Review: Firespell {Dark Elite, #1} Chloe Neill

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As the new girl at the elite St. Sophia’s boarding school, Lily Parker thinks her classmates are the most monstrous things she’ll have to face…
When Lily’s guardians decided to send her away to a fancy boarding school in Chicago, she was shocked. So was St. Sophia’s. Lily’s ultra-rich brat pack classmates think Lily should be the punchline to every joke, and on top of that, she’s hearing strange noises and seeing bizarre things in the shadows of the creepy building.
The only thing keeping her sane is her roommate, Scout, but even Scout’s a little weird—she keeps disappearing late at night and won’t tell Lily where she’s been. But when a prank leaves Lily trapped in the catacombs beneath the school, Lily finds Scout running from a real monster.
Scout’s a member of a splinter group of rebel teens with unique magical talents, who’ve sworn to protect the city against demons, vampires, and Reapers, magic users who’ve been corrupted by their power. And when Lily finds herself in the line of a firespell, Scout tells her the truth about her secret life, even though Lily has no powers of her own—at least none that she’s discovered yet…

From Goodreads.

• Publisher: Signet 
• Release Date: January 5th, 2010
• My Copy: eBook|Bought.
• Pages: 246  
• Series: Dark Elite Series 
• Genre: Paranormal Y.A. 
• Author's Website
• Buy This Book:

Firespell (Dark Elite, Book 1)

*NO SPOILERS

Lily Parker lived a calm and peaceful life with her parents in Upstate New York. When their work takes them for a year-long sabbatical in Germany and Lily is dumped in an all-girls boarding school in Chicago, Lily’s life changes more than she thought possible. Her new best friend has a secret and finding it out might be not be as fun as she thought.

Firespell is the first book in Chloe Neill’s Young Adult series. I have to say I enjoyed it more than I thought I would, though I do think it will appeal much more to younger audiences. Firespell is a nice fast read that even though drags a bit in the beginning, does definitely pick up later on and can be very entertaining.

My favorite part about the novel was Lily and Scout’s relationship. They take to each other immediately and their dialogues and interactions make the book, without it I do believe Firespell would have been a much lesser novel.

I totally recommend Firespell to any Young readers that have a taste for he paranormal. I really liked the world Chloe created and I think it has a lot of potential, I’ll be looking forward to Hexbound next month!

 

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Review: Shade Fright {Valerie Stevens, #1} by Sean Cummings

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

'I fell into this job quite by accident, when I discovered that I possessed the ability to see the preternatural world. There are a handful of people with similar abilities, and part of my job is to locate them, since Government Services and Infrastructure Canada like to keep track of these things. Don't ask me why'. There's a malevolent force in town, and it's quite literally Valerie Steven's job to determine who's behind it and why they want to destroy the world, starting with Calgary. She'll have help, in the form of her best friend (now more or less a zombie, unfortunately), a powerful dwarf troll, and the ghost of former Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King (but he goes by 'Bill' these days). But that's not all - Valerie has some tricks up her sleeve and, she hopes, luck on her side. Oh, and her boyfriend, Dave. He drives a dump truck.

From Goodreads. 

• Publisher: Snowbooks

• Release Date: March 1st, 2010

• My Copy: eCopy Given to me by the Author.

• Pages: 416

• Series: Valerie Stevens

• Genre: Urban Fantasy

• Author's Website

• Buy This Book:

Shade Fright (Valerie Stevens 1)

 

Shade Fright is all about Valerie Stevens and her job of cataloguing all things supernatural, but when weird things start to happen and Valerie’s responsibilities seem to be much more than what she thought, her world turns inside out and it’s up to her to do something to save her city and everyone living in it.

Along with Valerie, we get to meet her Zombie friend Catherine, A ghost named Bill, her human boyfriend, Dave and more. People that are a part of her life and that help her deal with the craziness that is going on.

I have to say that it took me a while to get into this book. It’s fair to say that I wasn’t in the best of reading moods when I started it and I had to take a break of about a month before I could go back and actually finish it. I feel like the story took a while to pick up and for things to start to happen, so I got distracted a lot.

