Cover Reveal: Taliesin Ascendant (The Children And The Blood #2) - Megan Joel Peterson

Taliesin Ascendant by Megan Joel Peterson

YA Fantasy

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Megan Joel Peterson lives somewhere between the cornfields of Illinois and fantasy worlds filled with magic. She has a degree in English Literature from the University of Illinois, and has worked a little bit of everywhere over the years. Now she spends her days and nights creating new stories, and thinks writing is the best job she ever could have asked for.

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Book Blast: The Never - Kristina Circelli

The Never by Kristina Circelli
Genre: Fantasy for 18+

“Out of nothing, we create something.”
Arianna has spent her entire life being called a dreamer, an artist who created a world no one else can see. And for her entire life, she has taken the medication that keeps that world – and the one who brought her there – at bay.
Now an adult, Arianna reawakens that part of herself kept locked away in the darkest corners of her mind. When she hides her medicine from her fiancé’s ever-watchful eye, he returns – the shadow in the night who collects her for an adventure known only in her fantasies.
But something is different about this world called The Never. It is no longer the cheerful place filled with light and laughter that she knew as a child. Now, the sea creatures drag their visitors into the depths of murky waters. The natives battle to the death against the tribe of children. And the pirates, led by the feared captain called The Hunter, seek out Arianna for their own sinister plans.
As Arianna goes deeper into The Never, she discovers just what her connection to the land means – and must choose between her life rooted in reality, and the world where anything is possible.

The Never is currently FREE on Amazon, from now until the 20th!! Head over to Amazon to take advantage of the deal!

