Reading Wrap Up

Hey everyone, time to talk books. I am pretty sure that most of you dove into Nalini Singh‘s Ocean Light as soon as possible…what did you think? How did you like Bo and Kaia’s story? Personally, I really liked it. I loved getting more of a look at how BlackSea works, since it is so very different from all of the other Changeling groups. And it was nice to have a human-based story again, too, for a change of pace. Like Doug said in his review, though, I finished this one with no clear idea of whose story would be up next. Maybe Malachai?

I also picked up a couple of books from a new-to-me author, which ended up being a successful blind-buy. Rayanne Haines started her Guardians series last September with the release of Fire Born, but I only picked it up last week (totally for the cover, too). I quite enjoyed it – enough so that when I was done I immediately ordered the second book, Magic Born. I only really have one gripe for these – and it makes me sound like someone’s English teacher – but there were times that the editing errors threw me a bit. I am still looking forward to the upcoming third book, but the errors were there. In Fire Born, it was, the strange use, of commas, that would distract me. Quite a lot at times. That seemed to be resolved by the second book, but then it became more a matter of spelling issues. Knew instead of new, clam instead of calm, little things like that. Not really a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but it did make me stop and go back to see if I had read something wrong.

How has your reading been? How would you rate Ocean Light? Have you picked up any new authors lately? How much does editing errors take away from your enjoyment of a book?

 

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Ocean Light Review

Well, we are almost at one of my two big reading-related days this month (the other being the day Iron and Magic comes out, of course). Tomorrow is the official release of Nalini Singh‘s latest Psy/Changeling book, Ocean Light, and to mark the occasion Doug Meeks was kind enough to send over his review.

What Doug said…

Well one of the reasons I don’t write books (outside of that no talent and no imagination thing) is that I have no patience, I would have all bad guys dead by page 10 and wonder “where do I go from here”. Fortunately Nalini Singh does not suffer from any of those afflictions and we have a story that manages to have drama, romance, loyalty and my favorite, violence all thrown together in a story to warm the heart while making the blood boil for those who suffer and takes us along on a pace that changes to suit the scene.

First of all my memory is terrible and I spent several chapters while reading trying to remember if Bowen had been thought dead in any previous books but since I was too lazy to go back and research it I finally decided it really did not matter (and it did not). Suffice it to say he was pretty much dead when we start this book and some medical miracle are the only thing keeping him alive and those might not be enough.

Then Kaia enters the scene and pretty much hates him on sight which always makes for a good story in the hands of a talented writer. We have a slow romance with a touch of insta-love thrown in but not too heavy handed (meaning there is no “MINE” moment just minutes after they meet). He will have to work at this one IF he manages to live long enough which does not look all that promising.

Enter a subplot of some residents of BlackSea disappearing over the last few months and it looks like humans (specifically the organization Bowen heads up) might be behind it.

Throw in a couple of hints, some red herrings, a bevy of suspects with a good mystery and along with an excellent romance you have a 5 Star story (which I actually rated 4.5).

We do get a slight bit more than a cameo of our favorite Psy – Kaleb Krycheck (who I personally love because he pretty much kills anyone who ever did Sahara wrong in any way LOL) but we do get a cameo of Sahara also towards the end. They obviously add to any book they are mentioned. We also get a really short cameo of Hawke just to add a bit of flavor into the story in how outsiders actually see him which I found interesting since we all still have Kiss of Snow in our heads which warps out viewpoint a bit.

My only minor complaint (go back and read paragraph 1) is that everybody I wanted to kill was not dead at the end of the book . I am assured there will be justice for all since this is actually book #17 of this series it is also book #2 of a trilogy with a bit of an overarching plot, so I can hardly wait to see where it goes from here. I did love the way she handled everything so there is nothing that resembles a cliffhanger but does leave a thread or two to make you want the next book immediately.

Oooh, and I am so patting myself on the back right now. With a whole couple of hours to spare, I got the Psy/Changeling character guide updated with the info from Silver Silence before Ocean Light comes out. I might’ve cut things a little close, but I did get it done in the end. Yay me.

