ARC Review: Iniquity by Melody Winter

Title: Iniquity (Ascent #1)
Author: Melody Winter
Publication Date: October 25th 2016
Genres: Fantasy, New Adult, Romance

Rating: 5 out of 5 "I loved it!"

This book is rather sexually explicit and may not be suitable for some readers.

I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

Synopsis:

Athena Harrow is about to turn twenty-one, but there will be no celebration. What is there to celebrate when the world is ruled by demons?

She hates the darkness the demons brought with them and longs for the light to return to the world—a world she only vaguely remembers. The people in her forest village blindly accept the life the demons forced upon them, even tolerating the yearly ascension ceremony where all the girls who have turned twenty-one are either sent away to serve the Master Demon or left in the village and forced to procreate.

But Paymon, the assigned village demon, selects a different role for Athena, a role that pits her against the village. While she adapts to her new life, Erebus, a younger, more powerful demon, arrives, and Athena must play a dangerous game with his emotions in return for information about the demon’s reign of darkness.

As Athena’s dreams of restoring the light begin to fade, her life with Erebus takes an unexpected turn, and this time it’s her life being put to the test.

Set in the forest around Buttercrambe in North Yorkshire, England, Iniquity explores the frightening, darker side of romance and the uncontrolled emotions it can unleash.

 Purchasing Links:  Goodreads | Amazon | B&N

My Thoughts

Wow.  I have somehow managed to hit the jackpot of amazing books lately and Iniquity did not disappoint!  I was sad at a few points during this book.  I was devastated when it ended.  Where is book two???

I liked that Athena was a very strong character.  She had her own ideas and was definitely willing to stand up for her beliefs.  I honestly loved that I have found a romance novel (which I RARELY read) with such a strong female character!  Yes!  I mean, I'm sorry, but I have a difficult time with purposefully weak women.   As much as I liked Athena, Paymon was my favorite character.  Winter hands us this beautifully written character who is meant to be a demon but is such a gentleman and is nothing short of a man of his word. Drool.  And then Melody Winter happens to him, but that's way too much of a spoiler for me to give you.  

Winter definitely has a talent for descriptions.  I never misunderstood any descriptions in this novel and was blown away by how easily I knew the village and Paymon's home.  This world seemed more real than my own at times!  This was especially true in the battle scenes.  I was never confused about how anyone attacked or who was attacked.  All of the motions made sense for the characters involved and she stayed true to the demon's abilities. So believable!

Lastly, I want to comment on some of the sexual events in this book.  Yes, they are quite explicit.  She does all but draw us a diagram.  However, I loved that these moments did not overpopulate the story and that the story was not based on the sexual moments.  Yes, these characters have sex.  They are husband and wife.  Get over it.  But I felt that Winter did a terrific job keeping these scenes within a loving and consensual tone.  Typically, I don't like romance novels because they are so overly focused on the sex.  Winter only uses it as necessary.   

                                                                                              Author Bio

Growing up, Melody showed a natural ability in art, a head for maths, and a tendency to write too long English essays. Difficult to place in the world when she graduated, she pursued a career in teaching, but ended up working in finance. Melody is convinced the methodical times she spends working with numbers fuel her desire to drift into dream worlds and write about the illusory characters in her head.

Melody Winter lives in York, North Yorkshire, England with her husband and two sons. When not dealing with football, rugby, and a whole plethora of ‘boy’ activities, she will be found scribbling notes for her stories, or preparing for another trip to the nearby beaches at Scarborough and Whitby. With an obsession for anything mythical, Melody revels in reading and writing about such creatures.

Author links: Website | Facebook | Twitter | GoodReads

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Blog Review Tour: Forever Blue by Abby Wilder

Title: Forever Blue
Author: Abby Wilder
Publication Date: June 17, 2016
Genre: Paranormal, Mystery, YA
Rating: 5 out of 5 "I loved it!"



