Monday 30 September 2019

Vow of Thieves (Dance of Thieves #2) by Mary E. Pearson (Review)

     The sequel to the much loved Dance of Thieves, in Vow of Thieves starts with Kazi and Jase travelling back home Tor's Watch, all while... canoodling to pass their evenings. While traveling back, Kazi gets signs that things might not be great up ahead, and when they finally get back, they are attacked and Jase escapes mortally wounded, and Kazi is captured. Tor's Watch had fallen and alone and in captivity, Kazi is devastated and listless. She wants revenge, but her captors have Jase's kid siblings and if she lashes out, they will pay the price. Unsure what to do, Kazi has to navigate protecting Tor's Watch, the children and protected herself.
       Just like Dance of Thieves, I really enjoyed Vow of Thieves. The characters were all fun to read, dramatic and exhilarating, and I was often on the edge of my seat while reading this book. I will attempt not to spoil anything important, but I do have to say that the plot twist and turns in this novel had me actively gasping as I read. Kazi is still a great character. She is tough and capable, but the author didn't feel the need to make her heartless and gave her a sensitive and vulnerable side, which I love. I often find authors ruin powerful female characters by taking away vulnerabilities and feminine traits from them. I respect that Mary E. Pearson doesn't do that. I love all of her strong female characters because they are allowed to still be women and identifiable to a female audience. All in all, read this series, and I give Vow of Thieves the rating of FOUR AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!
*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Tuesday 17 September 2019

Book Blitz: Merged by Jim Kroepfl & Stephanie Kroepfl

Merged
by Jim and Stephanie Kroepfl
Published by: Month9Books
Publication date: September 17th 2019
Genres: Romance, Science Fiction, Young Adult
Seven of our country’s most gifted teens will become Nobels, hosts for the implantation of brilliant Mentor minds, in an effort to accelerate human progress.
But as the line between what’s possible and what’s right, draws ever blurrier, the teens discover everything has a cost.
Scientists have created an evolved form of living known as Merged Consciousness, and sixteen-year-old Lake finds herself unable to merge with her Mentor.
Lake, the Nobel for Chemistry and Orfyn, the Nobel for Art, are two from among the inaugural class of Nobels, and with the best intent and motivation. But when Stryker, the Nobel for Peace, makes them question the motivation of the scientists behind the program, their world begins to unravel.
As the Nobels work to uncover the dark secrets of the program’s origins, everyone’s a suspect and no one can be trusted, not even the other Nobels.
As the Mentors begin to take over the bodies and minds of the Nobels, Lake and Orfyn must find a way to regain control before they lose all semblance or memory of their former selves.
EXCERPT:
Depending on your point of view, I’m either famous or infamous. I’m called by many names: Ward of the State, Orphaned, Foofool (only by Sister Mo), and Kevin. That last one makes me feel like I’m wearing someone else’s clothes. Tight and loose in all the wrong places. So, I came up with my own name, though no one has ever connected it to me. The identity of street artists should never be revealed.
I flick turpentine at a rat that’s getting a little too curious about my brushes. The alley smells like something died, making me wonder if there’s a body in the dumpster. Michelangelo cut up dead people to better understand how we’re built. If he was willing to do that for his art, I can endure this stink for one night. I breathe through my mouth and get back to work.
After four straight hours, the painting is coming along great, and I know I can finish it before people start heading out for their nine-to-five jobs. I paint madly, getting lost in the scene, moving from figure to figure, jersey to jersey. It’s my best work yet, and I want this one to last.
At least, for a few days.

Author Bio:
Jim and Stephanie Kroepfl are a husband-and-wife team who write YA novels and stories of mystery and adventure from their cabin in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Their debut novel, Merged, will be released by Month9Books on September 17, 2019.



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Monday 9 September 2019

Book Blitz: The Last Huntsman by Page Morgan!

