Pick of the Week and Review

What can I say? Today is a big day. Nalini Singh‘s 12th (how did that happen?!?) Guild Hunter book, Archangel’s War, was released today. We will get hauled off the cliff we were all left hanging on after the end of Archangel’s Prophecy and find out what happened to Elena and Raphael. I think I could use a re-read of the last book to get ready, honestly, but we will see if I have the patience to wait. Maybe. Anyways, Doug Meeks was kind enough to send over his review for Archangel’s War, as well, so I thought I would do a two-fer post covering both my pick and Doug’s thoughts on it.

Synopsis…

Wings of silver. Wings of blue. Mortal heart. Broken dreams. Shatter. Shatter. Shatter. A sundering. A grave. I see the end. I see. . .

The world is in chaos as the power surge of the Cascade rises to a devastating crescendo. In furiously resisting its attempts to turn Elena into a vessel for Raphael’s power, Elena and her archangel are irrevocably changed. . .far beyond the prophecy of a cursed Ancient.

At the same time, violent and eerie events around the world threaten to wipe out entire populations. And in the Archangel Lijuan’s former territory, an unnatural fog weaves through the land, leaving only a bone-chilling silence in its wake. Soon it becomes clear that even the archangels are not immune to this deadly evil. This time, even the combined power of the Cadre may not be enough. . .

This war could end them all.

What Doug said…

This is the book the last few have been leading up to and it did not disappoint for me but as some have mentioned it does kind of drag you through the mud for many pages before an ultimate ending that made me check to be sure the series had not just ended.

The world is headed towards war and nothing can stop it, there are battles and horrors but the majority of the Cadre of archangels are trying to prepare to stop an unstoppable enemy and sadly there are going to be casualties.

The Guild hunter world has always intrigued me but this one gives you a bit of everything you have seen and more, I can’t really say too much or ruin the plot which is worldwide in scope and is mind boggling but the ending is so complete I really thought she was ending the series and I missed the announcement (FYI: she has 3 more books at least contracted).

So with little to let you know all I can say is prepare for a small bit of romance and a ton of battles and war, I think I love the series so much I am biased since I have given all of them high marks even when many of my fellow reviewers did not but we all have our favorite series that just speak to us and this is one of mine. I love the violence, the romance, the loyalty and the family dynamics so enjoy this one because I have no clue where she is going after this but this is 5 Stars.

What do you need or want to see in this one? Where do you see the series going from here?

 

My Haul

For the last few weeks, I have been randomly getting print ARCs in the mail. I didn’t sign up for them or ask for them, but for some reason I have been put on some sort of glorious mailing list and voila! As someone who never really had access to ARC copies very much, it is like Christmas – I never know what’s coming, and they are all books I have been excited to get. But guess what? I am the most horrible person in the world, because I haven’t even read one of them yet. Yes, you heard that right. NOT ONE. I start to take a peek, then I catch myself reading little bits here and there which will just ruin the story, so I slap some sense into myself and put them down. Then do it again. Sigh. I really am weird.

I have them very prettily organized on my keeper shelves, all ready to go. But between my diving into a Mercy Thompson series re-read and my determination to get the In Death series caught up by the end of the year, I haven’t gotten around to much else. Isn’t it always the way, though? When you are desperate to get your hands on a book early, you just can’t pull it off. But when you do? You don’t get around to reading them. Or is that just me?

What upcoming books are you on the hunt for ARCs for? Anything you would sell your soul to get your hands on early?

Lazy Day

Yesterday was mine. Completely mine. No cleaning, no making supper, no errands or telemarketer calls. I hid in my bedroom and read – pretty much all day and all evening. And it was lovely. I did manage to get my print copy of Nalini Singh‘s Wolf Rain delivered on Monday, so I started that one ASAP and finished up on Tuesday. Tuesday evening was spent on Christine Feehan‘s Shadow Warrior. And Tuesday night was spent on these little insta-love stories from Alexa Riley and Fiona Davenport. I think I read maybe 8 or 10 of those – the Hollywood series including Muse, Starlet, Heiress and Daredevil, and The Princesses books. Needless to say, I am pretty groggy and cross-eyed today, but it was well worth it.

