Synopsis (from Goodreads.com):Clairvoyant Cassie Plamer has inherited new magical powers-including the ability to travel through time. But it's a whole lot of responsibility she'd rather not have. Now she's the most popular girl in town, as an assortment of vamps, fey, and mages try to convince, force, or seduce her-and her magic-over to their side. But one particular master vampire didn't ask what Cassie wanted before putting a claim on her. He had a spell cast that binds her to him, and now she doesn't know if what she feels for him is real-or imagined.
My Reveries and Ramblings: Cassandra Palmer escapes the Senate with a duffel full of weapons only to be attacked by the Circle. Pritkin and Cassie are forced to become allies due to a common goal-although she never truly trusts him. Besides Pritkin, Cassie is helped by Billy the ghost and Mac, a tattoo artist mage. Cassie’s Pythia powers drag her into the past to save Mircea from Myra who is set on making sure Cassie never lives to get her powers. By going into the past, Cassie accidentally sets the geis, a bonding spell Mircea had cast, in the future on the past Mircea strengthening their bond. This becomes problematic for both of them since they can’t seem to keep their hands off eachother when together and when separated are in total physical pain (a pain that has led others under the same circumstances to commit suicide).
After reading the first book in the series, Touch the Dark, I thought this can only get better. I was a bit disappointed. I mean, yes it was action packed. And yes, there was never a dull moment. But the plot didn’t really progress until the last 10 pages or so. Also, I love Mircea, and I hated how he was barely in this book. He showed up briefly in the present, but only for short periods of time in the past. Also, the whole thing with Tomas at the end was weird. I did like Cassie’s spirit in this book. No matter how many times she was knocked down, she just got right back up again. All she wants is to find her father, kill Tony, and live a normal life. But everyone else wants something from her. They are all one-step ahead of her. Even though the odds are in no way stacked in her favor, she keeps on fighting for what she wants. Honestly, I like the series so I’ll keep reading. I want to find out how it ends.
I felt rushed through the book, and I found myself confused several times wondering if I missed something but after rereading realized I didn’t miss anything. By the end of the book I got the gist of what happened, however I was still lost. Both in this book and the first I felt like I was thrown into the middle of it and was left to figure out what was going on. I give it 2 Kisses.
Follow Friday is hosted byParajunkee's View. Both Follow Friday and The Blog Hop are great ways to find new blogs and network your own. This week's blog feature isTotally Obsessed!
Question: Share your current fav. television show! Tell us a bit about it...
My Answer: It's tied between FRIENDS and Glee. If you haven't seen FRIENDS-get out from under that rock. Same thing goes for Glee. I've loved FRIENDS for years, my love for this show started around the time the series ended. It will always be #1. I've seen every episode countless times and I still laugh like it's the first time. I still cry I'm laughing so hard. I first saw Glee the summer before it premiered on FOX when itunes was selling the first episode for free. So I got it, mostly because it was free. And loved it!!!! I love music (obviously) and Glee is like an hour long weekly musical.
Synopsis (from Goodreads.com):In the hot-blooded vein of Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake saga and Kim Harrison's Rachel Morgan series, Karen Chance's debut novel is a contemporary dark fantasy revolving around a gutsy female protagonist with supernatural abilities that blends mystery and romance with hair-raising horror.
