Title: Siren's Call, Dark Seas #3 Author: Debbie Herbert Category/genre: Fantasy Romance My Star Rating: 5/5
Goodreads Blurb: Blood enemies, bound lovers...
He’d loved a vampire once, only to have her murdered by vengeful
Freebloods. Now to save his half-blood son from kidnappers, Garret Fox
must look to another Freeblood for help. Once the empathic vampire
Artemis reluctantly drinks his human blood, she cannot deny his
request. But although their connection runs deep, their attraction hot,
Garret can never forget what Artemis truly is. Sharing Garret’s
thoughts and feelings has wreaked havoc on her emotions. Discovering a
malevolent force bent on destroying everyone they both care for brings
her even closer to the human. Yet as Artemis fights side by side with
her lover, she is deeply conflicted. Even if they both manage to survive
this evil, how can she ever hope to find a true home with a man who
hates her very kind?
My Review:
This was by far my
favorite in the series. I absolutely fell in love with Nash. His
struggle to withhold himself because he was so worried for Lily's safety
was the heart of the romance for me. The guilt he was gripped with over
his past made him an approachable character despite his total sexy,
masculine flair. Lily was initially the perfect example of the girl you
loved to hate in high school, but as the story goes on she develops a
depth that brings you to adore her. Native American culture and beliefs
were expertly woven into the story, both serving as a vital element to
the plot and as a fantastic addition to the entertainment value of this
novel.
Debbie continues to be one of my favorites, and I can't wait to read more from this amazing author!
Title: Alice Takes Back Wonderland Author: David D. Hammons Category/Genre: Young Adult Fantasy My Star Rating: 4/5
Goodreads Blurb:
After ten years of
being told she can't tell the difference between real life and a fairy
tale, Alice finally stops believing in Wonderland. So when the White
Rabbit shows up at her house, Alice thinks she's going crazy.
Only
when the White Rabbit kicks her down the rabbit hole does Alice realize
that the magical land she visited as a child is real.
But all is not well in Wonderland.
The
Ace of Spades has taken over Wonderland and is systematically
dismantling all that makes it wonderful. Plain is replacing wondrous,
logical is replacing magical, and reason is destroying madness. Alice
decides she must help the Mad Hatter and all those fighting to keep
Wonderland wonderful.
But how can she face such danger when she is just a girl?
Alice
must journey across the stars to unite an army. She discovers that
fairy tales are real in the magical world beyond the rabbit hole. But
they are not the fairy tales she knows.
Fairy tales have dangers
and adventures of their own, and Alice must overcome the trials of
these old stories if she wants to unite the lands against Ace.
With the help of Peter Pan, Pinocchio, Snow White and heroes old and new, Alice may have the strength to take back Wonderland.
Review:
**I received a complimentary ecopy of this book in exchange for a honest review** I don't watch much television, but one show I absolutely can not miss every week is ONCE UPON A TIME. I'm in love with the way all the fairy-tales I grew up with are twisted and interwoven in ways that defy imagination. That said, I was not a big fan of the spin off ONCE WONDERLAND. I found it too drawn out and simple, doing no justice whatsoever to the show it was spawned from. ALICE TAKES BACK WONDERLAND is like a wonderful adaptation of ONCE WONDERLAND. One that I might actually watch and enjoy. Like the show, this story begins with Alice in an asylum, having medication shoved down her throat in hopes of making her forget the make-believe nonsense she believes to be her memories. And, like the show, as soon as she begins to believe that maybe she is a little bit wackadoodle, she takes one more trip down the rabbit hole. This is where Mr. Hammons breathes his own life into the story, making it his own. He successfully re-introduces us to the characters we think we already know, and connects the classics together into one imaginative, thrilling ride. Most of the villains we think we know are nothing like the "echoes" we have heard while tucked in our beds; on the contrary, the majority of them are heartfelt victims of circumstance deserving of our sympathy (Pinocchio's father got me right in the feels!). Each individual is woven into a web of personal complexity-- there is no "good" and "evil. Life isn't that black and white. And Alice is a creature worthy of her own praise. She is a brave, fantastic young American girl in this adaptation.
