Sneak Peek Saturday~ Crossfire (Addicted, 2) by Brandi Salazar

“Patrick, this is Isaac, our new wherever-we-need-him guy,” I said, using Marcy’s words to describe him. “You’ll be training him while I’m away.”

Pursing his lips and narrowing his eyes, Patrick sized Isaac up from head to toe. “Anything I should know about this character before I take him under my wing and share all my secrets?” he asked, totally serious. 

I turned my own eyes on Isaac and regarded him for a long moment. “Well, he doesn’t talk much—”

“The deadliest kind.”

“He seems to catch on quick.”

“Highly observant. Possibly dangerous.” Patrick rubbed a thoughtful finger across his bottom lip. 

“And he smells good.” I blushed a little on that one, but I figured if I put it out there then it would instantly diffuse the awkward feeling building inside me since my discovery. It didn’t. 

“Gay?” Patrick asked him. 

Isaac’s eyes widened, immediately affronted by the question. “What? No!”

“Homophobe?” Patrick asked in a dangerous tone. 

I nearly laughed at the deer in the headlights look flashing in Isaac’s eyes. After a tense silence, Patrick took pity on him and burst out laughing. Punching him in the shoulder, Patrick said, “Dude, I’m just messin’ with you.” 

*****

Crossfire is the second book in the Addicted to Magic series. As you can see, it contains just as much, if not more, humor than the first! I love Jessica and her BFF Amber. They always give me a chuckle, but the laughs don't stop there. Keep your eye out for more of Crossfire as we close in on its August release date. And, if you enjoyed this sneak peek, drop me a line and tell me about it! I always enjoy hearing from my readers!

BLOG BARRAGE: "A Warrior's Betrayal (A Brotherhood Novel #2)" by Brandi Salazar

BLOG BARRAGE: "A Warrior's Betrayal (A Brotherhood Novel #2)" by Brandi Salazar

A Warrior's Betrayal
(A Brotherhood Novel #2)
by Brandi Salazar
Self-Published/Indie
Erotic Dark Urban Fantasy Romance
Contains Elements of Action & Mythology
Heat Level: Sizzling
Length: 237 pages

Available at:
Amazon (Kindle) | B&N | Smashwords | Kobo

Blurb:
Forbidden desires...

Being a Brother and a caretaker isn't an easy job, especially when you find yourself coveting the one person you were meant to protect but never have- your brother's woman. That is exactly where Behr finds himself- in love and out of luck. Nothing a little killing can't remedy. While looking for a little trouble to take his mind off what's brewing at home, Behr finds the perfect distraction: hunting down the mythical Rage demon prowling his city's streets.

Lost and alone...

Cheyenne doesn't know what to do with herself. Weeks have passed with no sign of Erias, and as far as she knows, he's dead. Just when she resigns herself to the difficult task of moving on with her life, he reappears, but the Erias she knew no longer exists. He's a demon, the very thing he and his brother's hunt each night. Can Erias overcome this transformation and find the strength to make it back to Cheyenne and the Brotherhood, and if he does, will they accept him? In a world plagued with uncertainty, only one thing is definite: no matter how it ends, someone's heart is bound to get ripped to shreds.

Click on any of the following links listed below to enter the Rafflecopter!

BARRAGE SCHEDULE

December 12, 2012
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BARRAGE-WIDE GIVEAWAY

Follow this barrage to enter the contest at each participating stop for a chance to win one (1) of two (2) eBook copies of "A WARRIOR'S BETRAYAL". More entries = more chances to win!

 

 

 

 

Review of Wide Awake-Academy of the Fallen Series by Daniele Lanzarotta

Author: Daniele Lanzarotta

Date Published: May 25, 2011

Publisher: Rocket Science Productions

ASIN: B0052TMTE4

 

 

Kayla is a 16-year-old girl who was adopted when she was little. She lives a normal life, with great friends, loving adoptive parents, and well... a not-so-great boyfriend. But the reason why she was given up for adoption was far from any usual reason. She was meant to be kept away from the Academy and anything else related to the supernatural beings that could hurt her.

Unfortunately for Kayla, it was only a matter of time before she encountered the creatures from the Otherworld, and there is just no running away from the beings that she can now see.

In trying to protect Kayla by keeping her away from the Academy, she may have just been put in even more danger.

This is one of those stories that I had a lot of hopes for, and it just didn't deliver to my expectations. The story started off good, and the characters were well-developed. I hated her boyfriend from the second he pulled her aside at the museum, and I loved Kayla what she jumped to cut him off at the pass. The girl has guts. Only, when she starts being followed by "ghosts," not so much.

