I have read so many books and don’t have time to do long reviews for all of them, but I do want to share my thoughts. So…here is my…
One Sentence Review
For a change, it was the title, Your Name, In fire by Kera Emory, that caught my attention first, usually it’s the cover. Not to say I don’t love this cover…I mean, look at the the elements…is that wings around the heart?
Your Name, In Fire by Kera Emory is a fresh approach to the tried and true vampire tale, with the horror not being slasher bright but haunting, lurking, subtle, insidious, keeping the suspense at a high level.
Michael Phillip Cash writes some great novels and I am excited to read Witches Protection Program. I am a sucker for a great cover and that gun has me very curious. What do you think it contains?
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Wes is the black sheep of the family. Is it because of his reading disability? It made him seem slow and he had to work harder just to maintain what others found so easy.
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Now…he was being sent to DUMBO at the Witches Protection Program, having to abandon his dream job. He doesn’t believe in witches, elves or anything magic, but I have a feeling that is about to change.
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Enter Morgan…who denies her legacy as a witch and heir to Pendragon, a very successful make-up company.
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I can’t help but laugh at Wes and Alistair. A comedy of errors…or should I say ego. Wes needs that chip knocked off his shoulder.
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Morgan’s best friend is not a witch, but she aspires to be. Her spells made me think of Charmed (a TV show) and I couldn’t help but laugh at the wording of her spells. The question is…will they work?
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Will the frog turn into a prince or will the prince turn into a frog? I laughed my way through the entire scene. Michael Phillips Cash’s ability to make me visualize the scene as it unfolds, makes it uproariously funny and sticks with me throughout the story.
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Witches Protection Program by Michael Phillip Cash is Charmed. The magic and romance runs AMOK. The serious and humorous collide in this wickedly fun paranormal story of greed justice and romance.
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I received a copy of Witches Protection Program from Michael Phillip Cash in return for an honest review.
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4 Stars
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Book Description
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Wes Rockville, a disgraced law enforcement agent, is given one last chance to prove himself and save his career when he’s reassigned to a 232 year old secret government organization. The Witches Protection Program.
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His first assignment: uncover a billion-dollar Cosmetics company’s diabolical plan of using witchcraft for global domination, while protecting its heiress Morgan Pendragon from her aunt’s evil deeds. Reluctantly paired with veteran witch protector, Alastair Verne, Wes must learn to believe in both witches and himself.
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Filled with adventure, suspense and a rousing good time, Michael Phillip Cash creates a tongue-in-cheek alternate reality where witches cast spells and wreak havoc in modern day New York City.
“Follow me, kid.” She led him down a gray hallway with mulberry-colored carpet, more plush than anything he’d ever seen in a governmental office. The place had to be a city block wide, with corridors branching off to other conduits. Here and there, a doorway opened. Wes saw that many were filled with groups of people sitting at polished conference tables. Some rooms were dark, with shades drawn, the light of a presentation on screens peeking through the slats of the blinds..
Staff walked through the hallways, nodding to each other. Some were in pairs. All had a badge hanging on a chain or attached to a pocket. He squinted, but he couldn’t make out the impression on the shield. Forget about attempting to read it. He shrugged; while it looked official, it was unfamiliar. For a person who grew up with an entire family in law enforcement, he found it odd that he’d never seen it before.
“What is this place?” he asked.
“This is where the magic happens,” she told him cryptically.
She opened the door, whispering, “Prepare to be amazed.” Then, with a giant pop of her gum, she disappeared.
“Where…” Wes turned, looking for the woman, but couldn’t see her anywhere. “Where is…”
“Oh, she’s gone. Come in already,” a male voice ordered impatiently.
Wes spun to the speaker, his eyes settling on a small man seated at a glass desk. He was in a neat gray suit but wore a black turtleneck, which made him look like some odd, eccentric leftover from the beatnik generation. He was older than Wes’s father, Wes guessed somewhere north of sixty, with the thickening middle of a sedentary life, a tanned complexion, and silver hair. His chubby face sported a neatly trimmed goatee. Wes wondered where his beret might be. The man studied Wes with interested black eyes that glowed with merriment.
“What kind of department is this?”
“Mr. Wesley Paul Rockville. Son of Harris and Melinda, brother to Lauren and Andrew. Tough act to follow. Runt of the litter?”
