Blog Tour: Shades of Atlantis - Carol Oates - Guest Post & Giveaway

I am honoured to announce that Carol Oates is here today with a guest post as part of the Teen Book Scene blog tour for her book Shades of Atlantis. I reviewed Shades of Atlantis yesterday and thought it was a refreshing and enjoyable read. I hope you all get a chance to read it. You can follow along with the tour here. 

What books did you enjoy reading while growing up?

I vaguely recall storytime in school as a very young child although I don’t recall the specific stories. We used to lay our heads on our desk while the teacher read and I recall it being a very happy part of the day. The very first book I remember picking out myself and then treasuring until it fell apart in my hands was a children’s copy of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. It was to be the first of many books over the years.

I enjoyed stories with mystery, Nancy Drew and The Famous Five. I remember being so excited about my first taste of ginger beer on holiday in the Isle of Man. Even at a young age I tended to gravitate towards fairytales and stories with a supernatural element. I read a lot of books about Irish legends and folklore, most of which are fairly dark and full of Magic but many with the strong female characters I liked.

My love of books was in no way limited. When I was thirteen I took it upon myself to read The Bible cover to cover twice. The area where I grew up in Dublin is surrounded by a long history with vampires, since Bram Stoker was born here, so I probably read Dracula earlier that I should have, but it was then I discovered the classics in a big way. Shakespeare, The Bronte sisters, Austin , Twain, Dickens… I basically read anything and everything I could get my hands on. Something that hasn’t changed to this day.

I think if I had to choose a favorite book growing up and the one that still remains my favorite to this day I would say The Princess Bride by William Goldman. I read it over and over and I never get tired of it.

Thank you for being here today, Carol. I love your book list! I have to confess that I haven't read "The Princess Bride" yet, but I do have it sitting on my shelf. As for the others, sadly most of them have been neglected as well, though I do love Shakespeare's works. :)

Giveaway

Courtesy of Carol Oates I have a PDF e-copy of Shades of Atlantis up for grabs to one lucky winner. 

Thank you, Carol!

This contest is open internationally. 

Giveaway ends February 11, 2011 at 5 PM EST. 
Giveaway has ENDED. Thank you to all who participated!

Please fill out this form to enter.

Comments, while appreciated, will not be counted as entries. 

Thank you!

Shades of Atlantis - Carol Oates - Blog Tour Review

Since the death of their parents, Triona Pryor and her brother, Ben, have lived with their aunt and uncle in Camden, Maine. Now in her senior year of high school, Triona loves her family and friends, but she has always felt that she didn't quite fit in...in Camden, or anywhere else.

Enter Caleb Wallace, the devilishly handsome man who has recently moved to Triona's small town. While their attraction to each other is instantaneous, it also proves to be dangerous...and deadly.

When tragedy strikes, Triona flees to London for solace and to start her life anew. It's there she discovers from an unlikely source that her family has been keeping secrets from her - secrets about not only her birthright, but her ultimate destiny as well. Armed with this knowledge, Triona finds herself thrown into a whole new world and into a battle to save the lives of everyone she loves.

(Synopsis taken from goodreads.)

Title: Shades of Atlantis

Author: Carol Oates

Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal

Publisher: Omnific Publishing

Publication Date: November 2010

Format: E-book

Source: Received from author. Many thanks goes to Carol Oates, and Teen Book Scene for sending me a copy of this book for review. I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review. This review is part of the Teen Book Scene blog tour. You can follow along with the tour here. 

Look for it: Amazon

My rating: 4/5

Triona is biding her time, waiting for school to end so she can move on with her life and leave the small town she lives in with her brother, Ben. They have lived with their aunt and uncle since the untimely demise of their parents. Triona's working an after school job, trying to get enough money together to go on the trip she has been planning for so long. The restaurant is under new management, and she hasn't met all of the new owners yet. When she walks into work, she meets one of her new bosses, Caleb, and she is besieged with feelings previously foreign to her. The attraction is mutual, and they can't help but act on their feelings. However, Caleb has a secret. One that might prove deadly to the both of them. When circumstances spiral out of control, Triona is left to pick up the pieces, not knowing that there are still more secrets being kept from her. She decides to relocate in an attempt to start fresh, but what she doesn't realize is that her past isn't done with her yet. 

I'll admit I had a hard time deciding on my feelings for this book. Overall, I found it favourable, and the second half of the book made up for the first half. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the romance between Triona and Caleb, but I was hungering for more and the second half of the book definitely delivered. I did like the characters, but Caleb's penchant for telling Triona that he would answer her questions at a later date, and that she should just trust him for the time being drove me up the wall. Now I'm all for releasing details when needed, but he held back and wouldn't give her any information, and I understood and empathized with her frustration. He played his cards close to the chest. I can understand why he did what he did, but I didn't necessarily appreciate it. 

Triona was a strong character as well, and it was amusing to see her clashing with Caleb. They both had dominant and headstrong personalities and I enjoyed seeing them play off of each other. They definitely captured my interest, and I loved the lore that Caleb would dole out to Triona. I kept looking for more tidbits, hungry to know more. I appreciated how it was woven into the story, and I really liked the concept used in regards to celtic lore, and the history behind the lost city of Atlantis. It piqued my interest even more, and the farther I delved into the book, the more I could not put it down. It was an engaging read, and once I hit the halfway mark, the pages seemed to fly by. I became more engrossed in the tale, and found it quite original and refreshing. 

The world building in the prologue immediately captured my interest, and though we don't learn too much for a while after that in regards to the mystery surrounding Caleb and Triona, the lore doled out was fascinating.

All in all, an excellent read. The premise of the story was refreshing, and I enjoyed watching Triona finally get some answers. With a solid cast of characters surrounding her, it's hard not to fall in love with them. Both the characters, and the mythology used are sure to capture the interest of those who want to read something a little different from the mainstream paranormal these days.