Blog Tour: Beyond Fate by Heather Lyons {Review, Playlist,+Giveaway!}
Welcome to my stop on the Beyond Fate blog tour hosted by InkSlingerPR!
Today I am excited to share my review, Heather's playlist, and a giveaway with you all!
Beyond Fate (Fate #1.5)
by: Heather LyonsPublication Date: Oct. 10, 2013
Publisher: Cerulean Books
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Age Group: New Adult
Source: e-ARC provided by InkSlingerPR and the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Page Count: 142 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 5/5 stars
There are always two sides to every story . . .
His whole life, Jonah Whitecomb has strove to meet everyone’s expectations of him: the perfect student, dutiful son, loyal twin, accomplished surfer, and powerful Magical. But behind his carefully composed façade hides the truth of how his family has fallen apart, leaving Jonah more often than not feeling adrift. To complicate matters, he fell in love long ago with a girl in his dreams, one he’s never told anyone about, including his twin brother.
Just when life seems its bleakest, Jonah discovers that Chloe is real. Wanting to finally reach out and grab happiness for himself, he embarks on a journey to track down the girl of his dreams, only to find that happy endings aren’t always guaranteed, the best laid out plans can go horribly awry, and sometimes, you have to simply let yourself go along for the ride.
* Beyond Fate is Jonah’s point-of-view of the events of A Matter of Fate, and is a companion novella.*
His whole life, Jonah Whitecomb has strove to meet everyone’s expectations of him: the perfect student, dutiful son, loyal twin, accomplished surfer, and powerful Magical. But behind his carefully composed façade hides the truth of how his family has fallen apart, leaving Jonah more often than not feeling adrift. To complicate matters, he fell in love long ago with a girl in his dreams, one he’s never told anyone about, including his twin brother.
Just when life seems its bleakest, Jonah discovers that Chloe is real. Wanting to finally reach out and grab happiness for himself, he embarks on a journey to track down the girl of his dreams, only to find that happy endings aren’t always guaranteed, the best laid out plans can go horribly awry, and sometimes, you have to simply let yourself go along for the ride.
* Beyond Fate is Jonah’s point-of-view of the events of A Matter of Fate, and is a companion novella.*
My Review:
When I first read Heather was going to write novellas in both Jonah and Kellan's POV, I was ecstatic! The Fate series is one of my all-time favorites, so getting inside my boys' heads is something I've been looking forward to! It's no secret that I love both Whitecomb brothers. I've said it before, Heather has created such an intricate love triangle that makes choosing a "team" rather impossible. However, from the get-go, my heart tugs a bit more towards Jonah- I felt so much for him in A Matter of Fate and I really just wanted to see him happy. (Granted, I definitely didn't want to see Kellan unhappy, either.) With that being said, after reading both A Matter of Fate and A Matter of Heart, these books have left me in a state of emotional turmoil. I honestly don't know that I've ever felt SO strongly about characters in a book and what happens to them.
I LOVED reading Jonah's POV of some of the events that happened in the first book A Matter of Fate. I especially love that Heather didn't just retell the same story. We got to see the events leading up to the first time the twins met Chloe and we really get to see some of the secondary relationships in a new light.
I knew that the twins and their father weren't close, but gosh. I had no idea just how strained of a relationship it really was. And it broke my heart. To blame your own sons for your wife's death? That's just reaching an all time low. Thankfully, Jonah and Kellan are close to their uncle, as well as their neighbor Astrid. Still, to have your own father resent you.... It takes a toll on the twins, whether they admit it or not. Astrid has always been there for the boys and seeing her interact with them is really heartwarming. Their uncle, Joey, was the one who would take the guys surfing, thus creating a love for the ocean. Surfing is an escape for both Jonah and Kellan, and I really liked seeing the role it played in this novella.
Jonah has been dreaming about Chloe his whole life. Literally. From a young age, the two have been able to communicate via their dreams. He is in love with her and even though he is dating Callie, Chloe is never far from his mind. Finding out she actually exists for real and is his Connection (his soulmate), is a life-changing event for him. She is all he can think about and he will do whatever it takes to find her.
I actually felt bad for Callie. She really was innocent in all of this and still gets hurt by Jonah. She is in love with him, and while he loves her- it doesn't come remotely close to what he feels for Chloe. Seeing Jonah give her a crap excuse for breaking up, I don't blame her for continuing to call him and then eventually show up to see him demanding the truth. I wanted to hate Callie- but that really wouldn't be fair. Jonah knew all along what starting a relationship with her would do- and he decided to go ahead anyway. He hated hurting her- she had been his best friend before they ever became more, and this was not how he wanted things to go down.
After manipulating his father to move them across country to be closer to Chloe, Jonah couldn't be more ready to meet the girl of his dreams. However, things do not fall into place like he planned. Complications with his brother send Jonah spiraling back into his depression. Jonah and Kellan's relationship is probably the one that made my heart hurt the most. They have always shared everything with each other- being Emotionals, they can communicate without speaking, and as twins have that twin Connection that binds them together. However, Chloe is the one thing Jonah never shared with Kellan. He tried to tell him a few times when they were younger, but it wasn't taken seriously. Jonah could have avoided a lot of heartbreak, had he been honest with his twin up front.
“When you fall in love with somebody, you shouldn’t have to share them and that feeling they inspire in you, not even with your twin brother.”
