Growth Even After Death

Life is amping up for the holidays, so this will be my last post until the new year. Have a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, & ring in the New Year with hope and cheer! 
HEARTS to you all!

TOUR SCHEDULE

You've been expecting a change. Over the past few months, I've told you that I've decided to alter the priorities of my site to more personal posts on my writing/life journey and a little less on promoting others--though helping other authors will always be a focus of the Alleyway.
Well, this is one of the last posts I'd already committed to before making that decision. 
Don't let those words give you the wrong impression, though. I'm pleased to be a part of this tour and excited to share my thoughts with you. From the moment I read the premise, I knew this story would challenge me. So here goes: 

GOODREADS | AMAZON | B&N | KOBO | TBD | INDIEBOUND

Life, A.D. by Michelle Reed
Genre: Young Adult/Speculative Fiction Publisher: Month9Books Release Date: December 10, 2013 Pages:
Favorite Lines/Passage: His angry outburst is the last straw. It's all too much, and I can't fight the tears. I've been trying to hold back the ocean towel, and I can't do it anymore. Shame, weakness, and fear are ganging up on me. I begin to sob as I collapse onto the couch, pull my knees up to my chin, and wrap  my arms around my legs. Try as I might, I can't make myself disappear.
Description: In Life, A.D. you have two choices: join the program or face the consequences.

Seventeen-year-old Dez Donnelly crashes headlong into fate on the side of a rural highway, her life ending in a violent collision of steel and screaming brakes. The train that delivers her newly departed soul to the crossroads of the afterlife won’t be carrying her to the sweet hereafter until she accepts her abrupt end and learns to let go of the life she’ll never finish.

Her new reality is conduct manuals, propaganda, and unrelenting staff, all part of a system to ease her transition from life to death, while helping her earn her way out of limbo. Atman City, beautiful and enticing, is an ever-present temptation that is strictly off limits to underage souls. The promise of adventure proves too strong, and beneath the city’s sheen of ethereal majesty, Dez discovers a world teeming with danger.

Welcome to Life, A.D. where being dead doesn’t mean you’re safe, and the only thing harder than getting out of limbo is getting through it.

COVETED! A MUST READ!

My Splats: Growth is an ongoing process even after we die.

A favorite aspect of this story for me is a rather simple one. I love, love how appropriate the title is. And it does not represent what you might think. It fits on so many levels. The cover is pretty sweet, too.

The opening scene is powerful. It instantly pulled me into the inner character of Dez, who she is, how she reacts, and what she is feeling. Her confusion, denial, admissions, and doubts as she grips what's happening to her are touching and very real. Initially, the why is left for the reader to discern. I liked this tactic. 

Transitions from life to Dez seeing herself after, is done well through smooth and effective transitions of scenery and secondary characters.

The writing is easy to follow. The story is presented in first person, present tense - the official, Here and Now. For some readers, this is hard to digest. I enjoy it, and it works for this story, especially with the complexity of the world building that challenges the reader to self-examine his/her own beliefs and hopes and dreams for what comes after this life. 

Clever and vivid are both the world Reed creates as are her characters. Reed gives an altered perspective of what the afterlife might be, giving the feel of hope and the need to grow mixed with a purgatory kind of setting. This afterlife is all about personal growth and brings to the forefront how in charge we truly are with our lives during life as well as in this afterlife.

There was a theme threaded throughout the tale: Most people are busy living life preparing for the future instead of living in the moment. Gosh, I love that. 

I'd recommend this book to any enthusiast of young adult, adventure, or romance. Also to anyone open-minded and willing to ponder the afterlife.  

ABOUT MICHELLE E. REED:

Michelle E. Reed was born in a small Midwestern town, to which she has returned to raise her own family. Her imagination and love of literature were fueled by a childhood of late nights, hidden under the covers and reading by flashlight. She is a passionate adoption advocate who lives in Wisconsin with her husband, son, and their yellow lab, Sully.

 Connect:  Website | Twitter |  Facebook | Goodreads

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What are your thoughts on the afterlife? In fiction?

Middle Grade Mania! How To Survive Ancient Spells & Crazy Kings

MMGM aka Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday was created by Shannon Messenger to give middle grade reads the attention they deserve. I'm joining in, today. If you'd like to see more MG books, Click HERE to follow other participants.

Title: How To Survive Ancient Spells & Crazy Kings
Author: Laura Pauling
Genre: Middle Grade Adventure
Publisher: Pugalicious Press
Released: November 2012
Format: eBook & paperback
Pages: 174

Favorite Line/Passage: His words hovered over me, hissing at me that I'd made the biggest mistake of my life. My legs wobbled and I grasped the edge of the stone table. Safekeeping? I mean I knew they needed to be guarded, but this was bad. The survival or downfall of a madman rested on my shoulders and one little innocent mistake I made because I loved Zeb and wanted to feel close to him. But this? This could destroy everything.

Description: Convinced that her grandfather, Zeb, needs help, twelve-year-old Bianca persuades her family to fly to the Mayan ruins of Tikal on a search and rescue mission. Impatient, she and her brainy cousin, Melvin, sneak out in the middle of the night and follow the clues to the ancient Maya city of Etza, where the people haven’t aged in 2,000 years.

The cousins must learn to work together as they face loincloth-wearing skeletons from the underworld, a backstabbing princess, and an ancient prophecy—one that says in three days the city will be destroyed. They’ll find Zeb and zip right out of there. No problem. 

Except, Bianca starts to care for her new friends, and Zeb does not want to be rescued. The fact that a crazy king wants to serve Bianca up to the gods as an appetizer is just a minor technicality. But this ancient evil dude has finally met his match.

NIGHTSTAND WORTHY +1

My Splats: ancient adventure seeking and fun, Pauling takes kids on a wild ride through secret rooms, passages, and a whole lot of crazy in the mysterious culture of the Mayans. 

The opening of the story instantly blankets the reader in intrigue. Something strange is going on with Zeb, Bianca's grandfather, and she's determined to figure out what that is; a bit stubborn, one might say.

Bianca and Melvin have a great relationship: funny, teasing, and caring. They do engage in conflicts and disagreements, making it real and plausible, like families are. Having them cousins was another effective technique to give an overall feeling of wholesomeness and family unity. 

I love where Bianca started out--tough on the outside; a bit insecure on the inside. As the story progresses, she grows and changes. She takes the challenge of finding her grandfather, uncovering a secret that could end life as we know it, and accepting disappointments in stride as she devises a plan of action, turning all on its head with confidence and a willingness to sacrifice for others. 

Short chapters make for easy and quick reading, while details about a civilization gone by enrich the story. From exterior tattoos to head dressings, young readers are given a view of the Mayans and how different they are from us, today. It's all done with a little humor, too. 

I'd recommend this story to young middle grade readers and their parents, adventure and historical culture lovers, and even school teachers to read with their students. 

NOTE: Sadly, shortly after the release of this book the publisher closed. For those interested, Laura has offered to send an ePub copy of the story. Just leave your email addy in the comments. Thanks so much, Laura!

What's the last book you've read, where the setting is an ancient civilization or really unfamiliar to you?