Book Review: Siren's Secret by Debbie Herbert

 

Category/genre: Adult/Paranormal Romance

My star rating: 5/5

Goodreads blurb: In Debbie Herbert's debut novel, there are two secrets, each one with a deadly consequence….

Shelly Connors's worlds—on land and in the sea—are turned upside down when an evening swim turns into a nightmare. On a sweltering night deep in the bayou, the mystical mermaid witnesses a horrifying act. With a monstrous killer now hot on her trail, her life and the lives of her kin are in jeopardy.

Terrified of becoming the next victim, Shelly has no choice but to turn to Sheriff Tillman Angier. Tillman has had his intense gray eyes on the sultry honey-haired beauty for a while. The feelings are mutual …and impossible to ignore. But he's determined to solve the murders, and he knows Shelly's hiding something. Can she trust him with her deepest secret?

THE RAVE WORTHY: Obviously, I love Mermaid novels; What Disney generation female doesn't?  Unfortunately, I have found very few of them that I have totally loved, but this one did it for me 100%.  I could tell from the get-go that this was going to be one of those that keeps me on an emotional cliff until I'm done with it, so needless to say, I read it REALLY quickly.  So many social issues were packed into this book, and they made each and every character so layered and dimensional it was unreal.  From the sweet but tiresome autistic little brother with an alcoholic mother, to the childhood sexual abuse of the "bad guy" (in quotations because this story added to my stern belief that evil is not born, it's made).  She gave the killer humanity, not just by presenting his troublesome past but she used his sincere love of his pet to give me a reason not to hate him so bitterly.  The way the narrative is written changes with each scene depending on who it is about-  I knew the killer was around before she even said it, just like I knew Tillman was exhausted without needing to be told he hadn't slept in two days.  Debbie is a talented author and I am beyond excited to read her future works (when might that be, Miss Debbie???).

THE GRUMBLE WORTHY: Honestly, at first I thought perhaps there was too much anxiety written in for me to sit back and enjoy it, but Debbie did a beautiful job presenting it all in a delicate, seamless fashion that made it easier to digest while still keeping me on the edge of my seat.  So I guess that doesn't really qualify as a "grumble".  How about I just grumble that it's over?

Release Day Blitz: Let Me Go by DC Renee

Title: Let Me Go

Author: DC Renee

Genre: Romance

Publication Date: March 19,2014

Tour Host: Dreams Come True Promotions

Rape. One word changed his life. Mason Tredwell had it all. He was a good looking, well respected doctor. He had money, power, friends, and never worried about finding a woman to warm his bed. But, that all changed when he was wrongfully accused of rape. And now, after five years in prison and the loss of everything he cared about, he wants revenge.

Abandoned as a baby and bounced around different foster homes, Kat Gingham never really had a charmed life. But now, things are really falling apart. She has no money, no job, and even her lying, cheating boyfriend is gone too. She allows herself one night to cry about her situation before she picks herself back up. Kat falls asleep, safe in her bed, but when she wakes up, she’s no longer at home, and she’s no longer alone. She’s facing Mason, a guy who claims she ruined his life. And he’s hell bent on breaking her down, humiliating her, just like she supposedly did to him.

The problem is that she claims she has no clue what he is talking about, but he doesn’t believe her, declaring facts don’t lie.

Is Kat lying? Can she convince Mason to let her go? Or is fate playing a role in why they were thrown into this together?

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About me, huh? Hmmm, let's see...some fun facts: I'm in my late twenties, I'm married to a great guy who likes to drive me crazy sometimes, but I love it and him, I am one of those people that when asked to do something says "No...Yes" (yeah, I know, I'm stuck in the 90's), I am a total nerd (like you couldn't tell), I am a Trojan (Fight On!), I work in health insurance (fun times-well, I actually work with my sis, so I guess they technically are fun times), I am way too close to my fam and I feel like I'm forgetting something, hmm...oh yeah, I LOVE to read and write!!!

1. I hate onions, but I love onion flavored things like Funyuns or onion dip.

2. I can’t mix too many veggies together. For example, I love carrots, but I’ll pick them out of a salad. I don’t like lettuce on my tacos or burgers.