What did you think about this week’s big releases? Did you dive right in?

Sneak Peek

Maybe everyone has seen this but me, but during my online wanderings I came across the Rakuten Kobo site that sells Nalini Singh‘s upcoming Wolf Rain…and it has a preview. The first chapter and a half long preview. Just in case you want a teaser to tide you over until next week’s release, you can find it HERE.

Cover Lover – Archangel’s War

Well, I don’t think there are a lot of Nalini Singh fans who aren’t on the edge of their seats waiting for the next Guild Hunter book. The ending of the last one was a real kick in the pants, and having to wait until September 24th for Archangel’s War is a bit of a nail-biter, but at least we have the pretty, pretty cover to look at until then.

Short hair and wings of light. Sigh. Did I mention it isn’t out until September 24th?

Cover Lover – Sapphire Flames

Many thanks to Lidy, who sent over word that Ilona Andrews had upped the cover for the next Hidden Legacy book, Sapphire Flames. It is by a long, long way my most anticipated book of 2019, and it will be released on August 27th.

Synopsis…

In a world where magic is the key to power and wealth, Catalina Baylor is a Prime, the highest rank of magic user, and the Head of her House. Catalina has always been afraid to use her unique powers, but when her friend’s mother and sister are murdered, Catalina risks her reputation and safety to unravel the mystery.

But behind the scenes powerful forces are at work, and one of them is Alessandro Sagredo, the Italian Prime who was once Catalina’s teenage crush. Dangerous and unpredictable, Alessandro’s true motives are unclear, but he’s drawn to Catalina like a moth to a flame.

To help her friend, Catalina must test the limits of her extraordinary powers, but doing so may cost her both her House–and her heart.

What is your most anticipated book for the year so far? Anything you are counting down the days on? I have a few, like the two Nalini Singh releases, but this one tops them all.

 

Cover Lover – Wolf Rain

Nalini Singh sent out her monthly newsletter today, and in it she did the cover and blurb reveal for her next Psy/Changeling Trinity book, Wolf Rain. Since way back when, for whatever reason, Alexei is one of the characters that I was most interested in, but I really didn’t figure his story would ever come. It is such a huge world at this point that I thought he would just slip under the radar. I am glad to say that that wasn’t the case.

Synopsis…

Kidnapped as a young girl, her psychic powers harnessed by a madman, Memory lives a caged and isolated existence…until she comes face-to-face with a wolf. Labelled an empath by her bad-tempered rescuer, Memory knows that her ‘gift’ is nothing so bright. It is a terrible darkness that means she will always be hunted.

But Memory is free now and she intends to live. A certain growly wolf can just deal with it.

Alexei prefers to keep his packmates at bay, the bleak history of his family a constant reminder that mating, love, hope is not for him. But Memory, this defiant and fearless woman who stands toe-to-toe with him awakens the most primal part of his nature—and soon, he must make a choice: risk everything or lose Memory to a murderous darkness that wants to annihilate her from existence…

Are there any “old school” characters you would like to see get their story told? Alexei was my top pick, but second would be Remi. He isn’t from way back at the beginning, but he was introduced a while back. Honestly, I would like to get more into his pack as a whole. Kit is another one, but he is still young. I would happy even with more of an update as to what he is up to on his walkabout. They would probably be my top three. What are yours?

Random Ramblings

Howdy, everyone. How are things going? I thought I would just ramble through a couple of things and see what everyone is up to. Late November/December isn’t a great new release month for me – in fact, I don’t have anything at all ordered for new books until JR Ward‘s Prisoner of Night on January 7th. But my time won’t go to waste, since I will be using it to power through more of the In Death series.

