Sunday, March 31, 2013

Week in Review: 3/24-3/30


Books Ive Bought/received

* Blackout by Robison Wells- eARC- Edelweiss.

* Bitten By Deceit by Shawntelle Madison- eCopy- Netgalley

* Rogue Descendant by Jenna Black- eARC- Publisher

* Rising Darkness by Thea Harrison- publisher

* Chosen at Nightfall by C.C. Hunter- ARC- Publisher

* Prophecy Girl by Cecily White- eArc- Netgalley

* Mist by Susan Krinard- Arc- publisher

Books I Read

Death Takes a Holiday by Jennifer Harlow
Parallel by Lauren Miller
With All My Soul by Rachel Vincent
Chosen at Nightfall by C.C. Hunter
Of Shadow Born by Dianne Sylvan
Rising Darkness by Thea Harrison

Reviews Posted

Deadly Sting by Jennifer Estep
Taken by Erin Bowman


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* New Releases for the week. Was there anything you were looking forward to reading?

* Tuesday a promo post for Immortal Trust by Claire Ashgrove went up.

* Wednesday Soul Sucker author Kate Pearce was here with a promo post and giveaway. A cover reveal and giveaway for Gilded Destiny by Nola Sarina went up.

* Thursday a guest post and giveaway from author Michele Lang was posted on her Rebel Angels tour.

* Friday a guest post by Gabrielle Bisset, author of The Sons of Navarus series was posted.

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 * I love comments so if you see something you like (or not) please comment away and let me know.

Saturday, March 30, 2013

Early Review: Taken by Erin Bowman

Taken
Author:Erin Bowman
Release Date: April 16, 2013
Publisher: Harper Teen
Taken Book #1
ISBN:   0062117262
ISBN13: 9780062117267
Genre: YA Dystopian
Review Copy Source: Edelweiss

There are no men in Claysoot. There are boys—but every one of them vanishes at midnight on his eighteenth birthday. The ground shakes, the wind howls, a blinding light descends…and he’s gone.

They call it the Heist.

Gray Weathersby’s eighteenth birthday is mere months away, and he’s prepared to meet his fate–until he finds a strange note from his mother and starts to question everything he’s been raised to accept: the Council leaders and their obvious secrets. The Heist itself. And what lies beyond the Wall that surrounds Claysoot–a structure that no one can cross and survive.

Climbing the Wall is suicide, but what comes after the Heist could be worse. Should he sit back and wait to be taken–or risk everything on the hope of the other side?

In Claysoot all the men disappear on their 18th birthday, one minute they are there then the next poof...gone. No one knows where they go or why. Gray's brother is no exception. He turns 18 and disappears and Gray starts learning stuff about himself that send him over the wall. The very wall that no one has come back alive from attempting. 

Alright, TAKEN was interesting. Because the men disappear when they are 18 they don't really have relationships but they are matched every few months with girls and they have to try to get them pregnant. That was a bit crazy but they explain it better than I can. After Blane is taken by the heist Gray is matched with Emma. They have known each other since they were born and never really got along but become close pretty quickly. Together they find out some shocking secrets and when Gray goes over the wall Emma decides to follow him right over. I don't want to go to much more into the book as it would give away to many spoilers but things definitely aren't what they seem at pretty much every turn of the page. TAKEN kept me on my toes. There are a lot of characters to get to know but they are all interesting and well-developed. The world is kinda crazy. Just like any good dystopian the bad guy is extra bad. There are a few different love connections in TAKEN but they are shaky and in no way set in stone. I can't even begin to tell you how many secrets are in this book. I was flabbergasted more than once.

TAKEN was a good start to the Taken trilogy. The characters still have a long road ahead of them and hopefully it will be just as action packed and fast paced as book one. I definitely would like some more answers to the many secrets that are still out there.

I gave it 3.5/5 stars

Winner: Blood Moon by Holly Hunt


Thank you to everyone who entered!!

Prize: e-Copy of Blood Moon
The Winner chosen by Rafflecopter is.....


Congrats!! I have emailed winner who has 48 hours to respond with mailing address or I will pick another.

Friday, March 29, 2013

Guest Post: The Sons of Navarus Series by Gabrielle Bisset

UFI welcomes Gabrielle Bisset Author of The Sons of Navarus series. Thanks for Joining us!!



Thanks so much for having me here today at Urban Fantasy Investigations! It's my first visit here, and I look forward to many more.



I've been touring the blogs all this month talking about my series The Sons of Navarus in preparation of the release of the 4th book in the series, Blood Prophecy. Readers can get a FREE five chapter preview of the book at my website at http://www.gabriellebisset.com so be sure to head on over there after this to grab a copy! 


So what's the series about? Here's the series blurb for a taste:


Eight vampire warriors descended from the gods and chosen to defend their world against the Archon takeover, each dedicated to the war they must win. But there's another side to these Sons of Navarus—one that only the women they love know. Behind the strength they need to defeat their enemies lies a passion different in each one of the Sons. Their war will take them around the world and even involve the gods themselves, but they must unlock the secrets of the Prophecy of Idolas to defeat the Archons or perish in trying for none of their kind can be safe if the Archons win this battle.


When I decided to write a vampire series, I knew I wanted something different, something that wasn't just paranormal romance. Don't get me wrong. I love the genre, but I wanted to expand that idea to include more urban fantasy in the storyline too. The result is the Sons of Navarus. Part romance, part action, it's a combination of all the things I love in a story: sexy heroes, strong heroines, nasty villains, gorgeous settings, and a fight between good and evil.


