Sunday, October 29, 2017

Stacking The Shelves: (Oct 4)

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks! If you want to find out more about Stacking The Shelves, please visit the official launch page! Stacking The Shelves now has a new host and check out that new image!!

Pre-Order:


Dear Martin by Nic Stone. Got this from amazon after I purchased The Hate You Give by Angie Thomas which I loved so much, of course I pre-ordered this.


Purchased


Don't Touch by Rachel M Wilson. This is a book that was popular several years ago on booktube and I wanted to read it then.  I snagged this from the dollar tree.

That's all I got this week Got anything fun?? Share in the comments down below and I'll come show some love.  Thanks for stopping by.



Sunday, October 22, 2017

Stacking The Shelves 2017 ( Oct 3)

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks! If you want to find out more about Stacking The Shelves, please visit the official launch page! Stacking The Shelves now has a new host and check out that new image!!

I know I know. I said no more books for a while, then I went to the Dollar Tree and found a few and then a favorite author published a book so I had to get it as well. And well let me share down below:

I loved this author for years and I really couldn't believe she has a series I haven't read or heard of so I snagged this.
Lynn Kurland's River of Dreams

Everyone is always talking about this author and I wanted to see what she is known for.  This is one of her series.  The Bourbon Kings  by J.R. Ward

Then I purchased from amazon:

Dignity by Jay Crownover I had to have this, it's the next in the series and I needed to get my hands on it immediately.

I got from NetGalley the following ARC:

I've seen this talked about a bit on twitter so I as super excited when I got approved: The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory.


And that's it.  I've managed to keep it to a minimum.  What'd you get this week?? Share in the comments down below and I will swing on by later.
Happy Lusting

Wednesday, October 18, 2017

Waiting On Wednesday (WOW) 4: Dignity by Jay Crownover

Hosted by: Jill over at Breaking The Spines.  This is a weekly book lust prompt, asking for us to share our absolute can't wait to get our hands on a copy books. Swing on over to find out how to participate and to see what others are sharing.  

New Adult

Dignity by Jay Crownover
Looks can be deceiving.

I knew that most people took one look at the ink and the impossibly big and strong body it covered and decided I was a brawler…a bruiser…a beast. However, I was hardwired to be a thinker, not a fighter—my mind being my greatest weapon and my biggest weakness.

I should have chosen to use my brain and talents to be one of the good guys, a hero, a man with dignity and worth.

I turned my back on dignity and sold my soul to the highest bidder, deciding to dance with the devil, instead.

I couldn’t figure out how to help myself, so there was zero chance I knew how to save someone else.

That someone else was Noe Lee. She was the unkempt, unruly thief who was just as smart as I was and twice as street savvy. She was annoyingly adorable beneath the dirt and grime and she was in trouble. In way over her head, I told myself it wasn’t my job to keep her from drowning. In the Point, it was sink or swim and I wasn’t the designated lifeguard on duty.

I had shut the door in her face, but now she’s gone…vanished…disappeared without a trace. It took less than a second for me to realize that I wanted her back.

When a woman comes along that melts all the frozen, hard things you’re made of, you’ll do anything you have to, to bring her home.

What you see is not always what you get…and with a man like me there is more than anyone ever bargained for
Due Date: October 17
Print: Ebook, Trade Paperback
Pages: 292
Publisher: Createspace
Add To Goodreads
I have been a Crownover Fan for years. And because I have been trying to be good and not stalk all my favorite authors this one almost slipped past me.  Still caught it in time to snag a pre-order.  


What's on your book lust list?? Share in the comments down below!!
Happy Lusting


Tuesday, October 17, 2017

Book #Review: The Summoner

Book Title: Summoner
Author:  S.D. Grimm|WebsiteTwitter| Facebook|
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Genre: Paranormal YA, Mystery
Series/Standalone: 
Format: ebook 
Cost: $2.99
Pages: 330
How I got it: Purchased
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Publisher
Publication Date: Sept 04, 2017
Add To Goodreads
Synopsis:
When Allie’s best friend dares their group to play a game in a cemetery—something she calls “witching”—Allie never expects what it might mean for her. When she plays, she doesn’t just find bodies, she summons their souls. But one soul wants more than Allie is willing to give.

