Tynga's Reviews

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2012-01-27T16:18:00.001-05:00

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Black heart by Holly Black

2012-01-27T11:09:00.000-05:00

Black Heart by Holly Black

Book Stats:
Reading Level: YA
Genre: Fantasy
Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Release date: April 3, 2012

Series: Curse Workers #3

Source: ARC from S&S Canada

Reviewed by: Tynga

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Cassel Sharpe knows he’s been used as an assassin, but he’s trying to put all that behind him. He’s trying to be good, even though he grew up in a family of con artists and cheating comes as easily as breathing to him. He’s trying to do the right thing, even though the girl he loves is inextricably connected with crime. And he’s trying to convince himself that working for the Feds is smart, even though he’s been raised to believe the government is the enemy.

But with a mother on the lam, the girl he loves about to take her place in the Mob, and new secrets coming to light, the line between what’s right and what’s wrong becomes increasingly blurred. When the Feds ask Cassel to do the one thing he said he would never do again, he needs to sort out what’s a con and what’s truth. In a dangerous game and with his life on the line, Cassel may have to make his biggest gamble yet—this time on love.

Cassel isn’t like anybody else, and the things he has to deal with in Black Heart would most likely be to much for any of us. But if he wants some kind of like, then he has to cope with and do the best he can with what he has. His mom is on the loose, his older brother died and he is protecting the murderer, the girl he loves can’t stand to look at him and he’s got both the FBI and the Mafia breathing down his neck. Talk about pressure right? Cassel really strives to be one of the good guys, but it’s no easy feast we you grew up in a crime family.

The Cruse Workers series is one of my favorite because it stands out so much from anything else you can find on the market right now. Holly Black created a very unique world where some people are born with magical abilities laying in their touch. But magic is illegal and the law forces everyone to wear gloves, because you never know! Picture of gloveless girls is even considered porn hehe.

Black Heart, the third novel in the series proved to be as entertaining as the previous ones, and I wasn’t expecting less! The plot is mostly about Cassel walking the fine line between legal and illegal activities. He stroke a deal with the FBI to become one of them but his love for Lila, daughter of a crime lord, stops him from being completely honest with his new employer. Plus, he doesn’t really trust them, even if they are suppose to be the good guys. Seeing him struggle to do the right thing was great and his dilemma was that much more intense because he can’t rely on anyone else to help him. True to herself, Holly provided a story line full of secrets, hidden meanings and surprises to delight her readers.

Character wise, you can’t really go wrong with a guy like Cassel on the pay roll. He is witty and smart, resourceful and oh-so-surprising. You think you know what’s going on in this head of his, but you can never quite grasp what he’s gonna do until it’s right in your face. He gets himself in the worst situations possible to protect the ones he loves, at the risk of his own life, and your heart pounds because you have no idea how he’ll get out of yet another impossible mission. Barron, Cassel’s brother, also surprised me in this book. I never really liked him, but the little things he did between his “I’m cool and I don’t care” acts really brought a new light on him. The relationship between Cassel and Lila also reached new and interesting heights that will likely please you!

One thing I have to mention, is the new design for the covers. I am REALLY disappointed with them. Not only my series won’t match anymore but to new design is general and not relevant to the books. The original covers really captured to spirit of the series. Dark, sophisticated, mysterious, it really had the strong Mafia vibe you feel while reading the book and it was the perfect complement. I really wish the original artwork for Black Heart was available so I could buy it =/

The Curse Workers series is so out of the box that I’m not quite sure in which category it should be filed, but one thing is sure, it must go on your wish list if you haven’t read it yet. Intense with a dark taste of humor, this series promises to take you down unexplored paths.

Daring You To Read…Urban Shaman by C. E. Murphy

2012-01-26T06:08:00.000-05:00

This week, I wanted to highlight an amazing series: The Walker Papers by C. E. Murphy. It’s one of the first urban fantasy series I tried and I was instantly hooked. The series is all about Joanne Walker, a police mechanic who discovers she has shamanic powers and has a very limited time to figure out how to use them. The series has a great blend of aboriginal and Celtic mythology, thanks to Joanne’s mixed heritage, and C. E. Murphy’s writing is crisp and captivating. The world building is outstanding and the supporting characters will win you over instantly – Bobby, Gary, and the captain – if the excerpt linked below doesn’t grab you and make you desperate to start reading Urban Shaman.

The seventh book, Raven Calls, is coming out on February 21 and I’m very, very excited to see what happens to Joanne next. But before you read that, you should start at the beginning:

Joanne Walker has three days to learn to use her shamanic powers and save the world from the unleashed Wild Hunt.

No worries. No pressure. Never mind the lack of sleep, the perplexing new talent for healing herself from fatal wounds, or the cryptic, talking coyote who appears in her dreams.

And if all that's not bad enough, in the three years Joanne's been a cop, she's never seen a dead body—but she's just come across her second in three days.

It's been a bitch of a week.

And it isn't over yet.

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Read an excerpt

The rest of the series:

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Want to participate in Daring You To Read? Here’s how:

- You choose a book you’ve read, loved and would dare your readers to read!

- The book you choose must be an older release (at least 6 months ago), because let’s be honest, we’re all quite aware of the latest releases.

- Write your own blog post, using the button and linking back to Tynga’s Reviews, inviting your readers to read your chosen book.

- Come back on Tynga’s Reviews and put your link in the linking tool.

- Browse other bloggers Dare and let them know if you’ve read their featured book, or plan on reading it.

- Super easy and an awesome way to discover that special book who might have slipped off your radar!

Don’t forget to add your own Daring You To Read… post in the linky below.

Books for Trade / Sale

2012-01-25T07:14:00.000-05:00

I’ve been doing some cleaning in my shelves as they are overflowing now and there are some books I’d like to get rid of. I’m hoping to trade them with someone from the general Montreal area, but I will consider selling them if you are willing to pay shipping (this excludes ARCs of course).

If you are interested in trading or buying, please email me at TyngaUF(a)gmail.com and we can talk about it =)

All the books are brand-new or like-new and we are a no-smoking house.

Mass Market books:

Trade Paperback:

Hardcover:

ARC:

Thanks for taking a look!

That Thing at the Zoo by James R. Tuck

2012-01-25T05:34:00.000-05:00

That Thing at the Zoo by James R. Tuck

Book stats:
Reading level: Adult
Genre: Urban fantasy
e-book: 713 KB
Publisher: Kensington
Release date: January 27, 2012

Series: Deacon Chalk: Occult Bounty Hunter #0.5

Source: Author

Reviewed by: Jenn

Purchase: Amazon

Shredding monsters is his stock and trade. He sniffs them out, tracks them down, and corners them. End of story. But when the tables are turned, expect the unexpected. . .

Knowing his enemy is a rule Deacon Chalk swears by. But he's never seen anything like whatever is leaving the Atlanta Zoo's most dangerous predators bloodless, skinned, and hanging high in treetops. And he's only got till sunrise to keep it from turning the entire city into a slaughterhouse. Now Deacon is in zoo lockdown with a handful of staffers to save. His zookeeper backup has more guts than monster-hunting experience. And the only chance Deacon has to run this thing to unholy ground is to risk unleashing his darkest, most uncontrollable instincts. . .

Well, hello, Mr. Chalk. I am hopelessly intrigued about this series thanks to this introductory e-novella. I wasn’t sure what That Thing at the Zoo would be like since James R. Tuck is a new author but he had me hooked from the very first page. I desperate to know what was killing the animals at the zoo. As it turns out, the answer is both straightforward and complicated. The cover gives you a hint as to what might be doing the killing but it’s not your average vampire. It’s something a little darker, a lot less sparkly, and very, very motivated. It wasn’t what I expected and I love it when authors surprise me. This time around, in fact, I had a couple “Oh no he didn’t!” moments, which was great. James has done a wonderful job with this story and I was sad to see Deacon take care of business so quickly but, alas, this is the nature of novellas. Thankfully, I have a review copy of Deacon Chalk’s first full-length novel, Blood and Bullets, up next in my e-reader queue.

Before I close, though, I have to talk about Deacon. He’s an Occult Bounty Hunter with tragedy in his path and a gift for tracking down the spooky. I feel like I have a very good sense of what makes him tick, a testament to the author’s talent with words. I’m quite curious to learn more about Deacon and his friends because they seem like quite the team. After all, anybody who uses a strip club to finance a war on the occult is worth a second glance. Plus, we don’t know where Deacon’s abilities come from and I *need* to know what’s going on there!

In under 100 pages, James R. Tuck has thoroughly captivated my imagination. I can’t wait to see what he does with 300+ pages at his disposal.

“When I’m not writing” with Lena Coakley

2012-01-24T05:06:00.000-05:00

This week, we’re joined by Lena Coakley, the talented writer of the YA high fantasy novel, Witchlanders. Tynga had the chance to preview the book; you can read her thoughts here. Lena has a great “When I’m not writing” post for us and I hope you’ll enjoy getting to know her off the page!

If you are careful…if you use good ingredients, and you don't take any shortcuts, then you can usually cook something very good. Sometimes it is the only worthwhile product you can salvage from a day; what you make to eat. With writing, I find, you can have all the right ingredients, give plenty of time and care, and still get nothing. Also true of love. Cooking, therefore, can keep a person who tries hard sane.

― John Irving, The World According to Garp

I wasn’t sure what I’d write for this post. What do I do when I’m not writing? I procrastinate from writing. I think about how I should be writing. I talk about writing with my writer friends. ‘Dang!’ I thought. ‘Why did Jenn ask me to do this? She obviously thinks I have a life!’

It took my dear (writer) friend, Aino Anto, to remind me that I have a second art, one that is so much a part of my life now that I sometimes forget it’s there. I cook.

The grandmother who raised me wasn’t much of a chef. She saw cooking as a chore. And although I sometimes feel nostalgic for some of the things she made—lamb burgers with mint sauce, a bean and rice mess she called “capital casserole”—her repertoire was limited, and she never felt the need to consult any other recipe book other than a battered copy of The Joy of Cooking.

It wasn’t until I came to Canada as a nanny that I learned there was more to cooking than putting five ingredients into a pan. I was asked when I was hired if I would mind making dinner for the family as part of my responsibilities. I readily agreed, imagining Kraft Dinner, hot dogs, and other dishes a three year old and a one and a half year old would enjoy. Little did I know that my charges and their parents were more used to eating cold cherry soup, moussaka, salade nicoise…and many other things I’d never heard of.

Perusing the family’s library of cook books and learning to make these dishes gave being a nanny a bigger learning curve than it would have otherwise had, but I soon learned that I loved cooking. The family I worked for saw this and gave me a recipe book for every birthday, starting me off on a library of my own.

It’s been a long time since I was a nanny, but I still love to cook and collect recipe books (far too many!)—and I especially love to cook for other people. I belong to a gourmet club in my apartment building, and there is nothing like coming home from work knowing that someone is cooking you a gourmet meal, or, if it’s my turn, setting out the good dishes and hearing them sigh when they take that first bite.

Lena and her famous red velvet cake

Lately, it’s occurred to me that cooking and writing have a lot in common. When I’m planning a novel, I get the same feeling of balancing ingredients that I do when I’m trying to create the perfect menu. And here are a few other things that work as great advice both for cooking and for writing:

Be bold—Take chances with your cooking and with your writing. If you fail at cooking your friends will forgive you, if you fail at writing, no one ever has to see your mistakes.

Let it sit—Stews are one of my specialties, and I’ve learned to make them the day before if I’m serving to guests so that the flavors come together. Leaving your writing for a day and coming back to it later is also crucial. It will be a different piece when you come back, and you’ll see it with new eyes.

Trust your instincts—Your recipe might say one thing, but with cooking, your taste buds have the last word. Abandon your recipe if that’s what they are telling you, and abandon your novel outline if your instincts are telling you to follow a new character or a new plot thread. And unlike with cooking, with novel writing, you can always go back to a previous draft if it doesn’t work out.

Use simple, quality ingredients—Sometimes the best word is the simplest one. We’re all tempted to over-spice our writing with metaphor and poetic language, but, as with cooking, simpler is often better.

And finally, create with love—That one is self explanatory, I hope. Your readers and your diners will always be able to tell.

Happy cooking, happy writing, and happy reading!

Lena’s writing group, about to tuck into her pork and beer stew

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Thank you so much for sharing your love of cooking with us, Lena! That cake is making me hungry! =)

Want to get to know Lena some more? Visit her website or follow her on Facebook or Twitter.

High in their mountain covens, red witches pray to the Goddess, protecting the Witchlands by throwing the bones and foretelling the future.

It’s all a fake.

At least, that’s what Ryder thinks. He doubts the witches really deserve their tithes—one quarter of all the crops his village can produce. And even if they can predict the future, what danger is there to foretell, now that his people’s old enemy, the Baen, has been defeated?

But when a terrifying new magic threatens both his village and the coven, Ryder must confront the beautiful and silent witch who holds all the secrets. Everything he’s ever believed about witches, the Baen, magic and about himself will change, when he discovers that the prophecies he’s always scorned—

Are about him.

Tynga’s review

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Read an excerpt

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Do you guys have suggestions for who you’d like to see featured on the blog? If so, you can make your suggestions on this page. No guarantees that your favorite authors will be able to participate but we’ll try!

Authors, would you like to visit and share with us? Please email me at jennblogs (at) gmail (dot) com and we’ll set it up!

Giveaway: The Way We Fall by Megan Crewe

2012-01-23T07:11:00.001-05:00

Thanks to Disney-Hyperion & Big Honcho Media I have two copies of Megan latest title, The Way We Fall to offer to two lucky ducks!

More about the book:

It starts with an itch you just can't shake. Then comes a fever and a tickle in your throat. A few days later, you'll be blabbing your secrets and chatting with strangers like they’re old friends. Three more, and the paranoid hallucinations kick in.

And then you're dead.
When a deadly virus begins to sweep through sixteen-year-old Kaelyn’s community, the government quarantines her island—no one can leave, and no one can come back.
Those still healthy must fight for dwindling supplies, or lose all chance of survival. As everything familiar comes crashing down, Kaelyn joins forces with a former rival and discovers a new love in the midst of heartbreak. When the virus starts to rob her of friends and family, she clings to the belief that there must be a way to save the people she holds dearest.
Because how will she go on if there isn't?
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Two (2) copies of The Way We Fall by Megan Crewe

Open to US Only

Ends on January 301th, 2012

All you have to do is fill the Rafflecopter form below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Death Blows by D. D. Barant

2012-01-23T03:11:00.000-05:00

Death Blows by D. D. Barant

Book Stats:
Reading level: Adult
Genre: Urban fantasy
Mass market paperback: 343 pages
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Release date: March 30, 2010

Series: Bloodhound Files #2

Source: Personal shelf

Reviewer: Jenn

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

FBI profiler Jace Valchek was pulled into this parallel realm to hunt for Aristotle Stoker, a human serial killer who preys on vampires and werewolves. Now she works for the National Security Agency of the Unnatural States of America—and her boss is a vampire.

At a bizarre crime scene, Jace finds a bloodsucker murdered by magic, fried to the bone and dressed in the costume of the comic book hero the Flash—a character who isn’t supposed to exist here. Comic books have been outlawed for their powers, including crossover spells like the one that transported Jace to this world. Soon, she’s following a trail of dead bodies into the sinister underworld of black-market comics—where a deranged madman gives new meaning to the term “super-villain”…

As you may have guessed from my Daring You To Read... post a little while ago, I’m a big fan of D. D. Barant’s Bloodhound Files. Having suggested the first book in the series, I thought it might be a good time to post about the second book, Death Blows, since I’m re-reading the series in anticipation of the fifth book, Back from the Undead, which is being released at the end of March. (I have previously been about Dying Bites, despite my appreciation of the rest of the series.)

First up, how gorgeous is this cover? The model really captures my idea of what Jace looks like and I love the moody colours. I don’t really like the font that they’ve used for the word blows on the cover but it’s a small quibble, as is the fact that I doubt Jace owns a hot pink shirt...but I love the subtle wolf image that the artist snuck in.

While I didn’t think it possible, I enjoyed Death Blows more than Dying Bites, particularly the second time around. The stuff I loved about Jace’s debut -- the humour, the innovative world building, the strong characters -- are back in full force in Death Blows, and D. D. Barant has also added comic books. (Or Kamic books, as they’re called in Jace’s new home.) I’m a huge fan of graphic novels and superheroes and I love how the author tied in comic characters and storylines from our reality with the world of the Bloodhound Files. There are references to a lot of big comics, with a distinct preference for DC characters, and I loved seeing how D. D. tied them in with the storyline he created for Death Blows.

I also really liked how much we learn about some of the secondary characters in the book. Dying Bites was all about Jace and her acclimation to her new reality (and her quest to catch Stoker) and she’s definitely the central character again, but now we get a little bit more back story for some of my favourite characters in the series: Dr. Pete and Gretchen. Dr. Pete is the werewolf doctor who took care of Jace when she first got transported and they’ve remained friends. We got a little insight into Dr. Pete’s home life in Dying Bites but we really delve into his past this time around. Dr. Pete’s got some interesting layers and it adds a lot of depth and pathos to his character. My other favourite, Gretchen, is a pire who works for the NSA. She’s one of the first people Jace met and I adore her. She’s brilliant and confident and kind. Unfortunately, she spends a great deal of Death Blows in distress since the guy who’s dressed up like the Flash in the blurb above is someone important to her. Despite the circumstances, it’s so much fun seeing Gretchen outside of the office.

