Saturday, June 28, 2014

Hidden Prey by Cheyenne McCray

Hidden Prey

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Very special thanks to Miss McCray for this opportunity.

I want to start this review by saying, very simply:  READ IT, READ IT, READ IT!!

Description courtesy of Miss McCray's website:

Hidden Prey

Tori Cox, a talented and sought after musician, heads back to her roots in a small southwest town in Arizona as she flees an abusive relationship. When she arrives in Bisbee, she finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong time—and witnesses the execution of a Federal agent by none other than the son of El Demonio, the head of the Jimenez Cartel. Tori and everyone she loves is now in danger as the cartel comes after her before she can testify. 

Landon Walker, a special agent with the Department of Homeland Security, rescues Tori when he sees the beautiful woman running from members of one of the most ruthless cartels in the world. He sets out to protect her, but soon protecting her isn't enough. The fire between them makes him want her in a way that he's never wanted another woman, despite his wounded heart.

Hidden Prey is an adult romantic suspense, high octane thriller novel set in the beautiful southeastern Arizona area of Cochise County. Miss McCray's intimate knowledge of the area allows her the ability to describe her setting with so much detail that the reader can literally picture each scene in their head, but she doesn't focus so much on descriptions that the reader is bogged down by them.
The character development is thorough, yet done throughout the story in a manner that keeps the story line moving. Tori and Landon are complex characters that intertwine as the story opens, develops and makes exciting twists and turns.
The plot itself, is relevant to what is happening in the world today. Tori, a young, talented, intelligent women is pulled in by the charm and charisma of a man who turns out to be different as there relationship develops into something more. When she finally stands up for herself and leaves, she finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Landon, a man  in a career where he protects and serves, has lost the one woman that means everything to him in a tragic accident. He finds himself in the right place at the right time to save Tori. A drug cartel, under cover federal agents, and a witness to a murder all in a quiet town on the border of AZ and Mexico.

What I liked about the book: a HOT hero, a story full of action, romance, sex, and suspense. I liked that I couldn't figure out the ending. The relationship between Tori and Landon is hot, steamy, and complicated. I had the hardest time putting this story down. I found myself still reading at 2AM and had to force myself to put it away to get some sleep. Personally, I would LOVE to see this book made into a movie.

What I did NOT like about the book: honestly? NOTHING!

 Miss McCray is a talented writer who knows what it takes to engage her readers and keep them coming back for more!

A little about the author, Cheyenne McCray:
Cheyenne McCray is a New York Times and USA Today best selling author. She has won multiple awards and nominations. She writes multiple series as well as books under her "alter ego" Jaymie Holland.

Check out her website and more of her books. You will be very happy you did!
www.cheyennemccray.com

Happy Reading!





Thursday, June 26, 2014

Cop Town by Karin Slaughter

Cop Town

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Miss Slaughter and Delacorte Press/Random House for this opportunity.

Description courtesy of Goodreads:
Atlanta, 1974: As a brutal murder and a furious manhunt rock the city’s police department, Kate Murphy wonders if her first day on the job will also be her last. She’s determined to defy her privileged background by making her own way—wearing a badge and carrying a gun. But for a beautiful young woman, life will be anything but easy in the macho world of the Atlanta PD, where even the female cops have little mercy for rookies. It’s also the worst day possible to start given that a beloved cop has been gunned down, his brothers in blue are out for blood, and the city is on the edge of war.

Kate isn’t the only woman on the force who’s feeling the heat. Maggie Lawson followed her uncle and brother into the ranks to prove her worth in their cynical eyes. When she and Kate, her new partner, are pushed out of the citywide search for a cop killer, their fury, pain, and pride finally reach the boiling point. With a killer poised to strike again, they will pursue their own line of investigation, risking everything as they venture into the city’s darkest heart.

So I have a little confession to make: since my husband is a retired cop and retired Army, I am drawn by certain types of stories. Cop Town intrigued me for a few different reasons, it was about cops, it was about female cops, and it was set in the past. The fact that it was set in a neighboring city-Atlanta- intrigued me a little bit more.
Miss Slaughter didn't pull any punches (no pun intended) when she tried to make the story as real as possible in regards to the prejudices, the way women were treated and thought about, the way children were treated, and the way the police department was corrupt. For the generation of readers who grew up in the '80s and later, they may not believe a lot of the harshness that Miss Slaughter included in her story. Yes, this is a work of fiction, but I think she did a good job of researching how life was in the '70s and why it was so imperative for so much to change.
This was the first book by Miss Slaughter that I have had the pleasure to read. So what did I like about it? Well, it was a little slow getting started, but that isn't always a bad thing. Miss Slaughter created each of her characters to be realistic. I like that I felt connected with each character. My emotions changed with each scenario that affected each character. I felt sad, angry, hurt, exhilarated, and vindicated. On the subject of the plot, Miss Slaughter created a thriller/mystery that has twists, turns, surprises and an ending that will leave you stunned! 
Miss Slaughter is truly a talented author who was born to write!




