Stephanie's books

Clockwork Angel
Eragon
City of Bones
Twilight
The Fellowship of the Ring
The Golden Compass
Night World, No. 2
Thirst No. 2: Phantom, Evil Thirst, and Creatures of Forever
Thirst No. 3: The Eternal Dawn
The Iron Daughter
The Iron King
Nightshade
Divergent
A Discovery of Witches
A Great and Terrible Beauty
The Hunger Games
The Host
City of Glass
Memoirs of a Geisha
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo


Stephanie's favorite books »

Saturday 31 August 2013

Blog Tour Review- Hope's Decree (Book one of The Fated)

Hope’s Decree
Book one in the Fated Series
By Angela McPherson
 Genres: Young Adult Paranormal Romance
Rating: 5/5

Summary
When everything else is lost, there is always hope.
While most teens want an epic senior year, Trinity Whitebone hoped for a normal one. Being seventeen was hard enough. Having the emotions of everyone around you in your head made life more than a little difficult.
Until Blain Heros enrolled.
He screamed hot-god in jeans with just his walk. His intense stare warmed her skin like a thousand suns. Unfortunately, his interest in her seemed to run from blazing to freezing in the span of moments and left her nothing but confused. She could deal with things not being normal, but when life goes from strange to dangerous…
Trinity is the direct descendant of Pandora and fated to rectify the terrors released into the world by her curious ancestor. With powers she didn’t know existed and abilities she never wanted, Trinity tries to walk away from everything her life had become. She thought she could turn her back on her fate, until a band of rogue immortals discover who she is and will do whatever it takes to control her powers. Trinity is left with one decision…Embrace fate or die trying.

My Review
**I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review**
  I was so happy to find out this was Greek mythology I have always loved it and this book made me love it even more. This was a fantastic tale of Pandora's box, I loved how the author took the story and elaborated it in a beautiful and modern way, I just couldn't get enough. I have read a few books with their take on Greek mythology, but Pandora's box was a new one for me and since I have always been interested in the tale I was excited and I was not disappointed or let down in the least.
This book took me on an insane ride and I enjoyed every minute of it. Bad guys gone good, good guys gone bad, memory loss and a centuries old destiny, what more could a reader ask for. I could never know what was coming next and that was the most exciting part. I was also pleasantly surprised by the warriors and rouges it was like a fresh, different take on Angels vs Daemons or good vs evil, but if I can be so bold this was better for me, as I have started to feel like the Angel Daemon thing has been over done a bit.
 The one thing that bugged me a little was that both Blaine and Trinity seemed to flip-flop a bit to much for me. They always wanted to be with each other at opposite times it was a little frustrating. Then with Trinity she seemed to want her destiny and then she wants nothing to so with it, when you read it you will know why I don't want to spoil anything,but for me I did not understand it fully. But as you can tell by my 5 star rating it was a small annoyance that I got over quickly with all the adventure and excitement. I found Blaine and Trinity to be cute when they were admitting how they felt, and even when they were pushing and pulling their witty banter was funny and adorable. Speaking of witty banter I think Morpheus was my favorite I loved his smart ass attitude and even found him endearing when no one else did, I always saw his "light" in there somewhere.
The end left me with the feeling of impending doom and I am very curious to see were they go from here. I loved this book and I know many others will too.

Author Bio:
Angela McPherson
Born and currently residing in Midland, Texas, Angela shuffles three busy children (not including her husband) all over the place. She works in a busy pediatric doctor's office as a nurse during the day, and writes at night. She is addicted to coffee——who isn’t? And firmly believes chocolate can fix all——especially chocolate ice cream. She laughs a lot, often at herself and is willing to try anything once (she thinks). When Angela isn’t rushing kids around, working or writing, she’s reading. Other than life experience, Angela turns to a wide variety of music to help spark her creative juices. She loves to dance and sing, though her kids often beg her not to. 

Twitter: @abt3mcpherson

eBook Buy Links 



Tuesday 27 August 2013

Review- View by Ed Morawski

Title: View
Author: Ed Morawski
Rating: 4/5
Summery
A mysterious young woman appears out of the desert. She has no memory of who she is or where she came from, but one thing quickly becomes clear- she may be one of the most powerful psychics ever known. She proves adept at Remote Viewing and uses her skills to spy for the government. But what are her true motives? View is the story of how she affects the lives of the people around her-and how one man falls in love with her.

