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31 August 2012

Uncovered (29): The Uninvited Guests


Hi again! Thanks for stopping by Uncovered, my weekly cover love post. This week I have The Uninvited Guests by Sadie Jones, an Edwardian comedy. I love the styling of the woman in the foreground. Her dress and hair are perfect for the period. I also really like the beautiful sort of dark seafoam color of her gown. The figure in the background is a little bit ominous and hints at the mystery that awaits in the book. I even like the font and the curly-q edging around the book.

The illustration is by Christopher Neal and that jacket was designed by Richard Ljoenes

I'm a fan. Are you? I'd love to know what you think of this one so please leave a comment with your thoughts. Until next time!
 



29 August 2012

Once Burned - Review


Once Burned (Night Prince #1) by Jeaniene Frost
Publication date: 26 June 2012 by Avon Romance
ISBN 10/13: 006178320X | 9780061783203
Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Book Depository | Indiebound

Category: Adult Paranormal Romance
Keywords: Paranormal, romance, vampires, Dracula
Format: Mass market paperback, eBook
Source: Purchased


Synopsis:

After a tragic accident scarred her body and destroyed her dreams, Leila never imagined that the worst was still to come: terrifying powers that let her channel electricity and learn a person's darkest secrets through a single touch. Leila is doomed to a life of solitude...until creatures of the night kidnap her, forcing her to reach out with a telepathic distress call to the world's most infamous vampire...

He's the Prince of Night...

Vlad Tepesh inspired the greatest vampire legend of all—but whatever you do, don't call him Dracula. Vlad's ability to control fire makes him one of the most feared vampires in existence, but his enemies have found a new weapon against him—a beautiful mortal with powers to match his own. When Vlad and Leila meet, however, passion ignites between them, threatening to consume them both. It will take everything that they are to stop an enemy intent on bringing them down in flames.

Review:

Fans of Jeaniene Frost’s Night Huntress Series have been clamoring for a Vlad book for a while now. When Frost announced last year that he would finally be getting his own story, I am think there was a collective squeal from Vlad lovers around the world. I was excited to see how Frost handled portraying the vampire from whom all other vampire legends derived.

This was a really fun book. I love Jeaniene Frost because her books are usually action packed, funny, and have some good steamy love scenes. Once Burned delivered on all counts. It wasn’t quite as funny as a Cat and Bones book but I think that’s only because Bones is such a cheeky character. I think Vlad is much more serious than Bones so the feel is a little more serious but still highly entertaining.

While Vlad has made many appearances in the Night Huntress series, his past has remained a bit of a mystery. In Once Burned, we learn about his past and the events that shaped him. Having lost everything before and been betrayed, he is wary to trust. But he is not as cold and ruthless as he seems. It’s obvious that he cares for Leila even if he won’t say it in so many words. There is a scene in which Leila gets into his head and sees him picking out what to wear in order to meet her family that made me go “awwww” a little.

I really, really liked Leila. She’s lived a lonely life, estranged from her family and unable to touch anyone. But she doesn’t wallow in self-pity and or invite sympathy. She’s tough and brave and extremely loyal, often putting herself in danger to help others. I love that she isn’t afraid to stand up to Vlad and calls him out when he’s acting like an arrogant ass. Her unusual powers are what initially make her intriguing to Vlad but it’s her compassionate and fiery nature that really draws him in. Since this is a Jeaniene Frost book, I expected the chemistry to be hot and I wasn’t disappointed.

There are also some fun secondary characters to keep things interesting. Maximus and Marty stand out the most and I do hope that Maximus finds a girlfriend one day soon. Cat and Bones make a very brief appearance, which is fun. Their scene is quite brief but it was nice to see them.

The only thing I was really disappointed in was the ending. For some reason I thought Vlad was just getting a book, not a whole series. But it looks like Frost has been contracted for at least two Vlad books. If you’ve read Cat and Bones then you know that Frost isn’t always the queen of closure and the ending of the book feels somewhat unfinished. Since I thought this was the only book, I was expecting it to wrap up neatly and was surprised at the abrupt ending. But that's my only real complaint. But other than that small issue, this book lived up to my expectations and more. Now I just have to be patient and wait for the next book to come out. :(



Visit the author online at jeanienefrost.com and follow her on Twitter @Jeaniene_Frost



*FTC disclosure: I participate in the BookDepository & Amazon affiliate programs. Clicking on the link and making a purchase may result in revenue for this blog. Find our full disclosure policy here.

