Book Spotlight: Embracing the Outcast (Crowns Legacy #2) by Nadine C. Keels

Book Spotlight: Embracing the Outcast (Crowns Legacy #2) by Nadine C. Keels

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Title: Embracing the Outcast (Crowns Legacy #2)
Author: Nadine C. Keels
Pub date: November 17, 2019
Pages: 200
Amazon|Goodreads

They can only experience beauty if they dare to behold it…

Now that Princess Eunice of Diachona has come of age, she has much more to study, and a new weight sits on her compassionate shoulders. Her late mother was an admirable ruler, but Eunice can hardly see herself thriving in the political arena. In fact, she doesn’t think many people see her at all, especially not would-be suitors who often bypass quiet Eunice to pursue ladies they find more attractive.

So when Eunice meets a serious, gifted artist who expresses his desire for her company, she isn’t sure if his interest in her is romantic or simply artistic. And why does this young man seem to be as saddened by Eunice as he is drawn to her?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Nadine. A French name, meaning, “hope.”

With her lifelong passion for life-enriching fiction, Nadine C. Keels enjoys reading and writing everything from short stories to novels. Her fiction works include Love Unfeigned and The Movement of Crowns Series, and select pieces of her lyrical poetry can be found on her spoken word album, Hope. Lyricized. Through her books and her blog (Prismatic Prospects), Nadine aims to spark hope and inspiration in as many people as she is privileged to reach.

Find Nadine: Website|Goodreads|Twitter|Facebook|Bookbub|Amazon

Book Blitz: VEILED by Michelle Areaux

Book Blitz: VEILED by Michelle Areaux

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Veiled Cover 5x7Veiled
by Michelle Areaux
Genre: YA
Fantasy/Supernatural/Romance
Release Date: March 4th 2020

Summary:

Audrey is supposed to be attending the exclusive performing arts academy she has dreamed of attending her entire life. However, one wrong click landed her at the exclusive House of Shadows a… vampire academy.
Once Audrey discovers the truth of where she is, it is too late to leave without an entire coven of vampires realizing she is human and their next meal. Forced to remain at the academy, Audrey finds herself fitting in a world unlike any she had ever imagined. As she settles into her new role, a dark secret emerges and Audrey is now in danger…again.
Only, one boy can save Audrey from a dark secret lurking within the House of Shadows. But, will his desire to save her withstand the hunger he feels for her? Discover this exciting new academy series today!

Fans of the House of Night and Twilight will adore this new series.

 Amazon

Excerpt- 
“Come on, just tell her,”
Donovan shouts, and his voice causes me to jump and gasp. I wish I could run
away and hide, but I have no clue where I would go.  
“Tell me what?” I cried
out. I don’t know how much more I can handle.  
Eden looks at me with a
softness in her eyes that keeps me from screaming and jumping through the
window in front of me. “Audrey, you are at the House of Shadows. This is a
prestigious Vampire Academy school. We train Vampires to assimilate into the
real world while also getting the best education possible,” Eden says
slowly.  
Vampires…  
Wrong School…  
All at once, everything
that I had just heard and experienced hit me like a flash of lightning. To make
sure I understood exactly what she was saying, Eden smiled, allowing her white,
shiny fangs to protrude from her gums. As I gasped, her eyes turned from a
hunter green to a golden yellow.  I felt my legs crumble beneath me as
darkness swirled in my vision. I felt like thick, heavy tentacles were pulling
me down into a black abyss and there was nothing I could do to stop it.  
Oh no, I was passing out
with two Vampires in front of me.  
 

About the Author
Michelle Areaux is a wife, mother, and seventh grade Language Arts teacher.

She earned her Bachelor’s degree at the University of Kentucky and a Master’s degree in Literacy from Asbury University.

 
Author Links:
 
Book Spotlight: Songs of Sparrow’s Day (Sin Eater’s Tales #2)

Book Spotlight: Songs of Sparrow’s Day (Sin Eater’s Tales #2)

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Title: Songs of Sparrow’s Day
Author: J.R. Snyder
Pub Date: January 30, 2020
Pages: 33
Amazon|Goodreads

A botched sin eater job leaves Asher Norwood’s partner—and only friend—clinging to life after she contracts a deadly infection. His only hope for a cure lies with the world famous naturalist, Dr. Theophilus Rowley Terrowin III, who lives in a far-flung corner of the treacherous Winterwind Mountains.

