THE LOST WONDERLAND DIARIES by J. Scott Savage

Something monstrous wants to exit Wonderland and enter the real world.

Lewis Carroll, author of the classic book Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, secretly recorded the true story of his actual travels to Wonderland in four journals which have been lost to the world . . . until now.

Celia and Tyrus discover the legendary Lost Diaries of Wonderland and fall into a portal that pulls them into the same fantasy world as the White Rabbit and the Mad Hatter. However, Wonderland has vastly changed. Some of the characters that Tyrus remembers from the book have been transformed into angry monsters.

Helped by the Cheshire Cat and a new character, Sylvan, a young rabbit, Celia and Tyrus desperately work to solve puzzles and riddles, looking for a way out of Wonderland. But the danger increases when the Queen of Hearts begins hunting them, believing the two young visitors hold the key to opening multiple portals to multiple worlds, and she will stop at nothing to capture them.

Will the crazed creatures of Wonderland escape into the real world? Can Celia and Tyrus stop them and save both worlds? Or will they be trapped in Wonderland forever? 

Opening line:

"Is it time?"

What a funny, strange, laugh-out-loud ride in a fantasy world created by Carroll and Savage! Celia and Tyrus are thrust into the iconic world of Wonderland, thanks to one of Carroll's lost diaries. Tyrus is a reader, loves imagination, and understands the world. Celia loves math and logic and not reading since she has dyslexia. 

I LOVED all the different areas of Wonderland the two characters had to get through by solving puzzles. I LOVED the puzzles! Except the math ones, which went over my head but that doesn't mean I'm not logical. haha! 

I believe any reader, young or mature, would love this book. It's compelling, smart and intriguing. 

I have a couple of favorite quotes from the book:

""Now then," Judge Dodo said, "having heard the evidence, it is my duty to inform you that, should you be found guilty, you are subject to swift and just punishment up to and including name-calling, hair-pulling, button-pushing and being forced to listen to bad karaoke.""

I had to reread that part a couple of times and I laughed every time. 

""I don't read books because I have to," he said, in a stunned voice. "I read them because I want to." 

LOVE IT!

And one last one, which is my favorite and sums up this book loverliest:

 

Thank you to netgalley and Shadow Mountain for the early read!

A CAPTAIN FOR CAROLINE GRAY by Julie Wright

Regency London

Caroline Gray’s third season in London society ends as badly as her first two—no marriage proposal, no suitor, not even a glimmer of an interested prospect. She suspects it’s because she is far too quick to speak her mind to men who are put off by her forthright opinions, her eager intellect backed by a formal education, and her unconventional ideas about the future. She is far more daring than demure to suit the taste of her class. Besides, Caroline thinks there will always be next season to find a husband.

However, her family’s dwindling income leaves Caroline with only one choice to secure her future: a one-way ticket to sail with the Fishing Fleet to India, where the son of a family friend waits. If the match doesn’t work, Caroline cannot return home.

Captain Thomas Scott loves the thrill of the open sea, and as commander of one of the ships of the “Fishing Fleet,” he ferries scores of young English girls to the shores of India to find husbands. The voyages pay well, but he struggles to understand why families would allow young women to be matched with total strangers so far away.

The trips have always been routine and uneventful—until this trip’s first night’s dinner with one Miss Caroline Gray. She engages in a lively political conversation, presenting opposing viewpoints to the conventionally opinionated gentlemen at her table. Captain Scott is secretly amused and delighted at her boldness, not to mention quite drawn to her beauty.

The rest of the passengers are shocked by her behavior and Caroline finds herself an outcast, suffering harsh judgments from the other passengers. However, she finds an unlikely ally in Captain Scott which quickly draws them closer.

Both know an arranged marriage awaits Caroline at the end of their voyage, yet the attraction between them is undeniable. Caroline will have to decide if she will honor her mother’s wishes and marry a man in India whom she has never met—thus securing a future for her and her mother—or be brave enough to throw convention to the wind and commit to love a sea captain. He may be enchanted by her bold and unconventional ways, but will his love and admiration last?

Opening line:

"The ball had been a disaster." 

Thus begins the tale of poor Caroline Gray and her uncertain future, thanks to her thirst for knowledge, outspoken opinions (especially in men's company) and her male cousin becoming engaged.

With no where to go, no home to call hers, Caroline takes her mother's pleas and heads to India to have dinner with a man who might become her husband. 

The only problem is she meets Captain Thomas Scott, the captain of the ship and who Caroline has to eat dinner with, along with other passengers, every night. 

Thomas has seen his fair share of women running off to India to find a husband with disastrous results. Not everyone keeps to their religious upbringing so far from Mother England and Thomas has seen too much dereliction to last him a life time. He tries to talk the women into something better, but most are eager to find a man and are docile enough to be a perfection example of prime and proper. And blast, are they dull.

Not Miss Gray. She speaks her mind and is very knowledgeable and she finds in the captain someone who truly wants to hear her thoughts. They become close and soon Thomas is on the verge of proposing to Caroline.

