May 28, 2010

Review--Moon Sworn

**MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD, DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ BOUND TO SHADOWS!



SOME NIGHTS NEVER END. SOME DESIRES NEVER DIE...

Shape-shifting werewolf and vampire Riley Jenson is through with death--and causing it, solving it, surviving it. Her soul mate, Kye Murphy, is dead--and at Riley's own hands. Not even the seductive embrace of her vampire lover, Quinn, can fully ease her mind, for she has begun questioning her job at the Directorate.

Now the ritualistically slain bodies of ex-cons have started turning up. Reluctantly, Riley takes the case, but something even worse is waiting in the wings. A vicious enemy from her past is determined to strip Riley of everything that gives her life meaning: her lover, her brother--and even her own identity. Can Riley survive this ultimate assault? All she knows is that she must fight one last time to find asnwers, before everything goes dark forever.

Well I read the last Riley Jenson book, Moon Sworn, in 1 whole day and I didn't even start a little last night. All 395 pages completed in one day! Yea me! And like my friends had told me, the ending was a good one. It wrapped things up rather nicely.

The ending left things closed, but as Keri has said, for her new series starting next year starring Risa, Dia's little girl, Riley and the others may pop in for a scene or two. Which will be nice, we get to see old, familiar characters while still learning about a new one entirely.

Moving on to actual review now...basically like the BOC describes Riley is still heartbroken over losing her soul mate, murderer that he was and of course the loss of Kade cut her deep as well. You really have to sympathize for Riley because she is going through so much pain. But she tries her best to deal with it once she is assigned to a new case.

But the case is only the beginning of her problems, quite literally as an old enemy returns and is out to make her life hell. And it really puts a damper on her life and everything in between. But Riley is a fighter and she is going to see this fight to the end even if it kills her.

This truly was a great ending to the series. And as a friend mentioned Quinn has grown on her in the last book or so and I agree. In book 1 I didn't care for him all that much and the way he wanted to be with Riley but wasn't going to allow them to become really serious and he still forbid her to see anyone else, even though she did, because she's Riley and doesn't like to be told to do anything in regards to her personal life. Now, Quinn has really changed and grown into a more capable man and vampire. Perhaps it was one of the short stories I read, can't remember which anthology...Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance 1 or 2...where we get to see an event from Quinn's p.o.v. and then I believe the event is brought up even in one of the last few books as well.

In regards to his wonderful change in character, their relationship as a couple strengthened. Riley as a character is the same as always, but has grown in her own way as well. She is still strong and independent and sassy and lovable.

As sad as I am that the series is over, it does have a good ending that I enjoyed. One of the best endings to a series I have ever read! If you haven't read the series yet now is a great time to start because you can read the books straight through. I will miss Riley and her friends but look forward to seeing Risa and her friends and seeing the familiar faces as well.

Now onto more reading...

Contest Alert--at BBB


Another author is visiting Bitten By Books today and today it's Holly Black! She'll be stopping by for the usual interview or chat and then you can ask questions all day! She'll be talking about ger latest release White Cat.

Event starts at 12pm Central today and contest portion runs to 11:59pm Central 5/29. Hope to see you there.

May 27, 2010

Review--Unholy Ghosts


THE DEPARTED HAVE ARRIVED.

The world is not the way it was. The dead have rise, and the living are under attack. The powerful Church of Real Truth, in charge since the government fell, has sworn to reimburse citizens being harassed by the deceased. Enter Chess Putnam, a fully tattooed witch and freewheeling ghost hunter. She's got a real talent for banishing the wicked dead. But Chess is keeping a dark secret: She owes a lot of money to a murderous drug lord named Bump, who wants immediate payback in the form of a dangerous job that involved black magic, human sacrifice, a nefarious demonic creature, and enough wicked energy to wipe out a city of souls. Toss in lust for a rival gang leader and a dangerous attraction to Bump's ruthless enforcer, and Chess begins to wonder if the rush is really worth it. Hell, yeah.

Finished Stacia Kane's Unholy Ghosts today, her debut in her new series and it was seriously a wild ride! It was dark, gritty, edgy and enthralling from the first chapter!

The world is not what it seems, like the BOC talks about. There was an event called Haunted Week that changed everything, all this gets explained in the book. Basically this is kind of like an alternate reality, but not really alternate. This is the way things are. It's complicated for me to put into words, but it's not an overly futuristic event. Haunted Week actually took place in '97 if I recall correctly.

Anyway, it was really good. There were some cringe moments when you read them. If you can handle bloody moments they aren't too bad. I mean when reading I can handle anything, because I can tone down on how bloody "bloody" is. But still very entertaining.

Chess is asked to look into a typical haunting and pay off her debt with a heaping amount of interest tacked on, from her drug dealer Bump. She thinks it should be relatively easy since it's what she does for a living, but she soon finds out how very wrong she is.

Like the BOC says a rival gang and sort of drug dealer enters the picture, and he is one of the guys Chess is attracted to. The other is Bump's right-hand man, and Chess is sort of torn between the two. She doesn't do any leading on, she's attracted to both of them in different ways. Personally I'm rooting for Trouble, Bump's right-hand man. Lovely name! Although it could be because we didn't see enough of Lex, Chess' other interest. Hopefully he'll appear more next time. We saw a lot of Trouble, which is probably why I'm leaning towards him.

But the romance wasn't the focal point of the story, which was a thing I enjoyed, being the urban fantasy reader. It was there and then it was put aside while Chess dealt with other things.

The language was done remarkably well! A lot of the characters in the book had a rough, or slang to their language and you can literally hear their accent and how they would pronounce the words. Most of the characters were drug dealers and likely users so obviously they lost a few brain cells along the way. But their characters are still rather intelligent in their own way.

I cannot wait for the next book in this series either! It was very good and leaves you satisfied with just a few things to ponder about. I cannot wait to see where the series takes Chess. Unholy Magic is the next book in the series and releases July 6.

Contest Alert--at BBB

Double contest day! Over at Bitten By Books Jenna Black will be stopping by to promote her debut YA book, Glimmerglass! It's on my TBR pile and I can't wait to read it! Contest starts at 12pm Central! Same as the other contests, where there's an interview of some kind and then you can ask questions.

Then at 3pm Central Keri Arthur will be by to promote Moon Sworn the last Riley book! I'm really excited about this one. My friends have told me it was really good and had a good ending. Can't wait! See you at BBB!

