Blog Tour (Review): The Determined Heart by Antoinette May #TLCBookTours #historicalfiction #MaryShelley #Frankenstein

Title: The Determined Heart: The Tale of Mary Shelley and Her Frankenstein
Author: Antoinette May
Publisher: Lake Union Press (Amazon Publishing)
Release Date: September 29, 2015
Acquired Via: TLC Book Tours
The Determined Heart reveals the life of Mary Shelley in a story of love and obsession, betrayal and redemption.

The daughter of political philosopher William Godwin and feminist Mary Wollstonecraft, Mary Shelley had an unconventional childhood populated with the most talented and eccentric personalities of the time. After losing her mother at an early age, she finds herself in constant conflict with a resentful stepmother and a jealous stepsister. When she meets the Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, she falls deeply in love, and they elope with disastrous consequences. Soon she finds herself destitute and embroiled in a torturous love triangle as Percy takes Mary’s stepsister as a lover. Over the next several years, Mary struggles to write while she and Percy face ostracism, constant debt, and the heartbreaking deaths of three children. Ultimately, she achieves great acclaim for Frankenstein, but at what cost?

My Review

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is one of my all-time favorite novels, but I've not had much luck with anything written about her life. Since I've been craving historical fiction, and Amazon Publishing puts out some pretty stellar books, I figured that I should give The Determined Heart a chance. Believe it or not, I got exactly what I was looking for.

Audiobook Review: Huntress Moon by Alexandra Sokoloff

Title: Huntress Moon (The Huntress/FBI Thrillers #1)
Author: Alexandra Sokoloff
Narrator: R.C. Bray
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer (Amazon)
Release Date: January 27, 2015
Acquired Via: Author
FBI Special Agent Matthew Roarke is closing in on a bust of a major criminal organization in San Francisco when he witnesses an undercover member of his team killed right in front of him on a busy street, an accident Roarke can’t believe is coincidental. His suspicions put him on the trail of a mysterious young woman who appears to have been present at each scene of a years-long string of “accidents” and murders, and who may well be that most rare of killers: a female serial.

Roarke’s hunt for her takes him across three states...while in a small coastal town, a young father and his five-year old son, both wounded from a recent divorce, encounter a lost and compelling young woman on the beach and strike up an unlikely friendship without realizing how deadly she may be.

As Roarke uncovers the shocking truth of her background, he realizes she is on a mission of her own, and must race to capture her before more blood is shed.

My Review

Huntress Moon and Blood Moon are part of today's Kindle Daily Deal on Amazon. Today only, each is only $1.99.

I think there's a general rule regarding reading/movies/media consumption tastes and professions: lawyers and cops can't watch legal shows and doctors don't watch medical dramas. So, one of the main reasons I like urban fantasy so much is that they combine police procedurals with paranormal for a mix that is so unbelievable, it works for me. However, when Alexandra Sokoloff approached the blog about reviewing Huntress Moon, I actually jumped at the chance.

Blog Tour (Review & Giveaway): Miramont's Ghost by Elizabeth Hall

Title: Miramont's Ghost
Author: Elizabeth Hall
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing (Amazon Publishing)
Release Date: February 1, 2015
Acquired Via: TLC Book Tours
Miramont Castle, built in 1897 and mysteriously abandoned three years later, is home to many secrets. Only one person knows the truth: Adrienne Beauvier, granddaughter of the Comte de Challembelles and cousin to the man who built the castle.

Clairvoyant from the time she could talk, Adrienne’s visions show her the secrets of those around her. When her visions begin to reveal dark mysteries of her own aristocratic French family, Adrienne is confronted by her formidable Aunt Marie, who is determined to keep the young woman silent at any cost. Marie wrenches Adrienne from her home in France and takes her to America, to Miramont Castle, where she keeps the girl isolated and imprisoned. Surrounded by eerie premonitions, Adrienne is locked in a life-or-death struggle to learn the truth and escape her torment.