Wes bristled, wondering where this pint-size dude got off calling him a runt. At six foot three, he was hardly considered small. “I fail to see what this has got to do with my reassignment,” he said icily.
The older man ignored him. “The young gun who had his free will sucked right out of him.”
“No one took my free will!” Wes shouted, his face hot.
“I think Miss Genevieve Fox did a pretty nice number on you.”
“What are you talking about?”
Alastair cocked his head, a smile playing on his lips.
“I don’t think this is funny, um…Alastair. I’m getting out of here.” Wes had had enough. He was pissed and hungry.
“Sit down, Agent Rockville. It’s time you learned about your new assignment.”
About the Author
Michael Phillip Cash is an award-winning and best-selling novelist of horror, paranormal, and science fiction novels. He’s written ten books including the best-selling “Brood X”, “Stillwell”, “The Flip”, “The After House”, “The Hanging Tree”, “Witches Protection Program”, “Pokergeist”, “Monsterland”, “The History Major”, and “Battle for Darracia” series. Michael’s books are on the Amazon best-seller list and have also won numerous awards. Additionally, he is a screenwriter with 14 specs under his belt. Michael resides on the North Shore of Long Island.
I saw this fun challenge, Can You Read A Series In A Month, and thought, “I have the perfect series to read”. I recently won the third book in the Rick Yancey series, The 5th Wave, from Jessica @ a Great Read. When I read it had been made into a movie I checked it out further and found the first two books in a bundle on Amazon and they were on sale, so I grabbed them.
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Here is my completed series screenshot for The Fifth Wave by Rick Yancey.
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You may want to check out my reviews and see if this fantastic adventure series is something you or someone you know would enjoy. From teens to us old guys, Rick Yancey has created a fantastic alien/zombie, science fiction/horror, apocalyptic/dystopian series that KNOCKED MY SOCKS OFF.
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The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey is a #1 New York Times Bestseller, and now a major motion picture starring Chloë Grace Moretz.I have not seen it, but after reading the series I really, really, really want to.
OMG. Rick Yancy grabbed me by the throat right out of the gate and never let me go. I am blown away and totally creeped out.
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Alien = extinction.
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‘The only way to stay alive is to stay alone.”
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And Cassie is. Five months from normal to alone.
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Now, let’s go back in time and find out how Cassie came to be alone.
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Ninety seven million people wiped off the face of the earth. She keeps a journal just in case…well, in case there is anyone left to read it, except for the aliens. She has a special note just for them…”BITE ME!” I’m with her!
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Could you imagine? Silence! Think of sitting on your porch or patio listening to the hum of the world around you…automobiles in the distance, birds singing, your neighbor starting their car to go to work. Now, imagine it gone.
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Deafening silence (urban dictionary definition) – when even the solemnity of silence has become too loud.
Deafening silence described: the point of silence in which one can feel the fine hairs in the inner ear vibrating with the subtlest change in air pressure. Going out on a limb, but the sound of dead proteins rubbing and creating static nerve pulses to the brain at such a lean frequency that the wave pattern is then magnified by your brain to the point of confusion, annoyance, uneasiness, or anxiety.
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Will the children be the ones to save mankind?
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Other than Cassie, some of the characters I became curious about were Evan, Zombie, Ringer and Nugget.
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The twists and turns take me down the long…dark…rabbit hole. I want to know who will win the war for Earth. Who will survive and who will not? Be careful who you get attached to. Like some authors I know, Rick Yancey is not afraid to kill off his characters.
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Rick created a dark and terrifying world where characters counted on their insight and intuition, as much as their training and their desire, to survive.
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I just can’t stop reading…my eyes are blurring and I can’t see the words, can’t focus, but…I’m almost there…
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Truly an unputdownable book. I laughed and I cried. I screamed and I whispered.
I despaired and I hoped. But, above all, I kept reading til the very end…of The 5th Wave.
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Even the acknowledgments written by Rick Yancey are very entertaining.
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I read all three books, 1095 pages, in two days. That’s how good this epic series is!
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5 Stars
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GOODREADS BLURB:After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.
Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie’s only hope for rescuing her brother-or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.
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I did finish the book and went straight to bed, only to pick up…
I absolutely loved the first book. The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey, and could not wait to open the pages for The Infinite Sea, and I mean really open the pages of my paperback copy that I bought. I rarely buy books any more, because I get so many great ones free, and borrow from my sister or the library, but this was a set I wanted to have for my shelf.
