Something Wiccan This Way Comes & Wiccan Cool: Traci Hall

Recently, I revived copies of Something Wiccan This Way Comes and Wiccan Cool to review. I had a good time reading more in the Rhiannon Godfrey story that began with Her Wiccan, Wiccan Ways.  I read books 2 and 3 back to back. The stories reminded me of how much chaos is involved in a teenagers life. There were times when I read a passage that all I could do was wince. Because, I can remember when I was that impulsive and irrational (otherwise known as being a teen in the Midwest).  Reading more about the secondary characters was great, and some of the new characters are welcome additions to the lineup. Overall, I enjoyed this series.

If you enjoy Young Adult Paranormals, give Traci Hall’s stories a try.

SomethingWiccanThisWayComes

Description (Amazon)
What’s a girl to do when trouble finds her at every turn? Being different is nothing new for Rhiannon Godfrey. Neither is hiding who she really is to all but a select few. So far she’s managed to walk that line, but now someone is spreading rumors that the Godfrey’s New Age store is really a front for witchcraft, complete with cauldrons and eyes of newt. The whole town is turning against them even Rhee’s boyfriend is suspicious. Then there’s her ex-crush Matthew, who just showed up uninvited on her doorstep carrying a single suitcase and a heavy secret. Rhiannon tries to be good, she really does. But its hard when trouble pounces at every turn, and her unsuccessful spells seem to prove that science is the only path to enlightenment. Hiding her gifts and running from confrontation is easier than standing up for what she believes in. But this time, there’s more at stake. And the possibility she may have to find the inner strength to banish one friend in order to save WiccanCool another.

Description (Amazon)

-Normal- is highly overrated. And as easy to lose as your balance-

A Rhiannon Godfrey story.

At long last, Rhiannon is starting to fit into the ninth grade. She and Jared are starting to flirt again, and school is fine except for the mandatory student community service hours. She’s even learned to bank her psychic powers.

For the most part.

Then there’s Dane, the intriguing, infuriating guy who’s her community service student supervisor. He’s got -angry teen- down to a science. Without even trying, he slips past her emotional shields, challenging her to be the one thing she’s most afraid of-herself.

For Rhee, that’s as scary as the ghost haunting the silo behind Doyle’s ice cream parlor. A ghost that’s somehow connected to the shadows in Dane’s eyes. All she really wants is, for once in her life, to be normal. But for a girl like her, -normal- isn’t just an impossible dream, it can be downright dangerous.

Especially if it means embracing her gifts-and opening her heart.

 

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Some Girls Bite: Chloe Neill

I had a lot of fun reading this one and I hope to read more in the series. The main character is likable, hip, and strong. Along with the action there is quite a bit if humor throughout the book. It’s a great read.

Publisher: NAL Trade
Publication Date: April 2009
Format: Paper (Library)
Author Web Site: http://www.chloeneill.com/
Rating: Recommend, Series Read Continue

Description (Amazon)SomeGirlsBite
Sure, the life of a graduate student wasn’t exactly glamorous, but it was Merit’s. She was doing fine until a rogue vampire attacked her. But he only got a sip before he was scared away by another bloodsucker—and this one decided the best way to save her life was to make her the walking undead.

Turns out her savior was the master vampire of Cadogan House. Now she’s traded sweating over her thesis for learning to fit in at a Hyde Park mansion full of vamps loyal to Ethan “Lord o’ the Manor” Sullivan. Of course, as a tall, green-eyed, four-hundred- year-old vampire, he has centuries’ worth of charm, but unfortunately he expects her gratitude— and servitude. But an inconvenient sunlight allergy and Ethan’s attitude are the least of her concerns. Someone’s still out to get her. Her initiation into Chicago’s nightlife may be the first skirmish in a war—and there will be blood.

Darkness Calls: Marjorie M. Liu

I have a fondness for Marjorie M. Liu’s work and Darkness Calls does not disappoint. I like the idea of living tattoos, it is an interesting concept.

Publisher: AceDarknessCalls
Publication Date: June 2009
Format: Kindle
Author Web Site: http://marjoriemliu.com/
Rating: Recommend, Series Read Continue

Description (Amazon)
Demon hunter Maxine Kiss, inked with living tattoos, is on a mission to rescue the man she loves from a bloodthirsty army. To save him, Maxine has only one choice: to lose control—and release her own powers of darkness.

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Skin Trade: Laurell K. Hamilton

Skin Trade

I have been reading the Anita Blake series since it came out and I haven’t been enjoying the series as much with the later books as I did in the beginning. The departure from the animator activities into the sex feeding has been a little over the top for me. I could take it if there was a balance “Work/Life Balance" so to speak. But that balance has been lacking in the last several books. I do enjoy erotica and the Meredith series is truly a guilty pleasure for me, but I also enjoyed the original up-tight Anita. If the series had started out sexual, I wouldn’t have an issue…. but I miss the tone of the first few books.

