A Questionable Client (Kate Daniels, #0.5) by Ilona Andrews

A Questionable Client by Ilona Andrews

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


☆☆☆☆☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound!


Do you know what it feels like to discover a short that you've never read in one of your all time favorite series?




This is a delicious short on the first time Kate and Saiman meet, and of course all the shenanigans that ensues. Despite his uber creep factor throughout the series, he has remained one of my favorite characters so this was especially enjoyable.

Absolutely loved it, all the stars!

Because they are the best, it's available on their blog.


You are welcome.

Daughter of Necessity by Marie Brennan

Daughter of Necessity by Marie Brennan

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


☆ ☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound!





I spent the whole time making this face, just waiting for something to happen. It's all happening at once and is over and soon as it starts. Meh. Not a retelling so much as behind the scenes of an old story we know well.

Story Here

What do you think?

The Princess & the Penis by R.J. Silver

The Princess & the Penis by R.J. Silver

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


☆ ☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound!





I'm attracted to bold book titles/covers, I have always said I appreciate a book that blasts it's personality on full volume. However, the idea of reading this was entirely more satisfying than actually reading it. With a title of The Princess & the Penis one might expect a little raunch, a little humor, and a little fairy tale, but this was the weakest aspects of these three.

One word reaction:
Bored

Upswing? It's short!

Golden Son by Pierce Brown

☆☆☆☆☆


No spoilers and colorful language abound! I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Red Rising Review (Book 1)

The short answer?

No. 

You have absolutely no idea what lies ahead. 

2014 Reading Challenge, Failures and Goals

Merp.

It is December 27th and the new year will ring itself brightly into existence in exactly four days. According to the taunting helpful tracker on GoodReads I have read 87 of the 100 books I set out to conquer, leaving me 4 days to read and review 13 things. Turns out I have no fucks to give about this. Oh well. I'm not a huge fan of failure, and I'm certainly not all about setting goals just to abandon them in the last leg of the race, but I'm going to cut myself some slack. Boldly look into the future and all that jazz. Or something.

New Years Goals:

1. Make more realistic goals.
2. Complete my series of The 5 Books That Made Me Fall In Love With Reading (#3-#5 in the works)
3. Read 1 paper book a month. Seriously. I'm addicted to my Kindle.
4. Complete my top 10 favorite reads of 2014 blog post before the end of January. Lulz. 
5. Read 1 smut novel a month. Because.
6. Um… stop drinking coffee at 4pm so that I'll be up all night to read. 

Hahaha. OK so #6 is a stretch but that's cool cause I'm the boss of me.

Alright, I need to go work on this Golden Son review… cause shit is late going up.

xoxoxo

Erica

Little Knife (The Grisha, #2.6) by Leigh Bardugo

Little Knife by Leigh Bardugo

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


☆ ☆☆ ☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound!








I was a little "meh" until the very end, and BOOM.



Do it.

You are welcome.

The Too-Clever Fox (The Grisha, #2.5) by Leigh Bardugo

The Too-Clever Fox by Leigh Bardugo

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


☆ ☆☆ ☆☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound!






YES! Yes yes yes, and devious.

Curl up with this devilishly good short and treat yo self!

Click here enjoy.

You are welcome.

The Witch of Duva by Leigh Bardugo

The Witch of Duva by Leigh Bardugo

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


☆ ☆☆ ☆☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound!

SPECTACULAR!!

Do you love fairy tale retellings with a dark and twisty current?

Are you bored as feck sitting in front of your computer reading the same old shit as always?

Yeah. I thought so.

Click here to be more awesome.

You are welcome.

Zodiac by Romina Russell

Zodiac by Romina Russell

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


☆ ☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound! I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

DNF at 65% because...



Are you thinking about reading this book? Well, let's just get right down to business, shall we?

WARNING this book contains a love triangle.

WARNING this book contains a speshual 16 year old snowflake goddess out to save the GALAXY.

WARNING this book contains scientific NONSENSE.

WARNING this book is every YA book you've ever hated, but wrapped up in a pretty new facade.

Dreamfever by Karen Marie Moning

Dreamfever by Karen Marie Moning

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


☆ ☆☆ ☆☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound!

You guiz. YOU GUIZ.




I'm feeling that icky anxious feeling, I've read these too fast, it's over too soon. If you don't know my feelings about Iced, please see my review, because,for real, I'm not ready for this to be over.