Cassie Palmer, a powerful clairvoyant who works part-time at an Atlanta club reading Tarot cards, is finding it difficult to escape her past. Orphaned at a young age and brought up by the undead, Cassie has the ability to communicate with the spirit realm, and her powers were abused time and time again by a ruthless master vampire named Tony. It's been three years since Cassie -- a self-described "ghost magnet" -- has been free of the centuries-old bloodsucker, but now he's back and eager to reclaim his human possession. Forced to turn to the Senate (a group of "really old vamps" who make laws for the supernatural community) for protection, Cassie is thrown into a complex conflict where control of the entire supernatural world is at stake. Rasputin (yes, the Mad Monk himself), a power-hungry vampire, is killing off the Senate members one by one. Aided by some impressive allies -- including Dracula's older brother, Mircea -- Cassie must use everything in her paranormal arsenal to fight the encroaching evil -- and somehow stay alive
Fans of authors like Hamilton, Harrison, Kelley Armstrong, and Charlaine Harris will undoubtedly enjoy this fast-paced, blood-sucking romp through the supernatural underworld -- yet another noteworthy addition to the ever-growing subgenre of fantasy/romance/mystery hybrids. Paul Goat Allen
My Reveries and Ramblings:The Cassandra Palmer series is really interesting. Karen Chance does a wonderful job of combining paranormal with mystery and romance. Touch the Dark starts with the protagonist, Cassandra Palmer, nicknamed Cassie, living in hiding. She has been on the run for three years from her vampire “master,” Tony. He killed her parents and took her in as a clairvoyant when she was a little girl. Now, in her 20s, Cassie works as a tarot card reader at the same club as her roommate, Tomas. One night Tony’s men come to find her, and kill her. She manages to escape, thanks to a mysterious tattoo and Tomas. Cassie is now in the hands of the vampire Senate and Lord Mircea. All Cassie wants to do is be free-she doesn’t want to belong to Mircea, Tony, or the Senate. Simply running away isn’t going to help. Those who don’t want to control her, want her dead because she has inherited the powerful pythia’s power.
Touch the Dark is filled with time traveling, sexy men and vampires, and a lot of action scenes. Cassandra Palmer has one goal in mind-to get her father’s ghost from Tony and be free. Everything she does is to get that done. She doesn’t want power. She doesn’t want to be under the protection of Mircea and the vampires. By inheriting the pythia’s power, Cassie finds herself thrown back in time. This is mostly because Myra, the girl who was supposed to become the next pythia, has decided to mess with the timeline.
Lord Mircea, a very sexy vampire, has appointed himself as Cassandra’s protector. He knew where she was when she “ran away.” I’d love to believe that he loves Cassandra, but I’m not sure. His actions show that he does. But at the same time he’s a first class manipulator so I’m not sure. Same thing with Tomas, I think he has feelings for Cassandra, but at the same time, not too sure.
Karen Chance made sure the reader is never bored. There is so much going on that you feel like you ran a marathon by the end of the book. The only problem I had was that I felt thrown into the middle of everything. There were so many action scenes, I would have loved it if the story slowed down for bit. The time traveling scenes were a bit confusing, but still quite interesting to read. The series is quite interesting-mixing mages/magic, vampires, fey, and even historical figures into a series of books. I will definitely keep reading the series. I give it 3 Kisses.
Warning: This book contains graphic (almost) sex scene(s). 18 yrs. and older.
Synopsis (from Goodreads.com):In the tradition of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, this brilliant first novel fuses history, fantasy, and romance. Prepare to be enchanted by M. K. Hobson’s captivating take on the Wild, Wild West. The year is 1876. In the small Sierra Nevada settlement of Lost Pine, the town witch, Emily Edwards, is being run out of business by an influx of mail-order patent magics. Attempting to solve her problem with a love spell, Emily only makes things worse. But before she can undo the damage, an enchanted artifact falls into her possession—and suddenly Emily must flee for her life, pursued by evil warlocks who want the object for themselves.
Dreadnought Stanton, a warlock from New York City whose personality is as pompous and abrasive as his name, has been exiled to Lost Pine for mysterious reasons. Now he finds himself involuntarily allied with Emily in a race against time—and across the United States by horse, train, and biomechanical flying machine—in quest of the great Professor Mirabilis, who alone can unlock the secret of the coveted artifact. But along the way, Emily and Stanton will be forced to contend with the most powerful and unpredictable magic of all—the magic of the human heart.
