Review: Rogue's Pawn

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Rogue's Pawn is the first book ever written by Jeffe Kennedy, and is being re-released with some slight updates. As much as I love this author, I can't believe I hadn't actually read this series!

ARC Review: Spells for the Dead by Faith Hunter

Series:	Soulwood #5
Pub. Date:	July 28, 2020
Publisher:	Ace
Length:	384 pgs
Source:	NetGalley

I so enjoy spending time with Nell Inghram, our widder-woman who liberated herself from a cult in East Tennessee. Oh, and a yinehi with unique powers and abilities. I have loved watching her come into herself as the series has progressed. As Nell's experiences have grown beyond pizza and Krispy Kreme, she has amassed a family through blood and the land. So Nell is no longer our loner against the church, but now has a team to help fight battles both personal and professional. Her common sense approach to life and solving crimes is endearing and inspiring. And her relationship with Occam, the werecat, is so dang cute that I can't help but smile at their interactions.

Audiobook Review: Lady of Light and Shadows by C.L. Wilson

Series:	Tairen Soul #2
Pub. Date:	Nov. 1, 2011
Publisher:	Audio Realms
Narrator:	Amy Cardy
Length:	12 hrs 45 min
Source:	Audible Romance

Lady of Light and Shadows is the second book in one of my favorite series - Tairen Soul by C.L. Wilson. I have been wanting to re-read this series for quite a while, and I'm so glad I've been able to start fitting it in by audio. This was one of the series that got me started on fantasy romance, and I so wish there were more of these types of books being written right now. I just love the genre... but I'm very picky! Luckily, C.L. Wilson is a master at her craft and draws us in with both engaging characters and fabulous world building.

Audiobook Review: Faery Born by Donna Joy Usher

Series:	War Faery #1
Pub. Date:	June 12, 2018
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Narrator:	Rachael Beresford
Length:	7 hrs 39 min
Source:	Publisher

Faery Born was a somewhat surprising read. I didn't realize it was young adult when I started it, and while I do read some young adult, it's not something that I pick up often. This story did seem somewhat juvenile, but I think that was partially because the narrator sounded so young. So I wasn't sure that I was going to finish the story at first, but something about it kept my attention and kept me listening until the end. So I think the story was good, I just had to get over the age and maturity level of the characters.

Audiobook Review: The Unseelie King by Heather Killough-Walden

Series:	The Kings #6
Pub. Date:	March 20, 2018
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Narrator:	Antony Ferguson
Length:	6 hrs 51 min
Source:	Publisher

Man, it's been four or five years since I've read the earlier books in this series and I couldn't for the life of me remember what happened in those books. I probably should have went back and re-read at least the last book, but I was being optimistic. Luckily, I was still entertained even though my memory failed me.

Audiobook Review: Highland Mist by Donna Grant

Series:	Druids Glen #1
Pub. Date:	Oct 17, 2017
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Narrator:	Ruth Urquhart
Length:	8 hrs 39 min
Source:	Publisher

The Druids Glen series brings the magic of the Highlands to life with druids, fae and the magical mists that are so prevalent in Scottish folklore. The narrator, Ruth Urquhart, did a good job with the narration. She has great performance ability and is able to handle male and different female affectations with ease.

This series starts off with a prophecy and the brutal murder of the Sinclair clan and kidnapping of the youngest daughter, Glenna, by the ruthless MacNeil laird. Thinking to use Glenna for her druid abilities, MacNeil raises her in his cruel household and she remains ignorant of her origins. Luckily the life of strife and oppression did not crush Glenna's spirit, and I was happy she took charge of her fate when the time was right. Glenna took a big risk putting her trust in an enemy Highlander, but she followed her instinct and never looked back. Glenna was a decent heroine. She was determined to learn, both about her past and about her druid origins and powers. She also stayed positive, for the most part, where her relationship with our hero was concerned.

Audiobook Review: Lord of the Fading Lands by C.L. Wilson

Series:	Tairen Soul #1
Pub. Date:	Dec. 6, 2010
Publisher:	Audio Realms
Narrator:	Stephanie Riggio
Length:	15 hrs 42 min

This is the book that started it all for me in the fantasy romance genre. I first picked up Lord of the Fading Lands about five years ago shortly after I had been introduced to fae/fey characters. This was my first ever fantasy romance, and I absolutely fell in love with the genre. So going back for a re-read of this favorite series is like coming home to old friends... full of nostalgia and warm fuzzies.