Chapter 4 - No Longer a Child

      She saw him off, making earnest promises to always remember her medication, putting on the happiest face she could manage until his car disappeared down the driveway. Lily the puppy pulled on her new leash, eager to explore her surroundings. Although the sun was setting, Arianna allowed the dog to pull her into the woods, taking her on an evening stroll before they settled in for the night. Lily sniffed at the plants as she passed them, pouncing on flickering shadows and barking at nonexistent figures.
      Arianna laughed softly as she watched the puppy play, giving her plenty of room on the leash to wander and explore. She’d always wanted a dog as a child, only to be told by her mother that animals were dirty and not meant to be kept as pets. The refusal only fueled her desire, as did the promises that maybe, if she was good and took her medicine, then a puppy would one day be hers to hold and cherish.
      The sun slipped below the horizon, casting the woods in shadows. Arianna glanced over her shoulder and was comforted by the glow of lights in the cabin not too far in the distance. She tried not to wander too far from home at night, knowing what dangers lurked in a forest of heavy brush and wildlife. John didn’t  like her strolling through the woods at dark – or during the day, for that matter – so she tried not to upset him by staying close to home.
      “A gift of life, to keep death at bay.”
      Arianna turned about, searching for the familiar voice. She saw only night and darkness instead. Her heart beat wildly, both at the surprise intrusion and the possibilities of what the voice’s return may mean. “What…what death?”
      “Death of love, of heart, of soul.”
      She took in a deep breath, grip tightening on the leash. She wanted to see the figure’s face, needed to see it. Lily sensed her new owner’s hesitation and barked once, taking a stance at her master’s feet. “Who are you?” Arianna asked, narrowing her eyes.
      “You know who I am. You have known me since you were a child.”
      “I knew a child as a child. You sound like a man.” She felt a brush of fingers against her neck, as though a hand was pulling her hair back. She turned but saw only empty air.
      “I have watched you, Arianna of the Stars. I have watched you, dreamed with you, grown up with you.”
      Lily pulled at the leash and scratched at Arianna’s ankles, eager to get away from whatever was agitating her master. Arianna let the leash slip through her fingers, not noticing the dog as she ran back for the cabin on four wobbly legs and waited on the back steps, whimpering quietly.
      Free to wander on her own, the enraptured woman began to walk, slowly passing tree after tree. Her hands grazed over tree trunks, eyes grazed over leaves and shrubs. Moonlight streamed in through the canopy, creating a white glow that softened the night setting. “Who are you?” Her repeated question traveled a light breeze, laughter echoing back at her.
      “I am the one you dream of, the one you seek.”
      She saw something then, an outline moving through the trees. The figure was watching her, moving with her. If she looked hard enough, she could almost see a face, eyes. Not bright eyes, but seeking, piercing nonetheless. “Who are you?”
      Those eyes, dark green and ever watchful, latched on to hers. They followed her as they walked, peering around leaf and branch, staring through the moonlight. “I am the dream. I am the reality,” he answered, voice like a secret spoken in hushed whispers. “I am the eternal. I am the forgotten.” They moved closer together in the woods, yet still at a distance. “I am the always. I am the never.”
      Something inside her mind clicked. Arianna paused between two trees, one hand on either trunk. She knew that name. In the farthest corners of her mind, she remembered, and the memory hardened in her gut. Oh yes, she knew, and wished that her mind wasn’t suddenly filled with recollections of salted shores and pale pink skies. “You are not The Never. The Never left me. The Never forsook me. The Never forgot me.”
“No,” came the soothing, reassuring croon. “The Never did not forget you. The Never could not reach you, Arianna of the Stars.”
“Stop calling me that,” Arianna snapped, taking a step back. “Stop pretending to be him. Tell me who you are.”
“I have told you. You must believe me”
She heard the desperation in his request, but ignored it and instead slipped a hand in her pocket. “Have it your way. I know how to get rid of you.” She swallowed the blue pill and he reacted fast, exploding into her line of vision and grabbing her wrist.
“What was that?” he demanded. “What did you take?”
Unable to respond, Arianna simply stared up at him. This was not the boy the remembered, the boy who spoke to her as a child and led her on exciting other-worldly adventures. This was a man, perhaps a year older than her, perhaps even a year or two younger. There was something innocent about his forest green, almond-shaped eyes, and yet, something very sinister in the way he pressed his full lips together in a knowing smirk. His jawline was strong, as were his cheekbones, strong enough to take one of many hits she suspected he was used to enduring, and maybe even encouraged.
      He was tan, the tan of a man who spent his days in the sun, with wild hair the color of the setting sun. For the briefest of moments she longed to run her fingers through those thick locks, which hung down to his ears in messy strands. Bamboo pieces decorated his ears, pierced through twice in each.
His clothing, if that’s what it could be called, matched his eyes. His torso was wrapped in a soft, thin shirt that clung to his skin, with wide straps that crisscrossed at his shoulders to reveal finely toned muscle. The deep green of a material Arianna didn’t recognize covered his legs with leaf-shaped designs, ending just below the knees. He was barefoot, which only added to his mysterious aura. Strapped around his waist was a leather belt, with a dagger sheathed at his side.
Boy had most certainly become man.
“What did you take?” he asked again when she only gazed at him. His grip tightened on her wrist, causing her to wince.
“Um…just, just my medicine.”
“Medicine.” He said the word quietly, as though trying to understand it. Then he took her by the shoulders, almost too urgently. “Medicine! You must never take it again.”
Her brow furrowed. “I have to. It keeps me well.”
“No. You must never take it, my Arianna. It is why I could not find you for so long, why we could not be together.”
Arianna hesitated, savoring the feel of his rough hands on her bare skin. She had never known this figure in her dreams as a man, and was fascinated by the creature he had become. “We…we had adventures together, as children?”
He smiled, gently brushing back a strand of her hair. “Yes, we did. You cannot remember them all now, but you will. Promise me you will not take your medicine again. Promise me, and I will return tomorrow to show you what you have forgotten. We will fly from this place, and have our adventures again.”
An internal alarm was triggered, a familiar word, a familiar worry. Arianna ignored it and smiled up at him just before he faded into the night. “I promise.”

A lover of the written word since the time she first picked up a pen, Kristina Circelli shares her passion for fiction in her multi-genre novels.
Circelli is the author of several fiction books, including The Sour Orange Derby, a young adult novel about family and childhood imagination steeped in southern traditions; Beyond the Western Sun, Walk the Red Road, and Into the Shadow Realm of The Whisper Legacy, which centers on Native American cultures and the legends that come to life in the spirit realm; and The Helping Hands, a book that follows a gang of friends who rescue abused children. 
Currently, Circelli works as a copywriter, author, book editor, and creative writing professor at the University of North Florida, where she received her Bachelor's and Master's degrees in English. She resides in Florida, with her husband and two kittens.