My Reveries and Ramblings:Take an old Western then add some magic, a pinch of paranormal, and a sprinkle of romance and you get The Native Star. This was one crazy steampunk adventure. The Native Star follows a 25 year old witch, Emily. She and her adoptive father, Pap, own a magic shop-mostly for home use; however, it is being run out of business by a larger company. In an effort to ease Pap’s life, she casts a love spell on her friend for money hoping that after they get married she will grow to love him. However, her spell goes wrong and a poor drunk warlock, tells Emily about suspicious events occurring as well as accusing her of using dark magic. After going to check on his suspicions, Emily gets a native star stuck in her hand. With the help of Dreadnought Stanton, the most aggravating Warlock ever, she goes in search of removing it. Their journey across America is filled with problems. Almost every magical society is after them, including the government. Apparently the native star is much more valuable and deadly then Emily originally thought.
What an adventure! I felt like I was there. When Emily and Stanton were tired, I was tired. When they were scared, I was scared. It was so much fun. This novel takes place in 1876. Their journey takes them from California all the way to the east coast. It is an America where magic is used everywhere, even in the government. This magic is powered through faith and belief in it. You do get the occasional anti-magic religious town. This world is filled with secret societies, radicals, zombies, and flying machines. The story has an old western feel to it-so much so that I visualized some of it in sepia. No joke, it was almost like watching a blockbuster western film. Epic.
The characters were so well-written (the whole book was!) At the beginning of the novel, Emily made a choice. It was the wrong one and everything that happens to her after that is the consequence of one small decision. Hobson explores choices and their consequences throughout The Native Star, for almost every character. Emily is a very human character. She makes mistakes and she is not perfect in any way. But she tries to do the right thing. Emily gets stuck with the “insufferable” Stanton, who has made it his life mission to show off his magical knowledge. Stanton was a fascinating character. At the beginning, I agreed with Emily on his annoying and supercilious attitude and comments. I remember thinking “It’s going to be a long ride.” But over the course of the book, the reasons for his actions and personality are revealed and I (and Emily, of course) started to fall in love with him. The romance wasn’t overpowering though. It started out as hate then turned to love over time-basically a growing attraction. Stanton reminded me of Mr. Rochester from Jane Eyre. He’s definitely the strong smart guy, but there is no doubt that he is tortured. These two are the central characters of the novel. There are a whole bunch of others including an Indian Holy Woman, an evil soul that possesses people, a radical warlock who happens to run the American military, and a paranoid feminist witch.
This is the first book in a series. The Native Star is an exhilarating adventure that will leave you wanting more. I give it 4 Kisses.
Synopsis (from Goodreads.com):Teagan Wylltson's best friend, Abby, dreams that horrifying creatures--goblins, shape-shifters, and beings of unearthly beauty but terrible cruelty--are hunting Teagan. Abby is always coming up with crazy stuff, though, so Teagan isn't worried. Her life isn't in danger. In fact, it's perfect. She's on track for a college scholarship. She has a great job. She's focused on school, work, and her future. No boys, no heartaches, no problems. Until Finn Mac Cumhaill arrives. Finn's a bit on the unearthly beautiful side himself. He has a killer accent and a knee-weakening smile. And either he's crazy or he's been haunting Abby's dreams, because he's talking about goblins, too . . . and about being The Mac Cumhaill, born to fight all goblin-kind. Finn knows a thing or two about fighting. Which is a very good thing, because this time, Abby's right. The goblins are coming.
My Reveries and Ramblings: Tyger Tyger follows the adventure of Teagan, her brother, Aiden, and Finn into Mag Mell to rescue Teagan’s father from Fear Doirich, the goblin king. That’s basically the gist of the whole story. Hamilton put together a wonderful story. The mythology was well crafted/researched. It really brought the story to life. However, I felt that there were just so many names and places that I could barely pronounce that I found myself having to reread certain parts to get the back story correct. I did like how Hamilton incorporated the Gaelic phrases. Finn’s dialogue was interesting to read. He was confident in everything he did-from fighting to flirting. His character was a bit flat though. I just didn’t get that spark of a three dimensional character from him. I didn’t feel that he was real. In fact, most of the characters didn’t seem that three dimensional. Since this is the first book in a series, I’m really hoping Hamilton explores them more. Although I really liked Aiden and his singing ability. It made for some very funny moments, especially in Mag Mell (Kiss the Girl scene-wish he kept singing). Oh, and Ms. Skinner, a very obscure character, made me so angry, she needs to get a life instead of trying to control and judge others’.
