Book Review: Phoenix By Elizabeth Richards

Name: Phoenix
Author: Elizabeth Richards
Publisher: Putnam
Release date: June 2013

Summary:Weeks after his crucifixion and rebirth as Phoenix, Ash Fisher believes his troubles are far behind him. He and Natalie are engaged and life seems good. But his happiness is short-lived when he receives a threatening visit from Purian Rose, who gives Ash an ultimatum: vote in favor of Rose’s Law permanently relegating Darklings to the wrong side of the wall or Natalie will be killed.
The decision seems obvious to Ash; he must save Natalie. But when Ash learns about The Tenth, a new and deadly concentration camp where the Darklings would be sent, the choice doesn’t seem so simple. Unable to ignore his conscience, Ash votes against Rose’s Law, signing Natalie’s death warrant and putting a troubled nation back into the throes of bloody battle.

Review:When Black City finished with that epic ending I was biting my nails for months waiting for Phoenix to arrive in my hands and it was worth the wait. From High school students to full blown action heroes! Phoenix is like a whole new level. Love, destruction, gore and heartbreak. Life has gotten worse in Black City. Purian Rose threatens Natalie's life unless Ash votes in favour of Rose's law- a law that will send darklings and other dissenters to a deadly concentration camp known as the tenth.

I haven't felt so emotional reading a book in a long time. This book is defiantly not for younger readers. This skilfully crafted novel contains some mysticism, mystery, intrigue, sex, epic fight scenes, humour and romance in a neat package that is not just entertaining but challenges your mind and imagination. Elizabeth has created word images so vivid that it is almost like watching a movie. She takes you for a ride through The United Century States as Ash and Natalie find themselves in a action packed suspenseful events.

I was hoping that we would learn more about the world outside Black city and boy do we! We meet sexy new characters for example Elijah! I won't give much away but I can tell from reading Elizabeth's novels she likes to take risks and those risks pay off tremendously. Twists and turns are what Elizabeth's writing is about. I find myself always on the edge of my seat. You don't know who to trust where to look or what your feeling because her writing takes you on a roller coaster of emotions.

The plot is amazing Ash can't bring himself to trade Natalie's life for those millions of Darklings. The only way to save everyone is to escape Black City and find the Ora, a powerful weapon that could take down Purian Rose for good. I grew a serious hate for Purian rose and Sebastian. Elizabeth has a knack for drawing so much emotion from her books that makes the reader feel so passionate about her novels and it's characters.

 

Once again Elizabeth has blown me away and as I sit here after reading this book with tears running down my face I've realised that this book is one of the most heart-renching emotional YAs I've read in a long time. I need the third book NOW.

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Blog Tour: Wickedness/Deceit by Deborah White

Today Dark Readers host the final blog tour for Deborah White's awesome yet a little strange series. I have already reviewed Wickedness and Deceit shall follow shortly. 

Now I have been given an extract of Nefertaru's story.

Deborah White/Nefertaru’s Story

Setna leaves, but I am well guarded and there is no hope of escape. When he returns bearing the ring, I know I will not see Asru again in this life. I clench my fists tight and swear I will never wear the ring. One of the guards forces open the fingers of my right hand. He bends my ring finger back until he hears it crack and I scream out with the pain of it. I must have fainted, because when I wake the ring is tight on my finger and burns into my skin.

  “I am not afraid,” I say defiantly, spitting out the words. “Send me to Thoth. I will be reunited with Asru there.”

 I must have said something funny,because Setna laughs. He throws his ugly great head back and laughs and laughs.

Setna will not leave me alone for even the blink of an eye. Not now. There are always guards at the door.

Handmaids prepare me for the journey. They brush my hair until it shines as red and fiery as the setting sun. They bathe me. They anoint my skin with sandalwood and lotus blossom oil. Incense is burning. The smell of cassia, myrrh and aloes fills the room.

I can hear chanting, rhythmic and hypnotic. It began early this morning, before even the first cockerel began to crow. The chanting will not stop until I am sheltered in the arms of Thoth. Perhaps I should welcome what is to come, but I am so terribly afraid. Ever since I was first brought here, fear has been a dark and unwelcome presence; an impatient visitor waiting to be let in. Now that I wear the ring and I understand what HE, Setna has planned for me, fear has opened the door into my soul and stepped in. No… not fear. Fear is too gentle a word for what I am feeling. Terror. Because you see, Setna has a plan.

