Book Review: Peace is the Mission 2: Relinquish Our Chains by T. Douglas Tarenyika

Peace is the Mission 2: Relinquish Our Chains by T. Douglas Tarenyika

Our mission for peace continues as our young warriors venture to new lands in serach of majestic beings and their mythical beasts. Atalanta and Marcel have proven to be great leaders among their people, but will they gain new alliances or will this journey bring forth a different path which none of them could have expected?

Their world continues to grow as they venture through new lands and discover more of the world that surrounds them. Will their past lives, with its trials and tribulations set them off course, or will they manage to return back to their people with their goals accomplished? Join our warriors as they set forth upon their journey and continue their mission for peace among their people.

Book Review: Scourged by Kevin Hearne

Scourged by Kevin Hearne

Kevin Hearne creates the ultimate Atticus O’Sullivan adventure in the grand finale of the New York Times bestselling Iron Druid Chronicles: an epic battle royale against the Norse gods of Asgard.

Unchained from fate, the Norse gods Loki and Hel are ready to unleash Ragnarok, a.k.a. the Apocalypse, upon the earth. They’ve made allies on the darker side of many pantheons, and there’s a globe-spanning battle brewing that ancient Druid Atticus O’Sullivan will be hard-pressed to survive, much less win.

Granuaile MacTiernan must join immortals Sun Wukong and Erlang Shen in a fight against the Yama Kings in Taiwan, but she discovers that the stakes are much higher than she thought.

Meanwhile, Archdruid Owen Kennedy must put out both literal and metaphorical fires from Bavaria to Peru to keep the world safe for his apprentices and the future of Druidry.

And Atticus recruits the aid of a tyromancer, an Indian witch, and a trickster god in hopes that they’ll give him just enough leverage to both save Gaia and see another sunrise. There is a hound named Oberon who deserves a snack, after all.

Book Review: Teeth in the Mist by Dawn Kurtagich

Teeth in the Mist by Dawn Kurtagich

Before the birth of time, a monk uncovers the Devil's Tongue and dares to speak it. The repercussions will be felt for generations...

Sixteen-year-old photography enthusiast Zoey has been fascinated by the haunted, burnt-out ruins of Medwyn Mill House for as long as she can remember--so she and her best friend, Poulton, run away from home to explore them. But are they really alone in the house? And who will know if something goes wrong?

In 1851, seventeen-year-old Roan arrives at the Mill House as a ward--one of three, all with something to hide from their new guardian. When Roan learns that she is connected to an ancient secret, she must escape the house before she is trapped forever.

1583. Hermione, a new young bride, accompanies her husband to the wilds of North Wales where he plans to build the largest water mill and mansion in the area. But rumors of unholy rituals lead to a tragic occurrence and she will need all her strength to defeat it.

Three women, centuries apart, drawn together by one Unholy Pact. A pact made by a man who, more than a thousand years later, may still be watching...

Book Review: The Wild Inside: A Novel by Jamey Bradbury

The Wild Inside: A Novel by Jamey Bradbury

A promising talent makes her electrifying debut with this unforgettable novel, set in the Alaskan wilderness, that is a fusion of psychological thriller and coming-of-age tale in the vein of Jennifer McMahon, Chris Bohjalian, and Mary Kubica.

A natural born trapper and hunter raised in the Alaskan wilderness, Tracy Petrikoff spends her days tracking animals and running with her dogs in the remote forests surrounding her family’s home. Though she feels safe in this untamed land, Tracy still follows her late mother’s rules: Never Lose Sight of the House. Never Come Home with Dirty Hands. And, above all else, Never Make a Person Bleed.

But these precautions aren’t enough to protect Tracy when a stranger attacks her in the woods and knocks her unconscious. The next day, she glimpses an eerily familiar man emerge from the tree line, gravely injured from a vicious knife wound—a wound from a hunting knife similar to the one she carries in her pocket. Was this the man who attacked her and did she almost kill him? With her memories of the events jumbled, Tracy can’t be sure.

Helping her father cope with her mother’s death and prepare for the approaching Iditarod, she doesn’t have time to think about what she may have done. Then a mysterious wanderer appears, looking for a job. Tracy senses that Jesse Goodwin is hiding something, but she can’t warn her father without explaining about the attack—or why she’s kept it to herself.

It soon becomes clear that something dangerous is going on . . . the way Jesse has wormed his way into the family . . . the threatening face of the stranger in a crowd . . . the boot-prints she finds at the forest’s edge.

Her family is in trouble. Will uncovering the truth protect them—or is the threat closer than Tracy suspects?