However, when I got back to reading Shade Fright, I quite enjoyed it. I did really like the characters, specially the cast of secondary ones that make up Valerie’s life. I did feel that some of the references went over my head, because I don’t know a lot about Canada, but the book was enjoyable nonetheless.

Valerie is a great Urban Fantasy heroine, if a bit different from the rest. I loved her quirky relationship with Dave and  I am definitely looking forward to reading more of her adventures!

 

 

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Lala’s Book Corner: You Burn Me by Stella & Audra Price

 

 

 

“A priestess of The Morrigan, Xxieda Rolla is a woman who has known success in her business, fulfillment in her family life and is only missing one thing: the love of the man that would have her for always. Sent to Shadow Heights New York by her goddess to find him, she meets the ever tasty, ever surly Dante Barratt. Sparks fly, and so does Amaretto Latte.
Dante, a dealer of rare and illegal commodities, and a very tempestuous fire demon might want the woman who's brown eyes haunt him, but knows better then to get involved with someone who just screams purity. Shes hot, and successful in ways he never could be, and knows a man that just gave away his soul like he did didn't deserve a woman like that.
After a chance encounter on a dark street corner, and an earth shattering kiss, Both are powerless to deny the chemistry between them... until Xxieda tells him her secret: shes a virgin.
Caught between his head and his heart, can Dante accept the fact that Fate sometimes gives us exactly what we really need, not what we think we want?”

From Goodreads.

• Publisher: Tease Publishing LLC

• Release Date: May 15th, 2010

• My Copy: eBook Received from Author.

• Author's Website

• Buy This Book HERE!

You Burn Me is a Novella by the Price sisters, Audra and Stella. It takes place in their Eververse world. Even though I haven’t read any of the books and stories set in said world, it was great getting a look of a series I had heard a lot about.

Dante is a fire demon, well, actually he has fire demon powers which he gained by selling his soul to a demon. He considers himself a loner and undeserving of love, specially since his business is not considered something to be proud of.

Xxeida is a priestess of the Morrigan and as her day job, she manages her own record label, which allows her to be independent and keep being a kid at the same time. X has been waiting for her Happily Ever After for a long time and her Goddess has finally sent her on a mission to find the man who will be her mate.

Dante and Xxieda meet by accident on a dark street and one kiss is enough to change everything, for both of them. Dante is reticent about getting involved with Xxieda, but she got her eye set on him and she will not give up.

I had a lot of fun with their story, however I had a hard time believing in them for a while. Xxieda is very strong minded and goes after what she wants, but at times I found her coming on to strong and that was very unrealistic for me.

However, since this is fiction I gave her the benefit of the doubt and let it all play out. They have a real hard time in getting together, everything seems to be conspiring against it, but the end was definitely worth it.

You Burn Me was a fun short read and it got me curious about reading the other books in the Eververse series!

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Lala’s Book Corner: ARC Review of The Killing Edge by Heather Graham

 

 

“Chloe Marin was lucky. She was just a teenager when a party at a Florida beachside mansion turned into a savage killing spree and she was one of the few to survive. Bloody handwriting on the walls pointed to a cult whose rituals included human sacrifice. Chloe’s sketch of one of the killers linked two dead cult members found in the Everglades to the massacre, closing the case as far as the cops are concerned.
Ten years later, Chloe’s works as a psychologist specializing in art therapy to help traumatized victims, and on the side she finds release in her passion for the martial arts. Police who hire her as a consultant know she’s a literal kick-ass advocate for victims who can’t always speak for themselves.
The current disappearance of a young swimsuit model ranks low on the cops’ priority list. Everyone assumes the girl has run off for some fun in the sun, instead of getting ready for a photo shoot. Everyone but Chloe, who suspects a killer is using the modeling agency to stalk his prey. When the ghost of the model appears, asking Chloe for help, she knows that she has to do everything she can.
So does Luke Cane, a British ex-cop-turned-PI investigating the disappearance of the model on behalf of her father. Chloe and Luke have trouble trusting each other but they can’t help their strong attraction for each other. Luckily, they agree on the important things: someone needs to find those missing girls, and if a few laws have to get bent so lives can be saved, too bad.
When Chloe arrives late for an appointment at the modeling agency, she discovers a gruesome mass murder eerily similar to the one she witnessed a decade ago–and can’t help thinking that if she hadn’t run late she would have been there when the killer arrived. Ten years ago, she hadn’t been convinced the police had identified the real killers and now she’s sure of it. The same evil mind is behind the current murders, and she’s afraid she’s the target–and terrified that she won’t be able to cheat death a third time.
She has no choice now but to trust Luke on every level, because with a killer closing in, he’s the only one who’s willing to do whatever it takes to keep her alive.”