The whole story started off with this creepy vibe, and the fact that Kayla is haunted really made me want to stick with it. Add to that the outcast hero, Hunter, who holds a considerable amount of mystery himself, and the story moved along in the same direction any teenage romance would, which is good. However, for all we do learn about what is really going on, we are left in the dark on so much more. What is the secret surrounding Hunter, exactly? That is the biggest question for me, and I feel like I was running around in circles, close but never able to figure it out. And there were other things I took issue with.

One problem for me was the considerable amount of typos and grammatical errors. No book is perfect, and I have made this clear in any review I have ever written where I run into this problem. Only if they are plentiful does it ever really bother me. Fact is, I was surprised that the author had an editor or was even traditionally published. The language the characters used was not how people really talk. There was a huge lack of contractions, which would have made it so much easier to read instead of jerky as it was. Punctuation was also a major problem, which affected readability. Finally, the so called cliffhanger was weak. Instead of, say, revealing Hunter's secret, we were left with *SPOILER ALERT* a confession that he "might" be in love with Kayla. Somehow, that is just not enough make me desperate to find out what happens next, which is disappointing, because I really wanted to love this story. I don't know if I will be reading the next in the series yet, but if I do, it will be somewhere down the line. I'm in no hurry. This is a good YA book for a rainy day.

Wide Awake has a 4.8/5 star overall rating and is available on Amazon. 

Review of Shaken (Mind Reader Series #1) by Susan Hatler

Kylie is just your average girl trying to maintain her perfect GPA, crushing on the one boy she can even talk to without suffering metal distress, and being a good friend. Raised by her father after mother died when she was four, Kylie in under the assumption that this is as bad as her life can get, until she opens the door one morning and can suddenly read minds. Now, Kylie is privy to all kinds of information she wasn't meant to know, which doesn't make life as easy as one might think.

While trying to get a handle on her new ability, Kylie is drawn into a kidnapping mystery that only she can solve. Her father is telling lies, and the detective's cousin, Trip Williams, is hot on the case, digging up information that wasn't meant to be found, and Kylie finds herself right in the middle of it all. Suddenly, the life she thought she knew is turns upside down, and Kylie learns that not everything in life is black and white.

I didn't know what to expect when I picked this book up, but I had a good feeling about it. I ended up really liking it. From the first page I could tell it was solid writing and the tone was just right, making the characters likeable and about as true to life as you are going to get with a paranormal novel. I was never sure how Kylie's ability was going to play out--how much trouble would it get her into, who the kidnappers were, what her father was keeping from her, etc. The plot was really good and well thought out, and it held my attention all the way to the end.

The only thing that kept me from giving it a solid five stars was the predictability and how long it took the character, Kylie, to catch up to where I already was. Once I figured out something fairly obvious and self-explanatory, it took her a page or two more to make the same connections, which just made her appear slow. Other than that, I had no problems with anything. There were even some surprises toward the end that I couldn't have predicted--ever--because the information was never given until that point, and even then, it was played out well, which I really enjoyed.

I am glad this is a series, because I plan to find out what happens between all these characters. I want justice! I want in your face confrontations, and most of all, I want love.

 Shaken has a 4.9/5 star rating. You can pick up your copy here. 

Teaser Tuesday!

We're back this week with Teaser Tuesday!

 Brace yourselves, this week's teaser comes from John Matthews Blind School.

 

Ryan Lorimar and Jessica Werner have a special gift: they can see ‘fallen angel’ apparitions within other people. But as the fallen angels in turn know that they’ve been ‘viewed’, it’s a gift that will get him killed. They need protection. They need to enter ‘Blind School’.

Their only hope is Ellis Kendell and his team of agents. Day in, day out, Kendell’s team trawl through street-cam images from across the nation to pick up that tell-tale eye light-refraction of ‘viewers’. Can Kendell’s team get to the viewers before the fallen angels and get them to safety in ‘Blind School’? But there’s also an added agenda: Kendell’s department want the ‘viewers’ help in tracking down more ‘fallen angels’.

Yet is Kendell deluding himself? Setting this small group of teens against a legion fifty-times their number of the most cunning and vicious murderers and criminal masterminds the nation has to offer – is he simply throwing them to the wolves? Fated to watch them one-by-one die. The odds are against them.

 Teaser 1

"It's okay. I know your secret. You don't have to keep it to yourself any more." 
"What?" A sharp jolt ran through her as she pulled back and stared at Ben. 
But her mom was approaching, she couldn't pursue it. Her eyes shifted uncomfortably between Ben and her mom, then a quick forced smile to hopefully cover, she headed out. 
"Bye y'all." 

Teaser 2

Her thoughts pounded in time with her step: surely he couldn't have found out. And if he had, how?  She'd been so careful to keep everything from him. 
She knew that she should wait until after the doctor's appointment to talk to Ben, could do without the agitation beforehand-but in the end it was burning too hot through her mind. At the next cross- street, she memory-dialed her home number. 
After three rings her mother answered: "Hello."
"Mom. Is Ben still there?" 