28 August 2012

Top Ten Bookish Confessions


Howdy! Welcome to Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.  I haven't done a TTT in a while but this topic is just too fun. This week it's Top Ten Bookish Confessions. I am not sure if I'll have ten but let's see what happens. (ETA: I totally had ten.)

1. I prefer paperbacks to hardcovers. I know, I know. Book lovers everywhere are gasping. I mean, it's not like I hate all hardcovers. But I love the portability and smaller size of a paperback. I have to read in a reclining or semi-reclining state and having a huge hardcover doesn't work for that. And have you ever fallen asleep with a hardcover in your hands and bonked yourself with a hard corner? Ouch. 

2. If I really love a book and I see it in a used bookstore, I will "rescue" it by buying it. I will give it to a friend or donate to my local library if they don't have a copy. I try not to do this too often only because I don't have space in the apt, but it's hard to resist the urge.

3. Sometimes when I read romance books that I am not that into, I'll just skim to the smutty bits. Hey, if I am not into it, I may as well read the good parts, right?

4. I buy books based on their covers. Yes, marketing people, covers work. I will totally buy something if it has an awesome looking cover. Now what's awesome to me and what's awesome to someone else might be totally different but I will buy a book knowing nothing about it if I love the cover. It's also true that I will avoid a book if it has a heinous cover. If I like an author though and they have a bad cover, I will get it on my Kindle.

5. I am embarrassed to read my smutty romances in public. Yes, I love romances but I don't like people knowing that I am reading them. Is it the stigma and judgement that comes with reading romances? Maybe. But a lot of it I think has to do with the cheesy covers. Some of them are so bad, especially the older ones. Thank God for my Kindle. It allows me to read smutty books wherever I go.

6. I rarely do not finish a book. Once I start a book, I generally finish. It may take me a while and I may have to come back to it, but I will usually finish it. Even though I don't want to waste time with books I don't like, I feel like I need to read a book all the way through if I start it. 

7. I read multiple books at a time. Most of my friends only read one book at a time but I am usually reading 2-3 at once. They have to be different genres or else I might get them mixed up but I do like having different options. Sometimes I will stop in the middle of a more serious book to read an UF or romance novel just for a change of pace. I don't find it hard to go between books. This usually means I end up finishing books slower than some but then I'll finish several at once.

8. I go to the library once or twice a week. I basically drive by the library every single day so I stop by at least once a week, if not more, to drop off and pick up books. I also go to the library that is further away (different system) once every couple of weeks. I get books even though I have way too many at home to read. I just love going and seeing what's there and I inevitably come home with something.

9. I will not read excerpts of books I really want to read that have not been released yet. Why torture myself? I'd rather wait until the book is out to read the whole thing rather than just get a chapter or two and then have to wait. 

10. I LOVE my e-reader. There - I said it.  I still love physical books and bookstores but I love having something that can carry around hundreds of books. It's great for traveling and reading romances incognito (see #5). They are also great sales and I am much more likely to give a book a chance for a cheap price on my e-reader than to just buy it full price. Hey - times are tough and I can't always buy books from my local shop. I think having an e-reader has definitely increased how much I read just because I can bring it everywhere.  I think there is room in the world for both physical books and e-books. 

11. (Oops - had one more) I hate book snobbery. I really hate when people judge what other people because they read something that the other person doesn't approve of or deems "low" literature. I don't care if you read Shakespeare, comics, sci-fi, non-fiction or poetry. I love that there are is so much variety in literature and that there is something for everyone. I want people to read, period. And I definitely think it's good to go outside your comfort zone once in a while and branch out into a new genre. 

Thanks if you managed to go through this whole list. What are your bookish confessions? I'd love to know.