From Goodreads.

• Publisher: Mira

• Release Date: April 1st, 2010

• My Copy: ARC given to me by NetGalley.

• Author's Website

• Pre-Order This Book:

The Killing Edge

 

If you look at the my reviews and the books I am usually reading, it is pretty obvious that my favorite Genres are basically anything that is related to the paranormal and fantasy. I have been trying to branch out and checking out different genres recently, then I saw this Romantic Thriller and decided to give it a chance.

I don’t have much experience with reading thrillers, hence I don’t have much to compare this novel to, but I have to say that though i did enjoy reading The killing Edge, I wasn’t thoroughly impressed with it.

Right at the first page we get sucked into the mind of a killer and witness the beginning of a massacre. We then are taken to the POV of Chloe and her fight to run from the killers, stay alive and save her friends.

That was a very promising start and it did grab me. We then get to see Chloe 10 years after those killings and I have to say that I really enjoyed her as a character. A strong woman, who witness something horrible and despite being damaged, was able to work through it and become successful and well rounded.

A disappearance and new murders put Chloe and Luke together. Luke is an ex cop from England that has been living and working as a P.I. in the U.S. for almost a decade. I found him to be the perfect fit for Chloe, being that he also had a terrible experience in his past and is damaged from it as well. His way of dealing with it was different though, and that is where I believe he and Chloe bond, being different and similar all at the same time.

I enjoyed Heather Graham’s writing, i liked that she alternated between Chloe’s, Luke’s and the killer’s POVs and she was still able to keep the murderer’s identity a secret until the very end. I was completely surprised by it and that is quite an accomplishment nowadays, when i find myself guessing the perpetrator more times than not.

A couple things did bother me though, one of them was when the author over described a situation or a place, It got to a point where i found myself skimming forward. The other thing was the line she straddled on when it came to the sex scenes. Not smut and not Not-Smut, there were points when the scenes were almost crossing the line and then we got some others where she just scanned it, skipping it all.

I don’t mind the skipping, specially since the book is not erotica, but if there is going to be a couple more explicit scenes, it’s better to go, at least, almost all out, I felt like she held back and some of the imagery she used to describe feeling during those scenes were a bit overdone.

All in all, The killing Egde, was a fun read. It didn’t keep me at the edge of my seat at all times, but it had its moments. I loved the main couple and would like to have had more time with them at the end. The mystery was very well done and I loved being surprised by the end.

I give it 3 out of 5 Loveys!

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Lala's Book Corner: The Awakening Heroes Series by Joss Ware

“Everything they knew is gone.
From the raging fires, five men emerge with extraordinary new powers. They must learn how to survive this dark, ravaged world . . . but they cannot do it alone.”

• Publisher: Avon
• Release Date of Book #1: January 12th, 2010
• Release Date of Book #2: February 9th, 2010
• Release Date of Book #3: March 9th, 2010
• My Copy: eBooks purchased by me.
• Author's Website

"A man with no future...
When Dr. Elliott Drake wakes from a mysterious fifty-year sleep, the world as he knew it is gone. Cities are now desolate, and civilization is controlled by deadly immortals. Stranger still is Elliott's extraordinary new "gift" – he has the power to heal, but it comes with fatal consequences.

A woman with a past
Jade barely escaped the immortals and is now hell-bent on revenge. She trusts no one... until Elliott. His piercing gaze and tempting touch shatter her defenses, but the handsome doctor seems to have dangerous secrets of his own. Is it safe to trust him with her heart?

If they are to survive in this dark new world, Jade and Elliott must work together to fight the forces that takes them beyond danger."

