Sunday, July 31, 2011

Book Review: Blood Red Dawn

Today's review is on Blood Red Dawn by Karen E Taylor

Blood Red Dawn is the final installment in Karen Taylor's Vampire Legacy series, and though it was a pleasure to read, I feel that I have lost some dear friends.  It is a difficult task for an author to create characters that seem to come alive, but that is most assuredly not a problem for Taylor.  I fell in love with Deidre, Mitch, Sam,Vivienne, and Victor from the beginning as I'm sure any reader would.

In this, the final book, Deidre has found that she is pregnant with Mitch's child.  Though her memory has escaped, some things never fully go away, like her uneasiness in regards to Max.  He has been reborn as an Other and with his vampire strength he is more difficult to get rid of.

There are up's and down's abound in Blood Red Dawn, and someone very deer looses their life.  I must say that I was a bit upset by this and even shed a tear or two, but as the last line states...."life goes on."

I will miss the adventures of Deidre and the rest, but look forward to reading more of Taylor's works.

4 of 5 stars for Blood Red Dawn

Friday, July 29, 2011

Book Review: Resurrection

Today's review is on Resurrection by Karen Taylor

Resurrection is the 6th book in Taylor's Vampire Legacy and focuses more on the Others that were introduced in the previous book, The Vampire Vivienne

With the exquisite manner in which Taylor writes each of her books in this series, it seems only natural where subsequent installments lead the reader.

In Resurrection, Mitch and Deidre are attacked by the Others and Deidre is shot with an arrow that has some sort of poison on it.  Pete has left the pub to go on vacation and has left Maggie and her mute son Phoenix to watch over them during the daylight hours.

It turns out that Maggie is a breeder, and of all things, the widow of Eduard.  Through her blood there runs the catalyst that causes the poison in Deidre's blood to begin it's damage.  It is now deleting her memories.

Surprises are abundant in Resurrection keeping the reader engaged throughout the book.

4 of 5 stars

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Book Review: The Vampire Vivienne

Today's review is on The Vampire Vivienne by Karen E Taylor

The Vampire Vivienne is the 5th book in Taylor's Vampire Legacy series and though it does not center on the main character's Mitch and Deirdre, it still flows nicely with the rest of the previous installments.

As the title suggests, the book is written about and from the voice Vivienne Courbet.  She was made vampire in 1719 by Max while he and Victor were in Paris.  She was the newest of the Ladies of the Night at the local brothel called the House of the Swan.  She was just nineteen years old.  From there she lived with Max for a time until he killed Diego, her first love and her first "child", for she had recently turned him.

Vivienne was so angered by Max that she fled back to Paris and took over the House of the Swan.  One evening a young woman; Monique, came to her door beaten and had just recently given birth.  Vivienne had pity on the woman and took her in and cared for her.  She had also found a new love in Eduard DeRouchard.

With the revolution happening in Paris at the time, Eduard became one of those killed by the guillotine.  Monique took his body; claiming to be his wife, back to the brothel and sewed his head back on and cleaned his body so Vivienne could "say good-bye".  That night Vivienne turned Monique vowing not to loose someone she loved again.

Now, Vivienne is heading the Cadre and someone has decided to begin killing vampires again.  One vampire is even killed during a costume party at Vivienne's club, and the very next day the Imperial is bombed killing numerous humans and vampires alike.  Vivienne needs all the help she can get, and Deirdre, Mitch, Lily, Victor and Monique come to her aid.

A truly great read.

4.5 of 5 stars

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Book Review: Blood Of My Blood

Today's review is on Blood Of My Blood by Karen E Taylor

Blood Of My Blood is the fourth installment in Taylor's Vampire Legacy series and is as exciting as ever.

The story opens in New Orleans with Lily Williams and a group of "friends" talking about their earliest childhood memories.  Lily's was of clawing her way through a coffin and six feet of dirt to emerge into the night.  Her mother had left her for dead and buried her, leaving her to rot in her grave.  All these years her anger and hatred towards her mother only grew.  With the death of her lover Hyde, and her friend Moon, Lily sets out to finally seek her revenge.  Revenge on her unsuspecting mother, Dorothy Grey Williams.