There were a few parts where I feel as though the story lulled, but overall this was a delightful spin on several of my favorite childhood stories.
Two years after her brother Nate died during a Navy operation, aquator Nautia Olson’s nightmares began, and her ability to manipulate water became erratic. Anger, fear, joy, desire—they all trigger disaster.
Now, the Navy wants her for a top-secret mission, but Captain Riley Barton has his reservations. He’s read her file. He knows the damage she’s capable of, and yet—
She’s powerful.
If he can harness her ability—break through her walls—
Born and raised in Iowa, d. Nichole King writes her stories close to home. There’s nothing like small-town Midwest scenery to create the perfect backdrop for an amazing tale.
She wrote her first book in junior high and loved every second of it. However, she couldn’t bring herself to share her passion with anyone. She packed it away until one day, with the encouragement of her husband, she sat down at the computer and began to type. Now, she can’t stop.
When not writing, d. is usually curled up with a book, scrapbooking, or doing yet another load of laundry.
Along with her incredible husband, she lives in small-town Iowa with her four adorable children and their dog, Peaches.
Title: When We Were Human Author: Kate L. Mary Category/Genre: Apocalyptic Upper YA My Star Rating: 4/5
Goodreads Blurb:
“They came four
years ago. Invaded our planet, rounded us up, decimated the human race.
We fought back, and some even say we won, but they’re wrong. The
invaders took everything from us. Our family. Our hope. Our humanity. We
won the war, but there are no humans left. Only monsters who will do
anything to survive. Some look human and some don’t, but they are all
the same.”
Eighteen-year-old Eva has spent the last year
punishing herself for her sister’s death and hiding from everyone she
comes into contact with, human or otherwise. With the population
destroyed and the Earth left in ruins, she sees little hope left for the
future.
But when she crosses paths with Walker and Tara
something inside her awakens. Something she thought had died along with
her entire family. In these new friends Eva sees a promise of what the
future could be, as well as evidence that humanity might not be extinct
after all.
When a ghost from Eva’s past makes an unexpected
appearance, the group sets out on a cross-country trek that will teach
Eva how to love and hope again, and will remind her what it truly means
to be human.
Review:
**I received a complimentary ecopy of this book in exchange for a honest review**
So let's talk about aliens. I LOVE them. Okay, my husband might say I have a secret obsession with them. Ancient Aliens is pretty much permanently on my TV when he isn't around (the show freaks him out). I don't, however, read too many fiction books about them. I'm a romance junkie, and the idea of a human fornicating with an alien species kind of skives me out. Why I haven't seen an alternative like WHEN WE WERE HUMAN before is anybody's guess. But I loved it!
I got my alien fix, I got my romance fix. The two didn't touch, but they kind of did. Kate wove the two together seamlessly, making each was a vital part of the plot. Too cool.
You will immediately be sympathetic to Eva. Kate tackled some real issues with her character. She finds herself turning into a monster; the only way she knows how to handle the transition is to self-destruct. In comes Walker and baby sister Lilly to save her from herself. Two totally different kinds of love, both crucial to the survival of Eva's humanity.
I didn't care for the ending so much, though. It just kind of ended. No huge climactic event...just, hey, we're all happy now. Which is cool if there's a second book. Maybe there's more to come?
Lady Juliana Verault gladly left England—and its men—far behind in her quest to live as a Beguine. But the Christian community ceases to provide a safe haven when she’s called to travel to Palermo, Italy, where she’s entrusted with a letter from the pope that could radically change the church’s stance on women. Juliana holds the key to upending the power structure throughout Europe, but only if she can dodge her cousin, King Edward I of England, and his plans to marry her off as political leverage.
