Book #Review: Thorn Jack by Katherine Harbour .@KATHARBOUR @harpervoyagerus

Book Title: Thorn Jack ( A Book of Night and Nothing)
Author:  |Website| Twitter| Facebook|

Publisher: Harper Voyager
Genre: Mature YA Paranormal/ Dark Fantasy/ Faerie Tale Retelling
Series/Standalone: Series Book 1
Format: Large Hardcover

Cost: $25.00

Pages: 352

How I got it: Book Expo America

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BAM
Publication Date: June 24, 2014
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Synopsis:

They call us things with teeth. These words from Lily Rose Sullivan the night of her death haunts her seventeen-year-old sister, Finn, who has moved with her widowed father to his hometown of Fair Hollow, New York. After befriending a boy named Christie Hart and his best friend, Sylvie Whitethorn, Finn is invited to a lakeside party where she encounters the alluring Jack Fata, a member of the town's mysterious Fata family. Despite Jack's air of danger and his clever words, Finn learns they have things in common. One day, while unpacking, Finn finds her sister's journal, scrawled with descriptions of creatures that bear a sinister resemblance to Jack's family. Finn dismisses these stories as fiction, but Jack's family has a secret—the Fatas are the children of nothing and night, nomadic beings who have been preying on humanity for centuries—and Jack fears that his friendship with Finn has drawn the attention of the most dangerous members of his family—Reiko Fata and vicious Caliban, otherwise known as the white snake and the crooked dog. Plagued with nightmares about her sister, Finn attempts to discover what happened to Lily Rose and begins to suspect that the Fatas are somehow tied to Lily Rose's untimely death. Drawn to Jack, determined to solve the mystery of her sister's suicide, Finn must navigate a dangerous world where nothing is as it seems.

Beautiful, poetic, and descriptive writing that pulled you in and made you love it.  I picked this up because it was a Tam Lin retelling, I love the heck outta that Scottish tale, and when April over at Good books and Good wine talked about it, I made sure to have it on my list for Book Expo America.  I told everybody I met about the book, then almost missed the book myself. Oops. But I got there in time and begged and the reps pulled the very last one out of the back and I almost kissed her. Yeah that would have been hella awkward, but I needed this book in my life and who has time to wait until release date?? *stomps foot* I want it now *sobs please*. Ok now that those theatrics are over, let's get on to the book shall we??

I loved this book especially because the Fare weren't the good guys, they weren't quaint lovely faeries they were the Fae, the dark and scary things they have always been.  Katherine clearly did her research taking from poetry to the Bard himself (herself that's the question isn't it?? Well for another time) and Yeats, using well documented history, sharing myths, not just from the Celtic Isles but from Africa, from North America and from all of Europe. I loved every second of it!!!

This is so good, the mystery of who and what the Fatas are slowly unravels not just for the character but for us the reader as well.  We know they are Fae but who and which ones, are all revealed or is it really revealed as the story goes on.  The imagery of the town, the people and slow slide into their world is beautiful.  I felt how she felt as she realized she was being pulled in, it was amazing.  You feel the sense of danger, the thrill, the obsession that forms as we get pulled into finding out who these people are and why they are so familiar and strange at the same time.  I loved when jack would tell her ways to get away and she wouldn't listen. Jack was and is a fascinating character, I wanted to learn all about him and could totally understand why Finn was so hooked. He was alluring.   Jack was stuck in a rock and a hard place and I loved this rendition of Tamlin and how he was portrayed.  Jack worked hard at resisting the urge to pull Finn in closer, and yet wanted to get to know her even more.

The imagery, the character development, the classic prose used, all of the unanswered questions, it all pulls you in.  It makes you wonder what does her Jack really know?? Salom?? What's going to happen to the witch and the young knight?? Will peace be upheld?? Who's the new...well that would be a spoiler.. go read it my loves I promise you won't be disappointed.

I will say that I did have moments of calling her stupid because she really had some moments of duh!! Chile your pale humanness against their otherness.,,chile you never even saw the full trick being played.  They are the Fae, you don't win against such ancient trickery, you just gotta hope you survive the rise.  And boy what a ride!!