Bonus: I'm coming up on completing my 3rd reread (although I've read Iced serval times, don't look at me like that, you don't know my life) and I can not foresee a future where once a year, I don't get a hankering to READ THEM ALL AGAIN.

Faefever by Karen Marie Moning

Faefever by Karen Marie Moning

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


☆ ☆☆ ☆☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound!


This book is a traumatic roller coaster. True to my obsessive nature, I have already started Dreamfever, but again I break for snacks, and to mark my progress. I'm fresh off the burn of this book, so forgive my lack of enthusiasm, but seriously, horrendous.

Also, singular gif:

Bloodfever by Karen Marie Moning

Bloodfever by Karen Marie Moning

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


☆ ☆☆☆☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound!

It's 12:24 am, and I've just finished reading. I am of course, 4% started on Faefever but I took a break to slice off some gouda and write up a little diddy. As this is not my first reread, my convictions on ever writing a proper review are abysmal, truthfully. However, I liked the singular gif idea, so I'm going to stick with that for now.




Truth. For all the things.

Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning

Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


☆ ☆☆ ☆☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound!

Rereading this book has been the happiest I've been reading in ages. I spent the entire time with flashes of future books, scenes cementing into my memory and others clicking into place in a way only a reread can provide.

I like to dream about the day I'll actually review this series, but frankly, today is not that day. In the mean time, I'd like to demonstrate my feelings via a singular gif:




I'mma go read now.

Burn for Me (Hidden Legacy #1) by Ilona Andrews

Burn for Me by Ilona Andrews

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


☆ ☆☆☆☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound! I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.


It has been 48 mother frackin' days since I have been able to finish a book. I have picked up countless books, including this one, and after a few pages, put it back down. I have even gotten mildly interested in books, only to put them down and never think of them again. I started Burn For Me a 1000 years ago, and up until last night, I had no idea when I would be able to read again. You know what I did? I cracked that fucking spine and it was like the heavens opened up and warm light shined all around me. I read this damn book in one glorious sitting, just like the good ole days.

One day left!

OK so, I'm excited about this one <3 but at my speeding rate, the winner will have finished it before I do!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

xo

Love At The End of Days: The Apocalypse is coming… are you ready?

Love At The 

End of days 

The Apocalypse is coming…

are you ready?

Romance and zombies collide in the riveting sequel to Love in the Time of the Dead.

Year four into the Dead outbreak that ended the world and Vanessa Summers has been so burned by love, she swears she will never trust a man again. But Sean Daniels, guard leader of Dead Run River, isn’t just any man. When past lovers return to the colony, things get complicated. Desperate to rid herself of the heartache, Vanessa signs up for a supply run that will test her mettle as a guard in training. Sean volunteers to lead her team, and his hungry looks say it’s more personal than professional.

Danger comes from all sides as they scavenge Dead infested cities, and as her attraction for Sean deepens, Vanessa finds her head and heart at war with each other. He clouds her judgment, and any misstep could spell disaster outside of the safety of colony gates.

A race back to Dead Run River could save a team mate’s life, but trouble has been brewing back home. Laney Landry, the woman who broke Sean’s heart, is in trouble, and Vanessa must decide whether to take back the Denver colony beside the man she’s falling in love with, or bow out of an attraction that terrifies her.

Weathering Dead hybrids, betrayals, battles, jealousy, and soul consuming love, Vanessa must find her place in the team she’s found. And if she can, she might just master survival at the end of days.

Buy Links: 

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Author Website: http://terashanley.blogspot.com/

Twitter: @TeraShanley

Author Bio:

Tera Shanley writes in sub-genres that stretch from Paranormal Romance, to Historic

Western Romance, to Apocalyptic (zombie) Romance. The common theme? She loves love.

A self-proclaimed bookworm, she was raised in small town Texas and could often be found

decorating a table at the local library. She currently lives in Dallas with her husband and two

young children and when she isn’t busy running around after her family, she’s writing a new

story or devouring a good book. Any spare time is dedicated to chocolate licking, rifle slinging,

zombie slaying, friend hugging, and the great outdoors. For more information about Tera and her

work, visit www.terashanley.com.

