{Book review} Half Black Soul by H.D. Gordon

Half Black Soul by H.D. Gordon

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Man oh man am I glad I bought the omnibus. I read the first book BLOOD WARRIOR and then lamented that my book budget was at a limit and moved on from the book to other books in my TBR that were sitting and waiting for me. I've been dying to get back to Alexa and Nelly and bought the omnibus right before leaving on vacation.

I cannot tell you enough: buy this as the omnibus. Buy all four books at once or you will hate yourself. DO IT. Now.

So at the end of the first book, I was yelling at Alexa for leaving Nelly behind. "nooooo! Don't you know you're stronger together! STAHHHHP." H.D. Gordon knows how to write a story, man. This is most definitely a kindle bruiser. That's my own little phrase: I am hitting the kindle screen hard to get to the next page because I MUST READ MORE.

The relationship development and the unveiling of the world to Alexa is intense. Loved loved this book. Didn't stop reading. Gorged the whole series.



View all my reviews

{Blog Tour} SHADOWS ON SNOW by Starla Huchton -- with review, giveaway, and excerpt, oh my!

{Book Review} FAMINE: Book One of the Apocalyptics

Book Title: Famine: Book One of the Apocalyptics
Author: Monica Enderle Pierce
Publisher: Stalking Fiction
Publishing Date: April 2014
Length: 411 pages
Source: KindleUnlimited

The fate of every soul rests upon his shoulders. His fate rests in the hands of a troubled, young girl.

It’s 1895—the cusp of the Victorian and Edwardian eras—and Bartholomew Pelletier is a gentleman and a warrior. For fifteen centuries he’s endured the depraved appetite of Famine—one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse—as she’s consumed his strength and sought to unite with her fellow Horsemen. But now Bartholomew’s chance to imprison her has appeared—in the form of his young ward Matilde.

Chosen to wield the immeasurable power of the Catcher—the one entity that can capture the escaped Horsemen—Matilde is a distrustful child from an abusive and impoverished home. She must be hidden from Famine as she grows strong, learns to fight, and reaches adulthood. But Bartholomew faces a terrible act: For Matilde to become the immortal Catcher, he must gain her trust, and then he must end her life.

By any means necessary, Bartholomew intends to conquer this enemy, but is he willing to sacrifice the one person he loves in order to save mankind?

Famine is the first novel in a four-book, dark fantasy series. It contains graphic violence, strong language, and sexual content and is intended for mature readers.

GOODREADS | AMAZON

omfg it ends there?!?! gsyhxgfdsdhjvcfuknxsrol review to come. Jesus. fuck. I need more now! argh
***********************************************

Read through the KindleUnlimited program, so no idea if this shows up as a verified purchase or not.

Um, WOW! So, one of my boyfriend's obsessions is the lore and myth behind the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. While I've read a few  books where they are the main characters or the main villain, my interest in the lore didn't really peak until he started telling me all about them. Passionate excitement about the lore got me going, I must admit.  And I am SO glad it did. While FAMINE is a book I would've picked up anyway, I was more eager to do so because of this new fascination with the horsemen.

Holy. Wow.

First, I send you to my little statement above all the asterisks. (Edited for amazon review due to people's delicate sensibilities and inability to handle curse words.)

Yes, this book leaves you JUST LIKE THAT. Precipice and everything as the characters are looking down over a cliff.

Monica Enderle Pierce's writing immediately sucked me in. Without seeming like she was telling me every little detail of the scene, I indeed got a full picture, so vivid I could practically smell the squalor coming out of Matilde's miserable apartment in the Sixth Ward. My curiosity was held firmly by the author as she brings Bartholomew to Matilde by way of the murder of crows, beasts he depends on and loathes at the same time.

Bartholomew has been searching for 1500 years for a vessel like Matilde. Unfortunately for her, this means that so has Famine and her cronies. Bartholomew (remind me never to name a kid or a dog that; I keep mistyping it) goes by Monsieur to protect his identity. Matilde only knows him as Monsieur despite her constant attempts to uncover who he is. If no one knows his full name and only knows him as Monsieur, then Famine has less of a chance of finding them while they are on the run.