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Book Review (246): Because Of Low (Sea Breeze #2) - Abbi Glines

Because of Low (Sea Breeze #2)

by Abbi Glines 

Publication: 25th April 2013

Publisher: Simon And Schuster Australia

Pages: 290

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Age Appropriate: New Adult

Buy It: Dymocks  QBD  AMAZON  BARNES & NOBLE

Set in the steamy coastal Alabama town of Sea Breeze, an interconnected group of older teens hook up, break up ...and much, much more. Marcus Hardy had hoped to enjoy a year away at college while he put the summer he'd rather forget behind him. But instead, he's jerked right back his home town of Sea Breeze due to a family crisis. The only bright spot to returning is the hot redhead who sleeps over at his place several times a week. There's just one thing though - she's sleeping in bed with his new roommate, Cage York. Willow "Low" Foster needs a place to live. Running to her best friend Cage's apartment every time her sister kicks her out isn't exactly a long term solution. But Cage has a new roommate and suddenly sleeping over at his apartment isn't such a bad thing. Not when she gets to see those sexy green eyes of Marcus's twinkle when he smiles at her like he wants her there. There's one problem though, Cage is under the disillusion that when he's through sowing his wild oats, he's going to marry Low - an assumption Marcus intends to change. But when his carefully laid plans come crashing down with a revelation he never expected, Marcus will have to choose between Low or his family. Because once the truth comes out ...there's no other choice.

My Thoughts.

Because Of Low is the second book in the Sea Breeze series by Abbi Glines. Just as entertaining, charming and unputdownable as the first book Breathe, Glines is a force to be reckoned with.

Focusing on hapless Marcus who was the guy in a love triangle who didn't get the girl in Breathe, and now we get to finally see him win the girl of his dreams in Willow 'Low'.

Since we last saw him, Marcus has had to move back to Sea Breeze from college to help his Mother and Sister deal with the separation of his parents, he has moved in with Cage (known as the man whore) the friend of a friend, and it's through him that he meets Low.

Low is the one girl that Cage will drop anything and everything and do anything for since they were childhood friends growing up, life was hard for both of them and all they ever had was each other, life gives Low another knock when she ends up with nowhere to live, and that's how she comes to stay at the apartment with the two boys.

Straight away on meeting each other you can see the sparks fly, boy these two have chemistry!

But they both come with baggage and with neither willing to divulge to one another their family problems this will eventually blow up in their faces, and while I did guess at the start of the book what the plot twist was going to be, it was done so well that it was still a bit of a shock, such is how good Abbi's writing is.

We also catch up with Jax and Sadie the couple from Breathe, which I was so excited for, and may have squealed a little bit.

As with the last book Breathe, Because Of Low also features POV'S from both the leads Marcus and Low, which I love in a book and really enjoy reading.

While I did love this book, Jax and Sadie still hold the top spot in my favourite couple of the series so far, sorry Marcus but you can't compete with a sexy rock-star!

With quite a lot more characters of whom I'd love to read a book about, I hope this series will carry on for a while yet.

Just like the last book I highly recommend this book, I'm loving this series.

I give this 4/5 Stars.

Quotes.

“Things happen in life and you can’t control them. It sucks and you have to move on.” 

“Did you just call me a hottie? And Jax isn’t better looking than me. He’s just famous.”
Amanda let out a loud cackle of laughter.
“No brother dear, Jax Stone is hotness incarnate with or without the guitar and sexy as hell singing voice. You never stood a chance. He was what you call playing with the big dogs. This time you’re definitely playing within your league.” 

“I didn't want to see you, but you invaded my world. Every dark corner you found a way in bringing light to the lifeless and lost." Eva” 

“Those blue eyes that had stopped my heart the first time she looked at me found me in the crowd."

About Abbi.

Abbi Glines was born in Birmingham, Alabama. She grew up in the small town of Sumiton, Alabama where she left the summer she turned eighteen. She didn’t get far… she chased her high school sweetheart down to the coast and she’s been there ever since.