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I began this in the morning and I read it cover to cover in one sitting.
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Picked up right where the first book, The 5th Wave, left off.
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The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey started out with a BANG…and kept on going.
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Dammit Teacup.
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We discover what the gang is made of as they experience love, loss and sacrifice.
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What do the aliens want? Why don’t they just wipe them out already? Are they toying with them, like a cat with a mouse?
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We will lose some old friends and meet some new ones, but at least for the moment, life goes on.
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Rick Yancey is a master storyteller in this epic series filled with complex characters, some good, some bad, and some down right evil.
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The Infinite Sea is a thought provoking novel that may keep you up at night…wondering.
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I read all three books, 1095 pages, in two days. That’s how good this epic series is!
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5 Stars
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GOODREADS BLURB:How do you rid the Earth of seven billion humans? Rid the humans of their humanity.
Surviving the first four waves was nearly impossible. Now Cassie Sullivan finds herself in a new world, a world in which the fundamental trust that binds us together is gone. As the 5th Wave rolls across the landscape, Cassie, Ben, and Ringer are forced to confront the Others’ ultimate goal: the extermination of the human race.
Cassie and her friends haven’t seen the depths to which the Others will sink, nor have the Others seen the heights to which humanity will rise, in the ultimate battle between life and death, hope and despair, love and hate.
Finally…I will know the end of this awesome trilogy.
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Who will be the last one standing…alien…human…somewhere in between?
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I root for the ultimate romance to survive.
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Dumbo is the one who brought me to my knees!
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Treachery, betrayal, love and sacrifice…
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The Last Star by Rick Yancey will stick with me long after I have put the book on my shelf. Will it do the same for you? Will it leave you pondering your own definition of purpose and humanity?
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I have fears for Cassie and a smile for Bear, as Cassie thinks, “Yes, Daddy, I want to fly.”
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The 5th Wave series is not the story I thought it would be…it far surpassed all my “high” expectations. I cried through the ending with a smile on my face for the happy and the sad.
They’re down here, they’re up there, they’re nowhere. They want the Earth, they want us to have it. They came to wipe us out, they came to save us.
But beneath these riddles lies one truth: Cassie has been betrayed. So has Ringer. Zombie. Nugget. And all 7.5 billion people who used to live on our planet. Betrayed first by the Others, and now by ourselves.
In these last days, Earth’s remaining survivors will need to decide what’s more important: saving themselves…or saving what makes us human.
The Black Thumb by Frankie Bow has a pretty nifty cover and I love anything to do with the tropics. Sooooo…let’s take a trip to Hawaii.
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Grab your bathing suit, sun tan lotion and flip flops and let’s begin our adventure.
The Black Thumb (Professor Molly Mysteries) (Volume 3) Paperback: 342 pages Publisher: Hawaiian Heritage Press (April 18, 2016) ISBN-13: 978-1943476183 MY REVIEW
The cover for The Black Thumb by Frankie Bow has all the elements necessary to make me grab this cozy mystery for a read. I love the tropics and Hawaii. I am not the best gardener, though I do give it my all, so I was curious about the title. Great job with both, Frankie.
If you like character driven stories, The Black Thumb by Frankie Bow fits the bill. No matter how Molly feels about it, she cannot pass on solving the mystery. Her friends…and enemies…will be by her side.
There is a lot going on and a whole lot of people. I feel a bit scattered, but I want to know about the house, so I will read on. I demand a high level of of suspense in my mysteries, and cozies don’t really fit the bill, but there is just something about them that I can’t pass up. Over and over again, I am grabbing them for some light reading.
The Black Thumb by Frankie Bow is not my first cozy mystery by her and I doubt it will be my last.
I received a copy of The Black Thumb from Frankie Bow in return for an honest review.
3 Stars
Synopsis
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When a violent death disrupts the monthly meeting of the Pua Kala Garden society, Professor Molly Barda has no intention of playing amateur detective. But Molly’s not just a witness-the victim is Molly’s house guest and grad-school frenemy. And Molly quickly finds to her dismay that her interest in the murder of the stylish and self-centered Melanie Polewski is more than just…academic.
