February 28, 2014

Book Beginning: Endless Knight




Book Beginnings on Friday is a meme hosted by Rose City Reader. Anyone can participate; just share the opening sentence of your current read, making sure that you include the title and author so others know what you're reading.

This is what I truly am. . . .
Jackson stumbled back from me, making the sign of the cross. Just as I once predicted.

Endless Knight (The Arcana Chronicles #2) by Kresley Cole

Evie finally became badass -which is freaking exciting for me. For her "boyfriend"? Apparently not so much.  Although I don't really understand why is he so freaked out after everything they've seen... Okay, maybe a boy ripped in two behind Evie is a bit disturbing, but c'mon, she finally learned how to protect herself! That's what everyone wanted, right?
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February 27, 2014

Felicity Heaton: Claimed by a Demon King Blog Barrage


Claimed by a Demon King, the second book in Felicity Heaton’s hot new paranormal romance series, Eternal Mates, is now available in ebook and paperback. To celebrate the release, she’s holding a FANTASTIC GIVEAWAY at her website.


Find out how to enter the Claimed by a Demon King international giveaway (ends March 2nd) and be in with a shot of winning a $75, $50 or $25 gift certificate at her website, where you can also download a 6 chapter sample of the novel: http://www.felicityheaton.co.uk/cbadk


Claimed by a Demon King and the Eternal Mates series is set in the same world as the Vampire Erotic Theatre series, so if you’re a fan of that series, you will love Eternal Mates. Throughout this series, you’ll have a chance to catch up with the cast of the Vampire Erotic Theatre series and learn more about their world. In Claimed by a Demon King, you’ll get to visit the theatre, and some of the favourite characters in the Vampire Erotic Theatre series.


Here’s more about Claimed by a Demon King, including an excerpt from this paranormal romance novel and my review.



Claimed by a Demon King (Eternal Mates Romance Series Book 2) by Felicity Heaton

The moment the demon King Thorne of the Third Realm set eyes on the mortal huntress Sable, he knew she was his fated one. The fiery, dangerous female awakened hungers he had never experienced before, a dark craving and passion that has consumed him in their time apart. As the lunar cycle wanes, she enters his world again and nothing will stand in the way of him claiming his forever with her—not the relentless assault from the Fifth Realm or the dark elf male determined to seduce her out of his grasp.

Intent on achieving the coveted position of commander at Archangel, Sable leads her small team into the dark underworld and the Third Realm, to a war where her allies are the very creatures she normally hunts—vampires, werewolves, and demons. Her eagerness to lead the deadly mission has everything to do with winning her promotion, and nothing to do with the kingdom’s brash, lethally seductive demon king—a king who stirred fierce desire and wildfire heat in her with just a look and an innocent touch when they first met, and has been in her wicked dreams ever since.

As the gathering storm between rivals unleashes irresistible passion that flares white-hot and the heat of the battle brings life-shattering realisations, can Sable place her duty before her heart? Or will she surrender to her deepest desires and be claimed by a demon king?


Claimed by a Demon King is available from Amazon Kindle, Kobo Books, Barnes and Noble Nook, Apple iBooks stores and other retailers. Also available in paperback. Find the links to your preferred retailer at: http://www.felicityheaton.co.uk/cbadk

REVIEW



Although it's recommended that you read Kissed by a Dark Prince (EM #1) before Claimed by a Demon King, I - however - had not (shame on me!). Yes, sometimes I felt confused/curious - which was completely my own fault - when the characters mentioned some early events happened in the previous book, but I didn't feel that my lack of reading 'Kissed by a Dark Prince' impacted my reading and enjoyment of 'Claimed by a Demon King' (other than I wanted to know more about Loren and Vail, so I'm going to read the first book ASAP).

Felicity's PNR books and me have a constant war, so to speak. Some of them really amazed me and became my favorites, some of them just didn't do it for Me. I always bitching about the lack of action, even though I know it's PNR not an UF (can't help it, sorry!!) and I kind of just jumped into the middle of this new series, not knowing exactly what to expect this time. I WAS IMMEDIATELY SUCKED IN! Truth to be told, It still has more lovemaking than fighting, but I really enjoyed it. 

I don't know what I loved most: the characters/their relationships or the world building. Granted, I rolled my eyes at the heroine, Sable sometimes (she was a bit whiny), but she was okay most of the time. In fight? She is Badass! 