And the boy next door could be the key to saving her.

Cody Burkhart. Straight from Montana, cowboy hat wearing, and smoking hot, he’s just the thing to help Allie become “normal” again after the death of her mother. And as her newly appointed Guardian, he’s also just the thing to help Allie ward off the vengeful spirit who’s after her soul. Except Cody has his own demons to slay that keep him closed off. But as the full moon approaches, so does their only chance to break the curse, and Cody will have to make the biggest sacrifice of all.
I went into this one kind of blind, I pre-ordered based on watching a fellow booktuber's highly anticipated book-list and this was on there.  I ordered and when it came out I dived right in.  I figured this would be perfect for the season and I was right. This was a young adult to mature YA read about a young woman learning to cope with a recent tragedy in her life. She's trying to reconnect to her friends after such a huge change and she doesn't want them to treat her differently, so despite her fear she goes on a dare with them to the local cemetery and from there a whole new world opens up for her.

This unfolded slowly at first then once the world got established it just flew by, I found myself trying to find ways to sneak and read it when I was supposed to be paying attention to other things.  I really enjoyed the voice of the character as she shared this journey she was on.  This was very well written. I enjoyed the exploration of grief they were both feeling while learning to move on at this crucial time in their lives. 

While the novel explores the mystery of how she's able to summon, they also go on a journey to learn to move beyond their grief while trying to explore their attraction to each other. One of my favorite moments between them is the horseback riding scene where they just got to be a couple learning about each other without the world or their pasts intruding.  As the novel progressed and the mystery unfolded we learn more about what it means to be a summoner, how the 'gift' is bestowed and watch as Allie struggles to accept what it now means.  I loved her girlfriends in this tale, they were so supportive and at times pushed her to accept things about her new circumstances that she was hesitant to accept or to even see  I enjoyed how it was a paranormal tale and yet you felt like it could almost take place in this town as well. 

I did enjoy the story especially because of the minor twists and smaller mysteries that were being dealt with.  I loved the development of the characters and how the situations came about.  There is a love story within, and yet it never takes over the main focus of the story, it's a part of how she grows as a character and how she confronts changes.  I especially loved that it as slow build up to mystery and the love story.. Another bonus of the novel was the presence as well as the great relationships the characters had with their parents. From Allie with her Dad to Cody with his parents, the family units within the novel worked well together. Cody even had extended family he was close to that Allie got to meet and hang out with.  I enjoyed that the adults were adults who were present while still maintaining enough distance that their teens could explore without being watched all the time. 

I did however have a bone to pick with the author, now I have mentioned before that the healthcare field is my wheelhouse, this is my career, while I may not work in the field of prosthetic/robotics, I do have patients who have them and I can tell you they are built way better than the author made it appear in this novel.  Even on the cheapest end of the spectrum the prosthetic for hands are built in such a way that they won't just fall off because someone hit you, they are generally built with some suction capabilities to help it remain on.  I wasn't a fan of that part as it isn't an accurate depiction, considering there are prosthesis that appear almost life like that is now available. 

Other than that one con I really enjoyed this novel and the fact that it's a stand alone made me love it more.  I recommend if you want an interesting new take on ghosts.
 ★★★★1/2☆
If you have any ghost stories you think I should check out can you please share in the comments down below?? Thank you my loves and as always
Happy Reading 

