Blog Hop...(6)

Blog Hop is a meme that is hosted by Crazy For Books each Friday until Monday.

This is my sixth hop and I am still finding awesome blogs - YAY for Book Bloggers =)

Blog Hop Question: Who is your favorite new-to-you author so far this year?

I think for me this would have to be Jeaniene Frost, author of the Night Huntress series. I hadn't heard of her books until this year and once I read them I was hooked! I can't believe I only just found out about Cat and Bones this year..and the Night Huntress World series is just as awesome! COme on Eternal Kiss of Darkness =)

Happy hopping!! Have a great weekend folks!

Review: Covet by J.R. Ward

My Rating: O & B

Published: 2009
Publisher: Piatkus

Author's Website: jrward.com

Purchase @ Amazon.co.uk Amazon.com

Redemption isn’t a word Jim Heron knows much about – his speciality is revenge and, to him, all sin is relative. But everything changes when he becomes a fallen angel and is charged with saving the souls of seven people from the seven deadly sins. And failure is not an option.

Vin Di Pietro long ago gave himself up to his business – until fate intervenes in the form of a tough-talking, Harley-riding, self-professed saviour, and a woman who makes him question his destiny. With an ancient evil ready to claim him, Vin has to work with a fallen angel not only to win his beloved over…but to redeem his very soul.

Covet is the first novel in J.R. Ward’s Fallen Angel series. It’s full of action, secrets and mystery.

Jim Heron is typically a loner. He doesn’t get close to many people as he is always on the move. He is joiner/carpenter by trade and is currently building a house for Vin Di Pietro, a very wealthy businessman. Adrian and Eddie, two very different characters, are his workmates and I suppose Jim would call them acquaintances. But this all changes after one dreadful night and Jim becomes inexplicably tied to these two and Vin Di Pietro.

I did enjoy this book, but it wasn’t until much later in the story that it really picked up for me. I had a hard time trying to get into the story at the beginning but I plodded on. About half way through the book is when everything heated up and everything started to take more focus and I was able to figure out exactly what was going on. Some parts of the book were a tad predictable but that just could be me.

My favourite characters of this book would be Adrian and Eddie. They are funny and wise. Some of the things they did were quite funny. There was another four characters that I thought were good, but I can’t tell you much about them as it would give too much away. My favourite part of the book was when one of the characters finally got their happy ending. I was so pleased for them.

Overall, I wasn’t especially impressed by this book and this disappointed me as I thoroughly enjoyed J.R. Ward’s other books from The Black Dagger Brotherhood Series. I would recommend this book but only to the right reader. If you like books that take a few chapters to get into and really get going then this is the book for you.

Disclaimer: I do not own this book, I borrowed it from my local library. I have not been paid to review this book and everything I have said is of my own honest opinion.

Blog Hop...(5)

Blog Hop is a meme that is hosted by Crazy For Books each Friday until Monday.

Unfortunately I missed the blog hop for a couple of weeks due to my laptop breaking and went ot T in the Park but I'm back now =)

This is my fifth hop and I have found some awesome blogs! Come on, join in on the hop! It's worth it ;)

Blog Hop Question: TELL US ABOUT THE BOOK YOU ARE CURRENTLY READING!

I am currently reading Covet by JR Ward. I'm not that far into yet so I'm not entirely sure what it's all about but I know it's about a fallen angel that has to help seven people choose between good or evil. Whatever the outcome is this is what the world will turn out to be.

Happy hopping!! Have a great weekend folks!

Review: Succubus Blues by Richelle Mead

My Rating: E, B, L

Published: 2007
Publisher: Bantam Books

Author's Website: richellemead.com

Purchase @ Amazon.co.uk Amazon.com

Succubus (n.) An alluring, shape-shifting demon who seduces and pleasures mortal men.
Pathetic (adj.) A succubus with great shoes and no social life. See: Georgina Kincaid.

When it comes to jobs in hell, being a succubus seems pretty glamorous. A girl can be anything she wants, the wardrobe is killer, and mortal men will do anything just for a touch. Granted, they can often pay with their souls, but why get technical?

