This post is going to look SUPER long, but it’s mainly because I’m including the individual blurbs for November Rain and November Snow. (Yes. They are finally ready!)
What I’m Writing:
Many of you will be excited to hear that I’m back into Take Me Yesterday, book 2 of The Tomo Trilogy. I hit a snag last time I was writing, and then my energy had to go toward Bad Bloods—which is definitely going to happen again when final edits come around—but for now, I am working on the sequel of Take Me Tomorrow. I’m currently in chapter eight, about 11,500 words in. As many of you saw on my Instagram, Bogart recently protected my notes for Take Me Yesterday by laying on them. That being said, I know I need to refocus my energy soon and go back to Take Me Tomorrow, book one, to make the best book I can before I continue forward with book 2.
What I’m Publishing:
The final back blurbs for each part of Bad Bloods is finally available! You can read them below. And of course, the winning #1lineWed preview is here as well. The theme was hot: She wasn’t smiling, but a warmth radiated from her, as if she could hug people from a distance.
November Rain, Part One
(releases July 18, 2016)
Seventeen-year-old Serena isn’t human. She is a bad blood, and in the city of Vendona, bad bloods are executed. In the last moments before she faces imminent death, a prison guard aids her escape and sparks a revolt. Back on the streets determined to destroy her kind, Serena is spared by a fellow bad blood named Daniel. His past tragedies are as equally mysterious as her connection to them. Unbeknownst to the two, this connection is the key to winning the election for bad bloods’ rights to be seen as human again. But Serena is the only one who can secure Vendona’s vote. Now, Daniel must unite with her before all hope is lost and bad bloods are eradicated, even if it means exposing secrets worse than death itself. United or not, a city will fight, rain will fall, and all will be threatened by star-crossed love and political corruption.
November Snow, Part Two
(eBook releases one week later, with the paperback releasing in November of 2016)
When Daniel and Serena unite, their accidental relationship becomes the catalyst for a twelve-year war to continue. Exposing the twisted past of a corrupt city, Daniel, Serena, and everyone they know will come together to fight. But Serena has another battle. After a political rumor threatens their lives, Serena must leave her family and join the political front against her will. To survive apart, Daniel has to separate his love from his hatred and join forces with his worst memory to secure Vendona’s war. But very few of them will survive to see the last day. Bad blood or human, a city will burn, snow will fall, and all will be united by catastrophic secrets and irrevocable tragedy.
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What I’m Reading:
The Conjurer’s Riddle by Andrea Cremer: I finished it! I basically could do nothing but read this novel over my weekend. (My weekends are Sunday through Tuesday, by the way.) I am in LOVE with this series, and I am already dying for the third book. It’s brilliant, and you can read why in my review here. On a side note, there is definitely a third book. I tweeted to the lovely author, and she tweeted back! That deserves an extra star.
Clockwork Prince: I was so set on steampunk after reading The Conjurer’s Riddle that I had to continue The Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare. This is book 2, and to be honest, I should’ve started reading it a LONG time ago, since I read the first one in July, but it’s been on my nightstand, and I’m glad I finally picked it up again. Loved it! In fact, I finished it too. (Told you I read a lot this week.) I actually didn’t like Will very much in the first book, but he’s grown on me a lot more in this one. Same with Jem. And now I think I’m broken. This book definitely deserves 5 stars, and you can read my entire review here. (I NEED the third book now.) Also…Cassandra Clare liked my review of her work. I think I died and went to Heaven.
Trial by Fire by Josephine Angelini: I finished it in the middle of the night after I posted my last Saturdate article. And…I’m not going to lie. I wasn’t a fan. Don’t get me wrong. I think many readers could LOVE this book, but it wasn’t for me. I explained why in my 2.5-star review, but it mainly came down to the voice and characters. The world building is unique, the story is written well, and you’ll probably enjoy it if you love witches, other dimensions, love triangles, and vegan protagonists. Read my full review here.
What I’m Listening To:
Lykke Li, because she’s my Tomo Trilogy star. I’m trying to get back into Sophia’s voice, and Lykke Li was the number one singer I listen to while working on this trilogy.
