Sunday Salon: My First Three Books of the New Year

Becoming,

I recently started reading this, my second book of the year, and am enjoying it tremendously, especially since I am familiar with the place in which Michele Obama grew up - the south side of Chicago, including Hyde Park where I lived for over 10 years.

The memoir is not just of a woman who became the First Lady of the United States, but is also the story of a middle class Black family in Chicago and children who grew up to succeed. It is also a romance, between Michelle and Barack Obama, before their lives became entrenched in the political. I can't wait to get to that part.

My first book of the year, completed, was

Killing Commendatore

Murakami's book is another of his fantasies. It drew me in, in the same way a pit in the back of the narrator's house drew him in and led him on to voyages reminiscent of  Dante's Underworld and the crossing of the river Styx.

The above two books, memoir and fantasy/magical realism, couldn't be more different, but I like them both and find them a great way to start off my reading in 2019.

My third book of the year, which I've already begun, is

In Dog We Trust

This is turning out to be a more traditional kind of romance. It's about dogs and their owner, a young woman thrust into the limelight of becoming caretaker and co-trustee of  three famous and valuable show dogs. Her job comes with a seaside mansion that only she has access to. Along the way, she seems likely to meet the man of her dreams. This is delightful light reading. My review.

What are your first books this year?

The Sunday Post  hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer,
It's Monday, What Are You Reading? by Book Date.

  

Mailbox Monday: Romance and Fantasy

A new romance novel and a children's fantasy novel are among my new reads this week.

Combining a captivating romance with a cast of all too human characters, “It Ends with Us” will be published August 2, 2016. It is an unforgettable tale of love that comes at the ultimate price. (publisher)

When the Sea Turned to Silver is a children's fantasy written and illustrated by Newbery Honor author Grace Lin. It will be published October 16, 2016. A breathtaking, full-color illustrated fantasy inspired by Chinese folklore, a companion to the Newbery Honor winner Where the Mountain Meets the Moon (publisher)

What is new in your mailbox this week?
Visit Mailbox Monday to see what new books other bloggers have received the past week. 

Book Spotlight: BLOODLINES - AWAKENING by K.D. Harris

Bibliophile By the Sea hosts First Chapter, First Paragraph every Tuesday. Share the first paragraph(s) of your current read or book interest, with information for readers. Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.

BLOODLINES - AWAKENING Prequel to Medusa from the Lark Song Chronicles by KD Harris, published February 20, 2016 by Xlibris. Genre: YA fiction, fantasy

KD Harris' new novel immerses readers in Caribbean mysticism and young adult adventure, fantasy

Prologue, first paragraphs:

Though Cora's and Charlie's day together was coming to an end, they intended to squeeze every last drop from the time they had left. The two, though nineteen and twenty, though appearing to be no more than twelve, sat side by side on the bus, surrounded by other individuals, conversation and music.

The song playing on the bus's radio was "Boom, Shaka Laka," the hit song by Hopeton Lewis. It was 1970, and that was the winning festival song for Jamaica's independence celebrations. Some were moving to the beat and singing along....

First chapter, first paragraphs:

Charlie's first memories were of his grandmother, Matilda Wright, Mattie, or Miss Mattie,whom he called Gmaa. She was his world. 

He lived with her in the small country village of Maggoty, in the parish of St. Elizabeth, on the south coast of the island of Jamaica.  

Charles never knew his father. He had died before the boy was born. Charles' mother, Agatha Wright, otherwise known as Mumaa, Agatta, or Gatta, would come to see Charles on Saturdays at his grandmother's house.  

Agatha looked very much like her mother, Miss Mattie. They both had dark skin, broad faces and bright smiles. They were stocky in build and had bright shiny black hair. They both usually wore their hair in the same way - one plait which hung to their waists. The hair was inherited from Gamaa's father who was of East Indian descent. 

    From the publisher: 

"BLOODLINES – AWAKENING” focuses on two children - Cora and Charlie - growing up in two incredible families in rural Jamaica. Some members of these families can make things disappear into nothingness, others seem to effortlessly kill and maim at will. Thrown into this mix, there are loving relationships but also domestic abuse and neglect. Harris uses a combination of Jamaican patois and standard English to introduce the reader to Jamaica's intoxicating sights, sounds, smells and tastes, transporting them to a magical world where paranormal events are not that unusual, and wonder and danger become almost indistinguishable. 