May 26, 2010

Waiting on Wednesday

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill, that spotlights releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Here's another read I can't wait for, another find I learned about while at RT is:



TO STOP A VAMPIRE KILLER, SHE'LL HAVE TO SLAY HER OWN DEMONS FIRST.

A provocative and savvy vampire, Alexandra Sabian moves to the sleepy hamlet of Jefferson, Mississippi—population 6,000, nearly one-half vampires—to escape the demons lurking in her past. As an Enforcer for the Federal Bureau of Preternatural Investigation (FBPI), Alex must maintain the uneasy peace between her kind and humans, including Jefferson’s bigoted sheriff, who’d be happy to see all vampires banished from town. Then really dead vamps start turning up—beheaded, crucified, and defanged—killed in the same gruesome manner that Alex’s father was murdered decades ago. For Alex, the professional has become way too personal.

Things get even more complicated when the FBPI sends in some unnervingly sexy backup: Alex’s one-time mentor, lover, and fiancĂ©, Varik Baudelaire. Still stinging from the betrayal that ended their short-lived engagement, Alex is determined not to give in to the temptation that soon threatens to short-circuit her investigation.Like it or not, though, as the body count grows, and the public panic level rises, Varik may be her only hope to stop a relentless killer who’s got his own score to settle, and his own bloody past to put right.

Blood Law by Jeannie Holmes

Release Date: 7/6/2010

ISBN-13: 978-0553529672

Review--Abandon the Night


FROM THE RAGING FIRES, FIVE MEN EMERGE WITH EXTRAORDINARY NEW POWERS. THEY ARE HUMANKIND'S LAST HOPE...BUT THEY CANNOT SURVIVE THIS DARK, RAVAGE WORLD ALONE...

Quentin Fielding had everything. Money. Power. Women. But now that civilization is all but annihilated, Quent wants only one thing: revenge. Harnessing a strange new "gift", he embarks on a deadly mission to find the man he should have killed years ago: his father. Only one thing stands in his way--a mysterious, arrow-wielding beauty...

Zoe Kapoor is on her own quest for vengeance, searching for the monstrous fiends who murdered her family. Soon she and Quent join together, journeying through the ruins of the world they once knew as a desperate desire builds between them. Drawing closer to an enemy they never imagined, Zoe and Quent must abandon all fear, abandon all regret, abandon the night...

I guess part of the problem began when I realized that this was the third book in Joss Ware's new series. Abandon the Night is book 3 in her apocalyptic world series...don't really know what the name of it is.

I've read her other books she wrote under Colleen Gleason, the Gardella Vampire Chronicles and enjoyed them for a historical paranormal romance feel. But I just couldn't get too into this book for some reason. I kept reading it because I hate stopping a book, I almost never do that. Really I can't recall a time I did. Maybe a book for school...

If you really like paranormal romance then this book is likely for you. Maybe that's why I didn't enjoy it so much. I'm an urban fantasy girl, heavy on the story line and action with romance on the side. The romance here was constant almost. For the BOC mentions the two MCs and upon reading, within the first chapter or two, you learn that they already know each other and are already in some kind of relationship. Mostly just sex, but still, they aren't strangers. Quent recalls when they first meet and whatnot, but I thought they would be meeting and then falling in love based on the BOC. Sorry if that was spoiler like, but as I said you learn this really early on.

The storyline itself was pretty interesting. The world hasn't really ended just a lot of people have died but there are an elite race of humans with this crystal like thing inside of them that makes them invincible or something. It was strange. Not everyone, like our characters, is dying for this immortality.

Zoe is dying for revenge and of course the man she is after somehow ties back to Quent's need for revenge as well. It was a nicely done twist or mixture, whatever you want to call it. There were some zombies, but not too many. And then they were killed pretty quickly too each and every time.

So I guess what didn't work for me was the constant romance parts, there were more than I usually find in my urban fantasy reads, so that could be part of the reason why I wasn't enthralled with the book and possibly because it's book 3. There are likely to be 5 books since the BOC mentions 5 men who come across the world anew with certain powers. Don't know if I'll ever venture to those books to be honest.

Did some shopping today and got more books. Will get my last one on the way to work. So now I'm off to start Stacia Kane's Unholy Ghosts! From what Stacia said the other day on BBB, it's gonna be good!

May 25, 2010

Contest Alert--at BBB



Today over at BBB Vicki Pettersson is going to be stopping by for her newest release, Cheat the Grave! Fabulous read by the way. See my review here.

Like yesterday, there's a short interview of some kind and then you can comment and ask questions for a chance to win an e-gift card for $25 to Amazon or Barnes and Noble from her publisher.

BBB has several interviews and contests going on this week, so be sure to check the website out for other names that might be of interest to you! I'll be by later tonight for Vicki's once I get off of work. Ugh...work...

Teaser Tuesday


It's time for Teaser Tuesday!

Today I'm a little over 3/4 through Abandon the Night. Big release day today! Many new books to buy and read, but I have work. Ugh. Trying to hit at least one store today.

Keep forgetting to say, that Teaser Tuesday is a weekly blog post at Should be Reading by Mizb.

Rules:
1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a page
3. Pick 2 lines to share that are SPOILER free
4. Name the book, author, etc.

"He could damn well shoot her if he wanted to, but she didn't think he would. He wanted information." p 220

TITLE: Abandon the Night
AUTHOR: Joss Ware
GENRE: Paranormal Romance
RELEASE DATE: 3/9/10

May 24, 2010

News

Back again...

Was just surfing my Amazon recommendations and saw that there was an additional Kelley Armstrong book!

Now it's not a full-length novel, according to Amazon and its description its a novella, featuring Paige and Savannah dealing with a supernatural fight club! The first rule about the supernatural fight club...don't kill your opponent! Seriously.

Checked Kelley's website but couldn't find any leads. But according to Amazon, the book releases November 30, 2010.

Here's the description which may reflect the cover flap since it's a HB (Hardback) release:

The first rule of a supernatural fight club? Don't kill your opponent.

When the fighters come with lethal spells, werewolf strength and half-demon powers, that can be a lot tougher than it sounds. It's hard to attract talent if they know they might not leave the ring alive. So when fighters at a California club start dying -- it's bad for business.

Witch detectives Paige Winterbourne and Savannah Levine take the case. Going undercover in the power-heavy arena of the fight club is a welcome change of pace for Paige, relegated to the role of The Wife as her husband struggles to find his place in his family's Cabal--the corporate Mafia of the supernatural world.

As Paige is drawn deeper into new and dangerous corners of her world, she quickly discovers the greatest threat isn't the killer in her sights. It's something much, much closer to home. And this is one fight she can't afford to lose.

