The TSAR'S GUARD SPOTLIGHT TOUR- Featuring THE CROWNS FATE by Evelyn Skye Food Board & A Giveaway!

I am so excited that THE CROWN’S FATE by Evelyn Skye is releasing in May 2017 that I wanted to help spread the love!

If you haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Author Evelyn Skye, be sure to check out all the details below.

The Tsar’s Guard Spotlight Tour also includes a giveaway for an ARC of the book. So if you’d like a chance to win, enter in the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post.

I was lucky to read a very early copy of this book by my dear friend Evelyn and while I was reading the book made me so hungry that I decided to make a Pinterest board with all the food in the book. Check out a few of the photos below and then go over to the Pinterest page to see the rest!

About The Book:

Title: THE CROWN’S FATE

Author: Evelyn Skye

Release Date: May 16th, 2017

Pages: 432

Publisher: Balzer+Bray

Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook

Find it: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Kepler's Books | iBooks

The gorgeous and darkly compelling sequel to The Crown’s Game—perfect for fans of Red Queen and Shadow and Bone.

Magic is growing, shadows are rising, and the throne is at stake…

Russia is on the brink of great change. Pasha’s coronation approaches, and Vika is now the Imperial Enchanter, but the role she once coveted may be more difficult—and dangerous—than she ever expected.

Pasha is grappling with his own problems—his legitimacy is in doubt, the girl he loves loathes him, and he believes his best friend is dead. When a challenger to the throne emerges—and with the magic in Russia growing rapidly—Pasha must do whatever it takes to keep his position and protect his kingdom.

For Nikolai, the ending of the Crown’s Game stung deeply. Although he just managed to escape death, Nikolai remains alone, a shadow hidden in a not-quite-real world of his own creation. But when he’s given a second chance at life—tied to a dark price—Nikolai must decide just how far he’s willing to go to return to the world.

With revolution on the rise, dangerous new magic rearing up, and a tsardom up for the taking, Vika, Nikolai, and Pasha must fight—or face the destruction of not only their world but also themselves.

 Check out the food!!!

And go here to see the rest of the yummy recipes!
Follow Two Chicks on Books's board Recipes from The Crown's Game by Evelyn Skye on Pinterest.

About Evelyn:

Evelyn Skye is the New York Times bestselling author of THE CROWN’S GAME (out now!) and THE CROWN’S FATE (May 16, 2017). She was once offered a job by the C.I.A., she not-so-secretly wishes she was on “So You Think You Can Dance,” and if you challenge her to a pizza-eating contest, she guarantees she will win. When Evelyn isn’t writing, she can be found chasing her daughter on the playground or sitting on the couch, immersed in a good book and eating way too many cookies.

 Twitter | Goodreads | Tumblr | Instagram | Facebook

Giveaway Details:

1 winner will receive an ARC of THE CROWN’S FATE.  International.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule:

Jan. 9th - Brittany's Book Rambles: The Crown's Fate Review

Jan. 10th- Sarcasm & Lemons: Fancast

Jan. 11th- The YA Book Traveler: History of Russian Crowns

Jan. 12th- Picnic Reads: Character-Based Book Tag

Jan. 13th- Book Nerd Addict: Inspired Tote Design

Jan.16th- Dazzled by Books: Top 5 Reasons I Love The Crown's Game

Jan. 17th- Rants and Raves of a Bibliophile: Characters Matched to Teas

Jan. 18th- The Book Buzz: New Enchanter

Jan. 19th- The Aus. Library: Famous Russian Fairytales

Jan. 20th-  My Thoughts Literally: Character Inspired Dessert

Jan. 23rd- Omg Books and More Books: Books that Characters of TCG Would Enjoy

Jan. 24th- It Starts at Midnight: Virtual Tour of Russia

Jan. 25th- Next Page Please!: Character Blog

Jan. 26th- The Book Nut: Playlist

Jan. 27th- Arctic Books: Make-up Looks

Jan. 30th- Two Chicks on Books: Pinterest Recipe Board

Jan. 31th- Lost in Ever After: Typical Date for Nikolai & Vika

Feb. 1st- Alexa Loves Books: Fashion Book Look

Feb. 2nd- Sophie Reads YA: Russian History In and Out of The Crown's Game

Feb. 3rd- 21st Century Once Upon A Times: Drink Your Way Through The Crown's Game

Feb. 6th- The Eater of Books: 10 Reason I'm Excited for TCF

Feb. 7th- A Thousand Words A Million Books: Top 5 Magical Moves in The Crown's Game

Feb. 8th- Seeing Double in Neverland: Fanmade Bookmarks & Swag

Feb. 9th- A Page With A View: YA Fantasy Books set in Russia

Feb. 10th- Dana Square: Recipe from The Crown's Game

Feb. 13th-YA Wednesdays: Favorite Quotes from The Crown's Game

Feb. 14th- Juniper Reads: Sorting Characters into Fandoms

Feb. 15th- Nicole's Novel Reads: Nail Polish Looks

Feb. 16th- The Queen Reads: What the Characters of TCG would take to a Deserted Island

Feb. 17th- A Perfection Called Books: The Crown's Fate Review

Haven't started the series? It's not too late! Grab book 1 now!

