Whispering Minds YA Giveaway Wraps Up

Last chance to win one of Ten Giveaway Packages including 7 books and much more.

The hours are counting down on these great novels:

Splintered, The Collector, Crewel, The Fall, Want to Go Private?, Not a Drop to Drink and Whispering Minds.

 

Enter Below To Win one of the following:

1. One copy of Want to Go Private? and a sample of Granny’s Homemade Chai Tea.
2. A WTGP? technology pack with a sample of chai tea and a USB drive with a cut chapter from Whispering minds. If you win this, you will be one of only two readers to find out what happened to Gemini’s missing night.
3. A copy of Not a Drop to Drink and a sample of Granny’s Homemade Chai Tea.
4. A Drop to Drink Pack with a large sampling of tea and a personalized travel mug from Tervis to put it in.
5. One copy of The Collector and a scrumptious tea sample.
6. One copy of Crewel and a tea sample from Granny to tempt your taste buds.
7. A Crewel Weaver Pack that includes a copy of The Fall, a Native made dream catcher and tea.
8. One copy of Splintered and a sampling of Granny’s chai tea.
9. Your own personal therapy in a box: Group Therapy coffee, a stress ball and some of Granny’s pumpkin chai tea.
10. The Whispering Minds Prize Pack with a USB drive (and Gemini’s missing chapter) , all three kinds of Granny’s Homemade Chai Tea (vanilla, spiced and pumpkin), a Tervis travel mug to drink it in, an iphone 4 case, sticky notes to help you remember things(because Gemi often does not) and a physical copy of Whispering Minds.

Thanks for supporting the written word!


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A Little Therapy: Free

What do Adelice, Dante, Lynn, Gemi, Abby and Alyssa have in common?

You might say they're under a little bit of stress.

Besides their starring roles in YA novels, these six characters all face seriously difficult situations. One, falls down a rabbit hole where she's met with passionately crazy characters, not all of whom wish the best for our little MC. Another only wishes her plunge into the cyber hole is so benign. Deadly demons, cyber predators and compromised value systems are only some of the terrors these fascinating characters must stand up to and defeat.

And while you may not have to fight for your life on a daily basis, you still feel the pinch, which is why I am offering up Day Nine's prize.

A care package filled with your very own therapy.

• my absolute favorite coffee in the whole world--Group Therapy--made by La Crema Coffee Company,
• a stress ball,
• and some swag.

Aaand, my picture won't download, so you'll have to take my word for it. Therapy in a box actually does exist.

So do great giveaways.

There's only one day left to enter the Whispering Minds 10 Day YA Giveaway. Only one day left to win great novels by great writers and great swag--okay, I'm biased--by me. Only one day until Whispering Minds is unleashed on the world.



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YA Giveaway: The Collector by Victoria Scott

THE COLLECTOR

Whispering Minds YA Giveaway Day Five

 

So here's the scoop. I am in love with Dante Walker, the main character of Victoria Scott's novel, The Collector. Yep, I emotionally cheated on my husband with thoughts of bad boy, Dante. To be fair, I'm not even sure Miss Scott describes Dante's appearance, so it's not that he's a hot body who elicits this school girl crush on him. Well, not exactly. He is a demon, after all, so he must be pretty hot on some level.

 

No, my fangirl affair stems more from his personality which pops off the page and into your heart. Dante is a selfish, overly-confident dead boy, hell-bent on collecting the soul of an innocent and unsuspecting misfit. He's brash and used-car-salesman slick. He's everything I hate in real people, and yet I can't help myself.

 

Dante has collected my undying affections. Victoria Scott has collected my loyalty as a reader.

 

Dante collects souls, while Gemi, the main character of Whispering Minds, is also a collector--as shown in the excerpt below. 

 

    We were collectors.

    I collected books—stories of hope. Mom collected treasures, ugly things she found beauty in and hoped to rehabilitate. My dad bought hobbies—sports equipment for sports he never played. His yearly binges filled the spaces where Mom’s treasures didn’t reach. Together they had collected a lifetime of things and found no pleasure in any of it.