GoodReads Description
I broke the surface and gulped in air, running my hands over my face to push the water away. A raindrop splattered on my cheek. He did not rise. Seven more raindrops in quick succession splattered against my skin. And still, he did not rise. The heavens opened and rain fell like a sheet, blanketing me, cutting me off from the rest of the world.
I thought it was the end of everything.
But I was wrong.

Brothers, Ruben and Judah Mitchell, used to be close, but that was before they met Cara Armistead. Once she moved in next door, the brothers grew further and further apart until the tension between them led to an event which left one dead and the other branded by the aftermath.

One year later, after the death of her baby brother destroyed her family, Lennon Donnelly has moved back to her home town of Puruwai. While visiting the cemetery she finds a boy sitting on a gravestone, a boy with secrets in his past, but someone who finally sees her. Accused by the town as a killer, he reaches out to Lennon, but as their relationship deepens, the events of the year before present themselves in a way no one could have imagined.

In this compelling ya romantic mystery, Forever Blue tells of the intertwining relationships of Lennon, Ruben, Judah and Cara. Spanning over two years, Abby Wilder creates a story of intrigue and suspicion that will haunt you long after you turn the final page.

This story contains mild use of strong language and references to underage drinking and smoking.

My Thoughts

WOW!  What a book!  I am honestly not sure what I want to write about first!  This is going to be a difficult review to share because I honestly just want to tell you EVERYTHING so that you can share the experience with me..but it's more fun if you read it. Here....we...go!!!!!

In this novel, the story follows Lennon.  My favorite character, however, was Judah.  It takes a strong and solid person to shoulder as much as he does and I think that Wilder did a wonderful job of writing him that way.  Besides, I think I developed a fangirl crush..*swoon* I really liked Lennon's character as well, I just thought that there was more depth to Judah than there was to Lennon.  That was weird for me because Judah isn't our main character.

My least favorite characters were ALL of the parents.  I cannot imagine living a life with parents who are so distant.  It may be my teacher mind kicking in, but as these kids are out drinking and partying, don't the parents wonder where they are?  I mean, Judah keeps beer in his bedroom!  My parents would have cleaned the floor with me if that had happened when I was in high school!  How do these parents think that's OK? Or do they not check?  Or am I just old fashioned?  Who knows...

As soon as the twist came in at the end, I was so wide eyed that I was afraid I was going to have to sleep with both eyes open. I have never been so surprised that I wasn't sure I would ever be able to shut my eyes again!  WOW!  I SOOOOOO DID NOT SEE THAT COMING!  I am so impressed by a writer who is so talented that she can pull a twist like that out of goodness only knows where and still have it make complete and total sense!  I don't think amazing is a good enough word for such skill! 

If you are still reading this, why haven't you gone to Amazon and bought this book yet? Here!  Let me help you!  Just click right here!  

Author Bio

Abby grew up on a sheep farm at the bottom of the world.

A love of reading has remained constant in her life, and when it occurred to her that she couldn't imagine anything better than being a writer, she set out to achieve just that.

Girl Behind Glass, Boy in Uniform & Girl Beneath Stars are available now, and Forever Blue was released June 17th 2016

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Review: The Mark by Jen Nadol

Title: The Mark
Author: Jen Nadol
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Publication Date: January 19, 2010
Genre: YA, Paranormal, Fantasy
Rating: 4/5 "I liked it."

I purchased this book from a library sale.  Neither Jen Nadol nor Bloomsbury USA Childrens requested this review.


Description from GoodReads

Sixteen year old Cassandra Renfield has seen the mark since forever: a glow around certain people as if a candle were held behind their back.

The one time she mentioned it to someone else, the mark was dismissed as a trick of the light. So Cassie has kept quiet, considering its rare appearances odd, but insignificant. Until the day she watches a man die. Mining her memories, Cassie realizes she can see a person's imminent death. Not how or where, only when: today.

Cassie searches her past, her philosophy lessons, even her new boyfriend for answers, answers, always careful to hide her secret. How does the mark work? Why her?

