Paranormal Haven

Review and Giveaway: Binding the Shadows by Jenn Bennett

2013-05-23T04:00:00.000-07:00

Binding the Shadows
Author: Jenn Bennett
Series: Arcadia Bell, book 3
Publisher: Pocket Books
Release Date: May 28, 2013
ISBN-10: 145169508X
ISBN-13: 978-1451695083
Source: From publisher for review
Buy it here: Amazon | Book Depository
For more information visit Jenn Bennett's website

Review by: Ronnie

Binding the Shadows was on my list of Books We Can’t Wait For in 2013. Jenn Bennett’s spectacular urban fantasy series has earned her a spot on my favorites shelf. The Arcadia Bell novels keep getting better with each addition, and Binding The Shadows is definitely the best of the lot. Her writing is crisp, imaginative, capped with witty dialogue throughout the story.

The first chapters don’t waste any time as Cady and her demon boyfriend, Lon Butler, are trying to retrieve another demon at the behest of Ambrose Dare, head of the Hellfire Club. Cady’s magical abilities have been manifesting themselves in strange ways over the course of the last couple of books, and you see this happen in Binding The Shadows as well. The author has a knack (pun intended) for inserting details about previous books so that you’re not lost if you’re a new reader, but if you’ve been following along, you’re not overwhelmed with the recap. Dare informs Cady there’s been a slew of robberies with Earthbounds using strange knacks. Cady doesn’t really reflect on this information until her bar is targeted and her partner, Kar-Yee, is seriously hurt.

Part of what makes this series such a winner for me is that Cady isn’t a perfect, kick ass heroine. She second guesses herself, makes mistakes, and is reluctant to come forth with the truth when it might be better to do so. She’s flawed and the growth you see happen throughout the series is executed exquisitely.

The emotional highs and lows run the gamut, especially when Cady meets Lon’s ex-wife’s Yvonne, Yvonne’s mother, Rose, and her sister, Adella. You watch Cady struggle with her insecurities regarding her relationship with Lon, and putting his son, Jupiter, first, even as she’s hurting inside. The way the author demonstrates Cady’s feelings through the internal monologue and her subsequent actions is spot on. One of my favorite aspects within the Arcadia Bell series is the frequent humor and sarcasm that pop up throughout the narrative. This serves to make the read a little bit lighter when things are pretty intense. I would be remiss if I went through the review without mentioning Jupiter Butler. Normally kids don’t do it for me in books as I never think of the characters as capable kids, more as placeholders or a challenge for the main character to overcome. Let me just say I’d be happy if Jupiter got his own novel. He’s very well written as a smart-ass teenager that occasionally thinks he’s smarter than he actually is, he’ll do stupid things without thinking them through, and the things he’ll say will crack me up.

The pacing of the book never suffers as Cady, along with Lon, investigates what’s been causing the rash of robberies, in addition to the peculiar knacks that the Earthbounds seem to possess. Cady requests the help of Hajo, a demon with a somewhat dubious knack. A drug dealer with few scruples, Hajo meets with Cady and agrees to help her out by asking his contacts if they’ve heard anything. The ending to book is just marvelous. I cannot stress this enough. It’s jam packed with action and emotion and will leave you reeling at the end. The ending made me pretty much howl out loud. A cliff hanger yes, but I have faith that the author will wrap things up nicely in the 4th book that will be out next year. Binding the Shadows is urban fantasy at its finest and I *strongly* encourage anyone who hasn’t read these books yet, to pick them up and give them a try.
My Rating:

Giveaway -

Thanks to Pocket Books, we have 1 copy of Binding the Shadows to giveaway. Since Ronnie loves this book so much, we'll open it internationally. Giveaway will end on Binding the Shadows' release date, May 28th. Read our giveaway policy before entering. Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Review: Time Thief by Katie MacAlister

2013-05-22T04:00:00.001-07:00

Time Thief
Author: Katie MacAlister
Series: Time Thief, book 1
Publisher: Signet
ISBN-10: 0451417429
ISBN-13: 978-0451417428
Source: From NetGalley
Buy it here: Amazon | Book Depository
For more information visit Katie MacAlister's webite

Review by: Beth

Kiya Mortenson has run into a string of bad luck. She was struck by lightning. Right after she checks out of the clinic with a fresh bill of health, her car decides to stop working on a very dangerous road. Luckily she is saved by a hunky looking man who takes her into town, and pays for her car to be towed. As it turns out, she’s going to need some cash to fix her car. Hunky guy who saved her mentioned his grandmother might hire a helping hand, so she heads off to their RVs. Meanwhile Peter Faa has also entered the town. With Peter’s (kind of) sidekick, a ghost in the shape of a glowing ball, they are determined to track down the killer of a recent string of deaths. Peter is a part of the Watch, a paranormal police order. He has with him DNA evidence that the killer is a member of his family.

I’m not new to MacAlister’s work. I greatly enjoyed her Aisling Grey series. So when this one popped up I was very excited to get my hands on it. MacAlister’s novels, or what I’ve read of them, are fast paced romantic comedies with a paranormal twist.

Time Thief introduces a new race of people called Travellers. Travellers, well they travel. They live a gypsy kind of life style, moving around from place to place. They can steal time, but have to pay for it or karma will literally bite them. Kiya ends up working for grandmother Faa, caring for her pugs. Because she isn’t a part of the family they set her up in a tent away from the RVs, and before long she runs into Peter Faa who is poking around in the woods. The first meeting between them doesn’t go well, but it isn’t long until Peter is hurt, and runs into Kiya’s tent. It doesn’t take long for Kiya to decide she is going to help him. Together they sort of put two-and-two together until they figure out who the murder is.

There is a ton of silliness in these pages, but it might be too silly for my taste. I’m so glad when the heroine isn’t a cop, P.I., detective, or working for some unknown kind of investigative company. Kiya starts out as just a girl down on her luck. She comes off as a little too dense for my taste. On top of that, first impressions mean a lot, and Peter Faa is kind of a jerk. In fact most of the people in the Faa family are jerks. While these two characters make a good match for one another, it bothered me when they didn’t see clues that are right in front of them. Peter is supposed to be a part of the other world Watch, but he’s too involved with watching Kiya to notice when something is buggy is going down.

Time Thief’s pacing was well done, but the silliness of it all was a little too much for my taste. The characters seemed a little too dense and random for my taste. Peter and Kiya decide they love each other awfully fast, so fast even Peter’s ghostly friend says something about it. The magic system was very neat and pretty different, and I enjoyed that Kiya wasn’t a stereotypical paranormal heroine.
My Rating:

Part-Time Guest Reviewer Wanted

2013-05-21T11:00:00.000-07:00

Diane will no longer be reviewing for us. We wish her all the best and her departure means we're looking to add another part-time guest reviewer to our ranks. Here are the genres the person we're looking for may be asked to review books from:

- Contemporary and Historical Romance
- Romantic Suspense
- Urban Fantasy (may receive titles that are several books into a series)
- Paranormal (adult and/or YA)
- Erotica (including BDSM, same sex or multiple partners), Steampunk and Fantasy

The more genres the better but we won't rule anyone out just because they want to review only PNR or Romantic Suspense.

If you're interested in our guest reviewer position, fill out the form below (if you can't see the form you can fill it out here). If you have any questions, email us at ParanormalHaven@gmail.com

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Guest post and tour giveaway from author Felicity Heaton

2013-05-21T04:00:00.000-07:00

Unleash (Vampire Erotic Theatre Romance Series Book 6)

Felicity Heaton

A powerful vampire lost deep in his bloodlust, Snow is a savage animal, mindless with rage and a thirst for violence, and trapped with no hope of awakening from an endless nightmare… until a song draws him up from the abyss, restoring his sanity but leaving him haunted by the sweet feminine scent of lilies and snow, and fragmented familiar lyrics.

When the mysterious and beautiful songstress reappears in Snow’s room at Vampirerotique, she awakens a fierce protective streak and stirs dark desires that drive him to claim her as his female, even when he knows his touch will destroy her innocence.

A single forbidden taste is all it takes to unleash emotions in Aurora that she shouldn’t possess, tearing her between duty and desire, and luring her into surrendering to her wildfire passion and embracing hungers that burn so hotly they threaten to consume them both.

One act of kindness can lead to one thousand acts of sin though, each a black mark against the bearer’s soul and another grain of sand that slips through an hourglass. The clock is ticking and time is almost up. Can beauty save the beast?

Unleash is available from these and many other ebook stores: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon CA | Apple US | Apple UK | Apple Canada | Apple Australia | Apple New Zealand | Kobo

Find all the links at: http://www.felicityheaton.co.uk/ebooks.php?title=Unleash

Unleash – Excerpt

Snow ducked his head under the hot spray of water and closed his eyes as it soaked through his hair, washing away the shampoo.

He braced his hands against the black tiles in front of him in the double-width shower stall and hung his head forwards, letting the water hit his nape and cascade over his back. The heat soothed the last remnants of tightness from his muscles.

He had worked out in his apartment after Antoine had gone, putting his body through its paces to try to bring himself back to full strength, and had needed this shower. It completed the therapeutic and almost ritualistic process of putting the past three weeks out of his mind by erasing the evidence stamped on his body—the weakness, the bloodstains, and the fatigue. He always felt better afterwards. Almost normal.

Snow opened his pale blue eyes and stared at his feet. Rivulets streamed from the tips of his white hair and his chin and nose, catching the light and sparkling as they fell to the tray far below.

His lips parted and he sighed. Working out had felt good but a shower was always the best medicine after an extended period of captivity. It revitalised him, leaving him feeling alive and awake, and at peace.

He had already scrubbed himself from head to toe twice over, paying close attention to his wrists and ankles.

Snow straightened, the water beating on his broad bare chest, and removed one hand from the wall. He turned his palm upwards and stared down at his scarred wrist.

The marks would fade in time, his preternatural healing taking care of them and leaving smooth skin behind. They were always chafed though, permanent evidence that he had to spend his days wearing leather-lined steel cuffs attached to inch-thick chains that were secured to the industrial grade steel posts at the corners of his bed.

When they had first moved to the theatre, he had forced Antoine to purchase the strongest, thickest metal posts he could find and make a bed out of them for him. Antoine had protested but had done as he had asked in the end, arranging for the restraints at the same time.

His younger brother had told him countless times that he didn’t need to chain himself each day, and Snow had always countered that it was necessary and he did not mind it.

He did. He hated it.

That was beside the point though.

It was necessary, and ever since that fateful night centuries ago, he had always done whatever was necessary to protect others from himself.

Snow heaved a sigh, his chest expanding with it, powerful muscles straining, and ran his hand down his face.

It would have been so much easier if Antoine had agreed to do as Snow had asked that same night and destroyed him.

He deserved to be put down like the rabid beast he was.

Antoine was nothing if not stubborn though. He had been bleeding profusely from the savage wounds Snow had inflicted upon him, carving up his chest and arms so badly that Antoine had scarred rather than healed completely. Snow had thought he would seek revenge for himself and their family, or perhaps take his head as an act of mercy. He had dared to hope his brother would do what was right.

Antoine had refused to kill him and had even pressed him to promise that he would never kill himself either. Snow had agreed and regretted it the moment it had left his lips.

The past few centuries had been hell. Seeing Antoine every night and knowing what he had done to him, the fact he had almost killed the brother he loved with all of his black heart. Seeing Antoine and knowing that he had stolen everything from his brother in one night of madness. Seeing his brother and knowing that he had butchered their entire family.

Seeing Antoine’s face and seeing their mother’s pale blue eyes and their father’s dark brown hair.

It was enough to drive a man insane.

It was a good job he was already crazy.

Snow switched off the shower, ran his hands over his hair to squeeze the water out, and slid the glass cubicle door open. He stepped out onto the black tiles and grabbed a thick white towel. A very impractical colour, but he liked the touch of purity and lightness it brought into his dark world.

He scrubbed the towel over his hair and then dried himself off with one hand. He swiped his free palm across the clouded mirror, clearing enough to reveal his reflection and the main room of his apartment through the open door behind him.

He never liked to look at himself, normally hated seeing his reflection and seeing his mother’s eyes and hair, knowing what he had done to her, but he sometimes felt the need to look and remind himself of what he had done.

A twisted form of punishment.

He dropped the damp towel, pressed both palms against the edge of the black counter, and leaned forwards over the sink, staring hard at his reflection.

A face his mother had often called angelic.

The face of a cold-blooded murderer.

Snow growled and slammed his right fist into his face in the mirror, splintering the glass. Fire seared his knuckles and blood instantly ran down the shards of mirror. He pulled his fist back and plucked a sliver of glass from the soft flesh between his index and middle finger, and dropped it into the sink.

The scent of blood compelled him to taste it, stirring the darkness that constantly lurked within him, stalking just beneath the surface, barely restrained.

He rinsed his bloodied knuckles off in the black oval sink and then inspected them. Two of the cuts were deep. He lifted his hand to his face and sucked those two, drawing more blood to the surface. It tasted foul.

His stomach cramped and he spat the blood into the sink and then swiped his tongue across his knuckles to seal the wounds. The bleeding was already slowing. Within a few minutes, his flesh would begin to knit itself back together and heal.

He took a small towel and wrapped it around his hand, and then strolled naked into his bedroom. The bed loomed directly in front of him. He had promised Antoine that he would sleep and he meant to keep that promise.

He wanted to be sane enough to head down to the party even if it was only for a few minutes. Everyone was depending on him and he didn’t want to let all of them down. They had held off on celebrating the arrival of the twins so he could share in the joy of the event. He needed to be there.

He veered right, heading for the ebony chest of drawers that lined the black wall there next to his elegant wardrobe. He pulled out one of the smaller drawers at the top, fished a fresh pair of black boxers out, and shut it again. Someone spoke in the hall. Snow paused and listened. Callum was talking to Payne as they walked along the hall towards Callum’s apartment beyond Snow’s one. Discussing children.

