Ink of Blood

Review Opportunity: Charlie Sullivan and The Monster Hunters: The Varcolac’s Diary

Posted by cat2002116 on October 27, 2015

Posted in: Books, Review Opportunity, Reviews. Tagged: books, Review Opportunity, reviews. 1 Comment

CHARLIE SULLIVAN AND THE MONSTER HUNTERS: THE VARCOLAC’S DIARY

by D.C. McGannon, C. Michael McGannon

Publication Date: April 2012 (Original), April 2015 (Revised)

Age Group: Young Adult, Teens, Middle Grade

Genre: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Mythology, Bullying

Book Summary:

Monsters are real. They have always been here, even when we choose not to see them.

Now, for the residents of Hunter’s Grove, the choice is no longer theirs. As a power-hungry varcolac—a Greater—tries to break through the magic holding him back and lead his army of monsters to vengeance against human-kind, there are five who unknowingly possess the power to finish what centuries of humans before them have been unable to do. Charlie Sullivan and his band of new friends will be tested as they attempt to strengthen the magic that can lock the monsters and their evil prince away for good—even if the cost is their lives.

This is the story of five unlikely friends who uncover the sinister past buried under their sleepy hometown of Hunter’s Grove. This is a story about looking past differences, overcoming fears, and rediscovering what is truly important in this life. This is the story of Charlie Sullivan and the Monster Hunters of Hunter’s Grove.

All New, And Even More Exciting, Revised Edition for 2015!

My Review

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I found this book to be an entertaining read, even though it was quite short. In some ways, it reminded me of books like the Animorphs, with a group of young people thrust into a huge responsibility.

There was a good element of mystery through this book in the disappearances and I thought it was good to see how those disappearances were the catalyst to draw the five together… though I did find it a bit confusing to suddenly find out quite a way into the book about Darcy’s mother.

While I did think that the main characters were well-defined, I couldn’t really see much of that in Donnie… or understand his sudden and apparent change of heart. I did think it was good to see that bullying was involved in the book, but I wasn’t sure it added that much to the storyline… and not many of the effects on the characters were shown.

I did think that Darcy was the character easiest to empathise with. I thought that she did evolve somewhat over the course of the book. And I also thought it was really good to see the different abilities the children had.

I would have liked to see a bit more of the other characters’ relationships with their families and also more of the training expanded upon. I was a bit disappointed to see that so much of it was glossed over, since even by the end of the book, I couldn’t figure out where their sudden, apparent skillset came from.

The dream at the beginning added a new element of tension to the book, though I’m not sure why Charlie’s abilities meant he had to be the leader. While he did have to deal with some inner conflicts, I didn’t feel they were expanded upon like they could have been.

I really liked Liev and Lisa and I would have liked to see more of them. Some of Liev’s comments made me smile and I enjoyed seeing him and his sister and how their ability linked together.

There was a lot of action in this book and I did think the characters managed to pull together really well. While there were some sad moments, there was also a lot that was hopeful. In the future sometime, I would definitely read the other books in this series.

Reviewers Comments

“D.C. and Michael pack a wealth of wonder and fantasy into this young adult adventure. Incorporating some of the most fascinating legends…I found myself being drawn to the depth of the characters and enjoyed watching their bonds grow as they explored the gifts hidden deep within them as well as the evil that hunts for them.

I recommend this story for anyone who loves folklore and monstrous fun! From vampires to dragons, from witches to eerie ferrymen, this tale has it all.”

– Solomon J. Inkwell, Author of Vickie Van Helsing

“A must read for all young adult fiction fans!” – Amazon Reviewer

“I picked this book up for my oldest daughter. I thought she might enjoy it and asked her to let me know what she thought. She loved it! I ended up reading it with her and I have to say that I enjoyed the story as much, maybe more, than she did.” – Amazon Reviewer

“The characters are real enough that I found myself cheering them on and hoping they succeed in their mission. I look forward to reading the next installment.” – Amazon Reviewer

“Great book with a great cast of characters. Keeps your attention and makes you want to come back for more. I really appreciated the underlying theme of bullying and how it was addressed, but I especially loved the unique challenges and monsters the Monster Hunters faced. Can’t wait for more!” – Goodreads Reviewer

A message from the authors:

We began this journey together, as father and son, with the goal of writing a story that spoke to friendship, overcoming obstacles (and the ultimate evils in our world), and of the power of working together to face the biggest challenges in our lives. Yes, it’s full of monsters, peril, and steeped in exciting mythology and folklore, but it centers around the powerful bonds formed between an unlikely group of friends as they face a unique set of challenges. We wanted to write a story that we would be proud to read aloud to our then newborn son/baby brother (who now, years later, has read them through twice more). It has turned into the adventure of a lifetime as we are meeting people from all over the world who are falling in love with Charlie Sullivan, Darcy Witherington, Nash Stormstepper, and the twins Lisa & Liev Vadinknov – along with a wild, often humorous, and mysterious cast of humans and monsters alike.

