Little Red Reads

Emerald Ring Blog Tour and Author Interview with Dorine White

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Little Red Reads is pleased to be today’s stop on the official blog tour for 

Book Summary: Ordinary tween life turns upside down when Ancient Egypt intrudes on modern middle school life. Twelve year old Sara Guadalupe Bogus reads about adventures, but unexpectedly is drawn into one when a mystical emerald ring that once belonged to Cleopatra becomes stuck on her finger.
A series of burglaries spook Sara’s small Ohio hometown. Concluding that the root of all the crimes is the emerald ring, Sara realizes it’s up to her and her friends, Heidi and African exchange student Kainu, to save the town and protect Cleopatra’s legacy. Filled with magic, the ring thrusts Sara into a world filled with nightmares, allows her to shape shift into an Egyptian cat and battle assassins.

Author Interview…

Best all time books and or movies? 

Star Wars movies!

Do you have a playlist of songs you listen to while writing or for inspiration? 

I actually can’t write to music. I have to be able to picture the scene unfolding in my mind to write it down.

Give us a nutshell of your current works in progress.

I am doing NaNoWriMo right now. I am working on a YA fantasy that involves a young man named Kyler who must defeat an evil tyrant and its pet Griffin.

Any signings or events coming up?

I am doing two library NaNoWriMo events this month, but what I am most excited about are my upcoming school visits. My first two are booked for December and I can’t wait to get those kids excited about books.

Where is your dream vacation or writing retreat? 

I have always wanted to go to Hawaii. A dream spot would be somewhere near the water.

Paper or ebook?

 Paper. I like to hold a book in my hands and turn the pages. I do use my nook because some times I just can’t wait to read the next book.

Favorite bookstore, library?

I don’t have a specific one. I love bookstores in general. I could spend all day just bumming around and looking at books. I think one with a magical children’s section would be my favorite.

Your favorite character in the Emerald Ring and why?

I love both Sara and Heidi. Sara because she is based on my niece and every time I read the story I see her in my mind. I like Heidi because she is spunky and not afraid to put herself out there.

Author Bio: My name is Dorine White. I am a children’s author and a book reviewer. I grew up back East in Maryland and attended BYU in Utah. I have a BA in Humanities with an interest in Art History and French. Currently I live in the beautiful, yet rainy Northwest with my husband and 6 children.

 My first book in The Cleopatra’s Legacy series, The Emerald Ring, was published by Cedar Fort Books on May 14, 2013. It is a middle grade fantasy novel that involves Ancient Egypt, Cleopatra, and a magic emerald ring. Please check out the “My Books” page for more info.

 I am a member of the SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators) and the PNWA (Pacific Northwest Writers Assoc.).

Author Website- http://www.dorinewhite.com/
Blog- The Write Path- http://www.dorinewhite.blogspot.com/
Twitter @Dorinewhite- https://twitter.com/DorineWhite
Facebook Author Page- https://www.facebook.com/dorinewhite

Purchase:

Giveaway: Dorine is giving away one paperback copy of The Emerald Ring to a lucky winner in the US or Canada. Enter using the Rafflecopter below.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Middle Grade Book Review- Crater Lake

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Crater Lake: The Battle for Wizard Island
by Steve Westover
Ebook, 256 pages
Published March 13th, 2012
by Cedar Fort, Inc.
ASIN: B007TXWSEW
Book Source: Author
Rating: 4 1/2 stars
Summary From Amazon.com: While visiting his crazy Uncle Bart at Crater Lake National Park, thirteen-year-old Ethan’s world collapses when all the adults at Crater Lake disappear, including his parents. Now Ethan must rally his new friends and decipher the legends of Crater Lake to find the key to rescuing his parents from their earthen prison before he’s captured, too, and their captivity becomes permanent.
Danielle Thorne’s Review: Ethan isn’t excited to be visiting his crazy uncle who works out at Crater Lake, but his sister and other kids in the area seem to think it’s swell, until all of the adults in the area are swallowed up by the earth.

This is an enjoyable read that both middle grade and YA readers can safely enjoy. It’s imaginative with great suspense as the remaining young tourists learn to work together to rescue their parents. Their courage and adventure are exciting and admirable. The story is fast and focused.