Look for Counterfeit Magic by Kelley Armstrong on November 30, 2010. More waiting. Sigh...

Review--Succubus Blues


SUCCUBUS (N.)-AN ALLURING, SHAPE-SHIFTING DEMON WHO SEDUCES AND PLEASURES MORTAL MEN.

PATHETIC (ADJ.)-A SUCCUBUS WITH GREAT SHOES AND NO SOCIAL LIFE.
SEE: GEORGINA KINCAID.

When it comes to jobs in hell, being a succubus seems pretty glamorous. A girl can be anything she wants, the wardrobe is killer, and mortal men will do anything for a touch. Granted, they often pay with their souls, but why get technical?

But Seattle succubus Georgina Kincaid's life is far less exotic. Her boss is a middle-management demon with a thing for John Cusack movies. Her immortal best friends haven't stopped teasing her about the time she shape-shifted into the Demon Goddess getup complete with whip and wings. And she can't have a decent date without sucking away the part of the guy's life. At least there's her day job at a local bookstore--free books; all the white chocolate mochas she can drink; and easy access to bestselling, sexy writer, Seth Mortensen, aka He Whom She Would Give Anything to Touch but Can't.

But dreaming about Seth will have to wait. Something wicked is at work in Seattle's demon underground. And for once, all of her hot charms and drop-dead one-liners won't help because Georgina's about to discover there are some creatures out there that both heaven and hell want to deny...

Finally got around to finishing Succubus Blues, really I finished it earlier this morning but went straight ahead to my next book, which is not by the way, Moon Sworn, unfortunately. Currently I'm reading Joss Ware's Abandon the Night, one of my other freebies from RT. But moving on...

I was rather pleased with this series. I know some of my myths and lore rather well and knew what a succubus was before the book and was antsy about reading it, thinking there would be too much sex for my liking. However, I came to learn that Georgina is more of a reluctant succubus. She doesn't like what she is despite how she came to be a succubus, which we do learn as the book moves on with flashbacks here and there which were placed rather well. Her flashback moments are sometimes even noticed by others when Georgina spaces out for the moment.

Reluctant or not, Georgina must succumb to her succubus ways in order to survive. So she "feeds" when she has to, which is where the book opens up and the comical event mentioned on the BOC is what we encounter.

Georgina is rather likable and funny. Sassy too, she says what she's thinking, even if it is not the right thing to say. Her first encounter with Seth is rather comical as well, one I was able to deduce upon reading. Since the book is not new, if you've read it you might recall what I mean and if you will eventually read it, you'll know when you come across it!

I have to say I didn't really see the big mystery reveal coming. Don't get me wrong, I had a suspicion regarding the "culprit" but it was a different kind of suspicion. So I was right to suspect something, but I was wayyy off!

The mystery was a rather nice buildup too, something is attacking supernaturals and since Georgina and her friends are of that variety, they are possible targets. The reveal, as I said was shocking, not just the "who-done-it?" but the depth of the matter.

There are a handful of characters and they are all rather likable as well. Georgina has a handful of friends who are all witty and snarky, but you can tell there are strong bonds between them.

Seth was another character who was well-developed. His nervousness around Georgina was endearing. He seemed like a real person despite being a guy and most guys that I know would never allow nervousness to be a problem. So that was what attracted me to this fictional character, that he is different from the norm in a normal kind of way.

Overall it was a rather damn good book. Eventually I will get around to reading the other ones. Once or if I ever find a nice lapse between books and work and life and my own writing. Will be hard to accomplish, but will eventually have to do, because the ending while satisfying left me wanting to know more. Where the story is going to go next and since the next 4 are already out with the 6th and final book due next year, I'm at a good place to be.

I would love to say that I will finish Abandon the Night tomorrow so I can start one of my many anticipated releases tomorrow, but I fear it is unlikely because I have to work, literally all day tomorrow sucking out my reading time, and the time needed to buy my books. Will have to decide which Borders to go to, since my local one tends not to put new releases out on release day. Sad sigh...

Contest Alert--at BBB


Stacia Kane will be over at BBB today promoting her newest release (comes out tomorrow!) Unholy Ghosts! It will be a chat that starts at 12pm Central today and Stacia will be by to answer questions and whatnot.

I'm very excited about this release and as I said when I was at RT this year I got to see and hold the ARC of the book! So I'm really excited about finally getting my own copy and reading it!

The BBB contest runs from the start of the interview today to 11:59PM Central 5/25.

Hope to see you there!

May 21, 2010

Richelle Mead Signing

Just got back from a signing with Richelle Mead! She actually came to St. Louis! I get a little over excited when the authors I love to read come to my dull city. Because it rarely happens, hence it being dull. Gateway to the West, yeah right.


It was relatively calm as well. I guess because it's St. Louis. There were some people there, but not nearly as many who were at her signings earlier this week. Didn't take too many pictures because my camera was acting goofy. Second row and yet it sucked at taking a good close up. Have to tinker with it still. It's relatively new.

So, not too much to say. She read from Spirit Bound and there were a few drawings--all of which I lost!--and then she signed books of course!


I fear because the signing group was rather smaller than the rest of her ones so far, her publishers might not send her back to dullsville St. Louis. Oh well, I can always try to find another city she goes to. Although, she's really jumping around for the Spirit Bound tour. Had she not come here, there would be no way I would see her at all. Sad, but true. It's usually the way of things.

All in all it was a good Friday night! Plus I didn't have to work at all like I do every single Friday night there is.

Until next time readers!

May 20, 2010

Review--Spirit Bound


SALVATION HAS ITS PRICE...

After a long and heartbreaking journey to Siberia, Dimitri's birthplace, Rose Hathaway has finally returned to St. Vladimir's--and to her best friend, Lissa Dragomir. It's graduation, and the girls can't wait for their real lives outside of the academy's cold iron gates to finally begin. But even with the intrigue and excitement of court life looming, Rose's heart still aches for Dimitri. He's out there, somewhere.

She failed to kill him when she had the chance, and now her worst fears are about to come true. Dimitri has tasted her blood, and she knows in her heart that he is hunting her. And if Rose won't join him, he won't rest until he has silenced her...forever.

But Rose can't forget what she learned on her journey--whispers of a magic too impossible and terrifying to comprehend. A magic inextricably tied to Lissa that could hold the answer to all of Rose's prayers, but not without devastating consequences. Now Rose will have to decide what--and who--matters most to her. And in the end, is true love really worth the price?