3. I love dancing! (Not professionally, although I have taken plenty of classes over the years.) I supposedly bopped my head to the music before I could walk.

4. I go to Zumba & Latin Jam every week.

5. I played the piano until I was in college. I can read music, but I hated to do so, so I used to play everything from memory.

6. I speak Russian fluently, but I read like a first grader. Don’t get me started on spelling.

7. I work at the same company (and same building) as my sister, so I see her every day. We’re really close.

8. My sister and I have a 9 year age difference (and were born 4 days apart). We used to celebrate all our birthdays together. (Ironically, my mom and her sister also have a 9 year difference.)

9. I was born on groundhogs day (2/2). It’s also my aunt’s birthday too.

10. My favorite number is 22 (hmmm…I wonder how I got that). My husband’s favorite number is also 22 because he was born 1/22.

11. My first stories were Days of Our Lives fan fictions. They are still up on the website under my screen name fan22.

12. I got my Bachelors degree and my Masters degree from the University of Southern California. Go Trojans! (My sister also went there and got the same degrees I did – I guess you could say I followed in her footsteps.)

13. My whole family loves watching hockey, so it’s no wonder it’s my favorite sport. I love the Los Angeles Kings! (Root for the home team always!)

14. I love Bon Jovi and have seen him/them in concert 5 times.

15. My favorite rose is Fire on Ice. It’s white on the outside and red inside, so that when it blooms, it looks like red on white.

16. I was on the show The Great Pretenders when I younger. We were put into groups and dressed up and lip-synched songs chosen for us. I played the guitarist for The Go-Go’s singing Our Lips Are Sealed.

17. I love to sketch as a hobby, but I can’t sketch people at all. I usually sketch flowers.

18. I was my sister’s maid-of-honor at the age of 15. I didn’t get to go to her bachelorette party.

19. My favorite color is blue, so much so that my wedding colors were ivory and blue.

20. I’ve been married for 3 years, but been with my hubby for over 8 years.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dcrenee

Author GoodReads:https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6543134.D_C_Renee

Available to Purchase March 19

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Cover Reveal: A SOUL TO TAKE by Emily Taylor

It's no secret that I am a huge fan of Reuts Publications and their covers, so when they asked me to take part in their cover reveal I was ecstatic.  This cover is just as stunning as I had expected.

Title: A Soul To Take

Author: Emily Taylor

Electronic Publication Date:  April 29th, 2014

(Tentative) Print Publication Date: May 13th, 2014

Category/Genre:  New Adult paranormal romance with elements of dark fantasy and steampunk

Back Cover Blurb:

Dying is the least of Elixia’s worries.

The world has changed. Demons are no longer a legend, but a part of life, integrated into our society… or so the Government has attempted. But things are never that simple. Neither side favors this new union, and Elixia knows firsthand the dark nature of Demons and will do everything in her power to protect the innocent from their wrath. When her only living family is kidnapped, it means to even commit the greatest taboo for an Agent:
Sell her soul.
Yet when a mission from the Agency goes sour, Elixia finds herself in predicament. Murdered, her only hope is an offer from those she despises: a demon. However, it’s no ordinary demon who has offered Elixia the contract and his motive for such a deal is unclear. Her past may hold answers, but what happens when her investigation in human trafficking turns up something far more sinister?

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Book Review: Forbidden (The Soulkeepers #1) by Lori Adams

 

Category/Genre: New Adult/Paranormal Romance

My star rating: 4.5/5 (Rounded up to 5* on Goodreads)

Scheduled release date:  April 15

 

**I received a complimentary copy from Random House Loveswept via Netgalley in exchange for a honest review** 

Goodreads blurb: 
When Sophia St. James learns that she’ll be moving from Los Angeles to a podunk town somewhere in Connecticut for her senior year of high school, she isn’t expecting an otherworldly encounter. But there is more to Haven Hurst than meets the eye: it’s home to a family of Guardian Angels, and she is the only one who can see them in spirit form. Sophia soon realizes she wants to see much more of Michael, an irresistible yet volatile Guardian who seems drawn to her too.

