The Awesome Ali Cross & The Desolation Diaries + GIVEAWAY

So as many of you know I have mad love for Ali Cross.  She is the first Indie that I talked with 

really and has been a huge supporter of mine.  IN fact she is one of the biggest reasons I had the

courage to start blogging.  Most people have other bloggers support but I had hers and that was 

enough for me.  Now the BIGGER matter at hand is the books you see above.  They are a spin off

from her Desolation series and are about James and Miri.  I am so looking forward to getting my hands

on these as Miri was always a favourite of mine!!  Anyway below is the books & description and if 

you continue past that there is a giveaway I am providing to 1 lucky reader :)

Personal Demons

(Desolation Diaries #1)

What do you do when your past comes back to bite you in the ass--with very sharp, pointy teeth?
James thought life was good--living in Paris with Miri, not a single bad guy in sight. 
Until the goddess Hel came to reclaim him.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Smashwords | Goodreads

The Seer

(Desolation Diaries #2)

She's always been the one protected, shielded from the darkness in the world. But Miri wants to be as capable and strong as Desi and James. She wants to control her visions so they can actually be of use, actually give her friends an advantage over the dark.

When her visions reveal an enemy fixated on James, Miri must face the evil alone, and risk everything to do it.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Smashwords | Goodreads

And. . .

Tattered Dreams
(Desolation Diaries #3)

Miri has seen Akaros’ return—and James’ death. But James has been to Hell and back and refuses to let Akaros rob him of his future with Miri. Desi might not be there to save him this time, but James is determined to save himself.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Smashwords | Goodreads

SO because I LOVE Ali, I thought I would share the love with giving someone a copy of these

books!! There will be 1 winner of all 3 and they will come from the winners choice of Amazon

or Smashwords <3  GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

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(Review & Giveaway) This Wicked Game by Michelle Zink ~Blog Tour~

Release Date:  November 14, 2013
Published By:  Dial
Length:  368 pages
Review Copy:  ARC, for tour in exchange for honest review

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Claire Kincaid’s family has been in business for over fifty years.

The voodoo business.

Part of the International Guild of High Priests and Priestesses, a secret society that have practiced voodoo for generations, the Kincaid’s run an underground supply house for authentic voodoo supplies. Claire plays along, filling orders for powders, oils and other bizarre ingredients in the family store, but she has a secret.

She doesn’t believe.

Struggling to reconcile her modern sensibilities with a completely unscientific craft based on suspicion, Claire can’t wait to escape New Orleans – and voodoo – when she goes to college, a desire that creates almost constant conflict in her secret affair with Xander Toussaint, son of the Guild’s powerful founding family.

But when a mysterious customer places an order for a deadly ingredient, Claire begins to realize that there’s more to voodoo – and the families that make up the Guild – than meets the eye.

Including her own.

As she bands together with the other firstborns of the Guild, she comes face to face with a deadly enemy – and the disbelief that may very well kill her.

  This was something new and intriguing to me.  Zink has never let me down when creating worlds and characters that capture me and I was not let down with my expectations of this one in the slightest.  There is a part of me that has always wanted to see New Orleans and knowing that part will never be satisfied any time soon, I live it through books.  The bonus with this read was that not only did Zink create a place I could visualize easily but instead of filling it with vampires or something else supernatural, she used the supernatural that was accepted to have been there originally.  I'm not vamp bashing or generalizing by any means but it was good to see someone take hold of this area and place it somewhere into a general area of its roots.

  What the description doesn't mention is that not only is Claire a non believer being raised in a voodoo community but she is a descendent of one of the most well know Voodoo Priestess ever.  This was a little fact that I found interesting because hey how do you not believe when so many believed in a member of your family?  Here also lays the problem, that despite all the power her blood should hold, she wants nothing to do with it.  That is until everything seems to give her no other choice but to believe.  Because of this there was a consistent pacing and no real down time where the story plateaued.  Everything took off in the start and gradually became more from there.  There was twists and turns along the way but nothing was horribly unbelievable and I was happily along for the ride.