More information about this novel and other books in the LARK SONG CHRONICLES, visit BloodLines - Awakening or Harris's first book, Medusa: The Beginning

About the Author

“Bloodlines” is KD Harris’ second novel. Her first, “Medusa: The Beginning,” published in 2007, received rave reviews. Since then, she has written six more novels and a miniseries for TV. This second novel, though penned for young adults, will also attract the young at heart who delight in seeing wrongs made right and do not mind shedding a few tears or having a good laugh. Harris has authored short stories, poetry and plays which were performed by local drama groups. She is a regular contributor to the blog Four Friends and Their Friends. 

Harris was born and grew up in Kingston, Jamaica. Attending university in the United States, she graduated with a Ph.D. in higher education. Excerpts of her writing can be viewed online at Medusa the Beginning by Kathi Harris, and in Kathi Harris’s Book Corner, also on the blog Four Friends and Their Friends. This author lives with her family in Ohio.

“BLOODLINES - AWAKENING”

By KD Harris

Hardcover | 6 x 9in | 328 pages | ISBN 9781514433683

Softcover | 6 x 9in | 328 pages | ISBN 9781514432457

E-Book | 328 pages | ISBN 9781514431931

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

Book Review: The Ghost Bride by Yangsze Choo

The Ghost Bride

Title: The Ghost Bride by Yangsze Choo
Published August 5, 2014; William Morrow Paperbacks
Genre: historical fiction, fantasy

"Tell you what," said Fan. " If you wish to go to the Plains of the Dead, I'll show you the way. For a price." (ch. 13)

The plot: A young Chinese woman, Li Lan, in colonial Malaya of 1893, is promised to the wealthy Lim family as a ghost bride for their dead son, so that he may still bring pride to his family.   However, the young woman is in love with the dead son's cousin, Tian Bai, who is very much alive.

She is distraught by the dead son's haunting her in her dreams and takes too much medicine by mistake, lapsing into a coma. Her spirit leaves her comatose body and enters a gate to the underworld, where she encounters the spirit of her dead mother in the Plains of Death. She also meets the ghost Fan, who is to play an important role in the outcome of her wanderings, and falls under the spell of a mysterious and handsome spirit, Er Lang. Er Lang enlists her help for a task in the underworld and later gives Li Lan the energy or qi she needs to stay connected and not to disappear completely from the physical and spiritual worlds.

I have perhaps given too much away about the plot, but be assured there is much more to the book than my brief synopsis.

My comments: I loved the imagination of the author who created this world of wandering spirits and ghosts, combining aspects of Buddhist philosophy of death, punishment, and reincarnation, with the Christian hell as seen in Dante's Inferno, and the Chinese traditional beliefs in the fate of the dead who are not buried and provided for in the afterlife by their living relatives.

Chinese mythology, Buddhist and faint echoes of Christian beliefs seem to mingle in this world that Li Lan wanders into and out of, with the help of other spirits. The plot also holds suspense, as Li Lan helps Er Lang to find evidence of wrongdoing among the underworld spirits, evidence to convict and detain them, depriving them of freedom in the underworld and freeing her from the haunting spirit of the dead son, her would-be ghost husband. I was also reminded of the Greek myth of Orpheus's visit to the underworld to bring back his dead wife, Eurydice.

Recommendation: If you love fantasy, adventure, a mystery, mythology, romance and magic, this is a book I would recommend wholeheartedly. My rating: 5 of 5 stars.

Visit the book's TLC tour schedule for other reviews.

Yangsze Choo is a fourth-generation Malaysian of Chinese descent. She lives in California with her husband and their two children, and loves to eat and read (often at the same time). The Ghost Bride was the Shirley Jackson Award Nominee for Best Novel (2013) and the Goodreads Choice Nominee for Fantasy (2013).

Connect with the author on Facebook or on her website

Thanks to TLC Book Tours and the publisher for a review copy of the book.

Book Tour: The Collector of Dying Breaths by M.J. Rose

"It is with irony now, forty years later, to think that if I had not been called a murderer on the most frightening night of my life, there might not be any perfume in Paris today. And that scent—to which I gave my all and which gave me all the power and riches I could have hoped for—is at the heart of why now it is I who call myself a murderer."
From The Collector of Dying Breaths


“When nothing else subsists from the past, after the people are dead, after the things are broken and scattered...the smell and taste of things remain poised a long time, like souls...bearing resiliently, on tiny and almost impalpable drops of their essence, the immense edifice of memory.”  ―Marcel Proust 

Title: The Collector of Dying Breaths by M.J. Rose
Published April 8, 2014; Atria

My comments: Definitely a book for those who enjoy fantasy in novels of reincarnation, romance, and history. I can see its appeal for lovers of magic and romance. It's a novel those who do not normally read fantasy might have to be in a particular mood for, however. But it is rich in historical detail and setting and highly recommended in its genre.

Publisher description:
A lush and imaginative novel that crisscrosses time as a perfumer and a mythologist search for the fine line between potion and poison, poison and passion…and past and present.

