The Pack [New Cover Reveal]

The Pack by LM Preston - Cover Reveal.

Here is the lovely new cover for The Pack. With The Pack-Retribution (Book 2) coming out in print this September, 2012, the cover for the first book was updated to match and I love it. I think they have done a brilliant job making it eye-catching and keeping it in tone with the story.

Here is the synopsis:

Description: Shamira is considered an outcast by most, but little do they know that she is on a mission. Kids on Mars are disappearing, but Shamira decides to use the criminals most unlikely weapons against them the very kids of which they have captured. In order to succeed, she is forced to trust another, something she is afraid to do. However, Valens, her connection to the underworld of her enemy, proves to be a useful ally. Time is slipping, and so is her control on the power that resides within her. But in order to save her brother's life, she is willing to risk it all.

Praise for THE PACK

- I was most impressed by the author's world building abilities. Mars felt real right from the beginning. I gave it to one of my sons to read. He did tell me that "the fighting moves were interesting" and he thought "her sword and weapons were cool.".~By Kristien Howell

- A treasure for scifi readers ~ Midwest Reviews

- This sci-fi for YA jets along, full of action and humor and pathos and even a bit of romance. ~Darby Karchut

Excerpt:

“Well, I guess you can take care of yourself,” Valens said. “I’m impressed.” He came up behind Shamira while she bent down and removed the truth tick from Lenny’s neck. She crushed the tick in her hands and placed it in a pouch on her belt.

“What do you want?” she asked sharply while she walked past him to Lenny’s flunky.

“I want what you want—answers. I’ve been tracking this guy for weeks, trying to find out about my younger sister, who was taken over a month ago,” he said. She could tell from his voice that he was confident and sincere. He was also a bit older, and Shamira noticed the newness in the deepness of his voice, as if he was still getting used to his grownup man-voice.

“Where are your parents? Why aren’t they doing this for you?” she asked. Then, she pulled off the hook knives that held the metal web in place, and the victim fell loudly to the ground with a cold thud. “If your sister has gone missing, why aren’t your parents doing something about it instead of just you?”

“I’m pretty sure they’re dead. My dad was a member of the Security Force Elite on Sector One. One day when I came home, I found my mom cut down dead in our living room. My father and sister were nowhere to be found. I know he would have killed anyone who harmed either of them. He and my sister were just gone,” he said and walked cautiously toward her.

“Back up. I don’t like people close, so keep your distance.” She squeezed the metal ball, and the web retracted back inside. Squeezing it locked, she slid it into the pocket of her belt. “Well, look, I have to go. Just… just stay away from me, okay?” Shamira turned away from him and ran at top speed to her motorcycle.
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Sounds good right?  You can read my review for it here.

Want to purchase The Pack? Here are the links:

Amazon(US) :http://www.amazon.com/The-Pack-LM-Preston/dp/0984198970/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1343303112&sr=8-3&keywords=The+Pack+by+lm+preston

Amazon(UK):http://www.amazon.co.uk/Pack-Fantasy-L-M-Preston/dp/0984198970/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1343931571&sr=1-1

Barnes&Noble:http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-pack-l-m-preston/1020408061?ean=9780984198979

Books A Million:http://www.booksamillion.com/p/Pack/Lm-Preston/9780984198979?id=5433057156989
Smashwords:http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/140645

Contact LM Preston:

www.lmpreston.com

Blog: http://lmpreston.blogspot.com/

Tweet Me: http://twitter.com/LM_Preston

Facebook:http://tinyurl.com/2fev6qc

The Pack-Retribution (Book 2) available for review via netgalley.com, comes out in print this September, 2012.

The Pack by LM Preston. Review and Interview

For Review: Phenomenal One Press
From Goodreads: Shamira is considered an outcast by most, but little do they know that Shamira is on a mission. Kids on Mars are disappearing, but Shamira decides to use the criminals most unlikely weapons against them, the very kids of which they have captured. In order to succeed, she is forced to trust another, something she is afraid to do. However, Valens her connection to the underworld of her enemy, proves to be a useful ally. Time is slipping, and so is her control on the power that resides within her. Yet, in order to save her brother's life she is willing to risk it all

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started reading this one. I don’t usually read science fiction so it was with some trepidation that I agreed to review this – I wasn’t sure if I would like the genre. I shouldn’t have worried – it was good fun!

