The primal rule of winning: don’t fall in love with the contender.
Three
months shy of her eighteenth birthday, Ness is forced to return to
Colorado. Even though it’s been six years, and the wolves of her
all-male pack don’t recognize her, she recognizes them. People who shun
others because of their gender are hard to forget.
Especially
Liam Kolane—son of Heath, the crudest and cruelest Alpha to have ruled
the Boulder Pack. Liam is as handsome as he is infuriating, as kind as
he is punishing, and he makes Ness’s traitorous heart race, which isn’t
good. After all, he’s a Kolane. Like father like son, right?
When Heath dies, Liam vies to become the new Alpha and no one dares challenge him.
Except Ness.
Thus begins a treacherous game.
The rules: winner takes all…including loser’s life.
Fans of Kresley Cole and Cassandra Clare will devour A PACK OF BLOOD AND LIES.
* Contains Alpha males.
* Not suitable for children under 14.
At first I was going to give this 2 stars or dnf, but I kept going and
I'm glad. I think it was my mood and not feeling the story at first,
because I'm a HUGE werewolf fan. I mean I have always wanted to be one
so........
Anyhoo, this is a story about Ness who/whom was
shunned when she was a little girl and forced out of town with her
mother. Things happen and when Ness is a teen the pack drags her back
home to Colorado. <-- Not literally
I love Ness as a character; she's loving and kind but a bad ass when she has to be and she certainly has to be in this book.
The
old evil Alpha is gone and Ness decides to go up against Liam because
she thinks he's evil like his father. Turns out there are different evil
peeps in the book you wouldn't have seen coming.
But Ness is strong and she fights for what she believes in and doesn't back down when it comes to the ones she loves.
Some
of the characters I loved to hate but some of my favorite are Liam,
Ness and Evelyn. The book even brought a bit of a tear to my eye with
some happiness that ensues. Get over it, I cry when I'm happy and sad =)
I'm very happy with the ending of this book and look forward to the next book!
*Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for a digital copy of this book.*
Happy Reading!
Mel ♥
GOODREADS REVIEW
Death wasn’t the end, it was only the beginning…
Sybella
has always been the darkest of Death’s daughters, trained at the
convent of Saint Mortain to serve as his justice. But she has a new
mission now. In a desperate bid to keep her two youngest sisters safe
from the family that nearly destroyed them all, she agrees to accompany
the duchess to France, where they quickly find themselves surrounded by
enemies. Their one ray of hope is Sybella’s fellow novitiates, disguised
and hidden deep in the French court years ago by the convent—provided
Sybella can find them.
Genevieve has been undercover for so many
years, she struggles to remember who she is or what she’s supposed to be
fighting for. Her only solace is a hidden prisoner who appears all but
forgotten by his guards. When tragedy strikes, she has no choice but to
take matters into her own hands—even if it means ignoring the long
awaited orders from the convent.
As Sybella and Gen’s paths draw
ever closer, the fate of everything they hold sacred rests on a knife’s
edge. Will they find each other in time, or will their worlds collide,
destroying everything they care about?
Reading this with my lovely friend, Tammie! Did I get to reread the
first trilogy that I loved before this one? No! Do I care? No! 😃
So I wanted to smack Genevieve there at the end but I get to the last page and chills went down my spine!! Woot!!
I
was so excited to read this book because I loved the first books and
Sybella and Beast!! Of course now I need to do a reread but that’s
neither here nor there.
Sybella is bad ass as well as Beast as well as all assassin girls!
He is a big man, thickset and heavy. Either it has not
registered that I have just mortally wounded his two friends or he is
stupid, so certain he has a killing blow that he moves slowly, like an
executioner at a beheading.
In the time it takes for his sword
to arc toward me, I retrieve the stiletto from my left sleeve. Ducking
in low, I launch my entire body at him, aiming for his gullet.
The
move brings me up against his chest, my blade sinking deeply into the
hollow of his throat. For one crystalline moment, we are pressed
together in an embrace, his sword flailing uselessly behind me. I twist
the stiletto, shoving it in deeper.
**********************
Beast
His
physical presence has all the sublety of a small mountain, and as he
draws closer, the tattered remains of the lingering souls retreat. He
slips his arm around my waist and pulls me close—the only man in the
kingdom who could survive taking such a liberty with his throat intact.
I love them sooooo much!!
This book is told in the
POV’s of Sybella and Genevieve. Where I was more interested in Sybella’s
parts, I was interested in what was going on with Genevieve and the
mysterious prisoner.