Bad Boy Syndrome

We are only days away (DAYS!) from getting our collective hot little hands on Iron and Magic from Ilona Andrews. I did consider threatening/bribing/injuring someone to get an ARC, but I held strong. I might have to call in dead to work on June 26th, because I won’t be any good to anyone knowing that it is waiting for me on my ipad. Like many others, I am hugely excited for Hugh’s story. Weirdly so. And it got me to thinking that there really haven’t been many bad boy/anti-hero/villain books that I have read. In fact, there are only two that I can think of at this point. But those two remain my absolute favorite reads from their respective series, which is saying something.

First up was Lothaire from Kresley Cole. He was one big, bad, manipulative dude, and I couldn’t see how he would be redeemed. At all. What I ended up loving was the fact that he never really was redeemed – we just got to see what made him tick. He was wicked, sexy and fun, and his story is the first one that comes to mind when I think of the Immortals After Dark series.

The only other one I can think of is Heart of Obsidian. Well, Kaleb wasn’t completely a bad guy/villain, but up until his book I didn’t quite know what he was. He came off as the big bad, but once again when you see the world from his perspective things fall into place. Once again, Heart of Obsidian is pretty much the pinnacle of Nalini Singh‘s Psy/Changeling series for me, and it is a hard one to top.

What are your favorite bad-guy based stories? Have you ever read a book where the “hero” pulled as much crap as Hugh has? What does it usually take for you to root for them in the end?

On a related note, there is a feature written by Nalini Singh over on Hypable, where she discusses the power of paranormal romance. I am heading over now to give it a read.

Bookish Bucket List

It’s funny how things change. Over the last few years, I have done pretty massive purges of my books (both read and unread), to the point that I couldn’t even begin to guess how many hundreds I have gotten rid of (probably around 1000, or pretty close to it). I was going over my bookshelves the other day, looking at what I had left, and it made me realize that I don’t really have a ton of stories left on my reading bucket list – or books that I want to read before I die.

My beloved Cainsville series from Kelley Armstrong has wrapped. We finally got the Dani O’Malley/Ryodan story I had been waiting for for what felt like forever in the Fever series. I would’ve legit offed someone to get my hands on books two and three of the Hidden Legacy series a even a few days earlier. Another person (or two) would gladly have been sacrificed if it brought me closer to Heart of Obsidian. And any book that featured the Ghostwalkers was automatically on the list. I am talking about those books that I honestly was nuts about getting my hands on. But now, while I have several books I am very much looking forward to, I don’t have any that inspire that same kid-at-christmas feeling as I used to have. And I miss it.

Well, there are still a few that I would consider to be on my bucket list (and a few of them are already in the works). Jeanine Frost‘s next book will feature Ian, who has been on my wish-list since he was first introduced in the Night Huntress series. And William from the Lords of the Underworld will get his story in 2019 (and then I can pull the plug on the Lords). I have heard rumors that Ilona Andrews will be writing Roman’s book sometime after Hugh’s trilogy (another must read), but I still am whining about more Derek and Julie books, too.

At this point, the top 10 characters I would love to have stories about would look something like this (in no particular order):

1) Illium – Guild Hunter

2) Aodhan – Guild Hunter

3) Malachi – Psy/Changelings

4) Alexei – Psy/Changelings

5) Janvier – GhostWalkers

6) Dane – The Breeds

7) Ben – Mercy Thompson World

8) Roman – Kate Daniels World

9) Derek – Kate Daniels World

10) Lor – Fever Series

What does your bucket list look like? What were your original stories that you couldn’t wait to get your hands on?

Hidden Legacy Continues!

Sometimes, the simplest things can just make your day. This is one such little thing.

Last week, while I was on a scan through Amazon, I saw that Ilona Andrews had a new listing – for “Untitled Hidden Legacy Novella #1“. Since I got my hands on the first book way back when, Hidden Legacy immediately became one of my absolute favorite series. Let’s put it this way – if I could only recommend one series to everyone from now on, it would be this one. So a novella was a welcome sight.

And I would’ve been happy with just the novella, but then the even better news hit. Behold!