27 August 2012

Kindle Deals

Hey, everyone! This is just a quick post with a few eBook deals I've seen lately. I can never resist a good eBook sale and it's always a good way to try out a new author or series. I can highly, highly recommend the Julia Quinn and Sarah MacLean books. They are two of my fave historical romance writers and those are the first books in two excellent series. If you've been curious about them, you should definitely pick them up at a great price.

Free

 

$0.99


$1.99

(OMG I love both these books. Please buy them.)

$12.64

(This price is for the entire series. A very good deal.)

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you found something to tickle your fancy. :)

*FTC disclosure: I participate in the Amazon affiliate programs. Clicking on the link and making a purchase may result in revenue for this blog. All revenue goes back to buying prizes for the blog. Find our full disclosure policy here.




26 August 2012

Stacked (18): Johnny C. Stubbs


Hello! I hope that everyone is having a great weekend. The weather has been a bit less intense this week and temps have dropped significantly. I finished a couple of books this week, including What In God's Name? and The Postman Always Rings Twice (for book club). I hope to review both soon. 

Apologies for the lack of cover pics this week. It's been a busy week and I just didn't have time to add the covers. But the titles all link back to Goodreads, as usual, in case you'd like to add any of these books to your shelves. Let's see what I got, shall we?

Borrowed

What In God's Name? by Simon Rich - This is a new book that I had just read about when I saw it at the library. It's about what the world would be like if Heaven was run as a corporation. A super fast, funny read.

The Iron Duke by Meljean Brook - I have never read a book by Meljean Brook but I have heard good things about this series. 

Received

Touched by an Alien by Gini Koch - My friend gave me her copy of this book. I have been meaning to read it but have been putting it off because I don't love aliens. However, I love the covers and have read positive reviews of this series. 

Uncontrollable (State of Grace #2) by S.R. Johannes - This is the second book in Johannes's YA series. Our YA site, Read Now Sleep Later, will be on the blog tour for this and I just got the digital ARC. I really enjoyed the first book and am looking forward to this one.

Totally random story coming up. My friend found a dog Sat morning wandering around her neighborhood. The dog had tags but the number, unfortunately, was disconnected and the address on the tag was an empty apartment. My friend took the dog over to our friend's house since we were all hanging out at the pool. OMG he is the cutest wiener dog. I love long bodies and short legs (wieners, Corgis, basset hounds) and we had a ton of fun hanging out with him. Hilariously his tag said that his name was Johnny C. Stubbs. I was calling him Jack though. The happy ending is that my friend had left his name at the shelter number on Johnny's tag and his owner eventually called the shelter looking for him. So he got to go home and I spent the afternoon with an adorable dog. Hope you're all having a great weekend!

johnny c stubbs - dachshund extraordinaire



25 August 2012

Degrees of Wrong Blog Tour + Giveaway


We're on the Degrees of Wrong Tour today! This is the adult romance novel from writer Anna Scarlett (aka Anna Banks). Today I am giving you my dream cast. Here goes!


Dr. Elyse Morgan - I'd like to suggest Abbie Cornish (Sucker Punch, Bright Star). I think Abbie would be great as our feisty, chocolate loving heroine.

Capt. Nicoli Marek - Joe Mangianello would be perfect as the yummy and chronically shirtless Nicoli. Seriously he should be shirtless all the time.


Dr. Folsom - Sela Ward would be excellent as Elyse's mentor and family friend.

Admiral Judd - I have loved Victor Garber since his days on Alias and I think he would be great as the Admiral of the ship.


Stanley - Andrew Garfield would be great as Elyse's friend S-S-Stanley. We just need to switch his English accent to a Scottish one.

Ebony Grace - Though known for her more dramatic roles (like that of the Queen on True Blood), I think Evan Rachel Wood would be perfect as the friend with the misleading name.

Lt. Sheldon - Brooklyn Decker is beautiful and would be fitting as the lieutenant who has her eye on Nicoli. 


Ares Petropoulos - Ares is the evil mastermind behind The Black Death. I think Antonio Banderas could be spectacularly devious as Ares.

