FFBC: Welcome to the club, The Unlikelies by Carrie Firestone

The Unlikelies
by Carrie Firestone
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Release Date: June 6th 2017
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary

Synopsis:

Five teens embark on a summer of vigilante good samaritanism in a novel that's part The Breakfast Club, part The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, and utterly captivating.

Rising high school senior Sadie is bracing herself for a long, lonely, and boring summer. But things take an unexpected turn when she steps in to help rescue a baby in distress and a video of her good deed goes viral.

Suddenly internet-famous, Sadie's summer changes for the better when she's introduced to other "hometown heroes." These five very different teens form an unlikely alliance to secretly right local wrongs, but when they try to help a heroin-using friend, they get in over their heads and discover that there might be truth in the saying "no good deed goes unpunished." Can Sadie and her new friends make it through the summer with their friendships--and anonymity--intact?

This rich and thought-provoking novel takes on timely issues and timeless experiences with a winning combination of romance, humor, and wisdom.

Hi Carrie!! We’re so excited to have your book in our FFBC Tours, and can’t wait to ask you a couple of questions about your new book THE UNLIKELIES!!

Hi! Thank you so much for this opportunity!

Favorite Book? 

There are so many! The best book I’ve read this month was STATION ELEVEN by Emily St. John Mandel. I loved the premise and the way the lives of the characters intertwined.

Favorite TV show? 

Game of Thrones (Shame. Shame. Shame.)

Favorite movie? 

The Goonies

Favorite Song? 

Imagine by John Lennon

Favorite Food? 

Definitely popcorn

Name 3 fictional places you would move to in a heartbeat. 

The Boxcar (from the Boxcar Children); The Chocolate Factory (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory); The House (Little House on the Prairie)

What were your favorite books growing up? 

(I was a Fear Street girl!) Oooh. I would have loved those books, but I’m old so I was all about The Boxcar Children books, MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN, all the Judy Blume books, and all the Beverly Cleary books.

Favorite Quote? 

“Human beings are more alike than unalike, and what is true anywhere is true everywhere…” –Maya Angelou (Passports to Understanding)

What do you find yourself “Fangirling” over? 

If fangirling is what I think it is, I fangirled twice in my life. The first was when I met John F. Kennedy Jr. in the hallway of the school where I was teaching in NYC. The other time was when I met Barack Obama at a fundraiser. I said, “Welcome to Connecticut, Senator Obama. We love you.” He said, “Thank you. I love you, too!”

What were your 3 favorite books from the last year? 

Other than STATION ELEVEN, I loved THE HATE U GIVE by Angie Thomas, an awesome fantasy book called HEART BLADE by Juliana Spink Mills and WE ARE OKAY by Nina LaCour.

Could you tell our Book Addicts a little bit about THE UNLIKELIES? 

THE UNLIKELIES is about a group of teens who meet at a luncheon where they are honored for being local heroes. They begin to hang out and end up fighting cyber trolls, real life bullies, and drug dealers, all while trying to honor an elderly man’s dying wish. 

What 3 hashtags would you most associate with your book? (Could be a word or phrase or anything that would instantly make you think of THE UNLIKELIES.)

#UnlikelyRevolution #UnlikelyHero #DoSomethingNoble (and I’ll add one more #Lizard)

Besides reading, writing, and blogging, I love fashion!! What would Sadie wear on a typical summer day? 

Great question! She’s very casual: denim shorts, her favorite Leprechaun t-shirt, and flip flops!

How did you come up with the story? Did you find inspiration in any other story/movie/show and how has this affected your writing? 

It’s funny because I see a little bit of The Goonies in this book. And I was definitely thinking about the revolution songs of The Beatles as I wrote. But I was most inspired by the “unlikely heroes” I have encountered in my life. I wanted to show that do-gooders can be cool and interesting and that while “no good deed goes unpunished,” it’s so important to keeping trying to do good things in this jaded world.

Tell us your favorite quote from THE UNLIKELIES. 

This is totally random, but I like when Alice says, “Hello, little boy. Would you like some sassafras?”

Is there a specific scene that you had the most fun to write? Or which part was the most difficult to get through? 

I loved writing the Speakeasy scene because I would have hung out at Speakeasy all the time. The difficult scenes were the ones that dealt with the dark world of drugs and the pain that comes from watching someone you love suffer from addiction.

If you had to pick one song to be the Theme Song for THE UNLIKELIES– Which one would you pick? 

Blackbird by The Beatles

Are there any recommendations you could give your readers to be in the “perfect mood” to read THE UNLIKELIES (specific music, snacks…)? 

1. Suggested music: Anything by the Beatles (especially Blackbird)

2. Suggested snack: blueberry cobbler or biscuits with honey (both with a side of ice cream)

3. Suggested candy: candy necklace

4. Suggested time to read: early evening on a cloudy summer night

5. Suggested companion: a notebook to write down your own revolutionary ideas

What’s next for you? 

I’m planning to read and write a lot this summer. And I’m working on some of my own vigilante do-gooder projects! #UnlikelyRevolution

Thank you so much for this, Carrie!

Thank you! This was such a fun interview!!

Follow The Unlikelies by Carrie Firestone Blog Tour and don't miss anything! Click on the banner to see the tour schedule.