Most importantly: if you know today is someone's last, should you tell them?

My Thoughts

I truly enjoyed the beginning portion of this book. Nadol definitely supplies her audience a wonderfully gripping exposition. It all starts with two deaths! Not one! Two! How could that possibly fail to reach an audience.

Additionally, I loved Cassie. Nadol truly did an amazing job describing her and helping the audience to watch her grow over the course of the book. I was definitely impressed with the way this was done. Even though she creates a sixteen year old who may act a little older than sixteen, it fits the story and is more meaningful than a truly sixteen acting character would have been.

However, I really didn't like that it focused on the theme more than it did on the story. The story should have been the way that the theme was taught, not just theme with a little story mixed in. Then again, I'm an English teacher and must always be overly critical of everything that I read. We'll call that an occupational hazard. I think that there is a lot to learn from this book, but strongly believe that the story line should have been more at the front line than sulking in the background.

Overall, I think that this would make a terrific addition to any classroom library and would be a high interest piece for low level readers.


About the Author

I grew up in Reading, PA, hometown of John Updike, Taylor Swift and fellow YA author A.S. King (nope, didn't know any of them).
I went to college at American University in Washington DC, graduated with a BA in Literature, then spent the next twelve years doing something totally unrelated to pay the bills.

Now I live north of NYC in an old farmhouse with my husband and three young sons. I am thrilled to finally be writing, the thing I always meant to do.

GoodReads | Buy it on Amazon | Website | Twitter

ARC Review of Funeral Games by Colin Heintze

Title: Funeral Games
Author: Colin Heintze
Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press
Publication Date: September 26, 2016
Genre: Paranormal/Supernatural, Historical, Mystery
Rating: 5/5 "Loved it!"

I received an eARC from the publisher in return for an honest and unbiased review.



Description from GoodReads
Ingerval is the Country of the Dead. Despised by the wider world, blighted by history, since the beginning of time it has honored one law: the Dead rule, and the Living submit. No one remembers why Ingerval nobles return as ghosts after their deaths. To enjoy a brief life of pleasure and plenty, followed by an eternity of reigning from beyond the grave, is the fate of all Ingerval lords. All but one. 

As the youngest son of the King's third wife, Syphax never thought he would amount to anything. He is content to live out a contemplative life free from the scourges of power and politics that infatuate his peers. But, after answering a summons to the Palace – a sprawling, ever-expanding repository for Ingerval's ghosts – he finds himself at the heart of a dynastic struggle centuries in the making.

Funerals are happy occasions in Ingerval, and the King is planning for his to be the most decadent in the country's long memory. He does not know that, unlike every lord before him, he will not return to rule alongside his ancestors. He will die the true death, sparking a succession crisis that throws the noble families into chaos. Amidst the violence and intrigue, Syphax alone asks, "What really happened to the King?" The deeper Syphax digs, the more he realizes these events are connected to others dating back to the founding of his father's dynasty. 

Let the games begin.


My Thoughts
Wow.  Just, wow.  I am so glad that I found Colin Heintze!  This will definitely not be the last of his books that I read.  Now for the ever daunting task of  deciding where to begin this review.

Well, the best place to start tends to be the beginning. So, let's start there.  How often is it that readers lament the moments when their favorite characters die?  And Heintze either ignores that fact or chooses to make a mockery of it by throwing us into a funeral at the very beginning.  We don't even know the characters yet and they are already dying on us!  And then coming back!  I was stunned by this quick turn of events.  Heintze seems to do this in order to acclimate us to the Ingerval view of deaths and funerals.  That way, we are beyond stunned when King Heron does not return.  Rather than being upset that a beloved character died, we feel Syphax's pain when his father's funeral goes wrong.

