. Now a fifth grader at Magruder Elementary, Cassie and her three friends, Zee, Toni and Bryant, have been trying to make the best of the same old routine of school, but somehow all the fun has been sucked out of it, and especially at recess. Between a dwindling number of students on the blacktop and Marcus Mackey’s need to bully away any games that might be had, Cassie and her crew are on the verge of giving up on their formerly beloved recess. The four friends get help from an unexpected place when an “angel-on-probation” named Clarence is sent to earth to help them fix recess. Clarence’s crusade gains new importance along the way, as Cassie learns that it’s alright to take the risk and care enough to try to change things for the better.

Recess is just starting to be fun again when the Superintendent visits and unveils his plan to eliminate recess altogether. Cassie and her friends are devastated, but they realize they have just one shot to convince the Superintendent that recess is important. Determined as they are, a bizarre set of events including two suspensions, a visit from a news crew, and a food fight threaten to derail their plans and ruin recess for good. Will Cassie and her friends be able to convince the Superintendent that it's worth the risk to care about recess, too?

Buy the book: Amazon / Playworks

Reading, Four Square and Autonomy

by Jill Vialet, Playworks CEO and author of new kids’ novel Recess Rules

With increased literacy, kids’ worlds open up to unimaginable things. However, without the motivation to read, they may never develop the literacy necessary to reach their potential. Author Theresa A. Roberts notes that there are “three needs that children have, that when met, will lead to motivation for literacy -- competence, autonomy, and relatedness.

“When children's need for autonomy is nourished, they feel that their literacy behavior is initiated from within or at least that they have an inner endorsement of significance and value of the literacy activity. They have personally bought in to the importance of literacy.”

For many students, the reading block is draining! Without confidence or autonomy, struggling students feel trapped. But these same students often shine on the playground -- leading other children in games, fairly solving peers’ conflicts, and demonstrating a confidence mysteriously absent from their classroom performance.

So what is it that recess provides that reading programs do not?

In my new kids novel Recess Rules, fifth grader Cassie and her three friends, have been trying to make the best of recess. Between a dwindling number of students on the blacktop and Marcus Mackey’s need to bully away any games that might be had, Cassie and her crew are on the verge of giving up on their formerly beloved recess. The four friends get help from an unexpected place when an “angel-on-probation” named Clarence is sent to earth to help them fix recess.

Recess is just starting to be fun again when the Superintendent visits and unveils his plan to eliminate recess altogether. Soon, Cassie and her friends have developed the confidence to take a shot at convincing the Superintendent that recess is important!

At recess, students are given guidance, choice, and autonomy. At recess, children play hard and cheer loudly. Every child can discover their superpowers. Children develop a sense a confidence through play. At recess, every child belongs.

Let’s harness the power of recess in reading! We can give students choice and a voice in our literacy programs.

If we can bridge a child’s autonomy and confidence on the playground with their experience in the classroom, we may be able to encourage a few more happy readers. If we can engage young learners with books in the same way they engage with the blacktop or a kickball or a jump rope--as a tool to inspire and interact with--then the ideas and dreams formed from reading will be entirely their own.

Learn more about Recess Rules at www.playworks.org!

Jill Vialet is the CEO and founder of Playworks.  Jill has won a number of awards for her work with Playworks, including the Ashoka Fellowship, the Forbes 30 Leading Social Entrepreneurs, the James Irvine Award and the Women's Sports Foundation's 40 for 40.  Jill grew up in Washington, DC where she played in epic games of Capture the Flag as a child. She now lives in Oakland, California with her family. Recess Rules is her first book.

Win a print copy of Recess Rules!

Thanks to the author, I have three copies of her book for three winners.

DETAILS

-open INT

-will end 11/15

-must be 13+, one free entry per person

-winners will be emailed and must claim prize within 48 hours

-I am NOT responsible for lost, damaged, or stolen prizes

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Book Spotlight {Excerpt and Giveaway}- Spirit Singer by Edward Willit

Today I am spotlighting Edward Willett's MG/YA high fantasy, Spirit Singer! Below you can read an excerpt and enter to win a copy...

Spirit Singer

by Edward Willet

6/26/13

Tyche Books Ltd.

Amarynth is a spirit singer, gifted–or cursed, as she sometimes thinks–with the ability to lead the spirits of the dead from the Lower World through the Between World to the Gate of the Upper World and the Light that lies beyond it.

