Wishful Thinking {Time of Transition #3} by Gabi Stevens

*Wishful Thinking will be available for Purchase on April 24th!

  

 

Free-spirited artist Stormy Jones-Smythe was raised by two talented Wizard fathers but never showed the slightest hint of magical abilities. Which is why she’s totally surprised when three famous fairy godmothers show up at her door to tell her she’s one of them.

Surprised, and none too happy.  The godmothers are fugitives, framed for treason, and the last thing the magical Council wants is another fairy godmother going rogue. Hence Stormy’s new full-time Guard, Hunter Merrick. 

Stormy quickly realizes she’s not going to escape Hunter’s watch…and before long, she’s not sure she wants to. But her freedom depends on her ability to expose the plot against the godmothers, and that means getting control of her magic. Despite the growing chemistry between them, Hunter is fiercely loyal to the Council—and duty-bound to keep Stormy from doing either of those things. 

But he didn’t count on Stormy’s irrepressible exuberance and passion for life. Before long, even Hunter isn’t sure which side he’s on, and he can’t contain Stormy either way.

from GoodReads.

*I'm having issues with the comment box on blogger, so I am sorry for not responding in the comments. I do read and appreciate ALL of them!

• Publisher: Tor
• Release Date: April 24th, 2012
• Series: Time of Transition Series  
• Author's Website

*NO SPOILERS

I have totally enjoyed the Time of Transition series since book 1, The Wish List. I love the concept of the series and have been looking forward to each installment as they came. As You Wish was a great sequel and it made hunger for the finale to this very cool trilogy.

In Wishful Thinking we finally get to know the third and final new Fairy Godmother, Stormy. Stormy is the daughter of two artists and has lived in an artists colony for most of her life and being an artist herself, she finds great comfort there.

On the hero side of things, we have Hunter, a guard to the council of the Arcani (People with magic) and oath bound to follow the council's rulings. He is designated as one of the guards that "protect" Stormy and keep her away from the other Fairy Godmothers, who have been considered traitors of the Arcani race.

Wishful Thinking a great last book to a great trilogy and I have been dying for the end game in the Time of Transition series for a few years now. 

However, the one thing that put me off about Wishful Thinking was the rushed ending. I realized that since there are only three Fairy Godmothers, the trilogy would be dunzo with Wishful Thinking, but all of the sudden I was only 15 pages away from the end of the book and the final showdown had not happened yet. So i started thinking, "wait is there going to be a fourth book?", I mean "can it all be wrapped up in 15 pages?". 

Yes, it was all finished in 15 pages. After all the issues and heart ache of these three books, we get a quickly laid out ending that only basically describes how everything turned out after the showdown. It felt too easy and too fast after all that these characters had been through. Even though I love the characters, the world, the story, i think the ending was not what it could have been and what they deserved.

All in all even though i was not happy with part of the end of Wishful Thinking, I did enjoy the book very much and the last chapter was very sweet. =D 

The Time of Transition Series:

Don’t Forget to Vote for the Theme for

My TOP 5 Sundays Post on the Poll at the right sidebar!

Check Out My Design Blog:

Great Anti-Piracy Badge Up for Grabs!

*Great Freebies Available!

Thanks so much for tuning in and I’ll see you soon!

xoxo,

Read more...

Drink Deep {Chicagoland Vampires #5} by Chloe Neill

Clouds are brewing over Cadogan House, and recently turned vampire Merit 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 haven't been this precarious for vampires since they came out of the closet. If only they could lay low for a bit, and let the mortals calm down. 
That's when the waters of Lake Michigan suddenly turn pitch black-and things really start getting ugly. 
Chicago's mayor insists it's nothing to worry about, but Merit knows only the darkest magic could have woven a spell powerful enough to change the very fabric of nature. 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 vampires and humans alike.

From Goodreads.

• Publisher: New American Library 
• My Copy: Bought
• Release Date: November 1st, 2011   
• Pages: 352 
• Series: Chicagoland Vampires Series 
• Genre: Urban Fantasy 
• Author's Website
• Buy the Book:

*Contains Very MINOR SPOILERS if you haven’t read the previous books in this series.

I had very expectations for Drink Deep, specially after the events of Hard Bitten and the flabbergasting ending Chloe gave to it. I mean, tell me about ONE single fan of the series that wasn’t completely shocked with what happened... I dare you! LOL

So, I went into Drink Deep trembling, but trusting that Chloe would fix it and mend our broken hearts and after finishing Drink Deep I was equal parts satisfied and disappointed.