Monday, October 16, 2017

Book #Review: Second Grave On The Left by Darynda Jones

Book Title: Second Grave On The Left ( Charley Davidson #2)
Author:  Darymda Jones |WebsiteTwitterFacebook|
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series/Standalone: Book 2
Format: Hardcover 
Cost: $7.99
Pages: 307
How I got it: Purchased 
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BAM
Publication Date: August 06,, 2011
Add To Goodreads
Synopsis:
If you hang around with dead people, life can get pretty complicated. Take it from Charley Davidson, part-time private investigator and full-time Grim Reaper. Complicated is her middle name. The deceased find her very sparkly. Demons find her irresistible. And one entity in particular wants to seduce her in every way possible.
When Charley and Cookie (her best friend/receptionist) have to track down a missing woman, the case is not quite as open and shut as they anticipate. Cookie's friend Mimi disappeared five days earlier. Mimi then sends Cookie a cryptic message telling Cookie to meet her at an nearby coffee shop. The coffee is brewing, but Mimi's still missing. There is, however, a clue Mimi left on the bathroom wall: a woman's name. Mimi's husband explains to them that his wife had been acting strange since she found out an old high school friend had been murdered. The same woman whose name Mimi had scribbled on the bathroom wall.

Meanwhile, Reyes Alexander Farrow (otherwise known as the Son of Satan. Yes. Literally) has left his corporeal body and is haunting Charley. He's left his body because he's being tortured by demons who want to lure Charley closer. But Reyes can't let that happen. Because if the demons get to Charley, they'll have a portal to heaven...well, let's just say it wouldn't be pretty.

Can Charley handle hot nights with Reyes and even hotter days tracking down a missing woman? Can she keep those she loves out of harm's way? And is there enough coffee and chocolate in the world to fuel her as she does?
While I enjoyed this I can see there are going to be several things that are going to bother me if Charley doesn't grow out of them.  I ended up giving this 4 stars because of several issues in the books.

We are back in Charley's world and she has two cases she's working on, the overall case of Reyes and the case her best friend brought her of a missing woman.  What should be a simple missing persons case quickly evolves into more as bodies start turning up, and of course there is the case of the Dead Trunk Guy.  I really love Charley's voice she's so sarcastic and funny.  She feels really relateable, however at times she share some thoughts that make me want to slap her, especially when she does shyt after being told not to. 

As the story progresses Charley finds herself dealing with so many people who want to hurt her and she is left clueless by many of the attempts especially because it appears her case isn't going anywhere at all.  Charley keeps secrets from everyone especially when she shouldn't then wonders why they do the same to her.

In the first book we learned that Charley is a bit of book genius and really smart, sometimes in her actions I have to wonder is she really smart because she makes really bad choices way more than a competent adults should.   The things that annoy me in this book maybe minute to others but you can't expect me to believes she's been doing this since birth and she's never done any research on what it means to be a Grim Reaper, no fairy tales no myths, nothing??? You never tried to see what you could do with your gifts at all?? Your telling me you're a teenager with special gifts and you never tired to see what you could do with them to freak your friends out?? To make yourself cool?? Yeah Okay. Also for someone who is a magnet for trouble you never considered learning any kind of martial arts?? Self Defense?? No you just figured your dad and uncle will save you ever since time??

I get that Charley and her stepmother don't get along especially because the stepmother is a terrible excuse of a woman but for Charley to say she made the SS salute to her, wasn't ok and I didn't find it funny, yeah she did it as a child, but that's a symbol of serious hatred that aided in the death of millions that isn't a joke anyone should be making at all.  Like who the hell raised you???  Then there are times she makes these comments about some characters especially whens he met a character who as of Asian descent but was from Texas and made the internal comment that her face didn't match the accent. What the fuck does that even mean??  Are you trying to say Asians can't be from parts of the country with strong accents or are you saying they look too other to be American???

The story otherwise flew by quickly with different small cases being solved while the two major cases were being worked on.  Charley is trying to balance sharing enough information with those that need it and keeping what she thinks will change their lives forever We have hijinks, witty conversations, steamy moments with Reyes and then Charley discovering so much more about him and his world than before.

I like the way the series is setting up and how it seems everything is going to go. Hopefully Charley takes her head out of her hind parts and quickly because I can only do with so much clumsiness when it comes to your life being in danger. Get it together girl. It ain't cute or funny after a while, nope after a while you're just a mess that no one needs.
 ★★★★☆
RECOMMENDATIONS
  • The Croak Series by Gina D'amico: Croak, Scorch and I'm reading the 3rd one this month. 
  • Dead Like Me TV Series

I still recommend and I'm super excited to see where this series goes.
Happy Reading my loves, 

Sunday, October 15, 2017

Stacking The Shelves 2017 (Oct 2)

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks! If you want to find out more about Stacking The Shelves, please visit the official launch page! Stacking The Shelves now has a new host and check out that new image!!

