tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28950874807884411542024-03-16T11:51:06.720-07:00Bell, Books & CandleBell to keep track of my keys~
Books to keep me out of trouble~
Candle to light the wayCadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.comBlogger81125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-31308654514877767332024-03-15T11:01:00.000-07:002024-03-15T11:01:03.823-07:00<p></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"> “The Lost Girl”</span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"> by Casey L. Bond</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-ujD18FOusdgAtPtmjjAv0OQQi5hKYXSVkB2B2Xc2LRDWQt3Xgi7gWpnTkq0WSXtKhU2rgHXBokcAopJATrBlreCAEJVlkQVd7foUlQAmFKlNRthxKSGBu7feui2r0fxaL3FAy3zCnNjWNiDdbsjJzdiCEX-YX7bfrYBDWHDiKY58t5tKN3uTzPGtb9Y/s7952/TLLG%20Naked%20Hardback%20Cover%204.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5304" data-original-width="7952" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-ujD18FOusdgAtPtmjjAv0OQQi5hKYXSVkB2B2Xc2LRDWQt3Xgi7gWpnTkq0WSXtKhU2rgHXBokcAopJATrBlreCAEJVlkQVd7foUlQAmFKlNRthxKSGBu7feui2r0fxaL3FAy3zCnNjWNiDdbsjJzdiCEX-YX7bfrYBDWHDiKY58t5tKN3uTzPGtb9Y/s320/TLLG%20Naked%20Hardback%20Cover%204.png" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="s10" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.62; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s7" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.4px;"><br /></span></p><p class="s10" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.62; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s7" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.4px;"><br /></span></p><p class="s10" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.62; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s7" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.4px;">Blurb: </span><span class="s8" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.4px;"><br /></span><span class="s9" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; line-height: 15.6px;">Welcome to Neverland. Where shadows consume and magic is frighteningly real.</span></p><p class="s10" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.62; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s11" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;"> </span></p><p class="s10" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.62; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s11" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Ava is struggling to provide for herself and her sister, who slips further into insanity with each passing day. Raving about Neverland. Obsessed with a Second Star that Ava can’t see in the black, velvety sky. Until the night Belle succumbs to the terrifying shadows plaguing her and sweeps Ava away to a land that is only supposed to exist in storybooks. </span></p><p class="s10" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.62; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s12" style="color: #500050; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;"> </span></p><p class="s13" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.62; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;"><span class="s9" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; line-height: 15.6px;">Neverland is real. And so is Peter Pan</span><span class="s11" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">.</span></p><p class="s10" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.62; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s12" style="color: #500050; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;"> </span></p><p class="s10" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.62; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s11" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">He's grown from boy to man, wielding a terrible power he uses to rule the island. When he senses Ava’s presence and sends his Lost Boys to collect her, a dashing captain with a silver hook for a hand comes to her defense. He offers her protection aboard his ship, and the help of his crew to find Belle before Peter and his Lost Boys do. But what he asks for in return might be more than she or her sister can possibly pay. </span></p><p class="s10" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.62; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s11" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;"> </span></p><p class="s10" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.62; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s11" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Belle once stole something invaluable from Peter Pan, something Hook and his crew need if they’re ever to escape the cursed island’s thrall. And despite their undeniable attraction, Hook will do anything to claim it before Pan can. </span></p><p class="s10" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.62; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s11" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;"> </span></p><p class="s10" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.62; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s14" style="background-color: #efefef; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11px; line-height: 13.2px;">“An utterly enthralling retelling that will leave you breathless and begging for more!” – Jenny Hickman, author of </span><span class="s15" style="background-color: #efefef; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11px; font-style: italic; line-height: 13.2px;">A Cursed Kiss</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;"> </span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s17" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15.6px;">Book Links: </span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Amazon: </span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Universal: </span><a href="https://geni.us/TheLastLostGirlLAR"><span class="s18" style="color: blue; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">https://geni.us/TheLastLostGirlLAR</span></a></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Goodreads: </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/206725094-the-last-lost-girl"><span class="s18" style="color: blue; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/206725094-the-last-lost-girl</span></a></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;"> </span><a name="m_600614608072818126_OLE_LINK1"></a><a name="m_600614608072818126_OLE_LINK2"></a></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s19" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15.6px;">Tropes:</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">A glorious, morally gray anti-hero</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Allies to Lovers</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Pirates</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Shadow magic</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Touch her and </span><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">die</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Dark curses</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Forced Proximity</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">One Bed</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Betrayals</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Lost Memories</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Ancient Evil</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Dark Secrets</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Fantasy Creatures</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;">Deadly Flora</span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;"> </span></p><p class="s3" style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s17" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15.6px;">Triggers:</span><span class="s16" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 15.6px;"> Suicide ideation of secondary character, death, violence, gore, adult language, consensual sexual content, kidnapping and captivity, brief and vague reference to history of child abuse of minor character.</span></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-57008162323372329172024-02-25T22:22:00.000-08:002024-02-25T22:22:55.372-08:00<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBCByYFFLBgqhyg5D6q6GO4uIBdebnmTeE6cLpRyQJnDwFrqHUluV2nL71EnRUI4gM7IdpHB4Tz8CELRPTADXtgtcZR3d_KtVDMFzR0psG5WtZCkiK52fbGbwzQBXsosuTybZRWPgct5eL3mz1S8vYmhMKmlm4CT7xHZS2RyjLFVRfHluTpRkmNoB3piw/s500/wings%20of%20ink.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="333" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBCByYFFLBgqhyg5D6q6GO4uIBdebnmTeE6cLpRyQJnDwFrqHUluV2nL71EnRUI4gM7IdpHB4Tz8CELRPTADXtgtcZR3d_KtVDMFzR0psG5WtZCkiK52fbGbwzQBXsosuTybZRWPgct5eL3mz1S8vYmhMKmlm4CT7xHZS2RyjLFVRfHluTpRkmNoB3piw/s320/wings%20of%20ink.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><span style="font-size: large;">" Wings of Ink "by Angelina J. Steffort</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"> Fort Perenis, a Gaurdianforsaken place … <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Nine months in a cell where the darkness never comes to
light, the cries of those being dragged to the gallows, the nightmares, the whispered
tales of feathered fairies searching for women, brides, that go missing and
never return and the pain in my bad hand. The hand that had been broken when I
struggled to escape the guards. The pain of watching Ludelle, my love, executed
before my eyes. I couldn’t save him, or any of the others of the Wild Ray. I am
the last. Why does the General keep me alive?</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> <br /></o:p>Then the guard stops outside my door, enters, and bids me
move. The General has found a use for me at last. A creature out of nightmares
with black feathers for arms, claws for hands, his face more bird than human
has come to take me to Askarea, the fairylands. The tales of brides are true,
and I am to be the next sacrifice. I awake in a room when a voice calls out to
ask if I am alive. Like the one who brought me here, but more human in
appearance. This is the Crow King, the beast I am to marry.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Escape is foremost in Ayna’s mind, but there is no escape. She
will be no meek submissive bride, but Myron, the Crow King, has promised her he
will not force her into consummating the marriage as long as she presents herself
as trying to comply with his dictates. She must always have a guard when she
leaves her room, she is not allowed to leave the castle. There are those among the
crow fairies that would see her dead. There is a curse on these people and the
brides are the key to breaking it. There is history that is slowly shared as Ayna
tries to become accustomed to Myron and her new life. She refuses to back down even
in the face of the hatred many hold for her and will slowly come realize the
dark haunts Myron and even he struggles to keep it at bay. There is something
about him that makes her want to be close to him, to reach out and help.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Angelina J Steffort has reimagined the tale of Beauty and
her Beast bringing the darker side of the tale to us where curses have turned fae
into gruesome beasts, dark magic has a hand on Myron’s throat, adventure leads
to haunting dange, where hope and love dares to grow in a forest filled with evil,
and revenge. Ayna won’t be taken without
a fight. She has spirit and despite the torture, heartache, and pain she has
faced she will not back down. Her empathic voice is clearly heard throughout
the book. Myron, is a bit harder to read. His inner thoughts and feelings are
more hidden. Thankfully this isn’t a simple tale. It is filled with deceit,
complicated hidden hope, dark times and like a rose that grows in concrete love
will find a way to bring light to the dark heart of the Crow King. If I have
one discord, I would have liked to hear more of Myron’s thoughts/impressions in
order to garner a better understanding of him. He was a bit of an enigma that I
want to learn more about. In so saying…</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I only came up for
coffee, this book entwined itself so much around me, held me to the end and
dropped me on my butt. How did it end so quickly I wasn’t ready. With cliffhangers
I guess I never am. I highly recommend this paranormal tale, especially if you
enjoy your Grimm’s Tale unaltered.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-89550039399136742912024-02-25T21:20:00.000-08:002024-02-25T21:20:08.205-08:00<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia1qzonmhsZaz0FGcHHYVy-hNkiG9nLxkgablOsnJx1FsQ48VWFaGFUGIAh2OP94GtGyhWCix7m5jnLykDd11XG4-zq2z0rs7YdNmTpNJ16PQEzGwOzs0gxJGevFfExCYHNTALiWK-GXl6r5ODJ6Nygy72OXIA1AIa0Hhpeueh7mYFuZ0RUHdJE6YOr8Y/s1080/midnight%20waters.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia1qzonmhsZaz0FGcHHYVy-hNkiG9nLxkgablOsnJx1FsQ48VWFaGFUGIAh2OP94GtGyhWCix7m5jnLykDd11XG4-zq2z0rs7YdNmTpNJ16PQEzGwOzs0gxJGevFfExCYHNTALiWK-GXl6r5ODJ6Nygy72OXIA1AIa0Hhpeueh7mYFuZ0RUHdJE6YOr8Y/s320/midnight%20waters.png" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: large;">Midnight Waters </span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"> by Rosie Wylor-Owen</span></p><p class="MsoNormal">One is born, one will die<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>On the island of Dusk two families of witches had a long
history of hatred for each other the Arrowoods and the Everharts. A hatred so malevolent that one member of each
family would commit murder, one using the Tree of Life and the other a dryad as
an instrument of death. Now generations later these two families still pay the
price for their ancestors’ act of vengeance. A curse that brings death. Each time a new child
is born or adopted into the families of the Arrowoods or Everharts a member of
their family dies.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Maeve Arrowood had been driven away from Dusk after high
school. Growing up with the threats of
death, in the middle of the deadly feud with the animosity between the families,
she’d only wanted some peace. Her affinity for water made her the ideal person
to work with Nexus, a department of law enforcement in London retrieving bodies
from watery graves. Now she was home again because a child was soon to be born.
If it was her time to die, she wanted to be on the island. If it was her father’s,
she wanted to spend what little time was left together. Both survived this
birth, but her uncle didn’t. News spread quickly in Dusk. Maeve ran into two
Everhart sons, Ben and Adrian, on the street shortly after. Adrian immediately started
taunting her and cheering over the death. This is why she had stayed away for
so long.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Her uncle wasn’t the only death on Dusk it seemed. A body
had been found on the rocks within the boundaries of the merfolk. Since there
had been problems with tourists the merfolk had closed their waters to all. As
a former employee of Nexus, the police chief in Dusk asked for Maeve’s
assistance to bring the body to land. In the past Maeve had been friends with
the merfolk. So, requesting permission to retrieve the body from their waters
was left up to her. Told by Janeria, the queen of the merfolk, that some had
seen Tyler, the young man, pushed off the cliff onto the rocks. However, since
the distance had been too far to see the murderer Janeria wanted her people
left out of this situation. For this reason, Maeve couldn’t tell the Chief,
what had been seen, Tyler’s death was ruled and accident. Maeve couldn’t let it
go; Tyler had been a friend from school. Unfortunately, he had been an even
closer friend to Ben Everhart, who was now out for blood, refusing to believe
it an accident.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Ben Everhart would reluctantly team up with Maeve to find the
murderer and the reasons behind Tyler’s death. If either of their families saw
them together there would be the devil to pay. If this had been their only
contact with each other, they might have gotten away with it. Until they both ended
up at a dating agency whose unique introductions used magical masks that hid
their identities for the first three dates. It seemed that Ben Everhart and
Maeve Arrowood were an almost perfect match. Let the adventures begin.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>The unique story plot had me swimming in very deep waters
watching for something to come up and pull me down. Maeve’s closest friends are
a delight, one a fairy, the other a dryad, while sharing their unsolicited advice
and help. The families on both sides come off as strongly opinionated, at times
unreasonable, unwilling to even consider a means of ending the curse but also
had strong loving ties. Both families live as many families did eons ago, supporting
each other living in one huge dwelling. Adrain’s anger is right up there like a
volcano ready to explode and not easily controlled.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p> The animosity is palpable
and at times felt like an extra character that walked beside them. But the pull
between Ben and Maeve during their time together on their dates before they
realized who they were was equally strong. There is the mystery of Tyler’s
murder but by the end of the tale I was rooting for Ben and Maeve to find a
solution to end the curse or at least break away from their family’s cruel disregard
for their growing feelings. Shades of Romeo and Juliet that lead us into the next
part of this trilogy. If I had any discord, it would be that at times by their dialogue
and actions, Maeve and Ben seemed to me more older teens than young twenty
somethings. I am looking forward to reading the rest of the stories and I can
recommend this title. I believe some older teens would enjoy it as well but there
is encounter between Ben and Maeve that becomes heated.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-41670211928396414692024-02-11T07:32:00.000-08:002024-02-11T07:36:24.256-08:00<p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">Cheesecake Supreme Better Homes and Gardens 1960</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmasBEiyOsYlCfxy2pOTUChs25saLN6SMjsCAl1x6-GY-JVLbUuEiY3eEAOBoQCWI6fNrysNuFPBCGF31-2tYq1pvRgi4QQbeMf8UfFAX08R8tizTH66QB2KJx_5iHuwp6suf0U722pHCfHfO1Kl3qlJtFEL39sxf3kM7K_CU2jeZSoe_JGZtcJc0roqY/s400/cheesecake2.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="372" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmasBEiyOsYlCfxy2pOTUChs25saLN6SMjsCAl1x6-GY-JVLbUuEiY3eEAOBoQCWI6fNrysNuFPBCGF31-2tYq1pvRgi4QQbeMf8UfFAX08R8tizTH66QB2KJx_5iHuwp6suf0U722pHCfHfO1Kl3qlJtFEL39sxf3kM7K_CU2jeZSoe_JGZtcJc0roqY/w275-h295/cheesecake2.jpg" width="275" /></a></div><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><div><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></o:p></div><div><br /></div> Crust</span></o:p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>1 cup sifted enriched flour</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">¼ cup sugar<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">1 teaspoon grated lemon peel<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">½ cup butter<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">1 slightly beaten egg yolk<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">¼ teaspoon vanilla extract</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Combine first 3 ingredients. Cut in butter till mixture is
crumbly. Add egg yolk and vanilla; blend well.Pat 1/3 of dough on bottom of a 9-inch spring-form pan
(sides removed). Bake at 400 degrees about 8 minutes or till golden; cool.
