Sarah Beard is the author of YA novels Porcelain Keys and Beyond the Rising Tide. She earned a degree in communications from the University of Utah and is currently pursuing an MFA in writing from VCFA. When she's not writing, she referees wrestling matches between her three boys and listens to audiobooks while folding self-replicating piles of laundry. She is a breast cancer survivor, a baker of sweets, a seeker of good love stories, a composer of melancholy music, and a traveler who wishes her travel budget was much bigger. She lives with her husband and children in the shadow of the beautiful Wasatch Mountains. 

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Check out the author interview HERE.

​1. When I imagine Kai, I see a young Alex Pettyfer. Especially his eyes.
2. The town where the story is set (Avila Beach) is a real place where my family has vacationed every December for the past few years. There’s a family in Avila Beach that we house swap with, so while we’re playing at the beach they come to Utah and ski.
3. I’ve written music on my guitar to go with all of Kai’s lyrics in the book. And no one will ever hear it but me. J
4. Almost every time I worked on chapter 27, I was brought to tears.
5. More than once, I almost scrapped this story. In earlier drafts, there were so many plot holes that I thought there was no way I could make the story work. But something inside told me to press forward, that it was a story worth finishing. I’m so glad I did, because everything worked out and it turned out to be a beautiful story.
6. In one draft there was a menacing character from the Briar who would show up every now and then and try to steal the ring from Kai. I originally wrote him in to add tension, but I ended up taking him out because he changed the tone of the book into something I didn’t want.
7. I wrote three alternate endings because I wanted to explore different possibilities. But I ended up choosing the ending I felt the characters had earned.
8. The working title was “Borrowed Heaven,” but I thought it sounded too cheesy so my husband and I brainstormed until we came up with Beyond the Rising Tide.
9. The setting of the afterlife was inspired by Antelope Island in the Great Salt Lake. I had a vague idea of how I wanted the afterlife to be set up, but was having a hard time with the details. So I drove out there one day in the middle of winter (there’s a road that goes out to the island). I was the only one out there, and as I walked along the barren shores, all the details came to me. It was a magical day.
10. The name “Kai” is short for Zackai, which is Hebrew for “Pure.” I chose this name in the brainstorming phase when I imagined Kai as a perfect angel-type character. But as I got further into the story and his character developed more, his flaws and idiosyncrasies and demons surfaced and he became a more real and imperfect person. But I still loved the name, so it stuck.

​Favorite book: Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier
Favorite soda: Cream Soda
Favorite dessert: Brownies topped with mint chocolate chip ice cream
Favorite flower: Spring blossoms of any sort because they represent hope
Favorite season: Summer, because I hate being cold
Favorite movie: It changes. But right now it’s What If with Daniel Radcliffe and Zoe Kazan. The dialogue in this movie is simply spectacular.
Favorite country you want to visit: I’d love to visit Iceland, especially after seeing The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.
Favorite comic book character: Jean Grey
Favorite place to visit: Avila Beach
Favorite holiday: Christmas because of what it represents, and I love to watch my kids open presents.

One of the main characters in my book works at a chocolate shop, so naturally I had to do a lot of research about chocolate as I was writing the book (don’t feel too sorry for me). Here are some interesting things I learned about chocolate along the way:

1. Most people know that chocolate is poisonous to dogs, but too much can also be fatal to humans. Chocolate contains high levels of theobromine, which is a powerful stimulant in high enough doses can cause heart failure, kidney damage, and seizures. But don’t worry. You’d need to eat over 20 pounds of chocolate for it to be fatal.
2. Chocolate was once used as currency. In Mayan times, the cocoa bean was worth more than gold dust, and people would exchange cocoa beans for goods and services.
3. Wonder why chocolate tastes so good? Maybe it has something to do with the fact that it has over 600 flavor compounds.
4. Just the smell of chocolate triggers relaxation, as it increases theta brain waves.
5. Cocoa butter is one of the most stable and highly concentrated natural fats and is absorbed easily into the skin, which makes it ideal for use in skin products such as massage oils, cosmetics, and lotions.
6. Ever wonder why chocolate melts so easily on your tongue? It’s because chocolate is the only food substance to melt just below human body temperature. Mix in a little coconut oil, and it melts even quicker.
7. Consuming chocolate makes people feel so good because it contains the chemical phenylethylamine, which increases serotonin and endorphin levels in the brain—similar to how people feel when they’re in love.
8. Cocoa beans grow in pods on Theobroma cacao trees. These trees only grow within 20 degrees of latitude north and south of the equator (a narrow band called the Cocoa Belt). Some of the highest cocoa bean producing countries include Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Indonesia.
9. Americans consume 2.8 billion pounds of chocolate each year, but that’s still much less per person than what Europeans consume!
10. When you consider that it takes almost a year for a cocoa tree to produce enough pods to make 10 Hershey bars, it’s a wonder chocolate isn’t even more pricey!