Meanwhile, Mitch and Deidre are entering what seems to be a rut.  They both seem to be a bit edgy at times.  And while Deidre doesn't sleep much Mitch does, and his dreams cause him great anger.  One dream causes him to scream out "kill her!"  and Deidre feels that Mitch has finally come to resent her for turning him and she flees to a neighbor.

When she return's home she finds that Mitch is gone and so is everything else, even the curtains.  Distraught, she sets the cabin on fire and decides to go back to New York and the Cadre only to find that someone else has already been there.  Someone who looks just like her. 

And so the story goes, Lily takes what means the most to Deidre to get her to come to New Orleans; Mitch, and Deidre follows along with Victor and another vampire.

I can hardly wait to move on to book five!!

4 of 5 stars

Monday, July 25, 2011

BACK TO SCHOOL!!

Now that I am fast approaching my goal of 100 books for the year, and the school year will be fast upon my family, I will finally be able to relax a bit.  Though I will still be reading and reviewing, I will be returning to my writing. 

As it stands, my book, Before The Darkness, is just a little over 40,000 words and still is not finished.  I need to add some, take out some, and change a little here or there.  I am setting a goal of having my draft completed by the end of the year, and will be sending out copies to some of my friends in both the writing and publishing fields.

When the new year begins again, I will be back in the reading frenzy that I enjoy just as much as my writing.  (If not more......hehehehe)  So keep checking in on my progress, and check in often.  You never know what I'll be up to.  Insert crazy laughter here.

Mahalo and Aloha to all of my blog followers, my Goodreads friends, and my Twitter followers.

Annette M G Nishmoto

 

Book Review: Dark Magick ( The Gatekeeper Series #1)

Today's review is on Dark Magic; The Gatekeeper Series by




This has had to be one of the most difficult books for me to read. There were numerous errors which interfered with the flow of the story. Words were transposed, additional words added that didn't belong, names were spelled differently, and tons of grammar problems. I have not read any other works by Thompson-Geer, but I hope the other books are better written.



The basic summary of the book is that there is a war going on, the magickal are being hunted by the government; however, it is not clear why this is the case. There are two prominent women; Lynn and Reah, who are both witches, who must close the gates between this word and another. Again, the book doesnt give much detail as to why this must be done.



There is love, loss, and betrayal in the story, but it was so poorly edited I was disappointed with the book as a whole. It could have been a really enjoyable story if it was seriously given a overhaul. I am sorry to give this book such a poor rating.


1 of 5 stars

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Book Review: Better Than 8

Today's review is on Better Than 8 by Erin Jamison

Sweaty, hot and heavy!  Erin Jamison's Better Than 8 is a heart pumping, erotic, fantasy. 

Great books are those that create a world that the reader can hear and feel around them, and this book does just that.

Amara hasn't been in a relationship for four years since Adrian left her and married someone else.  Four years is a long to go without, even while Adrian keeps coming on to her.  So when one of her girlfriends suggests a web site where all the men have to be well endowed, she gives it a shot.

Sevastian seem like the perfect man. Tall, fit, smart, sense of humor, and 10.5 inches long.  They talked via email and alike for three months and then it stopped.  Amara had just about given up, until a chance encounter brings them face to face and as they say. . . "let the games begin."

Better Than 8 is a toe tingling page turner that will leave you wanting for "a little maintenance".  Grab your man, grab your woman, or grab both after you read this book, I know you'll want to.

5 of 5 stars

Friday, July 22, 2011

Book Review: Night's Child

Today's review is on Night's Child by Cate Tiernan

Night's Child is the special edition installment in Tiernan's Sweep series and receives two thumbs up.

Four years have passed since the last book and Morgan and Hunter are still together and in love, though they don't get to see each other very often.  Morgan is busy rebuilding the Belwicket coven that her mother was in, and Hunter is busy with setting up the New Charter; a newer and more evolved version of the Witches Council.  This leaves Morgan to making the most difficult decision with regards to their relationship.  She plans to break up with him, but is delighted when he turns around and proposes to her.  The next day however Hunter dies is a horrible ferry accident and Morgan is devastated.

