In My Mailbox (90)

In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren.

Damage by Anya Parrish
Isle of Night by Veronica Wolff
Winter's Kiss Anthology by Jennifer Echols and Catherine Hapka
Time Mends by Tammy Blackwell
Memories of Murder by Lara Nance
Deadly Little Voices by Laurie Faria Stolarz
Half Moon by Jordan Deen
Somnium by Keri Lake
Bloodrose by Andrea Cremer

Within the Flames by Marjorie M Liu

Within the Flames:
Joining the Dirk and Steele Agency turned Eddie's life around. A pyrokinetic and former car thief, he cannot refuse an assignment to cross the continent in order to rescue an extraordinary woman in peril...even though he fears losing control of the destructive power of flame at his fingertips.

The last of her shape-shifting kind, Lyssa hides in the abandoned tunnels beneath Manhattan, seeking refuge from those who murdered her family a decade ago and would now destroy her as well. Like Eddie, fire is her weapon, her destiny... and her curse. Yet she wants nothing to do with this mesmerizing stranger who seeks her trust while inflaming her passion. For beneath Lyssa's extraordinary beauty are dangerous secrets... and even darker, nearly irresistible urges. But she has won the heart of a fearless protector... and all the demons in the world will not make him back down.

Marjorie M Liu has one of the most creative imaginations I have ever encountered. Her books are never disappointing and I have been waiting for Eddie's story ever since I first met him in Tiger Eye. Ever since Eddie lost control of his fire he's been alone, and finally there is a woman who can withstand his fire and add to it with her own. It's been incredible to watch him develop over the course of the Dirk & Steele series, and I know fans are going to love this newest addition. Eddie is a hero, even when he doesn't want to believe it, he believes in doing the right thing no matter what the cost. Lyssa is a powerful woman who is afraid to trust herself, she protects those around her even while trying to avoid forming any kind of affection. I loved seeing a few past characters of the series woven into the story; and in fact, we learn a little something new about the relationship between Eddie and Roland (the powerful leader behind the Dirk & Steele detective agency). Marjorie's characters are deeper than they first appear, and some of the secrets they hide could damage more than just relationships. But with trust and love Eddie and Lyssa fight their demons in order to save others from a powerful evil the seeks not only to destroy, but take their power for her own.

Tempest Giveaway!

St. Martin's Press has provided one copy for me to giveaway!

Rules For Entry:

- US and Canadian mailing addresses ONLY.
- Contest ends: January 28, 2012 12AM EST.
- Fill out the FORM below to enter.

On My Wishlist (86)

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 - a linky is always at the ready for you to link your own 'On My Wishlist' post. If you want to know more click here.

Primal Anthology:
Four all-new stories of primitive desire- with a never-before- published novella of the Breeds.

#1 New York Times bestselling author Lora Leigh returns to her sensual world of the Breeds in an all-new novella that explores just how savage, and how far, a man is willing to go in the name of desire. Plus three other stories of irresistible passions from three masters of hot paranormal romance.












The Departed by Shiloh Walker:
A LIFELONG OBSESSION
FBI Special Agent Taylor Jones has made it his mission to save those in harm's way by any means necessary-including employing psychic agents like Desiree "Dez" Lincoln, who can communicate with the disembodied spirits of the dead. Taylor is haunted by his own ghost, his kid sister, gone missing at age six. For a quarter of a century he has been tortured by her loss and the mystery of her disappearance.

A NIGHT'S INDISCRETION
When Dez is seriously wounded, Taylor can no longer hide his feelings for her. Getting involved could spell disaster for both of them-not to mention those who rely on them for help-but once Dez lays her hands on him, he can't resist the fierce attraction. But after giving in to his desires, Taylor pulls back, and Dez strikes out on her own.

AN INESCAPABLE PASSION
Responding to the call of another anguished spirit, Dez is led to Taylor's old hometown. As the two are forced to come together to save a girl in peril, Dez may be able to help Taylor finally find the answers he's been looking for...



