Tag: Paranormal romance

Books, indie author, paranormal romance, Romance

Sword Witch by C.S. Wilde

debra

Sword Witch is a short novella by C.S. Wilde that tells the story of Sally, a sword (warrior) witch and her fight for the love of a human, Joseph.  She enters into a deal with an evil Fae in order to accomplish her goal by using illegal magic, and risking her own freedom.  And of course, it leads to an epic battle involving her half-Fae Brother, Neil.  I liked the give/take between Sally and Neil and seeing a little bit of their childhood and history.

This was a fun and entertaining read. I liked Sally’s magic–a couple of things she could do was really cool.   I also think this story would have worked as an even longer story, if the author chose to. I would actually like to see a story for the brother, Neil.

I received an ARC  in exchange for an honest review.

 

 

Books, fantasy, great reads, paranormal romance, Reviews, Romance, scifi, Urban Fantasy

The Beast by JR Ward

Karen

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I loved this book! There I said it. I thought it felt like the books of old when the original brothers were getting together, and I’m kinda partial to the originals. But blurb first, let’s follow the rules!

 

Nothing is as it used to be for the Black Dagger Brotherhood. After avoiding war with the Shadows, alliances have shifted and lines have been drawn. The slayers of the Lessening Society are stronger than ever, preying on human weakness to acquire more money, more weapons, more power. But as the Brotherhood readies for an all-out attack on them, one of their own fights a battle within himself…

For Rhage, the Brother with the biggest appetites, but also the biggest heart, life was supposed to be perfect—or at the very least, perfectly enjoyable. Mary, his beloved shellan, is by his side and his King and his brothers are thriving. But Rhage can’t understand—or control—the panic and insecurity that plague him…

And that terrifies him—as well as distances him from his mate. After suffering mortal injury in battle, Rhage must reassess his priorities—and the answer, when it comes to him, rocks his world…and Mary’s. But Mary is on a journey of her own, one that will either bring them closer together or cause a split that neither will recover from…

 

This book delivered as a good read. But for me it was more than that. The more I read this the more I realized that there were two other reasons that this book was so good. (1) I like Mary and Rhage. It makes a difference because I haven’t really liked the couples pretty much since books 9, I didn’t like Tohr/Autumn, Payne/Manny, Qhuinn/Blay love the boys just not my thing, and I despised Selena sooo yeah. Found the princess weak and pointless. Yeah I guess it’s nice to read about people I like. Problem I see in the future? I love Assail (and he is AMAZING in this book!!!) but his chick?? Eh I could take her or leave her. In fact I never really saw what the big deal was about Assail, then take that chick away and Bamn! he became interesting! But put them back together in a book? More boringville for me. Oh and don’t even get me started on Layla….seriously guys I don’t think I can read a book about her if Ward writes one I dislike her that much. (2) Things actually happened in this book, the plots carried and some story lines actually got completed. Lately I’ve been feeling like new stuff been added but nothing is getting resolved. Finally this fixes some(not all but that’s okay) of those loose ends.

All and all it felt the Warden of old and I LOVED EVERY BIT OF IT!

So in my opinion if you have read part of this series or all of this series go and get it, you’ll like this one. If you’ve never read any of the BDB and you’re a PNR fan or someday want to grow up to be a PNR author just remember this when deciding if you should pick it up. The USA Today said about JR Ward “J.R. Ward’s urban fantasy romance series is so popular I don’t think there’s a reader today who hasn’t at least heard of the Black Dagger Brotherhood” just get the book.

The first book in this series is Dark Lover if you want to begin at the beginning:

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Books, great reads, indie author, paranormal romance, Reviews, Romance

Fallen Hearts by Angela Colsin

debra

Fallen Hearts is Book 4 of The Crucible Series by Angela Colsin, an independent author I recently found.

