Desires of the Dead Review & Giveaway

Desires of the Dead Review

&

Swag Giveaway

Kimberly Derting

Book 2 of a 4 book series

Summary:

The missing dead call to Violet. They want to be found.

Violet can sense the echoes of those who've been murdered - and the matching imprint that clings to their killers. Only those closest to her know what she is capable of, but when she discovers the body of a young boy she also draws the attention of the FBI, threatening her entire way of life.

As Violet works to keep her morbid ability a secret, she unwittingly becomes the object of a dangerous obsession. Normally she'd turn to her best friend, Jay, except now that they are officially a couple, the rules of their relationship seem to have changed. And with Jay spending more and more time with his new friend Mike, Violet is left with too much time on her hands as she wonders where things went wrong. But when she fills the void by digging into Mike's tragic family history, she stumbles upon a dark truth that could put everyone in danger.

My Review

I really liked the second book in the series. It is less creepy then The Body Finder, but still a great thriller. I don't read murder, thriller books they scare me to much, but I love the characters and situations that Kimberly has created so I will continue to read all her books despite how much they creep me out. The desires to be found and laid to rest, even if that means the killers are still out their protecting their victims hidden 'resting' place. What a crazy concept.

Things in Violets life are changing after the events in The Body Finder. Her relationship with Jay is getting more intense and the romantic tension between the two young lovers is both amusing and adorable. Someone is now threatening Violet and stalking her and also Violet isn't telling anyone about the FBI agent that is now questioning her. She wants to become more independent and not a scared teenager relying on her parents and cop uncle for help.Violet is in a constant state of inner turmoil throughout the book, not knowing who to tell or how much to tell the people she cares about without causing them concern. With this book (like book one) we do get the stalkers prospective and a new development of her abilities in seeing the last moments of the dead's life. *chill down the spine*

I'm still waiting for Violet to finally take some self defense classes and then some offensive classes, with how many creepers she comes across! I get nervous and stressed for her and I want to take self defense classes after reading these books. And when is she going to stop running with music? People can sneak up behind you that way. But those scenes do get your heart racing with anticipation and excitement! 

I can't wait for the next book to come out, I'll be reading it and getting scared all over again! I look forward to seeing what will happen as Violet gets more comfortable with her gift and helping people. How Violet and Jay's relationship dynamics will progress and what other crazy, scary situations Violet can get herself into.

(I posted earlier my review on book 1

My Body Finder Review )

Kimberly Derting will also be coming out with another book (not of the Body Finder series) called The Pledge coming out November 15th (teaser from her blog http://kimberlyderting.blogspot.com/2011/02/huge-huge-huge-news-x2.html )

A romantic fantasy set in a dystopic, war-torn world, in which a teenage girl realizes that she may be the key to saving her country.

Swag Giveaway

Kimberly was kind enough to sign a stack of bookmarks that she had at the signing I went to on Saturday. The signing also consisted of Lisa Schroeder, Holly Cupala and Many Hubbard. I haven't read any of the other writers, but I did get Many Hubbard's Prada & Prejudice to read. I'm still shocked that some so sweet looking could have such a twisted imagination! But when she grew up reading Stephen King, I guess that is what happens. I completely enjoy it though. 

I have 7 sets of bookmarks signed on the back to giveaway to 7 people

Rules:
~Closed on Saturday March 5th 11:59pm Pacific Time
~This will be open internationally since I can just send them in envelopes.

~All you need to do is comment with your email address 

~And answer the question 

Have you read Kimberly Dertings books?

If yes, what scared you the most?

If no, will you be putting them on your to be read/to buy/to ask for your birthday/holiday list?

<3Books

Roxy's Snow Jaunt

Roxy's Snow Jaunt 

The snowflakes are upon us

On little legs of glee

Faster than a speeding bullet

Past the ball she soars

And away she goes

Through the snow

Oh what a joyous riot

I just had to post these pictures of my little girl running through the snow today. They are just too funny, her little legs and body aren't even touching the ground at all. I decided to add a little poem, I'm very rusty and I haven't written for a few year. Enjoy the snow (if you have it) and read a good book.

I'm currently read Melissa Marr's Wicked Lovely series as well as Kimberly Derting's The Desires of the Dead.

What are you reading on your snow day?

<3Books

Theatre Illuminata Book 1 & 2 Review

Lisa Mantchev 

Theatre Illuminata Trilogy

Book 1: Eyes Like Stars

Book 2: Perchance to Dream

Book 3: So Silver Bright (September 13, 2011)

All her world's a stage.

Bertie Shakespeare Smith is not an actress, yet she lives in a theater. She's not an orphan, but she has no parents. She knows every part, but she has no lines of her own. That is, until now.

