BLOG TOUR
CONJURE BY LEA NOLAN
Welcome everyone! We’re excited to
be the last stop in this AH-MAZING blog tour for Lea Nolan’s Conjure novel! We
read the book – and you’ll have our conclusions and impressions in a bit – we talked
to Lea, who was super-awesome to answer some questions for us, and we have a
nice little giveaway open to anyone who follows our blog through GFC. Soooo, show
time!
ANDREEA’S REVIEW
FOR CONJURE (THE HOODOO APPRENTICE #1):
Description: Be careful
what you search for...
Emma
Guthrie expects this summer to be like any other in the South Carolina
Lowcountry—hot and steamy with plenty of beach time alongside her best friend
and secret crush, Cooper Beaumont, and Emma’s ever-present twin brother, Jack.
But then a mysterious eighteenth-century message in a bottle surfaces,
revealing a hidden pirate bounty. Lured by the adventure, the trio discovers
the treasure and unwittingly unleashes an ancient Gullah curse that attacks
Jack with the wicked flesh-eating Creep and promises to steal Cooper’s soul on
his approaching sixteenth birthday.
But when a strange girl appears bent on revenge, demon dogs become a threat, and Jack turns into a walking skeleton, Emma has no choice but to learn hoodoo magic to undo the hex, all before summer—and her friends—are lost forever.
But when a strange girl appears bent on revenge, demon dogs become a threat, and Jack turns into a walking skeleton, Emma has no choice but to learn hoodoo magic to undo the hex, all before summer—and her friends—are lost forever.
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Genres: Young Adult
Paranormal
Opinions:
You know that I don’t easily give big ratings. So there’s
got to be something special about this one, right? Well, heck yes! It’s unique and
very well written, I’ll give you that.
The story is told from Emma’s POV (first person narration)
and I think she’s the thing that I loved the most in the whole book. She had a
lot of trouble to deal with, but the girl just wants everyone she loves happy
and save. Jack, her twin brother, is... umm, I have to admit he annoyed me from
time to time, but I chose to just ignore his complains, attitude and comments.
And Emma’s best friend and secret crush, Coop, is a sweet and adorabile
character. They’re light romance it’s refreshing, not the insta-love we keep
bumping into in the latest YA books. Oh, and another thing: the atmosphere was
creepy and dark and it kept me turning the pages (or scrolling through them,
since I read the book version...). The religious details and mystery are as
captivating as I’d hoped it would be. I’m really satisfied about how things
evolved.
The ending will leave you wanting, begging for more, mostly because Lea has a way with words that I
find quite fascinating. I’m anxious to read the next installment and I’m sure you’ll
love every single word of this one J
The one thing that bothered me was the characters’ age.
Since I read quite a lot YA books where ages were 16 and up, 14 or 15 years old
seemed such a young one for me. Especially when they have to deal with so much
trouble. But in the end, when you actually realise how young they are, you’ll
respect and admire them more for what they’ve been through.
Overall, I recommend this book to anyone who wants something
new and refreshing with a little drop of magic. Bonus, you’ll get an intriguing
plot with perfect pacing, well-developed characters and some cute secret love,
mixed with awesome adventure. Grab it and read it on spot, ‘cause you won’t regret it!
ABOUT THE
AUTHOR:
Lea Nolan couldn’t read until the third
grade. After a lot of hard work she finally got the hang of it and devoured any
book she could find with a shiny Newberry Award sticker on the cover. Today she
writes the stories she sought as a teen—smart paranormals with bright heroines,
crazy-hot heroes, diabolical plot twists, plus a dose of magic, a draft of
romance and a sprinkle of history. She holds degrees in history and women’s
studies concentrating in public policy and lives with her heroically supportive
husband and three brilliant children in Maryland.
JULIA’S INTERVIEW
WITH LEA:
Tell us more about your book, Conjure. What inspired you to
write this beautiful story?
In CONJURE, book one in The Hoodoo Apprentice
Series, three teens discover a hidden 18-century pirate treasure and
unwittingly unleash a wicked flesh-eating curse that only Gullah hoodoo magic
can break. It takes place on St. Helena’s Island, off the coast of South
Carolina, one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been.