Pierce does a wonderful job of story-telling. From the beginning, you know who Famine is, that Monsieur is somehow enslaved by her, and that the Catcher wants Matilde. But you don't quite know the details and it's parceled out to you in delicious chomps.

It's wonderful watching the relationship develop between Monsieur & Matilde, to see Mr Vernon & Mrs Henderson utterly accept Monsieur as he is and keep him ensconced in humanity.

And I had to love listening to Monsieur as he tells Matilde things like:

"Hell and heaven are concepts created by men to frighten parishioners . . . because fear is profitable and faith has become a business. Frightened people will pay to have their sins absolved." He'd found deterioration in all of God's houses.

I care nothing for the fabrications of that book. Animals possess souls, and they can and do seek revenge.

He remarks on organized religion and teachings like this a couple of times and I kinda pumped my fist in the air with a FINALLY! YES! He isn't atheist, of course, as his fate is entwined with the Horseman and God's will. There is a God and there are the Horsemen and there is the Catcher, and the Beacon, and the Guardian, but no there aren't winged babies and this heaven/hell crap. I thought that was wonderful and it endeared Monsieur to me even more that he is willing to tell this to a child in such a matter of fact way.

This book DOES evoke emotion. You think you're just happy getting the tale, but Pierce writes Matilde so appropriate for her age as she grows from an 8 year old to a pre-teen to an adolescent on the cusp of womanhood. While some readers may get annoyed with Monsieur, I found myself snarling at a petulant effing teenager who was grating on my nerves for her lack of respect, tone of voice, and utter lack of gratitude towards a man who, while he may not be forthcoming with hugs, took her out of the slums and is raising her to be a lady of means. While he had selfish reasons, too, and the pull of the Catcher, and of course Matilde will never have a normal life, he is caring for her, teaching her, arming her for her fate. So yeah, the teenage years bugged the hell out of me.

While I might say it often when I read a good book, I know that this one is one that will stick with me and I'll be turning over and over in my head as I wait for the next installment. I can only hope that Monica Enderle Pierce is a fast writer. And I hope it's a short series of books of this length that totally enthrall and mesmerize you. While she could stretch it out to the end of days, I'm hoping that is not the case and I will soon be treated to the ending of this story. I would love to meet some of the contacts, see how Thomas Green is doing, and what role the Greens will have to play.

I hope I didn't give you any spoilers and I hope you do read this. It was wonderfully crafted! And now I need to order a print copy as I definitely need to reread this one.

{Book Review} OUTLANDER by Diana Gabaldon

Book Title: Outlander
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Publisher: Dell Publishing Company
Publishing Date: June 1991
Length: 870 pages
Source: Borrowed from my mom

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

GOODREADS | AMAZON

Why did I wait so long to read this? Years ago my friend, Jen, told me to read this. I said, YES YES I HAVE BEEN MEANING TO! I even checked out the first three books from the library. But I never got around to picking it up. She reminded me again and again, and I went and bought the first three books. I gave them to my mom who raved about them and asked why I hadn't read them yet. *shrugged* I had a huge TBR and was going through them. Wasn't feeling a long series. I dunno.

*slaps self repeatedly*

So, since the show is coming out and the premier was offered for free, I decided to watch the premier. Hold the phone. God this sounds good! I should read it!

I don't have Starz, so I'm not going to be able to watch the rest until the first season is up and on netflix or something so NOW IS THE TIME. Called mom, picked up book, opened to the first page. Hissed, clawed, and growled at anyone who tried to interrupt me.

Claire Randall neé Beauchamp is on a second honeymoon of sorts, getting to know her husband again after six years apart due to the war. It's 1945. Claire worked as a nurse while her husband was abroad. To say that the war has changed them would be an understatement. As Frank's passion is genealogy, they are in Scotland tracing the route of his ancester Black Jack Randall when he was a dragoon commander in the highlands, two hundred years ago. And so the story begins. When Claire and Frank discover a stone circle and witness a druid ceremony, they are enchanted. Claire is interrupted before she can discover what that flower she saw was. She goes back the next day, touches one of the stones, and falls through time. She is at first convinced that she is watching a re-enactment or a movie being shot. But it becomes more and more clear that she is no where near 1945.