He shows me my coffin. My likeness is drawn on its gilded surface. I am shown wearing my wig.Thick ropes of dark hair frame my face. He describes how I am to be given poison and then once I am dead I will be mummified and laid down in the coffin with the Emerald Casket at my feet. The ring is throbbing on my finger. It burns so hot I can hardly bear it. Then I seemy name is carved on the coffin. But it says NefArtaru and not NefErtaru.My name is misspelt. And he can see from the look on my face that I know what this means. My soul will not be given passage into the afterlife and I will not be able to take the Emerald Casket safely back to Thoth. And though my spirit will be trapped here on earth it will be powerless to protect the spells and casket from Setna…or any otherwicked person who might covet them

  “The spells will be mine at last, to do with as I choose,” Setna looks triumphant. “And I will have the ring too Then I will open the Emerald Casket and…”

  There is a sudden noise coming from outside the inner temple doors. Cries and shouts and the guttural, bubbling sound of men dying horribly. A fleeting look of panic passes across Setna’s face. He spits out the words, “No Guardian will ever stop me!” Then he is calm again and acts swiftly. My head is pulled back by my hair. My mouth is prised open and the poison is poured in. I try to spit it out, but I can feel it trickle down my throat.

Now I can hear the doors being smashed open. Setna’s face swims in and out of focus. I am lifted up and placed inside the coffin. My life is ebbing away as surely as grains of sand blow in from the desert. His voice is urging me to hurry and die…but as my ring finger is severed from my hand and a jolt of hot pain sears through me, for the briefest of moments I am brought back to the world again. I can hear shouting and my own voice calling out, “Asru where are you?” But then all sound grows faint again and I know I am falling back into the darkness.

You can find out more about Deborah White at www.deborahwhiteauthor.com

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Book Review: Wickedness By Deborah White

Name: Wickedness
Author: Deborah White

Summary: A thrilling adventure that combines history fantasy and romance. Refreshingly original, from an exciting new voice in teenage fiction. This is a stunning debut in a brilliant new series for teenage girls from new Templar author Deborah White. A powerful and charismatic man; an Egyptian mummy and twenty spells written in hieroglyphics on parchment. An emerald casket, a French ropewalker and two red-haired girls, fourteen years old and living in London, but four hundred years apart - are all united by blood and by a devastating prophecy.

Review: I like to be challenged by books every once and a while when I agreed to read the follow up to this book I asked to read this first. I am glad that I have as I know I would have been baffled otherwise. This book is weird and just a little bit disturbing but I had to know more. I have found it compelling and intriguing. I like the fact each person has a different font and trying to work out the messages behind the mauscripts has me constantly thinking different thoughts about the book.

Another plus point for this book is that it is based in London, I love that it drifts from London during the plague and the present day. I knew I disliked the doctor from the beginning and I have a funny feeling Deceit is going to be just as disturbing and haunting as Wickedness. What I loved was the fact you hated him, hated the disturbing images and weird goings on you still had to know what happened next. I was shocked by Zac but when I thought about it, it was also kind of obvious. Sometimes the characters you love are really not what they seem, and sometimes you hate certain characters but also feel for them. I love conflicting thoughts and opinions whilst reading. It keeps you on your toes.
Although all seems well at the end of Wickedness I just cannot shake the feeling that Deceit is going to be far more sinister, on a whole new level.
I enjoyed this read even though parts disturbed me a great deal and I have had to read a seperate book in between this series.

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Just a few short stories...

I am really enjoying reading short stories. When I first got my iphone and discovered ibooks I think I was like a kid in a candy store. Downloading freebies and buying books of my fave authors, some of those still sit there unread.

So, I thought I would mention a few of the short stories I have read.

Thanks to the joys of Twitter I saw someone mention Katie Fforde's Staying Away At Christmas, I have seen a lot of Katie's books but never got around to them. I noticed this book was 99p and downloaded it, it is safe to say I devoured this short story very quickly. 

