Amazon.com: With just one touch, Jessa Bellamy can see anyone’s darkest secrets, thanks to whoever tampered with her genes. What she doesn’t know is that a biotech company has discovered her talent and intends to kill her and harvest her priceless DNA. Gaven Matthias is forced to abduct Jessa himself so he can protect her, but Jessa has a hard time believing the one man whose secrets she can’t read. As a monstrous assassin closes in and forces them to run, Jessa will have to find another way to discover if Matthias is her greatest ally-or her deadliest enemy.

Fans of Lynn Viehl’s Darkyn series looked forward to this launch of a new series, The Kyndred, centering on a small group of people who acquired special abilities after they “died.” Neither human nor vampire, these Kyndred were created by genetic manipulation done while they were children in the 1980s. Targeting orphans, each one has a different ability, just like the Darkyn do. Evil bio-tech firm GenHance is trying to round up these orphans now that they’re grown, to extract their special DNA and make all kinds of special potions out of it. Shadowlight is the first book in this new series, and it doesn’t disappoint.

I love the Darkyn books, and was glad to see some of the characters from that series appear in this new one. My favorite, snarky Dr. Alex, makes an appearance, while crime-fighting Samantha and her drool-worthy partner Lucan are here hunting down a bad guy. If there are to be no more Darkyn books, I hope that this series will keep us updated on what the vamps are doing by giving them secondary roles in Kyndred. Since Dr. Alex is also hunting for the Kyndred because of their mysterious connection to the Darkyn, it looks as though I’ll get my wish.

There are essentially two story tracks here. One is the story of the hero and heroine of the book, while the other is an over-arching story of the Kyndred themselves. Not all of the questions about the Kyndred were answered here, and I look forward to learning more about them and their role in future books. The hero and heroine, uber-licious Gaven Matthias and Jessa Bellamy, are the lead-off couple for the series and I hope Ms. Viehl carries them forward into future books like she did with Alex and Michael in the Darkyn books. There were too many questions about Matthias (no one uses his first name) and his history and role that I want answered! Like: if GenHance created the Darkyn in the 1980s, how come he goes back a couple of thousand years to Roman times? Who created him? At one point he calls Jessa “Jezebel,” but this never gets explained. My frustration is why I didn’t give this book 5 stars – I wanted to know all about him!

As an orphan, Jessa was experimented on by scientists at GenHance. She was adopted and raised by a loving man, who left her well off when he died. Unfortunately, she was killed in a workplace shooting that also took her fiance… and when she “woke up” she had the ability to touch people and know their deepest and darkest thoughts. She re-named herself and started a company that screened prospective employees for businesses, and was doing very well. However, now GenHance wants to recover all of the orphans it tampered with, and they’ve tracked Jessa down.

Matthias is also seeking the orphans in order to save them from GenHance. It’s a race to see who can snatch them first, Matthias or the bad guys. Just as Jessa is about to be grabbed by GenHance, Matthias comes to the rescue. He takes her to a secret underground compound, but Jessa isn’t sure she’s really up for this. He needs to convince her of his good intentions and enlist her aid in rescuing other orphans.

I would kill for my own Gaven Matthias. Seriously. Not only does he have the perfect manly bod and gorgeous face, but he’s the kinder, gentler Alpha that sets me a-flutter. No domineering jerk here! Just quiet strength, honor, integrity, and a whole lot of lonely-boy that made me want to kick Jessa to the curb and jump on him. Yum!

Ms. Viehl writes an intelligent tale about well-developed characters that don’t follow the cookie-cutter mold. I like how the women don’t automatically fall in with the guys’ plans. In the Darkyn series, Dr. Alex is STILL struggling with her conversion to vamp-hood (as is Samantha) even though she loves her fangy mate. In Shadowlight, Jessa has a hard time believing Matthias’ story about a vampire race, although I thought she took the whole deal about losing her company and her livelihood with unexpected ease. If character development continues into future books, then we may  see some angst developing. I hope so, because otherwise Jessa’s character is more jello-y than I like to see. The next book, Dreamveil, will be out in May 2010, and I’m really looking forward to it!