I still loved it, especially because it was so dark and deadly.  Shout out to April from Good Books and Good Wine for sharing this in her mentions!!

I'm definitely continuing this series, and I almost cried when I realized it was going to be a year form now.  *sobs*.

 

★★★★★

Go get it and thank me later. Happy Reading

#Review & #Giveaway: Jaguar Hunt (CLOSED) @SourcebooksCasa @TerrySpear

Book Title: Jaguar Hunt (Heart of the Jaguar #3)
Author: Terry Spear |Website| Twitter| Facebook

Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series/Standalone: Series
Format: ebook, Mass Market

Cost: $7.99

Pages: 384

How I got it: NetGalley

Purchase: Amazon| Barnes & Noble | Publisher
Publication Date: June 3rd, 2014
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Synopsis:

An agent and a jaguar-shifter chase trouble, and each other, through the jungles of Belize... Agent Tammy Anderson has a reputation: she prefers to work alone. So when she’s paired up on a mission with jaguar-shifter David Patterson—who’s only recently been released from jail—to say she’s less than thrilled is a understatement. Until she realizes that this sexy agent has what it takes… Soon, what started as an “easy” mission to locate a missing jaguar takes the pair to Belize, where they’re chasing down two renegade teen shifters who know more than they’re telling. As the action heats up, can they keep their minds on the job and off of each other?

We're once again back in the jaguar world, this is the third jaunt through this world and i'm loving it!!   We meet up this time with David, brother of Wade, from book two in the series (which I own but have yet to read. Boo Hiss Aisha get on it).  You don't have to read the books in order to get the story. It's actually fun, funny, quickly gets to the action and had Terry's brand of humor and shenanigans that makes this a great rom-com read.

Now even more information is given about some of our fave characters from the beginning books but it doesn't spoil the story at all. ( I would still recommend reading in order though, just to get the whole experience).  This time we're chasing a stolen jaguar from the zoom a set of teens who think they know more than they do and two Jaguar agents who only have half the story. And boy what a story!!

As with all the books I've read by Terry, I laughed and chuckled quite a bit while reading, I did a bit of googling when I wanted to understand more and I was just genuinely in awe of how well Terry writes not just the characters but the scenery. Reading her tales just make me want to go there, and try so many of the adventures, although I'll gladly skip the misadventures.  I got sucked into the world of Tammy and David's adventure and kept trying to figure out what was going on and would laugh when things were revealed and I found out how off base I was.  I finished this in one night and really enjoyed the ride with the couple and their friends.

I loved reading David and Tammy as characters, Tammy's both scary and inspiring because man there would have been time I would have quit! I loved their unconventional methods and their round about way of coming together. Tammy is awesome and I loved reading her.
 ★★★★☆

I've already pre ordered my physical copy, it should be here soon to sit proudly beside all my other Terry Spear books on the shelves. I love this series so much!!

Ok so for those who would love to get to know the characters Terry's having a giveaway:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Happy Reading

YA Blog Tour #Review: The A Word @joypreble

Book Title: The A Word (Sweet Dead Life #2)
Author: Joy Preble |Website| Twitter| Facebook|

Publisher: SOHO Teen
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal
Series/Standalone: Series
Format: paperback

Cost: $17.99

Pages: 272

How I got it: Publisher

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Publisher
Publication Date: May 2014
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Synopsis:

Jenna Samuels is about to turn fifteen. It's been almost a year since her stoner brother, Casey, bit the dust. Almost a year since he returned as her guardian angel, along with his "angel boss," Amber Velasco, the hot twenty-something former EMT. Almost a year since Casey and Amber used up their one-time-only angel power of flight to save Jenna from the evil Dr. Renfroe, swooping down to catch her as she tumbled off the balcony at the Houston Galleria. In short, a lot of A-word shenanigans and a mostly happy ending. Except now Casey's begun to wonder why he's still hanging around—not that he minds protecting Jenna. She's a handful, but there's got to be a bigger picture, right? Something to distract him from his on again/off again, doomed relationship with cheerleader Lanie Phelps, who has no idea her boyfriend is, well, dead. After all, he can't use his angel wings anymore. Neither can Amber. Enter Bo Shivers, Amber's "angel boss"—a mysterious A-word guy Jenna and Casey didn't even know existed. Whiskey-guzzling. Handsome in a grizzled way. Unpredictable. Okay, make that crazy. Bo lost his angel wings in an earthly flight a long, long, long time back—and he's been a thorn in Angel Management's side ever since. But Bo knows something is coming. Something big. Something that was worth forfeiting wings for Jenna... something that might just change everything for everyone.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review.

 ★★★☆☆

Happy Reading

#Review: Perfect 10 A Cosmo Red Hot Read @HarlequinBooks @authorerin

Book Title: Perfect 10 (A Cosmo Red Hot Reads)
Author: Erin McCarthy |Website| Twitter| Facebook|

Publisher: Harlequin/Cosmo Red Hot
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series/Standalone: Standalone
Format: ebook

Cost: $3.99

Pages: 71

How I got it: NetGalley

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Publisher
Publication Date: May 13, 2014
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Synopsis:

Katrina's Lesson in Social Media Disasters or How Technology Can Bite You in the A** Katrina Phillips is an expert social media manager. But that doesn't mean she can't make mistakes. Horrible, hide-in-your-closet-forever mistakes…like accidentally syncing her BootyBook app with her online profiles. Blammo. Now everyone in the world can see who Katrina has dated and how they rated in appearance, sexual performance and (OMG) detailed descriptions of their manly parts! Now her phone is blowing up with angry exes—and an out-of-the-blue text from the only guy who came close to a perfect score…. Katrina has had a thing for Drew Jordan since forever ago, even if a booze-fuelled one-nighter did destroy their friendship. So why is he suddenly texting her now—and is it because she rated his Sexy Staff of Manliness as "magnificent?" Now the only way to satisfy her curiosity is to reunite with Drew…and rate him all over again!

Excerpt

OMG. Are you insane????

 

Katrina Phillips glanced at the text from her best friend, Samantha, and ignored it. She didn’t have time for drama. She was on the subway and she was late posting the Deal of the Day for one of her clients, Mind & Body Yoga, on all of its social networking sites. She really should have at least gone through the tutorial on her new phone, but she’d figured it was a phone, not a plane. She’d had a dozen previous smartphones, each one simpler to figure out than the preceding model.

 

Except for this one. All her apps and contacts and data had transferred, but it seemed to be doing some sort of internal knitting together of every individual account she had, weaving them into one lumpy, messy pile of informational yarn. Which reminded her. She had to tell the knitting club she’d joined on a whim that she was quitting. She sucked at knitting.

 

Only she couldn’t do that because she couldn’t figure her damn phone out.

 

Her phone dinged again and it was a text from Bryan, a guy she’d gone out with twice who had agreed that they’d split the check for cocktails, then had managed to slide the change into his pocket when she wasn’t looking, stiffing her five bucks. Why would he be contacting her after two months of mutual avoidance?

 

Bitch.

 

Well. Good thing he’d bothered to get that off his chest. Annoyed, she deleted the text. Only to have another one replace it.

 

Hey, baby, wassup? Long time no talk.

 

O-kay. That was Dirk, a hookup from the year before. Hot, funny, great in bed. Not one to call the next day, as she’d found out. Why would he be crawling out of the woodwork?

 

Along with James, whom she’d dated for two months.

 

And Seth.

 

And Michael.

 

The texts and emails rolled in, one right after the other, like a This is Your Sex Liferetrospective, and she thought OMG was about right. This could not be a coincidence. Alarmed, she shifted on her plastic seat, the coughs of the other passengers and the rumble of the train louder than she was used to. She wasn’t studiously ignoring everyone with her earbuds in as she usually did, because she couldn’t use her phone. And had she mentioned she couldn’t figure out her phone?

 

Why? She texted Samantha, suddenly very, very concerned.