Book Review: Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

In a land where three suns almost never set, a fledgling killer joins a school of assassins, seeking vengeance against the powers who destroyed her family.

Daughter of an executed traitor, Mia Corvere is barely able to escape her father’s failed rebellion with her life. Alone and friendless, she hides in a city built from the bones of a dead god, hunted by the Senate and her father’s former comrades. But her gift for speaking with the shadows leads her to the door of a retired killer, and a future she never imagined.

Now, Mia is apprenticed to the deadliest flock of assassins in the entire Republic—the Red Church. If she bests her fellow students in contests of steel, poison and the subtle arts, she’ll be inducted among the Blades of the Lady of Blessed Murder, and one step closer to the vengeance she desires. But a killer is loose within the Church’s halls, the bloody secrets of Mia’s past return to haunt her, and a plot to bring down the entire congregation is unfolding in the shadows she so loves.

Will she even survive to initiation, let alone have her revenge?

Book Review: One Way by Jeff Lane

One Way by Jeff Lane

Barry Griffith doesn’t know it yet, but tonight is the night fate has chosen to be the night of his death… his murder. At a gas station in the middle of nowhere, late at night, his wife Jenny appears… no car… no coat and looking older than when he saw her last. That’s because this is not the woman he received a good-bye kiss from this morning. This woman has been a widow for over four years and has made an impossible journey back in time to try to stop her husband’s murder. Will they be able to escape the killers or does fate only have one plan… one possible outcome… ONE WAY?

Book Review: Elemental Claim by Miranda Grant

Elemental Claim by Miranda Grant

A fast-paced paranormal romance compared to Gena Showalter's "Lord of the Underworld" series.

The mission always came first…until her.

Rogan’s dedicated his life to protecting the Seven Planes. So when an ancient evil rises, he doesn't hesitate to volunteer his team. But immediately, things start to go wrong. Their intel is leaked to a gang hunting creatures of the Myth. The woman they grab is the wrong twin and worse, she’s protected by the gods. Drawn into an intricate game where one wrong move means the annihilation of the Seven Planes, Rogan can’t allow himself to be distracted by the soft lips of his captive. Especially since her very existence is a crime. Can Rogan keep his heart from messing up the mission or will he put everything on the line to pursue a life he never realized he wanted?

Within a few hours, Emma’s safe, little life crashes down around her. Driven off a bridge and drowned in a world of nightmares, Emma instinctively clings to the man that saves her. But when she wakes chained to a bed and interrogated over facts she doesn’t know, she realizes that her sexy savior might not have her best interests at heart after all. Forced to stay by his side, Emma is dragged into a terrifying reality where her twin sister stars as a mass murderer and Emma herself is wanted for being a descendant – a forbidden child of the gods. With so much at stake, does she dare listen to her heart and trust the very man meant to imprison her?

Book Review: 806: A Novel by Cynthia Weil

806: A Novel by Cynthia Weil

Sibling 1 throws blenders and plays guitar. Sibling 2 is allergic to everything and is into magic. Sibling 3 is a varsity swimmer with a group of female fans. Enough said. 

The only thing they have in common is their biological father, and the only thing they can agree on is that they all want to meet him. 
With the help of a broken-down, “borrowed” Jeep, KT, Jesse, and Gabe make their way across the country evading police, trying their luck on the slots, and meeting a life-changing pig, all to track down Donor 806, their father. Any hope of success requires smarts, luck, and ingenuity.
 Good thing they have each other...even if they don't see it that way.

Book Review with Excerpt: In The Dark by Becca Fox

In the Dark by Becca Fox

How far would you go to save your family?

Movies and books have made being a monster sound cool.

Lindsay can’t wear silver jewelry or get drunk with her friends, but hey, she sprouts fur and fangs during the full moon. Totally rad, right? Not. Forget about exploring the beast within, Lindsay just wants to graduate from nursing school. When a stroll in the park ends with her and her little brother being surrounded by masked goons who want to sell them overseas, Lindsay has no choice but to change.

Despite her best efforts, these kidnappers know how to handle a werewolf inexperienced in hand-to-paw combat. She regains consciousness hours after the scuffle to find her brother gone. In a panic, she turns to the only werewolf she knows: Wayne, Mr. Werewolf Pride, the guy Lindsay rejected none-too-kindly several years ago. Being the forgiving kind of guy he is, Wayne agrees to help. . .so long as Lindsay joins his pack. Living among others of her kind is the last thing Lindsay wants, but for her brother’s sake, she bites her tongue and agrees.

Lindsay learns a few things while traveling through Europe in search of her brother. One: Being a werewolf can be pretty badass when you know how to use your abilities. Two: Being a freak isn’t so bad when you’re surrounded by other freaks. And three: She might have misjudged Wayne.

