Tag: Urban Fantasy

Hidden Gems: The Stonefort novels by James Hetley

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations

This a new feature that will promote books I have read, and loved, but not reviewed :).
And, I am so happy that these books are available as e-books.  This is Urban Fantasy of the best kind. Intresting characters, intresting plot and a setting that you want more of.  I love the covers, they are eye catching, and fits the books. ( I liked the original covers too, but I would love to have print copies with these covers…)

Two magical families live in the hardscrabble town of Stonefort, Maine: the shape shifting Morgans and the Haskell witches. But evil is coming to Stonefort. A drug lord and frighteningly powerful sorcerer covets the Morgans’ alliance with the magical being known as the Dragon. Now 17-year-old Gary Morgan must claim his heritage and save his family. But first, he will have to master the power of the Dragon-and he’ll need the help of the Haskell witches to do it. Somehow, the Haskells and the Morgans must overcome their differences before the sorcerer assumes the power of the Dragon and destroys them all.

 

 

Two unusual families – the shapeshifting Morgans and the Haskell witches – have maintained an uneasy alliance for generations. Now the vengeful spirit of a dark sorcerer will force them to unite once more-or turn against one another.

Out Now: The Trouble with Air and Magic by Patricia Rice

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The Trouble with Air and Magic is officially out today ( Although it has been available since early January at some stores, but today it is available at all of them. I liked this, and it stands alone reasonably well so you don’t have to read the first book. ). 



Dorothea Franklin’s life is sliding toward disaster just as surely as her house is crumbling into the Pacific. Her unusual talent for feng shui can’t bring harmony to her invalid father or prevent her brother from dying in an experimental helicopter crash. Or has he?

She turns to computer genius Conan Oswin, whose brother also reportedly died that day. When Dorothea informs Conan that she didn’t feel the vibrations of her brother’s death, he wants to dismiss her illogic… but his instinct for trouble is already on full alert. His attraction to her is almost as distracting as her nonsense about chi and harmony — nonsense that plants doubts about the deadly crash. If only she would quit twisting his head with temptation, he might be able to save their brothers and her life.

Buy at Bookview Cafe and you can read a sample too!

ARC Review: Blood Winter by Diana Pharaoh Francis:

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations, reviews
The Particulars: Urban Fantasy, Pocket, available in print and e-book
The Source: ARC from the author.
The Grade: B-

The Blurb:

NEW GAME. SAME RULES. SHE FIGHTS. THEY DIE.
Max always does her job, no matter how brutal and bloody. That’s how it’s been ever since she was enslaved by a witch, turned into a supernatural warrior, and assigned to protect the coven of Horngate. But her job just got harder. . . .
Waves of wild magic have returned much of the world to a time when fairy tales were real and danger now lurks behind every tree and bush. As winter descends and food, heat, and water are harder to come by, many have turned to Benjamin Sterling for protection. Leader of the Earth’s Last Stand cult, Sterling claims to be the Hand of God, but his power and charisma secretly come from a dark and terrible source. With devout followers eager to do his sadistic bidding, he has his eyes on Horngate and its magical inhabitants. To save those she loves, Max will knowingly walk into a trap. But when the cult strips Max’s soul bare for all to see, will even Alexander—her lover and her strength—remain? And if she were to lose him, what does it matter if she gains the whole world. . . .

The Review:
This review is a bit late, since Diana Pharoah Francis was kind enough to ship the book from the States. It was well worth the wait. This is the latest book in the Horngate series, and while it stands reasonably alone, I though think you will get more out of it if you have read the first three books beforehand.
The world was believable in the way it described the new normal. Both for Horngate, and how the Sunspears and the Shadowblades need for calories strained their limits. I admired the ingenious ways they had created to main the infrastructure in the Covenstead, from heat sources to water sources. This was a contrast from the way people outside the Covenstead lived. They were scrambling for resources, and to survive the winter. In many ways, this shows how vulnerable our society is and how much we depend on oil.
The plot was gripping. I kept on reading, wondering when Max would break beneath the strain of responsibility and losing friends. But she didn’t, she kept soldiering on struggling to figure out how to defeat Sterling, and how to wake up the angels. Despite all the bleakness in the book, it ends with a feeling of hope. That things might be tough, but they will survive. And, if this is the last book in the series, it feels like all the loose threads are wrapped up.
 I enjoyed the banter between Max and Tyler, but also the more serious discussions between Thor and Alexander. That said, I had some trouble connecting with the characters.  Part of the reason was the feeling that all the non magical inhabitants behaved like spoiled children, not seeing the danger they put themselves and Horngate in.  

