Book Review (188): Daughter Of The Earth And Sky (Persephone #2) - Kaitlin Bevis And Guest Post

Daughter of the Earth and Sky (Persephone, #2)

by Kaitlin Bevis

Publication: 21st December 2012
Publisher: Musa Publishing
Pages: 267
Genre: Mythology
Age Appropriate: Young Adult
Buy It: Amazon   Barnes And Noble

Some vows can never be broken.

Persephone thought she could go back to her normal life after returning from the Underworld. She was wrong.
The goddess Aphrodite is born among the waves with more charm than she can control. Zeus is stalking Persephone and her loved ones, and Thanatos is no longer content with Persephone’s silence.

He wants her soul.

Persephone can’t tell anyone about Thanatos’ betrayal, and it drives a wedge between her and Hades. Her mother is still keeping secrets, and Melissa’s jealousy of Aphrodite threatens to tear their friendship apart.
Alone, Persephone turns to a human boy for comfort. But will their relationship put him in danger?
Sacrifices must be made, and Persephone must choose between her human life and her responsibilities as a goddess. If she doesn’t, she could lose them both.
But will either life be worth choosing once Zeus is through with her?

My Thoughts...

OMG! Kaitlin how can you do this to me?

That ending was was so good/bad, good in the sense that it was a bloody fantastic cliffhanger and bad because well it's a cliffhanger and we have to wait till Spring 2013 to be able to find out what happens!

 This book is in my opinion definitely better than the first book Persephone, I loved it, loved it, loved it, but jeez I will not sit here and wallow in the fact that 2013 still feels like years away when you're waiting to find out how this ending will resolve itself, ok so maybe I'll wallow a little.

God how I love Hades character, and although he was in the book quite a bit, I still wanted more, I can never read too much of him and his gorgeousness, but I'm also a fan of Persephone as well and life didn't exactly go so well for her this time, in the first book she found out who she was in this one she lost herself through the interference of Zeus, Thanatos, The Reapers and even Aphrodite.

Through the oath that Persephone made to Thanatos in the previous book, she cannot tell anyone, especially Hades, about his dealings and betrayal of secretly working with Zeus to bring down Hades, knowing this secret and not being able to tell Hades drives a wedge between the two of them, Hades knows that she's hiding something from him but he can't figure out what.

Persephone is effectively alone in this book, she's not talking to her mother Demeter, her best friend/priestess Melissa or Hades, and this is what Zeus wants, and he uses it to his advantage, but can Persephone and Hades defeat Zeus?

And will Hades find out about Thanatos and his intentions before it's too late?

I cannot explain how much I loved this book, Kaitlin you've got another winner on your hands.

A fast-paced, unputdownable series that gets better with every book, definitely pick this one up.

I give this 5/5.

Guest Post...

Which authors have influenced my work? That's a tough question because I feel like everything you read plays a part in how you end up writing. But I would have to say my biggest influence is L.J Smith.

I read everything by her (written prior to the year 2000) repeatedly while I was in middle school. I've always enjoyed reading, but her books were the first books that allowed me to escape into a magical world when I was reading them. Everything else was either too far fetched or too preachy to put myself into. Through L.J Smith, I discovered the young adult genre.

Her books were set in this world (mostly) and featured typical teenagers discovering that the world around them wasn't what they thought. It was magic. Sometimes the teen themselves were or became something supernatural, but sometimes they were just normal. Well, no matter what they were they were always possessors of "unearthly beauty."

I  have no idea how much of her work influence mine, but it's there. And I'm not the only one. Stephanie Meyer's "Twilight" has several scenes that I'm pretty sure were put there to pay homage to L.J Smith's work. I know reading over her stuff now, it doesn't look like much, but here's what you have to understand, she set precedence. I'm willing to wager pretty much any urban fantasy writer that grew up in the eighties or nineties read her work because there wasn't much else out there. The young adult section didn't used to take up half the book store. There was L.J Smith, R.L Stine, Christopher Pike, and Sweet Valley Twins,  Babysitters Club, and random books by Caroline B Cooney. If I close my eyes and picture a bookstore I see that one to three shelves with those books on it.  It wasn't until I hit High School that Harry Potter came around and transformed young adult literature. Now it's half the book store and the genre is thriving!

All young adult writers owe early young adult books a debt. I know I do. They made me love reading, and planted a spark that grew into a love of writing. I never even considered writing a "grown up" book.:)

About This Author

I spent my childhood curled up with a book, and a pen. If the ending didn’t agree with me, I rewrote it. I’ve always wanted to be a writer, and I spent high school and college learning everything I could so that one day I could achieve that goal. I graduated college with my BFA in English with a concentration in Creative Writing, and am pursuing my masters at the University of Georgia.
My young adult fiction novel “Persephone,” will be released this summer. I also write for Athens Parent Magazine, and truuconfessions.com. I have also published several short stories, my latest, Siren Song, is available on amazon.com.