Attach sides to bottom, butter; and pat remaining dough on sides to height of 1
¾ inches, leaving space at top to expand.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p>Cheese Filling:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">5 8-ounce packages Philadelphia cream cheese<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">¼ teaspoon vanilla (I use 1 teaspoon)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">3/4 teaspoon grated lemon peel (you can use lemon juice 1
teaspoon)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">1 ¾ cups sugar<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">3 tablespoons enriched flour<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">¼ teaspoon salt<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">4 or 5 eggs (1 cup)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>[I use large and 5 eggs]<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">2 egg yolks<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">¼ cup whipping cream<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Let cheese soften at room temperature [this is a must, or
you can get lumps in cream cheese or over beat it], 1 to 1 ½ hours. Add vanilla
and lemon peel. Mix next 3 ingredients; slowly blend in. Add eggs and yolks one
at a time; beat after each just to blend. Gently fold in whipping cream.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Turn into crust-lined pan. Bake at 450 degrees for 12
minutes; reduce heat to 300 degrees, bake for 55 minutes. Allow to cool. Loosen
sides with spatula after ½ hour. [carefully run a knife or blade spatula around
before loosening the sides, do not remove them yet]<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remove sides at the end of an hour. Cool 2
hours longer. Glaze with Pineapple or Strawberry Glaze.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>[I don’t but I have the recipe for the
strawberry if you want it or use premade strawberry glaze.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-6207414173450245472024-02-05T21:14:00.000-08:002024-02-05T21:14:21.449-08:00<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIh4TuYZpQ5OXQmojwLzj6twX405PqT2wbL9-4AQszgYJ2HfIaPg5yULpUvrTvEkP59kJsJMByBg4jMV2Qw41NaPykMQImMtNJToFgWdxXUKGIzKEP6jgTX31dmGcQfrNm_zcE-ixpHlj6MvHX7WoFkaBhUBxFEOesbhNnG0vws0oIj1E4tnC_Svze8pI/s1500/of%20elves%20and%20embers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIh4TuYZpQ5OXQmojwLzj6twX405PqT2wbL9-4AQszgYJ2HfIaPg5yULpUvrTvEkP59kJsJMByBg4jMV2Qw41NaPykMQImMtNJToFgWdxXUKGIzKEP6jgTX31dmGcQfrNm_zcE-ixpHlj6MvHX7WoFkaBhUBxFEOesbhNnG0vws0oIj1E4tnC_Svze8pI/s320/of%20elves%20and%20embers.jpg" width="213" /></a></div> <span style="font-size: large;">Of Elves and Embers</span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"> by Elle Madison & Robin D. Mahle<br /></span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Brush up your Greek Mythology…and jump into the tale of
Ember a princess who gave her life for her people, and prince who lives with shadows
and bitter regrets.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Ember had grown up as a human, in the world of hard knocks,
but had finally found her art and love in the tattoo shop she owned. Her uniquely
beautiful art decorated her own skin, even more so when she was brought to the
realm of the elves. Held in the strange world of winter cold, surrounded by fantastical
beasties, seemingly unwanted, except for the use of her isos, told she could
never return to the human world , could she deal with the realization that she
was one of them. They were wrong, they had to be. Her human mother had traumatized
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ember as a young child by loving shared
the video of her birth. They’d highjacked the wrong girl! <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Now facing, Hadeon, the Shadow King, who had been responsible
for bringing her to Aelvaria his presence raised feelings of “hatred, panic and
desperation.” Ember couldn’t understand her reactions, since she had no memory
of him or this land. It appeared the Hadeon wasn’t any happier to see her
either, but they needed her. She was told that she was the reincarnation of Princess
<a name="_Hlk158066982">Phaedra</a> who had given her life, along with seven other
princesses, to return the lost magic to the land, destroyed in the great war,
and to save her people. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Though her isos, magic, she was told she had wasn’t in any
hurry to reappear, within a short time Ember found that her ears morphed to a
point, in her anger at one point her flame colored hair erupted into flames.
She may not want to believe in reincarnation, but even her dreams started to
prove her wrong. In bits and pieces, she dreamed of a life she had no memory of
in her waking hours. She would train with the Hadeon and his cousins, Celani
and her brother Kallius, since she had known them in her other life. The hopes
were that her isos would come to life, when she could learn to control it. Dark
creatures called wraiths, fed on the souls of the people. So far Hadeon and his
soldiers were able to hold them at bay, but they were coming ever closer and
they need Ember to gain her magic in order to join the fight to destroy them. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Besides the dangers that face Ember, her dreams begin to bring
the realization that as the Princess Phaedra, she and Hadeon had been very close.
What had changed his feelings to the hatred, he appeared to have for her now? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While at times she saw a longing in his eyes
when he looked at her, it that disappeared quickly. Fantastical, creatures from
Greek Mythology roam the pages with their own personalities on show. I laughed,
stewed over Hadeon’s stubborn refusal to admit that he cared for Ember, enjoyed
the banner, intrigued by the situations and trials they all faced not only with
the wraiths but their search for the means to restore The Never Court whose
land was now uninhabitable. I found my self wrapped up in the lives both past
and present of the characters, my heartbreaking for what had transpired in the
past. I loved the creatures, some I hadn’t seen outside of mythology.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This is fourth book in "Forgotten Kingdom" series and the
authors have blended their story beautifully with the others before it. As the
story spins out, characters feelings and memories slowly evolve, dangers step
up, friendships once again bloom and though Hadeon and Ember’s trials and
battles come to completion in this book I enjoyed to cameos of Ivy, Aria and
Kage that tie them into the previous tales. The story is never dull, while I
kept waiting for Hadeon to take his head out of his butt, Ember struggled valiantly
to control her isos, make sense of her memories, deal with her feelings for
Hadeon in the face of his determination to not allow his feelings for Ember to
surface. And here is the slight discord I found with the tale. I understood his
reluctance, in part, but felt he over played his anger and hurt feelings. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I loved the story and both authors brought a new perspective
to the series while making it a seamless transition on to the next storyline. Although,
each book is penned by a different author, each giving the story at the core their
own twist, they flow beautifully into each other. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I highly recommend all the books that have
come so far, and look forward the upcoming story….so I can start at the beginning
and read them all again.<o:p></o:p></p><span style="font-size: large;"></span><p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-56645903855861752842024-01-31T22:48:00.000-08:002024-01-31T22:48:43.579-08:00<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglrNW0zeY1Hb2pbLw28L1JRYazLlvmYnS9tMyO3XVXoEjX_TSoNW-ib-Qvx1z9MfpUwohcRk2hRCh8wcFuWnuhJ6qcGago6v2HFsaQDryGpzLPHGd4ATdSsI-2lyfI4slMtBlHv7jjP-qmaoCeKqASl8i3sK8U72AtAiBSYfuqxUo5RMIAYPcQrjtfXHY/s4427/IMG_2011.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3900" data-original-width="4427" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglrNW0zeY1Hb2pbLw28L1JRYazLlvmYnS9tMyO3XVXoEjX_TSoNW-ib-Qvx1z9MfpUwohcRk2hRCh8wcFuWnuhJ6qcGago6v2HFsaQDryGpzLPHGd4ATdSsI-2lyfI4slMtBlHv7jjP-qmaoCeKqASl8i3sK8U72AtAiBSYfuqxUo5RMIAYPcQrjtfXHY/s320/IMG_2011.jpeg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Neucha; font-size: x-large;">The Last Lost Girl </span><span style="font-family: Neucha; font-size: xx-large;">by Casey L. Bond</span></div><br /> <span style="font-size: medium;">Casey L. Bond has a new title coming soon. “The Last Lost Girl” is Casey’s twist on an old story. Her books always draw me into the imaginative worlds she has created. Where walking beside her characters lets me become part of the action, sharing their adventures, dangers, romance, twists and turns. I never know where she will take me but it is always a wondrous journey. More about this story to follow soon.</span><p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-34748666822769525332024-01-30T11:56:00.000-08:002024-01-30T11:56:03.139-08:00<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVI8WtHysLHecEb4AQGW3AGvfnJvcmGTLZO2QU02fGevA-5YeYjYWl9vlCv3pU7Y0WR6Rq8It88hDH8eD9uzHaiIOwgvIhOwUSUCOeQ-ju8TkuSCFYUiNyNduEEpBdU0StBxUAAg56y_g48yob7qGwee2cCulifQYmMWODGYXa4Edv3ePWXYM_MTLGiHM/s445/glimmer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="445" data-original-width="297" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVI8WtHysLHecEb4AQGW3AGvfnJvcmGTLZO2QU02fGevA-5YeYjYWl9vlCv3pU7Y0WR6Rq8It88hDH8eD9uzHaiIOwgvIhOwUSUCOeQ-ju8TkuSCFYUiNyNduEEpBdU0StBxUAAg56y_g48yob7qGwee2cCulifQYmMWODGYXa4Edv3ePWXYM_MTLGiHM/s320/glimmer.jpg" width="214" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Glimmer of the Other by Heather G. Harris<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Review by
Katy Grant<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Saving the Realms<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After her parents’
murders Jinx, Jessica Sharp at 18, became a private investigator, creating a
job in which she could work for others but also to continue the search for
answers about who had murdered her parents and why. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her mother always told her to “fly under the
radar” since there was something unique about herself that could cause
problems. Jinx was a human lie detector. Recognizing instantly the truth or lie
behind what people were saying, and sometimes if she pushed them a bit, she
could get them to truthfully answer questions they’d had no intentions of
answering. This she keeps to herself, however, not even telling the caring Mrs.
Harding, the neighbor who lived next door Jinx’s whole life. Mrs. H. was a real
help, she had comforted Jinx after her parents’ death, continued to watch out
for her, even keeping Gato, Jinx’s extremely large Great Dane, when he couldn’t
tag along on a job.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>A simple search for a missing young woman will open realms
to Jinx, she never dreamed existed, much less could she believe that she
belonged in them. Joined in her search
for Hester, Lady Sorrel’s granddaughter, is Zachary Stone, who appears as stoic
as his name…at first. It was the stop at Rosie’s Café that Stone realized Jinx
was what he called a ’truth seeker’.
Stone suddenly grabbed her wrist looking at her saying she’d been
’hidden’. Which translated that even
though she was aware of her powers, she had been totally ignorant of the world
of magical beings of which she was one. There are three realms, but all her
life Jinx had lived in the Common Realm where magical beings could mingle with
humans without the humans seeing them as they really are. Stone, it seemed, was
a high-ranking inspector in what he called the Connection, a governing body for
the Realm of the Other. Without much fuss, Stone stepped out behind
Rosie’s introduced her to the Other. When they walked back into the café, it
was like walking into the mirror and coming out on the other side into a
strange world that looked the same, only some of the people she saw definitely
weren’t human. Within this realm magical beings and humans still mixed but as
an Other Jinx could now see the magical creatures as they truly were. And
finding Hester just became a lot more complicated since the new boyfriend she
had disappeared with was a vampyr. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Characters, both human and magical beings inhabit the realms
in which Jinx would travel with Stone. Each had its rules that must be followed
while danger flowed hot and heavy in all three realms, emotions were high, and
it was easy to offend without knowing it. At the center of it all was the
dagger created for a very special purpose that at all costs must not fall into
the wrong hands.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This tale has some
well-known legendary beasties, as well as some I had never seen in my decades
of reading sci-fantasy literature. Heather Harris did a grand job of giving
even the familiar beasties unique abilities and characteristics. Her realms may
be hidden but the suspense and danger is on just about every page. I never knew
what to expect when I turned the next page or who Stone and Jinx might
encounter. The story is a living thing that moves in and out of the imagination
and made me feel as if I were being drawn into a world filled with stories yet
to be shared, characters that I grew to care about, but might disappear from
the next page. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Dry humor sneaks in, in spots, British colloquialisms and
wording I found easily understandable in the context of the telling. A tale
which gives us implied romance, danger, death, hard won friendships, shifters,
deamons, empathy’s, vampyrs, trolls, ogres, mer-people, dragons and more. I got
so caught up in the series after turning the last page, I immediately picked up
the rest of the books to follow the story to its “conclusion”? Written in the
King’s English the reader be treated to familiar words with different
spellings, British colloquial sayings, and humor.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I first started listening on audio and found myself lost in
listening to the beautifully narrated book. Alyse Gibbs’ precise, clipped
King’s English is spot on and very easy to follow. [I worked for over 15 years
with a British lady who never gave in to American slang.] Likewise, I never
seemed to have a problem distinguishing which character was speaking since
Alyse Gibbs’ intonations and slight changes in range of her voice quickly
alerted me that a different character was speaking. She is an excellent narrator.