Fifteen years later, we meet Morgans daughter Moira.  Her life seems to mirror that of Morgans when she falls in love with a handsome young man who's mother is suspected of using dark magick.

Strange things are beginning to happen around Morgan, and she realizes that Hunter may still be alive.  She talks to Sky and she comes to help.

Morgans half sister Iona has killed their father and taken his soul.  With her increased power she has trapped Hunter on a deserted island for the last 16 years and it's up to Morgan, Sky, and Moira to rescue him.  Once found, Hunter is surprised to find that Moira is in fact his daughter.  And though Moira is confused, she sees and actually feels the love pouring from Hunter to her mother.

Moira was fated by the Goddess to be born, she destroyed the dark wave heading towards Belwicket and her home with the help of her boyfriend Ian, her mom, Sky, and hunter along with members of the Belwicket coven.

Things settle down a few days after the destruction of the dark wave, and low and behold Hunter once again proposes to Morgan and she says yes again.  Everyone is happy and the all live Happily Ever After.

Though some of the books received low stars, the series as a whole was enjoyable.  I think many YA readers would enjoy the series and I highly recommend it.  Love is expressed through mutual respect and trust, not through sex.  (A welcome change from other YA books.)

I have to give this 4.5 of 5 stars!!  Excellent job Cate!!

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Book Review: Full Circle

Today's review is on Full Circle by Cate Tiernan

Full Circle is the final installment in Tiernan's Sweep series and thankfully was full of adventure, love, and happiness.

It seems that even beyond the grave, Cal hasn't given up on having Morgan be with him.  He has been visiting her in her dreams.  At first she is just scared, but when she awakes from one on the edge of a cliff she knows she is under attack.  It's not Cal; however, but Selene who is out for revenge.

Hunter has decided to quit the Council, but has taken on a case even though he is no longer a Seeker.  With the help of his father, they come up with a spell to limit the powers of a coven leader who has turned to a dark spell to help her dieing son.

I'm happy that there is one very last special edition book to go along with the series, as Full Circle left many questions unanswered.  I hope to find the answers in Night's Child.

4 of 5 stars

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Book Review: Reckoning

Today's review is on Reckoning by Cate Tiernan

Reckoning is the 13th book in the Sweep series and surprisingly was a really good book.  This installment focused on Alisa and her mothers family.

As the birth of Alisa's half-brother or half-sister draws nearer Alisa finds herself feeling more and more unnoticed in her own home.  Things only get worse when she is asked to give up her bedroom for the baby and move to the "glorified closet" at the end of the hall.

Though upset, she decides to attend the weekly circle at Hunter's house.  Only Hunter and Morgan know that Alisa is a witch, so when the pipes start rumbling and the faucets start flowing causing a virtual flood, every one is a bit shaken.  Least of all Alisa.  So when she returns home and see that all of her belongings have been packed up in boxes, and packed by her stepmonster to be, it is no wonder that Alisa reaches her breaking point and runs away.

She arrives on the door step of her uncle Sam and finds a not so loving grandmother and a house full of ghosts?

This was a good stand alone book, and I really enjoyed it.  I hope that Charlie comes back into the mix in one of these last two books to come.  I would like to see their love grow.  Perhaps they are soul mates too.  Yeah, I'm a sucker for "Happily Ever After".

3 of 5 stars

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Book Review: Eclipse

Today's review is on Eclipse, Cate Tiernan's 12th book in the Sweep series and was a welcome reappearance of Morgan, Hunter, and their friend Alisa.

There is a dark wave heading towards Morgan and everyone she loves and all signs point to Ciaran as the witch that cast the spell.  After all, he knows that Morgan put a watch sigil on him, and he wants to talk to her.  Now every where she goes she's looking over her shoulder. 

