Congratulations to Emily R. for winning a copy of She Speaks to Angels!
Be sure to contact me at shadowhunters_jace_clary@hotmail.com with your email and I'll pass it along to the tour host!
Friday, May 18, 2012
Giveaway Winner: She Speaks to Angels
Congratulations to Emily R. for winning a copy of She Speaks to Angels!
Be sure to contact me at shadowhunters_jace_clary@hotmail.com with your email and I'll pass it along to the tour host!
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Tour Review: Stealing Breath by Joanne Brothwell (Promo+Giveaway)
Series: Stealing Breath #1
Author: Joanne Brothwell
Genre: New Adult Fiction, Supernatural Fiction
Elements: Psychic Abilities, Warlocks
Publisher: Crescent Moon Press
Format: PDF, 238 Pages
ISBN: 978-1-937254-33-9
Release Date: March 8, 2012
Source: Tour Host {Bewitching Book Tours}
Rating: 5/5
Tagline(s): ~NONE~
Summary: Deep in the backwoods of North Dakota, twenty-one year old Sarah Ross is searching for a missing child when she is attacked by a glowing-eyed, transparent...creature. Sarah survives, destroying the monster by using mysterious abilities she didn't even know she had.
Bloody and bruised, Sarah flees the scene and runs directly into Evan Valente, a handsome, charismatic stranger who helps her back to safety. But what is Evan doing out in the forest at five in the morning?
Turning to a healer, Sarah is shocked to learn her eyes bear the mark of the Indigo Child--an evolved human with the ability to feel the emotions of others. But her indigo aura also makes her an easy target for those who wish to consume her powerful essence.
Soon, Sarah is falling deeply in love with Evan and wants nothing more than to follow her heart and trust that he is the man he says he is. But she can't ignore the lingering feeling that Evan is hiding a terrible secret. The deeper she digs, the more danger she faces, leading her on a course that will force her to face the darkest, innermost parts of her soul.
Review:
Sarah Ross is an empath, which means that she has the ability to feel the emotions of others. Her ability is so strong that the emotions can be overwhelming sometimes. But after an attack by a mysterious creature in an abandoned house in the woods, Sarah meets Evan Valente who helps her get back to her campsite. The odd thing is that she feels none of Evan's emotions. Though Sarah has reservations about trusting Evan, she can't stay away from him.
When Sarah visits a Native American healer, she learns that she's not just an empath, but an Indigo Child as well. An Indigo Child is an evolved human with special powers, such as Sarah's empathy. Even stranger is that when Sarah and Evan touch, the power between them increases and they can do even more extraordinary things together. There is definitely something different about Evan, and when Sarah learns the truth about him, she'll have to decide if she's still willing to trust him or if she'll need to run to get away from him.
Joanne Brothwell uses Native American and Italian folklore by introducing us to the Native American Skinwalkers and the Italian Benandanti (good walkers) and the Malandanti (bad walkers). The Stregheria are witches and warlocks in Italy who are either good walkers or bad walkers. The good walkers were hunted into extinction for suspicion of witchcraft, but the bad walkers managed to survive the hunts. The Valente family is actually the last of the Italian bad walkers to survive.
This is actually only the second story I've read that had Skinwalkers as the supernatural element, so it's a new and interesting element to use. I love the use of folklore in Stealing Breath. It gives a richness to the story and gives us some insight into the Native American and Italian cultures.
I also really liked Sarah and Evan's relationship. They have a strong connection, but also have a lot of problems too. There's a point where Sarah learns the truth about Evan, and even though it hurts her to do it because she loves him, she forces herself to walk away from him. But a surprise revelation about Evan that even he didn't know about makes Sarah realize that maybe he's not as bad as they both thought him to be. So their relationship isn't perfect and has it's share of ups and downs, but the imperfections of their relationship is what makes it so perfect. It doesn't seem rushed or instantaneous. It takes time and effort to make their relationship work.