Fall in love with Rose and Dimitri all over again in Spirit Bound, the eagerly awaited fifth novel in Richelle Mead's enthralling Vampire Academy series.

Spent the entire day reading and it was sooo worth it! Spirit Bound was totally TOTALLY awesome. Will try to contain my excitement in this review and of course I can't talk too much because a lot happened and I don't want to lead to spoilers.

Basically the chapter that was in the Special Edition of Vampire Academy (book 1) was fairly accurate. That's where the story starts and from the cover flap you know Rose and Lissa are out of the academy now which means Rose is an open target for Dimitri who is still after her, hunting her. He had been sending her eerie letters that were disturbing, basically telling her he was coming for her and just being insanely creepy about. After reading Blood Promise and seeing his behavior there, you can imagine how upset Rose is by his letters.

But Rose has been trying to move on with her life, which is noted at the end of Blood Promise as well, she is giving Adrian a shot at a relationship because he cares for her. It was interesting, Team Adrian fans will be pleased because Adrian is constantly there for Rose throughout the book while Rose is determined to do what she was set out to do at the end of Blood Promise and that is trying to save Dimitri from his life as a Strigoi.

I love this series, I seriously have to thank my friends Aly and Cem from the Pride for making me reading this because I am totally addicted to it! Have been since the beginning. Richelle takes a new spin on vampires, of course there is no general vampire nowadays and I LOVE that! I've been reading vampire books since I was 13 and no two books are the same.

The book was well paced too. It eases into each event moving from the plotting to the planning to the acting and then the aftermath which starts up the next task or problem. All done very smoothly.

You gotta love these characters too. Rose is an amazing heroine because she started out almost unlikable in book 1, I'll admit I didn't really care for her that much through the first book, but really came to adore her by the end and then I was hooked for life. Now I totally feel for her, her emotions match my emotions based on the events that take place. And there are quite a few of them.

Other characters return as well such as her friends, Lissa, Christian and a few more. I don't want to get too far into the relationships, but for the most part things are unchanged. But as the book progresses the relationships change as well.

There are several exciting events in the book that I won't talk about, only that they are exciting! And the ending, oh god, it's one of those endings like Blood Promise, you are left dying to know what the next step is. Like my friend Cem said at her blog, it's not as agonizing as Shadow Kiss, but still sort of cliffhanger like. Well the good news is that on December 7, we'll have our answer! That's better than 2011!

Spirit Bound is a must read, as is the Vampire Academy series if you have not read it yet. Where have you been? :) Like I said, vampires are taken differently here than in other YA vampire books and this is a series you do not want to miss out on. It's almost over as well, since the next book Last Sacrifice concludes Rose's story. There are supposedly going to be another set of Vampire Academy books with different characters, but Rose has been a fun character to grow with and I've enjoyed her story.

May 19, 2010

Review--Dead in the Family


A FAE WAR HAS LEFT THE SUPERNATURAL COMMUNITY OF BONS TEMPS, LOUISIANA , IN CHAOS--AND WAITRESS SOOKIE STACKHOUSE MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY DRAINED. AND STILL, THE PEACE AND QUIET SHE SO DESPERATELY CRAVES IS HARD TO COME BY...

Even with the blood of two vampires in her system, Sookie is having trouble healing from the terrible torture she endured at the hands of her great-grandfather's enemies during the brief but deadly Fae War. Worse are the emotional wounds--especially over the loss of her personal fairy godmother and the near death of her first love.

Sookie is hurt and she's mad. Just about the only bright spot in her life--besides the fact that she is, after all, still alive--is the love she thinks she feels for vampire Eric Northman, who is under scrutiny by the new vampire king because of their relationship.

As the political implications of the shifters' coming-out are beginning to be felt, Sookie'sconnection to one particular Were draws her into the dangerous debate. And, unknown to her, though the doors to Faery have been closed, there are still some fae on the human side--and one of them is angry at Sookie. Very, very angry.

It was an all day reading day! I started and finished the latest Sookie Stackhouse novel, formerly known as the Southern Vampire Novels--or something like that--Dead in the Family. The overpowering mystery element was once gone from the novels but it is slowly returning.

I must admit that I really did enjoy this series immensely when there was this strong mystery driven plot, but it has been lacking the past few novels. But it is trying to come back it seems and I am glad for it. There is definitely a mystery here much like the mysteries that have happened in the earlier books. If you've read those, then you can guess what the mystery element is. But I suppose it's really no big spoiler because it happens fairly early on in the story, a murder occurs. Won't say who though!

So having the classic mystery back of "who-done-it?" was nice. I missed it. I think it was two books ago, the mystery wasn't really mystery worthy and it made me hesitate to buy the book in hardback, but at 46% off and having a Borders giftcard, I thought it was a good deal not to pass up.

Anyway, the series is coming back to it original genre which was mystery. A splash of new characters and plot development also occur in the book as well. As the cover flap describes, the Weres and other shifter kind are having a debate with the public over matters of their needing to register like the vampires did. This is a hot topic of the book for the shifter variety and possibly opens more doors for plot development for future books. It was a strong matter in the book, but didn't do much to move the plot along so much.

Alcide returns along with his pack, some new members in that as well. One of which made me wary, but nothing really happened. One theory was wrong, but still I'm wary of them all the same and wonder if my unease will be answered in another book. The Weres were pretty important in this book since I mentioned the political matter. Not all are out in the public, but some are as it might have happened in the last book, can't really remember.

Other characters come along that are new and surprising as well and I wonder what will be done with them in future books. I don't want to give too much away, but I will say one is connected to Bill, who pops up here and there.

And of course the flap mentioned Eric's maker who comes to town as well with an unexpected guess. With all these supes and the already mentioned murder, you know that Sookie's in for some chaos over the next couple of days.

I think the political matters that have been popping up, even the vampire politics have made things a little more confusing at times. I mean I can follow along with majority of it, but there was a time when Eric was rambling off about different areas and rulers and it was just very confusing and a little hard to follow and I was wondering why we needed to know this.

Other characters return, both human and non, like Tara, who is soooo different from the Tara on the show! She learns some interesting surprises as well. And as the cover flap mentioned, not all the fae are gone, some are still there. And let me just say that one was totally surprising and somewhat confusing. I don't want to dwell on it, because it comes along with another of the mystery elements.

Overall, the book was good. It's getting a little complicated with the political developments which will span on to the next book for sure. But I am glad to see the mystery element is returning. So if you can't wait to read this book then go ahead and get it because it is good, if you can wait, then wait, because while it was good, there are still elements to it that make it hard to enjoy like the earlier books where the mystery was stronger.