I tried my loves to hold off on buying new books but obviously I failed.  Some of this was an order from Bookoutlet finally coming in.   Let's take a look at what I got shall we??

I picked up the rest of a series that I'm currently reading:

Sixth Grave on the Edge 


Seventh Grave, No Body  I'm working with them to replace this one because it is so disgusting. It's got sticker residue all over it and glue on the book, I didn't pay for a damaged book, so I really don't appreciate receiving one. i'll let y'all know how that shakes out.

Eighth Grave After Dark

The Dirt on Ninth Grave

The Curse of Tenth Grave

Eleventh Grave in Moonlight

Then I decided to add a few more books to the bookoutlet order because for just a few more dollars I could get free shipping.  This is how I always get caught.LOL

Sister Gumbo by Ursula Inga Kindred
Last Summer with Maizon by Jacqueline Woodson

Real Talk: Black Pain by Terrie M. Williams
This one has also been on my radar for a while and of course wouldn't you know it came damaged even thought I once again didn't order a damaged book.

Hopefully they replace these damaged ones soon, either way I got some awesome books and I can't wait to dive into them!!

What did you get this week?? Share down below my loves so we can gush together.  See you next week. 

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

Book #Review: Call of the Forgotten:The Lost Prince by Julie Kagawa .@Jkagawa

Book Title: The Lost Prince (Call if the Forgotten)
Author: Julie Kagaea |WebsiteTwitterFacebook|
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series/Standalone:  Iron Fey : Call of the Forgotten
Format: ebook, Trade Paperback
Cost: $9.99
Pages: 377
How I got it: NetGalley
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Publisher
Publication Date: October 23, 2012
Add To Goodreads
Synopsis:
Don’t look at Them.
Never let Them know
you can see Them.
That is Ethan Chase’s unbreakable rule. Until the fey he avoids at all costs—including his reputation—begin to disappear, and Ethan is attacked. Now he must change the rules to protect his family. To save a girl he never thought he’d dare to fall for.
Ethan thought he had protected himself from his older sister’s world—the land of Faery. His previous time in the Iron Realm left him with nothing but fear and disgust for the world Meghan Chase has made her home, a land of myth and talking cats, of magic and seductive enemies. But when destiny comes for Ethan, there is no escape from a danger long, long forgotten.
My name is Ethan Chase.
And I may not live to see my eighteenth birthday.
Hello my loves, I can't even begin to explain how much I loved this story.  Julie writes in such a way that once you start reading you don't want to put it down.  I really enjoy this series I hadn't gone into the series because I didn't have the other books on my shelves, except the second one. I wanted to be able to move through all three books very quickly.

Having read this one, I can't tell you how glad I was to have all three.  Julie took us back into Iron Fey world where we got to see Meghan the Iron Queen again, and OMG her world has changed and poor Ethan is once again pulled back into the world of the Fey and nothing, absolutely nothing is going the way he needs it to.

From the get go this story moved really quickly each and every single scene bringing something new and wild and fun.  Poor Ethan found himself running back and forth between in the worlds.  As the story unfolds I found myself remembering snippets from the other books and falling back in the love with the characters.  I didn't put this book down at all, it was amazingly good and I quickly finished it so I could jump into the second one.

When I say the action unfolds quickly I mean really quickly and as much as I would like to say it, this books isn't for someone who hasn't read the series and knows the kind of background facts you would need to make this a rich and encompassing tale.  While Julie does summarize a little bit and give glimpse of the past, as much as Ethan thinks he knows he doesn't know everything and his shadowed and one sided perspective makes him miss the true importance of certain actions, conversations and people.  It doesn't take away from the story but this is definitely a must read in series order book.  I loved seeing old characters, catching up with Ethan, meeting new characters and reading as the prophecy began to unfold.  I found myself quickly reading so I could know what happens and  I loved reading so I could react to the different scenes.