My Review
**I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review**
 Now first of all I have to say this is not a book I would have picked on my own (since I usually gravitate to YA novels), but that's the great thing about the read to review's that are out there they give us that chance, and I am glad I signed up for this one. This book in my opinion could be compared to a action movie I would like to watch, but this one was played out in my mind, and the author did a great job in creating a fantastic picture. It had a damaged girl with no past, government working in secret, and abilities that no one can explain, but that`s not all you will get much more in the pages of this exciting book.
 I enjoyed most of the characters in the book, Angel was the one exception and yes I noticed how funny that was too. I liked how the majority of the story was told from max`s point of view but also to give the reader just enough to keep them interested the author gives a few different perspectives. I enjoyed those little bits of information cause just when I thought I had sort of figured out I was wrong and I needed to know more. Alicia was by far the biggest mystery and I want to know more about her story, well I guess what I really want is her take on the whole thing. I got to know her story through the eyes of others and even a bit from her, but I wish I knew more about her motives, and why she did the things that blindsided me, that being said I really felt for her and I'm glad she got to have some sort of happiness.
I found the author to be very knowledgeable I can really tell he is smart and did his homework, the information provided during their travels travels was so in depth it felt like I was with a tour guide and I loved it. I could also tell he is a photographer I got a great lesson in photography and I found it very neat. I also really enjoyed the quotes and the beginning of each chapter, I found them to be both deep and relate able to each chapter or the story, some even had me pausing for a moment to really soak it in.
That ending was something else and as I sit her writting this review I'm still not sure how I feel about it. I never saw any of it coming and I'm also not sure I believe everything I am told, I find myself conflicted and very very stunned, so good work Mr. Morawski I'll be thinking about this one for a while.

Sunday 18 August 2013

Review- Steel Lily (The Periodic Series 1)

Title: Steel Lily
Author: Megan Curd
Series: The Periodic Series book 1
Rating:5/5
Summary
AVERY PIKE is a commodity. No, more than a commodity. Her existence is guarded at all costs.

She’s a water Elementalist, the strongest of her dwindling kind. She creates steam to provide energy to fuel Dome Four: the only thing standing between humanity and an earth ravaged by World War III. No steam, no Dome. No Dome, no life.

Or so she thinks.

That is, until a mysterious man offers her a way out of having to donate steam. A way to escape the corrupt government of Dome Four. While the offer seems too good to be true, Avery is intrigued.

But when she arrives to her new home, she realizes the grass isn’t any less dead on this side of the fence. Instead, the lies are just hidden better.

…Which means digging deeper.

When Avery enlists the help of her friends to uncover the truth, she learns that while some secrets are better left concealed, humankind was never meant to live in a cage. And when you can control the most sought after resource, you can learn to control anything…including the fate of your world.

My Review

      I received an ARC copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.
"Funny how the grass was always greener on the other side, even when I knew the other side was dead and desolate."
 I feel like this was a central theme for this book, people always looking for something better even when what they have seems great. After the war took so much from so many people. I can understand the need to search for something more, something better. Also I felt like it was telling me everything may not be as it seems. Polished poop is still poop!!
I loved how the dystopian genre was melded with some steampunk and a little sci-fi with the abilities and underground lab, and I loved every bit of it. The unique world that Megan Curd built was fantastic, filled with so many layers of secrets, mysteries, and lies I was held captive form start to finish and I was very sad when it came to an end.
Now as much as I loved this book I must admit that I was not always fond of Avery. At the beginning I couldn't decide if she was crazy or just really didn't care, she seemed very unaffected and just kept getting everyone in trouble. She did redeem herself to me at the academy and by the end I was totally in her side and I'm rooting for her. Jaxson on the other hand had me from the get go, I knew her arrogance was a front and when I fond out more about his father I understood the reason for his mask. He liked to believe that no one could see through , but then again I think Avery always knew as well.
"The only way someone could hate so deeply was to have loved twice as much and been hurt because of it."
 The absolute betrayal was so heartbreaking and way out of left field for me, I wont spoil anything but I will say be prepared for a few WTF moments, and be ready to question your judgement, I know I did.
"The skeletons that Dome four hid may have been different than those of this Dome, but it seemed that secrets lurked in the shadows all around us."
This whole book was a rollar coster ride of adventure, sexual tension, heartache, and the will the survive and live a better life. I'm hooked on this series and I'm so hopeful for this group and more than ready to see what the future holds. I hope more people get their hands on this book and enjoy it's splender as much as I did. Thank you again to the wonderful Megan Curd for letting me take this journey and I can't wait for book two!!!