Audiobook Review: The Hum and the Shiver by Alex Bledsoe

Series:	The Tufa #1
Pub. Date:	Sept. 29, 2011
Publisher:	Blackstone Audio
Narrators:	Emily Janice Card Stefan Rudnicki
Length:	9 hrs 42 min
Source:	Hoopla

The Tufa books have been on my TBR it seems like forever, so I was super happy to see the audiobooks available on Hoopla when I started my roadtrip last week. This isn't my usual read as it wasn't a romance per se, but more on the urban fantasy side. Though it was in more of a rural setting than urban... rural fantasy? LOL

ARC Review: Grave Ransom by Kalayna Price

Series:	Alex Craft #5
Pub. Date:	July 4, 2017
Publisher:	Penguin/Ace Books
Length:	380 pages
Source:	NetGalley

I'm so glad that Kalayna Price is writing again, because I love the mix of fae and magic that she has created in the urban city of Nekros. In this latest installment, Alex's investigation into a missing person lands her smack in the middle of a criminal conspiracy using necromancy to further their interests. Alex and the soul catchers seem to be the only ones who can see the problem with the dead bodies walking around, so of course it will be up to her to figure things out and hope she doesn't get dead in the process. 

ARC Review: Souljacker by Yasmine Galenorn

Series:	Lily Bound #1
Pub. Date:	March 7, 2017
Publisher:	Diversion Books Tantor Audio
Length:	292 pages 9 hrs 42 min
Narrator:	Cassandra Campbell
Source:	NetGalley / Publisher

This story runs the supernatural spectrum from Fae to Demons to Vampires to Witches to Weres to regular old run-of-the-mill humans. Vampires are the dangerous underbelly of society on the cusp of a power play to make them more powerful than any other species/race. Weres seem somewhat insular and tend to think with that mob/pack mentality that is probably innate to their nature. While we don't have much info on the witches, besides Dani, they seem to be of the lone wolf variety, mixing with all the species (except vampires) at will.

The Fae were my favorite aspect of this story, and the reason I wanted to read the book. I am a sucker for a good Faery tale. The Fae did not feature heavily in this first installment, but I believe that will change in the future. Lily has a special bond to the Wynter Faery Queen, and we did get a brief visit to the Wynter court. That was probably my favorite part of this book so I hope more trips to Faery happen in the future. All the references to Wynter and her court made me think this was a spinoff series as they were mentioned like we should know who they are... but I haven't confirmed or denied the spinoff aspect as of the time I am writing this review. 

ARC Review: Curse on the Land by Faith Hunter

Series:	Soulwood #2
Pub. Date:	Nov 1, 2016
Publisher:	Ace/Berkley
Length:	352 pages
Source:	NetGalley

Curse on the Land has been one of my most-anticipated releases for the fall. I just fell in love with Nell and Soulwood in Blood of the Earth. I found her character to be so unique and refreshing despite it being the fifth cult-themed book I had read for the year.

Nell Ingram is a young widder-woman, having been a junior bride to a man who left the polygamous cult in East Tennessee. Since Nell met the paranormal agents of PsyLED, she has experienced a great amount of personal growth. In the first book of this series, I enjoyed watching Nell experience new things... pizza, Krispy Kreme, wearing clothes that are outside anything she would wear as a churchwoman, and generally learning that it was okay for women to have their own voice. In this second installment, Nell has just returned to Tennessee from Spook School and is wearing pants and jeans for the first time in her life. She has even cut her hair into a short bob, something that she would never have been able to do as a member of God's Light Church. Nell also has a special brand of magic tied to her land, Soulwood. She has some very unique abilities which have now been recruited by PsyLED, a paranormal division of a governmental investigation agency. Through this consultant position, Nell is learning self-importance because she is dang good at the job.