Seattle succubus Georgina Kincaid’s life is far less exotic. Her boss is a middle-management demon with a thing for John Cusack movies, and she can’t get a decent date without sucking away part of the guy’s life. At least there’s her day job at a local bookstore – free books: all the white chocolate mochas she can drink; and easy access to bestselling, sexy writer, Seth Mortensen, aka He Whom She Would Give Anything to Touch but Can’t.

But dreaming about Seth will have to wait. Something wicked is at work in Seattle’s demon underground. And for once, all her hot charms and drop-dead one-liners won’t help because Georgina’s about to discover there are some creatures out there that both heaven and hell want to deny...

Succubus Blues is the first instalment in the Georgina Kincaid series by Richelle Mead. This story will keep you on your toes and have you turning the pages non-stop. Fallen angels, imps, vampires, succubi and other creatures that go bump in the night. What more can a girl ask from a supernatural book series?

After reading Richelle Mead’s Vampire Academy, I have been hooked by her style of writing and thought I would give the Georgina Kincaid series a try. I wasn’t disappointed as I was hooked from the first page.

Georgina Kincaid is a lonely succubus that can only continue her immortal existence by sucking the life substance from mortals. This is also her job description in which she has to fulfil quotas. To make sucking the lives out of mortals more bearable, Georgina preys on sinful mortals, those who deserve it, this displeases her boss. Our heroine has friends in many forms; mortals, vampires, imps. She however doesn’t have a beau; Georgina has relegated herself to the single life, not getting close to any innocent mortals that may stray onto her path.

In Succubus Blues, an immortal seems to have a vendetta against Georgina as everyone she comes into contact with, friend or foe, end up being beaten up or worse, dead. Leaving mysterious notes for Georgina and her boss is just the tip of the iceberg. As Georgina discovers what they are up against, clarity regarding the actual villain is delayed. Does Georgina’s belated knowledge of the killer help or hinder her in the end? I will leave you to read the book to find out about that one.

My favourite part of this book was the never knowing who the villain was. I thought about it constantly throughout the book each time disaster struck and I was never sure who it was. Everyone seemed to have an alibi. Eventually I figured it out but only moments before Georgina did.

Favourite part of the book had to be the discovery of the villain or the flirty talk between Georgina and Seth. The witty repartee between Georgina and Seth had me giggling. The unveiling of the villain was rather dramatic. What does a succubus do once she finds outs who has been hurting her friends? Well I will let you find that out for yourselves also but all I will say is it’s definitely not what I would do.

Overall, Mead’s Succubus Blues was entertaining, toe curling and exciting. It was definitely a page turner and I can’t wait to read the next book in the series, Succubus on Top. I’m sure it will not disappoint.

Disclaimer: I do not own this book, it belongs to my local library. I have not been paid to review this book and everything I have said is of my own honest opinion.

Review: Glass Houses by Rachel Caine

My Rating: E, P, B

Published: October 2006
Publisher: NAL Jam

Author's Website: rachelcaine.com

Purchase @ Amazon.co.uk Amazon.com

Morganville is a small college town filled with unusual characters. But when the sun goes down, the bad come out. Because in Morganville, there is an evil that lurks in the darkest shadows – one that will spill into the bright light of day.

For Claire Danvers, high school was hell, but college may be murder. It was bad enough that she got on the wrong side of Monica, the meanest of the school’s mean girls, but now she’s got three new roommates, who all have secrets of their own. And the biggest secret of all isn’t really a secret, except from Claire: Morganville is run by vampires, and they are hungry for fresh blood…

Glass Houses is the spectacular first novel in the Morganville Vampires series by Rachel Caine. This book is full of constant surprises; I was honestly shocked at certain parts. Rachel Caine has brought vampires into a new light for me.

Claire is just your ordinary, blissfully unaware, super smart teenager. She has managed to get into college early but because her parents didn’t want her to move thousands of miles away, they settled on the college in Morganville. Going to college here has been hell for Claire as she has an enemy in the form of Monica. But Monica isn’t your typical school bully, she is much worse. Hell hath no fury like a little jumped up snobby princess scorned (at least that’s what I think of her). Whatever you do, don’t correct her on her history.

