Goldilox and the Three Weres

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Blog Tour: Unearthed by Cecy Robson

Welcome to our stop on the Unearthed Blog Tour! I'm so excited for a new UF series from Cecy Robson, as well as a new take on the Grim Reaper. And how cute is that cover!

Keep reading for more on Unearthed, including an excerpt, my review and a tour-wide giveaway.

Unearthed
(Death Seeker #1)
Cecy Robson
Release: Sept 24, 2019
Goodreads Amazon B&N
Kobo iTunes
ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley

Fae was once a flourishing paradise. Until Death turned greedy and destroyed it, targeting the creatures who inhabited it. Those who survived escaped to Earth’s realm, but Death wasn’t far behind . . .

Olivia Finn is just another pixie trying to blend in among humans and hide from the death hounds who devoured her family. Clinging to the talisman that keeps her veiled from those who hunt her, she believes she is safe. . .. Until Death finds her and discovers she’s immune to its grip.

Now that Olivia’s power is unearthed, she is sought by Fae who see her as their savior and stalked by dark entities compelled to destroy her. Can she trust the King of the Dead who has sworn to train and protect her? Or should she obey her instincts that warn he desires more?

Olivia can no longer hide from Death. To survive, she must seek it.

Excerpt

…in the Glen a nightclub where the Fae like to gather

Lights flash and magical mist pours across the dance floor, allowing privacy to those desperate for touch. Fae aren’t plentiful, and neither are establishments for us to gather. That’s what makes the Glen fun. It doesn’t just bring my kind together, it frees us. No glamour, no pretending. We discuss magic and the old realm, curse Death for destroying it and celebrate our survival.

With a shimmy and a shake, lavender and silver wings sprout from Dahlia’s back. She stretches, relishing the feel of simply being herself. She winks at me, her glimmering lavender eyes and lips radiant.

A drunk mountain troll stumbles between us. She releases my hand, allowing him through before clasping my hand and guiding us through the gyrating swarm of bodies. “Let’s have a drink, darling.”

I squeeze her hand. Fae are affectionate beings. In the human world, we cage our need to caress, embrace, and make love. It’s a way to keep our identities secret and another way to prevent Death from finding us.

Bill’s broken glamour was a result of a stolen kiss. It revealed his form to a human and worst of all damaged his talisman. Our talismans remain the only way to hide from those who hunt us. Without them, it’s a death warrant with our executioners often seconds from being collected.

A banshee sprints away from the bar and through the swarm of Fae. With all the grace of a swan, she leaps into the air and straddles the male who entered behind us. “David!” she screeches. “Sorry,” she adds when we groan and cover our ears.

“David” loses his tiny accountant persona, morphing into a giant cyclops with a long blond Mohawk. He laughs, catching the banshee when her legs break free of his widening waist.

She screeches. Again. The thought of that voice in the throes of passion makes me cringe. “David is going to need serious earplugs to get through the night,” I mutter.

Dahlia giggles, her laughter like wind chimes in the soft breeze. “Perhaps. But it will be worth it, darling,” she sings.

©Unearthed, Cecy Robson, LLC September 2019

Review

One of my favorite things about Urban Fantasy is that you get things like a law firm staffed by the Fae. That's where we meet Olivia, a pixie who lost her powers when her family escaped to the human realm. It gets even better when one of her co-workers turns out to be the Grim Reaper. But there are other types of Death in the world as well and they are hunting the Fae.

Olivia discovers that she has new powers that can help her fight the hell hounds that are after her people. Enter Ryker, who rescues her and offers to train her. Those scenes remind me of Cassie and Pritkin in the Cassie Palmer series, which I love. Also like Cassie, Olivia is unprepared for the sudden responsibility, in over her head and making it up as she goes along.

I loved the chemistry between Olivia and Ryker. And I liked the supporting characters. Dragons serve the role often filled by vampires in UF of a mob boss type and his muscle, which is a fun twist. And there's a gargoyle, which I love to see. I'm also intrigued by the idea that all these different versions of Death, presumably from different world mythologies, are all in competition for the same souls.

But there a few elements that I liked much less. First of all, first person POV is uncomfortable when the main character is being beaten. And it makes for abrupt ends in the action when that character passes out. I also felt like the villain was scary enough without making threats of sexual violence. They made him seem more human, as opposed to being a monster, which was unnecessary. And then there's this sentient tool/weapon that's just weird and squicky. Maybe its purpose will become clear in a later book?