 Florence, Italy—1533: An orphan named René le Florentin is plucked from poverty to become Catherine de Medici’s perfumer. Traveling with the young duchessina from Italy to France, René brings with him a cache of secret documents from the monastery where he was trained: recipes for exotic fragrances and potent medicines—and a formula for an alchemic process said to have the potential to reanimate the dead. In France, René becomes not only the greatest perfumer in the country but the most dangerous, creating deadly poisons for his Queen to use against her rivals. But while mixing herbs and essences under the light of flickering candles, Rene doesn’t begin to imagine the tragic and personal consequences for which his lethal potions will be responsible.

 Paris, France—The Present: A renowned mythologist, Jac L’Etoile, is trying to recover from personal heartache by throwing herself into her work, learns of the 16th century perfumer who may have been working on an elixir that would unlock the secret to immortality. She becomes obsessed with René le Florentin’s work—particularly when she discovers the dying breaths he had collected during his lifetime. Jac’s efforts put her in the path of her estranged lover, Griffin North, a linguist who has already begun translating René le Florentin’s mysterious formula. Together they confront an eccentric heiress in possession of a world-class art collection. A woman who has her own dark purpose for the elixir… a purpose for which she believes the ends will justify her deadly means. This mesmerizing gothic tale of passion and obsession crisscrosses time, zigzagging from the violent days of Catherine de Medici’s court to twenty-first century France. Fiery and lush, set against deep, wild forests and dimly lit chateaus, The Collector of Dying Breaths illuminates the true path to immortality: the legacies we leave behind

Thanks to Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours for a review copy of this book. Click on the link for more tour stops and reviews.

M.J. Rose is the international best selling author of fourteen novels and two non-fiction books on marketing. Her fiction and non-fiction has appeared in many magazines and reviews including Oprah Magazine. She has been featured in the New York Times, Newsweek, Time, USA Today and on the Today Show, and NPR radio. Rose graduated from Syracuse University, spent the ’80s in advertising, has a commercial in the Museum of Modern Art in NYC and since 2005 has run the first marketing company for authors – Authorbuzz.com. The television series PAST LIFE, was based on Rose’s novels in the Renincarnationist series. She is one of the founding board members of International Thriller Writers and runs the blog- Buzz, Balls & Hype. She is also the co-founder of Peroozal.com and BookTrib.com.

Rose lives in CT with her husband, the musician and composer, Doug Scofield, and their very spoiled and often photographed dog, Winka.

For more information on M.J. Rose and her novels, please visit her website. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads.

It's Monday: What's in Your Mailbox?

It's Monday, What Are You Reading is a weekly meme hosted by Book Journey.
Yolanda of Notorious Spinks Talks Books hosts Mailbox Monday this month.

Received last week: This one reminds me of the real-life scandal surrounding the Bolshoi Ballet not too long ago.

Title: Dancer Daughter Traitor Spy: A Novel by Elizabeth Kiem, August 13, 2013; Soho Teen.
Book description: "A new breed of spy novel combines classic thrills, Bolshoi intrigue, and elements of the paranormal.

Marina is born of privilege. Her mother, Sveta, is the Soviet Union's prima ballerina and an international star. But Sveta is afflicted with a mysterious second sight and becomes obsessed with exposing a horrific state secret. Then she disappears.

Fearing for their lives, Marina and her father defect to Brooklyn, where Marina is a dancer at Juilliard. But her enigmatic partner, Sergei, makes concentration almost impossible, as does the fact that Marina shares her mother's “gift,” and has a vision of her father’s murder at the hands of the Russian crooks and con artists she thought they'd left behind. Now Marina must deal with her mother's disappearance, her ability, and exactly whom she can—and can't—trust." (publisher)

I have been receiving a few teen novels recently and must admit, this one does look good, as does this other from last week,

Relic by Heather Terrell, to be published October 29, 2013 is a combination of fantasy and dystopia about a "civilization built on lies and the girl who single-handedly brings it down."

Current reads include
Old Man River: The Mississippi River in North American History, "an account of how the Mississippi shaped America,"
Good Prose: The Art of Nonfiction by Tracy Kidder and Richard Todd.
I finished last week:
Reese's Leap: An Island Mystery by Darcy Scott, for a book tour this week.

What are you reading and what arrived in the mail last week?

If you are having trouble leaving a comment, click on Book Dilettante and try again.

New Books for Review

A few books and ARCs/galleys arrived for review. Here is a preview.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane  by Neil Gaiman
Publication date: June 18, 2013; William Morrow
Genre: fantasy, magic
Publisher description:
A fable that reshapes modern fantasy.
It began for our narrator forty years ago when the family lodger stole their car and committed suicide in it, stirring up ancient powers best left undisturbed. Dark creatures from beyond the world are on the loose, and it will take everything our narrator has just to stay alive. 