Charlie Sullivan and the Monster Hunters: Witch Moon in the next adventure in the series, which takes us across the ocean to the Old Country, then on to Book 3: Council of the Hunters, where the group’s character and loyalty face the ultimate tests when they meet a surprising and spooky new cast of characters. The Dragon Gate (Book 4) will be released soon, and there will be a total of 6 books in the series!

We’ll leave you with more kind words from another Amazon reviewer:

“In my opinion, this series deserves to be a huge hit … I can guarantee you’ll be hooked!”

About The Authors

D.C. McGannon is finicky about his coffee. And loves tea. And lemonade. Sometimes together. He has had a lifelong love of things that lurk in the dark, and is quite comfortable under the light of a full moon. A writer, director, painter, and doodler, McGannon is co-author of the Charlie Sullivan and the Monster Hunters (Wyvern’s Peak Publishing) series of novels for young adults, and KAOS Obsidere: The Nightmare Has Begun (Dark Waters Press). He plays a mean air guitar, and lives and dreams with Holly, Michael, Nathaniel, and their sweet puppy, Jewel, somewhere in the Midwest.

Michael McGannon appreciates weird fiction, perhaps a bit more than one should at any given time. It has made him particular, fostering strange phobias, and even stranger dreams. He is fond of dragons, Japanese mythology, and the fine art of delivering timely and inappropriate puns. McGannon is an artist of diverse talents, and is co-author of the Charlie Sullivan and the Monster Hunters (Wyvern’s Peak Publishing) series of novels for young adults, and KAOS Obsidere: The Nightmare Has Begun (Dark Waters Press).Sushi is his delicacy of choice, if he has any say in the matter.

LIEP Promotions is organizing a review opportunity for CHARLIE SULLIVAN AND THE MONSTER HUNTERS: THE VARCOLAC’S DIARY by D.C. McGannon and C. Michael McGannon, a young adult/middle grade fantasy. The review opportunity closes NOVEMBER 3, 2015. Reviewers will have 3 weeks upon receiving the book to have a review posted. The eBook will be provided in PDF, Nook and Kindle formats.

PLEASE NOTE: Not only is this book perfect for a Halloween themed post, but this book also addresses bullying themes, which is an important topic for the authors, and October is National Bullying Prevention Month.

Chatoyant

Posted by cat2002116 on October 27, 2015

Posted in: Books, Reviews. Tagged: books, reviews. 1 Comment

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

So… even though I like Rain and Jabari as characters separate to each other (and not involved in an unrealistic romance), I have to say that Rain did really annoy me in this book. While I could understand her fear and worry about her mother, I thought that her original plan was incredibly selfish. I did have a lot of sympathy for what her mother was going through, though.

I did empathise with the child version of Nicks and it was good to have the opportunity to learn more about Niyol. The fact that this book picked up where the previous one left off was really good… but Nicks made me shudder when she was interrogating Rain. While I had sympathy for her past self, her current one comes across as completely evil.

I liked the opportunity to see a more serious, sensitive side to Marcello. When I had the opportunity to see past his constant flirting, I found him to be a really well-rounded character. However, although there were some elements of danger in this book, I felt that the abilities of the characters meant that their danger never really felt that real. And it was a bit annoying to see how Rain’s abilities kept on growing.

I did like the scenes of tension in this book, especially where Rain’s and Daktari’s mother was concerned. There was a lot that was really painful to read about what she was going through. And the fact that they had to go through power outages and freezing conditions was pretty awful to see.

I did feel some sympathy for Calista, but by the end of the book, I’m not sure if she’s actually on their side or not. It was good to see that the group were continuing their fight… and it was nice to see them drawing others into their cause. I don’t think I trust Eric, but to be honest, by the end of the book, I don’t think anyone can really be trusted.

I do have the fourth and final book ready on my Kindle to read. While I think the romance between Rain and Jabari will continue to annoy me, I am looking forward to seeing how it all ends.

Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension

Posted by cat2002116 on October 27, 2015

Posted in: Movies, Reviews. Tagged: movies, reviews. Leave a comment

(This review may contain spoilers).

By now, I’ve seen, I think, almost all of the Paranormal Activity movies. Although they are cliched and it’s easy to tell what’s going to happen by the end, I did think this was an acceptable addition to the franchise.

