Water by Terra Harmony

* I was given a free copy of this book for review purposes. The review is based solely on my opinion and was not influenced by author or publisher.

Meet The Seven. A centuries old collection of eco-minded individuals that command the elements in an attempt to maintain the Earth's natural balance. Their motives may be pure but their methods seem a bit archaic.

Kaitlyn, a jet-setting photographer is literally ripped from the life she has made for herself and manipulated into becoming a member of The Seven. She is basically kidnapped, treated like an animal, confronted with some scary, earth shattering truths about herself and then thrust into rigorous training. All that can take it's toll on a girl, but there is one thing that might make it a little better, Micah with his gorgeous green eyes. Any progress Micah makes with Kaitlyn is swiftly unraveled by Shawn, another gorgeous but not so friendly member of The Seven. Cato, current leader of The Seven, appears to be oblivious to the fact that his little organization is coming apart at the seams. Can they really help keep the world balanced when they can't get along themselves?

In her debut novel, Terra Harmony grabs your attention at the first sentence and takes you for a ride that doesn't stop, not even at the last page. The ending of the book is so abrupt that it left me gasping for 'Air', which just happens to be the second book in the Akasha series.

I had a hard time putting this book down. I felt that the story line moved along at a great pace and kept my interest peaked the entire time. Characters were well developed and I loved how the author slowly introduced their backgrounds in bits and pieces. Otherwise I think the information can be a bit overwhelming. This is a must read for fans of the fantasy genre. And as a bonus, the cover art is amazing.

My Rating: 4/5 stars

Meet Booker

This is my 15 year old cat Booker, so named because ever since he was a kitten he has loved my books almost as much as I have.  Just wanted to get introductions out of the way because he likes to read with me and will definitely be making his presence known throughout the blog.

Grounded!!

After taking stock of the books currently in my house that I have yet to read, I am forbidding myself to go in to any bookstore for 3 months. I should stay out of the library as well, but come on now let's not get crazy.  As you can see in the photo (which doesn't show the 50+ titles on my kindle), I've got some reading to catch up on.

My favorite bookstore is Half Price Books and I am there quite often.  In my own defense, I try to stick to the clearance section but it ends up being my downfall.  How can anyone expect me to pass up books for $1?  I just grab everything that looks good or is part of  a series that I need.  Other customers have actually come up to me in the store to ask questions.  One guy actually said "Sorry, with all those books I figured you must work here."  I don't actually buy everything I originally grab, I put some back.  But I do take a picture of it with my phone so that I can add it to my TBR list on Goodreads. 

Claiming the Vampire by Chloe Hart (Blood and Absinthe #3)

* I was given a free copy of this book by the author. The review is based solely on my opinion and was not influenced by author or publisher. *

As Demon and Demon Hunter, Hawk and Jessica should be natural enemies. At least that's what Talia, Jessica's mother and Queen of the Green Fae thinks. Although Talia isn't what she appears to be either and Hawk knows this. Should Hawk tell Jessica the truth about her mother and risk losing the chemistry building between them? If he doesn't innocent lives will be at stake, including Jessica's.

Claiming the Vampire is the third book in the Blood and Absinthe series. This book centers around Jessica, Princess of the Green Fae clan and Hawk, the semi-retired vampire assassin. I definitely recommend reading Taming the Vampire and Bound by the Vampire, books 1 and 2 in the series first. Jessica and Hawk are introduced earlier in the series and there is a continuing story line throughout all 3 books. Main characters Liz and Jack from Taming the Vampire and Celia and Evan from Bound by the Vampire play important secondary roles in this installment.

I love the character of Jessica, on one hand she is a kick ass warrior and she seems older than she is. Then on the other hand when it comes to dealing with men she is totally inexperienced and you remember that she is a young woman. Hawk is similar in that he has two sides as well. He has the tough as nail assassin side and the soft, loyal teddy bear side. The author does a great job developing the relationships between the characters, both main and secondary. This is something she is able to do throughout the series. The sex scenes are steamy and there are just enough of them. And although I could do without the 'backdoor' action (just not my cup of tea), the scene was handled tastefully.