I did want to smack Genevieve at the end
but that last page has me hoping for something awesome in the next
book!! And I swear!! Sybella & Beast better not get hurt!!!
Happy Reading!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
GOODREADS REVIEW
AMAZON REVIEW
Eragon meets And I Darken
in this thrilling new fantasy debut that follows a fallen princess as
she ignites a rebellion to bring back the magical elemental crows that
were taken from her people.
In the tropical kingdom of
Rhodaire, magical, elemental Crows are part of every aspect of
life...until the Illucian empire invades, destroying everything.
That
terrible night has thrown Princess Anthia into a deep depression. Her
sister Caliza is busy running the kingdom after their mother's death,
but all Thia can do is think of all she has lost.
But when Caliza
is forced to agree to a marriage between Thia and the crown prince of
Illucia, Thia is finally spurred into action. And after stumbling upon a
hidden Crow egg in the rubble of a rookery, she and her sister devise a
dangerous plan to hatch the egg in secret and get back what was taken
from them.
I freaking love this cover!
December Fairyloot!
This book was amaze balls!! Welp, looks like another ARC I will be preordering the hardback!
I’m going to add a few spoilers so Don’t read after the gifs unless you want a bit of spoilery
The
shit hits the fan maybe a page out of the gate! Thia is having a good
time out joyriding on one of the elemental crows; she was still waiting
to get one of her own.
Thia is out with her friend, Kiva, who is
a warrior. Then all hell breaks loose! The Illucians arrive and kill
all the crows and kill many people including Thia’s mom. Thia’s sister
becomes the new Queen and decides to marry Thia off to Prince Ericen of
Illucia. Thia fought this tooth and nail but had to succumb to her
destiny. My ass! And Thia’s ass too if she has anything to do with it.
Thia
leaves with the Prince to go to his home. BUT.... Thia found a crow egg
and is taking it with her. Thia’s sister is all for this as Thia must
find the way and the magic to hatch the egg.
Thia meets the
handsome boy Caylus, who just happens to be a rebel. Woot!! Oh, and the
evil Queens servant, Auma is a rebel as well. Oh happy day!! The evil
witch needs to be taken down.
Anyhoo, Caylus helps Thia find her
inner power to hatch the egg!! And we have sweet little Resyries which
means “ Stormbringer” and oh does he have a charge!!
Turns out
the prince might not be so bad. Turns out that evil Queen has a whole
slew of crow eggs! That bitch! And she needs Thia to hatch them. Not
today dear Queenie! The gang escapes and are planning her take down! I
hope the next book will have then raining hell down on the Queen.
SIDENOTE: The Queen did have some bad things happen to her but she
didn’t have to turn out the way she is but...
Either way, I loved the book and look forward to the next one!
Happy Reading!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
GOODREADS REVIEW
Project Runway meets Mulan
in this sweeping YA fantasy about a young girl who poses as a boy to
compete for the role of imperial tailor and embarks on an impossible
journey to sew three magic dresses, from the sun, the moon, and the
stars.
Maia Tamarin dreams of becoming the greatest tailor in
the land, but as a girl, the best she can hope for is to marry well.
When a royal messenger summons her ailing father, once a tailor of
renown, to court, Maia poses as a boy and takes his place. She knows her
life is forfeit if her secret is discovered, but she'll take that risk
to achieve her dream and save her family from ruin. There's just one
catch: Maia is one of twelve tailors vying for the job.
Backstabbing
and lies run rampant as the tailors compete in challenges to prove
their artistry and skill. Maia's task is further complicated when she
draws the attention of the court magician, Edan, whose piercing eyes
seem to see straight through her disguise.
And nothing could have
prepared her for the final challenge: to sew three magic gowns for the
emperor's reluctant bride-to-be, from the laughter of the sun, the tears
of the moon, and the blood of stars. With this impossible task before
her, she embarks on a journey to the far reaches of the kingdom, seeking
the sun, the moon, and the stars, and finding more than she ever could
have imagined.
Steeped in Chinese culture, sizzling with
forbidden romance, and shimmering with magic, this young adult fantasy
is pitch-perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas or Renée Ahdieh.
I loved this so much, it went to my favorites list and I have the hardback pre-ordered!
Animation: Arthur Redhawk
Let me tell you people! Do not always go by what a summary says!
When I read this was a cross between Project Runway and Mulan, I
immediately put hitting that pre-order button aside. I'm not into those
two descriptions. BUT, I saw it on Netgalley and thought I should take a
chance. I'm so glad I did! SPIN THE DAWN is nothing like what I was thinking in that part of the description!