Blog Tour- THE CROWN'S GAME by Evelyn Skye Favorite Foods from Fiction & A Giveaway!

I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on blog tour for THE CROWN'S GAME by Evelyn Skye! I freaking LOVED this book it was so magical and beautiful!!!! I have a guest post about food from Evelyn to share with you today! And make sure to enter the awesome giveaway for a beautiful necklace! 

Haven't heard of THE CROWN'S GAME? Check it out!

Title: THE CROWN’S GAME

Author: Evelyn Skye

Release Date: May 17^th, 2016

Pages: 416

Publisher: Balzer+Bray

Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook

Find it: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks

Vika Andreyeva can summon the snow and turn ash into gold. Nikolai Karimov can see through walls and conjure bridges out of thin air. They are enchanters—the only two in Russia—and with the Ottoman Empire and the Kazakhs threatening, the Tsar needs a powerful enchanter by his side.

And so he initiates the Crown’s Game, an ancient duel of magical skill—the greatest test an enchanter will ever know. The victor becomes the Imperial Enchanter and the Tsar’s most respected adviser. The defeated is sentenced to death.

Raised on tiny Ovchinin Island her whole life, Vika is eager for the chance to show off her talent in the grand capital of Saint Petersburg. But can she kill another enchanter—even when his magic calls to her like nothing else ever has?

For Nikolai, an orphan, the Crown’s Game is the chance of a lifetime. But his deadly opponent is a force to be reckoned with—beautiful, whip smart, imaginative—and he can’t stop thinking about her.

And when Pasha, Nikolai’s best friend and heir to the throne, also starts to fall for the mysterious enchantress, Nikolai must defeat the girl they both love . . . or be killed himself.

As long-buried secrets emerge, threatening the future of the empire, it becomes dangerously clear . . . the Crown’s Game is not one to lose.

Now on to the food post!

Evelyn Skye’s Favorite Foods from Fantasy Novels

If you follow me on twitter or Instagram, you probably already know that I’m obsessed with food. My author bio mentions pizza and cookies. I look forward to book club meetings because I get cake or a pastry every time. And THE CROWN’S GAME is filled with Russian food, both real and fantastical.

Of course, fantasy novels have a long and brilliant history of food. So on that note, I thought I’d list some of my favorites that I wish I could try:

November cakes from THE SCORPIO RACES

(picture from Fiction-Food.com)

Lembas bread from THE LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy

(picture from http://lotr.wikia.com/wiki/Lembas)

Cauldron cakes from the HARRY POTTER series

(picture from PastryAffair.com)

Cheerful Churchmouse Cherry Crisp from the REDWALL series

(picture from RecipeGirl.com)

Chocolate mice from THE NIGHT CIRCUS

(picture from http://www.burdickchocolate.com)

And some of my favorites from THE CROWN’S GAME:

Sergei’s apple sharlotka

Pâte à choux swans swimming in a pool of butterscotch

Truffles filled with hot cocoa

Ludmila’s famed Borodinsky bread

Blini with wild strawberry jam

Go here for THE CROWN'S GAME Recipe Pinterest Board!

What are your favorite fantasy novel foods?

About Evelyn:

Evelyn Skye was once offered a job by the C.I.A., she not-so-secretly wishes she was on "So You Think You Can Dance," and if you challenge her to a pizza-eating contest, she guarantees she will win. When she isn't writing, Evelyn can be found chasing her daughter on the playground or sitting on the couch, immersed in a good book and eating way too many cookies. THE CROWN'S GAME is her first novel. Evelyn can be found online at www.evelynskye.com and on Twitter @EvelynSkyeYA.

Website | Twitter |Facebook | Goodreads | Tumblr | Instagram

Giveaway Details:

1 winner will receive a beautiful custom THE CROWN’S GAME necklace (similar to the one in the photo below) made by the lovely Tales of A Ravenous Reader, US Only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule:

Week One:

5/9/2016- Dark Faerie Tales- Guest Post

5/10/2016- Owl Always Be Reading- Guest Post

5/11/2016- 125Pages- Review

5/12/2016- A Backwards Story- Review

5/13/2016- Two Chicks on Books- Guest Post

Week Two:

5/16/2016- The Reader Lines- Review

5/17/2016- Once Upon a Twilight- Guest Post

5/18/2016- That Artsy Reader Girl- Review

5/19/2016- Supernatural Snark- Guest Post

5/20/2016- Mundie Moms- Review

Top Ten Tuesday (64)- Ten Websites I Love That Aren't About Books

Hi thanks for stopping by!!! And welcome to my Top 10 Tuesday post! 

