Book Review: The Messiah Matrix by Kenneth John Aitchity

Book Review: From the Sky by J.E. Nicassio

Book Review: The Coven by Graham Masterton

Book Review: Dark Water by Simon Thould

Book Review: Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth

Book Review & Giveaway: The Second Wife by Kishan Paul

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The Second Wife
Kishan Paul
Genre: Suspense/Thriller
Date of Publication: October 14, 2015
ASIN: B0144W7QEW
Number of pages:285
Word Count: 80,000

Cover Artist: Syneca Featherstone

Book Description:

If you want to live, you must let go of the past...

Twenty-eight-year-old Psychologist, Alisha Dimarchi, is abducted by an obsessed client and imprisoned in his Pakistani compound for over two years. Forced to change her name and live as his second wife, her life is filled with trauma and heartbreak. Thrust into a world of violence and oppression, Alicia must fight not only to keep herself alive but to protect the lives of the people she now considers family. At night, she retreats into her memories of the only man she has ever loved – a man she believes no longer loves her.

Thirty-two-year-old handsome surgeon, David Dimarchi, has spent the last two years mourning the disappearance of his wife. After a painful and isolated existence, he begins the process of healing. It is then that he is visited by a stranger, who informs him that his wife is very much alive and needs his help. In a desperate attempt to save her, David enlists the help of a Delta Force Operative. Together they find themselves in the center of more than just a rescue mission. Will he be able to reach her in time and if he does, will she still want him?

Book Trailer https://youtu.be/8zH8RRevEE4

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Add it to your TBR List on Goodreads

***

Excerpt:

The slow drip of a leaky faucet disrupted Ally’s otherwise quiet slumber.

“Ally.” The distant sound of David’s voice soothed her, enveloping her in a warm blanket of safety.

A smile tugged at her lips. Soon he’d crawl into bed and wrap his limbs around hers, cocooning her with his love.

Instead of the heat she anticipated, something coarse scraped against her cheek. When she tried to swat it away, her arms refused to comply.

“Baby, wake up.” Her husband’s echoed tone became louder, rougher. “You need to wake up.”

The urgency in it made her eyelids flutter, pulling her further away from the dark claws of sleep.

Like a silent movie, foggy images of a dimly lit parking lot invaded her thoughts. A woman, tall and lean, walked the deserted space alone. With each clip of her heels against the paved road, the haze cleared a little more. Ally’s heart raced when the woman’s features came into view. Long, curly, black hair, dark brown eyes, tanned complexion.

It was her.

Two sets of hands emerged from the shadows, dragging her into the woods. The taller of the two men covered the woman’s mouth, muting her screams as she wrestled to break free, until the other one slammed a brick into the base of her skull, plunging her into darkness.

This must be a dream.

Rays of light pierced the darkness as Ally’s heavy eyelids fought to open. When she shifted, instead of soft sateen, her cheek scraped against a cold, hard surface.

“Alisha? Can you hear me?” This voice wasn’t David’s. It sounded thick, heavy with accent and oddly familiar. So familiar, she shivered.

***

Review 4 Stars

Like me, you may have thought the slave trade no longer existed. It still does, it's just not called that any more, it's more likely to be called people-trafficking or sex-trafficking, bit it is slavery all the same.

Ally Dimachi, a young psychologist has been abducted on the orders of a former patient. A patient who was obsessed with her and she very rightly refused to treat him any more. But that didn't stop him obsessing over her. It just made him even more desperate to possess her.

Ally is taken from everything she's ever known: her husband, David, her loving family and placed into a nightmare that there seems no escape from.

She is called Sayeed's second wife, but in reality she is a sex slave. Sayeed's first wife has failed to give him a child and he is desperate to get Ally pregnant with a son.

Ally's rapes and abuse at the man's hands aren't glossed over or sugar-coated, but neither are they gratitious. I feel the book was stronger to have kept those scenes in as you know exactly what Ally is going through and what sort of terrible man Sayeed is.

The book is told in alternate chapters from Ally's and David's points of view. The one who was lost and the one who lost her. Both characters are well-drawn and you feel empathy for both of them. Ally is such an admirable woman, she's been to Hell and back, yet fights every day to survive and look after the other people in the compound who are under Sayeed's rule as much as she is. She has such strength, at times she despaired and felt like ending it all, but she rallied once more.

David is like a ghost of his former self, even when he tried to move on and started a new relationship, it was Ally he still loved and wanted.

This was not an easy, light-hearted read by any means, but it was compelling and heartfelt, a truly moving story about hope and overcoming the odds. I was engrossed from start to finish.

***

About the Author:

From daring escapes by tough women to chivalrous men swooping in to save the day, the creativity switch to Kishan Paul's brain is always in the 'on' position. If daydreaming stories were a college course, Kish would graduate with honors.

Mother of two beautiful children, she has been married to her best friend for over 16 years. With the help of supportive family and friends, she balances her family, a thriving counseling practice, and writing without sinking into insanity.

Website: http://kishanpaul.net

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Book Review & Giveaway: Through His Heart by Deborah Camp

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Through His Heart
Mind’s Eye
Book Three
Deborah Camp
Genre: Romantic Suspense/Paranormal
Date of Publication: June 30, 2015
ASIN: B00XZ8HWJG
Number of pages:357
Word Count: 93,461
Cover Artist: Pamela Schmitt 

Book Description:

“Sending you an SOS.”

When psychic Trudy Tucker hears this plaintive cry in her mind and then connects psychically with a little girl’s kidnapper, she is drawn to a small town in Missouri where everyone is suspect – including herself and her lover, celebrated psychic detective Levi Wolfe. As she and Levi work together to sort through whom and what to trust, an innocent life hangs in the balance.

