The Scribe Book Review

Synopsis:

Hidden at the crossroads of the world, an ancient race battles to protect humanity, even as it dies from within.

Ava Matheson came to Istanbul looking for answers, but others came looking for her. A reckless warrior guards her steps, but will Malachi’s own past blind him to the truth of who Ava might be? While ancient forces gather around them, both Ava and Malachi search for answers.

Whispering voices. Deadly touch. Their passion should be impossible... or it could be the only thing that will keep them alive.

THE SCRIBE is the first book in the Irin Chronicles, the new paranormal romance series from Elizabeth Hunter, author of the Elemental Mysteries.

My Review:

After finishing The Scribe, my heart was racing.  I felt like I was on a runaway train with no way to get off.  I would have done anything to have book 2 in my hands at that moment, as I read the last page and frantically looked for more.  Elizabeth Hunter has woven a beautiful fantasy of good vs. evil with a compelling storyline filled with action, mystery, and romance that will leave you begging for more.

Ava is a strong willed woman with a delightful wit about her and a desperate desire to escape the voices she hears in her head, in a language she doesn't understand.  She often travels alone, working as a professional photographer and living life in self-imposed isolation, battling her fears that she just may be insane.  The only way Ava can quiet the voices in her head is to leave crowds of people behind.  In an attempt to find help for her affliction, she travels to Turkey, seeking the services of a mysterious specialist who claims to have helped others with her condition.  The peace Ava hopes to find in Istanbul is shattered as she realizes she is being followed, and her life is in danger.  As a result of these events, she meets Malachi who pretends to be a bodyguard hired by her family to protect her.  Ava has no idea that he is much, much more than just a bodyguard.

Malachi has a very secretive, mysterious, powerful and dangerous air about him from the first moment he appears in this story.  You know right away that there is much more to this man than you can see on the outside and are mesmerized by the waves of passion rolling off him and the sense of vulnerability that even his powerful exterior cannot hide. Malachi is one of those special characters that you just can't help but be drawn to - those special heroes who will earn his spot on your favorites shelf.

When Ava and Malachi meet in Istanbul, the chemistry is sizzling, and the story kicks into high gear as he seeks to protect her from unknown forces and help her discover who and what she is.  As the story unfolds, we also learn who and what Malachi is.  Thus, a world of powerful "other beings" is revealed as Elizabeth Hunter weaves her story of tragedies, both past and present, loss, hope, love, life and death.  You will become entralled with the story of Malachi and Ava and the journey for truths that they set out upon.

What works about this story?  Everything!  The characters, the fantasy, the romance, the suspense, the plot...even the setting adds to the awesomeness of this book!

What doesn't work?  I can't think of a thing that doesn't work about The Scribe.  It does deliver a heartbreaking shock near the end but leaves you with hope for the future as you anxiously await book 2, The Singer, due out sometime in the spring of 2014.

I could not put this book down.  I do not give 5 star/heart ratings easily, however; this book was a Page Turner book for me and receives a spot on my favorites list and shelf.  A Must Read!

Rating:  5 Gorgeous ♥♥♥♥♥'s...And that's the truth!

Cross My Heart...xxx

Sandra 

Quotes:

"I understand.  It's part of the reason I came back.  This city...It feeds the soul."

A strange fluttering started in her chest.  "I didn't know my soul was hungry."

"Didn't you?"  He smiled.  "Hmmm."
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"I thought I was crazy for a long time.  My whole life, really.  It's hard to leave that behind, even with all of you telling me that I'm not."

"Why?"

"Don't get me wrong."  She shook her head.  "I know it should be a relief.  But there's a part of me that still doesn't believe it.  A part that thinks I'm locked in a room somewhere because my delusions have finally taken over.  The voices have finally won, and this is all a kind of dream that my mind is using to cope."
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"Is that what you think?"  His voice fell, and he put his hand on the side of her neck.  Immediately, her pulse roared.  Her mind went silent.  There was only him.  His scent and touch.  The rest of the world went quiet when his thumb stroked the base of her throat.  

"You really think I have no claim on you?"