"Simon Japp will never forget his violent past. But when civilization is all but destroyed, he sees his chance for redemption. Blessed with a strange "gift," he's determined to help the resistance against the Strangers, the mysterious force that stalks them at every turn. He can't afford to get distracted, even by the stunning, soft-spoken woman fighting by his side . . . Sage Corrigan has learned to be careful where she places her trust. But she sees something good in Simon, even if he can't see it in himself. Posing as lovers to infiltrate a group key to their fight, they find that their staged affection soon develops into a desire that will leave them fighting for their lives in the night eternal."

"Quentin Fielding had everything. Money. Power. Women. But now that civilization is all but annihilated, Quent wants only one thing: revenge. Harnessing a strange new "gift," he embarks on a deadly mission to find the man responsible for the chaos and destruction, the man he should have killed years ago: his father. Only one thing stands in his way—a mysterious, arrow-wielding beauty . . .

ZoË Kapoor is on her own quest for vengeance, searching for the monstrous fiends who murdered her family. Soon she and Quent join together, journeying through the ruins of the world they once knew as a desperate desire builds between them. Drawing closer to an enemy they never imagined, ZoË and Quent must abandon all fear, abandon all regret, abandon the night . . ."

I can't even remember where i found our about this series, I think i saw some reviews around in January and even more in February. It looked so interesting that i had to check it out and I thought it was great that the three books were coming out in three consecutive months. Not having to wait forever between books was definitely a plus =)

I loved the post-apocalyptic concept of 5 men passing out during a earthquake whilst exploring a cave in Sedona, U.S. and waking up as if only little time has passed, to a world completely devastated and finding out that 50 years had passed and they hadn't aged a second.

In the first book we fall right into the action with our heroes saving some kids from the Zombie like creatures named "Gangas" that prowl during the night. We get to meet Elliot, Quent, Fence, Simon and Wyat only a few week after they have woken up and on the move to find the biggest known settlement, called Envy.

Each one of the books tells the love story of one the heroes and so far there has been Elliot and Jade's, Simon and Sage's and Quent and Zoe's story. I really enjoyed the romantic elements in this books and the smexing was wicked hot. I actually really liked all of the heroes and heroines of these novels and was pleasantly surprised that the smut did not overwhelm the plot and there was enough action and intrigue to keep you on your toes throughout all 3 books. The only thing that dragged a little in Joss Ware's writing was her descriptions, I dont know how to explain, I just found myself wanting to skim over them a lot of the time, specially when it came to describing the environment.

The over all plot was quite interesting and went much beyond being a "simple" apocalypse. Fifty years before, in June 2010, there were a series of alarming natural disasters, earthquakes, tornadoes, tsunamis and so on... after all that was over the survivors started trying to find each other and get together, but after a few weeks, over two thirds of them simply fell dead. After a while the "Gangas" started showing up at night and small settlements started being built. The largest one being where Las Vegas used to be and it was called New Vegas, N. V. for short and it evolved to being called Envy.

Some strange people started showing up with these glowing crystals embedded on their skin started showing up and asking questions. They are really creepy and evil, though not everyone sees that, they're called Strangers and are immortal. The most disturbing thing for me was finding out that a select group of wealthy men and women were responsible for The Change and the great plot of the series is out heroes inclusion into the resistance against the Strangers, their search to find out what caused the physical change of the planet and their struggle to end their rein of terror.

All in all, I really enjoyed this series but i can't say it was exceptional. There were times that I wanted to just put down the book, though what kept me going was my curiosity and my investment in the main characters. They were pretty great and the smexing was def hot =) 

My Rating:

Smut Level:

4/5

My Least Favorite Book in The Series: Book #2 - Embrace The Night Eternal

My Favorite Book in The Series: Book #3 – Abandon the Night

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Lala's Book Corner: Shadowland by Alyson Noel

"At the start of this breathtaking novel, Damen and Ever travel to Summerland in search of an antidote to reverse a powerful poison. But instead of the cure they seek, they find something far more sinister: the truth about their existence and the fate lying in wait of an immortal’s soul.

Now, with Damen fighting to save them from the Shadowland, Ever turns to magick, hoping to break Damen’s curse. Along the way Ever encounters the mysterious Jude, finding herself drawn to him in a way that will test her love for Damen like never before . . ."

From Goodreads.