Payne had taken responsibility for the witch’s youngling? Snow had never pictured the young vampire as a father. He had always imagined him to be more of a bachelor forever type because of his incubus blood.

Was everyone going to settle down and produce offspring now?

Snow tugged his boxer shorts on. They were all going to leave him behind. Everyone had a female now, something warm and tender in their lives. They were complete.

Where did that leave Snow?

With a frustrated growl, he pulled his wardrobe doors open, grabbed fresh bed linen from the stack he kept at the bottom, and slammed them shut again. What did he care about females? No female in her right mind would want him, and he certainly did not want a female.

He could never trust himself with something so weak and breakable.

He lumbered across his room, bare feet thumping against the wooden floor, and dumped the black linen beside his bed. He stripped the soiled covers off and focused on replacing them with fresh ones to keep his mind off a topic that had often angered him.

He had warred with himself many times about finding a female, debating the pros and cons of such a mission, and all the possible outcomes. It was highly likely that a female would leave him the moment she discovered the ugly truth about him, his bloodlust, and his horrific past.

He would probably react to her betrayal by losing his head to bloodlust and killing her.

He had a tendency to react violently whenever someone sought to hurt him.

Breaking his heart would cause him the ultimate pain.

Snow shook that thought away and smoothed the edges of his black covers down, neatening them. He grabbed his black robe and slung it on, but didn’t bother to fasten the belt.

Darkness swirled inside him like a rising tide that he was powerless to hold back. He breathed slowly, trying to work past the tightening knot in his breast, hoping to calm down before he lost himself again.

He sat on the bed and lay with his back against the pillows and his head against the steel bars of the headboard. He cast a glance at the restraints that rested on the pillows on either side of him. They were there if he needed them and that gave him back a fraction of his control, but didn’t quell his rising bloodlust.

His heart galloped, refusing to heed his attempts to slow it, and he closed his eyes and focused on positive things. The battle between his darker hungers and his desire to remain sane intensified and he breathed harder, drawing deep and filling his lungs with cool air. The soft scent of lilies and snow lingered in that air and his mind drifted to the lyrics of the song.

Calm swept through him, driving back the darkness for a brief second before it surged forwards again, obliterating the sense of peace.

A breeze washed over his bare flesh.

Snow frowned. There were no windows in his room. The breeze carried the unmistakable scent of snow yet it felt warm, and familiar.

Someone was in his apartment. He felt their presence as a soft caress that reached right down to his tainted soul and chased the black shadows from it.

Snow drew in a deeper breath of lily of the valley and snow, the pure feminine scent stirring his body and soothing the tension from it. He held it in his lungs and slowly opened his eyes, settling them directly on the dark beauty standing at the foot of his bed.

She was stunning, with a fall of glossy raven hair that playfully curled around slender shoulders and contrasted against her milky skin, heart-shaped rosy lips, a button nose, and the most incredible yet familiar eyes. They were turquoise around the outside but faded to a brilliant blue at their centres, around the dark mesmerising chasms of her pupils.

A pure white dress clung to dangerous curves and full breasts that would make any man’s eyes linger on her, evoking images in his head that he shouldn’t entertain but couldn’t keep at bay. He had never seen a female like her.

The white layers of her dress criss-crossed over her torso, forming a zigzagging line downwards from between the swell of her creamy breasts to the point above her navel. They flowed from there, free and untamed, drifting down to caress her ankles and her small bare feet.

Beautiful.

Unleash is available now from all Amazon Kindle, Kobo Books, and Apple iBooks Stores. It will soon be available for Barnes and Noble Nook, Sony Reader and also in paperback.

About Felicity Heaton:

Felicity Heaton writes passionate paranormal romance books as Felicity Heaton and F E Heaton. In her books she creates detailed worlds, twisting plots, mind-blowing action, intense emotion and heart-stopping romances with leading men that vary from dark deadly vampires to sexy shape-shifters and wicked werewolves, to sinful angels and hot demons!

If you're a fan of paranormal romance authors Lara Adrian, J R Ward, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Gena Showalter and Christine Feehan then you will enjoy her books too.

If you love your angels a little dark and wicked, Felicity Heaton’s best selling Her Angel series is for you. If you like strong, powerful, and dark vampires then try the Vampires Realm series she writes as F E Heaton or any of her stand alone vampire romance books she writes as Felicity Heaton. Or if you’re looking for vampire romances that are sinful, passionate and erotic then try Felicity Heaton’s new Vampire Erotic Theatre series.

In 2011, five of her six paranormal romance books received Top Pick awards from Night Owl Reviews, Forbidden Blood was nominated as Best PNR Vampire Romance 2011 at The Romance Reviews, and many of her releases received five star reviews from numerous websites.

If you want to know more about Felicity, or want to get in touch, you can find her at the following places: Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Unleash, the sixth book in Felicity Heaton’s Vampire Erotic Theatre romance series is now available. To celebrate the release, she’s holding a fantastic giveaway at her website and she’s also offering the first book in the series, Covet, for FREE at selected Amazon Kindle, Kobo Books and Apple iBooks Stores.

You can find all the links for the Covet special offer (and two other free paranormal romance ebooks) at: http://www.felicityheaton.co.uk/paranormal-romance-ebook-offers.php

GIVEAWAY TIME!
Find out how to enter the Unleash international giveaway (ends May 26th) and be in with a shot of winning a $75, $50 or $25 gift certificate at her website, where you can also download a 5 chapter sample of the novel: http://www.felicityheaton.co.uk/ebooks.php?title=Unleash

Book Review: Inferno by Sherrilyn Kenyon

2013-05-20T04:00:00.000-07:00

Inferno
Author: Sherrilyn Kenyon
Series: Chronicles of Nick, book 4
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
ISBN-10: 1250002834
ISBN-13: 978-1250002839
Source: From publisher for review
Buy it here: Amazon | Book Depository
For more information visit Sherrilyn Kenyon's website

Review by: Stephanie

Taking place where Infamous left off, Nick has just learned surprising news about his girlfriend and oh yea, his substitute teacher happens to be Grim, Mr. Death himself. To mess with his head even further, he now has the unwanted attention of the most popular girl in school and can feel a very powerful force nipping at his heels, just waiting for its chance to capture the young Malachai demon. Yup, just another complicated, life or death day for Nick Gautier.

At only 16, Nick shows readers again why he's one of Sherrilyn Kenyon's best characters. In Inferno, Nick continues to be sought after by evil so they can use him once he's in his demon form while he fights to prove everyone wrong and show he's not a monster in waiting. Nick is amazing. At times I forget how young he is because of how he takes all life's curve balls, and for him there are many, and when a stronger, older man would crumble at the weight being placed on his shoulders Nick takes it in stride with his offbeat, sarcastic humor. The only thing I found really off putting in this book was how easily the popular girl Casey was able to get her claws into him. He and Kody are on the outs and Casey swoops in too easily, yes there's an ulterior motive there, and gets Nick to act out of character. Some of it boosts his self-confidence which I'm all for but during other scenes it's obvious he's uncomfortable yet all it takes is a few words and he's doing it. It didn't feel right but thankfully by the end he's back to his old self. Nick is a really stellar, well-crafted character that takes on new depth with each release and I find myself falling more and more in love with him.

Acheron receives a good amount of page time and I welcomed every morsel. Seeing his and Nick's relationship form from the beginning is this fan girl's dream and of course I'm hoping it'll change their future because I'm telling you, their fallout in the Dark Hunter series nearly killed me but I think that's a discussion to have once we get closer to Nick's actual DH book. Nick's friend/guardian Caleb opens up some and reveals emotions and a history that helps explain his coldness towards Nick and it inadvertently draws the two closer together. Caleb can be a jerk but there's reason for the distrust. With secrets of her own, Kody also opens up, though more to the reader than Nick, and you get to learn more about her. I think both of these characters are coming into their own and are becoming less of supporting characters for Nick to count on when he's in trouble and more vital to the overall series. I'm enjoying watching this because they're both big personality characters with a lot to offer.

Most of the book is spent in Nick's head as he figures out what's after him, why the sudden interest from Casey, how he's dealing with the news about Kody, how he doesn't want to disappoint his mother (who thankfully doesn't spend the entire book hounding on him again), and how he doesn't want to become his father; all this in addition to the normal unusual things that randomly pop into a 16 year old boy's mind. To top it off his world expands when he goes beyond the borders of New Orleans into other realms. There's little downtime but I didn't think it ever feels overwhelming. There's a balance between the action, drama, random hilarity, and Nick reflecting about changes in his life and his future that keeps the book from feeling like it's packed with too much.

I may be able to nitpick at a couple things in the book but as a whole Inferno is great read. Nick continues to impress and the story is consistently engaging. This is a series that needs to be read in order. Could you pick the series up with this book and still figure out what's going on? Sure, but you'll miss the evolution of Nick and that's the backbone of the series.
My Rating:

New books, Spring Carnival and Nalini Singh tour news in our Weekly Recap

2013-05-18T04:00:00.000-07:00

Welcome to our Weekly Recap. We will be sharing what books and goodies we got and will go over some of our favorite posts, giveaways, book covers and anything else that peeked our interest during the past week. Lets start things off with sharing what books we got.

For Review

Flirting with Disaster by Ruthie Knox
Inferno by Sherrilyn Kenyon
Heart of Venom by Jennifer Estep
Dead Man's Deal by Jocelynn Drake
What the Duke Desires by Sabrina Jeffries
A Clockwork Heart by Liesel Schwarz

Spring Carnival and what's been happening at Paranormal Haven

- Our Spring Carnival is now over and we want to take a minute to express our gratitude to everyone who helped make our event a success. Many, MANY thanks to...

Delilah S Dawson
Diana Duvall
Jeri Smith-Ready
Gini Koch (and her assistant Colette)
Bec McMaster
Dani Harper

Rosalie Lario
Cynthia Eden
Kristen Callihan
Stacey Kennedy
Rebecca Zanetti

Thank you all so much ladies. I was unsure of how it would turn out since it was a new event but the feedback I received from the authors and looking over the comments left by followers are very encouraging and I'm seriously considering bringing it back next year.

There is still a little more time to enter in to all of the event giveaways. All end on Wednesday, May 22nd and the winners will be announced Saturday, May 25th, during our Weekly Recap. For a complete list of guest posts and giveaways, visit our event main page or click on any of the author names above.

- In cased you missed them, there were a few non-event related review posts during the last couple weeks. Reviews posted were:

Hot Blooded by Amanda Carlson
Immortal Trust by Claire Ashgrove
The Demon's Song by Kendra Leigh Castle
Midnight Secrets by Ella Grace
One for the Wicked by Karina Cooper
Heart of Iron by Bec McMaster

- We passed 2,000 GFC followers!! Not sure when it happened but holy crap is that awesome. I want to say welcome to our new followers and thank you to all our old followers who helped spread the word about our little corner of the web to others. This is so exciting :-D

Giveaways on other sites

- Goldilox and the Three Weres has 7 days of giveaways to celebrate her birthday
- Geeky Bloggers Book Blog is hosting a sponsored giveaway for a copy of Bare it All by Lori Foster
- I Smell Sheep is giving away winner's choice of Alien Tango, Alien in the Family, Alien Proliferation, or Alien Diplomacy plus swag from Gini Koch
- Under the Covers Book Blog is giving away a copy of Animal Magnetism by Jill Shalvis
- Readers Confession is giving away e-gift cards, pre-ordered books, and swag during her 1 year blogoversary kick off giveaway
- Fiction Vixen is giving away a copy of Fall of Night by Rachel Caine (Hurry, this one ends soon!)

Did you hear?

Nalini Singh will be touring the U.S. next month to celebrate her highly anticipated release, Heart of Obsidian (and the crowd goes wild!!). She won't be anywhere near I can visit (thank you Ronnie for solving that problem for me) but make sure to check out this blog post to find out if she'll be coming to your area. Your town not on the list? Well lucky you because she'll also be doing a virtual signing. Again, see this blog post for all the details.

Cover Talk

I like both of these covers but they're not my favorite of their series'....though Gin looks like she might kick my butt for saying that so maybe I think it's the best one ever....

I'm excited for both releases but we'll have to wait until December for them. In the meantime, Heart of Venom, Elemental Assassins book 9, will be out on August 27th.

Spring Carnival - Guest post and giveaway from Rebecca Zanetti

2013-05-17T09:00:00.000-07:00

Thanks to the Paranormal Haven group for having me over today! I love the idea of a carnival event…and even more so of having a group of wolf shifters hang out at a carnival. The hero in TWISTED, Terrent Vilks, is a pure-bred Alpha wolf shifter, and the idea of his attending a carnival cracks me up. Can you see a wolf shifter on the Zipper? Or the Tilt-O-Whirl? I can’t.

And to be honest, it turns out that Terrent isn’t a big fan of heights…or machinery. There’s a scene in the book where he’s chased the heroine through the woods, and she ends up climbing a tree. Here’s the quick excerpt:

Terrent reached for a branch, only to drop it and grab a different one. His mouth twisted in a pained grimace. “Come down. Now.”

Wait a minute. Maggie bit her lip. Was the big, bad wolf afraid of heights? “I think you should come up and get me.”

He stilled, his gaze piercing through the night. “If I have to come up and get you, little wolf, you’ll regret it.”

She levered out to sit on a thick branch, swinging her feet back and forth. “I’m waiting.” Her sing-song voice filled the forest.

“Get back closer to the tree,” he snapped. Red swept across his cheekbones.

“Make me.” She scooted farther away from the trunk, her legs dangling, her hands on a branch above her head. This was the most fun she’d had in too long.

“Damn it, Maggie.”