Frank Horan - Who doesn't love Eddie Izzard? He's the perfect choice to play Frank Horan, the man who loves to torture Elyse. 

Ralph/Geoffrey - Oh, Christopher Meloni. You are awesome in everything. 


Blue Eyes - Man, this book is just full of man candy. I don't usually go for blondes but Liam Hemsworth would make a delectable Blue Eyes.

That's the end of my dream cast. If this sounds like something you'd like, add the book to your Goodreads shelf or purchase from Amazon.

GIVEAWAY TIME

We also have an eBook giveaway for Degrees of Wrong today. One lucky reader will get an e-copy of the book. The winner will have to make an account on Samhain Publishing's website in order to receive their prize but, don't worry, it's free and easy.

Rules:
  1. No purchase necessary. None of the entries are mandatory, but you have to do at least one to enter.
  2. Open internationally as long as you have an email where you can accept eBooks. 
  3. One set of entries per household please. 
  4. If you are under 13, please get a parent or guardian's permission to enter, as you will be sharing personal info such as an email address. 
  5. Winner will be chosen randomly via Rafflecopter widget after the end of the day on Sept 2, 2012
  6. Winner will have 48 hours to respond to to the email, otherwise we will pick a new winner. 
  7. If you have any questions, feel free to email us. You can review our full contest policy here
a Rafflecopter giveaway
 





*FTC disclosure: I participate in the Amazon affiliate program. Clicking on the link and making a purchase may result in revenue for this blog. Find our full disclosure policy here.

24 August 2012

Uncovered (28): Meant To Be


Welcome to another week of Uncovered, the place where I wax lyrical about awesome book covers. This week I am featuring Meant To Be by Lauren Morrill. This is a contemporary YA novel with a romantic twist. I love the colors on this cover as well as the indie hipster vibe of the couple on it. It kind of reminds me of 500 Days of Summer. It just has a really sweet, fun, romantic look to it. I am not usually a huge contemp person but this cover makes me want to read this book.

I don't know who the designer is, unfortunately. My ARC just has credits for the images, which look to be stock photos. I normally don't like stock photos but they're used really well here. Stock photos don't have to be cheesy, people.

What do you guys think? Love it or hate it? Since this reminds me of 500 Days of Summer, I will leave you with this cute video of JGL and Zooey Deschanel. Happy Friday!





20 August 2012

Succubus Revealed - Review


Publication date: 30 August 2011 by Kensington
ISBN 10/13: 0758232012 | 9780758232014
Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Book Depository | Indiebound

Category: Adult Urban Fantasy
Keywords: Paranormal, romance, urban fantasy, succubus, demons
Format: Paperback, eBook
Source: Purchased & review copy won from Goodreads


Synopsis:

In Georgina Kincaid, succubus and she-demon, #1 New York Timesbestselling author Richelle Mead has created one of her most enticing characters. But with a shot at love, and maybe even redemption, is the ultimate seductress finally going soft? Like hell she is. . .

Georgina Kincaid has had an eternity to figure out the opposite sex, but sometimes they still surprise her. Take Seth Mortensen. The man has risked his soul to become Georgina's boyfriend. Still, with Lucifer for a boss, Georgina can't just hang up her killer heels and settle down to domestic bliss. In fact, she's being forced to transfer operations. . .to Las Vegas.

The City of Sin is a dream gig for a succubus, but Georgina's allies are suspicious. Why are the powers-that-be so eager to get her away from Seattle—and from Seth? Georgina is one of Hell's most valuable assets, but if there's any way out of the succubus business she plans to take it—no matter how much roadkill she leaves behind. She just hopes the casualties won't include the one man she's risking everything for.

Review:

This might sound weird, but I put off reading this book for a really long time. Why? Because I didn't want to see the series end! After 5 books, Georgina and her friends felt like my friends. Reading the last book meant that the series would be over and that I would have to say goodbye to them. But all good things must come to an end, and I really wanted to find out what happened to Georgina, so I finally broke down and read it.

