Tour Review: Dreamwalker by Andrea Heltsley

Title: Dreamwalker
Series: Persephone's League of Immortals #1
Author: Andrea Heltsley
Genre: Supernatural Fiction, New Adult Fiction
Elements: Witches, Psychic Abilities, Fae, Vampires, Deities, Immortals, Nymphs
Publisher: Andrea Heltsley
Format: Kindle Edition 
ISBN: 978-0-9853224-1-0
Release Date: May 23, 2012
Source: Tour Host {SupaGurl Books / AToMR Book Tours}, Author {Andrea Heltsley}
Rating: 4/5

Tagline(s): ~NONE~

Summary: Noel Kennedy lost her boyfriend, her job and her dignity all in one week. Then something happened and she began to dream of this stranger she had never met. She couldn’t resist the man of her dreams named Jared especially when she met him in real life. Entranced, she slowly unraveled a world she was meant to stay out of. Her life was not what she thought it was once a sexy Boone stepped into the mix and shook things up. Can she escape a life of servitude or immortality for a chance at love?

Review: 

Noel Kennedy's life changed once she began dreaming of a blond-haired, gray-eyed stranger who seemed familiar to her somehow. Things took a stranger turn when Noel saw the stranger in real life. But the stranger, Jared Townsend, wasn't the only one who found Noel. A danger very real and very unbelievable has found her too. With surprise revelations and long-lost memories surfacing, Noel must come to terms with not only her new reality, but also who she really is and a very uncertain future.

I didn't know what to expect from Dreamwalker, and I'm glad that I was pleasantly surprised by what I found. In Dreamwalker, Persephone is portrayed as the villain and not the victim, which is how she's usually described in stories featuring her. Persephone's League of Immortals is a group of slaves to those immortals that serve Persephone in exchange for that immortality. Then there is the rogue group that fights against PLI to keep their freedom and mortality, and protects others from being victimized and enslaved by PLI. It's all kind of confusing at first, but as Noel learns about this world, we learn along with her. So it gets better as the story progresses.

Noel's power is that of a dream walker, a clairvoyant who can enter dreams, have visions, and even see the future with training. She shares this power with Jared and Samara. The only reason her powers awoke was because Jared was sent to awaken them and performed a ritual to do so. For Noel, who is untrained, this ability can be very inconvenient--when a vision is coming upon her she suddenly nods off. I would have to say that the dreams that Noel has and enters are the most descriptive parts of Dreamwalker, besides the Underworld, though that is more like a nicely wrapped nightmare.

Noel and Samara have the ability to magnify each others powers. This would make them the most powerful clairvoyants in the world. They would be able to manipulate their visions and see the future in its entirety. This is the power of the Maristolla  family. Members of the Maristolla family are highly sought after because of their extremely powerful abilities. Noel and Samara's power is what makes Persephone want them as her new initiates. Like they say, with great power comes great responsibility. But it also comes with great sacrifice, as Noel and Samara know very well.

Now if you were caught between having to choose Jared or Boone, who would it be? Noel finds herself in this very situation. Her soul says Jared, but her heart and mind tell her Boone. At the beginning, I was all for Jared. He was the mysterious dream guy. But then Noel met Boone, who is very much in the now. He was there for her whenever she needed him, and because of his abilities as an empath, he really seemed to understand her. So by the time she had to choose one or the other, I was hoping that she would choose Boone. As for who she chose, you'll just have to read Dreamwalker to find out. And believe me, it's worth it. There are some really steamy scenes!

With the conclusion of Dreamwalker, I am extremely excited for the sequel, which comes out sometime in 2013. With all the uncertainties and questions left up in the air, I can't wait to find out what happens next.

About this Author:

I am a biology nerd who loves reading just about anything paranormal and some chick lit. I love my Italian greyhounds, my family, sunshine and summertime and most of all books! When I am not writing, I am reading. I have been writing on paper and in my head since grade school. It is pretty bad when you are at your job and daydreaming about writing a scene. I have fallen victim more than once, so I decided to make a go of it :) I am an entertainment girl! I love all things books, music, movies and television. Coffee is my best friend and I think I should own a Starbucks by now..lol.

Social Media links:

http://andreaheltsley.blogspot.com 
https://twitter.com/andreaheltsley 
http://www.facebook.com/AndreaHeltsley 
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5766043.Andrea_Heltsley

Links to find/buy your book:

Buy here on Amazon

Buy here on Barnes and Noble

Buy here on CreateSpace

PART OF....

September 10, 2012

July 14, 2012

Challenge Review: Haunted by Kelley Armstrong

Title: Haunted
Series: Women of the Otherworld #5
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Genre: Supernatural Fictions, Urban Fantasy Fiction
Elements: Angels, Deities, Witches, Sorcerers, Ghosts, Necromancers, Demons, Wraiths, Nymphs, Magicians
Publisher: Bantam Books, Random House Inc.
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 495 Pages
ISBN: 978-0-553-58708-1 
Release Date: May 31, 2005
Source: Borrowed from Wentworth Library
Rating: 4.5/5

Tagline(s): The afterlife isn't all it's cracked up to be....

Summary: Former supernatural superpower Eve Levine has broken all the rules. But she's never broken a promise--not even during the three years she's spent in the afterworld. So when the Fates call in a debt she gave her word she'd pay, she has no choice but to comply.

For centuries one of the ghost world's wickedest creatures has been loosed on humanity, thwarting every attempt to retrieve her. Now it has fallen to Eve to capture this demi-demon known as the Nix, who inhabits the bodies of would be killers, compelling them to complete their deadly acts. It's a mission that becomes all too personal when the Nix targets those Eve loves the most--including Savannah, the daughter she left on earth. But can a renegade witch succeed where a host of angels have failed? 

Review:

Eve Levine is used to breaking the rules, but she has never broken a promise once she's given it. The Fates are calling in the favor Eve promised in return for them returning Lucas and Paige to the living world. The demi-demon known as the Nix escaped her prison and has been roaming the world for about 100 years. After a number of failed attempts, the Fates are asking Eve to capture the Nix so she can be placed in an even stronger prison. The hunt becomes personal, though, when the Nix begins targeting those Eve loves the most--her daughter Savannah, and her guardians Lucas and Paige.

With the help of Kristof Nast, Jaime Vegas, and the angel Trsiel, Eve sets out to capture the Nix and protect her daughter. But with this mission being Eve's inaugural quest to angel-hood, Eve will need to choose between accepting angel status to better protect Savannah, or refuse and stay in the ghost world with Kristof. Whatever she chooses, it is forever and there will be no going back.

To be honest, I wasn't sure I would like Eve's story, or Eve herself. But I really liked Eve after reading Haunted. Eve really is a great mother and I can understand Savannah's love for her mother better now. Eve's dedication to Savannah, even in death, is so powerful, and her rage and frustration at not being about to protect and comfort her anymore is so heartbreaking.

Eve also brings out the better part of Kristof, Savannah's father. I even grew to like him a little. We get to see how Kristof really feels about Eve and Savannah, and his regret over missing so much in Savannah's life and what he missed out on with Eve before they both died shows a more caring side of Kristof that we didn't get to see when he was alive. I feel that if he had been given the chance, he would have made a pretty great father.

There were two tension breaking moments that I was really entertained by. The first was when Eve and Kristof scare Jaime's stalker ghost and the other haunters away. They definitely won't be bothering Jaime again. The second was when Jaime called Stonehaven to speak to Elena, but gets Jeremy on the line instead. Jaime is just too cute with how flustered she becomes just from talking to Jeremy over the phone.

If I hadn't been watching The Untouchables on MeTV for the past few months, I never would have noticed the reference to Eliot Ness in the Cleveland 1938 chapter when the Nix inhabits Agnes Miller. It's awesome when I notice references like that that others may overlook.

Anyway, I was glad that my first impression of Eve ended up being wrong. After reading Haunted, Eve has become one of my favorite characters in the Women of the Otherworld series. The next book, Broken, brings us back to Elena and the Pack where Elena has her own favor to uphold. 

About this Author:

Kelley Armstrong has been telling stories since before she could write. Her earliest written efforts were disastrous. If asked for a story about girls and dolls, hers would invariably feature undead girls and evil dolls, much to her teachers' dismay. All efforts to make her produce "normal" stories failed.

Today, she continues to spin tales of ghosts and demons and werewolves, while safely locked away in her basement writing dungeon. She's the author of the NYT-bestselling "Women of the Otherworld" paranormal suspense series and "Darkest Powers" young adult urban fantasy trilogy, as well as the Nadia Stafford crime series. Armstrong lives in southwestern Ontario with her husband, kids and far too many pets.

PART OF....

Tour Review: The Dream Slayer by Jill Cooper

Jill Cooper is hosting a Kindle Fire giveaway on her website: http://jillacooper.com/content/enter win-kindle-fire

There is also a Twitter party with Jill on July 18th from 8-9 EST with the hashtag  #DreamSlayer

Title: The Dream Slayer
Series: Dream Slayer #1
Author: Jill Cooper
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Supernatural Fiction, Urban Fantasy Fiction
Elements: Demons, Dreamers, Paladins, Magicians, Vampires
Publisher: Jill Cooper
Format: Kindle Edition 
ISBN: 978-1470112295
Release Date: May 1, 2012
Source: Tour Host {SupaGurl Books}
Rating: 4.5/5

Tagline(s): When your dreams come true, sometimes you get more than you bargained for...

Summary: Natalie Johnson has always dreamed she’s someone else; calm, beautiful, in control. A chosen warrior with a maniacal arch nemesis and a dreamy boyfriend, the type  that can make your knees melt and your heart quiver.

Real life is much different. She’s tormented by a bully and endures the sharp tongue of her father, but finds solace in her dreams.

When her bully ends up dead, de ja vu from a dream hits her hard as everything around her begins to fall apart.

Whatever killed Sarah in her dreams is now in reality, hunting her from the shadows. And it wants her dead.

Somehow as the lines between reality and nightmare blur, Natalie must discover hidden strength to pull her friends and family back from the brink of madness.


Review:  

Natalie Johnson is a girl tormented by a bully at school and her alcoholic father at home, but when she dreams Natalie is the Slayer. Strong, beautiful, and completely in control, the Slayer is everything that Natalie isn't but desperately wishes she was. When the Real World and the Dream World begin merging together, Natalie will need to find the strength hidden deep inside herself to claim her destiny and save both worlds from destruction. 

When I first started reading The Dream Slayer I was a little confused. The book starts with Natalie (the Slayer) trying to stop a runaway school bus. She succeeds and proceeds to chase her arch nemesis, Morach, behind the school where she loses him. Shortly thereafter, the story moves to Natalie being beaten up by her bully at school, Sarah, on the bus to school. I couldn't tell which world was supposed to be the real one, but as I kept reading it all began to make sense and I really started enjoying the book. 

We have the Real World and the Dream World. In the Real World Natalie is a shy girl who is the target for bullies; whereas in the Dream World Natalie is the Slayer, kicking demon butt and looking good while doing it. In the Real World Natalie's enemy is the Patricians--magicians with the power to manipulate dreams for their own purposes--and in the Dream World Natalie's enemy is Morach the Great, a demon master of great power. And in the Real World Natalie's love interest is her best friend, Tristan; and in the Dream World Natalie is deeply in love with Damien, a half-demon warrior. Though there are similarities between the two worlds there are also a lot of differences to look out for. 

There were two things that I thought were pretty cool: 

1) Natalie may not be a Slayer, but she has a role just as important. 

2) Natalie created a growing, thinking world that is more than just a dream. What was not real before may very well be real now. 

I would very much like to learn more about WOMP (World  Organization of Magical Protection) and about who Marcus is. He just shows up one day and all of a sudden is pretty chummy with Natalie and her friends. He's not even surprised by the mention of demon slaying. Just who is he?? 

I loved seeing Natalie finally stand up and fight. I could picture the battle in my head and it was just amazing! 

I can't wait to read the sequel, Demon Royale, and see how Natalie has changed, what's going on with the Slayer, and what new adventure there is to be had!

About this Author:

Author of the YA Dream Slayer series, Jill loves to blend horror, comedy, the supernatural, and love, through her novels. A fan of genre blending, her work strives to cross boundries, but most of all strives to entertain.

She loves soft cuddly cats, warm blankets, and paranormal romances.

Jill resides in Massachusetts, is constantly renovating her home that she shares with her husband, young daughter, and two skittish cats.

PART OF....

#OUReadathon: Once Upon A Read-a-Thon Goals

The Once Upon a Read-a-Thon is hosted by Angela @ Reading Angel, Candace @ Candace’s Book Blog, and Lori @ Pure Imagination!!

Books To Read:

• Dream Slayer by Jill Cooper
• Dreamwalker by Andrea Heltsley
• Enchanted by Alethea Kontis
• Dark Kiss by Michelle Rowan
• Haunted by Kelley Armstrong
  

Manga To Read:

• Daniel X Volume 3 by James Patterson, with Adam Sadler, art SeungHui KYE
• The Wallflower Volume 28 by Tomoko Hayakawa
• Sailor Moon Volume 5 by Naoko Takeuchi
  

To see all updates, check out the read-a-thon page at the top of the blog or CLICK HERE.  

**NOTE**

I'm only going to post the reviews I do for any of my goal book on Zodiac Book Reviews. All other posts (challenges, etc) will be posted as a link on the readathon page in the updates and on my main blog, A Bibliophile's Thoughts on Books.

Once Upon a Read-a-Thon {Sign Up}

The Once Upon a Read-a-Thon is hosted by Angela @ Reading Angel, Candace @ Candace’s Book Blog, and Lori @ Pure Imagination!!

To participate in the Once Upon a Readathon enter your name into the linky. Then, from 12:01 am on July 9th to 11:59 pm on July 11th you read, read, and read some more! Make sure you do at least one update post (if you don’t have a blog you may do this on facebook and/or twitter) and participate in at least one challenge. Be sure to grab the button for your sidebar too! (Grab it on the sidebar!)

Angela, Candace, and Lori will be giving away a $60 Amazon giftcard (or TBD if you’re international). The winner will be picked at random from the participants list. They will also be having a couple of mini challenges each day and there will be some sort of giveaway with those. To win anything you must participate in the read-a-thon. You must post at least one update on your blog (or Facebook or Goodreads if you don’t have a blog) and you must complete at least one mini challenge.

  

Sign up here to participate in the Once Upon a Read a Thon!