I highly recommend this tale in both Audible and eBook, I made good use of
both.<o:p></o:p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-55661799855332785402024-01-26T09:09:00.000-08:002024-01-26T09:09:48.775-08:00<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib7ED08s2F2ajMMSzA2Jana-hkGz7obLpF2on2qMlBf03yYfQZYmfwrZtmJY1YKVrlXJJYyJNbV8UjWOCLsYIp_FJXtKhrxwld8hqFtP8NSONfbw135JR_mpnmE_r8UwrBVqxCk1bCnaiCHhmKi0zEvp-K052_5lDxq3vZF2yEYpKeUSDa9BjAlSKXEOA/s1500/blood%20Weaver.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib7ED08s2F2ajMMSzA2Jana-hkGz7obLpF2on2qMlBf03yYfQZYmfwrZtmJY1YKVrlXJJYyJNbV8UjWOCLsYIp_FJXtKhrxwld8hqFtP8NSONfbw135JR_mpnmE_r8UwrBVqxCk1bCnaiCHhmKi0zEvp-K052_5lDxq3vZF2yEYpKeUSDa9BjAlSKXEOA/s320/blood%20Weaver.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Blood Weaver Lady by Karina Espinosa<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">reviewed by Katy Grant</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Foe or Friend, Obsessed with or Loved by</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Layanna, a blood mage princess, hides behind the guise of
Leila a healer of Lomewood. Befriended by the only living person to know her
true identity, Selene. Part merfolk, she had been sold into servitude by her
father, to the Rose Petal, a house of pleasure. They would watch over each
other until the promised time when Leila would find the means to free Selene
from her bondage and Leila could safely return home to Valoria.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ten years ago, war
broke out between Valoria and Keldara.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Layanna was sent away with her loyal guardian Sir Eric. Even as the war
ended, Eric had warned Layanna there was danger to her life if they returned to
Valoria. Promising to reveal all he knew of the peril, in her path, when she
was older. In the meantime, he trained her in the use of her blood magic, as
well as how to defend herself. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sadly, he
died before sharing his knowledge of the danger. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To find the answers she sought, Layanna stayed
hidden plying her trade as a healer while quietly searching in places where
information flowed.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Word has been spread
The Crimson Clan, another waring people, from the Grasslands had sent a message
to Valoria that they held the Lost Princess and would return her to Valoria
only if the King and Queen agreed to certain demands. Otherwise, she would be
married to the clan chief’s son. After ten years what had changed? Why was the
Crimson Clan avowing they had her as a bargaining chip? She needed to learn
more.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>News came to Leila
that some from the Crimson Clan had been reported within Lomewood. Leila feared
for Selene with such men visiting the Rose Petal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, when Selene signaled Leila she was in
trouble, Leila faced off several of the Crimson Clan men surprising Ronan, the
leader of the Crimson Clan group, with her skills as his men lay defeated at
her feet. Ronan made the mistake of trying to buy Leila’s “services” as a
pleasurer. She caught him off guard when she remarked that the services, he
needed from her were those of a healer. The mark on his neck proved someone had
tried to poison him. He was surprised by her knowledge and the attempt on his
life. Leila was even more surprised when he confronted her the next morning
with the knowledge that he knew who she was, the Lost Princess.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Within the vast Central Plains, the small town of Lomewood
was supposed to be neutral territory, free of the kingdoms and clans’ dealings.
Nevertheless, when some from the Crimson Clan entered the city, they would come
face to face with Layanna’s brother Prince Marcellus and their childhood friend
Prince Caelan, of Eldwain. When her brother Marcellus and Caelan found the
Crimson Clan in the city they brought in reinforcements. Leila would be caught
in the middle of a battle between Ronan, his men, and Caelan with a stronger
force of soldiers. Caelan sought Ronan’s death as well as the release of the
Princess and would destroy any who stood in his way. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When Leila got caught in the crossfire she
would be captured and tortured by one she thought a friend, while the one she
assumed to be an enemy would fight to protect her. Why?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The are no empty
sentences as the story rolls out its magic, mystery, drama, hidden secrets,
hatreds, warring differences, variety of atypical magical beings and unbound
love, in a world uniquely built on a very imaginative platform. In this book we
learn about the city of Lomewood and the Central Plains. While, I hope to see
more of the other kingdoms in the next editions. Kariana Espinosa has done a
smashing job of clouding the characters, so the reader isn’t certain who to
believe and who to mistrust. Selene, Leila and a young boy named Henry are the
only ones I am sure of at the moment. Emotions run high through the characters,
easily heard in their exchanges and dialogue. In this first book, just when you
think you may have an idea of who’s, who and where the story is going you turn
the page to another confrontation and the characters show a completely
different side to themselves. Leila is smart, wary, strong, and unsure of those
she thought she knew. At the center of chaos trying to understand what is
happening, and why now, Leila only knows she wants no harm to come to Ronan or
Caelan. his is only the beginning, with a cliff hanger that will keep my trying
to predict what happens next until next book surfaces on the shelves. <o:p></o:p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-31886933892031157262024-01-22T06:53:00.000-08:002024-01-22T06:53:46.895-08:00<p> <b style="color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #e69138;">Those Forbidden Shadows by Cameo Renae</span></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKipeAnfUVS27_SkRg0AmTpE-GPOVHpgXhbeCuPBpNVi7jetiUIjhXEQeQzVnVrCgzOYeR5-DQklV0Pyp6sql_SdbCsq4PwppzjLh8lBb3H4YYGOrLEDKSh_QiMJgibU8gVnYG-IDDR_b9Beq98pOpReXNxqK1fA9Ci-Bp2bUpGnQf4Jt1FcpxaXduDAM/s1500/forbidden%20Shadows%20Cameo%20Renae.jpg" style="clear: left; color: #f48d1d; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKipeAnfUVS27_SkRg0AmTpE-GPOVHpgXhbeCuPBpNVi7jetiUIjhXEQeQzVnVrCgzOYeR5-DQklV0Pyp6sql_SdbCsq4PwppzjLh8lBb3H4YYGOrLEDKSh_QiMJgibU8gVnYG-IDDR_b9Beq98pOpReXNxqK1fA9Ci-Bp2bUpGnQf4Jt1FcpxaXduDAM/s320/forbidden%20Shadows%20Cameo%20Renae.jpg" style="background: transparent; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="213" /></a></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> Review by Katy Grant</span><p style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">There is a reason I enjoyed reading Young Adult books so much, the author did the parents in before they could try to control the characters lives beyond the age of consent. Books for adult readers don’t have the same compulsion.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Kage was dying. He had brought them to Nether, where Elara could find the flower that would save his life. She would have to face Oren, a carnivorous tree which held the spirit of a child. Here too, she would face the Alena, the witch, who guarded the flower which held the elixir that could save Kage. Willing to pay any price to save him, Elara willingly agreed to the Witch’s demands. Their time in the Nether would be short but allow them time to explore the love they have for each other.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Valr, Kage’s Shadow Hawk had found them, while Rem followed closely on his wings. They must return to Celestria or there would be war. Vera and her parents were in Celestria demanding to see Kage to prove that he was not with Elara.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Knowing they must hide their feelings for each other or be charged with breaking the marriage contract, made by<span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #050505; font-size: 11.5pt;"> his father's ill-advised decision,</span> Kage could hardly control his rage. Elara needed to stay away from him for fear of not being able to hide her love for Kage from others. Rem guarded her, while allowing others to believe he and Elara with lovers. Bringing her to train beside the elite guard, she would become one of them. Beloved for her strength, loyalty, determination, and her willingness to stand up for those who had no protection. The guards quickly embraced the strong, caring young woman, protecting her with their lives. But it wasn’t enough, there were those who wanted her dead and would stop at nothing to see that it happened. Vera and her parents were watching, waiting for the moment they would see her dead or find the means to take over Terr.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Kage and Elara prove themselves to be resilient characters in the face of tremendous adversity, dealing with those plotting to separate them, kill them and even one who would capture Elara and enslave her. I loved that Cameo Renee gave us the back stories for secondary characters, so the reader has an even better view of the world Elara has been brought back too. The mystery of Elara’s birth is slowly being peeled away as she learns of the one who brought her to Earth but yet, not why. I loved the fact that the villains aren’t hiding but still manage to work their evil. Even more I enjoyed that Kage refuses to pretend he has ever wanted to marry Vera and now he plainly demonstrations his loathing of the woman, no matter the consequences. By the time I reached the last page, there is still so much left to uncover in this story. If you have ever come to the end of a book and wish that it would go on, this is one to pick up and read. There is so much happening, so many mysteries still not uncovered. I felt like I was in Wonderland where characters of the strange and wonderous appear, villains are standing in plain sight while Elara finds it within herself to keep going. Kage and Elara still hang in the balance, the Emperess’ death and even the death of Kage’s own mother has yet to be answered. With Elara’s magic still bound, she will face the adversity of a world she was born into but never had the chance in which to grow up in. She will confront magical beings fighting for their lives against hers while there are traps set targeting her death. So, looking forward to the next book in the Star Kissed series.</p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-79796805579083384972023-12-16T18:24:00.000-08:002023-12-16T18:24:58.414-08:00<p style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-size: large;"> Runaway Fire by Tia Capway</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh39tGzh69nFPWoyHRw5sckGY4WjXM0i6jgqgIfbbL7W45HzEfEJ2XQX2iIIhuL0vh6sIxNGaR_3_tsDk0deKEuUWm6fx3aYiQNJXP9TYNnSkOls9UNPUkaYGUbtXU6BX2Zm4479VcS_rFrGjFgKlseZEwP-JhE1fUm1DCzeWFhoXP4Iv-Sp-9RjqSvbyQ/s2700/runaway%20fire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2700" data-original-width="1800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh39tGzh69nFPWoyHRw5sckGY4WjXM0i6jgqgIfbbL7W45HzEfEJ2XQX2iIIhuL0vh6sIxNGaR_3_tsDk0deKEuUWm6fx3aYiQNJXP9TYNnSkOls9UNPUkaYGUbtXU6BX2Zm4479VcS_rFrGjFgKlseZEwP-JhE1fUm1DCzeWFhoXP4Iv-Sp-9RjqSvbyQ/s320/runaway%20fire.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br /> <p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Who breaks their wedding vows five minutes before they are
even spoken? Evidently, Adam. Furious after finding him tupping one of her bride’s
maids, Fiona simply ran. There was no going back. Fiona didn’t want to hear anything
Adam had to say. She had found shelter in a truck at the fire station and then
she had found him, Mason. He had taken one look at her tear-stained face,
listened for just a minute to her ranting about Adam and decided to help her. Two
things she needed right now, the locks changed on her house and an experienced
lover to wipe away what she saw in the walk-in-cooler. He helped her with both
of these problems. Then he walked away. He was a one and done kind of guy. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Only one glitch, neither could stop thinking about the
other.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Mason was a firefighter. He was also a wolf shifter. They
had strict laws about not allowing humans to become aware of the supernatural
world around them, shifters, and witches. But something was wrong with the magic
around them. Mason’s mom and sister, Sharon, were shamans who could sense
something was changing around them and not for the better. Sharon had dreams of
a witch who would come to the aid of the pack. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As a surgeon, Fiona was usually in control but after the fiasco
of her wedding, her tryst with Mason and now Adam coming to the hospital throwing
a fit, she’d had enough. Furious, she missed the gathering clouds overhead,
when lightning struck Adam’s classic and set it ablaze, she burst out laughing.