I was a bit frustrated at how both Teagan and Finn have the whole love-at-first-sight moment, then Finn goes away for a while, and she’s not upset. What bothers me is that they barely had a conversation and he’s in love with her. Also, throughout the book there aren’t any serious romantic moments-there are a few cute ones, though. Also, Abby, Teagan’s best friend, kept warning Teagan about how the goblins are coming for her in the beginning, but then when they finally do show up, Abby doesn’t believe her.
Tyger Tyger is like a modern day fairy tale-without the fey. It was a good book. Hamilton included Irish folklore, religion, goblins, and a really cool car chase in her novel. That car chase was very fun to read- most of the books I read don’t include one so that was interesting. I give this book 3 Kisses.
Little does she know, Dante is the one hiding a dangerous secret, one that has him fearing for her life.
Dead Beautiful is both a compelling romance and thought-provoking read, bringing shocking new meaning to life, death, love, and the nature of the soul.
My Reveries and Ramblings:Dead Beautiful centers around Renee and her life after she finds her parents dead in the Redwood Forest. Throughout the story Renee tries to solve the mystery of their “death by heart attack” which seems to be a reoccurring theme/death of students who have died while at Gottfried Academy. Of course, everyone tells her she is looking too much into their deaths and that it is perfectly possible for two people to die of heart attacks at the same time in the woods.
Besides her investigation into the mysterious deaths, her growing attraction to Dante, a student who causes her to literally go weak in the knees, has left her with more questions than answers. I liked Dante’s character and how unselfish he was but he just didn’t give me that I-want-him-gotta-have-him feeling. Honestly, I really really really wanted to love this book. I really did! But sadly, the idea of the Undead creeped me out. Even though they specifically stated in the book that the Undead are not the same thing as zombies, to me, they basically were; and I’m not a huge fan of zombie anything. But I tried. Also, I did not like Renee. I thought she was rude and was selfish most of the time.
This book wasn’t my type of book. However I think it was well written. The world Woon created was detailed. The mythology surrounding the Undead was original and put together nicely. The mystery was good. In fact, it was what kept me reading even though I wanted to stop because of the whole Undead thing. I wanted to find out who was behind all the murders. The end was not what I expected and I was a bit disappointed.
Overall, it was a good book, just not for me. Although I can understand why so many people really liked it. It was kind of like Twilight but with Zombie-like people instead of vampires.
Synopsis (from Goodreads.com):Twenty-five-year-old Julie Jacobs is heartbroken over the death of her beloved aunt Rose. But the shock goes even deeper when she learns that the woman who has been like a mother to her has left her entire estate to Julie’s twin sister. The only thing Julie receives is a key—one carried by her mother on the day she herself died—to a safety-deposit box in Siena, Italy.
This key sends Julie on a journey that will change her life forever—a journey into the troubled past of her ancestor Giulietta Tolomei. In 1340, still reeling from the slaughter of her parents, Giulietta was smuggled into Siena, where she met a young man named Romeo. Their ill-fated love turned medieval Siena upside-down and went on to inspire generations of poets and artists, the story reaching its pinnacle in Shakespeare’s famous tragedy.
But six centuries have a way of catching up to the present, and Julie gradually begins to discover that here, in this ancient city, the past and present are hard to tell apart. The deeper she delves into the history of Romeo and Giulietta, and the closer she gets to the treasure they allegedly left behind, the greater the danger surrounding her—superstitions, ancient hostilities, and personal vendettas. As Julie crosses paths with the descendants of the families involved in the unforgettable blood feud, she begins to fear that the notorious curse—“A plague on both your houses!”—is still at work, and that she is destined to be its next target. Only someone like Romeo, it seems, could save her from this dreaded fate, but his story ended long ago. Or did it?