The Last Huntsman
by Page Morgan
Publication date: September 9th 2019
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult
No women. No children. No torture. The Huntsman has his rules.
For years, Tobin has done his emperor’s bidding, eliminating threats to the Empire of Morvansk. But when he is ordered to kill the lovely Princess Mara, Tobin’s absolute loyalty ends. The emperor’s punishment is swift and lethal, and Tobin is left with only one desire: vengeance.
Stay quiet. Stay hidden. Stay free. These are the rules Ever lives by.
Raised as a boy by her overprotective father, Ever has something the Morvansk emperor covets: mirror magic. With it, she can see anyone, anywhere, through the mirror’s glass. The emperor stole her mother years ago for this same magic, and now, he wants Ever, too.
When Ever’s mirror shows the wounded rebel huntsman approaching her village, she’s compelled to help him. But as Tobin and Ever grow closer, and their secrets intertwine, they’ll have to follow the rules they’ve always lived by—or break free from them, once and for all.
EXCERPT:
The shriek of a bird drew my eyes to the trees above. When I looked down, Mara stepped into the clearing. The call of the nuisance bird muted, as did everything else in the world surrounding the glade. She came through the tall grasses, her lavender colored skirts gathered in her hands to keep the hem from getting soiled against the ground.
I closed my eyes and forced forward the image of my mother. Of Kinn, of Lael. The worst five minutes of my life were about to unfold, and I had to keep those three faces present if I had any hope of following through.
I opened my eyes as Mara searched the glade for Orin, the man she believed had beckoned her there. She lifted her face to the sun, most likely chilled from the walk through the dim forest.
Mother.
Kinn.
Lael.
I looked into the hushed wood. Her ladies would have made plenty of noise had they followed, and her guards’ steel swords and metal fixtures would have been a clattering racket. She’d come alone, just as the note had bid.
She fiddled nervously with the front tucks of her skirt, not seeing me as I stood. I parted the flexible pines and stepped past the young green needles, coming to the edge of the brook’s banking. It was then that the princess spotted me. She let out a small yelp and dropped her skirts. Covering her mouth with her hands, Mara released her breath.
“Huntsman, you frightened me.” She lowered her hand and sent me a small smile, though it quickly fell. “What are you doing here? You didn’t…did you read the note you delivered this morning?”
Don’t look at her. Don’t listen to her.
“Forgive me, of course you didn’t. Are you hunting?” she asked as I stepped across the three rocks in the brook and into the glade.
The sun hit me, and my legs turned to dead weight. They didn’t want to move any closer. My hands, too, stayed heavy at my sides. The blade with the prince’s crest was inside my trouser waistline, and my own personal blades were where I always kept them.
“I’m meeting the prince,” she said, her voice notched louder. “It’s not very indecent, considering we are to be married,” she added with a half smile.
I strode through the grass toward her, pushing the slab of stone in my chest lower to crush the rapid beating of my heart. Mara’s shrewd eyes narrowed. My presence made her nervous, yet she didn’t back away as I came to within a foot of her.
Mother.
Kinn.
Lael.
“The prince is not coming.”
Mara looked sideways at me. “How do you know this?” Her facial muscles went slack. “You’ve done something to him.”
“I’ve already told you,” I said. Level. Clear. “The emperor did not send me to kill the prince.”
She wanted to believe me. Just like she believed me the other night when I said we were friends. I could see it in the way she shifted her bottom lip side to side, gripping the inside of it with her teeth.
“Then why have you followed me here?” she asked.
There was not supposed to be any conversation. I’d been taught to be brief, to make sure the target knew who had come for him and why, and then to finish before the target could beg or offer money in return for leniency.
“I didn’t follow you.” I reached inside my jacket and gripped Orin’s blade, the gold of the crossed hilt cool under my hot, sweaty palm.
She stared at me with a confused grimace, paying no attention to my hand.
“I led you here,” I said. “It is Emperor Frederic’s order, princess. I am only his servant.”
The last sentence spilled out of my mouth unintentionally, and with it, I caught the first whiff of my decaying will. The Huntsman didn’t explain himself. The Huntsman didn’t make excuses.
I pulled the dagger and stepped forward so swiftly Mara didn’t know to resist. She was taller than me, but I was stronger and faster; I wrapped my arm around her neck and her knees buckled, her chin wedging tight inside my crooked elbow. She screamed, but my bicep and forearm squelched it into a sputtering croak.
Mother.
Kinn.
Lael.

Author Bio:
Page is the author of THE BEAUTIFUL AND THE CURSED, THE LOVELY AND THE LOST, and THE WONDROUS AND THE WICKED, young adult gothic thrillers critically acclaimed by Booklist, Publisher's Weekly, Kirkus, School Library Journal, VOYA, and The Bulletin. Page's novels have been an IndieNext selection, a Seventeen Magazine Summer Book Club Read, and a #1 Amazon bestseller. Her next book, THE LAST HUNTSMAN, is a reimagining of the Huntsman and Magic Mirror from the tale of Snow White. She lives in New Hampshire with her husband and their three daughters, an English Pointer, an arrogant cat, two boring bearded dragons, a one-eared bunny, a bunch of chickens, and during the summer and fall, their neighbor's two sweet horses.

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Monday 2 September 2019

Book Blitz: Sacrifices by Roxanna Rose!