She swallowed with effort; her eyes locked on the stormy grey in his.  "None."

"Really, Ava?"  He leaned down, his breath whispering across her cheek.  "How do you feel when I touch you, canim?"
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"When you find your power," he murmured in her ear as he stretched out beside her on the narrow bed, "you will sing to me.  And I will feel your magic as you feel mine."
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Nightfall Book Review

 Synopsis:

Roarke is in love with Mr. Wrong.

His name is Richard Tiernan. He is deadly handsome, darkly brilliant, and devastatingly attractive to women. He has been convicted of killing his wife, and his children have disappeared. Now he wants to make Cassidy the latest victim of his powers of seduction and secret agenda.

Cassidy knows all this. But still she chooses to surrender her heart and soul to a lover whose reasons for wanting her are as mysterious as the violent act that branded his a murderer. Cassidy is his now, to do with what he wishes...as he leads her through a labyrinth of desire that is her only path to the terrifying truth.


My Review:

Nightfall was my introduction to the book world of Anne Stuart, and I'm now a fan.  From the very first page through the last page, I lived in this world of dark, psychotic madness, sucked in so deep that I was unable to let go.  I had to keep turning pages, desperately trying to find out the truth about Richard Tiernan, convicted (he confessed) of taking a butcher knife and brutally murdering his pregnant wife, and suspected in the deaths of his two young children who have disappeared as well as his former lover.  Then we meet insecure, innocent, boring Cassidy Roarke, sacrificed by her own father as he will do anything to write his next bestseller - even make a deal with the devil.  His deal is to deliver his daughter to Richard in exchange for the exclusive rights to write his story, but why does the dark, moody, manipulative, dangerous  Richard want Cassidy?  What is he looking for?  Richard is out of jail on appeal and living with Cassidy's father when her father suddenly calls her home.  Cassidy returns home, walking into an empty house...empty except for a convicted murderer who is lurking and waiting for her in the shadows.  And thus the mind games begin.  

Richard has a master plan...Cassidy needs to figure out what it is in order to survive.  Along the road to discovering all the horrific truths, she falls in love with a man who will be put to death in three months...a man who refuses to fight his death sentence...a man who both terrifies her and yet draws her to him like a moth to a flame.  She knows she will lose everything - her heart, her soul, her sanity and possibly her life if she doesn't run and so she tries...time and time again.  But her heart and soul will not allow her to resist the magnetic pull he has on her.  Richard has nothing and yet everything to lose.  He wants Cassidy like he's never wanted or needed another woman...but for what?  What is his mysterious plan for her?  This is a book of mind games...and nothing is as it seems.  Anne Stuart has crafted a story of murder, lies, deceit and guilt and intertwined it with a story of  love, desire, truth, and strong characters who are pushed to their absolute limit.  A must read for lovers of romance/suspense.  This book goes on my Favorites List!

Rating:  5 Gorgeous ♥♥♥♥♥'s...And that's the truth!

Cross My Heart...xxx

Sandra 

Welcome to my Haunted House & Blog Hop~Enter at your own risk!

Welcome!  I'm happy to be hosting the Nancy Gideon Haunted House Blog Hop this week!  Enter if you dare to enjoy some of my favorite scary movies, spooky music, Halloween memories, and plenty of Bad Boys! 

I have such fond memories of Halloween.  Dressing up and roaming the neighborhood with my friends was both fun and scary!  My brother and his friends often hid behind trees to jump out and scare us when we walked by.  We did exactly what they wanted by screaming and running for our lives!  Later, we would wander home to dig through our bag of treats and sink our teeth into our favorite candy...then argue over who got the best and the most!  That's what brothers and sisters do!

My blog hop giveaway is a $20 Gift ECard from Amazon or Barnes & Noble - winner's choice.  The contest is open Oct. 23 - 30.  The winner will be announced within 2 days after close of contest.  A valid email address must be provided during contest entry.  You may enter the contest below via Rafflecopter.  
 