“Tell me the truth, or I’ll start swinging from branches.” To prove her point, she bent her knee and ran her foot along the branch.

“I should let you fall on your damn stubborn head.” He tugged on a lower branch, testing his weight. The thing snapped in two.

Maggie laughed and guided her other foot into place so she could stand. “Why did you lie?”

“I didn’t lie.” He reached for a higher branch and growled as it ripped from the tree. “You agreed to be my mate.”

“Were we in love?”

“Absolutely.”

Not likely. “I may not know a lot of wolves, but something tells me we don’t contract to mate. If we were truly together, which I’m not sure about, then any mating would’ve occurred quickly.”

“You calling me a liar, darlin’?” His voice lowered to a softness that slid danger into deadly.

The hair pricked up on the back of her neck. “I haven’t decided.”

“Let me know when you do.”

Her branch shuddered and then splintered apart. With a soft cry, she jumped and landed on a branch several feet down. Pine needles flew, and bark crumbled, but the damn thing held her.

He smiled. “Close enough.” Bunching his legs, he leapt.

The wolf hit her mid-center and tucked her into his hard body. She screamed as they sailed through the boughs. He rolled them several times mid-air, wrapping long legs and arms around her.

Gravity yanked them down like the powerful force it was.

She landed on top of him and lost every bit of oxygen from her lungs. Maybe her muscles. Hell, maybe her brain.

Her chin thunked against his chest. Taking several deep breaths, she went boneless on him as she took inventory. Nothing really hurt.

“Are you all right?” he rumbled, both hands flattening against her lower back.

Her entire lower back.

She lifted her head. “Fine. You?”

He grimaced and shifted his weight beneath her. “I’m good, though pine needles may have pierced my spine.”

All of that incredible muscle rolling into place against her body flared nerves to life. All sorts of nerves . . . in all sorts of places. She pushed against his chest to get off.

She didn’t move.

For more about Terrent, Maggie, and their novella, TWISTED, visit Rebecca Zanetti's website: http://rebeccazanetti.com/

TWISTED is a novella in the Dark Protector series and will be released on June 20th. I would love to give away a signed copy of FATED, book 1 in the series, to a randomly chosen commenter here. So, let me ask you this: Are you afraid of heights, or do you have any other phobias?

Giveaway is open U.S. only. Read event rules and guidelines before entering.
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Book Review: Heart of Iron by Bec McMaster

2013-05-17T03:00:00.000-07:00

Heart of Iron
Author: Bec McMaster
Series: London Steampunk, book 2
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
ISBN-10: 1402270305
ISBN-13: 978-1402270307
Source: From publisher for review
Buy it here: Amazon | Book Depository
For more information visit Bec McMaster's website

Review by: Stephanie

Keeping his distance as he watches from the shadows, Will is verwulfen and he'll do anything to protect Lena from his wild nature. When he learns that she is working with Humanists, a radical group looking to raise a human's status to more than a blood supplier to the Blue Bloods, Will takes an offer to help get a treaty signed with the Norwegian verwulfen in order to watch over Lena. Lena feels like she doesn't belong in White Chapel or in the social circles of high society. At one time becoming a thrall to a Blue Blood was all she wanted but now she's secretly working to free her kind from London's aristocrats. Will's presence is a distraction she doesn't need. Especially since there are real feelings behind her flirtatious gestures and he's made it clear he wants little to do with her. Each with their own missions and enemies, Will and Lena need to stop fighting each other and begin working together if they want to survive to have any future together.

It took some time but I finally warmed up to Lena. She first comes off as snobbish and simple minded with her sole determination to be part of the "in" crowd but there's more to her. She's intelligent, brave, cares for the weak and risks her life for what she thinks is a noble cause. Lena has a bigger heart than I first gave her credit for and no one deserves her love more than Will. To say Will has had it tough is an understatement. From his painful transformation at a young age to his mother selling him and being caged, Will doesn't know how to react to Lena other than pushing her away. It's a struggle for Will to want Lena so bad she brings out his wolfish instincts yet hold them back out of fear of hurting her. I love, LOVE Will. He's plays the role of reluctant alpha very well. His past is heartbreaking and his wants for his future are no better and watching Lena work her way under his skin and ruin those lonely plans is great. His transformation from lone wolf to 'you touch my woman you die' doesn't happen overnight and each step he takes is an emotional treat for me and by the end I was swooning.

I can't say I saw a relationship between Will and Lena working after Kiss of Steel but now I'm a believer. It builds as the book progress; they'll take two steps forward with a stolen kiss or private moment together and then a step back when Will pulls away out of fear of hurting Lena and Lena interrupting that as disinterest. As much as I wished they jumped into bed quicker I'm glad they didn't because the time they take during their mating dance reveals a lot that only adds to the intensity of their big moment and makes it all the more satisfying. The teasing almost drove me crazy but I think it's all worth it in the end.

Like in the first book the Blue Bloods (vampires) are a big part but the spotlight is also shown on the verwulfen. Hoping to obtain an alliance with the Norwegian verwulfen, who are incredibly interesting and I hope will play a more prominent role in future books, Will is asked by the ruling aristocratic Blue Bloods to help win over support and in exchange legal freedom for his kind. As one would expect, it's not that simple and Will, with Lena's help, learns to navigate the world of the upper class while he finds out more about Lena's involvement with the Humanists. There's a lot going on in this book that all intertwines with each other so I don't want to give away too much. I will say it's all fanatically written and flows together to deliver an engaging read without confusion.

Kiss of Steel was amazing and it left big shoes for the follow up to fill and I think Bec McMaster did a wonderful job doing just that with Heart of Iron. It did have a slow start while everything and everyone is put into place and once that happens, the book takes off and is hard to put down. Lena and Will don't make it easy on you but their HEA is worth every frustrating, exciting, tear-jerking moment and the story is excellent all around.
My Rating:

Spring Carnival - Guest post and giveaway from Stacey Kennedy

2013-05-16T04:00:00.000-07:00

Oooh! Spring carnival fun! How exciting! I gotta admit, I would pay money to put Kyden, the hero from WEREWOLVES BE DAMNED, at a carnival. Why? Well, let me tell you a little bit about him.

He’s a guardian from the Otherworld. That means he’s a hunk with a sword strapped to his back. While, of course, his sword might cause a look or two, luckily for Kyden, the magic in the sword hides it from human eyes. Still, I think it’d be amusing to see a tough guy, who usually fights against evil, go to a carnival.

Is it just me, or would he seem a tad out of place?

Now Kyden usually spends his nights hunting down supernaturals who have taken innocent mortal lives. He’s the definition of an alpha-male. You know the type, a man who wouldn’t be caught dead riding a Ferris wheel. Or if he did ride it, he’d look upward of ridiculous squished into the seat. I suspect the only way you’d get him to go to a carnival was if his leading lady, Nexi, wanted to go.

Once she got him there, I imagine it’d go a little something like this:

With Nexi being raised human, a carnival would be a blast for her. She’d eat cotton candy, she’d go on all the rides, and she’d have an awesome time. Kyden, however, would probably be grumbling behind her the entire way.

Of course, he’d try and be supportive. Maybe he’d smile at her to make it look he was having fun, but deep down, he’d be thinking about how to get her to leave with him. I suspect Kyden would much rather do other things to make the night exciting that didn’t include carnival rides.

So, yes, as I mentioned above, seeing Kyden at a carnival would be way better entertainment than the carnival itself! Don’t you agree?!

About the Author:

Stacey Kennedy is an urban fantasy lover at heart, but she also enjoys losing herself in dark and sensual worlds. She lives in southwestern Ontario with her husband, who gave her a happily-ever-after. Together, they have two small children who can always make her smile, and who will never be allowed to read Mommy’s books. If she’s not plugging away at a new story, you’ll find her camping, curling up with the latest flick, or obsessing over Sons of Anarchy and Game of Thrones.

Find Stacey online: Website | Facebook | Facebook Fan Page | Twitter | Goodreads

Stacey is giving away an e-copy of The Cat's Meow. This is open internationally. Read event rules and guidelines before entering.
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Spring Carnival - Guest post and giveaway from Kristen Callihan

2013-05-15T09:00:00.000-07:00

If one of your characters worked at a carnival, what would their job be? Would they be good at it or the worst employee ever?

As soon as I read this question, I thought of Poppy. Why Poppy? Well, now she doesn’t have the standard carnie personality, but she has one skill that can be quite… refreshing on a hot summer day spent at the carnival.

So then, what job would Poppy have? Why snow cone maven, of course!
:-)

Poppy, who has the power to create ice with a thought, could do this job with one hand tied behind her back. She’d be the queen of snow cone making. And because she is the responsible sort, and capable of leading an entire organization, she’d not only be a good employee, she’d be running the stand by the end of the first day.

Poppy Ice! Made from the finest, freshest ice available! 100% pure! Now in 24 delicious flavors!

Thanks again for having me.

Best,

Kristen
http://www.kristencallihan.com/

Kristen is giving away winner's choice of 1 book in her Darkest London series (Firelight, Moonglow OR Winterblaze). This is open internationally. Read event rules and guidelines before entering.
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Book Review: One for the Wicked by Karina Cooper

2013-05-15T03:00:00.000-07:00

One for the Wicked
Author: Karina Cooper
Series: Dark Misson, book 5
Publisher: Avon
ISBN-10: 0062127756
ISBN-13: 978-0062127754
Source:
Buy it here: Amazon | Book Depository
For more information visit Karina Cooper's website

Review by: Beth

Dr. Kayleigh Lauderdale is scientist working on a cure for degradation in lab made witches. Shawn Lowe, who is a part of the resistance, is sent to acquire Kayleigh in hopes she will have information that they need. Shawn only wants revenge for his parents’ murder. Shawn hold Kayleigh’s father responsible. He poses as her security, and gets far more than he bargained for when he kidnaps her.

One for the Wicked is the last book in the Dark Mission series. It switches between Kayleigh and Shawn’s POV mainly, but at the end diverts to previous couples in the series.

The story really starts with Kayleigh and Shawn in a car together. Kayleigh is doing a little awkward flirting. The sexual tension starts out strong between them. Shawn is a little too demanding from my taste, but looking back on the Dark Mission books most of the heroes were. While I don’t like instant love, I don’t mind some instant lust. Shawn does his seductive thing before her kidnaps her, but in the midst of Kayleigh’s abduction there is an earthquake. Instead of leaving (the nut case) Shawn on the floor to die, she helps him. Because of course this proves she’s not an evil (bad) person?

Safe to say that was where this couple started to go downhill for me. Kayleigh seemed so clear headed up until this point. Then of course we have the classic back and forth between loving, but not knowing they love each other, which never felt right between these characters. I mean he tried to kidnap her, jerked her around, and was just plain mean. Then he ends up trapped under a rock and she doesn’t walk away from him!?! This might’ve been because they both needed their sanity check. While Kayleigh might seriously have a screw loose, Shawn is trying way too hard to seem cool and bad at the same time. At times I liked him, at other times I thought they were both crazy.

The romance between them didn’t hold up for me. It has always been the background that made this series special in my eyes. In this post-apocalyptic world the church has condemned witches, real witches. The resistance, in which I was hoping would in the end kick major ass, really doesn’t. Instead Kayleigh’s father, who pulls the strings behind the curtain, goes crazy. We’ve always got glimpses of his history, and him for that matter, but what he does in this novel didn’t fully make sense to me. After everything that has happened, it didn’t hold up for me. Earthquakes keep happening. They push the characters forward and into fixing the issues. All this time I was waiting for the resistance to go on the offensive, but it never really happens.

As always the action is well detailed, as is the world around the characters. Kayleigh and Shawn didn’t do it for me, and neither did their storyline. They fell for one another too fast, but more than that Kayleigh liking Shawn made me feel as if she were dense. Even though Shawn’s ‘too cool for school’ annoys me, I did believe his feelings for Kayleigh. I just didn’t much like him as a hero.

Since this is the last in the Dark Mission series, I will say something about it overall. The books that stood out for me in the series were Blood of the Wicked (book 1) and Sacrifice the Wicked (book 4.) It isn’t a series that has to be read in order. In One for the Wicked the focus leaves Kayleigh and Shawn to check on the previous couples, which was nice, but readers who haven’t read the whole series won’t really know these characters. The biggest bummer was that one of the best (my personal favorite) characters, Jonas, was only given a novella length story. It was also lacking in story compared to the others.

The main theme that runs through all the novels is redemption. Most (I think there are a couple women) of the male protagonists have a dark past and are super alpha male. There are variations, but most of the couples hit nearly the same plot points. Cooper does a good job of varying types of characters, although one or two felt like rehashes. On the other side of that coin she has many characters over all, and I did enjoy the family feel in the resistance that grew over time. All-in-all I thought it was an okay paranormal series. I enjoyed the take on the world, but the romance didn’t do it for me.
My rating:

Spring Carnival - Guest post & giveaway from Cynthia Eden

2013-05-14T04:00:00.000-07:00

Spring Carnival!

Oh, wow, but I love a good carnival. Whenever I think of a carnival, I’m instantly reminded of the smells (only the good ones!). Fresh cotton candy. The tempting scent of candy apples…

I could go for some carnival fun right now!

For this post, I am going to focus on a character from my upcoming release—AVENGING ANGEL. The heroine in that book is a newly fallen angel named Marna. What would Marna’s first carnival experience be like? Well, I suspect it would go something like this…

Her job: Games Attendant

Marna likes to have fun—so, of course, she has to be the one in charge of the games. She’d yell and scream and get folks to come by and try their luck at balloon darts or the ring toss. But, just when the fun is going along nicely—

THINGS GET UGLY.

Marna realizes that some of the games may not be 100% fair. Folks aren’t winning, at least not the way that she’ d like for them to win. She starts to use a little of her angel power to even up the odds. Suddenly a five-year-old is walking away with a teddy bear that is three times his size. Two-year-old just won a life-sized Scooby Doo.