For up to the minute information on my future releases subscribe to my facebook or twitterpage!

Website

Goodreads

Facebook

Twitter

Waiting On Wednesday.

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking The Spine where you can spotlight an upcoming release that you're eagerly anticipating.

This week I'm waiting on....

Strength (Mark of Nexus #1)

by Carrie Butler

When college student Rena Collins finds herself nose-to-chest with the campus outcast, her rumor-laced notions are shattered. Handsome, considerate, and seemingly sane, Wallace Blake doesn’t look like he spends his nights alone, screaming and banging on the walls of his dorm room. Hell, he doesn’t look like he spends his nights alone, period.

Too curious for her own good, Rena vows to uncover the truth behind Wallace’s madman reputation--and how two seconds of contact had left her with bruises. Of course, there are a few setbacks along the way: guilt, admiration, feelings of the warm and fuzzy variety…

Not to mention the unwanted attention of Wallace's powerful, supernaturally-gifted family.

They’re a bloodline divided by opposing ideals, two soon-to-be warring factions that live in secret among us. When Rena ends up caught in their crossfire, Wallace has no choice but to save her by using his powers. Now they’re really in trouble. With war on the horizon and Rena’s life in the balance, he needs to put some distance between them. But Rena won’t let go. If fighting is what it takes to prove her own strength and keep Wallace in her life, then that’s what she’ll do--even if it means risking a whole lot more than her heart.

Expected publication: March 7th 2013 by Sapphire Star Publishing

ACID

by Emma Pass 

A fast and furious thriller featuring the coolest, toughest bad girl since Lisbeth Salander. Meet Jenna Strong.

In Jenna’s world, ACID – the most brutal, controlling police force in history – rule with an iron fist. And it was ACID agents who locked Jenna away for life, for a bloody crime she struggles to remember.

But Jenna’s violent prison has taught her a thing or two about survival. And when a mysterious rebel group breaks her out, she must use her strength, speed and skill to stay one step ahead.

A gripping futuristic debut that will hook you from the very first page.

Expected publication: April 25th 2013 by Corgi Children's Books/Random House Children's Publishing

Ashes and Ice (Book #1)

by Rochelle Maya Callen 

She is desperate to remember.
He is aching to forget.
Together, they are not broken.
But together, one may not survive.

​Jade wakes up with no memory of her past and blood on her hands. 

Plagued by wicked thoughts, she searches for answers. Instead, she finds a boy who doesn't offer her answers, but hope. But sometimes, when nightmares turn into reality and death follows you everywhere, hope is not enough. 

LUST. LOVE. LOSS. Sometimes, all that is left are Ashes and Ice.

Expected publication: February 4th 2013 by C&C Legacy Publishing

Blood, She Read

by Sara Hubbard 

Keeping secrets from a psychic can be murder.

Petra Maras lives a charmed life, but only in the magical sense. Her absentee father is a criminal, her mother is emotionally dead, and everyone at her new school knows she comes from a family of witches. All she wants is to be normal, but that’s impossible, given her family. And given that she’s psychic. When the police request help with a murder investigation, Petra reluctantly agrees. Which isn’t such a good idea since the prime suspect wants to date her, and she really wants to say yes. Her gut says he’s innocent, but since she can’t get a read on him she can’t know for sure. And when she discovers he’s been keeping secrets, she wonders if maybe she’s been following her heart instead of her head…

Published November 2nd 2012 by Etopia Press

What Lies Beneath

by Richard Denney

When Blair Lewis is left for dead in a freezing lake, she can't get over the fact that her boyfriend tried to kill her. And when she begins to receive disturbing gifts and letters from her supposed dead boyfriend, she attempts to figure out what is going on before the darkness consumes her. Nothing is as it seems and the startling truth is going to rip Blair right out of this world. Is Blair simply losing her mind? Or is something vicious and dark after her sanity and soul?

Expected publication: 2013 by CreateSpace

Sweet Damage

by Rebecca James 

I still dream about Anna London's house.

In my dreams the house is more than it was in life; the building taller and more imposing, the hallways longer and more labyrinthine, the inside colder and darker than the real thing ever was.

Anna is sometimes in these dreams, lingering ghost-like and elusive ahead of or behind me, and no matter how much I chase her or call her name, I can never reach her.