When Mason showed up with the fire department, it seems to just be fate. Fiona
felt something was changing in her and the more she thought about it, she was
certain she had caused the lightning strike to Adam’s car. Could she be
something more?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This short tale can be read in one setting, but has hot
spicy romance, humor, magic, mystery and an ongoing dark element that appears
to have been carried over from other books in the series. For such a short tale
the characters were easily relatable for me. I enjoyed their interactions. Evil
is ever present, but the source is only slowly being unveiled. The story isn’t
a stationary one; the storyline moves forward at a pace that held my interest,
with situations and characters that filled the pages. It is a well-played out yarn,
however there were a few times that the author lost me and I had to reread a
sentence or two. Once, when Fiona was at the firehouse, Mason came up and startled
her. The next thing I read, he was picking her up off the floor then, she is
brushing herself off. No mention of her falling. I say this because there were a
few times I felt like I came in on the middle of a conversation. In spite of
and because of the few misses I ran into, I enjoyed the author’s writing style,
storyline and characters. I started with the third book then decided I had to
have the first two to see what I had missed. There will be a fourth that I am
looking forward to reading. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I gave the
book four stars because I realize other readers may find descriptive sexual
content a trigger, while others find grammatical errors disconcerting. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I was given an advanced readers copy in return for my honest
opinion about the storyline and content. <o:p></o:p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-56311800432542370812023-11-08T19:26:00.002-08:002023-11-08T19:26:28.825-08:00Gargoyles of Stonehaven Trilogy<p></p> <br />"The Stone Secret" by Debbie Cassidy is the second book in the trilogy, beginning with "The Stone Initiation" both now available! Swing over to Amazon.com to see all formats. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT35SVpMmBf-IAErr9Hv6UfVM0NJy2AvIpRZXv1HzD4RPrQPtqlxUFhlgeBNjDNmTF5RbCDqQA6F3GcoD_36HCNoNnFlUJ_TfDWRHmRtyojaS2g_lS_6xqgh1cUdvSMlojTXAVvX7wncaF4nJxw8pkkA5lSc5u5nEne5hyphenhyphendNWC9VCRKmQNPt-RtASXNYA/s466/the%20stone%20initiation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="466" data-original-width="311" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT35SVpMmBf-IAErr9Hv6UfVM0NJy2AvIpRZXv1HzD4RPrQPtqlxUFhlgeBNjDNmTF5RbCDqQA6F3GcoD_36HCNoNnFlUJ_TfDWRHmRtyojaS2g_lS_6xqgh1cUdvSMlojTXAVvX7wncaF4nJxw8pkkA5lSc5u5nEne5hyphenhyphendNWC9VCRKmQNPt-RtASXNYA/s320/the%20stone%20initiation.jpg" width="214" /></a></div><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></div></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">The secrets of Stonehaven won’t stay buried for long.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">I’ve barely had time to wrap my head around the revelations doled out by my gargoyle sire when a knock at my dorm door brings a blast from the not-so-distant past back into my life. I thought I’d left Levi behind. I was wrong.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIDOnXvz1IyKydzmdqfZxzrCoPX3vU2NgFS8zPNrLRE0lKYXG2ieqgr_tR72MChh3qEzvDRTLE94TKTnWfHXra07cR0-U7O8-tU4ENw0Fojk4Pcck9p6lw18luOYdsEcIBZF-PRXMuGgOMuy1IuQ7o8kFxVfjnVPaNU2ODPR4PIH5U_wywRRpaaGmY1tk/s1128/The%20stone%20secret.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1128" data-original-width="752" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIDOnXvz1IyKydzmdqfZxzrCoPX3vU2NgFS8zPNrLRE0lKYXG2ieqgr_tR72MChh3qEzvDRTLE94TKTnWfHXra07cR0-U7O8-tU4ENw0Fojk4Pcck9p6lw18luOYdsEcIBZF-PRXMuGgOMuy1IuQ7o8kFxVfjnVPaNU2ODPR4PIH5U_wywRRpaaGmY1tk/s320/The%20stone%20secret.jpg" width="213" /></a></div></div></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left; white-space-collapse: collapse;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">The secrets of Stonehaven won’t stay buried for long.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; white-space-collapse: collapse;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">I’ve barely had time to wrap my head around the revelations doled out by my gargoyle sire when a knock at my dorm door brings a blast from the not-so-distant past back into my life. I thought I’d left Levi behind. I was wrong.</span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">He’s here for me, and things are about to get complicated.</span><br /><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">But convincing Levi that I’ve moved on without revealing that Serath is my fated mate isn’t the only challenge I’m facing.</span><br /><br /><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">With the elite trials mere weeks away, I need to make sure that I’m physically and mentally prepared, and that involves training directly with Serath—the object of my forbidden desire. Focusing won’t be easy, but I’ll need to find a way, because failure is not an option.</span><br /><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">Failure, means death.</span><br /><br /><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">Cam's adventure continues in The Stone Secret. A heart-pounding MF paranormal romance that weaves a tale of fated mates and impossible desires, where dark secrets and forbidden pass</span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">ions collide, and a hidden destiny awaits.</span></div><p></p><br />Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-14829279663160260822023-11-01T21:56:00.002-07:002023-11-01T21:56:38.463-07:00<p> <span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJSiaZS8Eyr07mRyNw9xm51lsV3FyQA9VYsR9J6RjgBerAgJ2_gjd82YevDW__hmGWkNsNcybGJt7lNJqR9vpnf6TOUQRWhd_mMnFqqqD93JKQ_VmN9DaTMPAwKongIY4MjK6RnN0_6N0nPZTYjxzxpjU8U22XX2zvt247YOWY4lg8cEqEiA3WBAd1wuQ/s475/way%20of%20the%20Wolf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-size: 12pt; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="304" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJSiaZS8Eyr07mRyNw9xm51lsV3FyQA9VYsR9J6RjgBerAgJ2_gjd82YevDW__hmGWkNsNcybGJt7lNJqR9vpnf6TOUQRWhd_mMnFqqqD93JKQ_VmN9DaTMPAwKongIY4MjK6RnN0_6N0nPZTYjxzxpjU8U22XX2zvt247YOWY4lg8cEqEiA3WBAd1wuQ/s320/way%20of%20the%20Wolf.jpg" width="205" /></a>Way Of The Wolf </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;"> by Jonathan Yanez</span></div><p>Review by Katy Grant</p><p><span style="font-size: 16px;">On an M class planet, th</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">ree resides a race of beings that hold magic within
their bodies, Marcus Walker and his son Jack, are two such beings. They live in
the Outlands, using their services to protect others. Others… there are shadow
spirits, walking dead soul snatchers, mutated creatures (evolution or man
created?), vampires and witches, mages and more unknown as yet. Charlotte Sloan
is the Captain of the Queen’s guard, a hard-won position, even harder to hold
as a female amongst the men. Aareth Emerson, once a security guard for the
Queen, within the walls of the city of New Hope, turned assassin after the
death of his wife. Queen Eckert is at the center of New Hope’s clean up. Over
the past decade, she has supported the growth of technology with mechanics and
mages working side by side, enforced fair treatment for all within the city
walls, while replacing those who would work only for their own welfare. Now she
wishes to reach out to those who live in the Outland to encourage growth and bring
about a better world for all. There are others you will meet, but these are the
players at the center for now.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; padding: 0in;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The Queen has called these four together to go into the Outland city of Burrow
Den, who has requested help dealing with a wild creature on a rampage, that has
killed so many. It will be a long hard journey, that will see one dead before
it is over. There is one, within the city walls, who would see them fail!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; padding: 0in;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">And so, the journey begins…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; padding: 0in;"> </span><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 12pt; padding: 0in;">There is much going on in this dark, gritty,
mystical tale. Along with its a</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #202124; font-size: 12pt;">tmosphere
of mystery, gloomy horror, beasties that terrorize, and evil scientists, the main
characters show grit and tenacity that will carry them forward.</span><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> The four hold their secrets close as they grow
along the way, with others joining the journey, even as they face unexpected
dangers. Along their foray they encounter a strange adversary who strength,
speed and agility could overpower them. When they reach Burrow Den they
encounter mistrust, lies, mysteries, curiosities and supernatural creatures
whose existence is only in part explained. Horror stalks them in the night,
sent by those whose only concern is for their own power and control while
having not a care for those they would experiment on.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-outline-level: 1;"><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; padding: 0in;"> </span><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 12pt; padding: 0in;">I found camaraderie and experienced loss
of some I had grown to care about, terror and new technology to wrap my head
around. </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #202124; font-size: 12pt;">At times some of the mechanics made me think </span><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 12pt; padding: 0in;">steampunk, as I when rode the steam
powered locomotive and then the magical, geared bicycles. I found a few scenes
that made me think of Dr.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> Moreau. Inhabitants of
the Outland made me think of </span><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 12pt; padding: 0in;">less advanced
societies. I had to stop a few times to reimagine, to wrap my head around what
I just read and listened to. Magical
beings, creatures not to be found on our world and parts where I had to stop
and reimagine what the magical creatures, gnomes might look like, even how the environment,
weapons and machines might appear. I enjoyed
reading the book even as I listened along with the three narrators who told the
story. This is the first in the series, so the ending leaves one part answered
and waiting for the next journey to begin. I found myself wrapped up in the story
of the characters for each shares a bit of themselves as the story goes on, the
world that is so different from my own, but really gives my imagination a good
run. This is a complex tale, so get ready to suspend logic, give your imagination
free reign and if you enjoy horror, magic, sic-fantasy and mysteries, I suggest
you might give this one a try.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-outline-level: 1;"><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; padding: 0in;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-outline-level: 1;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 12pt; padding: 0in;">The three narrators did a good job
with the read aloud. I had not difficulty understanding or differentiating
between characters. It was well paced. Over all one I could easily follow as I
was driving and mindless housework.<br /></span><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; padding: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-91117434465886779682023-10-24T10:36:00.002-07:002023-10-24T10:36:13.858-07:00<p>Review </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBIQLC3zSgGTowYMHAtTuvDIXTisEpp-9i7GEA0eJrrPAcfBlpUZel8_G1L2oXbHlhxqK3V_KztIlSCAPp3ho8-Bs2h4-l4LlYhvtWlsID7K0v-K1tYWtz9uJy3qnwdiDwbGNPCyH72Ap0hxbIckMzd7BJ2ejrWSa_6QPCqvOvm7moZWd7WJzdHTl0chw/s640/the%20devil%20of%20drury%20lane.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBIQLC3zSgGTowYMHAtTuvDIXTisEpp-9i7GEA0eJrrPAcfBlpUZel8_G1L2oXbHlhxqK3V_KztIlSCAPp3ho8-Bs2h4-l4LlYhvtWlsID7K0v-K1tYWtz9uJy3qnwdiDwbGNPCyH72Ap0hxbIckMzd7BJ2ejrWSa_6QPCqvOvm7moZWd7WJzdHTl0chw/s320/the%20devil%20of%20drury%20lane.webp" width="320" /></a></div><br />The Devil of Drury Lane by Tracy Sumner<p></p><p> Mercy Ainsworth loved drawing and getting into mischief. Her
father despised both. It was her Nanny that cautioned her to play the game, hide
her more spirited side and become a demure Miss in public while feeding her
love of art in a less public place.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">She had been attracted to Damien DeWitt, the youngest of the
Duke’s three sons whose residence bordered her father’s estate, since she was a
young girl. They said he was the quiet one, but she saw beyond his outer façade,
a power and resolve that she captured in a sketch she drew of him. Allas, she
lost it to the wind when she was called home. It was his brother who found the sketch
and called it to Damien. As he held it closely to his nose, in order to see it
without his spectacles, she had seen a depicted a strength in him that he
himself had never dared to bring forth in his father’s presence. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Years had passed and Mercy had found a way to hide her true
self from her father. For Damien the gossips had titled him the Devil of Drury
Lane, with women. His brothers maybe but never him. She was sure, but curious
about the title. Her father was selling her, in marriage, to pay off his debts.
Mercy would have the man she wanted, hide the truth and satisfy her curiosity.
She wanted Damien DeWitt and they would enjoy each other. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">This short novella is packed with secrets,
insights, spicy romance and the oft reminder that there was a time when parents
having little care for their offspring would abuse or use them to enhance their
fortunes. While, at times there are those siblings who will support each other
no matter what it takes. I loved the fact that Damien and Mercy were at the
center of the story, with others as characters that enriched the background of
the tale. This quick read sucked me in from the first page with characters that
appeared to live in the real world then, found the means to be themselves and
finally a way to be together. I highly recommend this tale if you love spicy
romance that feels like it could have come straight off the pages of a diary written
more than 200 years ago</span>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-80997250742738266352023-07-19T18:16:00.003-07:002023-07-19T18:16:18.507-07:00<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiwYVopCfZ-zgspvI77vi5kyHESEDXRQPiRVKPdNFaAyeFQJw7hLYf86e3xB5VDg0mq7qi-s6coQtnoyExO-ppqdi4SuArxx8-1CTGpqhLBq4S2g9HRJSe1N1E5fzCh-PZ0cF3VFzmIKb2Rwhk_6fQLnA1QxSN52a-OFpFKvvaVcrwwMvdf2UvX8txInxk" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="975" data-original-width="975" height="374" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiwYVopCfZ-zgspvI77vi5kyHESEDXRQPiRVKPdNFaAyeFQJw7hLYf86e3xB5VDg0mq7qi-s6coQtnoyExO-ppqdi4SuArxx8-1CTGpqhLBq4S2g9HRJSe1N1E5fzCh-PZ0cF3VFzmIKb2Rwhk_6fQLnA1QxSN52a-OFpFKvvaVcrwwMvdf2UvX8txInxk=w374-h374" width="374" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">Release Date: July 20, 2023</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> Hidden Fate by Jen L. Grey</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>King Arman is dead. With
his dying breath, he bade Thorn to stop Drake and rule in his stead.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>For too long Thorn had hidden, had been feared for the magic
within him. The same magic his grandfather had had and used for evil purposes,
to murder and control the people. A caring person wanting only to heal those who
were sick or injured, he was unsure at times that using his magic might make
people around him fear him. He hadn’t realized that he was missing a part of
himself, until Everly appeared. Recognizing this human as his fated mate. Through
their connection she could reach out to him, bring a sense of calm, help him
see different perspectives and find the best solutions. She helped him see himself as a healer, his
magic as a gift and not a curse. To see
the good that he could do for his people, and how different he was from the
grandfather that had used his magic as a means of destruction. Now they must find others to listen, to trust
and help stop Drake from destroying the world of dragons…</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Now there was no one to stop Drake’s reign of terror as he
would proclaim himself the next dragon king. Mad with power and hatred for his
brother, desire for the human that was Thorn’s fated mate and wife, he was
assured the crown upon his head, his people’s obedience in all things and the
woman at his side.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"> Drake’s climb to
power was littered with the dead he deemed unfit to live, coercion and the fear
he struck in the hearts of those he would rule. He would find Thorn and Everly.
Kill Thorn and take Everly to his wife. Those that would disagree or fight
against him would die, along with the cripple, infirm or elderly dragons. What
he hadn’t counted on was that Thorn had been changed by Everly’s love becoming anchored
in his belief in himself and what was right. He had become stronger.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"> Together Thorn, Everly,
Elliott, Eva, Saphira, Vlad and Cassidy along with others must now work to gather
people they could trust and would trust them in turn to stop Drake and those
who follow him. The battle that soon to be wrought, would be a bloody one,
brother against brother, warriors, many who were forced to serve, against the
untrained and the vulnerable. While for
many the stories of Thorn’s grandfather’s evil use of his magic was a cautionary
tale and a warning that Thorn could follow in his footsteps. It would take
demonstrations of Thorn’s power to heal and his words of a world where all were
free and could live in peace that might turn the tide. First, they must show people that Thorn is not
someone to be feared for his magic but a man who cares for others, who would
use his magic to heal, wherever possible, not to kill, and one who seeks peace
for all.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"> The love stories abound
in this tale with several finding fated mates, spicy love scenes, and the love
siblings have for each other. Before there can be peace and freedom, there will
be war and death. Who will end up with the crown will determine the kind of
world in which dragons would live. There is suspense, tension, action and even
some humor in this final tale. It’s a journey that favors poor odds for victory
over the battle of genocide of those who may be sick or weak. And have the
reader turning pages quickly to see the outcome. It is also one of strength and
conviction that you must fight for a better world for all, no matter the odds.