His only defense is three women, on a farm at the end of the lane. The youngest of them claims that her duckpond is an ocean. The oldest can remember the Big Bang. 

I don't normally read magical novels or fantasy, but this one seems unusual.

The Whistling Past the Graveyard by Susan Crandall
Publication date: July 2, 2013: Gallery Books
Genre: coming of age fiction
Publisher: 
A wise and tender coming-of-age story about a nine-year-old girl who runs away from her Mississippi home in 1963, befriends a lonely woman suffering loss and abuse, and embarks on a life-changing roadtrip.

I've seen this story line before in several Southern novels but I'm eager to see where this one goes. 

More Bitter Than Death by Camilla Grebe and Asa Traff
Publication date: June 18, 2013; Simon and Schuster
Genre: thriller. Scandinavian crime novel
Publisher:
Five-year-old Tilde witnesses the death of her mother by an unknown man. The novel focuses on domestic abuse...the search for healing and the ability to love again are soon transformed into a hunt for Tilde’s mother’s killer.

I've liked Scandinavian thrillers, especially those  by Larsson and Adler-Olsen. These are new  authors to me. 









A Dangerous Fiction by Barbara Rogan
Publication date: July 25, 2013; Viking Adult
Genre: mystery
Publisher:
A publishing mystery that introduces Jo Donovan, literary agent-cum-detective, in a new series by the author. Jo has to face a stalker as well as an old flame, NYPD detective, Tommy Cullen.

This seems to be a mix of mystery and romance, a great combination.

The Prodigal: A Novel by Michael Hurley
Published June 1, 2013; Ragbagger Press
Genre: adventure, suspense, romance
Publisher: 
A cross-genre novel of religious mystery, suspense and adventure about a disbarred lawyer, trying to rebuild his life on Ocracoke Island, who finds love and destiny when an old schooner with a mysterious past drifts ashore. "The supernatural elements—a religious relic, a gypsy woman out of legend—depict island and nautical life.” (Kirkus Review)


This one is for those who love being on the water. 






Josh Whoever by Michael Guillebeau
Published March 20, 2013; Five Star
Genre: adventure, thriller
Publisher: 
Josh is forced into the role of hero in the Army, walks away from the fame and becomes a small-time con man with a drinking problem. His latest scam convinces the Russian mob he is a private detective who can find Mother Romanov's missing daughter, Kiev....He needs to save the girl, stay sober, and keep his idetity hidden - or die.

Reads like a modern day swashbuckler.

The new mystery novels that keep coming out are always amazing to me. I also enjoy books that involve children as the main characters who learn new things and overcome odds. 

Thanks to the authors and publishers for the galleys/books for review. What did you get in your review box recently?

Mailbox Monday and It's Monday: What Are You Reading, Feb. 4

It's Monday: What Are You Reading is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.

Mailbox Monday is being hosted by Unabridged Chick this month.

Check out both blogs and add yours!

I am most of the way through The Aviator's Wife, an emotional but well written book that I received a few weeks ago and am taking in small doses.

I never thought I'd be reading a YA fantasy/vampire novel, except for those written by Meg Cabot, but I've started The Lost Soul: a 666 Park Avenue Novel.  I missed the first two in the series, but I can still follow this one.  Publisher's summary: "Jane Boyle discovered her mother-in-law Lynne Doran is actually a powerful, ancient witch who prolongs her life over time by inhabiting the bodies of younger women! As Jane and her friends attempt to tap into power stronger than Lynne's, Jane's estranged husband Malcom arrives to join the fight ...but can she grow to trust him before it's too late?" I'm enjoying this one as the story is well written. Must be the child/YA in me!

Another witchy book that appeared on my doorsteps is Shattered Circle by Linda Robertson, with modern witch Persephone, a werewolf boyfriend, and a seductive vampire as the main characters. Sounds a bit over the top for me!

The Stonecutter by Camilla Lackberg is a book I can easily predict I'll like. It's by a well known Swedish crime writer, whose main characters - a local detective and his girlfriend - suspect that the drowning of their little girl is the result of black secrets in their quiet fishing village. Sounds suspenseful.

Another mystery I've received is Ring Around the Rosy by Jackie Fullerton. A law student and her attorney fiancé leave their Midwestern town for a holiday in Florida, only to be faced with a murder they have to solve.

That should be enough to keep me busy this week and more..... What did you get in the mail or are reading this week?

