Waiting on Wednesday: The Fall by Bethany Griffin

{Releases 10.07.2014}

Madeline Usher has been buried alive. The doomed heroine comes to the fore in this eerie reimagining of Edgar Allan Poe's classic short story "The Fall of the House of Usher." Gothic, moody, and suspenseful from beginning to end, The Fall is literary horror for fans of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children and Asylum.

Madeline awakes in a coffin. She was put there by her own twin brother. How did it come to this? In short non-chronological chapters, Bethany Griffin masterfully spins a haunting and powerful tale of a tragic heroine and the curse on the Usher family. The house itself is alive around Madeline, and it will never let her escape, driving her to the madness just as it has all of her ancestors. But she won't let it have her brother Roderick. She'll do everything in her power to save him—and try to save herself—even if it means bringing the house down around them.

With a sinister gothic atmosphere and relentless tension to rival Poe himself, Bethany Griffin creates a house of horrors and introduces a whole new point-of-view on the timeless classic.

Why I’m waiting:

I don’t know if it’s the feeling and smell of fall in the air, or the Halloween decorations everywhere, but I’m in the mood to read something gothic and creepy…and when I saw this, it seemed perfect!

What are you waiting on?

Review: The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

The Evolution of Mara Dyer
Michelle Hodkin
Series: The Mara Dyer Trilogy (Book 2)
Paperback: 544 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Source: My shelf
Goodreads – Amazon

Mara Dyer knows she isn't crazy. She knows that she can kill with her mind, and that Noah can heal with his. Mara also knows that somehow, Jude is not a hallucination. He is alive. Unfortunately, convincing her family and doctors that she's not unstable and doesn't need to be hospitalised isn't easy. The only person who actually believes her is Noah. But being with Noah is dangerous and Mara is in constant fear that she might hurt him. She needs to learn how to control her power, and fast! Together, Mara and Noah must try and figure out exactly how Jude survived when the asylum collapsed, and how he knows so much about her strange ability...before anyone else ends up dead!

My reaction after finishing The Evolution of Mara Dyer:

{Source: Giphy}

Y’all, this book is a hot mess. There is so much going on, not a single part of it makes sense and fits neatly in the plot.  Rebecca looked at me and said this needed to be my last YA “girl” book.  But that’s not it—it’s not because this is a “girl” book.  It’s not that there aren’t interesting parts, because there are, it’s because none of it works together.  It feels like Hodkin decided to write a book and fit it into as many genres as humanly possible—and it just isn’t cohesive.  At all.  I wanted to like this book, and with it read the rest of the series because I think that there is an amazing concept buried somewhere in all the garbage that makes up these books.

I reread my reivew of The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer before writing this one—I wanted to remind myself what I didn’t like about it and what I did.  It seems TUoMD was more likeable that TEoMD.  By about a quarter of the way through TEoMD, I wasn’t sure I would be able to finish.  I was so fed up with the juvenile, amateurish writing and the strikingly apparent lack of chemistry between Noah and Mara.  The constant description of how perfect and arrogant (seriously, this is like the only word she used to describe him) Noah is, every time he entered the scene.  How Hodkin decided we weren’t smart enough to read between the lines and spelled out every. Single.  Thing.  Mara was thinking.  That no one grew or developed or changed for better/worse ever.  That there was nothing moving the story forward.

I actually jumped ahead and read the last chapter.  Or I wouldn’t have finished.  I liked pages 491-527 (on which the Second Volume ended).  I feel like Hodkin finally found her voice and story after going in circles for nearly 800 pages (the entirety of TUoMD & the first 490 pages of TEoMD).  There was action, excitement, and paranormal.  There was mystery, and a cliffhanger.  There were some amazing revelations.  And I want to know why.

Yet, I don’t know what so many people see in these books.  I checked out Goodreads, and there are several people that feel the same as I do about this book/series.  I do know that I won’t continue this series.

So, my advice, if you haven’t already bought this, don’t.  If you haven’t started reading this, don’t.  I’m still shaking my head, confused and disappointed.