Carrie Firestone has lived in rural, urban, and suburban places, and, while she currently lives in the suburbs, she is decidedly a CITY person. She loves parties, and all kinds of music, and books about random people doing random things in random places. She loves to travel with her husband, and two daughters, Lauren and Emily. When she isn’t writing, you might find her reluctantly sharing her popcorn at the movies, trying to get people (or dogs) to do a conga line, or adding items to her loose ends list.

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Blog Tour: Fractured Lines (Out of Line #4) by Jen McLaughlin

Fractured Lines (Out of Line #4)
by Jen McLaughlin
Release Date: October 14th 2014
Rate: Love it (4,5 stars)

Synopsis:

The lines we once crossed so easily have widened and torn us apart . . .

Once upon a time I thought Finn and I would live happily ever after, but real life doesn't always have a happy ending. He's testing my trust, and I'm losing faith in the man I thought I'd spend the rest of my life with, and there’s nothing I do can stop it. He’s the one I trusted to keep me safe, but now he’s the source of my greatest pain . . .

Forgiveness is fragile, and some fractures never fully heal . . .

One mistake—a slip in a moment of weakness—might cost me everything I've worked so hard for. The thing about trust is that it's a lot easier to lose than it is to build. Just as I'm about to give up and surrender to the demons from my past, an unexpected threat reminds me what I'm best at: protecting the woman I love. Whether or not she wants me, I will fight for Carrie and our daughter, and I will keep them safe—no matter the cost.

Even if I have to put my life and my heart on the line.

In Fractured Lines our favorite couple, Finn and Carrie, not only get their happily ever after, but they have also grown, not only because the author decided to make it an adult novel, but their personalities and their intimate moments have also grown and become even hotter than before (even if that's possible).

However, having a happy ending doesn't mean happy moments all the time. Real couples also have problems, even if their love is an epic one like Finn and Carrie's. And that is one of the things that make this series so enjoyable, the real factor that sometimes is hard to achieve. 

One thing is for sure. This fourth book in the Out Of Line series should come with a warning telling readers that this new story might caused so many emotions that people around might think you are crazy. You would go from worrying about the two main characters, to almost crying or actual crying (and the ugly one) and then you would show a goofy smile. The fact that once again Carrie and Finn's relationship is tested and that they have to fight new problems, leaves the readers in an overload of emotions.

I enjoyed so much this book and the whole series I do not want to give out anything with my review, that's why I am writing so little about the plot and what's going to happen between Carrie and Finn, but I would say that this is one of the best tributes an author can do to his/her characters and Jen McLaughlin did it perfectly. There's been a change in every single character from her Out Of Line series if compare the first book with this fourth one and the evolution has been outstanding. Moreover, it's always nice to have a piece of what's happening after the ending of a series, and Jen McLaughlin gifted us, readers, with exactly that. 

So if you are still wondering if you need to read this series if you haven't started yet, that's a definitely yes. You need to meet Finn and fall madly in love with him, make him one of your favorite male fictional characters and get to know Carrie and their unique love story. I gave them a chance and I do not regret it at all!

The first three books you can also find them in The Out Of Line set

Read my review for Out Of Mind

Jen McLaughlin is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. She writes steamy New Adult books for the young and young at heart. Her first release, Out of Line, came out September 2013. She also writes bestselling Contemporary Romance under the pen name Diane Alberts.Since receiving her first contract offer under the pen name Diane Alberts, she has yet to stop writing. She is represented by Louise Fury at The Bent Agency.

Though she lives in the mountains, she really wishes she was surrounded by a hot, sunny beach with crystal clear water. She lives in Northeast Pennsylvania with her four kids, a husband, a schnauzer mutt, a cat, and a Senegal parrot. In the rare moments when she’s not writing, she can usually be found hunched over one knitting project or another. Her goal is to write so many well-crafted romance books that even a non-romance reader will know her name.

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Teaser Blitz: Out of Mind (Out of Line #3) by Jen McLaughlin

Today is the teaser blitz for the upcoming book OUT OF MIND by Jen McLaughlin. This is the third, and final, book in the OUT OF LINE series!

The book will be released on April 29th!

Out of Mind (Out of Line #3)

by Jen McLaughlin

Release Date: April 29th 2014

Synopsis:

Reaching for sunlight...

Finn survived the ambush and came home to me, but in his head, the battle is still raging. He’s falling apart and I’m trying my best to pick up the pieces of him, to find the us we used to be. I love him as much as I ever did, but love isn’t enough to fix this. I thought telling my father about our relationship would be the hardest thing we’d ever have to face. I was wrong.

Lost in shadows...

All I wanted was to be worthy of Carrie. One mission, just one, and I’d be able to give her the future she deserved. Then everything went wrong, leaving me tainted and broken. Carrie wants me to be who I was, but all that’s left is what they made of me. I’m no good for her. No good for anyone like this. I have to figure out how to move forward. Alone.

Sometimes love isn’t enough…

 

Jen McLaughlin is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. She writes steamy New Adult books for the young and young at heart. Her first release, Out of Line, came out September 2013. She also writes bestselling Contemporary Romance under the pen name Diane Alberts.Since receiving her first contract offer under the pen name Diane Alberts, she has yet to stop writing. She is represented by Louise Fury at The Bent Agency.

Though she lives in the mountains, she really wishes she was surrounded by a hot, sunny beach with crystal clear water. She lives in Northeast Pennsylvania with her four kids, a husband, a schnauzer mutt, a cat, and a Senegal parrot. In the rare moments when she’s not writing, she can usually be found hunched over one knitting project or another. Her goal is to write so many well-crafted romance books that even a non-romance reader will know her name.