There are moments within the story that make me want to yell at certain characters, I wanted to ask some of them if they had brains, I side-eyed the hell out of others, and I called B.S on more than one occasion.  Ethan had issues with the Fey and I get why he's so angry but man he's beyond short sighted and extremely prejudiced.  I kept having to remind myself that he's a kid who has living through a tragedy that changed his life and his family forever and he gets to be angry.  However his anger at time was so silly, especially when it meant he missed out on getting help he really needed.

I highly recommend the series and the ones before this including The Iron Fey: The Iron Queen, The Iron King, The Iron Daughter  and the Iron Knight. Oh man so much unfolds due to the events from The Iron Knight and that's pretty much where this sub series kicks off.  If you love the Fey, witty characters, fun and adventures and of course our favorite mischievous character, then this series is for you.
 ★★★★☆
 I hope you love this as much as I do, It was a fun and adventurous read.  Happy Reading


Monday, October 9, 2017

Book #Review: First Grave on the Right by Darynda Jones

Book Title: First Grave on the RIght ( Charley Davidson 1)
Author:  Darymda Jones |WebsiteTwitterFacebook|
Publisher: St. Martins 
Genre: Paranormal Romance/ Mystery/ Thriller
Series/Standalone: Series 1
Format: Mass Market 
Cost: $7.99
Pages: 315
How I got it: Purchased & ARC from Netgalley
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Publisher
Publication Date: Feb 2011
Add To Goodreads
Synopsis:
First Grave on the Right is the smashing, award-winning debut novel that introduces Charley Davidson: part-time private investigator and full-time Grim Reaper.

Charley sees dead people. That's right, she sees dead people. And it's her job to convince them to "go into the light." But when these very dead people have died under less than ideal circumstances (i.e., murder), sometimes they want Charley to bring the bad guys to justice. Complicating matters are the intensely hot dreams she's been having about an Entity who has been following her all her life...and it turns out he might not be dead after all. In fact, he might be something else entirely.

This is a thrilling debut novel from Darynda Jones, an exciting newcomer to the world of paranormal romantic suspense.

First Grave on the Right is the winner of the 2012 Rita Award for Best First Book.
I picked this up years ago in a walmart because her shoes looked cool. yeah it was a total cover buy and it sat on my shelves waiting for me to remember it, now even though I never read the first one, i kept buying the series because Grim Reapers are my jam.  With the 12th book coming out in October, I was among the many lucky few who was given the widget to get this book as an E-arc to get us into the world of Charley and I must say it totally worked on me.

I absolutely loved this story, I'm glad I grabbed it when I did because awesome sauce doesn't even begin to explain how much fun this story is.  We are in snarky Charlotte "Charley" Davidson's head most of the time and we see what she sees and knows.  Ghost are real and as the Grim Reaper it is her job to help them figure out what is wrong and why they haven't passed into the veil to the otherside yet.  As such she grew up to become a private investigator after helping her Dad & Uncles fight crime from the time she was five. She's got a fun crime fighting 'secretary/ mother daughter duo, a few ghosts as resourcces and of course the police department in town to help her out.

I absolutely love this story, I love Charley even though sometimes she annoys the heck out of me. At first I didn't understand how she didn't know more about her gift but then you realize this isn't a world in which the supernatural are known and accepted, it's our world basically with only a few understanding souls around. And it's not like there is a Guide to being a Grim lying around anywhere.   Charley tries to use her talents for good, to aide those who need to pass on and those who need her help in this world.  With her links to the cops and her unathletlic abilities she more often than not ends up on the wrong side of a punch.

And then the mystery starts, Charley's being haunted by a man who she cannot see and that scares her.  Even thought the dreams are sexy in nature and not scary they still make her wonder because if she can't see him, what kind of ghost is he.  She's working a few cases and they start to converge as well as the case of her mystery night visitor and before long Charley has headed into a case that is darker than she can imagine.