Review: Rock Addiction by Nalini Singh

Rock Addiction
Nalini Singh
Series: Rock Kiss
Paperback: 404 pages
Genre: New Adult
Publisher: TKA Distribution
Released: September 11, 2014
Source: publisher

• Goodreads – Amazon – Kobo – iTunes

A bad boy wrapped in a sexy, muscled, grown-up package might be worth a little risk…

Molly Webster has always followed the rules. After an ugly scandal tore apart her childhood and made her the focus of the media’s harsh spotlight, she vowed to live an ordinary life. No fame. No impropriety. No pain. Then she meets Zachary Fox, a tattooed bad boy rocker with a voice like whiskey and sin, and a touch that could become an addiction.

A one-night stand with the hottest rock star on the planet, that’s all it was meant to be…

Fox promises scorching heat and dangerous pleasure, coaxing Molly to extend their one-night stand into a one-month fling. After that, he’ll be gone forever, his life never again intersecting with her own. Sex and sin and sensual indulgence, all with an expiration date. No ties, no regrets. Too late, Molly realizes it isn’t only her body that’s become addicted to Fox, but her heart…

Review

I tried to make this as spoiler free as possible.

Anyone that knows me knows I am a HUGE Nalini fan. Her Psy-changeling and Guild Hunter series are my favorite PNR series of all time! I am not however a big new adult genre fan, but when I heard about this contemporary new adult romance by my fave author I was so excited to get to this read.

What I loved

I could honestly feel the attraction and pull between Molly and Fox (Our main characters) From the very first page. Yes! This is an insta-lust right from the start kinda read, but that did not bother me, it is also a romance with a rock star main character, I was expecting the insta-lust. Have I read rock band/star romance reads before? Yes! But, in true Nalini Singh fashion she gave her characters depth and turned them into real people for me and made me care about what made them tick.

I really loved Fox! After he discovered what he wanted he went after it no mater what it takes. I enjoyed this because it was obvious from the start that he is a character that normally gets what he wants (or Fox throws a tantrum and people give into him) and now Fox needs to work at it. It was nice to see his growth through Rock Addiction.  

What I didn’t love

The sex became filler in Rock Addiction. I do not mind at all if there are smexy times in an adult read, but honestly I felt like visiting with some of the other characters, or somehow progressing faster in Molly and Fox’s story line than reading about them going about it yet again. I began skipping just to get to actual story.

Should you get a copy

If you are a big Contemporary New Adult genre fan that enjoys many smexy times in your reads give this a go. This is not your usual Nalini Singh read! If you are looking for a recreation of Singh’s PNR work this may not be for you. This is very much a first in the series book. I do want to continue with other characters that I met in Rock Addiction.

Happy reading

Guest post and Giveaway: Guardians Book 1 by Lola StVil

Guardians: The Girl
Guardians
Book One
Lola StVil
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Romance
ASIN: B006VRXR42
Cover Artist: Renu Sharma
 
The prophecy says I will fall in love with team leader and Angel, Marcus Cane. The prophecy also says that our love will cause his mission to fail and end the world.
Whatever.
This human is not worried. Why?
Because I do not intend to fall in love with Marcus.
The truth is I hate him. I hate his warm brown eyes with flecks of gold, his chiseled face and broad shoulders.
I hate how over protective he is just because a few thousand demons are after me.
In fact, I couldn't care less about Marcus or his perfect telekinetic girlfriend.
And when I see him holding her, I don’t die a little inside…
 
Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/7rWxyAvm_gk
 
Available at: Amazon BN Kobo Amazon UK iTunes
******OVER 450 FIVE STAR REVIEWS!*******

 

Alternate Endings by Lola StVil

 

My assistant and I would often brainstorm if I got stuck on a scene or felt bored. And we would often talk about how the fans were reacting to the story and if the cliffhangers were big enough and if the ending should be bigger. I’m always worried it’s not enough. So, my assistant and I would joke about how to end it, since the audience is never shy to demand the ending they want.

 

She would say, “Let’s make it all a dream. Like ‘Dallas.” Then she’d say, “What if Emmy just made it all up. Like a story within a story, like “The Princess Bride.’” Or, “How about we kill everyone and let the bad guys win?” She’s terrible, but it’d usually get me out of my stump and back to writing. Luckily for the fans, and B’s safety, the books never ended the way she suggested. We told the fans the alternate endings, and sure enough, they scolded B for rebellious streak.