Thorne, THE Demon King, on the other hand is soooooo freaking entertaining. He's possessive as hell - duh! -, but when he figures out he can't win the lady by acting as a caveman, his attempts to learn/understand human behavior, emotions and customs are sweet and usually really funny. He has more humanity than the other demons/creatures. 

But Thorne isn't the only one who wants our girlfriend. Nope, here comes a love triangle! Well, sort of. Add Legolas err. I mean Bleu - a HOT elf warrior to that pile of hot mess and you got yourself a crazy entertaining ménage à trois. Okay, not really, these men are too stubborn and possessive to share anything, and Sable wants only Thorne. Which always leads to bloodshed. But they're sweet when trying to outdo the other. 

Besides these three, we have a quite powerful line of side characters. Readers can meet Loren, Olivia and Vail again. An entire werewolf pack, and a vampire clan with a jackass, but fun leader, some human warriors, witches - good and evil -, even dragon shifters. Plus we meet some of the VET crew (Snow <3). I loved how all these different creatures got together to stop the big bad wolf -err Demon King. I loved their interactions, even their fights. We lose some of them along the way, and it hurts! So there is love, hate, friendship, alliance, betrayal, mystery and death. The world building is absolutely phenomenal!! The different realms, different races with their own unique features and abilities and hierarchy. Again I was mind-blown by Felicity's ability to describe so vividly and powerfully everything. Of course my favorite parts were the two fight scenes (including the childish fights between Thorne and Bleu :)), but I instantly felt the chemistry between the characters, so the romance was great, too. 

Overall I think, this must be one of Felicity's best PNR books to date. There are a bunch of cliches, but honestly? I don't give a rat's ass about cliches. I enjoyed it, even loved it and it definitely become my favorite. The next book is gonna be Vail's, Loren's brother and I'm pretty sure he's gonna get into trouble with a certain witch. It should be fun!


Claimed by a Demon King – Excerpt

“Is there a dress code for tonight?” Sable looked at the beautiful gown and then Loren’s fine clothing resting over the chair.

She hadn’t brought anything for this sort of situation and she doubted her team had either. All of her clothes were fit for battle and nothing else. Even if she had known in advance about the feast, it wouldn’t have helped. She didn’t own anything as fine as the dress Loren held. She didn’t own a dress period.

“I really don’t want to offend Thorne,” she ignored the teasing look Olivia slid her way, “but I know all of my team brought only battle clothes with them.”

“That will not be a problem.” Loren laid the dress down on top of his clothing and turned to her. “You represent your team so only you will be seated at the main table with the other commanding officers. Thorne will not mind if your subordinates are dressed plainly.”

In other words, he would mind if she was.

Sable refused to panic about this. “Maybe there’s a demon female I can borrow a dress from.”

“That won’t be possible,” Olivia said, snatching her focus. “There are no demon females.”

She gasped. “Who were those women then?”

“Witches… a vampire or two. I believe there was even a shifter amongst them,” Loren replied and Sable’s gaze darted back to him.

“Demons don’t have females?” How had she not known that?

“No,” Olivia said for him and why hadn’t her friend told her about this? “The Devil put some sort of curse on seven demon species when they seized these lands to make their own realms… I guess he was pissed because he wiped out all the women and made it so the men would have to seek out their fated one. Now, demons can only mate with their fated females. The kicker is that most of them are mortal… and demons stick out like sore thumbs in our world.”

Mortal.

Sable’s pulse kicked up a notch. “How do they know their female?”

“They dream of her after meeting her.” Loren’s smile turned wicked and she didn’t like the glint in his eyes.

Cold slithered through her even as her cheeks began to heat.

“You’re talking… naughty… dreams.” Could she sound any more innocent and nervous?

He nodded. “Very, very naughty.”

“Loren,” Olivia chided and crossed the room to him. Sable thanked her for backing her up until her friend turned to her, forming an allied front with Loren, her smile just as wicked as his was. “You’re not having naughty dreams of Thorne are you, Sable?”

“No.” Lie. A whopper of one. The dreams she’d had of him had been x-rated and hotter than all of her real-life encounters rolled into one. “Besides, I’m not a demon male. Why would I dream of him?”

