Review: The Kneebone Boy by Ellen Potter

Title: The Kneebone Boy
Author: Ellen Potter
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Publication date: September 14th 2010

Life in a small town can be pretty boring when everyone avoids you like the plague. But after their father unwittingly sends them to stay with an aunt who’s away on holiday, the Hardscrabble children take off on an adventure that begins in the seedy streets of London and ends in a peculiar sea village where legend has it a monstrous creature lives who is half boy and half animal. . . .
In this wickedly dark, unusual, and compelling novel, Ellen Potter masterfully tells the tale of one deliciously strange family and a secret that changes everything.

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Promo: Miss Mabel's School for Girls by Katie Cross + Giveaway

Let's welcome Katie Cross to the blog to celebrate the release of her YA fantasy, Miss Mabel's School for Girls, which releases March 27th, 2014!

For me, writing a book involved a lot of staring at a computer screen, slapping the delete button, pulling my
hair out, and Pinterest.

Oh, yes. You heard right. Pinterest.

The power of Pinterest comes from the images. I always find photos that I want to remember and have access to, so I pin them to a board for later reference. So, I thought to myself, Hey, I'm releasing my first book, Miss Mabel's School for Girls. Why don't I give the readers something to look at in anticipation of the book?

So instead of a boring interview where I talk about how great I am, I'm here today to take you on a visual tour to give you a few ideas of what you can expect to find in this exciting new young adult fantasy novel, Miss Mabel's School for Girls.

Geist by Phillipa Ballantine

    
Geist by Phillipa Ballantine
Publisher: Ace
Publication date: September 29th, 2010

 Between the living and the dead is the Order of the Deacons, protectors of the Empire, guardians against possession, sentinels enlisted to ward off the malevolent haunting of the geists...

Among the most powerful of the Order is Sorcha, now thrust into partnership with the novice Deacon, Merrick Chambers. They have been dispatched to the isolated village of Ulrich to aide the Priory with a surge of violent geist activity. With them is Raed Rossin, Pretender to the throne that Sorcha is sworn to protect, and bearer of a terrible curse.

But what greets them in the strange settlement is something far more predatory and more horrifying than any mere haunting. And as she uncovers a tradition of twisted rituals passed down through the dark reaches of history, Sorcha will be forced to reconsider everything she thinks she knows.

And if she makes it out of Ulrich alive, what in Hell is she returning to?

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Excerpt & Giveaway: Journey To Landaran by Judy Goodwin

Young Adult Fantasy

Aidah begins seeing visions through her brother’s eyes. He’s a Firestarter, gifted with the Talent to control light and heat, destined to become a Sun Mage in the great city of Landaran. But he doesn’t want to leave without his sister. As storm clouds gather, Aidah dreams of a beautiful man, a frightening man, calling to her. 

She fears the truth. That she may developing a Talent of her own, one that will change their lives forever. 
The power to read minds. To possess bodies. To travel 

inside dreams. In the world of Ernid, Spirit is the ultimate power. 

Nations will go to war over them. 

Judy Goodwin

Judy Goodwin has been writing since she was a child, when her fourth grade English instructor told her, ‘You should be a writer.” She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Creative Writing from the University of Arizona, and a Master’s in Education from Argosy University. Over the last ten years she has appeared in several small press magazines and anthologies with her fantasy and science fiction short stories and poetry. Her first novel was published in January 2013, entitled Heart of the Witch. 

~Book Tour~ The Wolf's Cry by Natalie Crown

Thanks for stopping by my tour stop for The Wolf's Cry by Natalie Crown. 
Back in November I had the pleasure to host the Cover Reveal, and I fell in love with it right then and there. And when the opportunity to review the book and host a tour stop presented itself, I knew I had to take it. 
The Wolf's Cry by Natalie Crown is a YA Fantasy book that released in January 2014, the first book in The Semei Trilogy.  
This tour will run March 10th-21st and consist of reviews, author interviews, guest posts, top tens and a giveaway.  

Stop by the tour page for the full list of tour stops.

ˇ~Book Blast~The Brotherhood of Dwarves by D.A. Adams + Giveaway!

