Monday, June 29, 2020

NOT EVEN A PANDEMIC CAN KEEP A BOOKAHOLIC DOWN!

For those of you who know me, you know that I travel several times each year to attend various Book Conventions and Book Signings. With these events being shut down this year due to the Coronavirus and the need for social distancing, I've been dragging my sorry self around, sad and missing my book "fix".  I absolutely LOVE attending these events and getting together with some pretty awesome authors!

Teri Dees Edney, the coordinator for SPACE COAST BOOK LOVERS, one of my all-time favorite events, decided that she didn't want to disappoint the authors and readers and bloggers who look forward to this event every year. So she decided to turn it into a VIRTUAL EVENT.

I appreciated the fact that she and her many helpers wanted to do something for us, but I wasn't exactly sure how it would work out. Well I am here to say... IT WAS FANTASTIC!!

Whether you wanted to learn how to make a Fairy Lantern, paint an Awesome Picture, have fun with a lunchtime coloring session or play Book Bingo, they had it all... using Facebook Live and Zoom. I laughed until I cried with the antics of authors Elicia Hyder and Violet Howe with their games and giveaways. And the Author Speed Mingle set several authors on Zoom at various times throughout the day, so that we could ask questions and have a chat with our favorite authors. These authors had giveaways and special book offers, including a few new-release books, only available to SCBL virtual attendees.

I know it must have been a lot of work putting this virtual event together, and I want to express a heartfelt "THANK YOU" to Teri and her helpers. I'm looking forward to getting together next year for Space Coast Book Lovers 2021, when (hopefully) I can give each and every one of you a big ol' HUG.

#SCBL




Saturday, June 27, 2020

Book Review - A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES (Book 1) by Sarah J. Maas

Title:  A Court of Thorns and Roses
Author:  Sarah J. Maas
Genre:  Young Adult, Urban Fantasy
Release Date:  May 5, 2015

About the Book:


The sexy, action-packed first book in the #1 New York Times bestselling Court of Thorns and Roses series from Sarah J. Maas.

When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a terrifying creature arrives to demand retribution. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she knows about only from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not truly a beast, but one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled her world.

At least, he's not a beast all the time.

As she adapts to her new home, her feelings for the faerie, Tamlin, transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But something is not right in the faerie lands. An ancient, wicked shadow is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it, or doom Tamlin-and his world-forever.

From bestselling author Sarah J. Maas comes a seductive, breathtaking book that blends romance, adventure, and faerie lore into an unforgettable read.
Buy Links: Amazon 

My Review:

After hearing so many positive recommendations about books written by Sarah J. Maas, I was excited when this one fell into my lap (courtesy of NetGalley). And I must admit that I had a hard time putting it down. Interesting story in a sort of "Beauty and the Beast" kind of way with a few twists. But as interesting as the story was, I have to admit that I didn't particularly care for the characters. I found myself more than once getting irritated with Feyre being so clueless when she totally ignored advice time and time again.

I may not read any other books in this particular series, but I truly enjoyed the writing ability of this author. Saying that, I'm sure I will give one of her other series a try.

Note:  Not sure if this is truly "Young Adult", so parents may want to check it out before your preteen picks it up.

My Rating: 

About the Author:
Sarah J. Maas is the #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author of the Court of Thorns and Roses and the Crescent City series, as well as the Throne of Glass series. Her books are published in thirty-seven languages. A New York native, Sarah lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, son, and dog.

Check out her website at:
https://sarahjmaas.com/

Saturday, June 20, 2020

Book Blitz & Giveaway - TASTE MY WRATH by Debbie Cassidy


Taste My Wrath
Debbie Cassidy
(The Iron Fae #1)
Publication date: June 18th 2020
Genres: Adult, Urban Fantasy
A dead earth, a handful of survivors, and a game that could wipe out humanity.
I was one of the few humans to be saved by the shining ones. Powerful beings who came from the stars just in time to stop the annihilation of mankind.
But they’ve been here before.
Earth was once their home and humanity has another name for them. Fae.
Now we live in iron cities paying for haven as workers and conscripted warriors.
We owe them after all.
Until they ask too much.
The Regency Tournament is about to begin. A test of prowess for the shining ones to determine which House will rule their people for the next century.
And we humans? We’re the prey.
But I didn’t survive earths almost destruction to be hunted like a beast.
If I’m going to go down, then I’ll be taking these pointy eared wankers with me.
And I have an advantage. A shadow companion—protective but tough. My mentor has trained me in the art of survival. With his smooth dulcet tones in my head, and his shadowy form at my back, I’ll no longer be prey.
And when I hunt the shining ones, they won’t even see me coming.
An Urban Fantasy Romance adventure. Experience the magic of the Fae set against a Post-Apocalyptic back drop in a dystopian world.


