Cover Reveal: Star Cursed- Ashley Lavering

Star Cursed

Second Book in the Curse of the Beast Series

By Ashley Lavering

Book Description:

Chel finished tying me to the chair and stood. “This is crazy.”

I ignored her comment. “Go down to the basement.”

“Now, I know you’ve lost it.” She folded her arms. “How will this prove that your giant dog is the hot guy that got in your van?”

“I’ll explain later. Just trust me.”

One of her eyebrows rose.

“Please?” I waited for her to nod. “Once you’re down there, I want you to whisper something. Then come back up.”

“Whatever.” With an eye roll, she left the room.

I focused on her feet thumping against the wood stairs and heard the change when they slapped across the tiled kitchen floor. Once the basement door closed, I strained to hear her, but all I caught was a beetle scuttlingacross the kitchen. Nerves tangled in my gut. Had I missed it?

“If this doesn’t work, I’m calling the loony bin, Tay.”Chel’s voice rang so loud that I jerked back, toppling the chair. I hit the floor with a thud.

Beast’s airy chortle resonated from outside the window.

“Shut up. This isn’t funny,” I told him.

Chel walked through the door. “Geeze, what happened?” She hurried to me. “Are you okay?” She righted my chair with a grunt.

“That depends.”

“On?” She cocked an eyebrow at me.

“On whether or not you’re going to untie me.” 

“Oh my gosh. I’m so sorry.” She scrambled to untie the knots.

My hands slipped free and I rubbed my bruised arm. “What kind of friend are you?”

“What?” She startled.

I shook my head at her. “I can’t believe you’d commit me.”

“Wait, you heard that?” Her eyes widened.

I repeated it word for word.

“Whoa, that’s, like, creepy and awesome at the same time. But I still don’t understand how this proves your dog is a werewolf.”

The dreaded moment had arrived and nervesattacked my stomach. “Because, Chel—he bit me.”

Seventeen-year-old Tayla will never forget Beast’sfiery-venom spreading through her body like an infection. Now, with her best friend Chel’s help, she must find ahuman true love before the last petal falls from her enchanted rose or the full moon will transform her into a wolf forever.

But Tayla never expected that her biggest obstaclewould come from inside—a wolf presence threatening to take her very soul. At every turn, the she-wolf exploitsTayla’s weaknesses and gains enough control to sabotageher dates. Tayla struggles to control her unruly wolf andher forbidden attraction to Beast. But can she resist his southern charm, the she-wolf’s attraction to his alluring scent, and still fall in love with a human?

Tangled in a web of wills, Tayla must risk everythingto break the Curse of the Beast. With failure and possible death looming overhead, Tayla will do anything to find true love. But will one moon cycle be long enough to conquer her wolf and remain human? Or will she become a permanent member of Beast’s pack? Find out in the second installment in the Curse of the Beast series.

Star Cursed coming February 8th, 2013!  Add it to your To-Be-Read List.

​Help Ashley celebrate her release that same day on Facebook with the fabulous Release Day Diva. There will be lots of fun games, prizes and other fun stuff you don’t want to miss! Blog Tour details coming soon to her blog and atAmber’s Supernatural & YA Reviews.

You can connect with Ashley here:

Her Blog: Creative Thoughts

Facebook  

Curse of the Beast Facebook Page

Twitter 

Goodreads 

Review #43: The Many Lives of Avery Snow- Christy Sloat

Title: The Many Lives of Avery Snow
Author: Christy Sloat
Pages: 210
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Review: I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review.

After reading and loving Ianni, I just had to read this book! It was great! I feel that people of any age could relate with this New Adult novel and would love it. My favourite parts are the reincarnation themes. I'm a huge believer in reincarnation so I found these parts of the book extremely interesting. I just wish when we are reincarnated that we could remember our past lives, it would be so great.