As Michael battles his forbidden desire for the beautiful young newcomer, one of Hell’s most notorious Demon Knights arrives. Handsome and charismatic, Dante has come to claim the reincarnated soul of his lost lover trapped in Sophia. Cursed with the demon of Persuasion living inside him, Dante will use his seductive charms to lure Sophia into a dangerous game that ends with the kiss of death—unless Michael, who has captured Sophia’s heart, can now capture her soul.

THE RAVE WORTHY: Confession time: this is the first "angel" romance that I really enjoyed.  I think its a really difficult subject to write.  You don't want to completely defile the image of divine winged beings, but you still have to give them some heat to keep it from getting boring.  Lori Adams did a great job of balancing the two.  The story begins at the right point, just when Sophia is starting her adventure so there is no first chapter lull to push through.  Her description of Hell is fascinating and unique from anything I've ever read.  Lori takes a wonderful path with her story in the way that soldiers of both dark and light (and everything in between) battle it out in plain sight without being seen by the ignorant mortals.  The ending had me clawing at my eReader, hoping if I hit refresh just one more time another page would appear.  Torture, Lori.  Most of all though, I absolutely loved the raw emotion that she was able to push into my heart.  I felt the pain, the love, and the passion as if it were my own.  That's really hard to do, and Lori has done it incomparably well.  Side note:  Dante is the guy I felt the most for.  Imagining myself in his situation was shattering, even if he is supposed to be the "bad guy".

THE GRUMBLE WORTHY:  The first chapter was great, but the next couple of chapters were a little difficult.  I understood the need for back story, but it felt like a really slow info-dump.  In the beginning, the banter between the teens seemed a little clumsy and awkward, but it did become much more natural as the story went on.  The only thing that really bothered me was Sophia's father being a pastor without it being played on more. There weren't any scenes in church, or really anything else in the story that made him being a preacher so important to have included it.  My mother is a minister, so maybe its my proximity to the profession that makes it so significant for me.

Book Review: Ink: Vanishing Point (book 2) by Bella Roccaforte

 

Category/Genre: Paranormal (Romance?)/Adult

My star rating: 5/5

Goodreads blurb: Shay Baynes is being put through her paces.
She’s under the threat of multiple murder charges, is being stalked by one of her fans and she’s dealing with the loss of her home as well as the mystery of what happened to Aiden. Everyone in her life is candy-coating the truth and treating her like a child.

Shay makes the decision to go it on her own and get away from everyone smothering her only to find out that the murder charges are the least of her worries. Now she’s fighting to stay alive trying to get out of the cruel haunted playground the specter has created for her.

THE RAVE WORTHY:  It's official: Bella Roccaforte is my favorite author.  Yep. I said it.  You may remember a while back when I reviewed book 1 in this series titled Ink: Fine Lines and I really, really enjoyed it.  Vanishing point is even better.  There is way more of the paranormal aspect in this one, although I still can't tell you what the hell the Specter is.  I think it's a ghost story...maybe?  Anyways, the imagery in this book is amazingly haunting, so much so it airs on the side of horror.  I got goosebumps reading about the new world that Shay finds herself in and I wanted to hide under my covers away from my own GalaxyTab.  I didn't, of course.  The book was way too awesome to put down.  The ending to this one left me just as tortured as the last, but I'm growing to love it I think.  Luckily, because I purchased it on the (early) release day Bella was sweet enough to send the first three working chapters to me, so SQUEE!  You won't hear a peep from me about them though, not until book 3 is released.  On the technical side of things:  as predicted the story advancement was flawless.  Bella's writing style is unique and unmatched.  As for the characters: what the hell happened to Shay, Bella?! I love love love her new bitch-in-charge attitude.  Eli is still Eli, sweet but just not the right match for Shay.  I changed my mind about who I'm rooting for; it used to be Aiden but now I'm thinking McNab is her guy.

THE GRUMBLE WORTHY: I really wished there was a bit more romance to this one. I know, I know.  I said on the first one that I wanted more paranormal, and I got it.  But part of me missed the triangle and smooching *sigh* I'm a romantic, what can I say?   I think there was even more head-hopping in this one, which I've made no secret of disliking in the past.  BUT just like Fine Lines, I don't care.  The story made up for any and all grumbles.  Once again, awesome job, Bella!