Stealing Breath is a part of a genre that doesn't get much attention. You can't put this book in the Young Adult genre or the Adult genre. It lands somewhere in the middle. I asked the author what genre she would put Stealing Breath into and she brought to my attention a genre called New Adult fiction. I was so intrigued by this new genre that I looked it up and found that New Adult fiction is a genre for novels that land between YA and Adult. The characters are usually between the ages of 18-26 and are just coming into adulthood. They are either just starting college or a new career after graduating high school. So Stealing Breath fits perfectly into this virtually unknown genre.
I'm really excited to read about what happens next for Sarah and Evan. Will they ever be able to settle in one place and live normal lives or will they have to continue running from those who want to possess their strong and powerful essences?
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EXCERPT- CHAPTER 1
I awoke to rustling outside my tent. The crunching of footsteps on gravel, twigs and branches snapping. Was that a voice? I lay motionless inside my sleeping bag, heart pounding, listening.
“Help.” A disembodied whisper. Was it right outside? I strained to hear but the throbbing pulse in my head drowned everything else out. I sat up. The atmosphere within the domed tent was wet, ripe with morning breath. The tip of my nose was cold as an icicle.
“Help.” The murmur came a second time, more audible than the last. I was sure it was a child’s voice. My heart skipped a beat. Could it be the voice of the eight year-old, Jessica Crow, who had gone missing from the neighboring Indian Reservation three days ago?
I thought of the drive out to the campgrounds when my friends, Amber, Kate, and I had been listening to the radio report on the status of the missing girl from the Wakina Reservation.
Poor Amber. Once again, she’d cried at the reminder of her third cousin, Jessica, lost and alone in the forest. Everyone in the community, including Amber, had been searching for her night and day but had found nothing. I’d practically dragged Amber along camping, telling her she needed a night off from her worries. It was a hard sell, but she’d finally agreed.
I glanced at where Kate and Amber should have been laying, but their sleeping bags and pillows were missing. The last I’d seen them had been around the bonfire at two in the morning. They could have ended up crashing just about anywhere, and I wasn’t about to go peeking into random tents to find them.
Having fallen asleep in my jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, I slipped on my jacket and shoes, pulled the ponytail holder off my wrist and wrapped my hair into a tight bun. I swallowed hard and took a deep breath. Then, unzipping the door flap of the dome tent, I stuck just my head out.
Nothing was out of place. Empty cooler bottles atop the picnic table, charred wood in the fire-pit, and the car we came in. Every campsite around us was nearly silent. The sounds of late-night make-out sessions, pounding music, and yelling were replaced by the occasional snore.
Using my empathy, I focused on trying to pick up on the emotions of any lucid person around, hoping I would hone in on Jessica’s emotions. Normally, the waking feelings of others hit me like a gale force wind, without my even trying. In fact, it had always felt like a bit of a curse that I was a walking sponge for other people’s pain. But right now, all I felt was…nothing.
The voice had seemed right outside the tent. Could I have imagined it?
I slipped out. A low, white fog blanketed the earth, enveloping the world in silence. The temperature hovered around freezing, way too cold for camping. And last night’s vodka was no longer taking the edge off. I shivered.
After checking around the cars and circling the campsite, I started down the road. Inside the forest, the eerie glow of early morning and the cool fog blanched the world a ghostly white. The moist nip in the air sharpened the scent of pine needles that littered the camp ground. I continued down the road for about ten feet until it led to the mouth of a hiking trail.
Now that I was half-frozen and shivering, the May long weekend at the campgrounds of Greater Slave Lake, North Dakota, seemed like a very stupid idea, even if it was the annual spring kick-off party.
“Help!” the diminutive voice called out again, this time, louder.
The memory of Jessica’s face flashed through my mind when I’d met her last summer; honey-brown eyes and springy hair that always stuck up around her head with static, and her sweet smile, part baby teeth intermixed with adult teeth. She was such a sweet, innocent child. If she had survived this long, she could be dangerously close to death from cold. My heart battered against my chest wall, and I fought off the urge to start running, directionless, into the bush to find her.