While she is still an apprentice her grandfather and tutor dies, slain by a mysterious creature in the Between World that is blocking access to the Upper World’s Gate. Without a spirit singer her village cannot survive, so Amarynth embarks on a hazardous quest to find out what the creature is, how it can be defeated, and how she can become a full-fledged spirit singer — a quest that takes her not only from her tiny seacoast home to the soaring mountains of the south, but across the even more rugged terrain of her own soul.

Find the book: Goodreads / Amazon

from Chapter 1 of Spirit Singer

   Something woke Amarynth in the small hours of the night.  It was dark as a cave inside her chamber, except for the faint bar of moonlight on the stones of the wall by the open door. For  a moment she blinked at that pale oblong, feeling the cool breath of a breeze against her cheek, wondering what had roused her. Then she heard it againa moan, from down the hallway. Her grandfather.

   Amarynth threw aside the covers and reached for her long blue robe, donning it over the thin shift in which she slept. The moan came again as she stepped into the corridor, the smooth stone floor cold under her bare feet. She hurried its length, passing through  pools of moonlight collected under the open skylights like puddles of rain.

   Her grandfather's room was at the far end of the corridor, past the library and  the meditation chamber. Amarynth knocked gently. "Grandfather? Are you all right?"

For a moment there was no answer; then she heard him moan again, his voice rising suddenly to a shout. "No! No! Stay away! Stay away!"

   Amarynth opened the door and rushed in. Her grandfather was sitting upright in bed, eyes wide and staring, face pale in the darkness. "Leave me alone!" he cried.

She seized his shoulders. "Grandfather, wake up! Wake up! It's me, Amarynth!"

   A shudder ran through his gaunt body, and suddenly his eyes

focused on her. "Amarynth...?" She felt the tension go out of him and gently laid him back on his bed. "You were dreaming again," she said. "Shouting at

someone to stay away."

   "Not someonesome thing." He closed his eyes, rubbing his

forehead with his gnarled hand. "The dreams are getting worse.

I'm afraid..." His voice trailed off.

   "Of what, Grandfather?"

   His eyes snapped open. "I'm sorry I disturbed you," he said. "I'm all right now. Go back to bed."

   "If only you'd tell me what you dreamed, maybe"

   "A dream is only a dream. It's not important. Now, go on. You

need your sleep."

   "But"

   "Amarynth."

   She sighed. "Yes, Grandfather." With a backward glance she went out, closing the door behind her, then returned to her room. She draped her robe over the chair once more, but instead of going back to bed went to the window and looked down the hill

to the darkened village of Covedrift, two-score huts strung along a curving shingle beach.The cool night air caressed her skin and brought to her the quiet, unceasing murmur of the ocean. The dreams had been troubling her grandfather for weeks, but she had never heard him cry out like that before, as though trying to drive something away. What did he see in the night? He would never tell her. Nor would he explain why he wouldn't tell her, almost as if he were protecting her from something. But from what?"I'm not a child anymore," she murmured to the night. "I don't have to be protected from bad dream.

Edward Willett is the award-winning author of more than 40 books of fiction and nonfiction for children, young adults and adults. He won the Regina Book Award at the 2002 Saskatchewan Book Awards for his YA fantasy Spirit Singer, and the 2009 Prix Aurora Award (Canada’s top award for science fiction and fantasy writing) for Best Long-Form Work in English for his adult science fiction novel Marseguro (DAW Books); the sequel, Terra Insegura, was shortlisted for the 2010 Aurora. His nonfiction book Historic Walks of Regina and Moose Jaw (Red Deer Press) won the City of Regina Municipal Heritage Award. Other novels include fantasy/steampunk epic Magebane (DAW Books), written as Lee Arthur Chane, Right to Know, a science fiction novel (Bundoran Press), and the upcoming Masks, the first in a new fantasy series (written as E.C. Blake, DAW Books). A former newspaper reporter and editor, Ed writes a weekly science column for the Red Deer Advocate and online subscribers, and is also a professional actor and singer. He’s married and has one daughter.

website * twitter * facebook * goodreads

Win a print or ebook copy of Spirit Singer!

Thanks to the awesome people at Tyche Books, I have three copies of this book for three winners! 

DETAILS

-open INT

-there will be 3 winners: 1 print, 2 ebooks

-will end 11/15

-must be 13+, one main entry per person

-winners will be emailed and must claim prize within 48 hours

-Word Spelunking is NOT responsible for lost, damaged, or stolen prizes

Fill out the Rafflecopter form:

a Rafflecopter giveaway