Sadly, at least for me, we don’t get the same exploration of Charlie, Jace’s golem partner. The way golems are treated in this society is really interesting and I love Jace’s reactions to the lems’ place in this world. Her indignation is spot on and I hope that we get to learn more about the lems and Charlie in future novels.

Here’s an example of why I want more Charlie:

“This whole thing could be an internal power struggle.”

“Maybe. Why try to win over supporters when you can kill them and take their weapons?”

“While making it look like the work of a nutjab?”

“Nutjob, Charlie.”

“Really? Nutjab sounds crazier.”

“How would you know? You don’t have any.”

“I have the objective perspective of an outsider.”

I have to say, when I first picked up the series, I was a little leery of reading a book with a female protagonist written by a male author. It’s my own personal bias -- if I were a writer, I don’t know how well I’d be able to write from a man’s perspective -- but D. D. Barant does a commendable job of making Jace a strong but still feminine character. And re-reading these books is reminding me of just how delightful this series is. Can’t wait to start Killing Rocks!

Read an excerpt

In My Mailbox

2012-01-22T13:43:00.001-05:00

Before getting to serious business, I would like to thank The Story Siren for hosting In My Mailbox every week =)

For Review:

Alpha Instinct by Katie Reus (Amazon | Book Depository)
Black Heart by Holly Black (Amazon | Book Depository)
Lothaire by Kresley Cole (Amazon | Book Depository)

Gifts:

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor (Amazon | Book Depository)
Blood Red Road by Moira Young (Amazon | Book Depository)
Touch of Power by Maria V Snyder (Amazon | Book Depository)

Notes:

I changed the design and added threaded comments, please let me know what you think =)

Also, I’m looking for another reviewer to join the blog, please check out this page if interested!

Alpha Instinct by Katie Reus

2012-01-20T11:22:00.001-05:00

Alpha Instinct by Katie Reus

Book Stats:

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Paranormal Romance/Thriller
Paperback: 368 pages
Publisher: Signet
Release date: February 7, 2012

Series: Moon Shifter #1

Source: Penguin Canada for review

Reviewed by: Tynga

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Fear has a scent. So does desire…

Ana Cordona has been a strong leader for the lupine shifters who survived after all the males and most of the females in her pack were mysteriously poisoned. As tough as she is, with no Alpha male, the pack is vulnerable to the devious shifter Taggart, who wants to claim both their ranch and Ana as his own. When Connor Armstrong comes back into her life, promising protection, it’s almost enough to make Ana forget how he walked out on her before—and reluctantly accept his offer to mate.

The minute Connor sees Ana again, it reawakens a raw hunger. He must have her for his bondmate—his wolf cries out for it. But his human side knows he must proceed with caution because of their complicated past. If he is to truly have her body and soul, he must go beyond his burning desire and win back her heart. Whatever it takes, he is determined not to leave her side again.

But Taggart and his rival pack are not their only enemies. A human element in town is targeting shifters. Their plan not only threatens Ana and Connor’s future, but the lives of the entire pack…

Ana Cordona, is the pack’s Alpha oldest daughter and her life wasn’t perfect, but damn close to it, until all the males and pregnant females of her pack died from poisoning. The culprit still hasn’t been found and with half her pack decimated, and both her parents dead, she has to stay strong for the females of her pack. It’s not easy though, Taggart, the misogynist alpha of the neighboring pack wants her – and her territory- for himself and nothing will stop him. But like it wasn’t enough, women are being attacked in town and naturally, suspicion falls on the Shifters.

I’ve been really excited about Alpha Instinct ever since I first saw the cover, and I have to say, the novel fell a little short for me. It’s not that it’s bad, because it’s not, but I was hoping for something along the lines of Patricia Briggs’ Mercy Thompson series or Rachel Vincent’s Shifters series and Katie Reus’ first novel in her new series didn’t meet my expectations for a couple of reasons.

First of all, I can see where Reus wanted her characters to be. Ana is suppose to be fierce and strong for her pack. A real Alpha figure. Yet, she came out to me as kind of weak. Yes she is stubborn, yes she wants to protect her pack at all cost, but the way she handled things felt a bit childish at times. I liked Connor though, he left her 50 years ago and came back to protect her when she needed him. He is strong-minded, fierce and commanding – all the right qualities. The interactions between the two though felt off sometimes. He wants her, yet he is very clumsy about it (which is fine, really) and she wants him but she’s scared he will leave her again and refuses to see what’s right in front of her eyes – he loves her to death. Really, Ana is an ostrich. You’ll tell me this a pattern we see often in romance novel, and yes you’d be right, I don’t really have anything against the pattern per see but the execution needed a little more polishing I think. On a more positive note, I really liked the relationship between Liam (Connor’s little brother) and December (a human female). It felt real and the awkwardness between the two of them was just the sweetest thing and I wish we saw more of them.

Another issue I found was how slowly and I’ll dare say boringly, the plot progressed. I know it' sounds weird to say the plot bordered boring, because there is actually a lot going on, what with poisoning, sabotage at the farm, Taggart treats and illegal activities, human females attacked and whatnot but I never felt a thrill with the action, the excitement of the chase or fear for one of the characters. All of Katie’s ideas were good, but I didn’t really feel immersed in the story. I wanted my heart to pound, my palms to sweat and have the urge to throw the book when crap happened, but it just didn’t work out.

The third element that baffled me, and it’s not the author’s fault, is the cover. I was attracted by this strong female image, yet Ana is nothing like it. She is not a badass, she would never wear an outfit like that and her tattoo is also at the wrong place. I know the art department wanted to draw readers to the book – and it worked for me – but it doesn’t really reflect to book so it just added to my disappointment.

All that being said, Katie Reus’ Moon Shifter series has potential. She sets a world where great things could happen, has great secondary characters and if she can polish the main characters and make the action as real as it gets, then the Moon Shifter could become a great series. A couple of things didn’t work for me, but I think you should give it a try. Maybe borrow it from a friend, the library or at least read an excerpt before you buy it because you might like it. I started this novel with high expectations, so maybe it’s my own fault I was a bit disappointed. All in all, I don’t plan to read the second book unless I read raving reviews about it once it’s been released.

Daring You To Read… Dark Lover by J.R. Ward

2012-01-19T00:06:00.002-05:00

There was a time when I stayed away from any book with a male’s chest on it because, to me, it rang like “overload of unnecessary sex scenes” and lame romance. Then I randomly received a review copy of Lover Mine, the eighth book in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series, in the mail, sent by Penguin Canada. I honestly didn’t think I would read it, but asked questions about it on twitter. Some girls I really like said this series was awesome and that I had to read it and were squealing because they were jealous I got a copy early. I wasn’t convinced, but the box set for the first 6 books in the series was about 30$, and I’m one to read a series in order, so I decided to give it a try. Boy did I take the right decision!

Black Dagger Brotherhood series is amongst my favorites out there, and believe it or not, I have read Lover Mine yet. Why? Because I pace myself so I can make the pleasure last! Sure I could read them all in a row, but then I would be in Brotherhood withdrawal until Ward releases a new book? No Thank you! Thus far, I read the first five books, and even if the third book (Zhadist’s book) is my favorite so far, I think the first book, Dark Lover is a great introduction to this amazing world! I even bought the books available in French for my mom because I liked the series so much =)

Now onto the book, in Dark Lover, we are introduced to an harsh world, where vampires live in secret from human society. A big difference from any other vampire novel though, is that vampires are prey in this series, to a race of undead, soulless, bastards called Lessers. They hunt on civilian vampires in hopes of exterminating the race, but The Brotherhood, a group of trained warrior vampires, won’t let that happen. Not on their shift. Each book in the series stars a different Brother, and Wrath, Leader of the Brotherhood, is the star of this first encounter. Darius, a Brother, asks him to protect his half-breed daughter Beth and Wrath can’t decline. What he doesn’t know is that he’ll fall – hard- for this half-human woman.

More about Dark Lover:

In the shadows of the night in Caldwell, New York, there's a deadly turf war going on between vampires and their slayers. There exists a secret band of brothers like no other-six vampire warriors, defenders of their race. Yet none of them relishes killing their enemies more than Wrath, the leader of The Black Dagger Brotherhood.
The only purebred vampire left on earth, Wrath has a score to settle with the slayers who murdered his parents centuries ago. But, when one of his most trusted fighters is killed-orphaning a half-breed daughter unaware of her heritage or her fate -Wrath must usher the beautiful female into the world of the undead…
Racked by a restlessness in her body that wasn’t there before. Beth Randall is helpless against the dangerously sexy man who comes to her at night with shadows in his eyes. His tales of brotherhood and blood frighten her. But his touch ignites a dawning hunger that threatens to consume them both…
Read My Review
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

The following books in the series:

How to participate?

- You choose a book you’ve read, loved and would dare your readers to read!
- The book you choose must be an older release (at least 6 months ago), because let’s be honest, we’re all quite aware of the latest releases.
- Write your own blog post, using the button and linking back to Tynga’s Reviews, inviting your readers to read your chosen book.
- Come back on Tynga’s Reviews and put your link in the linking tool.
- Browse other bloggers Dare and let them know if you’ve read their featured book, or plan on reading it.
- Super easy and an awesome way to discover that special book who might have slipped off your radar!

Don’t forget to add your own Daring You To Read… post in the linky below.

Allison Hewitt Is Trapped by Madeleine Roux

2012-01-18T12:13:00.000-05:00

Allison Hewitt Is Trapped by Madeleine Roux

Book stats:
Reading level: Adult
Trade paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: St. Martin’s
Release date: January 18, 2011

Source: Personal shelf

Reviewed by: Jenn

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

One woman's story as she blogs - and fights back - the zombie apocalypse

Allison Hewitt and her five colleagues at the Brooks and Peabody Bookstore are trapped together when the zombie outbreak hits. Allison reaches out for help through her blog, writing on her laptop and utilizing the military's emergency wireless network (SNET). It may also be her only chance to reach her mother. But as the reality of their situation sinks in, Allison’s blog becomes a harrowing account of her edge-of-the-seat adventures (with some witty sarcasm thrown in) as she and her companions fight their way through ravenous zombies and sometimes even more dangerous humans.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from Allison Hewitt Is Trapped when I picked it up from bookcloseouts.ca. The blurb sounded great and the price was right so I gave it a shot. As it turns out, this book is excellent and I’m so happy I bought it!

Allison Hewitt Is Trapped is written as a series of blog entries, complete with comments. Sometimes books that are styled this way end up being weird but it’s a style that really works for this story, mostly because Madeleine Roux is a fantastic writer and Allison and the other characters really come off the page.

I love Allison. She’s probably one of my favourite new characters of 2011. She’s a regular person who finds herself in the middle of an apocalypse and it’s her Every Woman qualities that make it easy to identify with her. Plus, I worked in a bookstore for a brief time and her descriptions of some of her colleagues and customers killed me.

Allison is in an impossible situation and she tries her very best to survive. In the process, she bonds with some of her coworkers and discovered a hereto unknown prowess with an axe. She also takes to blogging, which gives her a bit of perspective and puts her in touch with other survivors via her trusty comments section. The comments really added a little extra something to the book since they give us a few side stories.

On the journey from the bookstore to possible safety, Allison and company have quite an adventure. There are some lows but also a surprising number of positive experiences, as Allison meets a slew of interesting characters and develops relationships with people she would never otherwise meet. I don’t want to say too much about them since part of a great zombie apocalypse is never knowing who survives and where they go but I will say that it’s a well written quest that forces Allison to make decisions and decide what she can and cannot live with in this scary new world.

Madeleine Roux’s website says that this story started off as an experimental fiction blog and I think that the experiment was incredibly successful. Allison Hewitt Is Trapped can’t be put down once you start so you better start it early in the day. I did not do this and I paid for it the next day at school. But it was completely worth it!! The sequel, Sadie Walker Is Stranded, is slated for release on the 31st. I’m going to make sure that I read it on the weekend, in case it’s as addictive as its predecessor.

This book seems to have inspired a lot of folks. Check out this fan-made trailer! It has a lot of Kristen Bell, which makes it awesome in my books. The author really likes it – she put an announcement about it on her blog.

Read an excerpt

“When I’m not writing” with Cat Adams…and giveaway!

2012-01-17T04:23:00.002-05:00

Today’s visit is a double digest since Cat Adams is a pseudonym for the talented writing duo of C. T. Adams and Cathy Clamp. They are the brilliant minds behind the Blood Singer series (I’ve raved about these books on several occasions), but you may also know them from their Tales of the Sazi or the Thrall series, among other works. It’s been a treat getting to know these ladies and I’m sure you’ll enjoy finding out what they do when they’re not creating wonderful stories.

As an added bonus, there’s a giveaway so stick around!

First up, we have the delightful Cathy Clamp!

Before I started to write, I worked in a law office as a secretary and paralegal. Now that I write 1-3 books a year, I still do! I’ve worked in law since my teens (which was a looooong time ago) and I’ve always loved the law. But oddly, I never really wanted to be a lawyer. I like the underworld of the law—the research, the digging, the getting it on paper and making it . . . well, “pretty.” See, lawyers really only have two things to sell: knowledge and pretty. Yes, a person is willing to pay for knowledge but they want the knowledge wrapped up in a shiny bow of blue backing paper, gold seals and ribbons. The bow says “I paid $150 (or $250 or $500) per hour for this” and I’m willing to write the check. That kind of attention to detail takes a special kind of person to create because what makes one level of typed document worth more than another? Is it just nice margins? Well, yeah. It sort of is. Snow white paper, perfect margins, stapled just so, and no smudges. Then add in binders, dividers, indexes and personal attention that says, “I care.”

Being a legal secretary is a frenetic joyride every day that taxes your mind and body. It’s a real shame that “secretary” has become a dirty word, because it’s a honorable profession—born in a time when women weren’t considered smart enough to BE a clerk or secretary. Now it’s often seen as some sort of entry-level job that anyone can do. Um, wrong. “Anyone” can’t type 100 words a minute, do complex calculations, have a working knowledge of a dozen or more software programs, keep track of hundreds of ongoing cases every day, and multi-task crises from panicked and/or angry people who don’t have a clue what you’re doing but want to be the only client on your mind every minute of every day.

All while remaining calm and collected.

I’m a Certified Professional Legal Secretary (PLS), Certified Legal Assistant (CP), with advanced certifications in Real Estate and Intellectual Property (ACP) and a Certified Abstract Examination Associate (CAEA). It’s the last one I’m most proud of. Maybe because it’s the most recent. Nah. It’s the one I’m most proud of. Abstract Examination is reviewing public records for title chains to land and searching for problems when people are buying houses. Some people call it being a “landman.” Or landwoman. It’s standing in a sealed vault scouring through computers and old books looking for the truth. Nobody really thinks much about the process of title when they’re buying a house. That is, until something goes wrong. A judgment against a prior owner, a loan that never got paid off that the new owner is now stuck for, a long-lost relative claiming they actually OWN the house you bought and paid for. It can be scary. And I’m trained to make it not scary.

What I find fascinating about working with the public record is the sheer LIFE on the pages. Births, deaths, scandals, fraud, battling ex-spouses, families at war after a parent’s death. It’s the fodder for a hundred novels. A thousand! Sorting it out and having it make sense and be right is what makes my heart beat faster every day. It makes me smile when I right the wrong done a dozen or hundred years ago (yeah, some problems actually go back that far!) I could regale you with stories that would drop your jaw—right there for all the world to see, if anyone cared to look. People record things you wouldn’t believe. Affidavits claiming all sorts of things that can actually become true if you wait long enough. One that amused me was from a hundred-plus years ago. Two men, partners in a bunch of land deals, disappeared off the public record for a year or so. Then one of the men filed an Affidavit, saying his friend and partner had died, but his buddy “would have wanted him to have the land.” All of it. Thousands of acres. No mention whether said partner had family. Wife? Kids? Parents? No idea. But nobody contested the Affidavit and soon Partner 1 was selling land right and left. Was it as he said and a handshake deal stood the test of time? Maybe. Was it murder for profit? Again, maybe. We’ll never know. But it was a fun read. A novel in the making, perhaps?

Just maybe.

But next time you buy or sell a house, take a second to thank the title person or law office secretary. It’s their skill that got the property sold on time and kept it safe for you to enjoy.

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And now it’s C. T.’s turn!

I would love to spin you a tale about a beautiful, exotic woman who travels the world seeking adventure. LOVE to. Unfortunately that is SO NOT ME.

Nope. My life, my friends, is really pretty ordinary. I have an 8-5 job in a law office. It's a good job, but not the love of my life (that's writing, thank you very much).

I have a home. It's a nice little place with a partially (because I didn't get it finished before the weather got bad) screened in porch and a back patio. I have pets (including Lucky the Wonder Dog and Inkspot the Infamous of blog semi-fame.) I have friends, and family.

Most of my time is spent caring for all of the above. I also try to exercise, go online, watch the occasional show or movie (thank you Hulu), and have an online presence. I love to read, paint (both walls and canvas), knit, sew, build things.

I don't love to clean. Yes, it's a failing. I WILL clean, and DO, but it's under protest, and only to keep the house from being an unlivable pit. I am only semi-joking when I tell friends that one of my goals is to teach the long-haired pussycat how to use his tail to dust for me. I am NOT joking when I say that one of my goals if I make the "big time" as a writer is to hire a full-time housekeeper.

