Winner: A CURSED EMBRACE

And the winner is...

Ryan Snyder

Congrats! I'm sending your info to Cecy.

Thank you so much to Cecy for the giveaway, and everyone for entering.

Be sure to check back in July - I'll be having a little "Christmas in July" celebration for the blog's 2nd birthday. US + International - hooray!

Note: Sorry for the delay. The kids ran me a little ragged this week. Gotta love summer vacay.

Review: Club Monstrosity

Club Monstrosity by Jesse Petersen

When I saw "monster support group" I was so in. Natalie, the last of Dr. Frankenstein's creations, Alec the Wolfman, Dracula, Linda, a Swamp Thing, Kai, a Mummy, Bob the Blob, the Invisible Man - they all meet for their weekly support group as they try to live undiscovered in a dangerous human world.

Then members start dying the same way they did in their stories and soon these monsters who barely can stand spending one session together must join forces to stop the murderer before another monster goes down.

This short novel was a very quick read, but so much fun. It is a bit lighter than my usual UF reads and has some romance. There is some action, especially at the end.

I really liked our two leads, Natalie and Alec. Natalie works at the morgue, fitting since she was put together from leftover body parts, is very conscious about trying to fit in to the normal world, and tries so hard not to "monster out." Alec puts on the appearance that he is coasting through life, but he is more than he appears and has his eye on a certain monster.

I already pre-ordered the next one, out in July, The Monsters in Your Neighborhood.

Note: If you are looking for a quick read that is also easy on the wallet, check out Pocket Star's selection of other books. I've found some good reads there.

Club Monstrosity Amazon | B&N | Kobo  

Jesse Petersen:
website: http://www.jessepetersen.net/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3369676.Jesse_Petersen
twitter: https://twitter.com/jessepet

Review: Dead Things

Dead Things (Eric Carter #1) by Stephen Blackmoore

I knew after reading the first chapter that it was time to strap myself in and enjoy the ride. Excellent world and magic system, tortured lead character, lots of danger and action - hells yes.

First off, the setting: Los Angeles. LA has always been hellish for me, so  a story set there with a rampaging, ravenous ghost, the personification of Death, gangsters, a magical hitman, it all worked.

Eric is our hitman. His magical talent is control of the dead. He left LA after avenging the death of his parents, but his sister's murder brings him back. He is looking for payback and finds way more than he was expecting.

I am a sucker for any story where Death is a character. I love it, and I always want to see where the author will go with it. Here we get  Death across different belief systems, in particular the Loa and Santa Muerte.  Santa Muerte is so creepy. 

The magic system worked for me. I got plenty of show versus tell and it made sense. I liked Eric's attitude to his power. Control over the dead is one that would make most squeamish. 

This isn't a book with romance. There are lots of relationship issues. Eric spent years trying to keep a distance from anyone who mattered to him. He also left without a goodbye. I liked his interactions with Alex, his childhood friend, and Vivian, his ex. There is so much give and take, issues of trust and anger on all sides.

A fast-paced, action-packed read that solved our main issue but left room for more, I will be eagerly awaiting the next Eric Carter adventure.

Review: The Pirate's Wish

The Pirate's Wish (Assassin's Curse #2) by Cassandra Rose Clarke

Note: This is a book 2. Some parts of this review will be spoilery if you haven't read book 1, The Assassin's Curse (link goes to my review). That book was fantastic, so go read it if you love YA, action adventure, and fairytales.

Once again, I devoured this book, world and characters. Right away, as we get back into the mind of Ananna, our strong, clever pirate princess, I was enthralled. Her voice is unique and it was easy to get back into this world and our continuing adventure.

Ananna and Naji are still pretty much where we left them. They are stuck on a dangerous island with no way off, and they have three impossible tasks to accomplish to break the curse that binds them together (or at least binds Naji to Ananna; luckily for him she didn't cut and run). Or at least Naji thinks he has three impossible tasks. Ananna knows the third task, receive a kiss from a true love is not impossible because she loves him. Of course, she thinks it is impossible that he could love her...

Add in a dangerous manticore, more pirates, new friends, old enemies, tons of danger, battles, treacherous enemies from the Mists and you have a rollicking adventure.

Ananna makes this story for me. I absolutely love her. She might not be book smart, but she is clever, brave,  well-balanced, and she can weather any storm. I have read many stories containing unrequited love. When I know that the character will not dissolve into a puddle of goo nor cast herself from a cliff if her love isn't returned, I am a much more satisfied reader. I never felt that everything about Ananna was tied into her romantic feelings. Yes if he doesn't love her back, she will grieve, be upset, but she will live and find her own happiness. She is more than just the other half of a relationship. And that makes any ending or HEA that comes all the sweeter.

Clarke is not done with this world, The Wizard's Promise will be out in 2014. It involves other characters and I believe deals with the next generation.

If you love action, adventure, fantasy and fairytales, you might want to give this one a try. I would put it in an older YA fantasy category.

[received a review copy]

The Pirate's Wish  Amazon | B&N | Kobo | IndieBound

Cassandra Rose Clarke:
website: http://www.cassandraroseclarke.com/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5331983.Cassandra_Rose_Clarke
twitter: https://twitter.com/mitochondrial

Strange Chemistry: http://strangechemistrybooks.com/