Book Trailer: https://youtu.be/7AFG88e98eM

Add it on Goodreads

Available at Amazon

***

Review 4 Stars:

Trudy Tucker is on her way home for Thanksgiving and to bring her lover Levi to meet the family, when she connects psychically with a little girl who's been kidnapped. At first it's only the little girl she's chanelling but soon she connects to the kidnapper as well, but has no idea who he is or why he's taken the little girl.

The kidnapped girl turns out to be Levi's step-sister, one of two he's never met and doesn't really want to. He escaped long ago from the clutches of his father, religious zealot, John Comfort and he wants nothing to do with him or his new family.

But Trudy wears him down and he agrees to go back to his hometown, but insists he is only there to support Trudy. He doesn't want to meet anyone involved. Levi may have escaped physically, but mentally he's still an abused little boy trying to come to terms with the ghosts of his past and at the same time be strong for Trudy. And if he doesn't find a way to cope, then another innoncent child's life may hang in the balance.

Their investigation is blocked at all sides by sceptical law enforcement and by the locals who accuse them of being devil-worshippers and the spawn of Satan.

This was the third book in the series, so I think you will get more out of it if you read the first two, as you will gain more insight into the characters. However, I hadn't read the first two but I was still able to dive in and figure out what had happnend in the past and who everyone was without too much trouble.

The pace was quite fast and flowed well and there was a good balance between the romance and the suspense. It could have done with a bit less sex though, it seemed to slow the pace down somewhat in those scenes and I don't think all of them were needed.

Levi was a flawed hero, he wasn't perfect and although I thought I understood him, there were some parts where I wasn't sure I liked him. A couple of times he went very caveman on Trudy if she even looked or talked to another man, even if it was to do with the case, all 'You're mine. I don't wany anyone else to have you', that sort of thing. And one of the main reasons he proposed was because he thought an engagement ring would scare other men off, that Trudy was marked as his. Hmm, no. That didn't seem romantic to me.

Trudy, however, loved him flaws and all, and although they do have their spats, they do work through things as well, especially his unfounded jealousy. I'm not really sure where the jealousy came from, as Trudy (in this book at least, I can't speak for the others) showed no interest in anyone else and it was obvious that she was madly in love with him. Maybe Levi was just a bit insecure?

Levi finally confronts his father after all these years and I really liked that this was a confrontation; Levi didn't forgive his father. Some things are so bad that forgiveness isn't an option. What John Comfort did to his own son was appalling and I for one was glad that Levi didn't suddenly forgive and forget.

But the confrontation with his father was the catharis that helped Levi finally open up to Trudy about his past. He'd been so afraid that if he told it all, Trudy would leave him. But Trudy is a tough woman and she is with Leo for the long-haul.

All the characters were well-drawn, but we get to see the most of Trudy and Levi, which should be the way in a romance novel.

Lots of secrets, intrigue and mystery abound in the book and it doesn't end on a cliff-hanger, although there is a part that will ease you into book 4 if there is one.

Still, an enjoyable read despite some of my problems with Levi and some of his attitude.

***

About the Author:

Author of more than 45 novels, Deborah lives in Oklahoma. She has been a full-time writer since she graduated from the University of Tulsa. Her background as a newspaper reporter and editor helped her to write fast and enjoy research. After she sold her first few books, she quit newspaper work to become a freelance writer and novelist. Deborah's first novel was published in the late 1970s and her books have been published by Jove, New American Library, Harlequin, Silhouette, and Avon. She has been inducted into the Oklahoma Authors Hall of Fame and she is a charter member of the Romance Writers of America. She is also a member of the Author's Guild. She is an active volunteer with the Animal Rescue Foundation and is a foster home for dogs until they find their forever homes.

http://www.deborah-camp.com

http://wwww.facebook.com/officialdeborahcamp

http://www.pinterest.com/debbycamp44/

www.deborahcampwritersdesk.blogspot.com

www.twitter.com/authordebcamp

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Book Review: Annie's Defiance by Nicole Pouchet

Annie's Defiance
Elemental Myths #3
by Nicole Pouchet
Paranormal Romance
Novella
4 Stars

Blurb:

D.C. lawyer, Annie Birch, believes her life is one logical assessment after another. That changes, however, on the day she accidentally teleports during a high-profile negotiation. Knowing her new power must be a side effect after miraculously getting healed by the Incan Mother Earth goddess doesn’t help matters. Annie has already seen how emerging powers like hers also come with psycho villains that are bent on destroying her, as well as the corporeal world.

The icing on the cupcake of her ridiculous day is two gorgeous men who show up on her doorstep, both vying for her attention. Now, her choices involve much more than her oft-neglected libido. Annie is tasked to play a role in the Incan prophecy, which she prefers to watch from the sidelines. Will she stick to her safe, legal path? Or will she defy all logic to experience the decidedly more fun adventures being thrust her way?

Review:

I haven't read that many paranormal romances so I have no idea if there are certain conventions/expectations for the reader or writer of those. I have no idea if the book follows any of those conventions, but for me that was secondary to having an interesting tale.

And Ms. Pouchet certainly delivers on that score with a story that has no vampires or werewolves, but does have elementals and earth spirits. It was such an intriguing idea that I was hooked.

This is book 3, so I suggest you read the first two to get a better feel for the characters and world first, as I was a little confused in parts which referred to the other adventures beforehand.

Annie is a strong, independent woman, who doesn't necessarily need a man in her life, but she would like one. When she meets two handsome men on the same day, both having an interest in her, she is at first extremely wary.

Who are they? And what do they want from her? Can she trust either of them? I hoped the book wasn't veering off into love triangle territory, and to be fair, it didn't. I can't really say more without giving away the plot though.