I listen to music, but the mix is so eclectic it sends most music lovers into fits and spasms. My reading taste is just as . . . elastic.

And all of it. Every bit, from pre-dawn to collapse at the end of the day, feeds the writing and the creativity. No matter how mundane, somehow, it just fits. Whether I see a name in the public records that sparks a character bio (or in the case of Angelina Bonetti, the maiden name of a friend who works a couple of doors down from me), daydreaming while doing the dishes, or being inspired by Evanescence or Elbow's "Grounds for Divorce" it goes into the subconscious where it feeds the voracious animal that is my imagination.

People ask me "where do you get your ideas." The honest answer is EVERYWHERE and NOWHERE. They're just there. Unless I'm sick and/or utterly exhausted.

I love writing. Because I love writing I have organized my life around it. I do things I'm not too thrilled with to be healthy enough to do it. (Like eat my vegetables and get up that extra 1/2 hour to 45 minutes early to exercise.) Ultimately it's worth it. I get to do what I love. And luckily enough, I even get paid to do it!

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Thank you so much, Cathy and C. T., for visiting the blog today! It’s been a real treat getting to know you both better.

If this isn’t enough for you, check out their website. You can also follow Cathy on Twitter or visit her blog. C. T. also has a web presence of her own, including a blog and Facebook page.

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Get caught up on the Blood Singer series in time for the release of The Isis Collar, coming in March:

Bodyguard Celia Graves has definitely accepted her share of weird assignments, both human and supernatural. But her newest job takes the cake. Guarding a Prince from terrorists and religious fundamentalists is hard enough, but it seems like the entire supernatural world is after this guy too. When she is betrayed by those she is employed to help, and everything goes horribly wrong, Celia wakes to find herself transformed.
Neither human nor vampire, Celia has become an Abomination—something that should not exist—and now both human and supernatural alike want her dead. With the help of a few loyal friends—a sexy mage, a powerful werewolf, and a psychic cop—Celia does her best to stay alive. On the run from her enemies, Celia must try to discover who is behind her transformation…before it’s too late.
My thoughts
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository
Read an excerpt

In Celia Graves’s world, vampires roam the alleys of Tinseltown, streetcorner psychics have real powers, and cops use memory enhancement spells. But Celia thought she was an ordinary human, albeit one with a clairvoyant best friend and a ghostly little sister.
The vampire attack that made Celia an Abomination forces her to take food in liquid form and gives a whole new meaning to the word “sunburn.” She’s slowly adjusting (therapy sessions and all) when she discovers that the attack awakened a hidden part of her heritage: Celia is part Siren, able to enthrall men—and enrage women.
Her best friend’s murder is unsolved; the cops think Celia should be in jail or staked; and her old lover, mage Bruno DeLuca, has something important to tell her. To top it all off, Celia’s been summoned to the Sirens’ island.
Celia Graves has more than one enemy. Some of them want her blood. Some of them want her soul. All of them want her dead.
My thoughts
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository
Read an excerpt

In a world where bloodthirsty vampires roam the night and street corner psychics have real powers, bodyguard Celia Graves always thought she was an ordinary human—but that was never true. By ancestry, she’s half-Siren; a vicious vampire attack has turned her into a creature who finds sunlight painful and must take all her food in liquid form—but who still possesses a human heart, mind, and soul.
Her bodyguard business is booming: who wouldn’t want to be protected by a sexy woman who is half-vampire, half-Siren princess, and a crack shot? Unfortunately, it looks like Celia may have little time to enjoy her newfound fame . . . .
A rift is opening between the demonic dimension and our own, threatening to set hell’s denizens free (including the demon personally bent on destroying Celia). Celia’s recent troubles may have given her the unique combination of abilities needed to close the rift. But to overcome a death curse which nearly guarantees her failure, she’ll need to join forces with people she no longer trusts . . . and put people she cares about directly in harm’s way.
My thoughts
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository
Read an excerpt

Coming in March…
Celia Graves was once an ordinary human, but those days are long gone. Now she strives to maintain her sanity and her soul while juggling both vampire abilities and the powers of a Siren.
Warned of a magical “bomb” at a local elementary school, Celia forces an evacuation. Oddly, the explosion seems to have no effect, puzzling both Celia and the FBI. Two weeks later, a strangely persistent bruise on Celia’s leg turns out to be the first sign of a magical zombie plague.
Finding the source of the plague isn’t Celia’s only concern. Her alcoholic mother has broken out of prison on the Sirens’ island; her little sister’s ghost has possessed a young girl; and one of Celia’s boyfriends, a powerful mage, has disappeared.
Pre-order: Amazon | Book Depository

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Want to get your hands on The Isis Collar? C. T. and Cathy are offering one (1) autographed ARC to a lucky reader.

To enter, obey the Rafflecopter!

Giveaway closes January 31, 2011.

Open internationally.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Authors, would you like to visit and share with us? Please email me at jennblogs (at) gmail (dot) com and we’ll set it up!

Giveaway: Cinder by Marissa Meyer

2012-01-16T07:07:00.002-05:00

Marissa Meyer stopped by just last month to celebrate the release of her first book, Cinder, and her giveaway ended up being the most popular of the event, so I’m happy to have another copy to offer you, thanks to St-Martins & Zeitghost Media!

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About Cinder:

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . .
Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

One (1) copy of Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Open to US & Canada only

Ends January 25th, 2012

All you have to do is fill the Rafflecopter form below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Kindling the Moon by Jenn Bennett

2012-01-16T02:34:00.000-05:00

Kindling the Moon by Jenn Bennett

Book Stats:
Reading level: Adult
Genre: Urban fantasy
Mass market paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: Pocket
Release date: June 28, 2011

Series: Arcadia Bell #1

Source: Personal shelf

Reviewed by: Jenn

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Meet Arcadia Bell: bartender, renegade magician, fugitive from the law. . . .

Being the spawn of two infamous occultists (and alleged murderers) isn’t easy, but freewheeling magician Arcadia “Cady” Bell knows how to make the best of a crummy situation. After hiding out for seven years, she’s carved an incognito niche for herself slinging drinks at the demon-friendly Tambuku Tiki Lounge.

But she receives an ultimatum when unexpected surveillance footage of her notorious parents surfaces: either prove their innocence or surrender herself. Unfortunately, the only witness to the crimes was an elusive Æthyric demon, and Cady has no idea how to find it. She teams up with Lon Butler, an enigmatic demonologist with a special talent for sexual spells and an arcane library of priceless stolen grimoires. Their research soon escalates into a storm of conflict involving missing police evidence, the decadent Hellfire Club, a ruthless bounty hunter, and a powerful occult society that operates way outside the law. If Cady can’t clear her family name soon, she’ll be forced to sacrifice her own life . . . and no amount of running will save her this time.

Having just finished Kindling the Moon, I'm hard pressed to remember why I waited so long to read it. It’s one of the most delightful debuts I’ve read. I’m so happy that I finally read it because it was absolutely delightful.

Arcadia Bell is a woman with a past. A talented though somewhat untrained magic user, she’s on the run from the law since her parents faked all of their deaths to avoid being arrested for serial murders. She’s made a life as a bar owner with her demon friend but it all starts to crumble when her parents are spotted and Arcadia has to clear their names by finding the real murderer. Unfortunately, this entails tracking down a mysterious albino demon that no one’s been able to find for a good decade. Thankfully, Cady is resourceful and smart. I hate it when main characters spend big chunks of time dithering about what to do; Cady is all about getting stuff done, possibly because she only has a couple weeks to accomplish her goal. And Jenn Bennett takes us on quite the ride over these couple weeks. She’s crafted a plot with fantastic reveals, strong world building, wonderful characters, and lovely moments. So. Good. Her explanation for why there are demons is just fantastic:

That’s why there are so many Earthbounds [demons] running around the States these days. Some idiot magician working for queen Elizabeth summoned a group of lower-echelon Aethyric demons and trapped them in human bodies, thinking they’d make pliable subjects when America was being colonized. However, the newly invoked Earthbounds lost their ticket home when the magician died of smallpox before he could send them back. A few hundred years of breeding, and here we are.

Of course, I can’t talk about the novel without commenting on Lon and Jupe. First off, I *love* the name Lon Butler. It instantly invokes Old Hollywood for me. And Lon does have a very debonair, rakish air to him at times, in addition to being an expert of demons. He also has a son named Jupe, who just might be the cutest kid I’ve seen in a book lately.

Even though Lon has a couple decades on Arcadia, their romantic chemistry is off the charts. At first, I wasn’t sure how I felt about the age gap, which is ridiculous since a goodly chunk of paranormal romances have the centuries old/immortal guy wooing a nubile, twenty-something female lead. However, Lon is so charming and surprising that he won me over almost immediately. He may not have a showy power like Cady but he’s good at what he does and he’s got a lot of depth.

Did I mention there’s a hedgehog?

When I first bought Kindling the Moon, I didn’t really get everything on the cover. The Tiki faces made sense based on the blurb but I wasn’t sure what was going on with Cady. Having finished the book, though, I have to say that Tony Mauro has captured Arcadia perfectly, from her two-toned hair to the invisible sigils on her arm. I also love the moon necklace (Cady is called the Moonchild because of the way she was conceived) and the fact that she’s wearing a whole shirt instead of baring her midriff as so many UF heroines seem wont to do. It’s a very Cady cover and I love it.

Read an excerpt

In My Mailbox

2012-01-15T11:12:00.000-05:00

Before getting down to business, I would like to thank The Story Siren for hosting In My Mailbox every week! =)

There’s no vlog this week since I’m flying solo but I did take a picture. Unfortunately, I left some of my books at my parents’ house so I don’t have them all right now.

As you can see, I’ve been very spoiled this holiday season. It’s been a bountiful few weeks with lovely gifts (and gift cards) and some great e-book sales. (Ebooks are marked with an asterisk.)

For review:
Thread of Death by Jennifer Estep *
Kiss of Twilight by Loribelle Hunt *
Knightfall by Berinn Rae

Gifts:
Magic Gifts by Ilona Andrews (it was free on their website for a limited time) *
Better Off Undead by D. D. Barant
Wolfsbane by Andrea Cremer
The Hour of Dust and Ashes by Kelly Gay
Trance by Kelly Meding
A Shot in the Dark by K. A. Stewart
Soul Screamers: Volume One by Rachel Vincent

Bought:

Unearthed by C. J. Barry *
The Urban Fantasy Anthology edited by Peter S. Beagle and Joe R. Lansdale
Kindling the Moon by Jenn Bennett
Side Jobs by Jim Butcher
Jaq's Harp by Ella Drake *
Karma Girl by Jennifer Estep *
Hot Mama by Jennifer Estep *
Jinx by Jennifer Estep *
A Karma Girl Christmas by Jennifer Estep *
The First Days by Rhiannon Frater
Hard Spell by Justin Gustainis
Blood Secrets by Jeannie Holmes *
Happily Ever After edited by John Klima
Legend by Marie Lu
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
Acquainted with the Night by Piper Maitland
Killing Time by Elisa Page *
Amethyst Bound by L. Shannon *
Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder
The Shadow Reader by Sandy Williams

What’s in your mailbox this week?

New Reviewer Wanted

2012-01-13T12:36:00.001-05:00

Tynga’s Reviews is growing fast and with my first baby on it’s way, I find it increasingly difficult to deliver as much content as I would like to.

Jennifer is a fantastic help (<3) but I don’t want to put too much stress on her so I’m looking for a new member to join our little family =)

Since both Jennifer & I live in Canada, I’d like to recruit someone from the US. I have multiple contact with the US publishing houses, but for some of them, their policies are against sending review copies to Canada, so it would allow Tynga’s Reviews a wider range of possibility, review wise !

If you choose to review for me, I won’t be sending you any books, you’ll have to review your own books but, I have a lot of review request I am turning down right now, so if any of those books interest you, I could have them sent directly to you, and you can obviously keep those books. You could also request books from NetGalley =) and as mentioned above, ARCs from publishing houses will be a viable option in the future (we’ll have to discuss that).

I want it to be clear though, that reviewing for Tynga’s Reviews does not guaranty you a plethora of free books, and I would appreciate if you refrained from applying if it’s your motivation.

I would also like to find someone who would be interested in being involved into the different features hosted on the blog.

My criteria:

Books reviewed must be of the Paranormal Genre (some dystopian and steampunk accepted)

You must be 18 +

I’d rather if you don’t already have a blog of your own, so reviewing for me won’t be an hassle.

You must write fairly articulate reviews, and I’d like to see some you’ve previously written (amazon, goodreads and the likes)

If you have a goodreads account, I’d like to see it to make sure we have similar taste.

I’m not against negative reviews but I’m against bashing and disrespect. I reserve a veto vote on anything I publish.

No plagiary tolerated.

I might have forgotten something, so feel free to contact me with any questions you might have =)

TyngaUF(a)gmail.com

Also, feel free to contact Jenn if you have any questions for her =)

jennblogs (at) gmail (dot) com

If you are interested, please FILL THE FORM

Under The Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

2012-01-13T10:35:00.001-05:00

Under The Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

Book Stats:
Reading level: Ages 14 and up
Hardcover: 384 pages
Genre: Dystopian / sci-fi
Publisher: HarperCollins
Release date: January 3, 2012

Series: Under the Never Sky #1

Source: ARC from Harper Collins

Reviewed by: Tynga

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Aria is a teenager in the enclosed city of Reverie. Like all Dwellers, she spends her time with friends in virtual environments, called Realms, accessed through an eyepiece called a Smarteye. Aria enjoys the Realms and the easy life in Reverie. When she is forced out of the pod for a crime she did not commit, she believes her death is imminent. The outside world is known as The Death Shop, with danger in every direction.

As an Outsider, Perry has always known hunger, vicious predators, and violent energy storms from the swirling electrified atmosphere called the Aether. A bit of an outcast even among his hunting tribe, Perry withstands these daily tests with his exceptional abilities, as he is gifted with powerful senses that enable him to scent danger, food and even human emotions.

They come together reluctantly, for Aria must depend on Perry, whom she considers a barbarian, to help her get back to Reverie, while Perry needs Aria to help unravel the mystery of his beloved nephew’s abduction by the Dwellers. Together they embark on a journey challenged as much by their prejudices as by encounters with cannibals and wolves. But to their surprise, Aria and Perry forge an unlikely love - one that will forever change the fate of all who live UNDER THE NEVER SKY

The world as we know it is being slowly destroyed by Aether storms and in an effort to survive, a portion of the population created pods: Relatively small structures in which thousands of humans live physically. While their bodies stay behind in those buildings, their consciousness travels amongst thousands of virtual realm where everything is “better than real”. Technologically advanced, reproduction is handled by geneticists, they even found a way to reverse aging and Aria enjoys her virtual world immensely. After a sequence of unfortunate events though, she finds herself on the outside, with Savages, how will she survive this harsh reality from which she can’t escape?

Veronica Rossi created a very unique world when she wrote Under the Never Sky and even though I truly enjoyed the book in the end, I didn’t fall for it immediately. See, the beginning of the book has a very strong Sci-fi vibe to it, with the virtual realms and all and I’m really not into sci-fi, but Aria and Perri, the main characters, sounded promising so I kept on reading and I’m glad I did. Once Aria finds herself in exile and finally meets Perri, the story really picked up for me. Both characters launch themselves on a harsh journey on the very slim hope to reach their personal goals and it’s not an easy alliance.

Perri is what Aria calls a savage. He lived all of his life on the outside, in a tribe, and conflicts with his family will push him to take risky actions. I really liked him from the beginning and he didn’t disappoint! It wasn’t love at first sight with Aria though, but she grew on me as the story progressed, mostly because of her strength and determination and she proved to be a great character in the end!

The plot is mostly linear as the main characters slowly advance on their journey, but surprises will ambush them along the way. The first half of the book is mostly just the two of them and even though it could’ve been boring it wasn’t, but I have to say I was glad when secondary characters finally joined them on their quest as they spiked things up a little bit.

The end turned out to be heartbreaking but Veronica kept a door open for hope when she wrote her bitter end and I honestly can’t wait to see what awaits the characters in the next installment. She destroyed everything the main characters thought they knew in the first book and seeing them react to this new reality should be rather interesting!

This dystopian book isn’t full of action like Divergent by Veronica Roth or Legend by Marie Lu were, but it definitely held it’s own and I really enjoyed it. I would definitely recommend Veronica Rossi’s debut to fans of the genre!

Read an excerpt

Daring You To Read…Dying Bites by D. D. Barant

2012-01-12T03:05:00.002-05:00

I thought I’d use my first Daring You To Read... post of 2012 to shed a bit of attention on a fabulous Canadian author: D. D. Barant. He’s created a wonderful urban fantasy series called The Bloodhound Files. The books centre on Jace Valchek, a (human) FBI profiler who gets taken from our reality and pulled into a new one, in which humans are an endangered species in a world filled with vampires, werewolves, and golems. Despite their supernatural abilities, they need Jace to track down a serial killer, because mental instability is unknown in weres, pires, and lems.

The book is exquisitely written, with a lot of humour and a well crafted and layered plot. The history of this Jace’s new world parallels our world in some ways but is completely different in other ways. Jace is incredibly stubborn and smart, trying not to be overwhelmed by the differences between the two realities. She’s also got to catch a killer, armed with minimal knowledge of the world she’s been dragged into and a fierce golem named Charlie for a partner. Charlie’s actually one of my favourite characters in the book. He’s got a 1940s sense of style and a really dry sense of humour. Jace’s nemesis is a fantastic villain. He’s well motivated, smart, and dedicated, which makes him a good foe. I love it when authors create strong villains because it makes all of the hero(ine)’s successes seem like real achievement.