Until he finds out she's promised to another. He doesn't ask her any questions, just pushes her out of his life. 

Heartbroken, Caroline moves forward with the plan to meet the man in India and find if they are compatible. She decides she will become the perfect model of a society woman and keep her thoughts locked up. She determines she will wed. 

But she's not happy.

What will happen??

BRASS CARRIAGES AND GLASS HEARTS (Steam Punk Proper Romance #4) by Nancy Campbell Allen

Emmeline O’Shea is determined to save the world—single-handedly, if necessary. A strong voice for societal reform, she is the natural choice to deliver a key speech at the end of the International Shifter Rights Organization’s week-long Summit in Scotland.

But when a death threat arrives at Emme’s home, she is immediately placed into protective custody, watched over by none other than her personal nemesis, Detective-Inspector Oliver Reed. The two have crossed paths many times, with disastrous results, but now they will have to work together in order to reach the Summit before midnight of the last day in order to ensure legislation is passed to protect the Shifter community.

As unseen enemies close in around Emme and Oliver, they struggle to reach Edinburgh by any means necessary, only to find Emme’s vindictive stepsister, Oliver’s vampire brother, and a dangerous political minefield awaiting them in Scotland.

Even more difficult is their own refusal to admit that the fiery animosity that once burned between them might be turning into the heat of romantic passion. Could a straitlaced policeman determined to uphold the law and an outspoken activist willing to break the rules ever find true love? Or will all their dreams shatter like glass when the clock strikes midnight?

Opening line:

Emmeline Castle O'Shea stood at a podium in the balcony of the Municipal Hall for Citizen affairs and looked out with satisfaction a the murmuring crowd, feeling the energy build in the large room as she finished speaking." 

Emmeline O'Shea lives in an era of shape-shifting creatures who are treated unfairly, just because they are not like everyone else and she is one who is determined to make things right, even if it means ignoring death threats AND trying to keep out of Oliver Reed custody.

Oliver Reed is a Detective-Inspector who sees the injustices of his world as well, but he is determined to keep the peace and keep the citizens safe, including Ms. O'Shea. 

What a fun, romantic, daring, adventurous story Nancy has written for us! It's worth your time to read all four of the stories she's written in this series, though all can be read as a stand-alone book. The world she's created comes alive under her pen and the characters are distinct and relatable. (I personally loved Gus Gus). 

Utah Book Month~ Author Spotlight Ilima Todd!

I'd like to thank Ilima for doing this spotlight today! I hope you enjoy learning more about her and where she writes.

I’m super spoiled. I have a writing room in my house, and I’ve used it for years. It’s difficult for me to write anywhere else now. It has a door that I can shut and be at peace AND it’s tucked away on one side of the house far from the hustle and bustle of the family. Still, because I homeschool half of my kids and am a full-time mom at home, I usually don’t get to writing until the wee hours of the night. When that time comes, this is where the magic happens. J

I was quite crafty at one point in my life (way before becoming a writer), and you can see some of that in my writing space. I painted and glazed the walls, cut-sanded-painted the giant clock in the corner, made a wreath out of Harry Potter pages, and even decoupaged Pride and Prejudice pages onto my desktop. You can’t see it in this pic, but I have quotes on the wall from Firefly and Battlestar Galactica (nerd alert), and several shelves filled with books. We have a dedicated library in the house with walls of books, but I keep my favorite YA titles in my office. J I also have a collection of bookmarks, objects that represent parts of my books, and several gifts from my CPs that I love to hold onto lining the shelves and walls. It’s basically a writer inspiration wonderland.

Of course my laptop (the octopus on the cover is an ode to Remake) and Diet Coke are the two must-haves on my desk. And close beside me is a picture of my current main characters (for inspiration) and a calendar with daily word count goals (for motivation). I don’t like writing to a schedule, but with a crazy tight deadline from my publisher looming, I have no choice. So that chaise in the corner…yeah. It never gets used. Who has time for relaxing when there’s a story I need to get out of my head? J

And that’s my writing space!

Book blurb:

Imagine a future without family...

Nine is the ninth female born in her batch of ten females and ten males. By design, her life in Freedom Province is without complications or consequences. However, such freedom comes with a price. The Prime Maker is determined to keep that price a secret from the new batches of citizens that are born, nurtured, and raised androgynously.

But Nine isn't like every other batcher. She harbors indecision and worries about her upcoming Remake Day—her seventeenth birthday, the age when batchers fly to the Remake facility and have the freedom to choose who and what they'll be.

When Nine discovers the truth about life outside of Freedom Province, including the secret plan of the Prime Maker, she is pulled between two worlds and two lives. Her decisions will test her courage, her heart, and her beliefs. Who can she trust? Who does she love? And most importantly, who will she decide to be?

Author Bio:

Ilima Todd was born and raised on the north shore of Oahu and currently resides in the Rocky Mountains. She never wanted to be a writer even though she loves books and reading. She earned a degree in physics instead. But the characters in her head refused to be ignored, and now she spends her time writing science fiction for teens. When she is not writing, Ilima loves to spend time with her husband and four children.