Versatile Blogger Award

This week I received The Versatile Blogger Award from both Nanny at Getting Naughty Between the Stacks and from Uniquely Moi Books, thank you!


Here's the rules:

1. Share 7 things about yourself
2. Pass The Award to 15 bloggers recently discovered.
3. Notify the blogger recipients
4. Link the blogger who gave the award.




Ok, so here are 7 things about me:

1. I work at Mary Brown’s Famous Chicken and Taters!
2. I prefer werewolves to vampires (but I still enjoy a good vampire book!)
3. I have a cat I like to call "Princess Fatty Pants"
4. I thoroughly dislike blinking Christmas lights
5. My favorite color is green
6. My favorite scent is lilac
7. I wish I lived close to the ocean




And here are the bloggers I am forwarding this to:
1. La Femme Readers
2. A Good Addiction
3. Book-Savvy
4. Flipping Pages For All Ages
5. Intense Whisperer
6. Just Your Typical Book Blog
7. Love 2 Read For Fun
8. LovLivLife Reviews
9. My Ever Expanding Library
10. Not-Really-Southern Vamp Chick
11. The Bodacious Pen
12. The Book Swarm
13. Writing From the Tub - My Life as a Writer in Bath
14. YA Addict
15. WORD For Teens

Teaser Tuesdays (27)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly event hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.


Today's book: Matched by Ally Condie

“Now that I’ve found the way to fly, which direction should I go into the night? My wings aren’t white or feathered; they’re green, made of green silk, which shudders in the wind and bends when I move—first in a circle, then in a line, finally in a shape of my own invention. The black behind me doesn’t worry me; neither do the stars ahead.” (Page 3)

Here is how it works:
- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2 or 3) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
- Remember to show the title & author, too, so that others can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Almost To Die For by Tate Hallaway

Almost to Die For:
On her sixteenth birthday, Anastasija Parker learns that her so-called deadbeat dad is actually a vampire king. And he wants Ana to assume her rightful position at his side, in spite of the fact that she has witch's blood running through her veins-from her mother's side.
Too bad witches and vampires are mortal enemies. And now Ana's parents are at each other's throats over her future. It's up to Ana to make a choice, but deciding your eternal destiny is a pretty big deal for a girl who just wants to get through high school.

Tate Hallaway created an incredibly intricate world where vampires and witches exist together, but are mortal enemies. I finished this book in one sitting because I couldn’t put it down, a modern twist on Romeo and Juliet; I had to keep turning pages to find out what happened next. For centuries the True Witches have oppressed the vampires, until a treaty was made and a child born of that union, Anastasija. But her mother hid her true heritage from her and as this fast paced story unfolds Ana finds that she will have to make a choice between her father’s world and that of her own. Finding out that Ana is half-vampire is a shock to her peers in the coven, but it is not enough to deter Nikolai, the son of a vampire hunter and set to follow in his father’s footsteps. But her feelings for Nikolai are muddled with her feelings for Elias, Captain of her father’s guards. In her mother’s attempts to keep her from the vampires, a fight between the True Witches and vampires breaks out and Ana unlocks a power within herself that no one imagined possible. And by using blood magic she has formed a deeper connection to Elias, I can’t wait to see what’s in store for their relationship in the next book: Almost Final Curtain.

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? (27)

This is a fun weekly meme hosted by One Persons Journey Through a World of Books.


Books read last week:
Finding Sky by Joss Stirling
Will of Steel by Diana Palmer
If I Stay by Gayle Forman
Almost to Die For by Tate Hallaway



The book I'm reading now:
Scent of Darkness by Christina Dodd:
A thousand years ago, Konstantine Varinski roamed the Russian steppes. Driven by his craving for power, he struck a terrible bargain. In return for the ability to change from a magnificent warrior to a predator that could hunt down his enemies and kill them, he promised his soul — and the souls of his descedents — to the devil.

Plain Ann Smith loves her handsome, dynamic boss, Jasha Wilde, but her daring plan to seduce him goes awry when she finds a black wolf warming itself before the fire. Before her horrified eyes, the wolf changes into the man she adores. She flees, he pursues, but they can't escape their destinies.

For Jasha is the descendant of Konstantine Varinski and Ann is the woman fated to break the curse that binds his soul. To find heaven in each other's arms, they have the devil to pay.


