Author: Olivia Chanel

Saturday Night Author Fever #18 with Melissa Sarno

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Hi everyone and welcome to my interview series Saturday Night Author Fever, where I interview authors with a bit of a 70s music and diversity theme. I personally love 70s music, especially disco music, and sometimes on Friday nights when no one is looking you can find me dancing to classic 70s songs such as September, Bennie and the Jets and We Are Family. However, books are my true passion and because of this, I thought it would be a great idea to mix my two loves and start this interview series. The questions will be similar every week, but with a new author every time, and I hope you’ll enjoy the answers as much as I have. Now let’s get this party started!

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This Saturday Night we welcome Melissa Sarno. Thank you so much for sitting down with me today in my galaxy of books.

Melissa, can you tell us a bit about yourself and your books? What do you think about 70s music?

My debut middle grade novel JUST UNDER THE CLOUDS is due out from Knopf Books for Young Readers in summer of 2018. It’s about a homeless girl who tries to figure out where she belongs by tracking all the trees, plants, and growing things around Brooklyn. But it’s also about new friendships and sisters and what it truly means to have a home.

When I think of 70’s music, I always think of Anita Ward and, especially, “Ring My Bell”. When I was a kid, I danced all around the house to that song and her albums. But I also think of Joni Mitchell, Patti Smith, Janis Joplin, and Carole King, who sing the words of my soul.

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What’s on Princess Valentina’s Bookshelf – A Guest Post for Ripped Pages by M. Hollis

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Liv approached me to write a guest post about what books Valentina would read if she lived in our modern world, and I absolutely loved this idea! Val’s journey of self-love and growth was based on her finding validation on the books she read inside her tower. They were her salvation and what kept her grounded for many years. So here are a few books that I think she would love:

The Second Mango by Shira Glassman

What would be better for Val than a book about a dorky lesbian queen looking for lady love? The Second Mango is an adorable fantasy story with Jewish inspirations. I’m sure Val and Shulamit would be great friends if they ever met in some parallel world.

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Goodreads and Amazon.

Queen Shulamit never expected to inherit the throne of the tropical land of Perach so young. At twenty, grief-stricken and fatherless, she’s also coping with being the only lesbian she knows after her sweetheart ran off for an unknown reason. Not to mention, she’s the victim of severe digestive problems that everybody thinks she’s faking. When she meets Rivka, an athletic and assertive warrior from the north who wears a mask and pretends to be a man, she finds the source of strength she needs so desperately.

Unfortunately for her, Rivka is straight, but that’s okay — Shulamit needs a surrogate big sister just as much as she needs a girlfriend. Especially if the warrior’s willing to take her around the kingdom on the back of her dragon in search of other women who might be open to same-sex romance. The real world outside the palace is full of adventure, however, and the search for a royal girlfriend quickly turns into a rescue mission when they discover a temple full of women turned to stone by an evil sorcerer.

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ARC Review of Ripped Pages by M. Hollis

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Ripped Pages by M. Hollis

Publication Date: September 22, 2017.

Publisher: Independently published.

Genres: Retellings, Romance, Young Adult, LGBT, and Fantasy.

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Purchase here: Amazon | GumRoad

Synopsis: Princess Valentina lives a reasonably comfortable life, but after her mother’s death, her father gets tired of taking care of her and locks her in a tower. She spends years on her own, talking to the birds on her windowsill, and reading books with adventures she will never experience. Her plans of running away are usually left for another day because she knows the vast forest surrounding her tower is too dangerous to cross alone.

Until one day, another girl passes by on her horse and Valentina wonders if she’s finally brave enough to seize her chance of freedom.

Ripped Pages is a Rapunzel F/F retelling in the format of a novelette.

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Thank you, Maria Hollis, for my ARC of Ripped Pages. I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review; this does not affect my opinion. Any quotes mentioned below are taken from the ARC and are subject to change upon publication.

Ripped Pages is a beautiful story that feels fresh, unique, and absolutely perfect. This f/f fairytale feels modern and timeless at the same and is a retelling of the classic story of Rapunzel. Ripped Pages is a short and quick read with only about 60 pages and I do think a lot of people will fall in love with it.