    Apparently, we also collected secrets.

 

 

If you enter the Whispering Minds YA Giveaway any time during the course of my contest, you, too, may collect a crush on one or more of my favorite authors, or other great prizes.

 

To recap what's up for grabs. In addition to some authorly swag and a sampling of Granny's Homemade Chai Tea, entering the contest makes you eligible for the following prizes:

• a copy of Want to Go Private? by Sarah Darer Littman. This novel is a must-read for every human being with a heart.
• a technology pack inspired by the cyber connection between Want to Go Private? and Whispering Minds. this includes a USB drive with a cut chapter of my novel--a missing night of Gemi's life, if you will.
• a copy of Not a Drop to Drink by Mindy McGinnis, who takes survival of the fittest to a whole new level in her debut novel.
• a thirst quenching Drop to Drink Package that includes a truly awesome travel mug and a batch of chai to fill it with.
• a copy of The Collector by Victoria Scott. Yeah, I think I collected my thoughts on that up above.

Enter at will and don't forget to stop back next Monday for the reveal of Prize Number Six.

 

 

 

 



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Whispering Minds YA Giveaway: Technology Pack

USB Drive, Sweet Swag and Cutting Floor Scenes

Whispering Minds 10 Day Giveaway: Day Two

 

I remember playing the stick version of Oregon Trail in middle school on giant computers the size of my stove. Portable music came from your mouth until the advent of the Walkman, and movies were watched only once--in the movie theater with no potty breaks or quick trips to the concession stand for popcorn refills lest we missed the good part. Letters had to be written, addressed, stamped and mailed, not tweeted. It took forever to capture that perfect pic as we waited to finish out the roll of film, drop it off at the corner mart and wait some more while the photos were developed--only to rip open the package and discover everyone had their eyes closed or their heads turned. Or, you know, that goofy grin.

Life was very different before the explosion of CDs. DVDs, ipods, ipads, Gameboys and cell phones. We experienced the moment in the moment, with our full attention given to every passing second because there was no pause button.

And friends were real, not just avatars on a computer screen.

If we didn't physically see them or talk to them on the bunchy-corded phone, they did not exist. Kids from the next town over remained kids from the next town over--to be seen at sporting events a handful of times each year. Pen pals took a ton of work and our best friendships from summer camp typically waned as the months passed.

Yet, there was a certain amount of truth in our relationships. People were real. You built tree houses with them, kicked the can with them, spilled your secrets to them and made pancakes for breakfast the next morning. With them.

Technology has changed that. Casual acquaintances are friended and followed. Information that was
reserved for special people has become common knowledge--dumped into the vast pool of cyber space for anyone to access if they are determined or savvy enough.

Sarah Darer Littman highlights this in her novel, Want to Go Private?.

While the answer to her title question should almost always be a resounding no, our perception of friendship has evolved to the point where the answer is often an easy "yes".

In Whispering Minds, Gemi also learns the terrifying truth that a friendly avatar on a computer screen does not a friend make.

So without further ado, I give you prize number two: a USB flash drive and some yummy swag.

"What's so yummy about swag?" you ask.

Granny's Homemade Chai Tea~ tested by my awesome, real life friends.


You haven't met Granny yet, but she brews a delicious cup of vanilla chai for Gemi. She's brewed some up for you as well. Each day of the giveaway, winners will receive a sample of her tea as part of their prize packet.

However, in case you're not a tea drinker, I've sweetened the deal by downloading a cut chapter from Whispering Minds onto your USB stick.

Prize Recap:

1. Day One: A copy of Want to Go Private? and a sampling of Granny's delicious chai.
2. Day Two: A 2 gig USB Drive with a sizzling cut chapter from Whispering Minds--and tea.

To be eligible for these--and future prizes--enter below!

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*special thanks to my mom, Mary Jo, Judy and Jamie for slurping tea with me!

Whispering Minds YA Giveaway: Want To Go Private?

Want To Go Private?

