Saturday, April 15, 2017

Saturday's Series Spotlight: Orlosian Warriors by Dariel Raye


Series: Orlosian Warriors #1 & 2
Author: Dariel Raye
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy

Calm Assurance #1
Summary:
Two hearts, two different worlds, uncompromising love.

A straight-laced Nephilim-descendant and a human trouble-magnet?

When Asriel - Orlosian Warrior, descendant of Nephilim, law enforcer – is sent to guard Malina, a human with a penchant for drawing trouble like a tornado, she becomes his obsession.

With no hope of finding love in his dimension, he breaks the cardinal rule, leaving his home to protect her, but she has also drawn the attention of his enemies, and he is forced to face demons from his past. If Asriel chooses to stay with Malina, not only does he risk forfeiting his right to ever return to his dimension, but he will need her blood to survive.











Destiny's Favor #2
Summary:
His world shifted the moment she was born. Now, nothing can stop him from making her his…

Imagine a man who looks like an angel, wings and all. What would you do if you met such a man, and he told you that he exists for only one purpose, to claim you and only you?

Destiny Carter is a feisty, take-charge, Rubenesque beauty with a tough faΓ§ade. She finds herself caught in that age-old quandary of always being the bridesmaid but never the bride. A string of lackluster relationships leaves her hopeless and ready to settle for whatever comes along, until she meets Japheth, the man her fiancΓ© claims is his best friend. Japheth’s arrival is heralded by an attack on Destiny’s life, but somehow, from some instinct deep within her, she knows this is only the beginning.

Born more than 200 years ago, Japheth looks like an angel, but he’s far from it. In his world, the ratio of men to women is 500 to 1, and although he’s a superior being, he’s willing to break the most sacred law of his brothers, even to drink human blood, if it means having the one that he believes is meant for him alone. When he meets Destiny, he knows she’s the one he’s been searching for. To claim her, though, Japheth will have to betray a friend, risk his life, and, perhaps hardest of all, humble himself enough to win her love.


Destiny's Favor #2
Still too far away to get a good look at the legendary J, Destiny watched the two men pull each other into a brief man hug. As she did, her mind wandered back to her conversation with Memaw: “Destiny, you be extra careful the next few days, okay? Memaw’s got a feeling.” She wondered what all the sudden drama was about, especially since she was always careful. The older woman was always right, though, so she couldn’t help glancing around cautiously as she walked. Memaw had said those same words to her the night she was attacked, so it was always good to heed her advice, always better to be safe than sorry.

J bent to pick up his one bag, and before she could even close the gap between them, they were heading back toward her.

Destiny overheard part of their conversation as they neared: “Man, I know it’s after two and all, but I’ve never seen people sleepin’ at a bus station like this before. I swear, everybody’s laid out but you.” She also couldn’t help but notice J’s striking gait as he stalked closer, almost graceful but with a natural swagger. All jungle cat in a man’s body, was the only thought that came to mind. Realizing that she was staring far too much, she dragged her gaze from Robert’s friend and surveyed the station, but she was still hesitant to stop admiring him. Something about the way he moved sent a jolt of energy rushing through her, punching her guilt button in the process. Surely, she and Robert were not a match made in Heaven, but that certainly didn’t make it okay to have the thoughts she was having about his best friend.

Even during that beautiful season of the year, the dreary bus station looked and felt dank, grim, and hopeless. The floodlights, although strategically placed, barely pierced the darkness, and the skinny trees left over from the last time anyone cared reminded her of how she really felt about being alone.

A sudden blur of movement caught Destiny’s attention as they walked on, and fear and nausea invaded her, welling up from their hiding places. A tall, dark figure rushed toward her, his hands reaching out like claws, eager to grab her. Time stood still as waves of nausea struck, rendering her unable to move, a predicament she’d never found herself in until that reality-changing attack.

Destiny stumbled and fell to the ground. Every one of her survival instincts kicked in, and she was ready to fight if necessary, but just as quickly as the shadow appeared, it was gone. The station was eerily quiet and still again, and she found herself standing there, with no memory of getting up from the ground. She glanced around, checking all sides, then turned to face Robert and J as they stopped in front of her as if nothing had happened.

