Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Book Review ~ On Fire by Robert Mercer-Nairne

 

Title: On Fire
Author: Robert Mercer-Nairne
Release Date: November 25th 2014
Published By: Gritpoul
Page Amount: 64 pages, Hardcover

GoodReads Blurb:
This little book is a gem - which even people who do not normally buy poetry will want to own. Combining colors and words, it touches aspects of the human condition that concern us. With humor, tenderness and perception the cycle of life is laid bare. Because it sees existence as a whole, On Fire is profoundly optimistic. 

Review: 
I found this book at the dollar store and since I love both poetry and art I decided to pick it up. It was a while before I read it but I did around the end of December of last year. 

I thought that the art was good; I enjoyed looking at the artwork. The poems had some very good subject matter. I thought that they were pretty good but certainly not some of the best poetry that I've ever read. I don't think that it was at all a waste to read, though. And since I found it in the dollar store it was a great find. I would give this one a try if you feel like reading some new poetry to see what you think.  3 quills. 


Friday, January 23, 2015

Book Review ~ Beneath the Layers by Mia Rivers

 

Title: Beneath the Layers (Beneath the Layers #1)
Author: Mia Rivers
Release Date: expected publication March 2015
Published By: Mia Rivers 

GoodReads Blurb:
I have a secret.

A secret that no-one besides my boyfriend, my mother and I know. A secret from my past which has me trapped in a relationship from hell.

Refusing to tell a soul, I’ve kept it balled up inside for the past few years, trying to seem composed for the world while my reality was the complete opposite. I gave up on any hopes of a different life. A life where love and happiness existed. Alex, personally saw to it himself. He made sure it was drilled deep within my brain. This was the hand that life had dealt me. The life I learned to accept.

Until the day I bumped into Nick.

A gorgeous man who's haunted my thoughts and awakened my desires. A man, whose persistence turned my world upside down, more than it already was. The same man who also happened to be my boss and had a secret of his own. A secret that I couldn't decipher, even when it stood right in front of me. A secret that would blow me away.

My name is Tara and this is my story. 

Review: 
I received an ARC of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. 

This is Mia Rivers debut novel and it was a great debut. It had plot and character and emotion in it. This book kept me turning pages so I could see what happened and what Tara's secret was. You could feel the tension between the characters, especially Nick and Tara. While this book most definitely had some really steamy scenes, it wasn't just steamy scene after steamy scene, there was also a plot to it; a story. The steam was definitely there but there was more to the book than just that. And the ending was extremely unexpected. I'm eagerly awaiting book two. 4 quills!! 


Thursday, January 22, 2015

Sale ~ Bloodgifted by Tima Marie Lacoba


4.6★ - 49 Reviews It's REDUCED for THREE DAYS ONLY (0.99) as part of Australia Day celebrations.
What if you had the power to lift an ancient curse, but it came at a frightening price? Primary school teacher, Laura Dantonville's ordinary life comes to an end when she learns her family's ancient—and frightening—secret. One that explains her body's strange inability to age.
Let’s try to push her to the top 100 in Amazon!!!!!
Bloodgifted Being unable to age is only the beginning …
Laura Dantonville is shocked to learn her strange genetic mutation, is linked to a dark family secret—a centuries-old curse that turned her Roman ancestor into a vampire. Now that she has come of age, she is the key to breaking that curse. But she’s also the prey of rogue vampires who inhabit the city’s frightening and violent underworld, as her blood gives them the ability to daywalk. For her protection she’s assigned a guardian—the handsome, sexy and dangerous Alec Munro.
Former military doctor and current leader of the Brethren, Alec Munro has no intention of being responsible for Laura. After all, it was her damned family who was responsible for his untimely death and subsequent transformation. He owes them nothing, yet he also knows his own fated role in breaking the curse, and the unthinkable consequences should he not accept.
To the Brethren, the ending of the curse spells disaster. Among a powerful few malice grows…
Bloodgifted Author
I'm a fifty-something-young woman who lives on the Central Coast, an hour's drive north of Sydney in Australia. My little house is surrounded by bushland, possums and seed-dropping Rosellas on one side, and waterways on the other. I moved out of the big city a few years ago, and the only thing I miss about it are the quaint shops and cafes. But I've gained fresh air and a home with front and backyards--with a garden swing--and wooded hillside views.
Before becoming a writer, I was a practicing archaeologist, and was fortunate enough to have worked on some amazing digs around the world. After several years in the field I was drawn to teaching and ended up as Head of History in a local high school. While there I took the opportunity to take my students overseas to visit various archaeological sites in Europe and Britain. It was a fabulous way to combine my love of history with travel, and share it with others. On one tour, in Italy, I managed to indulge my other passion - gelato ice cream. We renamed it The Gelato Crawl of Italy!
I've always been a storyteller, but it wasn't until five years ago that I seriously ventured into writing. The result was Bloodgifted. In 2011 it was shortlisted in the Atlas Award and came fourth. In 2012 it was listed among the top ten in the Choclit Search for an Aussie Star Competition. In 2013, I was offered a publishing contract but declined in favour of going indie. I liked the idea of being in charge of my own creation.
Bloodgifted is just the start of a four-part series I've entitled, The Dantonville Legacy. Book 2, Bloodpledge, was released four months ago, and Book 3, Blood Vault, is due for release June 2015. Later I intend writing individual books on the other characters in the series, for they all have their own story.
Visit Tima Maria Lacoba Around the Web:

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Book Review ~ Street Team Smarts by Sara Humphreys

 

Title: Street Team Smarts
Author: Sara Humphreys
Release Date: March 2013
Published By: Sara Humphreys
Page Amount: 18 pages, e-book 

GoodReads Blurb: 
Have you wanted to start your own street team but had no idea where to start? Do you want someone to just give you the bottom line? Then this guide is for you! 

Review: 
I've been looking into author street teams and I ended up finding this book. It gives a good step by step start up guide on how to form an author street team. It's very short but it was informative and I'm glad that I found it. I think that it was definitely worth the time to read and think that it could help with forming an author street team. If this is information that you're looking into, I would recommend this book to you for a good start. 4 quills!! 

 

Friday, January 16, 2015

Book Review ~ The Twin's Daughter by Lauren Baratz-Logsted

 

Title: The Twin's Daughter
Author: Lauren Baratz-Logsted
Release Date: January 14th 2014 (first published August 1st 2010)
Published By: Bloomsbury USA Children's
Page Amount: 390 pages, Paperback 

GoodReads Blurb:
Lucy is stunned when her mother's identical twin sister shows up at the front door. Separated at birth, the twins have led dramatically different lives and Lucy's mother, Aliese, will do anything to make it up to Helen. But Lucy soon suspects that Helen enjoys being mistaken for her mother a bit too much. Then, on New Year's Day, Lucy finds her mother tied to chairs in the parlor. One has been brutally murdered - but which twin has died? 

Review: 
This book was amazing!! Definitely one of my favorite books that I've read this year. 

This is another one of those books where I don't want to give too much away. This might be one of those reviews where you'll just have to trust me. I absolutely loved this book; so much. It kept me guessing the entire way through. I found the characters believable. There was not a lot of romance in this book, but it was there and I thought that it was very well done. I stayed up late into the night reading this book. I needed to know what happened. And I cursed aloud out of pure shock several times while reading this. Personally, I think that you should absolutely give this book a try. I give it 5 quills!! 

  

Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year!! I know that this post is late, but I always do it. I did alright with my New Year's Goals for 2014. I didn't complete all of them and they did get switched around, but that's okay. It happens sometimes. I did write the first draft of two books in 2014, so that's pretty good. Hopefully, I'll complete all of my 2015 Goals. And here they are:

2015 New Year's Goals:
1. Read 20 books in 2015.

2. Release My Heart is Yours.

3. Edit Beauty of the Dark and send to my critique partner.

4. Edit book 2 in my Beauty of the Dark trilogy and send to my critique partner.

5. Write the first draft of book 3 in my Beauty of the Dark trilogy.

6. Finally release that 'secret project' sometime this year.

Okay, those are all of my goals. What about you? Do you have any goals for 2015?

Monday, January 5, 2015

Book Blitz and Giveaway ~ The Darkest Part by Trisha Wolfe!!



It's FREE on Amazon
for a limited time!
January 1-5

New Adult - Mature Content




Pressing the boundaries of both the psyche and the heart, Sam and Holden embark on a dangerous journey that will test the limits of love.