Happy Haunting, and I'll be sure to leave the lights on for you!  When you finish here, hop on over to the next stop on the blog hop to enter another trick or treat giveaway!  You can find those addresses below.  You can also enjoy the festivities at our Goodreads group Haunted House at Nancy Gideon By Moonlight 

Movies now showing in the Poltergeist Parlor...Enter at your own risk!

Nothing says Haunted Halloween quite like scary movies.  You know - the ones you watch with your eyes squeezed closed...the ones that make you jump at every little sound...the ones that make you double check your door locks...the ones that make you sleep with your lights on!  Remember these movies?

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

One of the scariest movies because: Adolescence is tough enough without worrying about razor-armed Freddy Krueger killing hormonal teens in their sleep.

What the critics say: "Tailor made for those who like their gore leavened with thought-provoking ideas—something that is a rarity in this genre."—James Berardinelli

The Shining (1980)

One of the scariest movies because: Jack Nicholson is seriously freaky as crazed novelist Jack Torrance, who [spoiler alert] tries to chop his family to little bits after a particularly stressful winter.

What the critics say: "Scaring the viewer is easy... What is harder is to accentuate the horrifying aspects of things that are familiar... Kubrick isn't out for screams, but he manages to make his movie thoroughly              unnerving by keeping the horror so close to home."—Janet Maslin

 

The Exorcist (1973)

One of the scariest movies because: Terrible, terrible things come out of a little girl's mouth (which happens to be attached to a spinning head, thanks to a demonic possession). Audiences were so affected by this fearsome film that some theaters even provided "Exorcist barf bags."

What the critics say: "The climactic sequences assault the senses and the intellect with pure cinematic terror. "—Variety

Carrie (1976)

One of the scariest movies because: Thanks to inspired directing from Brian De Palma, every moment in this film is filled with dread as the story inches toward its big, bloody finish.

What the critics say: "Brian De Palma's Carrie is an absolutely spellbinding horror movie, with a shock at the end that's the best thing along those lines since the shark leaped aboard in Jaws."—Roger Ebert

Jaws...1975

Steven Spielberg's "Jaws" is a sensationally effective action picture, a scary thriller that works all the better because it's populated with characters that have been developed into human beings we get to know and care about. It's a film that's as frightening as "The Exorcist" and yet it's a nicer kind of fright, somehow more fun because we're being scared by an outdoor-adventure saga instead of by a brimstone-and-vomit devil. - Roger Ebert.

You can find a slideshow and movie trailers for most of these movies at:   Scary Movies Slideshow & Movie Trailers

Enjoy & don't forget to leave the lights on! 

Visit Nancy Gideon's Haunted Open House & Blog Hop for more fun and giveaways!  Drop in on the other bloggers.  I know they will be waiting for you!

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Bad Boys, Bad Boys, Whatcha Gonna Do?

We all love the Bad Boys...you know the ones I'm talking about - big, powerful, bad*ss, alpha males who are usually carrying some emotional baggage.  Shifters, Vampires, Demons, Angels, or Mere Mortals...there's at least one for us all, stealing our hearts and making us weak in the knees.  They are only a book away - enjoy!

 Shifter Max Savoie from the By Moonlight series.  A powerful, sexy, dangerous predator who will make you howl at the moon and go weak in the knees.  Max is a personal favorite!  I would love to hear him whisper, "sha" in my ear.

  Vlad - Prince of the Night...Oh my, just looking at the cover makes me shiver.  A vampire who can control fire -  big, powerful, sexy, and arrogant.  Bad Boy!

 Zsadist - One of the Black Dagger Brotherhood, a former blood slave - Dark, tortured, angry, emotionally damaged vampire who is feared by both humans and other vampires.   Hands off...Giulia says he belongs to her!

 Remington "Riptide" (Remy) - a mere mortal?  Not on your life...Remy is a powerful, dangerous, underground boxer.  He's emotionally damaged and needs someone to love him and be his "real".  I volunteer!

Kane "Tack" Allen- President of Chaos Motorcycle Club and one bad, tattooed biker!  Dangerous, bossy, and sexy as sin...a real alpha male.

