Friday, April 27, 2012

Review: The Slayer: Book 2 of the Legend Chronicles by Theresa Meyers

The Slayer: Book Two of the Legend Chronicles by Theresa Meyers

Amazon Product Description:
April 1, 2012 
The Legend Chronicles (Book 2)
Brothers Winchester, Remington and Colt know the legends--they were trained from childhood to destroy demon predators, wielding the latest steam-powered gadgetry. It's a devil of a job. But sometimes your fate chooses you. . .CHASING TROUBLE

Winn Jackson isn't interested in hunting nightmares across the Wild West--even if it's the family business. Unlike his rakehell brothers, Winn believes in rules. As sheriff of Bodie, California, he only shoots actual law breakers. That's what he's doing when he rescues the Contessa Drossenburg, Alexandra Porter, a lady with all the elegance of the Old World--grace, beauty and class. And then he sees her fangs.

Alexandra isn't just some bloodsucking damsel in distress, though. She's on a mission to save her people--and she's dead certain that Winn's family legacy is the only way. Luckily, aside from grace and class, she also has a stubborn streak a mile wide. So like it or not, Winn is going to come back with her to the mountains of Transylvania, and while he's at it, change his opinions about vampires, demon-hunting, and who exactly deserves shooting. And if she has her way, he's going to do his darnedest to save the world. . .


My thoughts:
(The short, fast version) ~ Wonderful story!  I couldn't put it down.  The Legend Chronicles are a must read for fans of steampunk!  The characters are fantastic, the plot is intriguing, the story itself is entertaining, it is paced perfectly and the ending leaves you screaming for more!


(The longer version) ~ I fell in love with this book from the start.  I was intrigued by the characters right away.  Theresa Meyers has created a wealth of fantastic characters in this series.  She started with creative names and flushed them out with well developed personalities, enough back-story to make sure you get to know them, and principles/beliefs that they are willing to sacrifice for.  She takes these fabulous characters and sets them into a world that has been carefully built to be the perfect setting for their lives.  It is a clever blend of Old West meets technology with a few extra twists.  I truly enjoyed the interactions of the characters and was thrilled by the way the relationship developed and played out between Winn and Alexandra.  


I can't wait for the next book and would encourage all steampunk fans to check this series out!




Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Blog Tour: Alyssa Ivy

This blog tour is presented by Majanka Verstraete at Inspell Publishing.
Welcome to The Wormhole and my day on the tour.
It is my pleasure to feature Alyssa Ivy Rose ~
Alyssa Rose Ivy lives in North Carolina with her husband and two young children. Although raised in the New York area, she fell in love with the South after moving to New Orleans for college. After years as a perpetual student, she turned back to her creative side and decided to write. 
Important Links
and her books:
Title: Beckoning Light (The Afterglow Trilogy #1)
Author: Alyssa Rose Ivy
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Romance
As Charlotte steps through the gate, she has a strong feeling that nothing will ever be the same again.

Moving back to South Carolina after three years away, Charlotte knows she's going to have to face people from her past and adjust to a new high school, but she's completely unprepared for what else waits for her in Charleston.

Drawn through an old garden gate, Charlotte discovers a hidden world where she meets Calvin, a boy to whom she is inexplicably attracted. As Charlotte is pulled deeper into this hidden world, it's up to her older brother Kevin to rescue her. No matter how hard Kevin tries, the rescue depends upon Charlotte fighting her intense feelings for Calvin while mastering a set of abilities that she has only just discovered she possesses.
Title: Perilous Light (The Afterglow Trilogy #2) 
Author: Alyssa Rose Ivy
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Romance
Would you sacrifice everything for a world you barely knew?

It has been over a year since Charlotte and Kevin first stepped through the gate into Energo, and neither has been able to settle back into a normal life.

Even though she tries to deny it, Charlotte is in love with Calvin and can’t push him from her mind. She distracts herself with the antics of James and her growing friendship with Liam—the one person who seems to understand her.

Kevin is starting to adjust to his new identity as a college student and basketball player, but he can’t seem to shake his feelings for Samantha, his fear for Charlotte’s safety or the sensation that basketball is no longer enough.

When they unexpectedly return to Energo, both Charlotte and Kevin must face their fears and step up to become the leaders they were always meant to be.
Thanks for stopping by The Wormhole.
Happy Reading.

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Blog Tour: Hunter Moon by Cait Lavender (Giveaway too!)