I’ve recommended this book to several friends and most of them have been completely hooked. I hope you’ll feel the same!

Her job description is the “tracking and apprehension of mentally-fractured killers.” What this really means in FBI profiler Jace Valchek’s brave new world—one in which only one percent of the population is human—is that a woman’s work is never done. And real is getting stranger every day…
Jace has been ripped from her reality by David Cassius, the vampire head of the NSA. He knows that she’s the best there in the business, and David needs her help in solving a series of gruesome murders of vampires and werewolves. David’s world—one that also includes lycanthropes and golems—is one with little knowledge of mental illness. An insane serial killer is a threat the NSA has no experience with. But Jace does. Stranded in a reality where Bela Lugosi is a bigger box office draw than Bruce Willis and every full moon is Mardi Gras, Jace must now hunt down a fellow human before he brings the entire planet to the brink of madness. Or she may never see her own world again…
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository
Read an excerpt

Have you read any – or all – of the Bloodhound Files?

The fourth book of the series, Better Off Undead, was released in October and book five comes out in March so there’s no time like the present to start reading this series!

---------------------------------

Want to participate in Daring You To Read? Here’s how:

- You choose a book you’ve read, loved and would dare your readers to read!
- The book you choose must be an older release (at least 6 months ago), because let’s be honest, we’re all quite aware of the latest releases.
- Write your own blog post, using the button and linking back to Tynga’s Reviews, inviting your readers to read your chosen book.
- Come back on Tynga’s Reviews and put your link in the linking tool.
- Browse other bloggers Dare and let them know if you’ve read their featured book, or plan on reading it.
- Super easy and an awesome way to discover that special book who might have slipped off your radar!

Don’t forget to add your own Daring You To Read… post in the linky below.

Kindle Deals!

2012-01-11T17:24:00.001-05:00

** Prices are accurate at time of posting, make sure you double check before you hit purchase =)

1,10$	1,09$	1,09$	1,09$	1,09$
1,09$	1,09$	1,09$	1,09$	0,99$
2,99$	0,89$	1,99$	2,99$	0,89$
0,99$	0,99$	1,09$	1,09$	1,09$

Happy Reading!

Cover Love

2012-01-11T16:58:00.001-05:00

Yup, yup I’ve saved a nice number of covers for your guys, some you might have already seen, hopefully some you haven’t yet and it’s now time to share! Enjoy ^^

UK / US
Dark Angels #3
Release Date: June 5th 2012

Soul Screamers #6 Release Date: June 22, 2012	Elemental Assassin #5.5 Release Date: January 31, 2012
Mortal Instruments #5 Release Date: May 8th, 2012	MetaWars #2 Release Date: June 26, 2012
H&W Investigations #4 Release Date: July 3rd, 2012	The Iron Druid Chronicles #4 Release Date: April 24th, 2012
The Steampunk Chronicles #2 Release Date: May 22, 2012	Kitty Norville #10 Release Date: July 12th 2012
Bannon & Claire #1 Release Date: August 7th 2012	Anthologies Release Date: June 5th 2012
Saturn’s Daughter #1 Release Date: July 31st 2012	Allie Beckstrom #3 (UK) Release Date: June, 2012

Magic in the Blood by Devon Monk

2012-01-10T06:38:00.000-05:00

Magic in the Blood by Devon Monk

Book Stats:
Reading level: Adult
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
Publisher: Roc
Release date: May 5, 2009

Series: Allie Beckstrom #2

Source: Personal Shelf

Reviewed by: Tynga

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Working as a Hound-tracing illegal spells back to their casters-has taken its toll on Allison Beckstrom. But even though magic has given her migraines and stolen her recent memory, Allie isn't about to quit. Then the police's magic enforcement division asks her to consult on a missing persons case. But what seems to be a straightforward job turns out to be anything but, as Allie finds herself drawn into the underworld of criminals, ghosts, and blood magic.

Allie is recuperating, or at least trying to, from her magical outburst of Magic to the Bone’s end, but it’s not easy to get back to your normal – or not so normal- life when you have no memory of how you got there, forgot your father is dead and can’t remember ever knowing the guy you’re dating. But of course, Allie can’t deal with her crisis in peace because the police needs her help hounding a series of murders and ghosts – yes ghosts- decided now would be a good time to manifest themselves to her. To say Allie needs a vacation would be an understatement.

I really liked how Magic in the Blood picked up right where Magic to the Bone left-off. I actually read both books back to back and the distinction between the two feels blurry because they complete each other so well. This second installment in the series was exciting and action-packed and I loved how all the different elements of the plot eventually converged all together to make perfect sense – at least, as much sense as a paranormal world can make.

The world Allie Beckstrom lives in is amazingly original and I need to tip my metaphorical hat to Devon Monk for that. I love that magic is gritty and dirty and that this world’s reality is so harsh. Allie has a lot on her plate this time around dealing with ghosts, girls going missing, learning to play nice with other hounds, while being under threat by a powerful Blood Magic user and seeing her juggle with it all was highly entertaining.

We met some great new characters and got to know some others better and while I appreciated that, I truly missed Zayvion. Don't worry, he was there, but not as present as I would’ve loved and I wished the relationship between Allie and him would’ve progressed more. I have high hopes for the third book though! Hopefully the two of them will get back on track.

The conclusion was high in emotions and I enjoyed every moment! I’m really packed for the third book as I’m anxious to know what will hit Allie next.

The Allie Beckstrom series is definitely a must read for fans of darker Urban Fantasy.

Read an excerpt

“When I’m not writing” with Lia Habel

2012-01-10T02:54:00.000-05:00

This week, we have a guest that I’m extra excited about: the talented Lia Habel! Lia is the author of Dearly, Departed, a young adult novel that combines steampunk, romance, and zombies in a wildly imaginative way. I’ve just started reading it and it’s blowing my mind so far.

Keep reading to find out what Lia does when she’s not writing!

I know it’s lazy as anything, and probably something I shouldn’t admit, but I just spent the better part of a month doing precisely this – not writing. I still consider myself a newbie, an amateur, someone who stumbled into curtain of publishing cobwebs and is still flailing her way around blindly, and so the last three years have been a whirlwind of activity and emotion that I’m just not used to. I needed time off, so I took it. I hate the fact that my work had to wait while I gulped in some air, but I’m also glad it did.

Finding time to recharge is something I tend to struggle with. On paper, I’m perfectly poised for ultimate author efficiency – I live in a quiet house with one other person, who’s gone at least 30 hours a week; I’m single and childless; writing has (so far!) paid enough that I can count it as my sole profession. In practice, though, sometimes it doesn’t work out. The way I write consumes a lot of time and energy – not only the fact that I draft rough and rewrite again and again and again, but the fact that when I’m in “book mode” the real world tends to stop mattering, and I’m likely to turn into a hermit who resents every intrusion on her writing time and figuratively nips at everyone’s heels until they go away. And when rewrites take forever, that state seems to last forever, and by the end I’m a nasty, exhausted, emotionally shaky shell of a human being with several apologies to make.

With this kind of work ethic/pattern, I’m learning that occasionally I need to take a protracted vacation to recover. To do what? Well – decompress. I live a fairly boring life, and I’m content with that. I love to take long walks, especially in the woods or the snow. I play a lot of video games (I honestly think they’re a fantastic modern storytelling device), read a lot of books (almost exclusively nonfiction) and chatty blogs, explore new music, watch garbage TV. Basically pretend I’m part of a frat for a week or two. Alternately, I love to travel. Occasionally I get the insane urge to just walk out the door and wake up in a new city on a different continent (although I rarely act on these urges). I love heading to NYC every now and then, and attending steampunk and book conventions. I nearly always come back from conventions recharged, especially if I give myself time to enjoy them as a con-goer, and don’t allow work to absorb my attention every moment of every day.

Wow, reading back on this, it really sounds as if I’m incredibly lazy, like I’m a shirker. I don’t think that’s the case. I think instead it’s a matter of work hard, party hard – and live hard. Too often I think we allow our ambitions to take over (and I’m guilty of this, too), constantly looking forward instead of looking around. I’m getting to the point in my life where I’d much rather spend time enjoying the moment – and ought to, really, given how anxious I can become about the future, and how much mental and physical energy creating for that future sucks out of me. And maybe I ought to learn to stop apologizing for that.

The other day I told my mother that if there’s one aspect of the modern social networking/Internet culture that I can’t understand, it’s the need to take photos and video of everything and share them. People take photos of their morning coffee, random trees they pass, every event they attend. I can see the value in doing this, but I also wonder if those people are actually enjoying the things they’re doing while they’re doing them. It’s that sense of mindfulness, of centeredness that I’d like to work on achieving in 2012. And taking long, Skyrim-filled breaks is definitely part of that.

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Thank you so much for joining us today, Lia! I strongly encourage Skyrim breaks. Such a great (and addictive) game! ^_^

Want more Lia? You can visit her website or blog, or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, or Goodreads.

Love conquers all, so they say. But can Cupid’s arrow pierce the hearts of the living and the dead—or rather, the undead? Can a proper young Victorian lady find true love in the arms of a dashing zombie?

The year is 2195. The place is New Victoria—a high-tech nation modeled on the manners, mores, and fashions of an antique era. A teenager in high society, Nora Dearly is far more interested in military history and her country’s political unrest than in tea parties and debutante balls. But after her beloved parents die, Nora is left at the mercy of her domineering aunt, a social-climbing spendthrift who has squandered the family fortune, and now plans to marry her niece off for money. For Nora, no fate could be more horrible—until she’s nearly kidnapped by an army of walking corpses.

But fate is just getting started with Nora. Catapulted from her world of drawing-room civility, she’s suddenly gunning down ravenous zombies alongside mysterious black-clad commandos and confronting “The Laz,” a fatal disease that raises the dead—and hell along with them. Hardly ideal circumstances. Then Nora meets Bram Griswold, a young soldier who is brave, handsome, noble . . . and dead. But as is the case with the rest of his special undead unit, luck and modern science have enabled Bram to hold on to his mind, his manners, and his body parts. And when his bond of trust with Nora turns to tenderness, there’s no turning back. Eventually, they know, the disease will win, separating the star-crossed lovers forever. But until then, beating or not, their hearts will have what they desire.

In Dearly, Departed, steampunk meets romance meets walking-dead thriller, spawning a madly imaginative novel of rip-roaring adventure, spine-tingling suspense, and macabre comedy that forever redefines the concept of undying love.

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Read an excerpt

Authors, would you like to visit and share with us? Please email me at jennblogs (at) gmail (dot) com and we’ll set it up!

Kiss of Snow by Nalini Singh

2012-01-09T02:52:00.000-05:00

Kiss of Snow by Nalini Singh

Book stats:
Mass market paperback: 464 pages
Reading level: Adult
Genre: Paranormal romance
Publisher: Berkley
Release date: November 1, 2011

Series: Psy/Changeling #10

Source: Personal shelf

Reviewed by: Jenn

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Since the moment of her defection from the PsyNet and into the SnowDancer wolf pack, Sienna Lauren has had one weakness. Hawke. Alpha and dangerous, he compels her to madness.

Hawke is used to walking alone, having lost the woman who would've been his mate long ago. But Sienna fascinates the primal heart of him, even as he tells himself she is far too young to handle the wild fury of the wolf.

Then Sienna changes the rules-and suddenly, there is no more distance, only the most intimate of battles between two people who were never meant to meet. Yet as they strip away each other's secrets in a storm of raw emotion, they must also ready themselves for a far more vicious fight...

A deadly enemy is out to destroy SnowDancer, striking at everything they hold dear, but it is Sienna's darkest secret that may yet savage the pack that is her home-and the alpha who is its heartbeat.

This post feels well timed since I just dared you all to read Slave to Sensation a couple weeks ago. Judging by the comments, a lot of you have already tried out the Nalini Singh’s Psy/Changeling series. And if you love it as much as I do, this is the book you’ve been waiting for. Hawke and Sienna’s relationship has been on the slow boil since the characters met and it’s been a lot of fun watching the tension between them build. Fans have been clamouring for their story and, thankfully, Nalini has finally put Hawke and Sienna centre stage, and Kiss of Snow is absolutely thrilling.

Hawke has been one of my favourite characters in the Psy-Changeling world for quite some time. He’s got all of the usual alpha male characteristics, plus a sad history in the shape of a mate who died before they could bond. Like Lucas, he’s been in change of his pack for quite some time and he wears the mantle of authority well. Except with Sienna. Now eighteen and a soldier for the SnowDancer pack, Sienna is testing Hawke’s restraint and the limits of both of their control, sometimes on purpose, sometimes not. And for Sienna, control is important since she has an extremely dangerous talent. Her talent’s been teased a lot in previous books as being particularly lethal but now we finally get to see just how immense and powerful she is. I was surprised to find out what her X designation meant and how her power manifests. After so many books, I was worried it would be anticlimactic but Nalini Singh didn’t disappoint. In fact, this book exceeded my expectations in every way. The romantic storyline is passionate, layered, and fraught with tension. Despite the age difference between Hawke and Sienna and their differences in experience, they’re a strong match and it shows in their every interaction.

There’s also a nice secondary love story with Walker and Lara, another relationship established in previous novels. There may not have been as much fan fervour about this one but it’s a story I was quite excited to read. They’re both quiet characters compared to some of the folks who have been featured in other Psy/Changeling novels but I’ve always enjoyed them.

As if that wasn’t enough, there’s another payoff for long-time readers, as the war between the Psy and the Changelings escalates. An ongoing event in the series, Kiss of Snow features the biggest confrontation yet and it’s quite exciting. Not all authors are capable of captivating readers the way Nalini Singh has with these books and I can’t wait to see what happens next, in Tangle of Need. Unfortunately, I’ll have to wait a while since the hardcover isn’t due out May 2012 and I’m a paperback girl for this series. Sad panda face. But at least it gives me something to look forward to, and I’m sure it’ll be worth the wait!

Read an excerpt

In My Mailbox + Pregnancy Update

2012-01-08T12:11:00.001-05:00

Before getting to serious business, I would like to thank The Story Siren for hosting In My Mailbox every week =)

For Review:

Immortal Hope by Claire Ashgrove

Bought:

Demon Bound by Caitlin Kittredge
Left for Undead by L.A. Banks
Demon Song by Cat Adams
Tempestuous by Lesley Livingston
Black Magic Sanction by Kim Harrison
Pale Demon by Kim Harrison
Outlaw Demon Wails by Kim Harrison
White Witch Black Curse by Kim Harrison

Daring You To Read… Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

2012-01-05T00:08:00.002-05:00

Clockwork Angel is the first book in a prequel series by Cassandra Clare. She originally wrote the Mortal Instruments a YA fantasy trilogy with descendants of Angel blood, vampires, werewolves, warlocks etc and even though this series is awesome, I prefer its prequel trilogy, happening a 150 years or so before Mortal Instruments. Fear not though, you don’t need to read the original trilogy before you can read Clockwork Angel =)

Is a quote from my Clockwork Angel review ^^

Let me start by saying this book was A-MA-ZING. Cassandra Clare, how can you write such intense, engaging, addictive, and marvelous stories? One of the things that grabbed me in the book is her attention to details. We truly feel like we went back in time. The old London scenery, the vocabulary, proper ladies and gentlemen manners, candle light and horses & carriages: everything to bring you back to the 1800s.

Curious yet? Here’s more info:

Magic is dangerous—but love is more dangerous still.
When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother in Victorian England, something terrifying is waiting for her in London's Downworld. Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, who are members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she has the power to transform, at will, into another person. The Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa's power for his own.
Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons. She soon finds herself fascinated by—and torn between—two best friends: James, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and Will, whose volatile moods keep everyone at arm's length. As their search draws them deep into the plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world...and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all. - book cover
Read my Review
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Clockwork Prince, the second book in the trilogy released in December and it’s even better than the first one! Click the cover to read my review =)

How to participate?

- You choose a book you’ve read, loved and would dare your readers to read!
- The book you choose must be an older release (at least 6 months ago), because let’s be honest, we’re all quite aware of the latest releases.
- Write your own blog post, using the button and linking back to Tynga’s Reviews, inviting your readers to read your chosen book.
- Come back on Tynga’s Reviews and put your link in the linking tool.
- Browse other bloggers Dare and let them know if you’ve read their featured book, or plan on reading it.
- Super easy and an awesome way to discover that special book who might have slipped off your radar!

Don’t forget to add your own Daring You To Read… post in the linky below.

A Christmas With… Winners Announced!

2012-01-04T16:30:00.001-05:00

All the A Christmas With winners are now announced, so I’d like to invite you to look back on each giveaway post to find the lucky ones!

All the winners have been notified by email and have 72 hours to reply with their mailing addies or I will pick a new winner.

Make sure to check your spam folder just in case!

Winners – If you won multiple prizes, you received multiple emails, please reply to each email with your address to make it easier for me – I won’t hunt it down.

Thank you, and congrats!