The characters rocked! I think for me by reading Ianni first,I had a better grip on who the characters were and what there backgrounds were. The part that I didn't like too much was how little Ianni was present, but then again she got her own short story lol. I found Lilith to be in the novel quite a bit. Mostly it was about Avery and her love interests, not that I'm complaining. I preferred Dallas to Landon be ause I felt that sometimes Landon was portrayed as a bad guy for never wanting to lose Averyand by continuing to "stalker" her forever. 

Overall, I enjoyed this quick, cute read, and I can't wait to read the next one. It was a great series to get lost in. I just am super curious who Avery will end up with in the end. Again, it's a great read for people of all ages.

Cover Reveal: Fallen From Grace- K. Anne Raines

Seventeen year-old Grace grows up knowing she’s different, but she always attributed it to a mother who didn’t want her, a father who abandoned her, and a curse that sets her apart. Despite those struggles, her grandfather remained her rock and confidant. Her life irrevocably shatters the day her grandfather dies.

The day of his funeral sets off a chain of events, making Grace question everything she’s ever known to be true, and as a result, who she can truly trust. She inherits his house, part of his money, his Guardian and something that ties them together.

Just before Grace’s 18th birthday, she is thrust into a world she couldn’t fathom existed and does everything she can to thwart the destiny suddenly forced upon her. She’s been chosen for greatness, but at what cost? With eyes now open, she must choose to either be Chosen, or watch those around her suffer the consequences.

Torn between the man who’s come to protect her and the one sent to destroy her, she teeters on the edge of decision, trying to come to grips with who she is, what she wants and what all of that means for her, those she loves and the rest of mankind.


You can reach the author at any of these links.
http://www.facebook.com/raineskanne
http://www.twitter.com/kanneraines
http://www.kanneraines.com (still under construction, but will be up soon)
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6580110.K_Anne_Raines

email: kanneraines@gmail.com

Review #42: Children of Sun and Moon- Matt Larkin

Title: Children of Sun and Moon
Author: Matt Larkin
Pages: 256
Series: Skyfall
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Summary:

The Lunar King bargained his daughter away in marriage to end generations of war between the two dynasties of the Skyfall Isles. The King sends his niece Chandi along as handmaid to his daughter. Chandi has two tasks: watch over her cousin, and spy on the Solars. The Solars cost her everything she cares about, and now she wants nothing more than proof of their treachery so she can go home.

She knows little of spying, but the blood of the Moon God running through her veins gives her powers mortals can’t match, powers that let her slip into places she’s not supposed to be. Of course, the more she uses her powers, the faster she becomes a lunatic.

When she discovers a Solar soldier, Naresh, watching her, she decides to return the favor and stick close to him. But as he shows her the wonders of the domed underwater city, she begins to realize the Solars are not what she thought. Soon, she’ll have to choose between loyalty to her people and her own heart.

Review:
I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review.

At first I didn't know what to expect from this book. I thought that it might have been YA, but now I'm thinking its more New Adult or Adult. At the beginning I wasn't really feeling this book, but the more I read the more I got into it and began to enjoy the book. The story isn't one like anything I have ever read before. It's about two groups fighting for supremacy, the Lunars and the Solars. Finally they want to call a truce by marrying off one of the Lunar characters to a Solar, and it works for awhile. In the end the war still happens.

The characters were awesome. Chandi, the main character was a kick- ass heroine. She had an annoying cousin Ratna, the one who was married off. There were two love interests, well one and a half. If you have read the book you will now what I mean. There are war kings, Ignis (slaves) and 

were tigers all present. Yes you right me right, were tigers. The villains were very well portrayed and 

were very evil. There are some characters that I really want to know more about and what happens to them in the next installment. 

By the end of the book it turned out to be a good read. I am looking forward to reading the second novel. There were a few grammar mistakes that I noticed but they didn't turn me off the book. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys fantasy and kick butt heroines. Thanks for the good read Matt Larkin.