About The Author
Like Molly Barda, Frankie Bow teaches at a public university. Unlike her protagonist, she is blessed with delightful students, sane colleagues, a loving family, and a perfectly nice office chair. She believes if life isn’t fair, at least it can be entertaining.
In addition to writing murder mysteries, she publishes in scholarly journals under her real name. Her experience with academic publishing has taught her to take nothing personally.
I am super excited to share Lauren Carr’s latest awesome Gnarly novel, Candidate for Murder. This is one you won’t want to miss.
MY REVIEW
I am a huge fan of Lauren Carr’s, so when I saw a chance to get a copy of her latest Mac Faraday Mystery, Candidate for Murder, how could I resist?
A familiar cast of characters and Lauren Carr’s humorous hints had me guessing in this murder mystery.
OMG…Gnarly is under investigation. He’s running for mayor of Spencer and the mudslinging has begun. His competition will stop at nothing to undermine him.
After seeing the promo for the movie PETS, it is easy to visualize the mischief of Gnarly and his cohort Storm, a canine Bonnie & Clyde. Here’s just one example: feasting on a romantic dinner for two that was not intended for them.
“If you were smart, you would have put them outside before levaing our dinner unguarded.”
“I did…But I forgot to lock it!”
The writing and dialogue keeps me in stitches as the political campaign heats up. An old murder is being investigated and the city of Spencer will be rocked. Outrageously funny. Unputdownable. Spoofing politics makes this a MUST READ during our political times.
Greed, ambition, God complex, entitlement, ego, sex, money, power…
Every time I think of the kittens Gnarly saved, a laugh bursts forth.
So much is going on, I am having trouble figuring out who the bad guys are. I love that.
OMG!!! The best Mac Faraday…yet. Lauren Carr is a master storyteller who combines the humor of Janet Evanovich and the investigative skills of Patricia Cornwell. She is always at the top of my reading list.
I received a copy of Candidate for Murder from Lauren Carr in return for an honest review.
5 Stars
ABOUT CANDIDATE FOR MURDER BY LAUREN CARR
It’s election time in Spencer, Maryland, and the race for mayor is not a pretty one. In recent years, the small resort town has become divided between the local year-round residents who have enjoyed their rural way of life and the city dwellers moving into their mansions, taking over the town council, and proceeding to turn Deep Creek Lake into a closed gate community—complete with a host of regulations for everything from speed limits to clothes lines.
When the political parties force-feed two unsavory mayoral nominees on the town residents, Police Chief David O’Callaghan decides to make a statement—by nominating Gnarly, Mac Faraday’s German shepherd, to run as mayor of Spencer!
What starts out as a joke turns into a disaster when overnight Gnarly becomes the front runner—at which point his political enemies take a page straight out of Politics 101. What do you do when you’re behind in a race? Dig up dirt on the front runner, of course.
Seemingly, someone is not content to rest with simply embarrassing the front runner by publicizing his dishonorable discharge from the United States Army, but to throw in a murder for good measure. With murder on the ballot, Mac Faraday and the gang—including old friends from past cases—dive in to clear Gnarly’s name, catch a killer, and save Spencer!
Lauren Carr is the international best-selling author of the Mac Faraday, Lovers in Crime, and Thorny Rose Mysteries. The twelfth installment in the Mac Faraday Mystery series, Candidate for Murder will be released June 2016.
Lauren is a popular speaker who has made appearances at schools, youth groups, and on author panels at conventions. She lives with her husband, son, and four dogs (including the real Gnarly) on a mountain in Harpers Ferry, WV.
Kate Dyer Seeley is known for her Pacific Northwest cozy mysteries, which Scene of the Climb is the first. They are fun and easy reads that will stand alone.
So, put on your climbing gear and let’s get started.
Meg is afraid of heights and many outdoorsy things, but she is like a dog with a bone and sifts through the list of suspects that kept me guessing and kept the mystery alive in this fun cozy.
3 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB:Portland, Oregon, is the perfect fit for someone like Meg Reed. It’s a city with a small town feel, where she can crash on the couch of her best friend Jill, now that she’s graduated from journalism school. . .