Book Feature/YA Fantasy: Last Kiss in Venice

Title: Last Kiss in Venice (Legend of the White Snake #1)
Author: Martin Chu Shui
EBook, 189 pages; July 11, 2012
Genre: fantasy, YA, martial arts

"In the misty valley of the Er Mei Mountain, after the young and handsome scholar had rescued Caitlin from the eagle’s talons and started talking to her as if she was a human girl, she wondered how it was possible that she understood his words. Perhaps she just had natural ability to understand human words, or maybe instead of understanding the words, she received the messages by observing the scholar’s emotion and body language. No matter how she was able to do it, the result was the same: Caitlin, then the three-foot-long white snake, knew exactly what the scholar was talking about." (from Last Kiss in Venice)

Book description: “Last Kiss in Venice” is a reinterpretation of one of China’s most famous love stories, ‘Legend of the White Snake’. It combines eastern and western culture to tell a story of love and hate, loyalty and betrayal, revenge and justice. It is a supernatural love epic that combines magic and sword fighting in a timeless legend.

Beside a bridge over a canal in Venice, Charlie is spellbound by a girl he has just met, by Caitlin’s absolute beauty and also by what seems like a mythical bond between them. As they admit their love for each other in Paris, then move to settle down in Australia together, it looks like the start of Happily Ever After. But neither of them realizes that this is just the start of a heart-wrenching journey.

After a lifetime of searching, Caitlin finally finds her true love, settles down in the beautiful rolling countryside of outback Australia, and starts to raise a family, but her enemy is never far away. She loves Charlie deeply but can never reveal her secret; he must never know who she really is, and that is her downfall. Information in the hands of her enemy brings her life crashing down around her. To save all she has worked for, she must fight for the right to survive.(based on goodreads)

Martin Chu Shui of Australia has written two other martial arts fantasy novels, Dragon's Pupils: The Sword Guest, and Dragon's Pupils: The Peak. This is his third YA novel.

Book Review: Timeless Desire by Gwyn Cready

Timeless Desire

Title: Timeless Desire: An Outlander Love Story by Gwyn Cready
Paperback; Kindle; July 18, 2012
Genre: time travel, paranormal romance
About the book: Panna Kennedy, a  young widow and librarian, enters an obscure, pad-locked door in the Pittsburgh library where she works, and finds herself in 18th century England, in the rooms of handsome Colonel John Bridgewater. Bridgewater is not the English war hero Panna expects him to be, however. He’s under house arrest in his castle for betraying England, and sees Panna's sudden appearance as proof she has been sent to spy on him.

Bridgewater nonetheless warms to Panna, and pulls her into his plans to escape. Panna is thrown into a whirlwind of intrigue, sweeping her from Hadrian’s Wall to a forbidding stone castle in Scotland. Panna has to decide whether to remain loyal to her dead husband, or to side with this attractive man from the past whose life now depends on her. (based on the book description)

My comments: I have read most of Cready's time travel romances and liked them all, including Seducing Mr. Darcy, which I described as a combination of Jane Austen and Shakespeare's  Comedy of Errors and as an intriguing time travel fantasy and an erotic romantic comedy.

 The librarian Panna is a more subdued, more mature version of the main characters in Cready's earlier travel romances and her new heroine is less risque.  There is less of the wit in Timeless Desire though it is surprisingly still very "sexy" in parts. Timeless Desire is a very entertaining read for those who like fantasy, intrigue, and romance.

Gwyn Cready is a RITA Award Winner (Best Paranormal Romance 2009) and the author of several romances including Tumbling Through Time and Seducing Mr. Darcy. Gwyn has been called, "the master of time travel romance," and her writing described as “sexy,” “delightfully original” and “wickedly witty.” Timeless Desire is her latest foray into the time travel genre and men in kilts. She still finds both eminently satisfying. Gwyn lives in Pittsburgh with her family.

Thanks to the publisher for an ARC of this novel.

Guest Post by Amy Lignor author of The Angel Chronicles

Title: Until Next Time: The Angel Chronicles by Amy Lignor
Publisher: Tribute Books (January 24, 2012) ; eBook

"A True Inspiration" by AMY LIGNOR

I was thrilled when I was asked to be a part of this blog and tell readers how Emily and Matt - the angel/warrior team - came into being. According to Webster, inspiration is a stimulation for the human mind to do creative work. But where does the stimulation come from? Not to sound hokey, but mine came from finding a best friend at a time when I really needed one.

Thirteen is the age where the whole world looks like a real mess. (It’s not until later in life that we come to KNOW the world is a real mess. But losing someone I loved at that age was devastating to me because he was my best friend. Up until that moment I’d been writing stories about history and mythology. My mom was a research librarian and she passed along the love of old legends, but when my grandfather left my life, things changed. I actually began to wonder about angels, such as: if they were real, why on earth would they come to this messed-up place?

