Cold Burn of Magic by Jennifer Estep

 Title: Cold Burn of Magic
Author: Jennifer Estep
Publisher: Kenginston Books
Number of Pages: 368
Genre: Urban Fantasy/Young Adult
Source: My Copy











 Blurb:
 There Be Monsters Here. . .

It's not as great as you'd think, living in a tourist town that's known as "the most magical place in America." Same boring high school, just twice as many monsters under the bridges and rival Families killing each other for power.

I try to keep out of it. I've got my mom's bloodiron sword and my slightly illegal home in the basement of the municipal library. And a couple of Talents I try to keep quiet, including very light fingers and a way with a lock pick.

But then some nasty characters bring their Family feud into my friend's pawn shop, and I have to make a call--get involved, or watch a cute guy die because I didn't. I guess I made the wrong choice, because now I'm stuck putting everything on the line for Devon Sinclair. My mom was murdered because of the Families, and it looks like I'm going to end up just like her. .



Review:
I adored this book. It's the first Urban Fantasy I've read in a super long time and Jennifer Estep did not disappoint.  A Cold Burn of Magic is full of action and mystery and you just never know what will happen next.  I loved the world building, although to me it was awfully similar to the world found in the Elemental Assassin books. I kept expecting Gin or Finn to pop out any minute!  That was really the only flaw, if you could call it that in the whole book. 

I enjoyed that while Lila is stubborn, she slowly grows and can see reason-I hate it when characters are too stubborn for their own good. I also found myself torn between loving and hating the love interest in the book-Devon.  I just didn't understand what Lila saw in him or why everyone loved him so much...but this is Urban Fantasy and romance is always secondary and slow to build,  so I can't wait to see how it plays out!

All in all Estep has created another fantastical world that I can't wait to lose myself in. I can't wait for the next book.

The Royal We by Heather Cocks & Jessica Morgan

Title: The Royal We
Authors: Heather Cocks & Jessica Morgan
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing 
Number of Pages: 464
Source: My Copy













Blurb:
American Rebecca Porter was never one for fairy tales. Her twin sister, Lacey, has always been the romantic who fantasized about glamour and royalty, fame and fortune. Yet it's Bex who seeks adventure at Oxford and finds herself living down the hall from Prince Nicholas, Great Britain's future king. And when Bex can't resist falling for Nick, the person behind the prince, it propels her into a world she did not expect to inhabit, under a spotlight she is not prepared to face.

Dating Nick immerses Bex in ritzy society, dazzling ski trips, and dinners at Kensington Palace with him and his charming, troublesome brother, Freddie. But the relationship also comes with unimaginable baggage: hysterical tabloids, Nick's sparkling and far more suitable ex-girlfriends, and a royal family whose private life is much thornier and more tragic than anyone on the outside knows. The pressures are almost too much to bear, as Bex struggles to reconcile the man she loves with the monarch he's fated to become.

Which is how she gets into trouble.

Now, on the eve of the wedding of the century, Bex is faced with whether everything she's sacrificed for love-her career, her home, her family, maybe even herself-will have been for nothing.

Spanning nearly a decade, The Royal We is a richly imagined, emotionally compelling novel that examines, with warmth and wit, what truly happens after your prince has come



 Review:
I am a sucker for prince books. Pretty much any book with the word prince in the title or blurb will guarantee that I'll buy it. I have to admit, I'm not sure it was worth the $9.99 I paid for it.

The Royal We was cute, charming and fun but I felt frustrated in reading it.  It was told in first person format from the point of view of Becky, who falls in love with Prince Nicholas.  While I enjoyed that it went  from 2009-2013 it was a little jarring when Becky would insert something like-that never really happened, etc., etc. with regards to events mentioned in her biography, The Bexicon throughout the book. I think what made it frustrating for me is that I felt like I wanted to know Nicholas more. I never really got what made Becky wait that long for him. I think by year four of being kept hidden from the family and media, I would've been out of there.  But maybe not, because some things really are worth waiting for. :)

I think my main problem with this book was it was 100 pages too long, and the ending while sweet left me wanting more and slightly jipped-it just felt rushed and like things were missing from it.  This was not a bad read, but I expected a lot more-to me this was a library read. I don't know why it was slightly disappointing but it was. 


Side note: I learned after the fact that the authors have a very popular blog and are known royal watchers,  so I think if you followed their blog this book would be much more entertaining and it explains the high $9.99 price I paid for it. For some reason when a book is priced that high and I am dumb enough to buy I always have way higher expectations for the book then I should have.

Deweys Readathon

 Update Hours 8-13
I finally finished the book yay! Perhaps a 464 page book wasn't the best one to start for the readathon, but I had started it earlier in the week (I was about 60 pages in) and wanted to finish it. I did, and I think it did me in. I ended up really enjoying the book, even if it was about 100 pages to long.  I'm not sure I have it in me to do any more reading, but maybe I just need a break for a bit.
 