THINGS GET COOL.

Prizes are given away left and right because when an angel is in charge—even a fallen one—everyone’s a winner. Let the games continue. Play all day long!

And, yes, by the end of the day, nothing is left. Not even a lone stuffed animal. Marna may lose her job, but she sure had fun during her carnival hours.

For fallen angels, fun is hard to come by.

Thanks for checking out Marna’s day at the carnival! I’m going to give away two copies of AVENGING ANGEL (available 5/28/13) with this post. Read event rules and guidelines before entering. Open internationally.

To enter the giveaway, please tell me…what was your favorite carnival game? Were you a winner?

Have a great day!

Cynthia Eden
www.cynthiaeden.com
BOUND IN DEATH—Available now!
AVENGING ANGEL—Available 5/28/13

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Spring Carnival - Guest post & giveaway from author Rosalie Lario

2013-05-13T09:00:00.000-07:00

I’ve always been a fan of carnivals. The combination of good old-fashioned fun and House-of-Horror-type scares provides undeniable entertainment, and I’m usually the first in line when a traveling carnival hits town. So I’m honored to have been asked to be a part of Paranormal Haven’s Spring Carnival.

Today I’m going to let Taeg Meyers, the hero of my current release, MARK OF THE SYLPH, give you his take on carnivals. Now, you should know, Taeg is anything but normal. He’s half demon and half fae—a byproduct of his sadistic father’s interspecies experimentation—and he was born on a dimension called Infernum. As a result, he’s pretty accustomed to seeing some weird stuff. But even he might be surprised by what he finds at the carnival…

***

Light from the half-moon illuminated the dark, dusty path ahead of Taeg. Particles of dirt clung to his skin and clothes as he stalked down the muggy dirt road toward the crooked sign hanging in the distance. Once upon a time it had read “Carnival and Freak Show”, but the sloppy red paint had worn off a few of the letters, which only added to the decrepit feel of his surroundings.

“What the hell am I doing here?” he muttered to himself.

Following a lead, that was what. One that had led him to a freaky, permanent carnival in humid-as-hell Florida. Yeah, the lead was tenuous at best, but considering how much he had to go on he wasn’t about to leave any stone unturned.

He was searching for a sword. And not just any sword. A magical one.

A few months ago Taeg and his brothers had managed to stop their demon father, Mammon, from using an ancient and indestructible spellbook, The Book of the Dead, to start the apocalypse on Earth. They’d turned him into the council governing travel between dimensions, who also happened to be their employer, and had earned a free pass to stay here on Earth as a result. Unfortunately, Mammon’s right-hand man had escaped them. Leviathos had been Taeg’s best friend growing up—until Taeg had betrayed him. Leviathos was now on a mission to get his hands on that book, and that was something Taeg could never allow. Because his sister-in-law, Keegan’s wife Brynn, was bound to that book, and Taeg would do anything to protect her.

Even go to a carnival town affectionately termed the Devil’s Armpit in search of a sword rumored to have the power to destroy any object. Excalibur, to those who cared about legends.

Given the crazy hot weather and the general condemned feel of the carnival, there was no one waiting in line when he pulled up to the rickety wooden shack that served as the ticket booth. An older man with an impressive number of missing teeth smiled at him and drawled, “What can I do ya for?”

“Uh…” Finally figuring that must mean ‘Can I help you?’ or something similar, Taeg pulled out the piece of paper his contact back in New York, Bael, had given him. “I’m here to see a man about a sword.”

The old man reached out with shaky hands and grasped the paper, then unfolded it to read the name. “Ah, ya want Larry. He’s out at the big tent, by the snake pit.”

“Snakes?” Huh. Not his favorite creatures here on Earth, not by a long shot.

Woodenly hobbling out of the shack, the man pointed out the location of the tent. “If ya see the Dog-man, ya gone too far.”

Dog-man? Sounded like some sort of shifter to him, but he wasn’t about to say so. Most humans had no idea there were a multitude of species from other dimensions living right here on Earth.

Taeg strode through the barely-lit path between tents and entertainment areas, passing only a handful of brave attendees on his way. He also passed an alligator lady and a guy who could pull the skin on his chest up over his head.

Creepy. And that was saying a lot, coming from him.

Finally he arrived at the big tent. It was hard to miss, as it was the only one larger than your average-sized camping tent.

He stifled a shudder as he stepped through the open canvas flap. Ever since his sadistic father had tortured him and his brothers in a tent outside the Egyptian pyramids, he definitely wasn’t a tent fan. But for Brynn, he’d suck it up. She’d saved their lives, after all.

The tent was empty save for an older man who stood by a makeshift stage talking to a semi-hot, younger woman dressed in Goth-style. She wore a leather halter-top, short skirt and black lipstick, and somehow managed to look like she wasn’t melting in this heat.

The older man, who must be Larry, broke off when Taeg entered. He shot Taeg a look of appraisal before giving him a toothless grin that made him resemble the ticket booth guy.

“Come in,” he boomed in a Southern drawl, raising his hands for dramatic effect. “Prepare to be wowed and amazed!”

Wowed and amazed, huh? Tempting as that sounded…

“I’m actually here because of an acquaintance of yours.” Taeg kept walking until he stood directly in front of the man. “I’m looking for—”

“Oh, yeah, you’re the guy looking for the magical sword, right?”

Taeg flinched at the man’s loud tone. Not that there was anyone else here to listen in, other than the Goth chick, and from where she was looking, she appeared far more interested in what was in his pants than in what anyone was saying right now. “Uh, I was trying to keep that on the down low.”

Larry chuckled and clapped him on the back. “Look no further, pal. Here it is.”

He motioned to the woman, who gave Taeg a cheeky smile and a wink before turning to saunter toward the back of the stage. She picked up a long, thin sword and wiped it down with a handkerchief she produced out of thin air before turning to show him her profile. Without warning, she tilted her head back and opened her throat, effortlessly swallowing the sword to the hilt.

Taeg froze in shock. “What the hell?”

Larry let out a rusty laugh and slapped him on the back once more. “Impressive, ain’t it?”

“That’s…uh…” Growing up on Infernum, a world populated by demons and angels, he’d seen some crazy shit, but he could honestly say this was the first time he’d ever seen anything like this. The people in his world generally ran from swords, rather than shoving them inside their bodies.

Much to Taeg’s surprise, the woman lifted one hand and slowly pulled the sword from her throat before giving him a raunchy wink and curtsying.

“You’re uh…still alive,” he managed.

She giggled, and Larry let out a loud laugh. “I’m not saying it’s easy. It’ll take years for you to master, mostly likely, but I can teach ya how to do it.”

Realization began to dawn. Taeg had the sneaking suspicion he’d just been pranked by his contact. “This has nothing to do with a magical sword, right?”

Larry chuckled and shook his head. “Course not, buddy. Ain’t no such thing. But it’s a damn good illusion, and I’ll teach ya. For a price.”

Aw, hell.

After muttering some vague excuses and extricating himself from the grasp of the flirty Goth chick, who not so subtly indicated that swords weren’t the only thing she was good at swallowing, he strode from the tent.

Damn Bael. The guy was a regular jokester, and no doubt he was at home having a good laugh at Taeg’s expense right now. If Taeg hadn’t had the ability to instantaneously transport himself from one spot to another on this dimension, he’d be pissed as hell. But since it had taken him no time flat to get here from New York, he wouldn’t kick Bael’s ass. Too hard.

Time to get back to work. He needed to find the sword, or something else that would destroy that damn book. One thing was for sure, though. He’d think twice before ever coming back to a carnival again. There were few things that scared a guy from Infernum, but he had to admit, this place had done it.

***

Thanks for staying tuned for Taeg’s eye-opening carnival experience! To hear more about Excalibur and meet the woman who turns his world on end, be sure to check out MARK OF THE SYLPH.

Mark of the Sylph, Book 2 of the Demons of Infernum series, is Now Available!
Order at Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Links to Alternate Retailers

About the Author:

Rosalie Lario is the award-winning, paranormal romance author of the Demons of Infernum and the Fallen Warriors series. Rosalie double majored in Anthropology and Classics as an undergraduate student, and briefly considered becoming an archaeologist before realizing they don't actually live the life of Indiana Jones. So what was a classical geek armed with a lot of useless knowledge to do? Become a lawyer, of course!

After attending law school in Florida, she practiced real estate law for several years before finally admitting to herself that negotiating contracts wasn't nearly as fun as dreaming up stories. She never imagined all the mythology she'd learned throughout her undergraduate education might actually come in handy, but it makes perfect fodder for the paranormal romance stories she now dreams up.

When not writing, she enjoys spending time with her husband and two young children in their home state of Florida. You can visit Rosalie at: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Newsletter Sign-up

GIVEAWAY: One Signed Paperback Copy (U.S. only) or One eCopy (INT) of MARK OF THE SYLPH by Rosalie Lario. Read event rules and guidelines before entering.

Half-demon Taeg is desperate to free his pregnant sister-in-law, who is spellbound to an indestructible book that will create an army of the undead. He is convinced that an ancient sword can destroy the book and the spell forever, but this relic has been hidden for a millennia by a powerful glamour. The clock begins to run out on his search when an old rival goes after the book and Taeg’s family in his quest for revenge.

Librarian Maya Flores has a secret: she’s immune to magic and is well aware of the supernatural beings prowling the streets of New York City. Haunted by a brutal demon attack that took her family, she is on a one-woman mission to destroy the evil demons who did it—and any others who get in her way.

Maya is Taeg’s best hope for uncovering the sword. Unfortunately, she wants nothing more than to kill him. As he fights for her trust and to save his family, she is forced to face the truth that not all demons are evil. And the worst part? She might be falling in love with one, too.
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Book Review: Midnight Secrets by Ella Grace

2013-05-13T03:00:00.000-07:00

Midnight Secrets
Author: Ella Grace
Series: Wildefire, book 1
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN-10: 0345538366
ISBN-13: 978-0345538369
Source: From Edelweiss
Buy it here: Amazon
For more information visit Ella Grace's website

Review by: Ronnie

The first 10-15% of Midnight Secrets I wasn’t really all that wild about. It makes for a somewhat slow start, and takes you back to the teenage years of our hero and heroine. Savannah Wilde and Zach Tanner meet when he rescues her from being assaulted from a group of teenage boys. A relationship develops the two teens, only to have the book fast forward 10 years with each of them in their respective professions, living apart.

Savannah is a prosecutor working in Nashville, Tennessee and is sent on a two month leave of absence after being attacked in the courtroom. She heads down to Midnight, Alabama only to find that her former lover, Zach Tanner, is the police chief of Midnight. Savannah has worked hard at moving on after Zach left her without a word. Zach, on the other hand, is full of regrets with what happened with him and Savannah and wants desperately to try to make things right. The tragedy surrounding Savannah’s past and her parents ‘ murder come to the forefront of the book, as Savannah stumbles across letters her grandfather has written.

As much as Savannah tries to keep her distance from Zach, the feelings that she had years ago come back nearly immediately after running into him. This part of the plot, while perfectly serviceable to the book, left me with a feeling of “meh.” This wasn’t anything I haven’t read a hundred times before. She doesn’t want to be hurt again, so she tries to keep her distance. The man feels bad for his actions and tries desperately to communicate how much he regrets what he did. When they finally do reveal what misunderstanding kept them apart from one another, I wasn’t blown away by the revelation on either side.

Savannah, for her part, is a smart heroine. Strong, compassionate, and sensitive, she tracks the clues her grandfather left behind in his letters about her parents’ murder with Zach at her side. Zach is determined not to let Savannah slip through his fingers again, and will do anything to keep her safe. I thought the last 50% of the book moved a lot more quickly than the first half, and while you get a couple of scenes with the sisters in the latter half, Savannah and Zach are the stars of the book, and I did like the fact the book solely concentrated on them.

While I might be hard pressed to recall the plot of Midnight Secrets in a couple of weeks, I did enjoy the book quite a bit. I found myself getting sucked in after struggling through the first 20% or so, and I found the romance to be the focus of the book, rather than the suspense, and I found I enjoyed it more so for just that reason. I find that I’m also curious about what will happen to Savannah’s sisters, so I’ll definitely be tuning in again.
My Rating:

Spring Carnival - Guest post and giveaway from author Dani Harper

2013-05-12T04:00:00.000-07:00

Changeling Carnival

A scene from an upcoming story by Dani Harper

A carnival was no place for a Changeling’s nose, no matter how much he needed a few day’s pay. Harlan’s inner wolf complained incessantly, and his human side had a constant splitting headache. Cotton candy’s cloying sweetness set his teeth on edge. Popcorn, normally a favorite of his, was paired with the nauseating chemical signature of a butter wannabe. The aroma of donuts and corndogs and French fries might have been pleasant – hey, he had nothing against fast food – but in such vast overwhelming quantity, the stink of old and overheated cooking oil overshadowed all.

Thank the goddess he’d been sent to the haunted house when he’d signed on. Patrons weren’t allowed to bring food and drinks in here – it tended to go flying when skeletons and monsters appeared to jump out of the walls. All he had to put up with was the ear-piercing shrieks of delighted terror, and the tangy scent of human adrenaline.

A week and I’m outa here. Of course everyone stayed long enough to “strike” the carnival – disassemble the rides and the attractions, and pack them into the trucks. It was the traditional condition of employment, or rather, a time-honored choice between getting your paycheck handed to you or your ass. Harlan wasn’t concerned about the latter. His Changeling strength was more than a match for a gang of carnie muscle men. But even a werewolf needed cash.