 

But how interesting would complete plot twists like those be? To completely throw off the lead and have the audience breathless in an ending they never saw coming…Sounds like that could be a short story. ☺When you get so wrapped into a story, it does two things to you. First, you want to do it right and do it big. You really want to give your all to the characters and readers. The other thing it does to you is the relentless desire to just make it end! So, my assistant would tease we should end the book in different way to drive the audience crazy; all in good fun to make me laugh, of course. (The fans love B and her antics.)

 

About Lola

Lola StVil is a Haitian born writer and actress.

 

She lives in Hollywood, CA and welcomes online interaction with readers. Lola was seven when she first came to this country from Port-au-Prince, Haiti. She attended Columbia College in Chicago, where her main focus was creative writing. In addition to plays, she also writes screenplays and short stories.

 

She has been commissioned to write for ABC, CBS and Princeton University. She won the NAACP award for her play "The Bones of Lesser Men". In addition to being nominated for LA Weekly awards. Her work has also received positive reviews from The LA Times, Variety and LA Weekly. This is her first novel.

 
http://www.lolastvil.com/
https://www.facebook.com/guardiansgirl
Twitter @guardiansgirl
Instagram @authorlolastvil
Newsletter http://eepurl.com/W-scP

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Excerpt and Giveaway: Rock Addiction by Nalini Singh

I am so excited to bring you an excerpt from Singh’s new book Rock Addiction! Stop back by next week for the blog tour and my review.

A bad boy wrapped in a sexy, muscled, grown-up package might be worth a little risk…

Molly Webster has always followed the rules. After an ugly scandal tore apart her childhood and made her the focus of the media’s harsh spotlight, she vowed to live an ordinary life. No fame. No impropriety. No pain. Then she meets Zachary Fox, a tattooed bad boy rocker with a voice like whiskey and sin, and a touch that could become an addiction.

A one-night stand with the hottest rock star on the planet, that’s all it was meant to be…

Fox promises scorching heat and dangerous pleasure, coaxing Molly to extend their one-night stand into a one-month fling. After that, he’ll be gone forever, his life never again intersecting with her own. Sex and sin and sensual indulgence, all with an expiration date. No ties, no regrets. Too late, Molly realizes it isn’t only her body that’s become addicted to Fox, but her heart…

RELEASE DATE: September 9th, 2014 (That’s today y’all!)Goodreads – Kobo – iTunes – Amazon

 

Excerpt from ROCK ADDICTION

by Nalini Singh

 

Fox hadn’t become the lead singer of one of the best-selling rock bands in history by being a shrinking violet. No, he went after what he wanted, no holds barred. And the raw promise he could feel between him and Molly? He had to know where it would lead, the need so strong he hadn’t felt anything like it since the day he’d figured out that music was his escape, the air in his lungs.

 

Which was why he was leaning against the wall beside Molly’s apartment at five that afternoon, a guitar by his side.

 

The elevator doors opened at a quarter after the hour, Molly going motionless two steps outside of it, the doors closing silently at her back. Yeah, she hadn’t expected him, but Fox was ready to work with that. Waiting patiently as she took a deep breath and completed the trek down the corridor, he drew in the scent of her, his gaze lingering on the fluttering pulse in her neck.

 

“How did you get past security?”

 

Fox smiled slowly at the blurted-out question, wondering if Molly knew how bad she was at hiding her emotions. He liked it, liked that he saw the real Molly, not an illusion she’d created to tempt him—not that she had to do anything but smile to tempt him. “I told you the security sucks.”

 

Unable to resist, he reached out to run his finger down one creamy cheek flushed with a mix of surprise, passion, and, he was certain, sweet, hot feminine anger. His guess was borne out when Molly unlocked her door with jittery hands and put down her handbag on one corner of the bench, her fingers trembling before she curled them into her palms. “You’re breaking the rules.”

 

“What rules?” Closing the door, he leaned back on it and willed her to face him. Much as he loved the shape of her from the back, he liked watching those expressive eyes whisper her mood to him.