This virtual book tour is presented by Bewitching Book Tours.
You can see the entire tour schedule by clicking HERE.
Welcome to The Wormhole and my day on the tour.
It is my pleasure to feature Cait Lavender and Hunter Moon.
About the Author:
Cait Lavender is a twenty five year old wife and stay at home mother of one in Central California. Living on a cattle ranch and raising her daughter doesn’t afford her much leisure time, but when she has a spare minute or two she loves riding horses, baking and reading everything she can get her hands on. She grew up loving the written word and creative writing and finally decided to work on her dream of becoming a published author.
She has a short story, Cowboy Moon, and a full-length novel, Hunter Moon, both available on Smashwords, Amazon and Barnes & Noble. She’d love to hear from you on her Facebook author page, @caitlavender on Twitter or on her blog, www.caitlavender.com
Top Ten Favorite Books And Why.

1.        Guards! Guards! By Terry Pratchett—God, I love this book. I pretty much love anything that Pratchett writes, but this is one of my favorites. Sam Vimes is the main character and he’s a rough-around-the-edges Watch captain doing his best to be a good man, protect the city he loves and deal with his team of miscreant guardsmen.
2.        Moon Called By Patricia Briggs—I love all of her werewolf books, but the Mercy Thompson series is by far my favorite. Mercy is a kick-ass shifter who takes care of herself and those she loves. No wusses there.
3.        Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin—Let’s be real; if you’re a woman odds are you love this book too. I’ve read and re-read this book so many times I could almost quote the whole book.
4.        A Spell for Chameleon By Piers Anthony—This series really lit the flame of my love for the fantasy genre. In fourth grade my older brother ripped my Goosebumps out of my hand and gave me this book and while I didn’t understand the faintly sexual double entendres I enjoyed the Alice In Wonderland­­-like story filled with jokes and puns.
5.        Shadowfever By Karen Marie Moning—I loved the entire Fever series, but this one was my favorite because we finally got to know what the hell was going on! I love Mac and especially Barrons and I blame Moning for ruining me for all other male main characters like Austin ruined regular men with Darcy.
6.        Darkly Dreaming Dexter By Jeff Lindsay—Dexter is the serial killer we all love, because though he’s got deeply seeded issues he only kills bad guys, so he’s alright, right? I have to hand it to Lindsay for creating such a likeable character from a cold, emotionless murderer.
7.        Fool by Christopher Moore—Man, I love this book. It’s my go-to if I need a laugh. I mean, what don’t you love about a book that uses the phrase heinous Fu—ery most foul? If you’re sensitive to language I wouldn’t reccommend it, but otherwise it’s a humorous and intelligent take on Shakespeare’s King Lear. A.Maz.Ing.
8.        Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott—Yup, I love it. What can I say? It’s one of my favorite Robin Hood stories of all time. Romance, chivalry, intrigue, knights; what more could you need?
9.        The Heat by Heather Killough-Walden—Walden is one of my favorite Indy authors. Period. This book is her take on werewolves (I’m a sucker for a wolf, what can I say?) and is full of steamy romance, thrilling action and a little bit of magic.
10.     Neverwhere by Neil Gaimon—This book is such a wonderful mind-bending take on the classic quest story. I love Gaimon’s dark side and his take on the underworld of London.

There you have it! My list. Enjoy these books and I promise you won’t be disappointed!

Hunter Moon
By Cait Lavender

Bawling cattle tore Shelby Flint from her bed. With lawyer fees to pay in her struggle to keep her ranch from the clutches of her greedy cousins, she couldn’t afford the loss of even one calf. When she sees a large wolf circling her cows, she aims and fires. While the wolf escapes, Shelby can’t seem to get away from her troubles when a marijuana grower sets up shop on her land, sabotaging her property and eventually coming after her.

Adding to that, a handsome game warden is poking his nose into her business and working his way underneath her skin. Shelby will have to fight harder than she ever fought before to keep from losing her heart and everything she ever loved.

Shelby Flint is a self-sufficient cowgirl and cattle rancher, but when a wolf goes after her calves, a man is murdered on her land and someone is sabotaging her property she can’t do it by herself any longer. In walks a handsome game warden, poking his nose in her business and working her way under her skin. Shelby will have to fight harder than she ever has before to keep from losing her heart and everything she ever loved.