In my dreams it's as if the house itself has sinister intentions. In real life, though, it wasn't the house that was responsible for what happened there. It was the people who did the damage.

A gripping new novel from the author of Beautiful Malice.

Expected publication: April 2013 by Allen and Unwin

Book Review (187): Indigo Awakening (The Hunted #1) - Jordan Dane

Indigo Awakening (The Hunted #1)

by Jordan Dane

Publication: 18th December 2012

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Pages: 304

Genre: Paranormal

Age Appropriate: Young Adult

Buy It: Amazon   Barnes And Noble   The Book Depository

Because of what you are, the Believers will hunt you down.

Voices told Lucas Darby to run. Voices no one else can hear. He’s warned his sister not to look for him, but Rayne refuses to let her troubled brother vanish on the streets of LA. In her desperate search, she meets Gabriel Stewart, a runaway with mysterious powers and far too many secrets. Rayne can’t explain her crazy need to trust the strange yet compelling boy—to touch him—to protect him even though he scares her.

A fanatical church secretly hunts psychic kids—gifted “Indigo” teens feared to be the next evolution of mankind—for reasons only “the Believers” know. Now Rayne’s only hope is Gabe, who is haunted by an awakening power—a force darker than either of them imagine—that could doom them all.

My Thoughts...

Just like her previous book 'On A Dark Wing' Jordan has kept me riveted to each and every page in this book

This book has been on my wishlist ever since I first heard about it and so when I was asked to review it, by the fabulous author Jordan Dane herself, well to say I was excited was an understatement!

I loved the whole concept and world-building, it was an original story to add to the paranormal genre.

Most of the characters were so likeable in this book, I say most but really the ones I don't like are the 'baddies' because  let's face it, that's why they're not particularly likeable anyway.

The main thing I loved about this story was the different feelings I felt throughout while reading it and the biggest one was this big sense of dread, I had throughout the book, I just had a feeling it wasn't going to end well at all for someone and I was right, and I cried it was just so heartbreakingly sad, and I can see why it happened but it was upsetting anyway.

Rayne gets a phone call from her sister one night to say that their brother Lucas has escaped from the 'mental hospital' he's been kept at, on the run he manages to leave a message from Rayne to tell her not to look for him, but being the sister that she is she does anyway and while on her travels to find him she meets a boy Gabriel 'Gabe'  whom has some kind of special powers as does Lucas unbeknown to Rayne, Lucas manages to find shelter with a bunch of kids as special as he is, they are called Indigo's, all gifted with different powers and the saviors if you will of mankind, the hospital Lucas was admitted to was a cover for a church organization called the Believers that want to rid the world of these children but not before experimenting on them first.

So the aim for these Indigo kids is to stay off the radar and away from the believers, and with Lucas and Gabe being recognised as Crystal kids (a higher form of Indigo's) they need to group together if they have any chance of escaping with their lives.

And of course what's a book in a series without a killer ending, I sort of had an inkling towards the end of the book, but I was still shocked to have it confirmed either way, and it's cruel because now it's the sitting and waiting for the next book that's going to try my patience.

I loved this book and I highly recommend it.

I give this 5/5.

About This Author

Avon/HarperCollins launched Jordan Dane's debut suspense novels in a back to back publishing event in Spring 2008 after buying the 3-book series in auction. Pursuing publication since 2003, Jordan had received awards in 33 national writing competitions and was an energy sales manager in the oil and gas industry prior to selling. Now she is following her passion and writes full time.

Ripped from the headlines, Jordan's gritty plots weave a tapestry of vivid settings, intrigue, and dark humor. She loves challenging a reader's moral barometer with the borderline ethics of her characters and their flawed personalities—dark, angst-ridden antiheroes pitted against unforgettable villains. Publishers Weekly compared her intense pacing to Lisa Jackson, Lisa Gardner, and Tami Hoag—"romantic suspense that crosses over into plain thriller country with tight plotting and exceptional male characters, both bad guys and good."

Jordan and her husband share their residence with two cats of highborn lineage and the spirit of an intelligent canine who is impossible to forget.

Website

Goodreads

Facebook

Twitter

You Tube

Book Review (186): Chase Tinker And The House Of Magic (Chase Tinker Series #1) - Malia Ann Haberman

Chase Tinker and the House of Magic (The Chase Tinker Series, Book 1)

by Malia Ann Haberman

Publication: 15th August 2012
Publisher: Crossroad Press
Pages: 252
Genre: Fantasy
Age Appropriate: Middle-Grade
Buy It: Amazon   Barnes And Noble

In Chase Tinker's world, magic, lies and secrets can be a lethal combination...