But a girl needs a job, so Meg bluffs her way into writing for Northwest Extreme magazine, passing herself off to editor-in-chief Greg Dixon as an outdoor adventure enthusiast. Never mind that Meg’s idea of sport is climbing onto the couch without spilling her latte. So when she finds herself clawing to the top of Angel’s Rest–a two-thousand-foot peak–to cover the latest challenge in a reality TV adventure show, she can’t imagine feeling more terrified. Until she witnesses a body plummet off the side of the cliff. Now Meg has a murder to investigate. And if the climbing doesn’t kill her, a murderer just might. . .
I’m thrilled to unveil the trailer for book two in Donna Galanti’s fantasy adventure Lightning Road series, JOSHUA AND THE ARROW REALM, arriving August 30th. The Midwest Book Review calls book one, JOSHUA AND THE LIGHTNING ROAD, “a heart-pounding thrill ride full of unexpected twists and turns from start to finish.” Grab book one for just $.99cents now through September 20th.
Be sure to enter the fun giveaway package at the bottom of this post that includes a paperback of book one, poster of the Lost Realm, bookmarks, and a $25 B&N gift card (U.S. only). Sign up for Donna’s Thunderclap book release campaign and help her zap the world through social media with her lightning message!
I loved the first book in the series, Joshua and the Lightning Road and was very excited to get my hands on Book II, Joshua and the Arrow Realm. These magical children’s books are highly entertaining for all ages.
Twelve year old Joshua and his friend Charlie were having a great time sledding…until the Lightning Road brought the Mystery Girl. Who is she and what does she want?
Joshua and Charlie are not ordinary kids. They are older than their years and have traveled to magical realms, battling evil. Joshua is able to talk to animals. Nifty talent to have that comes in very handy.
Now…they are off on another adventure, taking the Lightning Road back to Nostos to save their friend, Sam, the King.
They will travel through trees that come alive and could stomp you into a pancake, battle birdzilla with razor sharp claws, cadmean beasts with red eyes, and fire breathing foxes.
They eat some odd food…dried squirrel mash and ache cakes…MMM, yummy.
Magical lands and fantastic characters, myths and legends, the Gods and Olympians, the Oracle and Joshua. Is he the one to make things right? Others believe it is so.
I am excited to be back in Donna Galanti’s magical world of adventure, friendship and loyalty. The main characters stand tall as they race through the pages proving time and again that together they can accomplish what seems impossible.
I received an ARC of Joshua and the Arrow Realm from Donna Galanti in return for an honest review.
5 Stars
ABOUT JOSHUA AND THE ARROW REALM:
On August 30th take the lightning road back to a world of beasts, bandits, and heroes in book two of the Lightning Road series. Join Joshua in a new fight for power in the Arrow Realm. Can Joshua and his friends conquer an unstoppable evil?
Joshua never thought he’d return to the world of Nostos but is soon called to the Arrow Realm to free his imprisoned friend, King Apollo, kidnapped as a power pawn in Queen Artemis’s quest to conquer every realm. With his loyalties divided between our world and theirs, Joshua wonders whether he alone can restore magic to the twelve powerless Olympian heirs and save all those enslaved. But when he finds himself abandoned in his quest, he fears he cannot only save those imprisoned—but himself as well.
“Fast-paced and endlessly inventive, Joshua and the Arrow Realm is a high-stakes romp through a wild world where descendants of the Greek gods walk beside you, beasts abound, and not everything—or everyone—is as it seems.” ~ Michael Northrop, New York Times bestselling author of the TombQuest series
JOSHUA AND THE ARROW REALM BOOK TRAILER:
EXCERPT:
A faint rumble groaned through the whistling wind.
Boom!
Thunder ripped the sky overhead.
Charlie reached the frozen pond, spinning across it. “Woohoo! I win! You Americans can’t beat us at speed!”
Lightning flashed. It zinged across the pine trees like brilliant sunlight. A seed of terror flickered inside me.
Boom! Boom!
Another flash scorched the sky.
Charlie’s smile fell to a frown as he raced across the ice, peering up into the swirling clouds.
We both knew what lightning could do.
Suddenly, sneaking outside for a moonlit sled ride before Bo Chez got home from his monthly poker game didn’t seem so smart.
The sleet turned to snow. Icicles flew off trees like glass splinters, shattering on the hard snow. As I shot toward the pond, a tree on the edge moved. Its branches swayed in the swirling snow.
It wasn’t a tree, but a girl! She stumbled through the mad flurry, arms outstretched.
“Charlie, look!”