Matt was born and raised in Virginia, and graduated from the College of William and Mary there. His lifelong love of fantasy began with The Hobbit. This led him to start writing his own stories at a young age. His primary influences are mythology and history. He now lives in Florida with his wife.

http://mattlarkin.net

Review # 41: Punished- Vanessa Steel

Title: Punished
Author: Vanessa Steel
Pages: 339
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Review: *Spoiler Alert*

This is the real- life story of Vanessa, a young girl who's life started off rough right from the date of her adoption at 6 months old. The book shares Vanessa's past and a little bit of the present, the terrible and the best times of her life. This is one of the most horrific books that I have ever read in my life. I can't believe the torture that Vanessa's "mother" put her through. All Vanessa wants is for her mother to love and accept her. A lot of awful things that happened to Vanessa made me nauseated. This book was hard for me to read because of all the graphic details. 

I am very grateful that the spirits were present to help guide Vanessa through the roller coaster of her life. I'm glad they shared bits of her future that made her want to continue with her life and have goals to work toward. I am so sorry that those disgraceful things happened to Vanessa, but I am glad that she has broken the cycle. I hope that other people read this book and can be brave enough to get help. I also hope that he people that hurt Vanessa felt guilty for their whole existence. I hope they got what was coming to them. I wish that Vanessa's family had been more willing to help her so that she didn't have to endure so much unnecessary torture. I wish they would have spoke up so those bastards would have been punished for their heinous acts. 

Vanessa thank you for being brave enough to survive and for sharing your heartfelt story.

In My Mailbox # 6

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi over The Story Siren at Let us know what books you've bought, borrowed or received for review!

This month has been pretty exciting! I've bought books but I have also started to receive more of the prizes that I have won from various giveaways and releases. Thanks to everyone!!!

Review #40: Ransom- J. M. Zuniga

Title: Ransom
Author: J. M. Zuniga
Series: The Diamond Mini- Series
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Review: I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review.
OMG!!! Seriously?? J. M. Zuniga how do you do it? I think this is the best book yet! There is such a big, fat punch packed into so little pages. The books blend seamlessly together, each leaving off with a bigger cliff hanger then the previous. The mysteries keep unravelling, the secrets continue to grow. The characters are endlessly surprising me. The romances are growing, some relationships are destroyed and will never be repaired. New characters are introduced, and are disposed of just as quickly.  This book is over flowing with action, there is gun fights and knife fights, helicopters, get- away cars, kidnappings and rescuing. Everything that you read a book for is included in this short story. If you haven't read this series yet you need too! If I could recommend one series for someone to read this is it! Thank you J. M. Zuniga again for blowing my mind!! I hope this series goes on forever. Also love the acknowledgements! *wink* 

Review #39: Two Equals- Marta Szemik

Title: Two Equals
Author: Marta Szemik
Pages: 203
Series: Two Halves
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Review: I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review. 

This is the third book by Marta Szemik that I have had the pleasure of reviewing. This book is definitely new adult, verging on adult. This novel takes place more in the future then the last book. 

*Spoiler Alert*

Sarah and William have children. Twins to be exact. But they are no ordinary twins. This book has quite a few secrets and mysteries that play out by the end of the book. This is a quick read, but it progresses a bit slow for me. 

All the old characters make appearances in this book, plus a few new faces. There is definite growth for the characters in this book from the second one. I found Sarah to have matured the most. Probably due to the fact that she is now a mother. You can feel the love that she has for the twins. William has also grown a lot. They are both willing to risk their lives for their children and for each other. I'm glad that Xander and Xela can finally be together and that everyone is happy for them. No one judges Xela for having the sphere tattoo. Eric has shown his worth quite a few times thought this book. I am actually starting to like him, not feel like he is a snake in the grass. Mira played more of a low key role in this book, hopefully we can see more of her in the next one. I also loved the twins but I don't want to give too much away. 

Overall a great read. Two Halves is still my favourite of the series. This one was just a bit slow. Otherwise I love where the series is going and the way the characters are maturing. 

Thanks again Marta for the opportunity to read and review another great book.

Review #38: Runaway Girl- Carissa Phelps

Title: Runaway Girl: Escaping Life on the Streets, One Helping Hand at a Time
Author: Carissa Phelps
Pages: 320
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Review: This is a heart breaking story of a young girl who has overcame great heart ships in order to get an education and amount to something. 