There was also an extract from her next novel 'A French Affair' which I am desperate to read now. So thanks to my iphone I have discovered another fabulous author. Now the last thing you expect when you book a cottage at Christmas is to be double book this is what Miranda finds when a young boy knocks at the door followed by a rather grumpy dad Anthony.

This is a loveable read that shows a little bit of kindness can go a long way. You never know you may meet the love of your life.

The lovely Miranda Dickinson sent her malling list a present via email I recently devoured the awesome 'After You've gone' a truly wonderful and oh so inspiring read. The story focusses on the life and times of a musican showing the good and the bad. The sad yet inspiring part of this story is that Harry should have recorded the songs his wife longed to hear when she asked. It showed me that anything that you can do today should not be put off.

The Christmas Bake Off was my first introduction to the lovely Abbey Clements I devoured this very quickly. A feel good book, I loved the sense of community and tradition. I had also been looking at reading her other festive novel 'Meet Me Under The Mistletoe' which features Rachel from this. I loved the fact I had already got to know Rachel and Milly and in some ways the stories kind of linked I liked that.

There are probably a few more I could mention but I have brain freeze. Do let me know of any short stories I shouldn't miss out on? Feel free to leave me a comment I am always on the lookout for more shorts. ADDICTED!!! I shall have a Kindle soon I can feel it.

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Shadows by Paula Weston blog tour: Character highlight: Rafa

 

In case you guys didint know, I am a tad obsessed with this novel. Angels, adventure, passion and jump out of your seats moments. This book is AMAZING. To read my review go HERE. Paula is here today to give us her character highlight for Rafa. RAFA is the lead male in this story and he is on fire! no joke! check it out:

 

Character highlight

Name: Rafa

Age: 19 (well, sort-of)

Likes:

• Beer

• Women

• Hand-to-hand combat

• Killing demons

• Antagonising the Rephaim at the Sanctuary

• Hanging out with Ez and Zak

• Kissing Gaby

Dislikes:

• Daniel

• Demons

• Everyone at the Sanctuary

• Being told what to do

• Losing an argument

• Missing his best friend

• Being lied to

Excerpt (argument between Rafa and Gaby):

 

‘Do you want a crash course on demonology, or do you want to get your friend back?’ Rafa repacks the weapons.

‘Don’t start acting like an asshole again now you’ve got an audience.’

‘Did you or did you not ask for my help?’

‘I didn’t realise it was a choice between saving Mags and understanding what’s going on. Maybe if I’d known a little more, I would have made sure Maggie wasn’t in danger in the first place.’

‘Maybe she wouldn’t have been in danger if you hadn’t had your tongue down the barman’s throat.’

‘Oh, for fuck’s sake, get over it.’

Ez smiles. ‘This is just like the old days. I’ve actually missed this.’

Who would play him?

Tough question! I’ve honestly not seen an actor who’s made me think ‘he’d be perfect as Rafa’. The trick with Rafa is that he looks 19, but carries himself with the confidence and life experience of someone much older (not that he particularly acts his age). And he’s such a masculine kind of guy, so he can’t be too pretty either.

But, for the sake of the exercise – and ignoring the fact the age isn’t quite perfect – I love Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy) as an actor, and this shot of him when he was younger catches some of the attitude I imagine when I picture Rafa.

 

MY GOD HES HOT!. I Want to say thanks to Orion and Paula for giving us this! and make sure you guys check out the next tour dates on the UK blog tour! also make sure you buy the novel! its available now in the UK!

 

 

 

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Confessions of an Angry Girl Blog Tour: Guest Post

 

SUMMARY:Rose Zarelli, self-proclaimed word geek and angry girl, has some confessions to make…

1. I'm livid all the time. Why? My dad died. My mom barely talks. My brother abandoned us. I think I'm allowed to be irate, don't you?

2. I make people furious regularly. Want an example? I kissed Jamie Forta, a badass guy who might be dating a cheerleader. She is now enraged and out for blood. Mine.

3. High school might as well be Mars. My best friend has been replaced by an alien, and I see red all the time. (Mars is red and "seeing red" means being angry—get it?)