Lynn Viehl “Shadowlight” Starts Off The Kyndred Series is a post from: Caden O'Brien's Website

Here’s the deal:

Get $2 off your next purchase of $20 or more of books, music or movies when you use promo code LARSSON on checkout at Alibris! Hurry, this coupon expires February 28, 2010.

Get $4 off your next purchase of $40 or more of books, music or movies when you use promo code KINGSOLVER on checkout at Alibris! Hurry, this coupon expires February 28, 2010.

Get $6 off your next purchase of $60 or more of books, music or movies when you use promo code KOSTOVA on checkout at Alibris! Hurry, this coupon expires February 28, 2010.

Get $8 off your next purchase of $80 or more of books, music or movies when you use promo code SAPPHIRE on checkout at Alibris! Hurry, this coupon expires February 28, 2010.

Get $10 off your next purchase of $100 or more of books, music or movies when you use promo code BOYLE on checkout at Alibris! Hurry, this coupon expires February 28, 2010.

Save Money with Discount Coupons from Alibris is a post from: Caden O'Brien's Website

Available on January 26, and you can pre-order now.

Noah Boyd’s “The Bricklayer” a great new thriller is a post from: Caden O'Brien's Website

This was something cooked up to deal with a little brain-fry caused by working long hours on one of their published books, and all I can say is “wow, this deserves to be published!” I have to warn you, as is posted on their site, this is a dark piece with disturbing themes. A young mother and her little girl get kidnapped by … well, it’s hard to tell WHAT they are. But they’re not nice. At all. They terrify the mother and daughter, and they don’t care. Oooooo. I love dark fiction, and this is pretty dark.  Read the warnings posted with each piece, and proceed accordingly.

This is the order the pieces should be read in. It’s a little confusing on their site, but just follow this order and ignore the titles of the posts because they’re a bit misleading. And if you want to see more, be sure to drop a comment saying so. Enjoy!

1. http://www.ilona-andrews.com/2009/03/06/opening-chapter-of-alpha-menz/
2. http://www.ilona-andrews.com/2009/03/07/alpha-men-final/
3. http://www.ilona-andrews.com/2009/11/23/okay/
4. http://www.ilona-andrews.com/2009/11/23/alpha-menz-snippet-part-2/

    

A spine-tingling unpublished work by Ilona Andrews is a post from: Caden O'Brien's Website

One day a blueblood warrior named Declan Camarine shows up wanting to take her back to the Weird as his woman. She pops him with her cross-bow and gives him a big HELLS-NO, and the game is on. Evil creatures are stalking the Edge and its citizens, and it’s up to Rose in an uneasy partnership with Declan to stop the killings.

One thing I love is when an author builds a world that grips me with its depth, multiple dimensions, and realism tinted with a reality brush. This world is fabulous, and I wish it had been set in an epic fantasy framework because I really wanted more slice-of-life from the Edge and Weird dimensions. I could just imagine what it would be like living there, and my mind spun off little fantasy stories set in that world. Big plus points here, and I hope the next book continues to build on it.

Another thing that hits my hot button is strong female characters. Rose is young, but her life has been hard. Seems like parenting in the Edge is an iffy proposition, and she’s had to deal with a crazy mother who was the local sleep-around and a runaway dad from early on. Realistic characters also do it – this world is people with the same loonies, abusers, and deadbeats as our own world. It definitely is not one where everyone makes nice to one another. In fact, you have to be careful even with your friends, because they all work off an “every man/woman for him/herself” framework. Rose is cynical enough to know how to play the game, but not so jaded that she doesn’t still have hopes and dreams of a normal life. But bad things can happen to good people in this world, so this isn’t a mindlessly cheerful outlook.

Rose and Declan are hot together, even when they’re not together. A good tale. The picture of Declan on the cover is a horrible one! From the description, he looks nothing like that and thank goodness! The little brothers, Georgie and Jack, steal the show. Georgie is a young necromancer, whose love of life makes him revive all kinds of sad dead critters at the expense of draining his own life away. Jack is a shapeshifter who is more comfortable in his cat (lynx) form than his human one. The way Rose loves and cares for these special little boys, and their love for her, brought me to tears several times!

