Rockstar Book Tours presents... THE LAST FALLEN MOON by Graci Kim - REVIEW + GIVEAWAY!

Hi guys!

Welcome back to Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.

Today, I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the THE LAST FALLEN MOON by Graci Kim BLOG TOUR hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my review post below and make sure to enter the giveaway for your chance to win!

Title: THE LAST FALLEN MOON (Gifted Clans #2)

Author: Graci Kim

Pub. Date: June 14, 2022

Publisher: Rick Riordan Presents

Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook

Pages: 384

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, Audible, B&N, iBooks, Kobo, TBD, Bookshop.org

Best-selling author Rick Riordan presents the second book in Graci Kim's magical and mysterious Gifted Clans trilogy.

"Graci Kim does such an amazing job of blending Korean mythology into the modern world, I am now wondering how I ever lived without knowing all this cool information."--New York Times #1 best-selling author Rick Riordan

For Riley Oh, life as the Godrealm’s last fallen star is not all it’s cracked up to be. Her new divine heritage doesn’t even come with cool magical powers; half of her friends and family (including her parents) can’t remember her; and to top it all off, the entire Gom clan is mad at her for killing the Cave Bear Goddess and stripping away their healing abilities.

But when their anger boils over and a group of witches curse Riley’s home, she knows it’s up to her to restore magic back to her clan – even if it means sneaking into the Spiritrealm.

Luckily, Riley has some backup. Along with her sister, Hattie, Riley meets Dahl, a heaven-born boy with shockingly white hair and a fondness for toilets who might not be telling the whole truth about who he is. Together they’ll fight vicious monsters, discover dark underwater worlds, and race to save the land of the dead from a fate that no one could have foreseen.

And this time, Riley won’t let anything get in her way. Because she can’t shake the feeling that something terrible is coming their way – and the gifted community is going to need all the powers they can get.

Grab THE LAST FALLEN STAR now!

 

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 This was a thrilling ride from start to finish.

When first we meet Riley Oh, she's lost her touch with her yourself, with her family, with her friends...with her LIFE.  While it's understandable considering all she has been through...discovering an incredible heritage, inadvertently making her clan lose their powers of healing while trying to save the world, having her parents and friends completely mind wipe on her, and almost losing her sister for good...it doesn't make it any easier to digest.  She's cut off from her emotions; lost her way.  She blames herself for so many things that were outside of her control, as so some of the former clan, and all she wants to do is set things right.  That guilt, that desire to make things good again for everyone is what drives her to make an irrational choice, landing her in the underworld on a self made quest to restore the clan's powers...but as you might have guessed, things are not quite that simple.  There are many obstacles along the way, including a 1000 year sentence to be served in one of the seven realms of hell, imugis that are not nearly as cute as the name might make them sound, and additional unknowns that seem to pop up from every corner.  Good thing she has a guide to help her through...sort of.  Good thing she catches up with someone she knows though is surprised to find...sort of.  Good thing at the end of the day the drudgery through the seven levels is more than a punishment...or vacation (what a concept!)...but a chance to learn and grow as she makes her way from the Riley she was before to the new(ish) and improved(ish) version left behind after all is said and done.

I really enjoyed this story from start to finish.  It was so interesting to learn about some of the Korean  beliefs surrounding the afterlife, and reincarnation, while being engrossed in the Fantasy story unfolding before our very eyes.  The dummy book Riley Oh encountered put it pretty cut and dry, even from the contents page, while the real thing's makeover was hard to believe, yet quite the concept!  As the story unfolded, so many more pieces, more characters, more stories were put into play that you could just feel it building to the possibility of another title in the series, still to come.  I mean, it's bad enough to have to leave characters behind that you've grown to know and love, but when they're are left on such a precipice as these were?  All true fans can do is count the days until the next adventure is ours to explore!  

So take a walk into the past, to secure a future for Riley Oh and her family, friends, and clan.  There are many surprises along the way, as well as liberal use of imagination, but that's what makes stories like these so unforgetable!

 

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About the author...

Graci Kim is the bestselling author of The Last Fallen Star, book one in the Korean mythology-inspired middle grade adventure series. Called a “sparkling yarn” by Entertainment Weekly, the Gifted Clans trilogy has been optioned by the Disney Channel for a live-action television series, and was a 2021 Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for “Best Middle Grade & Children’s Book”.

Graci is also one of the authors of The Cursed Carnival and Other Calamities short story collection, published by Rick Riordan Presents (Disney Hyperion), which became an instant New York Times bestseller.

In a previous life, Graci was a diplomat for the New Zealand foreign service, a cooking show host, and once ran a business that turned children’s drawings into cuddly toys. She lives in New Zealand with her husband and daughter. You can find her sometimes on Twitter (@gracikim), more often on Instagram (@gracikimwrites), and always at her website (www.gracikim.com).

Website | Twitter | Instagram | TikTok | Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub

 

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Giveaway Details:

1 winner will win a finished copy of THE LAST FALLEN MOON, US Only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Special thanks to the Rockstar Book Tours team for the chance to bring this tour to you and to Disney Hyperion for the copy for review. (THANKS!) For more information on this title, the author, the publisher, this tour, or those on the horizon, feel free to click through the links provided above. This title is available now, wherever books are sold. Catch the rest of the tour for more bookish fun!