 

Go to your profile.

 

Uh-oh.

 

It took her an agonizing minute to figure out how to bypass all the initial demands her phone was making of her. Honestly, it was worse than her mother and no, she would not like the GPS enabled right this second, she freaking knew where she was. But when she finally got to her profile and saw what exactly her glorious little piece of electronics had synced, she wanted a GPS to guide her to the nearest hole to crawl her hipster ass into and die.

 

Her BootyBook app had synced with her personal page.

 

Now every detail about every guy that she had logged in to her handy, and slightly tawdry, app equivalent of a little black book was now visible to everyone. Including ratings on their manners, clothes, conversation during the date, and yes, their penis size if she had hooked up with him. Along with whether or not she’d had an orgasm, the quality of foreplay, and her overall general impression of his sexual prowess.

 

OMG became OMFG.

 

Delete, delete, delete. Her hands started to shake, her armpits cranked out massive quantities of sweat, and her heart started to race so fast she wondered if a stress heart attack was possible at twenty-four. “Come on, come on,” she muttered to her phone, evil little piece of shit that it was, and clicked and scrolled and pinched and read, trying to figure out how in the hell she could get rid of what she had just seen. Forever.

 

When she thought she’d severed the mysterious connection she refreshed the site and finally remembered to breathe. It was gone. She called Samantha. “Check and see if it’s still there!” she blurted out without a greeting, her phone slipping in her sweaty hand. There wasn’t air-conditioning strong enough in the world to prevent clammy palms in this situation.

 

“It’s gone!” Samantha said, her voice triumphant. “Thank God. What the hell happened?”

 

“I don’t know, exactly.” Regardless of the fact that leaning against a subway window was never a good hygiene choice, she needed the support. She sagged backward. “But it doesn’t matter how. It did and I seriously don’t want to think about how many people saw it.” Given the commonality of instant notifications on status updates, it could be a lot. Everyone on her friends list. Including her mother.

 

Her phone dinged in her ear. And then again.

 

Katrina smacked the back of her head into the window so hard she actually managed to garner a side glance from the man sitting next to her, no small feat in New York, where eye contact on the subway was a social no-no. “I’m going to die,” she told Samantha.

 

The man looked away again. He so didn’t care.

 

“I’ll meet you at your place,” Samantha told her. “I’ll bring wine.”

 

“Thanks.” It was something.

 

“We’ll strategize damage control. Don’t freak.”

 

Yeah, too late. “All right, thanks. See you in a bit. Bye.” Tucking her hair behind her ear, Katrina bit her lip and gave her phone a sidelong tentative glance as it rested in her lap on her red skinny jeans, afraid to see who the latest texts were from.

 

Except one was from Drew Jordan, her best friend at NYU, her secret crush for four years, then her onetime lover after a boozy night at an art exhibit. Her throat caught as she frantically read the text, all too aware of what he must have seen.

 

Magnificent penis huh? I’m kinda speechless.

 

And with that, her humiliation was complete.

 

Because while there were quite a few BootyBook entries she remembered only in the vaguest sense, she distinctly recalled what she had written about Drew in the first flush of morning-after bliss when he had left her apartment. She had rated him a nine, skimping on a full ten because they weren’t in an actual dating relationship and because she had coaxed him into bed only after many vodka tonics. For kissing she had given him a ten, along with the description “dreamy.” His penis had been rated, well, magnificent, as he had noticed.

 

And she had written, “Now I understand what everyone is saying. Sex with someone you love is better. Happy sigh.”

 

But that happy sigh had turned into weeks of misery when it became apparent that neither one of them knew how to deal with the sexual aftermath of crossing that line in their friendship. She had acted weird, texting him too much. He had pulled away. She had flaunted a guy in front of him at a concert. He said she drank too much. Then came that fateful day when she realized that he was avoiding her altogether.

 

And she had absolutely and utterly humiliated herself by drunk texting him that she missed him.

 

So really, in the context of that text, she wasn’t sure she’d made it any worse.

 

God. Her life was over. No man was ever going to want to date her again.

