In Leah's Wake by Terri Giuliano Long

I read this book as a part of Novel Publicity's week long promotion of this book. It's not in my normal genre that I review, but I wanted to give it a try because let's face it even once in a while you need to read a book that is out of the norm for you. I think there is a lot you can say about this book, if you want really delve deep and analyze each other characters you certainly could. If you wanted to find a character you could identify with, there are a wide range in this book, so I believe everyone could find at least one person to identify with.

To start with I want to say this book, for the vast majority of it, is not a feel good type of book. I think most people want to believe there family is doing well, and when it turns out that it's not the case it's hard on everyone. Leah is a rebellious teenager who's action have a huge impact of every person in her family. When I look back at my own teenage years, I know I was not the best of kids. I know I put my parents through a lot, but never was I to the point that Leah was, and for that I am thankful. And while I can certainly identify with her to a point, because I did rebel as well, I often times found myself thinking she is one of the most selfish girls I have read. She honestly has no care for how anything she does affects anyone else, and even when she has moments of clarity, where she knows she was wrong in her actions, all it takes is for five minutes to pass by before she passed all the blame to someone else and takes off. I can honestly say that when it was told from her point of view, especially towards the end I had a hard time reading her, because I just wanted to send her to one of those bad kid camps and be done with it (not the best impulse but hey I had had enough of her selfishness).

The character I felt the worst for throughout the book was Justine. Justine is Leah's younger sister, and honestly she was left out in the cold over and over again. Their parents thought Justine was a good student, never got into any trouble, and so the focused mainly on Leah. And when Leah started going down the wrong path, Justine didn't understand why everyone was being mean to Leah, she only ever heard Leah's side of the story. Her parents really needed to sit her down and explain everything to her.

The parents in the story, Zoe and Will, go through a terrible time. They are each doing the best they can do, working, pushing Leah to do well, and genuinely just trying to make sure their girls have a good upbringing and set them up for a good future. Unfortunately jobs involve a lot of time, quality time with kids diminish, and things start falling through the cracks. By the time Leah is in trouble neither parent knows how to help her. If I had to pick one think they needed to do as parents was get on the same page. It seemed like the spent more time arguing with each other than coming up with a plan, and when they did have a plan, Will's temper always got in the way of the follow through.

Overall, I felt like this book is well written, and a testament of what can happen to families no matter how much money a family has. There were point in the book I could have done without, I felt like sometimes the author got on a tangent that wasn't needed to progress the story. But besides that I felt like it was a good read, and I think it will make the people who read it really think about their own lives, and perhaps, feel a little bit grateful for my own life after reading this story.

For more information on the tour see below



Announcing the In Leah’s Wake Social Media Whirlwind Tour! As part of this special promotional extravaganza sponsored by Novel Publicity, the price of the In Leah’s Wake eBook edition has dropped to just 99 cents this week. What’s more, by purchasing this fantastic book at an incredibly low price, you can enter to win many awesome prizes, including Amazon gift cards of up to $500 in amount and 5 autographed copies of the book. Be sure to enter before the end of the day on Friday, December 16th, so you don’t miss out.  

To Win the Prizes

1. Purchase your copy of In Leah’s Wake for just 99 cents on Amazon or Barnes & Noble
2. Fill-out the form on Novel Publicity to enter for the prizes
3. Visit today’s featured event; you may win an autographed copy of the book or a $50 gift card!
4. BONUS: If you leave a comment on this blog post, you have another chance at $100!

 

...And I can win too!

Over 100 bloggers are participating in this gigantic event, and there are plenty of prizes for us too. The blogger who receives the most votes in the traffic-breaker poll will win a $100 gift card as well. So when you visit Novel Publicity’s site to fill-out the contest entry form, don’t forget to say that I referred you, so I can get a point in the poll.  

The Featured Events include:

Monday, Radio Interview with Novel Publicity! We’re kicking-off on the Novel Publicity Free Advice blog. We interviewed Terri on our radio show Sunday night and have embedded the full podcast and blogged about its highlights. Give it a listen and then leave a comment on the blog post. This is a great chance to get to know more about this inspiring and friendly author. One commenter will win an autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake. Don’t forget to enter for the other contest prizes while you’re over there! Tuesday, Twitter sharing contest! A tweet is tiny, only 140 characters. But on Tuesday, it could win you $50. Send the following tweet across the twittersphere, and you just may win a $50 Amazon gift card. An autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake is also up for grabs. The winner will be announced Wednesday morning. Here’s the tweet: In Leah's Wake has taken the publishing world by storm. Get the book for just 99 cents http://ow.ly/7ywpZ #whirlwind Wednesday, Google+ sharing contest! Yup, there’s yet another awesome opportunity to win a $50 Amazon gift card, and this time it just takes a single click! Visit Google+ and share Emlyn Chand’s most recent post (you’ll see the In Leah’s Wake book cover included with it). On Thursday morning, one lucky sharer will be $50 richer. An autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake is also up for grabs. Three chances to win! How about that? Thursday, Facebook sharing contest! Stop by Novel Publicity’s Facebook page and share their latest post (you’ll see the In Leah’s Wake book cover included with it). It’s ridiculously easy to win! On Friday morning, one lucky sharer will be $50 richer. An autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake is also up for grabs. Friday, special contest on the author’s site! Win a $500 Amazon gift card, simply by leaving a comment on Terri’s most recent blog post. Yup, you read that correctly—$500! How easy is that? An autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake is also up for grabs.

Remember, it’s all about the books!

About In Leah’ Wake: The Tyler family had the perfect life – until sixteen-year-old Leah decided she didn’t want to be perfect anymore. While her parents fight to save their daughter from destroying her brilliant future, Leah’s younger sister, Justine, must cope with the damage her out-of-control sibling leaves in her wake. What happens when love just isn’t enough? Get it on Amazon or Barnes & Noble. About the Author: Terri Giuliano Long grew up in the company of stories both of her own making and as written by others. Books offer her a zest for life’s highs and comfort in its lows. She’s all-too-happy to share this love with others as a novelist and a writing teacher at Boston College. She was grateful and thrilled beyond words when her award-winning debut literary novel, In Leah’s Wake, hit the Barnes and Noble and Amazon bestseller lists in August. She owes a lot of wonderful people – big time! – for any success she’s enjoyed! Visit her on her website, Twitter, Facebook, or GoodReads.