This
book was everything for me. Let me try to keep this simple without any
spoilers. Hmmm....okay, Maia is a tailor in her own right, but girls are
not allowed to become tailors. <-- What?! I was like, are you for
real?! Anyhoo, her dad was a famous tailor but since Maia's mom died
he's not the same and he has become sickly. (I mean we all get old
right?) So Maia is the one running the shop and doing all of the
mending. Maia has three brothers but things happen to them so they are
not doing any kind of tailoring.
THEN, one day some dude shows
up saying Maia's father has to come to try out to become a Royal Tailor
to the Imperial Majesty. We all know that's not happening...soooooo..
Maia pretends she is one of her brothers and goes up against some other
men (some whom are real jerks) to try to win the spot of Royal Tailor.
Maia is not just doing this for herself, she wants to get money to her
family.
All kinds of shenanigans ensue and even some people trying to kill people! Geez!
Maia
befriends Edan who is the Lord Enchanter and he's a bit of something
else too. I wish I could tell you. I might come back with a spoiler
section =) Edan takes a liking to Maia because he knows her secret and
she's a good person; she has some magic too!
They end up on a
quest to seek these amazing things to make dresses out of for the
Imperial Majesty's soon to be wife. She doesn't want to be his wife but
that's how it goes in these arranged things. Anyhoo, this that and the
other happens. I was so happy and then I was sad because I'm not sure
what the future is going to hold AND I don't have the next book yet!? Do
I want to read the next book? I'm afraid! If I'm still alive, I will be
reading it!
I love Maia and Edan so much and that's all that matters!
Happy Reading!
Mel ♥
*Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for giving me a digital copy of this book to read.*
GOODREADS LINK
It's a dangerous thing, to choose the lesser of two evils.
The
war is over, and army priest Tomas Piety finally heads home with
Lieutenant Bloody Anne at his side. When he arrives in the Stink, Tomas
finds that his empire of crime has been stolen from him while at war.
With his gang of Pious Men, Tomas will do whatever it takes to reclaim
his businesses. But when he finds himself dragged into a web of
political intrigue once again, and is forced to work in secret for the
sinister Queen's Men, everything gets more complicated.
When
loyalties stretch to the breaking point and violence only leads to
violence, when people have run out of food, and hope, and places to
hide, do not be surprised if they have also run out of mercy. As the
Pious Men fight shadowy foreign infiltrators in the backstreet taverns
and gambling dens of Tomas's old life it becomes clear; the war is not
over.
It is only just beginning.
Woot!! This one went right into my favorites list! Happy Freaking Day!!
I loved almost every character in the book!! My favorite being Bloody Anne!
"I don’t want a fucking love spell," Bloody Anne snarled
at him. "I’ve paid you silver for wisdom, so you’ll have the good grace
to shut up and listen to the fucking question without interrupting me
again or I’ll nail you to your door with your fucking rat, you
understand me?"
Old Kurt stared at her for a moment, then laughed his thin, reedy old man’s laugh.
"That’s me told, ain’t it," he said. "I’ll listen, my fine lady. I’ll listen to you."
She’s Tomas second and she’s bad to the bone!!
Tomas is a fighter, a businessman and a priest. <— just read the book!
I
love these people and laughed my butt off at some of their antics! I
also give kudos to the author for having Tomas kill one of his own men
that was going to rape a girl and also give a beating to one that hurt
one of his brothel girls! Also, there was no senseless animal killings
in the book! Hell yeah! I mean I can’t say what he will do in the other
books but he got my full 5 stars for a great book and the forementioned
<— is that even a word!
This is a grimdark my peeps and done
in a way I could fully love and not cringe or skim. Yes, there are blood
and guts and stuff. Uh, I did mention grimdark. Anyhoo, I loved it and
look forward to the rest of the books!!
Happy Reading!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
GOODREADS REVIEW
AMAZON REVIEW
Lindsay Harrel presents a powerful story of healing, forgiveness, and finding the courage to write your own story.
A
year after the death of her abusive fiancé, domestic violence counselor
Sophia Barrett finds returning to work too painful. She escapes to
Cornwall, England--a place she's learned to love through the words of
her favorite author--and finds a place to stay with the requirement that
she help out in the bookstore underneath the room she's renting. Given
her love of all things literary, it seems like the perfect place to find
peace.
Ginny Rose is an American living in Cornwall, sure that
if she saves the bookstore she co-owns with her husband then she can
save her marriage as well. Fighting to keep the first place she feels
like she belongs, she brainstorms with her brother-in-law, William, and
Sophia to try to keep the charming bookstore afloat.