Loren preened his jacket and casually said, “Because their female dreams of them too, and they both experience the same dream if they’re sleeping at the same time.”

Holy hell in a hand-basket. His triumphant smile said he had noticed the blush that had risen onto her cheeks before she had gotten the better of herself.

“Screw both of you. Stop messing with me.”

“In all seriousness, demons are aggressive and it often takes their female to tame them and teach them civility, so try to avoid the unmated ones.” Olivia touched Sable’s arm.

She nodded, even though she didn’t think they were particularly aggressive. Thorne seemed quite calm to her most of the time, and the demons she had encountered so far were not as she had pictured or how Olivia said they were.

Olivia squeezed her arm. “Why did you hurl yourself into that fight?”

Sable glared at her. Could she not have five minutes without Olivia or Loren insinuating that she fancied Thorne?

She sighed. “I honestly thought they were attacking him. What else was I to think? We were called here to help in a war and we appear in the middle of a huge fight!”

Loren smiled and she wanted to slug him. “Your clue was that the other demons in the area were merely watching events unfold and not stepping in to protect their king.”

Sable loosed a ripe curse in his direction and then added, “Shut up.”

“It’s just like you to see a fight and want in on it,” Olivia said and she was about to nod in agreement until her friend ruined it by tacking on, “Of course, if it hadn’t been Thorne in the middle of that battle—”

“You can shut up too.” Sable took her arm away from Olivia and scowled at both of them.

“Come, come. I believe we have teased her enough. She will use one of those crossbow bolts on us if we do not stop.” Loren held his hand out to Olivia and she slipped hers into it and went to him. He pulled his mate flush against him and smiled down into her eyes before turning his gaze back on Sable. “Do not worry about the feast. Bleu will have left a dress for you in your room.”

There was a knock at the door. Sable opened it and stared as a huge blond demon rolled a large wooden tub into the room and set it down by the fire. Others entered behind him, carrying pitchers of steaming water.

A bath.

Sable wanted one of those too. She needed to relax before she could even think about showing her face at the feast. She wanted to scrub away her shame and embarrassment, and unwind.

She leaned out into the hall and looked along it towards her room.

A big dark-haired male stood there with another tub and an impatient look on his rugged face.

“Got to dash.” She looked over her shoulder to Loren and Olivia, at the tub and then back at them. “Try to keep the volume turned down when you’re scrubbing her back, Big Guy.”

Loren blushed and he blushed hard.

Sable tossed him a victorious grin and shot from the room. The demon waiting with the tub scowled at her and then something flickered in his dark red eyes and he straightened and bowed his head. She grimaced when she recognised him as one of the demons from the courtyard. Just great. She got to have her tub delivered by someone who had witnessed the whole debacle with his king.

“Roll it in, Big Guy.” She pushed her door open and waved him on. He grunted something under his breath and heaved the tub forwards, picked it up with one hand on the rim, walked to the fireplace off to her left and set it down. She hadn’t meant to challenge his strength but he had clearly taken her pet term and words as just that. Maybe he wasn’t good with English.

He flicked her another glance, raking his gaze over her from head to toe this time, curled his lip and stalked off.

Not stalked. Limped.

Great. Not just a witness but one of the ones she had shot.

“Sorry,” she called after him but he didn’t stop.

He disappeared around the corner and the other demons filed in, depositing the hot water into the tub.

Water in Hell. Back at Archangel, she had wondered if they would have such things in this part of Hell. Loren’s kingdom had water but then they had portals that channelled a river through their lands. Where did this kingdom get its water?

Probably through portals. Demons could teleport too.

Sable closed the door after the last demon had left and turned to the bed.

A beautiful sky-blue dress lay on top of the furs. She crossed the room to it and gazed down at the gauzy layers of fabric and the elegant silver metalwork of the corset beside it. It took her breath away. She had never worn anything so beautiful or so feminine.

A vision of her walking into the great hall and Thorne going wild for her the moment he set eyes on her rose into her mind.

She shut it out. She couldn’t let things go that way. She was here on an important mission, one that would decide the fate of Thorne’s kingdom. She couldn’t let her desire get the better of her. She couldn’t become a distraction for Thorne.


She couldn’t give him the impression that she wanted him, even when she burned for him.