Monday, June 23, 2014

Awaken: The Soulkeepers by Lori Adams

Awaken


I received an Advanced Review Copy of Awaken: The Soulkeepers in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Miss Adams and Random house Publishing for this opportunity.

Description via GOODREADS:
The thrills continue in Lori Adams’s addictive New Adult series of paranormal romance—the Soulkeepers—featuring the hottest love triangle in this life . . . or the next.
 
Sophia St. James has every reason to be happy: she survived the kiss of death from the seductive Demon Knight Dante and is free to be with Michael, her sexy Guardian Angel. She eagerly begins her Awakening to become a Spirit Walker and help lost souls cross over. But her training is fraught with setbacks, and Michael begs her to stop. The life of a Spirit Walker is far too dangerous, and he won’t be able to protect her.
 
Then Dante returns, threatening to drag Sophia to Hell so they can finally be together. Terrified of losing everything she has worked for, Sophia turns the tables on Dante, luring him into a deception that may get them both killed. The stakes climb even higher when Dante’s ally, Wolfgang, emerges from Hell with one order: kill Sophia. Will Michael once again be Sophia’s saving grace or will the Awakening give her the power she needs to save herself?

Awaken: The Soulkeepers is Miss Adams's second installment in her Soulkeepers series. And she does not disappoint! Miss Adams takes the reader back to the town of Haven Hurst, back to Sophia and Michael back to the Patronus family, and back to the supernatural. Awaken starts pretty much where The Soulkeepers left off. Michael and Sophia have begun their little paranormal romance, Sophia finds out that she comes from a long line of Spirit Walkers, Dante is sitting in Hell's Death Bunker being tortured every day from the start of the day to the end of the day only to begin all over again. Ah, but of course Dante's part does not end there, of course not. He finds his way back to Sophia-again-and continues to cause her grief and confusion. 
But Miss Adams has added a few new spins in this book. Dante learns that one of the people close to Sophia has a demon inhabiting their body. . . hmmm, who could it be?? And Sophia and Michael do not see eye to eye when it comes to Sophia training and becoming a Spirit Walker. And is Dante right? Are her memories from her past life with him coming back?
Miss Adams continues expanding her world of Angels, Demons, Spirit Walkers, all while luring the reader into her world of paranormal wonder and excitement. Miss Adams is so talented that the reader almost forgets they can't grab the character's hand and drag them along saying "Come on! I'll help!". 

Sunday, June 22, 2014

On Her Watch by Rie Warren

On Her Watch (Don't Tell, #2)

I received a copy of On Her Watch for free in return for an honest review. Thank you to Miss Warren, and Forever Yours Publishing for this opportunity.

Description from Goodreads:

War is raging in the InterNations Territories and within Lieutenant Liz Grant’s heart.

AWOL from her post for several months, Liz is on a mission to infiltrate the Beta Corps military, desperate to find out who murdered her father and turn the revolution in the insurgents’ favor. Commander Linc Cutler stands in her way. Coldly handsome and in control, his desire for her causes a crack in her deep cover.

She’s certain he holds the key to her past as well as her future, but Linc has pledged his allegiance to the oppressive Company regime headed by his father. Through escalating intrigue, espionage, and runaway passion, Liz is thrust into an impossible situation.

Lives, the Revolution, love at stake, it all comes down to the one man Liz shouldn’t trust.

On Her Watch is actually Book #2 in Miss Warren's Don't Tell series. But from my experience with this book, they are stand alone books. I did not read the first book and did not have any difficulty keeping up with the story line in On Her Watch.
This is somewhat of a difficult review. While I did not find anything technically wrong with Miss Warren's writing, I did not find anything spectacular about it either. 
While On Her Watch is Liz and Linc's story, Miss Warren deliberately wove their story around the story lines of her gay characters. Miss Warren took the plight of same sex couples into the future, but in her future they are paying the ultimate price for being who they were born to be. She has created a future by using a page out of reality's history. In her story Miss Warren has created another Hitler, but this one has been born from the United States. This Hitler is ordering genocide of everyone who is gay. But in her future, people, both gay and straight, are standing up and fighting for their freedom to love whomever their heart desires. 
So, the blurb may say the story is about Liz and Linc, it is really about the fight for people to love whomever they want to love.
This story was predictable and average. Miss Warren did a good job of creating a world full of turmoil and people willing to fight for what they believe in. But unfortunately it wasn't a story that really stood out.