  I really liked Claire.  Sometimes her logical mind was unreasonable despite the fact she had good reasoning.  However, on that note I would like to point out that this is also a quality that I appreciated about her.  She stuck to HER beliefs no matter what was expected of her and did not sway until basically her entire world started flipping over.  Even then it was not an immediate acceptance but a gradually/possible belief.  It was not like a light turning on but more like an ember that was getting enough air to finally become a flame.  Her connection to the world she denied was actually quite undeniable but I was relieved she didn't do the insta believe thing.  She was also willing to stand on her own.  She did not rely on anyone to do things for her and once her mind was set, she did not let go until she had accomplished what she wanted.  This is actually kind of what took her onto the believer side of things.  I loved watching the change and seeing the growth and though she was no kick ass fighter, turns out she had something else kick ass on her side.

  Now, triangle haters everywhere rejoice!  There is only one guy for Claire.  No indecision, no second possibility and no other guy getting in the way of her a Xander being perfect.  Xander is the son of one of the most prominent families and is not the "bad boy" but he is awesome in so many other ways.  He is willing to sneak around with Claire and not because that is what he wants but because it is what she wants.  He obviously cares very deeply for her and wants her but she is hesitant because he believes and though this does kind of hurt him, he holds out for her.  He also tries to protect her but with all strong female leads for the most part she wants nothing to do with it.  I really liked Xander, he was not typical of any book boyfriend out there, he was truly unique.

  This review could go one because there were actually a few other notable characters in this book but then I think you would loose the impact of the main ones.  There is just so much to enjoy in this one that I   I love this modern world Zink has pulled together and yet kept some of the older history woven throughout it.  I will admit it was different than what I was used to when it came to Michelle but it was a really good different.  I highly recommend picking you this book if you are looking for a quick and fresh read!!

  He kissed her, his mouth conforming perfectly to hers.  She never stopped being surprised at the feeling that arose between them.  They'd known each other their whole lives and had been dating in secret for over a year, but somehow the rush of desire she felt in his arms hadn't dimmed even a little.

  Clare watched people pass by on the other side of the window.  She thought about Xander, about the tangled wed that was their relationship, and the Guild and her lack of conviction next to his steadfast belief.

  Whatever Sasha said, it wasn't as simple as she made it sound.

  True love didn't always conquer all.

  "You're in trouble." she said.  "We all are."

  "We?" 

  "The firstborns," Allegra clarified.  Her eyes seemed to cloud over, her voice growing distant.  "I can't see the threat clearly, but it's out there."

  It is all I can do, and I can only hope as I prepare to leave this world for the next that you find enough peace in your heart to suspend this wicked game.

                                                                       Marie Leveau

Her mother would have been ecstatic that Claire had shown any interest in the craft, let alone actually tried a spell for her own purposes.

  Claire didn't want to give her the satisfaction.

  She looked down at it, catching a whiff of aloeswood.  It was a small thing, wearing the gris-gris for Xander.  And maybe it wasn't just for him.  For the first time, she had a legitimate reason to question her disbelief.

A HUGE thank you to Michelle for providing this awesome prize pack <3  

It is open to US/CAN and I want to wish you all GOOD LUCK!!

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~Release Day Blitz~ Dangerous Depths by Karen A. Hooper

Title: Dangerous Depths

Series: The Sea Monster Memoirs #2

Author: Karen Amanda Hooper

Release Date: November 20, 2013 

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Hell hath no fury like a selkie separated from his true love.

The gate to the sea creature realm is finally open. Yara wants to bask in the glow of her budding relationship with Treygan and explore Medusa’s world, but as the new leader of Rathe her powers are needed to save a sea creature she’s never met.

Rownan assumes the worst is behind him when he returns home to be reunited with his wife, Vienna, only to discover she’s gone. She traveled to the evil realm of Harte to find another gateway to Earth and was never heard from again. Rownan claimed he would go through hell to be with her, and now he must prove it.

Rownan, Yara, and Treygan will put their lives and souls at risk by traveling to the most dangerous realm of all. Love is supposed to conquer all, but no one has ever conquered Harte.