Let's take a second to just think about Prince Syphax.  He knows that he really doesn't have much to look forward to.  He knows that he isn't going to be king and he knows that he has spent most of his life just living for physical enjoyment.  However, he grows so much as the plot plays out.  From being a hedonistic individual to caring about what happens to his kingdom, the clans, and a variety of individuals.  My favorite example of this is the way that he cares for and repays his debts to Aunt Milda and the baby.  I cried as soon as that baby was quiet.

There was only one thing that I truly disliked about this novel.  The fact that Syphax finds no romance with the woman he loves.  I definitely understand why Heintze wrote this the way he did.  It demonstrates just how far Syphax has come since the beginning of this novel.  However, I think I would have preferred it if Heintze killed a favorite character than put me through the final scene between Fina and Syphax.  You'll have to read, and cry over it, yourself.

I definitely encourage you to give this book a chance!  You can buy it on Amazon.

Review of Maplecroft by Cherie Priest

Title: Maplecroft (The Borden Dispatches #1)
Author: Cherie Priest
Publisher: Penguin Group
Publication Date: 2014
Genre: Horror, Thriller, Paranormal (YA)
Rating: 4/5 "I liked it"

I purchased this book from a library book sale.  I was not asked to write the following review.  Penguin Group and Cherie Priest did not request the following review.





Description from GoodReads
Lizzie Borden took an axe and gave her mother forty whacks; and when she saw what she had done, she gave her father forty-one....

The people of Fall River, Massachusetts, fear me. Perhaps rightfully so. I remain a suspect in the brutal deaths of my father and his second wife despite the verdict of innocence at my trial. With our inheritance, my sister, Emma, and I have taken up residence in Maplecroft, a mansion near the sea and far from gossip and scrutiny.

But it is not far enough from the affliction that possessed my parents. Their characters, their very souls, were consumed from within by something that left malevolent entities in their place. It originates from the ocean’s depths, plaguing the populace with tides of nightmares and madness.

This evil cannot hide from me. No matter what guise it assumes, I will be waiting for it. With an axe.

My Thoughts

When I started this book, I was absolutely intrigued!  It was terrifying!  I was shivering! I did not want to put it down....and then I continued reading.  This book was chock full of terror and excitement.  It had wonderfully described characters.  What happened in the middle?  But, I'm getting ahead of myself.

First, the good.  I love the way that Priest describes her characters.  Nance is the lady that you love to hate.  Lizzie is the heroine that you want to see succeed.  Emma is the realist that you hate to love, but do anyway.  I fell so magically in love with each of these characters.  I especially loved that Priest made sure that they were not simply talking heads.  She takes the time to describe all of the most minute movements and details so that her audience feels as though they are watching the scene unfold.  

It is this same attention to detail that allows Priest to fill her book with action.  Each battle, argument, and romance filled scene has enough detail to make it feel like you are there!  It is wonderful!  

Finally, I liked Priest's idea to write this as a collection of journals from several speakers.  This allows the audience to feel the fear, anxiety, and insanity as it grows in each of the characters.

Now, the bad.  Although the characters are described well, there was little room for them to grow.  Lizzie stays Lizzie.  Emma stays Emma.  Owen is Owen.  Wolf is Wolf.  The end.  This form of literary flat-line does not do anything to impress me.  I want to see the impression that the events in the novel leave on the characters' lives.

Next, I absolutely abhorred the lack of explanation.  The entire time, the group has one foe.  It is a Problem.  It never has any name.  It is simply the Problem.  We also know that Wolf is a bit sketchy, he is working for some agency that he refuses to name.  Ever.  We NEVER find out.  WHY?  Tell me why, Priest?  Why are you torturing me?  I told you that I like your characters and yet you refuse to let me know everything about them?  What are you hiding?

Lastly, Priest could have used the journal format more effectively.  Her use of this format was rather confusing as I had to get into the persona of each character as it changed.  Often, this happened in the middle of the scene and forced me to switch POV in not so pleasant places.

I REALLY wanted to love this book.  Unfortunately, I found it less than polished and in need of stronger reasoning.

Have you read Maplecroft?  What are your thoughts?