My favourite part of this book was when Claire first arrives at Glass Houses and Eve meets her and makes her feel totally at home. The scene and chapters after this make this book worthwhile. There are so many plot twists and turns that frankly I didn’t see any of the bad stuff coming. Yeah I knew there would be bad stuff happening at some point, but it still caught me totally off guard as to who the bad guy was.

Shane has to be my favourite character from this book. He is so funny, intelligent and then there is this melancholic side of him. He has a troubled past and all I can say is kudos to him for coming back to this town an facing his demons. If I were him I would have left and never came back. Michael is another troubled character for an entirely different reason. As much as I think he would love to leave this town, he can’t. He’s stuck there for the rest of his days.

Monica is my least favourite character but then you have to have a bitch/villain in a book. She does make things interesting for the other characters mentioned in the book. Monica has a past with a certain character, but I don’t want to say too much on that as it will spoil the story for you.

This is certainly a book to read if you are into vampires. I thought it was a fresh perspective on vampires compared to other books. These vampires seem to be more powerful than the norm, I don’t know how to describe why I think this but it’s what I think when I read about them. The powerful spells they must be able to cast most likely contributes to this. These vampires have the humans in Morganville under their thumb and a lot of them don’t even know it. The ending is left on such a cliff-hanger that I can’t wait to read the second instalment, The Dead Girl’s Dance.

Disclaimer: I do not own this book and I am not paid to review this book. Everything I have said is of my honest opinion.

Review: The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown

My Rating: VG, P

Published: 2009
Publisher: Bantam Press

Author's Website: danbrown.com

Purchase @ Amazon.co.uk Amazon.com

The capitol Building, Washington DC: Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon believes he is here to give a lecture. He is wrong. Within minutes of his arrival, a shocking object is discovered. It is a gruesome invitation into an ancient world of hidden wisdom.

When Langdon’s mentor, Peter Solomon – prominent mason and philanthropist – is kidnapped, Langdon realizes that his only hope of saving his friend’s life is to accept his mysterious summons.

It is to take him on a breathless chase through Washington’s dark history. All that was familiar is changed into a shadowy, mythical world in which Masonic secrets and never-before-seen revelations seem to be leading him to a single impossible and inconceivable truth...

The Lost Symbol is the latest instalment in the Robert Langdon books and once again Dan Brown has surpassed my expectations. The Lost Symbol is mysterious, adventurous and thrilling. Great recipe for a summer read.

I had heard of the Freemasons before in passing before reading this book but this story was great even with my limited knowledge of the Masonic Brotherhood. It’s one of those mysterious groups that you either do or don’t hear about. In my case I hardly heard or read anything about them unless it was part of a plot. The Freemasons are central and essential to this story though and Dan Brown takes you on a historical adventure.

Robert Langdon is duped into travelling to Washington DC to help a friend. What he finds in DC is nothing like what he imagined he would be doing. With the help of Katherine Solomon, he discovers that the Ancient Mysteries isn’t just a legend that is based on mythological stories. It’s based on fact as Robert soon finds out. Katherine is Peter Solomon’s, Robert’s mentor, sister and is a scientist in Noetics. The Solomon’s are longstanding family in the Freemasons and Peter is very high up within the Brotherhood.

My favourite part of this book was once I connected the dots between the villain and the quest he is on. I figured out who he was about half way through the book and I was so pleased that I figured it out. It just made me want to read the book even more and get to the end to see how it all turns out. I would definitely recommend this book to any Dan Brown fans out there or anyone wanting an interesting and thrilling summer read.

Disclaimer: I was sent this book to review from Transworld. I have not been paid to review this book and everything I have said is of my own honest opinion.

In My Mailbox...(8)

In My Mailbox is a meme that is hosted by The Story Siren every Sunday.

This week from the library I got;

Succubus (n.) An alluring, shape-shifting demon who seduces and pleasures mortal men.
Pathetic (adj.) A succubus with great shoes and no social life. See: Georgina Kincaid.

When it comes to jobs in hell, being a succubus seems pretty glamorous. A girl can be anything she wants, the wardrobe is killer, and mortal men will do anything just for a touch. Granted, they can often pay with their souls, but why get technical?

