Green Eyed Demon by Jaye Wells plus an awesome Giveaway

The clock is ticking for Sabina Kane. Her sister has been kidnapped by her grandmother, the Dark Races are on the brink of war, and a mysterious order is manipulating everyone behind the scenes.

Working on information provided by an unlikely ally, Sabina and her trusty sidekicks – a sexy mage named Adam Lazarus and Giguhl, a Mischief demon – head to New Orleans to begin the hunt for her sister. Once there, they must contend with belligerent werewolves, magic-wielding vampires and – perhaps most frightening of all – humans.

But as much as Sabina is focused on surviving the present, the past won’t be ignored. Before she can save those she cares about most, she must save herself from the ghosts of her past.

Release Date (UK) 03/02/11 (US) 01/03/11

This is the third book in the Sabina Kane series. The first is Red Headed Stepchild and the second is The Mage in Black. I was sucked in by the first book and I'm still in love with this series now. Sabina is a kick ass half mage half vampire (or magepire), Adam is a hot mage Pythian guard and Giguhl is the funniest demon sidekick ever (not that he has huge competition in that category but still).

Sabina's twin, Maisie, was kidnapped at the end of Mage in Black by Sabina's grandmother. Lavinia Kane is the Alpha Domina (queen bitch of all vampires) and hates Sabina and Maisie because of their mixed blood heritage. In this book, Sabina tries to find Maisie and hopes to finally defeat Lavinia. She meets new friends and finds out more about her mage powers in this book as well as finally realising the depths her emotions can go.

Of the new characters introduced in this book, Brooks is my favourite. I'm not going to tell you anything about him so don't worry, no spoilers here. Although out of all the characters in the series I think Giguhl will always be my favourite. He's just awesome, so cheeky and horny it makes for some awesome one liners from him, and I still giggle at his nickname for Sabina, "Trampire". Can't wait for more from Sabina and co. and hope Jaye has lots of books planned for them.


Book Depository: Green-Eyed Demon
Amazon UK: Green-Eyed Demon

And a first for my blog, I'm going to run a giveaway with this review. To be in with a chance to win a copy of not just Green Eyed Demon, but also Red Headed Stepchild and Mage in Black (yes I am just that awesome!) just follow this blog and comment below. Tell me where you heard of my blog or where you stumbled across it and what your favourite series of the moment is or are, then I'll randomly choose a winner. Leave an email address where I can contact you for your details as well, or your twitter name if you don't want to leave your email. And that is all there is to it, to be in with a chance to win all the books so far in this awesome series.
The giveaway is open to any country that Book Depository delivers to, which I think is all of them! So follow and comment, it can't hurt and it costs you nothing.

Contest will run for a fortnight so end date is 11/02/11.

Thin Air by Rachel Caine

******SPOILERS FOR PREVIOUS BOOKS******

Joanne Baldwin has had better days - at least she hopes she has. After waking up naked and freezing in a forest, she's located by two rescuers she doesn't recognise at all. One supernaturally gorgeous guy might have been her lover. The other says he can control the weather ... and so can she.

Not everyone looking for Joanne has her best interests at heart, and with no way to tell friend from foe, Joanne is quickly lost in a fog of deception. Her tenuous hold on life is fading with every passing moment. Now she must rebuild herself, one memory at a time, before someone else steals her life - and she disappears into thin air. Oh, and along the way, it seems she has to save the world...

Book six of the Weather Warden series. Previous books are Ill Wind, Heat Stroke, Chill Factor, Windfall and Firestorm.

Joanne wakes up in a forest; cold, naked and with no memory, Lewis and David find her but she also has no clue who they are. As they try to work out how to get her memories back, Vanna (Alice) takes her away to Vegas where she promptly gets arrested and has to be bailed out. Unfortunately she gets bailed out by the last people on earth she'd want to bail her out, if only she could remember them. The key to getting her memory back is Ashan, but he's in hiding after being stripped of his Djinn-hood. At the same time she must save the world from the demon who is trying to take over her life.

The great thing with this story was Joanne's memory loss, because of course we know she who she shouldn't be trusting but she just won't listen no matter how much I tell her! Although she does get to meet and fall in love with David all over again which is a nice thing. And with a new power to boot! She's now a triple threat like Lewis, although she has no control over either Fire or Earth power since they're still new to her, but technically so is Weather since she can't remember ever learning it.

