Get Ferocious with Paula Stokes

Hello, my ferocious readers who live vicariously through fiction! Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Ferocious, the sequel to Paula Stokes's fierce and thrilling Vicarious. If you're looking for a book steeped in technology, mystery, pace, science fiction, and Korean culture, then look no further. Paula's on the blog today to talk about one of the locations of Ferocious, and she brought pictures! Be sure to stick around, too--there just might be a ferocious giveaway in store.

When I lived in South Korea, I taught English in a business neighborhood that was mostly skyscrapers and upscale restaurants—the Samsung neighborhood of the Gangnam district that would later become famous for its Gangnam style.

[EXCERPT] When we arrive at Gangnam Station, Jesse is astounded by the main level. Corridors snake off in several directions, filled with shops selling clothes and shoes and souvenirs and all types of food.

“It’s like an entire underground shopping mall,” he says.

“More or less.”

We make our way through the long rows of shops and eateries—a sprinkling of which have opened for business—and exit the subway tunnels. As we walk past the front of the UsuMed building, I slow down and look around, being sure to capture ViSE footage like Baz instructed. Jesse snaps some photos with his cell phone, like he’s a tourist out for an early morning stroll.

We cross the street to a red-and-gray building called Shinsa Tower. Inside, there’s a coffee shop with a banner in the window advertising something called honey bread. It smells delicious. I pull Jesse over to a corner and we stand next to a giant potted plant, scanning the doors and the lobby. While Jesse pretends to be checking something on his phone, I record as much information about this building as I can without arousing the suspicion of the security guard who stands next to the alcove where the elevators are located.

When I returned to Seoul last January, I walked all around the area between the Samsung and Gangnam subways stops. Consisting of major streets lined with skyscrapers owned by major corporations, this neighborhood felt like the ideal place to locate the corporate headquarters for my fictional pharmaceutical company.

One of the coolest things about Seoul is the creative architecture. Some of the buildings are curved or adorned with unusual facades for no reason other than décor.

There’s also a Buddhist temple, Bongeunsa, located right in the middle of this business neighborhood, across the street from a giant shopping mall. I love these colorful paper lanterns :)

Next stop: Namdaemun Market. Like good deals and delicious food? Join me tomorrow at Snuggling on the Sofa as our mini-tour of Seoul continues.

Title: Vicarious

Author: Paula Stokes

Publisher: Tor Teen

Publishing Date: August 16, 2016

Pages: 336

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

Winter Kim and her sister, Rose, work as digital stunt girls for Rose's ex-boyfriend, Gideon,

engaging in dangerous and enticing activities while recording their neural impulses for his Vicarious Sensory Experiences, or ViSEs. Whether it's bungee jumping, shark diving, or grinding up against celebrities in the city's hottest dance clubs, Gideon can make it happen for you--for a price.

When Rose disappears and a ViSE recording of her murder is delivered to Gideon, Winter is devastated. She won't rest until she finds her sister's killer. But when the clues she uncovers conflict with the digital recordings her sister made, Winter isn't sure what to believe. To find out what happened to Rose, she'll have to untangle what's real from what only seems real, risking her own life in the process.

Title: Ferocious

Author: Paula Stokes

Publisher: Tor Teen

Publishing Date: August 15, 2017

Pages: 352

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

Paula Stokes returns to the world of Vicarious in this sequel, a high-action psychological thriller with a protagonist out for vengeance.

When Winter Kim finds out that her sister is dead and that she has a brother she never knew about, only two things matter―finding what’s left of her family and killing the man who destroyed her life. Her mission leads her from St. Louis to Los Angeles back to South Korea, where she grew up.

Things get increasingly dangerous once Winter arrives in Seoul. Aided by her friends Jesse and Sebastian, Winter attempts to infiltrate an international corporation to get close to her target, a nefarious businessman named Kyung. But keeping her last remaining loved ones out of the line of fire proves difficult, and when all seems to be lost, Winter must face one last devastating decision: is revenge worth sacrificing everything for? Or can she find a spark of hope in the darkness that threatens to engulf her?

Paula Stokes is a mental health nurse and the author of several novels, most recently Ferocious and This is How it Happened. Her writing has been translated into eleven foreign languages. Paula loves kayaking, hiking, reading, and seeking out new adventures in faraway lands. She also loves interacting with readers. 

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

Mon. August 14 | Itaewon | YA Romantics

Tues. August 15 | Gangnam-gu | Beauty and the Bookshelf

Wed. August 16 | Namdaemun Market | Snuggling on the Sofa

Thurs. August 17 | Namsan Tower | Owl Always Be Reading

Fri. August 18 | Jeju Island | Love is not a Triangle 

Would you like to WIN your very own copies of Vicarious and Ferocious? Because Tor Teen is very generously giving them away just for you. All you have to do is retweet this tweet (and follow the rules!) by August 25. And don't forget these rules (which I am very strict on):


-This giveaway is for residents of the US and CANADA ONLY.
-No cheating or bending the rules whatsoever.
-No private accounts, giveaway accounts, shady entries, or the like. I check. And if the majority of your account is giveaway after giveaway your entry will not be accepted.
-Winner will have 48 hours to respond to my congratulatory email or else another winner will be chosen.
-I reiterate: no cheating.