Stopping at nothing to save his partner, Asher risks it all to bring her to the doctor, only to find that the esteemed Dr. Terrowin has a few dark secrets of his own.

Songs of Sparrow’s Day is a novelette, the second installment in the series Sin Eater Tales, a collection of short fantasy stories set in a world inspired by the early Age of Discovery where magic is intertwined with every day life and dangerous beasts rule the wilds.

A Note About Amazon Reviews – UPDATE 5/7/2020

A Note About Amazon Reviews – UPDATE 5/7/2020

by Christina ♥ 2 Comments

I was attempting to post two reviews on Amazon with one of them being a Kindle Unlimited book and got hit with this message:

“We apologize but this account has not met the minimum eligibility requirements to write a review.”

Apparently, I haven’t spent the magical $50 in the past 12 months (but close to that). And despite having KU, which you’d think they let their paid subscription readers leave reviews, this isn’t happening from what I see.

So as of now, I cannot leave book reviews on Amazon. I’m sorry to indie authors that need them. I’ll still leave reviews on Goodreads and start leaving them on sites such as Bookbub.

And, unfortunately, I won’t be able to use booksprout. I’m totally bummed about that.

When and if I can leave reviews on Amazon, I’ll update the status of this.

UPDATE: I can now review on Amazon–5/7/2020

Book Blast: Pauper King by E. Stuart Marlowe

Book Blast: Pauper King by E. Stuart Marlowe

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Find Pauper King on Amazon and Goodreads.
Author: E. Stuart Marlowe
Release Day: April 10, 2020
Pages: 469

X Snow White is dead.
IX Someone has put a pickaxe through her head.
VIII Her father, the disgraced King Johannes Wynpenny, vows to hunt down her murderer.
VII But then others die—more beloved fairy tale characters—and now it’s clear that a deranged killer is on the loose.
VI Someone who leaves behind taunting clues and a cruel countdown.
V Someone seeking revenge.
IV As his town is swept by witch hunt hysteria, Johannes must stop the maniac before others fall victim…
III …including himself.
II E. Stuart Marlowe weaves a tale of magical realism and crime, where fantasy and horror bleed into historical fact.
I And where the fables from our past speak to us across the centuries.

Review: The Gentleman Thief by Kate Gragg

Review: The Gentleman Thief by Kate Gragg

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Title: The Gentleman Thief
Author: Kate Gragg
Pub Date: April 17th 2020
Amazon|Goodreads

Enigmatic and somewhat haphazard Joe Thorne is a wannabe thief, struggling to prise himself out of his job as an overgrown chimneysweep. After taking work in the large furnaces of the alchemy district, he developed a distinctive cough with magical qualities. Ever the opportunist, when the moment comes to break into the realm of thieves and vagabonds, he leaps on it, but his chances are scuppered by one almighty sneeze. From this expulsion comes a journey to a mystical island, shrouded in ancient tradition. Valleys of crystalline rivers, arching forests deeper than the eye can fathom, and not a tavern in sight. Joe is devastated.

Swept up by a lost love, a frog-man (or is it a man-frog?) with amnesia, and a sentient handkerchief, they embark (Joe, somewhat reluctantly) on a quest to solve a mysterious disappearance which still shrouds the island.


The Gentleman Thief is a funny, quirky fantasy that will appeal to many readers.

What you’ll get:

Magical coughing mishaps.
An unlikely protagonist.
An island with secrets.
Entertainment from beginning to end.

Free Ebooks ~ 3/30

Free Ebooks ~ 3/30

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Hello and hi! It’s been a while. 🙂 Here are some currently free ebooks—free at the time of this posting, so hurry.

Ella’s only friend (and crush) lives on the other side of her phone’s screen. She and Baller929 know everything about each other.

Except their real names.

When they have a chance to meet at the school dance, Ella must decide: is revealing her identity to Baller929 worth the risk?