Edward sets Sir Robert Clarwyn, a knight errant and loyal hunter of criminals and traitors, on Juliana’s trail to retrieve her. Robert has never failed to bring home his target before … but then, he has never encountered a quarry like Lady Juliana, who can befuddle and bemuse him with just a smile.
If he can’t find a way to compel her to return to England, he’ll lose any chance of regaining his family lands and redeeming his heritage. Yet Juliana must complete her mission or risk endangering her gender’s future in the faith.
With danger and intrigue mounting, Robert and Juliana must rely on each other and be willing to risk everything … including their hearts.
About the Author
Author of historical, contemporary, and erotic romances, Rue Allyn fell in love with happily ever after the day she heard her first story.
“They came four years ago. Invaded our planet, rounded us up, decimated the human race. We fought back, and some even say we won, but they’re wrong. The invaders took everything from us. Our family. Our hope. Our humanity. We won the war, but there are no humans left. Only monsters who will do anything to survive. Some look human and some don’t, but they are all the same.”
╣Synopsis╠
Eighteen-year-old Eva has spent the last year punishing herself for her sister’s death and hiding from everyone she comes into contact with, human or otherwise. With the population destroyed and the Earth left in ruins, she sees little hope left for the future.But when she crosses paths with Walker and Tara something inside her awakens. Something she thought had died along with her entire family. In these new friends Eva sees a promise of what the future could be, as well as evidence that humanity might not be extinct after all.When a ghost from Eva’s past makes an unexpected appearance, the group sets out on a cross-country trek that will teach Eva how to love and hope again, and will remind her what it truly means to be human.
When the camp comes into view I have a difficult time not throwing up. Water and carrots slosh back and forth in my stomach. The sweat on my palms has nothing to do with the humidity, and my legs are so weak they feel like pipe cleaners trying to support a rubber ball. The fence surrounding the camp is down in most places, and the majority of the hastily set-up tents have blown away. The few left are ripped. The canvas blows in the warm breeze, flapping back and forth like the wings of an ominous bird. The storage building is still standing, though. If it isn’t empty this trip might be worth our time, but if it’s been cleaned out all this emotional turmoil and pain I’m going through right now will be for nothing. And I don’t have a lot of optimism that things will turn out in our favor. Atlanta is just visible in the distance. Or what’s left of it, anyway. A ruined building juts up here and there, but for the most part the city is flat. It looks as if like the earth had just opened up and sucked the city down. It’s what the creepers did in the first wave. Wiped out the all the major cities until there was nothing left but a landscape of rubble and dust. Killing millions in the blink of an eye. Walker heads into the camp, and I follow silently, trying not to think about those terrifying days. My throat tightens when we step across the toppled chain link fence. The rusty metal clinks under our feet and my heart pounds harder with each step. When I finally enter the prison camp where my sister lived out her final days, it feels like I’m walking into a cemetery. In many ways I am. Bones of the former inhabitants are scattered across the ground as far as the eye can see. The bodies have been picked clean by animals and bugs, and the clothes have long since blown away, but the skeletons remain as a heart-breaking reminder of everything we lost. Which one is my sister? “This way,” Walker says, tilting his head toward the storage building. The three of us pick our way across the camp, stepping over debris and remains. Tara won’t stop looking at me, and every glance causes my insides to harden even more. I wish I’d never told them I lost my sister here. I hate thinking that they associate me with this place. Even worse, I hate that I associate myself with this hell. I catch sight of a charred, mangled tree and the urge to hurl hits me so hard that I almost have to stop. The stump juts up from the ground, and to the left of it sits a small crater. It’s like a missile took out the top of the tree, then hit the ground next to it. The black circle from the fire extends for about ten feet around the hole. The fire burnt the tree to a crisp, leaving almost nothing behind. Our tree. Mine and Lilly’s. I force myself to turn away from the remains before I burst into tears. I shouldn’t have come here. We get closer to the storage building but something looks off. The brightness of the sun makes it hard to see and forces me to squint. Then it hits me. The walls are covered in writing and discarded cans of spray paint by the dozens lay on the ground. At first I’m not sure what I’m looking at, but it only takes a few seconds of scanning the words to figure out what it all means. They’re notes left by survivors. People hoping to find loved ones they’ve lost. Stupid people clinging to hope that doesn’t exist. “What is this?” I ask, coming to a stop about ten feet from the wall. “Survivor’s wall.” Walker glances toward Tara, then turns at the entrance of the building. “People leave messages behind just in case a family member comes through. We’ll check it out before we leave, but we should look for food first.” Tara nods and follows him, but her eyes are glued to the wall. They never stop moving, never stop reading the names. I keep my eyes on the back of Walker’s head as I follow him inside. Away from the wall and the words of desperation painted on them. There’s nothing on that wall for me.
