Life Doesn’t Come with Cheat Codes.

Hello friends! I’m writing today with some VERY exciting news about my yet-to-be-published book.

Before anyone else, I’m going to let you see my book cover and cover blurb. How cool is that?

But first, a little background: So this newest book, Forgiving What I Couldn’t Change (The Rewind Duology Book 2) is the sequel to Forgetting What I Couldn’t Remember. Both books deal heavily with coming of age, struggles with bullies, and finding yourself amidst the noise. Vera Bartlet is the main character, and in book one, she has to track down her missing dad while dealing with issues like time travel, dating, and learning to adult. If you like snark and clever tagline, you’d probably like this book, and you can find it on Amazon HERE.

Here’s the blurb for book 2:

Life doesn’t come with cheat codes.

Vera Bartlet finally lands her dream job after rescuing her dad from the psychotic bullies who held him captive. Despite dealing with the recurring trauma from being bullied and the psychological struggles surrounding it, Vera’s moving in a much better direction. With time travel under her belt, happily engaged friends, and an improved relationship with her previously estranged Uncle Edgar, life is stable – until the time machine gets stolen.
Vera’s family worries that a machine immune to the limits of time and space in the wrong hands would spell disaster for more than just their family. But when she’s quite literally dragged into the epicenter of the nefarious operation, Vera gets thrown into the very same virtual reality world that imprisoned her dad for the better part of a decade.

This place isn’t like anywhere Vera’s been before. Sporadic sky patterns with a deadly acid nightfall, man-eating purple-blooded wolf creatures, and an avatar with totally unnecessary upgrades is only the beginning of what she has to deal with. Her only saving grace is the frustratingly attractive Fader, who’s been in the game longer than she has and knows a way out.

Can Vera make it out of the game alive, forgive her bullies, and level up before her whole world glitches?

AND HERE’S THE COVER…

Seriously, how cool is this?!?! I’m obsessed with this cover. My designer really nailed this one.

As of now, I’m planning far a soft-release, maybe later next month if all goes to plan. But I’m not making any formal announcements yet as I’m still in the editing process right now. Even the cover may be subject to change depending on how everything is laid out, but I’m really excited to see how it goes.

There’s just so much that goes into all this, and I’m really hoping that it’ll all go smoothly, but the key is to just keep rolling with it and not panic. But then again, that’s also just life. And lately, I’ve been really bogged down with all my freelancing work on top of it all. And getting out of burnout is really, freaking difficult. I’ll probably blog about that soon too – but today is not the day.

In the meantime, if you want to join my review team, you can do so at this link: http://eepurl.com/df6qqf

Thank you so much for all your continued support! Angelina signing off for now, but I’m never too far away. Comment below to connect or follow me on Instagram and Tiktok.

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Want to win a FREE AUDIOBOOK? Details Below!

Hello bookish friends! I’m writing to tell you about an opportunity to win a FREE download of one of my audiobooks. On my Instagram, I wanted to thank my followers for supporting me when I hit 900 followers. Then I figured, why not extend the thanks to my blog friends as well? You guys are every bit as important as those on my social medias. That being said, if you wanna join the party on Instagram, I highly recommend it so that you stay updated about all the new cool things I have going on.

CLICK THE PHOTO to browse the audiobooks you can choose from if you win!

You can find the GIVEAWAY POST HERE, and that’s where the instructions are to enter the prize drawing. I’m going to randomly draw the winner on January 20th, midnight EST, so go ahead and join in before then!

I am so grateful to my narrators for lending their voices to my stories. There’s something so undeniably amazing for an author to hear their characters come to life. If you’d like to browse the audiobooks I have available, you can do that by clicking on the images below – never too early to start deciding which one you’d like if you win 😉

Thank you so much for playing, and please do spread the word to your friends if they love free audiobooks too. If you don’t get this one, never fear – I’ll be doing more giveaways in the future too! Happy listening, and may the odds be ever in your favor.

My Top 10 Best Reads of 2020 (Based on My Goodreads Profile)

I’m going to preface this by saying that in no way is this limited only to books published in 2020. I just thought it would be fun to chat a bit about my ten favorite books that I read this year and awarded the 5-star rating to, presented in the order I read them in.

Since it was a pretty slow year for everyone, and my in-person events were temporarily suspended, I found myself reading a lot more. As I’m a YA/NA writer primarily, I consider this to be critical research for my stories as well. Fair warning: that means I read predominantly romcoms, so skip ahead unless you’re into those too.