On the one hand, Chloe crossed another line in Drink Deep that i did not expect at all, but I did appreciate it and thought it was a very nice twist to the over all plot line of the series (even though I had sort of guessed it whilst reading the novel).

However, when it came to mending my broken heart, Chloe didn’t quite achieved the goal. I mean, yeah, I was soothed and got some resolution, but the way it was done I felt was a little lackluster.

I am really trying to steer away from spoilers LOl So I‘ll leave it at that and just say that over all, Drink Deep is a very solid addition to the series. It might not be the best one, but it’s quite enjoyable and made me want to get my hands on Bitting Cold just that much more.

Previously in The Chicagoland Vampires Series:

Don’t Forget to Vote for the Theme for

My TOP 5 Sundays Post on the Poll at the right sidebar!

Check Out My Design Blog:

Great Anti-Piracy Badge Up for Grabs!

*Great Freebies Available!

Thanks so much for tuning in and I’ll see you soon!

xoxo,

Read more...

ARC Review: The Secret of the Keepers {Kailmeyra #2} by Elizabeth Isaacs

   

  

 

Life for Nora couldn't be better; she has married the man of her dreams and loves living in the pristine land of Kailmeyra.
That is, until the darkness threatens her perfect world.
Now war is upon the land. She and Gavin must strengthen their clan and prepare to fight. But the enemy has an ally—one that not only wields power, but holds knowledge of the ancients' secrets. Secrets that could destroy creation itself.
As the darkness grows, doubt seeps in ... protectiveness hinders progress ... and the unthinkable comes to pass.
Bewildered and alone, Nora shoulders the responsibility of leading an entire race to war. As she struggles with decisions that seem impossible to make, she is haunted by one choice.

From Goodreads.

• Publisher: iUniverse

• Release Date: October 29th, 2011

• My Copy: PDF received by the author.

• Pages: N/A

• Genre: Y.A. Fantasy

• Series: Kailmeyra

• Author's Website

• Buy This Book:

The Secret of the Keepers

*Minor SPOILER from the previous book 

I really enjoyed The Light of Asteria and ever since reading it I have been jonesing for its sequel. When Elizabeth contacted me about reviewing it I could not have been happier.

It took me a little while to get back into the thick of things, because I honestly didn't remember some of the characters names and events of the previous book. However after a while I felt myself drawn once again into the fantastic world Elizabeth Isaacs has created.

I did have a bit of a problem with The Secret of the Keepers when it came to descriptions. It might be my own fault, since English is not my first language, but I got a bit lost whenever the author got into describing powers, energies, environments and so on.

However, when it came to the plot, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Nora and Gavin are still a great couple and it was so awesome to catch up with them and their clan.

I surely hope that there is a third book in the series, since I believe that is much more to be told, specially after the end of The Secret of the Keepers.

If you enjoy magical worlds and characters within a beautiful love story, this is definitely a series for you.

 

Previously On The Kailmeya Series:

  My Review of The Light of Asteria

 

 

Don’t Forget to Vote for the Theme for

My TOP 5 Sundays Post on the Poll at the left sidebar!

 

Check Out My Design Blog:

Great Anti-Piracy Badge Up for Grabs!

*Great Freebies Available!

Thanks so much for tuning in and I’ll see you soon!

xoxo,

Read more...

Review: One Grave at a Time {Night Huntress, #6} by Jeaniene Frost + GIVEAWAY!

 

THIS GIVEAWAY IS OVER!

Winners will be announced soon!

The grave is one wrong step away.

Having narrowly averted an (under)world war, Cat Crawfield wants nothing more than a little downtime with her vampire husband, Bones. Unfortunately, her gift from New Orleans' voodoo queen just keeps on giving--leading to a personal favor that sends them into battle once again, this time against a villainous spirit.
Centuries ago, Heinrich Kramer was a witch hunter. Now, every All Hallows Eve, he takes physical form to torture innocent women before burning them alive. This year, however, a determined Cat and Bones must risk all to send him back to the other side of eternity--forever. But how do you kill a killer who's already long dead?

From Goodreads.

• Publisher: Avon
  
• Release Date: August 30th, 2011            
  
• My Copy: Kindle Edition | Bought.
  
• Pages: 358
  
• Series: Night Huntress Series
  
• Genre: Urban Fantasy
  
• Author's Website
  
• Buy The Book:

One Grave at a Time: A Night Huntress Novel

*SPOILER FREE

Cat & Bones are back again! Two Cat & Bones novels in one year is awesome! I am also very happy to say that I enjoyed One Grave at a Time much more than I did This Side of the Grave. The action was pretty great and we had a lot of Ian time, which I adored.