The story idea came from a fast food
kid’s meal bag. There’s a place here called Chick Fil A that prints educational
facts on the bags. We’d just gone through the drive-through and my daughter was
reading the notes and asked, “Mommy, did you know pirates used to send messages
in a bottle?” No, as a matter of fact, I hadn’t known that. As I drove down the
road I wondered, why would a pirate need to send a message in a bottle? An
answer popped into my head: Maybe his ship and crew were cursed. But what could
he have done to land in such trouble? The questions and answers snowballed and
before I knew it, I had to set aside the novel I’d been planning to write this
one instead.
Music is a big part of writing inspiration. Which song would
make the perfect soundtrack for Conjure?
The song Bubbly by Colbie Calliet was
my guide for how Emma Guthrie feels about Cooper Beaumont. He gives her that
feeling that makes you crinkle your nose and wiggle your toes!
Name 5 authors that you love. Any book recommendations for your
fans?
I love: Markus Zusak, Maggie
Steifvater, Alyson Noel, Tera Lynn Childs and Kiersten White. I’d recommend
anything they’ve written!
5 Reasons you love to write.
1. I love the magical things that
happen on the page. The stuff I didn’t expect but the characters do or say that
totally surprises me.
2. I get to make things up. In
CONJURE I got to make up The Creep (the name of the flesh-eating curse) and
embellish the hoodoo magic a little.
3. I love to escape into the world
I’ve created. The people and their problems feel so real!
4. I love romance. It’s so much fun
to bring characters together for smoochy times.
5. I love to learn things. Whenever I
write, I have to do research and that’s a lot of fun.
Describe yourself in 5 words.
Dogged, forthright, open-minded, maternal, and bespectacled.
How many books do you plan to write in The Hoodoo
Apprentice?
There will be three books in the
series. They will grow with their readers and each will get darker and more
creepy than the last! I can’t wait for people to follow Emma’s journey as the
hoodoo apprentice!
Do you have a message for your fans?
Thank you for reading all the books
that you do, no matter who they’re written by because you keep us authors at
work! And for anyone who has read CONJURE, I truly appreciate it! Please follow
me on Twitter and Facebook and chat with me! You can write a question on my
website and I’ll answer you in a video!
Thanks so much for having me, Julia!
It was great to visit you!
~Lea
Additional Social Media links if necessary:
Group blog: http://honestlyya.blogspot.com/
Group blog: www.entangledteen.com
GIVEAWAY:
For this
blog tour post and wonderful opportunity to be a part of it, with the help of
Lea’s publisher, we’ll giveaway one ebook copy of Conjure to one of you. To
enter, just leave a thoughtful comment along with the email address! Winner
will be announced tomorrow! Good luck! J
Blog tour stops:
October 16 I'm A
Reader, Not A Writer
Bookish
Brunette
Mundie
Moms
October 17 Fantasy
Book Addict
The
Diary of a Book Addict
Long
and Short Reviews (LASR)
October 18 The
Story Siren
The
Bibliophile's Corner
October 19 Jean
Book Nerd
Books
Live Forever
October 20 Book
Chick City (UK blog)
October 22 Teen
Lit Authors Loop
Winged
Reviews
October 23 Bianca's
Book Review
Total
Bookaholic
Honestly
YA
October 24 Letters
Inside Out
October 25 YA
Sisterhood
Word
Spelunking
Step
Into Fiction
October 26 The
Book Goddess
The
Hobbitsies
October 29 A Tale
of Many Reviews
Teen
Librarian Toolbox
October 30 YA
Books Central
Candace's
Book Blog
October 31 Fresh
Fiction
November 1 Lauren's
Crammed Bookshelf
November 2 Winter
Haven Books
The
Misadventures of a Twenty-Something Year Old Girl
November 4 All
Things Books
Book
Pile (Kindle-a-holic)
November 5 The
Naked Hero
Tripping
Over Books
November 6 Book
Loving Mom
November 7 Literary
Rambles
November 8 Stuck in
Books
November 9 Good
Choice Reading
Books
with Bite
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