The Brotherhood of Dwarves

The dwarven saga begins… Roskin, heir to the throne of a remote, peaceful kingdom of dwarves, craves excitement and adventure. 

Outside his own kingdom, in search of fortune and glory, he finds a much different world, one divided by racial strife and overrun by war. 

The orcs to the south want to conquer all dwarves and sell them as slaves. 

The humans to the east want to control the world's resources.

 Caught in the middle, Roskin finds himself chased by slave traders and soldiers alike as he discovers that friendship is the best fortune of all. Just when he thinks he has triumphed, an act of betrayal sends him into bondage. 

His only hope of escape is the faltering courage of a disgraced warrior whose best days are behind him...

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~ARC Review~ Stolen Songbird by Danielle L. Jensen

 

Stolen Songbird by  Danielle L. Jensen
Publisher: Strange Chemistry
Publication date: April 1st 2014

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For those who have loved Seraphina and Graceling comes another truly fabulous fantasy...

For five centuries, a witch’s curse has bound the trolls to their city beneath the ruins of Forsaken Mountain. Time enough for their dark and nefarious magic to fade from human memory and into myth. But a prophesy has been spoken of a union with the power to set the trolls free, and when Cécile de Troyes is kidnapped and taken beneath the mountain, she learns there is far more to the myth of the trolls than she could have imagined.

Cécile has only one thing on her mind after she is brought to Trollus: escape. Only the trolls are clever, fast, and inhumanly strong. She will have to bide her time, wait for the perfect opportunity.

But something unexpected happens while she’s waiting – she begins to fall for the enigmatic troll prince to whom she has been bonded and married. She begins to make friends. And she begins to see that she may be the only hope for the half-bloods – part troll, part human creatures who are slaves to the full-blooded trolls. There is a rebellion brewing. And her prince, Tristan, the future king, is its secret leader.

As Cécile becomes involved in the intricate political games of Trollus, she becomes more than a farmer’s daughter. She becomes a princess, the hope of a people, and a witch with magic powerful enough to change Trollus forever

Cover Reveal: Keeper by Ingrid Seymor

I'm excited to reveal the cover for Keeper by Ingrid Seymour.  This YA fantasy is releasing as a serial novel with the following release dates:
 vol 1 - March 05
 vol 2 - April 2
 vol 3 - May 7
 vol 4 - June 4
and the Omnibus edition with all volumes releases in July.
This is the cover of the omnibus that contains all the stories that comes out in July. 

Review: The Pirate's Wish by Cassandra Rose Clarke

Title:The Pirate's Wish (The Assassin's Curse #2)

Author:  Cassandra Rose Clarke

Buy it: Amazon, Book Depository

Add it: Goodreads 

Meet the author: Goodreads, Official Site, Twitter
Publisher: Strange Chemistry
  Rating:
 

After setting out to break the curse that binds them together, the pirate Ananna and the assassin Naji find themselves stranded on an enchanted island in the north with nothing but a sword and their wits. But Naji has unseen enemies, and Ananna must face the wrath of the Pirate Confederation.

Together, they must travel afar, defeat their foes and break the mother of all curses. With all this going on, falling in love would be such a bad idea... All of this and much, much more await, in the swashbuckling sequel to The Assassin's Curse.

Review: The Assassin's Curse by Cassandra Rose Clarke

   Title: The Assassin's Curse (The Assassin's Curse #1)

Author:  Cassandra Rose Clarke

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Meet the author: Goodreads, Official Site, Twitter
Publisher: Strange Chemistry
  Rating:
 

Ananna of the Tanarau abandons ship when her parents try to marry her off to another pirate clan. But that only prompts the scorned clan to send an assassin after her. When Ananna faces him down one night, armed with magic she doesn't really know how to use, she accidentally activates a curse binding them together.

To break the spell, Ananna and the assassin must complete three impossible tasks--all while grappling with evil wizards, floating islands, haughty manticores, runaway nobility, strange magic... And the growing romantic tension between them.