Excerpt Provided by Erin's website

I believe I have shared my obsession no let's call it fervent love of Erin Mcarthy plenty of times before.  I mean I gush about Sweet, and True, and Believe all the time!!  So when I saw this on NetGalley I prayed that I would get it, and wehn I did?? Happy dance Happy dance.

As always, Erin writes, fun, strong and quirky characters.  This is a good look at friendship and it's many varied paths.  First Kat and Drew were college friends, and then one night they stepped over that boundary, their friendship never recovered.  When Kat accidentally reveals to all her social network contacts her feelings about certain male partners, life couldn't get any worse.  To say I laughed my butt off, and could totally understand how this happened I just couldn't stop chuckling at her. I shared right away with three friends the book and they all went and purchased because they loved the excerpt.

I felt Kat was a well written character that was relateable, likeable, funny and well set to take the world by storm ( or her part of the world anyway). And of course the fact that she and Drew live in my hometown doesn't have anything to do with it at all. Nope, my love of New York doesn't influence it not one bit. Ok that's a total lie, I loved reading about their adventures in New York, how the city helped them, changed them and made itself a part of who they were to become.  I loved that Kat was a modern girl with all the quirks and fear and beliefs, she was totally someone I went to college with. Heck even parts of her could be me.

It's a cute quirky story, especially because her job is social media. I loved it!!!i highly recommend this for a quick rump through New York and the brush with love and friendship that is set to burn up the sheets!! Enjoy my loves.

 ★★★★☆

Happy Reading

#Review: The Real Thing (Westmoreland Series) @AuthorBJackson @HarlequinBooks

Book Title: The Real Thing (Westmorelands #28)
Author: Brenda Jackson |Website| Twitter| Facebook|

Publisher: Harlequin Desire
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series/Standalone: Series
Format: ebook, Mass Market Paperback

Cost: $5.25

Pages: 192

How I got it: NetGalley 

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Publisher
Publication Date: March 4, 2014
Add To Goodreads
Synopsis:

What happens when a pretend boyfriend wants more than make-believe? Find out in this Westmoreland novel from New York Times bestselling author Brenda Jackson! No red-blooded man turns down the chance to escort gorgeous Trinity Matthews—and Adrian Westmoreland is definitely red-blooded. For her, he'll pretend to be her man. But keeping his hands to himself? That is impossible. A Westmoreland always keeps his word, but how long before Adrian turns this fake affair into something real?

OMGawd, my loves, why have I waited so long to dive into this?!!! I love Brenda's writing and I foolishly put this book aside after getting it, I'm now kicking myself, but I can't wait until September to get Aiden's story. Ok let's back up a bit.

I loved this story, first of all the characters are African American who are successful and affluent. YAYAY for diversity!!!  We meet Trinity who is the sibling of Tara a recent Westmoreland addition,  Trinity moved to Denver because of her residency and she's super excited to making serious headway into her dream career. Except she's working in an hostile environment, she's being sexual harassed by a mentor and is desperate for a way to turn him off; her sister Tara had a brilliant plan to have a Westmoreland, Adrian to be exact help her out.  They decide to pretend to be lovers in hopes of turning the asshat Dr away.  Now considering I have been in several hospitals myself, I can't lie and say this isn't a realistic look sometimes, it always takes someone with brassier balls than the offending party to get them to back off.  Which is effing sad as hell.

While I was pissed on Trinity's behalf, I totally got why she made the choices she did and I don't blame her for it.  While working on finding a way around Dr. Asshat (that's what I'm calling him from now on),  Trinity and Adrian find themselves connecting more than they expected. Adrian pushes Trinity to try new things, to look beyond what she always saw for herself and to embrace the changes that came with seeing beyond those dreams. Of course I won't lie, the sex?? Girl dayuum it's hot!!