It was interesting to see the tie-ins to the previous movies and Christie and Katie were really creepy on the tapes… though I felt that the movies shown with them in kind of contradicted their movies; or that there wasn’t enough detail about how things changed so abruptly.

There was a bit more explanation about the cult in this movie, rather than just having the women appear randomly. Although it does tie in with Katie and Christie’s storyline, I’m still confused about how The Marked Ones fits into the franchise.

Although there were some jumpy moments in this movie, I actually found myself desensitized to them. And a lot of the really jumpy moments were shown in the trailer.

It was interesting to see Toby as an actual entity, rather than invisible to all but the children. I thought Leila was cute at first… but she suffered from Creepy Child Syndrome very quickly. (If you don’t know what I mean by that… the Ring and The Grudge are good examples).

While there were some tense scenes in this movie, there were times I felt like I was just waiting for the inevitable conclusion. This film wasn’t actually that different from the others… though there was a bit more gore involved. The camera angles and night vision allowed for the violence to not be as obvious, though, which left a lot to the imagination.

I did get confused between Leila’s father and his brother for a while, due to not actually seeing much of either of them at first. There were some good comedy elements through the movie and although there were parts I felt dragged a little, it was entertaining to watch. I wouldn’t watch it again any time soon… but it was entertaining enough to see once.

Blog Tour: Dead Girl Running

Posted by cat2002116 on October 26, 2015

Posted in: Blog Tour, Books, Reviews. Tagged: Blog Tour, books, reviews. Leave a comment

DEAD GIRL RUNNING, by Ann Noser

Genre: dystopian, science-fiction, action-adventure

Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press

Date of Release: October 26, 2015

Cover Artist: Eugene Teplitsky

Find Online: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Goodreads

Description:

Eight years ago, SILVIA WOOD’s father died in an industrial accident. After suffering through years of Psychotherapy Services and Mandated Medications for depression and multiple suicide attempts, she longs to work in Botanical Sciences. When the Occupation Exam determines she must work in Mortuary Sciences instead, she wonders if the New Order assigned her to the morgue to push her over the edge.

To appease her disappointed mother, Silvia enters the Race for Citizen Glory, in an attempt to stand out in the crowd of Equals. After she begins training with “golden boy” LIAM HARMAN, she discovers he also lost his father in the same accident that ruined her childhood. Then Silvia meets and falls for Liam’s older cousin, whose paranoid intensity makes her question what really happened to her father. As the race nears, Silvia realizes that she’s not only running for glory, she’s running for her life.

My Review

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I thought the concept of this book was a really interesting one. Although the world did seem to come across as perfect to begin with, as the book progressed, it became quite clear that the world wasn’t anything like as good as it was implied to be.

I liked Silvia’s character. It was interesting to see her relationship with her mother and I felt a lot of sympathy for her during the course of the book, especially with the glimpses I got of her past and how her father’s death had affected her.

It was interesting to see Silvia interacting with Liam. I did think there were some interesting aspects to the society they lived in, such as the fact that there were different types of jobs. I would have liked to see more of the different types of work people could do, but I did find it intriguing to see how Silvia fit in with her job. I enjoyed seeing her relationship with Gus and even though I felt the romance could have easily been taken out of the book, it was good to see her acknowledge her feelings for Franco as being a crush.

It was good to be able to learn about the past and how people were still affected by the nuclear war. I did figure out some of the twists fairly early on, but it was interesting to see how Silvia reacted when she began putting the pieces of the puzzle together.

It was nice to see how Liam and Silvia were supporting each other. I did spend a lot of the book confused about why Liam switched constantly between different mood swings… but as the book went on, that did make a bit more sense.

Parts of this book did put me in mind of a film called The Island, but there were only a few similarities. I found it really easy to be drawn into this book and I felt there were some good elements of tension. I also cared about Silvia’s safety and although she wasn’t in a lot of danger in the present, it was good to learn more about her through learning about her past.

In the future, I would be interested in reading a sequel to this book and seeing what will happen to Silvia next.

About The Author

My to-do list dictates that I try to cram 48 hours of living into a day instead of the usual 24. I’ve chosen a life filled with animals. I train for marathons with my dog, then go to work as a small animal veterinarian, and finish the day by tripping over my pets as I attempt to convince my two unruly children that YES, it really IS time for bed. But I can’t wait until the house is quiet to write; I have to steal moments throughout the day. Ten minutes here, a half hour there, I live within my imagination.

Like all busy American mothers, I multi-task. I work out plot holes during runs. Instead of meditating, I type madly during yoga stretches. I find inspiration in everyday things: a beautiful smile, a heartbreaking song, or a newspaper article on a political theory. For example, a long drive in the dark listening to an NPR program on the SMILEY FACE MURDERS theory made me ask so many questions that I wrote HOW TO DATE DEAD GUYS to answer them to my satisfaction.