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24 Romance Novels By Authors of Color That Cost 2$ Or Less

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Hi everyone in the galaxy and welcome to another blog post of mine. This time it’s all about cheap books, romance novels by authors of color to be exact. If you know me you know that I love ebook sales and diverse romance novels. Anyway, I made this blog post because I have a lot of romance books on my kindle (a lot I’ve read, a lot I’m just dying to read soon). Because of this, I decided to put together a small list of romance novels that are 2 dollars or less on Amazon right now. However, remember that the price is from the American Kindle store and if you’re from somewhere else the sale might not apply to you and/or your country might add taxes which will make the price a bit pricier for you. I hope you guys understand.

Without further ado, here are the romance novels on sale. I’ll mark the free ones with a star (☆) so that you can make sure to grab those even if you don’t have any money at the moment. 

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Saturday Night Author Fever #17 with Zoë Sumra

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saturdaynightauthorfever-stars

Hi everyone and welcome to my interview series Saturday Night Author Fever, where I interview authors with a bit of a 70s music and diversity theme. I personally love 70s music, especially disco music, and sometimes on Friday nights when no one is looking you can find me dancing to classic 70s songs such as September, Bennie and the Jets and We Are Family. However, books are my true passion and because of this, I thought it would be a great idea to mix my two loves and start this interview series. The questions will be similar every week, but with a new author every time, and I hope you’ll enjoy the answers as much as I have. Now let’s get this party started!

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This Saturday Night we welcome Zoë Sumra. Thank you so much for sitting down with me today in my galaxy of books.

Zoë, can you tell us a bit about yourself and your books? What do you think about 70s music?

I’m a child of the 80s and, as such, a lot of my favourite bands or soloists started their careers in the 70s and continued into the 80s – particularly I’d like to single out Queen and Meat Loaf.  My first published book, Sailor to a Siren, is named after a Meat Loaf song (from 1984… my favourite Meat Loaf periods are probably the 70s/earliest 80s and the 90s, but this one song from the mid 80s always stood out to me).  Sailor to a Siren is a space opera novel: it’s a gangland thriller set on an alien planet, with magic, explosions, and quite a lot of shouting.

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Review of Depression & Other Magic Tricks by Sabrina Benaim

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Depression & Other Magic Tricks by Sabrina Benaim

Publication Date: August 8, 2017.

Publisher: Button Poetry.

Genres: Poetry, Nonfiction, and Mental Health.

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Purchase here: Amazon | Book Depository 

Synopsis: Depression & Other Magic Tricks is the debut book by Sabrina Benaim, one of the most-viewed performance poets of all time, whose poem “Explaining My Depression to My Mother” has become a cultural phenomenon with over 5,000,000 views. Depression & Other Magic Tricks explores themes of mental health, love, and family. It is a documentation of struggle and triumph, a celebration of daily life and of living. Benaim’s wit, empathy, and gift for language produce a work of endless wonder.

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Thank you, Button Poetry, for my ARC of Depression & Other Magic Tricks. I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review; this does not affect my opinion. Any quotes mentioned below are taken from the ARC and are subject to change upon publication.

The poetry collection Depression & Other Magic Tricks is amazing and captivated me from start to finish. It is a book about depression, anxiety, love, and heartbreak. However, I have to mention that based on the synopsis and title I expected the book to be more about mental health and less about romance and heartbreak, which took up a large part of the collection. I don’t mind poems about romance and heartbreak but I did find this collection to give another impression before I started it.

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Saturday Night Author Fever #16 with Miri Castor

Olivia ChanelLeave a comment

saturdaynightauthorfever-stars

Hi everyone and welcome to my interview series Saturday Night Author Fever, where I interview authors with a bit of a 70s music and diversity theme. I personally love 70s music, especially disco music, and sometimes on Friday nights when no one is looking you can find me dancing to classic 70s songs such as September, Bennie and the Jets and We Are Family. However, books are my true passion and because of this, I thought it would be a great idea to mix my two loves and start this interview series. The questions will be similar every week, but with a new author every time, and I hope you’ll enjoy the answers as much as I have. Now let’s get this party started!