A few will start, gather strength and numbers and not stop until Drake may be defeated.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>The conclusion of the trilogy that started with “Ruthless
Mate” continued in ”Mated Dragon” this tale of dragons with Jen L. Grey’s spin
on dragon magic is one I found fascinating and sad at times. Parents who feared what they did not understand
and blaming the child. Thankfully, Thorn found love in his adopted parents and
a young human woman, that will help him to become the man he was meant to be.
Secondary characters, each with their own personalities, help bring the story
to life and create the world of dragons that live on the pages in the books. For
myself, I love adventure, suspense, uniquely created worlds, characters, including
the truly evil, that can bring a story to life and of course romance. I enjoyed
the spicy romantic scenes and dialogue in the tale but at times it took over
the tale. This isn’t always a misstep, but I thought the romance wouldn’t have
suffered with a bit less and bit more storyline about Drake’s thoughts and
motives, background about the dragon magic or the evil grandfather, etc. Jen L.
Grey is a grand storyteller, I guess I just wanted a bit more of her imaginary
tale. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-14851231598737068022023-07-03T18:23:00.000-07:002023-07-03T18:23:31.283-07:00<p> </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1mIddIgRKI94lH5m91M0MvVpO6I_XCAJWxCIDiITX8RM_dJwcKJTsfnR3zTjVAMqyF5CLEDyZFyjhaBqPuAAJyMzo9bv2UMSCnmFIyOnt9OshIbkRNp4xlfYNPwurqkPk2JG1rocRMVTdUbHVhj-rV0P4K1ceKX5RyJ1mBlJr-Q2tSBAkCz6vw7joqSM/s3200/IMG_1684.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3200" data-original-width="2025" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1mIddIgRKI94lH5m91M0MvVpO6I_XCAJWxCIDiITX8RM_dJwcKJTsfnR3zTjVAMqyF5CLEDyZFyjhaBqPuAAJyMzo9bv2UMSCnmFIyOnt9OshIbkRNp4xlfYNPwurqkPk2JG1rocRMVTdUbHVhj-rV0P4K1ceKX5RyJ1mBlJr-Q2tSBAkCz6vw7joqSM/s320/IMG_1684.jpeg" width="203" /></a></div><br /><span class="s6" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12px; line-height: 14.4px;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span class="s6" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; line-height: 14.4px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span class="s6" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; line-height: 14.4px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="s6" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; line-height: 14.4px;">Edge of Chaos</span><span class="s6" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; line-height: 14.4px;"> Boxed Set</span><span class="s6" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; line-height: 14.4px;"> by Mila Young & Harper A Brooks</span></span></p><p class="s3" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 21.6px;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p class="s8" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s7" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; line-height: 12px;"><span style="font-size: large;">The Kings of Eden don’t have hearts… so they want mine.</span></span></p><p style="line-height: 21.6px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="https://geni.us/EdgeOfChaosLAR"><span class="s9" style="color: blue; font-family: Arial; line-height: 14.4px;"><span style="font-size: large;">https://geni.us/EdgeOfChaosLAR</span></span></a></p><p class="s8" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; line-height: 12px;">I’ve danced for powerful men. </span><span class="s11" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; font-style: italic; line-height: 12px;">Deadly</span><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; line-height: 12px;"> men. And when one wants to take things too far, I barely escape with my life. What I don’t know is that someone else was watching me from the shadows.</span></span></p><p class="s8" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; line-height: 12px;"><span style="font-size: large;">Someone deadlier… Someone scarier.</span></span></p><p class="s8" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; line-height: 12px;"><span style="font-size: large;">Now the Kings of Eden are after me.</span></span></p><p class="s8" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; line-height: 12px;"><span style="font-size: large;">They’re the monsters that rule this city, and I've become their newest obsession.</span></span></p><p class="s8" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; line-height: 12px;">Because of it, I’m swept up into their deadly world of gang wars and destructive magic. Dracon, Cassius, Knox–they’re criminals, murderers, and </span><span class="s11" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; font-style: italic; line-height: 12px;">inhuman</span><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; line-height: 12px;">… But I can’t resist.</span></span></p><p class="s8" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; line-height: 12px;"><span style="font-size: large;">Chaos is about to break out, and I'm finding myself craving the men who could just as easily break me. Ruin me. Kill me.</span></span></p><p class="s8" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; line-height: 12px;"><span style="font-size: large;">When my dark secrets of the past come back to collect, I have no idea if any of us will survive.</span></span></p><p class="s13" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; line-height: 12px;">We crave salvation, but we may only find a savage end to the love we’ve finally found.</span><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; line-height: 12px;"><br /></span><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; line-height: 12px;"><br /></span><span class="s12" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 12px;">EDGE OF CHAOS is the complete collection of the Kings of Eden series, including the following </span><span class="s12" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 12px;">full length</span><span class="s12" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; font-weight: bold; line-height: 12px;"> books:</span></span><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10px; line-height: 12px;"><br /></span><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10px; line-height: 12px;">Kings of Eden</span><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10px; line-height: 12px;"><br /></span><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10px; line-height: 12px;">Stolen Paradise</span><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10px; line-height: 12px;"><br /></span><span class="s10" style="color: #0f1111; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10px; line-height: 12px;">Ruthless Lies</span></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-52889847174034385842023-03-05T20:18:00.007-08:002023-03-05T20:18:55.825-08:00<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnyQY-JInQ5BTOfPUbQbiOsRUAFqUpyFA3zUeDXFquB_QSWkDgWv_6SeVBc7NH4low-7vC53fJjEAWVX5KF7QR1XhcGcM0uU7KN01osqbdBGI6DVkv92NS-9EfX29Ynjr8eALfLo4yS4zGaNmwXLkI3Qep1Xc6-6svAYTCbzfc3G6LbjflTa7pklad/s500/touch%20of%20iron.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="333" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnyQY-JInQ5BTOfPUbQbiOsRUAFqUpyFA3zUeDXFquB_QSWkDgWv_6SeVBc7NH4low-7vC53fJjEAWVX5KF7QR1XhcGcM0uU7KN01osqbdBGI6DVkv92NS-9EfX29Ynjr8eALfLo4yS4zGaNmwXLkI3Qep1Xc6-6svAYTCbzfc3G6LbjflTa7pklad/s320/touch%20of%20iron.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">Review </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-large;">A Touch of Iron </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> by Karina Espinosa</span></p><p class="MsoNormal">Ansel had loved his older brother growing up but when Alec
chose the Unseelie Court and turned from his family, he believed that Alec had
chosen a darker path. Losing all trust in his brother’s ability to care for
anyone but himself. Ansel became convinced only he could save Violet and that
his brother was only looking to gain favor with the King and would bring harm
to her. He blindly followed the Queen’s plans for bringing Violet to the Seelie
Court.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Betrayed! Ansel had delivered my mom to the Unseelie court
and was now under the powerful control of the King. She loved her mom and would
find a way to protect her at any cost. In
this, she and Alec were much alike. While she now felt it would be impossible
to ever forgive Ansel for this betrayal against her only family. The King would
try to use her mom against Violet to gain what he wanted, to control her power
as the last dragon. But he didn’t know Violet. He demanded to know who Violet’s
father was, and this was just one more step toward reaching that goal as well. Kazimir
would recognize her, and she feared how he would react, if it was revealed that
he had fathered her. She had to act fast and stand her ground.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Alec had secrets too and the King held the key to those, so if
he thought Alec was crossing him, Alec’s family might pay. For him, his family
had always come first but he soon realized he was coming to care for Violet
more than he ever thought possible. For two centuries, he had lived in the
Unseelie Court and danced to the King’s tune. But times were changing. There were
those who would see the King and Queen’s reign end and they would use the last
dragon to get what they wanted. Violet too,
would soon learn there were some unexpected allies, with their own agenda, that
would quietly come to her aid, for a price. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p> Now that the King had
Tessa in his Court, he would challenge Violet. He fell back on an old law long discarded
by the Fae which could still be called forth when needed. Without a family name, the king held total
control her Tessa. By refusing to name Kazimir as her father, she couldn’t produce
a family name and so couldn’t protect her mom. In order to claim a family name
for herself she must face a human trial, that could make use of the five human sufferings.
She would have to face at least one or more in the world of Fae. Alec feared
for life and tried to talk her out of agreeing. But Violet stood her ground,
she would face whatever the King threw at her and come out on the other side. After
all she had learned air, fire and even a bit of earth elements. She would face
her trial in the Air Village her only mentor Calypso, the leader there. Violet
could use only her power over air. In addition she would also be given a potion
that would cause her to temporarily lose her memories, including her own identity. She would wear an
iron bracelet to inhibit her other powers coming to her aid as well.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"> And no one could interfere
with her trial. And so, it begins.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Legend has it that the last dragon would bring changes to
the world of the Fae. But Violet was having a difficult time trusting anyone in
this magical world where lies, inuendoes, and threats flowed freely. In the
middle of the trials, challenges and threats to her life, Violet realizes there
is only one person she can truly trust and love. Violet, Ansel and Alec’s tale has
been building to this splendid conclusion with all three characters finding that
nothing is as it has previously appeared. As they share adventures, face adversity
and the intrigue of those in power, they change, adjusting their understanding
of things happening around them. Secrets slowly start coming to light. Some of this
in sight will alter the way they see and feel about each other. Joining forces with
Fae seeking to change their world, brings danger and love to the foreground. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">
</p><p class="MsoNormal"> Karina Espinosa has brought
the world of Fae to life through her vivid imagination, full of mystery, intrigue,
misadventures, secrets, love and heartbreak. She gave us a grand finale to the
story she started with ”Hint of Delirium” but I for one will keep my fingers
crossed that at some point she will revisit her world of Fae and share stories
about some of the other mesmerizing characters with whom we had such a short
introduction. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-50892250139887730692023-02-28T16:57:00.001-08:002023-02-28T16:57:22.110-08:00<p><span style="font-size: x-large;">Review of :</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"> Ruthless Moon - author Jen L. Grey</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7dY79dDvPuyyBT9Yo4Zap2SogxtywNXsLbVocyW6CZ0WsqxSRw0VTCNqLsUp0YxF2LRICILo45MshaBcbZpVTeqQEvQ7sHdaxnI-c46x1Iv8PiX_vdfBDvju9MYoAMVPYanKqMQtUCidOnLof0H35dHy04TwfJ_GG5InSsTlUZgi8QTZFVtzHQPPo/s346/ruthless%20moon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="346" data-original-width="230" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7dY79dDvPuyyBT9Yo4Zap2SogxtywNXsLbVocyW6CZ0WsqxSRw0VTCNqLsUp0YxF2LRICILo45MshaBcbZpVTeqQEvQ7sHdaxnI-c46x1Iv8PiX_vdfBDvju9MYoAMVPYanKqMQtUCidOnLof0H35dHy04TwfJ_GG5InSsTlUZgi8QTZFVtzHQPPo/s320/ruthless%20moon.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p> Tom may be dead but there was still a traitor among them. As
they drove up to meet with Tom’s cohort it was only partially a surprise to
find the traitor in their midst waiting to meet them was someone they knew,
Erin. It was fortuitous that they had brought Torak with them to meet the
contact since he wasn’t known to the witch. It wasn’t much of a shock to realize Erin had
been working with Tom against them. But why, what would she gain? For now, Torak must drive past the meeting
spot. He stopped to let the others out of the car just beyond Erin’s sight,
where she stood by her car. Even waiting in a Duncan Donut shop proved not to
be safe for them now. After ordering coffee and donuts, Jewel and Killian quickly
realized that one of the shops staff had recognized Killian and had headed in
the back to contact the police.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> And so, it begins
again, the struggle to find the captive packs, save them, while still having as
little contact as possible with humans. But something was amiss. Tom was dead. Why
was Erin helping humans capture shifters? Who might be next? At first it seemed
like an act of revenge, but Erin had no interest there. Yes, Tom had targeted
her mother’s old pack but now the pack that had been taken had nothing to do
with that revenge. The kidnappings seemed to center around a territory. Another
puzzle to solve.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Barely, escaping Erin’s questioning notice when they
returned to Shadow City, after the meeting, the night before, the next morning
they awoke to another demon attack upon humans. As Killian and Jewel headed
into town to offer help to locate the human who had been dragged away by
demons, field questions from the media and to calm down the raucous crowds, two
more demons came flying down, directly in front of Jewel. Killian been walking
towards her when he saw a knife appear in midair. As he had seen the knife so had
others. He rushed forward with the media and town’s people close on his heels. Jewel
was trying to deflect the knife when the demons in front her suddenly decided
to quickly exist. As Killian and Jewel
rushed towards to their truck to get away, Killian still had to try to answer
questions being thrown at him by the media. Finally, managing to reach to truck
they spun away from the crowds, the media cameras and a town full of angry,
scarred humans.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As they sped away from town trying to lose a couple media
vans behind them, Sierra called to let them know the others were heading to
Rockwood, the location where the humans had taken to recently captured pack for
experimentation. Killian, Jewel, Torak, Sierra, Roxy, Alex and the others
gathered at the rental cabin close to where the pack was being held. Their
first move was to scout out the government location. However, even before they
could reach the building, they ran into human hunters looking for deer. Then
Roxy fell into a trap set by the human captors outside the building. But the
worst news was this building wasn’t going to be easy to break into, the
shifters had been divided, held in cages, in different parts of the building,
with guards surrounding it. Worse yet, they had already started experimening on
the wolf shifters. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; text-indent: -1.0in;">Their time was
short if they wanted to save Torak’s pack mates, but tensions were running high
even among the allies. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; text-indent: -1.0in;">Sierra, Jewel
was certain was was the alpha’s mate, but they were spatting and arguing so
loudly and so often she feared <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">all of them would be caught before they could save anyone.