“Baby, this is Japheth Danaelson, J. J, this is Destiny Carter, my fiancΓ©,” Robert casually said.

She tried to dismiss the hazy monster as nothing more than a flashback, but subconsciously, she knew better; Destiny was convinced that something really had just tried to attack her again, even if it did stop in its tracks and vanish. Despite her disorientation, wobbly knees, and the feeling that she had somehow skipped through time, and despite the fact that her mind was now reeling with doubt over what she’d just seen, Japheth’s presence overshadowed everything else. Up close, he was absolutely breathtaking.

Author Bio:
Dariel Raye is an animal lover, animal rights activist, musician, and award-winning author of powerful paranormal romance and dark urban fantasy with IR/MC (Interracial/Multi-cultural) alpha male heroes to die for, and strong heroines with hearts worth winning. She fell in love with books and started reciting stories at the age of 3. A counseling psychologist, classically trained vocalist, and pianist, she plays over 11 musical instruments, and naturally incorporates behavioral psychology into her characters. Her stories tell of shifters, vamps, angels, demons, and fey (the Vodouin variety). She is also a Netflix paranormal TV series binger.

Dariel is currently writing two series: “Dark Sentinels” (wolf shifters), and “Orlosian Warriors” (Vampire-like Nephilim). For more about Dariel, follow her blog or visit her website. She also publishes a new release newsletter. If you enjoyed this book, please post a review on review sites. You can also follow her and contact her on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest.


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Calm Assurance #1

Destiny's Favor #2





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Personal Challenges by KC Wells

Title: Personal Challenges
Author: KC Wells
Series: Personal #4
Genre: M/M Romance
Release Date: April 7, 2017
Summary:
Will and Blake couldn’t be happier. They have a beautiful little boy, Nathan, and Sophie finally has the little brother she’s been demanding. But all is not bliss in the Davis household. Coping with reality is going to change all their lives.

Rick and Angelo are sick and tired of trying to get a wedding organized. If it was up to them, they’d be married already, but Angelo's mother has plans and they keep getting bigger. Angelo can see problems on the horizon: big, traditional Italian wedding and gay do not go well together. Something’s got to give.

Colin receives an unexpected call from an ex, with bad news. He feels compelled to help, regardless of the consequences. Ed loves Colin’s big heart and supports him in his efforts, but when the truth comes out, he finds it difficult to keep a lid on his emotions.

As the coming months unfold, the friends are going to need each other more than ever.


It's been nearly a year-and-a-half since I read KC Wells' Personal series so I was a little unsure if I would be able to get into the lives the characters without doing a re-read, which unfortunately I really didn't have the time to spare right now to do so.  Well, I worried needlessly, the boys were like seeing old friends after a long absence, everything just falls into place the minute you see each other again. I will say that I think I just might add these boys to my summer re-read list.

Previously, each installment focused on one couple but in Personal Challenges we get to see into the current lives of all three couples.  Sometimes, when an author does that, we lose a little bit and feel almost short-changed because there is just not enough pages to tell each story properly.  Well, not in Challenges, here it's as if we get three installments in one.

Each couple has individual issues to deal with and they do so in KC Wells fashion but I think what I love about them the most is the friendship between all 6 men.  The couples are the primary focus with their individual life events but they are still there for each other which is one of things I've loved most about the entire series but especially this installment.  The chemistry is off the charts as it has been since each couple met their significant other, I loved how the connections have only gotten stronger with time.

Someone asked me if Challenges is a standalone, well I'll write here what I told them.  It could be but you would be missing out on the beginnings of each couple and how the friendships are tied together. You won't be lost but had I not read the previous installments, I would definitely feel as if I was missing something, kind of like starting a television show with season two or a movie forty minutes in.  So personally, I could safely say I don't recommend starting with Challenges but it's not undoable and I highly recommend adding Personal to your TBR list if you haven't already and if you're like me and have read the series, you do not want to miss out with this newest installment.