ARC Review: Haunted Sanctuary by Moira Rogers

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The Particulars: Paranormal Romance, Samhain publishing, available as e-book

The Source: ARC from the Author
The Grade: B+
The Blurb:
 Eden Green can’t remember a time she didn’t believe in monsters—her cousin was born one. Her family’s dark past casts a long shadow, making it hard to make friends and harder to commit to a lover. She lives a quiet life in small-town Clover, Tennessee, but she’s always waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Tired of the city packs’ corruption, yet too alpha to be a subordinate in a sanctuary town, Jay Ancheta satisfies his need to protect by serving as Clover’s Chief of Police. As much as he’s drawn to Eden, he can’t offer forever to a woman who doesn’t know what he is—or trust himself to let her go after one taste.
When Eden’s cousin and his battered pack stagger into town, their tormentors hard on their heels, Eden is bitten in the chaos. Now Jay not only has a traumatized pack to deal with, but a newly turned wolf with enough hungry alpha power to consume them both.
With their combined strength, they can create a new sanctuary—if their passion can survive the ghosts of the Green family’s legacy.
Warning: Contains a newly turned werewolf heroine who enjoys a little rough dominance in bed and a badass alpha wolf hero who’ll fight bad guys, ghosts and even the past to protect what’s his. Be prepared for violence, death and heartbreak on the way to a happily ever after.
The Review:
I loved Moira Rogers Red Rock Pass series, so when Moira Rogers offered ARCs for this one, I requested it on the spot. And I am glad I did.
This was a sizzling, yet heart wrenching paranormal romance, set in small rural town that felt believable. I enjoyed the nuances in small town life, which made it feel believable. One factor that I liked was the historic feel of the farm were the pack settled. There were also hint of other things,more darker events, through the book which was a touch that I appreciated .
While the focus on this book was Jay and Eden, their romance was heavily intertwined with the apperance of Zach and his werewolf friends. The pack brought with them a lot of problems, which felt logical. But, I liked how they were determinded to create a better life, and everyone pitched in.
Eden and Jay had been attracted to each other for a long time, and I liked how their allowed their casual friendship develop into something more, despite the chaos their life turn into.The plot gripped me from the start, and the feeling of danger kept creeping higher and higher until it reached the breaking plot.  I loved how the pack dealed with the final confrontation with their enemies.  It was the perfect, and logical, sollution.   
The problem with all that tension was that it overshadowed Jay and Eden’s relationship at the end of the book. Not much, but enough for me to notice it.

Urban Fantasy Reading Challenge: Moon Called by Patricia Briggs

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations, reviews

The Particulars: Urban Fantasy, Ace, available in print and as e-book

 The Source: The Bookshelf
The Grade: B+ 
The blurb:

Mercedes “Mercy” Thompson is a talented Volkswagen mechanic living in the Tri-Cities area of Washington. She also happens to be a walker, a magical being with the power to shift into a coyote at will. Mercy’s next-door neighbor is a werewolf. Her former boss is a gremlin. And she’s fixing a bus for a vampire. This is the world of Mercy Thompson, one that looks a lot like ours but is populated by those things that go bump in the night. And Mercy’s connection to those things is about to get her into some serious hot water…




The Review:
I was a bit hesitant to re-read this book, since I have had a bit of bad luck when it comes to re-reads recently. In the end, I am glad I re-read it.

What I like with Patricia Briggs novels is the detailed worldbuilding, and how she can take something and give it a fresh twist. This book, and the rest of the Mercy Thompson series, are no exception. This book focused on the werewolves, but I liked how she introduced the other factions in the world, both vampires and fae. I liked how the werewolves in the US were ruled by the Marrok, and how he kept a firm but benevolent grip on the reins. It felt right, somehow.

