NEW RELEASE TUESDAY!

These are the new release books that are on my order for delivery either later today or tomorrow:

Lover Unleashed by J.R. Ward
(this one will actually be late since a
  friend is going to one of her signings
  and I'm getting a signed copy)

Eternal Rider -Book 1 of the Lords of Deliverance by Larissa Ione

Get Lucky by Lorie O'Clare

The Sweetest Thing by Jill Shalvis

Vampire Mine by Kerrelyn Sparks











And for my Kindle:

                                                                                                                                                                                          

                                                                           



Claimed by the Highlander by Julianne
MacLean



There are a few more books that I want to get from Today's new releases but I want them in hardcover so I'll be waiting to see if my book club is able to get them in hardcover editions.

What's on your New Release Tuesday shopping list?



FRIDAY FIFTY-SIX (56)

The Betrayal of the Blood Lily (Pink Carnation)


Captain Reed raised one brow.  "I fail to see how the two are connected.  Would you contract your marriage to suit the wishes of your superiors?"

The words acted on Freddy like a match to tinder.  Penelope could practically hear the flames crackling in the suddenly too-still air.  Mandated marriages were a senstive topic for Freddy at the moment.


Rules:



*Grab the book nearest you. 

*Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest or the most intellectual.  Use the
  CLOSEST!

*Turn to page 56.

* Find the fifth sentence.

* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like or if you feel the scene
   needs it

WISHLIST THURSDAY

This is a roundup of books that are on my Amazon wish list, I'm not buying them right away but I do plan to buy these sometime this year.



It Happened One Bite

            

A Lot Like Love (Berkley Sensation)

How to Woo a Reluctant Lady (The Hellions of Halstead Hall)


So what's on your wish list?

NEW RELEASE TUESDAY

Woohoo!  Some really great books coming out today.  This is what is on my shopping list

Hummingbird Lake: An Eternity Springs Novel

Seduce Me in Dreams: A Three Worlds Novel


                                                                        

The Peach Keeper: A Novel

So what's on your list today? 

MAILBOX MONDAY

Unfortunately no new books made it into the mailbox for me this weekend or today.

Did you get any new books today?

LAZY SUNDAY

I'm having a Lazy Sunday.  My only plans today are to read and eat.

What about you? What are you doing today?

FRIDAY FIFTY-SIX (56)

The Friday Fifty-Six

Rules:



* Grab the book nearest you

 * Turn to page 56.


* Find the fifth sentence.


* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you feel you need to for it to make sense).


* Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

When Beauty Tamed the Beast

Page 56;  "I think this will all work out better than it might have otherwise," her father went on.  "After all, Augustus could never have married you.  And there isn't a single duke on the market this year.  Someday Marchant will be a duke."


So what's your Friday Fifty-Six?

REVIEW/ THIS SIDE OF THE GRAVE(NIGHT HUNTRESS, BOOK 5/ JEANIENE FROST/ AVON

Title:  This Side of the Grave
Author:  Jeaniene Frost
Publisher:  Avon, An Imprint of Harper Collins
Publication Date:  February 22, 2011
Genre:  Urban Fantasy
Print ISBN: 978-0061783180
eBook ISBN:  978-0062065797
Length: 384 Pages


Purchase:  Amazon


Book Description: 

Danger waits on both sides of the grave…

Half-vampire Cat Crawfield and her vampire husband Bones have fought for their lives, as well as for their relationship. But just when they’ve triumphed over the latest battle, Cat’s new and unexpected abilities threaten to upset a long-standing balance…

With the mysterious disappearance of vampires, rumors abound that a species war is brewing. A zealot is inciting tensions between the vampires and ghouls, and if these two powerful groups clash, innocent mortals could become collateral damage. Now Cat and Bones are forced to seek help from a dangerous “ally”—the ghoul queen of New Orleans herself. But the price of her assistance may prove more treacherous than even the threat of a supernatural war. …to say nothing of the repercussions Cat never imagined.

My Review: 

Cat Crawfield and "Bones" Russell continue to be one of my favorite paranormal/urban fantasy couples, they are smart, hip and just so much fun.  Once again I found myself drawn into the world created by Jeaniene Frost, which I didn't want to leave when this installment was over. 

