Blog Tour: The Forgotten Ones by Laura Howard ~ Review, Excerpt & Giveaway

Welcome to my stop on the awesome The Forgotten Ones tour, hosted by Shane at Itching for Books!   Today I'm super excited to share with you an excerpt from the book, my review, along with a tour-wide giveaway!  Thanks for stopping by!

Title: The Forgotten Ones
Author: Laura Howard
Published: May 15, 2013
Source: Author via blog tour
Purchase: Amazon

Allison O'Malley's plan is to go to grad school so she can get a good job and take care of her schizophrenic mother. She has carefully closed herself off from everything else, including a relationship with Ethan, who she's been in love with for as long as she can remember.

What is definitely not part of the plan is the return of her long-lost father, who claims he can bring Allison's mother back from the dark place her mind has gone. Allison doesn't trust her father, so why would she believe his stories about a long forgotten Irish people, the Tuatha de Danaan? But truths have a way of revealing themselves. Secrets will eventually surface. And Allison must learn to set aside her plan and work with her father if there is even a small chance it could restore her mother's sanity.

I'm really happy I gave this story a try.  I liked getting to know Allison and Ethan, and how their friendship (or lack there of at times) changed throughout the story.  I did have a bit of trouble connecting with Allison on a closer level, but I still enjoyed her adventure.  Allison's mother being schizophrenic, forcing her grandparents to basically raise her as well as watch over her mother, was a unique twist on this story that I really enjoyed.  I did feel as though Allison could have relaxed and lived a little.  She didn't enjoy parties or spending time with friends like other teenagers, rather she'd prefer to sit home alone and read.  Though I could totally relate, I would have liked to have seen her let loose now and then and do a few teenage things.  Allison had a lot of pent-up guilt over her grandparents raising her.  That, mixed with her overprotective nature towards her mother, seemed to cause her to grow up much more quickly than she otherwise would have.

When I first found out this story revolved around Irish Mythology I thought, okay, I can do this.  I'm not really big on mythology simply because I often have trouble following the story when there are so many difficult names of characters and places that I simply cannot pronounce.  There were definitely A LOT of names in this story, and some very close together, so I did have trouble keeping track of who was who and what they were doing.  For example, there was Aengus and Aodhan, Blaithin and Breanh, and Niall and Niamh, just to name a few.  Yeah, this was tough for me.  So if you're a lover of mythology, you probably wouldn't mind this at all.  If you have trouble keeping names straight like I do, than you will completely understand how this was a bit of a struggle for me, and quite frustrating at times as I felt lost in the story for a few pages until it was all straight again in my head.

Back to the good things... this cover.  THIS COVER!  It's gorgeous.  Just simply breathtaking.  I loved it at first glance, which is probably why I decided to give the ole Irish Mythology a go.  It was worth it for sure.  :)

I would definitely recommend this book to fantasy and fairy fans.  The world that Howard created is awesome.  I could actually picture it while reading, which is always a plus to me.  I look forward to seeing what Howard comes out with next.  I'll tell you this though... that cover is going to be hard to beat!  ;)

After he flipped his light switch on, he paused and turned to look at me. His face was scrunched in concern.

“What is it, Al?”

“Nothing. I was just thinking about something Rachel said to my cousin the other day.”

“Are you going to tell me what it was?” he asked.

“Um, no. I don’t think I will,” I whispered. I tried to keep my voice from cracking as he moved closer to me

“Well,” he said, his gaze moving down to my lips. “How am I supposed to make you feel better if you don’t tell me what upset you?”

I inhaled sharply as he kept moving forward. I took two steps backward before I bumped into the wall.

“She might have said something about you only being interested in me because I’m ‘no-man’s land’,” I managed to squeak out.

Ethan chuckled, and I could feel it vibrate through me. “No-man’s land, huh?”

“That’s right. And she said I’m probably a lesbian, anyway.”

His face was inches from mine now. “You’re not a lesbian, are you Al?” he teased, trying to meet my eyes.

“I don’t really have much to base my opinion on,” I said, the words just barely audible above the beating of my heart. “I’ll have to get back to you on that.”

“For the sake of your own peace of mind,” he whispered, leaning in so that I could feel his breath on my lips. “I’d be willing to help you figure it out.”

My pulse spiked, and I willed it to slow down so that I could form a witty reply.
But, he didn’t give me a chance. His lips just brushed against mine, soft as a feather.
He brought his hands up and cradled the back of my head, so gentle. His lips moved against mine – not taking, only asking.

The trailing of his fingertips down my arms made me shiver. I pulled back, needing to breath. He didn’t let go of my arms though.

“We should go back outside, before we ruin this by fighting.” His smile was genuine, if the slightest bit wistful.

I blushed, knowing he was probably right.

Laura Howard lives in New Hampshire with her husband and four children. Her obsession with books began at the age of 6 when she got her first library card. Nancy Drew, Sweet Valley High and other girly novels were routinely devoured in single sittings. Books took a backseat to diapers when she had her first child. It wasn’t until the release of a little novel called Twilight, 8 years later, that she rediscovered her love of fiction. Soon after, her own characters began to make themselves known. The Forgotten Ones is her first published novel.

Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Facebook 

a Rafflecopter giveaway