Carissa's life starts out hard and poor. She runs away at age twelve, experiencing things that most people can only imagine: Sex, Rape, Pimps, Drugs, Alcohol...etc.. For me this is hard to imagine that people live like this. This is why I like reading non- fiction and biographies, I like to learn how different people live. 

This book had me gasping at horrors right from the very beginning. I cried tears of joy and teats of sadness. I am happy that Carissa could overcome everything that she went through and go and get an education and make a name for herself. 

Thank you so much Carissa for being brave enough to share your story. Thank you for helping others to get over situations that you have been through, or getting them out of one bad situations. You are such a brave human being.

Review #37: Wanderers if the Night- Tempest C. Avery

Title: Wanderers of the Night
Author: Tempest C. Avery
Series: The Dreamer Trilogy
Pages: 317
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Review: I received this book in a read 2 review in exchange for and honest review.

This is the second book in the series about Lily Bryg. This book continues right where the first one left off. For the most part the prophecy has been fulfilled. Now the four friends are struggling to find themselves and still grasp lost memories from before. 

*Spoiler Alert*

Lily falls for Conall, Larkin's cousin who I salsa a werewolf. Grid goes over to Ronan's side. While Caer was kidnapped by Ronan and held captive in order to lure Lily to him. 

I enjoyed this book more then the first one because now I am familiar with the characters and its not so hard to tell them apart. I liked the love triangle between Lily, Conall and Larkin. Only because I want to see what happened in the past with Lily and Conall and see who she ends up with. Plus I want to know what happened between Lily and Ronan in the past, obviously it was something juicy!!

Hopefully the series continues to get better with each book. There were still a few spelling mistakes, but an improvement from the last book.

Review #36: Charity Rising- DeAnna Kinney

Title: Charity Rising
Author: DeAnna Kinney
Pages: 300
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Review: I received this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review. 

Usually I'm scared to read sequels because a lot of the time they don't live up to the first book.but that was not the case with Charity Rising. the sequel was just as good if not better then the first. 

In this novel Charity and Levi are married and eventually get to live together. Ashley and josh also eventually get married. In this book we get to see how the pack lives together and deal with issues that arise. The characters haven't changed. I find Charity and Levi to be a hilarious couple, especially when Levi trades in Charity's mustang for a old, slow Buick so she can't speed around. I'm glad that Raven and Rose found each other and I hope to find out more about them in another book. Also I hope that Eli will find a mate and hopefully we also get a book about that. And I want to find out more about what happens with the triplets and about Ashley and Joshes baby. 

DeAnna Kinney is a great writer. She keeps you interested and gives you a great read at the same time. The romance is the perfect amount. There is just enough action and suspense. DeAnna you have definitely made an impression on me and I will continue to read books by you in the future. You are definitely on my radar of must read/ favourite authors. 

Thanks for the great opportunity to read your books!!

Review #35: The Pact- Jodi Picoult

Title: The Pact
Author: Jodi Picoult
Pages: 496
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Review: My friend lent me this book to read because she loved it and said that I would too. Usually I don't read this type of book, you know adult and all haha.but I thought what the hell I'd give it a try. And I needed a book to read on my flit to Mexico. I read the first few pages and thought to myself I am going to hate this book but I kept reading and I'm glad I did. This is an excellent book that pulls at your heart strings while telling an amazing story. Jodi Picoult has you guessing what actually happened until the very end. After reading this book I will be reading a lot more books by this great author. 

I liked how to book flipped back and forth between past and present, which I usually don't care for but in this novel it worked. As I stated before, I was reading this on the airplane and not gonna lie, I had to control myself, because through most of the novel tears were threatening to flow down my face.

All the characters were well put together and each brought their own flare to the story. I only wish the Emily had written something letting everyone know about the abuse, so that they didn't know the who,e reason why and what was troubling her. My heart goes out to poor Chris. I feel like her had the greatest burden and still does because he couldn't save Em, then he was blamed for her death and even went to jail. It was selfish of Emily to do that to Chris, break his soul in two, rip out a part of him.