The approaching dark wave is causing the blood witches, Morgan, Hunter, and Hunter's father very ill.  The only witch unaffected is Alisa, who suddenly finds out that she is a half witch from her mother's side.  Because of this, she has been learning the most difficult spell any witch can learn.  The spell to cancel the dark wave.

Eclipse was a good book, but still not as good at the first few books in the series.  There are just 3 left in the series, though I won't be holding out for a return to greatness.

3 of 5 stars



Sunday, July 10, 2011

Book Review: Origins

Today's review is on Cate Tiernan's Origins, the 11th book in her Sweep series.

Most of the books in this series have taken me just a day or two to finish, this installment however took me three days to plow through.  It was so far from the usual story of Morgan and her friends that I found that I had to force myself to keep picking it up to finish it.

Origins is centered on the life of Rose McEwan and her first love Diarmuid, the boy she thought was her soulmate.  Their "love" was quick and intense, but was not meant too last for Rose has used a spell to entrap Diarmuid and to keep him.  Though they saw each other nearly each evening, and she became pregnant with his child his true feelings were revealed when she was sentenced to the gallows for witchcraft by the woman he would marry.

On the eve of her hanging Rose is overcome with anger and casts a spell using dark magick.  The spell is to get even with those who had hurt her and others of her clan.  The spell that was to be The Dark Wave.

It was a nice story, but didn't really need to be a stand alone book. 

1 of 5 stars

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Book Review: Seeker

Today's review is on Seeker by:  Cate Tiernan

Seeker is the 10th book in Cate Tiernan's Sweep series, and was both interesting and a bit boring.

Seeker is the first book in the series that is narrated by Hunter.  In Strife, Hunter receives information leading to the location of his parents, who he hasn't seen in 11 years.  In Seeker, he decides that her has to take the chance to find them.  Though he asks Morgan to come with him, she is still working hard to improve her grades in school and besides there is no way her parents would let her go on a journey with him.

Knowing that hunter will be leaving, Morgan decides that she is ready to sleep with him.  After all, they are soul mates, but Hunter pulls away.  He doesn't want to "lover her and leave her".

When Hunter finds his parents home in Canada, he is surprised to find that his mother has died and his father is a shell of the man he once was.  After dealing with a case that the council gave to him, Hunter decides to bring his Da back home with him.

When they finally reach home, Hunter has some news that will really upset Morgan.

3 of 5 stars

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Book Review: Blood Ties

Today's review is on Blood Ties by Karen E Taylor

Blood Tiers is the third installment in Taylor's Vampire Legacy series and just as enjoyable as the previous two.

The book begins with Mitch on the hunt as Deidre watches and admires his skill, along with his body.  When they return to the pub, Pete informs them that they had a visitor.  That visitor turns out to be Victor Lange come to cash in on their promise to help the Cadre.

There is once again a series of murders taking place in New York and the culprit is killing both humans and vampires.  Larry Martin is "alive" and well it seems, and even as young as he is as a vampire, he has abilities that even Deidre herself has never seen. 

Along with threatening letters to each of the Cadre members, Larry; being the melodramatic type that he is, sends a bouquet of red roses to Deidre.  Among the red roses there is a single black one, and a note saying that he won't forget her.  Each day a rose goes missing and another vampire is found dead.

Now Deidre and Mitch are running against the clock trying to find Larry before he can kill again. 

4 of 5 stars

Monday, July 4, 2011

Book Review: Strife

Today's review is on Strife by Cate Tiernan

Strife is the 9th book in the Sweep series by Tiernan, and is a step downward from her previous volumes.

As in the previous book, Morgan's life is still out of control.  Her father is on the loose, and even though she knows his true name she is reluctant to tell Hunter.  Her grades are still falling and her parents feel that their only option is to send her to a Catholic school.

If that's not enough, things have been happening wherever Morgan goes.  Books fly across the room, bookshelves fall over.  Hunter and another witch Eirn rein Morgans powers thinking that her lack of control over her powers is to blame.

Finally, toward the end of the book, Hunter gets news about his parents.

Though I enjoyed reading Strife, I don't feel it lived up to the previous books.  I hope that the remaining books are not as lacking.

2 of 5 stars