He had to admit, the haunted house was cleverly designed. It was big – a sprawling labyrinth two floors high – but one person could run it alone. In case of trouble (and it never failed, some hapless human would succumb to primal fears, and either pass out or stand there paralyzed) there was a warren of quick shortcuts to any room in the attraction. Harlan much preferred the non-human problems, like skeletons that got stuck in their closets, or zombies who lost body parts they weren’t intended to, or giant corny spiders who crashed to the floor in a tangle of mechanical legs instead of menacing passersby from their polyester webs. He could deal with those. A few tools, a little WD-40, and all was well with this weird little world once more.

In fact, the whole gig was pretty good as far as temp work went. Until 11:04 on the busiest night of the week, when the screams coming from the upper floor of the haunted house aroused the wolf within him so fast that Harlan nearly shapeshifted on the spot. He bolted through the dusty behind-the-scenes corridor and up the narrow stairs with inhuman speed. The door – meant to be disguised as a wall panel – splintered from the sheer force as he burst through it.

Harlan had trouble believing what he was seeing, but his inner wolf assessed the surreal scene at once. A young woman lay on the floor, her body contorting and writhing. Even Harlan’s night vision couldn’t determine what her normal eye color was – right now they were glowing green. Changeling green. And the scent, the lush primordial scent of cool forest shadows and moonlit trails… Jesus H. Christ, she was making her first change right here and right now. The screams weren’t coming from her, although they damn well should have been; an initial change was agonizing as bones and muscles reshaped themselves for the first time. No, all the screaming was coming from her friends, a guy and a girl, who were flipping out over the bizarre behavior of the girl on the floor.

Of course, it didn’t help that they were in the Exorcist room.

Harlan didn’t waste time. He scooped up the woman immediately, and held her tightly against him. The proximity of another Changeling could be comforting, and his wolf would undoubtedly communicate with hers on some level. “Everybody relax,” he ordered. “Just a sympathetic reaction. It happens to some people in this part of the house. Power of suggestion and all that.” Hey, if you couldn’t dazzle them with brilliance, then baffle them with bullshit.

The female friend stopped screaming. The guy, however, continued to shriek like a twelve-year old girl. Harlan rolled his eyes, shouldered the woman in his arms with one hand and grabbed the guy by the back of the shirt collar with the other. After a few solid shakes that may or may not have given him whiplash, the guy settled for gibbering quietly to himself.

“I’ll take your friend downstairs and call 911,” said Harlan. “Are you two okay for getting through the rest of the house on your own? You’re almost out. I’ll meet you down there.”

Dazed but trying to cope, the girlfriend nodded and took the guy’s hand. He was still freaked but unlikely to give her any trouble. Harlan slipped back through the wall panel door – or what was left of it – and ran like hell. He’d lied to the couple he’d left behind. They had at least half an hour’s worth of wandering before they’d find their way out. And he needed the time.

Or rather, the woman in his arms needed the time. He wasn’t calling the EMTs or anybody else. Instead, he had to get her as far away from here as possible before she became a wolf.

Like him.

Dani Harper is the author of Changeling Moon (a RITA finalist), Changeling Dream and Changeling Dawn.

She has TWO new paranormal releases this year, Storm Warrior (Book 1 of the Grim Series) in August, and First Bite (Book 1 of the Dark Wolf Series) in October. Check her website at www.daniharper.com for more.

Dani is offering a paperback or ebook copy of one of her first three Changeling books, plus a tote bag. AND, in keeping with the carnival theme, she couldn’t help but toss in a new DVD of one of her favorite old Disney movies “Something Wicked This Way Comes”. The 80s classic film is based on the unforgettable story of a dark and dangerous carnival by author Ray Bradbury! This giveaway is open internationally. Read our event rules and guidelines before entering.
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Spring Carnival - Guessing Game Giveaway

2013-05-11T04:00:00.000-07:00

We had a last minute cancel for today's author post so we decided to give some books and swag away. Here's what we have up for grabs...

Giveaway #1

We are giving away swag, some of it is signed, from authors Jennifer Estep, Shannon K Butcher, Moira Rogers, D.B. Reynolds, Lara Adrian, and more. We're also giveaway away winner's choice of 1 book from the Book Depository up to $10. Both of these prizes will go to 1 winner.

To enter just fill out the form below (if you can't see the form you can fill it out here). This giveaway is open internationally (or where ever the Book Depository ships)

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Giveaway #2

For this second giveaway we are 11 new print books. In order to win all these lovely books you'll need to guess what the combined page total is. The number we're using is the very last number printed in the book so if the last number printed is 394 but then there are a couple promo pages printed after that, we're counting the 394 number. Here are the books up for grabs

Agave Kiss by Ann Aguirre
Dead Letter Day by Eileen Rendahl
The Golden Age of Death by Amber Benson
The Fallen: Rebel by Kristina Douglas
Kiss of Temptation by Sandra Hill
A Matter of Blood by Sarah Pinborough
Moonglow by Michael Griffo
Blood Trade by Faith Hunter
One for the Wicked by Karina Cooper
Under the Gun by Hannah Jayne

and.....well the last book is a surprise. Didn't think we'd make it easy and give you the names of all the books so you can look them up did you? Where would the fun be in that??

To enter just fill out the form below (if you can't see the form you can fill it out here). This giveaway is open to U.S. residents only.

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Make sure you read our event rules and guidelines before entering. Good luck!

Spring Carnival - Guest post and giveaway from author Bec McMaster

2013-05-10T05:04:00.000-07:00

In the Victorian-era London of my London Steampunk series, if you’re not a blue blood of the Echelon then you’re nothing at all. The Great Houses rule the city with an iron fist, imposing their strict ‘blood taxes’ on the nation, and the Queen is merely a puppet on a string...

For Will Carver, life is dangerous. Not only is he outlawed, but his kind are considered better off in a cage. For years he's worked on controlling the beast inside him. The only one who threatens to destroy his newfound control is the flirtatious Lena Todd, the one young woman he can't have.

But what happens when a darkly alluring fair rolls into town? Read on to find out:

***

The line to the kissing booth wound sinuously between the candy-striped tents. Will Carver eyed it with a vague sense of unease. Music from a nearby organ grinder filled the air, along with the squeal of several young girls on the mechanised carousel. Will hated being amongst so many people, but Lark and Charlie had been insistent on seeing the fair and his blue blood master, Blade, had asked him to watch over the children - and Charlie's older sister, Lena.

"Put up your dukes," a man cried in the distance and a loud round of whooping followed.

"Come on!" Fifteen-year-old Charlie cried, standing on his tiptoes to see over the crowd. "Jimmy Page is fightin' soon! We got to see it--"

"Fight-ing," Lena corrected, with an exasperated sigh.

The boy rolled his eyes and grabbed hold of Lark's hand. Of an age - though no one truly knew how old the orphaned girl was - the pair were virtually inseparable, and Lark enjoyed the blood sports almost as much as Charlie, though for entirely different reasons.

"Come on," Charlie called impatiently, using his smaller form to slip through cracks in the crowd. Lark shot Will a grin and disappeared after him, their fingers still intertwined.

"Charlie!" Will snapped. The fair was full to bursting with people, the hot, sweaty crush of bodies. Particularly here, near the boxing tents. Will eyed the crowd. The thought of being surrounded by so many people made the back of his neck twitch, but he had no choice. Charlie was barely a year into his transition as a blue blood and though he had the fierce hunger of the craving under control now, it was best not to risk an incident.

Besides, the fair had made its berth at Wapping, on the edges of Whitechapel proper. This wasn't Blade's territory, and the aristocratic Echelon wouldn't take kindly to having a rogue blue blood like Charlie here if they saw him.

Or himself.

"Blast it," Lena muttered, trying to see over the crowd. "We'll never find them now."

She was barely an inch or two over five feet, clad in a tight white coat with raspberry stripes and velvet collar. The skirts were the same material, but angled slightly so that the stripes clashed with each other. An eye-watering concoction, all froth and elegance, but one he couldn't stop looking at. Especially her skirts. They were daringly short, showing off a hint of the white chaplets that buttoned down over her shiny black boots.

He wasn't the only man in the crowd looking. Lena drew the eye, like a dancing flame. She was vibrant, vivacious; so full of colour and life that she made the world around her seem a little drab in comparison. She was also wearing a small clockwork brooch shaped like a butterfly, complete with fluttering wings, that would have cost a poor man six month's wages and the fabric in her skirts alone screamed that she had coin.

Will towered over her and most of the crowd. He saw Charlie's blonde curls disappear into the boxing tent, with Lark at his side. A roar went up and Charlie punched his fist into the air with excitement.

"I see 'em," Will murmured, sidestepping to keep the pair in sight. It brought him directly behind her, the sweet honeysuckle perfume she wore curling through his nostrils.

"I swear I shall box his ears when I get my hands on him."

Will shot her an amused look. "Now that sounded like your sister speakin'."

Pretty brown eyes met his as she glanced over her shoulder, her lips parting in surprise. Then Lena smiled and the world faded. It felt like a mule kicked him in the chest. It wasn't often that he said something to bring a smile to her lips. Most of the time, they were at each other's throats.

A year ago she'd come into his life when Blade had married her sister Honoria. One moment, life had been safe and he was starting to understand the rules of human society, and then Lena had sauntered into it and changed it forever. She, with her smiles that could light up a whole room and the type of laughter that made his breath catch, every damned time. It bothered him in a way he both did and didn't understand. He constantly felt on edge, as if something boiled beneath his skin, just waiting to burst out. Every day it grew just a little harder to breathe around her, his skin just a little tighter...

And that... that was dangerous for someone of his kind.

"It did," Lena admitted with little touch of colour in her cheeks. "I should never hear the end of it if Honoria knew."

She looked at him as if waiting for him to reply. He felt almost as if this were a challenge, a dance. She had taken her step - now it was his turn. Only, as usual, he never knew the rules or the steps, never knew precisely what she wanted of him.

Will glanced away. People pushed past, raucous laughter and energy dancing over his skin. But in this space there was a sense of silence and it stretched too long and he knew it.

Lena gave a little sigh. "Well," she said. "I shouldn't expect Charlie to venture far when there's blood sport around." Glancing up beneath her lashes she graced him with a devastating smile. "Do you think I might ride the merry-go-round?"

He hesitated.

"Please, Will. I've never ridden one. And there's no one here to see him and report him to the authorities. You know I wouldn't risk that."

A dangerous thing. Only Lena could sap his resolve, just by smiling at him. Will eyed the massive golden edifice. Steam curled out of the central turret, and the gold paint almost hurt his eyes to look at. Each galloper was a variety of hues; pinks and greens and purples, with saddles of actual polished leather. No reason to deny her. He knew where Charlie and Lark were, and the entire point of the day was for the three of them to enjoy themselves. Life in Whitechapel was so far removed from this decadence that it almost felt surreal and Lena had grown up amongst the Echelon, with their bright silks, glittering smiles and elegant homes. He knew a part of her craved a return to what she thought of as 'home'.

"Fine. One ride, then we'll fetch Charlie and Lark."

"Thank you." Lena gathered her skirts and scurried through the crowd toward the merry-go-round.

Still so girlish in some ways, although Whitechapel had removed some of the naivety from her. Still, he liked that she was almost playful here.

The cries of the hawkers mingled with the gasps of the crowd, creating a bustling, energetic song in his ears.

"Come on, ladies and gents! Try your hand at the hoop toss! Win a prize, any prize..."

"Step right up! See the Bearded Lady..."

The crowd was thicker here. Will found himself dogging Lena's footsteps, the press of her bustle against his thighs. A young fingersmith pressed against his side and Will reached out, catching the lad's hand as it dipped toward his pocket. A quick glance and the boy saw his eyes - the golden amber irises that named what he was as surely as if he said it.

Blue bloods were feared here in the city, but everybody knew the stories of verwulfen and what they could do in a rage. They'd been outlawed for years; fit to be caged and chained, or better yet, executed. He was one of the last of his kind here in London proper, and the only free verwulfen in the empire, as long as he kept to Whitechapel and Blade's protection.

The dipper paled, laughter choking into a muttered hush as he wrenched at his hand. "Sorry, guv. I tripped a little, put me 'and out--"

Will squeezed the boy's wrist until he felt the bones pressing tight beneath his palm. "Not me or mine, aye?"

The lad shot a glance toward Lena then nodded.

"Spread the word," Will replied and let him go.

As sure as the sun rose in the East, there'd be more of them, raking the crowd for flats. And the boy was young enough to be working in a team, as they usually did in places like this.

"What was that?" Lena asked over her shoulder, her dark hair gleaming beneath her jaunty little hat.

"Nothin'," he replied and gestured her toward the merry-go-round.

Even he had to admit the damned thing was impressive. The hiss of steam exhaled as it swirled to a halt and half a dozen young ladies giggled and slid giddily from the saddles.

He paid a penny to the showman and helped Lena onto the floating platform.

"Will." Lena looked up at him and for a moment he didn't understand. With a faint gesture at her skirts, she tilted her head toward the gilt-painted horse. "Would you mind?"

Heat burned through his cheeks. To put his hands on her... Sometimes he dreamed of it, in those few moments that he could never control. Dreamed of touching her skin, just to see if it was as soft as it looked.

Clearing his throat, he reached out and slid his hands around her tiny waist. His fingers looked enormous against her skirts, then he stepped forward and lifted her. Lena caught his upper arms, sucking in a sharp breath. The moment she found her side seat on the galloper, he let her go as if his fingers were burned.

But that didn't lessen the feel of it, as though his skin had its own memory of her body. Rubbing his hands against his trousers, he stepped back off the turning wheel.

"Thank you." She smiled again and wrapped her gloved hands around the barley twist poles. "One day I might even succeed in making a gentleman of you."

"I doubt it," he muttered.

"One can only try." She arched a brow at him, gave him a sweet smile, then looked around with excitement as the other riders mounted.

