Welcome
to Sortilege Falls
by
Libby Heily
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GENRE:
YA Fantasy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Welcome
to Sortilege Falls Blurb:
Sixteen-year-old
Grape Merriweather moved to Sortilege Falls expecting a fresh start
and new friends. But things are never
quite what they seem in this
sleepy Missouri town. Her math teacher looks like a witch, her school
is being stalked by a vampire, and Grape could swear the town’s
garden gnomes are moving. None of that compares to the small group of
teenage models, blessed with otherworldly beauty, who rule Sortilege
Falls. Even the adults are powerless to tell them no. When the models
fall ill from a mysterious disease, all of the town’s secrets start
leaking out. Grape is determined to help her new friends, but
searching for the cure might just get her killed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GRAPE IS
SERENADED BY GRAESON:
Grape is
in her backyard at night. Her brother, Brad, has just gone off into
the woods to collect plants–Brad is a huge botany nut. Grape is
staring into the distance, trying to see into the woods when she
hears something behind her:
“Fancy
meeting you here.”
Grape
screamed.
“Calm
down,” the vamp kid from school said, his hands raised in the air
like a victim. He had switched his purple shirt for a black one and
slicked his curly hair back as well. “It’s cool. It’s just me,”
he said and reached out to grab her shoulder.
Grape
pushed him hard in the chest, making him stumble backward. “Don’t
touch me. What are you doing here?”
He
regained his balance and rubbed his chest where she’d shoved him.
“I wanted to see where you lived. That really hurt.”
She slit
her eyes at him. “I’m glad it hurt. It was supposed to.”
“That’s
not very nice.”
Grape
grabbed the lawn chair and held it above her head. “Are you a
stalker?”
“No.”
“You’re
sneaking around my house at night wearing all black.” She readied
herself to swing the lawn chair. It was pretty light and wouldn’t
do much damage so she decided to aim for a vulnerable spot—his
face.
“No. I
just thought... I don’t know. I thought you looked nice.”
“Do I
look nice now?” She gave the chair a swing, missing his nose by
inches. She hopped back a little and held the chair up high again. He
got one warning shot, that was it. The next swing would break his
nose.
“I’m
sorry. I thought this would be romantic.” He reached into his baggy
pants pocket and pulled out an iPod with a little set of speakers
attached. “I was going to play a song for you.”
“Totally
creepy!”
“No.
Really, listen.”
He
pressed play and an unholy mix of instruments blasted out in a tinny
blare. He shut it off quickly. “Wrong song. One second.”
“Leave.”
He
looked up at her with heartbreak in his eyes. “I just need one
second.”
“Shoo!
Go! Off with you!” She shoved the chair at his chest, driving him
backward.
He gave
her one last dejected look and walked around the corner of the house
toward the street.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Review: I haven't read a YA books in ages, but this one sounded like such fun and it was. It was a quick read. It is the first book in the Grape Merriweather series. Like I said, I don't often venture into the YA arena, but I do when the character is relate-able and that's how I felt about Grape. She was kind of like I was in high school. She wanted to fit in. I can easily see myself carrying on with this series. Though unlike myself, in her original hometown, she was obviously popular. I love the story behind Grape's unusual name too.
Her new town of Sortilege Falls is unlike any other. A group of teens are worshipped like some kind of Gods. They are "The Models" and that's what they are. The rest of the world will do anything for them, much to their ire, and they treat the rest of the world pretty badly.
The Models were a bit hard to like and the way they sort of weave a spell over all the other "Normals" makes for an interesting story. Mandy is the only "Model" that you will feel any positive emotion for. The others are so nasty that, even though you know that they really aren't all that bad, you can't find it in you to care about them.
Grape is a kick butt kind of teen. She is one of the only people that doesn't seem to be affected by the aura that surrounds the "Models" and as they start falling ill, it is her and her brother, Brad that seem to be able to save the survivors.
I have to say I was a bit jealous of Grape and her metabolism, because that girl was always shoveling food into her piehole and she was never gaining weight. Only the "Models" didn't find her figure appealing. (The guys were even nastier than the girls).
The magic, of sorts, that surrounded "The Models" made for some really interesting scenarios, especially as they tried to figure out what the parents had done to make their children this way.
The ending was a cliffhanger that will leave you begging for the next book.
Rating: 5 stars
AUTHOR
Bio and Links:
I was
born during a blizzard. I’m told it was pretty cool but I have no
memory of that time. I grew up in two tiny towns in Virginia and
spent most of my twenties moving around the US. I’ve lived in
Virginia, Florida, Missouri, and Washington. I’ve settled down, for
now, in Raleigh, North Carolina.
I’m a
writer and improviser. I studied acting in college but spent more
time rewriting lines than memorizing them. My first play, Fourth
Wall, was produced my junior year. Since then, I’ve written several
full length plays, one acts and screenplays. I started writing
fiction in my late twenties. Now, I focus mainly on novels but still
dabble in theater.
Fun
facts about me: There are none. I’m sorry to disappoint you so
soon. But, I do love to read, write, and run. My hubby is my favorite
person on earth. Dogs are my second favorite. All dogs. I love orange
juice, especially when it’s mixed with club soda. Carbonation is
better than alcohol. Jaws is my favorite movie. Everything I’ve
said so far is true.
Awards:
Puschcart
Prize Nomination for “Grow Your Own Dad” – Published by Mixer
Publishing
Semi-finalist
Eugene O'Neill Playwrights Conference – “STUFF”
Honorable
Mention The Ohio State Newark New Play Contest – “The Last Day”
Contacting
Libby:
Email:
libbyheilyauthor@gmail.com
Snail
Mail:
PO Box
58251
Raleigh,
NC 27616
Libby on
the Web:
libbyheily.com
http://libbyheily.com/
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/libbyheily/
Twitter
https://twitter.com/libbyheily
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/libbyheilyauthor/
Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Libby-Heily/e/B005HBXAOU
Goodreads
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5066866.Libby_Heily
Purchase
Links:
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01FV4DZWE?tag=geolinker-20
Barnes
and Noble
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/welcome-to-sortilege-falls-libby-heily/1123755970?ean=2940153003634
Smashwords
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/634244
LULU
https://www.lulu.com/shop/view-cart.ep
Behind
the Scenes Info:
“Welcome
to Sortilege Falls” is my second novel. My first, “Tough Girl”
was about an eleven-year-old who is slowly starving to death and
loses herself in an imaginary world to combat the misery of her life.
I wanted to write something happy after that and WTSF is about as
“happy” as my writing gets. The idea was to come up with a main
character whose very name sounds like a smile, thus Grape
Merriweather was born. Stories grow and writers hardly ever end up
writing the book they intended. That is definitely true with WTSF. My
“happy” story grew to encompass the themes of beauty worship,
celebrity, as well as delving into the mysterious relationships
between child stars and their parents. In the beginning of the novel,
Grape is new at school and eager to impress. She was popular back
home and has never had trouble making friends. She spends over an
hour the night before trying on outfits and picking the perfect one
for her first day. But she is ignored by students and teachers alike.
Everyone is too caught up with the beyond gorgeous models to bother
with one new student. We discover this weird world along with Grape
and I tried to stay true to her voice. It was very important to me
that Grape wasn’t perfect, that she partially fell under the
Models’ spell as well.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GIVEAWAY
INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE
Libby
will be awarding a $10 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner
via rafflecopter during the tour.