 

Shoulders tight, she turned. “This was supposed to be a one-night stand.”

 

“Ah.” Folding his arms over the plain black of his T-shirt, he said, “How about a one-month stand instead?” He knew he had to play this exactly right. Molly was wary of him, and yeah, he could understand why. To have her in his life beyond a fleeting instant, he’d have to win her trust.

 

She jerked up her head. “What?”

 

“Why not? I like you. You like me.” He smiled—because the reason Molly had needed to jerk up her head was that she’d been staring at his chest. “Admit it.”

 

Sitting down on the bench, she began to unzip her boots, very obviously not looking at him. “You’re okay for a rock star.”

 

He wanted to bite her, then pet her until she was limp and languid in his arms. “We burn up together.” Deliberately modulating his voice—his instrument—for maximum effect, low and bedroom rough, he saw her fingers stutter on the zipper. “I’m here for a month. It’s an easy equation.”

 

When the words “Let me think about it” fell from her mouth, he thought she might’ve been as startled as he was, her lips parting on a slight gasp—as if to call back the declaration.

 

Meet the Author

 

NEW YORK TIMES AND USA Today bestselling author of the Psy-Changeling and Guild Hunter series Nalini Singh usually writes about hot shapeshifters and dangerous angels. This time around, she decided to write about a hot and wickedly tempting rock star. If you’re seeing a theme here, you’re not wrong.

Nalini lives and works in beautiful New Zealand, and is passionate about writing. If you’d like to explore her other books, you can find lots of excerpts on her website. Slave to Sensation is the first book in the Psy-Changeling series, while Angels’ Blood is the first book in the Guild Hunter series. Once Rock Addiction is out, swing by the site to check out the special behind-the-scenes page, complete with photos of many of the locations used in the book.

STALK HER:  Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

 

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Review: Tempting the Beast by Lora Leigh

Tempting The Beast
Lora Leigh
Series: Breeds #1
Paperback: 264 pages
Publisher: Ellora's Cave Publishing
Published: July 25, 2008
Source: Library
Goodreads – Amazon

Callan Lyons is a genetic experiment. One of six fighting for freedom and the survival of their Pride. Merinus Tyler is the reporter who will tempt him, draw him, until the fury of the "mating frenzy" locks them into a battle of sexual heat there is no escape from.

Deception, blood, and the evil Genetics Council are hot on their trail. Callan will use his strength to try and save them both...and do all in his power to keep his woman in the process.

Review

One night I was searching for a new shifter PNR to read, specifically a new shifter PNR series because I generally pop through PNR like candy. I came across Tempting The Beast in my search. I honestly have no idea how I had never heard of the Breeds series before. This series all ready has like 30 installments… How I missed hearing about a series that long running I will never know. Now let’s get to the good, the bad, and the ugly (Um, did you see the cover).

The good

Though I did find Tempting the Beast while searching for shifter books this is not quite a shifter book. The characters so far in this series don’t shift into animals, (though they do have some cool big cat traits) and I don’t think that is something that will be happening. Callan (Main male lead.), and his “pride” are genetic experiments. I liked this twist into the paranormal/scifi link. I don’t really know who is behind all these evil experiments that created Callan and those like him other than the vague references we get about the pride hiding from the Council that created them. The mystery behind what the Council is and what or who else they have created kept my interest piqued throughout the read.

I feel like Leigh did a good job at making Tempting the Beast a platform for continuing stories within this world without completely loosing the original story that was being told. The romance and relationship between Callan and Merinus (Lead female) was ok, but I have to say I did find myself rolling my eyes at times at just how predictable they were, but this is PNR. I don’t want to spoil anything if you plan on giving this a try but Tempting the Beast did remind me a bit of the BDBH when a certain female went into needing… I will say no more, and if you didn’t get that reference it’s not really important.

The not so good

I would have liked more of a back story in Merinus. I feel like if I would have gotten a little more of this cool lead I could have connected and liked her more, instead of only getting her character when she is under stress. Also, don’t get me wrong I like my smexy times in my romance reads… But there needs to be a balance. This for me was to much sex and not enough relationship building. Yes, I do know Merinus and Callan where in the mating frenzy or whatever, but come on, I got to the point that I was just skipping the sex scenes. 