Is this her chance at something more than friendship? Or will Baller929 ditch her when he finds out that Ella’s the geeky girl at the bottom of the totem pole?
Starting over sucks.
When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I’d pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring…until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.
And then he opened his mouth.
Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something…unexpected happens.
The hot alien living next door marks me.
You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon’s touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I’m getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades.
If I don’t kill him first, that is.
Zera is a Heartless—the immortal, unaging soldier of a witch. Bound to the witch Nightsinger, Zera longs for freedom from the woods they hide in. With her heart in a jar under Nightsinger’s control, she serves the witch unquestioningly.
Until Nightsinger asks Zera for a prince’s heart in exchange for her own, with one addendum: if she’s discovered infiltrating the court, Nightsinger will destroy Zera’s heart rather than see her tortured by the witch-hating nobles.
Crown Prince Lucien d’Malvane hates the royal court as much as it loves him—every tutor too afraid to correct him and every girl jockeying for a place at his darkly handsome side. No one can challenge him—until the arrival of Lady Zera. She’s inelegant, smart-mouthed, carefree, and out for his blood. The prince’s honor has him quickly aiming for her throat.
So begins a game of cat and mouse between a girl with nothing to lose and a boy who has it all.
Winner takes the loser’s heart.
Literally.
What if Anna and Elsa never knew each other?
As the future Queen of Arendelle, Princess Elsa’s life is full of expectation and responsibility—not to mention, questions. What type of ruler will she be? When will she have to pick a suitor? And why has she always harbored the feeling that some critical piece of herself is missing?

Following the unexpected death of her parents, Elsa is forced to answer those questions sooner than she’d hoped, becoming the sole ruler of her kingdom and growing lonelier than ever. But when mysterious powers begin to reveal themselves, Elsa starts to remember fragments of her childhood that seem to have been erased—pieces that include a very familiar-looking girl. Determined to fill the void she has always felt, Elsa must take a harrowing journey across her icy kingdom to undo a terrible curse . . . and find the missing Princess of Arendelle.
Perfection comes at a price.
As soon as the government passed legislation allowing humans to be genetically engineered and sold as pets, the rich and powerful rushed to own beautiful girls like Ella. Trained from birth to be graceful, demure, and above all, perfect, these “family companions” enter their masters’ homes prepared to live a life of idle luxury.
Ella is happy with her new role as playmate for a congressman’s bubbly young daughter, but she doesn’t expect Penn, the congressman’s handsome and rebellious son. He’s the only person who sees beyond the perfect exterior to the girl within. Falling for him goes against every rule she knows…and the freedom she finds with him is intoxicating.
But when Ella is kidnapped and thrust into the dark underworld lurking beneath her pampered life, she’s faced with an unthinkable choice. Because the only thing more dangerous than staying with Penn’s family is leaving…and if she’s unsuccessful, she’ll face a fate far worse than death.
For fans of Keira Cass’s Selection series and Lauren DeStefano’s Chemical Garden series, Perfected by Kate Jarvik Birch is a chilling look at what it means to be human, and a stunning celebration of the power of love to set us free, wrapped in a glamorous—and dangerous—bow.
What would you kill for?
After a brutal nuclear war, the United States was left decimated. A small group of survivors eventually banded together, but only after more conflict over which family would govern the new nation. The Westfalls lost. Fifty years later, peace and control are maintained by marrying the daughters of the losing side to the sons of the winning group in a yearly ritual.
This year, it is my turn.
My name is Ivy Westfall, and my mission is simple: to kill the president’s son—my soon-to-be husband—and return the Westfall family to power.
But Bishop Lattimer is either a very skilled actor or he’s not the cruel, heartless boy my family warned me to expect. He might even be the one person in this world who truly understands me. But there is no escape from my fate. I am the only one who can restore the Westfall legacy.
Because Bishop must die. And I must be the one to kill him…
On the precipice of her sixteenth birthday, the last thing lone wolf Cat Crawford wants is an extravagant gala thrown by her bubbly stepmother and well-meaning father. So even though Cat knows the family’s trip to Florence, Italy, is a peace offering, she embraces the magical city and all it offers. But when her curiosity leads her to an unusual gypsy tent, she exits . . . right into Renaissance Firenze.
Thrust into the sixteenth century armed with only a backpack full of contraband future items, Cat joins up with her ancestors, the sweet Alessandra and protective Cipriano, and soon falls for the gorgeous aspiring artist Lorenzo. But when the much-older Niccolo starts sniffing around, Cat realizes that an unwanted birthday party is nothing compared to an unwanted suitor full of creeptastic amore. Can she find her way back to modern times before her Italian adventure turns into an Italian forever?
Life was normal for Nikki until otherworldly wolves chased her through the woods near her high school. Now she’s a target for a myriad of supernatural beings.