Cat has been through a lot since the start of this series.  Having survived the showdown with "Gregor",  she and Bones have been rounding up the remaining troublemakers.  When Cat and Bones discover that master less vampires in Ohio, where Cat is originally from, they have no choice but to investigate.  They are not surprised to discover that their nemesis is one of the troublemakers that they have been searching for and that he is using Cat's new abilities as a reason for preaching anti-vampire rhetoric and stirring trouble between ghouls and vampires in an attempt to start a supernatural war.  I feel that Cat's character continues to grow in each book, she's had to let go of her "vampire prejudice" and now is having to learn to judge each supernatural creature on it's own merit.  Cat is also learning to control her emotions better and her love for Bones continues to grow.  She's also learning more about friendship and working on her other relationships, though she still has a quick temper.  

Bones continues to be an incredibly important character in the series, both as Cat's love interest and as a Master Vampire.  It's really nice to see Bones concerned for Cat's welfare and support her.  He's still very territorial about Cat being his wife and with his mind reading abilities, this proves to be very dangerous for anyone who has inappropriate thoughts about her. 

The scenes between Cat and Bones are very well written and I especially liked that Cat is working on her "impulsive" behavior and thinks before she leaps into action.  We get to see quite a few of my favorite secondary characters including Mencheres, Bone's grand sire, who is becoming very important to the series.  We also get to see Denise and Spade, Cat and Bone's best friends.  I really liked what Ms. Frost is doing with these two characters, especially with Denise's growth in self confidence.  Vlad makes another appearance, and is becoming one of my favorite supporting characters, I find him highly amusing.

The villain is someone we met in This Side of the Grave: A Night Huntress Novel and without giving spoilers, I won't say who he is but I will say that he is definitely a thorn in Cat's side and that his behavior will force Cat to re-evaluate how she deals with their enemies in the future.  The ghoul queen of New Orleans, Marie Lavou or "Majestic", makes another appearance in this book and though she is not portrayed as a villain, she is somewhat of a gray character.  When she forces Cat to do something she's not comfortable with, and which results in a new and unusual power for Cat, I did begin to wonder about her ultimate motivation. 

The ending was perfect for this story and left both Cat and Bones in a good place.  There are still a lot of unresolved issues in the supernatural world and there are more changes coming in the future.  It will be interesting to see where Ms. Frost takes us next in this complex and highly interesting world that she's created.  Due to the nature of this particular series, I do continue to recommend that the books be read in order.

My Rating:  5 out of 5 Crowns

FTC Disclosure:  The book reviewed was purchased for review.

WISHLIST WEDNESDAY

This month has been very hectic so far and for some reason I left a book off

my order at Amazon that I want very badly.  I've read 2 of the 3 books that this author has published so far, Garden Spells and The Sugar Queen.  I have The Girl Who Chased the Moon: A Novel in my T-B-R pile and I will read it when this book is issued next week, which I've just added to my shopping cart:

The Peach Keeper: A Novel

It’s the dubious distinction of thirty-year-old Willa Jackson to hail from a fine old Southern family of means that met with financial ruin generations ago. The Blue Ridge Madam—built by Willa’s great-great-grandfather during Walls of Water’s heyday, and once the town’s grandest home—has stood for years as a lonely monument to misfortune and scandal. And Willa herself has long strived to build a life beyond the brooding Jackson family shadow. No easy task in a town shaped by years of tradition and the well-marked boundaries of the haves and have-nots.

But Willa has lately learned that an old classmate—socialite do-gooder Paxton Osgood—of the very prominent Osgood family, has restored the Blue Ridge Madam to her former glory, with plans to open a top-flight inn. Maybe, at last, the troubled past can be laid to rest while something new and wonderful rises from its ashes. But what rises instead is a skeleton, found buried beneath the property’s lone peach tree, and certain to drag up dire consequences along with it.





For the bones—those of charismatic traveling salesman Tucker Devlin, who worked his dark charms on Walls of Water seventy-five years ago—are not all that lay hidden out of sight and mind. Long-kept secrets surrounding the troubling remains have also come to light, seemingly heralded by a spate of sudden strange occurrences throughout the town.





Now, thrust together in an unlikely friendship, united by a full-blooded mystery, Willa and Paxton must confront the dangerous passions and tragic betrayals that once bound their families—and uncover truths of the long-dead that have transcended time and defied the grave to touch the hearts and souls of the living.


So what's on your Wednesday Wishlist?  Inquiring minds want to know:)

TEASER TUESDAY

Unfortunately there were no new releases that came out today in print that
screamed my name so I'm doing a Teaser Tuesday post instead of a New Release Post.