Skin Trade is less sexy than the latest few in the series (I think the first encounter is around past the halfway point). But it still has a way to go before it captures the magic that she created at the beginning. I do enjoy it when Anita and Edward interact, that was a great part of the book. But I could really take or leave the rest of it. Definitely a library book.

Publisher: Berkley
Publication Date: June 2009
Format: Paper (Library)
Series: Anta Blake series book 17
Author Web Site: http://www.laurellkhamilton.org/
Reason for reading:
Rating: Ho Humm

Description (Amazon)
A proven series with a hot new look. The #1 bestselling author returns with her most anticipated novel yet.
When a vampire serial killer sends Anita Blake a grisly souvenir from Las Vegas, she has to warn Sin City’s local authorities what they’re dealing with. Only it’s worse than she thought. Ten officers and one executioner have been slain—paranormal style. Anita heads to Vegas, where’s she’s joined by three other federal marshals, including the ruthless Edward. It’s a good thing he always has her back, because when she gets close to the bodies, Anita senses “tiger” too strongly to ignore it. The weretigers are very powerful in Las Vegas, which means the odds of her rubbing someone important the wrong way just got a lot higher.

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Witches Incorporated: K. E. Mills

Witches,Incorporated is a surprise for me. Usually I shy away from historicals and alternate histories (or things that just feel like them) . WitchesIncBut I got pulled into the series by the first book The Accidental Sorcerer and I have not been able to pull away yet. I love the characters and setting. There is just something about it that keeps me hooked. I think I’ll be reading books in this series as long as the author publishes them.

Publisher: Orbit
Publication Date: June 2009

Format: Paper

Author Web Site:  http://www.karenmiller.net/

Series: Yes – Rogue Agent

Rating: Recommend, Series Read Continue

Description (Amazon)

It’s a case of espionage, skullduggery and serious unpleasantness
And it’s also Gerald’s first official government assignment. He’s hunting down a deadly saboteur, and time is quickly running out. Old enemies and new combine forces to thwart him. Once again, innocent lives are on the line. He needs his friends. He can’t do this alone.
But Princess Melissande and Reg have troubles of their own. With the help of Monk Markham’s brilliant, beautiful sister, they’ve opened a one-stop-shop witching locum agency, where magical problems are solved for a price. Problem is, the girls are struggling to keep the business afloat. Things are looking grim for Witches Incorporated – and that’s before they accidentally cross paths with Gerald’s saboteur.
Suddenly everybody’s lives are on the line and Gerald realizes, too late, that there’s a reason government agents aren’t supposed to have friends …

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Doomsday Can Wait: Lori Handeland

This is a good series for fans of UF, Fantasy, and Romance. It’s a fast paced ride with several creep crawlies. The heroine is likable and has some vulnerabilities that the reader can appreciate.

Publisher: St. Martin’s Paperbacks

Publication Date: April 28 2009

Format: Paper (Library)

Description (Amazon)DoomsdayCanWait

It took the near annihilation of humanity for Liz Phoenix to understand the true meaning of her premonitions. Liz is one of the sacred few on earth who has the psychic powers to fight the malevolent forces that have tried to wipe out the human race since the beginning of time. She battled these beings once, thwarting Doomsday but losing most of her soldiers in the massacre. Now she must replenish her troops quickly—because the supernatural war isn’t over yet.

As the new leader of the federation, Liz is marked for death by a Navajo witch with a link to her past. To survive, she must rely on her few remaining allies—her mentor, a shaman with too many secrets, as well as ex-lover, Jimmy Sanducci. Bringing Jimmy into the mix is a dangerous move, for Liz’s darkest desires are razor-sharp—and her longing for Jimmy is at a fever pitch. But can Liz afford to give into the cravings that burn inside her, with the next shot at Doomsday just around the corner? This time, if evil wins, chaos will reign—and the world as we know it will be lost forever…

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Rating: Recommend, Series Read Continue

The Mage: Jean Johnson

The Mage is the last book in Jean’s Johnson’s Son’s of Destiny series. I picked it up TheMageyesterdayy and I just turned the last page about 10 minutes ago. I think that this book may be my favorite of the series. Somewhere along the way, I fell in love with Morg and I truly enjoyed reading his story.

Have some fun, go out and read The Mage.

Publisher: Berkley
Publication Date: April 2009
Format: Print

Author Web Site: http://www.jeanjohnson.net

Rating: Recommend, Series read finale

Description (Author Website)

Eight brothers, born in four sets of twins, two years apart to the day–they fulfill the Curse of Eight Prophecy.  Though no longer trapped in exile, their growing family faces new problems.  The worst of those troubles now falls upon the last of the Sons of Destiny.

Hope, Morganen’s foretold bride, has finally arrived on the island.  She hasn’t been telling the full truth about herself, and the consequences will stretch further than even she anticipates.  Just as Morg gets used to Hope’s revelation, new enemies arrive on the Isle, seeking to steal away the brothers’ chances at creating a new nation.  During the attack, an old foe resurfaces and strikes amid the confusion, kidnapping the final bride-to-be.

