Give me magic, gadgets, monsters, zombies, everything that seems impossible, and throw in some tough chicks with swords. That's the stuff.

Thursday, October 31, 2013

More Transplanted Tales & a Giveaway

Kate SeRine has unveiled the newest cover in her Transplanted Tales series, and she has a giveaway too!

This time we have a novella, GRIMM CONSEQUENCES, a companion/sequel to the very awesome RED.

Here is the cover:

The blurbage:

"You reap what you sow…

Saying Nate Grimm has a dark past is an understatement. Fortunately, no one’s bothered to look too closely at the Fairytale Management Authority’s lead detective and part-time Reaper. And that’s the way Nate wants to keep it. For after centuries of torment and loneliness, he’s finally found happiness with the hot and hard-charging love of his life, Tess “Red” Little.

Of course, his love for Tess is the reason there’s a posse of Reaper judges after him, led by a sadistic bastard acquainted with Nate from once upon a time. Now, Tess will pay the price for Nate’s transgressions unless Nate severs his ties to the transplanted Tales—and Tess—forever. His enemy has the advantage in speed, malice and brutality. But the Reapers have underestimated the depth of Nate’s love and devotion. And the fury of his wrath…"

I adore this series and am very much looking forward to seeing what happened to Tess and Nate after RED. We have to wait until April to read it, but the cover gives us a little taste of what's to come. I am so looking forward to finding out more about the Reapers (you know I have a thing for Death characters) and seeing two of my favorites in the spotlight again.

Now to the international GIVEAWAY from Kate SeRine. Just enter the Rafflecopter below.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Pre-order GRIMM CONSEQUENCES: Amazon
Kate SeRine links

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Bloodlines Review: Demons of Oblivion Tour

Today the Book Pile is a stop on Skyla Dawn Cameron's Demons of Oblivion tour.

I should have listened to Melissa (from My World...in words & pages) and gotten into this series earlier. She said I would like it and she was right. Snarky, kickass heroine, loads of action, some romance, and a very interesting world, I got sucked in and enjoyed the whole ride.

The blurb for the series:

"A diverse cast of characters come together in classic urban fantasy about monsters, the people who hunt them, and the occasional apocalypse. Snarky humor, magic with bite, nonstop action, a
dose of romance, and at its core: broken people finding family in one another.

Also, there’s a saber-tooth cat named Sir Rodney Ballsgalore. Because reasons."

Yes, Cameron is very good at the snarky asides. Here is the blurbage for book 1, BLOODLINES:

"If you're in her way, it sucks to be you.

After three hundred years of unlife, narcissistic vampire Zara Lain has seemingly done it all, and she's now making a living as a successful thief-turned-assassin. Her newest assignment seems simple enough: kill the aging leader of the O'Connor coven and his only heir, and she'll have another ten million in the bank.

But in the dangerous world of the supernatural, few things are ever “simple.”

When a massive assault decimates the continent's population of powerful witches and warlocks, and its orchestrator has vampires being hunted down and captured, Zara realizes the tables have turned and now she'll be playing the hero. Forced to join with a smart-mouthed fellow vampire, a demonologist who's also a fan of hers, a recently widowed—and frequently brooding—warlock, and her best friend's mom, Zara's grudgingly willing to do what she can to save the day.

If only people would stop ruining all her outfits..."

First off, the action junkie is appeased. Loads of action, explosions, fights, quick pace. Oh yeah.

I liked the world building. It is a huge world and there is lots that can be done with it. There is a huge shakeup that happens very close to the start. This will have lots of consequences down the line. I also liked the mythology.

Zara's vampire is a hunter and is fairly pragmatic about what that entails. I felt Cameron balanced Zara's snark and selfishness with the realities of an immortal "un"life as well as the events from her past to make her a well-rounded character you can sympathize with (but never pity) and root for til the end. I liked the other characters as well, but this is Zara's show all the way.

Lots of betrayals, Zara learns more about her world, and there is some steam too, but it fit with the character and the story. This tale is definitely not done and I want to know what happens next. It is a UF series with different protags (although Zara gets her turn in the spotlight again), so that is a little different. I'm looking forward to the next one.

BLOODLINES is free until November 1 for Kindle, so go grab it now!

The other books in the series are half-price until November 1 too.
HUNTER
LINEAGE

Skyla Dawn Cameron:
Website: www.skyladawncameron.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/skyladawn
Facebook: www.facebook.com/SkylaDawnCameron
GoodReads: www.goodreads.com/skyladawncameron
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/skyladawnc/

[received a review copy]

Friday, October 11, 2013

It's Gettin' COLD in Here

Amanda Carlson's latest Jessica McClain book, COLD BLOODED, released this week and it is filled to the brim with action of every kind.

Yes you Romance fans, you'll be happy here. And you non-Romance fans, hey, it's book 3, it's time.

There is quite a bit of setup for things that need to happen later in the series, but it didn't feel like a "middle book" to me. More like the continuation of the runaway train that has been Jess' life since she first shifted in book 1.

The action is back in the city, with Jess returning to her hometown just as her friend Marcy has been kidnapped by sorcerers. Marcy's aunt, Tally, is willing to feed Jess to them to get Marcy back, and as one of the most powerful witches in the country, she would be a formidable opponent. Jess has to make new alliances quickly, outrun sorcerers and demons, and keep running for her life. This takes her to New Orleans and the queen of the vampires who has her own designs on Jess.

I've said action a couple of times, but I should add more: action, action, ACTION! It really doesn't stop, and Jess barely has time to think, something that is going to bite her in more ways than one, I'm afraid. She has her mate, her family, her friends and some new allies, all of whom she will need.

I really liked what is happening with Ray. His character arc keeps getting more interesting. Naomi and Danny are still among my favs. I also like Jess and Rourke together, especially that while he is protective, he also gets that she is strong.

I also love the broader view of the various supernaturals we get here, in particular the witches and vamps. The world is expanding, the stakes are rising, and I have a feeling in book 4 the action will be explosive.

We definitely need book 4 (thank you recent book deal where we get at 2 more books in this series), because we are left with a big problem at the end. I can't wait to read how Jess claws and bites her way out of it.

Now on to the GIVEAWAY! Enter the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win. Thanks, Amanda!
COLD BLOODED Giveaway!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

COLD BLOODED  Amazon | B&N | Kobo | Indiebound

Amanda Carlson
website: http://www.amandacarlson.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/amandaccarlson
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authoramandacarlson