Mundie Moms

Friday, February 15, 2013

Breathless Reads is in AUSTIN, TX TONIGHT!


The Breathless Reads tour stops in Austin TONIGHT!! You guys do not want to miss this stop. Andrea Cremer, Brenna Yovanoff, Marie Lu and Jessica Khoury will be in town to talk about their books at Book People at 7 pm! I'm thrilled to be the live blogger for Penguin Teen at tonight's event. I'll  be sitting down with each of the authors prior to the event to ask them a few questions, and I'll be tweeting live during the event! If you can't make the event, you can purchase books from Book People! They ship internationally! Give them at call at 512-742-5050


Dance of Shadows Blog Tour: Guest Post

Welcome to today's Dance of Shadows blog tour hosted by Bloomsbury Teen. I'm so thrilled to have author Yelena Black on the blog today. I recently reviewed Dance of Shadows, and this is one I'd highly recommend picking up. This cover alone is just stunning and such a perfect match for this book. 




By: Yelena Black
Published by: Bloomsbury Teens
Released on: February 12th, 2013
Series: Dance of Shadows #1
Purchase from:Amazon | Barnes & Noble


Dancing with someone is an act of trust. Elegant and intimate; you're close enough to kiss, close enough to feel your partner's heartbeat. But for Vanessa, dance is deadly – and she must be very careful who she trusts . . .

Vanessa Adler attends an elite ballet school – the same one her older sister, Margaret, attended before she disappeared. Vanessa feels she can never live up to her sister's shining reputation. But Vanessa, with her glorious red hair and fair skin, has a kind of power when she dances – she loses herself in the music, breathes different air, and the world around her turns to flames . . . 

Soon she attracts the attention of three men: gorgeous Zep, mysterious Josh, and the great, enigmatic choreographer Josef Zhalkovsky. When Josef asks Vanessa to dance the lead in the Firebird, she has little idea of the danger that lies ahead – and the burning forces about to be unleashed - quoted from Goodreads




Hi Yelena! Welcome to Mundie Moms! I really enjoyed Dance of Shadows. What inspired your story?
Thank you so much! The story was inspired by my love of ballet and mysteries. I wanted to write a story that involved both of those elements as well as the bond between sisters. I studied dance as a girl, and I grew up on classical music, so those things are very much “in my blood” so to speak. I’ve always been fascinated by the legend surrounding Stravinsky and the premier of The Rite of Spring, when the audience supposedly went into fits upon hearing the opening sequence. I think art—music, dance, theater, and so many more forms—has the potential to really elicit a great response from people … and really, I wanted to write a book that would do that as well. Plus, anything with pointe shoes works for me!

I loved how you mixed dance, the story's mystery and the romance all together. Out of the three, which was your favorite element to write about the most?
I loved writing all three, but writing the romance elements of the book were probably my favorite. Can you blame me?!

You have some great characters in your book. Do you have a favorite character you enjoyed writing or one that surprised you the most in terms of how much they changed from your first drafts to the final draft?
I can’t choose a favorite! I loved writing from Vanessa’s perspective and exploring her growth as a character. I was most surprised I think by Justin, who has a larger role in the sequel and became a more important character in the novel than I initially thought he would be. And Blaine always makes me laugh.

I don't know much about dance, but I really enjoyed the way you wrote the dance elements Dance of Shadows. I felt like I understood it enough to understand what was going on. What role has dance played in your life?
I’m so glad! I worked hard on the dance elements so this is a huge compliment. I took dance lessons when I was younger, though I never tried to pursue dance professionally. I’ve always been inspired by dancers and their discipline, however, and was excited to be able to write about that in Dance of Shadows.

Are you able to tell us a little bit about what you're working on now?

I’m currently editing the sequel to Dance of Shadows, which follows Vanessa to Europe as she continues searching for her missing sister, Margaret.



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Thank you Yelena for stopping by! 
To find out more about Dance of Shadows, follow the Dance of Shadows facebook page. 

About the Author:
Yelena Black is a recent MFA graduate of Columbia University. She currently resides in New York City and is a full-time writer. She has a keen interest in dance and all things devilish.

Follow Yelena via her Website | Twitter | Facebook

My Thoughts on The Book (taken from my review posted here):
Dark and intriguing, Dance of Shadows weaves together mystery and suspense with the beauty and danger of this story's elegant ballet. Graced with an appealing storyline, and the mystery behind this story's main character Vanessa, sister's disappearance, this was a book I was hooked with from the moment I started reading it. Yelena Black's third person writing was well crafted, and flowed well never once making it confusing on who was talking and what was going on. I enjoyed being completely wrapped up with all that was going on. I loved the setting and the cast of characters I met.

Vanessa herself is a character I enjoyed getting to know. She's a character who grew and changed through out the story, and surprised me in some ways with how she went from being naive about some of the things going on at the dance's boarding school to being a strong character who wants to get to the bottom of all that's happening. The two guys who have her torn were both well written, and I'll admit I was just as torn as she was, and went from wanting her to pick the one to strongly disliking him at the same time the mystery surrounding him was revealed. I loved who she ended up choosing and I'm dying to know what will transpire between them next.

Not being one who knows a lot about ballet, I felt Yelena did a wonderful job at making me feel like I was able to comprehend what she was talking about, and all that was going on in regards to the ballet. I loved how the mystery and the suspense was woven into the ballet. It was detailed, and richly written, so much so that I had no problems picturing the dances, and moves that were being performed and practiced. I enjoyed the cast of characters I met. They were lively, mysterious and so easy to like. 

I loved the twists and secrets some of them harbored, and I loved the well written love triangle that this story had. It went against the norm and I felt like Vanessa's feeling between the two guys were justified and relatable, given all that is going on with both of them. I can't wait to read more about the romance that I'm hoping develops between Vanessa and the one she choose (I'm leaving out their names so that I don't spoil anything) in the sequel. This is a deliciously dark, wonderful read and one I'd recommend picking up!

The Mortal Instruments Movie Cast in HD


Yesterday Sony Pictures (@MortalMovie) gifted us with a photo we've all been dying to see, Jace and Clary. This picture speaks so many unspoken words between these two characters. I love the way this photo was taken. I can't wait to see this moment on the big screen. Since I'm so giddy over this picture and all the other ones that were revealed this week, I thought it was fitting to put all the HD TMI Movie photos in one posts. Here are all the pictures that have been released in HD so far.


The Cast: Simon, Izzy, Alec, Jace, Magnus, Valentine, Jace & Clary (because this picture needs to be posted twice), and the other cast photos. 

1st reveal: Simon

2nd reveal: Izzy

3rd reveal: Alec

4th reveal: Jace

5th reveal: Magnus

Sony's VALENTINE treat to us, Valentine

Our 6th and final reveal: The real Valentine treat, Jace & Clary

Other stills revealed: this one above was revealed this past week, which is the group walking into Magnus's party.



Who's ready for August?!

Also, HAPPY FRIDAY!!!!

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