Will retreated to the edges of a row of tents, his hands tucked into his pockets as he drew in a deep breath. At least here he had space enough to himself and Lena's perfume no longer obliterated his thoughts.

The fairground organ began to play as the merry-go-round leapt into motion, its offset cranks shooting Lena up into the air and then down again. She shot him a delighted smile, then she was spinning out of sight as the merry-go-round began its rotation.

"A tuppence entry to the Hall of Mirrors!"

"Freak show! Freak show! See wonders you've never seen before..."

And one cry that focused his attention so absolutely that the world drained away: "Come see the Wolf Boy!"

Will forgot everything; Charlie and Lark, even Lena. Slowly he turned toward the tent behind him, with its bedazzling red and white stripes and a leering showman prancing in front of it in a red coat and top hat.

"Penny for the price! See the World's Shortest Woman! The Tattooed Man! And the Wolf Boy, locked in a cage for your safety!" The man cried. He saw he'd gained Will's attention and the cane he was twirling pointed directly at Will. "Something caught your interest, young man? Come see Dibbler's Curiosities! You'll be amazed!"

He'd just bet he would be. Heat flared behind his eyes, a hint of the rage within. Will breathed through it, the way Blade had taught him. He had to see first, to know if what he suspected was true...

Flipping the man a penny, he shouldered past, into the dimness of the tent. There was a stage in front, with rows of chairs and people gasping at the mulatto woman onstage performing her acrobatics. A little clockwork monkey performed the same routine beside her, with its handler fiddling with a small control box at the side of the stage. The pair stood on their heads and the crowd clapped and laughed.

Nothing to see here. Will slipped through the crowd to the handler's side, sparing barely a glance at the pair on stage. The moment the handler's concentration returned to his control bow, Will slipped past, ducking behind the curtains at the side of the stage.

The only thing he saw was the cage, though peripherally, he was aware of others in the room. A woman with a beard sucked in an outraged gasp where she sat in front of a mirror, jerking her robe tight around herself. Someone said something. Will simply stared through the iron bars on the cage into a pair of unblinking yellow eyes.

Time froze, seemed to slow down around him until even the harsh laughter past the stage lost its edge. All he could see were those bars and the ragged child in the cage. A verwulfen boy, his lip curling in an almost animalistic way, eyes darting around the tent as he took sharp little breaths. Almost human until one saw those burning, golden eyes.

The same as his own.

Just the same. He could remember what it had been like to stare out through those bars, fingers burning every time he touched the cold silver-coated steel. Knowing that there was no escape. That no one cared. That he was an animal in their eyes and slowly becoming one in his own--

"Will, what are you doing?" Lena cried.

Will finally broke the staring match, letting out the breath he'd been holding. Lena grabbed his arm, peering up at him crossly. "I saw you walking away," she said. "I thought you were leaving me behind! The only reason I knew where you were was because some lady with... with a beard accosted me outside spouting some nonsense about some brute barging his way in here..."

Slowly she realized that there was someone else in front of them. Her eyes slid to the cage, taking in the boy curled in the corner. "Oh."

One word that said so much. Lena leaned closer, her hands resting on her thighs. "Hello," she said. "You poor boy. Do you understand me?"

Her face was but an inch from the cage.

Will hauled her back into his arms a second before the boy lashed out, clawed nails raking through the bars. Someone had filed them into points and the ragged edges were sharp enough to slash her pretty face to ribbons.

"Don't get too close," he snapped.

Lena paled. "I didn't think-- I'm sorry. I thought--"

"That he's like me?" Will asked, with a growl. He let go of her upper arm. "It ain't his fault. He don't know no better. Just... stay out of the way." Christ, he knew what the lad was thinking. After years of being whipped and cut at, the boy would think that anyone who got close enough was an enemy.

The first time Blade let Will out of the cage, he'd almost torn him to pieces before Blade had struck him unconscious. Hours later he'd woken in a new cage; for his own safety and that of Blade's family, he'd had to be contained. It had taken him months to realise that he wasn't going to be hurt anymore, that people weren't coming just to stare at him and to cut his skin to see how quickly he healed. Almost a year after that before Blade could let him out.

Raking a hand over the back of his neck, he stared at the cage. What the hell was he going to do?

"Will," Lena whispered, her small hand sliding tentatively into his. "Will, we can't do anything about this. I know you don't care to see such a thing, but the Echelon's metaljackets are patrolling the fair and perhaps... perhaps it's safer for him to be locked up here. Both for him and the crowd. He doesn't know how to speak, how to control himself. He could be dangerous."

Dangerous, yes, but Lena didn't understand. Given a chance, even a boy like this could learn to be a man. And if not, then he could mimic it, the way Will had taught himself.

Will stared at the boy, taking a deep breath through his nostrils, his fists flexing. If he made a move, then he would cause trouble. The children could be arrested and Lena too. Heat shifted beneath his skin in a lazy shiver. He knew what he wanted to do. To let out the fury inside him; to make these people regret what they did. To save the boy.

But he could almost hear Blade's voice in his ear, explaining patiently why he couldn't.

Sometimes the best thing to do was to walk away.

"Aye," he said, choking the rage of the beast down. "I ain't causin' no trouble, Lena." He let go of her hand and gestured toward the exit to the tent. "Not today."

As if he understood the words, the wolf boy finally looked away, the light fading out of those golden eyes as he began to stare blankly at the canvas walls again.

***

The next afternoon, Will cut a generous portion of butter and set it to melt in the enormous bowl of porridge in front of him.

"Know aught about this?" Blade asked, entering the dining room and shaking out the London Standard in front of him.

Will eased the creases out of it with his fingertips, tracing the outline of a grainy photograph. The headline screamed, 'Wolf Boy Escaped from Fairgrounds!' Even in black and white, the intense stare of the young lad sent a shiver over his skin.

Will folded the paper, set it aside and sank his spoon into his porridge. "Don't know nothin'."

"Aye, and where were you last night?"

"Patrollin' the rookeries. Same as I do every night."

"Will," Blade's voice held a certain carefulness. "This is the sort of thing that'd bring the Echelon sniffin' at our doors. If they find the boy--"

"They won't," he replied, his gaze lifting to his master's.

Blade held his stare for a long moment, his lips thinning. Will held the stare. He rarely gave Blade grief, after the way the other man had broken him out of the cage and given him a safe place to live; a home. But some things couldn't be tolerated. He knew. That was the hardest thing. He knew exactly what it felt like, crouched behind metal bars, trying to ignore the curious stares and whispers.

But Blade had taught him more than just to speak again. He'd taught him to be cunning, to know when a man could take a chance and when he couldn't.

It didn't always make sense to him, but sometimes he listened.

Blade gave a curt nod and took the paper back. "Aye, fine then. But next time, you let me know before you do somewhat like this again. You need me to do anythin'?"

Will hesitated. He had found a place in Undertown - the closed over train lines of the collapsed underground tunnels - to hide the boy. But after that...

"I need to get him out," he said. "He can't stay here in London. He doesn't want to."

Blade frowned. "It'll cost money."

"You can have all I got."

"More 'n that, Will," Blade gave him a wry glance, then sighed. "I s'pose 'onoria won't care much for that diamond necklet I were intent on buyin' for 'er anyway. We'll get 'im out."

"North?" To Scotland, where he'd once been born.

Blade shook his head. "There's nowhere safe for verwulfen in the Isles, lad. No, we'll send 'im East. To the Scandinavian clans. The one place the Echelon won't find 'im and won't dare look."

Somewhere where there'd be others of their kind. Dozens of them. Will stilled, excitement shivering over his skin. He'd never met others. Only the man who'd attacked him when he was a little boy and infected him.

"You want to go with 'im?" Blade asked quietly.

A long breathless moment. To be amongst his own people again, where he could go where he wanted and do as he willed without people staring at him or waiting for him to explode into a rage.

Then he shook his head. His home was here. He owed Blade more than just a debt of gratitude and this... this and the cage were all that he'd ever known.

Besides... something held him here.

Or someone perhaps.

HEART OF IRON BY BEC MCMASTER – IN STORES MAY 2013

In the mist-shrouded streets of London’s dreaded Whitechapel district, werewolves, vampires and a clockwork army are one step away from battle…

NO ONE TO TRUST

Lena Todd is the perfect spy. Nobody suspects the flirtatious debutante could be a rebel against London’s vicious elite—not even the ruthless Will Carver, the one man she can’t twist around her little finger.

Will Carver, is more than man, he’s a verwulfen and he wants nothing to do with the dangerous beauty who drives him to the very edge of control. But when he finds Lena in possession of a coded letter, he realizes she’s in a world of trouble. To protect her, he’ll have to seduce the truth from her before it’s too late.

“Deftly blends elements of steampunk and vampire romance with brilliantly successful results…darkly atmospheric and delectably sexy.” –Booklist, starred review for KISS OF STEEL

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Award-winning author Bec McMaster lives in a small town in Australia and grew up with her nose in a book. A member of RWA, she writes sexy, dark paranormals and steampunk romance. When not writing, reading, or poring over travel brochures, she loves spending time with her very own hero or daydreaming about new worlds. The third book in the London Steampunk series, My Lady Quicksilver will be in stores in October 2013. Read more about her at www.becmcmaster.com or follow her on Twitter @BecMcMaster.

Thanks to Sourcebooks, we have 1 copy of Kiss Of Steel, London Steampunk book 1, to giveaway. This is open to U.S./Canada only. Read our event rules and guidelines before entering.
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Spring Carnival - Guest post and giveaway from author Gini Koch

2013-05-09T09:00:00.000-07:00

In the the Alien/Katherine “Kitty” Katt series, my heroine discovers that the Roswell rumors are true, but with a twist -- the aliens are here from the Alpha Centauri system to help us and as a side benefit they’re all gorgeous, and value brains over looks. As Kitty gets deeper into Centaurion Division she gets involved in the fight to save the planet from threats both very external and internal, using her wits, her mouth, rock ‘n’ roll, comics, and whatever’s in her purse, like hairspray or a Mont Blanc pen. Or alligators.

The series is set in present day Earth, but the A-Cs haven’t necessarily ever visited a carnival. The humans, like Kitty, have, of course. (Most who know her would say that Kitty’s life actually IS a carnival.)

Q: If one of your characters worked at a carnival, what would their job be? Would they be good at it or the worst employee ever?

A: Well, if Kitty worked at a carnival, she’d definitely get one of the barker jobs, because she’s great with the snappy patter. She’d want to work up to something better, though, but would get embroiled in a weird plot to take over the world by lacing all the cotton candy and funnel cakes with mind control drugs. And then she’d foil it, most likely with whatever she randomly had in her purse. But she’d get recruited by a secret government agency for her skills at thinking outside the box and then have to leave the carnival life. (Wait…this sounds like the plot of one of my books…)

If Jeff was working at the carnival, though, he’d have the job as the main attraction as The World’s Most Handsome Man. And he’d be the best at it, ever.

Q: If your fictional world had its own carnival, what types of rides and
attractions would visitors find?

A: Well, since this series is set on Earth, their carnivals are our carnivals. So all the usual rides and attractions. If the A-Cs were creating a carnival, though, they’d have: The Hyperspeed Scream, wherein you go a mile in a couple of seconds, get off the ride and throw up; The Last Picture Show, wherein someone takes your picture and then an Imageer tells you all about yourself, making a point to bring up the things you hoped no one knew about; and The Tunnel of Love, wherein you ride on a boat with a Empath who tells you how you’re feeling at any given moment. All the game prizes would be stuffed Poofs and all the animal acts would involve Peregrines, though there would be one comedy animal act involving an African Gray Parrot. There would also be an alligator exhibit that no one would go to because the alligators aren’t actually in cages. Good times for all!

Q: For the older characters, how have carnivals changed over the years/decades/centuries?

A: They say that the rides, games, shows, and food aren’t nearly as good as when they were young. But they do like the new cotton candy and funnel cakes.

Q: How would an experience unfold for your characters if they attended a carnival?

A: They’d go to have fun, then something weird would happen, more weird would happen, danger would ensue, Kitty would realize all the clowns are evil aliens just like “Killer Klowns for Outer Space”, mayhem would ensue, the good guys would foil the evil plot, Jeff and Kitty would have some great sex, and the world would be saved. Not necessarily in that order.

Author Bio:

Gini Koch lives in Hell’s Orientation Area (aka Phoenix, AZ), works her butt off (sadly, not literally) by day, and writes by night with the rest of the beautiful people. She writes the fast, fresh and funny Alien/Katherine “Kitty” Katt series for DAW Books, the Necropolis Enforcement Files series, and the Martian Alliance Chronicles series for Musa Publishing. As G.J. Koch she writes the Alexander Outland series. She also writes under a variety of other pen names (including Anita Ensal, Jemma Chase, A.E. Stanton, and J.C. Koch), listens to all kinds of music 24/7, and is a proud comics geek-girl willing to discuss at any time why Wolverine is the best superhero ever (even if Deadpool does get all the best lines). She speaks frequently on what it takes to become a successful author and other aspects of writing and the publishing business. She is also the Lead Editor at Raphael’s Village, an online, nonpaying ’zine. Because she wasn’t busy enough, Gini’s added on featured guest columnist, reviewer, and webcaster for Slice of SciFi and It’s Comic Book Day. She can be reached through her website at www.ginikoch.com.