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This Saturday Night we welcome Miri Castor. Thank you so much for sitting down with me today in my galaxy of books.

Miri, can you tell us a bit about yourself and your books? What do you think about 70s music?

Hey there! My name’s Miri and I’m a YA SFF author for the Opal Charm series. It follows Opal Charm, a young bisexual black girl through her destiny to save Earth and an alternate world from a mysterious overlord. My books tend to be about self-discovery, love, and the power of friendship!

This is what I think of 70s music: Saturday Night Fever! Disco parties! Black people with the huge fros! 70s music made the 70s a time to be alive.

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Diversity Spotlight Thursday #4 Enemies to Lovers Edition

Olivia Chanel2 Comments

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Hi readers out there in the galaxy, welcome to my fourth Diversity Spotlight Thursday post. I haven’t done a post like this in a while but I’m so excited to be back. This meme was created by Aimal @ Bookshelves & Paperbacks and the point of the meme is to every Thursday feature three books that follow these points,

  1. A diverse book you have read and enjoyed.
  2. A diverse book that has already been released but you have not read.
  3. A diverse book that has not yet been released.

If you are interested in joining the meme, you can read the rules and see more of how the meme works here.

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Book Review of When We Wonder by Fatima AlSuwaidi

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When We Wonder by Fatima AlSuwaidi

Publication Date: November 11, 2016.

Publisher: Blurb.

Genres: Poetry.

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Purchase here: Amazon | Book Depository 

Synopsis: When We Wonder is a journey through
love and pain,
hurt and healing.

This collection of poetry and prose explore the different aspects of self-struggle and self-discovery,
and all the things that make us wonder.

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Thank you, Fatima AlSuwaidi, for my review copy of When We Wonder. I received this review copy in exchange for an honest review; this does not affect my opinion.

When We Wonder has become one of my favorite poetry collections. This book manages to say so much with so little words and there is no doubt in my mind about the fact that When We Wonder deserves endless success and a spot among the more well-known poetry authors currently sporting their names on the bestseller lists. What I love about this poetry collection is that the poems are relatable, beautiful, and will sweep you away.

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Saturday Night Author Fever #15 with Hayley Chewins

Olivia ChanelLeave a comment

saturdaynightauthorfever-stars

Hi everyone and welcome to my interview series Saturday Night Author Fever, where I interview authors with a bit of a 70s music and diversity theme. I personally love 70s music, especially disco music, and sometimes on Friday nights when no one is looking you can find me dancing to classic 70s songs such as September, Bennie and the Jets and We Are Family. However, books are my true passion and because of this, I thought it would be a great idea to mix my two loves and start this interview series. The questions will be similar every week, but with a new author every time, and I hope you’ll enjoy the answers as much as I have. Now let’s get this party started!

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This Saturday Night we welcome Hayley Chewins. Thank you so much for sitting down with me today in my galaxy of books.

Hayley, can you tell us a bit about yourself and your books? What do you think about 70s music?

Sure! My debut is called THE TURNAWAY GIRLS and it’s a middle grade fantasy about girls who are trained to turn boys’ songs into gold but who aren’t permitted to make any music themselves. The main character, Delphernia Undersea, sings in secret—and discovers a new kind of magic that changes her whole world. It’s coming out in September 2018 from Candlewick in the US and Walker Books in the UK and Australia.

Music is a huge part of my life. In fact, until I was eighteen I wanted to be a professional singer. I really connected with the singer-songwriter tradition of the 70s when I was a teenager. I loved Cat Stevens and Bob Dylan. I also listened to a lot of ABBA growing up, because my mum loves them. That music is pure happiness to me.

I hardly ever perform, but I still love singing. I’m writing some songs as an accompaniment to THE TURNAWAY GIRLS—hopefully I’ll be brave enough to share them closer to my release date.

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