Here are some other vocab words that describe my life: Inadequate. Insufferable. Intolerable.

(Don't know what they mean? Look them up yourself.)

(sorry that was rude)

 

Are you anything like Rose? Were there any personal experiences that you put into the story?

I am a bit like Rose in a few ways. First of all, I do have a temper. But I have to confess that, although I’m not always proud of the way I behave when I get angry, it feels good when anger comes to the surface and I actually let it out. There’s something very cathartic about expressing an emotion that we often frown upon in our society. It just has to be done with a measure of wisdom.

I am also like Rose in that I was often drawn to the guys who were kind of rebellious, kind of on the fringes, kind of mysterious. (Usually they had hearts of gold, like Jamie does, although not all the time!) I was forever walking the line between two worlds—the one my friends and family occupied, and the one the guy occupied. It was tough.

Rose has many views on what makes a girl independent and strong. What do you think are some of the biggest challenges facing teen girls today?

I think teen girls today have to work extra hard to figure out who they want to be, and how they want to act, and what they think is right. Girls are bombarded with images—online, on TV, in the media—telling them what a woman should look like, how thin she should be, how she should behave, what her priorities should be. That, in and of itself, is nothing new. What is new is the social media component that invites people to talk about these images, to have conversations about these expectations. Social media is fantastic in a lot of ways, but I think it can also be really confusing. It provides a forum in which everyone can participate, but not everyone has the ability to keep social media interactions in perspective, and not everyone knows how to express themselves in a respectful way on social media. I think this can compound the effect of being bombarded with negative imagery in a pretty profound way. And yes, social media can also play a positive role in this instance, but it’s usually not the positive social media interactions that stick with us.

Louise Rozett’s debut novel Confessions of an Angry Girl is OUT NOW! in the UK Visit www.louiserozett.com for more info

 

 

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BEHIND THE SCENES AT THE LEVEL 2 BOOK LAUNCH

 Here’s a behind the scenes post about the LEVEL 2 launch from Amy at Usborne, organiser of the event.

At Usborne we’re so excited to be publishing the fantastic LEVEL 2 by Lenore Appelhans. We wanted to do something special for the launch of the series so we decided to hold a launch especially for book bloggers and booksellers. Here is our photo diary of the event:

 

The Venue

Here we are setting up at the Ice Tank, Covent Garden. We chose this venue because it perfectly reflects the look of the Hive in LEVEL 2 – white and minimal.

 

The Entertainment

We enlisted the help of Emma at Boom Nails and her colleague to come and do LEVEL 2 manicures at the launch. The nail art idea is one that we have carried through the campaign. Felicia loves painting her nails in the book and the cover design has a very fashion-led look so we asked Emma to come up with the definitive LEVEL 2 nail design and printed postcards. We are also launching our own nail art competition (here) – check it out!

Some alternative LEVEL 2 nail designs!

 

The Experience

To add another dimension to the launch we had Danni from BlastPhoto take photos on the night and set up a photo booth so guests could have their photos taken. Here is Alice from The Reader Room posing for the camera! Cheeeese!

 

Here are just some of the props used by Dannie for the photo booth!

 

 

The Cake

What is a book launch without cake! We had this fabulous cake made for the launch. Here’s ... tucking in. The verdict – yummy!

Sneak a peek at our nail art competition and all the photos from the launch over on the LEVEL 2 website:

www.thememorychronicles.co.uk

#thememorychronicles

It’s here that the UK tour ends but fear not – with a quick hop across the pond the US tour begins on Monday over on Mundie Moms where Lenore will be taking readers through her LEVEL 2 playlist. Don’t miss it!

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Book Review: With Love At Christmas By Carole Matthews

Name: With Love At Christmas
Author: Carole Matthews
Publisher: Sphere

Summary:
Juliet Joyce adores Christmas. She loves the presents, the tree, the turkey, the tinsel, everything. Already the festive spirit is upon her,

own and Rita, her eccentric mother, is behaving more erratically each day. And has the chaos got too much for Juliet's husband Rick?

With the big day fast approaching, Juliet hopes that she can stop everything spiralling out of control, because the only thing she wants is her family all around her and her home to be filled.