I also enjoyed the military plotline and I hope we get more of it in the next book.

One Grave at a Time was still not my fave in the series, but not my least favorite either =)  I also missed Vlad in this one, though I will forgive Jeaniene, because we do have his spin-off coming up hehe.

Now onto the bad news =/ Sigh, what was once one of my favorite UF couples, might be hitting a bit of stagnant period in their relationship. Don’t get me wrong, I still love them, but they are so happy and stable together that I have to agree with my girl Danielle from ALPHA reader, it might be time to bring in an amnesia plotline or throw in the towel and have this power duo as beloved secondary characters in Vlad’s spin-off.

All in all, I am not ready to give up on this series yet, not even close. I love Jeaniene’s writing, world and stories and all that will definitely keep me coming back for more again and again, specially since Jeaniene has absolutely becoma an auto-buy author for me. This is an amazing series and a must read for any Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance fan out there!

But, I do have come to expect a lot from this series, and the last couple books just haven’t reached my expectations of greatness for these characters.

 

Previously On The Night Huntress Series:

 


 

Win a SIGNED Night Huntress Series Book by Jeaniene Frost!

*of YOUR choice*

INTERNATIONAL

Ends September 21st!

To Enter, Fill Out the Form Below!

 

       

 

  Don’t Forget to Vote for the

Theme for My TOP 5 Sundays Post on

the Poll at the left sidebar!

 
Thanks so much for tuning in and I’ll see you soon!
xoxo,

Read more...

Sarah’s Reviews: The Deviant by Orren Merton

 Heinrich Straus, an eight-hundred year old German vampire, is on the run-from his past, from his crimes...from himself. Looking for a place to settle, Santo Paulo, a quiet, central California college town, seems to offer everything he's looking for: peace, quiet, and friendly people. It's not long before he is noticed by one of the local college students, who endeavors to win his heart. Concurrently with his arrival, however, local detectives uncover the serial murders of young women, and fix their sights on Heinrich. Even with a daughter of Santo Paulo as his champion, Heinrich finds that being a vampire makes proving his innocence complicated...

From Goodreads

• Publisher: Darkling Books
• Release Date: December 13th 2010
• My Copy: Received From Author.
• Pages: 298
• Genre: Paranormal Suspense
• Author’s Website

Buy the book – The Deviant by Orren Merton

With the Twilight series being at the forefront of people's minds when you see a vampire book on the bookshelves it must be hard for writer's to get people to read their take on a vampire story. Merton's The Deviant focuses on how a vampire feels when he falls in love with a normal human girl. Also as you can see by the cover he has a dog! We are taken slowly through the vampires past and his future does not look good. Can love really save him?

Heinrich (the vampire) is after salvation and he makes friends along the way but within this there is a spate of murders going on in the town and he knows he could soon be top suspect.I liked that Heinrich was a traditional vampire with none of the newer traits associated so the writing wasn't trying to hard. That said the writing might seem a little over the top as you are taken to a minute by minute guide of all Heinrich's conversations but it's done in a way that is truly fascinating. 

All the little mundane things actually are interesting. Although this takes the story away from the mystery side of the tale and I'm afraid this side of the story didn't surprise and even his relationship with Hope didn't set the emotions going. My one major personal gripe is there are a few typos which I tend to find stand out like a sore thumb but that said cannot argue with this being a good read.

You can find out more about Sarah HERE!

Thanks for reading, please comment below x x x

Read more...

Review: Hard Spell {Occult Crimes Unit Investigation #1} by Justin Gustainis

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Stan Markowski is a Detective Sergeant on the Scranton PD's Supernatural Crimes Investigation Unit.
Like the rest of America, Scranton's got an uneasy 'live and let unlive' relationship with the supernatural. But when a vamp puts the bite on an unwilling victim, or some witch casts the wrong kind of spell, that's when they call Markowski. He carries a badge. Also, a crucifix, some wooden stakes, a big vial of holy water, and a 9mm Beretta loaded with silver bullets.”

From Goodreads.

• Publisher: Angry Robot 
• Release Date: July 7th, 2011   
• My Copy: eCopy received from the Author.
• Pages: 416 
• Series: Occult Crimes Unit Investigation Series 
• Genre: Urban Fantasy 
• Author's Website
• Buy the Book:

Hard Spell (Occult Crimes Unit Investigation)

*NO SPOILERS.