Roarke - just Roarke - Rich, powerful, emotionally damaged, devastatingly handsome with those Irish blue eyes - definite "bad boy"!  I love his "heart"...ultimate hero, for sure!






So...a shifter, 2 vampires, a boxer, a biker, and a rich, gorgeous CEO...that's my Bad Boys for this month.  I will feature some more soon.  Leave me a comment if there's a Bad Boy you think is deserving of a spot on the list...I'll see what I can do!

Take This Regret Book Review

 Synopsis:

There are some mistakes we make that we will regret for the rest of our lives. For Christian Davison, it was the day he betrayed Elizabeth Ayers. For five years, Christian has regretted the day he walked away from his family and will do anything to win them back. Can Elizabeth forgive someone who has committed the unforgiveable? Or are there some wounds that go so deep they can never heal?




My Review:

What a beautiful yet painful story to read.  So much anger and hurt held inside for 5 years festering and growing in a woman, Elizabeth, who could not or would not forgive the man who had wronged her so badly.  A foolish young man, Christian, who, in a spur of the moment decision, makes the wrong choice and is forced to live with his regrets and without the woman he loves for 5 years and beyond.  A beautiful little girl, Lizzie, so full of joy and innocence with love to give everyone including the daddy who gave her up.  This is a poignant love story that makes you feel like you're riding on a runaway train with no way to get off.  When it crashes, it almost destroys them all.  Christian has so many regrets and is losing hope of ever being forgiven, as Elizabeth has hardened her heart filled with the fear that he will leave her again.  This is a story of love & loss, betrayals that are unforgivable, regrets that threaten to drown them in their sorrow, trust that is destroyed in such a way that it may never allow love to grow again in her broken heart.  Sometimes when two people are in love, the pain they cause each other is too overwhelming and shattering to get past...to ever allow themselves to trust again.  Take This Regret will stir emotions deep inside you and make you pray for this couple to find their way back to each other...even knowing this will be a near impossible feat. 

The downside for me is that the angst in this story went on for a little too long.  It began to be a little too much for me to accept as Elizabeth withheld her forgiveness from Christian over and over again.  She almost lost all my sympathy as I began to feel like she was punishing him more than anything else.  I gave this book 4 hearts as I enjoyed the alternating POV between H/h, allowing us to hear both character's thoughts and feel their anguish and genuine emotions.  The emotional turmoil is real and beautifully written for both characters.  If the turning point in this story had come sooner, it would have been a 5 star read for me.

Rating:  4 Beautiful ♥♥♥♥'s...And that's the truth!

Cross My Heart...xxx

Sandra

Quotes:

I knew she could feel me, conscious of watchful eyes.  Being near her stirred me - my love and guilt and desire - emotions that left my heart heavy and my legs weak.
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Echoes of our past surfaced in my mind, our happiest moments, the way only he could make me smile, the way only he could make me feel, our most intimate times.  I wanted to hold onto them, but they fluttered and flickered and gave way to vivid images so strong I could almost taste them - sick, cold, alone - and I remembered why I could never give into this.
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I closed my eyes as he pried my fingers from the page and wrapped them in his hand.  "I don't want to become like him, Elizabeth."  His throat bobbed in unspent emotion.  "I don't want to waste my life.  I don't want to waste this," he stressed as he squeezed my hand.
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They say cowards run in the face of danger or pain.  I supposed that's what I was, what I'd become, too fearful to love, too fearful to be loved, too afraid to live - so I ran.

          

 

Raphael Book Review

Synopsis:

Malibu, California—home to rock-and-roll gods and movie stars, the beautiful, the rich . . . and vampires. Powerful and charismatic, Raphael is a Vampire Lord, one of the few who hold the power of life and death over every vampire in existence. Thousands call him Master and have pledged absolute loyalty on their very lives. But when, in a brazen and deadly daylight attack, a gang of human killers kidnaps the one female vampire he’d give his life for, Raphael turns to a human investigator to find his enemies before it’s too late. Cynthia Leighton is smart, tough and sexy, a private investigator and former cop who’s tired of spying on cheating spouses and digging out old bank accounts. When Raphael asks for her help in tracking down the kidnappers, Cyn’s happy to accept. But she soon realizes her greatest danger comes not from the humans, but from Raphael himself. Battling Russian mobsters and treacherous vampires, and betrayed by those they trusted, Cyn and Raphael find themselves fighting for their lives while caught up in a passion of blood and violence that is destined to destroy them both. 