RATING:





Author Bio:
Born and raised in the north-west of England, K.C. WELLS always loved writing. Words were important. Full stop. However, when childhood gave way to adulthood, the writing ceased, as life got in the way. K.C. discovered erotic fiction in 2009, when the purchase of a mΓ©nage storyline led to the startling discovery that reading about men in love was damn hot. In 2012, arriving at a really low point in life led to the desperate need to do something creative.

An even bigger discovery waited in the wings—writing about men in love was even hotter….

K.C. now writes full-time and is loving every minute of her new career. The laptop still has no idea of what hit it… it only knows that it wants a rest, please. And it now has to get used to the idea that where K.C goes, it goes.

And as for those men in love that she writes about? The list of stories just waiting to be written is getting longer… and longer….

K.C. loves to hear from readers.


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Friday, April 14, 2017

Friday's Film Adaptions: By the Great Horn Spoon! by Sid Fleischman


Summary:
In this rollicking adventure set during the California Gold Rush, Jack's aunt is forced to sell her beloved mansion to meet her debts. She is still unable to raise enough money to pay her creditors, and twelve-year-old Jack goes to California in search of gold to help her. Joined by his trusty butler, Praiseworthy, Jack finds adventure and trouble at every turn. Will Jack strike gold in San Francisco or come home empty-handed?

This new edition features illustrations by Brett Helquist.

Film
Arabella Flagg and her 14-year-old brother, Jack, are left orphaned and penniless when their grandfather dies in Boston in 1849. Determined to make his own fortune, Jack stows away aboard a ship bound for the California gold rush. He is followed by the family's very proper butler, Eric Griffin, who becomes the ship's cook. Also aboard is the nefarious Judge Higgins, a thief with a disguise for every imaginable crooked caper.

Release Date: March 8, 1967
Release Time: 108 minutes

Cast:
Roddy McDowall as Bullwhip Griffin
Suzanne Pleshette as Arabella Flagg
Bryan Russell as Jack Flagg
Karl Malden as Judge Higgins
Harry Guardino as Sam Trimble
Richard Haydn as Quentin Bartlett
Mike Mazurki as Mountain Ox
Hermione Baddeley as Miss Irene Chesney
Alan Carney as Joe Turner
Cecil Kellaway as Mr. Pemberton
Parley Baer as Chief Executioner
Arthur Hunnicutt as Referee
Dub Taylor as Timekeeper
Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez as Bandido



Author Bio:
As a children's book author Sid Fleischman felt a special obligation to his readers. "The books we enjoy as children stay with us forever -- they have a special impact. Paragraph after paragraph and page after page, the author must deliver his or her best work." With almost 60 books to his credit, some of which have been made into motion pictures, Sid Fleischman can be assured that his work will make a special impact.

Sid Fleischman wrote his books at a huge table cluttered with projects: story ideas, library books, research, letters, notes, pens, pencils, and a computer. He lived in an old-fashioned, two-story house full of creaks and character, and enjoys hearing the sound of the nearby Pacific Ocean.

Fleischman passed away after a battle with cancer on March 17, 2010, the day after his ninetieth birthday.

was the father of Newbery Medal winning writer and poet Paul Fleischman, author of Joyful Noise; they are the only father and son to receive Newbery awards.


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July Thunder by Shannon A Thompson

Title: July Thunder
Author: Shannon A Thompson
Series: Bad Bloods: July #1(Bad Bloods #3)
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Release Date: April 10, 2017
Summary:
From best-selling author Shannon A. Thompson comes an exciting new duology in the Bad Bloods universe.

Fourteen-year-old Violet has been called many things: a bad blood, a survivor, an immortal…now she has a new name—citizen. But adjusting to a lawful life is not easy, especially when she must live under the rule of the same officers who justified the killings of her flock only eight months earlier.

Segregation of bad bloods and humans is still in effect, and rebellious Violet steps into a school where she is not allowed. When the police get involved, things deteriorate quickly, sparking a new revolution at the wall separating the Highlands from the outskirts.

That’s when Caleb steps in. He might appear to be an average sixteen-year-old bad blood, but he has secrets, and Violet is determined to figure them out. Caleb knows who’s attacking the wall and why, but his true identity remains a mystery—and how he relates to Violet could shake the threatened city to its very core.