The voice had originated from further within the tree-line, I was sure of it. Closer now, yet still far away. I entered the trail and headed straight.
“Jessica?” I called out. No response but the echo of my own voice from the trees around me.
The trail was straight and narrow for well over a hundred feet, the trees like two solid walls of green on either side of me. Then the trail began to snake back and forth until it forked into several side-trails. I stopped to listen.
A dry crackle emerged from the trail to my right, and I immediately followed the sound. This far into the forest it was darker, the only light filtered through evergreens and fog. I looked back. The vapor had closed in behind me, obscuring the pathway like a curtain of white. Shivering transformed into shaking.
Despite running these trails in the early morning numerous times, today it looked different. I cursed under my breath and shoved my hands into my pockets.
“Hello?” I called, my voice immediately diminishing, muffled by the woods. Other than the odd bird chirp and frog croak, the forest was quiet. If the voice really had been Jessica, she would need help and most likely immediate medical attention. I forced myself forward.
The trail wound to and fro, the brush dense, the fog almost material as it clung to the spruce needles. The path grew thin and sparse, barely enough room to place one foot in front of the other, with the way the underbrush encroached on the trail. I stumbled on twigs and logs as branches clawed my cheeks and pulled my hair. I began to trip, reaching out for something to hang onto. I fell, my hand forced into a thorny bush.
Damn it! I stood up and peered at my scraped hand, blood beading out of paper-cut sized scrapes. I’d been out here for at least ten minutes, but still, I heard nothing but the crunch of my feet snapping the twigs underfoot and my breath echoing through my own head. Ready to turn around and head back to my tent, the high-pitched voice rang out once again.
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Sunday, May 13, 2012
Tour Review: Staring Into the Eyes of Chance by Kay Dee Royal (Guest Post+Giveaway)
Series: LIIA (Lycan International Investigation Agency) #1
Author: Kay Dee Royal
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Paranormal Erotica Romance, Supernatural Fiction
Elements: Werewolves, Psychic Abilities
Publisher: MuseItHOT Publishing, MuseItUp Publishing
Format: PDF, 157 Pages
ISBN: 978-1-927361-99-3
Release Date: March 2, 2012
Source: Tour Host {Bewitching Book Tours}
Rating: 4.5/5
Tagline(s): Olivia swears off men until she meets Chance, a Lycan alpha. He ignites an undeniable hunger they can only sate together.
Summary: Olivia endures a thirty-four year passionless marriage, discovering her dead husband’s philandering history at his funeral. She devotes her energy and life-long sensitivity with animals to her wildlife refuge and preserve.
Chance, a Lycan alpha and leader of the Lycan International Investigation Agency (LIIA) throws himself into his investigations. He chooses to neglect his duty of finding a primal-mate after watching his father become an empty shell over the loss of his.
A murderous rogue pack draws Chance onto Olivia’s wildlife preserve, sending Olivia’s animal sensitivities into overdrive. Chance and Olivia discover a sizzling force driving them together.
Will they succumb to its enticing tether, or fight to resume their loveless lives apart?
Review:
When one man and one woman, both unwilling to risk the pain of falling in love meet, they feel an undeniable connection. They need to search their hearts and decide if what they are feeling is worth taking a chance on. Staring Into the Eyes of Chance brings us the story of Chance and Olivia and the lengths they'll go to to protect what matters.
Olivia suffered through thirty-four years in a marriage with a man who didn't love her and cheated on her the whole time until he died. Chance witnessed the effects of losing a primal mate when his father lost his mother during childbirth, and he doesn't want any part of that pain. Chance and Olivia meet while Chance and his pack are tracking a rogue pack through Olivia's wildlife preserve. Sparks fly and a bond is formed. But when the one your destined to be with is threatened, what will you sacrifice to protect that special someone?
I really liked how Olivia and Chance's relationship developed. The attraction was instant, but they didn't fall in love right away. Olivia has trust issues after learning of her dead husband's cheating, and Chance has given up finding his primal mate to avoid the pain potentially losing her would cause. Each has their issues with falling in love and it takes them a while to become comfortable with each other. But when they finally decide to take that chance, they discover a love and passion, trust and loyalty that cannot be broken.
Their primal mate bond is really tested during and after the rogue pack alpha captured Olivia. Smoke is one of the most vile and disgusting bad guys I've ever read about. Not only did he kidnap, sexually assault, and drug Olivia and her best friend, Lindsey, he also marked Lindsey, effectively making her his mate and stealing her from Trevor, who Lindsey is the primal mate of and loves very much. That is one of the worst things that can happen to primal mates, being mated to someone else. There is also question about whether he is Chance's long-lost, and supposedly dead, older brother, Savage. Kay Dee Royal has created a bad guy of the top tier, ans though I found Smoke repulsive, he works really well for the villain of this book.
The ending of the book leaves a lot of questions left unanswered, but it does end on a somewhat happy note. I can't wait to read the next adventure in this series.
About this Author:
Kay Dee Royal writes paranormal and fantasy erotic romance—maybe because it's also her favorite genre to read! She pens tales with wild, rugged heroes and strong, intelligent heroines. She'll give them both a few shadowy secrets, making her stories intriguing and fun. She resides in Southern Michigan with her family (her dogs, her cats, her caged husband... you get the idea) You can reach her at her blog and find the latest on her titles from her publisher, MuseItHot.
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Guest Post by Kay Dee Royal:
Staring Into the Eyes of Chance ~ Humans can have PN abilities, too.
Thank you, A Bibliophile’s Thoughts on Books, for having me today. I’ve been enjoying all the different blogs on my tour and look forward to spending time here.
I’m Kay Dee Royal, an author who loves writing and reading paranormal, fantasy, and contemporary erotica romance.
My muse enjoys being taken away by strong, intelligent, confident heroines and rescued by wild, rugged, beastly heroes, both of which harbor shadowy secrets of intrigue and fun. My muse lives for the escape (LOL), imagine that.
With that in mind, besides telling the tales of paranormal beings, there are also humans with paranormal abilities…like Olivia. She’s a fifty-five year old widow of a philandering husband (for the entire thirty-four years of their marriage) and has never had children.
Olivia began at an early age ‘reading’ animals…any wildlife or domesticated animal. She never realized everyone couldn’t do what she did—knowing what the little OR big creatures were thinking. In her very early years, she didn’t know how she knew an animal’s mood, but she had the ability to calm them and understand their wants and needs.
As she grew older, certain kids bullied her…until she hid her gift/talent. Not until she was in her early twenty’s, did she come out of the closet to a close friend…not even her sister, Lacey knows about Olivia’s psychic ability with wildlife.
The thing about Olivia, she could only ‘read’ creatures, not humans. So, the first time she meets a Lycan in human-form…to be exact, four Lycan in human-form, she’s totally thrown off with sensory overload.
It was one of my favorite scenes to write. And, the Lycan had no clue she could ‘read’ them…even better.
So, what paranormal abilities would you like a human heroine to possess?
Here’s a scene of Olivia being somewhat challenged by her ability…
Excerpt (18 +):
Olivia closed her eyes, calling up her animal sensitivity ability, while shoving down her own panic. After years of psychically working with animals, she knew they sensed panic and fear. Her breathing needed regulating.
Olivia relaxed as best she could and opened her mind. She sensed the wolf; masculine. He came across with an urgent need to protect, more like helping her feel safe. Another howl, with a deep and sinister timbre, shattered her concentration. A stab of electricity zipped through her, pumping adrenaline and tightening every muscle. This howl came from farther inside the forest than the first one. She sensed aggression in the wolves within the forest, ready for battle. Her heart drummed against her ribs in anticipation of an answering call, and she couldn’t stop the tremors running rampant in her belly.
Instead she saw the lights go out through her closed eyelids. She opened her eyes and saw nothing but blackness.
Nine o’clock on a September evening, what did she expect? Damn power company! Hopefully Lacey sat in the Jacuzzi and wouldn’t come running out.
She lay listening for any sound. Her own breath, the loudest panting she’d ever heard, came in at a close second to her heart banging against the walls of her chest. Slowly, she sat up. The back of her head throbbed, her spine hurt, and the front of her body ached, especially her breasts. She bent her legs to stand and in that same moment a jet of hot mist coated her face.
Wolf breath.
Olivia froze, tamping down the run-for-your-life urge. Her mind reached toward the beast beside her, searching his energy markers, his emotions, urges. She read him as curious, stimulated. Maybe a misread of…sexually stimulated? She sat back on her haunches, figuring if she stretched at least four feet of her five-foot ten frame, maybe she’d appear larger. His breath assailed her from above, she remained squatted.
Damn, this thing is huge!
He sniffed the top of her head, down by her ear, licked the length of her neck and up the side of her face. Another howl close by, echoing near the tree-line, got the wolf’s attention. He raised his head from her and shoved her body back with his own. She went down on her butt, folding her legs sideways. Fur from his backside pressed into the front of her, including her face. Olivia turned her head away and took a breath. A shiver began in her belly and inched through her arms, legs, and up her neck. She sensed his urgency, he must move and his need…again, to keep her safe and again something else, another misread?
He moved back, his head next to hers. A growl vibrated, harsh and deep, beside her ear. Olivia jumped when he yipped instead of howled. He circled her, stopping behind her. A sudden scratch of claws and pebbles from rain washout near the barn pelted her. Air swirled around her as the wolf leaped over her head in the direction of the woods.
Olivia’s breath whooshed out like a balloon being released. Tears welled and trickled down her face. The wolf’s size was about as abnormal as it got. She’d never heard of any wolf being that large. She’d done plenty of research on the species, brushing up for the wolf pup she rehabilitated and released back into the wild years ago when Ray and she first opened the refuge, before they owned the preserve property.
Olivia pushed herself up onto wobbly legs, her stomach lurched, and before she could blink, vomit spewed. She retched hard, falling onto her hands and knees, weak and crying, something she hadn’t done since Ray’s funeral. As if on cue, all the lights popped on, illuminating her shadow against the barn wall.
Oh, that’s lovely. Damn power company.
A howl, and then another and another, echoed from different locations in the forest. Her forest, her wildlife preserve, not a place for a beast like her visitor, and most definitely not a place for the aggressive lot in the forest. She swiped her face with the bottom of her shirt and looked toward the woods.
About thirty yards away in the mowed meadow, her wolf circled with another, close-in-size, milky-eyed wolf with a deformed face, both spot-lighted in the yard light. They flashed razor sharp teeth and glowing eyes, with the exception of the one’s coated eye. Their vicious growls and snapping jaws filled the air. Olivia found her tranq gun on the ground and grabbed it. By the time she turned for a shot, she saw the tail end of both wolves leaping into the woods, her wolf chasing the other.
Olivia leaned against the barn, adjusting her position in accordance with her pain. She thought of the curious readings she sensed from her wolf, not sure of their meaning. She never questioned first impressions from readings anymore. Years of experiences proved first intuitive readings rang as authentic truth in almost every case.
She closed her eyes and pictured her wolf looking at her for the first time, the way his head snapped in her direction and how their gazes met and connected. She touched her neck, sliding fingertips up her cheek where his tongue touched her skin. Her breath caught, heart raced, and her eyes opened wide. She laughed out loud, maybe in relief, maybe in a small fit of hysteria, or maybe because she consider that wolf as “her” wolf. Her “stimulation” readings from him threw her off, knowing it wasn’t a possibility.
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