The series begins with Blood Avenged and eases the reader into the Sons story. I'm not a huge fan of having eight characters thrown at me at once (although eight hot men might not be that bad!), so I intentionally wrote the first book to focus on just one of them before introducing the non-romantic storyline. The second and third books, Blood Betrayed and Blood Spirit, immerse the reader into the Sons' world and the civil war with the Archons. The fourth book, Blood Prophecy, will take readers even more into that world as they follow two of the Sons, Ramiel and Thane, as they search for the key that will help them solve the Prophecy of Idolas.


But just in case someone wonders if there's any romance in all this war stuff, I want to assure them there is...and it's quite hot. While the series is certainly not erotica, it's definitely erotic paranormal romance/urban fantasy. The result is a series with very sexy romance and a strong non-romantic plot.


Thanks so much for having me here today! Remember to grab a copy of the FREE preview of Blood Prophecy, and for more information on the Sons of Navarus series, readers can visit my website for excerpts, buy links, character profiles, swag (romance trading cards), and free desktop wallpapers to bring those delicious Sons to your computer. And look for Blood Prophecy coming soon!

 
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Find Gabriella and her books
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Series Order:

Vampire Dreams Revamped (Sons of Navarus Prequel)
Blood Avenged (Sons of Navarus #1)
Blood Betrayed (Sons of Navarus #2)
Longing (A Sons of Navarus Short Story)
Blood Spirit (Sons of Navarus #3)
The Deepest Cut (A Sons of Navarus Short Story)
Blood Prophecy (Sons of Navarus #4) COMING THIS MAY!


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Thursday, March 28, 2013

Guest Post & Giveaway: Rebel Angels by Michele Lang

UFI welcomes Michele Lang Author of Lady Lazarus series. Thanks for Joining us!!


The Secrets of Magda Lazarus, the Witch of Budapest

By Michele Lang

Magda Lazarus, the heroine of the World War II urban fantasy trilogy, LADY LAZARUS, is all about the secrets, both magical and personal.

So here are five things that she would NOT WANT you to know…

(1) Her magic is improvised. That is, she is an untrained witch, at least at the beginning of the trilogy. Her mom died before she could teach Magda the lore of her magical line, the Lazarus witches, and Magda, orphaned, has to claim her magic for herself. And she better hurry…in 1939, war is looming like a fatal storm.

(2) Her sister has predicted a terrible apocalypse. Magda's little sister Gisele has foretold a horrifying war and the end of their lives if Magda can't somehow stop the evil Nazi war machine from destroying the world. She's running out of time…

(3) Her boss is mad at her. Magda works for the dread vampire lord Count Bathory, the most terrifying vampire in Budapest. He is her protector in a dangerous city, but now that she has gone to Paris in search of her magical inheritance, Bathory is miffed that she's abandoned her post. And it is always a deadly thing, to piss off a vampire…

(4) She can return from the dead. Magda doesn't especially enjoy dying and returning, over and over again. But she refuses to stay dead. This is one of her secret weapons, but once her enemies figure out her ability to return, you bet they will turn it against her!

(5) She's damned her soul. Magda not only had the nerve to summon a celestial master, Archangel Raziel, out of the elevated realms, she was crazy enough to fall in love with him. And that is how heaven itself gets turned upside down…
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The LADY LAZARUS series by Michele Lang
ADVENTURE, ROMANCE, AND MAGIC ON THE EVE OF WORLD WAR II
Summer 1939: In Budapest, the magical city where East meets West, beautiful, young Magda Lazarus has managed to make a life for herself in a dangerous world that teeters on the edge of war. But then her sister has a terrible vision: Nazi Germany overruns all of Europe, and their family and millions of others are exterminated.

Magda, the last of a long line of witches descended from the legendary Witch of Ein Dor, must find the secret of her family's magic. Alone, pursued by SS werewolves, a Nazi wizard, and demons, including the one that has possessed a willing Adolf Hitler, she has no choice but to summon the family's guardian angel, the dark keeper of secrets Archangel Raziel. 

And when she stands in his celestial presence, her heart is utterly, completely lost…

"An absolutely unique protagonist in an engaging tale set against the backdrop of the greatest clash of good and evil in human history. What's not to love about LADY LAZARUS?"

-Jim Butcher, #1 NYT Bestselling Author of THE DRESDEN FILES
 
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Michele Lang writes supernatural tales: the stories of witches, lawyers, goddesses, bankers, demons, and other magical creatures hidden in plain sight. Author of the LADY LAZARUS historical fantasy series, Michele's most recent book in the series, REBEL ANGELS, released March 2013.

Michele is also a lawyer who has practiced the unholy craft of litigation in both New York and Connecticut. She returned to her native New York shortly before 9/11, and now lives in a small town on the North Shore of Long Island with her husband, her sons, and a rotating menagerie of cats, hermit crabs, and butterflies.

Find Michele and her books
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Rebel Angels 
Lady Lazarus #3
 Magda Lazarus has twice come back from the dead to fight the Nazis’ devastating conquest of Poland. To prevent the Holocaust her sister has seen in terrible visions, Magda will need the Heaven Sapphire, a gem powerful enough to defeat even the demon Asmodel. With the future of all Europe in the balance, Magda and her husband, the fallen angel Raziel, begin a perilous journey to the Caucasus, the resting place of the fabled stone.

Surrounded by Germans, Russians, and mistrustful Azerbaijani tribesmen, Magda must summon all her magic to withstand the predations of the deadly supernatural foes. But more dangerous yet is the power of the Sapphire itself, which could stop Hitler…or destroy Magda.


Michele is also giving away free ecopies of her novella "The Magic of Fabulous,"set in the world of Lady Lazarus. If you would like one, please leave your email address in the comment section!!
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US/CAN only 
a Rafflecopter giveaway