Honestly, I figured at this point I would be getting bored with the In Death books – or at the very least not still excited to get my hands on the next one. But I am on Indulgence in Death – number 31 – and still going strong. I look forward to each new story, to getting back with favorite characters and a favorite world, and it still hasn’t gotten old. I like them enough to pick up not only the e-book versions, but the pretty, pretty UK paperback versions, as well. They look so nice on the shelf. Well, shelves, but who’s counting?

Oh, and I am also using my time to work on the character guide for the Night Huntress Universe. And weirdly enough, I am liking it way more than I did the first time around. I did enjoy the series on my first read through as the books were published, but I am getting way more involved in the world during my marathoning of them. I still have a ways to go – I am only on Destined For an Early Grave – but it has been great rediscovering them so far.

And today, Nalini Singh‘s newsletter came out with a tiny snippet from her upcoming Psy-Changeling book, Wolf Rain, which announced the main couple. The female lead is a new character named Memory, but the male lead? Alexei. Alexei! If you have been around this blog any length of time, you might remember that his story has been on my most-wished for for a long, long time. He and Remi are my top two, so I am a happy, happy gal.

So, what have you been reading? Are you anticipating any new books in the rest of 2018, or are you like me and using the time to play catch-up? Have you rediscovered any old series that have become new favorites?

Archangel’s Prophecy Review

The countdown is on for Archangel’s Prophecy, and to help you get ready Doug Meeks sent over his review. And from what Doug said, it is a pivotal book. Not that I would ever miss a Nalini Singh book, but this one sounds like it packs a punch.

What Doug said…

This book was hard to rate, much less review. Let me start with the fact there are 3 pretty major plots in this book:

1. – Elana seems to be regressing back to a human

2. – She has to find a killer that threatens her sister and niece

3. – In China, the Archangel Favashi is seemingly showing signs of madness …… or something

This book kept me kind of stressed out the whole way through, you keep telling yourself “Nalini Singh won’t allow this to happen …. will she?” and that sets the mood for most of the book.

I think this may be one of the better books in the series but a LOT is happening and sadly of the 3 plots above, only 2 of them get resolved and so we get a bit of a cliffhanger on the other one which might drive me crazy before the next book comes out sometime in 2019 (I assume).

We do get a bit more insight into the “Legion” but even though we have 3 plots moving along simultaneously and each is handled masterfully the Elana plot overshadows them all and even me, the guy who gives 5 Stars to most of her books had to lower this one to 4 because of the cliffhanger and some really bizarre things close to the end that stretched my ability to accept this reality and the fact that the ending to plot number 2 seemed to be rushed a bit after a ton of buildup.

There are so many great things about this book I hated not to love it to death but when you invest a reader so deeply into a plot and then don’t bring it to a conclusion it grates on me and waiting a year to find out what happens is not my idea of fun.

The fact that after all my above complaints I gave it 4 Stars should give you an idea of how good this book is so buy and enjoy or buy it and wait until the next one but this is one you can’t skip folks.

I still think I am going to be picking up Shades of Wicked first, but honestly I will probably end up reading them both at the same time. A few chapters of one, then a few chapters of the other. It can really play with your mind, but I just don’t have a lot of control.

 

Which One First?

Sometimes, you can have too much of a good thing. One example of this can be found this coming Tuesday. There are a few really good books coming out, but there are two that I am doing a countdown for. The first is Archangel’s Prophecy from Nalini Singh, and anytime there is a Nalini book it is my automatic must-read-it-right-this-minute, stay- up-all-night-until-it-is-finished no brainer choice.

But…but…Ian. Ian! Jeaniene Frost‘s Shades of Wicked also comes out on Tuesday. And it is Ian’s story – raunchy, vulgar, irreverent Ian. How can I not pull a must-read-it-right-this-minute, stay-up-all-night-until-it-is-finished? His story is one that I have wished for since way back at the beginning of the Night Huntress series, and to finally get it is a real treat.

At this point, I am thinking that I am going to have to go for Shades of Wicked as my first read. It is a tough choice, but my raging curiosity and excitement for Ian is edging Raphael and Elena out of first place. Which one will you be tackling first?