Books in the Eternal Mates romance series:


About Felicity Heaton:
Felicity Heaton is a USA Today and international best-selling author writing passionate paranormal romance books. In her books she creates detailed worlds, twisting plots, mind-blowing action, intense emotion and heart-stopping romances with leading men that vary from dark deadly vampires to sexy shape-shifters and wicked werewolves, to sinful angels and hot demons!

If you're a fan of paranormal romance authors Lara Adrian, J R Ward, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Gena Showalter and Christine Feehan then you will enjoy her books too.

If you love your angels a little dark and wicked, the best-selling Her Angel series is for you. If you like strong, powerful, and dark vampires then try the Vampires Realm series or any of her stand-alone vampire romance books. If you’re looking for vampire romances that are sinful, passionate and erotic then try the best-selling Vampire Erotic Theatre series. Or if you prefer huge detailed worlds filled with hot-blooded alpha males in every species, from elves to demons to dragons to shifters and angels, then take a look at the new Eternal Mates series.

If you want to know more about Felicity, or want to get in touch, you can find her at the following places:


Felicity is happy to offer an eBook copy of Kissed by a Dark Prince (Eternal Mates book 1) to one reader. To enter, just fill out the rafflecopter below. Good luck!

DhesiX Web Developer

February 13, 2014

Review ~ Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout




 “Beautiful face. Beautiful body. Horrible attitude.
It was the holy trinity of hot boys.”

Starting over sucks.
When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I'd pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring.... until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.

And then he opened his mouth.

Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something...unexpected happens. 

The hot alien living next door marks me.

You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon's touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I'm getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades. 

If I don't kill him first, that is.

Title: Obsidian 
Author:
 Jennifer L. Armentrout
Series: 
Lux #1
Length: 
Paperback,  335 pages
Publisher:
 Entangled Teen
Original Publication Date:
  May 8th 2012
ISBN 13:
 9781620610077
Goodreads || Amazon

Unbelievable, but true nonetheless. I never thought I 'd ever read this book - I failed at my first attempt months ago - and I especially never thought that by the end, I'm gonna actually enjoy it. A book challenge made me pick it up again, and I'm glad I did.

There were parts kinda slow and boring to me, I actually skipped a few, but overall, it did kept me entertained. Yes it is predictable, and a bit cliché, but it's a fun book. Fortunately, from the second half things got so speed up, I actually sat up in my chair.
I liked the story and loved the world building, and I can wait to see more in the next books. Enjoyed the unfolding of the romance, it wasn't rush, wasn't cheesy either. It was however, exciting, entertaining and sometimes frustrating. I really enjoyed the snarky bantering between Kat and Daemon. 

Surprisingly, Kat didn't make me want to slap her - most of the time, anyway - and even made me laugh out loud a few times. She stood up more for herself, than I expected. Never backed down from Daemon or anyone else, and she did not cry whenever someone hurt her feelings. Definitely earned some bonus points with me. And she's not a scared little girl, she's brave. A bit slow on catching up on things, though. 

About Daemon... Now I'm not saying He would not have deserved a kick in the balls, I would've hit him a few times, but his cold-warm behavior was fun (and somehow reasonable and understandable). And damn, HE IS FUNNY! An entertaining jackass. I got to like him. As Katy says “Beautiful face. Beautiful body. Horrible attitude. It was the holy trinity of hot boys.” This pretty much sums Daemon up.. at least most of the time. He can be sweet, of course.

With the side characters, however, I can't do anything. I didn't really care about Dee, even though she's a nice girl, great friend, but I just did not see much sense in her character in addition to being a bridge between the two main characters. The other members of the Luxen group also did not create any lasting value. They were pretty average, cliched characters in my opinion.

Jennifer's style is light and fun, so it did not take me long to finish Obsidian. 100 % that I will continue the series, although, for now I would not say it's a favorite, but it sparked my interest.
 
Favorite scene(s): Final battle scene, And pretty much almost every scene with Daemon and Katy.
Favorite character(s): Daemon, Katy, Adam.
Favorite quote(s):

„Why are you such an ass?” The words came out before I could think twice.
„Everyone has to excel at something, right?”
„Well, you're doing a great job.”
„Not all of us have control over what we can do. Some struggle with their abilities.”
„But you do?”
„I'm just that awesome.”
„That's enough.” Daemon grabbed Ash's arm. „There's a McDonald's down the street. We'll get you a Happy Meal. Maybe that'll make you happier.”
"You look like you got more of a bath than the car. I never thought washing a car would be so hard, but after watching you for the last fifteen minutes, I’m convinced it should be an Olympic sport."