Monday, June 9, 2014

Deadly Curiosities by Gail Z. Martin

Deadly Curiosities

I received this ARC in return for an honest review. Thank you to Miss Martin and Solaris for this opportunity.

About the book (courtesy Solaris):

Welcome to Trifles & Folly, and antique and curio shop with a dark secret. Proprietor Cassidy Kincaide continues a family tradition begun in 1670 - acquiring and neutralizing dangerous supernatural items. It's the perfect job for Cassidy, whose psychic gift lets her touch an object and know its history.


Together with her business partner Sorren, a 500-year-old vampire and former jewel thief, Cassidy makes it her business to get infernal objects off the market. When mundane antiques suddenly become magically malicious, it's time for Cassidy and Soren to get rid of these Deadly Curiosities before the bodies start piling up.

My take on this book:
OMG!! This was one of the best books ever! I was hooked almost from the start. 
Cassidy and Teague both have special paranormal gifts. But unlike a lot of books, their gifts are kept on the down-low. There are a few people who know about them, but for the most part, they prefer to use their gifts for "the greater good" (if you will) without being in the limelight.
And don't forget about Sorren. He is a good vampire who has worked with certain members of Cassidy's family and the Alliance for centuries to find objects with bad mojo and secret them away in safe places where they will be kept out of circulation and keep the general population safe.
And of course you can't leave out the bad guys. There is a group, the Family, that is always trying to get their hands on the powerful, dark objects for their own gain. Only, the Family is always changing members because the members are always double-crossing one and other.
This story is full of action. It kept me on the edge of my seat. I can see this story as a major motion picture full of action and adventure. The special effects would be awesome and the fight scenes between Cassidy, Teague, Sorren and friend against the Moran, the demon, and all their accomplices would be AMAZING!!

Miss Martin does a super fantastic job of describing everything that is happening without drowning the reader in descriptions. She makes the reader feel as if they are right next to the characters as everything unfolds,
I can't wait til the next book. Oh, and somebody needs to tell M. Night Shyalaman, or J.J. Abrams that their next big hit is right here!
Happy Reading!!

Friday, June 6, 2014

The Curse of the Thrax by Mark Murphy Blog Tour Review

The Curse of the Thrax

I received The Curse of the Thrax as an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Dr. Murphy, and Miss Krackau/PR by the Book for this opportunity.

About the Book:
The children of the Godswood Village grew up hearing stories about the Thrax, a fearsome dragon “with scales like iron plates and teeth as long as battle swords.” Because the Thrax had not been seen in over 100 summers, these always seemed like fairy tales to Jaykriss, the 14-year-old son of Glyndich, the powerful village War Chief.
Until the Thrax returned—and killed Jaykriss’s father. 
Jaykriss dreams of avenging his father’s death by subduing the Thrax and recovering the Bloodsword, a treasured family heirloom Glyndich lost while battling the dragon. But can he?

The Curse of the Thrax is a story about a dystopian society set in the future. It is a futuristic society that has actually reverted to the medieval time period. There is no electricity, no cars, very little science and dragons. A "Dark King" and a group of Priests are the rulers of the lands. The Priests have the authority to charge a person with a crime and sentence them right away. Anyone who defies their laws are sentenced to death. It is a society ruled by fear.
My son and I read the book together. We both enjoyed that it is a dystopian society and the way that Dr. Murphy combined the future and the past to create this exciting world. Bringing these two worlds together worked like a charm for this particular story. He wove magic and dragons into a world where they don't normally exist. The reader is carried along Jaykriss's and Marda's quest/adventure to find a way to help Jaykriss's mother and sister keep from becoming the War Chief's new family. Along the way they are introduced to science, a subject that is forbidden. They are introduced to the past and how it was full of scientific wonder. And they are introduced to a prophecy that they just may be able to fullfill.

As my son told me "It kept me wanting to read more". I couldn't agree more. The story is full of adventure, mystery, friendship, family, first love, and discovery. While the book is the first in a trilogy, it was refreshing to not be left hanging. Instead, Dr. Murphy pauses the story in a place that leaves you excited for more, but not frustrated that you will have to wait until the next book is out to get an answer.

I highly recommend The Curse of the Thrax for both YA readers and adults who like adventure.

Happy Reading!
Check out the official Blog Tour: twitter: #CurseoftheThraxBlogTour
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You can also check out Author Mark Murphy on twitter: @MarkMurphyBooks