As always, first the Blurb:

Most humans live in blissful ignorance of the supernatural, unable to see what they don’t believe exists. Such used to be the lot of Stephan Forrester, a normal mortal leading a regular life, at least until the day vampires abducted him. With his family murdered in the attack, Stephan finds himself alone and dying of an obscure, incurable illness contracted in the vampires’ lair.
Using what time he has left to seek justice, Stephan sets out to eliminate the offenders until only one remains. However, locating this final target means doing something he doesn’t think possible—actually working with a vampire.
Entombed against her will and forced to hibernate for seventy years, Maddox only awakens when a mortal with a vendetta frees her from the grave. He needs help locating the same vampire who buried her alive, and ironically, she senses a connection to her human savior in the form of a blood link. But Stephan’s intense hatred for vampires makes honoring that link impossible.
Even so, Maddox is unlike any vampire Stephan’s ever encountered. As charming and intelligent as she is beautiful, she reminds him of what it means to actually live, mending his wounded heart. In turn, Maddox finds it hard to separate from Stephan, or resist the passionate responses he elicits, and their unexpected bond strengthens as time goes on.
But time is the one luxury Stephan doesn’t have, and saving him from his illness could prove fatal to them both.

My thoughts:  I have really enjoyed finding and reading this author’s books.  I have enjoyed each story a little more than the previous one.  I have enjoyed this book most of all so far.  I thought the story very good with the right level of emotional angst, especially on the part of Stephen.  He had to most change in this story.  After everything he went through at the hands of the vampires, being forced to work with one threatened to take its’ toll on him.  He already has enough to deal with concerning the death of his family and the disease he contracted.  Forced to come to terms with Maddox not being like all the other vampires he encountered was difficult for him.  Maddox had her own angst to work through, albeit for different reasons.  And, she had to deal with the many societal/technological changes that have occurred since her forced hibernation.   We saw a couple of characters from previous books that play a role in this story as well as have a large part of a previously started story arc realized. I just knew something was out there in the previous books and glad to see it come to fruition.  I am looking forward to the next book in this series.

Happy Reading,

Debra

Books, great reads, indie author, paranormal romance, Reviews, Romance

Strange Brew by Angela Colsin

debra

Strange Brew is Book 3 of The Crucible Series by Angela Colsin, an independent author I recently found.

First, the Blurb:  Feeling out of touch with her magical gifts, Aislinn Carmichael is a witch seeking a means of restoring her ability to its fullest potential. Despite the warnings of family and friends, the endeavor inevitably drives her to accept the initiation trial of a witch coven called The Trine. 

Their test demands the capture of a supernatural creature, a task Aislinn has little doubt she can accomplish with relative ease. But of all the potentially benign creatures she could’ve snared, none other than a feral werewolf stumbles into her trap. Making matters worse is The Trine’s intentions for her dangerous captive, forcing Aislinn to release him and potentially risk retaliation. 

But vengeance is the farthest thing from the werewolf’s mind. 

Troy Ashland is a werewolf standing at death’s door, slowly losing his humanity until there’s nothing left but savage instincts. It’s a process all werewolves face, and the only thing that can appease his restless beast is his mate. So when word arrives from an oracle saying to travel to the Southern US to find her, he’s on the next flight out. 

After his arrival in Arkin City, the last thing Troy expects is to be caught in a magical trap. But all is forgiven with one glimpse of his temporary jailor, who turns out to be the very woman he was searching for. Still, his efforts of winning her are surprisingly difficult. Not only is Aislinn inexplicably resisting their attraction, but The Trine won’t leave well enough alone …

My thoughts:  Stay with me on this review:  I will get to the point.  Maybe I need to state the point first. Okay, I will.  One of my mantras is “Trust Your Author” and sometimes I have to remind myself of this.  Now, stay with me!  Aislinn is a human witch and Troy is a 195 year old werewolf who is desperate to find his mate because he is turning savage and will run the risk of having to be put down before he becomes uncontrollable.   Aislinn is working on a ritual spell that needs her to capture an immortal for one night as part of this spell.  She captures Troy.  They are fated mates and this is how they find each other.  The first part of the story centers around their relationship and becoming mates through a series of interesting events.  Admittedly, I was concerned a little bit at first because I usually like relationships in stories to unfold over time.  However, it worked in this book and was necessary.  Trust Your Author and they will take us where we need to go! And Ms. Colsin did.  Once they become mates, they have some issues to solve, especially considering we have a witch and a werewolf.  But then, the real story starts to unfold and I really enjoyed that story.  It surrounds a coven of witches, a dead spirit and entities looking for a long lost magical book! I thought this story was very enjoyable. The point of “Trust Your Author” came when I realized that Aislinn and Troy’s mating was crucial to the unfolding story.  To see how, you will need to read the story.  I hope you enjoy because this is a fun read.

Happy Reading,

Debra