The wonderful C.C. Hunter is here today to tell us 13 things we will learn from her newest book, Taken at Dusk.
Make sure to sign up below for a chance to win a copy!
Thirteen Things You’ll Learn From Taken at Dusk 1. The only thing worse than trying to help a woman with amnesia remember her name and life is trying to help a dead woman with amnesia remember hers.
2. Be careful what you wish for—you might just get it.. and the reality will probably not be anything like the fantasy.
3. The person you think is your enemy could just turn into a friend who'll do anything to save you.
4. The scariest thing in the world isn't ghosts or rogue vampires bent on murder—it's falling in love.
5. Explaining why you have a skunk curled up in your arms to your mom and your old best friend is as easy as eating a brownie while brushing your teeth.
6. We all make mistakes, which is why it's so important to practice forgiveness.
7. The only thing worse than a pissed-off shapeshifter is a pissed-off shapeshifter in love.
8. Sometimes the earth really does have to open up and swallow you whole before you can accept the truth that's right in front of you.
9. Vampires have no sense of humor.. especially when they get turned into a kangaroo.
10. Free will gives us choices, but even making the right choices can't change destiny.. and learning to accept that can be the most painful lesson of all.
11. People aren’t always who they say they are, even if you really want them to be.
12. Sometimes when you try to save someone, they end up saving you instead.
13. Never get between a dragon and a warlock on the war path.
Taken at Dusk by C.C. Hunter Publisher: St Martin's Press (April 10th, 2012) Reading Level: Young Adult Paperback: 400 pages Series: Shadow Falls #3 Step into Shadow Falls, a camp for teens with supernatural powers. Here friendship thrives, love takes you by surprise, and our hearts possess the greatest magic of all.
Kylie Galen wants the truth so badly she can taste it. The truth about who her real family is, the truth about which boy she’s meant to be with—and the truth about what her emerging powers mean. But she’s about to discover that some secrets can change your life forever… and not always for the better.
Just when she and Lucas are finally getting close, she learns that his pack has forbidden them from being together. Was it a mistake to pick him over Derek? And it’s not just romance troubling Kylie. An amnesia-stricken ghost is haunting her, delivering the frightful warning, someone lives and someone dies. As Kylie races to unravel the mystery and protect those she loves, she finally unlocks the truth about her supernatural identity, which is far different—and more astonishing—than she ever imagined.
Prize:
1 winner will receive a copy of Taken at Dusk.
Rules:
You must be at least 13 (or have permission) to enter.
Name and email must be provided.
Extra entries are possible and links must be provided.
Contest is US only and ends April 27th.
Once contacted, the winner will have 48 hours to respond.
I was thirteen and I woke up that morning with sunshine spilling through my window. I stretched my hands over my head and it hit me—the memory of a dream I’d just had came rushing back. There had been no sunshine in the dream.
It was spooky, but more strange and sad. Like an old movie, I could still see it playing in my mind. But unlike a movie, my memory came with all five senses. The smell of wet earth and the scent of a storm brewing somewhere close by. I could feel the wind hit my face, blowing my blonde hair across my eyes. Tombstones, aged and cracked, littered the ground around me. All was silent—deadly silent.
A small group of people stood quietly by a gravesite. All wearing black. Even the sky held a dismal shade of sadness. There seemed to be no color in the image—no joy, all drab and gray. I stared at the faces of those grieving people. Did I know them? Yes, but.. vaguely. And from where?
Immediately, my gaze shifted to the casket. The tiny polished box carried the only color in the scene. A bright pink ribbon rested on top. My gaze shot back to the people again. They weren’t crying. For some reason that seemed odd. They needed to cry. Cry for the child who obviously lay tucked inside that casket. The child who would never run and play and who would never know life.
I studied the faces of the people again, trying to remember where I’d seen them. How could I know them when they looked so out of place? Like people from old pictures. People from another time, another life.
And then came the realization. The woman dressed in a thick black wool coat, hugging herself against the cold and staring at the casket with empty emotion, was my grandmother, but younger. A lot younger. The woman today was old, in her late sixties. But yes, I remembered seeing her younger face in family photo albums.
Then, I recognized the other people. My mom and dad when they were young. My grandfather and one of my uncles. My gaze shifted from one person to the next.
Then it went to the casket.
Who had died? Part of the answer came with the next cold whisk of wind: A baby. A baby girl.