Crater Lake comes across the pages in pristine detail as Ethan discovers living history dwelling below the park where legend has come to life. The tension between the characters as they develop team building skills is a great lesson, and the beat-the-clock action kept me reading straight through to the expected happy ending. I enjoyed reading this exciting fantasy, and kids will, too. Mr. Westover brings great action adventure to readers of all ages — without resorting to titillating material or silliness. He has not forgotten the workings of a young boy’s overactive, persnickety mind, and he subtly impresses upon the reader’s heart the true importance of family love and devotion.

This book is also available in print.
Author Bio: My first novel, DEFENSIVE TACTICS was published by Cedar Fort in August of 2010. This FBI thriller is light and fun, but will also raises meaningful questions for the reader to consider. My second novel, CRATER LAKE: BATTLE FOR WIZARD ISLAND will be released in March 2012. Crater Lake is mid-grade fantasy set at the pristine Crater Lake in Oregon. Though it is written for a younger audience, readers of all ages will enjoy it.
Read more by following my blog at http://westoversleftovers.blogspot.com/

Middle Grade Book Review- Garden of Lost Souls

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Garden of the Lost Souls
Flin’s Destiny Series #2
by Erik Olsen
Hardcover, 304 pages
Expected Publication: July 10, 2012
by Cedar Fort, Inc
ISBN: 146211010X
Book source: Netgalley
3 1/2 stars

Summary from Goodreads: Flin climbed to the top of the Cathedral and was now pinned against the anemone’s ceiling while dozens of enraged Snazzards scaled up after him.
I can’t climb any higher he thought, desperately looking around for any last options. There’s no place left to go! They’re going to get me! Panicked, he jumped and fell hundreds of feet through the air as the ground raced toward him.
“NOOooo…!” he screamed.

After all he’s been through, it seems Flin’s life is finally getting back to normal—well, as normal as you can get when you’re stuck hundreds of miles under the earth’s surface. But in Cobble Cavern, nothing stays normal for long. 

And when Flin and the rest of his classmates are sucked into another adventure, they’ll need more than a little magic to make it out alive. Especially since this time Flin will have to choose between saving an entire village from destruction or rescuing his own best friend!

Packed with action, humor, and tons of twists, this second installment in the Flin’s Destiny series will keep your kids up with a flashlight long past bedtime. Delve deeper into the mysterious underworld in this heart-pounding story that’s bound to become a family favorite.


Cathy’s Review: Flin and all of his friends are still stuck underground in Cobble Cavern, there’s still really no hope of leaving the cavern and their good friends Hepple, Fezzy and Inger. That’s okay, but Thanksgivings coming right away and the Flin and his friends miss their families and know that their families have no idea what happened to them. Flin would like to find a way to get back to the surface, but there seems to be no way. One day in Cobble Cavern Lake there are turtles. Not quite sure how they got there, Flin and Flowell join in the fun of riding on them, but disaster strikes and they are sucked out of the anemone wall and into a jellyfish in the middle of the ocean. They are able to escape the jellyfish unharmed, but soon find themselves in yet another cavern, but at least they are together. But being together doesn’t last very long as they get thrown into a river and sucked down different branches of the river. Each thinks the other is dead, and neither has any idea how to get back to Cobble Cavern. They both must be brave and risk everything, including their own lives to get back to Cobble Cavern and their friends. 


I like the action of these books. I really like that there is a series of books for boys, it doesn’t seem like there are very many of those right now. I think the characters and the story line of these books is fun, the one thing that I have issues with in these books is that they are really hard to follow, it seems like they jump from one thing and one person to another with no real continuity. You never know what character you are going to end up “listening” to or where they will be. All in all a fun story, especially for middle grade boys!

About the author: ERIK OLSEN lives in Sandy Utah, where he enjoys the mountains and is surrounded by a great family and friends that have continued to support him throughout his writing quest. After having one of the world’s craziest dreams, he began writing a series of five books detailing it, called Flin’s Destiny, which is full of continuous action and adventure deep in the earth and keeps you wanting more.                                                                                               

Find out more about author Erik Olsen:  Goodreads/ Website/ facebook