Two hundred
years before, governess Emily Fairfax knew two things for certain: she
wanted to be a published author, and she was in love with her childhood
best friend. But he was a wealthy heir and well out of her league.
Sophia discovers Emily's journals, and she and William embark on a
mission to find out more about this mysterious and determined woman, all
the while getting closer to each other as they get closer to the truth.
The lives of the three women intertwine as each learns the power she has over the story of her life.
What a lovely story this was; all the warm and fuzzy feels!
You have Sophia the counselor. She's going through some rough things and decides a change is in order. And oh, she goes to Cornwall and rents a room above a bookstore! Gasp! I would love that soooo much! It would be lovely enough being in Cornwall but living above a bookstore too! Be still my heart! ♥
Ginny is the owner of said bookstore BUT is having trouble with her husband ~ish.
But soon Ginny is on a whirlwind adventure with Sophia when Sophia discovers and journal from many years ago written by a woman named Emily. So, Sophia drags Ginny her lovely brother-in-law William on a wonderful ride of finding out about this woman.
I love the characters and the setting so much. The POV's are wonderful and oh, that ending! I love a story that has a beautiful happy ending!
*I would like to thank BookLookBloggers for a print copy of this book. All opinions are my own*
Happy Reading!
Mel ♥
It's February Unboxing month! Woot! Get ready for some lovely things in this month's Owlcrate Box!
Next we have one of my favorite things! A Haku keychain from the movie "Spirited Away" OMG! And we also have an enamel pin designed for the book of the month!
Next is a cute little Pixie Dust crystal soap!
Next we have a letter from the author but there is a map on the other side so I'm showing that and a bookmark designed for the book of the month
The next two pictures is of the cutest little graphic novel!
Next we have an umbrella inspired by the creatures from Harry Potter
And my other favorite thing is a beanie with unicorns!! OMG! Inspired by the unicorns from Harry Potter.
And finally we have the book "Crown of Feathers" with beautiful stained edges
Happy Reading All!
Mel ♥
A girl who can speak to gods must save her people without destroying herself.
A prince in danger must decide who to trust.
A boy with a monstrous secret waits in the wings.
Together, they must assassinate the king and stop the war.
In
a centuries-long war where beauty and brutality meet, their three paths
entwine in a shadowy world of spilled blood and mysterious saints,
where a forbidden romance threatens to tip the scales between dark and
light. Wicked Saints is the thrilling start to Emily A. Duncan’s devastatingly Gothic Something Dark and Holy trilogy..
OMG! OMG! OMG! PLEASE LET ME LOVE THIS......
Thank goodness I loved the book! Let just give you a little skinny on the book first before I tell you WHY I love it.
The
book starts out with a bang; action right out of the gates. We have
Nadya, she's a cleric and has been hiding in a monastery forever! She
has powers and some peeps found out about her and all hell broke loose.
She has to go on the run with a friend in order to not be killed or
captured for other horrible reasons.
We have Serefin who is a
Prince and a mage and he is after Nadya. The POV's are his and Nadya's
but we get other characters through their story lines.
Then we
have Malachiasz who is another mage character and from the same place as
Serefin, but who helps Nadya and her friend get from point A to point
B.
I loved the book in the very beginning but the only reason I
kept loving it is because I fell in love with the villian! Yes, you
heard it first here people. And there are actually a few villians in the
book.
I also love the Vultures! They are bad guys and girls in
the book as well. What is it with me and the bad guys! I don't always
love them so there!
I am interested to see where this will go in
the next book because that ending had me "shook" and I'm not over it
yet. I hope that it gets better and doesn't suffer from second book
syndrome!
Anyhoo!
*Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for a digital copy of this book to review.*
Mel ♥
Seventeen-year-old Edgar
Poe counts down the days until he can escape his foster family—the
wealthy Allans of Richmond, Virginia. He hungers for his upcoming life
as a student at the prestigious new university, almost as much as he
longs to marry his beloved Elmira Royster. However, on the brink of his
departure, all his plans go awry when a macabre Muse named Lenore
appears to him. Muses are frightful creatures that lead Artists down a
path of ruin and disgrace, and no respectable person could possibly
understand or accept them. But Lenore steps out of the shadows with one
request: “Let them see me!”
What a lovely tale...
Once upon a dark December, in a year we
must
remember,
Morbid mounds of ash and ember told a
gruesome tale of gore--
Wow, I think Cat Winters did a great job on this book!