If you want to peruse my entire Goodreads page, and take a gander at the books I’ve written, you can find that HERE.

But without further ado, let’s go!

#1: 100 Days of Sunlight (Abbie Emmons)

This one is a great riff off of John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars in the sense that there’s acquired (not genetic) blindness, and the characters have an interesting romantic relationship that develops over time. You’ll just have to read it yourself, because it’s incredibly sweet and poignant.

#2: What are Friends For? (Sarah Sutton)

Another cute story of childhood besties-turned-lovers. It’s a tale that is equal parts creative and mystifying in its teenaged-frustrations, but it ends on such a good note. Bonus points for a very satisfying closet-make out scene.

#3: The Loneliest Girl in the Universe (Lauren James)

Ah okay, this one got mixed reviews from other readers but I was absolutely in love with this chilling coming-of-age narrative set in a futuristic, dystopian setting. It takes a really rapid turn toward the end that left me shaking, but I loved it and thought the concept was super clever and well-executed. The psychological elements were confusing and terrifying in the best way. Read this, I promise you won’t be disappointed.

#4: Aix Marks the Spot (S.E. Anderson)

And… back to the romcoms. This story is a lovely jaunt into the southern French countryside, where Jamie meets a cute local boy who takes her breath away. It’s culturally rich and beautifully depicted, and I loved being able to escape somewhere refreshing when I read it this past April.

#5: The Rose Gate: A Retelling of Beauty and the Beast (Hanna Sandvig)

Here’s a fantasy for a change of pace now – a modern retelling of the classic. A cursed prince, who’s actually quite young, adorable, and in my mind, looked a lot like a young Luke Hemmings. But like, in a castle in a different realm, with an ever-shrinking portal that holds everyone there captive. Such a fun twist!

#6: As Much as I Ever Could (Brandy Woods Snow)

This one was probably the hottest of all the books I’ve read this year. Seriously, Jett is a locally-famous racer driver, and his casual friendship with CJ slowly but surely, turns into something else. CJ struggles from traumas involving an accident she was in years ago, and a summer with Memaw is just what the doctor ordered to get her out of her funk and embracing her reality, however bleak it may seem. In my head, I pictured Jett as a very blonde Patty Walters (from the band As It Is – what, I have a thing for guys in bands, don’t judge me).

#7: The Law of Tall Girls (Joanne Macgregor)

I really enjoyed this story about high school plays, following your dreams, and being honest with yourself and your friends. It also portrayed mental health especially well, given how difficult that topic can often be. With a sprinkling of incredibly embarrassing moments, and honest real-ness, this book is not one to miss. Also, love the body-positivity around Peyton’s relative discomfort with her height (even though she eventually learns to love it, and meets a tall guy who really loves it too).

#8: Joy’s Summer Love Playlist (Piper Bee)

Watermelons, bands, and summertime romance. What more could you want? With Jin’s good looks straight out of a K-pop band, compiled with Joy’s increasingly less-subtle crush, and friends Lena and Cale added to the mix, it’s a full-ride any YA reader would love. Be sure to check out the companion book as well, B-Sides.

#9: Alex, Approximately (Jennifer Bennett)

This book had my heart from start to finish! I adored the concept of Bailey’s online friend being the object of her affections, except for one major twist (that’s provided on the back cover so it’s not a spoiler, I promise) – she doesn’t tell him when she moves to his hometown. Then it turns out that she works at a museum alongside – you guessed it – Porter (who is actually Alex, the very same guy she met online but neither of them have any idea of it). So for the entire book, you just watch them fall in loathe, then fall in love, and neither of them have any real clue about it for a while. Jennifer Bennett is fantastically good at storytelling, and I’ve since checked out more of her work and loved those too.

Bonus: I was reading this shortly before I met my very own online friend after almost four years of talking, and it was nothing short of amazing. You can read about that experience on my blog HERE.

#10: Things We Know By Heart (Jessi Kirby)

This novel had a heart-wrenching plot (literally). The protagonist literally falls for the guy who received her dead boyfriend’s heart after he passed away. I know that sounds pretty dark for a YA novel, but it was handled with such care and taste that I honestly really enjoyed it. Totally worth the spontaneous book splurge at Barnes and Noble. Another story in the John Green vein of love-loss-growth, it’s a book any hopeless romantics like me would heartily enjoy.

There you have it! These are my favorite books that carried me through this crap-sandwich of a year. Here’s to a better and brighter 2021 – I’m hopeful that it’s going to be great ❤

Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!