Gusts snatched the words away as my sled hit the ice and careened out of control on the bumpy surface. The girl staggered and fell onto the pond. I twisted my sled away to avoid hitting her and smashed right into Charlie. With a yelp, he pulled me up, and we clumped toward the girl. We lifted her up, half dragging her back up the hill to the house in the pelting snow and sleet.
“Who is she?” Charlie yelled.
“No idea,” I yelled back.
He said more, but his words were lost in the wind.
My lungs burned with the cold and effort. There was only one reason someone would appear with lightning—to steal us. This girl might appear like a waif unprepared for a storm but I couldn’t trust that’s all she was.
Donna Galanti is the author of The Element Trilogy (Imajin Books) and The Lightning Road series (Month9Books). She attended an English school housed in a magical castle, where her wild imagination was held back only by her itchy uniform (bowler hat and tie included!). There she fell in love with the worlds of C.S. Lewis and Roald Dahl, and wrote her first fantasy about Dodo birds, wizards, and a flying ship. She’s lived in other exotic locations, including Hawaii where she served as a U.S. Navy photographer. She lives with her family and two crazy cats in an old farmhouse, and dreams of returning one day to a castle. Donna is a contributing editor for International Thriller Writers the Big Thrill magazine and blogs with other middle grade authors at Project Middle Grade Mayhem. You can find her at www.donnagalanti.com.
E-book ARCs are available for this next thrilling book in The Lightning Road series! Email donna(at)donnagalanti.com for copies and specify the format you’d like.
GIVEAWAY:
Donna Galanti has offered an ebook of Joshua and the Lightning Road, Book I for an International giveaway that will end 8/22/16. Just leave an email and answer the question:
If you could have a magical talent, what would you like it to be?
Prolific master storyteller, Gena Showalter, shines in this sizzling hot romance filled with fun and sexual banter that had me lost in her world with wonderful characters that made me want the story to go on, and on, and on…
I love the cool cover created by Sabrina Sun for Homicide in the House by Colleen J Shogan.
Homicide in the House by Colleen J Shogan has so many elements that relate to our current political climate, I couldn’t help but be intrigued. Government shutdown. Political machinations. All decisions are compromised. Give to get. It’s not selling out your soul when you bend…not break. Representatives park themselves and build a kingdom. I could get on a rant, but let’s talk about the book.
Even though Homicide in the House by Colleen J Shogan is the second book in the Washington Wodunit series, I don’t feel my reading suffered from not having read Stabbing in the Senate first, where Kit was accused of murdering her boss. Will dead bodies follow her through Capitol Hill?
Right off, I like Representative Maeve Dixon and Kit, her right hand. When Maeve is suspected of murder, it is time for Kit to put her thinking cap on and begin her own investigation. Colleen kept me guessing who amongst the suspects was the guilty party.
Homicide in the House by Colleen J Shogan meets all the requirements for a cozy mystery: an amateur sleuth and her trusty friends. Some lovable and not so lovable characters along with a critter and easy reading and I would vote yes to adding this to your reading list.
I received a copy of Homicide in the House by Colleen J Shogan in return for an honest review.
3 Stars
Synopsis:
Kit Marshall has bounced back from her first brush with the law, when she was suspected of murdering her senator boss. Now she is working for a freshman congresswoman, Maeve Dixon, a young Gulf War veteran representing North Carolina. It’s February, and Kit is feeling out of sorts. A government shutdown has just been announced, wreaking havoc on the Hill, and Dan, Dixon’s chief of staff and Kit’s supervisor, is an inexperienced lightweight flying blind. Then there’s Kit’s distracted live-in boyfriend, Doug, who doesn’t seem any closer to popping the question. Kit’s best friend Meg is up to her eyeballs with her new beau and oversight committee job, and Clarence the beagle mix will certainly not win Capitol Canine if Meg has to campaign for him all by herself. Bad as things are now, they are about to get much worse.
Early one morning Representative Dixon is caught standing over the corpse of Jack Drysdale, the Speaker of the House’s top staffer, a man she argued with in front of the press the day before. The murder weapon was the Speaker’s gavel. This item was entrusted to Dixon at the time, leading the police to believe they’ve found their killer. To save her job, Kit must clear her boss’s name, and quickly. Dixon’s career may be over if the police declare her a suspect or an anonymous blogger known as Hill Rat breaks the story. Solving this murder will test Kit’s courage and all her fledgling powers of deduction as she roams a spooky, sparsely populated Capitol Hill looking for clues and sounding out suspects.