I’d love to have more time to write (and run, read, and sleep), but until I find Hermione Granger’s time turner, I will juggle real life with the half-written stories in my head. Main characters and plot lines intertwine in my cranium, and I need to let my writing weave the tales on paper so I can find out what happens next.

Find Ann Noser Online:

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

About Curiosity Quills Press

Curiosity Quills Press (CQ) is a small hybrid publishing company specializing in genre fiction of the highest quality. With 150+ titles in our catalog already and approximately 6 new books coming out each month, there’s never a dull moment at CQ. We work with major retailers such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Audible to ensure that you, the reader, can find whatever you are looking for at your convenience.

Founded in 2011 by Eugene Teplitsky and Lisa Gus, CQ was initially a resource portal for writing and publishing, created in an effort to help writers, like themselves, survive the publishing industry. After rapid success, CQ morphed into publishing press that over time has solidified its share in the market. Now we spend our days searching for the next great escape!

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Blog Tour: Underneath Everything

Posted by cat2002116 on October 25, 2015

Posted in: Blog Tour, Books, Dream Cast, Reviews. Tagged: Blog Tour, books, Dream Cast, reviews. Leave a comment

Underneath Everything
by Marcy Beller Paul
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Release Date: October 27th 2015

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, GLBT, Realistic Fiction
Rate: 3.5 out of 5

Synopsis:

Mattie shouldn’t be at the bonfire. She should be finding new maps for her collection, hanging out with Kris, and steering clear of almost everyone else, especially Jolene. After all, Mattie and Kris dropped off the social scene the summer after sophomore year for a reason.

But now Mattie is a senior, and she’s sick of missing things. So here she is.

And there’s Jolene: Beautiful. Captivating. Just like the stories she wove. Mattie would know; she used to star in them. She and Jolene were best friends. Mattie has the scar on her palm to prove it, and Jolene has everything else, including Hudson.

But when Mattie runs into Hudson and gets a glimpse of what could have been, she decides to take it all back: the boyfriend, the friends, the life she was supposed to live. Problem is, Mattie can’t figure out where Jolene ends and she begins.

Because there’s something Mattie hasn’t told anyone—she walked away from Jolene over a year ago, but she never really left.

Poignant and provocative, Marcy Beller Paul’s debut novel tells the story of an intoxicating—and toxic—relationship that blurs the boundary between reality and fantasy, love and loyalty, friendship and obsession.

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I’m not really sure I liked this book even by the end. Mattie was a character who was interesting, but I did feel like she was weak and easily led. While I could sense the almost hypnotising draw Jolene had to her, I didn’t really like or trust her even when it seemed like she and Mattie might be on their way to repairing their relationship.

I liked the friendship between Mattie and Kris and I thought that, despite certain things revealed later on, Kris really did care about Mattie. I would have liked to see more of her during the book, but the interactions she did have with Mattie were interesting and it was nice to see that she did have an end goal.

I really wasn’t sure what Jolene’s end game was. There was part of me that wondered if she even was a person… since when she appeared, the writing seemed to take on an almost dreamlike quality. The parallels between her relationship with Mattie and her relationship with Hudson were interesting to see, such as the fact that both of them seemed to be obsessed with Jolene the moment they allowed her into their lives.

I did like seeing Mattie’s relationship with her parents and brother, though it did get a bit confusing with the constant switching between the present day and what had happened in the past. I also thought it was good to see how all of them did have problems with their families and personal lives… even Jolene.

It was interesting to see the way Mattie almost slipped down to rock bottom and how she was affected as a result. The first person POV allowed me to understand her and I found it really easy to understand how she was feeling most of the time. There was a lot of tension in this book and I was drawn in and able to keep on reading, despite the negative feelings I had while reading.

I don’t think I’d read a sequel to this book, even though it would be good to see Mattie grow into her own person. I would be willing to check out other books by this author in the future, though.

Read chapter One!

Follow the Underneath Everything by Marcy Beller Paul Blog Tour and don’t miss anything! Click on the banner to see the tour schedule.

Marcy Beller Paul is a young adult author, former editor, and full-time mom who still has all the notes she passed in seventh grade (and knows how to fold them).

She graduated from Harvard University and lives in New Jersey with her husband and two children. Underneath Everything will be published by Balzer + Bray, an imprint of HarperCollins, in Fall 2015. It is her first novel.