My copy of Spirit Bound came today! Part of the reason I pushed myself to read, read, read and finish Dead in the Family. I'd say I'd try to read some tonight, but I'm not really committing to it since I've been reading all day. However I have all day tomorrow to read and my friend who already read and finished said it was good. Check out her review here.

Until later readers! You can expect my Spirit Bound review either tomorrow afternoon or fairly early on Friday!

Waiting on Wednesday

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill, that spotlights releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Today's pick, because it's so hard to choose just one, being that I am eagerly awaiting several books for the rest of the year, is...

Tracking the Tempest!


Tracking the Tempest begins four months–and one eyebrow sacrificed to magical training–after the close of Tempest Rising. During that time, Jane’s been busy honing her supernatural powers and enjoying her newfound sense of confidence. Rockabill may not yet be heaven, but she’s realized it’s home. Valentine’s Day is fast approaching, however, and Ryu–Jane’s bloodsucker boyfriend–can’t let a major holiday go by without getting all gratuitous. This time his shenanigans involve a last-minute ticket to Boston and a hefty dose of direct interference in her life. But Ryu’s best laid plans inevitably create more upheaval than even he can anticipate, and Jane winds up embroiled in an investigation involving a spree of gruesome killings committed by a being of tremendous power . . .

. . . who, much to Jane’s surprise, happens to be another halfling.*

*The above is taken from Nicole Peeler's Website, so it may not reflect the BOC exactly to the letter but it's a good summation of the book! Can't wait!

Tracking the Tempest by Nicole Peeler

Release Date: 6/29/10

ISBN-13: 978-0316056571


May 18, 2010

Review--Magic on the Storm

"MAGIC STIRRED IN ME...I CLOSED MY EYES, WANTING TO LOSE MYSELF TO IT. WANTING TO USE MAGIC IN EVERY WAY I COULD. BUT THAT WOULD BE BAD. I HAD ENOUGH MAGIC INSIDE ME; I COULD BURN DOWN A CITY. AND I DIDN'T WANT TO DO THAT..."

Allison Beckstrom knows better than most that when magic's involved, you always pay. Whether the price is migraines, amnesia, or muscle aches, she is committed to her work as a Hound, tracing illegal spells back to their casters. But her job is about to get much more dangerous.

There's a storm of apocalyptic force bearing down on Portland and when it hits, all the magic in the area will turn unstable and destructive. To stop it from taking out the entire city, Allie and her lover, the mysterious Zayvion Jones, must work with the Authority--the enigmatic arbiters of all things magic--and make a stand against a magical wild storm that will obliterate all in its path.

OMG! Now I totally understand what Devon was saying about how things change for Allie in Magic on the Storm! I won't go into that too much because, yes you guessed it, it's too spoiler-y. But all I have to say about her latest Allie Beckstrom book is WOW! And a hint, when you get towards the end, a little past the halfway mark, the title of her next book makes so much sense that you can figure out what it will contain.

Moving on...the book opens with a light moment between Allie and Zayvion before the trouble really hits the fan. Really it comes in the form of a messenger, Shame, telling them about a meeting that is being held with the Authority and Allie and Zayvion have to be there. There is a storm coming, like the BOC says, and everyone knows this, magic-users know that this will bring trouble, so they are worried. They have to figure a way to try to harness the intensity of the storm and how it will effect the magic within their city. A little complex to explain, but it is said much more easier in the book while reading.

The storm brings nothing but troubles for Allie, even before it really hits! In the short length of time in the book, so much happens to Allie and you really have to feel for the poor gal. Her dead father still haunts her mind and when she's around her stepmother Violet, he tries to take control because he still loves her. It seems that in this book we get to see more of her father's feelings. He was a cold-hearted b*st*rd in the beginning of the series and some of that still remains in his character, but there is a soft side to him.

The relationship between Allie and Zayvion is endearing as well. They are Soul Complements and even without that connection between them, their love would still run strong. That is how deeply they care for one another runs. Zayvion was patient and kind and gentle with Allie back in books 2 and 3 when she was still trying to gain back all her memories that she lost in book 1. That kind of patience seems rare, but when reading, it comes naturally to the characters. Maybe it works like that in real life too sometimes, but every time I read something regarding the relationship between Allie and Zay, I am touched. It takes an amazing writer, and Devon is one, to do that to the readers, to really make them care about these characters in this other world.

The plot moves rather nicely, as one problem leads to another and another. Allie struggles to keep up, that poor gal needs a vacation! I don't want to say why exactly because it's a spoiler, but...no, sorry. Can't think of anything that won't lead to a spoiler. There's big trouble afoot and it's gunning for Allie is all I can vaguely come up with.

There a quite a few surprises in towards the end, particularly the last two chapters. Surprises that will be shocking. Well with BIG endings, when are there not a few surprises?

The ending also leaves you hanging a bit, I will admit but there is a section of the next book at the end of the novel as well. I skimmed it a bit, didn't want to get too enthralled and then have to wait some more. But on the bright side, if you can call it bright, the next book still comes out this year.

Magic at the Gate releases November 2, with a chance of seeing it a little early. Really, I'm only guessing. There are times when you can find a book the weekend before it comes out unless it's a hardback, there's no luck there. At least never ever for me. But Magic at the Gate will explain the something I mentioned at the beginning of this review. So never fear while reading and you come to event X. Just remember this title and you'll be okay, I had to remind myself of said title when I came to it.

Okay, better end there before I talk...err...type too much! My copy of Spirit Bound has yet to arrive. This is likely the last time I preorder something, like I mentioned earlier on my Teaser Tuesday post. Yeah, I got a great deal on the book, but now I am left waiting on release day for my copy. Hopefully it will come soon. Until then, I guess I will start Charlaine's Dead in the Family, the sooner I start and finish that, maybe Spirit Bound will get here sooner!

Teaser Tuesday


Teaser Tuesday is here again. The worst part of preordering a book online is that come release day you are STILL waiting to read the book! I preorderd Spirit Bound and it's going to take awhile to get here I just know it. I don't want to buy another copy too soon because with my luck it will come the day after I buy it. However if it doesn't come before Friday, I'll be buying a copy regardless because that's when Richelle comes to St. Louis! Still very excited about that!

Anyway, onto Teaser Tuesday. I almost finished with Magic on the Storm, so hopefully my copy of Spirit Bound will be here soon!


The Rules:
1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a page
3. Pick out two lines that are SPOILER free
4. Name the book, author, etc.