Abbi now lives in the quaint southern town of Fairhope, Alabama with her three children and husband Keith (the high school sweetheart she chased after). Her life is never dull and Keith always makes sure there is another “experience” for them to explore.

Books published by Abbi include The Vincent Boys and the USA TODAY bestseller The Vincent Brothers, Breathe, Because of Low, the USA TODAY bestsellers While It Lasts and Just For Now, The Existence Trilogy that includes the USA Today Bestseller Ceaseless, and The New York Times bestseller and Wall Street Journal bestseller Fallen Too Far. Currently she is working on Never Too Far, the sequel to Fallen too Far.

When Abbi isn’t locked away in her office typing away she is hauling her kids to and from their many social activities. You could say her second job is the Glines Kids personal chauffeur. It’s a rather illustrious job.

Links.

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Book Blast & Giveaway: Saved - Lorhainne Eckhart

Saved by Lorhainne Eckhart
Genre: Adult romance
Published May 11, 2013

Growing up I had dreams that one day I'd fall in love, get married and start a family. Then one night I was taken. But I survived, I escaped and I was saved. Eric didn't see me as  damaged. He didn't see my baby as a monster. He protected me, he kept me safe ... he saved me.

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     “Thank you, Captain,” was all she said, but he could feel her stiffen even though he was no longer touching her.
     “I’ll be back later to see how you’re doing.” He didn’t know why he did it when he reached down and smoothed back the stray wisps of hair that dangled in her face.
     “Remember what I said, Abby: You’re safe here. If you’re hungry, you say something. If you’re scared, tell me. If you’re hurting, you have to speak up. No one is going to hurt you here. I don’t know how to make you believe it.”
     She was staring at him now, but for the life of him he couldn’t figure out what was going on in her head. He let out a sigh because there was nothing more he could do here. His hand was on the door, and he was about to yank it open when she said, “Captain, could you do me a favor?” He turned around and faced her and was nearly undone by her eyes, swimming with a sheen of tears.
     “Could you keep telling me I’m safe? I think if I hear you tell me over and over, I’ll start to believe it. I think I will.”

2012 was an amazing year in the publishing world for me, and it started with The Forgotten Child, which landed on the Amazon bestseller list for western romance and romance series. With the publication of each novel and short story, each one made its way to the top ten for its respective genre. 2013 has seen me posted in the top 100 authors on Amazon for romantic suspense and mystery/thrillers, police procedural.

Where did it all begin? In 2008, I published my first novel, The Captain’s Lady, a contemporary military romance, through The Wild Rose Press. This year I have a crazy writing schedule with four books scheduled for release and six short stories.

I write three genres, edgy romantic suspense (Walk the Right Road Series), western romance (Finding Love ~ The Outsider Series), and young adult mystery, and I warn my readers to expect the unexpected. I’m the mother of three children, one a special needs child. We live on a small Island in the Pacific Northwest, where I advocate for the environment and the rights of special needs children. Somewhere in my busy schedule, I do find time to write. I encourage you to contact me by email; I do answer every email I receive.

Stay tuned. There is more to come from the Walk the Right Road Series and Finding Love ~ The Outsider Series. 

And to my readers and all of you who have shared my stories with your family and friends, a big heartfelt thank you.

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Cover Reveal & Giveaway: Wings (Black City #3) - Elizabeth Richards

Today we are super excited to share the cover to WINGS, the third and final book in author's Elizabeth Richard's BLACK CITY series!

Check out this beauty! 

Wings (Black City #3) by Elizabeth Richards

Get the first two books in the series! 

OPEN INTERNATIONAL!!!

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Book Review (245): Breathe (Sea Breeze #1) - Abbi Glines

Breathe (Sea Breeze #1)

by Abbi Glines

Publication: June 2o13

Publisher: Simon And Schuster Australia

Pages: 352

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Age Appropriate: New Adult

Buy It: Dymocks  QBD   AMAZON  BARNES & NOBLE

Sadie White's summer job isn't going to be on the beach life-guarding or working at rental booths like most kids her age. With her single mother's increasing pregnancy and refusal to work, Sadie has to take over her mother's job as a domestic servant for one of the wealthy summer families on a nearby island.