Tour Schedule:

Week One:

6/1/2022	YABooksCentral	Excerpt
6/2/2022	Feed Your Fiction Addiction	Review/IG Post
6/3/2022	More Books Please blog	Review/IG Post
6/4/2022	onemoreexclamation	Review/IG Post

Week Two:

6/5/2022	Lifestyle of Me	Review
6/6/2022	Okie Dreams	Review/IG Post
6/7/2022	The Bookwyrm's Den	Review
6/8/2022	laura's bookish corner	Review/IG Post
6/9/2022	A Court of Coffee and Books	Review/IG Post
6/10/2022	wilted pages	Review/IG Post/TikTok Post
6/11/2022	beersbooksandboos	Review/IG Post/TikTok Post

Week Three:

6/12/2022	@drewsim12	IG Review/TikTiok Review
6/13/2022	Read With Serena	Review/IG Post
6/14/2022	Nonbinary Knight Reads	Review/IG Post/TikTok Post
6/15/2022	meetcuteromancebooks	Review/IG Post
6/16/2022	@coffeesipsandreads	Review/IG Post
6/17/2022	@ReadsReaders	YouTube Review/IG Post/TikTok Post
6/18/2022	Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers	Review/IG Post

Week Four:

6/19/2022	Emmiepooh2	IG Review
6/20/2022	Bookwyrming Thoughts	Review
6/21/2022	The Real World According To Sam	Review/IG Post
6/22/2022	The Girl Who Reads	Review/IG Post
6/23/2022	The Momma Spot	Review/IG Post
6/24/2022	BookBriefs	Review/IG Post
6/25/2022	Ruei's Reading Corner	Review/IG Post

Week Five:

6/26/2022	onemused	IG Review
6/27/2022	Library of Alexandria Archives	Review/IG Post
6/28/2022	Two Points of Interest	Review
6/29/2022	popthebutterfly	Review/IG Post/TikTok Post
6/30/2022	@enjoyingbooksagain	IG Review

Until next time, remember...if it looks good, READ IT!

Life After Death: The Turnkey of Highgate Cemetary by Allison Rushby

Hi there!

Welcome back to Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.

Today, we're shining the spotlight on a new Middle Grade novel COMING SOON via Candlewick Press!  It's official book birthday is July 24th, 2018 (as of this post), and in truth, I think it will draw fans of the genre from all age groups because it's much more than just a simple story.  It takes actual history, gives it a little twirl, and spins out a result most unexpected...and utterly intriguing!  Ready a spot on your wish list because here comes today's book of choice...

The Turnkey of Highgate Cemetary

by

Allison Rushby

9780763696856

Candlewick Press

About the book...

Twelve-year-old Flossie is no ordinary ghost — she's the caretaker of every soul in Highgate Cemetery. And during World War II, even the ghosts aren't safe.

Flossie Birdwhistle is the Turnkey at London's Highgate Cemetery. As Turnkey, it's Flossie's job to ensure that all the souls buried in the cemetery stay at rest. Not an easy job for a young ghost, but a task made especially difficult by World War II: London is being attacked every night by enemy bombers, and even the dead are unsettled. When Flossie encounters the ghost of a German soldier carrying a mysterious object that seems to exist in both the living and spirit worlds, she becomes suspicious — what is the officer up to? Before long, Flossie uncovers a sinister plot that could destroy not only her cemetery, but also her beloved country. Can Flossie and her ghostly friends stop the soldier before it's too late? History collides with the supernatural in this exciting, ethereal mystery from Allison Rushby.

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A curious read about the keepers of our spirit's comfort at life's end set amidst WWII as the evil powers that be try to bridge the world of twilights and the living for nefarious purposes... 

Can you just imagine?  WHAT IF the Hitler regime had been able to accomplish what is being attempted in this book?  I mean, the effects would have been devastating on such another level, I can't even begin to envision it...and yet, it is said he did have an obsession or sorts with the occult, and supernatural interests.  *shivers*  Sorry, but no one should have so much power, especially with that much hatred in their heart, but I digress...this book isn't JUST about the war and what COULD have been.  It's about the enumerable souls left behind in the rubble, those that passed from natural causes and those "helped along" by the tragedies occurring all around them, and where they all fit in.  A phrase repeated much was that it wasn't their war...it was for the living and they were beyond that world's reach for all intents and purposes.  Thing is once the soldier appeared, all bets were off and choosing inaction would leave ghostly blood on their hands regardless of who would or would not see it.  Flossie may have been an unusual pick for a turnkey, but she was without a doubt chosen, and with good reason.  Despite her lack of years, she's knowledgeable, dependable, compassionate, and determined.  She faces down ghosts from her own past, conquers unanswered questions that left fear in her formerly beating heart, and manages to keep the faith and stand strong when everything seems to be crumbling to the ground.  

In the end, there was so much learned and so many miles of the heart covered, showing us that looks can be deceiving, not all lost can be saved, and sometimes the greatest thing we can give is ourselves.  A great pick for Historical Fiction fans as well as the Middle Grade set.  The use of a younger soul to guide the way makes it more approachable, while her lack of confidence makes her seem more human.  After all, we aren't all born with a backbone of steel...but it doesn't mean we can't accomplish great things in this life...or even perhaps in the after.

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About the author...

Allison Rushby, the daughter of an author, was raised on a wholesome and steady diet of classic English literature. Some of her favourite books, re-read countless dog-eared times include Rumer Godden's The Dolls' House, Frances Hodgson Burnett's The Secret Garden, Dodie Smith's I Capture the Castle and Noel Streatfield's "Shoes" series. She has long been a fan of cities with long, winding histories, wild, overgrown cemeteries, red brick Victorian museums, foxes and ivy. She likes to write with a cup of Darjeeling tea by her side and a Devon Rex cat called Claudia curled up in her lap.

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Special thanks to Raquel and Anna at Candlewick Press for the ARC for review.  (THANKS!)  For more information on this title, the author, or the publisher, feel free to click through the links provided above.  This title is set to release July 24th, 2018, so mark your calendar or pre-order your copy today!

Until next time, remember...if it looks good, READ IT!