Book Review: Hereafter (Afterlife #1) by Terri Bruce

 

Category/genre: Adult/Paranormal

My star rating: 3/5

*I received a complimentary copy from Mictlan Press via Netgalley in exchange for a honest review**

Goodreads blurb:  Thirty-six-year-old Irene Dunphy didn't plan on dying any time soon, but that’s exactly what happens when she makes the mistake of getting behind the wheel after a night bar-hopping with friends. She finds herself stranded on Earth as a ghost, where the food has no taste, the alcohol doesn’t get you drunk, and the sex...well, let’s just say “don’t bother.” To make matters worse, the only person who can see her—courtesy of a book he found in his school library—is a fourteen-year-old boy genius obsessed with the afterlife.

Unfortunately, what waits in the Great Beyond isn’t much better. Stuck between the boring life of a ghost in this world and the terrifying prospect of three-headed hell hounds, final judgment, and eternal torment in the next, Irene sets out to find a third option—preferably one that involves not being dead anymore. Can she wipe the slate clean and get a second chance before it’s too late?

THE RAVE WORTHY:  I have to say I was impressed with Terri Bruce's ability to handle this one.  After-death books have a tendency to leave a sour taste in my mouth because they are generally approached in a really cheesy manner, but this author did a good job managing the transition.  Any and all possible plot holes are addressed at the appropriate time.    The characters were defined and stayed true to character through out.  You were introduced to a lot of fun information on different cultures and their beliefs of death.  I'm a trivia nut, so this was awesome for me.  She even snuck in a little bit of astral projection (a weakness of mine) that worked really, really well.  I wanted to love this SO BAD!

 

THE GRUMBLE WORTHY:  Honestly, the main character is what ruined this for me.  I found Irene to be a whiny, petulant little brat who developed a rather unhealthy and inappropriate dependence on a 14 year old boy.  If she had been scaled back even a little I would have enjoyed this a lot more.  She acted even more like a teenager than the character that was supposed to be a teenager (Jonah).  Maybe this would have worked a little better as a YA--I wouldn't be so focused on the fact that the MC is supposed to be thirty-something.  The story was also a little slow moving, but I totally could have looked past that if it wasn't for how badly Irene grated on my nerves. 

That Blasted Query Letter!

This post comes at the request of a fellow writer who wanted to see the query letter I used to perk an editor's interest enough to keep reading.  I sent it to her, and got to thinking.  When I was first starting to write seriously I scoured the internet in search of letters that worked, so why not share mine with you all?

For the record:  I went through 2 other drafts before I came to this one.  I sent the first with the first round to agents and editors and figured out pretty quickly that it was not good enough.  The second draft elicited some bites, but did not do much better. PitchWars helped me polish it up to perfection, and it took a grand total of four weeks from pitch to contract.

The best part is, I honestly feel like I totally get the whole query thing now.  I just finished one for my WIP and I actually really love it.
 
So here it is, folks.  This query letter was sent to 10 agents/editors and earned me 6 partials and 4 fulls.  Not too shabby!

Dear agent/editor:

Twenty-four year old Eliza discovers her roots in Voodoo royalty, but claiming her throne means giving up her soul mate.

After learning that she is adopted, Eliza begins her search for her biological family and is propelled into an underground world of witchcraft, seances, and sacrifices where she is worshiped as the descendant of the last great voodoo queen of the bayou, Marie Laveau.  From her great, great, grandmother, she has inherited the ability to heal the souls of others by a simple touch of her hands.

Using this gift, Eliza is expected to return the voodoo community and religion to glory. A task not so terrible if it could be lived beside the devastatingly endearing Samuel Mueller. But Samuel is her Keeper; his charge is keeping her safe and according to tradition he is not permitted to mingle romantically with his ward. The two struggle to smother the flame that grows between them while Samuel meets his demands as Eliza's guardian, keeping her from those who would sooner have her killed than let an outsider rule the Bayou. 

HEALING THE BAYOU is a new adult paranormal romance that is complete at 60,000 words.  As per your submission requirements, below I have included (insert individual requirement here).  I would be happy to provide additional material, should you be interested.  I look forward to hearing from you, thank you for your time.