"'I'm staying right here, with you,' Zayvion said. 'Because I don't want to be anywhere else in the world.'" p78

TITLE: Magic on the Storm
AUTHOR: Devon Monk
GENRE: Urban Fantasy
BoldRELEASE DATE: 5/4/10

May 17, 2010

Review--Silver Borne


Mercy Thompson, car mechanic and shapeshifter, never knows what the day--or night--may bring in a world where "witches, vampires, werewolves, and shapeshifters live beside ordinary people". But she us about to learn that while some secrets are dangerous, those who seek them are just plain deadly...

Mercy is smart enough to realize when it comes to the magical fae, the less you know, the better. But you can't always get what you want. When she attempts to return a powerful fae book she previously borrowed in an act of desperation, she finds the bookstore locked up and closed down.

It seems the book contains secrets--and the fae will do just about anything to keep it out of the wrong hands. And if that doesn't take enough of Mercy's attention, her friend Samuel is struggling with his wolf side--leaving Mercy to cover for him lest his own father declare Samuel's life forfeit.

All in all, Mercy has had better days. And if she isn't careful, she may not have many more...

All right! Finally got around to and finishing Silver Borne. It's been busy. But the book was great! I love the characters, Mercy is the type of heroine I like the best. Snarky and with attitude. She isn't afraid to tell it like it is in some cases that are dire.

Mercy still occasionally suffers from post-traumatic stress from her attack by Tim 2 books ago, and it's a hard thing to overcome, yet Adam is patient and considerate regarding the matter. He is gentle and understanding and doesn't push her.

But that's not even touching the surface of Mercy's problems. Someone is very angry with her, she's trying to take care of Samuel who's wolf is in control, there are "problems" at the shop, the book she's trying to return to Phin is becoming more of a hassle than she thought, and a string of others. Not wanting to go too far into them of course.

The action is well paced, as the problems start small and then keep getting more intense and dangerous as the book moves along. We get to delve further into the fae part of the world again here. No vampires this time. I miss Stefan. I mean how many vampires are there that share the same love I have for Scooby-Doo? Hopefully he'll come back again...

As I said, everything was well paced. Things happen and their results are not always positive. A bounty hunter comes into the picture and in a city full of werewolves, you can guess what that means. But I don't want to get too far into that, but there is a connection to the plot that was well done.

I also like seeing Ben develop further into a better character. When he first came along, he was kind of an a-hole, now he's almost nice. Scary. But he too is still snarky at times as well.

There's a little bit more of werewolf action and politics too at one point. After a chaotic event that followed another actually, there's a challenge put into place and certain pack members are revealed to not being as loyal as Adam would've thought. It's not a big part of the story, sort of minor, but it's possibly a thing that may pop up again in a later book.

Overall it was very entertaining and gripping. I kept wondering about this book and what was so special about it. The information does finally get revealed towards the end and it is quite surprising and it brings along more than one surprise as well! Vague again, I know. But I don't want to go to full into details.

Now I have to go get ready for work. Sigh...rather be reading.

News

I was just on Amazon, looking at my recommendations and I came across something interesting and I thought I would share.

Apparently an author "Tbd" is going to write Vampire Dairies: Stefan's Diaries #1. It apparently releases November 2 2010.

So I'm guessing LJ is writing from Stefan's p.o.v. I checked her website, but didn't see anything promising. So it will be something to keep an eye on.

I remember reading this series back in 2001, when the series was nearly 10 years old, now almost 20 years later it's back and has a TV show and is pretty popular.

May 16, 2010

Cover Art--Richelle Mead


While on another blog I read, Off My Bookshelf, Alex had posted some cover art and among them, Richelle Mead's Last Sacrifice! The last Vampire Academy book, or the last one starring Rose at least. It's interesting. This time the girl is alone. There's always debate whether this is supposed to be Rose, but the girl has blond hair and Rose has dark hair. Some say that the blonde is Lissa. What do you think?

Obviously no description yet since we're stilling waiting for Spirit Bound. Will post one whenever I see it.

May 12, 2010

Review--Death Blows


IMAGINE A WORLD WHERE ONLY ONE PERCENT OF THE POPULATION IS HUMAN, AND THE REST ARE VAMPIRES, LYCANTHROPES, AND GOLEMS. NOW IMAGINE HUNTING DOWN KILLERS IN THIS WORLD. THESE ARE THE BLOODHOUND FILES...

FBI profiler Jace Valcheck was pulled into this parallel realm to hunt for Aristotle Stoker, a human serial killer who preys on vampires and werewolves. Now she works for the National Security Agency of the Unnatural States of America--and her boss is a vampire.

At a bizarre crime scene, Jace finds a bloodsucker murdered by magic, fried to the bone and dressed in the costume of the comic book hero the Flash--a character who isn't supposed to exist here. Comic books have been outlawed for their powers, including crossover spells like the one that transported Jace to this world. Soon, she's following a trail of dead bodies into the sinister underworld of black-market comics--where a deranged madman gives a new meaning to the term "super-villain"...

It's been a long time since I entered D.D. Barant's alternate reality where humans are outruled by the supernatural and I've missed it. It took me a little bit to remember all the characters and their relationships since I've been reading and doing a million other things, but it was still a great read.

Death Blows has Jace taking a break, so to speak, from her main case, finding the serial killer mentioned on the BOC, when the more pressing matter comes up. It was quite an interesting read with the spin on comic books and superheroes as are mentioned in the BOC as well. We might not think much of them here in our reality, ;) but over in the otherworld, they are banned yet still exist.

I don't want to go into too much detail because then I will end up revealing a spoiler, but the comic books play an important role in this novel as do the superheroes. We learn a lot more about comic books and superheroes than in this book. These superheroes are definitely different than Vicki Pettersson's, but different in a good way. We see them more as the traditional type of comic book heroes.

The mystery element was definitely good. I honestly didn't see the identity of the bad guy coming, of course as Jace was making the conclusions I was following in her direction. Some times I can spot the bad guy or make a guess, but this time I was on level with Jace's thinking.

Jace is a great protagonist. She is a stranger in this world where humans make up 1% of the population and yet she has some authority being a police officer in some way. Her partner, a golem named Charlie makes for great bantering. He's pretty funny and they have the nice friendship/partnership relationship going on. Jace has a lot of gumption and yet she still has her moments of panic, making her real. We can all be brave but faced with real and scary danger we do freak out and Jace does this. Well not a big freak out, but still her fear shows which makes her real. As I said. :)

The relationships she has in this book are definitely good. I still can't help wonder what her relationship with Cassius is. He's her boss, but there's some heat between them or maybe friction? I can't decide if they have a spark or not. Because when you look at Jace with her friend De. Pete, you see something different as well despite theirs being a mutual friendship, they have a deeper friendship than she does with Cassius, of course then again, he is her boss.