Enter Stage Right

NATE. Dashing pirate. Will do anything to protect Bertie.

COBWEB, MOTH, MUSTARD SEED, and PEASEBLOSSOM. Four tiny and incredibly annoying fairies. BERTIE'S sidekicks.

ARIEL. Seductive air spirit and Berti's weakness. The symbol of impending doom.

BERTIE. Our heroine.

Welcome to the Theatre Illuminata, where the actors of every play ever written can be found behind the curtain. They were born to play their parts, and are bound to the Theatre by The Book - an ancient and magical tome of scripts. Bertie is not one of them, but they are her family - and she is about to lose them all and the only home she has ever known.

Lisa Mantchev has written a debut novel that is dramatic, romantic, and witty, with an irresistible and irreverent cast of characters who are sure to enchant the audience.

Open Curtain

My Review

I completely enjoyed this book. The female lead character Bertie is great, a strong willed, independent trouble making young woman.
At first I was a little confused about the parameters of the world in which her book is set. But then I just came to accept this world is based on magic and when magic is involved anything is possibly, like when Harry Potter goes into the what seems to be 2 man tent actually contains around 500 square feet of living space.
The world that Lisa Manchev has created is based on magic. The Theatre Illuminata  contains any, and every prop, set, character ever written within the theater. The characters are not just actors, but they are the person. It is a crazy concept, but I very much enjoyed every word of it.
I love Bertie's comical relief sidekick fairies Cobweb, Moth, Mustardseed and Peaseblossom they just want to eat any type of sweets they can get their hands onto.
Bertie's two male interests are Nate the protective sweet pirate and Ariel the seductive tempting air spirit. Who will capture her heart? Will she be able to remain at the theater her only known home? Who is Bertie?

The stuff that dreams are made on.

Act Two, Scene One

Growing up in the enchanted Thèâtre Illuminata, Beatrice Shakespeare Smith learned everything about every play ever written. She knew the players and their parts, but she didn't know that she, too, had magic. Now, she is the Mistress of Revels, the Teller of Tales. She is ready for the outside world.

Enter BERTIE AND COMPANY

And it is nothing like the one she has come to expect. Bertie can make things happen by writing them, but outside the protective walls of the Thèâtre, they don't go as planned. And her magic cannot help her make a decision between -

Nate: Her suave and swashbuckling pirate. Is now in mortal peril.

Ariel: A brooding, yet seductive, air spirit. Loves Bertie enough to die for her.

When Nate is kidnapped and taken prisoner by the Sea Witch, only Bertie can free him. She and her fairy sidekicks embark on a journey aboard the Thèâtre's locomotive caravan, using Bertie's word magic to guide them. Along the way, they collect a sneak-thief, who has in his possession something most valuable, and meet a bird that might be Bertie's father - and the maker of the magical Scrimshaw. Bertie's dreams are haunted by Nate, whose love for Bertie is keeping him alive, but in the daytime, it's Ariel who is tantalizingly close, and the one she is falling for. Who does Bertie love the most? And will her magic be powerful enough to save her once she enters the Sea Witch's lair?

My Review

I don't know who I want Bertie to end up with, both Nate and Ariel have their charm. Nate being the dependent, protective safe harbor and Ariel the exciting storm that can take you anywhere. In this book Bertie finally learns who her father is, her parents story of love and loss and she learns more about herself and ends up even more confused about what she wants. Book 2 is all about the journey, the long road to self discovery and decisions that Bertie will need to make. This world that Lisa Mantchev has created is full of limitless possibilities of any types of magics, infinite paths to be taken, it is charming, sweet, innocent, passionate, stubborn and confusing. I look forward to more of this world being revealed and Bertie's decisions, imaginations and what her future will have in store for us in the next and final book of the trilogy. Who will Bertie choose? Will she be able to reunite her parents? What else is Bertie capable of making imagination into reality?  

September 13, 2011

Things are never easy for Beatrice Shakespeare Smith. Something's happened to the Théâtre Illuminata, putting the only home she's ever known in limbo. Her mother's sanity is fraying under the strain, her father has vanished and an angry goddess is out for revenge. Bertie is caught between her duties and her dreams, just as her heart is torn between Ariel and Nate. But hope glimmers in a Distant Castle, and if Bertie can put on the performance of her life, maybe she can win the magical boon that may save them all.

