Blog Tour: The Gemini Connection by Teri Polen @TPolen6 #Review #GuestPost #Excerpt #Giveaway #BlogTour #YA #Dystopian

Woo hoo! I’m thrilled to kick-off the blog tour for Teri Polen’s latest book, The Gemini Connection!

I have a very cool guest post from the author and a sweet giveaway for you guys at the end!

The Gemini Connection (Release Date: June 7th, 2018)

Teen twin brothers Evan and Simon Resnik are fiercely loyal to each other and share an unusual bond—they experience each other’s emotions as their own and can sense where the other is.

On their dying planet of Tage, scientists work tirelessly on its survival. Like the twins’ parents, Simon is a science prodigy, recruited at a young age to work with the brilliant creator of Scientific Innovations. To the bitter disappointment of their parents, Evan shows no aptitude or interest in science. As a Mindbender, he travels into the minds of scientists to locate buried memories, connect ideas and concepts, and battle recurring nightmares.

When Simon mysteriously disappears, Evan is plunged into a world of loss and unbearable guilt. For the first time, he can’t ‘feel’ Simon—it’s like he no longer exists. Evan blames himself. No one knows that he ignored his brother’s pleas for help on the night he went missing.

A year later, Simon is still gone. Evan lost his twin, but Tage might have lost its last hope of survival when it’s discovered that Simon’s unfinished project could be its salvation. Evan is determined to find him—somewhere—and bring Simon home. Their unusual connection might be more extraordinary than they know, and the key to locating Simon.

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Guest Post by Teri Polen – Playlist

Identical twin brother main characters, Evan and Simon, in my new YA sci-fi/thriller, The Gemini Connection, may look alike and share an extraordinary bond, but that’s where their similarities end. While writing, I generally prefer to listen to music, as I did while drafting this book–but quickly learned each twin demanded their own playlist. And they were vastly different.

Simon is a science prodigy, and everything in his world is precise, meticulous, and fact-based. He sees things in black and white, rarely venturing into gray areas. That being said, Simon’s met someone who’s causing him to be uncharacteristically distracted and unfocused–he can’t get this guy out of his mind. While writing Simon’s character, he liked classical music in the background–especially cello music. I’m not really a classical music fan, but I can appreciate it. Once Simon’s relationship began with his new love interest, two songs jumped to the forefront: Sunshower by Chris Cornell, as played by Vitamin String Quartet, and Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Variation 18–you may know it as the theme from the movie Somewhere In Time. Simon may be highly logical in his head, but he’s a bit of a romantic in his soul.

Evan is a different story entirely. His mind is full of stormy emotions–doubt, anger, guilt, grief, determination, fear–he’s dealing with some pretty heavy issues. Between searching for Simon and feeling responsible for his disappearance, trying to prove himself to his parents, and sorting his feelings for someone very close to him, Evan’s a vessel of constantly churning emotions, and his choices in songs reflect that. He and I share much similar tastes in alt/rock music.

Bring Me to Life – Evanescence

Falling Apart – Papa Roach

Love Falls – Hellyeah

Hurricane – Thrice

Stand By Me – Ki Theory

Way Down We Go – Kaleo

I’d Rather See Your Star Explode – Slaves

Make This Go On Forever – Snow Patrol

Bother – Stone Sour

In the Air Tonight – Phil Collins

Angels Fall – Breaking Benjamin

Vengeance – Zack Hemsey

Their tastes may be polar opposites, but the music made it pretty to get into their heads, and I could see things playing out as I wrote. I’ve started drafting another book now, but I still miss my twins. Maybe a sequel one day?

Excerpt

Review:

This book is a bit of a slow burn but it quickly evolves into a thrilling, action-packed story! It’s also very character driven and we get to spend a lot of time getting to know each twin and what makes them tick.

One of this things I really loved about this book, is that the author was careful to create an original story that doesn’t consist of all the usual YA tropes I’ve come to expect. I appreciated that there was no “insta-love” between characters but there was a little romance. In addition to that , I quite enjoyed reading a story from the point of view of a male protagonist. It made for a nice change.

I enjoyed this one and if you enjoy quick writing, strong characters and excellent world building, then you will really like The Gemini Connection!

Rating… A

Now Available

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About the Author

Teri Polen reads and watches horror, sci-fi, and fantasy. The Walking Dead, Harry Potter, and anything Marvel-related are likely to cause fangirl delirium. She lives in Bowling Green, KY with her husband, sons, and black cat. Her first novel, Sarah, a YA horror/thriller, was a horror finalist in the 2017 Next Generation Indie Book Awards. Visit her online at http://www.teripolen.com

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