"A family. All of us. The beautiful and the ugly. The perfect, the broken."
Leah Tyler is not sure whether the dreams of a soccer scholarship to Harvard are her own, or her father’s. Caught in between wanting to be the good, straight-A, high achieving soccer player she has always been and enjoying the exciting life her boyfriend Todd has shown her, her life - and her family - start to unravel after she resigns from the soccer team in a fit of petulance.
In Leah’s Wake is the story of a sixteen-year-old rebelling against the high expectations that her parents and community has for her; the common story of an almost-adult trying to be her own person. Leah’s mother, Zoe, cannot objectively evaluate her oldest daughter or control her or her husband’s reactions towards Leah’s wild behaviour, despite being a child psychologist who frequently advises other parents.
In Leah’s Wake is also about a very vulnerable twelve-year-old caught in the her sister’s downward spiral and the cross-hairs of her parents’ anger and disappointment. Whilst most stories focus on the rebellious child, Terri pays attention to the one who usually gets left behind in the wake of a family breakdown - Justine, the good, responsible, nerdy kid who stays quietly in the background trying to make things better.
The story starts well, but slows down in the early quarter of the book, only picking up towards the middle when the tensions between the four members of the Tyler family start to play off on each other. I enjoyed the way Terri gave us glimpses into the personalities and the backgrounds of each family member. However, some of the jumps between viewpoints were a little abrupt, causing me to stumble through what would have been a very smooth read.
Other notes:
Several typos made their way into the version I was reading, as well as some font size irregularity - however, nothing terribly major that would detract from the reading experience.
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
- Purchase your copy of In Leah’s Wake for just 99 cents on Amazon or Barnes & Noble
- Fill-out the form on Novel Publicity to enter for the prizes
- Visit today’s featured event; you may win an autographed copy of the book or a $50 gift card!
- 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:
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.