Win a signed first edition of Underneath Everything by Marcy Paul (US ONLY)

Opalescent

Posted by cat2002116 on October 25, 2015

Posted in: Books, Reviews. Tagged: books, reviews. 1 Comment

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I’m not completely sure I liked this book. Although it was good to see the characters from the first book and get to know new ones, I found it really difficult to believe in the feelings Rain has for Jabari. Just to give an idea of one of the reasons why, this is an exchange early on between them:

Jabari: I love you because you’re a warrior.
Rain: I love you because you’re hot.

If it weren’t for the romance that feels completely unrealistic, I’d probably give this book 4 out of 5 stars. There are a lot of intriguing aspects to it and I do get the feeling that Rain does care about the people around her, even if it feels sometimes that that fades when Jabari’s around. I also thought that Aleela added an interesting element… and I did find myself getting a bit annoyed with Jabari on Rain’s behalf at times.

It was interesting to have the opportunity to learn more about Nicks’ past and I found myself disliking her even more by the end of this book. I did notice the parallels drawn between the Holocaust and what Nicks is doing. One of the worst scenes is when the books and art are burned. I felt the pain of the woman whose painting was taken from her.

I had a lot of sympathy for Maha and I was glad about what happened with Darryl, even though I did think that Rain’s guilt made a lot of sense and really worked for her character. Marcello and Cole are good forms of comic relief… but it was also really good to see the more serious side to them both. I’d like to see more of them in the next two books.

There was more of a feel of real danger in this book, even though I did feel that their abilities meant that they weren’t in proper danger. I did, however, feel that the author did a good job of showing how Rain’s and Daktari’s mother’s depression affected them. And Nicks made me cringe with just how evil she seemed to be in how she spoke to and treated everyone. I found myself really worrying about Callista.

I have the next two books on my Kindle, ready to read. Even though I don’t like the romance, the rest of the book does pull me in really well.

Pan

Posted by cat2002116 on October 25, 2015

Posted in: Movies, Reviews. Tagged: movies, reviews. Leave a comment

(This review may contain spoilers).

Having been a big fan of Disney films, even now, and always having a fascination with the story of Peter Pan, I was quite eager to see this movie when I saw it advertised. I went with my sister to see it and ended up enjoying the movie more than I thought I would.

Despite the movie being set in the wrong time period, I did find myself drawn really easily into the storyline. Although Peter was a typical mischievous boy to begin with, I felt that his character was well-rounded and although there were some cliches, the struggle he faced to discover who he really was came across really well.

This movie does deviate from the source material a whole lot. Hook, for instance, is re-imagined completely differently to his character in the original tale. While it was an interesting take to have Peter and Hook be allies, don’t go into this movie expecting a true-to-the-original storyline.

There were some very nice visual effects in this movie and even though I didn’t think Hook’s interest in Tiger Lily was entirely believable, I did think that he was interesting and it might be interesting to see if a sequel shows the enmity between Peter and Hook.

There were some good emotional moments in this movie as well as some really good elements of tension. There were some hints shown as to what Blackbeard’s end game was, but I did feel he was a bit of an over-the-top villain… though I do really like Hugh Jackman’s work.

What was confusing was how the nuns were related to everything. I would have liked a bit more explanation about that.

I did find this movie really entertaining, though one of the characters did have a pretty obvious Australian accent that was a bit cringe-worthy. It was nice to see the inclusion of the fairies… and being able to see the different memories was pretty interesting, even though they did seem to be a bit conveniently placed. I also thought the mermaids were an interesting aspect.

I did enjoy this movie and probably would watch it again in the future. I do think it’s the sort of movie children would find engaging… and I expect my niece would get a lot of enjoyment out of it.

Blog Tour: The Touched

Posted by cat2002116 on October 23, 2015

Posted in: Blog Tour, Books, Dream Cast, Interviews, Reviews. Tagged: Blog Tour, books, Dream Cast, interviews, reviews. Leave a comment

The Touched (The Descendants #1)
by Jennifer Weiser
Publisher: Limitless Publishing
Release Date: September 29th, 2015
Rate: 3.5 out of 5

Synopsis:

The first sixteen years of Arabella Penthallow’s life have been a lie…

In a world where deception is the key to survival, Ara has kept up the charade of being a perfect Legion Leader’s daughter. But a darkness stirs, and she discovers she is Touched, a mortal gifted by the Gods. The Touched are as rare as they are feared, and Ara is forced to leave Union City for neighboring Midnight City to protect herself and those she loves, leaving Tove Thorn, the boy who has always known her heart, behind.