Mid Event survey: 
1. What are you reading right now? I just finished The Royal We
2. How many books have you read so far? A grand total of one!
3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon? I'm not sure what or if I'll be reading more. This one kinda did me in.
4. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those?Yes! I took one nap and the pets have been on a lets see how many times we can whine to get Colette's attention kick.  They've had so many treats it's not funny.
5. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far? That I haven't been more active doing mini challenges.
Update Hours 7-8
I am still reading The Royal We, and it feels like it will never ever end, but I am enjoying it--even it is glorified fan fiction of William/Kate.


Update: Hours 1-6
I have not yet finished the book I started  and it's one I started earlier in the week:

 Food consumed: Eggs and corn pops
Drinks: One can of coke
Naps: 1
Pages read: I've read about30% of The Royal We from where I started at. It's slow going.

 Intro Meme:

What fine part of the world are you reading from today? 
Ohio, where the sky is gray and it's a whole 49 degrees according to weather.com, but I'm sure they are wrong because it feels much colder out!
2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?
All For You by Laura Florand
3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?
Rice Krispy treats, which I still have to make and buy. :)
4) Tell us a little something about yourself!
I always hate these things! I'm the distance assistant for author Gini Koch, proud aunt of Charlie and dog mom of Cleo. :) Three years ago I only read UF and PNR. Now I've swung the other direction and only read contemporary romance.
5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to? 
I haven't done a read-a-thon in awhile,  mainly because of my work schedule but today I'll be taking lots of breaks to do memes and visiting other blogs. I'll also try to post everything readathon related in this post so I don't have 20 million posts all relatively the same.

Where have I been & Dewey's Readathon

I've sat down to write a review I don't know how many times this year, but something has always managed to distract me. Like right now, my dog is giving me the side eye to give her more treats, but I'm not going to cave in!  I'll be strong and finish this post even if her whines get to be supersonic level, lol!

Sure she looks all innocent in this picture but get her in the right mood and watch out! I've got to be honest, I'm not really sure how I lost the drive to blog, but lose it I did. The bi-annual Dewey's Readathon, though has motivated me to get back into reviewing again-maybe not as much as before, and maybe not in the same style, but I've found that I've missed gushing about my favorite new find or whining about a book that had such great potential but fizzled out.  It's no secret (at least on twitter) that I've been in a massive slump-I know I need a break from romance, but I just can't seem to take it! Here are a few books that I'm planning on reading on Saturday:

 

All of these books have been on my tbr shelf for much, much too long!!  Hopefully the readathon will be just what the doctor ordered to get me back into blogging!!

Guest Post With Lauren Hammond

Please help me welcome Lauren Hammond, author of These Walls That Bind Me. She's here today talking about her newest novella, These Walls That Bind Me and her favorite reads!

 First off, I'd like to thank Colette for having me on her blog today.

Secondly, today's post is a top five list of some of my favorite reads and why I love them so much, along with some deets on my latest novella, These Walls That Bind Me.

I'm going to go ahead and kick things off with....

5. Ashes to Angels by Natalie McCollum - This book was one word and that word is brilliant. Not only is it dark, but it is raw and edgy too. Combine that with the fact that the dialogue is executed through song lyrics and you've got yourself one unique and epic read. An epic read, indeed.

4. Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma - Who doesn't love a book that makes you question your own thoughts and beliefs? I loved this book so much for that very reason. It made me question my thoughts, my theories, and all of the morals I was raised with.

3. The Crimson Petal and the White by Michael Faber - This book was amazing. I don't know if it was the setting, the interesting choice of a main character, or the structure of the story that made me love it so much. Okay, okay, for me, it was definitely the setting, Victorian London. What else is awesome is that you feel like you witness the climb of a girl from the gutter up close and personally. How it seems more about luck and promiscuity rather than the beauty of Sugar.

2. The Opportunist by Tarryn Fisher - I like to think that sometimes there is true beauty in heartbreak. Just like I like to think that half of the time happily-ever-afters are a facade because unfortunately they're not always realistic. I don't know if it's just me, but I love any book with a real quality to it and this book has it, hands down.

1. Delirium by Lauren Oliver - Delirium. Ah, Delirium. I don't think I can ever sing praises for this book enough, the same way I can't imagine what it's like to live in a world where it is forbidden to love someone. For one thing, Oliver's writing is poetic and beautiful. But it's not only that, but story in itself is unique, not to mention moving and at times heart-wrenching.

If you guys get a chance, check these reads out! I promise you, they won't be disappointing!

Also, if you're in the mood for a short, yet fun and emotional read, check out my latest novella, These Walls That Bind Me!

Here's the synopsis -

I love to hate you and I hate to love you.

Ruby Dixon has always believed that every girl has that one guy...
You know...
The one that she just can't let go of.
The one that broke her heart.
The one that got away.
Yes...
Every girl has that one guy.
And Ruby just so happens to be locked in a room with hers.

Buy Links: 

Amazon | Barnes and Noble

Barnes and Noble link. 