I found that several of her secondary characters were well developed especially if they were characters that Charley knew well.  She has a cast of characters that make you wonder who is staying and who will be going and why are they here.  A few that seem like love interests, her Uncle who gladly takes her help but doesn't really want to know how her talent works, and a paranormal story wouldn't be complete without an evil stepmother.  Then of course is the man haungitng her dreams and my gawd does the man kno how to haunt.

For me this was a very quick read as it sucked me in and turned me on. I really found myself trying to read faster so I could find out what happened to whom and where is her mystery man, and what was really going on.  By the end we know there is an even bigger bad guy that she must face and I'm pretty worried for Charley because she's got no defense skills at all.  She's an extremely clumsy private investigator , she relies more on her gifts to aide her instead of actual PI skills which unfortunately for her means she runs into more physical issues than anything else.

I'm really invested in seeing where this all goes since I own the next four books in the series. Hopefully she signs up for a self defense class with what is brewing around her because Grim or not she's going to need it. 
 ★★★★☆
Highly Recommend to my paranormal romance friends and those looking for a good paranormal mystery with a sarcastic quirky female lead.  
Happy Reading my loves, 

Saturday, October 7, 2017

Book #Review: Double Dose by Katie Allen

Book Title: Double Dose ( Human Design 4)
Author:  Katie Allen |WebsiteTwitterFacebook|
Publisher: Carina Press
Genre: Erotica Romance, Sci-Fi Romance
Series/Standalone: Series Book 4
Format: ebook
Cost: $2.99
Pages: 199
How I got it: ARC from NetGalley
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble |
Publication Date: Oct 2017
Add To Goodreads
Synopsis:
Previously published under a different title A double dose of happily-ever-after… Speech therapist Daphne's neat, orderly life takes a turn for the dramatic when she's kidnapped and spirited away to a hideout deep in the Colorado mountains. Her captors? Gorgeous men—all escaped from a secret laboratory designed to build perfect supersoldiers.

Trauma associated with his engineering left Benjy mute, and Ari thinks Daphne's just the girl to help him recover. Held against her will, Daphne will be damned before she helps any of them—regardless of how electrifying she finds their touches.

But as Daphne's hunger for Benjy and Ari grows, so does her empathy for the other soldiers hiding out at the lodge. With danger from her own past threatening to resurface and an overeager FBI agent sniffing around, she needs to free herself, her men and the others.
I went into this one totally based on the cover. I'm so glad I did. This is a part of series and yet it isn't written that way, I didn't feel as if I was lost reading the story because each of the characters from the previous novel gave a brief synopsis of their stories without really spoiling anything. So I'm adding those onto the TBR Pile because why not??!!  When I went to write this I discovered that Katie is the author of one of my favorite books ONe Two Punch,  which is another amazing menage erotica, I knew I liked this one for a reason.

This was fun, funny, and a wild adventure.  Hiding deep in the mountains Ari knows that his best friend needs help and decides to go out and get that help however he can.  That help comes in the form of Daphne, Speech therapist, who is an expert in the field . She needs time away from the stresses of her own practice and a failed relationship that makes her doubt all she thought she knew about love and relationships

Let's be clear from the beginning this could have gone very wrong, however the way the author wrote it, giving screen time to the obvious issues with them having kidnapped her for her help makes the story a bit more believable and less Stockholm syndrome. From the very beginning Daphne tries to make the men see reason and when that doesn't work she tries to run. Daphne is cognizant of who she is, she voices her concerns without fear due to the presence of others who let her know they have her back when it comes to Ari.  Daphne is relateable, fun, sarcastic and just down to earth & very well accomplished.  The men who are working with what they know are pretty good guys who are trying to make the best of a bad situation made worse by Ari's decision to kidnap Daphne.

I enjoyed the story that unfolded, it's the culmination to the series so the mystery is sped up here and the unfolding pieces all start coming together and everything not just their case but Daphne's case as well begin to converge and spiral out of control.