Carter Decker has vowed to burn Union City to the ground…

Midnight City’s cocky, infamous bad boy always gets what he wants, and he wants Union City to pay for burning his mother alive because she was Touched. When Carter meets Ara, she is everything he’s been taught to hate. Then he learns she is Touched—just like him—he isn’t sure who he hates more…the Touched girl whose father killed his mother, or himself for being tempted by someone he’s sworn to kill.

They are told they’re fated to be soul mates…and they each wish the other never existed.

When Midnight City is attacked by Union City, Carter and Arabella will do the unthinkable…even if it means falling for the enemy. The truth lies in Arabella’s home nation, and Tove is waiting. Soul mates or not, he has an advantage Carter doesn’t, fated souls be damned.

War is coming…and Ara is the prize.

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I did really like the blurb of this book when I read it the first time. Having finished reading the book, however, I do have some mixed feelings.

I would have liked some background on the Touched earlier on in the book. While the first scene did contain a lot of tension and I found it very easy to empathise with Carter as he watched his mother die, I did find it really hard to get into the storyline with the constant switching of different first person POVs and third person POV. It would have easily been four stars if it hadn’t been for that.

I did think the two different cities were interesting and I would have liked to see more of Carter’s relationship with his father, as well as with Rob. It was easy to see the friendship between Carter and Cast… but I was only told about Carter’s and his father’s connection to Rob, not shown.

It was interesting to see the different kinds of abilities, though the fact that Ara was a ‘chosen one’ was a bit worrying, given that she seemed able to outshine everyone. I did find the bonding to be an interesting concept and I was glad to see that there were doubts about whether the feelings were real or not… something I don’t see very often with soulmate romances.

I did like the relationship between Cast and Trinity better and it would have been good to see more of them interacting together. I wasn’t very keen on how many male characters were apparently in love with Ara, but I did find Tove fairly interesting in spite of that. I would have liked to see more of his character outside of obsessing over Ara.

I thought Alexis and her children were interesting and I would have liked some more details about them and what their end goals were.

While I’m curious about what will happen in book two, I probably won’t read it unless it sticks to third person or one first person POV. The constant changes did make it hard to read… which was a shame, because the plotline of the book was really intriguing, even if I would have liked the focus to be on a different character.

Arabella steps back from me and locks her gaze with mine. “Then there’s something I have to tell you,” she whispers. “But whatever I tell you, despite what you might choose to do afterward, you have to promise you remember what you just said.”

I laugh nervously before I realize she’s serious. I clear my throat and nod. Arabella returns my nod, her features becoming somber before she closes her eyes. I watch her Her features relax and a soft smile pulls at her lips. With her eyes closed she tugs my hand to hers. Warmth spreads through me with her touch. Something solid forms between our hands. Ara’s eyes spring open, peering up at me, she removes her hand and takes a step back from me.

My eyes run down my arm to my outstretched hand, where the weighted object sits. My stomach flips as my eyes adjust to the object sitting in my hand. A small, round, silver tin sits in my hand. I recognize it as the same small tin that Ara and I had used when we were kids.

A sun baked mud pie sits in on my palm. My gaze darts from it to her. She forces a weak smile.

My stomach plummets, the tin falls to the ground. Sand bursts from it and all over our shoes.

The whispers are true. Our little Arabella isn’t who she once claimed to be.

Arabella Penthallow is more than human.

She’s Touched.

A character interview with Ara:

Hi Sarah! Thanks for having me!

1) What is your most important goal?

As a first daughter to the Legions, my goals are for unity and peace. For far too long, my nation has allowed our people to live fear—a fear of unknown, a fear of what they don’t understand, a fear of prosperity, of trust. My goal is to unite our people. To allow them to see the importance of what our futures might hold, should we continue to be negligent to our neighbors. At least, thats what the Legions dutiful daughter would tell you. Between you and mean, Sarah, my goals are simple. Live without fear. Live without lies. Control the darkness and maybe, possibly find happiness along the way.

2) What do you fear the most?

I used to fear death. I don’t anymore. It’s the darkness within me I fear.

3) Who, or what, has been your biggest inspiration?

My mother has always inspired me to continue forward. She gives strength, even in her absence.

4) What do you enjoy doing the most?

*laughs lightly* I used to love climbing the apples trees within the backyard of our home or reading beneath them on a lazy summer day. Those days I was longing for a distraction from the lies we spun. Now, as fickle as it would seem, I enjoy spending time with those I love the most—Rob, Carter, Tove, Cast and Trinity.

5) Where is your favourite place to be?

*blushes* There’s this rope swing, that hangs from one of the apple trees in our backyard…It used to be my favorite place under the stars. I would spend hours out there, just gazing at the sky, wishing upon more then one shooting star. The swing holds some of my favorite memories.

6) What would be your perfect day?

