Andrea's Review of The Long Moon by Stephy Smith

The Long Moon

Author: Stephy Smith

Published by Astraea Press

When Carson Long hears what his friend and mentor has done, he knows he's in trouble.  Forced to share a ranch, partly now his own with River Moon wouldn't have been his first choice in the future he had mapped out for himself.  But when circumstances dictate that he and River need to work together to save the farm and themselves, old tensions, and the loves and hurts of a long ago romance boil quickly to the surface.  Can they ever forgive each other and move forwards?  And can they do it in time to save what they hold dear?

The Long Moon began with promise.  The character of Moon, in particular shines with authenticity, wit and sparkle, and he was easily my favourite character to read about.  The Long Moon combines a fast moving, dangerous plot to rid the central characters of their land and livelihoods, with the struggle of both River and Carson to regain the romance they thought was lost for good.

The plotline of the story was fast paced, and during the action and investigation sections of the book; kept me interested and enertained.  There were other moments in the book, such as the story of where River got her name that were thoroughly enjoyable and brought a smile to my face. 

Sadly though, I found the romance between River and Carson to be quite forced - I never really felt any great chemistry between them, and therefore I didn't get swept away by the quite significant romantic element in the book.  There's a lot of excess description in the book, and the author may do better in showing more and telling less.  There were also some editing/spelling/grammar issues that would have benefited greatly from a more intensive editing process.

There is some promise in the characters though, and with a little more polish,  I think it would have been a more enjoyable read.

3\5

Copy provided for review.

Andrea's Review of Reclaimed by Kim Faulks

Reclaimed

Author: Kim Faulks

Reviewed by: Andrea

Natalie was reluctant to take the job of guarding the mysterious and irritating Mr Ash.  She'd had a gutful of her sorry heap of an ex boyfriend, and wanted to make some changes in her life.  But the pay was phenomenal, and the assignment was short.  How bad could it be?  Natalie embarks on a journey of discovery where nobody, including herself is who she thinks they are. 

Reclaimed surprised me in many ways.  the central character, Natalie was believable and likeable, and I enjoyed makinng this journey with her.  Mr Ash, while mysterious, chauvinistic and emminently unlikeable commanded my attention for the first portion of the book, and I was very curious to see where the story went.

From halfway through the book, I feel obliged to give fair warning that it's an erotic suspense, and some of the scenes are quite graphic.  The party scenes built to a suspenseful peak in the book, and held my interest well.

For me the only real disappointment in the book was Malik.  I really, really wanted to like him, but in a shorter length novella like this one, there was little time to really get to know each character's motivations, and story, and in this case, it meant that I didn't really bond with the character, or what happened in the story after he arrived in it.

Still, there was enough in the story to keep me entertained and wanting a second instalment to see where they could possibly go from here.

3.5/5

Copy provided for review.

Awaken Me – Emily Gossett

After witnessing her fiancée murder her best friend two days before her wedding, Aimee decides to immediately flee from the life she only knows. Lost in a foreign city, Aimee comes in contact with a mysteriously handsome Italian stranger, who seems to know more about Aimee, than Aimee knows about herself. Quickly discovering that the last six years of her life have been a ...moreAfter witnessing her fiancée murder her best friend two days before her wedding, Aimee decides to immediately flee from the life she only knows. Lost in a foreign city, Aimee comes in contact with a mysteriously handsome Italian stranger, who seems to know more about Aimee, than Aimee knows about herself. Quickly discovering that the last six years of her life have been a cover up to who she really is and where she came from. Aimee’s world, before her eyes , becomes a tsunami of conflicted emotions, undecidedly Torn between two men whom she loves deeply. Aimee ultimately finds her true identity, which is more lethal than either men, being the weapon the Rogues desire most. Aimee is anything but human.

One of the best vampire/werewolf books I have read to date!!!

It really is a story of love and finding who you really are. Aimee is a great character as she has so much conflict happening in her life. She leaves her murderous finance Derek, only to be found by Alec, who she has no memory of. She has lived six years with Derek believing everything about him. She knew nothing of her past life as her memory was wiped away.

When she is found by Alec a whole new world opens up to her, one that is very confusing and conflicting for her. She starts remembering the past, she remembers who Alec is and what she feels for him.

Her emotions become in conflict over both Derek and Alec. Aimee’s feelings for Alec resurface with her memories and her feelings for Derek won’t go away.

Awaken Me toughed me in so many ways. It made me think about love and what it really is. Even though Aimee loved Derek, her love for Alec was something stronger. There was a strong connection between Alec and Aimee as every time they touched, a current of electricity flowed between them.