From Anne Fortier comes a sweeping, beautifully written novel of intrigue and identity, of love and legacy, as a young woman discovers that her own fate is irrevocably tied—for better or worse—to literature’s greatest star-crossed lovers.
My Ramblings and Reveries:I had seen this book on B&N’s coming soon page and had to get it as soon as it was released-which I did at the end of August 2010. This book brought me into a month long obsession with Italy. I grilled my parents for days about our family which came from Italy. I was secretly hoping that there was some sort of cool mystery, death, or curse or something that would allow me to go on the same kind of adventure as the protagonist, Julie, did in Juliet. I was so disappointed when there was nothing-but I’m not giving my hopes up until I step foot in Italy and find out for myself ;)
Juliet begins with Julie Jacobs finding out about the death of her great aunt, who raised her and her sister, Janice. After she is told by Umberto, the butler, and her aunt’s lawyer that the estate was left for Janice, a broke Julie goes to Siena, Italy to find the family treasure that was left for her by their mother. In college, Julie Jacobs went to Italy with a group of peace activists only to be kicked out of the country and asked to never return. This time she enters the country as Giulietta Tolomei, her birth name. On the plane she meets Eva Maria Salimbeni who informs her to be careful about who she tells her name to. She begins to tell Julie, or Giulietta, about the history between their two families. What follows is 400 pages filled with a treasure hunt for Juliet’s eyes, a gold statue with very very valuable jewels for eyes. However, this statue is said to be located at the grave of Romeo and Juliet, which no one has seen since the black plague. Led by only her dead mother’s notes and a copy of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Julie sets out on a wild treasure hunt. There is another thing-a powerful curse that all started with the Friar Lorenzo, who was the friar responsible for Romeo and Juliet’s romance all those years ago. As he was being tortured he cursed the Tolomei (Juliet and Julie’s family) and the Salimbeni (Eva Maria’s family-and the evil man who tore Juliet and Romeo apart’s family) family.
“A plague on both your houses
You shall all perish in fire and gore
Your children forever wail under a mad moon
Till you undo your sins and kneel before the Virgin
And Giulietta wakes to behold her Romeo.”
Of course Julie doesn’t have an easy time trying to end the curse and find the treasure- what with Alessandro Santini wanting her to stay away from him and his godmother Eva Maria. Then when he finally befriends Julie, he starts doing some very suspicious things. Then there’s the issue of someone on a motor cycle who keeps following her everywhere. And to top it off, the Maestro painter who she befriends and who owns the painting of the original Juliet from all those years ago, tells her that Romeo comes to his studio almost every night to drink a glass of wine and look at the painting. And no, he is no ghost- for ghosts don’t drink wine.
Take The Da Vinci Code, National Treasure, Romeo and Juliet, and Anne Fortier’s imagination and writing and you get Juliet, a beautiful love story spanning centuries and a treasure hunt. This is one of my favorite books. I opened it to skim through before writing this review and ended up rereading it completely -I did not expect to stay up until 5 AM. And now all I want to do is go to Siena. Having been to Italy once before (about 4 or 5 years ago) I have to say it felt like Italy, I was right there. Not only that but I remember seeing the places that she describes in the book, which make it all the more real.
The middle chunk of the book alternates between the past and present. The past being the “real” Romeo and Juliet in 1340. The story is sad and tragic. In my opinion, it’s even more tragic than the Shakespeare version. Now many years later, their decedents are cursed and trying to break it. But will Romeo and Juliet of today’s world find love or tragedy?
Julie Jacobs, or Giulietta was a great character. I truly related to her. I hated her twin sister, Janice, so much. But eventually grew to like her. Alessandro Santini is a hot Italian man. He is the head of security for the local 500 yr old bank, very hot, and a tortured soul. Who doesn’t love all that? Plus he’s got some secrets.