Paper vs. Screen - my personal struggle and the realness

I have a plethora of paper ARC's from BEA and some more from NYCC all lined up to be reviewed and then giveaway to all of you guys, because must share the book love. I just can't get through them. No matter how good they are, how much I love the authors, I still find myself putting down the books and picking up my kindle. What is wrong with me?

I decided to time myself, the ever problem solver that I am, in an attempt to figure out why it's so damn difficult for me to read paper books. I counted out 1000 words on a kindle, and then a 1000 on a paper and gave it a go. The results were astounding. I read a whopping 3x faster on a kindle screen, than paper. No wonder I keep putting it down, it's taking too damn long. Its no surprise to me that I've grown to read faster over the the time I've had my kindle, I am on my mark for 100 books read for the year. I have exponentially practiced more in one medium over the other. I find this rather disheartening.

Do you guys remember Alena Graedon? She wrote The Word Exchange that I went gaga over, and she recently shared an article where science proved we use a different part of our brains to read on paper vs screen. We engage more deeply with paper, but they didn't mention reading speeds. Oh well.

Either way, it's pissing me off.

In other, profoundly better news, here is a sneak of the giveaways to come!

Salt and Storm by Kendall Kulper

Zodiac by Romina Russell

The Forgotten Girl by David J. Bell

The First Bad Man by Miranda July

…and that's just a sneak.

Am I alone in this struggle? I can't be...

DNF at 6%: Unborn (Unborn, #1) by Amber Lynn Natusch

Unborn by Amber Lynn Natusch




No spoilers and colorful language abound! I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

DNF at 6%, which is a personal record.

I'm not going to rate this, obviously.

Here are my thoughts thus far:

OK, so here is the deal. Are you are thinking 6%, christ on a cracker, did you even learn anyone's names yet? The author barely started, give them a chance!




I hear you. I do. My answer is still a resounding fuck no.

DNF: The Walled City, by Ryan Graudin

The Walled City by Ryan Graudin




No spoilers and colorful language abound! I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

DNF at 55%

I'm not going to rate this, I'm not far enough into the story to justify a star rating.

Here are my thoughts thus far:

Lacks substance, otherwise known as a plot. It's fancy, I'll give you that much with its strong and rich Asian culture, intrigue and suspense. But, big fucking but here folks, what the hell was the point? Nothing written mattered, a pretty backdrop constructed to disguise the lack of content. Boohiss.

NYCC and a Giveaway of Burn For Me by Ilona Andrews!

FOLLOW THE MASSES

I got there late, and this was the hoard flowing into the bowels of NYCC. The badges were a real help, just a little tap on a tablet and bam, you move on through!

I'm just going to say this right here, right now. NYCC was a giant flee market filled with overpriced crap smattered with some legitimately awesome things. I was largely disappointed with the entire thing, I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't what I experienced. Aside from a numerous amount of books that are due to publish within the remainder of the year, the publishers were peddling older books for $10 a pop. Meh. The best part about CC? THIS BEAST OF BEAUTY.

There is a huge but here though, which was the off site panel at B&N featuring the gracious duo that make up Ilona Andrews! One very expensive cab ride across town, an overpriced scolding hot latte and and scuffle with the cashiers about who got to a book first was all worth it when we came up the escalator and walked right into these guys!

Like a creep, we just stood there, and started taking shameless pictures, because duh. Behold, the powerhouse behind Kate Daniels, who came with a box or two of Burn For Me, yet to be published!

On the fourth floor of Barnes and Nobel, the panel was fun, intimate and well worth it. But this was the best part, eep.

I have to say, I've met my fair share of authors and their handlers, these two were far and away the most gracious, down to earth, pleasantly charming of the lot. They spent time with each fan take the time to connect, take pictures, chat, sign things, it was nothing short of heart warming. They shared their tale of braving the New York City Subway and they were delightfully surprised that us east coasters aren't as gruff as we are protrayed. Oh and the icing on this kind of weird day? I got to share it with that pretty lady in black, JennyJen, my book buddy!


So, it's time folks. TIME FOR A GIVEAWAY!

Fine print and all that jazz: Open internationally. This is my copy from BEA 2014, it is not to be sold, it is an advanced readers copy!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Business of the Busy Bee: NYCC and Nessies

It's not really a secret I'm phobic of not being productive, and good thing for me, I consider reading productivity. However, these past two weeks I've been sewing constantly perfecting a pattern for baby Lock Ness Monsters, and binge watching Once Upon a Time. It has left little room for much else, but I have good news!