Anyways, this is a great read. I would recommend it to anyone. It's quick and has a little bit of an underlying message. It's good to the last page.

Review #34: Compulsion- K. B. Miller

Title: Compulsion
Author: K. B. Miller
Series: A Moon Coven
Pages: 180
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Review: I received this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Ever since reading the novella "Haunted Moon" I want to jump right into Compulsion. This book takes place in the present day following around Lily Moon, who recently found out that she is a witch and must lead her coven against an evil gang of vampires. Also Lily is trying to keep her relationship going with a good vampire. 

I enjoyed the character seven though there were a lot of them. I hope that in the next few books that we learn more about each character. I really liked Lily. I found her to be a great leader and even when she had no idea what she was getting herself into, she gave it her all. Mason seems like a very swoon worthy love interest. I can't wait to see where that leads. I really want to find out more about Lily's best friend Camden, and I wan to know if her baby will be able to see ghosts too. 

Needless to say, this was a great book. I can't wait for the next instalment. I want to see if Dax gets his dead, clammy hands on Lily.

Thanks K. B. Miller for the chance to read and review such a great book.

Review #33: Ianni- Christy Sloat

Title: Ianni
Author: Christy Sloat
Pages: 48
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Review: I received this book free from the author in xchange for an honest review.

First off I want to say that I friggin love this cover!!!! It is gorgeous. This short story is a great start to the series. It gives background information about Ianni and how she fell from heaven and became a human. We also learn why and get glimpses of how scary almost dying was for Avery. We a,so see how deeply Ianni cares for Avery, by saving her life in exchange for losing her wings. The story is short but filled with awesomeness. It's a great introduction to the characters. I will be starting The Many Lives of Avery Snow ASAP!

Thanks Christy for the great read!!

Review #31: The Moon Stealers- Tim Flanagan

Title: The Moon Stealers
Author: Time Flanagan
Pages: 188
Rating: 3/5 Stars
Review:

I received this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review.

I think this book is confused. Yes the book not me. I felt like half of the book was for children while the other half was for YA maybe adults. But with those halves put together, I don't know who this book is for. Some parts are too gruesome for children, while other parts are too childish for YA. It felt like two completely different stories. One about children, immortals and possibly fairies, while the other is about aliens and secret agents I guess you could call them. I didn't feel like it came together at all in this book, except for minor crossovers with the aliens. 

The characters are oaky. Peter showed up for two minutes. Joe and max are desperate to find Peter even though they aren't even friends, which is series to me. Scarlet is an empty character. She is there to "save" the boys once and then just fill space. Now Georgia atleast killed an alien and found a severed hand. Steven is a nerd, with a jobbing chasing hoaxes. Then there is creepy Edgar who hangs out with little kids and claims to be from the past and that there is a realm of fae. Which we don't see at all in this book. My favourite character was Tracker for obvious reasons. He can shoot a gun, he knows how to stay alive when there is an Apocolypse and I'm sure that her is ruggedly handsome. Enough said.

Overall I liked the book. It just had two separate stories combined into one. I just wish that the author had made two books instead. Most likely I will read the next book to see if fairies make an appearance.

Review #31: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer- Michelle Hodkin

Title: The Unbecoming if Mara Dyer

Author: Michelle Hodkin

Pages: 456

Rating: 5/5 Stars

Review: This is the author's debut novel and all I have to say is BRAVO!!!! This is one of the best books that I think I have ever read. It's a mystery right from the beginning and just when you think you have solved it...... BAAMMM!!!!! Half of the mystery walks through the door and then the book is over. Mind you it does end with one of the best cliffhangers that I have had the privilege of reading. There are continuous twists and turns throughout then book. And how talented is Michelle Hodkin, she had me peeing my pants laughing, then scared crapless in just a few pages. 