And so this tale revolves around Claire in the 18th century. She finds herself hostage/a guest of a scottish clan and inexplicably drawn to one James Fraser, nephew to the chieftain and a laird in his own right. Circumstances require that she marry him and suddenly she now has two husbands.

Let me tell you, ladies. From the brief description and interactions with Frank, from the get go you want her to choose Jamie. And I was SO frustrated with how she kept being a wishywashy about returning to Frank, returning to Frank, returning to Frank, when Jamie has done nothing but demonstrated that he puts her first. Not to mention, Jamie is very alpha, Frank is very not. This may be unfair to Frank as we haven't explored his character much in this book, but I'm one of those "it happened for a reason." I was so incredibly happy when she makes her decision. But then there is more heartache and danger and turmoil lurking about in the form of Frank's ancestor, Black Jack Randall.

Oh, he's hideous. He makes your skin crawl. He's vile. And you'll be brought to tears when Jamie comes to the rescue, and again when Claire comes to the rescue, and again when Claire understands and helps with the internal healing.

Wonderfully written, no grammatical errors, prose that flows, language that is salty and appropriate to both time periods, laughter as you read this romance and Jamie is asking things like "Who is John Wayne?" and Claire answers, "You." With a plot full of action and tension and anticipation, with betrayals and romance, with adorable conversations between characters, this is immediately on my favorites list, my re-readable, my kindle-bruiser, and one I look forward to reading again...after I finish the series of course. 

{Book Review} TOMORROW WENDELL by R.M. Ridley

Book Title: Tomorrow Wendell, The First White Dragon Black Novel
Author: R.M. Ridley
Publisher: Xchyler Publishing
Publishing Date: June 28, 2014
Length: 267 pages
Source: Author for honest review

Book Blurb:
When predictions tell Wendell Courtney he’s going to die, he turns to the one man he hopes can help. Jonathan Alvey’s no stranger to the strange. But, unlike the private investigator’s run-of-the-mill zombie cases, he can find no trace of magic around Wendell, and no hint of an adversary. Alvey certainly has magic and wits enough to solve the mystery, but is his offering to the insatiable dragon black sufficient? Or is Wendell truly destined to die?

Goodreads | Amazon

 I can already hear the comparisons that people will be making in regards to R.M.Ridley's TOMORROW WENDELL. Paranormal Private Investigator is all they would need to hear before making that jump. And while I understand, please don't! 

Once I started reading, I could not put this book down. The story is fluid and fast-paced, the characters nuanced, everything shown as opposed to told. Jonathan Alvey is a magic-wielding paranormal private investigator, a functioning alcoholic, a magic addict who is constantly fighting down the addiction with other addictions, a good man who is struggling with a past, and hellbent on helping others. It's not for a paycheck, although of course that's nice as a guy needs to eat. It's because he CAN help and therefore feels he SHOULD help. 

I think what I liked best about this was its realism. Yes, yes, I know. Magic ain't real, kid. But that's not what I'm talking about. I'm referring to the fact that this world is encumbered with nightmares from our fairy tales, legends, and myths. Perhaps if we all took a step to the left, we'd cross that barrier and see the things that Jonathan sees. 

Wendell Courtney is Jonathan's newest client and the title character. On an impulse, Wendell visits an antique shop near his dentist, slides a coin into a fortune telling machine, and receives a death sentence. He turns up in Jonathan's office, begging for help. As Jonathan begins to investigate, nothing makes sense. There are no magical traces of malicious intent. Completely puzzled, Jonathan is determined to save his client. 

With characters that are relatable, action that will have you rubbing your own stomach and ribs in sympathy, quirks that make him utterly likable, and an ending that will blow you away, this was one hell of a start to a series. I eagerly await the next installment and hope that Author R.M. Ridley writes fast!

{Blog Tour} NEFERTITI'S HEART and HAPSHEPTUT'S COLLAR by A.W. Exley, The Artifact Hunters series

I'm excited to be hosting a stop for the Artifact Hunters tour that features Nefertiti's Heart and Hatshepsut's Collar by A.W. Exley.   This series is new adult / Mystery / Steampunk, recommended for ages 16+ (there's some mature content). The tour runs March 3-14th.  Check out the tour page for the full list of tour stops.