We get an action packed adventure along with a steamy erotica featuring a menage that becomes polyandrous.  I loved the way the separate relationships developed between each of the men and Daphne especially her non verbal communication with Benjy.  The relationship the men had as friends was wonderful to read as well.

All in  all a quick action packed adventure that had strong female lead who has an extremely erotic encounter with these men.
 ★★★★1/2☆
RECOMMENDATIONS
  • Wolf by Kaitlin O'Connor
  • One Two Punch by Katie Allen 
Happy Reading my loves, 



Tuesday, October 3, 2017

ARC Book #Review: The Witch's Quest by Michele Hauf

Book Title: The Witch's Quest The Decadent Dames
Author:  Michele Hauf |Website| Twitter| Facebook|
Publisher: Harlequin
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series/Standalone: Series
Format: ebook
Cost: $5.75
Pages: 
How I got it: NetGalley ARC
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Publisher
Publication Date: October 2017
Add To Goodreads
Synopsis:
The witch's redemption…

Kelyn Saint-Pierre always had a bit of a thing for Valor Hearst. But after he makes a harrowing sacrifice to save the tomboyish witch from a gruesome death, Kelyn's certain that any spark between them is gone forever.
Valor wishes she'd known about Kelyn's crush before she ruined everything. There may be a way she can repay her smoking-hot champion…but it won't be easy. Circling the globe on a dangerous mission that pits them against deadly magics and dark creatures, Kelyn and Valor are pushed scorchingly close together. But surrendering to passion may only further bind them in pain…

Look for 2 new titles from Harlequin Nocturne every month!

Harlequin Nocturne: Delve into dark, sensuous and often dangerous territory, where the normal and paranormal collide.
I went into this with the best of intentions. I so badly wanted to like this book, I probably should have known there was going to be an issue when the author wrote a note letting you know you can read this as a stand alone.  Just a hint...she lied, this is part of a broader world, even if you read it for this story you will be lost like I was.  Now not saying she doesn't know what she's taking about but as a totally new to this series reader I was totally and completely lost. 

We start off great with a snarky witch heading into the Dark Woods to create a spell, and I immediately liked her because she was awesome when she shared her feelings and why she as doing the spell.  The beginning scenes description is amazing I felt like I was in the forest with Valor as the author is able to write the heck out of that scene. Then as the scene progressed it just went weird, not just what was happening in the woods but how much a virtual stranger especially a Fae was willing to give and do for a stranger. As the story progressed we were given more back story, more of the characters and it just didn't flow so well if you didn't know who the Saint-Pierre's where already.  Every where they went and interacted with other supernaturals they all knew who he was and responded with respect, and I was kind of lost. 

Our characters in this story are Kelyn who is a Fae who sacrificed greatly for Valor the witch from the woods and he's angry about it but doesn't want to be.  He lost a lot and he's tired of her always apologizing when they see each other, he just wishes to be left alone.  His family supports him and those that were her friends have cut her out of their lives, especially his werewolf brother Trouble.  Valor is a Decadent Dame, she works at and partially owns the brewery with friends.  Valor is a witch who is perpetually seen as one of the guys, she loves 'masculine things' and doesn't know what it means to be a 'real woman' and this is what drives her for most of the story.  She also does quite a bit conventionally written witches don't do like bend people's will to her own needs, ignore warnings about nature, was super greedy and had to be checked several times about this by Kelyn. 

This story takes conventional lore and turns it on it's head, a werewolf who is brother to a full fledged Fae, and a vampire.  A vampire who is pregnant and therefore hormonal, calling demons at a party, drinking angel dust.  Fae who put out glitter when they have sex. It was just all so odd.  Nothing that we know of traditional lore was kept in the book, everything was something the author was making up and there wasn't any information about it until you were presented with that scene. 

That's pretty much when I was over the story and just wanted it to be done.  I work in the healthcare field and 'angel dust' isn't just something you made up it's an actual drug that actual people can die from, that pulled me right out of the story and I could no longer suspend belief.