✳ TEASER ✳

✳ ABOUT THE AUTHOR ✳

Karen was born and bred in Baltimore, frolicked and froze in Colorado for a couple of years, and is currently sunning and splashing around Florida with her two beloved dogs. She's addicted to coffee, chocolate, and complicated happily-ever-afters.

Karen has been making up stories for as long as she can remember. Due to her strong Disney upbringing, she still believes in fairy tales and will forever sprinkle magic throughout all of her novels. 

✳ CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR ✳

FACEBOOK / TWITTER / BLOG / WEBSITE / GOODREADS

**Review** Descended by Blood by Angeline Kace

Release Date:  August 22, 2011
Published By:  Accendo Press
Length: 252 pages
Review Copy: Kindle, purchased

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Brooke Keller is a high school junior who has never spent much time living in one place. She is finally in a town long enough to almost snag the boy of her dreams, until her life is threatened after killing a fanged man in his attempt to kidnap her. Brooke begins a dangerous journey in an effort to find out who is after her and how to stop them. In a world with powerful and prejudiced vampires, Brooke must tap into the side of her that she never knew existed at the risk of losing her life in order to save it.

  Firstly I have no clue why I did not read this sooner.  Second I will admit to the oddest thing pulled me right in... A crooked pinky finger.  The odd thing about this is the fact that my daughter happens to have this little "defect" and I really wanted to see where it was going.  Turned out it was not going where I has expected but the nifty little fact made sense and made me worry about the changes my child could be facing.  All funny business aside, I liked the twist and the options that were throughout.  The little things that were placed throughout to keep a steady pace and insure that things remained interesting, were spectacularly done.

  Brooke is just a normal girl, minus the fact that she has to constantly worry where her mother will move her.  However, this move has been different and they have stayed in one place long enough for her to have a best friend and now a boyfriend, but it's when things are at their best that they can turn to the worst.  Before she can even really enjoy everything being as perfect as she had hoped it could be, it turns out that she stayed in one place for too long and now they have found her.  I found that this part of the book, the "pre-contact" was set in place to give Brooke some normal before her like hit the fan.  After the quick false sense of happiness everything just blew up and became a non stop race for not only her life but also that of the ones she loves.  Not to mention she has to figure out exactly what it is her heart wants out of all of this and save humanity while she is at it.  No pressure... Ya know?

  As far as kick butt characters, I was not sure at first if poor Brooke had it in her.  Not the she was a wimp but she was most defiantly passive and avoided confrontation at all costs.  Well, at least she did before she found out exactly what she was, or most specifically that life was not always as it seemed.  Apparently when your life is in danger and same with those that are around you, you tend to step up your game.  When she finally trained and let what she was being told/taught sink in, she developed at an amazing rate, exceeding what even I thought she would be capable of.  My only peeve with her was her indecision with guys.  I felt that she was stronger, better than that and I honestly just wanted her to make the call and decide.  I understand to a point being torn but you are better than that.

  You get to the boys and that is where everything goes kind of blurred.  Jaren is the boy that Brooke fell in love with after moving to town and has waited for.  This guy is sweet and basically everything that she needed but his problem is, his freak out.  When he is there to witness and then find out what exactly is going on with Brooke, he flakes, he breaks her heart.  I wanted to smack him in the back of his head and tell him to smarten up.  However, Mirko pushed this process along himself.  It's hard to deny you have feelings about someone no matter what is in their blood, when another guy starts playing for her.  Not Brooke is not a new shiny toy but the way these boys wanted her, you would think that she was.  Who was I pulling for?  I would have to say Jaren but my attraction pulled towards Mirko and his all around hotness.

  I am so glad that Enemy Within is out because this book had one of those endings that left you needing more.  Also Kace's writing was great and I look forward to sinking my teeth into more work by her.  Yes, there is a love triangle in this book but you know what it was easy to understand why it happened, this did not frustrate me any less at times but it made it a little easier to swallow at times.  I also think the majority of people are not going to hate this one because of the guys and the rotating circumstances.  If you are ready for a great read that's fast, Descended by Blood is something you should consider picking up.

   I wanted to defend her, but I didn't have the guts.  I could stand against a wild mountain lion, but I folded when it came to teenagers.  What did that say about me?  Or better yet, about my peers?