Gini is giving away winner's choice of a signed copy of either Alien Tango, Alien in the Family, OR Alien Proliferation plus swag. This is open internationally. Read event rules and guidelines before entering.
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Book Review: The Demon's Song by Kendra Leigh Castle

2013-05-09T03:00:00.000-07:00

The Demon's Song
Author: Kendra Leigh Castle
Series: Hearts of the Fallen, book 1
Publisher: Entangled: Covet
Sold by: Macmillan
ASIN: B00CGFCF9Q
Source: From publisher for review
Buy it here: Amazon
For more information visit Kendra Leigh Castle's website

Review by: Stephanie

All Sofia wanted to do was help her friend and then return to her normal life. Instead she's thrown into the supernatural world and becomes the target of a demon out for revenge. Keeping her safe is Phenex, the fallen angel of song, and a man she's finding impossible to resist. Phenex can deal with monsters but the emotions Sofia brings out in him are hard to handle. One thing is certain; he plans to do whatever it takes to keep her at his side.

It's a tug of war between Phenex and Sofia. On one end is Sofia, a mortal who is a caring friend, dedicated nurse, and thrives in the sun. On the other end is Phenex, an immortal who doesn't like to admit he has a good heart, loves his music and no matter how much he wants to live in the light, he is forced into the dark. I had a difficult time getting into this book because there's a good amount of emphasis put on how psychically attracted they are to each other in the beginning and I need more than that. They're both interesting enough but I wanted more and thankfully once they start spending more time together, more is delivered.

There's a lot of 'well if you would....we could be together' which I usually find frustrating because how could you love someone but still want them to change in order to fit into your life? In this case watching them struggle both brings them closer together and threatens to keep them apart and it's fascinating and well done. It may sound mean to admit I like the conflict but it makes them and their relationship stronger in the end. Together they were the backbone of the story.

Sofia is being hunted by vampires because she stops one from nearly draining her friend. This event uncovers a plan that involves overtaking the vampire king, raiding his hidden supernatural city of Terra Noctem, and tipping the scales in favor of evil. All of this worked for me. First off the vampire king isn't what you'd expect. Seems like a slightly above average guy until sh--, stuff starts happening then you see what makes him a good king. His hidden city houses all types of supernatural beings and is described well enough to form a picture in your mind but I wanted more detail because it sounded like such a magical and unusual place. As for tipping the scales, it's a case of good vs evil. Evil fallen angels vs fallen angels looking for redemption but they just don't know it yet. I'm a sucker for a fallen angel story; I love the idea of atonement but still keeping that naughty streak to them. What takes place in The Demon's Song regarding the fallen has me craving more.

I had to hit nearly the half-way point before I thought things picked up, both in the story and between Phenex and Sofia. While I was reading, I was into it but when I had to set it down, I didn't feel that tug to pick it back up immediately. Also, it says that this is the first book in the series but there are 2 releases that take place in the same world, a full length book and novella, and I found myself wishing I'd read those first. You don't miss anything critical to the story but you meet couples that have already had their story told and I wish I knew it.

Like I said, when I had my Kindle in hand, I enjoyed The Demon's Song. Phenex and Sofia are quite a couple and I want to know more about Terra Noctem but I can't say I'll rush out and read book 2. If this was Kendra Leigh Castle's other series that would be a different story because I can't seem to get enough of those.
My Rating:

Spring Carnival - Guest post and giveaway from author Jeri Smith-Ready

2013-05-08T09:00:00.000-07:00

Hey, Logan Keeley here, from the Shade series by Jeri Smith-Ready. I’m not Shade’s main character—that would be my girlfriend, Aura—but I did just publish my own short story, “Bridge.” More about that at the end of the post.

But first! Stephanie and Athenna wanted to know what job I would have at a carnival and whether I would suck at it or not.

I’m a ghost now, but during my life I was a rock star. Well, almost. Things kinda took a bad turn just as my band was about to break out, on what should’ve been the best night of my life.

Anyway, what I’m saying is that I love talking to crowds, feeding off their energy and giving them what they want—especially if what they want is entertainment! (If what they want is food, I’m no good, since ghosts can’t hold stuff like plates and pots.)

So I’d be what they call a “barker,” the dude who convinces people at the carnival to go inside the tent to see a show, maybe a sword swallower or fire eater—or maybe even a clown eater. (That would rock, because I hate clowns. They freak me out.)

Basically, I’d be this guy, only with a better suit (I hope):

Problem is, in my world, only people Aura’s age and younger can see and hear ghosts. So no one over seventeen could hear my spiel. Which is sad, because I wouldn’t just SAY how great the show was, I’d SING it:

Step right up,
ladies and gents,
and behold the wonders
waiting in these tents.

Dudes who breathe fire,
chicks who throw knives,
even skeleton men—
are they dead or alive?

It’s all free for the looking,
free as can be,
(except the last act,
which costs a small fee.)

But maybe, just maybe,
if it’s your lucky night,
you might even lay eyes on
a hermaphrodite!

Okay, the song needs serious work. But it’s just a first draft.

If you want some better lyrical writing, check out “Bridge,” which just came out last week—just 99 cents on Kindle! That’s, like, a fifth of what you’d pay for a carnival hot dog.

http://amzn.to/ZLoiuQ

Logan is barely seventeen, and barely dead. To find eternal rest, the ghost rock star must make peace with his brother Mickey, before his guilt over Logan’s death drives him to suicide.

Krista sees ghosts everywhere, but never the one she needs most. A chance boardwalk encounter with Logan turns her Senior Week party into a rescue mission. Can her own grief give her the strength to save Mickey’s life?

Loaded with bonus material, the “Bridge” ebook is the perfect introduction to the young-adult Shade trilogy—a tale of ghosts, music, and everlasting love.

Only 99 cents on Kindle!

----

Thanks to Steph and Athenna for having me on your blog—you rock!

You can follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/keeley_logan

I also have a Tumblr with Zachary, my old nemesis: http://shadeboys.tumblr.com. We blog about TV, music, and any other random stuff that we think of.

Zach’s on Twitter, too: http://twitter.com/moore_zachary

And so is his best friend, Martin: http://twitter.com/connelly_martin

Aura is there, too, but not very often, because that would be, um, awkward: http://twitter.com/salvatore_aura

Oh, and if you want to follow Jeri (The Woman Upstairs), she’s here: http://twitter.com/jsmithready, and her website is: http://www.jerismithready.com

And last but not least, here’s a sweet video that Amy from Fictitious Delicious made for me: http://youtu.be/jHq3VbmoBRM?hd=1

Author Bio:

Award-winning author Jeri Smith-Ready lives in Maryland with her husband and two cats. Her plans to save the earth were ruined when she realized she was more of a “problem maker” than a problem solver. To stay out of trouble, she keeps her Drama Drive strictly fictional. Her friends and family appreciate that.

When not writing, Jeri she can usually be found—well, thinking about writing, or on Twitter. Like her characters, she loves music, movies, and staying up very, very late.

Other Links for Jeri: Facebook | Goodreads | Tumblr

Jeri is giving away winner's choice of 1 book from the Shade trilogy. This is open internationally but if the winner lives outside the U.S., they'll receive their book from Book Depository plus a signed matching bookplate. Read event rules and guidelines before entering.
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Book Review: Immortal Trust by Claire Ashgrove

2013-05-08T03:00:00.000-07:00

Immortal Trust
Author: Claire Ashgrove
Series: The Curse of the Templars, book 3
Publisher: Tor Books
ISBN-10: 0765367602
ISBN-13: 978-0765367600
Source: From publisher for review
Buy it here: Amazon | Book Depository
For more information visit Claire Ashgrove's website

Review by: Athenna

The Templar Knights have fought back Azazel's creations for centuries and many knights have been lost to Azazel's darkness, but the prophecy has stated that a few select women who carry the blood line will be the salvation of the knights and save them from the darkness. Lucan's seraph has been located and confirmed by his scar she carries on her own body. Even though this should be the happiest time of his life Lucan has reservations about trusting another female. Lucan has been through a lot of heart ache and betrayal in his life and even though she is supposed to be his seraph he still can't just blindly trust that she is not going to betray him at some point. He wants to open up and trust her but his reservations make it hard to do.

Chloe has had a bad relationship in the past and thinks if she is to open up to Lucan he will only wind up burning her in the end just as the past relationship did. But these feelings she has for Lucan are so powerful and consuming she can't stay away.

Lucan must trust her enough to bring her into the fold and take her as his seraph or he will loose the war with darkness and become a dark knight as some of his fellow knights has befallen to.

I always enjoy this series . I love the historical highlander feel these warriors portray mixed with the modern day women. They don't take any crap and give these men a run for there money and make them fight to win them over .

This book is no different , they have great chemistry together but both of them fight there attraction at first . The sex is not as hot and explosive as in the precious two books but still very hot. I think the two of them as a couple just were not as steamy as the previous couples. Of course that didn't take away from the book it was still an excellent book .

If you haven't checked out this series yet please do I think you find as I have that this is a great series to add to the collection
My Rating:

Spring Carnival - Guest post and giveaway from author Dianne Duvall

2013-05-07T09:00:00.000-07:00

I’m so thrilled to be here, participating in Paranormal Haven’s Spring Carnival! And the timing is perfect, because today is release day for PREDATORY, the anthology that contains my Immortal Guardians novella “In Still Darkness”, along with stories by Alexandra Ivy, Nina Bangs, and Hannah Jayne!

“In Still Darkness” features Richart d’Alençon, a two-hundred-and-thirty-year-old French immortal who spends his nights hunting and destroying psychotic vampires. Though his brother and sister are also immortal, Richart considers it a fairly lonely existence . . . until he meets the charming single mother Jenna McBride. Unable to resist her lure, he daringly attempts to carry on a traditional courtship with her while keeping his vampire hunting profession (as well as his immortality) a secret. But it doesn’t go very smoothly. Richart is pretty rusty in the dating department, and hiding his nature is a little difficult when his eyes glow every time Jenna touches him. :-)

Richart’s Second (human assistant/guard), Sheldon, proves to be of little help. Sheldon is young, green, and prone to mischief. Naturally, therefore, when I pondered what kind of trouble one of the characters in my series could get into at a carnival, Sheldon instantly came to mind. Here’s how I imagine things might go if he were to attend one . . .

* * *

A shadow among shadows, Richart watched Jenna stride through the darkened parking lot toward the store, preparing to embark upon yet another grueling nightshift. Though petite, she moved with long, confident strides that swiftly ate up the cracked and stained asphalt and made it nearly impossible for him to drag his gaze away from her shapely form. Her head swiveled from side to side as she kept an eye on her surroundings, allowing him brief glimpses of her face.

His own eyes, preternaturally sharp, searched for but found no threats lurking tonight.

Oblivious to his presence, Jenna disappeared through the front doors. He smiled as he heard her greet her friend Debbie, laughed at the joke she cracked and Debbie’s witty rejoinder.

“Monster” by Skillet split the night, driving him to retrieve his cell phone and answer a call from — he glanced at the screen — his Second. “Yes?”

“Code blue! Code blue!” came Sheldon’s urgent greeting.

“What?”

“Code blue! Code blue! Or code red! Wait. Which one is it if it’s an emergency?”

Richart groaned. “What have you done now? I thought you were out on a date.” 

“I was,” Sheldon said, the panic in his voice temporarily giving way to disgruntlement, “but she bailed on me as soon as she saw I was taking her to a carnival.”

Richart frowned. “Why? I thought women liked that sort of thing.” And he knew Sheldon had really been looking forward to tonight, yet another first date. The boy couldn’t seem to land a second. Not that Richart could talk.

“I did, too. I mean, how many times have we seen couples make-out on carnival rides in chick flicks?”

“Too many times to count,” Richart responded dryly. “Did your date leave before or after you tried to grope her on the ferris wheel?”

“We didn’t make it to the ferris wheel. We didn’t make it through the gates. Apparently she thinks carnivals are for kids and that they’re juvenile and . . . I can’t remember the other big word she used. The bottom line is they aren’t sophisticated enough for her.”

Richart pursed his lips. “If she wanted someone sophisticated, why did she agree to go out with YOU?”

“Oh, ha, ha, ha. I can be sophisticated when I want to be. Wasn’t I the one who—”

“Sheldon?” Richart interrupted.

“Yeah?”

“Weren’t you calling about some kind of emergency?”

“Oh, crap! Right! Code blue! Code—”

“Just tell me what it is!” Richart snapped, then counted to ten.

“Right. I need you to meet me in the Tunnel of Love.”

Richart remained silent for a long moment. “Seriously?”

“Yes.”

“Do I even want to know what you’re doing in there?” Richart asked.

“Nothing pervy!” Sheldon instantly denied. “I followed some vamps in here and have them cornered.

Alarm rose. “You what?”

“They were hunting a human couple — drunk, easy prey, you know how it goes — so I followed them in and . . . intervened before they could attack.”

“Damn it, Sheldon. You know Seconds aren’t supposed to actively hunt vampires on your own! You don’t have their speed or strength or—”

“What else was I supposed to do? I knew you were busy stalking Jenna and didn’t want to interrupt.”

Richart ground his teeth. “I’m not stalking her. I’m watching over her.”

“Whatever you say, man.”

“Where is the carnival located?”

Sheldon told him.

Richart’s surroundings disappeared. First darkness, then the outskirts of the carnival grounds replaced them as he teleported. Four feet away from him, a woman stood with her head down, texting away on a cell phone. The toddler clutching her hand, stared up at Richart with wide eyes and gaping mouth as pink cotton candy melted on his tongue.

A hasty glance around confirmed that no one else had noticed his sudden appearance. Relieved, Richart offered the boy a smile and a wink, then strode through the gates and began to search for the Tunnel of Love.

“How many are we talking?” he asked Sheldon.

“Vampires? Three.”

That Sheldon, a human who lacked their preternatural speed and strength, had gotten the best of even one vampire was impressive, particularly since he was likely unarmed.

“Where are they? What are they doing?” Relief suffused Richart as he finally spotted the Tunnel of Love, it’s exterior as gaudy as he had feared it would be.

“I sort of immobilized them,” Sheldon said uneasily. “But I don’t think it’s gonna hold much longer, so you might want to haul a—” A crash sounded. “Oh, crap.” Click.