Shadow Bound by Erin Kellison:
Death
Some people will do anything to avoid it. Even trade their immortal souls for endless existence.

Wraiths
Secretly, inexorably, they are infiltrating our world, sucking the essence out of unsuspecting victims with their hideous parody of a kiss.

Segue
Adam Thorne founded the Institute to study and destroy his monster of a brother, but the key to its success is held in the pale, slender hand of a woman on the run. There is something hauntingly different about Talia O’Brien, her unknowing sensuality, her uncanny way of slipping into Shadow.

Twilight
This is the place between life and what comes after - a dark forest of fantasy, filled with beauty, peril, mystery. And Talia is about to open the door.

Loss (ARC) by Jackie Morse Kessler

Loss:
Fifteen-year-old Billy Ballard is the kid that everyone picks on, from the school bullies to the teachers. But things change drastically when Death tells Billy he must stand in as Pestilence, the White Rider of the Apocalypse. Now armed with a Bow that allows him to strike with disease from a distance, Billy lashes out at his tormentors...and accidentally causes an outbreak of meningitis. Horrified by his actions, Billy begs Death to take back the Bow. For that to happen, says Death, Billy must track down the real White Rider—who is lost in his memories.

In his search, Billy travels through White Rider’s life: from ancient Phrygia, where the man called King Mita agrees to wear the White Rider’s Crown, to Sherwood Forest, where Pestilence figures out how to cheat Death; from the docks of Alexandria, where cartons of infested grain are being packed onto a ship that will carry the plague, to the Children’s Crusade in France—all the way to what may be the end of the world. When Billy finally finds the White Rider, the teen convinces the man to return to the real world.

But now the insane White Rider plans to unleash something awful on humanity—something that could make the Black Death look like a summer cold. Billy has a choice: he can live his life and pretend he doesn’t know what’s coming, or he can challenge the White Rider for his Crown. Does one bullied teenager have the strength to stand his ground—and the courage to save the world?

While I found the first two books in this series by Jackie Morse Kessler to be emotionally engaging, I didn't feel that way with Loss. Jackie writes honestly and from the heart, and I absolutely love her style, but I just couldn't connect with the main character, but at the same time, I enjoyed the story. I did truly love the creative way Jackie used the stories of King Midas and Robin Hood and wove them uniquely into her own. This book is told in three parts, the middle has very little to do with Billy, and while it was interesting to learn of the White Rider's past, it was very repetitive and lost my attention rather quickly. To me, there was little development with Billy's character, nothing truly changes until the very end of the book. Yes, I understand that could be kind of the point, Billy really needed to work through his cowardice in order to develop trust he needs in himself, but there seemed to be a lack of personal growth throughout the novel. I believe fans of the series are going to enjoy this foray into the world of the Horsemen of the Apocalypse, and I can't wait for the next installment.

Friday 56...The Mortal Bone (69)

Go to page 56 of the book CLOSEST to you (not the coolest, the closest) and find the fifth sentence.

The Mortal Bone by Marjorie M Liu

I could see stars.

Theme Thursday (45)

Theme Thursdays is a fun weekly event hosted by Reading Between Pages that will be open from one Thursday to the next. Anyone can participate in it. The rules are simple:

• A theme will be posted each week (on Thursdays)
• Select a conversation/snippet/sentence from the current book you are reading
• Mention the author and the title of the book along with your post
• It is important that the theme is conveyed in the sentence (you don’t necessarily need to have the word)
  Ex: If the theme is KISS; your sentence can have “They kissed so gently” or “Their lips touched each other” or “The smooch was so passionate”

This will give us a wonderful opportunity to explore and understand different writing styles and descriptive approaches adopted by authors.

This week's theme is - COME (came, arrive, coming etc)

He was watching the stillness of Heather's face like a hawk, and his eyes grew calculating. "Come along, by all means," he said. "The Cessna's plenty big enough."