I put my hands up to my face because there was no way I could hold back the tears.  The hardest part was that I felt like I loved him, too, and he had just tarnished it.

If he thought he could shun me because my blood contained only half of what hers did and then get all excited like a dog in heat when she came around, he had another thing coming.

He joined streching with me.  "There's always a crisis going on, Slatki.  You'd do well to start enjoying the small things when they're given to you."

She was right.  Things were going to change for me whether I wanted them to or not, like fall giving way to winter.  And apparently, I was going to have a major roll in this change.  I could sit back and let others decide what role I would take, or I could carve it out for myself.

~Cover Reveal~ Crashing Into You by B. D. Rowe

So welcome to the cover reveal for Crashing Into You!! I am in LOVE with this cover
& synopsis!!  Don't forget to enter the giveaway!!! 

New Adult Contemporary Romance

Bookish college sophomore Sydney Baker wants Evan Taylor with every ounce of her being. The hottest stud on campus, Evan is six foot four, ripped, stacked with muscles. He’s even easy to talk to.

There’s just one problem: he’s her roommate Melanie’s boyfriend.

But when Melanie tragically dies after a night of wild partying, Sydney and Evan turn to each other in a time of intense grief. And it doesn’t take long for their close friendship to blossom into something more.

Unfortunately for Sydney, secrets from the past soon put her relationship with Evan to the test. Especially when a sexy blonde freshman makes her way into Evan’s life, and tries to rip away everything Sydney holds close to her heart.

Buy It:

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B.D. Rowe is a Sacramento native with a penchant for crafting tales of romance, mystery, and intrigue. Crashing Into You is B.D. Rowe’s New Adult debut.

Find B.D.

Twitter~Facebook~Goodreads

5 Winners will receive a Copy of  Crashing Into You by B.D. Rowe.

12 Winners will receive an E-Copy of  Crashing Into You by B.D. Rowe.

1 Winner will receive a $50.00 Amazon Gift Card.

Must be 13+ to Enter

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Mini Break...

  Okay, so I know you are all wondering what the heck the GIF is about.  Am I having a blogging break down?  NO.  What is going on is that school and blogging have finally clashed, butted heads and with 7 assignments due in the next two weeks... Well lets just say school won.  So I am going to take this week to get ahead on assignments and ahead in my blogging again do I do not end up like Donald up there.  I am also currently trying to convince someone to sign up and help out on the blog so that this blog can be as awesome as always!!!  So guys, have a great week and I will see you on Monday!!!

P.S.- I will still be checking in over the next few days so if you have something you want to share link me up and I will visit!! When I don't blog, I tend to love stalking more than ever lol

**REVIEW** Finned by Sutton Shields

Release Date:  January, 2013
Published By: Createspace
Length:  310 pages
Review Copy:  Paperback, provided by author for                           honest review

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Take a fish-phobic girl, divide her by one hot merman, add a splash of his crazy ex-merbitch, and you get one stinky school year.

Sixteen-year-old Marina Valentine is a rule-stretcher in an uptight Texas seaside town. She’s hormonally challenged, curious to a fault, hates fish, and has a dating resume that makes the queen look like a slut. It’s not that guys don’t ask her out. They do. She just has an unfortunate reaction to dating—uncontrollable gags. It’s not exactly a turn on.

One by one, her oddball friends start disappearing—much to the joy of the snobby high school royals—and Marina fears she is a walking bull’s eye. Inquiries into their disappearances lead to startling, gag-worthy discoveries. Toss in an increasingly inconvenient attraction to one of the royals—who holds the key to solving the mystery…in his fin—and it’s an anti-fish girl’s worst nightmare come true. Soon, Marina finds herself at the center of a looming underwater war that’s really going to play games with her love life.

As time closes in—and the Merpeople officially come out of the ocean—Marina must choose between the lives of her friends, the future of an underwater utopia, and the life of her first love. There’s just one problem. Where does a love-shy, fish-phobic, non-mergirl even begin…especially when her enemy may be the one person she trusted above everyone else?