Killian was not happy with the thought that Sierra might be mated to Torak and
was making sure his feelings were known. Jewel was quick to realize the
pressure Killian was under, the guilt that continued to crop up when some human
recognized him as the spoke’s person for the supernaturals, his fear that
Sierra would cling to Torak and eventually leave to pack to be with him. Then
Killian would lose the last link to his lost family. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Tensions ride high in this last tale, fights among those
within the packs, fear they have lost the ability to shift or even communicate
with pack members. There is still the puzzle as to how and why the packs are
being targeted. The suspense rides right
up there in the midst of danger that surrounds them on all sides. While the
villains appear to have no scruples about life as long as they consider that
life to be less then human. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Jewel has grown in each book, taken on responsibilities,
learned to handle her guilt for not being with her father at the battle that
cost his life or even being at the camp when her PawPaw’s pack was taken. Most
of all she learned to accept and love her mate, a man that she first saw as the
cause for the humans being made aware of the existence of them as supernatural
beings. And therefore, the cause of the government searching for, capturing and
torturing shifters. Now she was becoming part of the solution, often stepping
up as a mediator in times of stress, standing by Killian and supporting him
with her strengths, knowledge and common sense. Killian’s love grounds her,
protects her, when she lets him, and has learned to let her take the led
sometimes, in spite of his role as alpha, together they make a powerful team.
Many of the characters from the first two books are back and we see a bit more
of their personalities. All uniquely talented, sometimes volatile, always
strong and full of snappy attitudes, with emotions running high, but always
willing to pull together for their place in the world and peace for all. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Readers will find the imperfect good, the slightly twisted
antiheroes, and a few true villains both human and supernatural, romantic
encounters and love even for those who are different. There are battles, worries
for those being held and tortured, shame for the actions of humans towards
supernatural beings, love for the mates and how they look after their own. There is a story here that swallows up the
hours, takes the breath away as you run forward to see how they may free their
friends, enjoy the quips between friends and allies, delight in the romantic
interludes between the main characters, wait for the villains to get their just
desserts and if your favorites will reach the end. So I recommend that you grab
a comfortable spot, crack open the tale and enjoy the journey all the way to
the end. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; text-indent: -1.0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-33712057535769792772023-01-12T20:02:00.001-08:002023-01-12T20:05:11.679-08:00<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvX8fbp9A2yKC2_qQqlD9mqncKVgolPfs1pKKBAGXHL4qweGkmeW7KVvoFzP1o7QAvVkv6xvRlF82YjS6c0-CwvseIcQvMvPELPRwPuWKeFhte0qU9JxT7IDlctzHCOhSJRTulGVm0aBZjLB8S0AO23zADwxU6pIehcWKnonw4eSUz8-zQ6c9p6r6T/s500/The%20Dragon's%20Fake%20Mate.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="313" height="411" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvX8fbp9A2yKC2_qQqlD9mqncKVgolPfs1pKKBAGXHL4qweGkmeW7KVvoFzP1o7QAvVkv6xvRlF82YjS6c0-CwvseIcQvMvPELPRwPuWKeFhte0qU9JxT7IDlctzHCOhSJRTulGVm0aBZjLB8S0AO23zADwxU6pIehcWKnonw4eSUz8-zQ6c9p6r6T/w257-h411/The%20Dragon's%20Fake%20Mate.jpg" width="257" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">Fake Dragon Mate <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"> by Harlow Blaze</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Starla</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">He was there
again, across the street watching her. She didn’t have to see him; she could
feel his presence there. This wasn’t good, the spell must be weakening. She was
a human, a witch whose greatest powers were embedded in her Club, were she
served shifters and other supernatural beings, while watching over the girls
who worked for her. It protected her, allowed her to control her magic, made
her stronger. She knew he would come, but
she’d known at some point she wouldn’t be able to control the cursed spark. To keep
it contained, not allowing it to come to life. For the last year, since he had
been visiting the Club, the cursed spark had started to fail. Now every few
days she had to re-enforce her spell to control it. She refused to become a breeding machine for
a dragon!<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Mars</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">He couldn’t
stop himself from standing outside her club each night, to watch her. Drawn to
her as if by some thread that he believed was a curse. A curse she had placed
on him. He had to find out soon why she had cursed him, he had done nothing to
her. This couldn’t go on. As a dragon
enforcer, for one of the biggest eyries in the country, he was the best. He had
lost all sense of feelings and emotions long ago as a child. But he could feel
hatred for her, every time he got close to her, his chest would tighten with pain.
It had to be hatred. Baz the King of
Seattle, a powerful dragon, would settle for nothing less than perfection. These
nightly visits had to stop. Then he heard to warning call. Something was wrong.
He had no choice but to report back to Baz something bad had happened.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">For eons, few
female dragons had been born and the dragon populations were dwindling. Dragons
could only mate with other dragons, with few exceptions. Humans with a dragon
spark had only recently begun to surface, but until the spark awoke even the dragons
couldn’t identify the human women. Baz had a sister, Ruby, who had just turned 21 and hated basically being
a prisoner under her brother’s control.
But if someone from one of the other eyries stole her to mate, centers of power
could change. Mars was supposed to be on guard watching her, but he had left
two of his best men to guard her. How had she been taken. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">Starla was a powerful
witch as long as she was in her club. Beyond that her powers were much weaker. Traveling
through several territories that were controlled by other dragons, without
permission to enter their domain, could mean war. Baz wanted to go after his
sister and her abductor but if the media followed him, it would put Ruby in
danger. Mars would have to go after Ruby, but he would have to appear as a
human. They needed Starla’s illusion magic to shield him, making Mars appear as
a human. However, being so far from her
Club she couldn’t do it without help. Then, a voice gruffly intoned “I will
allow it, my mate. For a price.” She would have to stay with Mars, travel all
the way to Death Valley. How could she keep the spark from coming to life in
such close proximity? Did she have a choice?
Could she control the night mares that gave her the magic she needed to help
him find Ruby and battle any trouble on the way? Controlling the night mares meant controlling your
fear. If she didn’t they could destroy her. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">Dragons have
been my dearest companions since I was five. A story filled with dragons, witches,
shifters and other beasties grabbed my attention right away. The way in which
the story was written is full of imagery, I could easily see the story through
Harlow Blaze’s words. It was a race against time to find Ruby before the King
who had her abducted managed to woo and bed her. But it wasn’t a journey without
mounds of trouble that could still create more problems for Seattle’s King. I
loved Mars right away. He was a powerful being, his word defined him, so he was
always on guard to never fail. He believed he was dead inside, but his actions
were far more telling about who he is. His care of Starla, in spite of the fact
that he believed she’d cursed him. His slightly warped sense of humor and he
admission that he saw himself as broken because he couldn’t feel anything. Each had a past they were running away from
that had made them a bit of a lost soul. Starla wanted control of her life since she’d
had none growing up. Under her crusty exterior she was compassionate, she would
put her life on the line for those that needed her help. And gave what little
love she thought she had to her closet friends, of which not all were human. There
is humor, friendship, love, and stupidity. One line seemed to hint that Mars
wasn’t as emotionless as he believed “….she liked his dragon better when it
didn’t act like a f*&$ing Shakespeare.” I highly recommend this story and Harlow Blaze’s
writing. I love the characters and the storyline. I hated to see the last page,
even if there is more in the series to come with other characters. There is no
cliffhanger and the ending was just about perfect. This is a paranormal romance with some spicy
scenes.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">I was graciously,
offered this ARC for my honest opinion of the story I read.<o:p></o:p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-57029260378650400382023-01-09T22:01:00.001-08:002023-01-09T22:01:50.431-08:00<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6sRQpV_pOHdYzqcbVIGHAWa1erEwpGTRGSPZ6Hvma7NXr7uahjSQHU1sITT2UHKsqkO6PV33kkvpgSvjCbgpqyOXYuzD1jVzbFJoxpgi3B23T9zpSg7teJqSzo5YjTzNlcaR4Qai00ZvIskA47kUVnlUpBwTrVxdy82WirJTPuK6cKlPDVaUu_ASQ/s2475/Winter%20of%20the%20Shadow%20Fae.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2475" data-original-width="1574" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6sRQpV_pOHdYzqcbVIGHAWa1erEwpGTRGSPZ6Hvma7NXr7uahjSQHU1sITT2UHKsqkO6PV33kkvpgSvjCbgpqyOXYuzD1jVzbFJoxpgi3B23T9zpSg7teJqSzo5YjTzNlcaR4Qai00ZvIskA47kUVnlUpBwTrVxdy82WirJTPuK6cKlPDVaUu_ASQ/s320/Winter%20of%20the%20Shadow%20Fae.jpg" width="204" /></a></div><p><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Shadows Into Light; font-size: x-large;"><b>Winter of The Shadow Fae</b></span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Shadows Into Light; font-size: large;"><b>by L. P. Dover</b></span></p><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p> Twenty-five years ago, Alasdair was a sorcerer whose hunger
for power brought about a war in the Land of the Fae, intending to place
himself in a position over all the Fae. He failed in this, was defeated by the
Queen of the Ice Court. As he lay dying, he vowed to wreak his revenge upon those
who thwarted his march to power. He transferred some of his powers to his son
Kai, then laid a curse upon him. A spell that at some point in the future would
drive Kai to kill those who had stood in the way of his father’s rise to power.
He had been but a boy of fourteen when
his father laid the curse within him. But it never laid totally dormmate, the
hatred simmered within him for twenty-five years, changing him into a hardened
heartless man, caring for no one.<p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In the intervening years, the Land of the Fae had been divided
into four distinct lands, Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. Some of the cruel,
hard and fast laws had also been softened. Ella, the daughter of Queen of The Ice
Court was coming of age. She would marry and create a new Court, one of Frost
and more change would be coming under her rule. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The time had come, Kai would be the means of his father’s vengeance
and he would begin with the death of Ella. As he stole into her bed chamber, he
leaned over the beauty reposed in slumber upon her bed. No one had detected him.
She stirred but didn’t wake. As he looked upon her the desire to kill her was
ever as strong, but now it warred with his desire to claim her as his own as
well. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Ella was a Keeper, the fae’s version of a guardian angel.
When one of her kind were close to death, she was one who would appear to lead
them to the Hereafter, the next world where the dead lived on in spirit. She
was of an age to marry and claim her land that would become The Court of Frost.
For the last two years she and Iston, an
Elven Prince, had managed a close relationship, leading to the belief of all that
it would culminate in their marriage. However, Ella had her doubts of late. She’d
had a vision of a man with dark hair and grey eyes, emanating power. There was
as well a feeling of danger that surrounded him. For Ella there was something
about him, that called to her. Told, he was truly evil, one of the Shadow Fae,
the son of the sorcerer Alasdair and warned to beware of him. She had to find
out more about him. To do this she would have to step into the mortal world of
his home. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">There was a time when marriages between Fae and humans was
forbidden. If a Fae were to go against this law, they were banished to the mortal
world for the rest of their days. It was a deadly environment, shortening the
life of Fae banished there, some for crimes against the Land of the Fae, some simply
by their choice of mate. But times had changed after the war, marriages between
Fae and mortals were no longer forbidden and they might choose to live where they
would. However, once banished they were not allowed to return to the Land of Fae.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">There were times when Ella slipped into the mortal world to
retrieve a dying soul to escort the dead to the Hereafter. As she stood by
Linnet’s bedside, she felt him slip into the shadows. He was too late. He could
only stand and watched as his mother took her last breath. It had been a long time
since he’d last seen her. Once they had been close, but his father had changed
that, as a boy he taught him to hate, to close off his feelings for anything
but the service to revenge. Even so, Kai let another opportunity to kill Ella
pass, as she stood with her back to him. Some part of him held him back, while
deep inside the spell pulled at him, wanting to taste her blood. He knew he
would one day kill her but until that day, he would watch her, get close to see
where these strange feeling he seemed to have to protect her was coming from.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It started with a shared kiss. Ella knew who Kai was and
wanted to learn more about him and his plans to kill her and her family. Watching
him she saw her chance when she grabbed a Draya, a female half Fae, that was
part of Kai’s group of Shadow Fae. Taking her back to the Ice Court, she questioned
her to learn more of their plans. Ella returned to the mortal world shifting in
her appearance to that of Draya to see if Kai would share information with her.
What she wasn’t aware of, was that Kai could sense her presence as easily as
she could sense his nearness. So, when he grabbed her, taking her in his arms
and kissing her both were surprised at their reactions to the kiss that turned
demanding and hot. Angry at herself and him she pulled away and ran. No matter
how much he wanted to claim her as his own, he knew one day they would face
each other with daggers, and one would die.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>There is so much happening in this story. The story opens as Kai recognizes the time has
come for his father’s revenge, for in truth it is his father’s hatred that
lives on in his sons. The story may begin twenty-five years after the Alasdair’s
death, but gradually throughout the tale the reader learns more and more about
the history behind the war, Kai’s role and how it changes after he sees Ella
and realizes the strange connection between them is tearing him apart. The story
is presented succinctly but with twists and turns that you might not see coming.