Books that spark my interest this week:
Dancing with the Devil by Keri Arthur
Any Given Doomsday by Lori Handeland
No Rest for the Wicked by Kresley Cole

Finding Sky by Joss Stirling

Finding Sky:
When Sky catches a glimpse of Zed for the first time, lounging against his motorbike at school, she is drawn to him just like every other girl in Wickenridge. But Zed sees something special in her that the other girls don't have. Zed tells her they are both Savants - people with special powers like telepathy and the ability to see into the future. Not only that, she is a Savant too, and his soulfinder - meant to be together.

When a soulfinder speaks telepathically to her partner, it's like all the lights coming on in a building. But for Sky it's just not that easy - she's a mystery to herself, haunted by nightmares from her past before she was adopted, and riddled with doubt and insecurity. Just when Sky is slowly coming round to the idea of being with Zed she is kidnapped by a family of criminal Savants. In a chilling twist, Sky and Zed's relationship is put to the ultimate test and the fate of those she loves lie in Sky's hands. Will Sky have the strength to embrace her power and be brave enough to control her own destiny, or will the dark demons of her past prevent her from realizing her true potential?

I found Joss Stirling’s original ideas on Savants intriguing and it kept me interested throughout the book. There is so much mystery surrounding Sky’s past, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading as the plot unfolded. Her initial reaction to Zed was animosity, although she found herself attracted to him, his rude behavior towards everyone made him hard to get along with. But a freak incident during a soccer match at school changes things between them as he discovers how special Sky truly is. Zed’s whole family are gifted Savants and they have enemies who will stop at nothing to destroy their family. Sky becomes caught in the middle when she is kidnapped and a powerful Savant creates false memories of what truly happened, making her believe Zed and his family are out to hurt her. The secret to unlocking what truly happened lies in unlocking her lost memories of the past as well, and Sky is not entirely sure that the love she and Zed share will survive the trials ahead as they try to stop the criminals from harming anyone further.

In My Mailbox (32)

In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi, over at The Story Siren.





Hunger by Jackie Morse Kessler
Finding Sky by Joss Stirling
The Candidates by Inara Scott
By Amanda Hocking:
Hollowland, Switched and My Blood Approves
Forever Frost by Kailin Gow

On My Wishlist (27)

On My Wishlist is a fun weekly event hosted by Book Chick City and runs every Saturday. It's where we list all the books we desperately want but haven't actually bought yet. They can be old, new or forthcoming. It's also an event that you can join in with too - Mr Linky is always at the ready for you to link your own 'On My Wishlist' post. If you want to know more click here.



Lunarmorte by Sam Young:
Existing in the shadows of our world are supernatural races; children blessed by the ancient Greek gods with unimaginable gifts, and at present they are fighting a two-thousand-year old war with one another.

The Midnight Coven, an alliance of dark magiks, faeries, and daemons born of black magik, believe that the vampyres and lykans are lesser supernaturals and a threat to mankind. They are at war with the Daylight Coven, a confederate of light magiks, faeries, vampyres and lykans who believe in the equality of the races.

Into this war seventeen-year-old Caia Ribeiro is born...a lykan with a heritage unlike any other. A heritage that, whether she wants it to or not, will put her into the very heart of battle...





Outlander by Diana Gabaldon:
The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon--when she walks through a standing stone in one of the ancient stone circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach--an "outlander"--in a Scotland torn by war and raiding Highland clans in the year of Our Lord...1743.

Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire is catapulted into intrigues and dangers that may threaten her life...and shatter her heart. For here she meets James Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, and becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire...and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.






Generation Dead by Daniel Waters:
The phenomenon that's been sweeping the country seems to be here to stay. Not only are the teenagers who have come back from their graves still here, but newlydeads are being unearthed all the time. While scientists look for answers and politicians take their stands, the undead population of Oakville have banded together in a group they're calling the Sons of Romero, hoping to find solidarity in segregation.

Phoebe Kendall may be alive, but she feels just as lost and alone as her dead friends. Just when she reconciled herself to having feelings for a zombie -- her Homecoming date Tommy Williams -- her friend Adam is murdered taking a bullet that was meant for her. Things get even more confusing when Adam comes back from the grave. Now she has romantic interest in two dead boys; one who saved her life, and one she can't seem to live without.

Will of Steel by Diana Palmer

Will of Steel:
Follow New York Times bestselling author Diana Palmer to Medicine Ridge, Montana, and meet Police Chief Theodore Graves—a man as rugged as the land he passionately wants to claim as his own. Only one thing stands in his way, a feisty woman who is prepared to meet his challenge. Sparks fly as they go toe-to-toe, but can the man with a will of steel finally learn what it means to bend?

Diana Palmer is what I like to call my “fallback romance writer”, if there’s ever a time I need a simple romance or a ‘break’ from reading I pick up one of her books. There are some recurring characteristics that her protagonists share in all her books, but for the most part I still enjoy reading anything I can get my hands on by Diana. Her talent for creating sweet romance with rugged men gets me every time, and this book was no different. Jillian is a quiet woman who keeps to herself after a brutal attack when she was a teenager, now almost twenty-one, her uncle and his partner who both recently passed, put a clause in their wills that she and Theodore would have to marry or their ranch will be put on public auction. Jillian is not sure she wants to marry any man, but she does feel safe with Theodore. Without any warning the man who attacked Jillian has been released from prison and has returned to torment and exact revenge on Jillian. Theodore and the rest of Jillian’s friends band together to keep her safe, but her attacker is wily and danger is closer to Jillian than they all thought possible. There was one loose thread that was left by the end of this book, the danger of a convict Theodore once put away getting out on a technicality, he promised to kill Theodore but nothing came of it and that bothered me, but I was able to look past that and enjoy the romance.

Friday 56...Heavenly (34)

The book today: Heavenly by Jennifer Laurens

“You didn’t?" My breath stalled in my chest. "Are you sure?”

The Rules:

* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of this blog.
* Post a link along with your post back to this blog.
* Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

If I Stay:
On a day that started like any other…
Mia had everything: a loving family, a gorgeous, adoring boyfriend, and a bright future full of music and full of choices. Then, in an instant, almost all of that is taken from her. Caught between life and death, between a happy past and an unknowable future, Mia spends one critical day contemplating the one decision she has left—the most important decision she’ll ever make.
Simultaneously tragic and hopeful, this is a romantic, riveting and ultimately uplifting story about memory, music, living, dying, loving.







Gayle Forman wrote and incredible emotional story about having to choose to give up all that you’ve lost in order to carry on, or making the decision to leave life behind. I admit that I found the pace of this book a little slow, but not in a boring “when is this going to end” kind of way. More like an incredibly reflective way. As Mia relives memories of her past she finds it harder and harder to cling to life, and when her Gramps spends an emotional moment with her broken body, Mia has seemingly come to a decision, yet she lingers watching those around her as they hope for her recovery. Each time a memory is replayed we see the incredible dynamics of Mia’s family and how especially heartbreaking it is to say goodbye. This book is about family, love, life and the power of hope. Mia’s connection with music is what first brought her and Adam (her wonderful boyfriend) together, and their own connection grew stronger as life began to test its bounds. But nothing could come between Adam’s love for her, and one of the sweetest lines in this book was when Adam is speaking to Mia’s comatose body: “Please, Mia,” he implores. “Don’t make me write a song.”

Future Favorites (17)

Future Favorites is an awesome blog feature over at Electrifying Reviews. I post about a book that is yet-to-be-released and that I can't wait to read!

Hereafter by Tara Hudson:

Release Date: June 7, 2011 by Harper Collins
Drifting in the dark waters of a mysterious river, the only thing Amelia knows for sure is that she's dead. With no recollection of her past life - or her actual death - she's trapped alone in a nightmarish existence. All of this changes when she tries to rescue a boy, Joshua, from drowning in her river. As a ghost, she can do nothing but will him to live. Yet in an unforgettable moment of connection she helps him survive.

Amelia and Joshua grow ever closer as they begin to uncover the strange circumstances of her death and the secrets of the dark river that held her captive for so long. But even while they struggle to keep their bond hidden from the living world, a frightening spirit is doing everything in his power to destroy their new found happiness and drag Amelia back into the ghost world...forever.

Wednesday Random Recommendation (33)

Come the Morning:
In the days when Scotland lay under siege - from the Vikings who sailed from the north and the Norman English who came from the south - King David sought to unite his people into one nation. For this, he needed loyal warriors. Waryk de Graham soon proved the greatest of these fighters, and was knighted Lord Lion. But his honored position came with a price: a wife chosen for him by the king - a reluctant Viking bride.
Daughter of a Gaelic noblewoman and a Viking warlord, Mellyora MacAdin had an imagination that blazed with dreams of ancient myths and tales of adventure. She had already pledged her heart when she received King David's decree to marry the fierce Lord Lion. As he came to claim her, Mellyora swore to resist this barbarian nobleman - only to find herself a willing partner to his seduction. Now, torn between defiance and devotion, Mellyora must decide where her future truly lies, as she discovers the savagery in her family's blood, and the secrets of her husband's heart.