The writing is good, but the book felt a little incomplete, I suppose because it is part of a series rather than a standalone. Romance, adventure, supernatural powers and characters that were very well-drawn, even those who only got a few minutes of screen time.

Enjoyable reading for any paranormal romance fan and even for those who just want something different from vampires and shape-shifting.

Book Review: The Dragon's Curse by Victoria Zagar

The Dragon's Curse
by Victoria Zagar
M/M Fantasy
Less Than Three Press
4 Stars
Review Copy from Netgalley

Book Description:

War is brewing between the Greenlands and the Summer Kingdom, despite the efforts of Lord Aidan and Prince Varion, who have been meeting in secret in an attempt to maintain peace. When war proves inevitable, Aidan offers Varion asylum, loathe to see the man he's come to care about become his enemy.

But Varion refuses, sacrificing safety and his own desires to stay in the Summer Kingdom in order to protect his little brother from their ruthless father. The two men instead declare a blood oath to always protect each other, an oath that will see them through war, transformation, and a deadly curse...

Review:

King Cendali of the Summer Kingdom has become a bitter and cruel man after the death of his first wife and he lives for war. He hates the Dragonfolk, a race who are said to be descended directly from dragons. The thought that someone actually might have mated with a dragon disgusts Cendali and he cannot bear the sight of the Dragonfolk with their strange eyes and scaly skin.

When floods drive the Dragonfolk out of their traditional territory and encroach on the Summer Kingdom, Cendali has his excuse for war. He wants to completely wipe out the Dragonfolk, thinking them unnatural. But first he wants to know how to gain the dragon power - how to transform into a dragon.

Prince Varion has been meeting with Lord Aidan of the Greenlands as the two of them try to avert war between their kingdoms and they have fallen in love. But it doesn't matter, for their meetings are not as secret as they suppose and Prince Varion's life is in danger as soon as his father knows.

Both Lord Aiden and Prince Varion set out on the same quest: to find the godess' shrine and discover the secret of the dragon power. For only by giving it to his father might Prince Varion live and protect his younger brother.

Yes, it is possbile for a human to turn into a dragon, but the power has a price. Once the power is used, the person will no longer be fully human. That isn't the only cost: males with the dragon power die as soon as they mate.

This was a wonderful romantic adventure, with lots of UST between our heroes. The world Ms. Zagar has created is fully realised, with its own history, culture and customs.

I'm not usually a fan of shifter romance stories, I have a phobia about dogs so books with werewolves tend to terrify me rather than think anything romantic. But I do adore fantasy and dragons, so I am glad I gave this one a try.

Although short at novella-length, the story and characters are fully developed. Aidan and Varion are both noble characters and you have to wonder why Cendali hadn't poisoned Varion's mind as much as he had his youngest son, Tiernon.

I really wanted them to get their happy ending, but with a curse that if you make love, you die, that may not be easy to come by.

I don't want to spoil anything, so you'll just have to read it to find out.

The writing is good and flows well, just one wee niggle: while researching the curse Varion and Aidan "poured" over books instead of "pored".

All in all a good fantasy adventure and romance.

Book Review: The Alchemist's Daughter by Mary Lawrence

The Alchemist's Daughter 
by Mary Lawrence
Book 1 of the Bianca Goddard Series
Historical/Mystery
Publisher: Kensington
Expected Release Date: April 28 2015
4 Stars
Review Copy from Netgalley

In the year 1543 of King Henry VIII’s turbulent reign, the daughter of a notorious alchemist finds herself suspected of cold-blooded murder…

Bianca Goddard employs her knowledge of herbs and medicinal plants to concoct remedies for the disease-riddled poor in London’s squalid Southwark slum. But when her friend Jolyn comes to her complaining of severe stomach pains, Bianca’s prescription seems to kill her on the spot. Recovering from her shock, Bianca suspects Jolyn may have been poisoned before coming to her—but the local constable is not so easily convinced.

To clear her name and keep her neck free of the gallows, Bianca must apply her knowledge of the healing arts to deduce exactly how her friend was murdered and by whom—before she herself falls victim to a similar fate…

Review:

Bianca Goddard is an alchemist's daughter, but don't ever call her an alchemist! Bianca has no interest in turning base metals into gold or searching for the elusive philosopher's stone. Rather, she is interested in herbs and concoctions and how they might heal the many poor of London and Southwark who seem more prone to diseases than those better off.

Her friend Jolyn visits her one day, and mentions stomach complaints that she's had for weeks. Bianca mixes up a herbal remedy for her friend, who then drops dead much to Bianca's shock. Did her remedy cause her friend's death? Or had she been poisoned before she came to see Bianca?

The local constable is determined to see Bianca hang for the death, he doesn't care whether she is innocent or not, just that someone pays for the crime, and Bianca is the easiest suspect.

Bianca is convinced her friend has been murdered, but who would murder her dear friend, and why?

The suspects are many and varied, from Mr. Wynders, Jolyn's married suitor, to her landlady Mrs. Beldam at Barke House. Pandy, one of the other girls in Barke house, who also loved Mr. Wynders. Or perhaps one of the muckrakers who accused Jolyn of stealing a ring he found. Banes, the handyman who spies on the women in Mrs. Beldam's establishment. Mrs. Beldam insists that Barke House is no longer a brothel and she is only acting out of charity, to give these poor girls somewhere to go.

But is anyone telling the whole truth? It's up to Bianca to keep one step ahead of the law as she tries to uncover the secrets everyone has been hiding.

Bianca is a wonderful heroine: strong, opinionated and her own woman. She doesn't rely on others for help, but goes after it herself using her scientific skills and observational skill to ferret out the truth.

The squalor of Tudor London is brought to life, from rat-catchers to ships quarantined due to plague. There are no fancy marble halls or silk dresses here, it's about the mud and the dirt and the determination of people to make a go of things no matter how poor or disadvantaged they are.