I thoroughly enjoyed the entire series and highly recommend it to all fans of paranormal romance. I look forward to more work from Chloe Hart.

My Rating: 4/5 Stars

My Own Space

I am so excited to be writing this entry from my very own reading room/office!  Jas (the hubby) and I spent all day moving furniture, cleaning and purging. We used to share a room but now he has his own studio space and I have my own comfy place to curl up with a book.  It's still very much a work in progress (much like this blog) but I love it already.  Now I'm on the hunt for a big comfy chair.

Ignite by Kaitlyn Davis (Midnight Fire #1)

* I was given a free copy of this book for review purposes. The review is based solely on my opinion and was not influenced by author or publisher. 

After reading reviews of this book, I wasn't sure what to expect. I saw several comparisons to Twilight and I'm not a huge fan of that series. While I do agree that there are some similarities, they seem to be few and far between. One such similarity is a scene at the beginning of the story where Kira (who is starting at a new school) stares across the lunchroom at a group of "misfits" (read vampires) much in the way that Bella stares at the Cullens, in the lunchroom in Twilight. There is also a triangle of main characters in both stories but the relationships within the those triangles differ from each other. 

I also got a bit of a Harry Potter vibe from Kira. She is different from any other conduit, she seems to be stronger and have additional powers. And it's up to her to save the World, but if she's not careful she could destroy it.

I like the concept of the story. I think the conduits are an interesting group especially so because they are divided into two separate factions. The vampires in the story aren't susceptible to what we've come to know as the typical vampire weaknesses. I'm not condoning that, being a fan of the old school vampires, but I have to give the author props for being creative about it. She does have an explanation for the fact that the vampires don't fall victim to crosses or holy water. Hey, at least they don't sparkle.

There were quite a few typos and grammatical errors which is why this was rated 3 stars instead of 4. I am looking forward to seeing where the author goes next, the story and the characters have a lot of potential.

My Rating: 3/5 stars

Birthmarked by Caragh M. O'Brien

It's 300 years in the future, the Earth is drying out and natural resources are scarce. The Enclave is a privileged society with strict rules and harsh punishments. You either live in the Enclave or outside the wall in a seemingly different world. No matter where you live, you serve the Enclave. This is the setting of the first of three novels in the Birthmarked series.

Gaia Stone is a 16 year old midwife that lives outside the wall. Every month the first three children born in the sector HAVE to be 'advanced' to the Enclave. Gaia has been apprenticing under her mother but has recently begun working on her own when her parents are arrested. Until their arrest, Gaia does not question these advancements, she believes the story spun by that Enclave that it is in the best interest of the children. She does everything as her mother taught her, including marking each of the babies born with a distinctive 4 'freckle' pattern on their ankle. Gaia doesn't like the lack of information about her parents that she is getting from Enclave guards so she decides she needs to sneak into the Enclave to find her parents. That's when her world gets turned completely upside down.

The premise is very intriguing, however, the story is a bit sluggish right out of the gate. The first scene is attention catching, but then after that the pace slows way down until a little over one hundred pages in. The character of Gaia is a bit contradictory. She has no formal education, she is from outside the wall and is portrayed as being extremely shy and naive Then the author has Gaia using words like 'inchoate', and solving complex codes in a short amount of time when highly educated men couldn't make sense of them She is dominant and demanding one minute and then whiny and helpless the next. It's like the author couldn't decide how she wanted Gaia to be. On the other hand most other characters in the story seem a little under developed, like they were a shadow of what they could be.

I almost gave up on the book a few times but I soldiered through and am actually glad I did. The pace picks up and pieces start falling in to place. The story has definite potential and hopefully the author continues the momentum in the next book.

My Rating: 2.5/5 stars

Welcome to the nook!

Hi, my name is Brittany and I'm an addict.  At least that's what my husband tells me.  Like any addict who has admitted they have a problem, I'm now going to do something about it.  I'm creating the 'book nook'.  I'm going to introduce you to my addiction and hopefully enable yours!