Welcome to The Rise Tour for Nadine Brandes. I’m thrilled to be part of this internet takeover (shhhh, don’t tell anyone 😉 ), in preparation for the release of A Time to Rise, the final book in the Out of Time Series.

AHHHHHHH! *cue the shouts of jubilation*

Now on with the show.

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Time.

The great equalizer of humanity. One of the most elusive yet pressing things we find ourselves facing every day.

Time is a strange concept. How can something invisible exert such weight on our lives? In A Time to Die, this notion of how time influences us is placed on a silver platter and set under a bright spotlight.

Which chilling and thought-provoking results.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to know when you would die? That’s the situation facing Parvin Blackwater, the story’s main character. Everyone has a clock, matched to them at birth. These clocks show, to the second, the time of the person’s death.

Two years ago, when I first discovered A Time to Die, I could barely contain myself at the brilliance of this concept. It blazed as bright as a supernova, an explosive idea that captured my imagination.

Needless to say, the first book bowled me over like an incoming wave. I reviewed it here, if you want a more thorough description.

Because today, much as I love everything about A Time to Die, I want to use this post to talk about one specific theme. The book asks the question, “How would you live if you knew the day you’d die?”

Maybe you’ve considered such a question before. Maybe it’s never crossed your mind until now. Realistically, we’re not outfitted with special glasses that allow us to see the deepest secrets of the universe. We don’t know the exact time of our death.

For the sake of answering the question, however, let’s imagine you have—as Parvin did—exactly a year to live. How would you fill those final 365 days? What activities would you devote your time and energy pursuing?

Here’s my short list:

• Travel in Europe—England, Scotland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland
• Give away all my money—a less than impressive amount, since I’m a poor college student and a writer
• Publish a book—because I haven’t yet and that’s been a goal of mine for years
• Make more use of the time I have by doing volunteer/community service work
• Write letters to friends and family
• Record some of my piano compositions
• Sleep in a hammock under a star-filled sky
• Visit as many of my friends around the country as I could

I’m sure I could come up with more, given enough time. (See what I did there?)

Thinking about such things can be difficult, but that’s one of the amazing gifts books provide. They nudge us outside our comfort zone. They provide valuable insight into life. They cause us to think.

• How do we use our time?
• What do we value in life?
• Where do we devote our energy?

This series does that, and more. Oh, much much more. Those are the best sort of books. The ones that spin a grand adventure, present characters you care deeply about, and deftly weave profound themes throughout.

The Rise Tour

In case you haven’t noticed the enthusiasm—which would be like missing the skyscrapers as you drive through New York City—I adore the Out of Time series. Nadine is an amazing writer, but more than that, she’s an amazing person.

Even if you haven’t read her books *YET* you should take full advantage of this author awesomeness.

Pre-order A Time to Rise and get a character bookmark. I have one, and they’re pretty cool.

BUY THE OTHER BOOKS!!!

A Time to Die

A Time to Speak

Come to the Facebook party for A Time to Rise.

Join the Thunderclap. Basically, sign up to participate in a social media blast the day A Time to Rise comes out.

Connect with Nadine online.

• Website: http://nadinebrandes.com
• Newsletter: http://nadinebrandes.com/my-newsletter
• Facebook: http://facebook.com/NadineBrandesAuthor
• Instagram: http://instagram.com/NadineBrandes
• Twitter: http://twitter.com/NadineBrandes 

Join the Street Team, and become a member of Nadine’s Ninjas. I mean, how cool is that?

Now a question for you. Say you have a year to live—how would you spend it? I’d love to hear your answers here or on social media.