The characters, loved them! Mara was such a mystery to me. I still haven't decided is she is crazy or not, but I like her anyways. I love her witty comebacks and her strong personality. Then there is Noah *swoon*, I want pictures please! I found him to be very gentleman- like even when Mara was being rude to him which was quite often. Plus bonus points for help inner save the dog. That broke my heart a little bit. I do wish that we could have begotten to know Rachel and Claire better, but hopefully that will be in the next book. Also Jude is an ass. So the ending pissed me off but also peaked my curiosity. 

So needless to say, you need to read this book! I can't wait to read the next one, I want to know what the hell happens!!!!

In My Mailbox #5

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi over The Story Siren at Let us know what books you've bought, borrowed or received for review!

So I have some exciting pics to share!!!! This week I received my first package in the mail!!!! I'm going to post the play by play lol.  

I received all of these Goodies from the lovely Venessa Kimball. She was doing a wicked giveaway as you can see here. Everyone who hasn't read her book needs to. You can check out my review here, on Goodreads or on Amazon. So I am very grateful for that. Plus it's my first signed book!!! Woo hoo!!!

Also I received in the mail this week another great book!

This one was won during the R&M Halloween Spooktacular on Facebook. I had actually read and reviewed the ebook and then won this copy. And guess what??

It's signed too!! So that is my week in a nutshell. 

Review #30: The Vampire Hunter's Daughter- Jennifer Malone Right

Title: The Vampire Hunter's Daughter

Author: Jennifer Malone Wright

Pages: 19

Rating: 5/5 Stars

Review: Well that pissed me off! How could Jennifer do that to the readers? This story ended right when it started! URGH! And the worst part is it ends right when the story gets interesting. And I can't believe that there are already six parts to the story and you can buy the complete set. I would do that if I were you then you wouldn't be left hanging.

But otherwise, the book was amazing!!!!!! It had a grip on me right from the beginning up until the very last period. It was action- packed, fast- paced, and filled with mystery and the right amount if emotion. From the very brief encounter with the characters, they seem like they have their heads on straight and will rock. I will be waiting to meet Chloe's dad and see if he is as bad as he seems. I can't wait to continue with the series and see where it leads.

Review #29: My Diary- Mary Skies

Title: My Diary

Author: Mary Skies

Pages: 13

Rating: 2/5 Stars

Review: So I'm not really into poetry. But I wanted to give this book a shot. I did enjoy the story that was depicted in the poems, but I wasn't a fan of everything as a whole. I feel like it might have been better as a story instead of poems. I felt like the poems were hinging on boring, not in story but in design. For example I would have liked to see the poems set up for example in the way that Ellen Hopkins does in her books. Also maybe some pictures would have given the blank pages some "umph" that they needed. Even if it was just a broken heart. Just little fixes like that I I think the book would get better star ratings. 

I want to thank the author Mary for being brave enough to share her story in the first place, even though you could tell that it really had hurt her.

Review # 28: Two Halves- Marta Szemik

Title: Two Halves

Author: Marta Szemik

Pages: 372

Rating: 4/5 Stars

Review: This story starts off with our main character Sarah, living the high school life as somewhat of a loner. She does however have two best friends, twins Mira and Xander, who if you read my review were featured in the novella Marked. Soon we discover that Sarah is no ordinary human. She is a hybrid, a half human, half vampire who has a prophecy to fufill. Hiding in the human world and using black orchid serum with Aunt Helen is how Sarch has been concealing her carnivorous tendencies for the last eighteen years. That is, until the boy she has been dreaming of, William, shows up and whisks her away stating that she is in great danger. 

This is an example of where a novella and book blend nicely together. Things emphasized in the novella show up in the book and all that background information gives you an advantage to know what is going on in the book. 

Some of my favourite characters reappear in this book, which is super exciting. Also we get to meet a handful of new characters. I really enjoyed Aunt Helen and Sarah. William was okay but there was room for improvement. Also I'm glad that we get to see Eric again, and that he proves what side he is on. 

Overall a great read. I definitely liked it better then the fist book. Thanks to Marta for giving me the opportunity to read and review this novel. I'm looking forward to book number three.