I love Rachel Caine's writing so much and what's bugging me so much is that this book is the last one available in UK covers so far. There's no news on the publisher's website as to when the next one is being released. So, since I refuse to buy the US cover and wreck my collection, I'm going to have to find another way to read the rest of the series. 'Cause I most definitely want to read the rest of the series!

As should you!


Book Depository: Thin Air
Amazon UK: Thin Air

Interview with Julie Particka

Teenagers are greatly under-appreciated. Until one of her students read a piece she wrote and told her she should become an author, Julie never seriously considered it. To this day, she still appreciates the wisdom and council of teenagers.
No longer teaching, now she splits her time between raising her own kids and living in the world of her imagination (where her children occasionally visit). They reside in southwest Michigan with her wonderful (and very patient) husband and the faithful German Shepherd mix they're all convinced is a person trapped in a dog's body by some sort of curse. She doesn't want to change him back though--it'd be too hard for him to lie on her feet under the desk if he was human.

Julie Particka's website



In the run up to the release of Pretty Souls, I asked the author for a wee interview. Don’t expect this to be like other author interviews you’ve read though. It’s my first author interview so I thought I’d try and ask some different questions, maybe get a wee giggle out of Julie. I have the pleasure of knowing Julie personally (although I tend to call her Sel as I first met her online) and she’s as gorgeous in real life as her picture has you believe.



First off, the book related questions. Why don’t you give us a quick rundown of Pretty Souls?

Pretty Souls tells the story of Elle, a bitten werewolf, and Cass, her half-vampire foster sister. Though oddly matched, the girls work together to hide their true natures from everyone around them. In addition to spending their days as normal human teenagers, they sneak out at night to keep tabs on the generally quiet supernatural population in their town. When Pretty Souls begins, they find someone or something is turning people into voodoo-style zombies: still alive, but no longer themselves. On the journey to catching the bad guy, Elle has to deal with bullies, tutors, half-demons, first love, loss, betrayal, and the beast that inhabits her body day and night.


So are any of the characters (even slightly) based on anyone you know?

The sisters are physically (and only physically) based on two of my nieces. Elle runs cross country, and at one point the niece in question was in fact a runner, but not anymore, nor is she particularly hairy even at the full moon. My other niece has never been a cheerleader, nor has she ever drunk the blood of neighbourhood animals (at least not to my knowledge). So yes, but only in regard to their human physical appearance.


Who is your biggest literary influence?

Kelley Armstrong, no question. Not only do I love her writing, but the online writing group on her website was also what pushed me to improve my own craft. If I can manage a career anything like she’s developed, I will be an extremely happy woman.


Who is your biggest literary crush (excluding your own characters)?

Right now there is this steaming hot incubus named Brystion (from Allison Pang’s A Brush of Darkness) who makes me drool. I also have this strange crush on Adrian from Richelle Mead’s Vampire Academy series (though some of the people I’ve seen suggested to play him on screen? Uh…no). He’s just so wonderfully damaged, yet seems such a true soul that I adore him.
(I love Adrian too – JA)


Now onto the non-book related questions. As a parent, you must watch a lot of kids TV. What programme is your favourite? And we all know there’s at least one, if not more, that you actually enjoy.

LOL I actually don’t mind a few of them, though some it’s more for the opportunity to make fun of them than anything else. One that I just love on its own merits though is Phineas & Ferb. The kids on it remind me so much of mine, it isn’t even funny. Besides, any show with a pet platypus who is actually a secret agent is an automatic win.


What was your favourite childhood toy? Any that you always wanted but never got?

I don’t remember having a favourite toy. I had a bit of an obsession with stuffed animals, but I can’t name one that was my favourite. And it wasn’t a toy but I remember asking for a pony or riding lessons every year for ages. Finally had to pay for them myself once I was an adult.


What’s the worst fashion trend that you’ve ever followed?

Jumpers. What the hell were people thinking…including me? I have a long torso, so jumpers inevitably went places they weren’t supposed to go. Horrible, horrible memories. *Shudders* I should write a horror story about killer jumpsuits.
(I’d read it! That’d be full of giggles, I’m sure. – JA)


Can you tie a cherry stem in a knot with your tongue?

LOL no. My husband can though, and so can at least one of my best girlfriends. And that’s really all a girl needs, isn’t it?


If you had to wish for a mythological creature to be real, which one would it be?

(Must remember to be the good twin…) I always kind of wanted a Pegasus growing up. Unicorns were cool, but really? Is there anything better for a horse-loving girl than one that can fly? Oh, but I want it to be black. White horse and me? Yeah. No. Must be black.