ARC Review: Dangerously Charming by Deborah Blake

Series:	Broken Riders #1
Pub. Date:	Oct. 4, 2016
Publisher:	Berkley
Length:	304 pages
Source:	NetGalley

The Broken Riders series is a spinoff from Deborah Blake's original Baba Yaga world. I haven't read about the Baba Yagas yet, but I'm definitely going back to investigate. I just love the world full of faery/fairytales that Blake has built.

Audiobook Review: Torn by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Series:	Wicked Saga #2
Pub. Date:	Sept. 13, 2016
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Narrator:	Amy Landon
Length:	10 hrs 17 min
Source:	Publisher

Torn picks up where Wicked left off. The fae prince made it through the door from the Otherworld and will now be seeking out a Halfling to birth his apocalypse baby and doom the humans to a horrible existence. With The Order's decimation during the Equinox, and all the information that seems to fall in Ivy's lap, it really seems to be Ivy and Ren against the entirety of the Fae in New Orleans.

Audiobook Review: Wicked by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Series:	Wicked Saga #1
Pub. Date:	Dec. 8, 2014
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Narrator:	Amy Landon
Length:	11 hrs 51 min
Source:	Hoopla

So Armentrout hooked me pretty early on this one... as soon as she tackled the heat and boob sweat that all us New Orleanians suffer in September (and the majority of the year). She definitely did her research on the setting for this story - modern day New Orleans with supernatural elements, mainly the fae. I love it when stories get New Orleans right, it really helps me to feel like I am taking part in the story to imagine walking the same paths, going to the same places, and seeing the same crazy people.

Audiobook Review: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

A Court of Thorns and Roses 
by Sarah J. Maas
Series:  A Court of Thorns and Roses #1
Pub. Date:  May 5, 2015
Publisher:  Recorded Books
Narrator:  Jennifer Ikeda
Length:  16 hrs 17 min
Format:  Audiobook
Source:  Audible

My Rating:  
Sultry Scale:

A thrilling, seductive new series from New York Timesbestselling author Sarah J. Maas, blending Beauty and the Beastwith faerie lore.

When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin—one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world.

As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow grows over the faerie lands, and Feyre must find a way to stop it... or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.

Perfect for fans of Kristin Cashore and George R. R. Martin, this first book in a sexy and action-packed new series is impossible to put down!

I have been hearing chatter about this book for a while - but I was initially under the impression that it was a young adult book. So I kept putting it off because I have to be in a certain mood for a young adult book. So for those of you who may have been steered a little wrong on the Y/A front - let me reassure you that this isn't a Y/A read. The heroine is on the young side, but I wouldn't classify it as Y/A.

Series Saturday Audiobook Review: Grave Visions by Kalayna Price

Grave Visions 
by Kalayna Price
Series:  Alex Craft #4
Pub. Date:  Feb. 2, 2016
Publisher:  Tantor Audio
Narrator:  Emily Durante
Length:  10 hrs 3 min
Format:  Audiobook


My Rating:  
Sultry Scale:

Grave Visions by Kalayna Price is the much-anticipated fourth installment in the kick-ass urban fantasy series about Alex Craft, a grave witch who can communicate with the dead. 

If you want to hear voices from the dead in Nekros City, you call Alex Craft. She's a Grave Witch with reasonable rates and extraordinary powers, who specializes in revealing the secrets of the dead. But now she's the one fighting to keep her own secret. She's not human—and her newly discovered heritage is causing havoc for her both in the human realm and in Faerie. But her status as an unaffiliated fae also makes her an ideal candidate to investigate a new street drug that has surfaced in several of the spaces between the human and fae worlds. 

This glamour-infused drug causes hallucinations that turn real—at least for a while and often with deadly consequences. Searching for the source of this drug—and its purpose—lands Alex front and center in the conflict brewing in Faerie and she must find answers before she's dragged so deep she loses her freedom. 

There was a long four year wait for the latest installment of the Alex Craft series due to some personal/health issues of the author. I totally respect that and am super glad that she is writing again, and hope that all is well going forward. After the long hiatus, I took the opportunity to re-read the series before picking up Grave Visions and I highly encourage everyone else to do so. I forgot so much that happened, and was really geared up for this story following the emotional star-crossed lovers aspect of Grave Memory. I think everyone was firmly on Team Death after that last book.