Blog Tour: Pretty Wanted by Elisa Ludwig | Guest Post | Giveaway

Welcome to our stop on Pretty Wanted tour for Elisa Ludwig. This tour is hosted by The Fantastic Flying Book Club Tours.

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Pretty Wanted
Pretty Crooked #3
Author: Elisa Ludwig
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Contemporary
Released: March 17th 2015
Review Source: Katherine Tegen Books

Willa’s string of good-hearted but ill-conceived thefts at her former high school catapulted her into a life she hardly knows. She became a cult hero, but soon afterward, her mom disappeared, leaving only a cryptic message. When Willa hit the California highway to find her, she discovered a dark family secret: Joanne Fox is not who she says she is-and neither is Willa. Now, Willa and fellow trouble-maker Aidan must race to St. Louis, Missouri, Willa’s birthplace. There, they hope to find answers about Willa’s past. But uncovering the truth requires solving a decades-old murder case.

Unfortunately, the perps are still out there . . . and willing to do whatever it takes to keep the case cold. With Willa’s face on the nightly news and the police hot on her trail, it might not matter that Aidan and her friend Tre are there to help. Willa’s only hope is to find the truth before it finds her first.

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Why Thief?

The PRETTY CROOKED series was inspired by the real-life exploits of Colton Harris Moore, aka the Barefoot Bandit, a teen outlaw who was known for breaking and entering and stealing everything from cake to planes before he was apprehended.

I was fascinated by the idea of a self-educated teen who could pull off such daring feats, and I wanted to know more about what could drive an ordinarily law-abiding person into this behavior. Thus Willa Fox was born.

I also wanted to give my own story a benevolent twist so that Willa was doing the wrong things for what she believed to be the right reasons. So Willa’s crime is stealing from the rich bullies to avenge their cruelty toward the scholarship kids.

As the book evolved into three books, of course, Willa’s Robin Hood scheme was only the beginning. When she finds herself embroiled in the mystery of her mother and a long-ago murder, she relies on her thieving techniques mainly to survive on the road, but also to uncover the truth. For Willa, this temporary criminal life is a journey to learning about herself, her own ideas of morality and what matters most to her.

Also? Those stealing scenes were incredibly fun to write.

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My debut young adult novel PRETTY CROOKED (Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins) was released in March 2012, and the sequel, PRETTY SLY, is out in March 2014. COIN HEIST, a YA thriller, is out in June 2014 (Adaptive Studios). I live in Philadelphia with my husband and son.

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Book Review: Pretty Wanted by Elisa Ludwig

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Pretty Wanted
Pretty Crooked #3
Author: Elisa Ludwig
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Contemporary
Released: March 17th 2015
Review Source: Katherine Tegen Books

Willa’s string of good-hearted but ill-conceived thefts at her former high school catapulted her into a life she hardly knows. She became a cult hero, but soon afterward, her mom disappeared, leaving only a cryptic message. When Willa hit the California highway to find her, she discovered a dark family secret: Joanne Fox is not who she says she is-and neither is Willa. Now, Willa and fellow trouble-maker Aidan must race to St. Louis, Missouri, Willa’s birthplace. There, they hope to find answers about Willa’s past. But uncovering the truth requires solving a decades-old murder case.

Unfortunately, the perps are still out there . . . and willing to do whatever it takes to keep the case cold. With Willa’s face on the nightly news and the police hot on her trail, it might not matter that Aidan and her friend Tre are there to help. Willa’s only hope is to find the truth before it finds her first.

Hands down, in my opinion, Pretty Wanted is the best in the trilogy. The puzzle was complete, things made sense, Willa has grown to mature young adult and did the unexpected. It was a good ending to the series.

We learned in Pretty Sly, Willa’s mother is actually her older sister. She learns her mother has been murdered. Even though she is in trouble with the law, she wants to uncover the truth of her past and takes a journey to reveal the truth. Pretty Wanted is this journey.

I was pleased with the ending. I liked the decision Willa made. She is usually careless. But as she learns more of the truth, this made her wise. She started to act like a mature young lady. What I liked most is she did not stop until everything made sense to her. This girl was on a mission and conquered. Overall, I’m glad I continued the series. If you're looking for a light, fun and adventurous series, you should give Pretty Crooked trilogy a try.

Book Review: Pretty Sly by Elisa Ludwig

Pretty Sly
Pretty Crooked #2
Author: Elisa Ludwig
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Contemporary
Released: March 18th 2014
Review Source: Katherine Tegen Books

Sequel to Pretty Crooked...

Willa Fox was told to stay out of trouble. In fact, it was an order from a very serious juvenile court judge.

However, that was before Willa found her house ransacked and a mysterious email from her mother telling Willa she had to leave Paradise Valley for a while and not to come looking for her. Willa knows her mom’s in danger and that no one at school will miss her after her recent sticky-fingered stunts with the Glitterati. So with the help of her pal Tre and with her degenerate crush Aidan as her wingman, Willa violates her probation and hits the California highway in search of her mom.

But when Willa and Aidan’s journey turns dangerously criminal and they wind up being the focus of a national manhunt, they realize it’s sometimes easier to escape the law than the truth—and that everything Willa thought she knew about her mom, and her life, was wrong.

Pretty Sly is Elisa Ludwig’s fast-paced sequel to Pretty Crooked, the second book in a trilogy that’s pitch-perfect for fans of Ally Carter. With a daring heroine who has one-of-a-kind spunk, a roller-coaster Bonnie and Clyde romance, a thrilling mystery, and a shocking twist ending, this book will have readers rooting for Willa as she makes the wrong choices to do the right thing. Fans will be eagerly awaiting the series conclusion.

Before starting this review, I would like to mention that you are required to read the first book of the series, Pretty Crooked. The book will provide you a solid background of what is going on while reading Pretty Sly, which in my opinion; it was a bit more thrilling than the first.

Pretty Sly is an adventurous book. Will Fox also known as Sly Fox, is in search of her sudden missing mother. As you learn from the first book, Willa is currently on probation. So escaping from her probation is really not a good idea. Along with her hottie crush, Aidan, Willa takes a dangerous journey in which it will lead her to the truth to her past along with trouble with the law. As Willa uncovers the truth about her mother, her life is changed upside down.

Although I was having a very hard time getting into the book, I really like the plot twist of the story. I like a good mystery in a story. And I liked how Pretty Sly provided you some clues for you to piece it together. Yet when you get to discover the truth… Yeah, I think you will like the twist of the story.

Overall, Pretty Sly is a fun and adventurous story. I really like how Willa acts without thinking – such a very free spirited.  She is kind and headstrong.  And I cannot wait to learn what Willa will do next on the third installment of the series.