Have you ever ridden a horse bareback?

Is this a trick question? (I’m the good twin, remember? LOL) Yes, I have indeed ridden more than one horse bareback in my time. If I had the opportunity right now, I’d do it again. (So who wants to loan me a horse?)
(If anyone offers one based on this, I’ll let Julie know, lol. – JA)




So that’s my short interview with Julie Particka and the review for Pretty Souls will be posted in a few weeks time. Please come back and read it!


Click here for review.

Forsaken: The Demon Trappers by Jana Oliver

Riley has always wanted to be a Demon Trapper like her father, and she's already following in his footsteps as one of the best. But it's tough being the only girl in an all-guy world, especially when three of those guys start making her life more complicated.

Simon, the angelic apprentice who has heaven on his side; Beck, the tough trapper who thinks he's God's gift, and Ori, the strikingly sexy stranger who keeps turning up to save her life.

One thing's for sure - if she doesn't keep her wits about her there'll be hell to pay...

Released as The Demon Trapper's Daughter in the US.

Riley is an apprentice Demon Trapper being trained by her father in how to trap demons, that is until her father is killed by one of them. Riley has to stop any necromancers from raising her dad from the grave to be used as an undead servant, unfortunately this means standing vigil over her dad's grave every night until the next full moon and putting up with the necromancers sales pitches. Along with this, Riley also has to attend classes, train with her new Master and handle a new relationship all at the same time.

I loved this book. It's set in 2018 in Atlanta - hell central. The demons are trying to take over and angels are few and far between so it's up to the Demon Trappers to even the score. I liked how the world was written and the storyline was exciting. Books where the main character's father dies always hit me hard and this one was no exception, especially as the scenes immediately following it are quite emotional.

Jana crafted a scary world with interesting characters, exciting action scenes and budding romances. A great read and I'm very much looking forward to the next one.


Book Depository: Forsaken
Amazon UK: The Demon Trappers: Forsaken

Matched by Ally Condie

On her seventeenth birthday, Cassia meets her match. Society dictates he is her perfect partner for life. Except he's not.

In Cassia's society, Officials decide who people love. How many children they have. Where they work. When they die.

But, as Cassia finds herself falling in love with another boy, she is determined to make some choices of her own.

And that's when her whole world begins to unravel...

Cassia gets matched to her best friend, Xander, on the day of her Matching Banquet, it is a very rare occurrence to get matched with someone in the same city let alone someone you actually know. But when she reads Xander's microcard, another face flashes up on the screen - a face she knows. Cassia begins to question the Society and her Match, along with everything else in her world. She needs to know more about the other boy, Ky, and finds herself falling in love with him. Is she willing to endanger everything she knows, and possibly her family's safety, to follow her heart or does she stay quiet and do what Society tells her to?

First off, how gorgeous is that cover? It's the reason I picked up the book, very different and visually stunning. The author has created a perfectly scary world in this book. Society have made sure only genetically matching couples have children therefore ensuring the healthiest of children, and over time most diseases have been eradicated. Society chooses who you marry and what you do for a living. Even what you eat and what you wear. This world is terribly frightening to me.

The book is very well written and I loved it. In spite of my fear of the world, I was drawn in to the story because, in my head, it's something that could actually happen at some point in time. Cassia is a good heroine, she has her own mind and decides that Society can't be completely true so she decides to fight. I really like her relationship with Ky and Xander as well as her family. Luckily, for me, there's going to be a sequel!


Rating
5/5


Book depository: Matched
Amazon UK: Matched

Firestorm by Rachel Caine

******SPOILERS FOR PREVIOUS BOOKS******

Rogue Weather Warden Joanne Baldwin is racing to New York to warn her former colleagues of the impending apocalypse. An ancient agreement between Djinn and the Wardens has been broken, and the furious Djinn, slaves to the Wardens for millennia, are now free of mortal control.

With more than half the Wardens unaccounted for in the wake of the Djinn uprising, Joanne realises that the natural disasters they've combated for so long were merely symptoms of restless Mother Nature fidgeting in her sleep. Now she's waking up - and she's angry...

Book five of the Weather Warden series. Previous books are Ill Wind, Heat Stroke, Chill Factor and Windfall.