Hopefully I will be able to get my hands on an ARC (got my fingers crossed) and be able to post a review on So Silver Bright. This is a must read series for any YA fantasy, Shakespearean, creative book lover. If you get confused with the world Lisa has created, just keep reading and remember ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE WITH MAGIC and a very creative imagination!

http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/m/lisa-mantchev/

<3 Books

Debut Blog Giveaway

This is my 1st blog giveaway

I'm very excited for it

CLOSED
WILL PICK AND ANNOUNCE WINNER LATER

I have learned that the easiest way to get followers and to get my blog out there is to have contests. I love entering them, but so far I have been unsuccessful in almost everyone, but two of Yasmine Galenorn's contest and even those I got the 2nd place prize and not the really desired ARC that I was crossing my fingers for. 

I do go to as many book signings as Seattle has on my days off. Even if I haven't even read the author yet, I will go out and buy the books and read them so I can go to the book signing. Kinda backwards I know, but that is the fun of it. My goal is to find inexpensive copies of the books to get them signed to give away at some point. So if you see that I will be going to a book signing keep an eye out for a giveaway to possibly come. 

I am hoping that if I review my books well enough that I will start to get ARC of the books to review. I love reading it is a fun enjoyable hobby of mine and I LOVE to share the books I have read with other people.

So please browse around my website and if you have any comments or critiques about it please let me know. I'm still very new to this whole blogging thing and I still have things to iron over, I don't speak computer very well that is what my husband it for. 

Okay, now no more sidetrack items, it is down to business!

A signed copy of Richelle Mead's books 6 Last Sacrifice

and one of my handmade bookmarks I like to make

If you haven't read the series, it is a must read!

I got this extra book signed at the University Bookstore. I had already bought a copy of the book at Borders (but I couldn't find the receipt) and I wanted to get a priority bracelet that put me into the 1st 100 of the line so I also bought a book there (last signing of hers I waited for 1.5 hours in line) and so far it has been sitting on my shelf and I have had no idea what to do with it for a few months now. But now I do!

So who wants this special copy!

Contest ends February 24th 11:59 western time

Winner will be announced on my birthday February 25th so someone else can share the joys of my day!

Rules & Regulations

-US only (sorry, this is coming out of my own pocket)

-13+ of age

-Comment on this post with the below format

-Winner will be chosen at random and notified, with 48 hours to reply back or another winner will be chosen

- Don't forget to add your email address or you will be DQ

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Total Points :____(max 5 entry point)

+1 Pt for following me on my blog

+1 Pt for blogging about my contest

(please copy the link)

+1 Pt for following me on twitter ( Kr15tina, on the right bottom is my tweets)

+1 Pt for tweeting about my giveaway using hashtag #giveaway

(please copy the link)

+1 Pt for answering the question

"If you could meet ANY author dead or alive who would it be and why?"

emailaddress@email.com

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Good Luck Everyone!

<3

My Review of Kendra Leigh Castle's books

I just finished reading all of Kendra Leigh Castle's books 

The MacInnes trilogy

Call of the Highland Moon

Dark Highland Fire

Wild Highland Magic

&

Fallen (Harlequin Nocturne)

Renegade Angel 

Summaries of the books are from:

http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/c/kendra-leigh-castle/

Call of the Highland Moon

A Scottish Highlands werewolf fleeing his destiny ...

Gideon MacInnes is a werewolf from the Scottish Highlands. He loves the haunting beauty of his home, but runs away to upstate New York, grappling with his destiny of being his clan's next alpha. As a snowstorm closes in, Gideon is attacked by rogue wolves working for an enemy he never imagined existed. He stumbles, wounded and bleeding, to collapse on the doorstep of Carly Silver's tiny romance bookstore-ironic, as she's never been very good at relationships with men.

A warmhearted woman, looking for a new pet ...

Thinking he's a dog, she takes him home, treats his injuries and wakes up to find a devastatingly handsome naked man in her bed.

Trapped together through the raging storm, Gideon discovers that he's found his mate and Carly has to choose between becoming a werewolf, charged with protecting humankind from the inhabitants of an evil otherworld, or giving up the one man she's ever truly loved 

My Opinion
This is every book lovers fantasy

She is the owner of a bookstore and she has a hot sexy werewolf dropped on her doorstep, only for a huge SCOTTISH sexy naked man to be replaced by the wolf. 

The book also contains lots of sexual tension and attraction but wanting to deny it like every good book.

Dark Highland Fire

Gabriel MacInnes has led a charmed life. A Highland werewolf of Alpha lineage, he'd always thought that, as the second son, he would never have to worry much about responsibility. But with his Pack now squarely in the sights of an ancient and rediscovered enemy, everything has begun to change.

Exiled from the Drakkyn realm, on the run from the dragon prince who claims her as his own, the last thing Rowan an Morgaine wants is to deal with a bunch of overbearing shifters in the middle of nowhere. But when her hiding place on Earth is discovered, and with blood the only thing that can restore her waning power, the fiery demigoddess has little choice but to accept Gabriel as a protector ...