I URGE you to read this book. Juliet is a passionate tale of love, death, secrets, fate/destiny, and finding oneself. It will have you believing that Romeo and Juliet existed and that this curse is for real-which of course both aren’t true. You will be transported to Italy and will never want to leave. You will wish/pray/hope/beg that you can find your Romeo. You will beseech your parents to let you go to Italy to find love and adventure. You won’t know what to do with yourself when it ends. I give it 5 Kisses.
Book Trailer:
Just because I think Romeo and Juliet is one of the greatest (albeit tragic) love stories of all time:
Question:If you are a fan of Science Fiction what is your favorite book? If you haven't read Science Fiction before...any inkling to? Anything catch your eye?
My Answer: I don't read that much science fiction-only because it kind of freaks me out...not sure why though. But I did start The Host a while ago and I really liked it, but had to return it to the library before I could finish it.
Question: What book(s) would you like to see turned into a movie?
My Answer: I would love to see Juliet by Anne Fortier turned into a movie. I will be posting a review for it soon. It's basically like the Da Vinci Code but instead of Da Vinci and the supposed decedent of Jesus, it's Romeo and Juliet. It's actually one of my favorite books EVER. It would be such a great movie ESPECIALLY since it takes place in Italy!
Synopsis (from Goodreads.com):The only thing Avery Hood can remember about the night her parents died is that she saw silver—deadly silver, moving inhumanly fast. As much as she wants to remember who killed them, she can't, and there's nothing left to do but try to piece her life back together. Then Avery meets the new boy in school—Ben, mysterious and beautiful, with whom she feels a connection like nothing she's ever experienced. When Ben reveals he's a werewolf, Avery still trusts him—at first. Then she sees that sometimes his eyes flash inhuman silver. And she learns that she's not the only one who can't remember the night her parents died.Part murder mystery, part grief narrative, and part heart-stopping, headlong romance, Low Red Moon is a must-read for teen paranormal fans. As breathless as Twilight and as spooky as Shiver, this is a book to be devoured in one sitting—by an acclaimed YA author making her paranormal debut under the pseudonym Ivy Devlin.
My Reveries and Ramblings:When I first picked up this book all I knew about it was that it was a book about a girl who falls in love with a werewolf. Which seems to be a popular plot element in most paranormal YA books along with vampires and angels. But since I’m obsessed with love stories I picked it up anyway. I do not regret it one bit! It’s a short book so it didn’t take me that long to read. The book was fast paced and heart racing. Seriously, my heart was actually racing. It was beating so hard I had to stop reading to calm down-that’s how suspenseful it was-especially the ending.
The story revolves around Avery Hood, whose parents were just brutally murdered. She witnessed the murder but can’t remember it. The only thing she remembers is a flash of silver and blood. Haunted by nightmares and forced to live with her grandmother, Avery buries herself in the pain of losing her parents. Strange things start happening to Avery as she tries to remember who murdered her parents- her hair starts changing color (to blood red), her love of her old home draws her into the woods, the murderer is out to remove his only witness, and a cute new student arrives at the local public high school (which Avery attends).
Ben and Avery have a seriously intense relationship. I love it! They can sense/feel each other’s emotions which makes it difficult to hide things. They both know what the other is feeling. Imagine how amazing it would be if you could feel the love and know with out a hint of doubt how much they loved you. That’s how Avery and Ben’s relationship is. Of course both have secrets that they keep, even ones that they don’t even know they have.
Ivy Devlin did a beautiful job with the writing. I felt the pain that Avery felt when she mourned her parents. She truly loved them. She didn’t have that typical “teenager hates parents” relationship that I’ve seen in a lot of YA books. She was close to her parents. Also, in the book whenever the word “moon” came up, the word was printed in red-as well as the cover. The color red was seen throughout the book, not just the typography but also in the story. It fit perfectly with the story since red symbolizes both love and blood.
Low Red Moon was a sensational debut novel that had me flipping through the pages. This modern day paranormal retelling of the popular Little Red Riding Hood will leave you wanting a sequel. I really really really hope Ivy Devlin writes a sequel. So far I haven’t read anything that says she is-but I’m hoping anyway. I give it 5 Kisses.