Immortal Rider by Larissa Ione

2012-01-04T10:12:00.001-05:00

Immortal Rider by Larissa Ione

Book stats:
Reading level: Adult
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Mass Market Paperback: 448 pages
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Release date: December 1, 2011

Series: Lords of Deliverance #2

Source: Grand Central Publishing

Reviewed by: Tynga

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

The signs are everywhere...disastrous world events. Evil rising up, unleashed upon the innocent. The prophecies were there...but no one listened. Until now. The time has come for those who can either usher in Doomsday...or prevent it. They are here. They ride. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

Arik Wagner, a soldier with the U.S. Army's paranormal unit, the R-XR, kissed a girl and liked it. And then he went to hell as punishment. Where he's spent weeks being tortured...and plotting revenge.

Limos, Horsewoman of the Apocalypse, isn't your average girl. She's immortal, dangerous, and her fiancé is Satan himself. In a moment of weakness, she gave in to her desire and kissed Arik, triggering her fiancé's wrath - and his claim on her. In order to save Arik, and the world, Limos must make a dangerous pact with her recently turned evil brother, Pestilence. A deal that might just cost her her soul...and her heart.

The Four Horsemen –well three of them- managed saving Ares’ seal, thus avoiding kick-starting the apocalypse but they’re not out of trouble just yet. Limos’ and Thanatos’ are still very much in danger of breaking. Will they manage to avoid the worst?

Immortal Rider is the second book in the series and I enjoyed it even more than I did the first. I think the main reason is because there was less world-building necessary, allowing action and romance to shine brighter.

Limos has been my favorite Horseman from the start so I was really happy that this installment was mainly about her and her love interest, Arik. Their relationship is very high on the impossible-love-list with Limos being Satan’s bride and all, so the challenges were very intense, to say the least. Both of them also have their own troubled past, creating fireworks for the reader’s enjoyment. Thanatos also ended-up being a special treat for me. He let’s down his guard a bit with a human guardian and I really enjoyed discovering more of his personality. I can’t wait for him to have the spotlight!

Larissa Ione built a plotline to keep you on your toes the whole time. Between Pestillence’s pranks, Satan’s attempts to get hold of Limos, protecting the Horsemen’s seals, a wedding (!!!) and of course the steamy romance, there is no time to get bored at all.

The conclusion was a killer and the Horsemen will have to ride –pun intended- the shockwaves resulting from the metaphorical bomb dropped on their heads. The third book, Lethal Rider, promises to be an exciting one!

I really like the Lords of Deliverance series and would definitely recommend it to urban fantasy and paranormal romance lovers. I have the Demonica series at home and after reading Immortal Rider, I’m that much more anxious to get started on this series.

Read an Excerpt

Trailer: Cinder by Marissa Meyer

2012-01-03T16:25:00.001-05:00

I just wanted to share with you the trailer of Cinder by Marissa Meyer!

Don’t forget that you can still enter the giveaway here to win a copy!

"When I'm not writing" with Erin Kellison

2012-01-03T07:32:00.000-05:00

We're kicking off 2012 with a guest post by the lovely Erin Kellison, author of the Shadow series. The first book in the series, Shadow Bound, came out in 2010 and was soon followed by Shadow Fall and Shadowman, as well as the e-novella, Shadow Touch. I can't think of a better way to start the year!

Okay, I write a lot. Or I do various activities that have to do with my writing. Revisions, plotting, copy edits, and online stuff. But in my serious off time, I hang with my family. My husband, Matt, is my best friend. We met in tenth grade biology when we were assigned to sit next to each other. He was acnified and I had monstrous braces with rubber bands. And the first thing I said was, “Can I see your schedge?” (That’s short for class schedule.) You know, because I had decided that age 15 was the year I was going to be cool, and here was this boy I was going to try it out on. He looked harmless. That “schedge” line must have worked REALLY well, because we married at twenty and now have two kids and a mortgage. The cool thing—yeah, not so much. Although HE did turn out to be cool—Mr. I Play Electric Guitar. I watched Star Trek: The Next Generation at home with my family. Raise your hand if you’re a nerd, too. Just me? Okay, then.

The bulk of my daily free time is doing kid homework. Holy hell, they are in grade school and they have more homework than I used to have in a week! We have craft madness in our house—a million projects started by my wee ones, but not yet completed. My favorite of their projects is when they start to write a book. And then I get all glowy feeling inside. The big one is into manga. The little one just got a pet hamster who bites and is named Henry. We are working on the biting thing.

My house is routinely a disaster that my husband and I maintain at a “messy” level. Occasionally it gets to “critical,” but even then, we only get rid of the stinky stuff. I wince when clean house people stop by unexpectedly. We have guests now and the master bedroom is truly obnoxious—it’s where we dumped all the stuff while cleaning.

I love TV, movies, and books. I bought a whole bunch last night when I was supposed to be working. I read just about everything fiction. I’m not as keen on the literary stuff, though that’s what I got my degree in: English Language and Literature. Gimme genre fiction any day. I long, pine, and dream about seeing more movies in the theatre than I do. I have a babysitting switcheroo arrangement with another family, so my sweetie and I go out every other week. Once all the holiday craziness began, the dates stopped, so I am in major, terrible withdrawal now. Next week, we start up again.

TV is awesome, too, but I watch sporadically. I love Castle, Once Upon A Time, Top Chef, Shameless, Revenge, and many more. I started American Horror Story, but got too scared. I write very dark with a high body count, but my horror threshold for film and TV is low. The images and ideas grab hold of my brain and won’t let go. My husband even changes the channel when a horror movie commercial comes on so as not to get me started. At about 2a.m. the ideas start to seem possible, then I am hopeless. And I hate tension music. I must mute tension music.

I have my girls’ night out gals, with whom I love to spend time. I love to shop for shoes. I love yummy food. And they make me feel normal for a night. (I fool them!) And I meet with my crit pardner once a week—though that has more to do with my writing life.

No matter what I am doing, though, I have a story in my head. It’s not the one I am writing, which I tuck carefully in a mental box when I am through for the day. The story in my head is epic, too big to write, and if I get a distracted look in my eyes, I’m probably working on a bit of it.

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Thanks very much for visiting us, Erin! I love the story about how you met (and kept!) your husband.

To get to know Erin better, you can visit her website, blog, or Facebook page, or follow her on Twitter.

Death
Some people will do anything to avoid it. Even trade their immortal souls for endless existence.

Wraiths

Secretly, inexorably, they are infiltrating our world, sucking the essence out of unsuspecting victims with their hideous parody of a kiss.

Segue

Adam Thorne founded the Segue Institute to study and destroy his monster of a brother, but the key to its success is held in the pale, slender hand of a woman on the run. There is something hauntingly different about Talia O’Brien, her unknowing sensuality, her uncanny way of slipping into Shadow.

Twilight

This is the place between life and what comes after—a dark forest of fantasy, filled with beauty, peril, mystery. And Talia is about to open the door.
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Read an excerpt (scroll down)

Sacrifice Custo Santovari accepted pain, blood, even death, to save his best friend. But a man with all his sins just isn’t cut out to be an angel.

Mystery One moment he’s fleeing Heaven; the next, he’s waking up stark naked in Manhattan. In the middle of a war. Called there by a woman who’s desperately afraid of the dark.

Shadow It gathers around Annabella as she performs, filled with fantastic images of another world, bringing both a golden hero and a nightmare lover.

Wolf He pursues her relentlessly, twisting her desires even as she gives herself to the man she loves. Because each of us has a wild side, and Annabella is about to unleash the beast.

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Read an excerpt (scroll down)

GhostsThey haunt the halls of the Segue Institute, terrifying the living, refusing to cross over. But one soul is driven by a very different force.It survives even death. And Kathleen O’Brien swore she would return to those she was forced to leave too soon.ShadowmanHe broke every rule to have her in life; now he will defy the angels to find her in death.The GateForging it is his single hope of being reunited with his beloved, but through it an abomination enters the world. Leaving a trail of blood and violence, the devil hunts her too. Pursued through realms of bright fantasy and dark reality, Kathleen is about to be taken. . .

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository
Read an excerpt (scroll down)

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Authors, would you like to participate? We’d love to have you. Please email me at jennblogs (at) gmail (dot) com and we’ll set it up!

Thank You, A Christmas With… + Giveaways Reminder

2012-01-02T09:04:00.001-05:00

The end is already so close!

In fact, all the interviews have been posted by now, but you still have until January 3rd (midnight east) to enter all the giveaways (see all the link at the bottom of this post), and all winners will be announced on each respective Rafflecopter widget once I pick them, so don’t forget to come back and see if you’ve been lucky!

I would like to thank everyone for such an awesome response! I was really happy to have all of you come and visit and I hope you enjoyed learning about your favorite authors’ Christmas habits =)

Here are some numbers:

30 Authors
28 Giveaways which breaks down to 54 books total & some jewelry and lots of swag!

But this events wouldn’t have been possible without the participation of some truly awesome allies, and I would like to thank every single one of them personally for their time, their efforts and their generosity!

First, thank you to my friends from the different publishing houses (you know who you are, and you rock!)

And now a huge Thank You to the fabulous authors who made room for us in their busy schedule! You guys have been so amazing, we can’t thank you enough =)

(In no particular order)

Kimberly Derting
Larissa Ione
Devon Monk
Jaye Wells
Juliet Dark (Carol Goodman)
Linda Robertson
Maria V Snyder
Richelle Mead
Faith Hunter
Kelly Meding
Jennifer Estep
Brodi Ashton
Cynthia Hand
E. S. Moore
Nancy Gideon

Elizabeth C. Bunce
Kersten Hamilton
Diana Pharaoh Francis
Marissa Meyer
Janet Lee Carey
Rachel Vincent
Julie Kagawa
Anna Carey
Leigh Fallon
Dani Harper
Theresa Meyers
Alexandra Ivy
Nancy Holder
Shelli Johannes
Courtney Cole

Thank you so much! I truly hope you appreciated the event =)

Now here are link to all the giveaways (click the covers) – In case you missed some of them!

Jewelry handmade by Faith Hunter

original By Moonlight holiday charm bracelet

Heart of Steel by Meljean Brook

2012-01-02T01:53:00.000-05:00

Heart of Steel by Meljean Brook

Book stats:
Trade paperback: 320 pages
Reading level: Adult
Genre: Steampunk romance
Publisher: Penguin
Release date: November 1, 2011

Series: The Iron Seas #2

Source: Personal shelf

Reviewed by: Jenn

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Return to the gritty, alluring world of steampunk with the New York Times bestselling author of The Iron Duke.

As the mercenary captain of the Lady Corsair, Yasmeen has learned to keep her heart as cold as steel, her only loyalty bound to her ship and her crew. So when a man who once tried to seize her airship returns from the dead, Yasmeen will be damned if she gives him another opportunity to take control.

Treasure-hunter Archimedes Fox isn’t interested in the Lady Corsair — he wants her coldhearted captain and the valuable da Vinci sketch she stole from him. To reclaim it, Archimedes is determined to seduce the stubborn woman who once tossed him to a ravenous pack of zombies, but she’s no easy conquest.

When da Vinci’s sketch attracts a dangerous amount of attention, Yasmeen and Archimedes journey to Horde-occupied Morocco — and straight into their enemy’s hands. But as they fight to save themselves and a city on the brink of rebellion, the greatest peril Yasmeen faces is from the man who seeks to melt her icy heart…

In case you didn’t get it from my Daring You To Read post last week, Meljean Brook has won my heart with her steampunk romance. The Iron Seas series is filled with exciting adventures, bold characters, and steamy relationships.

In The Iron Duke, Yasmeen and Archimedes’ story is a tiny vignette in the larger story of Mina and Rhys. In Heart of Steel, a title that refers to Yasmeen’s outlook on romance, our lady airship captain and the dashing explorer are front and centre, in the midst of a thrilling adventure, complete with zombies, explosions, passion, and exotic locations.

Yasmeen is a fearless protagonist. She’s independent, crafty, brave, and loyal to a select few. As an airship captain with a mysterious past, she lives the life she loves and she makes no bones about her mercenary lifestyle, living with her own code of honour. (This is a woman who, at the start of the novel, takes the time to visit Archimedes’ sister Zenobia after tossing Archimedes off her airship, presumably to his death in the zombie-infested canals of Venice, to let Zenobia know that she was going to share the proceeds from the sale of the da Vinci sketch that Archimedes recovered.) Yasmeen is an alluring combination of toughness and femininity, particularly to Archimedes, who’s half in love with her at the outset of the novel, even though (or perhaps because) she threw him off her airship. And Yasmeen, for her part, is unwillingly intrigued by Archimedes, having read all of the stories about him and appreciating the way Archimedes comports himself with a combination of courtliness, dashing bravado, and brightly coloured waistcoats.

The non-romantic part of Heart of Steel revolves around that da Vinci sketch. First, Archimedes pursues Yasmeen for it and then Yasmeen and Archimedes team up after the sketch is stolen from her airship, the Lady Corsair. The adventure they embark on takes them into Horde-occupied territory, offering us a glimpse at the other side. In the previous stories, we’ve only seen the world from the perspective of people who have been threatened by the Horde so it was really neat to see how people affiliated with the Horde live. It was also a lot of fun to go on an adventure across the continent, as Yasmeen and Archimedes explored places people rarely go.

I can’t say enough good things about the world that Meljean has created for the Iron Seas stories. I hope she never tires of writing them because I don’t want to say goodbye to this world any time soon!

Read an excerpt (scroll down)

Visit Meljean’s website for more information about the series!

Books read in 2011

2012-01-01T00:03:00.043-05:00

Here's the list of books I've read in 2011 ^^

-A-
A Beautiful Dark by Jocelynn Davies
Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton
Archangel's Consort by Nalini Singh

-B-
Bitten by Kelley Armstrong
Bloodlands by Christine Cody
Bloodlines by Richelle Mead
Blood Bound by Rachel Vincent

-C-
City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare
Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

-D-
Dark Desires After Dusk by Kresley Cole
Dark Needs at Night's Edge by Kresley Cole
Deceived by the Others by Jess Haines
Defiance by Lili St-Crow
Delirium by Lauren Oliver
Divergent by Veronica Roth

-E-
Enclave by Ann Aguirre
Eternal Kiss of Darkness by Jeaniene Frost
Eternal Rider by Larissa Ione
Evernight by Claudia Gray

-F-
Fallen Angel by Heather Terrell
Fantasy Lover by Sherrilyn Kenyon
Fire Study by Maria V Snyder

-G-
Grave Witch by Kalayna Price

-H-
Hounded by Kevin Hearne

-I-
Immortal Rider by Larissa Ione
Infinite Days by Rebecca Maizel
Iron Crowned by Richelle Mead

-K-
Kiss of a Demon King by Kresley Cole

-L-
Legend by Marie Lu
Lover Awakened by JR Ward
Lover Revealed by JR Ward

-M-
Magic in the Blood by Devon Monk
Magic in the Bone by Devon Monk
Magic Study by Maria V Snyder

-O-
Once Every Never by Lesley Livingston
One Grave at a Time by Jeaniene Frost

-P-
Poison Study by JR Ward

-Q-
Queen of the Dead by Stacey Kade

-R-
Red Glove by Holly Black
River Marked by Patricia Briggs

-S-
Sea Glass by Maria V Snyder
Shadow Heir by Richelle Mead
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
Sins of the Angels by Linda Poitevin
Some Girls Bite by Chloe Neill
Something Deadly This Way Comes by Kim Harrison
Spy Glass by Maria V Snyder
Stolen by Kelley Armstrong
Storm Glass by Maria V Snyder
Succubus Revealed by Richelle Mead
Supernaturally by Kiersten White

-T-
Taken by the Others by Jess Haines
The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting
The Iron Daughter by Julie Kagawa
The Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney
The Mage in Black by Jaye Wells
This Side of the Grave by Jeaniene Frost
The Strange Case of Finley Jayne by Kady Cross
Touch of Power by Maria V Snyder
Trance by Kelly Meding

-V-
Viscious Circle by Linda Robertson

-W-
Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night
Witchlanders by Lena Coakley
Wither by Lauren DeStefano
Woflsbane by Andrea Cremer

Total: 65 books

I was quite frankly hoping for a bigger number, but 2011 has been quite busy, in a good way, and with the baby coming in 2012 not sure I'll do better, but I'll try!

Random Act of Kindness–January Edition

2011-12-30T13:40:00.000-05:00

The girls at Book Soulmates started a very cool project. The concept is to post a wish list and someone might just send a gift to you! Of course, you might wanna be nice to and offer someone something from their wish list as well!

Here are the details, from their website.

Rules:

• Sign up each month you'd like to participate in.

• Show off your participation! Grab one of the buttons available :)

• Create a wishlist and post it in the Google Doc located in each R.A.K post for the month.

{Post on your blog, Amazon, where ever as long as there's a link to it.}

• If you choose to do a R.A.K for someone, check out their wishlist and contact that blogger for their address.

• At the end of the month, SHOW US YOUR R.A.K!

Make a post saying 'Thank You' to whoever granted one of your wishes and share it with us :)

OPEN TO EVERYONE!

Let's keep our International bloggers in mind and in our hearts.

Remember, there's always the Book Depository and they offer FREE shipping!

Last month I received …

By Tara by Cindy by Kate

Thanks ladies!! <3

----

I also offered...

To Cindy To Christen

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Here’s my wish list for this month ^^ I know it’s quite long, but you’ll have plenty to choose from!