Screams erupted from the tacky tunnel.

Groaning, Richart pocketed his phone and raced forward.

* * *

You can see more of Richart and Sheldon in PREDATORY! :-)

Predatory

Four of today's most exciting paranormal authors take readers into the thrilling realm of vampires, immortals, and other supernatural beings with a thirst for illicit desire...

Out Of Control by Alexandra Ivy

Ph.D student Angela Locke has a crush on her sexy professor, Dr. Nikolo Bartrev. When she learns he's actually a Sentinel with extraordinary powers, she joins forces with him to catch a psychopath. But soon, their hottest pursuit is of each other...

Ties That Bind by Nina Bangs

Cassie Tyler agrees to sub for her friend at the funeral home where she works. But she gets more than she bargained for when a group of men attack her and a vampire comes to her rescue. . .

In Still Darkness by Dianne Duvall

Immortal Richart d'Alençon can't forget the woman who rewarded him with a sensuous kiss after he saved her from a trio of vampires. While Richart knows that loving a human can only bring trouble, the taste of forbidden lust is too great to resist. . .

High Stakes by Hannah Jayne

When vampire fashionista Nina LaShay's design contest rival is found dead, she's the prime suspect. Sexy photographer Pike is number two. He's the kind of man who makes Nina salivate. But will she have to reveal herself to have him--and to save them both? Or does Pike have a secret of his own?

Author Bio:

Dianne Duvall is the New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author of the Immortal Guardians paranormal romance series. Her debut novel DARKNESS DAWNS was nominated for the RT Reviewers' Choice Award for Best Vampire Romance by RT Book Reviews, for Best Paranormal Romance - Vampire by The Romance Reviews, and for Best Book of 2011 by Long and Short Reviews. NIGHT REIGNS, the second book in her Immortal Guardians series, was declared an "utterly addictive" Top Pick by RT Book Reviews. PHANTOM SHADOWS, the third book in the series, was deemed a Top Pick by both The Romance Reviews and by Night Owl Reviews. DARKNESS RISES, Immortal Guardians Book 4, will be released on October 1, 2013. When she isn't writing, Dianne is active in the independent film industry and once even appeared onscreen as a machete-wielding maniac not unlike the vampires she so loves to create in her novels.

Find Dianne on the Internet:

Dianne is giving away winner's choice of Darkness Dawns, Night Reighs, OR Phantom Shadows plus Immortal Guardians swag. This is open internationally. Read event rules and guidelines before entering.
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Book Review: Hot Blooded by Amanda Carlson

2013-05-07T03:00:00.000-07:00

Hot Blooded
Author: Amanda Carlson
Series: Jessica McClain, book 2
Publisher: Orbit
ISBN-10: 9780316205214
ISBN-13: 978-0316205214
Source: From NetGalley
Buy it here: Amazon | Book Depository
For more information visit Amanda Carlson's website

Review by: Ronnie

When I first read Amanda Carlson’s Full Blooded earlier this year, I recall being a little dubious. The “Chosen One” is not one of my favorite tropes in urban fantasy, but when I finished the book, I was very excited for the sequel. I always love when books manage to surprise me, and that’s exactly what Full Blooded did. Hot Blooded is the second book in the Jessica McClain series and it’s a fantastic sophomore effort from Amanda Carlson.

At the start of Hot Blooded, Jessica has to rescue her mate, Rourke, from the vengeful goddess Selene. Truth be told, I’m not very invested in Rourke. There really hasn’t been enough interaction between the two of them to make me believe in their mate bond, I mean I want him to survive because our main character does, but I wouldn’t be broken hearted if he ceased to exist. Armed with two wolves, a human cop, and two vampires, Jessica sets out track down Rourke and kill Selene. Part of the “Chosen One” mythos is Jessica is the only female werewolf to ever have been born, and there is a prophecy about a “True Lycan” who will vanquish all evil. Whether Jessica is the True Lycan is subject for debate, but all the evidence certainly seems to suggest this is the case.

One of the most interesting aspects of Hot Blooded is watching Jessica coming to terms with being a werewolf and her interactions with humans and other supernatural creatures. She hasn’t been a wolf her whole life and doesn’t always know what’s “normal” for a wolf and what’s not. This creates a very interesting dynamic with the other wolves accompanying her, as well as the vampires. She doesn’t think like a “Pack” wolf, and her actions do create conflict. I found her unwillingness to kill and the ability to think things through a pretty refreshing change from other shifter books that I’ve read in the past.

The pacing is spot on within Hot Blooded. Nary a dull moment, with good character development, especially in regards to the human cop, Raymond Hart. Through her quest to rescue Rourke, Jessica encounters a bunch of monsters, including evil goats and death bats of the Underworld. Wholly creative, I’m absolutely entranced by the world Amanda Carlson has created.

That being said, I did have a couple of issues. One, I’ve already mentioned. There is hardly any page time with Rourke and I just don’t feel as connected to him as I’d like. He seems like a very capable love interest, but at this point, I don’t have enough invested in his character to really care with what happens to him. The other issue is that because of this Prophecy, we don’t know the potential of Jessica’s abilities, and they keep growing as the book goes on. It’s not my favorite plot device, to make the main character keep growing more powerful with each book. Takes away an excellent way to build tension, but that’s just a personal quibble of mine. On the whole, I’m very excited for the next Jessica McClain novel, they are an excellent addition to the genre of Urban Fantasy.
My Rating:

Spring Carnival - Guest post and giveaway from author Delilah S. Dawson

2013-05-06T06:00:00.000-07:00

No one suspects the tailor of dark deeds. No one. Everyone else in the caravan is colorful: a freak, a performer, a ringmaster, their gifts shimmering on the surface. The carnivalleros make their coppers by the light of glittering lanterns, luring the crowd close with thrilling antics, cloying words, or exotic strangeness. But Antonin Scabrous is merely a man who knows his way around a sewing machine, more often silent and smiling around a mouthful of fangs and pins. He doesn't leave the costumer's wagon very often. Or at least, that's what everyone thinks.

It's a Friday night, and the show ends promptly at midnight. The carnivalleros trudge up the stairs into their wagons, yawning, leaving their props scattered about, along with the detritus of a crowd of humans hungry for adventure. Antonin used to live in Manchester, and well he remembers what it was like, penned up in that gilded cage and sewing dresses for grand dames he could have snapped between his two hands and drained in moments. Everything there was fake: the food, the bludrat fur wigs, the painted cheeks, the illusion that humans could rule. Strange, how the caravan in many ways is more real, more true to life.

Mostly.

There is still illusion here, if you know where to look.

Antonin slips from his wagon, a dark cloak hiding his dark face and bright gold hair. He breathes in the scent of midnight on the moors, the wild wind combined with spilled cocoa and wine and bits of buttered popcorn. Aside from a few bludbunnies nosing around, he's alone. Satisfied, he hurries to one of the largest wagons, one of the few acts that occurs inside four walls instead of outside, where the humans feel safer because they can't be cornered. The sign on the door reads:

Bolted Burlesque: one copper.

Look with your eyes

Don't touch her cans

Or else you might find yourself

Missing a hand.

Antonin chuckles to himself. The automatons can't actually chop off body parts-- at least, not legally. But anyone kicked out of the warmth of the caravan's lights is liable to be eaten by morning. He slips a copper into the coin slot. When the door swings open, he breathes in the scent of oil, metal, and hours-old lust and enters the darkness with a smile on his face.

With the press of a button, warm lights flicker on, slightly red to make the clockworks seem more lifelike. Antonin threads among them, ignoring the carefully sculpted bodies in every size and color catering to every man's wildest dreams. In the cities, even the whores must keep on their clothes to avoid bringing the bludrats en masse. Only here, with flesh replicated in metal, can men see something as scandalous as a nipple, as secret as the fold of a thigh.

There she is. So beautiful. Tan skin that matches his, long dark hair, graceful curves highlighted by a silver corset and real lace petticoats pulled up daringly high.

“Mathilde.”

His hand caresses her face briefly, needle-scarred palm warm against smooth copper. When he finds the tiny button hidden under her hair, he presses it and steps back, arms open.

“Antonin.”

Her voice is tinny and far-away, as if played back on a gramophone. But her sigh is heartfelt and filled with love. She wiggles and creaks, pulling her feet free from the pedestal where she stands all day and steps daintily down into his embrace.

“Oh, Antonin. It's been forever.”

“All day, my darling. Too long.”

He pulls away to gaze down into her eyes, which are intelligent and lit from within by golden-green bulbs. She blinks, wire eyelashes barely brushing against pink-painted cheeks. He kisses her, gently, and finds her lips warm, as if she'd been lounging in the sun all day.

“When, Antonin? When?”

“Soon, dearest. Soon.”

“But the way they stare. The way they...” She quivers in his arms. “They touch me, sometimes. They're not supposed to, but they do.”

“I know. And I'm so sorry. I would kill them all, if I could.”

She steps boldly forward, her perfect chest jutting against him hard enough to make him grunt. With the subtle grinding of gears, she rotates her pelvis, just a little.

“When?” she breathes into his mouth.

“When the caravan is near London in two weeks. And I need to finish your new outfit first.”

“Is it beautiful?”

“It's as perfect as you are. Green, and made exactly according to the latest papers from Paris.”

She giggles and squeezes his fingers hard enough to bruise, but he doesn't mind.

“And we'll live in the city? And you'll have a new costume shop? And I won't have to dance anymore?”

“You'll never have to dance again, darling.”

Taking his face in her riveted palms, she pulls him close for a kiss so hot he thinks of the cherry-red iron in a blacksmith's forge. His hands rove down her back, and he wishes he could pluck away the solder melding the silver corset to her waist.

Somewhere far away, a coin clicks in a slot.

Antonin pulls away, wiping oil from his mouth as Mathilde freezes in place, her hands still out as if she held his shoulders.

“Antonin?”

“I'm back here, Criminy. Just adjusting a costume on one of the clockworks.”

The ringmaster appears, his head cocked sideways and one knife-sharp brow raised.

“I hadn't heard any complaints. We seem to have a lot of trouble from this one, don't we?”

Criminy steps around the automaton, and Antonin tries to tamp down his rage as his oldest friend runs a finger down Mathilde's face, her arm, as if she is simply a statue. When Criminy reaches for her fabric petticoat, Antonin slaps his hand away.

“The fabric is pinned. Don't muss it.”

“As you say.” Criminy opens one of Mathilde's eyes with his thumb. The light within has gone dark. “This is the one that keeps shorting out. Slapped a customer once and broke his jaw. Right?”

Antonin wipes a drop of sweat from his brow.

“Right.”

Criminy stares at Antonin so hard that the tailor feels the ringmaster can see straight down into his soul and under his belt as well. It's unnerving, and he half hopes Mathilde will short out now and inexplicably break his best friend's face.

“Maybe we need to retire this one. Scrap her. If she's causing that much trouble.”

Antonin breathes out, his hands shaking. He's fully aware of just how quick Crim can be.

“Give her two more weeks, Crim. If we can't get her back to speed, I'll take her to the silversmiths in London and have her melted for coin. We'll get a better rate there than we will out here in the country.”

Criminy's eyes bore into Antonin's.

“Two weeks.”

The ringmaster disappears with a swirl of his cape, and Antonin breathes a sigh of relief when the door closes.

“Does he know?”

Mathilde's eyes are open again, shining gently. Her pulls her close, so close that his body molds to her harder form, and he wishes she were made of flesh so that he could devour her, steal her away, marry her like a real girl.

“He knows everything, darling. He's married to a fortune teller, remember?”

Her arms tighten around him, and he struggles to take a breath.

The next morning, there's an empty pedestal in the Bolted Burlesque.

And the costumer's wagon is empty.

For more about Delilah and her Blud series, visit her website.

We love Delilah's series so we decided to give away winner's choice of one book from her series in paperback or e-format (novella's are only available in e-format). This giveaway is open internationally. Read our event rules and guidelines before entering.
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Spring Carnival rules, guidelines, and post schedule

2013-05-06T03:00:00.000-07:00

Event Rules and Guidelines

1. You will be required to fill out a Rafflecopter form (unless otherwise stated in a specific post) and leave a comment for each giveaway you enter.

2. Make sure to pay close attention to the shipping on each giveaway. Some will be open internationally while others will be U.S. only.

3. You can enter as many giveaways you want. Our giveaway policy applies to all event giveaways. Please read before entering.

4. All giveaways end (unless stated otherwise on a specific giveaway) on May 22th and winners will be announced on May 25th. Winners will have 3 days to respond to our emails [or message us at Paranormalhaven(at)gmail(dot)com] or another winner(s) will be chosen.

You can help spread the word of our event by putting up our event button on your blog's sidebar. Go here to find the HTML code for it or find it on our sidebar. You'll earn extra entries for having it up.

Post Schedule
This list will be updated each day with the latest post link

5/6 - Delilah S. Dawson guest post & giveaway (open internationally)
5/7 - Dianne Duvall guest post & giveaway (open internationally)
5/8 - Jeri Smith-Ready guest post & giveaway (open internationally)
5/9 - Gini Koch guest post & giveaway (open internationally)
5/10 - Bec McMaster guest post & giveaway (open to U.S./Canada residents)
5/11 - Guessing game giveaway (1 giveaway open internationally & 1 open to U.S. residents)
5/12 - Dani Harper guest post & giveaway (open internationally)
5/13 - Rosalie Lario guest post & giveaway (open internationally)
5/14 - Cynthia Eden guest post & giveaway (open internationally)
5/15 - Kristen Callihan guest post & giveaway (open internationally)
5/16 - Stacey Kennedy guest post & giveaway (open internationally)
5/17 - Rebecca Zanetti guest post & giveaway (open to U.S. residents)