I wanted to tell someone how sorry I was. Emotion built in my chest. A crazy thought hit. Someone needed to cry for the child. I stood back from the crowd, not really present, but somehow still there. I felt the odd sadness. But why weren’t they crying?
Then my grandmother, my mom, dad and uncle were gone. As if they’d vanished into the air. I saw the casket being lowered into the gaping chasm. Abruptly the dream changed and I saw the gravestone. It simply read, Our baby girl: Christie.
Christie? CHRISTIE? That was my name. How could the baby have my name? That’s when I’d woken up. My heart still thumped against my breastbone at the memory, and I had tears in my eyes. Not wanting to be alone, I went and found my mom cooking breakfast.
I told her about the dream, about the casket with the pink ribbon and seeing my name on the gravestone.
I saw shock hit my mom’s face. “What is it?” I asked, but was almost scared for her to answer.
“This is weird.”
“What?”
“Your grandmother got pregnant a few months after your dad and I were married. It was a girl. She only lived a few weeks. You were named after her.”
The spookiness tiptoed up my spine as chills skittered up my neck. I looked at my mom and asked, “Why didn’t anyone cry?” Suddenly, I burst into tears.
My mom’s faced paled even more. “Your grandma told everyone no tears. She said she couldn’t handle the tears. We weren’t allowed to cry.”
I dropped down into a kitchen chair and asked the question burning inside me. “How could I have dreamed this?”
“I’m sure you heard the story,” Mom said.
“When? When could I have heard the story? I swear I never knew about her before now.”
“I don’t know, but you had to have heard it. How else would you have known this?”
How else?
To this day I think about that dream. I think about the little girl, my namesake. Did I really hear someone tell that story and my mind simply played it back as a dream? Or did the spirit of Christie somehow visit me? Did she need me to know about her? Did she need someone to cry for her?
I guess you see why my Shadow Falls series involves ghosts. There’s a part of me that believes in them. What about you? Do you believe in ghosts?
C.C. Hunter
Whispers at Moonrise by C.C. Hunter Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin (October 2nd, 2012) Reading Level: Young Adult Paperback: 400 pages Series: Shadow Falls, #4 Shadow Falls Camp is back in session with the most explosive installment yet. A shocking new threat will rock Shadow Falls—changing it forever and altering Kylie’s journey in ways she never imagined.
Even at a camp for supernatural teens, Kylie Galen has never been normal. Not only can she see ghosts, but she doesn’t seem to belong to any one species—she exhibits traits from them all. As Kylie struggles to unlock the secrets of her identity, she begins to worry that Lucas will never be able to accept her for what she is, and what she isn’t… a werewolf. With his pack standing in their way, Kylie finds herself turning more and more to Derek, the only person in her life who’s willing to accept the impossible.
As if life isn’t hard enough, she starts getting visits from the ghost of Holiday, her closest confidante. Trouble is, Holiday isn’t dead… not yet anyway. Now Kylie must race to save one of her own from an unseen danger before it’s too late—all while trying to stop her relationship with Lucas from slipping away forever. In a world of constant confusion, there’s only one thing Kylie knows for sure. Change is inevitable and all things must come to an end… maybe even her time at Shadow Falls.
Prize:
1 winner will receive a Sha do w Falls t-shirt!
Rules:
You must be at least 13 to enter.
Name and email must be provided and counts as 1 entry.
Extra entries are possible and links must be provided.
Contest is US Only and ends November 12th.
Once contacted, the winner will have 48 hours to respond.
The form must be filled out to enter.
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Chosen at Nightfall by C.C. Hunter Published: St. Martin's Press (April 24th 2013) Reading Level: Young Adult Paperback: 400 pages Series: Shadow Falls, #5 Summary: Kylie Galen's life hasn't been the same since her world was turned upside-down in Born at Midnight, Shadow Falls #1, and now an epic conclusion to her journey—not to mention a tough choice between two guys!—is brewing in Chosen at Nightfall:
When Kylie Galen left Shadow Falls, she thought it was the hardest decision of her life. Heartbroken and separated from everyone she loves, she has to embrace her abilities and what it means to be a chameleon. But as Kylie's journey comes to a close, she must return to the camp that started it all… and she must finally chose between the two boys who love her. The werewolf who broke her heart when he chose his pack over her, and the half-fae who ran from their intense attraction before they ever really had a chance. For Kylie, everything will finally be revealed and nothing will ever be the same.