If you wish to offer me something, just email me at TyngaUF(a)gmail.com and I will give you my mailing addy

Beautiful Chaos – Kami & Margaret
Venom, Tangled Threads & Spider’s Revenge– Jennifer Estep
Frostbitten, Waking the Witch – Kelley Armstrong (I’d like the MM edition, to match my collection ^^)
Acheron by Sherrilyn Kenyon (MM please ^^)

Alien Huntress series by Gena Showalter
Wraith by Phaedra Weldon
Cold Sight – Leslie Parish
The Rift Walker - Clay & Susan Griffith
Charlie Madigan series by Kelly Gay
Unknown, Unseen – Rachel Caine
Firestorm, Thin Air, Gale Force, Cape Storm, Total Eclipse – Rachel Caine

I really hope you join the fun! I think it’s a great way to meet new bloggers as well as give a bit of joy in this world!

A Christmas With… Elizabeth C Bunce

2011-12-29T06:58:00.001-05:00

Today is the last day of A Christmas With… and I’m really happy to spend it with Elizabeth C Bunce, author of Starcrossed & Liar’s Moon! I loved Starcrossed and can’t wait to get started on the second book ^^

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1- Starcrossed, the first book in the Thief Errant series was a huge success, how different was the release of Liar's Moon for you?

I think the response to StarCrossed caught us all off guard, so with Liar's Moon, my publisher has done a lot to promote the release, particularly to booksellers and e-book readers (for a limited time, the e-book edition of StarCrossed is available for $2.99, and includes a big sample of Liar's Moon!). Liar's Moon is getting a lot of exciting press and attention, and it's been fun to see more and more people discovering Digger!

2- Your characters have very original names, I find myself wondering where you find your inspiration?

I have a background in anthropology and linguistics, so my first priority is to make the names seem to fit the cultural/linguistic background they're coming from. My second priority is to make them easy for a reader to pronounce! (I am not always successful with this last one, alas! Sometimes a character just arrives, complete with her name, and you have to go with it.)

3- If you had to pick three theme songs for Liar's Moon, what would they be?

I actually did have a playlist, of sorts--particular songs that evoked a mood, a relationship, or a scene for me, although put together they sound really eclectic. The first one would be Billy Joel's "Blonde Over Blue," which I'd call the "Koya and Durrel Theme." The next would be the clanky instrumental "Discombobulate/Marital Sabotage" from the Sherlock Holmes (2010) soundtrack, which was sort of my "Gerse Theme," because every time I heard it, it put me right into that dirty, mysterious city. And the now-infamous last scene Liar's Moon was totally inspired by an old English sea chantey called "Don't Forget Your Old Shipmate," and that probably makes no sense to anyone but me!

4- How many books can we expect in the series? Do you have a tentative title/release date for the next book?

At the moment, Digger's future is not firmly established. I know we'd all love for there to be a third book, and my editor and I have talked at length about what that book will be, but nothing is firm as of yet. It depends on the fans, really!

Now onto some Xmas-y questions:

5- What's a typical Christmas like in the Digger's World?

Well, there's no Christmas in Digger's world, but like many cultures, there is a sacred midwinter holiday. In Llyvraneth, it's called the Dead of Winter, and corresponds to the closest full moon of Marau, god of the dead, to midwinter. Instead of a holiday of merriment and festivity, it's a solemn day of remembrance of the dead. There is also a tradition of feeding birds on the Dead of Winter, as birds (particularly crows, rooks, and ravens) are thought to communicate between the world of the living and the world of the dead.

6- What's the best Christmas gift we could offer her?

I know we're supposed to say something like "peace in Llyvraneth and safety for her friends..." but Digger likes *things,* so she'd be pretty easy to buy for. Her favorite gifts have been small, lavish, and portable (like the embroidered black gloves Durrel gives her in StarCrossed)... so I think she would really like an Iphone, although service is spotty right now in post-war Gerse.

7- What's your best Christmas memory as a kid?

Oh, that's tough! I vividly remember being five years old and waking up very, very early in the morning to use the bathroom. I knew it was too early to get up and check under the tree, but as I toddled down the hallway, I accidentally (hear that, Mom? ACCIDENTALLY!) caught a glimpse of a huge, hulking shadow in the living room that scared the daylights out of me. I crept down the hall to investigate... to discover a giant (GIANT) teddy bear sitting on the sofa! He was probably a good 5' tall, and much bigger around than my five-year-old arms could reach around. Like a good little girl, I scuttled straight back to bed until the sun rose and my big brother got me up.

8- What can we wish you for this Merry time?

Well, I would like world peace and health and safety for my friends! This is the first holiday season in five or six years that I haven't been just coming off a deadline, and it's lovely--for the first time in ages I have all this mental space to enjoy the holidays, not just survive them! We even got our decorations up before Thanksgiving, which I think is a first ever.

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If it got you curious, here’s a bit more about Liar’s Moon

Prisons, poisons, and passions combine in a gorgeously written fantasy noir.
As a pickpocket, Digger expects to spend a night in jail every now and then. But she doesn't expect to find Lord Durrel Decath there as well--or to hear he's soon to be executed for killing his wife.
Durrel once saved Digger's life, and when she goes free, she decides to use her skills as a thief, forger, and spy to return the favor. But each new clue only opens up new mysteries. Durrel's late wife had an illegal business on the wrong side of the civil war raging just outside the city gates. Digger keeps finding forbidden magic in places it has no reason to be.
And for a thief in a town full of liars, sometimes it doesn't pay to know the truth.
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Scholastic Canada would like to offer 3 copies of Starcrossed!

Open to Canada Only

Giveaway Ends January 4th, 2012.

All you have to do is fill the Rafflecopter form below.

The only mandatory entry is to provide your name and email addy =)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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“I write historical fantasy for young adults and discerning not-so-young adults. "Historical fantasy" means my work is inspired by real places and cultures of the past, but with fantastical, otherworldly, or magical elements.

I've been writing as long as I can remember--even before I knew it was a job! I’ve always been interested in literature, folklore, history, and culture, so I studied English and anthropology in college. But I’ve only ever worked as a writer (although not all my writing jobs were as interesting as being a novelist).

I’m a native Midwesterner, currently living in the tall grass prairie near Kansas City with my husband and our dogs. When I’m not writing, you can find me with a book, a dog, or my needlework in hand, sometimes all of the above, which makes for some furry embroidery.”

You can visit Elizabeth here.

More of Elizabeth Bunce‘s books:

Daring You To Read…The Iron Duke by Meljean Brook

2011-12-29T01:52:00.001-05:00

For my last post of the year, I’m daring you all to read a more recent work: a delicious steampunk romance from Meljean Brook.

After the Iron Duke freed England from Horde control, he instantly became a national hero. Now Rhys Trahaearn has built a merchant empire on the power — and fear — of his name. And when a dead body is dropped from an airship onto his doorstep, bringing Detective Inspector Mina Wentworth into his dangerous world, he intends to make her his next possession.
Mina can’t afford his interest, however. Horde blood runs through her veins, and despite the nanotech enhancing her body, she barely scratches out a living in London society. Becoming Rhys’s lover would destroy both her career and her family, yet the investigation prevents her from avoiding him…and the Iron Duke’s ruthless pursuit makes him difficult to resist.
But when Mina uncovers the victim’s identity, she stumbles upon a conspiracy that threatens the lives of everyone in England. To save them, Mina and Rhys must race across zombie-infested wastelands and treacherous oceans — and Mina discovers the danger is not only to her countrymen as she finds herself tempted to give up everything to the Iron Duke.

Released on October 5, 2010, The Iron Duke is the first full-length novel in the Iron Seas, Meljean Brook’s steampunk romance series. (There are a couple novellas that were previously published but you don’t need to read them to get into The Iron Duke.) It’s a great adventure story filled with steampunk gadgets and amazing chemistry between Rhys and Mina. Rhys is a big hero, having freed England from 200 years of tyranny of the Horde (yeah, Genghis Khan’s descendants), an invading force that took over by sneaking nanotechnology, or bugs, into imported sugar and tea, and then using the bugs to control the population, until the Iron Duke destroyed the radio tower controlling the bugs, setting the population free. Mina is much less famous, and more reviled, as a half-Horde resident of London struggling to make a life for herself. Romantic entanglements aside, Meljean tackles a lot of issues in this novel, including some biggies like racism and women’s rights, and it’s done in a thought-provoking but not in-your-face way. And the worldbuilding is just fantastic. The world of the Iron Seas has just about everything you can think of -- zombies, the Horde, pirates, airships -- and more!

Plus, the cover is a lovely example of the trendy headless man torso we’ve been seeing more and more of. Check out those abs! ;)

Read an excerpt
(You’ll need to scroll down a little bit)

So what are you waiting for?

Don’t forget to add your own Daring You To Read… post in the linky below.

If you want to learn more about the meme, read the inaugural post!

StarCrossed by Elizabeth C Bunce

2011-12-28T19:56:00.001-05:00

StarCrossed by Elizabeth C Bunce

Book Stats:
Hardcover: 400 pages
Reading level: YA
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books
Release date: October 1, 2010

Series: Thief Errant #1

Source: Personal Shelf

Reviewed by: Tynga

Purchase: Amazon | Kindle (2,99$) | Book Depository

Digger thrives as a spy and sneak-thief among the feuding religious factions of Gerse, dodging the Greenmen who have banned all magic. But when a routine job goes horribly wrong and her partner and lover Tegen is killed, she has to get out of the city, fast, and hides herself in a merry group of nobles to do so.

Accepted as a lady's maid to shy young Merista Nemair, Digger finds new peace and friendship at the Nemair stronghold--as well as plenty of jewels for the taking.

But after the devious Lord Daul catches her in the act of thievery, he blackmails her into becoming his personal spy in the castle, and Digger soon realizes that her noble hosts aren't as apolitical as she thought... that indeed, she may be at the heart of a magical rebellion.

War between Faiths brought an entire population to hide at all cost since King Bardolph won. The King believes in Celys de Goddess of Life & Harvest and hates everything magical. Showing your Faith to Sar, the magic Goddess, or even worst, having magic of any kind, can get a Sarist killed in no time. Digger doesn’t have any magical powers, but she can see magic and for that reason, she has been declared filthy and was shunned out by her brother, her last living relative. Roaming the streets as a professional thief to earn a living, she will run into trouble and will be forced to run away from Gerse. Little did she know, she will find herself in a far worst situation.

StarCrossed was a great fantasy novel and even though it was action-packed from the start I had a hard time getting into the story for one specific reason: The terminology. See, I read the book on my kindle and strived hard to figure out the Lore, to finally find a glossary at the very end, when I was finished *sigh*. So, if like me, you are reading it in ebook, be aware that there is a glossary available and that it will be pretty handy! Once I figured out the lore, I found it very original. In Digger’s world, there are seven moons, each representing a God or Goddess. The magical powers very few possess also sound very promising, even though we only get a glimpse of them, for obvious reasons.

Bunce surprised her readers with an intricate story line and I liked the change of tones throughout the book. I particularly enjoyed the second part of the story because it’s full of suspense and intrigue. You do have a good idea of whom might stab you in the back, but you never know when they will pounce!

Elizabeth provided an array of great characters with shinning personalities. I wish we would’ve seen more of Raffin & Durrel because I quickly grew fond of them, but no such luck. Digger’s evolution was a show on its own and I’m anxious to see what Elizabeth Bunce will do to top that in the next installment.

The end was a maelstrom of emotions and I found the conclusion very satisfying. Thank God it doesn’t end on a cliffhanger, but Digger sets in motion a whole new adventure and I’m really excited for the second round, Liar’s Moon.

Fantasy lovers will love this series, I’m quite sure. I would definitely recommend it to fans of Maria V Snyder & Kristin Cashore.

Read an excerpt

A Christmas With… Anna Carey

2011-12-28T06:05:00.002-05:00

A Christmas With is almost over, but worry not, there’s fun until the end! I’m really happy to have Anna Carey by my side, author of Eve, to celebrate it’s release =)

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1- Eve is your first YA novel, was it a challenge to change from a middle grade audience to an older one?

The two series are very different, but it didn't feel challenge to write for an older audience. I'd had Eve's voice stuck in my head, and when I began the book I just wrote from her perspective and the process felt very natural. The book is actually an incarnation of another book I was working on in graduate school, which was solidly adult.

2- Eve is part of a trilogy, Once is the title of the second book, have you already picked the third book's title? How hard is it for you to choose your book's title?

I'm currently discussing the title of the third book with my editor. I can't reveal it yet, but soon! I can have a hard time picking titles and rely heavily on her opinion. I'm sometimes so close to the book I can't pin point the one message or feeling that the reader will take away from it. That said, the first and third book were much easer to title than the second one.

4- If your book was turned into a movie, which actors would you pick to play your characters?

Ahh yes...fantasy casting! Eve's been optioned for television, and there's a pilot in development. Eve is a genuinely kind person, but grows stronger (and fiercer) over the course of the series. I love Pretty Little Liars, and even though Sasha Pieterse (Ali) is a bit evil in that show, that actress seems to have a mix of sweetness and strength. For Caleb, I keep thinking of Jackson Rathbone from the Twilight movies. If you take off all that vampire makeup and get rid of his red contacts, he definitely has Caleb's look. For full explanations and pictures, check out the official EVE web site: http://theevetrilogy.alloyentertainment.com/anna-carey-fantasy-casts-eve/#1

Now onto some Christmas-y questions!

5- What's your favorite Christmas song?

Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree. Whenever I hear it I think of that scene in Home Alone, when Kevin is pretending to have the party at his house. Growing up, I watched that movie hundreds of times with my brother, so that song always reminds me of him.

6- What is Christmas like in Eve's world?

For those who live in the wild, beyond the City of Sand, Christmas comes and goes like most other days. Presents are scavenged items wrapped in the pages of old books. Holidays bring up pain more than anything else, and remind survivors of the time before the plague, and loved ones they lost. Inside the City of Sand (which you'll learn much more about in Once) Christmas is a celebration, and an opportunity for the new government to show the citizens inside the walls all the City has to offer.

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If it got you curious, here’s a bit more about Eve

Where do you go when nowhere is safe?
Sixteen years after a deadly virus wiped out most of Earth’s population, the world is a perilous place. Eighteen-year-old Eve has never been beyond the heavily guarded perimeter of her school, where she and two hundred other orphaned girls have been promised a future as the teachers and artists of the New America. But the night before graduation, Eve learns the shocking truth about her school’s real purpose—and the horrifying fate that awaits her.
Fleeing the only home she’s ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Arden, her former rival from school, and Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Separated from men her whole life, Eve has been taught to fear them, but Caleb slowly wins her trust . . . and her heart. He promises to protect her, but when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Harper Collins would like to offer 1 copy of the book (US only) and Anna is also offering a signed copy (US & Canada only)!

Giveaway Ends January 4th, 2012.

All you have to do is fill the Rafflecopter form below.

The only mandatory entry is to provide your name and email addy =)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Anna Carey is the author of the forthcoming EVE trilogy, which releases October 4^th, 2011. She grew up on Long Island, the daughter of a special education teacher and an astronomer. Early on she talked of being a painter, district attorney, flutist, physical therapist, or graphic designer, but eventually pursued writing—the one thing that allowed her to be all of the above. She studied Literature and Creative Writing at NYU, and took part in her fair share of snowball fights in Washington Square Park. After college, she worked as an editor in children’s publishing before getting a Masters in Fiction from Brooklyn College. She now lives in Los Angeles, where the apartments are bigger and the weather is sunnier, but she still misses New York.

You can visit Anna here.

More of Anna Carey‘s books:

Drink Deep by Chloe Neill

2011-12-27T06:33:00.000-05:00

Drink Deep by Chloe Neill

Book stats:
Trade paperback: 352 pages
Reading level: Adult
Genre: Urban fantasy
Publisher: New American Library
Release date: November 1, 2011

Series: Chicagoland Vampires #5

Source: Personal shelf

Reviewed by: Jenn

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Clouds are brewing over Cadogan House, and Merit the vampire can't tell if this is the darkness before the dawn, or the calm before the storm. With the city itself in turmoil over paranormals and the state threatening to pass a paranormal registration act, times have never been more precarious for the vampires. If only they could lay low for a bit...

Then magic rears its ugly head when Lake Michigan turns black.

The mayor insists it's nothing to worry about, but Merit knows a panic is coming. She'll have to turn to friends old and new to find out who's behind this, and stop them before it's too late for both the vampires and humans.

WARNING: There is NO way to talk about Drink Deep without discussing the I-can’t-believe-that-just-happened moment from Hard Bitten so please don’t read this review if you are unaware of what I’m talking about.

You have been forewarned. =)

After the epic-ness of Hard Bitten, I was expecting something truly incredible out of Drink Deep. Unfortunately, I wasn’t quite as blown away as I’d hoped. Don’t get me wrong -- Drink Deep is an excellent installment in the Chicagoland Vampires series but it just didn’t knock my socks off in the same way that Hard Bitten did. That being said, it’s still a solid novel filled with lots of excitement, fights, and mystery; it just didn’t punch me in the gut the way Hard Bitten did at the end.

Drink Deep takes place about two months after the tragic events of Hard Bitten. In some ways, the book is all about treading water -- the characters are all struggling in the wake of the events from the last book -- the anti-vampire movement, the Grand Presidium taking over Cadogan House, Ethan’s sacrifice -- including Merit, who also has to contend with Jonah’s increased presence in her life and his offer to join the Red Guard, a secret group of vampires who try to protect vampirekind outside of (and sometimes from) the system. Merit is understandably discombobulated by everything, though it’s Ethan’s loss that’s really put her off her game. As bad as I felt for Merit, it was nice to see just how much Ethan meant to her.