The book opens with Georgina working in a mall as a Santa's elf of all things. Whenever I think of mall Santas I think of David Sedaris's "Santaland Diaries" and I can't help but laugh. Georgina is back together with Seth, yay! I've always been a fan of Seth and Georgina, imperfect as the relationship is. Seth is dealing with a family illness when Georgina gets a sudden transfer to Las Vegas. The timing and method of the transfer are suspicious though. Georgina starts to do a little investigating and discovers things are not as simple as they appear.

Georgina's friends are back from more crazy antics. Jermone has them participating in a bowling league which, apparently, holds a lot of prestige in the demon world. While not really necessary to the plot, it was pretty funny watching them bowl with their matching t-shirts.

There are no big surprises in this one. If you've read the series, you probably have your suspicions about how the story is going to go. Was the ending predictable? Yes. Did I enjoy it? Yes. Like I said, I have come to really love these characters and it's sad for me to see them go. I think fans of Georgina and Co. will find this to be a fitting and satisfying end to the series. At a signing recently, Mead said that she has considered writing some short stories from Jerome or Carter's point of view. I really hope that happens one day. Until then, I will just have to satisfy myself by reading the series over again. :)
 


Visit the author online at www.richellemead.com and follow her on Twitter @RichelleMead

19 August 2012

Stacked (17): With Girl of Nightmares


It's the weekend again  - hooray! This week was one of the longest weeks ever. I don't know what it was but time was just crawling by. I am very happy that it's the weekend finally, even if it is 100 degrees outside. This week was another low buy/acquisition week for me. See how good I am being? I did go to the Girls' Nightmare Out event with Kendare Blake, Marta Acosta and Lisa Desrochers at Mrs. Nelson's this week. But I only bought one book! A recap of that event will be coming soon. Other than that just trying to get through review books and library books. Here come the books. Check it out!

Bought

   

Embrace by Jessica Shirvington - My friend Crystal just gave this one a really good review and it was only $2.44 on Kindle.

Girl of Nightmares by Kendare Blake - As I said earlier, I went to the Kendare Blake signing at Mrs. Nelson's earlier this week and got this signed. Recap coming soon to Read Now Sleep Later. Really excited about this one. I hope it's scary!

Received


Ironskin by Tina Connolly (NetGalley) - Originally the cover to this one didn't entice me but I kept seeing it around. I finally read the synopsis and hello - it sounds awesome. Jane Eyre in an iron master? Sign me up!

The Taker by Alma Katsu - My friend Crystal was able to grab and extra copy of this one after RWA. I don't know much about this one but it sounds interesting.

And that is all, folks! Does anyone have anything good planned for the weekend? It's so hot here I really can't be outside much unless I make it to the beach. I will probably do a lot of reading and I plan to go see Paranorman in 3D at some point. It's looks awesome. I also kind of want to see Expendables 2, just because it looks like a train wreck (and Bruce Willis is in it). I'd love to see what you got this week, so please leave links and I'll come visit. Have a wonderful weekend!




17 August 2012

Uncovered (27): Frost Burned


I saw this lovely cover at Comic Con and swooned. This might possibly be my favorite Mercy Thompson cover ever. They're all gorgeous but there is just something about this one that just screams Mercy to me. I love that her expression is a little bit soft but still with a glint of badass in it. Love the tats and her Mercy's hair is looking great. I also like the haziness of the background - it's mysterious and puts the emphasis on Mercy. I am a fan of all the covers, but this one is special. 

Dan Dos Santos, the artist behind the previous Mercy Thompson covers, also did this one. Dan has a large body of work and, if you're a fan of sci fi or urban fantasy, chances are you've seen Dan's work around. Definitely check out Dan's website to see more of his work and the blog that he co-writes with a collective of talented artists. Frost Burned will be published in March 2013 by Ace Roc.
 