“Three more novels in Ilona Andrews‘ Hidden Legacy series, focusing on the emerging powers and personalities of previously-introduced House Baylor family members, for publication starting in fall 2019, plus a novella to bridge the gap, published by Avon Impulse in November 2018, to Erika Tsang at Avon, by Nancy Yost at Nancy Yost Literary Agency (world).”

This is so, so good. I am happy to get a bit more of Connor and Nevada, and I am equally happy to get stories from other characters, too. There is so much potential, so many ways this could go. Connor and Nevada’s story is far from played out – I could honestly see several more books from their POV. But then the side characters like Augustine and Catalina would be great to read about, too. Ideally, I would love to see Hidden Legacy work something like Nalini Singh‘s Guild Hunter series – a story for the main couple, then a book or two from other characters, then back to the original couple. Best of both worlds that way.

Anyone else completely happy about this news? How would you like to see the second part of Hidden Legacy play out?

 

Archangel’s Prophecy Cover Reveal

Today is a pretty good day, honestly. Not only did I kindly get sent an ARC of Nalini Singh‘s upcoming Psy-Changeling release, Ocean Light (yes!), but it is also the reveal day for the cover of her next guild Hunter book, too. Archangel’s Prophecy is a return to Raphael and Elena’s side of the story, and it will be released on October 30th.

Synopsis…

Midnight and dawn, Elena’s wings are unique among angelkind…and now they’re failing. The first mortal to be turned into an immortal in angelic memory, she’s regressing. Becoming more and more human. Easier to hurt. Easier to kill.

Elena and Raphael must unearth the reason for the regression before it’s too late and Elena falls out of the sky. Yet even as they fight a furious battle for Elena’s very survival, violent forces are gathering in New York and across the world.

In China, the Archangel Favashi is showing the first signs of madness. In New York, a mysterious sinkhole filled with lava swallows a man whole. In Africa, torrential monsoon rains flood rolling deserts. And in Elena’s mind whispers a haunting voice that isn’t her own.

This time, survival may not be possible…not even for the consort of an archangel.

The cover is once again from Tony Mauro, and I think it is a beauty. I do love the covers from this series, and it kind of makes me wish I still had the print versions to look at. Sometimes.

Are you looking forward to this one? Whose story would you like to see up next?

Covers and Blurbs

This is sort of a mash-up post of some recently released covers and blurbs. A big one is the official reveal of the first Night Rebel cover from Jeaniene Frost, Shades of Wicked. This one isn’t as epic as the Night Huntress books, but since it is Ian’s story, I will take what I can get. This one will be released on October 30th.

Blurb:

The Rule Breaker

Master vampire Ian is unrepentant, shameless…and every shade of wicked. He’s made one too many enemies in his two centuries of existence, including Dagon, a demon who now lays claim to his soul. Ian’s only chance to escape Dagon is to join forces with a Law Guardian, but he’s never been able to abide by the rules for long.

The Law Maker

Veritas’ normal role is police, judge and jury to reprobates like Ian. But she has her own ax to grind with Dagon, so if she can use Ian as bait…well, all’s fair in law and war. As they scour supernatural hotspots to perfect their trap, Veritas soon realizes Ian’s devil-may-care, roguish image hides something much more powerful. And Ian discovers that Veritas has shocking secrets of her own. As they’re drawn to each other with a passion as intense as their peril, either love or justice will prevail. But each will have devastating consequences…

And it hasn’t been long since I have dipped a toe back into previous favorite author Christine Warren, but so far, so good. Her next Alphaville book will be called Your Lion Eyes, and it will be out on December 4th.

Blurb:

Molly Buchanan is a lioness on the prowl. Unfortunately, since she’s been prowling through the same town for her entire life, she’s down to some pretty slim pickings in the dating department. But the minute she sets eyes on the new bachelor in town, her lioness starts to purr and plans to do some serious rubbing up against Grady Emerson.