Either Morg will rescue Hope and help his faimly complete the Prophecies of the Seer Draganna and the last Duchess of Nightfall, carving a new kingdom in the process…or their enemies will be free to slaughter them all….

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Cry Mercy: Toni Andrews

CryMercy

This is the third book in the Mercy series and I think it’s as good as the first. With each book the reader is given another layer of insight to the main character, Mercy. The story telling is first rate. I can’t wait for the next in the series.

Publisher: Mira
Publication Date: June 2009
Format: Print

Author Web Site: http://www.toniandrews.com/

Rating: Recommend, Series read continue

Description (Amazon)
I just want a normal life…even if I’m not entirely sure I’m human.

My name is Mercy Hollings and I’m a successful hypnotherapist in Balboa, California. The problem is, my good fortune is dependent on a dark secret. I can make people do whatever I want using telepathy, a power I call "the press." And that ability has hurt some people I never wanted to hurt, so I try to keep it under wraps.

I also try to keep people at a distance…at least, I used to. Recently a group of fearless characters broke through my self-imposed walls and became my friends: Sukey, my receptionist-turned-P.I.; Tino, a Chicano gang leader; Hilda, a wealthy society widow; Grant, a retired millionaire—and Sam, my sexy-as-hell ex-boyfriend.

But with friends comes drama. Tino has inadvertently led me into the dark world of gang violence, and Sukey has pushed me into searching for my biological parents, the only people who can finally tell me who—or what—I really am.

Santa Olivia: Jacqueline Carey

I picked this up from the Library yesterday around 4pm and I finished it by 8pm. I really enjoyed the story of Loup Garron. She is a wonderful character and it was a pleasure to read her story. I don’t think that I would like another Loup book. Loup’s story felt complete to me, but I would like another tale about the genetically modified solders in this universe.  There seems to be a lot to explore in that world

While I was reading this, I kept thinking about the movie Million Dollar Baby… the boxing was the key. Not sure why I didn’t bring in Girl Fight, but it did remind me of women’s boxing. Thankfully I was far more pleased with the ending of Santa Olivia than I was with Million Dollar Baby.

Fans of Jacqueline Carey’s other work will enjoy Santa Olivia.

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Publication Date: May 2009
Format: Print

Author Web Site: http://www.jacquelinecarey.com/

Rating: Recommend

Description (Amazon)Santaolivia
Loup Garron was born and raised in Santa Olivia, an isolated, disenfranchised town next to a US military base inside a DMZ buffer zone between Texas and Mexico. A fugitive "Wolf-Man" who had a love affair with a local woman, Loup’s father was one of a group of men genetically-manipulated and used by the US government as a weapon. The "Wolf-Men" were engineered to have superhuman strength, speed, sensory capability, stamina, and a total lack of fear, and Loup, named for and sharing her father’s wolf-like qualities, is marked as an outsider.

After her mother dies, Loup goes to live among the misfit orphans at the parish church, where they seethe from the injustices visited upon the locals by the soldiers. Eventually, the orphans find an outlet for their frustrations: They form a vigilante group to support Loup Garron who, costumed as their patron saint, Santa Olivia, uses her special abilities to avenge the town.

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Bitten to Death & One More Bite : Jennifer Rardin

Jaz Parks is a fun character. I really enjoy reading about her antics and adventures. I think the thing that I love the most about this series is that main couple isn’t on the fast track to the bedroom. It’s not all about the sex with a Jaz Parks story, and that is great. Because the other elements to these books are terrific… humor, adventure, sarcasm, etc…

bitten_to_deathDescription
Jaz Parks here. My latest mission has taken me to the ancient Greek city of Patras; but instead of soaking up its splendor, I’m here to infiltrate a Vampere Trust. Only two vamps have ever escaped the tightly bound communities and lived to tell the tale: Edward "The Raptor"Samos, the most reviled criminal mastermind in recent memory, and Vayl, the CIA’s number one assassin who also happens to be my boss.
The Raptor is trying to take over Vayl’s former Trust. Unfortunately the Trust’s new leader has her own plans.
This job is going to be the death of me.

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DescriptionOneMoreBite (Amazon)
It’s Jaz Parks. I’ve already smoked the guy who was the pain in the CIA’s you-know-what for the past few years. But now, in the power vacuum left by the death of Edward "The Raptor"Samos, a struggle for supremacy has begun between his former allies.
The CIA feels the balance must be maintained. So when an agent planted among the Weres discovers a plot to assassinate the Coven’s leader, my vampire boss and I are brought in to take out the woman hired to do the deed, a killer who might be as wily and Gifted as ourselves.
So it’s off to the Scottish Highlands for some twisted fun among murderers, demons and half-crazed relatives. Sometimes being a top-secret CIA assassin isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

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