Firstly, I'm back to reading now the obsessiveness that takes over when creating a new pattern has died down. They were seriously worth the effort. Behold the adorableness:

Second (and much more exciting), I got my badge for NYCC and I'm too excited.

I have a list of authors, signing booths, drop times, my camera, and comfy shoes. I'll be covering the event and I couldn't be more excited! I'll be live Tweeting and sharing sneak peeks of my book scores, so pop onto Twitter tomorrow and I'll check in once I'm back. 

xo

Erica

Love in the Time of the Dead by Tera Shanley

Love in the Time of the Dead by Tera Shanley

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


☆☆☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound! I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

OK you guys. Fair warning, this book includes a speshual snowflake, zombies, and a love triangle, but truth be told, I liked all of it.

I really dig this author, I've read a few of her shorts before and she has this really wonderful way of laying down the foundation of a story without making the reader feel bogged down in mundane details. I'm a chronic skimmer, I get really fucking bored when authors hammer out paragraph after paragraph of descriptions. Shanley is just vivid enough to make you feel like you are there, but holds back in the right places, it's an art form I wish more authors had, and she has it in spades. From the first page I was engrossed and I finished this book in one sitting, without skimming a single paragraph.

Chat with Eddie Han and a Giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway


I had the pleasure of reading and reviewing Parabolis recently, my love for this book is a bit overwhelming, I need to spread it around. I would like to welcome Eddie Han, author of Parabolis:



Tell us a little bit about yourself and your journey in becoming a writer:
As a teenager, I had fantasies of living out my twenties like a Kevin Smith film: creating an indie comic book with a cult following, falling in love with a lesbian, and engaging in pretentious conversations with a bunch of asshole friends. I went to UCI instead. I studied art and graduated with a subpar GPA. Then I got an internship at a comic book company where I discovered the disenchanting power of being a production assistant. I no longer wanted to make comic books… or fall in love with a lesbian. In 2004, I moved to Tokyo to teach English with a missionary organization for 2 years. That's where/when I discovered writing. It started with personal journal entries--a form of catharsis while dealing with the amplified loneliness of culture shock and dense urban living. Then the newsletters I'd send home to my friends, family, and donors. Then essays and short stories about romantic encounters and regret. Then a long story inspired by movies, video games, music and melancholy. It was more of an exercise to hone my craft, to try and capture the scenes in my head and string them together into a coherent narrative. That eventually became Parabolis.

Parabolis is a pioneer in cultivating a new reading experience, what was the inspiration for bridging the world of fantasy novel and comic-zine:
I suppose the most potent inspiration was my own insecurity. It was my first crack at novel-writing so I had concerns about whether or not the narrative could stand on its own merit. I decided then that I'd augment it to be something more than a novel. I wanted it to be a work of art (if not literary, then at least aesthetically). The two conventional platforms that immediately came to mind when considering merging art with books were illustrated novels and graphic novels. But in both cases, the art often serves either as a redundancy or a substitute for the prose. So I looked to magazines and newspapers instead where the prose and visual elements (usually in the form of layout design, photographs and/or editorial illustrations) compliment each other. It made me wonder if it was possible to make an entire novel like that. That's when I called Curt.

Give us some insight into what it looks to take the plunge into self publishing an actual book, not just the digital format we see so often these days:
I read somewhere a few years back that self-publishing was career suicide. Although that seems to be changing, it does have a certain stigma attached to it, even if you're successful--sort of like being a Youtube celebrity. Initially, it was enough to give me pause until I questioned my motives. Was I trying to become the next great American novelist or simply writing for the sheer pleasure of it? Once I had settled on the latter, I saw no harm in trying to make something awesome with or without the validation of industry elites. The only thing I knew about publishing was that making a physical book costs money, especially if you want the quality to be comparable to traditionally published products. So we turned to Kickstarter. After a successful campaign, David David Katzman, the self-published author of A Greater Monster, held our hand and walked us through the process. He first recommended creating an indie publishing house to release the title under. Then we had to sort through the complexities of typesetting, layout, paper weight, grain, and texture before finally bidding on a printer. Once a printer was selected and the finalized files uploaded, we waited for the shipment to arrive.