Newly arrived in Alpha, Washington, Grady just wants to settle in and do his job as the town’s newest deputy. But even this rogue-bear sheriff knew Molly Buchanan was trouble the minute he laid eyes on her. She might be smoking hot, sharp as a tack, and funny as hell, but she is also his friend’s younger sister, and there are some things a good man just doesn’t do-no matter how much his bear might want to devour her.

On the blurby side of things, there have been two biggies released recently. First up is Nalini Singh‘s Archangel’s Prophecy. It looks like this one will be a return to Raphael and Elena’s story, and it will be released on October 30th.

Blurb:

Midnight and dawn, Elena’s wings are unique among angelkind…and now they’re failing. The first mortal to be turned into an immortal in angelic memory, she’s regressing. Becoming more and more human. Easier to hurt. Easier to kill.

Elena and Raphael must unearth the reason for the regression before it’s too late and Elena falls out of the sky. Yet even as they fight a furious battle for Elena’s very survival, violent forces are gathering in New York and across the world.

In China, the Archangel Favashi is showing the first signs of madness. In New York, a mysterious sinkhole filled with lava swallows a man whole. In Africa, torrential monsoon rains flood rolling deserts. And in Elena’s mind whispers a haunting voice that isn’t her own.

This time, survival may not be possible…not even for the consort of an archangel.

And there is a bit more info on Gena Showalter‘s upcoming Gods of War series. The first book will be called Shadow and Ice, and it has a release date of October 23rd.

Blurb:

Knox of Iviland has spent his life competing in the All Wars, where vicious warriors with supernatural powers fight to the death to claim new realms. One winner takes everything—and all losers die. Enslaved as a child for his ability to control shadows, the most ruthless champion in history will stop at nothing to kill his king. But first he must win the battle for Earth. When a fearsome weapon imprisons every combatant in ice, centuries pass without progress…until she walks in.

Vale London craves a fun arctic getaway with her foster sister before settling down to open a bakery. Street-tough but vulnerable, she is unprepared to find ancient gods escaping a frozen cave—merciless beings who target her when she inadvertently enters their war.

Though Vale is now his enemy, Knox is consumed with lust and a fierce need to protect her. But only one combatant can prove victorious, and he will have to choose: live for freedom, or die for love.

There you have it, a few upcoming releases to look forward to.

This and That

I don’t know if I have enough info to do a full “this and that” updating post, but then it might be nice to have something that is under a million rambling words, right?

• Let’s start with site stuff. You might notice that I did pull some of the character guides that were either obsolete or very out of date with no hope of being updated. That said, I did keep a copy of them all and I can email any of them to anyone who needs them. That includes The Chronicles of Nick, White Rabbit Chronicles, Angels of the Dark, and The Midnight Breed guides. Just send me an email if you need any of them.
• Christine Feehan‘s release schedule has been updated a bit to include dates for the next Leopard People and Torpedo Ink books. Leopard’s Run will be released on October 30th, and Torpedo Ink #2 will be out on January 3rd.
• There is a little teaser synopsis for Gena Showalter‘s new Gods of War series up on Amazon. The first book is called Shadow and Ice, and it will be released on October 30th…

“After being trapped in an ice prison for centuries, a group of otherworldly immortals have finally broken free. In a bid to rule the earth, their fight to the death resumes, and the whole world becomes a gladiator arena. But this time, these savage warriors will risk more than their lives and the survival of their realms; they’ll also risk their hearts.”