Thirteen-year-old Chase Tinker can't understand why he has the power to move things with his mind. Besides that, his dad has been missing for over a year, causing his mom to be too upset to pay much attention to her sons, so now he's been busted for shoplifting. As if this isn't enough to worry about, his younger brother Andy suddenly has a weird magical ability too.

Can things get any crazier? Chase thinks.

Then, a grandfather they thought to be long dead arrives at their door. He wants Chase and Andy to come visit him for the summer so they can learn about their supernatural heritage and why they have magical powers in the first place.

The boys soon find out that Grandfather, along with their cousin Janie, lives on a remote island in the middle of Puget Sound in an out-of-this-world house where fantastic magic can be found in practically every room, stairway and corridor. Chase can't believe their dad has been keeping so much from them.

It's an even bigger shock when Chase learns that all their magic is controlled by a very powerful and mysterious Relic in the attic, and if anything happens to this relic, every bit of Tinker magic will be lost forever. He's even more disturbed when he learns his family has a dark and powerful enemy that is determined to steal all their magic, their house and their relic. 

Now Chase must find a way to stop these evil beings, while at the same time figuring out what has happened to his dad, unraveling even more Tinker lies and secrets and not letting on that he has a huge crush on the housekeeper's daughter.

My Thoughts...

Chase and his brother are being raised solely by their Mother after the disappearance and suspected death of their Father over a year ago.

Chase has a secret, he can move things with his mind and then he discovers that his brother Andy can freeze time.

One day they are unexpectedly visited by their long thought to be dead Grandfather, he informs them that they come from a long line of Wizards and he's there to take them to his home and to train them, but the Tinker family home just isn't your normal house, the rooms all have different magical themes to them and when a family member dies a new room appears with that persons power inside.

 And with their cousin Janie and the housekeeper's daughter Persephone (whom Chase has a crush on) they have a ton of adventures inside the amazing, never-ending house.

Of course this story wouldn't be complete without some bad guys, in this instance a group who are set on stealing the Tinker family's powers and using them for their own gain, but can the combined powers of the Tinker's help to defeat the group?

There was a big twist towards the end of the book that I didn't see coming and I thought it was extremely well done, and the end sets up well for the next book.

A great start to a new series.

I give this 3.5/5.

I love writing, reading, ballroom dancing, watching TV, chocolate, pizza, avacados, Fall, driving my car, a cozy fire on a chilly night, ladybugs, snapdragons, Christmas trees, long summer days, full moons, Seahawks football, Mariners baseball, my computer, my ipod and ferrets.

I hate onions, eight-legged freaks, bigotry, bullying, rude people, waiting in line, jogging, getting up early, fleas and the middle of winter when it gets dark at 4:30 in the afternoon.   

I keep Christmas lights up in my house year round. It know it's weird, but they're so colorful and festive. Besides, I'm sort of afraid of the dark and they make very lovely night lights. 

I never devloped wisdom teeth, but I like to think it's not because I'm not wise, I'm just more evolved. :)

I have TERRIBLE motion sickness. I can't even watch or play a video game with too much movement. It really sucks.

I don't know why, but kids and cats always really like me.

I have two awesome daughters and four wild and crazy ferrets.

I've had a lot of different jobs (cashier, ballroom dance instructor, proof operator, car salesperson, receptionist, server, bartender, AutoCAD drafter, office clerk, real estate agent, hand assembly worker, ferret-sitter), but more than anything, because I love reading so much, I've always just wanted to write 'Tween/Teen books for all the 'Tweens and Teens out there to enjoy and look forward to reading.

http://maliaannhaberman.weebly.com

Amazon

Goodreads

Cover Reveal: Racing Savannah (Hundred Oaks #4) - Miranda Kenneally

Racing Savannah (Hundred Oaks #4)

by Miranda Kenneally

Author of CATCHING JORDAN, Miranda Kenneally’s RACING SAVANNAH, about an underprivileged girl training to be a jockey while working in the barn at a high-stakes horse farm whose on-again, off-again relationship with the owner’s son has an upstairs/downstairs effect on race day, pitched as Downton Abbey in the South.

Expected publication: December 1st 2013 by Sourcebooks Fire

Cover Reveal: Of Triton (Of Poseidon #2) - Anna Banks

Of Triton (Of Poseidon #2)

by Anna Banks

Expected publication: May 28th 2013 by Feiwel & Friends

Blog Tour: Beguiled (Immortal Essence #2) - RaShelle Workman, Book Review (185).