Author Bio
Megan Curd is a graduate of Northwestern College in St. Paul, Minnesota. While having always enjoyed reading any books she could get her hands on, Megan didn’t begin writing until a friend encouraged her to do so while in college.

When not writing, Megan enjoys spending time with her family and friends. Traveling and snowboarding are hobbies she loves, and doesn’t turn down the opportunity to play xBox with her brother and friends when it presents itself.

Megan currently resides in Stanton, Kentucky with her husband, son, and Great Dane named Dozer.

"Like" Megan Curd on Facebook: http://on.fb.me/kGCsmI

Wednesday 14 August 2013

Blog Tour Review- Creatura

Title: Creatura
Author: Nely Cab
Rating: 3.5/5
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Tour Host: Lady Amber's Tours
Blurb:
Isis can control her dreams. Or she could—until recently. The creature in her nightmares has been haunting her for months. As if being dumped wasn’t bad enough, now she dreads going to sleep. She decides to confront the creature and win back some of her peace; only, she finds that he’s not a monster and he’s not a dream.
A sacrifice for love, a shocking discovery and a jealous ex-boyfriend blur the lines between reality and dreams, making it hard to tell who the real monsters are.
Who would’ve known…that sometimes love is lethal?

My Review:
        I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book started off strong. Isis is a young girl tortured by her once controlled dreams, then she finds the strange creature haunting her dreams is really a super handsome man form a line of gods that Isis nor I for that matter could have ever imagined. I thought the idea was neat and the explanations were well done, but I found the story a little sloe in parts but by the ending I was glad I kept going.
I liked Isis she seemed very down to earth and most of all I liked her mother and their relationship. I felt bad for her as all the information was dropped on her, but I think she handled it well all things considered. David was a bit too cheesy for my taste I loved his devotion, but at certain points I thought he has been around humans all this time why is her stuck in the 1800's. I really loved Davids family I admired their will to stand next to him, to protect Isis and to even break a few rules for them all in the name of love.
The ending was a big shock and filled me with the urge to know more. This is a very neat idea and if you love mystery and adventure but most of all undying love then pick this one up and give it a go.


Author Bio:
Nely Cab was born on December 9, 1974, in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico. She has lived and resided in South Texas most of her life. In 2001, the author relocated to Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico, where she dedicated time to the study of culinary arts and the art of oil painting.

After her return to the U.S., she resumed her employment in banking and in the following year transitioned to the field of Social Work. Later, Nely took up writing as a hobby and produced her first novel entitled "Creatura".

Last year, the rights to "Creatura" were sold to a leading Young Adult publisher in a foreign country, where it has just recently been released.

Today, Nely Cab writes from the comfort of her home in South Texas, where she lives with her husband and son. Currently, Nely is working on the second installment in her debut series "Creatura".



Monday 5 August 2013

Blog Tour Review- Apocalypse of Angels: Seeing Angels

Title: Apocalypse of Angels 
Author: Harmony Lawson
Genre: Young Adult
Rating: 4/5
Tour Host: Lady Amber's Tours

Summary
Camille Harper, about to finish high school, can see angels all around her. They appear to watch her. She has been able to see angels from birth, and while she is amused by this ability, she just wants a normal life with friends, family, and good times. Why can she see angels? She doesn't know, but she believes the knowledge will change everything. Then she witnesses a confrontation between a beautiful angel and a dark winged creature. The strange event will signal the end of normal life. 

Did the strange beings know she could see them?

Her friends want her to sneak out to an abandoned house for parties, but her instincts scream “NO!” Something is not right about the place. The hip new guy in school, Earl, wants to date, but she is afraid he will disturb her circle of friends, and there is something not right about him. Her parents aren’t doing well together. And whatever strange plot is developing, her sister may be in the middle.