When she and Wayne stumble onto the mastermind behind the kidnapping, this werewolf mafia king decides they know too much. Lindsay and Wayne should get out of dodge but, they know that unless this man is stopped, innocent people will die.

Book Review: This Darkness Mine by Mindy McGinnis

This Darkness Mine by Mindy McGinnis

Sasha Stone knows her place—first-chair clarinet, top of her class, and at the side of her oxford-wearing boyfriend. She’s worked her entire life to ensure that her path to Oberlin Conservatory as a star musician is perfectly paved.

But suddenly there’s a fork in the road, in the shape of Isaac Harver. Her body shifts toward him when he walks by, her skin misses his touch even though she’s never known it, and she relishes the smell of him—smoke, beer, and trouble—all the things she’s avoided to get where she is. Even worse, every time he’s near Sasha, her heart stops, literally. Why does he know her so well—too well—and she doesn’t know him at all?

Sasha discovers that her by-the-book life began by ending another’s: the twin sister she absorbed in the womb. But that doesn’t explain the gaps of missing time in her practice schedule or the memories she has of things she certainly never did with Isaac. As Sasha loses her much-cherished control, her life—and heart—become more entangled with Isaac. Armed with the knowledge that her heart might not be hers alone, Sasha must decide what she’s willing to do—and who she’s willing to hurt—to take it back.

Edgar Award–winning author Mindy McGinnis delivers a dark and gripping psychological thriller about a girl at war with herself, and what it really means to be good or bad.

Book Review: Mystery Date by Amber Nadine

Mystery Date by Amber Nadine

Rayn Parrington is a twenty-two year old script distribution company owner living in New York City. When her boyfriend Adam Lanes leaves her suddenly, her best friend Oliver (Ollie) Haggard talks her into joining a dating site. When she finds Adam is also on the dating site she decides to pose as Taylor Jones in hopes of winning back his affection. What Rayn doesn’t know is that she’s not the only one pretending to be someone else online. Adam isn’t really Adam.

Book Review: Queen of Hearts by Colleen Oakes

Queen of Hearts by Colleen Oakes

Only queens with hearts can bleed.

This is not the story of the Wonderland we know. Alice has not fallen down a rabbit hole. There is no all-knowing cat with a taunting smile. This is a Wonderland where beneath each smile lies a secret, each tart comes with a demand, and only prisoners tell the truth.

Dinah is the princess who will one day reign over Wonderland. She has not yet seen the dark depths of her kingdom; she longs only for her father’s approval and a future with the boy she loves. But when a betrayal breaks her heart and threatens her throne, she is launched into Wonderland’s dangerous political game. Dinah must stay one step ahead of her cunning enemies or she’ll lose not just the crown but her head.

Evil is brewing in Wonderland and maybe, most frighteningly, in Dinah herself.

This is not a story of happily ever after.

This is the story of the Queen of Hearts.

Book Review: The Disappearances by Emily Bain Murphy

The Disappearances by Emily Bain Murphy

What if the ordinary things in life suddenly…disappeared?

Aila Quinn’s mother, Juliet, has always been a mystery: vibrant yet guarded, she keeps her secrets beyond Aila’s reach. When Juliet dies, Aila and her younger brother Miles are sent to live in Sterling, a rural town far from home--and the place where Juliet grew up.

Sterling is a place with mysteries of its own. A place where the experiences that weave life together--scents of flowers and food, reflections from mirrors and lakes, even the ability to dream--vanish every seven years.

No one knows what caused these “Disappearances,” or what will slip away next. But Sterling always suspected that Juliet Quinn was somehow responsible--and Aila must bear the brunt of their blame while she follows the chain of literary clues her mother left behind. 

As the next Disappearance nears, Aila begins to unravel the dual mystery of why the Disappearances happen and who her mother truly was. One thing is clear: Sterling isn’t going to hold on to anyone's secrets for long before it starts giving them up.

Book Review: Hounded by Kevin Hearne

Hounded by Kevin Hearne

Atticus O’Sullivan, last of the Druids, lives peacefully in Arizona, running an occult bookshop and shape-shifting in his spare time to hunt with his Irish wolfhound. His neighbors and customers think that this handsome, tattooed Irish dude is about twenty-one years old—when in actuality, he’s twenty-one centuries old. Not to mention: He draws his power from the earth, possesses a sharp wit, and wields an even sharper magical sword known as Fragarach, the Answerer.