However, Jonah wanted one thing to be his own. One thing he shouldn't have to share with anyone. Chloe is HIS dream. I can't imagine what it's like with them. Watching their relationship deteriorate tore at my heart because they are brothers and it's been them against the world for so long.
Jonah is such a complex character who does not open up and wear his feelings on his sleeve. He is filled with so much self doubt and pain- and I just wanted him to be happy!
Gah. My heart hurts again over-thinking and over-analyzing this. I mean it when I say I'm going to need to mentally and emotionally prepare for the third book in the series A Matter of Truth, releasing November 5th. Meanwhile- pick this series up if you haven't already. As much as Heather puts you through the emotional ringer, her writing is beautiful, expressive, and is able to make you connect with her characters on a level I think no other author has.
~Let's Talk Music!~
by: Heather Lyons
Anyone
who knows me is well aware that I’m a rabid music fiend. I listen to it all day
long. I’m always building new playlists, downloading new songs, talking about
music to friends (and, let’s face it, strangers, too), and going to see my fave
bands live. So, it probably comes as no surprise that I’m quite particular and
a wee bit fanatical about the songs I listen to while writing. Finding the
right music to create a book to is a critical part of my writing process.
Today, I
want to share with you fifteen awesome songs from the Beyond Fate playlist. All
of them, in some way, helped shaped scenes and characters—not necessarily via
lyrics (although sometimes, that helped), but often simply in terms of how the
songs made me feel.
While
I’ve shared most of the songs that went into my playlist for Beyond Fate, I
also wanted to dish a bit about a few of the more important ones.
1. Byegone by Volcano Choir. If there
is ever a song that I’d consider to be the official theme song for Jonah’s POV,
it’d be this one—as I said above, not so much due to the lyrics (because some
of them don’t fit at all), but because of this song feels like Jonah to me. I
mean, I’ll never be able to listen to this song again without thinking of Jonah
Whitecomb. And while I wrote a lot of the story to Byegone, the scene that this one matches perfectly is when he goes
surfing at Mavericks for the first time.
Door's
wide open
You know what were saying ‘bout
us now
He’s a legend
I’m a legend
And we both go tripping through
the door
You know that we are northern now
2. Act on Impulse by We Were Promised Jetpacks. Jonah tries really hard to be exactly
who everybody wants him to be, and there’s constantly a huge weight of
responsibility settling on his young shoulders. Choosing to go after happiness
for himself is a big gamble.
We
act alone
We
act on impulse
3. Sheets by Damien Jurado. I remember
sitting in the audience at a show last year, watching Damien Jurado sing this heart wrenching song, thinking, “Oh, man.
This is so Jonah.” Even now when I
hear it, I think of the struggles Jonah goes through.
Is
he still coming around like an injured bird needing a nest?
A place to rest his head in a
song you'll regret
Lord knows I don't want to
compete
But I still sleep in the very
sheets he's been in
4. Brothers on a Hotel Bed by Death Cab for Cutie. Technically, this
song is about a couple growing apart, possibly in the midst of a divorce. But
to me, it also really fits the divide that slowly opens up between Jonah and
Kellan throughout this story. These two—they’ve always been close. Always. And
now they aren’t, and it’s incredibly sad to watch them struggle to accept their
new realities.
On
the back of a motorbike
with your arms outstretched
trying to take flight,
leaving everything behind.
But even at our swiftest speed
we couldn't break from the concrete
in the city where we still reside.
And I have learned that even
landlocked lovers yearn
for the sea, like navy men,
'cause now we say goodnight
from our own separate sides
like brothers on a hotel bed
About Heather Lyons:
Heather Lyons has always had a thing for words—She’s been writing stories since she was a kid. In addition to writing, she’s also been an archaeologist and a teacher. Heather is a rabid music fan, as evidenced by her (mostly) music-centric blog, and she’s married to an even larger music snob. They’re happily raising three kids who are mini music fiends who love to read and be read to. Giveaway:
10 comments
I think I need to start this series, because your review got me all excited about this book!! HAHA I really like the sound of this it!
ReplyDeleteAnd the music! Loved!
Great review! :)
You DO need to start this series girl! It's one of my absolute favorites! Hands down!
DeleteAmazing Review Girl! I share all the feels about these books. I will be eternally grateful to you for turning me onto them :-) Awesome Playlist too!
ReplyDeleteYAY! I'm so glad you're hooked girl! I love having another go to person about this series! Because Lord knows, I need to cry my feelings out!
DeleteI am loving how much you love tbis series! What a great review, Jessica! And thank you for sharing the playlist!
ReplyDeleteThanks Andrea! It's been a good while since I've become so invested in a series- it's nice and nerve wracking at the same time! :D
DeleteI skimmed your review because I know this isn't the first book in the series. ANyway, I NEED to read these. I think I am just going to get them and dive right in! :P Love the playlist
ReplyDeleteYou do need to read them! I love them so much! I don't know if you would, but hopefully you will!
DeleteI haven't read this series so I don't have a favorite. Yet. I know when I do get a chance to read this series I will definitely have a favorite!!
ReplyDeleteI hope you get to read it Lisa! It's one of my very favorites!
DeleteLeave me some comment love! And I will get around to commenting back!
My blog is an award-free blog, however, as I just do not have the time to follow-up.