As the Earthly and Drakkyn realms converge, Gabriel and Rowan must decide how much they're willing to sacrifice for fate...and for one another.

My Opinion

We now get to meet Gabriel, Gideon's brother in this book. He doesn't want love but he gets it thrust into his arms willing or not. This book was entertaining and laughable at times, they are both stubborn and too strong willed to be the 1st one to bend. The book is a game of tug a war of emotions they want, they shouldn't, but the attraction refuses to be denied. 

Wild Highland Magic

As soon as she laid eyes on him, her animal instincts took over.

For generations, the MacInnes werewolves have been guarding the portal between Earth and the Drakkyn realm. Bastian and his sister came through the portal from Drakkyn, seeking sanctuary in the beautiful Scottish Highlands and relief from the curse that haunts him. Solitary and despairing, Bastian must find a way to break the curse or it will kill him.

A family squabble 25 years ago drove a rift between the MacInnes alpha and his brother, and Catrionna MacInnes has never met her MacInnes relatives nor had any guidance in how to be a werewolf. When her father brings his family to Scotland seeking reconciliation, Cat lays eyes on Bastian, and her most basic animal instincts kick in. Bastian tries to resist Cat - no good can come of their attraction - but she won't take no for an answer. She knows that all she wants - what she must have - is to mark him as her own.

My Opinioin

I love the conclusion to the book, although I would love more books, but I'll just have to be satisfied with what there is. The ending was wonderful, this book had a 2nd romantic twist, which I'm really glad that it was included! This love pair unlike the 1st 2 books had their romantic bonding a little differently, but it was very entertaining. I like brooding male characters and Bastian fits that character description very well.

In Summary

This is a series that every paranormal romance reader will enjoy and love, it has everything, sex, lust, mates, werewolves, dragons, goddesses and witches oh my! And of course wonderful HEA's (Happily Ever After) for even some unexpected minor character :). The character personalities were all great and each person was given a good back story to their personality. There was not a single weak or whiny character (which I can't stand!), all the females were either strong willed or strong physically. The men were sexy characters, a few brooding and dark and a few with some lighter personalities. The worlds and multi dimension were built flawlessly and with no confusions. 

You can never go wrong with a series about werewolves!

Renegade Angel

It's been thousands of years since Raum's angelic wings turned from white to black, and the Destroyer of Dignities and Robber of Kings never looked back. These days he's also on the outs with Hell and works with a motley crew of ex-demons on a new mission: snuffing out lesser demons and their half-human progeny.

Raum's latest assignment brings him to a small Vermont town - and a sweet, funny half-demon, half-human he'll risk everything to save. Ember Riddick stirs him as no woman ever before - and she holds the key to what Lucifer will move Hell and Earth to prevent: his team's redemption.

But Ember's secrets are as dark as Raum's midnight wings. And their fate may leave them entwined - but destroyed..

My Opinion
Absolutely loved this book! 
Raum is a fallen angel, a demon of hell the Destroyer of Dignities and the Robber of Kings. A self loathing demon with no heart and no hope of ever being forgiven. Ember is just the woman to be his undoing, a temper and passion to match his own and bring his wall tumbling down. A fight of good vs evil (like always) to keep the bad guys down in Hell from spilling onto Earth and destroying humanity. All that stands in the way of Hells plans are a for-hire fallen angel and a woman with the power to break the barrier and passion to thwart everything. A must read for any person who loves reading about angels and their darker sins

Kendra Leigh Castle will be putting out another book series (unknown yet how long the series will be)

Dark Dynasties : Book One

Dark Awaking due out on June 28, 2011

Enter the world of the Dark Dynasties . . .

For centuries, shapeshifting vampire Tynan MacGillivray has prowled the night as an outcast, valued only for his ferocious hunting skills. When a feud among the immortals escalates into all-out war, he is ordered by his ruthless queen to locate a Seer-a human woman with a special gift-who can secure victory for their clan. Ty's search leads him to a quiet New England town, but once he has the Seer in his grasp, her touch awakens within him a hunger like he's never known . . .

Lily Quinn has always been different. Since childhood, she's had vivid nightmares and an eerie sixth sense. When a sexy, silver-eyed stranger demands her help, Lily plunges into a new world of danger and sensuality. With Ty, she discovers sizzling passions she cannot deny and powers she cannot control. Soon, it is clear that Lily is much more than a Seer-she holds the key to ancient secrets and unthinkable destruction. But will a vampire's vow of eternal protection stop these evil forces . . . or unleash her dark destiny?