Review: Well I know it is no longer Christmas but I have only just finished reading this delightful novel. Now there are just so many fabulous books available at Christmas you would have to start in at least October to be done in time. Carole Matthews sure does know how to write a feel good Christmas novel. A truly loveable family although they sure are a handful, they make my family seem normal. 
Although I must say regardless of how unconvential the Joyce's are I would truly love to see them feature in another of Carole's books. 
I have said it before and I will say it again I truly love Carole's Dear Reader, it's such a nice touch and it is one of my fave things about reading her books. I will be forever grateful to my friend Debbie for buying me one of Carole's books as a birthday present I am hooked and I shall be going through her back catalogue as and when I can, in between ones I am sent.
Juliet Joyce is a trooper and you would have to love Christmas as much as she does to put up with the headaches that she is given. To say her patience is tested is putting it midly. Although saying that there are some beautiful moments in this book the birth of Juliet's granddaughter and I couldn't stop laughing at Juliet and Rick's night to themselves haha.
What I loved about 'With Love At Christmas' is that Carole has managed to fit in many real-life scenarios. Take Merak who is polish and won't be able to afford the trip home for Christmas as he sends money home to help out his family. Lisa is doing all she can to provide for her daughter Izzy and is taken advantage of by her landlord meaning a cold and lonely Christmas. I don't want to say too much as I may ruin the story but deaths, births, friendship, love and most of all family are featured in this feel good read.

It boils down to Christmas is a time for caring, I loved this book. Carole also kindly features her survival tips for Christmas which are very funny my favourite is: By The Perfect Gift: For yourself. As no one else will.

There are also a few chapters from her next novel A Cottage By The Sea, just from reading that I know I am going to find Harry hilarious.

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Book Review: The Soul Seekers Echo By Alyson Noel

Name: The Soul Seekers: Echo
Author: Alyson Noel
Publisher: Pan Macmillan

Summary: She inherited a magical destiny and a mission to stop a powerful family of dark sorcerers. She never expected to fall in love with one of them. There's still so much Daire Santos has to learn about being the last Soul Seeker....and about herself. As her magical training becomes more intense, so does her relationship with Dace. But when she learns that his connection to the evil Richter family goes far deeper than she ever imagined, she begins to question if love can conquer all.
Dace is painfully aware that he wouldn't exist if it wasn't for the Richters' dark magic- and now his brother Cade is determined to use his love for Daire against him. Dace is willing to sacrifice anything to protect the girl he loves- including his own life. But will Daire allow it? And what if defeating Cade costs not only his life, but his Soul too?

Summary: Right I know I am a broken record when it comes to the lovely Alyson Noel.
I wasn't sure I would love a series more than 'The Immortals' but 'The Soul Seekers' is a whole different ball game. It is one of the most intense reads I've read in a while.
Well firstly, I would like to apologise for how long it has taken me to sort and edit this review, I promise Mystics review will be up super fast. IS IT HERE YET? LOL!

When I finished Fated I was itching for Echo the wait nearly killed me I had to know more about Dace's story.
Echo starts exactly where Fated left off at the heart of the action, with the pace of the story getting faster and faster.
The twists and turns in this novel are so unexpected although afterwards you're thinking you should have seen that coming. I don't think I was prepared for the shock regarding Dace's story and he's family ties.
I truly love Daire and Dace as a couple they are perfect this novel takes them on the most bizarre emotional rollercoaster, I found myself, laughing, crying and screaming at this book. I just couldn't put it down this book sure did hurt my eyes, I just wanted more and more.
Cade may well be the evil of the two brothers but he has a lot more to do with how this story will end.
There are some hard times for Daire and Dace and I am sure that Mystic will be the same, I must say if you haven't read this series yet you will be eager for the next installment. I cannot wait, the twists within Echo prove that as a reader we should expect the unexpected.

It was nice to see Daire's mother more in this novel, Daire needed to know how much she cared and I feel that they bonded a fair bit in Echo even though she still doesn't completely understand or accept Daire's path.
I don't know what else to say without ruining the fact that this book is awesome and it will have you hooked on every page. I will warn you, you may scream when you get to the end and we have a bit of a wait before Mystic. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!

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