Still, I enjoyed the book overall. I like where the characters wind up in the end and I'm looking forward to seeing what's next.

Recommended for fans of: The Cassie Palmer series by Karen Chance

1/2

3.5 stars

About the Author

CECY ROBSON is an international and multi-award-winning author of over twenty-five character driven novels. A registered nurse of eighteen years, Cecy spends her free time creating magical worlds, heart-stopping romance, and young adult adventure. After receiving two RITA® nominations, the Maggie Award, the Award of Excellence, and a National Reader’s Choice Award nomination, you can still find Cecy laughing, crying, and cheering on her characters as she pens her next story.

Connect with Cecy online:

Win a $50.00 Amazon Gift Card. Ends September 4 at 11:59 pm (EST)

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Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Release Day Review: Archangel's War by Nalini Singh

Archangel's War
(Guild Hunter #12)
Nalini Singh
Release: September 24, 2019
Goodreads Amazon

Wings of silver. Wings of blue. Mortal heart. Broken dreams. Shatter. Shatter. Shatter. A sundering. A grave. I see the end. I see. . .

The world is in chaos as the power surge of the Cascade rises to a devastating crescendo. In furiously resisting its attempts to turn Elena into a vessel for Raphael’s power, Elena and her archangel are irrevocably changed. . .far beyond the prophecy of a cursed Ancient.

At the same time, violent and eerie events around the world threaten to wipe out entire populations. And in the Archangel Lijuan’s former territory, an unnatural fog weaves through the land, leaving only a bone-chilling silence in its wake. Soon it becomes clear that even the archangels are not immune to this deadly evil. This time, even the combined power of the Cadre may not be enough. . .

This war could end them all.

Review:
Guys! Guys! You are not ready for this book. I thought I was ready and I really wasn't. I'm not sure how I'm going to review this book without spoilers but I'm going to try. I will say now that if you're not caught up on the series, stop reading this post now. There will be spoilers for Archangel's Prophecy ahead.

Dear lord! This book was an emotional roller coaster. One minute it had me laughing and the next I was an anxious ball of nerves on the edge of my seat. I made the mistake of trying to read a few chapters before bed and ended up finishing the book at 4AM. I'm both physically and emotionally exhausted. And honestly, I didn't expect anything less after the cliffhanger of the last book.

I ended up going back to reread the last few chapters of Archangel's Prophecy before starting this one and I'd recommend doing the same if you're able. So to briefly recap. The cliffhanger ending of the previous book was brutal. Elena had lost her wings and was enclosed in a chrysalis. Raphael wasn't in much better shape after trading hearts with his consort. Because of this, he and Elena both are in a Cascade-induced coma state and are getting ready to force themselves to wake-up. The problem is that they don't know if Elena will wake as Elena or the back-up battery the Cascade wants to turn her into.

Archangel's War picks up almost exactly where that one left off. So literally everything from the first page on is a spoiler for this book.

I know that's vague but there's a reason why I always look forward to reading each new Guild Hunter book every year. These books are top-shelf book crack. The characters! The worldbuilding! The big bad! Everything in this series is so amazingly done and is hands down one of my favorite urban fantasy/paranormal romance series ever.

Archangel's War was an awesome addition to an already amazing series! I laughed. I cried. And I about had a nervous breakdown the whole last half of the book when the major battle this series has been building to finally came. I loved how this whole book was set up. It slowly eased us into the battle and then proceeded to drop us right into the fray. I loved that we got to see a lot of the characters we've come to love from previous books in the series again and were introduced to a lot of new ones as well.

Actually, we got a whole lot of expanded worldbuilding in this book that starts to set things up for future books in the series including the backstory of a certain blue-winged angel. To me, it really seems like Nalini Singh has set up the next book to potentially be Illium's book. I really hope it is. If it's not, I can deal with that too but it seems to be where the story is going. And I am here for it.

Nalini Singh proves once again with this book that she's a master storyteller and that I have no chance of ever predicting where she'll take a story. I can't recommend this series enough! Seriously. Go read it and come back and we can yell about all things Guild Hunter together.