Shannon Drake is an incredible writer and whether it’s vampires or historical romance you are in for a treat! In all of her books her characters have depth and are completely engrossing. In this medieval story, love and trust grow as Mellyora and Waryk are thrown together by the King, but their feelings for one another are tested as events unfold.





I invite and welcome anyone interested in participating to post their own "Random Recommendation" (original post) on their blog (and include a link back to this blog) and join in the fun! Some books might not be very recent reads, but I hope that just helps these (sometimes forgotten) books earn a spot on your own bookshelf!

Teaser Tuesdays (26)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly event hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.


Today's book: Misguided Angel by Melissa De La Cruz

“Schuyler Van Alen walked as quickly as she could up the polished brass spiral stairs leading to the upper deck. Jack Force was standing at the edge of the bow when she caught his eye. She nodded to him, shielding her eyes from the hot Mediterranean sun. It’s done.” (page 7)

Here is how it works:
- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2 or 3) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
- Remember to show the title & author, too, so that others can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Marked by the Moon by Lori Handeland

Marked by the Moon:
Tough-as nails Alexandra Trevalyn does what most people can’t: She kills werewolves. Once part of an elite group of hunters, she’s going rogue these days, though no less determined to rid the world of bloodthirsty beasts…once and for all. That’s why Alex had no choice but to kill Julian Barlow’s wife—and will have to pay the price. Julian’s brand of vengeance is downright devious, and now he’s turned Alex into a member of his pack. It’s only a matter of time before she falls under his spell. With the wild freedom of the wolf in her veins, Alex can’t deny that Julian wakes her most primal passions…and draws her that much closer to the moon’s call where evil lies in wait.

I love Lori Handeland’s Nightcreature novels, and when I heard that she had sold more books in the series I was ecstatic. I was definitely not disappointed while reading this new addition to the series. What I adored most about this book was the magical surprise at the end of the book (but that’s all you’re getting from me!). There was never a single moment where I felt the pace dragged; this book is filled with constant action and hot, steamy sex. All her life Alex has been taught werewolves are evil, they killed her parents and at the tender age of fifteen she became a Jager-Sucher, determined to avenge her father’s death. But not all werewolves carry an evil demon within them, and Julian is a legend among the werewolves. He only wants to avenge his wife’s murder so when he turns Alex into a werewolf he gets more than he bargained for. As they fight their unwanted connection, things begin changing and a rogue werewolf is killing the Inuit villagers that reside close to their own village. Someone is suddenly out to kill Alex and the danger of searching for the killer together forces Julian to admit that Alex has become more than just another member of his pack.

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? (26)

This is a fun weekly meme hosted by One Persons Journey Through a World of Books.


Books read last week:
If Angels Burn by Lynn Viehl
Marked by the Moon by Lori Handeland




The book I'm reading now:

If I Stay by Gayle Forman:
In a single moment, everything changes. Seventeen-year-old Mia has no memory of the accident; she can only recall riding along the snow-wet Oregon road with her family. Then, in a blink, she finds herself watching as her own damaged body is taken from the wreck...
A sophisticated, layered, and heartachingly beautiful story about the power of family and friends, the choices we all make—and the ultimate choice Mia commands.








Books that spark my interest this week:
Private Demon by Lynn Viehl
Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder
Misguided Angel by Melissa De La Cruz

If Angels Burn by Lynn Viehl

If Angels Burn:
Alexandra Keller is Chicago's most brilliant reconstructive surgeon. Michael Cyprien is New Orleans' most reclusive millionaire-and in desperate need of Dr. Keller's skills. In the heart of the Garden District, Alex encounters the extraordinary Cyprien, uncovering a love Alex is willing to embrace, even if she must sacrifice her heart and soul to do so.

This was my first Lynn Viehl experience and I very much enjoyed it despite a few minor things that bothered me in the book. This is the first in the Darkyn series so I realize that there was a lot to explain in order for the reader to fully understand the Darkyn world, but there were times when there was just so much going on that I sometimes lost sight of Alexandra and Michael Cyprien’s story. I loved how incredibly detailed Lynn was in creating her world of the Darkyn. The incredible twists and turns I had to travel in order to reach the truth of Michael’s origins kept me reading long into the night. Alexandra is thrown into a world she knows nothing about after she reconstructs Michaels face and her estranged brother suddenly becomes a part of her life again. There is a secret society that is working to torture and kill every Darkyn they can find, and caught within their web of lies is Alexandra’s brother. Michael gives Alexandra a reason to use her skills again, but saving the family tortured by the secret society is more dangerous then she expects.