Together or not, a storm will form, a rally will start, and shocking truths will be revealed.


“Play for me,” Kuthun asked. When I faced him, he spread his hands out with a million strings drawn in between.

It was an instrument he made—one meant only for me—and I played it like a laid-down harp.

A million times I had attempted to reconstruct the instrument without Kuthun’s powers, but a million times I had failed.

The music could only be found between his abilities and mine, and that was how I knew I was like him, even when the world didn’t see it that way.

I was a bad blood at heart, but all Vendona saw was a person with bad blood and no powers to show for it.

On my third sixteenth birthday, I had cried over it. I had wished to be born like them, and Kuthun had slapped me.

“You are human, and you are still great,” he’d said then, and even now, he repeated it, “Music is your gift.”

Notes floated between our unspoken thoughts, and he listened to every single one. In it, I played the raging sea, the sparkling glass castle, and the heated empty beach. Last, I played how I heard Violet laugh for the first time.

When Kuthun tilted his head at the notes, I asked, “What else have you learned?”

“That the fish aren’t hungry today,” he joked as the music ended.

His strings broke apart, and, like silver glitter, they fluttered into the sand and disappeared. With one kick, Kuthun buried it all.




Top Ten Bad Bloods You’ll Meet In The New Duology
If you’ve read the first duology in the Bad Bloods universe, then you already know how crazy, wild, and wonderful a bad blood can be. (Book 1 is free across all platforms right now.) But if you don’t know what a bad blood is, a bad blood is a person with hindering abilities. Think X-Men, but the powers come with serious ramifications. Want an example? In the latest duology, Violet is a fourteen-year-old girl who can turn into a shadow…but she often loses herself to darkness and time, so she struggles to form back into a person. Because of her shadowy nature, she also has a hard time identifying as individual rather than simply following anyone she latches onto…like a shadow.
Here are the top ten bad bloods you’ll meet for the first time in the new Bad Bloods duology, July Thunder and July Lightning. Check out the Pinterest board for more inspiration!

  • Levi (13): He’s described as a seedy sailor, with curly blond hair and skin that…glows. He might be closer to an eel. And his powers include cleaning water.  
  • Kuthun (18): A love interest in the book, Kuthun sees the strings of fate…even the strings of those who have died long ago. 
  • Kat (15): Between her night vision, her sharpened claws, and her black-white-red hair, Kat might as well be a calico cat. Even cats mistook her and sheltered her from a young age.
  • Skeleton (15): Skeleton works in the Pits, an underground fighting ring, but his name should be taken literally. He’s slowly defying all science by turning into a skeleton…and remaining alive. 
  • Nuo (17): Nuo grew up with our protagonist Caleb, but her powers can make you repeat, repeat, repeat until whatever action you’re doing kills you. 
  • Hanna (16): She might be bald, but she can grow anyone else’s hair. And dye it, too. 
  • Ellen (9): She glows like a lighthouse, but after burning her own eyes, she cannot see the night she turns into day.
  • Plato (7): Plato might have a glass heart…because he can turn sand into glass right before your eyes.
  • Yasir (15): Do you like jewels? This is your guy. He can change anything into a gem…including his own eye, which is now a sapphire. 
  • Britney (8?): Her age is a mystery for a reason. Her powers, too. Revealing either could kill us all.   
Author Bio:
Shannon A. Thompson is a young adult author, avid reader, and a habitual chatterbox.

As a novelist, poet, and blogger, Thompson spends her free time writing and sharing ideas with her black cat, Bogart, named after her favorite actor, Humphrey Bogart. Her other two cats bring her coffee. Between writing and befriending cats, Thompson graduated from the University of Kansas with a bachelor’s degree in English with an emphasis on creative writing, and her work has appeared in numerous poetry collections and anthologies. Represented by Clean Teen Publishing, Thompson is the best-selling author of The Timely Death Trilogy and the Bad Bloods duology. When she is not writing, she is climbing rooftops, baking cookies, or watching murder shows in the middle of the night, often done with her cats by her side.


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July Thunder #1
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July Lightening #2(Coming May 1, 2017)



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