I really loved how Aimee’s powers emerge just when they are needed. Being hybrid, makes life for Aimee, different from everyone else, because she is one a kind. Aimee has strong mindset and a very strong personality. I’d really hate to get on the wrong side of her!!

5/5

Ebook GIVEAWAY: Captivated an Affliction Novel

Ok guys,

I have 2 ebook copies of Captivated: An Affliction Novel to giveaway.

All you have to do is tell us in 25 words or less what would you do if you were a vampire slayer and had to distance yourself from everyone you ever cared about.

Post you answer along with you email addy under this.

The giveaweay will end Friday Night 10-2-12 at 9pm AEST. Winners will be announced Monday after 12pm AEST.

To Urn Her Love- Review by Andrea

Author: Elaina Lee

Published by Astraea Press

To Urn Her love is a story about finding love in strange places.  When Caylie Abrams' little brother decides to help her out by stealing a weird looking vase to sell, he places his sister in a predicament she never could have dreamed of. 

Rick Marshall was her fantasy, the ultimate one that got away.  Her humiliation over his rejection so many years ago has lessened, but never fully healed.  Now that they have been thrown together by circumstances that nobody could have predicted, can they make their past wrong right?

I'm not usually a fan of shorter works.  I find that the shorter length usually either doesn't allow enough detail for me to be interested, or is a frustratingly brief start to a story that could have been better told in a full length novel. 

Not so for To Urn Her Love.  From page one, I was captivated by the characters that Elaina Lee has woven with so much detail they could leap off the page.  The story unfolds with the right amount of back story to keep it interesting and let us know the characters, yet still gains momentum towards the major plot in a satisfying manner.

There are dashes of wry humour throughout, which made me laugh and enjoy the story more than if it had been a more serious tale - which; given the object around which the story centres, it could have easily been.

The central character, Caylie is at some points heartbreakingly real.  Saddled with far too many responsibilities, she took me on a journey that, although brief was satisfying and left a smile on my face.  I'd recommend it for anyone wanting a lighthearted, fun read, and hope to see more from Elaina Lee in the future.

Captivated (An Affliction Novel) – D. Apodaca

Dean tilted his chin up and smiled. “I have no fangs.”

He said through his teeth.

I examined the glistening white canines. They were normal, just like mine. “You retract them when you don’t need them.” I said.

            Dean moved across the table and put his face up to mine. His mouth was a torturous breath away from my own. “Then why haven’t I sucked your blood Lina?” He whispered right before pressing his soft pale lips against mine. Then he inched towards my neck and lingered his lips on my pulse. His soft breathing tickled my skin and triggered a chill that shot up my spine. My blood jumped to a rush and began to throb for him. If he were a vampire, i swear I’d let him suck me. “why aren’t I biting you right now?” He whispered. It took everything i had in me not to melt into the sea and land as a puddle on the ground.

I give praise to Apodca for Captivated. For me it lived up to its title. It really was a captivating story.  

There were several different relationships  evolving around Mindy and the one that stood out most to me was the relationship Mindy had with Markus. There was no hint at any kind of romance ever existing between them. I loved the way Markus looked out for Mindy and he treated her with respect. He came across as her older brother. The one who loved her and did everything in his power to protect her.

Dean was a really interesting character. Throughout the entire story Mindy was led to believe he was a vampire. Markus was the one who led her to believe this and he told her to keep away from him. Mindy fell in love with Dean and they started dating, only for a short period of time as Dean was trying to protect her by distancing himself from her.

By the end of the story Dean was revealed in a new light, one that I never expected. The ending had so many unexpected things occur without me realising them earlier.

Not knowing all of Dean’s background, apart from the beginning that explains the death of his parents, made the story that much more interesting. It really made Dean stand out because we knew so little about him, but what we did know was enough.

I can’t wait to see where Apodaca takes the story in the next instalment of the Affliction series.

4/5

The Adventures of the Magnificent Seven – David Roth

Their names are Lisanne, Josël, Kristof, Anton, Sabas, Dak, and Alyse, but they’re far better known by their travelling name, 'The Magnificent Seven.' Best friends for life, if you find one of them, odds are you’ll find the other six. Children of far reaching and vivid imaginations, their creative fantasies have taken them to such places as the circus, the Orient Express, white water rafting, and outer space. What always starts as an adventure in the real world quickly becomes an adventure of the imagination for them, with a mystery to solve.

This book is aimed at tweens. It was full of adventure, imagination and very creative fantasies. It reminded me of when I was a kid, playing games and pretending to be anywhere in the world on my very own adventure.

It was something I struggled to read mainly because it wasn’t aimed for someone my age to read. If I were back in my late primary school/early high school years I would defiantly have loved this book.

3/5