╣Teasers╠
╣About the Author╠
Kate L. Mary is a stay-at-home mother of four and an Air Force wife. She grew up in a small town just north of Dayton, Ohio where she and her husband met at the age of twelve. Since their marriage in 2002, they have lived in Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, and California.Kate enjoys any post-apocalyptic story - especially if zombies are involved - as long as there is a romantic twist to give the story hope. Kate prefers nerdy, non-traditional heroes who can make you laugh to hunky pieces of man-meat, and her love of wine and chocolate is legendary among her friends and family. She currently resides in Oklahoma with her husband and children.Be sure to check out her best-selling BROKEN WORLD series, a top 100 book in dystopian and post-apocalyptic fiction on Amazon.
The Broken World seriesAvailable now on Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, Paperback and Audiobook!Broken World
When a deadly virus sweeps the country, Vivian Thomas sets out for California in hopes of seeing the daughter she gave up for adoption. Then her car breaks down and she’s faced with a choice. Give up, or accept a ride from redneck brothers, Angus and Axl. Vivian knows the offer has more to do with her double D’s than kindness, but she’s prepared to do whatever it takes to reach her daughter.
The virus is spreading, and by the time the group makes it to California, most of the population has been wiped out. When the dead start coming back, Vivian and the others realize that no electricity or running water are the least of their concerns. Now Vivian has to figure out how to be a mother under the most frightening circumstances, cope with Angus’s aggressive mood swings, and sort out her growing attraction to his brooding younger brother, Axl.
While searching for a safe place to go, they pick up a pompous billionaire who may be the answer to all their problems. Trusting him means going into the middle of the Mojave Desert and possibly risking their lives, but with the streets overrun and nowhere else to turn, it seems he might be their only chance for survival.
CollisionNew Adult Romantic Mystery
Available now on Kindle and Kindle UnlimitedSome secrets are better left untold…When eighteen-year-old Kara Jones gets into a car accident on the way home from college, she’s left with more than a few bruised ribs, a busted cell phone, and a totaled car. After a slip-up at the hospital, she’s shaken to discover that her family isn’t all it seems. And now her mother’s strange behavior and willingness to do anything to protect her secrets—including pulling Kara out of school—have Kara floundering in the dark.
Enter Derek Miller, a former classmate who’s dealing with family issues of his own. His nerdy charm is too much for Kara to resist, and she’s even more amazed when he agrees to help her dig into her mother’s past. Together they investigate her mother’s old friends and boyfriends, hoping to discover who Kara really is. Instead, they find disturbing connections to the dark history of Kent State University, and an ever expanding maze of mystery surrounding Kara’s birth.
As Kara and Derek chase secrets, she realizes he’s the only person she can trust. But as they get closer to the truth, the disturbing answers reveal a web of evil far darker and further reaching than they’d imagined, leaving Kara to wish she’d never asked the questions in the first place.