What I’m Watching:
Mockingjay Part 2: I just saw this a few hours ago, but I LOVED it. (I also got mistaken for wearing cosplay to the movie theatre…excuse me for wearing a side braid and boots. This is my usual attire.) That being said, I thought it was awesome. I still think they didn’t need to divide the last book into two movies, but for the readers out there, (spoilers for the rest of the people) I was a little sad to see that they played down Finnick’s sacrificial death a bit. On a positive note, seeing Tigris was PHENOMENAL. I also thought they made the overall tone of the ending much happier and little less, you know, insane, and aside from a few other edits, I still thought it was a great movie for a great book. Can’t believe it’s over. </3
The Yes Men Are Revolting: So this is the best documentary ever. Basically, it follows a group of pranksters (also activists) who focus on bringing attention to political issues currently being ignored by world leaders.
Men, Women, & Children: This is an Adam Sandler movie about how the Internet has affected modern families, and let me tell you, it’s scary how realistic it is (and terribly sad). I thought it was a wonderful movie, but it’s definitely (and intentionally) uncomfortable.
That Sugar Film: Another documentary I watched this week, but this one is Australian, and it’s about how sugar affects the body of one guy. I know you all see me baking a lot, so I do consume sugar, but I’m actually really weary of what I consume. I rarely drink soda or eat processed foods, for instance, so I find documentaries like this to be interesting. This one was a bit bizarre humor-wise, but had some interesting stats to see.
Fifty Shades of Grey: Yep. That happened. One of my good friends hadn’t seen it yet—and she helped me shop this week—so we rented it and watched it. As controversial as it is to talk about, I’m actually interested in seeing what they’ll do with the sequels (since they recently announced they’ll be filming both sequels back-to-back at the start of 2016). I’m hoping Taylor, the body guard/assistant of Christian Grey, gets more screen time, because his side story was my favorite.
What I’m Baking, Making, and Drinking:
Jalapeno cheddar pasta and cheesy potato ham casserole. No pictures this time, but they were both great!
What I’m Wearing:
I have new boots! And they’re steampunk boots. I couldn’t quite capture their beauty on Instagram, but the backs have golden spokes on them. They went perfectly with The Conjurer’s Riddle.
What I’m Wanting:
The next book in The Inventor’s Secret series. Come on, Andrea Cremer! I’m addicted. I know you’re the process of writing it, but, but, but…
I would also like Clockwork Princess, book 3 in The Infernal Devices, because my heart needs mending after book 2.
What I’m Dreaming Of:
Bogart was a BAT! Which is awesome…because bats are my favorite animals. But, yes. Bogart turned into a bat, and he was super tiny too. He even helped me find Kiki—another one of my cats—who was stuck in the wall or something. (If you only knew Kiki, this wouldn’t surprise you.)
I had a little white dog I loved dressing up as Pikachu…and everyone thought I was crazy, but I borrowed my father’s truck and turned that into a Pikachu truck…and then four other Pikachu-themed cars parked next to mine, and it was the best day of my life.
What Else Is Going On:
The Black Friday Sale for The Timely Death Trilogy has begun! From now until November 30, you can get the first book in the trilogy for free and the second book for only .99¢ on Smashwords. Use the code WS34V at the links below to read more this holiday season.
And, of course…
Stay Dark,
~SAT
Shannon A. Thompson 
IMO it goes Catching Fire, Hunger Games, MJ 2, MJ 1. If they hadn’t split the stories it would have probably went CF, MJ, HG.
Oh well.
Lykke Li o/
Is o/ high five or is Google just confusing me more? 😉
If they hadn’t split it, I’d probably be The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay, which is how the books went for me too. I actually think I liked the movies more, which is strange to say, but in the movies, we got to see more, like President Snow in general. The amount of insanity Katniss had in the books made it very difficult to read from first person by book three. I definitely thought they made the ending in the movie SOOO much lighter in regards to overall tone too. Thanks for commenting!
~SAT