Amy's Romance Reviews: BOOK TOUR, GIVEAWAY & REVIEW

Wednesday, April 7, 2021

BOOK TOUR, GIVEAWAY & REVIEW - Dead Sea by Mia Kerick

Book Tour!

Dead Sea
by: Mia Kerick

Dead Sea

(Story Ballads Book #2)
by: Mia Kerick
Genre: YA Coming of Age Gay Romance
Release Date: March 3

Kyle is a swaggering bully; Lenny strives to be invisible.

Kyle has been left alone in the world; Lenny is the world’s biggest loner.

When Kyle saves Lenny from drowning, their lives will never be the same.

After a brutal encounter with school bullies, Lenny swims out into the ocean, determined to let the current whisk him away. Next thing he knows the meanest kid in town is pulling him from the waves, promising to be his Dead Sea, and to never let him sink.

All Kyle wants is to get out of beach cleanup, is that too much to ask? So he goes for a swim, only to come upon the most epic “nobody” in the senior class drowning in a riptide. Lenny’s haunted gaze grips him, and Kyle makes the impulsive decision to save his life or die trying. And through this ordeal, Kyle and Lenny are transformed.

Kyle’s heroic act sets him on the straight and narrow, and he opens his heart to the young man he dragged from the ocean. Lenny changes too but is still unable to reveal the truth of his pain. While drowning in a sea of secrets, the reformed bully and wary victim fall in love. But staying afloat in the Dead Sea is not as simple as it seems.

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Buy Link:

Amazon (Kindle Unlimited or $2.99)

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My Rating - 5 Stars!

Dead Sea is a stunning read by Mia Kerick. The second book in the Story Ballads series, it's easily read as a standalone.

This is a deep and heavy young adult story.

Kyle and Lenny are two teens. Total opposites. And both barely holding on; both struggling with who they are.

Their lives collide and dramatically change forever one day at the beach when Kyle saves Lenny from a riptide.

The two have nothing in common. Kyle's the popular boy at school, one of the crowd who bullies Lenny. And Lenny's the recluse who never talks at school. Ever. They are two boys who hide, one behind his clothes, the other behind his attitude.

But damn, there are so many layers behind what they show the world. Kyle's mother is toxic and abusive, never appreciating or praising him. Dear lord, the way she talks to him is horrific.

And poor Lenny. He hides behind his silence at school. He knows he's different and he's completely confused by who he really is. Lenny just doesn't fit in. He struggles to figure out where his desires fit in. His love of wearing costumes and dressing up leaves him confused and embarrassed. So to the world he chooses to try to be invisible. His family issues are complicated as well.

They are two broken young men whose worlds collide. Two broken young men who end up saving each other. And it's beautiful.

Despite not knowing one another, Kyle chooses to save Lenny and feels compelled to keep protecting him.

What follows is a tale of two boys who help each other embrace who they are, encouraging and inspiring each other. Two boys who give each other a reason to live.

This is a story with family and mother issues galore. There's homophobia, bullying, attempted suicide, and depression.

As far as favorite quotes, there are way too many to list. The author seriously had me stunned with some of the impressive quotes. Basically, she reminds us to find the people who nurture and support us. She reminds us that life will always throw us obstacles and complications but encourages us to survive our current obstacle and face the future. It's wonderfully poignant. Especially in our current environment.

Dead Sea is a heavy and powerful coming of age story. Mia Kerick once again gifts her readers with a stellar young adult romance that is complex and multi-layered. I am thrilled to have read about these two young men and their journey.

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Giveaway!

$20 Amazon Gift Card (International)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Award-winning gay romance author, wife, and mother of four, Mia Kerick, knows that a satisfying romance novel is riddled with challenges. For true love to prevail, the leading men are going to have to put in some effort. But the HEA is oh, so rewarding.

From Jane Eyre’s Mr. Rochester to Brokeback Mountain’s Ennis and Jack to Twilight’s Edward, Mia has a great affinity for the tortured hero in literature. Her contemporary gay romance focuses on such tropes as coming of age, hurt/comfort, and forbidden love. She firmly believes that sometimes you have to break his heart to save him. In Kerick’s books, the course of true love truly never does run smooth.

Mia’s books have been featured in Kirkus Reviews magazine. They have won a 2019 IPPY GOLD award for Juvenile/Young Adult Fiction, GOLD award for Juvenile/Young Adult Fiction, a 2018 YA GOLD MOONBEAM Children’s Book Award, a YA Readers’ Favorite Award, several Gold Rainbow Awards in YA and adult categories, a Reader Views’ Book by Book Publicity Literary Award, the Jack Eadon Award for Best Book in Contemporary Drama, a YA Indie Fab Award, a First Place Royal Dragonfly Award for Cultural Diversity, a First Place Story Monsters Purple Dragonfly Award, and more.

Mia cheers for each and every victory made in the name of human rights. Her only major regret: never having taken typing or computer class in school, destining her to a life consumed with two-fingered pecking and constant prayer to the Gods of Technology.