Three half-human, half-angels are sworn to protect her. Complicating life further, Mace, Raven, and Vine–the Halflings–are the swoon-worthy new guys at her school.

For the Halflings, safeguarding Nikki isn’t just an assignment. All of humanity hangs in the balance.

Together, they outsmart the demons hunting her, but when Nikki’s name is connected to a research laboratory bent on world domination, the stakes rise.
Salome Montgomery fears winter—the cold, the snow, the ice, but most of all, the frozen pond she fell through as a child. Haunted by the voices and images of the strange beings that pulled her to safety, she hasn’t forgotten their warning to “stay away.” For eleven years, she has avoided the winter woods, the pond, and the darkness that lurks nearby. But when failing health takes her grandparents to Arizona, she is left in charge of maintaining their estate. This includes the “special gifts” that must be left at the back of the property.? ?
Salome discovers she’s a key player in a world she’s tried for years to avoid. At the center of this world is the strange and beautiful Nevin, who she finds trespassing on her family’s property. Cursed with dark secrets and knowledge of the creatures in the woods, he takes Salome’s life in a new direction. A direction where she’ll have to decide between her longtime crush, Colton, who could cure her fear of winter. Or Nevin, who, along with an appointed bodyguard, Gareth, protects her from the darkness that swirls in the snowy backdrop.
An evil that, given the chance, will kill her.
Strange things are happening in Neverland…
Although Angelina McFarland loves reading fairytales, she never dreamed of falling right into one. Literally! But who is this flying boy who saved her? And why doesn’t he want to grow up?
Desperately trying to find a way off this cursed island, Angelina runs into a ruthless pirate. Hook captures her and keeps her trapped on the Jolly Roger to lure the flying boy out of his hiding.
But is James really the heartless man she heard about? The more time Angelina spends with him alone, the more she starts to wonder who actually is the bad guy in this story… and who isn’t?
“Any last words?” Hook asks me.
“Go to hell, you freaking…filthy…godforsaken…”
Our noses almost touch as he dips his head and brushes a strand of my hair behind my ear. “Angel, the word you’re looking for is pirate.”
I was born more than a thousand years ago.
Put into a cryogenic tube at age seventeen, forgotten during a holocaust that decimated the world, I’ve finally been awakened to a more serene and peaceful future.
But things at the hospital are new and strange. And it’s starting to scare me.
Everyone is young. Everyone is banded and tracked. And everyone is keeping secrets.
The cute geneticist Michael Bennett might be the only good thing in this crazy new world where “life is precious” but no one seems free to live it. The problem is, I don’t think he’s being totally honest with me, either.
When I’m told only I can save the human race from extinction, it’s clear my freeze didn’t avoid a dreadful fate. It only delayed the horror…
In the domed city of Evanescence, appearance is everything. A Natural Born among genetically altered Aristocrats, all Ella ever wanted was to be like everyone else. Augmented, sparkling, and perfect. Then…the crash. Devastated by her father’s death and struggling with her new physical limitations, Ella is terrified to learn she is not just alone, but little more than a prisoner.
Her only escape is to lose herself in Nexis, the hugely popular virtual reality game her father created. In Nexis she meets Guster, a senior player who guides Ella through the strange and compelling new world she now inhabits. He offers Ella guidance, friendship…and something more. Something that allows her to forget about the “real” world and makes her feel whole again. But when their separate worlds collide, Ella will have to choose between love and survival. Because Nexis isn’t quite the game everyone thinks it is.
And it’s been waiting for Ella.
In the Diamond Kingdom lives a cursed prince who can influence the weather with his mood swings. The endless winter makes living there almost unbearable. Yet, no one can leave since they are all as cursed as their prince.
Each year a maiden is chosen to be sent to the Diamond Palace. Her task—to seduce the prince and make him fall in love so that the curse that plagues their kingdom and afflicts the royals is lifted.
This year, it’s Claire’s turn to participate in the selection. She’d rather eat ice than be chosen. Not that a commoner would have a chance among all the noblewomen who dreamed of being the queen. Especially against the beautiful daughter of the regent.
When a surprising choice is made, Claire’s fate is sealed. However, the cold and beautiful prince presents himself a bigger challenge than she expected. He refuses to acknowledge her existence. At the palace, Claire’s only solace is the fairy godmothers who tend to everybody’s needs.
Everybody will freeze to death if Claire can’t bring some joy to the prince’s heart. Yet the prince’s attention might be a death sentence to her once the one who cursed him comes to terrorize their lives and destroy all that the prince treasures.
Mini-Reviews ~ What I’ve Been Reading Lately

Mini-Reviews ~ What I’ve Been Reading Lately

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Sometimes I read really good books but don’t have a lot to say about them. Here are some books I’ve read lately (or this year).