Anyone that has read my blog for any period of time knows how much I love Urban Fantasy, even if me and the genre and I have our issues sometimes. However, I have to admit that I don’t tend to be the biggest fan of Male protagonists in UF. Nothing against it, but I just connect better with women, that’s all.

However, I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed Stan as the protagonist of Hard Spell. I really liked the world Justin created for this series, the rules, creatures and character history was extremely interesting and engrossing.

I did feel that the book lagged for a while in the middle part of it, though. That made me take longer to read it than I would normally take, but towards the end things got so awesome that I could not put it down until I was done.

All in all, Hard Spell is a very good first book in a series and it does a great job in setting up the world and characters. Despite its shortcomings, I enjoyed it a lot and am definitely looking forward to the next installment in the series.

 

 

Next in The Occult Crimes Unit Investigation Series:

EVIL DARK

Coming out on February 28th, 2012

 

 

Don’t Forget to Vote for the Theme for

My TOP 5 Sundays Post on the Poll at the left sidebar!

Check Out My Design Blog:

Great Anti-Piracy Badge Up for Grabs!

*Great Freebies Available!

Sign Up for…

Thanks so much for tuning in and I’ll see you soon!

xoxo,

Read more...

Quickie Series-Catch-Up Reviews: Lover Unleashed {BDB #9} by J.R. Ward & Hunt The Moon {CP #5} by Karen Chance

 

 

 

Payne, twin sister of Vishous, is cut from the same dark, warrior cloth as her brother: A fighter by nature, and a maverick when it comes to the traditional role of Chosen females, there is no place for her on the Far Side… and no role for her on the front lines of the war, either.
When she suffers a paralyzing injury, human surgeon Dr. Manuel Manello is called in to treat her as only he can- and he soon gets sucked into her dangerous, secret world. Although he never before believed in things that go bump in the night- like vampires- he finds himself more than willing to be seduced by the powerful female who marks both his body and his soul.
As the two find so much more than an erotic connection, the human and vampire worlds collide … just as a centuries old score catches up with Payne and puts both her love and her life in deadly jeopardy.

From Goodreads.

• Publisher: NAL 
• Release Date: March 29th, 2010              
• My Copy: Kindle Edition | Bought.
• Pages: 489
• Series: Black Dagger Brotherhood Series 
• Genre: Paranormal Romance 
• Author's Website
• Buy The Book:

Lover Unleashed (Black Dagger Brotherhood, Book 9)

*NO Spoilers.

The Good: Anytime I get to see the BDB boys and girls is a good time. I was very happy to see Payne and Manny get their HEA and Specially to see Vishous get some closure. A lot of emotions in the air, my heart broke, I cried and enjoyed every minute!

The Bad: It felt more like V’s story than Payne and Manny`s and I felt like things got wrapped up too nicely for Payne and Manny. It felt too easy =/

The Smex: Payne and Manny were hot, but I have seen much hotter in this series =/

 

 

Previously On The BDB Series:

 

Next On The BDB Series:

Coming on March 27th, 2012!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cassandra Palmer recently defeated a god, which you'd think would buy a girl a little time off. But it doesn't work that way when your job description is Pythia-the world's chief clairvoyant. Cassie is busier than ever, trying to learn about her power, preparing for her upcoming coronation, and figuring out her relationship with the enigmatic sexy master vampire, Mircea.
But someone doesn't want Cassie to become Pythia, and is willing to go to any lengths to make sure the coronation ceremony never happens- including attacking her mother before Cassie is even born.

From Goodreads.

• Publisher: Signet Select
• Release Date: June 7th, 2011             
• My Copy: Kindle Edition | Bought.  
• Pages: 419
• Series: Cassie PalmerSeries 
• Genre: Urban Fantasy 
• Author's Website
• Buy The Book:

Hunt the Moon: A Cassie Palmer Novel

*NO Spoilers.

The Good: A great trip back into one of my favorite world and characters. Fast-paced and so full of action, you will feel out of breath.

The Bad: Maybe a little too much action =/ 

The Romance: A lot of goodness for those that are Team Mircea and those like me that are Team Pritkin!  = Awesome!

 

Previously On The Cassie Palmer Series:

 

 

Don’t Forget to Vote for the Theme for

My TOP 5 Sundays Post on the Poll at the left sidebar!

 

Check Out The BHSV GIVEAWAYS:

GIVEAWAYS END ON JULY 15th!

 

Check Out My Design Blog:

Great Anti-Piracy Badge Up for Grabs!

*Great Freebies Available!

Sign Up for…

 

Thanks so much for tuning in and I’ll see you soon!

xoxo,

Read more...