BLOG TOUR Captain America: The Ghost Army by Alan Gratz (Illustrated by Brent Schoonover)

I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE GHOST ARMY by Alan Gratz & Brent Schoonover Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!

About The Book:

Title: CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE GHOST ARMY

Author: Alan Gratz & Brent Schoonover (Illustrator)

Pub. Date: January 3, 2023

Publisher: Graphix

Formats: Hardcover, Paperback, eBook

Pages: 176

Find it:  Goodreads, https://books2read.com/CAPTAIN-AMERICA-THE-GHOST-ARMY

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Alan Gratz ( Refugee, Ground Zero) comes an all-new, original Captain America graphic novel!

In this thrilling historical adventure set during World War II, Steve Rogers (AKA Captain America) and his young sidekick, Bucky Barnes, encounter threat like none they've ever seen -- a Ghost Army. The dead of this war and wars past are coming back to life, impervious to bullets, flames, or anything else the Allies can throw at them. The armies rise from the ground in the night and seem to disappear without a trace.

How can Cap and Buck fight something that's already dead? And just what does the mysterious Baron Mordo―sitting in his castle atop nearby Wundagore Mountain―have to do with this?

Award-winning, #1 New York Times bestselling author Alan Gratz merges the worlds of historical fiction and super hero comics in this one-of-a-kind graphic novel that is sure to be met with major enthusiasm from fans of all ages.

Check out my review of the book here!

About Alan Gratz:

Alan Gratz is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of several highly acclaimed books for young readers, including Ground Zero, Allies, Grenade,Refugee, Projekt 1065, Prisoner B-3087, and Code of Honor. Alan lives in North Carolina with his wife and daughter. Look for him online at alangratz.com.  

Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub

 

About Brent Schoonover: 

Hailing from the epicenter of culture known as South Beloit, Il, Brent was on a one-way trip to normalcy until the fateful day he laid eyes upon his first comic book. He immediately grabbed hold of a pencil and never let go, dedicating himself to creating scores of characters and scenarios with a zeal that would make lesser men quake in dread.

Now located in Minnesota, he draws upon a fertile imagination marinated in comics, old cartoons, classic horror movies, pro wrestling and face-melting metal to create distinctive illustrations with a retro feel that run the gamut from comic books to editorial and packaging assignments. Working for clients such as Target, Marvel Comics, DC Comics, Surly Brewing, and the Star Tribune. You can check out more of his work at
brentschoonover.com 

Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Goodreads 

  

Giveaway Details:

1 winner will win a finished copy of CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE GHOST ARMY, US Only.

Ends January 10^th, midnight EST.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule:

Week One:

12/19/2022	YA Books Central	Excerpt/IG Post
12/20/2022	Kait Plus Books	Excerpt/IG Post
12/21/2022	Eye-Rolling Demigod's Book Blog	Review/IG Post
12/22/2022	onemused	IG Review
12/23/2022	popthebutterfly	Review/IG Post
12/24/2022	A Backwards Story	Review/IG Post

Week Two:

12/25/2022	Nerdophiles	Review
12/26/2022	ThePaperbackBruncher	IG & TikTok Spotlight
12/27/2022	A Bookish Dream	Review/IG Post
12/28/2022	@just_another_mother_with_books	IG Review
12/29/2022	Novel Novice	IG Spotlight
12/30/2022	Becky on Books	Review/IG Post
12/31/2022	A Blue Box Full of Books	IG Review/LFL Drop Pic

Week Three:

1/1/2023	More Books Please blog	Review/IG Post
1/2/2023	@thebookishfoxwitch	Review/IG Post

Endless (LTZ Book 1) by Kaylene Winter

Endless (LTZ Book 1) by Kaylene Winter

Rating: 3 Stars

Release Date: June 26, 2020

Format: eBook (Kindle Unlimited)

Publisher: Rockstar Romance LLC

Get your copy of the book from Bookshop.org

Get your copy of the audiobook from Libro.fm

“With my shit background, not in a million years had I ever believed in love at first sight. At that moment not only did I believe, but I knew I would do anything for her. Anything she ever asked of me. Please, don’t let this girl break my heart.”

If you’re looking for a steamy, action-packed rockstar romance complete with the “second-chance romance” trope and a guaranteed happily ever after (HEA), then you’ve come to the right place with Endless and the Less than Zero (LTZ) series. 