I’m looking forward to the next book. This one is pretty self-contained, so it seems the next one will need to focus on another character. I’m hoping William, Declan’s tortured and gorgeous shape-shifting friend and army-mate, gets a book because we sure were teased enough!

On The Edge by Ilona Andrews – A Winner! is a post from: Caden O'Brien's Website

I’m a huge fan of indie author Amy Lane, and am excited to make this announcement. We’ve been waiting a while for this book to come out, and it’s now here! Update:  Now available from Amazon!
Enjoy!

Rampant (Little Goddess series) by Amy Lane now out! is a post from: Caden O'Brien's Website

Older sister Claire Waverly lives alone in the family home in North Carolina, where she runs a unique catering business that specializes in using flowers in the recipes. You see, there’s something a bit magical about the garden that the herbs and flowers grow in… the food can have unexpected side effects on those who consume it, and Claire is highly sought after in this small town college community. In particular, a crazily sentient apple tree that wants to tell people what their most important moment in their lives will be (usually a spectacular death), and Claire works hard to make sure that curious townspeople don’t sneak in to partake of the tree’s peculiar fruits.

Younger sister Sydney booked out of town 10 years earlier, when she turned 18, and Claire has had no contact with her. But one day Sydney shows up with 5 year old daughter Bay in tow, asking for sanctuary in the family home.  She has her own demons, but the distance between herself and Claire is such that she can’t confide. Throw in eccentric elderly cousin with a compulsion to give weird things to people, out of the blue, and you have a recipe for gentle magic to heal old hurts and show people a brighter, happier future.

The sisters have to learn to live with each other, and a couple of hot guys in the picture add some sizzle to the story. There’s no explicit sex, per se, but the love goin’ round is steamy enough to make you not notice.  There’s also a threat from Sydney’s past to complicate things, but this is late in the story.

The depiction of the relationship between Claire and Sydney is beautifully handled, and as someone who’s had her share of differences with a much-loved younger sister, I can say that it rings true. Not a lot of action, but definitely a lot of feeling. I really cared for these characters, and marveled at the strange and beautiful world they live in. It’s not a long book and is a fairly quick read, so give yourself and your sister a treat and check this little gem out!

The author, Sarah Addison Allen, is North Carolina born and bred, and lives there still while writing full time. Check out her website and read more about this interesting young author. On my reading list is her second book, The Sugar Queen, and her upcoming 2010 release The Girl Who Chased The Moon.

Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen is a post from: Caden O'Brien's Website

Why own a dog ? There’s a danger you know,
You can’t own just one, for the craving will grow.

There’s no doubt they’re addictive, wherein lies the danger,
While living with lots, you’ll grow poorer and stranger.

One dog is no trouble, and two are so funny,
The third one is easy, the fourth one’s a honey.

The fifth one delightful, the sixth one’s a breeze,
You find you can live with a houseful with ease.

So how ’bout another ? Would you really dare ?
They’re really quite easy but oh, Lord the hair !

With dogs on the sofa and dogs on the bed,
And crates in the kitchen, it’s no bother you’ve said.

They’re really no trouble, their manners are great,
What’s just one more dog and just one more crate ?

The sofa is hairy, the windows are crusty,
The floor is all footprints, the furniture dusty.

The housekeeping suffers, but what do you care ?
Who minds a few noseprints and a little more hair ?

So let’s keep a puppy, you can always find room,
And a little more time for the dust cloth and broom.

There’s hardly a limit to the dogs you can add,
The thought of a cutback sure makes you sad.

Each one is so special, so useful, so funny,
The vet, the food bill grows larger, you owe money.

Your folks never visit, few friends come to stay,
Except other dog folks, who all live the same way.

Your lawn has now died, and your shrubs are dead too,
But your weekends are busy, you’re off with your crew.