Heather's Song by Diana Palmer

My Book Boyfriend (51)

My Book Boyfriend is a weekly meme hosted by Missie of The Unread Reader, in which we swoon over boys in books!
(I--as in me, Amy--don't like to use commercial photos, I like to use the authors' descriptions and my imagination.)

Milo

Book: Once Every Never by Lesley Livingston
Series: Once Every Never...

Lean muscled and golden haired, he's nineteen and a genius; with broad shoulders, lightly tanned arms and strong square fingers. Long legs and blue eyes behind stylish-cool glasses.

Quotes:

Milo stood and stretched, his lean-muscled physique showing through the thin material of his T-shirt, which had a picture of a despondent stormtrooper hunched over a beer in a bar with the caption "Those were the droids I was looking for..." Okay...maybe she hadn't altered the timeline. Milo was obviously still a nerd. He'd just morphed into a hot nerd.

"Hey now." Milo smiled down at her. "I don't think you're a waste of anything. And I don't think you're crazy. But I also don't know what to tell you. What you're telling me is...well. It's impossible. You know?"

Suddenly Milo was across the room and gripping Clare's arms. Hard. "Listen to me, Clare." His stare seemed to stab through the back of her skull. "You listen to me. "I'm not going to stop you from doing this. It's your gift and you have every right to use it as you see fit. I also know that you seem to need to go back there for...well, for whatever reason. That's fine. But you'd damned well better promise me you'll be careful. You've been luckier than you've had any right to expect, but I don't think you can exactly place your faith in people who see you as some kind of blood-magic vending machine."

Future Favorites (65)

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!

Touched by Cyn Balog
Release Date: August 14, 2012 by Delacorte Press

Nick Cross always listens to the voice in his head. Because if he doesn't? Things can go really, really wrong. Like the day he decided to go off script and saved a girl from being run over . . . and let another one drown. Trying to change the future doesn't work.

But this summer at the Jersey Shore, something's about to happen that Nick never could have predicted. He meets a girl named Taryn and finds out about the Book of Touch. Now the path that he thought he was on begins to shift . . . and there's no way to stop things from happening. Or is there?

In a life where there are no surprises, nothing has prepared Nick for what he's about to discover--or the choice he will be forced to make. . .

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? (84)

This is a fun weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.

Books I read last week:
Blood and Bullets by James R. Tuck
Heather's Song by Diana Palmer
Destiny and Deception by Shannon Delany



The book I’m reading now:
Loss:
Fifteen-year-old Billy Ballard is the kid that everyone picks on, from the school bullies to the teachers. But things change drastically when Death tells Billy he must stand in as Pestilence, the White Rider of the Apocalypse. Now armed with a Bow that allows him to strike with disease from a distance, Billy lashes out at his tormentors...and accidentally causes an outbreak of meningitis. Horrified by his actions, Billy begs Death to take back the Bow. For that to happen, says Death, Billy must track down the real White Rider—who is lost in his memories.

In his search, Billy travels through White Rider’s life: from ancient Phrygia, where the man called King Mita agrees to wear the White Rider’s Crown, to Sherwood Forest, where Pestilence figures out how to cheat Death; from the docks of Alexandria, where cartons of infested grain are being packed onto a ship that will carry the plague, to the Children’s Crusade in France—all the way to what may be the end of the world. When Billy finally finds the White Rider, the teen convinces the man to return to the real world.

But now the insane White Rider plans to unleash something awful on humanity—something that could make the Black Death look like a summer cold. Billy has a choice: he can live his life and pretend he doesn’t know what’s coming, or he can challenge the White Rider for his Crown. Does one bullied teenager have the strength to stand his ground—and the courage to save the world?


Books that spark my interest this week:
River Marked by Patricia Briggs
Within the Flames by Marjorie M Liu
Memories of Murder by Lara Nance