Thanks to the lovely ladies at The Broke And The Bookish for creating this weekly meme!

Here's this week's topic.

May 10: Ten Websites I Love That Aren't About Books 

Ok so this is going to be a pretty eclectic list.... I think.

1. Twitter

2. Pinterest. I use this for more than books. I look up recipes, skincare and makeup ideas, and pretty art.

3. Perfectly Posh . I loveeee these amazing pampering skincare products and am always checking for new deals. Also I'm an independent consultant.

4. Facebook

5. Yahoo Fantasy Baseball. I'm a huge baseball fan and play in a fantasy league every year.

6. Vudu. A couple friends and I share an account we have over 460 movies to watch.

7. Amazon. I use this for so much more than books! I have Prime and love it!

8. Food Network. Love looking for new recipes here.

9. Harris Poll Online. I love this site! I do surveys pretty much daily. You earn points that you can use towards gift cards from Amazon, Starbucks, a bunch of restaurants, Bath & Body Works, and other stuff.

10. LuLaRoe Mindy Herbert's Facebook group. I'm always looking at her page to see if she's added new stuff! Click in the link to follow her page. LuLaRoe clothes are awesome!

So what about you? What are some of your go to websites? And check back next week for my Ten Books I Picked Up On A Whim !

Hugs,

Jaime

The Tsar's Guard Parade Featuring THE CROWNS GAME by Evelyn Skye Food Board & A Giveaway!

I am so excited that THE CROWN’S GAME by Evelyn Skye is releasing in May 2016 that I wanted to help spread the love!

If you haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Author Evelyn Skye, be sure to check out all the details below.

The Tsar’s Guard Parade also includes a giveaway for an ARC of the book. So if you’d like a chance to win, enter in the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post.

I was lucky to read a very early copy of this book by my dear friend Evelyn and while I was reading the book made me so hungry that I decided to make a Pinterest board with all the food in the book. It's been a private page only Evelyn and I had access to but now we get to share it with the world! Check out a few of the photos below and then go over to the Pinterest page to see the rest!

About The Book:

Title: THE CROWN’S GAME

Author: Evelyn Skye

Release Date: May 17^th, 2016

Pages: 416

Publisher: Balzer+Bray

Formats: Hardcover, eBook

Find it: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks

Vika Andreyeva can summon the snow and turn ash into gold. Nikolai Karimov can see through walls and conjure bridges out of thin air. They are enchanters—the only two in Russia—and with the Ottoman Empire and the Kazakhs threatening, the Tsar needs a powerful enchanter by his side.

And so he initiates the Crown’s Game, an ancient duel of magical skill—the greatest test an enchanter will ever know. The victor becomes the Imperial Enchanter and the Tsar’s most respected adviser. The defeated is sentenced to death.

Raised on tiny Ovchinin Island her whole life, Vika is eager for the chance to show off her talent in the grand capital of Saint Petersburg. But can she kill another enchanter—even when his magic calls to her like nothing else ever has?

For Nikolai, an orphan, the Crown’s Game is the chance of a lifetime. But his deadly opponent is a force to be reckoned with—beautiful, whip smart, imaginative—and he can’t stop thinking about her.

And when Pasha, Nikolai’s best friend and heir to the throne, also starts to fall for the mysterious enchantress, Nikolai must defeat the girl they both love . . . or be killed himself.

As long-buried secrets emerge, threatening the future of the empire, it becomes dangerously clear . . . the Crown’s Game is not one to lose.

 Check out the food!!!

And go here to see the rest of the yummy recipes!
Follow Two Chicks on Books's board Recipes from The Crown's Game by Evelyn Skye on Pinterest.

About Evelyn:

Evelyn Skye was once offered a job by the C.I.A., she not-so-secretly wishes she was on "So You Think You Can Dance," and if you challenge her to a pizza-eating contest, she guarantees she will win. When she isn't writing, Evelyn can be found chasing her daughter on the playground or sitting on the couch, immersed in a good book and eating way too many cookies. THE CROWN'S GAME is her first novel. Evelyn can be found online at www.evelynskye.com and on Twitter @EvelynSkyeYA.

Website | Twitter |Facebook | Goodreads | Tumblr | Instagram

Giveaway Details:

1 winner will receive an ARC of THE CROWN’S GAME.  International.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Find the complete Tsar’s Guard Parade Schedule at Evelyn Skye’s website!

Blog Tour- THE GIRL AT MIDNIGHT By Melissa Grey Book Influences and a Giveaway!