...and now for your reading pleasure...
Excerpt:
“Hey, have you heard anything about—wait, what? The fuzz is after me?” I sifted through my recent actions, but couldn’t remember doing anything illegal that would put a cop on my tail. “Wait, you’re not talking about Tyler, are you?”
One of her husband’s favorite pastimes was making me pull over without cause. I was always tempted to pull a stunt like I was on Cops and lead him in a high speed pursuit. But since I’d gotten out of a few speeding tickets by dropping his name, I guess it was a wash.
“What, Tyler? No, I wish he was this hot.” She leered. “The game warden stopped by about five minutes ago asking all about the girl who lives on the Flint ranch.” She waggled her eyebrows at me.
It was Jesse’s mission in life to set me up with a man. It was the bane of her existence that I’d sworn off cowboys. A cowboy hadn’t worked out too well for my mom, and that was pretty much all there was around Raymond. It was probably the only lesson I’d learned from my mother.
“I have to say, Matt Albert wasn’t a fan of Mr. Warden asking about you.  Gave me one scary glare when I told the hottie where you live.”
“Oh geez. You haven’t told Matt I’d date him again did you? The guy’s dumber than a box of rocks!”
The Albert clan was huge in Raymond. Half the population was related in some form or another, and Matt had his eyes on me since grade school. I’d always chalked up his infatuation with me to the fact we weren’t related. Kissing cousins were so Alabama.
Matt liked to get drunk at the rodeo and pick fights. The one date I had gone with him I ended up with four glasses of Coors on my shirt and a bruise on my cheek where the other guy had elbowed me to get at Matt. That had been four years ago. He was either tenacious to the extreme or stupid, and I leaned toward the latter.
“Of course not. Especially if you’ve got Hunky McWarden in the wings!” I rolled my eyes at Jesse’s outrageous nicknames. It was never a good sign when she waxed poetic.
“Why do you keep saying that? I thought the game warden was an octogenarian?”
“Yeah, that was Bill Freedman, and he retired last month. Officer Hotstuff must be his replacement. Lucky for us! Lord knows we need an infusion of new blood around here.”
While that was certainly true, I wasn’t in the mood to play ‘The Dating Game’ with Jesse. “Oh quit it. I’d better get home if there’s a popo waiting for me. Wish me luck!”
I walked back to my truck and looked down at Reggie.
“Sorry, I forgot your hot dog. I guess I owe you one.”
He hopped in the back, forgiving as always and off we went. I wondered why the warden would be looking for me. I hadn’t hunted or fished in years, not since grandpa’s health went downhill. I hoped one of my cows didn’t get out. That could be a nightmare if it ruined property or someone hit it with a car. Great, that’s all I needed right now.
I saw the warden’s forest green Silverado when I pulled in, but no sign of the warden himself anywhere. I lowered the tailgate of the Blazer to let Reggie down and he took off toward the barn. I trusted his instincts and followed him and found an image I could use to warm the lonely, cold nights. On the trailer of alfalfa was a 6’4’ Adonis. The man, or god, who I assumed was the warden, had his shirt off while he was unloading hay. His fantastic shoulders were bare and rippling as he unloaded bale after bale of hay. His biceps flexed as he squatted to pick up another and bless him, I had a front row seat to his fantastic rear.
The warden couldn’t have been any older than late twenties or early thirties, and his golden skin just added to the Greek god effect he had going. Something stirred in me while I watched him work, something I had never felt before. Pure unadulterated lust. I wanted that man more than anyone in my whole life.
Irritated with my surging libido, I tamped down my unwelcome feelings as much as I could. I definitely didn’t need that kind of complication in my life right now. He bent over and picked up another bale and I had to bite the inside of my lip to keep from moaning. No man should look that delicious. I nodded my head in agreement with myself and continued to gawk. His shoulders were nearly twice as wide as mine, and his broad chest narrowed to flat, rippling abs and a trim waist.
In the ten minutes I supposed he’d been there he had almost the whole trailer unloaded, and it didn’t even look like he’d broken a sweat. If I’d unloaded that much I would have been a puddle of exhausted goo. I stood there, staring at all his assets, for a few minutes longer before I climbed on the trailer and started helping.
When I came up behind him, he stopped working and stared at me. His nostrils flared wide, but he didn’t seem surprised at my arrival. Unnerved a bit by his piercing gaze, I picked up a bale. He just shrugged and resumed unloading, maintaining a silence the whole time we worked. In between bales he brushed his dark brown hair off his forehead to reveal two eyes the brilliant blue of sapphires.
He looked at me for a moment, and then unloaded the last bale of alfalfa. I hopped off the trailer, suddenly needing distance from his cobalt stare. Without the hay bales to occupy my hands, they were itching to touch the ripples of all six of his abs. I stared at the ground, shifting from foot to foot.
“Thanks. I really appreciate the help. If I was by myself, this would have taken hours.” I handed him his uniform shirt that was hanging off the side mirror of my truck and glanced at the name tag. “Officer Newcomb.”
“It’s warden Newcomb, but you can call me Cash.” He put his uniform back on and I couldn’t help feeling a sense of loss. The fabric covered a spectacular chest with just a judicial smattering of curly brown hair that drew together in a fuzzy line that lead south. Talk about a happy trail.