• Ilona Andrews had a competition over on their blog to pick the name of the newest Innkeeper Chronicles story featuring Maud and Arland. The winning title was Sweep of the Blade. They also did an interesting Q&A session over there, as well. If you pour over the questions, there is some good news (they are in talks with Avon for more Hidden Legacy books) and some not so great news (it doesn’t seem like there will be any more Derek-and-Julie stories). But I will take what I can get.
• Shades of Wicked from Jeanine Frost has gone up for pre-order on Amazon, which makes it a real thing in my world. It is also showing a hardcover release, which is news to me, but I will keep an eye out for more info.
• I had mentioned in a previous post that J.R. Ward will be starting a new contemporary series early next year that will feature firefighters. Turns out the title of the first book will be Consumed.
• The next Argeneau Vampires book from Lynsay Sands will be called Vampires Like It Hot, and it will be released on September 25th.
• October 30th is shaping up to be a pretty epic release day. According to Amazon.com, Nalini Singh‘s next Guild Hunter book is due out then, as well, and it will be called Archangel’s Prophecy. No clue on whose story it is as yet, though.
• Mercy Thompson #11 from Patricia Briggs will be called Storm Cursed, and it will be released next March. I had seen a listing somewhere showing the Tom and Moira spin-off book as a September 2017 release, but I can’t find it now. I don’t think I was dreaming it, but who knows at this point?
• I’m really hoping this is a misprint, but it looks like we might have quite a wait for the next Elder Races story from Thea Harrison. Lionheart is showing a December 2018 release. I haven’t come across anything else in progress, either. Have you heard what Thea has on the go? Is there another story due out before Lionheart? If not, that is an 18 month period between releases, which seems odd to me.
• And finally, the second Lowtown book from Lindsay J. Pryor now has a title. Rogue will be released on November 22nd.

Yeah, I had more than enough for the post. Have you heard of anything coming up in the PNR/UF world? Any new releases you are really anticipating?

 

Ocean Light Cover and Blurb

I was making my usually daily rounds, looking for something that might be interesting enough to post, when the light-bulb went on and I remembered it was the big reveal day for Nalini Singh‘s Ocean Light. Didn’t take me long to get my e-butt over there to see, either.

Synopsis…

Security specialist Bowen Knight has come back from the dead. But there’s a ticking time bomb in his head: a chip implanted to block telepathic interference that could fail at any moment—taking his brain along with it. With no time to waste, he should be back on land helping the Human Alliance. Instead, he’s at the bottom of the ocean, consumed with an enigmatic changeling…

Kaia Luna may have traded in science for being a chef, but she won’t hide the facts of Bo’s condition from him or herself. She’s suffered too much loss in her life to fall prey to the dangerous charm of a human who is a dead man walking. And she carries a devastating secret Bo could never imagine…

But when Kaia is taken by those who mean her deadly harm, all bets are off. Bo will do anything to get her back—even if it means striking a devil’s bargain and giving up his mind to the enemy…

I have to admit, I would’ve bet good money that this one was going to focus on Malichi and/or Miane, but this works for me, too. I thought maybe Kaia had been introduced in Stefan’s novella, but she isn’t listed. I did find out I am a book behind on the guide, though. Yay…

But onto the good stuff. Cover? Me like. I wasn’t thrilled when they changed the design a couple of books back, but they are growing on me – and the color is pretty. Looking forward to Bo’s story, and what sounds like a return to Alaris. I thought the underwater station was intriguing, and it is a good way to turn the focus onto the water changelings.

Pick of the Week

I know that you are probably all pretty sure that my pick of the week would be Archangel’s Viper from Nalini Singh, right? Ha! I am going in another direction completely and picking the stand-alone re-release of Dark Swan. As much as I liked both the Alien Huntress and Otherworld Assassin series from Gena Showalter, the character whose story I most wanted was Dallas. Always Dallas. Years went by, and still, no Dallas. And then the series seemed to suddenly end – without Dallas’s story ever being told. But out of the blue last year, Gena announced a novella to be published in the Blood Red Kiss anthology with Kresley Cole and Larissa Ione – featuring Dallas. All of that means that Dark Swan is my pick of the week – and I am grateful for it.

Synopsis…

The Alien Huntress series is back with fan favorite AIR agent Dallas Gutierrez from New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling paranormal romance author Gena Showalter, who doesn’t disappoint with this sizzling hot alpha hero.

Lilica Swan isn’t quite human or otherworlder; she is the best—and worst—of both.

She is willing to do whatever proves necessary to save her sister from the seductive and deadly Alien Investigation and Removal agent, Dallas Gutierrez, even bonding her lifeforce to his by effectively marrying him. But the bond will fade without consummation. Can Dallas resist his insatiable desire for the powerful beauty? Or will she lead to his ultimate downfall?

Have you ever completely given up on ever getting a story only to get it years later? Was it worth the wait?