There is cruel death, a puppeteer who reaches beyond the grave with his hatred
to destroy his children by turning them into monsters. There is love so strong
it lives beyond the grave.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">At first, I wasn’t certain I would appreciate Kai, he was a
bit of a cyborg like character that only lived to wreak havoc and death. A man
who turned away from his sisters and mother who so loved him, no matter what to
follow in the footsteps of an evil psychopath, long turned to dust. Ella too
seemed a bit hard hearted. Her relationship with Iston one of protocol and
convenience, the merging of two different peoples. But Kai is fighting a curse
that he didn’t ask for that has ruled his way of life and changed him from a loving
young boy to a bitter killer. Ella cares deeply for her people and would place
her life in danger to save them. But she has a duty to her living land, that
will some day become her court. So as the story goes on we get a better look at
the characters and how they change each other. It is inevitable though that the
beast inside Kai won’t be ousted until it has seen the death of Ella. Will he
be able to control the curse that holds him or will he be the death of the
woman he loves. This is a story that took a minute to find my way in but once
there I didn’t want it to end. I will say there are parts that broke my heart
but I loved that romantic spicy tale of enemies that loved so well, each would
die for the other.<o:p></o:p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-73610206300700512802022-12-27T12:50:00.006-08:002022-12-27T12:54:59.017-08:00<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi44oWD3xDYcGI53LIW32jZ_r1hnpbJfyIun6p_HIh4BvQoxV-uruh6mLpcvxfNgMTFgjF2Mc_qye6M8lJqbftB2dkUz-hfpG_n8HwAnEGGnC4bGDoRc4Wdzs3M5UzQBuopQEQ8_XYdrQmLtJA1upKV6nO_v0UsjI8gvDbqIS3GlxEGYdsClxZ3AeLf/s400/Un%20Match%20by%20Eden%20Dunn.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="250" height="419" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi44oWD3xDYcGI53LIW32jZ_r1hnpbJfyIun6p_HIh4BvQoxV-uruh6mLpcvxfNgMTFgjF2Mc_qye6M8lJqbftB2dkUz-hfpG_n8HwAnEGGnC4bGDoRc4Wdzs3M5UzQBuopQEQ8_XYdrQmLtJA1upKV6nO_v0UsjI8gvDbqIS3GlxEGYdsClxZ3AeLf/w262-h419/Un%20Match%20by%20Eden%20Dunn.jpg" width="262" /></a></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"> Un Match </span></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"> by Eden Dunn</span></h2><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">He
was different from his public persona, at heart he was a nerd, he just hid it
well. He was easy on the eyes, a tough player on the ice and a good time for a
lot of women. But they ran through his life faster than fire could melt ice. He
wanted what he saw others have in their close relationship with one woman in
their life. How to get started was the problem his was too well known and he
didn’t want any of the women who just wanted a bit of him, a part of his fame
or a good chunk of his money. So, he asked for help and his brother suggested
an online dating service. He’d even let him use his picture so no one would
recognize him. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">But
then he ran into her. A good friend of one of the other hockey players fiancés;
she was a single Mom. Those two things alone should have sent him running in
the other direction. But there was something about her.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Characters
from the first four books come back to play a part in this Tommy and Eleanor
story, I enjoyed playing catch up. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">This
is a turn down the lights low, put on some good music, curl up in a chair enjoy
this storyteller’s steamy tale.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Available now on Amazon:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="color: black; text-align: center;">https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BKP5KP2L?notRedirectToSDP=1&ref_=dbs_mng_calw_4&storeType=ebooks</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-45651492434273916642022-12-12T09:04:00.005-08:002022-12-12T09:04:30.034-08:00<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkyIX6DJcM_8na89JkDtB4L9UjIsU6JVkgAmModPadNFQDCNT5wu9MykF4uJTcG7tP9Xa3vYfbRMBwqsKxawcHKjZqwWHI-xMdZxbSTjzAhoYsrKou_ptiFf-p-F527cmUcl9OVcjcloqCyaVZPjpdyJPvIybl0FGUMhOVNCXcFzLfOopqomgnnsMi/s350/snowlit%20christmas%20kiss.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="219" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkyIX6DJcM_8na89JkDtB4L9UjIsU6JVkgAmModPadNFQDCNT5wu9MykF4uJTcG7tP9Xa3vYfbRMBwqsKxawcHKjZqwWHI-xMdZxbSTjzAhoYsrKou_ptiFf-p-F527cmUcl9OVcjcloqCyaVZPjpdyJPvIybl0FGUMhOVNCXcFzLfOopqomgnnsMi/w264-h422/snowlit%20christmas%20kiss.jpg" width="264" /></a></div> <span style="font-size: large;">Snowlit Christmas Kiss</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> by Larrissa Lyons<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">She’s thought her<br />self free of the betrothal her father had tethered
her to as a small child. With the death of Robert her intended, the ties
binding her should have been severed. It was Lady Redford, Robert’s Mama, that
had asked her to consider accepting her youngest son, and now the standing Lord
Redford, as her husband. Anne Larchmont, at 24 years old, was held to be on the
shelf at such a great age. Robert not inclined to an early marriage had put the
nuptials off several times in the last eight years. Anne was looking forward to
searching out a husband of her choosing, but after meeting, spending time with
Lady Redford, she found she quite liked the woman and after losing two sons and
her husband within months of each other, Anne couldn’t bring herself to refuse
the request to at least meet Ward, Lady Redford’s youngest son, just back from
the war with Napoleon. Why he was still recuperating from serious injuries he’d
received during the war.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For a small reprieve, Anne took off walking to visit her closest
friend Isabella Spier, who lived several miles away. She hadn’t counted on the
late snow, nor having to assist a tenant farmer’s wife bring her children into
the world, nor even the death of the family’s beloved cat, which she promised
to bury before heading to her own home. The night was filthy, icy cold, damp
with snow and no Moon to light the frozen ground where she was trying to dig a spot
to bury the cat. When out of the dark night a man stepped into view. Walking
with a pronounced limp, he was missing part of his right arm and looked as
weary as she. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Edward, now Lord Redford, had been making his way home after
being released from long term care in London. Still not in the best of shape,
his left hand still healing after being pinned under an enemy’s horse in
battle, his leg to had been broken in a couple of places, and he had lost part
of his right arm, but he was determined to find the game keeper’s cottage close
to his home. A fellow solider knew Edward needed just a bit more time alone
before facing his intended bride and the responsibilities of running the Redford
estates and offed him the use of the game keeper’s cottage on his estates close
to Edwards home. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And so, the betrothed couple meet, not by accident though, without
realizing who they really are. They spend the night in the game keepers’
cottage and find warmth, laughter, acceptance, compassion for humans and
beasties alike. After spending time together, they find they have a very
special connection they are comfortable and can talk of anything. They are also
physically drawn to eat other. Regretting that they must part come morning but enjoying
the hours they have out of time, just being themselves. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Neither realizes that their meeting, strange as it may seem,
wasn’t an accident. A beastie had scared Edward’s horse, leaving him on foot,
to make his way to the game keeper’s cottage, which in turn led him to making
the acquaintance of Anne as she tried to dig the grave for young Owen’s cat,
Lord Grayson. There was something in the air, Phineas could smell it. He had even let out a loud roaring sound to
hurry the two young humans through the night so that they might reach the
cottage before they froze to death trying in vain to eek out a hole in the frozen
ground. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">War has taken its toll on Edward and his comrades. He is
heartsick, from losing friends in battle, trying to adjust to the lose the
better part of his right limb and the slow healing of his other injuries and now
to come home to a position of responsibilities he’d never wanted, with the
death of his siblings and father. Then to be forced into marriage with a young
woman he had yet to meet. Anne is in no better shape. After expecting some latitude
of freedom to search out a man of her own choice, she is now considering how
she can make her refusal, to marry the newly appointed Lord Redford, her hand
in marriage. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We meet an outspoken heroine, who has compassionate nature
for all those, no matter their station in life, determined to set her world right.
She gave up on having a London season when she found her best friend Isabella
was slowly going blind. Isabella’s father just wants to hide her away, as if he
were ashamed. But Anne visits her whenever she can, to help her keep up her spirits,
but Isabella won’t let a little thing like losing her sight to stop her from
enjoying life. Ed has come away from a war that has cost him friends, pain and
lose of limbs but he pushes himself to become the head of the family. I loved
to fact that several of the chairs in the tale have disabilities but show their
strengths by finding ways to pick up life after the horrors of war. This romance
that takes place around the holidays makes you want to believe that good things
can still come out of the tragedy that is our world. Larrissa Lyons made me feel like I was back in
time, as she wrote of the situations the characters find themselves in, a blind
friend whose father appears ashamed of his daughter’s failing sight, no doctor
to help a woman in labour, using a shove to dig out a grave in the frozen
ground and betrothals where parents choose who you are to marry. The wording she uses also sets the pace and
time for the tale words that I was very comfortable with and enjoyed seeing in
print since it had been years, she I had heard or saw in print some of the terms
she used. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I enjoyed this romantic story, with a veteran of war who
wouldn’t allow his disabilities identify who his was as a man, an outspoken
spinster and a shifter that just had to step in and do a little meddling. I was
given an advanced readers copy in exchange for my opinion of the book. I found
humorous, touching, romantic with language and a few lightly steamed scenes,
along with a HEA ending. Enjoy it, I did.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiimOMiUZgZHKBQM3Ai84_ZDu10PHtdZ8THixD_3jbq-GDOPZYjE3KfAheQIOxoaBazc9gLPo396mNL7gbVFDrCvK1SXUOKsuBTkfmmeLBebYQFyWwUN_naCpueoBVZSo2cqBwX4N2I2fEeJcP278OeJw4lfsAb7egS2R-L3eHhYxN4oJUxxgVxiNR8/s350/snowlit%20christmas%20kiss.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="219" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiimOMiUZgZHKBQM3Ai84_ZDu10PHtdZ8THixD_3jbq-GDOPZYjE3KfAheQIOxoaBazc9gLPo396mNL7gbVFDrCvK1SXUOKsuBTkfmmeLBebYQFyWwUN_naCpueoBVZSo2cqBwX4N2I2fEeJcP278OeJw4lfsAb7egS2R-L3eHhYxN4oJUxxgVxiNR8/s320/snowlit%20christmas%20kiss.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /> <o:p></o:p><p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-30595643601010249692022-12-05T20:26:00.006-08:002022-12-05T20:26:59.325-08:00<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Merienda One; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Merienda One; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCcFo-2Nqj_InFeqk53u613737aQn-y9KfIvJxacaucpG3UZpEHA8ycrOILgcy0QJMJHa4bekFzHiPhtD3_AtTVm4xB-RbBqLq3kc9imrvlRSjJwYkCzohbpw0Goru_vBLaFQs9qCXjANTGWTdMlTVvFq0u7d3HTCxUNoZxVv8SatwNsHWdz8dgKPd/s2560/the%20dance.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2560" data-original-width="1600" height="490" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCcFo-2Nqj_InFeqk53u613737aQn-y9KfIvJxacaucpG3UZpEHA8ycrOILgcy0QJMJHa4bekFzHiPhtD3_AtTVm4xB-RbBqLq3kc9imrvlRSjJwYkCzohbpw0Goru_vBLaFQs9qCXjANTGWTdMlTVvFq0u7d3HTCxUNoZxVv8SatwNsHWdz8dgKPd/w306-h490/the%20dance.jpg" width="306" /></a></span></div><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Merienda One; font-size: large;"><br />The Dance: the Chase Duet</span><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> By Kimberly Knight<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Release Date: December 8, 2022</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Stacy is a free spirit. A dancer at heart, but her practical
side had sent her to college for a degree in business with a miner in dance. She
still had little more than a year left at college. She’d gone to a couple of auditions but hadn’t
placed in either. The plan had been to finish school and then find a job. Hopefully
as a backup dancer for a group, but if not, she’d have her degree in business.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Blake was a bartender at the Wild Pony Bar. He had a dream
too. He wanted to own his own bar or possibly a club, but raising the money
needed for his venture was slow going. He’d been walking in the shadow of his
older, very successful, brother for some time now making it hard for him to seriously
focus on anything, but his dream. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Stacy and Blake had been spending some recreational time together
when they needed to let off steam. And he was good at listening when she needed
to talk. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> Stacy’s Mom was
paying her part of the rent on the apartment, she shared with her friend Molly.
When out of the blue her mom called with the bad news that her business had
fallen off to the point where she would have to close it soon. Both she and her
mom would be in trouble if that happened. It was time for Stacy to step up, try
to help give her mom’s business a boost with some new marketing ideas. Soon
going to school during the week and helping her mom on weekends started to take
its toll on her energy. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In the end it was Molly who suggested a solution for Stacy’s
shortage of funds, that might keep her in school and pay the rent. She introduced her to
Sweethearts, a high-end escort service, that paid very well if you were willing
to play the game. And she was in…<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Blake had asked Stacy to go with him when he visited with
his family a couple times to keep his parents from harping on his lack of
ambition, higher education and single state. She’d done it, even If, she didn’t
agree with his strategy. It was one of the reason’s she had told him about her work
with Sweethearts. Until the night she came to the bar to find him after one of
the men she dated turned out to be a rapist… leaving her battered, beaten and
terrified. He was the one to comfort her, try to get her to report the man and
finally took her home and helped her forget.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Then Stacy ran into Eddie, an old friend, the son of a man
her mother had lived with when she and Eddie had been teens and their lives
took another sharp turn. Eddie had loved Stacy as a teen and wanted to try
again to reach her.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The tale takes place over several years, with long stretches
between seeing each other, picking up months later. Their lives change and each
tend to go their own way at times only to come back together again. There are
triggers such as rape, high-end escort services, spicy scenes with open doors
and abuse. But the story has heart, characters gradually change trying to learn
from past mistakes. There is heartbreak and at times each of them lets the
other down. Their lives mesh off and on, but each of the characters have a way
to go before they can find themselves on a path to a better life. But will they ever end up on the same path
wanting the same thing, at the same time? The last page isn’t the end of the story, for
me the cliffhanger was heartbreaking. The story will continue with the next
book. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This is a book I probably wouldn’t have picked up on my own
if I hadn’t been given an advanced copy to read and review. I can’t pinpoint
any particular part of the tale when I realized that I really cared about the
characters and wanted a happy ending for all of them. I recognized their pain
and understood some of the poor decision making while struggling to make their
lives work and their dreams come true. I recommend this story if you can get past
the triggers, because for me the people felt real; the story snuck up on me, wrapping
itself around me, drawing me in. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> I gave it four stars
only because I found the blank time slots a bit disorienting to the flow of the
story for me.<o:p></o:p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-82860582165390200782022-12-04T20:20:00.005-08:002022-12-04T20:20:59.215-08:00<p><br /></p><h1 class="a-spacing-none a-text-normal" id="title" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 28px; font-weight: 400 !important; line-height: 36px; margin-bottom: 0px !important; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><span class="a-size-extra-large" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 36px !important; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><br /></span></h1><h1 class="a-spacing-none a-text-normal" id="title" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 28px; font-weight: 400 !important; line-height: 36px; margin-bottom: 0px !important; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><span class="a-size-extra-large" id="productTitle" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 36px !important; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikecf5dRmEIDe4uHaecGaSpN3yy_TNknQp_JH-vGT6nX-SQncfgRffZyp40WrR9sEj2SdFelghDEzyaRKHfNwB3UBO0jl8hCIJGQbdLFCzy8RjBqR9u4cVNmRe4mM56XxssEwiQ06KXzz4LzHuykkDT66MH-uvPTQe9JFxLjTDh0cwVDjs7LB14fT7/s500/Shattered%20wolf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="333" height="401" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikecf5dRmEIDe4uHaecGaSpN3yy_TNknQp_JH-vGT6nX-SQncfgRffZyp40WrR9sEj2SdFelghDEzyaRKHfNwB3UBO0jl8hCIJGQbdLFCzy8RjBqR9u4cVNmRe4mM56XxssEwiQ06KXzz4LzHuykkDT66MH-uvPTQe9JFxLjTDh0cwVDjs7LB14fT7/w267-h401/Shattered%20wolf.jpg" width="267" /></a></div><br />Shattered Wolf (Shadow City: Silver Mate Book 1) </span></h1><div><span class="a-size-extra-large" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 36px !important; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;">by Jen L. Grey</span></div><div><span class="a-size-extra-large" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 36px !important; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;">Release date December 8, 2022</span></div><p> Silver wolves, descendants of an Angel, were more powerful
than other shifters and had been hunted for eons, spending their lives moving
around to keep hidden from outsiders when possible. They lived by the rule that
they would harm neither humans nor supernatural beings, they were the
protectors of life. But war had come to them in the form of demons and brought
them to the attention of humans, telling others where they could be found. There
were others, mostly humans, who coveted the power of the shifters and would go to
any means to find a way to acquire the secrets of shifting. And so, begins a
new world where supernaturals are hunted and they will have to fight for their
freedom. After Jewel’s father, the Alpha of the silver wolves, died trying to
save others, her Mother Mila, went on a rampage, blaming those for whom her husband
had died. She made life so miserable that Jewel had to get away in order to
sort out her pain and find a way to better cope with her loss. What would it
mean to their world?</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For months she lived with her grandfather’s pack, hours from
her home, until one night a friend convinced her to go to the city for a night
out, upon their return to the encampment only silence greeted them. As they
searched the nearby cabins, they could find no sign of anyone, no signs of
struggle. Something was very, very wrong. After noticing the television was
still on running a news report Heather and Jewel turned up the volume to listen.