Should you get a copy?

If you love paranormal romance, are looking for something a little different, and don’t mind a lot of graphic sex I say give this a shot. Now I will say this is not something I will be re-reading but I think I will give the next book in the series a try. I am very interested in where all the setup of this book will lead.

This was a quick read that piqued my interest in what is to come for these characters in the future, but I wouldn't stay up too late reading it. 

Happy Reading

Review: Beautiful Redemption by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Beautiful Redemption
Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl
Series: Beautiful Creatures
Preloaded Digital Audio Player
Publisher: Findaway World
Published: October 23, 2012
Source: My Audible account
Goodreads – Amazon

Is death the end . . . or only the beginning?

Ethan Wate has spent most of his life longing to escape the stiflingly small Southern town of Gatlin. He never thought he would meet the girl of his dreams, Lena Duchannes, who unveiled a secretive, powerful, and cursed side of Gatlin, hidden in plain sight. And he never could have expected that he would be forced to leave behind everyone and everything he cares about. So when Ethan awakes after the chilling events of the Eighteenth Moon, he has only one goal: to find a way to return to Lena and the ones he loves.

Back in Gatlin, Lena is making her own bargains for Ethan's return, vowing to do whatever it takes -- even if that means trusting old enemies or risking the lives of the family and friends Ethan left to protect.
Worlds apart, Ethan and Lena must once again work together to rewrite their fate, in this stunning finale to the Beautiful Creatures series.

Review

Ok, y’all.  Let’s be honest.  I’m not completely pleased with how Garcia and Stohl ended the series.  I was excited to start Beautiful Redemption after finishing the amazingness that was Beautiful Chaos…especially after the way the ended it! {Read my review here}

I’m just…in shock at this.  Nearly wordless.

Beautiful Redemption left me feeling less than redeemed.  Here’s why {and this is going to be spoiler laden, so fair warning}:

• I didn’t feel the connection between Lena and Ethan.  Ethan was pining for her from the other world and doing everything he could to get back to Gatlin and her…and I didn’t feel the same sense of urgency from Lena’s story
• BR was split into 3(??) “books,” two from Ethan’s and one from Lena’s POV.  Lena seemed weak, unmotivated, and bored.  I don’t feel like she loved Ethan enough to actually do or try anything.  Garcia and Stohl eluded that the different groups of people were “trying,” but I never actually believed them.
• There were some unanswered, or vaguely dealt with themes.  I know that everything can’t be neat and tidy, but there were things that should have been.  For example:
  • Did the Casters do anything about the rouge Keepers?
  • How much time passed while Ethan was away?
  • How much time passed before Amma’s obit was published?
  • Seraphine…????  I didn’t understand that part AT ALL.  I mean really, how did Angeles have control over her after her death?
• Time jumps without introduction confuse me.  Greatly.  See point above.
• I did not like the female narrator at all.  She got all the voices wrong.  And I felt very confused because of this.
• Nearly NOTHING about Lena’s story. 
• Things seemed to happen a little too easily for Ethan.  And regarding Abraham…read the books and you’ll understand.

Now, I did enjoy things about BR, too.  Here are a few:

• Ethan is an amazing character.  If Lena had half as much character development in the Caster Chronicles as Ethan did, then I might would like her more.  Let me get this point across to you: he’s AMAZING.  More teen male protagonists need to be like him.  He’s strong, polite and respectful, considerate, and still a man.  Men don’t have to be jerks to get the girl.  More authors need to take note of this.
• I love The Sisters.  And Aunt Pru didn’t disappoint.  I wish she had gotten more screen time.
• Garcia and Stohl wove together different mythologies, and I appreciated that. 
• Even though the ending droned on a little, and really liked the actual last two chapters.  There were several points that they could have ended things on—several times that made me sigh with contentedness—yet I’m glad they chose the two ending chapters that they did.  They were PERFECT.
• Nearly EVERYTHING about Ethan’s story.

This is by far my least favorite installment in the series.  There was so much that just didn’t seem to fit in with the rest of the books.

But this is just my opinion…