Despite the fact that I vaguely remembered what happened, I couldn’t stop reading. I held my breath, from the moment Mercy met Mac, to her search for Jessie and Adam. The plot moved at break neck pace, and I loved how the stakes gradually increased as Mercy and her friends they tried to figure out who was behind this. I’ll admit that there was times when I wondered if they would figure out who the villain was in time. 
   

Meeting the characters again felt like meeting old friends. I liked that Mercy a lot. She had a core of strength and confidence. And while she defied Adam a lot, she also knew how to handle werewolves, and when to keep quiet. I also liked her loyalty to her friends, and how she was prepared to do anything for them. 
I couldn’t find anything bad, the only thing that keeps it from getting an A is that I felt it lacked that something.

* The blurb is from the UK edition, since I couldn’t find a proper blurb for the US edition online. Which drove me nuts. I hate when all I can find is a three line blurb.

Friday Bargains: 0.99 books at Sony

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations

The bargains I am excited about right now is at Sony. I haven’t bought anything from Sony, just downloaded freebies, but I think that will change. ;).

Anyway, they have to ongoing campaigns right now.  The first one is  Fall in love with a series, which Amazon is price matching.  It is mostly romance, but I am excited, since several of the books are on my Wishlist.
The second is in their newsletter, and it is a hodgepodge of genres. 

Oh. They have a third campaign: Buy 6 books, get one for free. You can read more here.

Sourcebooks offer 30% off on Linda Wisdoms Paranormal Romances this week.

30% off any Linda Wisdom novels this week!

Created on Thursday, 11 October 2012 08:00

Author Linda Wisdom’s tales of witches and demons are wickedly entertaining! Her light paranormal romances are a delightful way to spend an October evening! Take 30% off any of her books at Discover a New Love with coupon code “WISDOM” when you check out from the cart. Expires October 18, 2012

Friday Bargains: Samhain bargains

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I got an e-mail from Samhain, telling me that they have a 30% off code ( coupon: TRICKORTREAT) on the following 8 e-books. Unless something has changed,  this stacks on top of the new release discount, which means 60 percent off.

Ballroom Blitz by Lorelei James
She’s got the rhythm, but he’s got all the right moves…

Unleashing The Receptionist by Juniper Bell
You can tie a girl up, but you can’t keep her down. 

Dark in the Woods by Rosemary Laurey
When the wild things are stirring, taking sides could get you killed.

Sex and the Single Princess by Bonnie Dee and Marie Treanor
Behind every beautiful shoe is a sexy shoemaker. 

Just a Kiss by Erin Nichols
She’s unforgettable… which is what got him in trouble the first time.

My Regelence Rake by JL Langley
Before you find your prince, you have to kiss your share of rakes.  

 Wanderlust by Vella Munn
Her feet say its time to move on. Her heart says something else..

The Fallen Boys by Aaron Dries
The road to forgiveness is covered in blood. 

The current Samhain bookclub offering is  Heat of Passion by Elle Kennedy and Shadows in the Mist by Brian Moreland.



 

Friday Bargains: A lot of Historical mystery

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For me, autumn means I want to curl up on the coach and read mysteries. And, the publishers are appearantly reading my mind this week. 
Right now, the first three books in  Tasha Alexander’s Lady Emily’s series are discounted to 1.99 at Amazon. ( That price, in combination that Amazon didn’t add Whispernet fees, was enough for me to snap up the first one.)

Joss Alexander’s Tainted Innocence is discounted to 1.99 at Carina Press, until September ends.  This is another one I plan to buy. 

Still Life with Murder by P.B Ryan is free at both Amazon and Smashwords.  ( I have this one, I have started to read it several times, but I never finished it.)

Friday Bargains: Mostly Novellas and short stories

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Kobo has very nice round up of novellas, and short stories here, priced between 0.99-2.99. I am tempted to buy some, but I probably wont since I am trying to purchase less e-books.

Amazon   offers 100 e-books for 3.99 this month.  The romance e-books sounds quite interesting, but  the one I really want is in Fantasy..  I might actually buy something from Amazon, instead of just downloading freebies.

Poisoned Pen press offers several of their books for free right now.  (If one of the books isn’t free, price report it.)

And, since I am weak I signed up for Samhain’s newsletter ( I love coupon codes). Speaking of Samhain, their current Book club selection is Blaze of Glory by Sheryl Nantus. Today is the last day.