We get to see various parts of the book through different character's eyes, but I think I would have preferred more time with Bianca so that the reader could figure out things at the same time she did.

The author has obviously done a lot of research and nothing historical seemed inaccurate or jarring. But then American spelling was used, which brought me up short a bit. It's a pet peeve of mine with books set in Britain. It should have British spelling, not American.

The book is fast-paced and kept me intrigued the whole way through and I didn't guess who the murderer was until it was revealed, a rare treat for me.

A great read if you like your history spiced up with a bit of mystery.

Book Review: The Resurrection Maker by Glenn Cooper

The Resurrection Maker
by Glenn Cooper
Thriller/Conspiracy
ARC from Netgalley
4 Stars

Blurb:

Echoes from the past guide Arthur Malory on a dangerous search for the Holy Grail, a quest that may shed light on the mystery of the resurrection of Christ.

From the thriller writer, Glenn Cooper, whose books have sold five million copies and have been top-ten bestsellers throughout Europe, comes his explosive new thriller, the most innovative and controversial book ever written on the Holy Grail and the resurrection of Christ. Arthur Malory, a seemingly ordinary Englishman, has a burning interest in the Grail, a passion inherited from his father. Thrust into a life-or-death quest to find the precious artifact, he will discover not only his own amazing heritage but the power that the Grail possesses, a power that informs the resurrection of Christ and explosively merges spiritual and scientific thought.

Review:

Arthur Malory doesn't just share Thomas Malory's surname, he is also his descendant, and like his ancestor, Arthur too has a fascination with the Holy Grail.

A chemist, who works at a physicist company in Basingstoke, Arthur is also a member of a loose society of friends who also have an interest in the Grail and they call themselves the Grail Loons.

After witnessing one of the Loons' murder and almost dying himself, Arthur is set on the path to find the Grail and finish his mentor's legacy. But Arthur isn't the only person searching for the Grail and some of them have no qualms about killing to get what they want.

This book endeared me from the start, when it was revealed that Arthur worked in Basingstoke, a chemist who works for a physics company, as we live in Basingstoke and my husband is a chemist who works for a physics department! As far as I know, he hasn't had the urge to go search out the Grail, at least not yet.

Like most of Mr. Cooper's other books, the tale takes the reader from the present day to various other points in history from the Big Bang, to the time of Christ, the time of Arthur and his knights, to 1800s Barcelona and Gaudi, to the time of Thomas Malory as he writes his opus, the Morte D'Arthur. Each section blended well with the whole as you try and connect the dots and you feel as if you are on the quest with Arthur.

It was an engaging, entertaining read and I adored Arthur. He was an ordinary man put on a path to find something extraordinary and he was noble and pure of heart, as someone who would go looking for the Grail is supposed to be.

It had romance, adventure, a great plot with an interesting melding of science and faith. The book ends on a cliffhanger and at first I was disappointed at that. But as I thought about it a bit more, that was really the only ending the book could have. That ending fit the book perfectly.

I have a wee niggle, which I often do with books set in Britain with mainly British characters, but then the spelling and idioms used are American. It's jarring to me and does take me out of the story somewhat.

Still, all in all a fascinating read.

Book Review: A Vision of Fire by Gillian Anderson & Jeff Rovin

A Vision of Fire
by Gillian Anderson & Jeff Rovin
Science Fiction
Simon and Schuster
Review Copy from Netgalley courtesy of the publisher
4 Stars

The first novel from iconic X-Files star Gillian Anderson and New York Times bestselling author Jeff Rovin: a science fiction thriller of epic proportions.

Renowned child psychologist Caitlin O’Hara is a single mom trying to juggle her job, her son, and a lackluster dating life. Her world is suddenly upturned when Maanik, the daughter of India’s ambassador to the United Nations, starts speaking in tongues and having violent visions. Caitlin is sure that her fits have something to do with the recent assassination attempt on her father—a shooting that has escalated nuclear tensions between India and Pakistan to dangerous levels—but when teenagers around the world start having similar outbursts, Caitlin begins to think that there’s a more sinister force at work.

In Haiti, a student claws at her throat, drowning on dry land. In Iran, a boy suddenly and inexplicably sets himself on fire. Animals, too, are acting irrationally, from rats in New York City to birds in South America to ordinary house pets. With Asia on the cusp of nuclear war, Caitlin must race across the globe to uncover the mystical links among these seemingly unrelated incidents in order to save her patient—and perhaps the world.

Review:

I was an avid fan of the X-Files so when I saw that Gillian Anderson had written a book, I had to give it a go and I'm glad I did.

Tensions are running high in the UN after an assassination attempt on the Indian ambassador. It looks like the peace talks going badly between India and Pakistan might set off a nuclear war and things all around the world are getting weird. From animals behaving oddly, to children and teenagers having strange lapses of concentration and harming themselves, or being harmed by unseen forces.

Caitlin O'Hara is a child psychologist who is brought on board after the ambassador's daughter has strange fits and starts speaking in languages no one can understand. Even Caitlin's friend, Ben, an interpreter at the UN doesn't recognise any of them, but they do have similarities to some he's heard. At first Caitlin is convinced that Manik is having some sort of reaction to her father's almost shooting, but she's never seen a case of PTSD that happened so quickly before.

Soon, other things grab her attention: a young man who set fire to himself in Iran, a young woman who suffered all the symptoms of drowning, but she'd been on dry land. It seems that Manik's episodes are part of something bigger, but what? And how can they stop it?