Tour wide giveaway:
 Cait is giving away 5 print copies of Hunter Moon and a $25 Amazon gift card
Click HERE to go to the giveaway form.

Monday, April 23, 2012

Blog Tour: A Bite's Tale: A Furry Fable by Veronica Blade

This virtual book tour is presented by Bewitching Book Tours.
You can see the entire tour schedule by clicking HERE.
You can see my review by clicking HERE.
Welcome to The Wormhole and my day on the tour.
It is my pleasure to feature Veronica Blade and
A Bite's Tale: A Furry Fable.


Interview:
 How many jobs did you have before you became a writer? I’ve had way too many different jobs, because I had no idea what I wanted to be when I grew up. Then I grew up and still had no idea. But as soon as I finished the first page of my first manuscript, that was it for me. I was hooked!


 How long does it take you to write a book? It depends on the length. A novella like A Bite’s Tale: A Furry Fable takes about ten days. From Fame to Shame took 6 days. But that’s only to vomit out the first draft — which, for me, is always garbage. My real work comes after the fact. Something that takes a week to write will need about a month of revisions.

 What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk? I do most of my writing in bed, almost horizontal. It’s comfortable :-P

 Do you have a routine that you use to get into the right frame of mind to write? It’s harder to write when you’re drowning in negative emotions. If someone upsets me, I can’t find my muse. I’ll usually “cleanse the palate” first with something fun, like scrabble or The Vampire Diaries. It works!

 Where do you get your ideas or inspiration for your characters? I don’t think we writers know where this stuff comes from. We’re all just a little bit crazy, I guess :-P

 How do you decide what you want to write about? The possibilities are limited only to my imagination, so I can pick just about anything. I’m big on following my passion though. If I’m not feelin’ it, the story will suffer and it will have been a huge waste of time. After a few duds, I’ve learned my lesson! I never force it. Whatever I get excited about is exactly what I will work on.

 What books have most influenced your life? I never knew the YA genre existed until I read Twilight. Been addicted to YA ever since.

 What are you reading right now? Vesper, by Jeff Sampson. It’s actually pretty good, with an intriguing plot, but if there’s no romance (which there isn’t, so I’m not sure why I bought it), it can’t hold me. I’m about to move on. What do you suggest?

 What do you like to do when you are not writing? I watch The Vampire Diaries! I’m a total TVD junkie.

 What do you think makes a good story? Lots of romance! Not the graphic stuff, but the anticipation. Other than that, we have to care about the character — what she feels, what she wants. If we can’t relate to her and get inside her head, we won’t care enough to finish the book.

Fun random questions:

• dogs or cats? Cats. They’re a little more independent and they don’t require baths, which leaves me more time to write.

• Dark or milk chocolate? Milk. It’s creamier and not as bitter.

• Night or day? Night, because everyone is in bed and there are no distractions to come between me and my characters.

• Favorite color? Purple!

• Pens or pencils? Pencils. Sometimes my writing is very sloppy.


Thanks Veronica for joining me on my blog today!!!!
By Veronica Blade


A sweet romantic tale with a Cinderella spin featuring vampires, witches and werewolves


Blurb:
A Cinderella who spends her nights as a wolf. A prince with a taste for blood.


Seventeen year old Cydney struggles against her werewolf nature, trying to keep everyone around her safe. No way will she risk exposing the beast at the prince’s ball, no matter how her two cousins try to persuade her. Even as she attempts to get on with her life, Cydney can’t forget the boy she loved three summers ago — or what she did to him after losing control.


Turned into a vampire to save his life, the prince refuses to live up to his royal duties. He just wants to find the girl he loved and lost...the werewolf girl who bit him. But his father, the king, commands him to attend a ball where he must choose a wife. Can he find his Cinderella before he's forced to marry another? He doesn’t even have her real name, much less a glass slipper.


More About the Author:

Veronica Blade lives in Southern California with her husband and whichever of their kids — or someone else’s kid — decides to drop in. By day she runs the family business, but each night she slips away to spin her tales. She writes stories about young adults to relive her own childhood and to live vicariously through her characters. Except her heroes and heroines lead far more interesting lives — and they are always way hotter.


You can visit Veronica Blade on FaceBook, check out her website at www.VeronicaBlade.com or follow her on Twitter @VeronicaBlade. She loves hearing from readers!


FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000174247353
Twitter: @VeronicaBlade
Website: VeronicaBlade.com
A Bite’s Tale: A Furry Fable

Review: A Bite's Tale: A Furry Fable by Veronica Blade

A Bite's Tale: a Furry Fable by Veronica Blade

Amazon Product Description:
A Cinderella who spends her nights as a wolf. A prince with a taste for blood. 

Seventeen year old Cydney struggles against her werewolf nature, trying to keep everyone around her safe. No way will she risk exposing the beast at the prince’s ball, no matter how her two cousins try to persuade her. As she attempts to carve out some semblance of a life, Cydney can’t forget the boy she loved three summers ago — or what she did to him after losing control. 

Turned into a vampire to save his life, the prince refuses to live up to his royal duties. He just wants to find the girl he loved and lost...the werewolf girl who bit him. But his father, the king, commands him to attend a ball where he must choose a wife. Can he find his Cinderella before he's forced to marry another? He doesn’t even have her real name, much less a glass slipper. 


My thoughts:  
     This was a fun twist to the Cinderella story of old.  Prince charming is a vampire.  Cinderella is a werewolf.  Of course there is a ball and that is where they will hook up - - - but the last time they saw each other she bit him!  I enjoyed the read very much.  The characters are nicely developed and easy to invest in.  Dunstan, the king's advisor, is my favorite character; I found myself seeing people I know in him.  The author has set her characters in a world where paranormal is normal and humans are the "odd man out" so to speak.  
     Well written, entertaining, and worth the read for certain.
I wish the story had been longer and am hoping to see more from Veronica Blade.  

Friday, April 20, 2012

Blog Tour: Fire Baptized by Kenya Wright (Awesome Commenter Giveaway ~ Signed book option)

This virtual book tour is presented by Bewitching Book Tours.
Click HERE to see the entire tour schedule.
Welcome to The Wormhole and my day on the 
Fire Baptized Tour.
Kenya Wright always knew she would be famous since the ripe old age of six when she sung the Michael Jackson thriller song in her bathroom mirror. She has tried her hand at many things from enlisting in the Navy for six years as a Persian-Farsi linguist to being a nude model at an art university.

However, writing has been the only constant love in her life.

So here we are Kenya is publishing her first book, Fire Baptized, the urban fantasy novel she always wanted to read. This novel is the first book in a series.

Will she succeed? Of course.

For she has been coined The Urban Fantasy Queen, the Super Iconic Writer of this Age, The Lyrical Genius of Our Generation. Granted, these are all terms coined by her, within the private walls of her bathroom as she still sings the Michael Jackson thriller song.

Kenya Wright currently resides in Miami with her three amazing, overactive children, a supportive, gorgeous husband, and three cool black cats that refuse to stop sleeping on Kenya’s head at night.
  

Fire Baptized
By Kenya Wright

Since the 1970’s humans have forced supernaturals to live in caged cities. Silver brands embedded in their foreheads identify them by species: a full moon for Vampires, a crescent moon for Shifters, a pair of wings for Fairies, and the list goes on, for each supernatural species has been tagged and categorized by humans.

Lanore Vesta is marked with a silver X, the brand of Mixbreeds, second-class citizens shunned by society. She stays to herself, revealing her ability to create fire only during emergencies. All she wants to do is graduate college and stop having to steal to survive. But when she stumbles upon a murder in progress, she catches the attention of a supernatural killer. Now all she wants is to stop finding dead bodies in her apartment.

Enlisting help from her Were-cheetah ex-boyfriend Meshach and a new mysterious friend named Zulu, she is steered through the habitat’s raunchy nightlife. But their presence sometimes proves to be more burden than help, as they fight for her attention.   

While the corpses pile up, and the scent of blood fills the air, Lanore is left wondering: will she find the psycho or die trying?



And now for the Giveaway...
Kenya is giving away winner’s choice of an ebook or signed print copy of Fire Baptized. Print copies open to US Shipping. 
The author is also giving away ONE $20.00 Amazon gift card to the tour host with the most comments....so, I am adding my own giveaway...
If my blog has the most comments during the tour, and I win the $20.00 amazon gift card, I will share with one commenter, chosen by random.org.  
That means this is really a twofold giveaway:  
one commenter will win their choice of a signed print copy 
of Fire Baptized or an ecopy, 
and one commenter (if I win the commenter giveaway from the author) 
will win any ONE book ($10.00 or less from Amazon.com - US Only for this)
This giveaway will run ONE day only - ends at midnight on April 20, 2012.