It was also really neat to see Malik as the leader of Cadogan House. He’s one of the characters who’ve been hiding in the shadows in some ways, since he wasn’t super important for any of the previous storylines, and it’s refreshing to see him in a more central role because I’ve always enjoyed his quiet and his wisdom. Unfortunately for him, he’s taken over the House at a terrible time and he has to deal with Frank, the weaselly representative from the Grand Presidium, and the anti-vampire protests that continue from the last novel.

The central problem of Drink Deep -- the magics mentioned in the blurb -- is a well-written mystery that leads Merit and Jonah down several wrong paths before homing in on the answers. I love it when authors are able to have their characters make smart decisions that end up going nowhere, since it adds a realistic level of frustration and tension to the story.

You know who was really frustrated in Drink Deep? Jonah. He’s been interested in Merit for a while and he’s itching to make his move so we get to see more of smoldering Jonah than we have in the past. Jonah’s really grown on me, much as he has for Merit, and there’s a part of me that’s definitely rooting for his handsome self. I don’t have much hope for it but I’ve got my fingers crossed all the same.

As always, Chloe Neill has delivered an engaging novel full of surprises and left her readers dying for more. We’ll have to wait until August to read the next installment, Biting Cold, so there’s plenty of time to speculate about what incredible surprises she has in store for us next.

Read an excerpt

A Christmas With… Cynthia Hand

2011-12-27T06:26:00.002-05:00

Please welcome today’s guest, Cynthia Hand, author of Unearthly and the soon-to-be released Hallowed. Make sure you read on the discover more about the series and a particularly delightful Christmas story!

** If you haven’t read Unearthly yet, you can purchase the ebook for only 1,09$ on Amazon**

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1- Unearthly received raving reviews from readers and fellow writers alike, what do you expect with Hallowed?

I think that most people who liked Unearthly will like Hallowed, for most of the same reasons. Hallowed is a middle book, and sometimes readers don't fancy the middle book as much as the first. I'm like that, actually. I am generally not as thrilled with sequels because I miss the initial rush of getting to know the characters and their world. But Clara is still Clara and Tucker is still Tucker and their story carries on. Hallowed is a more serious, contemplative book than Unearthly, but I also think it is more emotionally powerful, for that reason.

2- Where will Clara take us this time around?

We're still in Jackson, Wyoming, but the world has definitely changed for Clara in this second book. In Unearthly, Clara very much saw the world in black and white, but in Hallowed she comes to live in a world of grays. We'll find out a lot more about angel-bloods in general, about Black Wings and White Wings, purpose, and, of course, we'll find out more about Christian.

3- How did you manage to keep the tension, to not say love-triangle between Christian-Clara-Tucker alive?

Ha, I love these love triangle questions. What cracks me up about the reviews for Unearthly is how often folks talked about the love triangle. I don't think I even thought the words love triangle when I was writing Unearthly, simply because I didn't mean for the reader to truly get to know Christian. Clara has a crush on Christian in Unearthly, but it's a crush on who she imagines him to be, not who he truly is. And she really gets to know and love Tucker. So there's no contest, really. That said, in Hallowed, she really does get to know Christian, and she's attracted to him and all that he represents, so it very much is more of a traditional triangle. I'm not really trying to manipulate the reader into being team Christian or team Tucker. I'm just interested in getting to know the characters and seeing what they do on the page.

4- How many books can we expect in the series? And when will the next one release?

Sigh. Well there were originally going to be four books in the series. Harper Collins only bought the first three, but I was working on the third book this summer and fall with the idea that there would be a fourth book. But my editor has recently convinced me that the story would be better served as a trilogy--that I didn't quite have enough there for four books, so I am revising the third book to be the final book of the series. This makes me sad, in some ways, to leave Clara's world, but it's also exciting because there are some other projects I've been itching to work on and now I can get to those sooner. I don't know what the release date will be yet.

Now onto some Xmas-y questions:

5- What was your favorite part of Christmas when you were a kid?

I think I loved the beauty and pageantry of Christmas best. I loved the lights and the tree and the candles that we used to light while we sang Silent Night at church on Christmas Eve and the all-in-all glowiness of Christmas.

6- Is there one present you received that really stuck to your memory?

I have a funny story about this. I'd been having some doubts about the existence of Santa, but when I confessed this to my parents, they said I would have to prove my theory. Or, in other words, disprove Santa's existence. Nice, right? I tried to do this for a couple of years. I stuck notes up the chimney giving Santa instructions to bite off the gingerbread cookie's left arm (if he really came down the chimney, he'd find the note and follow the instructions) and I tried to stay up late to catch my parents, but it never worked. I had savvy, savvy parents. Then one year I hit on an ingenious idea. We made our yearly trip to see Santa in the mall, and I told him I wanted a sewing kit. But I told my parents that I told him I wanted a specific kind of doll (what I really wanted). Oh how clever I was. Mwa ha ha. It was too good not to share, so I told my piano teacher all about my insidious plan. And I made her promise not to tell my parents. She promised. (She did not, however, promise not to tell ANYBODY, as I found out years later that it was her mother who called my parents and ratted me out). So Christmas morning. I bust downstairs to look under the tree, and there it was. . . the sewing kit. I was so astonished. Maybe Santa was real after all.

7- Is there a special tradition in your family?

Oh, lots. We open one present on Christmas Eve. We always read The Night Before Christmas on the night before Christmas (and The Grinch who stole Christmas) and we don't open presents until at least 7am, and I like to make cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning.

8- What would a typical Christmas be like for Clara?

I actually wrote a quick Christmas scene in Hallowed that was eventually cut, where Clara and Billy were decorating the tree. But I think Christmas is pretty ordinary for Clara. Maggie always wanted her kids to have normal upbringings as much as possible, so I think they had pretty standard traditions. That said, I'd guess that there would be a lot more angel jokes than usual around this day.

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If it got you curious, here’s a bit more about Hallowed

For months part-angel Clara Gardner trained to face the raging forest fire from her visions and rescue the alluring and mysterious Christian Prescott from the blaze. But nothing could prepare her for the fateful decisions she would be forced to make that day, or the startling revelation that her purpose—the task she was put on earth to accomplish—is not as straightforward as she thought. Now, torn between her increasingly complicated feelings for Christian and her love for her boyfriend, Tucker, Clara struggles to make sense of what she was supposed to do the day of the fire. And, as she is drawn further into the world of part angels and the growing conflict between White Wings and Black Wings, Clara learns of the terrifying new reality that she must face: Someone close to her will die in a matter of months. With her future uncertain, the only thing Clara knows for sure is that the fire was just the beginning.
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Cynthia would like to offer one of you an ARC of Hallowed!

Open Internationally

Giveaway Ends January 4th, 2012.

All you have to do is fill the Rafflecopter form below.

The only mandatory entry is to provide your name and email addy =)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Cynthia Hand divides her time between Southern California, where she lives with her husband and son, and southeast Idaho near the Teton mountains. She teaches creative writing at Pepperdine University. She is the author of Unearthly.

You can visit Cynthia here.

More of Cynthia Hand‘s books:

A Christmas With… Kersten Hamilton

2011-12-26T06:06:00.002-05:00

In the Forests of the Night is the second book in the Goblin Wars series and released just last month. To celebrate the occasion Kersten accepted to stop by for a very touching interview. Please welcome her warmly =)

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1- In the Forest of the Night is your second YA book, how was the transition from writing to a younger audience?

Story is the heart of fiction, and readers of all ages crave it. A good picture book, one with story, can usually be turned into a good novel. Tyger, Tyger, the first book in the Goblin Wars series is proof of that—it started out as a picture book!

Writing picture books is hard because you must work with pure distilled essence of story. There is no room for error or extra words. It is so hard, in fact, that when I manage to write a good picture book, I put on my YA novelist hat and send my picture book self a box of truffles.

Even when I wrote Tyger Tyger as a picture book, I knew I wanted to expand it. I had to wait until my own children were grown and out of the house before I could settle into it, though. When I am writing, I am very, very focused, to the point that the rest of the world becomes a shadow land. While my children were at home I limited myself to writing picture books and MG novels. Even so, the children only survived because they learned to call out for pizza at a very early age.

Writing picture books is fun because it is such a challenge. Writing MG novels is fun because you get to step into the world of a ten or twelve year old, and enjoy the newness of the world all over again. I really enjoy writing YA because I can go wild with themes and thoughts. I love them all!

2- Tea finds herself between a rock and a hard place in this second installment, how will she manage to get the upper hand?

Now, Tynga. I can’t tell you how or even if she’ll get the upper hand or what it would look like if she did. It is an Irish story after all, and you know how they can be. I can say that readers will be surprised. Several times.

3- How many books can we expect in the Goblin Wars series? Do you have some exclusive tidbits to share with us?

I’m not sure yet – at least three, but maybe more. The only tidbit I can share is that if you loved Tyger Tyger you will LOVE the next book….

Now onto some Xmas-y questions:

5- What's a typical Christmas like in the Hamilton family?

The whole Christmas season is fun. When my kids were little, we like picking out presents from the Angel tree – that is usually presents for children of men or women who are in prison, that are then sent from their parents. I like that idea a lot better than Santa Claus. I had real problems with that jolly old elf when I was a child—he never brought me anything. We always had a Christmas tree with ornaments from every Christmas we had been together; candlelight Christmas Eve service with carols; and stockings and presents at about nine o’clock on Christmas morning. Yes, you read that right. My children were all night owls, and even on Christmas I had a hard time getting them out of bed before nine! Now–a–days, I am just as happy to be traveling at Christmas as staying home.

6- How is it different from when you were a kid?

Very, very different. When I was a child we were very, very poor. I remember spending one Christmas in a basement because we were homeless. We did have carols and fun, but we almost never had presents, unless a charity sent over a box—and let me tell you, people put the weirdest things in those boxes. One Christmas I got a red striped shirt that was two sizes to large, and a choke collar for a dog. Which might have been useful…if I’d had a dog. And that was my problem with Santa Claus. It is very rough on a little kid to go to school after Christmas and be asked “What did Santa bring you?” Because he usually didn’t bring us anything, and everyone knew that Santa brings presents to good little children. Which meant…I wasn’t good and I had to stand up in front of class and admit it. My family wasn’t good because we were poor. Needless to say, I never told my children that Santa Claus brought gifts.

7- What's Christmas like in Mag Mell?

Mag Mell is a bit like Narnia before Aslan returned. In Narnia it was always winter and never Christmas; in Mag Mell it is always summer, but the result is the same.

8- What could we offer Tea for Christmas?

A magic box to keep precious things in—a box that couldn’t be broken or stolen away by goblins.

Thank you for having me on your blog, Tynga. And Merry Christmas!

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If it got you curious, here’s a bit more about In the Forests of the Night

The battle against goblinkind continues . . . but which side will Teagan be on?
Teagan, Finn, and Aiden have made it out of Mag Mell alive, but the Dark Man’s forces are hot on their heels. Back in Chicago, Tea’s goblin cousins show up at her school, sure she will come back to Mag Mell, as goblin blood is never passive once awoken. Soon she will belong to Fear Doirich and join them. In the meantime, they are happy to entertain themselves by trying to seduce, kidnap, or kill Tea’s family and friends. Tea knows she doesn’t have much time left, and she refuses to leave Finn or her family to be tortured and killed. A wild Stormrider, born to rule and reign, is growing stronger inside her. But as long as she can hold on, she’s still Teagan Wylltson, who plans to be a veterinarian and who heals the sick and hurting. The disease that’s destroying her—that’s destroying them all—has a name: Fear Doirich. And Teagan Wylltson is not going to let him win.
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Kersten would like to offer one of you a paperback copy of Tyger Tyger!

Open Internationally

Giveaway Ends January 4th, 2012.

All you have to do is fill the Rafflecopter form below.

The only mandatory entry is to provide your name and email addy =)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

---------------------------

You can visit Kersten here.

More of Kersten Hamilton‘s books:

In My Mailbox + Christmas Wishes + Belly Update!

2011-12-25T14:18:00.001-05:00

Before getting to serious business, I would like to thank The Story Siren for hosting In My Mailbox every week =)

For Review:

Silver-Tongued Devil by Jaye Wells
The Way We Fall by Megan Crewe

Gifts:

Bloodlines by Richelle Mead
The Bite Before Christmas by Jeaniene Frost

Shadow Heir by Richelle Mead

2011-12-25T10:57:00.001-05:00

Shadow Heir by Richelle Mead

Book Stats:
Reading level: Adult
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Zebra
Release date: December 27, 2011

Series: Dark Swan #4

Source: ARC from Kensington

Reviewed by: Tynga

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

#1 New York Times bestselling author Richelle Mead returns to the Otherworld, a mystic land inextricably linked to our own--and balanced precariously on one woman's desperate courage...

Shaman-for-hire Eugenie Markham strives to keep the mortal realm safe from trespassing entities. But as the Thorn Land's prophecy-haunted queen, there's no refuge for her and her soon-to-be-born-children when a mysterious blight begins to devastate the Otherworld...

The spell-driven source of the blight isn't the only challenge to Eugenie's instincts. Fairy king Dorian is sacrificing everything to help, but Eugenie can't trust the synergy drawing them back together. The uneasy truce between her and her shape shifter ex-lover Kiyo is endangered by secrets he can't--or won't--reveal. And as a formidable force rises to also threaten the human world, Eugenie must use her own cursed fate as a weapon--and risk the ultimate sacrifice...

** This review contains spoilers of Iron Crowned, I suggest you avoid reading until you are catched-up with the series **

After working so hard to avoid the prophecy saying the first male grandchild from the Storm King would invade the human world, Eugenie gets pregnant – with twins (a boy and a girl) – and decides to keep them. Of course, this decision caused a lot of unrest and factions are hunting her, to kill her, before the babies are born. She tries to be very careful about her whereabouts and keeps constant security, but it’s never enough. She’ll find herself going to extreme length to protect her babies and like it wasn’t enough, the Otherworld will have to face an unprecedented tragedy.

First of all, I have to mention that reading Shadow Heir, at the particular moment I did, was somewhat special for me. You see, at the beginning of the book, Eugenie is 5 months pregnant and so was I, which provided me with an extra connection with her I never had before. Of course I’m not pregnant with twins and trying to protect them from Gentry enemies, but the human and emotional aspect of a pregnancy were just the same.

Emotions were strong ones for this final installment, what with the pregnancy, the birth of Eugenie’s twins, her chaotic relationship with Dorian, Kiyo trying to kill her and the better part of the Otherworld suffering from a mysterious blight. Throughout the book, our hero had to take some very hard decision and assume the consequences and it was great to see her approach those matters with such maturity.

I really liked the plot and I was surprise to see the novel split into three fairly distinct parts. Part one – Eugenie’s Pregnancy & Twins Birth, Part two – The Blight, Part Three – The Prophecy. Overall, Richelle Mead managed to keep a good balance between emotions and action for a perfect mix.

I only have one major complain. While the book would’ve been a perfect part of an on-going series, it wasn’t enough –for me- to be the final book in the series. So many questions are still pending that I’m not satisfied with the conclusion. Shadow Heir is in serious need of a following book, an epilogue, an addition short story, something!

I’m really sad to see yet another series of Richelle ending has a really liked the Dark Swan series. I can’t wait to see what her next adult series will be about!

Read an excerpt

A Christmas With… Richelle Mead

2011-12-25T06:15:00.002-05:00

Unfortunately, Richelle is way to busy right now to participate in many blog events, but I’m a huge fan of her work and Kensington wishes to sponsor a giveaway for her =)

Shadow Heir, the last book in the Dark Swan series releases on December 27th, and trust me, you don’t want to miss it!

If it got you curious, here’s a bit more about Shadow Heir

#1 New York Times bestselling author Richelle Mead returns to the Otherworld, a mystic land inextricably linked to our own--and balanced precariously on one woman's desperate courage...
Shaman-for-hire Eugenie Markham strives to keep the mortal realm safe from trespassing entities. But as the Thorn Land's prophecy-haunted queen, there's no refuge for her and her soon-to-be-born-children when a mysterious blight begins to devastate the Otherworld...
The spell-driven source of the blight isn't the only challenge to Eugenie's instincts. Fairy king Dorian is sacrificing everything to help, but Eugenie can't trust the synergy drawing them back together. The uneasy truce between her and her shape shifter ex-lover Kiyo is endangered by secrets he can't--or won't--reveal. And as a formidable force rises to also threaten the human world, Eugenie must use her own cursed fate as a weapon--and risk the ultimate sacrifice...
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Kensington is offering 1 copy of Shadow Heir by Richelle Mead!

Open to US & Canada only

Giveaway Ends January 4th, 2012.

All you have to do is fill the Rafflecopter form below.

The only mandatory entry is to provide your name and email addy =)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

---------------------------

More of Richelle Mead‘s books:

A Christmas With… Julie Kagawa

2011-12-25T06:06:00.000-05:00

First of all, MERRY CHRISTMAS YOU ALL! I really hope you have an amazing time with your friends and family =) Now, I’m really happy to welcome Julie Kagawa on the blog, to chat about her latest release, The Iron Knight!

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1- The Iron Knight is written from Ash's POV, was it harder for you to write from his perspective?