Review:
*sigh* I'm so sad to see this series end. Although there will be a spin-off, I'll really miss Kylie, Lucas, and Derek. Usually it's so common to see a series fall apart after a few books but that isn't an issue with this one. I never once debated putting any of the books down or not continuing on with the series. C.C. Hunter did a tremendous job piecing together this world and, in the end, allowing each character to grow and find their own peace.
In this book, Kylie finally knows what she is and what exactly being a Chameleon means. As the book starts, Kylie is coming back to camp after leaving in order to find out more about herself and her family. She knows where her place is now and she looks forward to facing her reality.
I felt that Kylie showed amazing strength and courage in this book. She knows what issues she will face with Lucas and I loved that she doesn't always just fall back in his arms. She really shows how a strong, confident girl can stand up to people and make someone work for their love. Lucas really has to prove to her how much he loves her.
I was wondering how everything would come together for this final book and I was so pleasantly surprised. We still have some twists and turns but I couldn't have been happier with the outcome. For once, after finishing a series I felt sad to see it end, but still completely satisfied with the results. I won't go into too much detail in case you haven't read the previous books but as someone who reads a lot of books, and a lot of paranormal, I'd really suggest picking up this series. Each book is a nice, well-formed read with an engaging plot and outstanding characters we learn to love with each page. I definitely plan to read more from C.C. Hunter!
Whispers at Moonrise by C.C. Hunter Published: St. Martins Griffin (October 2nd, 2013) Reading Level: Young Adult Paperback: 383 pages Series: Shadow Falls #4 Rating: 5 of 5 stars Summary: Shadow Falls Camp is back in session with the most explosive installment yet. A shocking new threat will rock Shadow Falls—changing it forever and altering Kylie’s journey in ways she never imagined.
Even at a camp for supernatural teens, Kylie Galen has never been normal. Not only can she see ghosts, but she doesn’t seem to belong to any one species—she exhibits traits from them all. As Kylie struggles to unlock the secrets of her identity, she begins to worry that Lucas will never be able to accept her for what she is, and what she isn’t… a werewolf. With his pack standing in their way, Kylie finds herself turning more and more to Derek, the only person in her life who’s willing to accept the impossible.
As if life isn’t hard enough, she starts getting visits from the ghost of Holiday, her closest confidante. Trouble is, Holiday isn’t dead… not yet anyway. Now Kylie must race to save one of her own from an unseen danger before it’s too late—all while trying to stop her relationship with Lucas from slipping away forever. In a world of constant confusion, there’s only one thing Kylie knows for sure. Change is inevitable and all things must come to an end… maybe even her time at Shadow Falls.
The breathtaking fourth installment of the New York Times bestselling Shadow Falls series from author C. C. Hunter… Whispers at Moonrise.
Review:
This book had some major shocking moments for me! I highly enjoy this entire series and this book is no exception. If you haven't checked it out yet, do it now! Each book is so easy to follow and they all throw us quite a few twists and turns along the way. Nothing is predictable and each new character brings so much to the story.
In this book, Kylie is still struggling with her guy problems again, but her main focus is a new ghost that is appearing to her. Holiday, the camp leader, is alive and well but is still appearing to Kylie as a ghost. Kylie has to figure out why and if it could mean danger is coming for Holiday.
All of this is fine but OMG Lucas totally disappointed me here! Not in a"I hated him and this book" way but a"I want to kick his butt" way! Trust me guys, you will be saying the same thing. It seemed that every time Kylie and Lucas were able to take a step towards each other, something happened to erase that progress. *sigh* Kylie even finds herself communicating with a sworn enemy in the hopes of understanding Lucas's actions.
Other that the love issues, Kylie really takes some huge steps in discovering more about herself in this book. From the beginning she has been confused on exactly what type of supernatural she is but we are finally getting more pieces of the puzzle here. She also makes some major decisions that were necessary and really show her maturity. I like the way she has grown over the course of the series.
I don't want to give too much away in case you haven't read the previous books but I honestly can't recommend it more. One of my favorite aspects is the family vibe we get. No one is related really but the friends seem incredibly close. The camp is where they feel safe and wanted, and I honestly can't imagine the story without them in it. Kylie's friends are always supportive and helpful, even with they want to kill each other.
The Shadow Falls series is one of my all-time favorites and I am now a loyal fan of C.C. Hunter! Everyone needs to check out these books and dive right in. You won't be disappointed!