I read book one and two of this series. I rated Worlds Away four stars on Goodreads while Worlds Collide (book two) was three stars. This series won’t be for everyone but I think a lot of readers will like it. I’m not going to finish the series simply because I lost interest–I’m not very good at completing trilogies and so forth.
I’ve posted reviews for Aya Ling’s other books on this blog previously but I didn’t for The Cursed Prince. I enjoyed the book and I love everything this author writes. If you haven’t yet, check out her work.
Leigh Walker + Vampires + Shifters = Perfection.

This book was amazing.

I haven’t read a lot of mermaid books but The Mermaid Trials will likely reign as my favorite for a long time. Maybe even forever. The worldbuilding, the characters, and the trials themselves were all very interesting.

I’ll be reading book two for sure.
Beautiful writing. I need to read more from Nina Clare.

I cannot express how much I love this book. And for K.M. Shea to give me vampires? I’m over the moon, rocketed by joy. Thank you.

Love. Love. Love. And such beautiful illustrations.

A unique re-spinning on Sleeping Beauty and my favorite at the moment.
Really great series. Five books are currently out.
Spindles and Spells is a promising opener to a new, exciting series. If you love reading fairy tale retellings in any shape or form, add this book to your list. I read a lot of retellings myself, so I’ll certainly be keeping up with Laura’s books.
Review: The Priestess Trials by A.A. Lee

Review: The Priestess Trials by A.A. Lee

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Title: The Priestess Trials
Author: A.A. Lee
Pub Date: March 3rd 2020
Pages: 278
Amazon|Goodreads

Famine. Slavery. War. Survival.

When hunger strikes her village, Tala, a war orphan, thought marriage was her ticket out of slavery. But her strategic move only leads to desperation. She’s forced to run from her fiancé to escape the same fate as his three previous wives, who died at his hands.

The Priestess Trials may provide the cover she needs to prevent her disastrous marriage, but it’s even harder than she thought it would be. Her competitors are years ahead of her in skill and social class. Her dark skin and short hair mark her as a slave, and that makes her the target of their ire.

Will she endure their cruelty to save her life and become a priestess, or will she abandon her plans altogether and spend the rest of her life in dire straits?


The Priestess Trials is an exciting, wholly imaginative Asian-based YA novel that is sure to surprise readers until the very end. A.A Lee knows what she is doing (clearly, she is a priestess of words).

The world–or in this case the villages–Lee creates is one of stark realism. It’s a grim time for women. There’s no sugar coating the treatment of people like Tala and the attitudes of those around her. Just when you think things get better, they don’t.

The ending was unexpected but I liked it. Lee is definitely an author I will read more from in the future.
Angel Born (Halflings #1) by Heather Burch

Angel Born (Halflings #1) by Heather Burch

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Title: Angel Born (Halflings #1)
Author: Heather Burch
Pub Date:  February 1st 2020, HezLand Publishing
Pages: 310
Amazon|Goodreads

Life was normal for Nikki until otherworldly wolves chased her through the woods near her high school. Now she’s a target for a myriad of supernatural beings.

Three half-human, half-angels are sworn to protect her. Complicating life further, Mace, Raven, and Vine–the Halflings–are the swoon-worthy new guys at her school.

For the Halflings, safeguarding Nikki isn’t just an assignment. All of humanity hangs in the balance.

Together, they outsmart the demons hunting her, but when Nikki’s name is connected to a research laboratory bent on world domination, the stakes rise.

I own the original books of this series. I think book one was originally called Halflings but I never actually got around to reading them. So I don’t know if there are any content differences between the old books and this new release.

Angel Born is a fun, fast-paced story about a not-so-regular girl and her halfling guardians (half-humans/half-angels). Nikki’s in danger but it’s not yet revealed exactly why she’s being targeted by the agents of Hell. There’s a dash of love, despair, and plenty of angst.

There’s sort of a love triangle. I usually do not like love triangles but I don’t dislike it here. Readers will have a favorite of the two, that’s for sure.