Now, for the first time, Camille Harper is interacting with angels face to face. This is incredible, but when Jason Waters enters her life, she gets more than she bargained for. Her strange ability complicates life on a whole new level. Camille and Jason enter an exciting but forbidden relationship.

Strange beings present danger. What’s a Nephilim? What are fallen angels up to?

Jason believes something is strange with Earl, but Jason is hiding things from Camille as well. Which one is right for her? Are they both trying to possess her for supernatural reasons?

Camille just wants to make it through the year and graduate from high school, but changes are leading up to some apocalyptic event.

Can Camille continue Seeing Angels without her life going to Hell?

My Review
 *I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review*
 I really thought hard about this rating, I felt like at one point I could have given it a three, and that for me because I sort of felt like the obvious was dragged out a bit, but when I looked at the overall picture this book really was an enjoyable read.
  I liked Harmony I found her down to earth, I thought it was neat how at peace she was with being able to see Angels, it gave her a certain quality that also made me feel at ease. I liked her instinct especially when it came to Earl, he seemed fishy right away and I'm glad she caught on. Jason seemed like a sweetheart and I would be happy to have him in my corner any day. I hope Harmony and Jason can find a way to be with each other I think they deserve it. I want to know more about Sam and Mya I hope they have a bigger part in book 2.
   Having Harmony aware of what Jason was was a neat change but also I felt it made it drag on, since she was aware and I was aware I just wanted them to get it over with and talk about it. Once the secrets were out I found things picked up, and excitement and drama followed. With all the revelations at the end I am very interested to see what will happen next, this story of good vs evil was different in a few ways and I want to know what else is in store. I am particularly curious about the Nephilium it seems to be a large factor and I can't wait to see were it goes from here. I believe this was a good first book and things can only get better from here.

Author Bio:

Harmony Lawson was born on a naval base in San Diego, California. Currently, she and her family live in Northern California in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Her education is in drawing, painting, and writing. When she read her first romance novel at age 16, she became a hopeless romantic.
Harmony is fascinated by angels, and she incorporates research in angels, the Nephilim, and fallen angels into her fictional stories. Many of the descriptions in her books reflect actual documentation found in religious documents.
While she has endured many hardships in life, she believes life will be better tomorrow. Life has its ups and downs, trials and tribulations, and Heaven and Hell. She believes the bad times are a test to prove a person’s worth. Her books reflect on that concept.

Links:
Web: http://freedomofspeechpublishing.com/apocalypseofangels/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HLawsonAuthor
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6888212.Harmony_Lawson
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Harmony-Lawson/e/B00AZCNXNE/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1368469991&sr=8-1
Facebooks: https://www.facebook.com/hlawsonauthor?fref=ts



Saturday 3 August 2013

Review- Shooting Stars (A Surah Stormsong Novel 1)

Title: Shooting Stars
Author: H.D. Gordon
Series: Surah Stormsong book 1
Rating: 5/5

Summary
Once upon a time, a common boy fell in love with a princess. It was a hopeless, forbidden love, grown in a world where sorcery and magic rule over all. Now, dark times are brewing, and destiny will bring them together, while fate works to keep them apart. Extraordinary battles will be fought, and extraordinary choices made. Join the author of The Alexa Montgomery Saga for the beginning of a tale of star-crossed lovers and magic, of hope and love and loss, of desperate wishes made on stars.


Book Trailer done by H.D. Gordon while writing for inspiration
http://youtu.be/-W10dR3mvJY