Now, this is an enjoyable book, well told with characters that you care about. But I have a niggle with Caitlin and the first time she witnesses one of Manik's strange episodes. Up until that point, Caitlin seemed a very down-to-earth sort of person, medically trained and looking for scientific explanations. But as soon as she sees Manik, she suddenly does an about-turn and veers off into New-Agey type stuff. She wants to treat Manik with nothing more than hypnosis and rants at the family doctor for prescribing sedatives. It just didn't seem like her at all.

The book is fast-paced and I eagerly turned the pages ready to see what happens next. It has an intriguing, mysterious storyline to be untangled and the threads were woven together so well that it leaves plenty of room for the next book. Another book I will look forward to.

Book Review: Swan Prince by Erin Lark

Swan Prince

by Erin Lark

M/M Paranormal

Entangled Publishing

Review copy from Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher.

4 Stars

Blurb:

Trapped between his royal heritage and swan shifter status, Oliver doesn't pay close attention during his flock's winter migration, and gets caught in the crosshairs of a trigger-happy hunter.

Careening toward the ground with no place to go, Oliver submits to his human form. As his swan's feathers recede, he seeks shelter in an old barn.

Bastion's spent the better part of his adult life caring for a bunch of bullheaded stallions, but this is the first time he's ever found a naked and gorgeous man in one of his stalls. When he asks the man his name, he doesn't get a reply. Without a wallet or a voice to tell him who this stranger is, Bastion takes Oliver in, clothes him and tends to a mysterious wound.

Oliver has nowhere else to go. Bastion is in a bind after firing a farmhand who would much rather call in sick than do his job. When passion flares, can Bastion and Oliver overcome their differences, or will this swan prince fly south?

Review:

I must admit that shifter tales aren't my usual thing and since I have a dread fear of dogs, anything with werewolves I avoid like the plague. But growing up in Ireland, there are quite a few fairy tales centred on swans, such as The Children of Lir, so when I read the blurb of this one, I thought I would give it a try. And I am so glad I did.

Oliver is the swan prince of the title, living half his life as human, half as a swan, usually six months as each. But on his winter migration, he gets separated from his flock and is attacked by a hunter who clips his wings. Oliver knows the wound is bad and would likely kill him as a swan, but he might be able to tolerate it better as a human and he makes a rapid shift to his human form. Such a drastic change leaves him mute, wounded and naked in the rapidly falling snow, so he seeks shelter in a nearby barn.

Bastion owns the barn, and raises and keeps horses for clients, anything that will help pay the bills. He is shocked to discover a handsome, naked man in one of the stalls, with what seems to be a gunshot wound in his shoulder. Who is this man and what is he doing in Bastion's barn?

This was a sweet, passionate fairy tale romance that was low on the angst, but there is some concerning whether or not Oliver and Bastion can actually become a permanent partnership. Oliver is the prince of his flock, and the rest of them can only shift if their prince is with them. 

There are a couple of love scenes in the book, both of them scorching hot and fitting well within the story, they flow as part of the narrative. The story is told half from Oliver's point of view and half from Bastion's, so you get to know each other's feelings. They are both in love, no doubt about that. Both are sympathetic characters that you can relate do and you hope that they can get their happily ever after.

A wonderful read if you are looking for something low on the angst scale. I think personally I would have liked a little bit more angst, perhaps something more about the hunter who attacked Oliver, but all in all I very much enjoyed the book.

Book Review: Experiment by Cyma Rizwaan Khan

Experiment
by Cyma Rizwaan Khan
Sci-fi/Dystopia
Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/XLQ4CJiweQA
4 Stars

Blurb:

How do you survive in a world without hope?

And what will it turn you into?

Alien species are in control of the planet and Zyronian Citizens have no choice but to become slaves to both reigning species, the Zyre and the Khaltars. Life on Zyron for someone who is born a Citizen was bad enough but the constant riots within the regions have made survival impossible. So when Lane Volze, a twenty-two year old Citizen becomes the victim of a treacherous conspiracy, his brother Connor takes the help of resistance leader Jace Dyer and does everything in his power to get him out, but nothing is at it seems, and Connor keeps running into dead-ends. Lane on the other hand, struggles for survival in the prison from hell and is trying his best to come to terms with the fact that his life is over.

Will Connor get to the bottom of this conspiracy before it’s too late?

Review:

On the planet Zyron, if you're born a Citizen, that's all you can be. Citizens are the lowest class, lucky if they can get a poorly paid dead-end job and the unlucky ones are little more than slaves or have turned to crime as a way to make ends meet.

Connor Volze and his brother Lane have been alone since the death of their mother and Connor is a criminal, beholden to his crime boss, but he wants something better for his younger brother and tries to keep him out of that criminal underworld.

Framed for a murder he didn't commit, Lane is sent to the infamous prison of Black Wall, where few make it out alive and of those who do, no one is ever quite the same. For it is in Black Wall that the experiment of the title takes place. But what is the experiment? What do they want? And how did they know Lane's name? He wasn't arrested at random, he was targeted, but by whom and why?

Connor seeks the help of the resistance leader, Jace Dyer, to try and free Lane from the nightmare his life has become, but Jace Dyer is hiding secrets of his own too.

This was a fast paced book, the pages seem to turn themselves and I kept reading well into the night to see what was going to happen next. Connor and Lane were both sympathetic protagonists, despite their criminal dealings. Lane is tortured in prison, but it isn't overly graphic, you just get a sense of how horrible it was by his reactions to the things done to him.

It's a sci-fi book, but I didn't really get a sci-fi vibe from it at all. There was a bit of explanation of the different races and planets before the book started, I think that may have worked better if they were introduced at different periods throughout the book, because I couldn't really remember it all as I was reading the main section. There were some mentions of different technology, but nothing that said this was firmly a sci-fi book. It could have been set on Earth with any form of corrupt government or agency and it wouldn't have lost anything.

However, if you're after an intriguing tale, well-told, with characters you care about, you won't go far wrong with this one.