Beguiled (Immortal Essence #2)

by RaShelle Workman 

Publication: 19th October 2012

Publisher: Polished Pen Press

Pages: 204

Genre: Sci-Fi Romance

Age Appropriate: Young Adult

Buy It: Amazon  

Worlds divided them. Chance brought them together. Only love will save them. 

In book 2 of the Immortal Essence series, Venus must enter her planet's Hell, and complete three trials in order to free her parents, and save her soulmate. 

SUMMARY:

Venus has become immortal, just as she always wanted. In the process she hurt Zaren, lost Michael, and destroyed her family. 

At least that's what she believed.

Turns out Ramien, the god of her planets' underworld, has her parents, and Michael. 

To save them, Venus makes a deal. She must complete three trials. They seem impossible. They certainly won't be easy. Worst of all, someone she loves won't make it out alive.

My Thoughts...

I love the covers in this series, they are all absolutely gorgeous, and whomever designed them needs a huge pat on the back.

So Beguiled takes place weeks after the end of Exiled, Venus is back home, she's now Immortal, she's dating Zaren and Michael whom came back with them is still around although she hasn't seen much of him.

Acting as ruler of her Kingdom after the disappearance and presumed death's of her parents the King and Queen, she is horrified when she learns from Michael that her parents souls are being held captive by Ramien the God of the Underworld, and so she sets off straight away with Michael in tow to rescue them.

But when she agrees to do anything Ramien asks to free them, she never thinks of what the consequences to the deal will be and when she does find out what it is,  she'll do whatever it takes to get out of their agreement.

Ramien also sets her three tasks that she must complete as well before her parents can be freed, so with some help from Michael, Zaren, Vinny and Cheverley they must try to defeat all the obstacles in their way.

But one of them won't make it and I have to say I ended up in tears after the death of this character, it was a definite shock.

I loved the ending to this, it definitely put a smile on my face, I just hope the next book Dovetailed isn't too far away, I'm interested to see how this series finishes up.

Highly recommended, check it out.

I give this 4/5.

Excerpt...

The dream was venom to my sleeping soul.

It wouldn’t stop.

Night after night. Like the rising of Kelari’s suns, the dream was consistent.

Always exacting.

Always relentless.

Always unwavering.

An alabaster door loomed before me. I shivered involuntarily. Doors! Behind them lay the unknown. The door shimmered open and I stepped through without holding my breath like I normally did. There wasn’t any point. I knew I dreamed. The outcome couldn’t be altered.

One overwhelming emotion permeated. Terror. It saturated the air. Dense, like the molten lava dribbling down the side of a distant volcano. The fear wasn’t mine though. I scanned my surroundings for the offender generating the sensation, but saw no one.

Above was darkness. No moon. No stars. Only emptiness. Raging fires dotted the otherwise barren landscape like potted plants. Some of the fires rose into the sky. Others roared low, smoldering against the shadowed ground.

Directly in front of me stretched a bridge over a vast ocean of lava. I ambled toward the center, treading carefully. The lava roiled and hiccupped far below. Heat rose and struck my face, but the bridges’ surface was cool against my hands.

Movement caught my attention.

Something swam in the lava.

It was long. Half of its body covered with scales while the other half moved like a billowing red curtain. The creature burst into the air. I choked on a scream, falling back, slamming my elbows against the bridges’ floor.

The thing, a ferrikat, ascended higher and higher, passing the bridge and continuing upward. I noticed the “curtain” was actually fiery hair attached to a head. It had a face, which arched toward the dark sky. One nose, one mouth, and two eyes. The lids were shut, and long ruby lashes rested against its porcelain cheeks. Clavicle bones protruded at the base of the neck, where shoulders attached to arms attached to hands attached to long fingers, hung at its sides.

A female, I realized, trying to chew away my shock. I knew ferrikat’s existed, but they were rarely ever seen.  

From the waist down the body was that of a fish. Scarlet, magenta, orange, and fuchsia scales sparkled or burned. Her tail splayed wide, and was shaped like a dolphin. Abruptly the she-fish stopped, and hung in the air, like a perfectly placed painting. Her face tilted downward, slowly. Familiarity blew through me like a warm wind. The ferrikat opened her eyes.

I knew those eyes.

RaShelle Workman

Bestselling author of Sleeping Roses, Exiled, Aligned: An Immortal Essence Short Story, and the Blood and Snow series. Renowned goofball with attitude.

                               BESTSELLING AUTHOR, DISCO DANCER, CUPCAKE BAKER

Contact Links

Blog/Website: http://www.rashelleworkman.com

Twitter: @RaShelleWorkman

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rashelleworkman

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/shells42/