Then there were the things that Valor would say about women and not feeling like a real one.  i understand not always feeling like you fit the mold of what a "real woman " should look, talk, or act like but to bash other women for liking what they like because you don't understand it is bullshyt and it's tired.
"Because only real girls cried;  and she would use her tomboy for all it as worth right now"
It's 2017 write better character flaws without bashing other women for liking makeup and doing their hair and wearing stilettos, my IQ doesn't drop because I like these things, not does my ability to be a gear head drop because I like lipstick.  Cut that shyt out. 

For me it was almost impossible to get a good read on the characters because they felt disjointed, they at times felt like they were trying too hard to be different then kept thinking weird thoughts in their scenes and just genuinely weren't really likeable.  I felt at times they didn't even really like each other then they were having sex and it just didn't spark anything for me.  I didn't feel like we got a sense of the characters, what they looked like, or who they were it was disjointed and only mentioned when either of them was obsessioning over the other's body.  It also didn't feel like they had any real chemistry because he was still mad at her for what happened even though he didn't want to be. 

I didn't connect to the story at all, it felt like it was being weird just for the sake of being weird.  From the names of characters, the anatomically impossible sitting scene between Valor and Kelyn post sex which leads into another sex scene; the douche bag of a brother named Trouble and the things he's done, the random characters that were introduced, the threads from being in Faerie which aren't answered.  I just felt so confused reading this book, perhaps it would have been different if I read the first book, however when I looked it up this appears to be a spin off of another series. 

I can say the author is very gifted in creating wonderful scenes that the characters interacted with, especially her description of places they visit on this journey. 

I really wanted to like it, I even let the fact that she curses by saying the names of tv doctors slide, because I sometimes use fun ways to curse but even I wouldn't shout out a tv doctor's name during sex. just not happening.  This as clearly a book you had to read in the order of the series, and I wish I had truly known that. 
 ★☆
Let me know if you've read the series, does it make more sense than this book?? Share in the comments and let me know if I should try from the beginning. 

Sunday, October 1, 2017

2017 Monthly Reading List: October


My goal for this year was 365 books. It's October and I wanted to keep the ball rolling.  Last month I made  it to a 100 in the books and I can't wait to see how far I can get with the next three months.  I know I on't make 365 and that's ok for me. I just want to make it more than over 100 because I haven't had the best reading years in the last two/ three years.

These are a few of the books I'm planning to read this month:
  • Christine Feehan Book
  • Non Fiction Book
  • J. D. Robb 
  • Nora Roberts
  • Erotica Challenge book Billionaires: The Stepbrothers, & Theirs to Take by Laura Kaye
  • Book from my shelves Second Grave On The Left by Darynda Jones
  • YA Challenge book
  • Paranormal Challenge book Burning The Dragon by Cecilia Lane 
  • New Adult Challenge Book
  • Book from 52 Books in 52 Weeks Challenge
  • Ebook Challenge Books
  • Brenda Jackson Challenge
  • Randomly Selected Book from previous monthly list
  • Book Club Reading Choice
This starts my Spooky/Witch/Paranormal Reads for the next few weeks, now normally I read paranormal throughout the whole year, but some I save for especially the fall just because of the way the season and the books are setup they go best then.  With that in mind here are a few particular books I want to read in September and October that are for the spookiness:
  • A Little Night Work by Lucy March
  • Alice Hoffman's work from my shelves
  • Portraits of Celina by Sue Whiting
  • Lilith Saintcrow's Dante Valentine Series (I had started this years ago and put it aside)
  • Krewe of Hunters Series by Heather Graham
  • LA Banks Werewolf Series
  • Gena Showalter Darkest Night Series ( i don't believe that's the series name but yeah that series)
  • Cheyenne McCray's Magic Series: Forbidden Magic, Seduced by Magic & Wicked Magic
  • Ashlyn Chase's Flirting With Fangs Series: Flirting Under a Full Moon
  • Any Terry Spear's books
  • Holly Black 
  • Julie Kagawa's dragon series
And of course anything else that catches my eyes.  What are you planning to read now that it's fall?? share in the comments down below and I'll see you next week for a weekly wrap up.