After the ending in Windfall, Jo has to work out how to stop Mother Nature waking up fully and destroying the world. David can only help so much 'cos, if she wants him, Mother Nature has full control over all the Djinn, and they have no way of fighting it. And as if that wasn't bad enough, not all the Djinn are on the same wavelength. Ashan and a small group of Djinn are set on letting Mother Nature win this battle. But Jo is determined to fight as much as she can and must talk to Mother Nature to convince her to stop. And yes, that is as hard as it sounds.

I was a tad miffed at Rachel Caine and her treatment of David in previous books but this series has quickly dragged me back in again. I lovelovelove David and Jo and want them to be happy but I realise this is not at all possible. But I still want them to be together as much as they can.

The story in this book was amazing, real apocalypse style. And since it involved the end of the world it's a story that you feel fairly strong about! It was very emotional at times as well, not a lot can upset me but Rachel managed it in spades with this one. I said it before and I'll say it again ~ if you've read the rest of the series, you have to read the rest (LAW, remember?).

Also, if you haven't read the rest of the series? What are you waiting for??? Get started now!!


Rating
5/5


Book Depository: Firestorm
Amazon UK: Firestorm

Windfall by Rachel Caine

******BLURB HAS SPOILERS FOR PREVIOUS BOOKS******

Leaving Las Vegas seemed like a great idea to Joanne Baldwin. But there is no escaping her past - and there is no time to recharge. The former Weather Warden's powers are at an all-time low just as the clouds of war are gathering - and the biggest storm since Atlantis's destruction is heading for landfall.

Joanne is exhausted. When not donning a rain mac and camping it up for the camera as a TV weather girl, she has to contend with a vengeful cop on her tail, her newly divorced sister moving in and getting caught in the middle of a supernatural civil war. Worst of all, her boyfriend in a bottle can't stop draining her powers and is fast morphing from the Djinn of her dreams to the Ifrit of her nightmares.

As the agreement between the Wardens and the Djinn starts to self-destruct, Joanne finds herself forced to choose between saving her lover, saving her Warden abilities ... and saving humanity.

Book Four of the Weather Warden series. Previous books are Ill Wind, Heat Stroke and Chill Factor.

Joanne is working as a weather girl in Florida and has been warned about ever using her Warden powers again. Which isn't much of a problem since David is feeding off her powers and they're running low. David is an Ifrit but he can take form after feeding, which he doesn't like doing because he knows he's hurting another Djinn by doing it. But a major storm is coming and bringing other dangers with it, Jo has a huge decision to make that will affect her whole life.

This series just keeps getting better. I love how Rachel keeps you on your toes wondering what's coming next. One thing I really love about Rachel's writing? Her chapters are nice and long, although this trifles with my "I'll read to the end of this chapter then go to bed" method of reading!

I love David so much so the "is he isn't he an Ifrit" theme in this book killed me! I just loved the scenes after he'd fed and he was back and all gorgeous and sexy as usual but then he has to go away again when his power starts to fade, urgh, so frustrating.

If you've read the first 3 you have to read on, it's the LAW!


Rating
5/5


Book Depository: Windfall
Amazon UK: Windfall

Badlands by Seleste deLaney

After a brutal Civil War, America is a land divided. As commander of her nation's border guards, Ever is a warrior sworn to protect her country and her queen. When an airship attacks and kills the monarch, Ever must infiltrate enemy territory to bring home the heir to the throne, and the dirigible Dark Hawk is her fastest way to the Union.

Captain Spencer Pierce just wants to pay off the debt he owes on the Dark Hawk and make a life for himself trading across the border. When the queen's assassination puts the shipping routes at risk, he finds himself Ever's reluctant ally.

As they fly into danger, Ever and Spencer must battle not only the enemy but also their growing attraction. She refuses to place her heart before duty, and he has always put the needs of his ship and crew above his own desires. Once the princess is rescued, perhaps they can find love in the Badlands - if death doesn't find them first...

Release date 28/02/11

Ever gets interrupted pre dinner party by a siren going off at the fortress. The prisoners have escaped and are fighting their way free. When she and her guards get there, she hears of the queen's assassination and realises she must find the princess heir to the throne. She ends up aboard the Dark Hawk and finds herself strangely attracted to the captain but she must fight her attraction and get on with her mission. But can she stop herself if he's also attracted to her?

I loved this story so much. Loved Ever and especially loved the world Seleste has built for the characters. It's just my type of place (without the war and fighting), the steampunk/clockwork style that she's going for just reminded me of Return to Oz. I like the steampunk look so I had no problem with the imagery. Hmmm, I wonder if I could have found a new Hallowe'en costume?