A great read.

Review copy from author.

Book Review: The Exiled by William Meikle

The Exiled
by William Meikle
Paranormal/Supernatural/Horror/Dark Fantasy
DarkFuse Publishing
Review Copy from Netgalley courtesy of the publisher
4 Stars

Blurb:

When several young girls are abducted from various locations in Edinburgh, Detective John Granger and his brother Alan, a reporter, investigate the cases from different directions. The abductor is cunning, always one step ahead, and the only clue he leaves behind at each scene are the brutalized corpses of black swans.

When the brothers' investigations finally converge at a farmhouse in Central Scotland, they catch a glimpse of where the girls have been taken, a place both far away yet close enough to touch. A land known throughout Scottish history with many names: Faerie, Elfheim, and the Astral Plane. It is a place of legend and horror, a myth. But the brothers soon discover it's real, and, to catch the abductor, they will have to cross over themselves.

To catch a killer, John and Alan Granger will have to battle the Cobbe, a strange and enigmatic creature that guards the realm, a creature of horrific power that demands a heavy price for entry into its world. The fate of both realms hangs in the balance…and time is running out...

Review:

Originally, fairy tales were not aimed at children and in the Exiled, William Meikle has written a fairy tale/dark fantasy that harkens back to those early predecessors.

John Grainger is a detective in Edinburgh, estranged from his brother, Alan, a journalist. Both of them collide when little girls are being abducted in broad daylight, where no one has seen a thing and the only clue is the mutilated bodies of black swans, each with their wings removed.

John wants to catch the culprit, while Alan is looking for a big scoop and they each follow different leads and end up at the same derelict farmhouse. But that isn't the only thing they have in common, both Alan and John have the ability to see another world and it is there that the girls have been taken.

But who is taking these girls here and why?

Part fantasy, part detective story, this book hooked me from the very first page and didn't let go until the last page was turned. Like any book a story will stand or fall on its characters and the characterisation here was spot on. I loved both Alan and John. Both of them had their flaws, which made them more realistic, but both had noble hearts and wanted to do the right thing, even if it meant danger for themselves.

Edinburgh comes to life, from the gritty, run-down block of flats where the first girl was abducted, to the more genteel old town and castle. You can imagine yourself there, and also in the other world of faerie which is well-described too. There's just enough description to set the scene, and the book moves along at a break-neck speed. The tension just keeps mounting and mounting on both sides of the veil.

My only niggle with this one, and it is a niggle, is that the book is set almost entirely in Scotland and the other realm, yet we have the characters doing things like getting items out of the trunk of the car, looking under the hood or driving SUVs. The Americanisms jarred me out of the story somewhat, and it's such a shame as this is not the only British set book I've read where this happens. The author writes the dialogue with Scottish overtones, it just seems a pity that the Americanisms crept in for the narrative part.

A great read if you enjoy your fairy tales and dark fantasy.

Book Review: Chasing the Rebel by Tyler Flynn

Chasing the Rebel
by Tyler Flynn
M/M Historical Romance
Carina Press
4 Stars
Review copy from Netgalley courtesy of the publisher

Blurb:

France, 1791

Marcus, Lord Rothbury, is on the run. Part of a foiled plot to help King Louis and Queen Marie Antoinette escape to Switzerland, he’s searching for the jewels the rebels stole from the queen—jewels that, when sold in England, will buy the monarchs’ freedom and restore the aristocratic order Marcus holds dear.

Pamphleteer James Lockhart publicly condemns the monarchy and has his own plans for the jewels—selling them to help the Parisian poor. But when the two are thrown together against a common adversary, Marcus finds himself increasingly attracted to the impetuous American.

As they hunt for the jewels, Marcus begins to suspect his companion isn’t all he seems. Secretive and changeable, James could be playing a double game, and Marcus can’t be sure who James is fighting against—the enemy, or the man who’s fallen in love with him.

Review:

The French Revolution is not an era I have read about before in the context of a male/male romance and it was a delight to see something different in the historical genre.

Marcus Rothbury is an English aristocrat who has spent a lot of time at the French Court (I am unsure why, that was ever explained in the book, just that he was there.) The royals have been ousted and are foiled in their escape to Switzerland ahead of the mob. With the Queen's jewels stolen by the rebels, Marcus is determined to find them, return to England to find some royal sympathisers and use to jewels to help free the king and queen.

James Lockhart on the other hand, is an American who thinks the royals got what they deserved and he wants to find the jewels too, but not to save the king and queen, but to sell to feel the poor of Paris.

Both of them fall afoul of rebel soldiers and are thrown together, but it soon becomes clear that these two men already have a history already.

In Paris, both of them frequented a certain coffee house, where men can debate all the things of the day and also seek out other men of their persuasion. Rothbury and Lockhart have already spent one very passionate night together, but for Rothbury that's all it should be. He has dallied before, but never with the same man twice and he keeps rebuffing Lockhart's advances while the two of them are on the run through the wood and searching for the jewel thief.

Rothbury knows he had duties and responsibilities back in England; he must marry and secure an heir for his estates at Winterton, but Lockhart sorely tests his resolve.

Both characters are from different ends of the spectrum: Rothbury is a fine upstanding citizen, who wants to do what is right and his own desires should take second place. Lockhart is more of a free spirit, what he wants he goes after and he goes after Rothbury a lot.

It's a fun romp through French countryside, with our heroes trying to stay one step ahead of the men hunting them, getting captured, getting rescued, captured again and you think the rebels aren't very good at keeping their prisoners confined. The book is told entirely from Rothbury's point of view, so like Rothbury, the reader doesn't know what Lockhart's true intentions are which keeps the tension rising a bit.