The List
(College of Charleston, #1)
New Adult Contemporary Romance
Available from Lyrical PressAmazon│Barnes & Noble│iBooks│Kobo│Google
The List. Twenty things every girl must do before she turns twenty. . .Body piercing
Get drunk
First kiss
But thanks to her crazy, over-protective father, Annie Roth is way behind schedule. Good thing it’s her first semester of college, because Annie is more than ready to start checking off items. . .
Fake ID
Skinny dipping
Road trip!!!
Where it gets complicated? Ryan and Chris. Best friends. Both sweet, funny, totally hot, and totally into Annie.
But there are some things on The List that Annie only wants to do with Ryan. . .
Lose it
Get Heart Broken
Fall in love
No Regrets
(College of Charleston, #2)
New Adult Contemporary Romance
Coming September 2015 from Lyrical Press Amazon│B&N│Google│iBooks│Kobo
College is supposed to be fun…
Go to parties
Pick up guys
Maybe get in a little trouble
On the surface Cami is your average, wild teenager out to have a good time, but inside she’s struggling. Almost a year ago her best friend was in a car accident, an accident Cami feels responsible for. Since then, she’s made it her personal mission to experience everything life has to offer, both for herself and for Julie, who will never have fun again.
Then she meets Liam, her cousin’s sexy roommate. Hooking up with a hot British dude seems like the perfect way to start off the school year, but the more time she spends with him, the more she finds herself actually liking the guy. Which totally screws up her plans to live life with no regrets…
Prep For Doom
Don’t Look Back, Chapter 18
Band of Dystopian Anthology
Young Adult ApocalypticFrom the imaginations of twenty authors of dystopian and post-apocalyptic fiction comes PREP FOR DOOM – an integrated collection of short stories that tell the tale of a single catastrophe as experienced by many characters, few of whom will ever meet. What begins with a seemingly innocuous traffic accident soon spirals into a global pandemic. The release of Airborne Viral Hemorrhagic Fever upon New York City’s unsuspecting populace brings bloody suffering within hours, death within a day, and spreads worldwide within a month.
An online community called Prep For Doom has risen to the top of a recent doomsday preparation movement. Some have written them off as crazy while others couldn’t be more serious about the safety the preppers could provide in a global disaster. But when AVHF strikes, their preparation may not be enough to save them.
Title: Unforgiven (The Soulkeepers #3) Author: Lori Adams Category/Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Romance My Star Rating: 3/5
Goodreads Blurb:
Otherworldly
desire and paranormal action reach new heights in the final installment
of The Soulkeepers. As Sophia St. James moves Heaven and Hell to claim
her destiny, questions are answered, secrets are revealed—and immortal
love is tested.
After finally becoming a powerful
Spirit Walker, Sophia St. James is shocked to discover that her conjured
identical twin, Ka—along with her soul—have been dragged down to Hell
by the relentless Demon Knight Dante. Sophia tries to hide the crisis,
but there is little hope of keeping any secrets from her red-hot
Guardian Angel. Growing suspicious, Michael has been making plans of his
own that will bind him and Sophia together forever.
But
Sophia is plagued with evil visions through Ka’s experiences in Hell.
She is terrified that Dante will discover he has taken the wrong Sophia.
Desperate to return to her original state before she withers away and
dies, she risks everything to go where Michael can’t follow. To bring
back Ka and save her own soul, Sophia must now enter the gates of Hell.
My Reivew:
**I received a free copy via Netgalley in exchange for a honest review**
I really, really, really HATE that I didn't love this more!
The
first two books in the Soulkeepers series were some of my favorite
books to date, but this one just was not up to par for me. The
characters fell flat, the writing was a bit simple, and honestly it just
felt like this one was written out of contractual obligation; like the
author was bored with the setting and wanting to move on.
That
said, the plot itself was well thought out and the ending provided
satisfying closure to the series. I will STILL remain a faithful reader
of Lori's, and can't wait to see what she comes up with next