Today's Teaser is from the new print book that I'm starting, from a new to me author that a lot of people in one of my groups love.  Once again the rules for Teaser Tuesday:

Grab your current read



Open to a random page


Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page - pr a little more if you need to set the scene


BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)


Share the title & author, too, so that other Teaser Tuesday participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

From page 212: 

"Cross Industries," Garrison Said.  "As in Darius Cross of Cross Industries."

"Darius died eight months ago.  We were pitching to his son Micah.  They're switchingad firms and it could be a big coup for us to get them."

So what's your teaser for today?  Please leave it below in your comments either like what I did or in a link if it's on your blog.

MAILBOX MONDAY

This is what I've gotten in the mail so far......might have some more books I'm waiting on though:

My Wicked Enemy

My Forbidden Desire

Kiss Me, Kill Me: A Novel of Suspense

Saddled and Spurred: A Blacktop Cowboys Novel

So what was in your Monday Mailbox?



REVIEW/ DESTINED FOR AN EARLY GRAVE/ JEANIENE FROST/ AVON

Title:  Destined For An Early Grave (Night Huntress, Book 4)
Author:  Jeaniene Frost
Publisher:  Avon(A Division of HarperCollinsPublishers)
Genre:  Paranormal Romance (Vampire)
Print ISBN: 978-0061583216
eBook ISBN: 978-0061892899
Length: 400 Pages
Reviewer:  Maria


Purchase:  Destined for an Early Grave (Night Huntress, Book 4)



Description:


Her deadly dreams leave her in grave danger
 

Since half-vampire Cat Crawfield and her undead lover Bones met six years ago, they've fought against the rogue undead, battled a vengeful Master vampire, and pledged their devotion with a blood bond. Now it's time for a vacation. But their hopes for a perfect Paris holiday are dashed when Cat awakes one night in terror. She's having visions of a vampire named Gregor who's more powerful than Bones and has ties to her past that even Cat herself didn't know about.

 

Gregor believes Cat is his and he won't stop until he has her. As the battle begins between the vamp who haunts her nightmares and the one who holds her heart, only Cat can break Gregor's hold over her. She'll need all the power she can summon in order to bring down the baddest bloodsucker she's ever faced . . . even if getting that power will result in an early grave.

 

My Review: 

I've had this book sitting in my t-b-r (to-be-read) pile since it was released but had fallen behind on my reading.  When I began to read, I was once again drawn into the world created by Jeaniene Frost and captivated by her characters.   This is the fourth book in The Night Huntress series and due to the number of characters involved and the amount of action that takes place, I do recommend that you read this series in order beginning with Halfway to the Grave (Night Huntress, Book 1).


Cat Crawfield continues to evolve as a character; she's young and still very impetuous. Her skills as a vampire killing damphir continue to grow, as does her love for Bones, her vampire husband. Now that she and Bones have some free time, she is looking forward to visiting Paris and relaxing on their "honeymoon". When Cat beings to have dreams of being chased by a blond vampire, one who claims that she is married to him and not to Bones, she is naturally disturbed. As the story develops, Cat discovers that she does know "Gregor", the blond vampire and that she did apparently spend some time with him when she was a young teen.


While Cat is willing to acknowledge that she might know "Gregor", she's not willing to give up her relationship with Bones and refuses to acknowledge a previous marriage. As Cat and Bones travel across Europe dodging "Gregor's" attempts to grab Cat, their relationship begins to fray under the stress. Especially when ghouls become "Gregor's" allies and complicate the situation. When Cat discovers that Mencheres, Bones sire, had tampered with her memory so that she would forget "Gregor", she begins to have doubts about the depth of Bones love and commitment to her and about Mencheres intentions towards her future.


Trying to keep Cat safe and out of Gregor's clutches, Bones and Mencheres bring her back to the United States and enlist the help of her uncle and his special military group. When Gregor threatens the lives of people that Cat loves, she makes an interesting decision that will change her life forever. I was thrilled when Cat finally acknowledges her relationship issues with Bones were mostly due to her impetuous behavior and self-esteem issues which allowed them to resolve their problems and prepare to face off with Gregor in a final battle.

Since I don't give spoilers if I can help it, I will just say that the story concludes in a very dramatic fashion and that I look forward to reading This Side of the Grave (Night Huntress, Book 5)



My Rating:  5 out of 5 Crowns

FTC Disclosure:  The book reviewed was purchased for review.