About The Author
Colleen J. Shogan is a senior executive at the Library of Congress. She is the former deputy director of the Congressional Research Service and previously served as a staffer in the United States Senate. A political scientist by training, Colleen has taught American government at Georgetown University, Penn, and George Mason. Colleen is a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She received her BA from Boston College and her doctorate from Yale. A member of Sisters in Crime, she lives in Arlington, Virginia, with her husband Rob Raffety and their rescue mutt, Conan. Her first book, Stabbing in the Senate, won the Next Generation Indie Award for Best Mystery in 2016.
The cover for Dark Dreams and Dead Things by Martina McAtee is awesome.
Deliciously spooky and eerie and I LOVE it!
What do you think?
MY REVIEW
I have been eagerly anticipating the second book in the Dead Things series, Dark Dreams and Dead Things by Martina McAtee, even since I read the first book, Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things. The covers are so amazingly creative, I would grab the book for that reason alone.
Dark Dream and Dead Things by Marina McAtee picks up where Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things left off in this dark magical world.
The prophecy is yet to be fulfilled by the Triad, Ember, Tristan and Kai. The teenagers can barely control their powers, yet they jump in with both feet. It’s not like they have a choice.
There is humor in their dark world. For example, Kai is helping Ember dress and talking about her boobs…the writing cracked me up. Kai and Rhys, with the baby werewolf, is hilarious and sweet. Another example of the fun writing:
If Rhys had to carry her to the car, he didn’t want her waking up and chewing on his boyfriend like a squeaky toy.
Witches, wolves, fae, a one-eyed dog and a resurrected cat all live and love in the same home. The danger surrounds them and it is hard to know who to trust. Who will live and who will die?
A very deep and dark look into the paranormal and supernatural world. The characters also struggle with real world issues, like love and getting through the teenage years.
I felt like I stepped into an episode of Supernatural.
The story is not over and the series needs to be read in order to get the full picture.
I received a copy of Dark Dreams and Dead Things by Martina McAtee in return for an honest review.
4 Stars
Dark Dreams and Dead Things (Dead Things #2)
by Martina McAtee
Genre:YA Paranormal/Urban Fantasy
Release date: July 15th 2016
Summary from Goodreads:
17-year-old November Lonergan spent her whole life feeling like an outsider. She was right. She’s a reaper like her mother; like her two cousins, Kai and Tristin. The supernatural world believes they are part of a prophecy to save them from an evil known as the Grove. Ember just wants to survive high school and fix the fallout from bringing back her friend.
Old enemies are lurking; waiting for their opportunity to strike but the pack has a new problem. A group of legendary hunters has resurfaced, threatening the reapers and anybody who stands with them. They are making good on their threats too; attacking those closest to the pack.
Their only hope of defeating the Legionaries involves trusting a stranger to perform a dangerous spell to advance Ember and her cousin’s powers. But Ember has a secret; a secret she can’t tell the pack. One that leaves the pack vulnerable.
An attack on pack allies, leaves one member of the group injured and another missing, along with a mysterious girl named Evangeline who may play a bigger part in this than any of them realize. As the Legionaries are closing in, the pack must trust their enemies, enter hostile territories, and play a dangerous game of cat and mouse with a psychopath. Their entire plan lynches on a dangerous bargain, but rescuing one member of the pack could mean losing another in their place…possibly forever.
You can see my 5 star review for Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things HERE. I am loving this series and the fantastic world that Martina McAtee has created.
Martina McAtee lives in *******, Florida with her teenage daughter, her best friend, two attack Chihuahua’s and two shady looking cats. By day she is a registered nurse but by night she writes young adult books about reapers, zombies, werewolves and other supernatural creatures. When she isn’t working, teaching or writing she’s reading or watching shows that involve reapers, zombies, werewolves and other supernatural creatures. Her debut novel Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things is set to release on August 31st, 2015. She is currently working on the second book in the Dead Things series due to release in 2016.
4 Stars
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(Professor Molly Mysteries) (Volume 3)
Donna Galanti is the author of The Element Trilogy (
, won the Next Generation Indie Award for Best Mystery in 2016.