{Release Day Blitz} THIRD DAUGHTER by SUSAN KAYE QUINN

Third Daughter by Susan Kaye Quinn
(The Dharian Affairs Trilogy #1)
Publication date: December 13th 2013
Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Steampunk

Read on for an excerpt, giveaway, and my review! ||||

{ARC Review} CHARRED HEART by Lizzy Ford ***AVAILABLE NOW****

Charred Heart
Lizzy Ford

For a thousand years, Chace has searched for a way to break the curse placed on him by a jilted lover. He’s a dragon shifter, one who can’t control when the magic will force him into a different form. He’s already lost everyone he ever cared about a few times over and doesn’t know how much longer he’s meant to suffer.

At his wit’s end, he makes a deal with a mysterious figure that offers him what he wants most – an end to his misery – in exchange for everything that’s his: His life, his power. His heart.

The next day, he meets Skylar, a modern day dragon slayer whose mission is to cage him – or kill him. Sexy, witty and brave, she is the yin to his yang, the woman destined to break the curse, balance his magic and make his broken heart whole. 

Except it’s too late. Not only has he sealed his fate, but an innocent one-night-stand with Skylar has dragged her into the middle of a deal with the devil, one she won’t escape, if he can’t convince her that dragon shifters aren’t her enemies

*fans face* Whoa, baby. This is Lizzy Ford's steamiest novel yet and very apropos given it's a paranormal romance about a dragon shifter. *licks lips* Say it with me...dragon hotness! And in true Lizzy fashion...this ends with a cliffhanger, but I hear that CHARRED TEARS isn't far behind, --thankfully--.

Chace is a thousand years old and tired of watching his loved ones die around him - humans and shifters alike, no one quite has the lifespan of a dragon. Ready to call it a day, he strikes a deal with Mr Nothing to become human. Shortly thereafter, Skylar crashes onto the scene, convinced she's a dragon slayer, and she's ready to slay Chace.

Passion and instant chemistry, these two rip one another's clothes off and sexy time commences. When things don't add up, Chace decides to take his end of the deal further and tells Sky to take him into the rehab center so he discover where the heck all the shifters are disappearing to. He insists to Sky that she's been brainwashed, but Sky is having difficulty believing her entire life could be a lie...

Tons of action, twisty motives from evil parties, a shocking ex-boyfriend, and a long lost father crash into the scene and keep you stabbing at your kindle. Another "kindle bruiser"...if Lizzy Ford keeps this up, I'm gonna need a new kindle and fast!

****Disclaimer: My copy was an ARC copy given to me by the author with no obligation. I'm writing this review because I feel like it.*****

Do NOT miss out on Lizzy Ford's

TWELVE KINDLES OF XMAS giveaways!

CLICK HERE and go enter! 

{Blog Tour with Review} EMBRACING DEATH by D.T. DYLLIN

 

Title: Embracing Death
Author: D.T. Dyllin
Series: The Death Trilogy #2
Genre: Erotic Paranormal Romance
Expected publication: December 12, 2013 by Dragonfairy Press

Blurb:

All of Samantha Bevan’s memories have been returned to her. But instead of bringing her peace, they’ve only brought her more turmoil. She now recalls the dark addiction to feeling other people’s deaths and every day is a struggle to control her urges. At least she has Austin to help her… or does she?

Samantha will discover that even with her memories, she doesn’t know the truth of her past, and those secrets may prove detrimental to her and everyone she loves. Will she be able to unravel the mystery of who’s been pulling her strings before it’s too late? Or will Austin be the one to suffer from her mistakes?

Goodreads | Releases for purchase mid-December 2013

 My review copy was an ARC copy (well yeah, it doesn't come out for a few more weeks!) provided via publisher for this tour.

Oh. My. Gawd. Again, it just intensifies and Dyllin leaves it with a cliffhanger (WHEN IS BOOK 3 out?!) that just leaves your heart in a twist. I liked the flow of this book. Just when I thought I had a handle on everything, I learn that indeed there is more!

My favorite line from FEELING DEATH was when Austin tells Sam that if she needed, he'd kill someone every day from her if she needed it (you must read to understand). It's powerful because it's something that's so horrendous and yet he loves her so much he would be willing to do so if she needed it. I didn't quite understand fully. Not until we got into more depth in this book.

Malcolm really was a piece of work...just horrific. And now Sam and Austin are dealing with the aftermath of EVERYTHING. (I still hate Nixon; his excuse is pathetic. Absolutely pathetic. He obviously doesn't have a clue as to what love is.)

Bad guys. Good guys. Which is which? It's really hard to tell at times. I mean there's covert operations and then what looks to be sanctioned. And Malcolm seemingly is on the side you'd expect to be good but he's definitely not. And then poor Sam & Austin are all churned up and effed in the head and ... geez. And then you get their shared history and your jaw drops and it's just...OH MY GOD.

More twisties, turnies, and corkscrews into the past, another kindle bruiser that kept me up way past my bed time to see what the heck is going on. And then...cliffy. And I don't have book 3 at the ready to read yet! *sobs dramatically* 

Feeling Death
Book 1 in THE DEATH TRILOGY

Samantha Bevans is having the best sex of her life—but it's not with her husband. Fortunately for her marriage, the affair is all in her mind. Isn't it? As an empath, she senses other people's emotions. But her connection to the man with the the chiseled face and haunting eyes seems so real.

There's no time for fantasies with a serial killer loose in Pittsburgh. The killer is targeting dancers at a strip club where Samantha used to bartend, back when drugs were the only cure for the torment of her abilities. As a member of a special task force, Samantha uses her talents to sense the victims’ final thoughts. Just when she thought the case was complex enough, she discovers one of the victims was thinking about her fantasy man when she died.

Who can Samantha trust when she can’t trust her own mind? An empath feels the emotional environment around her…and Samantha is surrounded by death.

Amazon | Goodreads 

This book is trippy. I'm not happy with the label of "erotic" paranormal romance because erotic usually means erotica, and books in that genre are fairly focused on sex. This isn't about sex. This was a total mind screw, a psychological thriller, with romance and yes, sex, in it, but so much more! I should warn you: if you're going into this book expecting the typical-of-most-erotica sexy but easy, cheesy conversations and then nothing but sex scenes, this is not the book for you.

I don't know if it's because I was so fascinated at this absolute mind-frack (hey, I gotta post my review on amazon so no cursing. They get mad when you use the word see-are-a-pee. See? I even had to do that phonetically or they would kick it back out!) that I just took the sexy bits, digested them, kinda said "ooh that was hot", and then promptly forgot about them as I watched Sam unravel or if there just wasn't enough overly detailed sex for me to agree with that slap on label of erotic. Regardless, it IS definitely paranormal romance and it was a heck of a ride.

The build-up is trippy, the way half the book is told in flashback that progress from six years ago to 4 years ago to 3 years ago, it kept me turning the pages, utterly fascinated at these people, their powers, and what it means to be Sam. A more apt description is definitely psychological thriller. As always, I do my best to keep my reviews spoiler free so it's difficult for me to talk about this book (AGAIN, D.T. Dyllin! The Gates Trilogy was the same way! I'm gonna have to get a book club reading these so I can dish!) without giving too much away, but I must say the love triangle is a doozy. And then...the whole Nixon thing...SO. MESSED. UP. Annnnd, since the book is told in a series of flashbacks after the present day is secured, I can't tell you whether I mean flashback Nixon situation or current Nixon situation. All I can say is MESSED. UP.

Thankfully, I'm reading the ARC right now of Book 2, EMBRACING DEATH. It took that whole book to get to the examples of the title, and now I want to know more. I'm hoping I get a bit more history of Malcolm, Austin, Nixon, etc., or resolution and answers and peace (too hopeful? yeah, I'm the eternal optimist) for Sam.

TL;DR -- more of a psychological thriller, romance with hot sex scenes than erotica, this is a Kindle-Bruiser. You will be glued to your kindle, stabbing it with your finger to turn the page!  

About the Author

  

Cynical-Optimist. Chocolate-holic. Sarcasm Addict. Paranormal Believer. Self-Imposed Insomniac. Sci-Fi Geek. Animal Lover. Writer…are just a few words to describe D.T. Dyllin. She was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and now lives in Nashville, Tennessee with her husband and two very spoiled GSDs.

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