My Review:

Raphael is the first in the Vampire In America series, and I must say I am hooked.  I loved the romance/suspense feel to this book and will admit I have already read book 2, Jabril.  This world of both humans and vampires that D.B. Reynolds has created is intriguing to me in that it is very "real".  This isn't your dark, spooky, coming out of graveyards and caskets vampire story.  This is a modern world where vampires and humans exist, both aware of and living together.  Lord Vampire Raphael rules one of eight regions and has the power of life and death over thousands of vampires.  He is a powerful, rich, sexy, mind controlling hero who has a heart of gold and rules with fairness but with absolute power.  He does not expect his orders to be questioned...ever!  But he has met his match in the human bombshell Private Investigator, Cynthia Leighton.  Cyn (Raphael thinks "Sin" as he looks her up and down the first time they meet & his fangs come out!) is a P.I., formerly a police officer, who is a kick*ss, self-sufficient, fearless, smart heroine who trusts very few people and lets even fewer get close.  She works alone and doesn't give a sh*t whether Raphael likes the way she handles things or not.  The two experience an instant, sexual attraction when Raphael hires her to help find a vampire who is kidnapped from him in a major power-play while he is away.  The abductors were human, thus Raphael needs a human who can think like them and get in their world to track them down.  And so the mysterious and intriguing plot thickens and explodes as their journey begins, and they come to realize that their attraction is much stronger and deeper than just sex.  Sooner or later, they will have to come to terms with the emotions that neither one of them knows how to handle.  This was a great read, grabbing me and pulling me into a world that seems very real and yet sub-real at the same time.  The characters are strong and the sexual tension and romance grows as the danger and suspense builds.  Everything was not resolved in the ending of this book so I recommend having book 2, Jabril, ready to read immediately after although it was not a terrible cliffhanger...just enticement to read more!  I loved it!  A must read for lovers of romance/suspense/pnr/uf.


Rating:  4 beautiful ♥♥♥♥'s...And that's the truth...

Cross My Heart...xxx

Sandra 



Quotes:

"How did you know?" Raphael asked.  He had a warm, rich voice that flowed like sweet honey, a voice she could not only hear with her ears, but taste with her tongue, feel its heat against her lips.  She licked those lips self-consciously and wondered if he was using some sort of magical vampire influence on her.  
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"Yes, I want you.  I want you until I can think of little else," she whispered, not even trying to break away from him.  "You stalk my dreams and haunt even my days when I should be free of you.  Every nerve in my body is tortured with wanting you, wanting to touch you, to fuck you, to have you fill me until I scream with the delicious pain of it and beg for more."
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 Raphael came through the door like a child's nightmare, his eyes glowing an almost solid silver with wrath, his gleaming fangs fully extended, blood painting his mouth a brilliant red, dripping from his chin to shine wetly against the tattered remains of his black shirt.  His huge chest was heaving with the fury of his breath, and his hands curled into claws as his gaze found her and he growled a warning.  "Release her, human."
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Raphael smiled then, a slow, predatory baring of teeth.  "Asshole?  I don't think anyone has dared use that word to me in a few hundred years, at least not in my hearing."

"Which is probably why you're such a big one sometimes."  Cyn grinned up at him, then sobered.  "Listen, I've got a lot of information for you--"

"Later," he said.  "I want you now."    
   

Spook*Tacular Haunted House & Blog Hop!

 

I'm stirring up some frightful fun!  Join me at my first Haunted House & Blog Hop! I'm excited to join Nancy Gideon's Haunted Blog Hop during the week of Oct. 23 - 30.  You can also find the fun at our goodreads group - Nancy Gideon By Moonlight.  Join us for a week of fun, games, and giveaways.
Nancy Gideon By Moonlight