That’s a tricky one—filled with enormous possibilities. Though, if I must answer, I would say one spent with Carter. No arguing, no lying, no worry about our linking souls, but one spent barefoot in the grass—truly understanding one another and possibly discovering who we truly are.

7) What word would describe you the best?

Toxic. Those I love and care for deeply, don’t truly understand the wickedness within me—but I know. It’s only a matter of time before they do…and by then the damage will already be done.

8) What are you passionate about?

Change and the love I have for those I care for. I want nothing more then for their happiness. A world without fear or chaos. A place that they can truly be themselves and believe in the better of tomorrow.

9) What makes you happy?

The friendships I have gained along the way.

10) What makes you angry or sad?

The gods we are sad to be descendants from. Those who found our mere exist to be a nuisance. An entertainment to them when they found themselves in need of it. For they turned their backs on their blood—left us to defend and protect ourselves against those that fear us, but the gods themselves placed that fear in humanity. We have paid the price for their neglect. I don’t believe they exist any longer. For if they have—wouldn’t they have heard our calls…felt something towards their descendants. Wished to help save those that are innocent? No, perhaps they never existed, but were created for children stories and to give The Touched a reason of hope. It angers and saddens me, because there has never been nor will there be hope—not unless we demand it.

Thank you.

Follow the The Touched by Jennifer Weiser Blog Tour and don’t miss anything! Click on the banner to see the tour schedule.

Jennifer Weiser is a young adult author who has always been a book nerd and a bit chocolate obsessed. Writing has always been a favorite escape, but quickly became a passion not long after the birth of her daughter. When she isn’t combing the shelves of her local book stores or blogging about newest book obsessions, you can find her nestled in her nook creating worlds she hopes that one day will inspire her daughter, who not only has given her the courage to follow her dreams–but offers the inspirations that help color their worlds together.

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Blog Tour: Dark Heart of Magic

Posted by cat2002116 on October 22, 2015

Posted in: Blog Tour, Books, Dream Cast, Reviews. Tagged: Blog Tour, books, Dream Cast, reviews. Leave a comment

Dark Heart of Magic (Black Blade #2)
by Jennifer Estep
Publisher: Kensington
Release Date: October 27th 2015

Genre: Young Adult, Urban Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal, Magic, Supernatural
Rate: 4 out of 5 stars

Synopsis:

Something Wicked This Way Comes…

As a thief, I stick to the shadows as much as possible. But when the head of the Sinclair Family picks me to compete in the Tournament of Blades, there’s no escaping the spotlight—or the danger.

Even though he’s my competition, Devon Sinclair thinks I have the best shot at winning what’s supposed to be a friendly contest. But when the competitors start having mysterious “accidents,” it looks like someone will do anything to win—no matter who they hurt.

As if I didn’t have enough to worry about, mobster Victor Draconi is plotting against Devon and the rest of my friends, and someone’s going around Cloudburst Falls murdering monsters. One thing’s for sure. Sometimes, humans can be more monstrous than anything else…

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

Having read the first book in this series, I was very happy to have the opportunity to read the second… and I found myself enjoying this one as much as the first.

It was good to be able to see Lila struggling with her feelings for Devon, but that the romance didn’t seem to take up the whole book. I did prefer the relationship between Felix and Deah… and I couldn’t help but feel a lot of empathy for Deah, since this book showed even more how badly her father and brother treated her. It was good to see that she had a good relationship with her mother, though.

There were some good scenes of tension in this book and I enjoyed seeing Lila’s interactions with Oscar. While I didn’t really like that she was chosen, over some of the others, to enter the tournament, it did become quite interesting to see how the tournament was conducted… and the different talents and the strengths that were used while trying to win.

I really didn’t like Vance’s character and he didn’t really seem to exist outside of annoying Lila. I felt he came across as a foil and it would have been good to see a bit more depth to him.

I didn’t like Vince at all in this book… even less than the first one… and it was interesting to see the stark differences in how he and Claudia viewed members of their family. I did notice there was quite a bit of repetition in this book… like, ‘cold burn of magic’ and the references to Oscar being on a sugar high.

I couldn’t see any redeeming qualities in Blake’s character, either. I did like how things progressed with him during the tournament, though. And it was really good to see more of how Deah’s talent worked. I thought the descriptions of the talents were probably among the strongest in the book.

I am hoping to read the next book in this series in the future. This one ended on kind of a cliffhanger and it would be good to see how things progress for the characters.

Working for the mob isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be.