Besides the main mystery there are a few other secrets that I won't go too far into, but they are definitely interesting. One was wayyy interesting and I am still trying to figure out its meaning. The hard part to understand about the book is the science part to it, the explaining of this and that in relation to the alternate realities and the traveling between them and other aspects that are related to it. I can't fully explain it right without revealing something that happened, so I won't. When I was a little confused I tried to stop analyzing it and just trust the characters, they know what they're saying. But it was still good, just trying to understand the mechanics of this alternate world is a little complicated and I can't imagine how Barant can write something like that, that takes true talent!

The ending was surprising as well yet I don't know what to make of it yet. I just finished reading, so it's all still sinking in. When or if you read it, you'll understand what I mean. Certain characters that came about in the ending make things a little muddled to understand. I understand it on the basic level, but not on the deeper level.

Ignore my rambling. I'm typing what I'm thinking and trying to make sense of everything. Anyway, it was a great read. I love the supernatural and reading this book where the supernatural are dominant is quite thrilling. Can't say I would want to visit it since humans are treated nicely all the time, but still it's nice visiting in this safe way.

Waiting on Wednesday

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill, that spotlights releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Stepping away from werewolves this week I have Jocelynn's next book which I am dying to read as well. If I had an e-reader I could've gotten an ARC, but alas, I do not have one. Oh well.


Pray for salvation... Pray for Daylight...

Murder had pulled Mira out of the shadows and back into the living world...

As the fire-wielding enforcer of the Nightwalker Coven wrestles with the mind-destroying ghosts of her dark past, the slaying of a senator’s daughter in Savannah threatens to expose her kind to the brilliant light of day. The dawn of chaos has come. The naturi have broken free of their eternal prison to feed on the defenseless and unbelieving of an unprepared Earth.

Mira and Danaus—vampire and vampire slayer—must unite to prevent the annihilation of their separate races. But for Danaus the challenge is intensified, for he must also fight the bori who covets his soul. And Mira, the Nightwalker he must protect—whose power is the Earth’s last hope—is rapidly going insane.

Pray for Dawn by Jocelynn Drake
Release Date: 6/29/10
ISBN-13: 978-0061851803

May 11, 2010

Teaser Tuesday


Teaser Tuesday time again. Not too far into my read and won't likely get too far either since I have to go to work in an hour. But I found a good quote and it isn't spoiler-y since it mentions this on the BOC.

Rules:
1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a page
3. Pick 2 sentences that are SPOILER free
4. Name the book, author, etc.

"That's all you got? You've got a dead superhero named the Flash on your hands and you can't come up with a single punch line?" p8







TITLE
: Death Blows
AUTHOR: D.D. Barant
GENRE: Mystery Thriller--based on finding it in the horror section at Borders.
RELEASE DATE: 3/30/10

Review--Cheat the Grave


"I AM NOT SHADOW, LIGHT, ROGUE AGENT, OR LEADER."

Las Vegas socialite and otherworldly avenger Joanna Archer gave up everything when she embraced mortality--abandoning her powers and altering her destiny to save a child...and a city. Now her former allies are her enemies--and her enemies have nothing to fear.

Yet still she is bound to a prophecy that condemns her to roam a nightmare landscape that ordinary humans cannot see and dare not enter. And a beast is on her trail--an insane killer blinded by bloodlust, who's determined to rip much more from Joanna than merely her now-fragile life. Survival is no longer an option in this dark realm where good and evil have blurred into confusing shades of gray--unless she can gather together an army of onetime foes and destroy everything she once believed in.

WOW. Cheat the Grave was by far my favorite in the Signs of the Zodiac series by far! City of Souls was awesome, but Cheat the Grave goes far beyond that! This was my second early copy of a new release that isn't out yet and my last. Oh well. It was fabulous to have two books I was dying to read months early. Although Cheat the Grave has moved its release date up to May 25, so it won't be too much longer now for the rest of you readers!

So like before and always, I won't go too much into the plot since the book isn't even out yet and just stick to basic positives.

The book picks up a short time after the events in City of Souls. As we know Joanna gave up everything to save the life of a child. Now her troop and troop leader have turned their backs on her. Worse of all is Warren's betrayal of her at that moment in the end of book 4, still haunts Joanna and having interactions with him now in book 5 doesn't bode well with her.

Joanna is not happy at all with her troop leader or even her troop who blindly follow Warren's orders no matter how obscene they may be. But Joanna--or Olivia as she is know to the humans, the mortals, is moving on with her life. She is taking charge of her father's company and helping out her friends plan the wedding of the century. Her best friend's--Olivia's best friend's--mother is getting married and Olivia is helping out and attending the parties and other social events that go along with it, but this puts Olivia out in the spotlight--so to speak--and the killer who is after her will have no trouble at all in finding her.

Olivia then learns something has happened--won't tell what--and this is when she turns to the people she once thought of as enemies for help, or rather she admits to needing help and they are her only option since her troop shuns her.

There are some big, major spoilers/secrets that I would love to divulge in, but I can't. What I can hint at is that problems that occurred in City of Souls return here and the problems start anew and we see something different to them. That's it. I'm done with that.

Other spoilers/secrets that weren't in City of Souls also pop up, but again, won't say, but they are good and were definitely ones I was anticipating.

I know, I'm not giving much of hints, but I can't find a way to give you a hint that still leaves you thinking and doesn't give you the answer, at least there's only 2 more weeks to the book releases.

The ending was good, but not overly satisfying, only because it makes me want to read book 6 right away and Vicki is still working on it. She said at RT she sticks to one book a year, which is totally understandable. I've learned how much work goes into writing one book, not even counting the amount of work and time that goes into trying to sell that book to an agent and then a publisher. So the ending was good, but it was sort of cliffhanger-like in that a few problems are still there and we have a whole year to wait to see how they will be resolved. I am curious to how that will play out and since RT is in LA next year, I won't be able to afford to go, so I'll be waiting with everyone else for the actual release date. Oh well. In theory I should be too busy with my new job and writing my own book to go, but still really would like to go. Shooting for 2012 though!

Back to the book, the pacing was done extremely well. Vicki balances Joanna/Olivia's life wonderfully. There are times when she is Olivia--social debutante running a casino business and helping her friend plan her wedding and then she's Joanna--ex-Zodiac troop member trying to make the world a better place still all while dodging numerous attempts on her life and avoiding her father the Tulpa.