  This is a hoot to read right from the start and is jam packed with quirky, fun characters.  You can feel the amount of connection that Sutton has with her characters and it makes the book that much more fun to read.  It is no secret that I am a Mermaid fanatic but that does not make my love of a book come easy, they still have to work for it.  With Finned, it would be hard not to love because honestly there is a unique main character and premise to the entire book.  The humour alone would be enough for anyone to want to speed through this one and yet still enjoy it.  This was more than a mermaid read for me, it was something that had soul.

  Marina is happy to be banished and glad to be at a school with some of her old friends.  Though she was less than impressed when she was also told never to touch a deck of cards again; meaning never do another reading.  Now having her last reading, read her death isn't exactly ideal but at least she knows that it is coming for her and she can spend her last months with real people... Kind of.  The new school is filled with aquariums and sea life... literally.  Though Marina manages to keep her gag reflex in check most of the time fish just happens to have that effect on her.  Then when things get dire, her friends are all gone and it turns out the guy she can keep her eyes off of is half fish... Well lets just say the plot can get fishier *laughs at own pun*.

  I can not get enough of Marina, she is seriously amazing.  This girl has some serious issues but for each one she has, she has something awesome to back it up.  Like she my gag at the thought of fish, dating and other things but you want a girl with a back bone and you will call this girl.  She does understand what fear is but for the most part she brushes it aside and refuses to back down from the evil (and I quote) "mer-bitch".  Truth be told she really does not back down from anyone and sticks to her opinion on just about everything.   She was not made up to be perfect or even close to it but there was an obvious moral base and when it came to the one she liked not being all he seemed, she took a little bit to adjust.  I also liked that there was some paranormal background so having Mermaids be real wasn't really all that much of a stretch for our young Marina.   The amount of stuff dumped on her did overwhelm her a little though and I can not say that I blame her because it would be a lot for any person to take in, let alone one that fish-phobic.  Yes that is a hint that she is tied into everything in this new little world she has become a part of.

  Troy was not the typical melt my heart guy either.  I liked him but at the same time I had to question if he was good enough for the epidemically snarky Marina.  Yes, I love her and no matter how Merman the guy is he needed to be good enough for her.  I would like to now mention that he is a part of the Fairhair faction of this book, though that means he is a part of the nicer group it does not mean that he is supposed to interact with her.  Basically this causes my blood to boil...  Ridiculous reaction you may thing but when he insinuates they carry on a "secret relationship" I wanted to smack him for Marina.  There is hope for the poor clueless boy though and he does manage to redeem himself and then only then did I want to kiss him... I mean not really because that would be a love triangle but the thought was there.  Troy does have many redeeming qualities but I would LOVE for you to figure them out and decide for yourself.

  There are so many things that made me love this one but what really tipped the scales for me was the fact that you could tell how much the author loved her characters.  There is something that you get from characters that obviously carry a certain amount of their creator with them and everything in this book said Sutton Shields.  No I do not know her personally but when you talk to her it all makes sense.  With a wonderfully paced plot, well developed characters and with a uniqueness that had me completely consumed, Finned became a top ten Mer read almost instantly.  If you love characters that could stand on their own, snark and an abundance of quirk this is the book for you!

Dear God.  On December 31st, I'm going to die.  Well, that really blows.  Still, it was rather remarkable what a plain deck of cards and a funky, Cajun card-reading gene can uncover... remarkable and seriously crappy.  Hey, if I die, I die.

He kept staring at my legs.  Did my jeans offend him?  Was there a dress code? Ew.  What if he swings towards a pervy sort?  Note to self: Possibly a pervy sort.  Keep a watchful eye on Mr. Smarmy.

  "No, you're not, actually...and what the hell is happening to your skin?"
  Dang it.  "Hive.  Are you going to say anything at all about what just happened?" I asked frustrated he has taken this long.  GAG.
  After a brief moment, he said, "Are you gagging?"
  GAG. "Yes.  It's a me thing.  And don't change the subject."

"Out," he had said to a bewildered Katrina.  "Now." He was so fierce that no one wanted to challenge him, much less Katrina.  It was such a nobody puts Marina in the corner moment, and I loved every moment.