I have to say that I was somewhat disappointed with this book. I really enjoyed books 1 & 2, though they weren't my favorites, but this one just felt incomplete and kind of slow. The plot took a while to move and I felt that some of the choices made, regarding the characters, were interesting but weird. I felt that the conclusion of it was too quick and lacking momentum. I realize that there will be a book 4 in this series and that leaving this open is a part of it. But, it bothered me that nothing really got resolved, the book ended the same way it started and that was so irritating. I like Ever most of the time, but she came out selfish and shallow at times in this novel, that really annoyed me. Damen changed a lot this time around and I actually enjoyed the changes. He has become the sort of Hero I can totally get behind of, even though he did play the martyr at times and it felt too forced. Overall this book felt like a transition book. I won't give up on the series though. Let's see what happens.

I give it 3/5 Loveys

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Lala's Book Corner: The Dante Valentine Series by Lilith Saintcrow

Lilith Saintcrow came into my life with her "Jill Kismet" series (which I'll be reviewing soon). Then I went and read her YA series, "Strange Angels", which she writes as Lili St. Crow. I really enjoyed her writing and decided to give this series a chance. Since the series was already over, I felt it would be nice to go through beginning, middle and ending in one reading, without having to wait months for each book. You guys probably know what I mean, right?

From GoodReads:

"Necromance-for-hire Dante Valentine is choosy about her jobs. Hot-tempered and with nerves of steel, she can raise the dead like nobody’s business. But one rainy Monday morning, everything goes straight to Hell.

The Devil hires Dante to eliminate a renegade demon: Vardimal Santino. In return, he will let her live. It’s an offer she can’t refuse.

There’s just one catch. How do you kill something that can’t die?"

Well, Dante's world is a very different from our own and the same at the same time. Her story takes place around 600 years in the future, where the "awakening" has happened. The "awakening" was when the world was finally clued in to the existence of Psions, who are humans with psychic talents, such as: Necromances, Shamans, Skinlin and so on..

After the "awakening", people were also aware of the existence of Vamps, Shifters and Demons. As well as the Devil, who is the main villain throughout the whole series.

Dante is a necromance, one of the best in the world, and she is also a bounty hunter that goes after psions that use their talents for crimes. She has had a harsh past, abandoned by her parents for being an "abomination", raised in a psions school and abused by the headmaster and lost people she loved at an early age. Dante is a broken woman in many ways, people that love her might be able to glue her together, but she is still broken and pieces just keep falling off.

Her world is a world of a very dark past and present. Psions are viewed as abomination by some normals and as a constant danger by others. They were treated as such right after the "awakening" and confined to Death Camps. This cruel period of time is reminiscent of the "Holocaust" and it is as usual, a very disturbing image to be had.

Besides the dark, there is also the technological aspect of the world. There are hovers, slicboards, Holograms and much more. Lilith has created a very interesting world and plenty lovable for any "Back to the Future" fan out there :P

Each book was a struggle on itself. Dante goes through unimaginable obstacles and difficulties and watching her was heartbreaking at times.

There is a love story in the series and it is a very unsual one. That story brought many questions in my head. The first one was: Is this Love or Obsession? - Because it is pretty hard to see the line between those two, it got extremely blurred a lot of the time.

I went through the first 3 books pretty quickly, however the 4th and 5th were a huge struggle for me. Despite liking Dante, she pissed me off many of times, by making a huge deal out of a situation and then getting over it easier than I would. Meaning that whenever she was over it, I wasn't and that made it hard for me to relate to the rest of it. The secondary characters are very interesting and many times much more likable than Dante. I cried for her, whenever she got even more broken and that made me connected to her.

Dante's story is full of betrayals, doubts, darkness, faith, lack of faith, pain, love, hurt and fighting. She a tough and dark character that I felt was interesting to follow, though she did get tiring at times.

I recommend this series if you are a Lilith Saintcrow fan and if you are ready for a read that not at all light.

My Rating:

The Dante Valentine Series:

(in the order they should be read)

Working for the Devil

Dead Man Rising

The Devil's Right Hand

Saint City Sinner's

To Hell and Back

Next I will review Strange Angels by Lilith's alter ego Lili St. Crow

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