My Review
 I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review.
 I have been dying to read this book since it was released and when I noticed it was a read to review on goodreads I jumped on it. I am huge H.D. Gordon fan as I have read 3 of the 4 books in the Alexa Montgomery series and loved them all, I could not wait to read this one and of course I was not disappointed. Set in a beautifully described land full of magic and a love that seems impossible, this book was perfect, and I never wanted it to end.
This book is full of great characters and I loved how seamlessly the points of view were interchanged, it was so good I didn't even notice at first and I even found a little soft spot for Black Heart (crazy I know) his story had me feeling a little sorry for him, but in the end I really hope they bring him down lol. Surah was amazing she was spunky and headstrong, but smart enough to pick her battles and know how conduct herself the way a princess should. Her bond with Samson was by far the best part of the story, I like many others I am sure, have always wanted to own a Tiger and for her to get to communicate with him as well made me very jealous, I wish I could talk to my dog like that. Samson was so loyal and I was instantly in love with him, I think he was the perfect companion for Surah.  
I really enjoyed the pace of this book, every page was full of knowledge and adventure, not to much filler as I like to call it which has been the case in many of the books I have read in the past. So much fun and excitement I just wanted to keep reading and drowned in the world created. I am so excited that book two is on its way at the end of August and I will be all over that and I suggest to anyone that they start this series so you can get book two it will be worth it I promise.
I am very interested to see what will happen between Surah and Charlie. His song for her was beautiful and heartfelt, and with an ending like that I need answers. If you have not read H.D. Gordon's books I suggest you do and The Alexa Montgomery Saga is a great place to start and it leads into this series beautifully. Great book this is at the top of my recommend list!!

About the Author
H. D. Gordon is the author of The Alexa Montgomery Saga. Blood Warrior, the first book of the Alexa series was her debut novel and has held a spot in the top 100 fantasy bestsellers for over a month. Half Black Soul is the second book in this series and H. D. plans to complete Alexa's tales by the end of 2012. In June of 2012, Joe, a fantasy novel about a young clairvoyant, was released as well. H. D. is a lifelong reader and writer, a true lover of words. When she is not reading or writing she is raising her two daughters, playing a little guitar, and spending time with her family. She is twenty three years old and lives in the northeastern United States.

Friday 2 August 2013

Blog Tour Review- Untimely (An Untimely Romance book 1)


Title: An Untimely Romance
Author: J & L Wells
Genre: New Adult, Time Travel Romance
Rating: 4/5
Tour Host: Lady Amber's Tours
Synopsis:
Heather Richardson is a seventeen-year-old British girl whose life quickly becomes an emotional roller coaster when she meets Ruben Brown, a controlling twenty-four-year-old man who works for her father at Freesdon Manor. As much as Heather wants to love Ruben, the cracks in their relationship begin to show as her eighteenth birthday draws nigh.

In a surprising turn of events Heather is confronted by Frank, an intriguing man from a past that dates back to the nineteenth century. His untimely presence changes everything.

When she’s thrown back in time by an unrelenting force, Heather realizes that her life is not what it appears to be. Her future has already been written, and it seems she cannot escape her fate, a fate determined by a love lost long ago. In her struggle to find herself, Heather must chose her destiny amidst a dangerous love triangle, vengeful lovers, and passions controlled by the hands of time.
 My Review:
I Received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review.
 To be honest when I first stared reading this book I had forgot what it was all about, of course I had read the summary when I signed up for the blog tour but I did not re-read it before starting the book. With all the mystery in the beginning I was glad I chose to do it that way I felt it made the story much more exciting. I really enjoyed the setting of an old hotel on the English country side, and the descriptions were so well done I was able to get a perfect vision of the beautiful place both in present day and in the nineteenth century.
The only reason I did not give this book a 5 out of 5 was Heather's dependency on Ruben. I was so annoyed with her at certain points wondering what in the world could this girl see in this gross guy that had showed her his true colors right off the bat yet she continued to pursue him. This of course is my personal opinion but at certain times I was so turned off by the way he treated her and her running after him asking for forgiveness.
"theirs was certainly a love-hate relationship, yet one Heather didn't want to, or couldn't release herself from."
Now that being said thank goodness for Frank and his old world charm, he really brought life and love to this story.
I loved the writing it was great how they transitioned from past to present gracefully, the dialog matched the time period and the imagery of the grand parties held in the past made me feel like I was on the sidelines waiting for a dance.  What I thought was going to be a ghost story became so much more, it was a story of finding love, being loyal to those you care about, and also about finding who you truly want to be.
The sweet and tragic ending had me very curious about the next book, I believe I have an idea, but judging by the mystery and unexpected way book 1 unfolded you just never know.

Author Bio:
About J & L Wells: J & L Wells is a UK based mother daughter team, consisting of Laura and her mother Judith. Together, they write compelling fiction and are currently working on book 2 of the Untimely Romance series.
Author Links
Buy Links (If Available)