When the family arrives at their summer getaway, Sadie is surprised to learn that the owner of the house is Jax Stone, one of the hottest teen rockers in the world. If Sadie hadn't spent her life raising her mother and taking care of the house she might have been normal enough to be excited about working for a rock star.

Even though Sadie isn't impressed by Jax's fame, he is drawn to her. Everything about Sadie fascinates Jax but he fights his attraction. Relationships never work in his world and as badly as he wants Sadie, he believes she deserves more. By the end of the summer, Jax discovers he can't breathe without Sadie.

My Thoughts.

This was my very first Abbi Glines novel, and while I had definitely heard of her, I'd never gotten the chance before now to pick up one of her books, and after reading Breathe I realised I should have made time, so good is her storytelling.

Abbi's writing will keep you engaged, entranced and on tenterhooks as you navigate your way through this thoroughly addictive novel.

I love the concept of this story, the idea of not just the fact that a world famous rock-star Jax and a normal, everyday teenage girl Sadie fall in love, but that she's the 'help' filling in for her very pregnant Mother. The switch in this Mother/Daughter relationship also added a bit more to the plot, the idea that Sadie is almost like the parental figure, earning the money, paying the bills and cleaning the house while her Mother takes it for granted, and before becoming pregnant spent her nights out partying.

Sadie and Jax made such a great couple, beating the odds to make their relationship work, of course as in most YA contemporary romance's there is a love triangle, add into the mix Marcus who works for Jax as well, I really liked his character and felt so bad for him when Sadie made her choice and ultimately chose Jax (I'm so happy that the next book 'Because Of Low' in this series is his, he deserves a HEA).

Another positive was the secondary characters: Miss Mary (who ended up being the Mother figure that Sadie needed) and Mr Gregg (who likewise was a Father figure that she'd never had), helped to make this a heart-warming story.

I also enjoy it when author's have point of view's of both the male and female leads which seems to be prevalent throughout the series, I love reading the different aspects between characters and their thoughts and feelings of what was occuring in a single moment.

If you like reading about sexy as hell rock-stars and the girls who end up catching their hearts then please do give this series a go, you will not be sorry.

I give this 5/5 Stars.

Quotes.

“I relaxed. “I would imagine in your world, girls are much different than here in the real world. I’m sure if you spent some time with the everyday girl, you would find I am not unique.”

He grinned at me. “The everyday girl is who writes me fan mail and buys out my concerts. They are the girls who yell my name and run after me like crazed animals. You’ve not even tried to sneak into my room and squirt your perfume on my pillow.” 

“You're everything I write about in my songs, but can never have.”

“For the first time, the object of what I want is more important than fulfilling my desires.” 

“I'm not going to hurt her. I know she's special and I tried to stay away, but when I'm with I don't feel so cold and alone.”

About Abbi.

Abbi Glines was born in Birmingham, Alabama. She grew up in the small town of Sumiton, Alabama where she left the summer she turned eighteen. She didn’t get far… she chased her high school sweetheart down to the coast and she’s been there ever since.

Abbi now lives in the quaint southern town of Fairhope, Alabama with her three children and husband Keith (the high school sweetheart she chased after). Her life is never dull and Keith always makes sure there is another “experience” for them to explore.

Books published by Abbi include The Vincent Boys and the USA TODAY bestseller The Vincent Brothers, Breathe, Because of Low, the USA TODAY bestsellers While It Lasts and Just For Now, The Existence Trilogy that includes the USA Today Bestseller Ceaseless, and The New York Times bestseller and Wall Street Journal bestseller Fallen Too Far. Currently she is working on Never Too Far, the sequel to Fallen too Far.

When Abbi isn’t locked away in her office typing away she is hauling her kids to and from their many social activities. You could say her second job is the Glines Kids personal chauffeur. It’s a rather illustrious job.

Links.