Seattle succubus Georgina Kincaid’s life is far less exotic. Her boss is a middle-management demon with a thing for John Cusack movies, and she can’t get a decent date without sucking away part of the guy’s life. At least there’s her day job at a local bookstore – free books: all the white chocolate mochas she can drink; and easy access to bestselling, sexy writer, Seth Mortensen, aka He Whom She Would Give Anything to Touch but Can’t.

But dreaming about Seth will have to wait. Something wicked is at work in Seattle’s demon underground. And for once, all her hot charms and drop-dead one-liners won’t help because Georgina’s about to discover there are some creatures out there that both heaven and hell want to deny...

It’s after dark in New York City, and Clary Fray is seeing things. The best looking guy in the nightclub just stabbed a boy to death – but the victim has vanished into thin air. Her mother has disappeared, and a hideous monster is lurking in her apartment. With her life spiralling into darkness, Clary realizes that she has stumbles into an invisible war between ancient demonic forces and secretive Shadowhunters – a war in which she has a fateful role to play...

Schuyler Van Alen has never fit in at Duchesne, her prestigious New York City private school. She prefers baggy, vintage clothes to the Prada and pearls worn by her classmates. But when she turns fifteen, Schuyler’s life changes dramatically. The death of a popular schoolmate haunts her in unexpected ways. And strangest of all, Jack Force, the most popular boy in school, is showing sudden interest in her.

Once an outcast, Schuyler is thrust into Manhattan’s most exclusive social circle. Its members are the powerful, the wealthy, and – as Schuyler soon discovers – the unhuman. They are Blue Bloods, an ancient group of vampires, and for centuries they’ve been invincible. Now something is preying on this elite group, and Schuyler wants to find out the truth. But is she the most vulnerable of them all?

The Lost Symbol was received courtesy of Transworld (Between the Lines) for review.

The capitol Building, Washington DC: Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon believes he is here to give a lecture. He is wrong. Within minutes of his arrival, a shocking object is discovered. It is a gruesome invitation into an ancient world of hidden wisdom.

When Langdon’s mentor, Peter Solomon – prominent mason and philanthropist – is kidnapped, Langdon realizes that his only hope of saving his friend’s life is to accept his mysterious summons.

It is to take him on a breathless chase through Washington’s dark history. All that was familiar is changed into a shadowy, mythical world in which Masonic secrets and never-before-seen revelations seem to be leading him to a single impossible and inconceivable truth...

Why I might not be blogging as much

Hi Folks,

Just to let you know that I might not be around for a few weeks. Well I will be around but I might not be updating as often as I would like.

This morning I had a little accident with my car so I need to get it fixed and all the stuff that does along with it.

So I'm sorry if I don't get back to you as quickly as I would like but I will still to try and write reviews and that but with all the car stuff about to be going on I'm not sure how often that will be but I will try and be here.

So I won't be participating in any memes this week or next as I have a lot to do this weekend plus I have T in the Park next week from Friday until Monday.

The Nerd's Wife - Giveaway

Hi Folks,

Arena over at The Nerd's Wife is having a giveaway to celebrate having over 100 followers and for turning 25 on her next birthday.

Books being given away are;

Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins
The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan
Glimmerglass by Jenna Black
Incarceron by Catherine Fisher
Shade by Jeri Smith-Ready
Linger by Maggie Stiefvater
Mistwood by Leah Cypess
Sea by Heidi R. Kling
The Necromancer by Michael Scott
Siren by Tricia Rayburn
Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce
White Cat by Holly Black

This giveaway is open internationally.

There will be *at least* two winners.

Winner #1 will get a choice of *two* books from the list.

Winner #2 will get a choice of *one* book from the list.

If I reach 150 followers during the contest, I'll add Winner #3 with a choice of *one* book from the list.

If I reach 200 followers during the contest, I'll add Winner #4 with a choice of *one* book from the list, and so on for each 50-follower milestone thereafter.

Books will be purchased by me from The Book Depository and shipped to the winners.

If you want a chance to win some of these books then click here to fill in Arena's form.

Thanks