Unfortunately, a very angry Celtic god wants that sword, and he’s hounded Atticus for centuries. Now the determined deity has tracked him down, and Atticus will need all his power—plus the help of a seductive goddess of death, his vampire and werewolf team of attorneys, a bartender possessed by a Hindu witch, and some good old-fashioned luck of the Irish—to kick some Celtic arse and deliver himself from evil.

Book Review: Scents of the Past: A Novel by Erin Marie Bernardo

Scents of the Past: A Novel by Erin Marie Bernardo

A secret diary. A forgotten past. Another time. Close cousins Addison and Elissa live in present day New York City and lead somewhat ordinary lives. When uncertain circumstances surrounding a set of antique perfume bottles sends them back to eighteenth-century France, they must uncover the truth behind their travel. Disaster strikes when Addison finds herself in a nearly identical situation to a mishap she experienced in the present-the witnessing of a murder and release of a secret. Only this time the truth could destroy the entire French monarchy. With Addison's head on the line, the young women search for answers before Addison suffers her unlucky fate twice. It is only when they discover the haunting connections to life in the present, that they understand why they both were sent, and why a repeating past...may not always be such a bad thing.

Book Review: Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake

Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake

When kingdom come, there will be one.

In every generation on the island of Fennbirn, a set of triplets is born—three queens, all equal heirs to the crown and each possessor of a coveted magic. Mirabella is a fierce elemental, able to spark hungry flames or vicious storms at the snap of her fingers. Katharine is a poisoner, one who can ingest the deadliest poisons without so much as a stomachache. Arsinoe, a naturalist, is said to have the ability to bloom the reddest rose and control the fiercest of lions.

But becoming the Queen Crowned isn’t solely a matter of royal birth. Each sister has to fight for it. And it’s not just a game of win or lose…it’s life or death. The night the sisters turn sixteen, the battle begins.

The last queen standing gets the crown.

Book Review: The Book Jumper by Mechthild Glaser

The Book Jumper by Mechthild Gläser

Amy Lennox doesn't know quite what to expect when she and her mother pick up and leave Germany for Scotland, heading to her mother's childhood home of Lennox House on the island of Stormsay.

Amy's grandmother, Lady Mairead, insists that Amy must read while she resides at Lennox House—but not in the usual way. It turns out that Amy is a book jumper, able to leap into a story and interact with the world inside. As thrilling as Amy's new power is, it also brings danger: someone is stealing from the books she visits, and that person may be after her life. Teaming up with fellow book jumper Will, Amy vows to get to the bottom of the thefts—at whatever cost.

Blog Tour with Review: Blood and Chaos by S. M. Soto

Blood and Chaos by S.M. Soto

This blog tour includes a review.

We thought the games were over...but they've only just begun.

She was the puppet. 

He pulled the strings. 

Now the death toll is rising, what could this mean? 

It was all a game. 

Of feelings. 

Of pain. 

Death is just an illusion, or so they say. 

She was just a pawn on a piece of his demented board. But there’s only one question left to settle the score…Can dead people really stay dead?

Book Review: Choosing Me: Love Letters from a Poet by Bill Weber

Choosing Me: Love Letters from a Poet

Sex... Bombarded with imagery in advertising, on TV, in the movies, sex has become commonplace and ordinary. Even in our romantic relationships, we have too often let the flames of passion die to a flicker.

Yet sex is naturally healthy, good for loving relationships, and even spiritually enriching. Rendered in exquisite language, the poems in this volume open new windows into the sensual magic and mystery of sexual pleasure. They allow us to rediscover the sacredness of both the body and the act of lovemaking.

Inspired to write these poems by a desire to express the depths of meaning and the physical expression of making love, poet Bill Weber paints vivid pictures in words that far transcend old clichés and masterfully express the transcendent dimensions of sexual pleasures.

Blog Tour with Review: Deal Takers by Laura Lee

Deal Takers by Laura Lee

This blog tour includes a review and giveaway.

MY DICK CAN BE A REAL BASTARD SOMETIMES.

When he takes charge, I’ve been known to do a lot of stupid shit, despite the fact that I have a genius IQ.

Case in point: How I met the woman of my dreams.

Now, I’m going to let you in on a little secret: I don’t regret that moment of idiocy one bit. It may have been one of the most embarrassing moments of my life, but you know what they say about first impressions, right?

Well, I can guarantee that I made quite the impression that evening. (Don't worry; I’ll tell you all the gory details later.) 

Most days, she acts like she hates me—probably because I behave like an ass— but we both know the truth: Rainey O’Neil wants me just as much as I want her—she just doesn’t want to admit it. Good thing I’ve never been one to back down from a challenge.

 *Deal Takers is the second installment in the Dealing with Love world but can be read as a standalone.