In the book Lockhart's hair is bound in a ribbon, briefly I might add, for if his hair came loose from that ribbon once, it came loose quite a few times. Didn't he know how to tie a ribbon correctly? :) Nearly every chapter he lost that ribbon, or his hair came loose from it.

The banter between the two of them is very amusing and you can almost feel Rothbury's exasperation with this free-spirited American who says what he thinks and feels without worrying about the consequences.

It's an enjoyable read, but I did feel the ending wrapped everything up rather too neatly, but I won't say any more in case I spoil the story.

If you like historical M/M romance with quite a bit of unresolved sexual tension - eventually resolved, then this might be for you.

Book Review: Tarnished Heroes by David Kessler

Tarnished Heroes
by David Kessler
Crime/Mystery
4 Stars
Kindle Re-issue

Blurb:

Young policeman Neil Douglas rushes to the aid of a woman who has been stabbed on Hampstead Heath. Seeing a man standing over the body, he lashes out with his baton, striking the man in the head. There is just one problem: the man didn’t attack the woman; he was coming to her aid. Neil has just put an innocent man in a life-threatening coma. And the killer is still on the loose.

Supended from duty and tormented by guilt, he is determined to track down the escaped killer. All the while he is taunted over the airwaves by a pretty but ruthless American phone-in show presenter.

But who was the dead woman? Who is trying to hide every trace of her past? And does her case have anything to do with another murder case five years ago in which the “innocent man” whom Neil struck was the prime suspect? Neil is determined to find the answers to these questions – even if it costs him his life.

Review:

Late at night, coming to the scene after a woman is attacked on Hampstead Heath, young policeman Niel Douglas makes a split-second deicsion that will forever haunt him. Discovering a man over the woman's body brandishing a tree branch, Neil attacks him with his baton and sends the man into a coma. But the man wasn't the attacker, he had been coming to the woman's aid.

When the man's identity is revealed as Martin Roebuck, a murder suspect in a different case a few years ago, Neil feels there is more going on than meets the eye. Suspended from duty, hounded by the press and a talk-show radio host, Neil is determined to find out what is going on even if it meand losing his job or his life. But the more he investigates the more he realises that everyone has something to hide and they don't want Neil raking over old coals, especially the real killer.

Now, although a crime novel with a mystery to solve, this seems more of a psychological drama and a character study. The pace is not as frantic with Mr. Kessler's later thrillers, but that isn't to say nothing happens or that it's slow moving. And one thing I have to applaud the author for – we get glimpses into the mind of the killer but without revealing the killer's identity before Neil finds out. I hate it when books let the reader find out more than the investigators do. Here, the reader feels as if they are investigating along with Neil and it really works.

As with all stories, it can stand or fall with its characters and here we have a very sympathetic protoganist, even if he has done some wrong things. You really get to know Neil as the book progresses. And the twists! There were a couple near the end that I didn't guess and they completely floored me, but all of them had little hints here and there earlier in the book so the reader doesn't feel cheated.

The romance between Neil and Beth, the aforementioned radio host, just didn't seem to gel with me, but I can't really say why. It did add an extra layer of danger, with Neil now not only worried about himself but Beth and her young son as well. I loved the part when Neil was telling little Stevie a bedtime story about a knight slaying a dragon who'd been terrorising a village, but when he returned to the village, they all said the dragon wasn't killed. Neil explained to Stevie that we all carried our own dragons, whether it was fear, pride, greed and we can only slay our ownd dragon's, not anyone else's.

A very engrossing read.

***

Book Review: Gaudi Afternoon by Barbara Wilson

Gaudí Afternoon
The Cassandra Reilly Mysteries, book 1 of 4
by Barbara Wilson
Open Road Media
4 Stars
Review copy from Netgalley courtesy of the publisher

Blurb:

Professional translator and amateur detective Cassandra Reilly travels to Barcelona in search of a missing man—but finds much more than she bargained for in this mystery, hailed by the New York Times as a “high-spirited comic adventure”

American but with an Irish passport, the itinerant translator Cassandra Reilly is living in London when she receives an unexpected phone call. The voice on the other end belongs to Frankie Stevens, a San Francisco transplant with an unusual request. Her husband, Ben, has gone missing—presumably in Barcelona—and Frankie needs a translator to help her find him. Not one to pass up a well-paying gig or a free trip to Barcelona, Cassandra takes the job. But she quickly realizes that all is not as it seems.

Frankie’s charm is matched only by her guile. As Cassandra chases down leads in search of Ben, she becomes increasingly tangled in a web of half-truths—and caught between former flames Ana and Carmen.

Winner of the British Crime Writers’ Award for Best Mystery Based in Europe and the Lambda Literary Award for Best Lesbian Mystery, Gaudí Afternoon is the first book in the Cassandra Reilly Mystery series, which continues with Trouble in Transylvania and The Death of a Much-Travelled Woman, and concludes with The Case of the Orphaned Bassoonists.

Review:

Cassandra Reilly is a Spanish translator, working on an epic South American novel when she gets a call from her friend, Lucy, whose other friend Frankie is in a bit of a pickle.

Frankie's ex-husband Ben has absconded to Barcelona and Frankie needs to see him to sign some urgent paperwork, but she doesn't speak a word of Spanish. Cassandra is reluctant at first, but the money Frankie offers is too good to be true and it would be no hardship for Cassandra to finish the translation of the book in Spain.

But as it turns out, Frankie didn't tell her the whole truth and Cassandra, like the reader takes a while to figure it all out.

The pages just flew by, Ms. Wilson's writing flowed so well. It's not a murder mystery, but more asking the questions - who are we? And do how other people see us define who we are or who we would like to be? There is genderbending aplenty in this novel, with mistaken identies and mistaken genders galore, which lost a bit of its sparkle after the third of fourth time it happened.