Oh, sure. It always looks all glitzy and glamorous on TV and in the movies. Folks wearing slick suits, eating in fancy restaurants, and talking about how to best deal with their enemies over coffee and cannolis. And maybe I’d actually done some of those things, during the few weeks that I’d been working for the Sinclair Family. But most of the time, taking care of Family business was a boring, tedious job, just like any other—

“Watch out, Lila!” Devon Sinclair shouted.

I ducked just in time to keep from getting pelted in the face by a blood persimmon. The ripe, apple-size fruit sailed over my head and splattered against the ground. The skin exploded on impact, painting red pulp and seeds all over the gray cobblestones, and filling the summer air with a sweet, sticky scent.

Sadly, the cobblestones weren’t the only things covered in fruit—so was I. Red pulp had soaked into my blue T-shirt and gray cargo pants from where I’d already been hit, while seeds and bits of skin clung to the laces of my gray sneakers.

An angry, high-pitched cheep-cheep-cheep sounded, the noise somewhere between a crow’s cawing and a chipmunk’s chirping. I glared up at the tree where the persimmon had come from. A creature with ash-gray fur and emerald-green eyes jumped up and down on its hind legs on a branch about ten feet above my head. The creature’s jumps were so hard and powerful that more ripe blood persimmons dropped from their branches and hit the ground, bursting open and adding to the oozing mess that already coated the cobblestones. Oh, yeah. The tree troll was definitely upset that it had missed me with its latest fruit bomb.

Tree trolls were among the many monsters that made their home in and around Cloudburst Falls, West Virginia, along with mortals and magicks, like me. I’d always thought of the trolls as sort of a cross between an oversize squirrel and the flying monkeys from The Wizard of Oz. Oh, tree trolls couldn’t actually fly, but the black webbing under their arms helped them catch wind currents as they hopped from one branch and tree to the next, while their long, bushy tails let them dangle upside down. The trolls were only about a foot tall, so they weren’t nearly as dangerous as copper crushers and many of the other monsters that inhabited the town. Most of the time, they were pretty harmless, unless you got them riled up. And this one was certainly riled, since it kept jumping up and down and cheep-cheep-cheeping at us all the while.

Follow the Dark Heart Of Magic by Jennifer Estep Blog Tour and don’t miss anything! Click on the banner to see the tour schedule.

Jennifer Estep is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of urban fantasy and paranormal romance.

Her Elemental Assassin series follows the life and times of Gin “the Spider” Blanco, a barbecue restaurant owner who also happens to be an assassin with magical control over the elements of Ice and Stone.

The Mythos Academy series focuses on Gwen Frost, a 17-year-old Gypsy girl who has the ability to know an object’s history just by touching it. She studies at Mythos Academy, a school for the descendants of ancient warriors.

Her Bigtime paranormal romance books feature sexy superheroes, evil ubervillains, and smart, sassy gals looking for love.

Estep’s new Black Blade series is about 17-year-old thief Lila Merriweather, who has a Talent for sight, along with the ability to take magic others used against her to boost her own powers. She tries not to get involved with the Families who control much of the town, but ends up in the middle of a potential turf war.

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Lailah

Posted by cat2002116 on October 22, 2015

Posted in: Books, Reviews. Tagged: books, reviews. Leave a comment

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I was a bit surprised by how easily I was drawn into this book, considering that it contained angels and vampires… both supernatural creatures I feel are over-used in fiction.

Francesca was a very interesting character, though I had a lot of trouble figuring out what was going on with her for a long time at first. I don’t really like love triangles, but by the end of the book, I felt I had a bit more understanding of why she was drawn to both Gabriel and Jonah in different ways.

I was a bit confused by how easily Francesca seemed to be able to ‘read’ people… though there were some occasions where she seemed to get it wrong. I found the other vampires she met to be quite interesting characters… though I did think that the actions of one of the characters were made a little too obvious. The apparent twist… wasn’t really a twist at all.

While I did feel some sympathy for Hanora, I did develop a strong dislike for her by the end of the book. I would have liked to see more of her like I did with Brooke… though I did feel there were a lot of stereotypes with the vampire characters.

The shadow girl was a particularly interesting twist and I did like the fact that Francesca struggled with how she was drawn to Gabriel, but didn’t feel like the girl he’d known in the past. I had mixed feelings about Ethan when he was introduced… but it was interesting to see the contrasts between his past self and what he was like in the present day.

I found it easy to follow the storyline from Francesca’s POV, but I still had quite a lot of questions through most of the book. While some of them were answered by the end, I did kind of feel that Francesca was becoming a bit ‘centre of the universe’.

There was a lot of good action in this book and I liked being able to learn more about Jonah’s past, though his change seemed to come about awfully quickly. I do have the next book in this series ready to read on my Kindle and I am looking forward to it.

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