Blind School has a 4.5/5 star rating and is available for purchase on Amazon. 

Indie Author Feature! 

 

This week I would like to introduce Annalise Grey, author of Howl (Kane Wolves, #1). 

 

Genre: Older YA Paranormal Romance

Publication: January 4, 2012

Purchase your copy on Amazon and Barnes and Noble today! 

Add Howl (Kane Wolves, #1) to your Goodreads TBR list! 

Description:

Nineteen year old Sophie Matthews is a line-walker between two worlds - human and werewolf. She lives around humans but is never truly part of their world. That is, until she is spotted by a hiker.

What should have been a passing glance becomes so much more as Sophie falls for the one thing she is forbidden from ever having: a human mate.

Adding to her stress is newcomer Daniel, the arrogant wolf on Sophie's tail.

Then several humans are killed by a mysterious and dangerous beast within the pack's hunting grounds. The humans begin whispering of wolf-men roaming the forest and the threat of discovery looms heavy around the pack.

Everything is falling apart and Sophie realizes just how little control she has over her future.

Will she risk everything - her heart, her family, and her safety - for a chance to control her own fate?

About Annalise Grey:

Pennsylvania native, dreamer, explorer.

I write because I like talking to the voices in my head. They are (usually) good company. I love to travel (when I have the $ for it). My family is everything to me.

To find out more about Andrea, you can find her here. 

What people are saying: 

Andrea Heltsley (4 stars)- 

The fighting was epic and the storyline was solid. I wish the author had dug a little deeper with the characters and explored their personalities more. I could have used some more sympathy in this book other than Sophie and the love triangle.  The story had action up until the very end. I was on pins and needles to see what happened. Alas, I got no such end. The author left one hell of a cliffhanger and I am still sad about it.

Laura Thomas (5 stars) -  

Imagine my delight when I found out that I had won this book. I've been wanting to read it and now I urge you to do so.

I sat down last night and started reading. At first it was a bit slow, but then I glanced up at the clock and four hours had flashed past and I was finished.
Howl is about Sophie and her family of werewolves, living as a pack and trying to remain undiscovered. Glimpsed by a hiker in her wolf form, Sophie later runs into him again in her human form. A mutual atrraction grows, but since it is forbidden to be with human mates, Sophie secretly starts dating jaime.
The pack has problems of their own when people are being viciously attacked and sitings of an unusually large wolf are reported. 

I really want to tell you more, but I don't want to spoil it for you.
Annalise Grey gives you just enough detail, with flowing dialogue and well developed characters that you feel a connection with.
The end left me wanting more and i will be watching for another book, hopefully several.

 

Review of A Devil Named Desire (The Devil's Bargain #2) by Author Terri Garey

 4 Stars

Hope Henderson is in a state of despair over her sister's supposed death. After a series of unfortunate events throughout her life--her parent's deaths and running her sister off unintentionally--Hope blames herself for everything that has gone wrong. She is so depressed, in fact, that she attempts to kill herself, unwittingly calling upon the Darkness. And that is when Sammy Divine, the devil himself, steps in to save the day.

Sammy, always the Master of Deceit, has his own agenda. Give Hope the opportunity to see her sister again, and in return Hope will create a site for his followers to worship him and his minions, as well as her immortal soul. However, Archangel Gabriel, the Lightbringer, never the one to let a good soul fall into the abyss, notices the darkness shadowing Hope, and steps up to the plate, appointing himself her protector.

I really liked this story. Gabriel, as an angel, is historically forbidden to partake in sins of the flesh, otherwise risk falling the way of his brother, Samael. He holds himself to this high standard, looking down on his fallen brethren because he cannot comprehend his temptation as he has never been tempted. Until he meets Hope. Hope appears to be anything but attracted to him, which boggles his mind and captures his attention more thoroughly than whatever game the Devil is playing at.

I had a few problems with the wording. It seems the author has a style that can be a little backwards at times, but overall, the tone was perfectly fine. I also noticed a few typos, but that is nothing compared to the actual leaving out of words. That was my biggest annoyance throughout this book. In the end, I couldn't hold it against the author because there were some great passages that were beautifully written. Everything about it was dark and sensuous, temptation wrapped in pleasure that has the power to create a flutter in your belly as first love is recognized and acted upon. I loved the connection between Gabe and Hope, but I was attracted to Sammy's role in all of this too, curious to see how his life will play out in the end. Try as he might to be evil, there is no doubt there is a heart somewhere deep down beneath that clever, crafty, devilish facade.

If you like your romance wrapped in deviltry, pick up a copy on Amazon, today.