The man in the video would have grabbed
anyone’s attention his was gorgeous, but when she realized he was a shifter
speaking to humans about the reality of supernatural beings living around them,
she realized they needed to get away fast and find help. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">But as they left the encampment a black SUV came barreling
down the road after them, they were being followed, the driver tried to run
them off the road. Barely managing to escape with their lives, they headed for
the new home of the silver wolves. Jewel’s terror turned to full blown anger
when they finally reached Shadow City and one of the first people she saw was
the man, Killian, from the news video. It was all his fault, why was he here
with Sterlyn, her Alpha, and other supernaturals? She blamed him for the disappearance of her
family and the pack. Even as her mind told her she despised the traitor, she
was strangely drawn to him. Why was he
watching her with such a strange look of longing? She told Sterlyn about finding
the empty encampment and the SUV that tried to run them off the road. Finding the pack members would require Eliza’s,
a witch, help but to assist she needed something tangible from at least one of the
shifters. They would have to return to the encampment, get in and get out fast
for someone fear that those who had followed them would be back with others.
Together with Sterlyn, Griffin, her mate, Heather, Jewel and several others
they would drive back to the cabins and find what they could. Killian insisted on going along on the
journey, much to Jewel’s consternation. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">They’d almost reached the encampment when they saw the smoke
and the bright glow from a fire. Most of the cabins were a blaze and falling in
unsalvageable by the time they reached them. Jewel and the others knew that time was short,
they had to try to find something they could use in their search and get out
before the humans who had torched to cabins came back. But it didn’t take long
to realize once again they had run out of time. The humans came with guns and tranquilizer
rifles. It didn’t take a genius to realize that the humans wanted to capture
them but wouldn’t hesitate to kill them if they couldn’t. The fight to escape
would cost them, they would lose a couple of their comrades before they succeeded
to break away and escape.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The story begins with a tale of treachery, hatred towards
supernatural beings, hits the ground running with action, blends in romance
that blooms even in the midst of terror and fights to bring about justice for
everyone. This paranormal trilogy is
full of action, suspense, romance and edge of chair terror. Jen L. Grey doesn’t
hesitate to make hard decisions by creating situations where bad things happen to
good people in their struggle to remain free. The supernatural world comes
together with angels, demons, vampires, shifters and more. She has built a
world where there is good and evil on both sides, humans and supernatural
beings. Peopled with characters whose lives are very different from each other
while they draw strength from their diversity, find mates with whom they can forge
loving bonds and join forces to fight for their freedom to live in peace. The
story unfolds with light touches of humor, sadness, pain, death and uncertainty
in a world ruled by fear, greed, and hatred. But there is also hope. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">For a time, I felt like I’d stepped into the world of
Indiana Jones, wherever you went you ran into trouble, with no clear end in
sight, and an army of elite fighters without mercy, interspersed with people
you will come to admire and for whom you are rooting to come out on top. I had
a hard time sitting still reading it, I found myself with the tale in hand
pacing the floor, laughing, crying, and scared for those held in captivity. I
highly recommend this book if you enjoy paranormal situations, romantic
suspense and action stories. There are some twists and turns so don’t get too
comfortable, you may be surprised at what happens next.<span style="color: #202124; font-family: Roboto; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This part of the story ends in a cliffhanger that may leave
you feeling like someone pushed you off a high ledge only to catch you and
secure you in a net. Just know that the next edition won’t be far behind.<o:p></o:p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-5613464420693232022022-11-30T21:36:00.003-08:002022-11-30T21:37:40.436-08:00<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDz2fCrS342bns4hN6eSE2kPGGTnHiaz2xjsi51eae6mgfEsbsypcmq54lAmt5OxGSG-4XWZQ0lSPakXEIfm7x-aXsPQV95n3Y76xKHlJ5ebc4WEiqwX9gTuIdR6_Ckqww8QBxT4UHBSJPOxbOjwjySe5jMLgYGfTh_Q-lJEjje5tqPSMXJuql3XMp/s1080/midnight%20ball%20cover.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="418" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDz2fCrS342bns4hN6eSE2kPGGTnHiaz2xjsi51eae6mgfEsbsypcmq54lAmt5OxGSG-4XWZQ0lSPakXEIfm7x-aXsPQV95n3Y76xKHlJ5ebc4WEiqwX9gTuIdR6_Ckqww8QBxT4UHBSJPOxbOjwjySe5jMLgYGfTh_Q-lJEjje5tqPSMXJuql3XMp/w418-h418/midnight%20ball%20cover.jpg" width="418" /></a></div><br /> <span style="font-family: Lemonada; font-size: medium;">Books on my mind...</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Lemonada; font-size: medium;">A new book by L. L. Hunter, The Midnight Ball, will hit the streets on Dec. 13, 2022.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Lemonada; font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p><span style="font-family: Lemonada; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Lemonada; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Lemonada; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Lemonada; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Lemonada; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Lemonada; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Neucha; font-size: medium;">"In the magical kingdom of Sydlandia, 17 year old Grace is hiding a secret.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Neucha; font-size: medium;">When a devasting event upends Grace’s world, it will force her to rethink everything</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Neucha; font-size: medium;">she’s ever known.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Neucha;">And question everyone around her.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Neucha; font-size: medium;">After all, she’s not the only one hiding secrets."</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Neucha;"><span style="font-size: medium;">From the bestselling author of The Dragon Heart series and the Legend of the </span><span style="font-size: large;">Archangel series, comes the complete Midnight Ball trilogy in one magical </span><span style="font-size: large;">collection.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Neucha; font-size: medium;">Reign of Secrets</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Neucha; font-size: medium;">Crown of Lies</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Neucha; font-size: medium;">Queen of Midnight</span></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2895087480788441154.post-76279699116034808622022-11-03T18:52:00.004-07:002022-11-03T18:56:03.580-07:00<p><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Merienda One; font-size: x-large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Merienda One; font-size: x-large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJzwSdKkJY2Y6ecJ3uQq9FS1s4RO2C-RSE-zZ3Obb3_I88ehKd8pNmA1n6u_ljMNU2oMb2Qd3sy0LcytfthlJ5TouFa-ayeoyXp99IiSyirLyAlJ60K7KcmNUw_bGVP5FNRLC0IqOCRf28h7E5t4Ud0KVF4ZXs1mlB_PqB-l9isYzZEsQGD2mQdGd4/s500/Blaze%20of%20fire%20Espinosa.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="333" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJzwSdKkJY2Y6ecJ3uQq9FS1s4RO2C-RSE-zZ3Obb3_I88ehKd8pNmA1n6u_ljMNU2oMb2Qd3sy0LcytfthlJ5TouFa-ayeoyXp99IiSyirLyAlJ60K7KcmNUw_bGVP5FNRLC0IqOCRf28h7E5t4Ud0KVF4ZXs1mlB_PqB-l9isYzZEsQGD2mQdGd4/s320/Blaze%20of%20fire%20Espinosa.jpg" width="213" /></a></span></div><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Merienda One; font-size: x-large;"><br />A Blaze of Fire </span><p></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Merienda One; font-size: x-large;"> By Karina Espinosa</span></p><p> review by Katy Grant</p><p> AVAILABLE: Friday November 4th, 20022</p><p>She had left her human world behind to save Ansel. But who
would save her from those in the Unseelie Court who would see her dead. First, she
was half fae, an abomination in the eyes of the humans as well as in the eyes
of the fae. It could be a death sentence for her sire and herself if any found
out her father was Kazimir, the Unseelie King’s General. Thankfully, even
though she looked exactly like her mother, Kazimir didn’t appear to recognize
her.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">After speaking to the Seelie Queen, Ansel was allowed to attend
the Unseelie Court as an Ambassador, so he could keep watch over Violet. He
didn’t like how close his brother was becoming to her. After sneaking into her
room to see her, where their passion for each other took over, Alec warned
Ansel to stay clear of Violet or he could be the means of all their deaths.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Now within the Unseelie Court, Alec had promised to protect
her and to that end he had two loyal fae to stand watch over her. Rose was a
Pixie with no powers, a low fae, as her handmaiden and Rook who size and
fighting strengths were a bit terrifying. The plan was to demonstrate to the Unseelie
King that Violet did hold the Orb within her, therefore having the ability to
control and use all four elements, Earth, Wind, Fire and Water. The second
purpose, to have her offer fealty to him; the third, to prove to the King that once
she was completely trained and in control of her elemental powers, she would be
an asset to the Unseelie and not a threat. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To this end, her training began with Kazimir, as an elemental
fire fae. When she didn’t show promise soon enough, he pushed her off a cliff
towards the rocks and water below. Her elemental wind power stood her in good stead,
thankfully. But now she was more than ever, weary of him. As another form of
testing, the King decided to send Violet along with Kazimir to collect the taxes
from the lower fae. Kazimir and Alec both tried to object, to no avail, since
Violet herself stood before the King and accepted the task, unknowing of the
cruelty behind the act. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The journey would only take a week after all, what could be
so hard about collecting taxes. The first village they came to, Violet realized
why both men had objected to her going. The
villagers looked as if they were starving, the huts and town looked to be
falling down. She watched as a villager
was being whipped half to death because he had no tribute to offer and refused
to give up his young daughter. She couldn’t just stand by and watch. She tried
to stop the lashing but was pulled away by Alec and ushered off to the Town Hall.
Later, the beaten man lay on the ground, where they dropped him after his
lashing, as if dead. While the others
were distracted, Violet asked Rook to help her bring him into the Town Hall
where she could tend him. The Fae showed no signs of humanity, no compassion to
those who they considered beneath them. <a name="_Hlk118401070"><o:p></o:p></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As they left the village and headed for the next, along the trail,
they were attacked by creatures of death, Wraiths, flying down from the sky
with claws extended. Kazimir ordered men left behind to fight them off to give
the rest of them time to get away. But as Violet looked back, she could see
those left behind would not survive the attack without help. She broke free of
Alec and ran toward them to help even if it meant her death….but as she was
throwing fire at the creatures a strength broke free from within her….<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">She was now in mortal danger if the King found out what she
had done. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In these chapters, the Unseelie Court unfolds with all its warts,
starting with their cruel monarch pulling the strings of control. From the high
fae and their arrogant ways to the inhuman treatment of the low fae, to those
who look to a legend to somehow change their realm. She knew she couldn’t stand
by and watch this inhumanity continue, she would help where she could, while
she was here. Violet never intended to stay in this world. Somehow, she would return
to the human world. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> The conspiracies, intrigue,
secrets, heartbreak and caring hearts will show themselves. Living among these beings
had showed her that they were not always what they seem on the surface. Karina
Espinosa has put her own imaginative twist to good storytelling, envisioning the
Unseelie Court in her own way. Evil is not always fully evil, characters will grow
and change, but will it be enough to save those under the King’s oppression, for
any to join in to protect Violet or is there too much fear, self-importance, or
self-preservation of the old ways. This tale ends in a twisted cliffhanger that
sends a dagger to the heart of this reader.
I love the beginning of this tale “A Hint of Delirium”, the first in this
trilogy. But “A Blaze of Fire” had me
wanting to hide in the shadows of this tale to watch, listen and somehow become
part of this riveting story. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I was given an ARC to read so that I might share what I saw
in this tale. This is what I found. <o:p></o:p></p>Cadihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11225751930330140448noreply@blogger.com0