Day One of the Whispering Minds YA Giveaway

 

I've loved and hated this book since the moment I read it. Loved because Sarah Darer Littman is an amazing author whose characters pop off the page in an unforgettable way. And hated because those characters pop off the page so realistically that it breaks my heart. They truly are unforgettable.

 

I yelled at the stupidity of Abby's vulnerability the first third of the book, sobbed my way through the second third and sniffled pitifully to the end. Want to Go Private? is a grim reminder that not everyone is who they appear to be..

 



From the back cover: "When Abby meets Luke online, she can't believe her luck. He's nice. He's funny. He thinks she's pretty.... Abby knows she's not supposed to chat with random guys online. But Luke's not a stranger."

 

And here, my friends is where Want to Go Private? intersects with Whispering Minds in a terrifying way. Both Abby and Gemi get sucked into a world of falsehoods by the very cyber friends they trust.

 

If this sounds cautionary, it is. I am a firm believer that anybody who is a girl, loves a girl or knows a girl should read Want to Go Private? I also believe that those who care for the elderly or the mentally or physically vulnerable should read it. In this day and age where an avatar can be anyone and pretty words can ring true to those yearning for more, everyone should understand just how easy it is to become a victim. 

 

And so I give you Want to Go Private?.

 

Literally.

 

Day One's prize is a copy of Want to Go Private? by Sarah Darer Littman (along with a bit o' my authorly swag).

 

Want to win either of these prize packages, just follow the directions below. Interested in spreading the word on your blog? Shoot me an email and I'll send you a link. Any bloggers who post a link to this giveaway or my Goodreads giveaway will have their names entered into a separate drawing for a bonus gift.

 

 

 

 

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And don't forget to hop over to Goodreads for your chance to win one of ten free copies of Whispering Minds.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Whispering Minds

by A.T. O'Connor

Giveaway ends November 15, 2013.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Teen Tuesday: Want to Go Private? Book Review

This world is a scary place. So many of you are innocent and trusting, and at the age where you're seeking your indepenence from your parents and/or experimenting with personal relationships on a whole new level. Those are all good qualities as long as you temper them with a healthy dose of caution.

My sixteen-year-old-daughter is pocket-sized. A physical trait that makes her a greater target for sexual predators, simply by virtue of being easier to drag off or carry away. So says Pat Brown, America's top criminal profiler in her book, How To Save Your Daughter's Life. I read it, and I'm sold. Sold on the idea that so many teens and young adults needlessly put themselves at risk every single day.

Sold on the idea that caution is a good thing. Sold on the idea that you need to understand the nuances of relationships before you can ever protect yourself from the hidden dangers they may carry.

But, don't trust me. Trust an author who read through real-life transcripts of a cyber-victim's chat and wrote about them just for you. If you've not heard of Want to Go Private? by Sarah Darer Littman, I suggest you track down a copy now.

What's it about? When Abby meets Luke, she's feeling pretty punky about her life. Her best friend seems to be slipping away and her parents are more concerned about her grades than her social life. Online, Luke recognizes her need for friendship and cultivates a dangerous level of trust within Abby. He gets her. He cares about her. He wants to make her happy.

Wrong!

He wants to make himself happy.

Told in three parts, Want to Go Private? follows Abby's terrifying journey of trusting the wrong guy for all the wrong reasons, and the consequences of her misplaced trust.

This is a gut-wrenching story of a sexual predator stalking his victims online. It's a wake-up call to teens and young adults to understand the yearning within themselves and how easy it really is to fall victim to an experienced predator. Like Abby, I'm sure you're shaking your head and saying, "Not me. I know better. I would never."

Well, guess what? She said all those things, too. She was a good kid who got manipulated. And so can you.

It was a hard book to read. At times I wanted to vomit. I wanted to reach through the pages and smack Abby upside the head for being so stupid. I wanted to shake her and hug her and tell her she'd be okay. Just please, please, please stop making mistakes.

And I ask of you, teen readers, please, please, please read this novel. It just may save your life.

Alexandra Tys~