ARC provided the publisher via Netgalley.

Monday, September 23, 2019

#nameathon Readathon Wrap Up

For Nameathon you use the letters in your name or blog name to generate a TBR list. I'm using WERES. The challenge is hosted by Under the Covers and Ideally Inspired Reviews and ran from September 16-22. Check out my TBR post.

I should probably start by saying I am terrible at sticking to a TBR list. And I knew when I made the list that I probably wouldn't read five books during the week. Turns out I did, just not the ones on my TBR. Fortunately some of my books count for more than one prompt.

Here's what I read during the readathon:

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And here's how I completed my prompts for WERES:

W author’s debut - Bringing Down the Duke by Evie Dunmore
E enemies to lovers and
R royals - Promise of Darkness by Bec McMaster
E green on the cover and
S rom com - Well Met by Jen DeLuca

How did you do in the Readathon?

Friday, September 20, 2019

Review: Promise of Darkness by Bec McMaster

Promise of Darkness
(Dark Court Rising #1)
Bec McMaster
Release: September 17, 2019
Goodreads Amazon
ARC provided by the author

Princess. Tribute. Sacrifice. Is she the one prophesied to unite two warring Fae courts? Or the one bound to destroy them?

In a realm ruled by magic, the ruthless Queen of Thorns is determined to destroy her nemesis, the cursed Prince of Evernight.

With war brewing between the bitter enemies, the prince forces Queen Adaia to uphold an ancient treaty: she will send one of her daughters to his court as a political hostage for three months.

The queen insists it’s the perfect opportunity for Princess Iskvien to end the war before it begins. But one look into Thiago’s smouldering eyes and Vi knows she’s no assassin.

The more secrets she uncovers about the prince and his court, the more she begins to question her mother’s motives.

Who is the true enemy? The dark prince who threatens her heart? Or the ruthless queen who will stop at nothing to destroy him?

And when the curse threatens to shatter both courts, is she strong enough to break it?

A fairytale twist inspired by the Hades and Persephone myth.

Review:

Promise of Darkness started a little slow for me, but that's not unusual for a first book in a series. By the end I was completely sucked in. There's so much Fae mythology packed in to this fantasy world with magic and portals and monsters. Most of the books about the Fae that I've read have a more modern setting so that was a nice change. There's also a mystery to solve and a curse to break. It's so wonderfully twisty!

I love an Enemies to Lovers romance and McMaster puts an interesting spin on the trope. Princess Iskvin isn't sure who her enemies are most of the time. She just knows that she's being lied to. And Prince Thiago smolders and seduces as he tries to earn her trust. Slow Burn FTW!

This book reminds me of Amanda Bouchet's A Promise of Fire in a lot of ways. Obviously, the titles are similar and they are both the first book of an adult fantasy romance trilogy that follows the same couple. Both feature rival kingdoms and evil queens. Both also use modern language and familiar mythology to make a high fantasy setting more accessible.

But my favorite thing about Bouchet's series was the found family of supporting characters surrounding the prince and McMaster has done a great job of creating that as well. I'm looking forward to getting to know them better as the series progresses. And Prince Thiago in particular has so many more secrets to reveal, I can't wait to see what's next.

4 stars

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

#nameathon Readathon TBR

I have fallen completely out of the reading groove and landed in a Netflix hole. Not that there's necessarily anything wrong with a TV binge, but my September ARCs aren't too happy about it. So I'm hoping that a readathon will be just the thing to get me back on track.

For Nameathon you use the letters in your name or blog name to generate a TBR list. I'm using WERES. The challenge is hosted by Under the Covers and Ideally Inspired Reviews and runs from September 16-22. For the full list of prompts, check out UTC's video.

Here's my TBR for the challenge:

W author’s debut - Bringing Down the Duke by Evie Dunmore

E green on the cover - Well Met by Jen DeLuca

R royals - The Orchid Throne by Jeffe Kennedy

E enemies to lovers - Aurora Blazing by Jessie Mihalik

S red on the cover- The Blacksmith Queen by GA Aiken

There's also an Instagram challenge, so watch our feed next week for these.

Friday, August 30, 2019

Month in Review: August 2019

The Weres were a bit quiet this last month on the blog. We don't know about you but we were crazy busy with the start of a new school year. Here's what we posted in about in August: