Friday, May 2, 2014

Sketchy by Olivia Samms

I was really into getting this book because I saw it on a Goodreads ad and the cover and description sucked me in. You can see my review below. I listened to it on audiobook, but I was totally into it and listened to the whole book in about 3 days. It was unique and interesting. I recommend it for those who like books with a little bit of everything.


Bea's life has been a mess ever since she got kicked out of private school and sent to rehab. Now clean, Bea is starting over at Packard High School, in a city shaken from two assaults on young women. The latest victim, Willa Pressman-the one who survived-doesn't remember a thing. But Bea has a disturbing new "skill": she can see-and then draw-images from other people's minds. And when she looks at Willa, Bea is shocked by what she sketches. Bea might be the only one who knows Willa's secrets-and who can take down the killer before he strikes again.



Sketchy (Bea Catcher Chronicles, #1)Sketchy by Olivia Samms
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I listened to it on audible. I was really sucked into the story, and I thought Bea was an interesting character. It is hard to show an addict and cravings accurately. I think it was done well. I enjoyed the story and there were times I really hated Willa and felt sorry for Bea so anytime I feel emotion for the characters I feel like the author has done a great job of sucking me in. I will be picking up the second book and continuing the series.

View all my reviews

Here is a link to an interview with the author! I am looking forward to reading or listening to Book 2!!

 

Sunday, April 13, 2014

Reivew and Blog Tour - The Power by Jeff Hennelly

The Power 





Blurb

What would you do if you had the power to heal but it only brought you personal destruction and ruin? Would you still use it?

When a street shaman meets a horrific demise on Dr. Austin MacLean’s ER table, Austin soon discovers a raw and irrepressible power. But when this power inflicts traumatic effects on three chronically ill children, families rush to accuse him, his colleagues condemn him, and the police begin to investigate in this affluent New Jersey beach town....and so do others when the children begin to show inconceivable progress.
Dara Kleows, a local reporter, is the first to connect the children’s gradual healings back to Austin. The two develop a deep bond but Austin remains uncertain as to what this beautiful woman wants. Is she just after a story, or more? There are those who covet Austin’s “power” and at any cost, while Dara is more concerned by Austin’s headlong march toward his own perdition.  




Excerpt

When Austin looked up, he thought he saw a faint corona flicker around DJ. It started growing ever-brighter, and he tried to step back but was pulled closer by some indelible force—an atmospheric hollow drawing his humming body into the eye of an invisible storm. An ear-popping decompression was followed by an overpowering energy surge, his brain and muscle masses engorging with a metamorphic euphoria. Experiencing that spine-chilling “conduit” feeling, he swore as if he were about to be struck by some unseen force. And when DJ looked up, Austin sensed the imminent electrical surge was meant for the boy.

Author Bio

Jeff Hennelly now lives in Chester Springs, Philadelphia, PA. He’s been in the medical device business for over 20 years and has worked with hospitals, clinics, and alternate care facilities from Palo Alto to Prague. His articles and short stories have appeared in numerous trade magazines and journals. He is represented by Eric Myers of the Spielman Agency in New York. His novel, THE POWER was published on Amazon in June, 2013. Look for his new novel, THE 95 PERCENT in 2014.  


BUY LINK


Giveaway


In order to enter to win one of two $5.00 giftcards or a copy of The Power put in the blog comments what you would want your super power to be if you could have one. If you tweet the Amazon link you get an extra entry. Make sure you post your Twitter username in your comment if you do!


                              MY REVIEW

Coming soon - I am still reading this one!!

Monday, March 3, 2014

Review of Earthbound

 

BLURB:

Some say history repeats itself, but for Terran, an Earth Elemental, history has returned and slapped him in the face. Along the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, the Acobi Fallen Angels have decided to go underground–literally. They are resurrecting an old legend, shanghaiing innocent people into slavery. Underage girls are trapped and kept in holding cells, ready to be sold into the sex trade. Terran must stop the Acobi and keep the public away from the Shanghai tunnels, all while keeping his supernatural powers hidden.

Kelly Habersham, overachieving real estate developer, has finally convinced her father and brothers to give her the Portland condo project, which would require extensive construction near the tunnels. Determined to impress her father and make a name for herself in the family business, she is not about to let a Save-the-Earth guy get in her way.

Terran and Kelly must work together and come to a truce--or they may be the next shanghai victims.

Elaine Calloway

Crafting Stories of the Living, the Dead, and the Eerie In Between.

Elaine Calloway grew up in New Orleans with a love of cemeteries, gothic architecture, and all things paranormal. She is currently writing The Elemental Clan Series, a good vs. evil set of tales involving Elementals and Fallen Angels. For more information and to connect with Elaine online, visit her website at http://www.elainecalloway.com.

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My Review - ****

I'm a huge fan of sci fi, and I liked the dark twist this story had. This was something different, and I enjoyed the detail and the way Calloway brings you into the story. I want to read the first two after this one, and like that it could be a standalone.

Sunday, February 23, 2014

My Review of The Admirer



Being a huge Pride and Prejudice fan, I was looking forward to reading The Admirer. I think it was a refreshing story to remind us that we don't always have to have lots of sex and angst in a story. I enjoyed it, and believe Ms. Osbourne's debut should do very well.


Saturday, February 15, 2014

Very Good Things To Say About Very Bad Things

**** Very Bad Things ****


I just finished this book and I really love it. The characters were deep and quirky. I gave it a four and not a five because of the mush factor. I still really loved the book and Madden - Mills is a kick-ass writer. You need to check out Very Bad Things.



Born into a life of privilege and secrets, Nora Blakely has everything any nineteen-year-old girl could desire. She's an accomplished pianist, a Texas beauty queen, and on her way to Princeton after high school. She's perfect. Or is she?

Leaving behind her million-dollar mansion and Jimmy Choos, she changes the course of her life, becoming a girl hell-bent on pushing the limits with alcohol, drugs, and meaningless sex.

Then through a chance encounter, she meets her soulmate. But he doesn't want her.

When it comes to girls, twenty-five-year-old Leo Tate has one rule: never fall in love. His gym and his brother are all he cares about...until he meets Nora. He resists the pull of their attraction, hung up on their six year age difference.

As they struggle to stay away from each other, secrets will be revealed, tempers will flare, and hearts will be broken.

Welcome to Briarcrest Academy...where sometimes, the best things in life are Very Bad Things.
  
*Very Bad Things is a complete standalone novel without a cliffhanger.
 
*Very Wicked Things (also standalone) will release early May 2014! Pre-order will be available soon!
 
New Adult/Contemporary Romance recommended for 18 and older. Contains adult themes and content.
 
 
"Very Bad Things is maddening, passionate, heart-breaking, all-encompassing, and about a million other adjectives." -Sarah Griffin of Books to Breathe and Angie's Dreamy Reads
 


Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Enter the Giveaway and Check out Sisters of the Heart!!



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Promises of the Heart
(Sisters of the Heart Series, Book One)
[Kindle Edition]
Scarlett Rains (Author)
December 25, 2013
Book Description
 
Fate Plays a Hand!
When Amelia Fitzailwyn, Duchess of Kensington, is orphaned at a very young age, she must leave home and travel to her new guardian's estate. She embarks on the journey with her beloved governess, Rachel: wishing all the while that her Uncle William would somehow rescue her. To her delight, he does! Uncle William is her new guardian...and he has two sons! Amelia happily settles in to life at Havenwood Manor with her new family.
 
 
The Stage is Set!
What are the servants whispering about? Have they noticed all those heated looks between Uncle and Rachel? Amelia sees mysteries everywhere...and would solve them all if her cousins would leave her alone long enough to do her research! She wishes John, the eldest, would keep his nose out of her affairs and poke it back in his theme bookHow to be the Most Boring Personage in the Realm. And Alex, the skirt chasing hypocrite, irritates her even more: going on-and-on about her one little rendezvous with Simon.
 
Time Will Tell!
When it turns out Uncle, is not really her uncle, Amelia begins to see the irksome boys in a new light. In fact, she plans to marry one of them! Will John stop straining his steely grey eyes reading and see her for the woman she is? Or will Alex stop pulling the curl out of her hair long enough to notice the sheen of it as it wraps around his finger? Solve the mystery, dear reader, as you enjoy this delightful tale of a young woman's coming of age in Georgian England.

Review
imagefrom Nancy on  Goodreads:

"Promises of the Heart" is an eighteenth century tale of a young girl’s coming of age. The first thing I really liked about this book was the lovely graphics reflecting the time period in London, England. The reader is also pulled into the story at once with carefully crafted prose appealing to all five senses.

For example: watching the fluffy clouds lazily form shapes that quickly swirled into other shapes in the gentle breeze…a cacophony of sounds bombarded the weary coachman: the hue and cry of merchants and street people rose up above the clopping of the horses hooves in a relentlessly forlorn lament.

Scarlett Rains does a masterful job on style continuity throughout the entire novel. Somewhat like Charles Dickens, but more like the Victoria Holt novels I read profusely at one time in my life, "Promises of the Heart" resonates with cleverly woven intrigue surrounded by authentic characters of the day. Historical novels should inform about the life and times of the era—"Promises of the Heart" did not disappoint! The segue to her second novel "Seduction of a Bluestocking" was a perfect cliffhanger, enticing the reader to find out what happens next. Well done, Scarlett Rains! Five Stars!