Both Zoey and Tyson knew it was love at first sight when they met at one of LTZ’s concerts. Their whirlwind summer romance was everything they could have ever dreamed of, but after Zoey is convinced to let him go both of their lives turn rocky and complicated until their eventual reunion. The problem is, neither Zoey nor Tyson are the same people they were eight years ago so there is a lot of unresolved feelings and complications to work through when they get back together again. After all, what’s the story of a rockstar without legions of rabid fans, vindictive exes, and having to explain the rock anthems dedicated to his feelings for her to the entire world? 

It was exciting to see both Tyson and Zoey learn that being strong isn’t about how successful or beautiful or strong you are. Being strong can often be boiled down to putting the needs of the person you love above your own. The way that Kaylene Winter structured this book around this idea is really interesting. In the first part, we have a very young Zoey putting Tyson’s needs above her own to give his band the best chance at succeeding. The roles are reversed after they reunite when Tyson has to learn how to deal with the fame that he’s long been used to and the woman who’s loved him since before he became famous. I’m a sucker for a HEA story, so I absolutely loved the epilogue. A couple that is able to grow together, work on their issues as a team, and ultimately become better is authentic and realistic, and one hundred percent worth rooting for in my opinion. 

It’ll be interesting to see how the relationship between Jace and Alex plays out in the next book, Limitless, as Winter really built up the relationship and the tension between them. They were both amazing best friends to Ty and Zoey in this book, so they deserve their happily ever after. 

 

The Extraordinaries (The Extraordinaries Trilogy Book 1) by TJ Klune

 

The Extraordinaries (The Extraordinaries Trilogy Book 1) by TJ Klune

Rating: 5 Stars

Release Date: July 14, 2020

Format: Audiobook (library)

Publisher: Tor Teen

Check out my review of the final book in the series, Heat Wave!

Check out the book on Bookshop.org

Check out the book on Libro.fm

Check out the book on Goodreads

Check out the book on Book Depository

*Please note - this post contains affiliate links, from which we may earn a commission (at no additional cost to you) if you make a purchase

The Extraordinaries by TJ Klune is a quirky, queer superhero love story. I had this book recommended by so many fellow bookstagrammers that I absolutely had to pick it up. After reading Wolfsong and The House in the Cerulean Sea, I went into this with high expectations and I was not disappointed. 

Our main character, Nick Bell, is the biggest fan of Nova City's resident "Extraordinary" Shadow Star. When he's not writing the top-rated fanfic in the Shadow Star Fandom, he's dealing with all the complexities of his ADHD brain and the strain in his relationship with his father following the death of his mother. We have the best friend Seth who is precious and must be protected at all costs (and also very obviously in love with Nick). To round out the main cast of characters, we have their female best friends Jasmine “Jazz” Kensington and Lola “Gibby” Gibson. 

The characters were a highlight of the book. There is Nick’s dad Aaron, who is a police officer and struggles to interact with his son at times following the death of his wife. He’s not an absent parent by any means though, he does his best to be there for his son in every way possible despite working (i.e. after Nick comes out, he demonstrates how to put a condom on using a banana as a demonstration much to Nick’s horror). We have Nick, who has the best lines in the book and is completely clueless about how much Seth cares about him. There’s also the whole cast of supporting characters in the book, who really show up after one of the main characters is injured and lands in the hospital. There’s nothing I can really critique with the characters in this book because everything was as close to perfection as humanly possible. 

Michael Lesley is going to be one of my new favorite audiobook narrators ever. He has a very upbeat and humorous style when he reads. Between his narration and TJ's witty writing style, I found myself laughing a lot while reading. While I can’t comment on the gay rep in this book due to not belonging to that community, I can comment on the ADHD representation (having the condition myself) and it was spot on. Lesley did such a great job narrating Nick’s inner rambles and monologues. I really related to it, and all the moments that referenced Nick’s ADHD felt very natural (and not like it was thrown in to hit some type of “diversity” quota). 

If you've read Klune's The House in the Cerulean Sea and Green Creek series before, you should expect a very different vibe from The Extraordinaries. It’s a very lighthearted and humorous read, but it also addresses some heavy and serious stuff (i.e. parental death). I highly recommend this book to any young adult fans of the superhero genre. There are no intimate sex scenes, but there are some descriptive makeout moments and the main character does have some slightly sexual tones to his inner monologues while fantasizing about his crush. 

About the Author

TJ KLUNE is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling, Lambda Literary Award-winning author of The House in the Cerulean Sea, The Extraordinaries, and more. Being queer himself, Klune believes it's important—now more than ever—to have accurate, positive queer representation in stories.

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