There’s dog food and vitamins, training and shots,
And entries and travel and motels which cost lots.

Is it worth it, you wonder ? Are you caught in a trap ?
Then that favorite dog comes and climbs in your lap.

His look says you’re special and you know that you will
Keep all of the critters in spite of the bill.

Some just for showing and some just to breed,
And some just for loving, they all fill a need.

But winter’s a hassle, the dogs hate it too,
But they must have their walks though they’re numb and you’re blue.

Late evening is awful, you scream and you shout
At the dogs on the sofa who refuse to go out.

The dogs and the dog shows, the travel, the thrills,
The work and the worry, the pressure, the bills.

The whole thing seems worth it, the dogs are your life,
They’re charming and funny and offset the strife.

Your lifestyle has changed. Things won’t be the same,
Yes, those dogs are addictive and so is the dog game !!

–Author unknown

Poem for Dog Lovers is a post from: Caden O'Brien's Website

Second, I got a fun piece of good news the other day. As you may have noticed, I’m a member of  LibraryThing.com, which lets you organize, catalog, review, and share your library and wishlists. It’s yet another variant on social websites, geared toward book lovers, librarians, authors and other literati. Called a “social cataloging” site, it’s a lot of fun. One thing they offer is a lottery for new books being released, either by publishers or privately by the authors themselves. They want volunteers to review the books on LibaryThing and other places, and usually there’s a much bigger volunteer list than there are books available. And guess what? I scored a book my first time out! I get a free book, and I’m happy to give it a review even though that’s not a requirement for getting the book. But the more you review, the better your odds are for ‘winning’ a book in the future!

So in the mail is a copy of The Bricklayer: A Novel written by Noah Boyd. Here’s a brief description from Amazon’s site:

… introducing Steve Vail, one of the most charismatic new heroes to come along in thriller fiction in many years. He’s an ex–FBI agent who’s been fired for insubordination but is lured back to the Bureau to work a case that has become more unsolvable—and more deadly—by the hour.

A woman steps out of the shower in her Los Angeles home and is startled by an intruder sitting calmly in her bedroom holding a gun. But she is frozen with fear by what he has to say about the FBI—and what he says he must do. . . .

A young agent slips into the night water off a rocky beach. He’s been instructed to swim to a nearby island to deposit a million dollars demanded by a blackmailer. But his mission is riddled with hazardous tests, as if someone wanted to destroy him rather than collect the money. . . .

Vail has resigned himself to his dismissal and is content with his life as a bricklayer. But the FBI, especially Deputy Assistant Director Kate Bannon, needs help with a shadowy group that has initiated a brilliant extortion plot. The group will keep killing their targets until the agency pays them off, the amount and number of bodies escalating each time the FBI fails. One thing is clear: someone who knows a little too much about the inner workings of the Bureau is very clever —and very angry—and will kill and kill again if it means he can disgrace the FBI.

Steve Vail’s options —and his time to find answers—are swiftly running out.

Looks pretty cool, eh? Can’t wait to read it, and I’ll post the review here too.

My First Review! and Merry Christmas… is a post from: Caden O'Brien's Website

My favorite books tend to be those that walk the edge of fantasy and reality. They deal with ordinary people in the ordinary world, but there’s a twist. Magical and supernatural elements abide alongside the mundane world. You might be an ordinary 9-to-5 person with no special talents, but your boss is a vampire. Or a werewolf pack lives on the edge of town and they run all the security and law enforcement operations. Or the evil government took special forces soldiers, and experimented on them until a variety of psychic talents were enhanced. Having things like this in your life can have a dramatic impact! The stories focus on real people dealing with extraordinary things, and they react much like you or I would do. The fantasy is realistic.

Jeri Smith-Ready does a fabulous job in blending the real with the supernatural. I’ve just read the first two books in her WVMP Series, Wicked Game and Bad to the Bone.