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Book Review (244): Faster We Burn (Fall And Rise #2) - Chelsea M. Cameron

Faster We Burn (Fall and Rise #2)

by Chelsea M. Cameron 

Publication: 20th April 2013

Publisher: DRC Publishing

Pages: 450

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Age Appropriate: New Adult

Buy It:  Amazon & Barnes and Noble

Katie Hallman is done with douchebags. Done with guys who treat her like crap and leave her broken. But then Stryker Grant is there anyway. With his numerous piercings and bleached hair, he’s the polar opposite of all of her past relationships, which makes him the perfect candidate.

At first, Katie just sees him as a physical escape from her previous rocky relationship, and Stryker doesn’t seem to mind just being a distraction from Katie’s problems. But soon he’s getting under her skin, peeling back layers she’d rather keep covered. She tries to make it clear that she doesn’t want a relationship, but keeps breaking her own rules.

Then a tragedy sends Katie into the only arms who are there to catch her, and she’ll realize that she needs him more than she ever thought possible. But is she ready to let herself trust another guy with her already-battered heart? Or will she push him away to protect herself from getting hurt again?

My Thoughts.

Faster We Burn is the sequel to Deeper We Fall in the Fall And Rise series by Chelsea M. Cameron.

While I really did like this book I did prefer the first book more, I felt that the obstacles that Katie and Stryker had to overcome in this story were nowhere near as challenging or complicated as Lottie's and Zan's were in Deeper We Fall.

We saw this couple's first meeting and interaction in the first novel, and throughout their book the sparks were definitely flying giving us some steamy moments between these two and their 'friends with benefits' deal, but then they both find themselves developing feelings for each other, but with Katie still dealing with the aftermath of her relationship with Zack, she's not ready for another boyfriend, even though she knows that Stryker isn't and never will be anything like Zack.

With Katie's family not exactly welcoming when Stryker spends Thanksgiving with her at her house, the odds seem to be stacked against them, but these two belong together and they will fight to make that possible, trying to rid themselves of their demons to become a couple and to become the people that they were meant to be.

All the characters in this book that were in the debut made their appearance, one complaint I have is that there wasn't really that much Zan, with him being Stryker's friend I expected a whole lot more of him, we saw a lot of Lottie who is Katie's best-friend and roommate that's why I couldn't really understand the lack of interaction between these two, but that's just me being picky.

I'm hoping that this series will continue and perhaps have a book featuring Lottie's twin brother Will and Audrey who runs a bit hot and cold, and I just know that there's a story behind why she's like that.

If you like contemporary romance books and are a fan of the new adult genre then definitely pick this series up.

I give this 4/5.

Quotes.

“You drive me insane because you never know what you want and you expect me to just accommodate you. And I do it. Every time. You say jump and I get out a goddamn trampoline. When I'm not with you, I'm thinking about you. I can't stop thinking about you and wanting you. I want to walk across this room and do what you want, but I can't. I can't fuck you anymore.'
'Why not?'
'I can't just fuck you because I love you!” 

“I love you so much, sweetheart. So much that sometimes I can't breathe. I can't think. You're all I've ever wanted, even before I knew I wanted it. I don't deserve you, Katherine.” 

About Chelsea.

Chelsea M. Cameron is a YA/NA New York Times/USA Today Best Selling author from Maine. Lover of things random and ridiculous, Jane Austen/Charlotte and Emily Bronte Fangirl, red velvet cake enthusiast, obsessive tea drinker, vegetarian, former cheerleader and world's worst video gamer. When not writing, she enjoys watching infomercials, singing in the car and tweeting (this one time, she was tweeted by Neil Gaiman). She has a degree in journalism from the University of Maine, Orono that she promptly abandoned to write about the people in her own head. More often than not, these people turn out to be just as weird as she is.

Her New Adult Contemporary Romance titles include My Favorite Mistake, which has been bought by Harlequin along with a sequel, Deeper We Fall and Faster We Burn (April 20, 2013)

Her Young Adult books include Nocturnal, Nightmare and Neither, the first three books in The Noctalis Chronicles. The fourth and final book, Neverend will be out in 2013. Whisper, the first in The Whisper Trilogy is also available, with the second book in the series, Silence and the final book, LIsten coming out in 2014.

Links.

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