16 August 2012

Get A Clue - Review


Get A Clue by Jill Shalvis
Publication date: September 2005 (reprinted January 2008)
by Brava
ISBN 10/13: 0758211384 | 9780758211385
Goodreads | Amazon | B&N

Category: Adult Romantic Suspense
Keywords: Romance, suspense, mystery, murder
Format: Mass market paperback, eBook
Source: Library


Synopsis:

All in one day, city girl Breanne Mooreland gets left at the altar, takes the flight from hell to her honeymoon--alone--loses her luggage, and ends up snowed in at a Sierra mountains lodge run by the kookiest staff this side of the Addams Family. Oh, and there just happens to be a gorgeous naked man taking a shower in her suite who says he isn't going anywhere. Burned-out vice cop Cooper Scott is in serious need of this vacation, and he's not about to give up the only available room during a bad snowstorm just because an upset, okay, make that insane, woman is having a conniption fit. They'll just have to make the best of it--her side of the bed versus his. But when Cooper wakes up kissing the long, leggy Breanne, he has other thoughts. Part of him wants to prove that not all men are scum, and another part of him entirely wants to show her exactly what that honeymoon suite is intended for. But that will have to wait, because a screaming Breanne has just stumbled on a very dead body.

Review:

A snowed in cabin, a jilted bride, one sexy naked cop, a house full of suspicious servants, and one dead body all add up to a fun little read by one of my fave contemp authors.

A play on Clue, the story opens with Breanne making her way to her honeymoon cabin, without the groom. Stood up at the altar, she figures she can at least enjoy the paid for vacation. But instead of a cozy retreat, she finds herself snowed in with no power with Cooper, a very attractive ex-cop, and a hodge podge group of servants. When Breanne finds a dead body in the cellar, the inhabitants of the house have to figure out who the killer is before one of them is then next victim.

This would be a great beach read - fun, fast and not too serious. The murder mystery was not as exciting or scary as I had hoped. It was actually kind of slow and I wish it had been more suspenseful.

The best part of the book, for me, was the chemistry between Cooper and Breanne. They had some serious heat going on and I loved the smexy times. The book also had plenty of Shalvis's signature clever and oftentimes hilarious dialogue.

I really liked Cooper. Smart, sexy, and protective, I felt like he put with a lot when dealing with Breanne. She's pretty much afraid of everything and he kept saving her. She was a little neurotic for my tastes but again, the love scenes were hot, so it was worth it.

It's not my favorite Jill Shalvis book but I think fans will enjoy this peek into some of her early writing. Readers new to Shalvis should probably start with something more recent like her Lucky Harbor series.
 


Visit the author online at jillshalvis.com and follow her on Twitter @JillShalvis

14 August 2012

ALA Summer Read-A-Thon Wrap Up


Yesterday was the last day of our ALA Summer Read-A-Thon. Unfortunately I did not meet my goal. However, I did finish Dark Companion by Marta Acosta and read about 100 pages of SEAL in Wolf's Clothing by Terry Spear. SEAL is actually really fun and I hope I can finish it tonight. 

Total Pages Read: 468

While this isn't the most impressive number, I am still happy that I finished one book off of my list. I had a lot of fun hosting with Crystal and Nicole, and maybe we will do another one before the end of the year. Thanks for stopping by. 

If you participated, how did you do?




13 August 2012

Santa Barbara Weekend

Hello again. As I mentioned yesterday, I didn't get a ton of reading done this weekend. That's because I was hanging out with my parents who came down for a quick visit. It was ridiculously hot in Los Angeles this weekend so I took them up north a bit to spend the day in Santa Barbara. Though it was still quite warm, it was way cooler than L.A. I took them to the SB Botanic Garden up in the hills. There was a lot of walking but it was really cool to see native California plants in the wild. My favorite part was the Redwood walk. Anyway, just thought I would share a few pics from the garden. Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!




 



12 August 2012

ALA Summer Read-A-Thon Update


OK so I am not doing so well at the Read-A-Thon right now. My parents just left and I seriously have not had much time to read since they got here. I am on page 130 of Dark Companion right now. It's interesting but the pacing is a little slow. There are hints of darker things to come, but I want those dark things to happen NOW. Or soon, at least. My goal is to at least finish one book during the challenge. If I can do that, I will still consider it a success. I'll check back in at the end of the challenge with a final update.

Hope everyone is managing to stay cool. It's over 100 degrees where I am and I am just trying to hide from the heat. :(