I wanted to know where Grandpa was and if he was doing okay, and my dreams turned away from Mount Olympus and ended up in a very grand library. I loved that place - it had every book known to mankind; groups of eager looking students walking around; a few adults who seemed to be ‘watching’ carefully; and a young boy named Matt.

Matt was my age and was hysterical. He would sit and talk to me in that library and I always thought we’d get kicked out for being too loud. But he ‘showed me around’ and spoke a great deal about his training and what he was waiting for - the chance to come ‘down’ and have a life. He was all excited about adventure, and when I would speak about how awful it was, he would just smile and say that he wanted a chance at a life - a chance to fight, defend…maybe even fall in love. That’s how Matt became a reality for me - a spark of imagination that helped lead me through the troubled time of losing my grandfather.

Years later when I lost my father, Matt returned, and I finally knew that the world should meet him and his partner. They should see their journeys through life - the people they had to defend, save…even the people they had to take. I wanted readers to know about what I saw and how different everything was from what is ‘in print,’ and how there was fun, laughter, lighthearted sarcasm at times - and the real difference between their lot in life and ours.

I’ve worked on The Angel Chronicles for a while now, and over time I’ve gone back to edit, change, add - a writer never stops, as all writers out there will tell you. There’s always something that can be ‘tweaked’ as time goes on. But I was absolutely thrilled when the YA world began accepting the ‘winged ones.’ The ‘fanged ones’ had been all the rage for so long that it was nice to see an angel take charge once in a while (LOL).

Emily and Matt will never ‘fall’ into the ‘fallen’ category. They are a team that come from a place where things make sense, and enter into a world where they could be torn apart by the emotions - good and evil - that they find surrounding them all of a sudden. But the one thing they will always have is another chance. And, to me, that has to be one of the greatest gifts anyone could possibly ever receive. Until Next Time, as well as the others in this series, are a true inspiration to me, and I hope readers will find them to be their new ‘best friends’ when they head out on the adventures that this angel/warrior team take!

Thank you for giving them a spot on your site, and in your lives!

Until Next Time, Everybody.
Amy


*****

Until Next Time: The Angel Chronicles, Book 1 Summary

How does a girl choose between the one who steals her heart and the one who owns her soul?

Matt and Emily were created for a specific job. Raised and trained as the ultimate angel/warrior team, they are sent down to save, defend, judge and forgive, depending on the 'life' they've been assigned. What they don't realize is that the power of human emotions, such as love, anger, passion and fear can take over even the best of souls, causing them to make mistakes and follow paths that lead to confusion and heartache.

When the reason for their training is finally revealed, the angel/warrior team find themselves thrust into a world they know nothing about. Matt takes over the life of Daniel, a young man with a great deal of baggage. Emily becomes Liz, a girl living in a remote village who relies on nothing more than her own strength to survive. A violent storm erupts one night, and framed in the window of Liz's establishment is a frightening face. Let in by the soul of a Good Samaritan, the two visitors bring with them a past full of secrets that could literally change an angel's path and a warrior's plans.

From murder to redemption, this angel/warrior team must find a way to keep the faith they have in each other in a world that's ripping them apart.

Author Bio:

Amy Lignor, who lives in New Mexico, began her career at Grey House Publishing in Connecticut where she was the Editor-in-Chief of educational and business directories. She also owns The Write Companion, which offers writers a full range of editorial services. She has published several works of fiction.

The guest post and book tour are hosted by Tribute Books Blog Tours.
For more interviews, guest posts, and reviews of the book, visit http://the-angel-chronicles.blogspot.com/

Dragon's Pupils: The Peaks by Martin Chu Shui

 Here are the opening sentences for the fantasy YA novel,Dragon's Pupils: The Peaks (Dragon's Pupils Series Book 2). Opening sentences can reveal the tone of a novel and give readers the flavor of a book.

"A group of shadowy figures swiftly negotiated their way among the giant gum trees. In silence, gliding over the green moss and rotten vegetation that covered earth, they approached the lone farm house situated at the edge of a large forest.

 Underneath the thick blanket of midnight’s darkness, their black-clothed bodies were almost invisible. Walking around the house and carefully avoiding the faint light emitted from the windows, they peeked inside: Around a desk, two teenage girls were reading books beside a pair of flickering candles.

One of the ghostly figures turned around scanning the surroundings one more time and then nodded to the others. Rising from the shadows suddenly, he strode towards the house.