Sacrifices
by Roxanna Rose
(Legacy Series, #3)
Publication date: September 1st 2019
Genres: Paranormal, Romance, Young Adult
Morrigan, Goddess of Uncontrollable Lust and Killing Rage, is trapped in the mind of the immortal she created. For more than 2000 years they search for the means to destroy the Goddess Brighid, freeing Morrigan’s trapped spirit and allowing her to release the full malevolence of her power on the mortal realm.
Jenna thought her grandmother’s eccentric behavior was a product of the tragedy that left them as their family’s only survivors. Learning the truth of her family’s connection to the Goddess Brigid, Jenna is plunged into a legacy she never asked for as she becomes hunted by the murderous Goddess Morrigan. Can she survive a world she never knew existed?
Greagoir spent more than two millennia reveling in the carnage and lust that came with being the chosen immortal of Morrigan. But when he looks at Jenna, he sees the face of his beloved Genovefa, the woman he lost long ago. Is he willing to cross Morrigan and sacrifice his freedom?
The Otherworld demands sacrifices. Someone will pay the ultimate one.
EXCERPT:
Once they got into the car Julie pulled out her phone.
“Thanks for keeping him distracted.”
Julie pulled up selfies of her sprawled out across a huge bed in various poses.
“What are you, twelve? I can’t believe you did that. I am so embarrassed.”
“Relax, he didn’t catch me and there was no way I would ever get a chance like that again. I’m spending the night at your place. We can take the dresses back to Rent the Runway in the morning before your gran’s plane comes in. I’ve got my keys, let’s stop by the market on the way up and grab some snacks. Your gran never has decent junk food and you need junk food to talk to hot guys… like our host that couldn’t take his eyes off you. I told you that dress was rockin’…you’re welcome.”

Author Bio:
Roxanna Rose's fascination for myths and legends are the inspiration for her young adult paranormal/fantasy romance books. A soon-to-be transplant to the Pacific Northwest, Rose takes her unique views of legends from around the world and breathes life into each character while creating a richly layered world around them.


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Sunday 1 September 2019

Book Blitz: Kingdom Cold by Brittni Chenelle!

Kingdom Cold
by Brittni Chenelle
Publication date: September 1st 2019
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult
Beware: a binge awaits.
Deliciously dark, romantic and gripping, the Kingdom Cold trilogy now can be yours in a dazzling collection.
Kingdom Cold follows the impulsive, teenage princess, Charlotte, as she attempts to murder her betrothed. But an arranged marriage is only the beginning of her problems, for the world as she knows it is falling apart. Her kingdom faces total destruction at the hands of Merlin and Lancelot, leaders of power-crazed Camelot.
Will wicked King Arthur prove, once and for all, that ruthless deeds create the legend? Can Princess Charlotte sacrifice love to save her home?
Only one can reign.
EXCERPT:
I reached around my back to try and unlace my corset myself. Not even close. There was no way I was getting it off. I tried reaching one more time, but this time I wound up making myself light-headed and out of breath. A thud sounded on my door. My shoulders tensed. I hoped it was one of my maids—I needed to get out of this thing. I hurried to the door and pushed it open. Prince Young stood in my doorway.
“Charlotte,” he said. I looked into the hall behind him to see if someone else was passing, anyone who could help me–but it was only him.
“Please pardon me for coming to your chamber. I wondered if I might be able to have a word with you before the—”
Grabbing him by the shirt, I pulled him into my chamber. “Get in here,” I said, shutting the door behind him. I took two steps toward the center of my room and said, “Quick, untie it. Help me take this off.”
“Well… this is going better than expected,” he said, half under his breath.

Author Bio:
10 FUN FACTS ABOUT BRITTNI CHENELLE
1. She lives in South Korea.
It's true. She does most of her updates in the morning or at night to account for the time difference. She also infuses most of her novels with her observations about Korean culture.
2. She's a Type 1 Diabetic.
She uses an insulin pump for survival and refers to her diabetes as "Beetie" which is what inspired her children's book "Life with Beetie". When she wants something from her parents she tells them, "My Beetie hurts." It's a trick that has never failed her.
3. She doesn't really BELIEVE in fiction.
Despite all the; Dragons, Elves, and Magic present in her novel "Involuted the Tale of the Red Ribbon Tree", Brittni INSISTS that it's a true story. I wouldn't normally believe it but when browsing some of her old pictures, you can find pictures of her with a mysterious red ribbon tied to her wrist.
4. She's OBSESSED with dark chocolate.
She made me put that in and would also like me to inform you (on an unrelated note) that her birthday is in May.
5. She loves video games, anime, and cosplay.
Favorite games: League of Legends, Stardew Valley, Pokemon. Favorite Anime: Avatar the Last Airbender, Your lie in April, Full Metal Alchemist. Cosplay: She once dressed as Korra from Legend of Korra. She's hoping there will be more brown characters for her to cosplay in the future.
6. She has a Bachelor's degree in English Literature and a Master's in Creative Writing.
7. She's working on a Manga/Anime style novel with about 100 images included.
8. Sorry guys, she's married.
If you ask her, she'll tell you her husband saved her life but everytime someone asks "how" she gives a different reason. I've overheard her give about 4 different reasons, but I bet she has more. He must be an amazing guy.
9. She posts awesome travel pictures on her Instagram.
Her username is @brittnichenelle. You're here because you love her unique way of seeing the world, now you can see it in picture form! This is especially good if you have an interest in Asia since that's where most of her pictures are taken.
10: Brittni, why did you become a writer?
"I write because I would go crazy if I didn't. The body is limited but the mind is free to roam among dragons and fairies, it can soar through the air, and breathe underwater, and hold onto love in even the worst conditions. I guess that's why, because books are not bound by the rules of reality and I am addicted to the freedom-- seduced by the possibilities." -Brittni Chenelle

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