I loved Trinity as a character, I loved Adrian and his family. I loved the fact that they had great relationships with their siblings, and their families. I loved reading their interactions as a couple and with their family. I loved the unfurling of each characters' characteristics and their raw intensity with each other.  I will say I laughed a little at the beginning when they first got together because of the language used in the romance, not because of them, it's funny because i read raunchy erotica, and this was tame for the first few chapters then BAM it got good and raunchy too.  Never let be said that romance can't have a little kick with those nice flowers.

While their romance blooms, we have tension mounting at the workplace, and we are left wondering how will it work itself out.  As we progress, moves are made, gmae changing steps taken and man oh man does Adrian show up for Trinity!! I love this book and the family??!! Where do I sign up to marry into this??

I really loved coming back to the Westmoreland Clan and I can't wait to catch up completely and of course I'm now dying to read the Secret Affair which comes out September.

 ★★★★☆

Have you read any Brenda Jackson??  Or do you have another author like her you think I should check out?? Share down in the comment section and I will gladly look into them. Thanks for stopping by and of course,
Happy Reading

May Challenge: Clean Sweep & Bout of Books 10.0

Clean Sweep ARC Challenge Hosted by Kimba@ Kimba's Caffienated Book Reviewer
May 1 through May 31 
 Rules 

• Link-up and add button to your blog Arc must be read between May 1st and May 31st, 2014 
• Challenge starts and ends at midnight in your local time zone 
• All ARCS/finished copies that were provided by publisher/author are eligible. They can be in any format (eBook, physical, audio) Post start up post with goals.(can be posted during event) 
• Tweet using hashtag #CleanSweepARC 
• You do not have to post review on blog during the month of May. Just provide a link to Goodreads showing read May 1 to 31st with a two sentence review. 
• Twitter Party Wednesday May 14th 7pm (EST) #CleanSweepARC Participate in challenges 
• The Participant Giveaway will include entries for each linked book read, posting about challenge, start up/results post (can be combined), having button on your sidebar, participation in Twitter party, entering challenges and for following hosts. 
• Grand Prize- One winner will receive a new release of their choice (can be audible credit, novel or gift card) valued at up to 20.00 US dollars. Open internationally. 
• Challenge Schedule and entry form will post on May 1st and participant giveaway will close on June 3 at 11:59 (CST) 
• Sounds like fun right? So come on grab the button, link up and get ready to make a clean sweep. Angie and I will be here to cheer you on and motivate you!

I'm signing up for this, I'm hoping to complete at least 25 books.  I have so many books I need to clean off of my TBR list, Sweet Goddess am I behind and so many good books come out this month!! So here's my list of books to clean up this month.

1. Robyn Carr: The Newcomer, The Wanderer, The Chance, The Promise, Four Friends
2. The Witch's Salvation 4/12
3. Thorn Jack
4. 3rd Degree
5. Counting to D
6. Mystic River
7. A Perfect Hostage
8. Undone He Comes
9. The Burning
10. Night of Pleasure
11. The Adventure of Julian
12. Immortal Rules Julie Kagawa
13. Eternity Cure Julie Kagawa
14. Forever Song Julie Kagawa
15. The Broken
16. The Word Exchange
17. Kate Douglas duet
18. love's paradox
19. the body in the woods
20. Blossom St. Birds
21. Searching for perfect
22. Honoring Grief
23. Born Confused
24. We are the Goldens
25. No One Needs to Know
26. Hot Secrets 
27. The Temptation of Anna Jacobs
28. Awakening The Warriors
29. Templeton Twins Have an Idea (book 1), Make a Scene(book 2) by Ellis Weiner

I'm also signing up for the Bout of Books 10.0 which starts on May 12th. I will be doing most of my updates via the YT channel. (my channel). I'm not sure what I'll want to read, I'll definitely try to finish these though because they need to go back to the library.

1. Rogue Gina Damico
2. If I were You Lisa Renee Jones
3. Fathomless by Jackson Pearce
4. The Rake's Redemption Regina Scott
5. Who I kissed Janet Gurtler
6. You Found Me Jane Lark

Or I might just grab anything that catches my eye. But I really want these off my TBR Pile!!

What are you going to be reading this month?!!  Share down below and I'll come cheer you on!! Happy Reading and good luck!!