With a loud cracking noise, he broke down the front wooden door with one powerful kick." (Part I)

Title: Dragon's Pupils: The Peaks by Martin Chu Shui
Kindle Edition , Dec. 3, 2011
Genre: fantasy, YA, martial arts

Product description: " Powerful and invincible they ride across vast desert landscapes, hunting and slaying vampires under the cover of night. Jian Ke, the sword guests are more famous than ever! Admired by millions of TV fans around the nation as they pursue a life of action and adventure: a splendid tapestry depicting Liz, Henry and Sue at the top of their game. With her paintbrush in hand Liz is prepared to take on a hoard of vampires, an army of aliens and even her first kiss from the man of her dreams, Sue’s handsome older brother.

Life couldn’t be better until everything falls to pieces. Liz must now face her biggest fears as the world she once knew slips through her fingers. No-one will be left untouched by the chaos which ensues. Armed only with her knowledge of Tai Chi, Liz must fight for what she has lost and begin the climb of her life. An unforgettable journey will take her to the Peaks.

Dragon's Pupils - The Peaks the second instalment of the Dragon’s Pupils series, follows the drama of Liz’s life as she fights monsters, wields magic and longs for forbidden love. It is a journey which will take you through Australia’s most beautiful landscapes and ultimately witnesses the transformation Liz undergoes, as she rises to meet her latest challenge."

I received a review copy of the ebook.

Book Review: Cinder (Lunar Chronicles, Book 1) by Marissa Meyer

Title: Cinder (Book One in the Lunar Chronicles) by Marissa Meyer
Reading level: Ages 12 and up
Hardcover: 400 pages; Feiwel & Friends
Release date: January 3, 2012
Objective rating: 5/5

I wasn't sure about this reworking of the Cinderella fairy tale, but I was hooked by the cover and by the opening sentences. I wanted to know more about this futuristic version, a Cyborg Cinderella.

"The screw through Cinder's ankle had rusted, the engraved cross marks worn to a mangled circle. Her knuckles ached from forcing the screwdriver into the joint as she struggled to loosen the screw one gritting twist after another. By the time it was extracted far enough for her to wrench free with her prosthetic steel hand, the hairline threads had been stripped clean." (from an uncorrected proof. Final copy may differ).

Cinder is virtually enslaved to her wicked stepmother, selling cyborg parts and repairing robots in the open market to make money for the household. Things begin to change for her when the Prince comes to her market stall wanting someone to fix his antiquated android. She catches his eye but Cinder is determined to hide her steel hand and foot from him, fearing rejection. Cinder, however, is only 35% cyborg, fixed and renewed with mechanical parts as a very young child after surviving a house fire that killed her real mother. She knows little about her parents or her past, just that her stepfather, now deceased, had been responsible for saving her, mending her, and bringing her home to his family.

The Prince in the meantime befriends Cinder, his "mechanic", hoping she will help him avoid the beautiful but dreaded Lunar Queen, queen of the moon people, who is determined to forge an alliance with Earth through marriage to the Prince. The real conflict and danger for Cinder is not her stepmother, as in the original fairy tale, but this queen who uses magic and "glamour" to control and manipulate everyone who sees her.

Comments: The well-written and entertaining book shows how Cinder escapes dangers after finding out her true identity. I was totally entranced with this futuristic version of the Cinderella story, and I am way past being a teenager or young adult, the targeted audience. I recommend it for its highly imaginative plot, which made it very enjoyable reading.

GIVEAWAY of the Audio CD: enter now through Jan. 3, 2012 at this link: Enter to win the Audio CD of Cinder.

 A complimentary ARE of this book was sent me for possible review

© Harvee Lau  of Book Dilettante. Please do not reprint without permission.

Book Review: Dragon's Pupils - the Sword Guest by Martin Chu Shui

Title: Dragon's Pupil - the Sword Guest
Author: Martin Chu Shui

Publisher:  BookPal, 300 pages paperback or Kindle 

Publication date: July 27, 2009

Genre: martial arts adventure, YA

Rating: 4/5

The chief monk raised his hand for quiet. "Master Zhang, as the chief monk of Anie temple, I formally request that you paint the dragons' pupils."

Zhang looked at the endless blue sky for a long time, and then sighed. :"All right, I'll do it, but be prepared." Taking out his calligraphy pen, he made four rapid strokes on the wall.

As soon as the pupils appeared in the dragons' eyes, they winked and twisted their whiskers a bit....The two dragons shook themselves and leapt into sky, against the heavy grey rain. There was a roar of wind and a howl of thunder, and they disappeared into the dark clouds. (Prologue)

I enjoyed the Tai Chi and martial arts action scenes almost as much as I enjoyed the stories that Henry and Liz's father told them, stories from old China that explained many of the martial arts movements and one aspect of ancient Chinese culture. I can see this being made into a film as the fights using Qi force and energy and Tai Chi movements are described in fascinating detail. A good book that also explains Chinese culture in terms of its history of fighting based on the philosophy of the Tao, and its legends that include a calligraphy pen which paints scenes that come to life. Definitely a book for YA readers and martial arts movie fans.