I am so excited to be hosting a spot on THE GIRL AT MIDNIGHT Blog Tour! I loved this book! It was a fantasy but it's set in the real world with bird like people and dragons! I fell hard for a certain dragon named Caius (when you read the book you'll see why). I have a post about Melissa's inspirations for the book. Make sure to enter the giveaway below for a copy of the book!
Haven't heard of THE GIRL AT MIDNIGHT? Check it out!

Title: THE GIRL AT MIDNIGHT

Author: Melissa Grey

Pub. Date: April 28, 2015

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Pages: 368

Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook

Find it: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo, Indiebound, Powell’s,  Goodreads

ORDER A SIGNED COPY FROM BOOKS OF WONDER

For readers of Cassandra Clare’s City of Bones and Leigh Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone, The Girl at Midnight is the story of a modern girl caught in an ancient war.

Beneath the streets of New York City live the Avicen, an ancient race of people with feathers for hair and magic running through their veins. Age-old enchantments keep them hidden from humans. All but one. Echo is a runaway pickpocket who survives by selling stolen treasures on the black market, and the Avicen are the only family she’s ever known.

Echo is clever and daring, and at times she can be brash, but above all else she’s fiercely loyal. So when a centuries-old war crests on the borders of her home, she decides it’s time to act.

Legend has it that there is a way to end the conflict once and for all: find the Firebird, a mythical entity believed to possess power the likes of which the world has never seen. It will be no easy task, but if life as a thief has taught Echo anything, it’s how to hunt down what she wants … and how to take it.

But some jobs aren’t as straightforward as they seem. And this one might just set the world on fire.

Praise for THE GIRL AT MIDNIGHT:

"Grey’s energetic debut offers a strong protagonist…[and the] well-built world, vivid characters, and perfect blend of action and amour should have readers eagerly seeking the sequel." — Kirkus Reviews, Starred

 "Sparks fly...This first novel will please fans of Cassandra Clare and Game of Thrones watchers with its remarkable world building; richly developed characters...[and] a breathtaking climax that...cannot come soon enough!""—Booklist starred review

"Inventive, gorgeous, and epic—Grey dazzles in her debut." — Danielle Paige, New York Times bestselling author of Dorothy Must Die

“A stunning debut. Equal parts atmosphere and adventure … positively divine.” – Victoria Schwab, author of A Darker Shade of Magic

Now on to the post!

Influences and The Girl at Midnight

Every author is influenced by something: books they've read, plays they've seen, movies they watched. We -- and the books we write -- evolve from the stories we've consumed throughout the years. Here are a few of the works (only 33% literary!) that influenced the world and characters of The Girl at Midnight.

1) NEVERWHERE by Neil Gaiman

I read this book when it came out ages ago (I was still in high school) and its stayed with me ever since. The idea of a subterranean world, hidden beneath the streets of one of the world's most populous cities, inhabited by creatures both magical and mundane captivated my imagination and the way Gaiman envisioned his world beneath London played a big role in how I approached the Avicen's home, the Nest, beneath the streets of New York.

2) STAR WARS

This one hardly needs an introduction. There's a reason for the enduring nature of its story -- spelled out nicely when you consider Joseph Campbell's THE HERO WITH A THOUSAND FACES -- and I think the notion of a hero rising from unlikely circumstances is one of them. There is an element of fate to Luke Skywalker's story but more importantly, he is defined by the choices he makes. He chooses to do good in the face of overwhelming odds and that's a really powerful message.

3) FINAL FANTASY VII

This game was a life-changer for me. You can read more about how FF7 influenced my approach to storytelling in general but when it comes to The Girl at Midnight, it helped me develop my cast of characters. Having a strong protagonist is vital but it's just as important to have that person surrounded by a strong and diverse crowd. In FF7, Cloud was the central focus of the story but what would he be without Aeris, Tifa, Barrett, Red XIII, Cait Sith, Cid, Vincent, and Selphie? A lot less interesting, that's for sure.

About Melissa:

Melissa Grey was born and raised in New York City. She wrote her first short story at the age of twelve and hasn't stopped writing since. After earning a degree in fine arts at Yale University, she traveled the world, then returned to New York City where she currently works as a freelance journalist. To learn more about Melissa, visit melissa-grey.com and follow @meligrey on Twitter.

Website  | Blog | Twitter  | Instagram | Pinterest |  Goodreads

Giveaway Details:

1 winner will receive a signed Hardcover of THE GIRL AT MIDNIGHT! US Only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Check out the Tour Schedule!

Week One:

4/20/2015- Novel Sounds- Guest Post

4/21/2015- Cuddlebuggery- Review

4/22/2015- Parajunkee- Interview

4/23/2015- Fiktshun- Review

4/24/2015- Dahlia Adler- Guest Post

Week Two:

4/27/2015- Paperback Princess- Review

4/28/2015- Bookish Broads- Interview

4/29/2015- Mundie Moms- Review

4/30/2015- Two Chicks on Books- Guest Post

5/1/2015- Icey Books- Review