I
was reading through her author's notes, etc and she was telling how she
went about finding out as much history as she could before writing this
book. I think she made a remarkable book on fiction and fact to create a
young Poe.
I loved reading about Lenore! The book is written in
two POV's; Edgar and Lenore. I must say it's bloody brilliant. I loved
the creepiness to the book and the way the author incorporated a muse
for different people. It was so freaking gothic and awesome and like I
said a bit creepy. If you accept what you have created then the
creepiness goes away and you find that you have a friend for life.
That's
all I'm going to say before I sit right here and type a spoiler before
the book is even out yet. This is February and this fine book will be
out in April; I'm putting it on my birthday book buying list for myself.
*Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for a complimentary copy of this book for review.*
Happy Reading!
Mel ♥
GOODREADS REVIEW
Thief. Runaway.
Assassin. What happens when your rumoured name destroys your life? When
the very runes engraved on your skin since birth, are a death sentence?
Evie doesn't remember a life before she was on the streets, a life before thieving to live and killing to stay alive.
When
a royal family she didn't know anything about go missing, Evie finds
herself thrown into the royal court of the protectors, and they demand
her help.
Help in exchange for a chance at freedom and the name
that's haunted her, forgotten. A name she can’t even read, a name she
doesn’t understand.
But when three Royal protectors are tasked
with helping her, her demon ex who is literally from hell, stalking
her...will Evie ever be free?
Holy crap on a cracker!!!!! I freaking loved this book! Thank God for my
book group challenges or I never would have found this gem!!
First let’s take a look at this absolutely gorgeous cover!!
"For a woman people fear, you are the kindest woman I’ve met in years," he says
Evie is bad assed! She’s a killer of things for reasons. She
has a young girl she watches over for reasons. Some jerks capture said
girl. Some of them turn out to not be jerks. They have to venture into
hell with Evie’s ex boyfriend demon for reasons. A lot of crap goes down
with a surprise ending for reasons! Oh, and it could be considered a
love triangle but not in the way you’re thinking because I hate love
triangles but this book is on my favorites list so it didn’t effect me
that way.
Also, this book is on kindle unlimited US but I have
bought the kindle version and the paperback version!! Now, I only hope
the rest of the books are as good!
Happy Reading!!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
GOODREADS REVIEW
I'm a monster. A
literal monster. But I'm a "good" kind of monster. You know, like the
serial killers who kill the drug dealers, rapists, and general scum of
the earth.
The difference between those serial killers and me?
I'm only part human; two-thirds of me is werepire. That's right,
werewolf and vampire. It's not fun, but I make due. I'm also a
therapist; the one these scum pay to... talk to. I listen, sure. But
then I have my own personal brand of justice. It gets messy, so if you
plan to stick around, might I suggest you wear a rubber suit?
From the back cover:
I'm stuck - stuck in this body with two blood-hungry beasts who happen
to be relatively clueless to what being human means. Luckily, I still
have that part of me, too. I realized a while ago what happened to make
me this way and now I'm on a mission to find a cure without killing
myself in the process.
I also may have the opportunity to buy a
castle in England complete with gargoyles. Am I going to? You bet I am!
But while I was there, I gained a follower of sorts - a watcher. I don't
know who it is or why, but my monsters inside are helping me to figure
it out. The watcher even followed me home - I feel them.
At
least I can get back to helping my patients and finding that cure to rid
myself of this werepireism. How will I ditch the watcher before they
out me for the monster I truly am?
I picked this book from Netgalley because of the cover and the
description! The cover is freaky cool and how cool would it be to read
about a human/werewolf/vampire?!
So here I am, three months later, a werepire, yet still
part human and doctor. Okay, fine, I am not a doctor in the sense that
you come see for a physical or something like that. I am a
psychotherapist, also knows as a psychologist. I get to help patients
work past their insecurities, anxieties, and other issues all while
being two-third monster, mentally and physically.
Of course, since then I have found you can get this on Kindle Unlimited so there you have it.
Anyhoo,
at first I was all over the place at how I wanted to rate this and how I
felt about the book. I went from 3 to 2 and back to 4 stars. There are
some annoying things with the main character but overall it won me over;
mostly due to the fact that she has gargoyles (real ones) and she takes
out mostly evil people. AND the werewolf/vampire thing. I mean I want
to be a werewolf myself, but I digress.
This is a bit gruesome when she's killing someone so take that in mind if you don't like that kind of stuff.
There is a good bit of snark and just regular times which I found fun!
*And thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for a copy of this book!*
Happy Reading!
Mel ♥
GOODREADS REVIEW
AMAZON REVIEW