What does your writing process look like while working so closely with an artist?
Curt and I were already close friends and shared similar artistic sensibilities so working with him was a pleasure. He's a brilliant artist and he's very intentional with his work. When he took on the project, he was adamant about the form having a function--that adding art shouldn't be just a gimmick. Every week, he would first read the post-edit chapters and ask himself, "What can I say with my art that wasn't already said in the text?" As a result, he was able to create an impression of culture and history that wasn't explicit in the narrative. For example, the process of transferring his illustrations using acetone left imperfections and distortions that simulated the effects of the print press. He was conscious of how a 2-column format affected the reading rate, how to proportion just the right amount of negative space and margins to give the eyes rest, which fonts to use and how to alert the reader of a change in POV using visual cues. He's a true craftsman. And he has excellent hair.

When did you first create Dale and what was the inspiration behind his story?
After I returned from Tokyo, I worked as the General Manager of my dad's recycling business. It wasn't a terrible experience but I knew it wasn't what I wanted to be doing. I used Dale as a vehicle to transplant that nagging sense of discontentment into Parabolis--where I could both escape it and address it.

Who has more of you, Dale or Sparrow? Or are they two sides to the same coin?
I was the source material in shaping Dale's behavior (although, that presented its own challenges because I couldn't always distinguish between what I'd like to think I'd do and what I'd actually do). Sparrow on the other hand, is an idealized version of the character I'd want to be if I were represented in a fantasy novel: fearless, pragmatic, cold and calculating. There's a moment toward the end when they switch roles--when one loses their humanity and the other finds his. I suppose in that sense, they could be two sides of the same coin. Sparrow is, after all, a shadow of Dale.

What are you working on now?
Life... you know, in general. And when time permits, a follow-up to Parabolis.

Parabolis by Eddie Han

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

No spoilers and colorful language abound! I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

There were times when I was reading this book when I got so lost in the moment that I would clutch it to my chest and give a happy sigh. I was experiencing that moment, you know the one when you get hit with all the good feels at once.

parabolīs

1. dative plural of parabola
2. ablative plural of parabola

parabola f (genitive parabolae); first declension

1. A comparison, illustration.
2. (Ecclesiastical Latin) An allegorical relation, parable; proverb; taunting speech or any speech.

Parabolis is a glorious odyssey that will burst into your mind and take up permanent real-estate in your soul. It is an intriguing mix of an ambiguous place in an uncertain time, composed with a corrupt political regime, and an unmerciful equalizer. This dizzyingly good fantasy debut is an astute and imaginative commentary on the human condition.

The first thing to note about this book is just how beautiful it is. The cover is something I would spot in any bookstore and be compelled to pick up. In a strictly tactile sense, the paperback is a joy to hold with it's smooth texture and substantially firm cover. The card stock quality is a testament to how much the author and artist value attention to detail, an indication of how much love and effort went into self publishing this gorgeous novel.

We are introduced to Dale Sunday as a young boy being raised by his father in the shadow of his older brother, Darius. His best friend, Sparrow is a small boy with tenacious convictions and wisdom far beyond his years, the kind gained only by great pain and great loss. The dynamic between these two unlikely friends is luminous and haunting, forged by young boys but cherished through to manhood remains the beating heart of this narrative.  We follow Dale's evolution from wide-eyed boy to disillusioned adult, only to find him back in his childhood home, in his fathers own footsteps. The time comes where he must choose his path, where he must define what it means to be a man in his own right.



Han's characters are complex, flawed and beautifully realized. This eloquent fantasy novelzine is grounded with a sense of reality and relatability in the dialogue but manages to be exquisitely quotable. It feels familiar with a veiled sense of the past and a touch of otherworldly elements that leave the reader captivated. If all of this wasn't enough, Han collaborated with a brilliant artist, Curt Merlo to bring his story to another level.

Full disclosure, this book took me forever and a year to finish, but in the spirit of honesty, it's in no way a negative reflection of its quality, in fact it's directly the opposite. It was so enjoyable that I relished in the tremendous writing and intelligent composition while my children weren't around to interrupt  me. Apparently, this is an extremely rare scenario. Despite long bouts without reading, Parabolis always called to me; each time I started again all the background of life would melt away so I could seamlessly fuse back into the story.

All in all, I cannot speak highly enough about everything that is happening here. I just, GAH!

Parabolis is now available in digital format, check it out on Amazon for $2.99! I will be interviewing the author and hosting a signed giveaway on my blog, so more to come.