Martin Chu Shui describes his book as an adventure fantasy that combines both the ancient and the modern, the East and the West. There are dragons as well as vampires, protagonists that fly through the air, as well as those realistically portrayed. As I said before too, I enjoyed the stories from the ancients that the author uses throughout the book. I think the novel is a mixture of the literary with fantasy.

Product description: The story centers on Liz, born of half Australian and of half Chinese descent. Growing up in Australia, she isn’t very interested in her father’s ancient Chinese stories. She is concerned with problems that are far more contemporary — such as environmental issues, and particularly her friend’s handsome brother who is an environmental activist. But her disinterest in Chinese culture changes when her two worlds collide, after a catastrophic accident sets thousands of ancient monsters loose near her home.

Suddenly Liz must learn many new skills and call on all of her Chinese heritage if she is to prevent the monsters from destroying Earth. Helped by her twin brother and best friend, Liz sets out to discover why the monsters exist and how to stop them. When she is injured in a battle, she must travel to China to seek a cure that is spiritual as much as it is physical. But can she find the old man who can help her before the monsters catch her? How will she manage in a country that is so strange and yet so familiar? And can she learn enough about a world she has ignored to stop the monsters in time?

About the author: Martin Chu Shui lives in Australia with his wife and two children.

I bought this novel from the Kindle store.

Book Review: Insatiable by Meg Cabot

Title: Insatiable
Author: Meg Cabot
Paperback: 464 pages
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks; Reprint edition (June 7, 2011)
Genre: fantasy, fiction
Source: review copy from publisher
Objective rating: 4.5/5

Summary: The main character, Meena Harper, writes dialogue for the television soap opera, Insatiable. She  becomes upset when the producers decide the story line should now include vampires, the current craze among young adult viewers. Little does Meena know that she is soon to meet and fall for a prince, the King of all vampires, Lucien Antonescu. Lucien is in New York City to hunt down rogue vampires who have broken his rules not to kill humans.

Lucien puts Meena and others he knows in danger during his hunt for these wayward vampires. An "ancient society of vampire hunters" is also determined to put a stake through the heart of  Lucien and all of his kind. Things get pretty exciting during the course of the novel!

Comments: I'm not normally a reader of fantasy or vampire books, but I found Insatiable very entertaining - the storytelling and writing, the characters and the engaging plot. There is enough romance to interest romance readers, action to please thriller readers, and a lot there to satisfy fantasy and vampire addicts. The author also pokes a little good humored fun at the traditional vampire romances as she spins her own tale of fantasy.

Dark Prince by Christine Feehan: Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays asks you to choose two sentences at random from your current read. Identify the author and title for readers.

How does one control one's nature, little one?
He saw her smile even as it filled his emptiness, as it registered in his heart and lungs and sent his blood soaring. (p. 9)

Title: Dark Prince: Author's Cut Special Edition
Author: Christine Feehan
Hardcover: 496 pages
Publisher: William Morrow; Special edition (March 8, 2011)
Genre: Fantasy, romance
Source: Publisher

Product description:
"Mikhail Dubrinsky is the prince of the Carpathians, the powerful leader of a wise and secret ancient race that thrives in the night. Engulfed by despair, fearful of never finding the mate who can save him from the encroaching darkness, his soul cries out in loneliness—until the day that a beautiful voice full of light and love responds, softly soothing his pain and yearning.

A telepathic hunter of serial killers, Raven Whitney helps to catch some of the most depraved criminals. But her work keeps her from getting close to others, and has drained her body and spirit. In need of rest and rejuvenation, she embarks for a vacation far from home.

From the moment they meet, Raven and Mikhail are helpless to resist the desire that sparks between them. But just as fate unexpectedly brings these life mates together, malevolent forces threaten to destroy them and their fragile love. Yet even if they survive, how can these two lovers—Carpathian and human—build a future together? And how can Mikhail bring Raven into his dark world without extinguishing her beautiful goodness and light?"

Comments: One of  several fantasy books that I have enjoyed. The fantasy and adventure combined with a love story, the sympathetic character of the despairing Mikhail, and the writing grabbed my attention immediately. I'm looking forward to more books in this and in her other series.

Author: Chrisine Feehan is a New York Times bestselling author with more than 40 published novels, including four series that have hit number one on the NYT bestselling list. More information: http://www.christinefeehan.com/