I may be wrong here, but knowing the author likes a certain space-cowboy Captain, I felt there was a bit of Firefly/Serenity influence going on as well. Whether there was or not, does not change my opinion of the book, it was fun to read and I didn't want it to end. In fact, I'm still disappointed that it was over so soon.


Rating
5/5


Amazon UK: Badlands

My Soul to Take by Rachel Vincent

Something is wrong with Kaylee Cavanaugh ...

She can sense when someone near her is about to die. And when that happens, a force beyond her control compels her to scream bloody murder. Literally.

Kaylee just want to enjoy having caught the attention of the hottest guy in school. But a normal date is hard to come by when Nash seems to know more about the dark forces behind Kaylee's power than she does.

And when classmates start dropping dead for no apparent reason and only Kaylee knows who'll be next, she realises that finding a boyfriend is the least of her worries.

I read My Soul to Lose, the prequel to the Soul Screamers series, a while ago and couldn't wait to read this book. But just as I was about to order it, Rachel announced the cover art for the UK version and, as you can see above, it's gorgeous! So I forced myself to wait so I could get the nicer covers. I'm a tad cover obsessed when it comes to my books.

The wait did not disappoint. This is a great first book for the series, although I'm finding it difficult to say anything about the book here without giving away spoilers. Normally I gauge it by what the blurb says and the blurb here does not give a lot away! And I don't like to give spoilers away in a review.

So all I'm going to say is that Kaylee is a great character, as is Nash. They're well written and the story is great. I've read all of Rachel's Shifters series and love her as an author, her writing style is flawless and I basically read this book in one sitting. She writes a great story and manages to make me laugh as well.

I am currently about to download Reaper which is another Soul Screamers novella that the lovely Rachel Vincent is offering for free. Isn't she a lovely person?

So yeah, sorry I couldn't tell you a lot about the story but I don't want to spoiler people so blame the person that wrote the blurb! But a must read for all YA fantasy fans.


Rating
5/5


Book Depository: My Soul To Take
Amazon UK: My Soul to Take

Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton

When ordinary seventeen-year-old Ellie starts seeing reapers - monstrous creatures who devour humans and send their souls to Hell - she finds herself on the front lines of a supernatural war between Angels and the Fallen, and faced with the possible destruction of her soul.

A mysterious boy named Will, who has been waiting sixty years for her return, reveals she is the reincarnation of an ancient warrior, the only one armed with angelfire, and capable of fighting the reapers. He is an immortal sworn to protect her in battle. Her soul has been reborn again and again over the centuries to fight the reapers, and he's been there for five hundred years to protect and fight alongside her. Now that Ellie's powers have been awakened, a powerful reaper called Bastian has come forward to challenge her. He has employed a fierce assassin to eliminate her - an assassin who has already killed her once. At the same time, Ellie is falling in love with Will, even though they know their relationship should be impossible.

While balancing her dwindling social life and reaper-hunting duties, she and Will discover Bastian is searching for a dormant creature believed to be a true soul reaper. Bastian plans to use this weapon to destroy Ellie's soul forever, not to mention the devastating ramifications for human souls. Now she must face an army of Bastian's most frightening reapers, prevent the soul reaper from consuming her soul, and uncover the secrets of her past lives - including truths that may be too frightening to remember.

Release Date 15/02/11

It seems angels are the new vampires in the young adult world. But does that mean they're going to get run to the ground in the same fashion? And turned into something they're not just for entertainment? If it does, it's not happened yet. Angelfire is a great debut novel from Courtney Allison Moulton and is the first in a trilogy, so ... even more awesome!

Ellie comes up against a reaper on the night she turns 17, thankfully Will is there to help her. He "wakes" her powers and she remembers what her job is. Ellie's sole job is to hunt and kill reapers and stop them from recruiting more soldiers for Lucifer's army. Will has been her Guardian for 500 years and always waits for her and watches over her until she turns 17.

Ellie kicks ass and it's awesome to read a YA novel that has a kick ass heroine. Her family life isn't perfect but she has Will to help her escape that life. Ah Will *sigh*, he's sexy, tattooed and willing to protect Ellie with his life ..... yeah, he's also awesome.

The book reads fairly quickly and the characters are well written. I'm really looking forward to the second book, Wings of the Wicked, which will be released in 2012.


Rating
4/5


Book Depository: Angelfire
Amazon UK: Angelfire