Preston has an undemanding style of writing that is easy to get into. Although written in third person we still get the story from Shamira’s point of view and that works well. I found her to be a complicated character and one which I didn’t warm to straight away. She is so strong she sometimes comes across as rather cold and it’s not until about two thirds of the way through the story that we get to see a softer side to her character. Once she began to trust the others and relaxed a bit I found myself really liking her. She is certainly a force to be reckoned with! She really reminded me of Max from the TV series Dark Angel.

The other character to stand out was Valens. His friendship with Shamira was one of the best parts of the story - it was fun watching her slowly trust in him and her feelings and there are some really sweet scenes between the two. The other part of the story I loved were the actions scenes. Preston excels when writing these scenes – there are many in the course of the story and they all had me completely gripped. I could really see them all unfold in my mind’s eye.

The story is rather dark in places, both in terms of the corruption on Mars and in some of Shamira’s actions. Due to this I think the book is more suited to older readers even if the writing style makes it accessible to a younger audience.

If you haven’t read any Science fiction but fancy trying out the genre I think this could be a good place to start. I enjoyed it and am really looking forward to trying more.


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L M Preston also took the time to answer a few of my questions...

What inspired you to write 'The Pack'
There were several things that influenced the idea of The Pack. I had originally planned for this character to be a male. I told my beta team (my kids and husband) about this idea I had about a blind vigilante that organizes a group of misfit kids to fight against a major crime organization on Mars.

My daughter told me that she wanted me to write about a female main character. That it would be cool to have a girl in the role. I smiled and Shamira’s face appeared in my mind’s eye.

I decided that her mission would be to save missing kids, because I wanted to write about missing kids escaping from captivity. Every day at my job, I passed a board of missing children. My heart went out to them, and I always hurt for their loss. Once a former colleague who’d been a police officer told me of a horrible case where he had located missing kids that were captured and being used in despicable ways by their captors who had enslaved them for years before disposing of them. These sad facts were the makings of The Pack.

It is a two-book series that I truly enjoyed writing. It’s aimed at kids 14yrs and up. It has adventure, twist and romance all in one. The true adventure is the building of trust and true friendship that empowers Shamira to become the champion she was meant to be. The Explorer X series was aimed at kids 12yrs old and up.

Do you have a favourite scene in the book?
My favorite scene is when Shamira accepts the friendship she's offered and walks to the front of a room filled with kids who chant her name as they prepare for an attack against the crime organization that had kidnapped and misused them. I still tear up when I read that part.

You have also written another novel called Explorer X - Alpha. Can you tell us more about it?
Explorer X - Alpha is a story of Aadi, a boy who takes being a leader for granted, only to find out that the life he had was not what it had appeared to be. He went to space camp only because his parents made him go. However, he finds that the camp is a front for the company to manipulate the kids to become conquerors of new worlds. His journey begins at camp, but ends with him discovering that no one can make him become anything. He has the final choice to use his powers to conquer or to save. With this revelation, he convinces his teammate and love interest, Eirena, to do the same.

Both books are science fiction. Is this something that really interests you?
Well, to be honest I have at least ten more series that I’m dying to write. All of them are science fiction, urban fantasy and one paranormal. I've been an engineer for almost twenty years and science fiction gives me a place to create all the things I'd never be able to create in a lifetime. It also feeds my action addiction. As far as YA Science Fiction – I’m definitely home.

What authors/books did you love when you were growing up?
I’ve always loved reading horror, adventure, science fiction, true crime and romance. There’s not much I haven’t read. However, I love the style of James Patterson. He never, ever bores me. I also loved Dean Koontz’s earlier novels. I realized that in order for me to finish a book, I personally have to be excited about writing it.

Did any of these inspire you to become a writer?
Becoming a writer was something that just happened. I've always written when I was younger. Up until college, I carried a notebook of short stories and poems everywhere. Then life happened. I started writing when my husband challenged me to write a scifi novel. Since then, I've been addicted and stories won't stop pouring out of me.

What’s next for you?
Well, to be honest I have at least ten more series that I’m dying to write. This year though, I’ll be finishing up The Pack (Retribution) and Bandits. Next year I’ll be able to delve into my growing list of book ideas. Also, I plan to go on a hot air balloon ride, check out Universal Studious, Harry Potter World and help my son to finish his first book.

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Thanks! Hope you enjoy that hot air balloon ride - it sounds awesome!

You can read the first few chapters of The Pack at the author's website here