About the author:
Scarlett Rains was raised in an orphanage, survived that and breast cancer! She considers all of it a blessing, refuses to let anything stop her; insisting that life is what you make it! Scarlett is a person who will spout optimistic 'truths' with her last breath! She is a busy grandma juggling a hectic schedule to try to balance her family's needs (including her insular cat's hissy-fits and her demanding dog's pathetic begging for belly rubs) and still manage a few minutes to write her stories. She often awakens from a sound sleep, jumps up, snatches a cup of coffee and hides in her office behind locked doors typing 18th century romance novels. Scarlett believes escaping her day-to-day responsibilities by living vicariously in the lives of the characters she creates keeps her out of trouble …and saves the cost of psychotherapy services. The author’s delightful Sisters of the Heart Series books are enjoyed by readers around the world. Scarlett loves receiving feedback and ideas from her readers.

Follow Scarlett Rains, Author:

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Thursday, January 2, 2014

Playing Darlene Guest Post

In this eye-opening true story, one woman recounts the double life she led working in two very different professions…one revered and the other reviled. Darlene spent over twenty years being thought of as a well-mannered teacher in a Southern California public school district, but her colleagues and students would have never imagined that for eighteen of those years she also worked as a professional dominatrix in a dungeon.

“Playing Darlene” lets the reader take a peek into the mysterious lives of professionals in the sex industry and some of the jaw-dropping encounters she had with the thousands of clients whose fantasies she helped come true. With everything from roleplaying a shopaholic wife being spanked by her husband to wrapping up a muscular cross-dressing client in plastic and watching him wiggle, Darlene helped men realize their most secret desires…while she wasn’t grading school papers on her breaks. Darlene's true stories of balancing her two different personas are frequently shocking, at times hilarious, and occasionally touching, but at the heart of the story is a woman on a personal journey not only to reconcile with her past, but also to discover the full potential of her own sexuality.

Guest Post

Thanks to 50 Shades...

BDSM is getting a lot more attention these days partly due to its inclusion in the 50 Shades trilogy. Here's what I think has been going on:

People have always had sexual fantasies. We like to fantasize about situations and/or activities that are considered naughty, illicit, or otherwise frowned upon by society. Whatever is prohibited becomes more desirable. Imagining these scenes in the safety of our minds can be highly arousing. Frequent scenarios involve kidnapping, domination, sex with a stranger, and even rape. Romance novels have been the most popular genre for quite a while, and guess what they involve? That's right -- those four activities. What woman wouldn't like to be overpowered by a handsome stud, carried off to the man's "cave," and seduced? Many women wish that sex could be like that for them, but, darn it, it's not. I think the cause could be that belief among dinosaurs that women aren't supposed to enjoy sex. Society is still telling us that we're not "good girls" if we like it as much as boys do. How can we take pleasure in sex if we're made to feel guilty afterward? But wait a minute. If it wasn't our idea, we can't be guilty, right? The abovementioned fantasy is the perfect solution. It was the MAN who swept us away and forced us to surrender. We can relax and have a mind-blowing orgasm and not have to take any responsibility for it. So...50 Shades comes along, and in addition to containing the gorgeous, very-skilled guy and the naive gal, throws in a few BDSM elements. Now women are discovering that a little kinkiness can make a romance novel even more erotic.

The next logical step is for people to wonder what OTHER activities exist in this "forbidden" world. If a small amount of BDSM is good, more would be even better. Consequently, it's not surprising that people are taking more of an interest in it. Besides, let's face it, after a while, vanilla sex can get boring, but with only a handful of B&D tricks up one's sleeve (coupled with a bit of imagination), there's no end to the variety of fun and satisfying sensual adventures ahead.

I'm excited to see that BDSM is becoming more mainstream. It looks like the addiction has begun.

 

About the Author:


Darlene was born in Hollywood, California, and grew up in Pasadena, a quiet suburb near Los Angeles. She received a BA in German from California State University, Los Angeles. For several years she worked in television and film. Credits include General Hospital, Chicken Soup for the Soul, and the female lead in the film Monstrosity in which she played a spaced-out punk rocker. She even photo-doubled for Christian Bale in Empire of the Sun and Corey Feldman in Friday the 13th: A New Beginning (when they were 14 and 12 respectively). For the past 20 years, she has been a public school teacher in Los Angeles County. She currently lives in the San Fernando Valley, where she can be found indulging in her favorite hobby, ballroom and country-western dancing. Her next book is scheduled to be released in early 2013. You may also email her at darlene@chancespress.com.

Darlene was featured in an episode of Discovery Fit & Health's “Shocking Family Secrets.” The episode will aired on Thursday, Dec. 27th at 10PM (9PM Central).

http://health.discovery.com/tv-schedules/series.html?paid=56.17811.136231.43229.x

Available at: Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Playing-Darlene-Professional-Dominatrix-ebook/dp/B0094JN1R2/ B&N - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/playing-darlene-darlene/1112737604 Smashwords - http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/223956