Author Bio:
Debbie Cassidy lives in England, Bedfordshire, with her three kids and very supportive husband. Coffee and chocolate biscuits are her writing fuels of choice, and she is still working on getting that perfect tower of solitude built in her back garden. Obsessed with building new worlds and reading about them, she spends her spare time daydreaming and conversing with the characters in her head - in a totally non psychotic way of course. She writes Urban Fantasy, Fantasy and Reverse Harem Fantasy. All her books contain plenty of action, romance and twisty plots.

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Tuesday, June 9, 2020

Book Blitz & Giveaway - FALSE START FAIRY TALE by Kelly St-Laurent


False Start Fairy Tale
Kelly St-Laurent
Publication date: June 9th 2020
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Adèle Villeneuve is attempting the impossible. At twenty-four she’s opened an events company in her small French village, which at last count has a population of 1501. Even her parents tried to stop her. But Adèle has a plan. Or, at least she did.
Then the Reniers returned to town.
Aside from the dilapidated chateau that’s sat in ruin for the past forty years, Saint-Germain is known for one other thing: a bitter feud between the Reniers and the Villeneuves that has gone on for so long no one remembers how it started. It’s practically folklore, a hatred so deep it ended with the Reniers leaving France back in the eighties, never to be seen or heard from again.
Until now.
With the feud reignited, Adèle’s quiet life is upended. Even more so when she finds out that the Reniers are not only refurbishing the chateau but also opening a competing events company. When Finn Renier, the alluring son of her father’s enemy, offers her a truce that could save her business, she makes a decision that goes against her family, a choice that changes everything.
As she finds herself falling for the one person she’s not supposed to, secrets and lies become entangled, a dangerous truth threatening to be revealed.
Because Finn isn’t all that he seems.
And the Reniers didn’t just return to Saint-Germain for a fresh start.
EXCERPT:
“How about a drink?”
I stare at him, certain that he’s joking. “A drink?”
“Yeah.”
He says it with such confidence. I can’t imagine what it’s like to walk around with that level of self-assurance. “I can’t have a drink with you.”
“Why not? You did last Friday.”
“You showed up at my table. Uninvited, I might add. And that was in Laval. My papa’s office is right over there and he would disown me if he saw me speaking with you, let alone having a drink with you.”
He watches me closely. “Do you always do what your dad wants?”
“No.” The moment I say it I have my doubts.
“So, have a drink with me.”
“Sure,” I say sarcastically. “We’ll go into the café where Gloria’s only known me all my life. I’m sure she won’t tell Papa.”
A subtle hint of annoyance crosses those cover model features of his. “Are you serious about not being seen in public with me?”
“Are you serious in not realizing why?” I glance around, worried that we’ve been talking too long. Saint-Germain’s gossips have eyes everywhere.
“Adèle, it’s just a drink. I’m not asking you to marry me.”
My mind conjures up an image of him in a suit, standing at an altar, watching me, teary-eyed as I walk down the aisle. Appalled at my disturbing, traitorous thoughts, I get to the point. “Our families are at war.”
“Should I be sharpening my sword?” he asks. “Or will it be pistols at dawn?”
Both those words are far too phallic for my liking. “Surely you have something better to do, like repair your dilapidated château so you can put me out of business.”
“The workers start next week.”
“Well…” I have no comeback to that.
“If you won’t drink with me, will you at least take a walk with me?”
“Why?” I ask, confused.
“Because I’m new to town. Aren’t you supposed to be friendly to newcomers?”
“There are plenty of other people you could ask,” I tell him.
He chuckles at that. “As far as I can see, there are two other people my age in Saint-Germain. You and your cousin.”
“Then ask her,” I say.
“I’m asking you.”
My heart does an unmistakeable flutter, proving itself to be as traitorous as my thoughts. I realize I need to be blunt. “The only way you could ever get me to drink with you is if it was to toast your family’s departure from Saint-Germain.”
He moves even closer. “We’re not going anywhere.”
“Then I suppose you’ll have to get used to drinking alone.”
The air between us thickens, his eyes glancing at my lips. For a fleeting second I think he might kiss me. For a horrifying moment, I think I want him to. But then it passes, like temporary psychosis. Still, a worrying realization persists.
I cannot trust myself around Finn Renier.


Author Bio:
From the moment when she believed that the worlds inside the television were real, Kelly St-Laurent has run away with her imagination.
Born in one of the most beautiful corners of the planet, she spent her childhood inspired by the mountains and oceans of New Zealand, constantly wondering about the places beyond the horizon. At age nineteen she decided to find out and hopped a plane to Canada. And, so began her love affair with the Great White North, that has come to be her second home.
Prior to writing her first novel in 2016, Kelly worked as a production coordinator in visual effects where she got to help bring fairies, dragons and monsters to life.
Kelly currently lives in Montreal with her husband Alex and their Shetland Sheepdog Bucky. When she isn't writing, she's often found re-watching her favorite films with a wine in hand.
She still believes the world inside her television is real.

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