​Sarah Beard has written a beautiful and intriguing story that readers are not going to want to miss.  The expression of emotions from Sarah’s characters are brought life in this expressive and captivating story.  The love story is a bit complicated in that, Kai died the day he saved Avery.  Now he works from the other side working on missions to save people has been assigned to.  But Kai is intrigued with Avery and her struggles after her near death experience in the waves and wants to help her.  Avery has always been a fighter, and although she struggles, she also fights.  This story brings to life raw emotions of pain, guilt, sorrow, and feeling lost and the power to overcome the struggles.  The story and characters will capture the heart of readers.  I would recommend this story for readers that enjoy contemporary young adult books, as well as novels written from various viewpoints.
 
Genre: contemporary, young adult
Publisher: Sweetwater Books
Publication date: June 14, 2016
Number of pages: 304
Category: Junior High+
Content Rating: PG, brief violence
Book Rating: 5 stars

A review copy of this book was provided by SLB Tours.

​June 24--Reading Is My SuperPower
June 25--Just Commonly
June 26--Singing Librarian Books
June 27--Book by Book | Zerina Blossom's Books
June 28--Christian Bookaholic
June 29--Bloomfield Of Thoughts
June 30--Fictionally | Red Headed Book Lady

Sarah Beard has written a beautiful and intriguing story that readers are not going to want to miss.  The expression of emotions from Sarah’s characters are brought life in this expressive and captivating story.  The love story is a bit complicated in that, Kai died the day he saved Avery.  Now he works from the other side working on missions to save people has been assigned to.  But Kai is intrigued with Avery and her struggles after her near death experience in the waves and wants to help her.  Avery has always been a fighter, and although she struggles, she also fights.  This story brings to life raw emotions of pain, guilt, sorrow, and feeling lost and the power to overcome the struggles.  The story and characters will capture the heart of readers.  I would recommend this story for readers that enjoy contemporary young adult books, as well as novels written from various viewpoints.
 
Genre: contemporary, young adult
Publisher: Sweetwater Books
Publication date: June 14, 2016
Number of pages: 304
Category: Junior High+
Content Rating: PG, brief violence
Book Rating: 5 stars

Historical romance author Melanie Dickerson earned her bachelor’s degree in special education from the University of Alabama and has taught students with special needs in Georgia and Tennessee. She has also taught English in Germany and Ukraine. Dickerson has won numerous awards, including the 2012 Carol Award in young adult fiction and the 2010 National Readers’ Choice Award for best first book. Her novels The Healer’s Apprentice and The Merchant’s Daughter were both Christy Award finalists. She lives with her husband, two daughters, and two guinea pigs near Huntsville, Alabama.

Book two in Melanie Dickerson’s Medieval Fairy Tale Series, The Beaituiful Pretender, is a fun new novel that combines Princess and the Pea with Beauty and the Beast.  When Lady Dorthea of Plimmwald runs away with her father’s knight, Avelina is thrust into an unexpected situation.  Avelina must go to Thornbeck Castle for two weeks pretending to be Lady Dorthea and ensure that she is not selected as the margrave’s bride, but somehow gain his alliance to protect Plimmwald. Melanie’s novel is filled with excitement and adventure that readers will absolutely love.  From page one readers will not be able to put down this novel with fantastic characters, in addition to a well-narrated story. I would recommend this novel to readers that enjoy fairytale retellings and romance.
 
Series: A Medieval Fairy Tale
Genre: historical fiction, fantasy, romance, retellings, fairytale, young adult, Christian
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Publication date: May 17, 2016
Number of pages: 320
Category: Middle School +
Content Rating: PG, violence, threats
Book Rating: 5 stars

Other books in the series:
1-The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest

A review copy of this book was provided by the author via the publisher.

start digging into her past and discover a horrible crime that happened thirty years ago. They uncover a connection between the two crimes and attempt to bring this information to the police, only to be reprimanded for meddling in the investigation. Not only are the girls upset by the admonition, but they also struggle with the fact that their exuberant investigating could provide a legal loophole allowing the killer to go free. Frustrated by this turn of events, the Super Spies realize it’s up to them to snare the Cat Lady killer. 

Or die trying...

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The FBI arrives on the scene. Sarah realizes this bombing could have even bigger implications. Searching for the bombers, Sarah is introduced to the world of terrorism. She fears that the bombing and her parents’ disappearance are connected and terrorists are involved. To make matters worse, the bombers are determined to finish the job. Can the Super Spies find the bombers before it’s too late?

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determined to find out what that connection is. The Super Spies embark on a journey that leads them into a web of corporate corruption at its highest level that leaves innocent victims in its wake. Can they find the proof they need to stop the greedy corporation before it’s too late?