Review: Universal Alien by Gini Koch

Title: Universal Alien
Author: Gini Koch
Series: Katherine "Kitty" Katt #10
Genre: Science Fiction
Publisher: DAW
Number of Pages: 544
Release Date: December 2, 2014
Source: Publisher

Issues with Australia need to be straightened out, so the White House sends the Vice President and his wife, aka Jeff and Kitty Katt-Martini, over to handle the situation. But before Kitty can make things worse, she’s suddenly in another world -- one where she’s been married to Charles Reynolds for years and aliens don’t exist. Kitty’s not the only one confused, because the Kitty from that world has taken her place in this one. Can they both save their respective days before it’s too late to go home to the universes they belong to, or will one Kitty decide to keep the other’s life… forever?

I can't believe that this is the tenth book in the Katherine "Kitty" Katt series by Gini Koch. Where has the time go? Normally by this point in a series, I've stopped reading because the plots get recycled and the love interest still hasn't been resolved. Not so with this series! I really didn't know how Gini would be able to top the last couple of books, but she did with this one.

I love how she is able to bring life into this series by providing a huge twist, and honestly I can't believe I didn't guess what was going to happen from the title of the book! Throughout the series Kitty has talked about there being multiple universes, and I'm glad that we got to experience one. I can't say much about this book without giving anything away, but there are classic Kittyisms, great music playlists and lots of action and twists you just don't see coming. 

I think that what I loved most about this book was that it gave Chuckie fans a glance to see what could've been, and for Jeff fans to see what life would be like without him in it. There is just so much goodness in this book, and so many characters that I wanted to hug.  

This is not a book that can be read on it's own-I highly recommend reading the others in this series first, otherwise there are bits and pieces that just won't be fixed, If you haven't started the series, the books are fast reads and have so many laugh out loud moments in them.   

Universal Alien is so far my favorite book of the year, and Koch's writing just gets better and better with each book. You just never know what will happen next. The pages practically turn on their own.

Gini Koch’s Top 10 Sci Fi & Superhero Movies & Giveaway!

 It's hard to believe that book ten in the Katherine "Kitty" Katt series is almost upon us! In honor of this being the tenth book in the series, Gini is here today with a giveaway and to do a top ten list of her favorite Sci Fi & Superhero Movies!



Gini Koch’s Top 10 Sci Fi & Superhero Movies

This list does tend to fluctuate, in part because new movies come along that shove their way into my heart (waves at Big Hero 6), but these are my top ten as of today. With two extras because I know I’d be asked why they weren’t listed if I didn’t have them in here somewhere.

12. Serenity

11. X-Men (the first one)

10. Star Trek (the first J.J. Abrams one)

9. Big Hero 6

8. Starman

7. The Incredibles

6. The Terminator

5. Star Wars: A New Hope (the original version, where Han shoots first)

4. Captain America: The First Avenger

3. Mystery Men

2. Galaxy Quest

1. The Avengers

Blurb:

Being the wife of the Vice President isn’t easy. Especially when your talents lie in kicking butt and rocking out…

Jeff and Kitty Katt-Martini find out just how easy it is for the wife of the Vice President of the United States to unintentionally insult an ally. Now they have to smooth things over with the Australian Prime Minister, pronto, or risk creating an international incident the worldwide anti-alien coalitions will be able to use to force Jeff to resign and the A-Cs to leave the planet.

But before Kitty can make things worse, a cosmic congruence and a little help from some powerful beings shoves her into another world -- one where she’s been married to Charles Reynolds for years and aliens don’t exist. She’s also landed in the middle of a huge conspiracy and is marked for death…but at least that’s business as usual.

Kitty’s not the only one confused, because the Kitty from that world has taken her place in this one. Now Alpha Team and the Diplomatic Corps have to make sure that no one spots that there’s been a switch, while keeping World War III from happening. And they have to do so while keeping this new Kitty in line, because she has views about what to do and how to it, and time is running out.

Can both Kittys save their respective days before it’s too late to go home to the universes they belong to? Or will one Kitty decide to keep the other’s life…forever?

Giveaway:

Gini is offering one winner the choice of one of any of the first 9 books in the Alien/Katherine “Kitty” Katt Series (Touched by an Alien, Alien Tango, Alien in the Family, Alien Proliferation, Alien Diplomacy, Alien vs. Alien, Alien in the House, Alien Research, or Alien Collective), signed and personalized. Open internationally.  To enter, fill out the rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Author Bio:

Gini Koch writes the fast, fresh and funny Alien/Katherine “Kitty” Katt series for DAW Books, the Necropolis Enforcement Files series, and the Martian Alliance Chronicles series. Alien in the House, Book 7 in her long-running Alien series, won the RT Book Reviews Reviewer’s Choice Award as the Best Futuristic Romance of 2013. As G.J. Koch she writes the Alexander Outland series and she’s made the most of multiple personality disorder by writing under a variety of other pen names as well, including Anita Ensal, Jemma Chase, A.E. Stanton, and J.C. Koch. Currently, Gini has stories featured in the Unidentified Funny Objects 3, Clockwork Universe: Steampunk vs. Aliens, and Two Hundred and Twenty-One Baker Streets anthologies, and, writing as J.C. Koch, in Kaiju Rising: Age of Monsters, The Madness of Cthulhu, Vol. 1, and A Darke Phantastique anthologies. She will also have a story in the first book in an X-Files anthology series coming out in 2015. Gini can be reached via her website: www.ginikoch.com