There was quite a bit more Tulpa action as well, for Skamar--the tulpa Joanna named--battles with the Tulpa constantly and tries to help Joanna out as well when she can.

Overall this was a fantastic read! There was a lot of secrets going on throughout this book and by saying that I mean the secrets are being revealed. Some things were ultimately shocking and others were just surprising. Some things I wished were touched on more, but the lack of focus on it means that it might be coming up in the next book. Joanna seems to think so at least. :)

A terrific novel overall! As I said my favorite in the series so far, but by book 6 I might change my mind again! And I love the cover choice. Remember my post from March 2? There were two cover options for Cheat the Grave, one had a shirtless guy and the other was this one? Here's the link. Even after reading it, I am still not sure who this mysterious guy is supposed to be. I have my speculations, none which I say for spoiler purposes, but still I wonder.

After you've read it, let me know what your guess was if you can remember that there used to be a guy over Joanna's shoulder.

Check back later for my Teaser Tuesday post, I have to find a good set of sentences in my current read!

May 6, 2010

Review--My Soul to Keep


WHEN KAYLEE CAVANAUGH SCREAMS, SOMEONE DIES. AND KAYLEE IS ABOUT TO SCREAM HER HEAD OFF....

Kaylee has one addiction: her very hot, very popular boyfriend, Nash. A banshee like Kaylee, Nash understands her like no one else. Nothing can come between them.

Until something does.

Demon breath. No, not the toothpaste-challenged kind. The Netherworld kind. The kind that really can kill you. Somehow the super-addictive substance has made its way to the human world. But how? Kaylee and Nash have to cut off the source to protect their friends--one of whom is already hooked.

And so is someone else...

***SPOILERS FOR MY SOUL TO SAVE!!***

This was my first early read! I received an early copy of My Soul to Keep last week and couldn't wait to read it! And as usual, I won't divulge too much into the storyline nor will I reveal spoilers.

But anyway, MSTK picks up close to the end of My Soul to Save, after Kaylee is free from her grounding. So it's a good place to be. I liked that transition. While we all had to suffer and wait for the book, Kaylee was grounded, so she couldn't really do much other than go to school. Which put a slight cramp into her dating life with Nash, but she was able to see him here and there, for her father still isn't too fond of him.

The word that is spreading about the book is that it is darker than the first two and that Kaylee and her friends are really pushed to their limits and now I totally understand what they were saying. The book does get much darker, even darker than My Soul to Save, which was pretty intense with teenage girls selling their souls for fame. Although, can't recall the page number, I did enjoy the crack regarding Hannah Montana. It was good, made me chuckle! I've been reading all day so basically I read this book in one day, minus chapter 1 which I read yesterday, so trying to remember where certain events happened is kind of hard, I want to say this was in the last portion of the book, last 1/4 maybe. Whatever, not important, just something that made me laugh out loud. Which thankfully I was home alone so I could do just that without getting weird stares.

But the characters are really growing in this series and I love that. It's sometimes hard to believe that this is YA, because these teenagers, 16-18 are really going through some scary stuff--and not just the normal teenage/high school stuff. There are some serious matters that come up here and there that are shocking.

Kaylee is pushed so far beyond the limits throughout the book and her strength is incredible. Yes, she does have her breakdown moments, but who wouldn't? But she is able to overcome them for the moment and do what has to be done. She is a very strong young woman and I think that she is a good character for teens to read about. She has hard decisions that must be made in the book and her choices aren't easy ones to accept. Enough on that because it may lead to spoilers, but that's nothing entirely new to any book, the protagonist having to made tough decisions.

I love the characters in these books though. Kaylee as I said is a strong young woman and who I think is a good role model for the average teenage high school girl. She's normal, she sees others in her school who put on a show and try to act all snotty--basically falling into the cliches of high school b--es, but they do exist--saw them at my high school. Like Sophie for example, I hate her! I find it hard sometimes to really passionately hate a fictional character, but with Sophie? I literally hate her guts! And Rachel does an amazing job for readers to hate her. True, I can sympathize with her at times, but they are few times. She's just cruel and nasty when it really isn't warranted towards Kaylee, and she's family! But as I said, I can sympathize with her at times because she has been through a lot and she really doesn't know the truth regarding the "why".

Emma is still one of the greatest best friends I've ever read about. She too cares for Kaylee and does amazing things for her best friend. She is flawed, but who isn't? This again makes her relate-able and real and lovable! Nash is still the good boyfriend and does what he can to make Kaylee comfortable about their relationship. He doesn't pressure her into moving further with their relationship and that I think is an admirable quality.

There is the mystery element to be found in the book and I enjoyed it as well. There's a lot of tension in trying to figure out what is going on, which literally had me gripping the pages and wanting to read more and more--which I did obviously! The mystery element really grabs you, it's not overly detailed, but it's not simple either. The Netherworld never is. And surprisingly this time when I was reading and saw the word "The Netherworld" I thought of the The Netherworld--the dark and scary place where dark and scary things dwell, and not the "Neetherworld" from Beetlejuice (Loved that cartoon show as well as the movie!) like I did the previous time, because as I said The Netherworld is a very scary place.

Kind of like before there is an ending that wraps up the plot but it leaves you wanting more, desperately. It's not a dramatic cliffhanger ending...I have had those and it drives me crazy...but it is going to make the wait for My Soul to Steal be somewhat agonizing and that releases in January 2011. But luckily Alpha comes out October 1 2010 to bide the time. The last book in the Shifters series, a book I am DYING to read!

So overall My Soul to Keep was fan-tab-u-lous. It was darker than the first two, but I am weird chick, always have been, so I like dark books. My friends can attest to that! When I say it is darker, I'm not meaning anything negative in regards to the quality of the book. Bibliophiles and readers know that "dark" books are just as good as the "lighter" books, but sometimes darker books can be better, we all need to have that edge and My Soul to Keep promises to give you that edge!

If you haven't read the Soul Screamers series yet, I HIGHLY recommend it! So far there's only 3 books, book 3 comes out in June, so you have time to catch up. The series is amazing because I think the real life elements, involving high school are done wonderfully and realistically--which makes me so glad that I am done with high school! But seriously it is written wonderfully well and I think it does speak well to high school students. I just finished college, so I am not too far from my high school years and I still feel like that this book speaks to teenagers on their level. If these were printed while I was still in high school, I would sooo be reading them then! Would've had them sooner too!

Stay reading readers!