Review: Magic Bleeds by Ilona Andrews

Title:Magic Bleeds (Kate Daniels #4)

Author: Ilona Andrews  

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Meet the author: Goodreads, Official blog  

Rating:

 
 Atlanta would be a nice place to live, if it weren't for the magic. When the magic is up, rogue mages cast their spells and monsters appear, while guns refuse to fire and cars fail to start. But then technology returns, and the magic recedes as unpredictably as it arose.

Kate Daniels works for the Order of Knights of Merciful Aid, officially as a liaison with the mercenary guild. Unofficially, she cleans up the paranormal problems no one else wants to handle - especially if they involve Atlanta's shapeshifting community. When she's called in to investigate a fight at the Steel Horse, a bar on the border between the territories of the shapeshifters and the necromancers, Kate quickly discovers that there's a new player in town. One who's been around for thousands of years - and who rode to war at the side of Kate's father. This foe may be too much even for Kate and Curran, the Beast Lord, to handle. Because this time Kate will be taking on family.

Review: Magic Strikes by Ilona Andrews

Title:Magic Strikes (Kate Daniels #3)

Author: Ilona Andrews  

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Meet the author: Goodreads, Official blog 

Rating:
 

Drafted into working for the Order of Merciful Aid, mercenary Kate Daniels has more paranormal problems than she knows what to do with these days. And in Atlanta, where magic comes and goes like the tide, that’s saying a lot.

But when Kate's werewolf friend Derek is discovered nearly dead, she must confront her greatest challenge yet. As her investigation leads her to the Midnight Games—an invitation only, no holds barred, ultimate preternatural fighting tournament—she and Curran, the Lord of the Beasts, uncover a dark plot that may forever alter the face of Atlanta's shapeshifting community…

Review: Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews

Title: Clean Sweep (Innkeeper Chronicles #1) 

Author: Ilona Andrews  

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Meet the author: Goodreads, Official blog

 My Rating:

On the outside, Dina Demille is the epitome of normal. She runs a quaint Victorian Bed and Breakfast in a small Texas town, owns a Shih Tzu named Beast, and is a perfect neighbor, whose biggest problem should be what to serve her guests for breakfast. But Dina is...different: Her broom is a deadly weapon; her Inn is magic and thinks for itself. Meant to be a lodging for otherworldly visitors, the only permanent guest is a retired Galactic aristocrat who can’t leave the grounds because she’s responsible for the deaths of millions and someone might shoot her on sight. Under the circumstances, "normal" is a bit of a stretch for Dina.

And now, something with wicked claws and deepwater teeth has begun to hunt at night....Feeling responsible for her neighbors, Dina decides to get involved. Before long, she has to juggle dealing with the annoyingly attractive, ex-military, new neighbor, Sean Evans—an alpha-strain werewolf—and the equally arresting cosmic vampire soldier, Arland, while trying to keep her inn and its guests safe. But the enemy she’s facing is unlike anything she’s ever encountered before. It’s smart, vicious, and lethal, and putting herself between this creature and her neighbors might just cost her everything.

The Wolf's Cry Cover Reveal & Giveaway

 I'm excited to reveal the cover of The Wolf's Cry by Natalie Crown. This is a YA Fantasy/Alternate World book that releases January 2014. This is the first book in the The Semei Trilogy.

Review: Lips Touch:Three Times by Laini Taylor

Title: Lips Touch:Three Times

Author: Laini Taylor
Add it: Goodreads

Buy it: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The book Depository

Meet the autor: Goodreads,  Offical Blog

My ratings:

Three tales of supernatural love, each pivoting on a kiss that is no mere kiss, but an action with profound consequences for the kissers' souls:

Goblin Fruit
In Victorian times, goblin men had only to offer young girls sumptuous fruits to tempt them to sell their souls. But what does it take to tempt today's savvy girls?

Spicy Little Curses
A demon and the ambassador to Hell tussle over the soul of a beautiful English girl in India. Matters become complicated when she falls in love and decides to test her curse.

Hatchling
Six days before Esme's fourteenth birthday, her left eye turns from brown to blue. She little suspects what the change heralds, but her small safe life begins to unravel at once. What does the beautiful, fanged man want with her, and how is her fate connected to a mysterious race of demons?