Sam Wintry’s life used to be almost perfect. She was engaged to her childhood best friend and high school sweetheart, Tyler Marks, planning an amazing cross-country honeymoon during her college break. But after a hit-and-run leaves her in ruin, she begins seeing Tyler’s fractured, ghostly presence, and her family believes she’s losing her mind. Not until she completes their journey, stopping along the way to scatter Tyler's remains, will Tyler be able cross over. Only...is Sam ready for him to leave her?

When the black sheep of the Marks' family, Holden Marks, returns to check on Tyler's case, Sam convinces him to give her his brother's ashes. Despite their shaky history, she needs him...plus, he owes it to Sam and his brother. What she doesn’t count on is Holden’s relentlessness to go on the trip.

On the road, Holden realizes just how unhinged Sam has become. Dealing with her psychosis forces him to confront his dark past, making it harder to keep secrets hidden that should remain buried. Especially from Sam, the only woman he’s ever loved. And as Sam starts to unravel the truth, she begins to question if the brother she's unwillingly falling for again is in an even darker place than her. 





Excerpt

My feet race across the root- covered path, and when I reach her, I swallow hard. Rain water drips down her face, rolling over her full lips, and her black hair is slicked back. Like she just got out of the shower. I try to keep my gaze from drifting lower, but dammit. Her white shirt clings to her body, teasingly revealing the fact she’s either not wearing a bra, or she’s wearing a really thin one.

I’m instantly sporting a semi. I give myself a mental punch to the gut, clearing my thoughts. I don’t know how to start this. My mouth is dry, and if I had any words in my empty head before, they’re long gone. Maybe I misread her paint— 

Her arm snakes around my neck, pulling my shirt off my head, and I realize— like a dumbass— I’m still holding it above me. Her other hand goes to my stomach, and I suck in a sharp breath at the feel of her warm skin through the material. Her body presses against me, and it’s so delicate, fragile. She’s shaking. I want to hold her tight. Feel every bit of her. 

“What are we doing?” she asks, releasing a small, timid laugh. 

I swallow again. “I don’t know . . . but whatever it is, I don’t want to stop.” 

Heat blazes in her eyes, desire. And I try to remind myself that this is Sam. My next door neighbor, and the girl I’ve known since she was in diapers. But she’s far more mature than her years; she sees things clearer than anyone I’ve ever met— is more sultry than any woman I’ve ever seen. 

Shutting down my brain, I brush a wet lock of hair from her cheek. She gasps at my touch and bites down on her lip, and it’s my undoing. Gripping her soaking shirt, I pull her to me and press my lips to hers. 

It’s soft and questioning, us trying to figure out our beat. It’s nervous and unsure, but as her mouth parts to welcome me in, I dip my tongue inside the hollow of her mouth, taste the sweetness of her. When she matches me, her tongue sliding over mine, mingling, heat scorches the back of my throat. My pulse quickens as a tremor rocks me. 

She shivers in my arms, whether from the cold or the kiss, I’m not sure. But all I want to do is make her shiver more. And then warm her. I bend at the knees and grasp her thighs, lifting her into my arms. Something primal is taking over— driving out any hesitation. She latches her arms around my neck, locking her legs around my waist. 

I’m moving us forward or backward . . . I don’t know. But I feel the tree bark against my knuckles at some point, and I press Sam against it, her body molding to mine. Our kiss becomes crushing and hungry, and I’m suddenly desperate, scared for it to end. 

I’ve never opened myself up to anyone like this, especially a girl. I’ve made out with them and other things. Hell, I’m a guy. But with Sam . . . I know I’m vulnerable now. I can feel her reaching in and taking up residency in my soul. 
It’s painful and pleasurable and scary as hell. 

Thunder cracks above, the rain beats down, but we’re lost beneath a black dead tree— feeling alive.








The Series...


The Darkest Part - Goodreads | Amazon
Losing Track - Goodreads | Amazon
Fading Out - Goodreads | Pre-Order
Bad Road - Goodreads | Available mid 2015




The Giveaway...


Tell us what you think about one of the Living Heartwood books and be entered to WIN a $50 Amazon Gift Card!



The Author...


From an early age, Trisha Wolfe dreamed up fantasy worlds and characters and was accused of talking to herself. Today, she lives in South Carolina with her family and writes full time, using her fantasy worlds as an excuse to continue talking to herself.