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February 12, 2014

Review ~ Up From The Grave by Jeaniene Frost



"I'm the Red Reaper, and you're dead.” 


There’s always one more grave to dig.

Lately, life has been unnaturally calm for vampires Cat Crawfield and her husband Bones. They should have known better than to relax their guard, because a shocking revelation sends them back into action to stop an all-out war…

A rogue CIA agent is involved in horrifying secret activities that threaten to raise tensions between humans and the undead to dangerous heights. Now Cat and Bones are in a race against time to save their friends from a fate worse than death…because the more secrets they unravel, the deadlier the consequences. And if they fail, their lives—and those of everyone they hold dear— will be hovering on the edge of the grave.

Title: Up From The Grave
Author:
  Jeaniene Frost
Series: 
Night Huntress #7
Length:
 Mass Market Paperback,  343 pages
Publisher:
  Avon
Original Publication Date:
  January 28th 2014
ISBN13: 9780062076113

I really hope that Frost also provides at least a couple of short stories later on because I was not willing to let go of this crew before, but now I really am not ready to let them go!

Up from the Grave was better than I expected, although sometimes I was a bit bored, but when the story revved up, despite the fact that many of the dramatic scenes was pretty predictable, and Cat (still) was a bit slow-minded, I really enjoyed it.

I loved that the whole team came together (although Vlad 's absence is inexcusable! I understand that he has a book, but dang, he's Cat 's Best Friend .... sort of). Sometimes it reminded me of Resident Evil, Underworld or Twilight (not to be afraid, this book does not contain sparkly creatures), but despite all these similarities I liked every solution/twist.

I approve of the big bad enemy. It was great and unexpected (to me anyway). And I like that it wasn't just one human SOB. The conflict was great as it's - although we have not seen it before - arcs over the whole series. There was less humor than used to be, but it was enough for this kind of story. Same with the hot romantic scenes, less romance and more adventure (in "hell"). 

Is Up From The Grave a worthy ending for the series? Halfway through the book I would have said no. In the end I say HELL YEAH! Of course it could have been better overall, but at the end, I felt that we're finally home and dry. I felt that spark of peace Cat wanted so badly. Neither was it rushed nor dragged out.

Any open door remained? Yes. Not one either, therefore I would like a short story despite the fact that I'm not a big fan of short stories. I want to see what happens next with the small group, even if nothing exciting. No cliffhanger, more like an open thread for everyone to imagine themselves how our favorite vampires live off their hopefully long life.

Certainly I am looking forward to Ian 's book and I also have an idea of who's going to be his heroine - Cat is not going to like it , if it's confirmed ;) (I am not sure about this idea after the hangout chat with Jeaniene but it sure would be an amazing book/series)

And now a minute of silence in memory of the best series of my life! :(

Favorite scene(s): Either the "infiltrate" scene or the last battle scene with the follow up scenes.
Favorite character(s): EVERYONE!! Okay not everyone, but all of the good guys.
Favorite quote(s):
"I would never hurt you that way save for one reason: to keep you safe. I can live with your anger, your retribution...bloody hell, despise me if you must, but don't expect me to behave as though you aren't the most important thing in my life. You are, and I will let no one, yourself included, bring you to harm.”
“The day you love anyone but yourself is the day I’ll take your marital advice, Ian,” Bones bit back in an icy tone.
“Then today is that day,” Ian replied sharply, “for I love you, you wretched, pig-headed guttersnipe. I also love that arrogant, overprivileged dandy smirking at us”—a wave indicted Spade, whose aforementioned smirk vanished—“as well as the emotionally fractured, malfunctioning psychic who sired me. And you, Crispin, love a bloodthirsty hellion who’s probably killed more people in her thirty years than I have in over two centuries of living, so again I say, don’t bother trying to convince her that she isn’t who she is.”
“That's how two vampires, a medium, and a dog came to sit around a Ouija board in the back room of a floral shop.” 
"Holy crap, you're a closet Trekkie!”

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