Some things were a bit dated, such as cameras with film which needed to be devoloped rather than digital, which most people would use nowadays. I suppose professional photographers might still use film for some things, but Cassandra was definitely not a photographer.

I've never been to Barcelona, but the author described it so well that I almost think I have been. It was a fun, light-hearted read despite some of the subject matter and the parts of the other novel Cassandra was translating were hilarious. I was very disappointed though near the end, when the secret of Raoul's black bag was about to be revealed, and Cassandra's briefcase got stolen so we never found out and neither did Cassandra.

An enjoyable jaunt with a very likeable narrator and I just adored Carmen, the Spanish hairdresser who is Cassandra's on-again/off-again lover, she was just so vivid and vivacious.

Book Review: Too Busy for Love by Tamsin Baker

Too Busy for Love
by Tamsin Baker
Escape Publishing (Harlequin Enterprises Australia)
M/M Erotic Romance Novella
Review copy from Netgalley, supplied by publisher
4 Stars

He needed a job — he never expected to need his boss.

Thomas's life can be pared down to one principle: Be as successful as possible by being as single-minded as possible. But his commitment to his goal is tested upon returning home to his mansion and finding his gorgeous new gardener in his library.

Luke is a student, and his new job is perfect: decent income and a place to study that's quiet, peaceful, and stocked with useful resources. The last thing he expects to find there is a stunning man who offers to open up all the doors that Luke has yet to be brave enough to peek behind.

Thomas is happy to wait for Luke to come to him, but when he does, Thomas has no intention of holding back...

Review:

Thomas Hayder is a successful businessman who's made millions from nothing and knows he must keep working hard if he's to stay successful.

He hasn't time for love and commitment and relies on one-night stands to state any physical needs. When he meets his new, young and handsome gardener, he falls instantly in lust and wants Luke in his bed.

Luke, however, has never been with a man before and although he does find his new boss attractive, Luke isn't sure if he is ready to jump into bed with a man.

As it's an erotic novella, you know they will get together eventually :)


The love scenes are quite hot and sensual, with some earthier language than I was expecting. No flowery euphemisms here! The writing flows well and you get to know a bit about the characters in what is in essence an extended short story. I would have preferred a bit more detail on the other parts of their lives, like Luke's life as a student and Thomas relationship with his mother, rather than just when they were together, which was also mostly a sex scene.

I have to admit I didn't care for Thomas at first, he really seemed to only want Luke for sex rather than anything more intimate or long term and I really felt empathy with Luke, who had fallen in love with his boss. I felt more connection to Luke than Thomas and I think Luke should have made Thomas wait a bit more before giving in to him.

Although there wasn't a BDSM or D/s dynamic, Thomas kept calling Luke 'Baby Boy' which was rather off putting for me. It just seemed to come out of nowhere.

But all in all, a good light-hearted read.

Book Review: The Heavens Rise by Christopher Rice

The Havens Rise
by Christopher Rice
4 Stars
Supernatural Thriller/Horror
Pocket Books
Review copy from Netgalley courtesy of the publisher

Blurb:


New York Times bestselling author Christopher Rice brilliantly conjures the shadowed terrors of the Louisiana bayou—where three friends confront a deadly, ancient evil rising to the surface—in this intense and atmospheric new supernatural thriller.

It’s been a decade since the Delongpre family vanished near Bayou Rabineaux, and still no one can explain the events of that dark and sweltering night. No one except Niquette Delongpre, the survivor who ran away from the mangled stretch of guardrail on Highway 22 where the impossible occurred…and kept on running. Who left behind her best friends, Ben and Anthem, to save them from her newfound capacity for destruction…and who alone knows the source of her very bizarre—and very deadly—abilities: an isolated strip of swampland called Elysium.

An accomplished surgeon, Niquette’s father dreamed of transforming the dense acreage surrounded by murky waters into a palatial compound befitting the name his beloved wife gave to it, Elysium: “the final resting place for the heroic and virtuous.” Then, ten years ago, construction workers dug into a long-hidden well, one that snaked down into the deep, black waters of the Louisiana swamp and stirred something that had been there for centuries—a microscopic parasite that perverts the mind and corrupts the body.

Niquette is living proof that things done can’t be undone. Nothing will put her family back together again. And nothing can save her. But as Niquette, Ben, and Anthem uncover the truth of a devastating parasite that has the potential to alter the future of humankind, Niquette grasps the most chilling truths of all: someone else has been infected too. And unlike her, this man is not content to live in the shadows. He is intent to use his newfound powers for one reason only: revenge.

Review:


This is the first supernatural type book I've read from Mr. Rice, but I have read and enjoyed his previous thrillers so I thought I would give this one a go as well, since I knew I liked his style of writing.

I'm glad I did, it was a very interesting and engaging tale.

The story begins with extracts from the journals of one of our main characters, even though she is absent from quite a bit of the book. Niquette  was my favourite character and I would have loved to see a bit more of her.

The prose is lush and detailed and you can almost imagine yourself everywhere the author describes, you can feel the heat and humidity of New Orleans, even if like me you've never been there.

Just a personal preference, but I did not like the parts where it was written from Marshall's point of view, it was really disturbing to be in that man's head and I felt like I needed a shower afterwards. I found no redeeming features in him at all, but I suppose that was the point.

The book flits between past and present and it can get a bit confusing as to which era you're in, but gradually the longer you read the more quickly you realise which part is set where.

Like any book, the story will succeed or fail depending on the characters. Here, the characters are very well-written, even the ones like Marshall who make your skin crawl and the side characters like the nurses in the hospital.

A scary and disturbing read sometimes. It's well-plotted with lots of little twists and turns to keep you guessing and despite feeling uncomfortable at some of the scenes, all round it was a very good read.