Here’s the storyline from the author’s website:

Recovering con artist Ciara Griffin is trying to live the straight life, even if it means finding a (shudder!) real job. She takes an internship at a local radio station, whose late-night time-warp format features 1940s blues, 60s psychedelia, 80s Goth, and more, all with an uncannily authentic flair. Ciara soon discovers how the DJs maintain their cred: they’re vampires, stuck forever in the eras in which they were turned.

Ciara’s first instinct, as always, is to cut and run. But communications giant Skywave wants to buy WVMP and turn it into just another hit-playing clone. Without the station—and the link it provides to their original Life Times—the vampires would “fade,” becoming little more than mindless ghosts of the past. Suddenly a routine corporate takeover becomes a matter of life and un-death.

Ciara is a tough gal. Twenty-four years old and trying to make it in the legit world by getting a college degree, she was raised by grifter parents who moved every two weeks. Relationships, honesty, and commitment are not part of her psyche. She’s got a dead-eyed cynical view of the world and its inhabitants, supernatural or not. Told from her viewpoint, she is foul-mouthed and funny, and I found myself laughing out loud at many of the situations she found herself in. For example, her first intimate encounter with future-love-interest Shane (a young grunge-era vampire) resulted in him taking a huge chomp out of her thigh, which caused her to viciously kick him in the head with her other leg. His resulting jerk-back causes a lot of flesh-ripping which causes a lot of bleeding, which requires stitches… Shane runs off into the night. Now, in a typical romance book, the assault would have caused her multiple orgasms and an instant bonding to her attacker, who would nobly turn her into a vampire so that they could have mind-blowing sex for eternity. But this isn’t fairy-tale land.

Smith-Ready’s worldbuilding is superb. She poses a unique view of vampire life, and it’s not happy-camperland for the vamps. Yes, they are beautiful, alluring, super-strong, super-fast, and super-sexual. But something bad starts happening after they are created, and it just gets worse as they age: they fade. Over time they become less human, while at the same time the vampiric traits get stronger. If they lose their connection to their Life Time, fading is even faster because they have difficulty connecting to the present time. They can’t learn new things or form real relationships. The world is so confusing to them, they develop obsessive/compulsive behaviors to try to cope with things they can’t control. They become extremely flammable, and they burn like paper (humans burn like wood). Even though they’re technically immortal, the average vamp only lives about 80 years after their turning. It’s heart-rending to see them struggle.

At first Ciara wants nothing to do with these freaks, but because she’s a good person at heart (and she really needs the job) she throws her lot in with the vamps and cooks up a scam, er, plan, to save the radio station and the sanctuary it provides the vamps. She re-brands the station as “The Life-blood of Rock n Roll” and promotes the Vampire DJ angle. Almost no-one believes they’re real, of course, but the campaign is a huge success. Her relationship with Shane is rocky – he’s young enough to be still quite human and he loves her, but she’s afraid of it. As they work through the difficulties, they have the inevitable fading problem hanging over their heads, except they don’t know how fast it will happen or whether Ciara’s efforts to save Shane will help avoid it. In spite of these unique problems, their relationship is like any other couple getting off to a tough start. It’s believable, and because we care about the characters, it pulls at the heartstrings.

The bad guys work hard to destroy the vamps and Ciara too, and there’s good action in both books. These are not strictly romance books, so there’s more character development and action to move the plot along. These books are on my keeper shelf and I can’t wait for the third installment, Bring On The Night, which will be out in August 2010.

Smith-Ready is an obvious musicphile, and the book comes with a lot of playlists of the tunes the DJ’s play. Her website includes a great music player with all the tunes from the books on it, and I was thrilled at how many of them were in my personal library. I also found a lot of tracks that I haven’t heard in years, so I happily added them to my collection.  Great stories and good music totally do it for me. If you also like books and music, check out Carrie Vaughn’s Kitty Norville series. She’s a DJ werewolf, and the books are also realistic fantasy. Rock on!

• Wicked Game
• Bad to the Bone
• Bring on the Night (August 2010)
• tentatively titled Lust for Life (early Spring 2011)

Jeri Smith-Ready’s WVMP Series – Wonderful Realistic Fantasy is a post from: Caden O'Brien's Website