It was a little harder, initially. I knew Meghan; after three books I knew her voice and her personality and her quirks. It was difficult with Ash, because he was such a guarded character, and he never was really chatty. And because he’s lived such a long time, and is an Unseelie fey, he’s done some things in his life that might change how some people view him. It was actually kind of scary putting his story out there; what will people think now that they know the real Ash? But I wrote his story as honestly as I could, and I hope they will come to love the Winter Prince as much as I do.

2- The book as been released since late October, what has been the fan's response like thus far?

I think initial reactions have been very positive. There have been concerns that Meghan is barely featured, but it was impossible, given the circumstances, to have her in the book for long. And I think Ash surprised some readers with how much dark stuff he had in his past, but he is an Unseelie fey, after all. If a character is too perfect, has no doubts or conflicts, and doesn't struggle with anything, that would make for a very boring character.

3- Can we expect any more books in the series?

Meghan and Ash's story has come to an end for now. But there is a second Iron Fey series coming out next year starring Ethan Chase, Meghan's younger brother, when he is a bit older. And I'm sure lots of familiar faces will pop in for cameos.

4- The Immortal Rules, the first book in your new Blood of Eden series is due April 2012, can you tell us a bit more about it?

Sure! Or, better yet, I'll let Goodreads do the talking. :)

        You will kill. The only question is when.
        In the dark days since the insidious Red Lung virus decimated the human population, vampires have risen to rule the crumbling cities and suburbs. Uncontested Princes         hold sway over diminished ranks of humans: their "pets." In exchange for their labor, loyalty and of course, their blood, these pets are registered, given food and shelter,         permitted to survive.
       Unregistered humans cling to fringes, scavenging for survival. Allison Sekemoto and her fellow Unregistereds are hunted, not only by vampires, but by rabids, the unholy         result of Red Lung-infected vampires feeding on unwary humans. One night, Allie is attacked by a pack of rabids, saved by an unlikely hero...and turned vampire.
        Uncomfortable in her undead skin, Allie falls in with a ragtag crew of humans seeking a cure, or cures: for Rabidism and for Vampirism. She's passing for human...for now.         But the hunger is growing and will not be denied. Not for friendship—not even for love.

Now onto some Xmas-y questions:

5- What's a typical Christmas like in the Kagawa family?

Pretty typical. We wake up (Or, we're woken up by my youngest sister at 5am), go out to the tree, empty stockings, open presents. This year, however, everyone will be coming to MY house, and will be bringing new babies and husbands and such, so it should be very interesting. :)

6- How is it different from when you were a kid?

See above scenario. Also, we don't worry so much about giving presents to everyone (Except the new nephew will probably get a ton). There will be small gift exchanges, but for the most part, everyone is happy just spending time with each other and eating good food.

7- What's Christmas like in the Faerie Realms?

I imagine fairly festive. They fey love to party, after all. The major gift-giving, however, is reserved for the rulers of the courts: Mab, Oberon, Titania, and all the court fey to try to outdo each other with giving the most elaborate gift. Enchanted humans and stolen babies are highly favored gifts, another good reason to stay together for the holidays. ;)

8- What could we offer Ash for Christmas?

Lol, well Ash loves books about history, philosophy, and military strategy, and has quite the collection of old poems, some written by the authors themselves. If you could find him a copy of an original Sophocles, he'd probably love that. ;)

Or you could always give him a sword. :D

**Drawings by Julie

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If it got you curious, here’s a bit more about The Iron Knight

Ash, former prince of the Winter Court, gave up everything. His title, his home, even his vow of loyalty. All for a girl… and all for nothing.

Unless he can earn a soul.

To cold, emotionless faery prince Ash, love was a weakness for mortals and fools. His own love had died a horrible death, killing any gentler feelings the Winter prince might have had. Or so he thought.

Then Meghan Chase—a half human, half fey slip of a girl— smashed through his barricades, binding him to her irrevocably with his oath to be her knight. And when all of Faery nearly fell to the Iron fey, she severed their bond to save his life. Meghan is now the Iron Queen, ruler of a realm where no Winter or Summer fey can survive.

With the (unwelcome) company of his archrival, Summer Court prankster Puck, and the infuriating cait sith Grimalkin, Ash begins a journey he is bound to see through to its end— a quest to find a way to honor his solemn vow to stand by Meghan’s side.

To survive in the Iron realm, Ash must have a soul and a mortal body. But the tests he must face to earn these things are impossible. At least, no one has ever passed to tell the tale.

And then Ash learns something that changes everything. A truth that turns reality upside down, challenges his darkest beliefs and shows him that, sometimes, it takes more than courage to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

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Julie Kagawa was born in Sacramento, California. But nothing exciting really happened to her there. So, at the age of nine she and her family moved to Hawaii, which she soon discovered was inhabited by large carnivorous insects, colonies of house geckos, and frequent hurricanes. She spent much of her time in the ocean, when she wasn’t getting chased out of it by reef sharks, jellyfish, and the odd eel.

When not swimming for her life, Julie immersed herself in books, often to the chagrin of her schoolteachers, who would find she hid novels behind her Math textbooks during class. Her love of reading led her to pen some very dark and gruesome stories, complete with colored illustrations, to shock her hapless teachers. The gory tales faded with time, but the passion for writing remained, long after she graduated and was supposed to get a real job.

To pay the rent, Julie worked in different bookstores over the years, but discovered the managers frowned upon her reading the books she was supposed to be shelving. So she turned to her other passion: training animals. She worked as a professional dogtrainer for several years, dodging Chihuahua bites and overly enthusiastic Labradors, until her first book sold and she stopped training to write full-time.

You can visit Julie here.

More of Julie Kagawa’s books:

A Christmas With… Rachel Vincent

2011-12-24T06:52:00.002-05:00

Rachel Vincent released the first book in her brand new adult series, Blood Bound, back in August and since it was my favorite read of 2011, I had to invite Rachel to the event! I will let you guess how excited I was when she accepted *g*

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1- Blood Bound is the first book in your new series, how hard was it to create a whole new world that's so different from everything out there?

Very, very difficult. And I've already heard that it's "too similar" to another book I've never read, so really, it feels impossible to create something totally new. The best we can do as writers is to write everything from our own perspective and try to bring some new slant even to old ideas.

2- Blood Bound has been my favorite read in 2011, what's been the fan response like?

For the most part, people really seem to like it. One blog reviewer said that she liked it, but didn't plan to continue because she can't imagine the world not getting darker with each book. And I think that's a valid point. These aren't light, fluffy stories. These are stories about people who have to make horrible choices and tragic sacrifices. That's never easy, and a world that forces those kinds of decisions will never be full of rainbows and sunshine. ;) But yes, I've been thrilled with the critical reception so far.

3- Shadow Bound, the second book in the series, features Kori & Ian, will we see more of Liv & Cam? I really liked them and feel like there's more to their story!

Yes, Liv and Cam will both be in the book a little bit. But they'll be on the other side of the great divide this time. ;)

4- How many books are planned in the series? I was sad to say my good byes to the Shifters series last year, but I'm happy to have a new amazing adult series to sink my teeth into!

Three. This will be a trilogy, unless something changes drastically.

Now onto some Christmas-y questions:

5- What's your favorite Christmas movie?

"It's A Wonderful Life." That may be a cliched answer, but it's true. I'm fascinated with the concept. I'd love to do something with that "what if I'd never been born" concept some day.

6- What's a typical Christmas like in the Vincent family?

Lots of baking. A real tree. Traditionally colored wrapping paper and white lights outside. I like a traditional Christmas. So it's kind of unfortunate that I live in San Antonio, where it was 70 degrees on Christmas day last year. ;)

7- How is it different from when you were a kid?

Now I'm an adult and I buy presents. And I pick the menu. And bake the pies.

8- Is there any Christmas wishes you'd like to share with our readers?

I hope everyone gets at least one new book for Christmas (or whatever holiday you celebrate) this year. You can never go wrong with reading. ;)

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If it got you curious, here’s a bit more about Blood Bound

*Beware official product description contains spoilers*
By blood, by word, by magic...
Most can't touch the power. But Liv Warren is special – a paranormal tracker who follows the scent of blood.
Liv makes her own rules, and the most important one is trust no one.
But when her friend's daughter goes missing, Liv has no choice but to find the girl. Thanks to a childhood oath, Liv can't rest until the child is home safe. But that means trusting Cam Caballero, the former lover forbidden to her.
Bound by oath and lost in desire for a man she cannot have, Liv is racing to save the child from a dark criminal underworld where secrets, lies, trauma and danger lurk around every corner...every touch...every kiss.
And more blood will be spilled before it's over...
Read my Review
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Rachel would like to offer one of you a copy of Soul Screamer omnibus vol1!

Open to US Only

Giveaway Ends January 4th, 2012.

All you have to do is fill the Rafflecopter form below.

The only mandatory entry is to provide your name and email addy =)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Rachel Vincent is the author of the Shifters series about a werecat named Faythe Sanders, who is learning to define her own role in her family and fighting to claim a place in her Pride. Her new adult series, Unbound, will debut September 1, 2011 in the US, Canada, and the UK with Blood Bound.

Rachel’s young adult urban fantasy series, Soul Screamers, is about a teenage bean sidhe (banshee) trying to balance a normal high school experience with the terrifying, hidden world she’s just discovered. My Soul To Take, My Soul To Save, My Soul To Keep, and My Soul To Steal are available now. Look for book five, If I Die on October 1, 2011 in the US and Canada.

A resident of San Antonio, Rachel Vincent has a BA in English and an overactive imagination, and consistently finds the latter to be more practical. She shares her office with two black cats (Kaci and Nyx) and her # 1 fan. Rachel is older than she looks—seriously—and younger than she feels, but remains convinced that for every day she spends writing, one more day will be added to her lifespan.

You can visit Rachel here.

More Rachel Vincent‘s books:

Touch of Power by Maria V Snyder

2011-12-23T12:58:00.001-05:00

Touch of Power by Maria V Snyder

Book Stats:
Paperback: 400 pages
Genre: Fantasy
Reading level: YA & Adult alike
Publisher: Mira
Release date: December 20, 2011

Series: Healer #1

Source: ARC from Net Galley

Reviewed by: Tynga

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Laying hands upon the injured and dying, Avry of Kazan absorbs their wounds and diseases into herself. But rather than being honored for her skills, she is hunted. Healers like Avry are accused of spreading the plague that has decimated the Fifteen Realms, leaving the survivors in a state of chaos.

Stressed and tired from hiding, Avry is abducted by a band of rogues who, shockingly, value her gift above the golden bounty offered for her capture. Their leader, an enigmatic captor-protector with powers of his own, is unequivocal in his demands: Avry must heal a plague-stricken prince—leader of a campaign against her people. As they traverse the daunting Nine Mountains, beset by mercenaries and magical dangers, Avry must decide who is worth healing and what is worth dying for. Because the price of peace may well be her life...

Avry has a very unique talent and a group of man are ready to do anything to keep her alive. See, she is the last of Healers, a group able to assume other people’s injuries and heal themselves – or die trying. There used to be many of them, but after the plague hit the Fifteen Realms, the Healers were accused of spreading it, leading to a witch hunt of uncontrollable proportions. Kerrick and his rogue band will break her out of prison and save her from the pier, protect her from mercenaries, all the while dragging her to heal a King, victim of the plague. But healing this man will cost her own life, is she willing to make the sacrifice?

Touch of Power is another amazing fantasy novel by Maria. Set in a world with medieval ways and a select few people with Magical skills, Maria laid the table for an epic adventure. I was completely engrossed by the dangerous atmosphere, with its characters trying to avoid ambushes from powerful enemies to reach a very specific goal. In fact, I was so compelled I read the whole book in one sitting, which is a rare feat for me.

Miss Snyder paid extra attention to details and it paid off. She painted a very realistic world and the magical abilities she blessed her characters with – and their precise description- made the story that much more brilliant. The plot was also quite interesting. It starts in a slow and linear manner but at some point the routine the characters established will shatter and provide a very exciting and nerve-wracking second half of the book.

Maria’s characters were endearing and to following their success and defeats proved to be quite a rollercoaster ride. Avry is a strong, pig-headed, compassionate woman with a strong motherly instinct. She always wants to do what’s right, even putting her own life in danger to do so. Kerrick is a very enigmatic character and trying to figure him out along the journey was one of the highlights for me. I also have to mention Belen, the Poppa Bear, for whom I had a very sweet spot.

The end proved to be a very emotional one for me. I wept (snuff and all) through the end, so bad that I couldn’t see the words anymore ‘cause they were too blurry. Touch of Power really met my expectations and I truly can’t wait to get my hands on the second book in the series! Fantasy fans, make sure you don’t miss that precious piece of fiction!

Read an Excerpt

A Christmas With… Maria V Snyder

2011-12-23T06:27:00.001-05:00

I’m a huge huge fan of Maria’s work and I was really pleased that she accepted to stop by the blog to celebrate the release of Touch of Power, the first book in her latest series!

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1- I'm a huge fan of your Study and Glass series, and with the debut of your new series, Touch of Power, I can't help but wonder how different this new magical world will be?

A) One difference is the world is recovering from a deadly plague, which killed over two-thirds of the population. The survivors are trying to pull together, but without police and government and with the criminal element running wild, it’s a struggle. Also the world had Fifteen Realms, but after the plague, two leaders who had survived, Tohon of Sogra Realm and Estrid of Ozero Realm wish to conquer the others and form just one Realm. The magic system is different as well as magic is a gift from certain elements like fire, water, earth, the sun, etc…

2- Avry, your main character has the power to heal yet it comes with a price, how did you decide what would be the cost of such power?

A) I dabbled with that type of healing power in my first book, Poison Study. Yelena also has the power to heal by assuming the person’s injury or illness and then healing herself. This was just a part of her magic, so I wanted to explore this in more depth. The ability to heal with magic is very appealing to me. As a mother, I hate to see my children sick or injured and always wish I could make it all go away. I also have to give credit to an old Star Trek episode titled The Empath about a race of healers/empaths who would can take on the injury or illness of another. The empath eventually takes on Dr. McCoy’s injuries and then dies. I watched all the Star Trek episodes, but this one just stayed with me.

3- I'm a romantic at heart, is there a love story developing in this first encounter?

A) You know me, it wouldn’t be any fun without a little romance J

4- How many books are planned in the Healer series? Scent of Magic will release in January 2013, do you have tentative titles of the following books?

A) There will be three books for now. The third is called, Taste of Death, due out January 2014.

5- As mentioned before, I love the study series, and I'm wondering if you are thinking of revisiting those characters? I'd love a story from one of the man's perspective!

A) I do plan to write another Study book with Valek and Yelena. However, it will probably be more from Valek’s point of view than Yelena’s and it will include some flashbacks about Valek’s early years. Don’t get too excited. There are no definite plans as to when this will be published – I haven’t discussed this with my editor yet. J I’d also like to follow Reema and Teegan from Spy Glass.

Now onto some Christmas-y questions!

6- What's a typical Christmas like in the Snyder family?

A) I decorate the house in early December and we get a live x-mas tree around mid-December. We have my husband’s family over at our house on x-mas eve, and my parents come up for x-mas dinner. I always cook a tenderloin, mashed potatoes, and corn. We open presents in the morning. I always make sure the kids have at least five boxes to open. It’s pretty standard type stuff.

7- What's your favorite Christmas song?

A) The Little Drummer Boy by Bing Crosby

8 - What's your best Christmas memory?

A) My son’s first x-mas. My husband and I had been trying to decide where to go – his parent’s or my parent’s house and I was stressed about doing all the things we used to do when I was a kid. When my husband said, “We’re a family now, we’ll make our own traditions, ” it just took all the stress away and made the holiday fun again.

9- What's the best Christmas gift we could offer Avry?

A) 9 lives! LOL

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If it got you curious, here’s a bit more about Touch of Power

Laying hands upon the injured and dying, Avry of Kazan absorbs their wounds and diseases into herself. But rather than being honored for her skills, she is hunted. Healers like Avry are accused of spreading the plague that has decimated the Fifteen Realms, leaving the survivors in a state of chaos.
Stressed and tired from hiding, Avry is abducted by a band of rogues who, shockingly, value her gift above the golden bounty offered for her capture. Their leader, an enigmatic captor-protector with powers of his own, is unequivocal in his demands: Avry must heal a plague-stricken prince—leader of a campaign against her people. As they traverse the daunting Nine Mountains, beset by mercenaries and magical dangers, Avry must decide who is worth healing and what is worth dying for. Because the price of peace may well be her life….
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Maria is offering 2 copies of Touch of Power (1 INT – 1 US & Canada only)

Open Internationally

Giveaway Ends January 4th, 2012.

All you have to do is fill the Rafflecopter form below.

The only mandatory entry is to provide your name and email addy =)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Maria lives with her family and a black cat name Valek (a.k.a. the bug assassin!) in Pennsylvania where she is at work on another book and/or a short story (yes this is purposely vague - as you can see, Maria is very busy and updating her website takes time that she just doesn't have. Oh, all right, but if this information is out of date, don't blame Maria :). Actually, Maria is hard at work...well not at this very second...on a new fantasy series featuring a healer in a world recovering from a horrible plague.TOUCH OF POWER the first book is expected to be published in January 2012, and she's working on the second book, SCENT OF MAGIC, well...that's what she told her editor ;>

You can visit Maria here.

More of Maria V Snyder‘s books: