As part of the blog tour I'll be sharing my review and favorite quotes!
By: Lindsey Duga
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Page Count: 300 (ebook)
Release Date: August 3rd, 2020
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal, Romance, Historical Fiction, Fantasy
Review: 5 stars
Synopsis: Colt Clemmons is an agent in a specialized division within the Bureau ofInvestigation—one that hunts down not just mobsters, but also monsters.For reasons that are kept top secret, Colt is the only person who can resist a siren's voice. But he's never had a chance to test this ability. The last siren left in the worldmysteriously disappeared years ago.Then one night, with a single word, she reveals herself. It seems too good to be true.And it is. Because nothing about this siren—her past, her powers, or her purpose—is what it seems...
I am absolutely in love with this book, Lindsey Duga's story telling, and Colt Clemmons... but we don't need to talk about that.
Roaring is a young adult paranormal romance set in 1929 intertwining the world of mobsters and speakeasies with monsters and mythology.
Roaring has definitely become one of my favorite books that I will not hesitate to read over and over again.
Duga's characters seemed to come to life, I rooted so hard for Colt and Eris. Their emotions became tangled with mine and ish got real. There were times when I was reading and I audibly said "Oh God this is good." The world that was built and the monsters in Roaring set the stage for a story as entrancing as Eris's siren call.
When Colt, an agent for the Bureau of Investigation, is tasked with taking down the lost siren, he expects to find a cruel monster, but instead meets a young girl working in a speakeasy. Their adventure to discover the secrets of the monster trade is filled with action, gun fights, and sizzling romance.
I highly recommend reading this book while listening to a 1920s instrumental playlist.
I definitely recommend this book to any fantasy, romance, and paranormal lovers!
WARNING: You might get way too attached to these characters and fall in love with this book
Favorite Quotes with Lindsey Duga's Reaction:
(There were so many parts I loved, I had such a hard time choosing!)
“I didn’t regret what I’d done. Telling the man that. Forcing him to live without ever being able to lay his detestable hands on another woman.” (Pg.49)
This is a really important part of Eris’s character arc. We get to see how she knows right from wrong, and how she’s willing to use her power to protect another girl from nights of terrible abuse.
“Who’s to say that what they would make me do wouldn’t be just as monstrous? Colt, do you
really think the government would only use me for good? And I thought I was naive.” (Pg. 57)
Another great glimpse into Eris’s character. She’s sheltered and innocent, but has enough
sense of the world to not place her faith in an institution that can be made of people who are
potentially corrupt.
"I almost pointed out that my boss wasn't a crime lord, unlike theirs who probably was. But to her, I supposed there wasn’t much of a difference.”(Pg. 83)
Colt has been on the hunt for Eris for a long time, and he’s been trained to see her only as a monster who could potentially become a threat to the entire country. And now, he’s beginning to see her as just a girl who’s caught between a rock and a hard place. Who doesn’t want to have these powers, but because of them, she has to suffer the consequences. It’s an important moment where Colt is seeing things in her perspective.
“ ‘Are you ready Eris?’ he asked, still breathless from the fight he’d just initiated. My hands
shook. ‘Ready for what?’ ‘To Fight for your freedom.’ “(Pg. 114)
Ahh I love this quote. It might be a little cheesy, but while I was writing this scene I knew I
needed to create these trigger words for Eris. Fight and Freedom. For so long Eris has
struggled with her place in life. She’s like Rapunzel in the tower. Kept up there for her “own
good” but now that she has this chance to live her life, she’s going to fight for it. And for Colt,
he’s ready to stand by her and fight alongside her, because he believes her to be the good he’s
been searching for all this time. It’s a really big turning point for both characters.
”He stared at me in a way that made my skin feel warm and tingly like my whole body had just
been doused in giggle water.” (Pg.134)
This one is fun mostly because I got to use a 1920’s slang term for alcohol to describe how Eris
reacts to Colt’s “heated” gaze. It happens of course, after she gets all dolled up. You know the
quintessential Cinderella ballroom scene. The handsome prince gets a look at the breathtaking
princess and both of them just stare longingly at each other. Fun fact about me: I LIVE for those
scenes.
“The touch of Colt’s lips on my hand had done something to me. It made me realize how much
I’d been living without. Without touch, without connection, without the feeling of being wanted or
desired. The realization hurt.” (pg. 150)
Oooof. This one stings. Both Eris and Colt are orphans with guardians that took care of them,
but not necessarily loved them. There’s this moment that everyone has when discovering
something for the first time—even if that’s just eating a really good kind of ice cream. How have
I been living without raspberry sherbert all my life? A sense of loss and longing and intense
desire for more. Except you know, for them...it’s not ice cream...it’s way worse.
“Then I saw myself in Millie, on the office floor, begging to die. It was me who wanted to die
then, and instead I killed everyone else. My sins. My fault. Monster.” (Pg. 178)
A theme throughout this book is redemption. Colt has a dark past and he struggles with whether
or not he’s worth saving. He truly sees himself as a monster—the very thing that he hunts.
Luckily Eris is able to give him the redemption he deserves.
“And if this made us sinners, I wouldn’t walk through the gates of hell—I’d run through them.”
(Pg. 178)
One of my absolute favorite quotes from the book! I actually stole the idea of it from a song
called “Sinners” by Lauren Aquilina. The song is about two lovers who know their love might be
wrong, but if they’re together then nothing else matters. One of my favorite lyrics from the song
is “And if we’re sinners then it feels like heaven to me.” I thought that was so beautiful and I
wanted to convey that sentiment in my book somehow.
“I’d chosen to believe in someone who had stayed silent her whole life to ensure she never
robbed anyone of their free will. Someone who stood up for women who were abused and
battered. I found something in Eris that I hadn’t realized I'd been looking for… light.” (Pg. 235)
Like I said, Colt has a dark past. In a lot of ways he was living in this darkness. He’s a monster
hunter who hunts down mobsters and their monster armies. He’s surrounded by blood, claws,
tommy guns, dope, booze, and evil on every street corner. When he meets Eris he finally sees
the light and goodness that he’s been living without for so long.
Find Roaring Here:
[Goodreads] [Amazon] [B&N] [Kobo] [Google Play]
About the Author:
Lindsey Duga is a middle grade and young adult writer with a passion for fantasy, science fiction, and basically any genre that takes you away from the real world. She wrote her first novel in college while she was getting her bachelor’s in Mass Communication from Louisiana State University.
Other than writing and cuddling with her morkie puppy, Delphi, Lindsey loves catching up on the latest superhero TV show and practicing yoga.