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Lisa Orchard grew up loving books. She was hooked on books by the fifth grade and even wrote a few of her own. She knew she wanted to be a writer even then. Her first published works are the “Super Spies Series.” These stories revolve around a group of friends who form their own detective squad and the cases they solve. “The Starlight Chronicles,” is the next series that Lisa created with musical misfit, Lark Singer as her main character.

Lisa resides in Michigan with her husband, Steve, and two wonderful boys. Currently, she’s working on the next book in the Starlight Chronicles Series along with a few new ideas that may turn into stand-alone novels. When she’s not writing she enjoys spending time with her family, running, hiking, and reading.

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Check out the interview HERE.

This is a fun series filled with plenty of adventure, as well as mystery and suspense.  Each novel has a different mystery that has to be solved by the main characters--one involving a cat lady, one involving a high school bomber, and one involving a pied piper.  Readers will enjoy the exciting and intense sequence of events in each novel of this series.  I would recommend these books for middle school readers that enjoy teen mystery novels.

Series: The Super Spies
​Genre: Upper Middle Grade Mystery/Thrillers 
Publisher: Astraea Press
Category: Middle School +
Content Rating: PG, suspense
Book Rating: 4 stars

A review copy of this book was provided by SLB Tours.

​May 30--Mel's Shelves
May 31--Katie's Clean Book Collection
June 1--Reading Is My SuperPower
June 2--Smiling Book Reviews
June 3--deal sharing aunt
June 4--Singing Librarian Books

What happens when a margrave realizes he’s fallen in love with a servant?
The Margrave of Thornbeck has to find a bride, fast. He invites ten noble-born ladies from around the country to be his guests at Thornbeck Castle for two weeks, a time to test these ladies and reveal their true character.
Avelina is only responsible for two things: making sure her deception goes undetected and avoiding being selected as the margrave’s bride. Since the latter seems unlikely, she concentrates on not getting caught. No one must know she is merely a maidservant, sent by the Earl of Plimmwald to stand in for his daughter, Dorothea.
Despite Avelina’s best attempts at diverting attention from herself, the margrave has taken notice. And try as she might, she can’t deny her own growing feelings. But something else is afoot in the castle. Something sinister that could have far worse—far deadlier—consequences. Will Avelina be able to stop the evil plot? And at what cost?

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Book two in Melanie Dickerson’s Medieval Fairy Tale Series, The Beaituiful Pretender, is a fun new novel that combines Princess and the Pea with Beauty and the Beast.  When Lady Dorthea of Plimmwald runs away with her father’s knight, Avelina is thrust into an unexpected situation.  Avelina must go to Thornbeck Castle for two weeks pretending to be Lady Dorthea and ensure that she is not selected as the margrave’s bride, but somehow gain his alliance to protect Plimmwald. Melanie’s novel is filled with excitement and adventure that readers will absolutely love.  From page one readers will not be able to put down this novel with fantastic characters, in addition to a well-narrated story. I would recommend this novel to readers that enjoy fairytale retellings and romance.
 
Series: A Medieval Fairy Tale
Genre: historical fiction, fantasy, romance, retellings, fairytale, young adult, Christian
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Publication date: May 17, 2016
Number of pages: 320
Category: Middle School +
Content Rating: PG, violence, threats
Book Rating: 5 stars

Other books in the series:
1-The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest

A review copy of this book was provided by LitFuse.

Historical romance author Melanie Dickerson earned her bachelor’s degree in special education from the University of Alabama and has taught students with special needs in Georgia and Tennessee. She has also taught English in Germany and Ukraine. Dickerson has won numerous awards, including the 2012 Carol Award in young adult fiction and the 2010 National Readers’ Choice Award for best first book. Her novels The Healer’s Apprentice and The Merchant’s Daughter were both Christy Award finalists. She lives with her husband, two daughters, and two guinea pigs near Huntsville, Alabama.

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Melanie Dickerson has done it again.  Her Thornbeck series is a hit.  Book one, The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest is a charming and entertaining tale of a young woman, Odette, who poaches off the margrave’s forest in order to feed the poor children, which she also teaches.  Jorgen is the margrave’s forester and is determined to rid the forest of its poacher, as well as avenge the death of his father who was killed by a poacher.  When Odette meets Jorgen at a Midsummer festival and they begin to have affections for each other, this complicates everything.  For little does Jorgen know that Odette is the poacher.  Filled with exciting characters, a twist on a couple of fairytales, including Robin Hood and The Swan Princess, and an excellent story with plenty of plot twists, readers are not going to want to put this exciting new adventure, fairytale down!
 
Series: Thornbeck
Genre: historical fiction, fantasy, romance, retellings, fairytale, young adult, Christian
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Publication date: May 1, 2015
Number of pages: 306
Category: Middle School +
Content Rating: PG, hunting
Book Rating: 5 stars

Other books in the series:
2-The Beautiful Pretender

A review copy of this book was purchased for review.