Reminiscent of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, this hauntingly atmospheric tale is inspired by historical research into the real-life Miramont Castle in Manitou Springs, Colorado.

My Review

I'll be honest with you - I'm disappointed. Miramont's Ghost started off as a fascinating and addictive novel, and I am very unhappy how everything turned out. (Though not as much as the characters were, I'm sure.) There are a lot of themes in the book that would normally scare me away, but I was already hooked on Miramont's Ghost and kept reading.

Review: The Fire Seekers by Richard Farr

Title: The Fire Seekers (The Babel Trilogy #1)
Author: Richard Farr
Publisher: Skyscape (Amazon)
Release Date: November 1, 2014
Acquired Via: Kindle First
The time of our immortality is at hand.

An undeciphered language in Crete. A rash of mysterious disappearances, from Bolivia to Japan. An ancient warning at the ruins of Babel. And a new spiritual leader, who claims that human history as we understand it is about to come to an end.

Seventeen-year-old Daniel Calder’s world falls apart when a freak accident brings personal tragedy—and he discovers there’s a link between the accident and a wildly successful new cult, the Seraphim. Catapulted into a violent struggle for humanity’s past and future, he’s not even sure who the enemy is, or if he’s battling a phantom that doesn’t exist. But as Daniel puts his life on the line, he is forced to conclude that our very survival as a species will depend on who, and what, we choose to believe.

My Review

When I saw The Fire Seekers as one of the Kindle First options last month, I jumped at it. I really like thrillers with a sci-fi/fantasy element, and it was an added bonus that this one was based on religious mythology. I've always been fascinated by Babel, Mesopotamia, and anything ancient like that.

The Fire Seekers started out really strong. I loved meeting Daniel and getting the build-up to where the synopsis promised the book would go. I just knew that I'd be on for a wild ride. Unfortunately, it was one that go stuck on its way to the top. I was flying through the book, and I felt myself slowly losing interest. By the halfway point, I didn't really care anymore. I would only read a page or two at a time before putting it down.

I have no idea where The Fire Seekers was going plotwise, but if you're interested in this sort of thing, I hope you like it more than I did. As for me, I'm off to see what other books are out there.

- DNF -

Buy Links
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Fishpond


To satisfy FTC guidelines, I am disclosing that I received an digital copy of the book for reviewing purposes from the publisher prior to the release date through the Kindle First program. This has in no way affected the outcome of the review. All opinions expressed are rambling, honest, and completely my own.

Spotlight (Excerpt & Giveaway): Amulet of Elusion by Katie Lynn Johnson

Title: Amulet of Elusion (The Lost Amulet Chronicles #1)
Author: Katie Lynn Johnson
Genre: Fantasy
Audience: Young Adult
Release Date: June 12, 2013
Alexa Costa has a life-altering secret…only she doesn’t know it yet.

Confined by law to the kingdom of Alvair until the age of eighteen, Alexa Costa has lived a sheltered existence under the watchful eye of her sword-wielding guardian, Ivy. Her love interest, Caleb Whitman, is exactly the opposite. A merchant sailor and seeker of rare artifacts, Caleb has lived a life of adventure in nearby San Lucero, the long-time rival of Alvair.

After her eighteenth birthday, Alexa’s quiet existence becomes tumultuous, and she realizes she does not need to seek to find adventure. Myths become real, legend becomes fact, and Alexa discovers that she possesses rare abilities which make her a target for both sides in a centuries-old struggle for power. She must use every resource available to her—including her talents with the supernatural Amulets— to help her friends, rekindle her romance with Caleb, and save her island home from destruction.

Excerpt

Quietly she closed the door and placed her hand on the side of his face, silently imploring him to look at her. When Caleb continued to look at the floor, Alexa leaned into him and pressed her lips to his. She wanted him to know that she didn’t blame him for anything, and that she was grateful for his decision to brave Hadley’s fire chamber to rescue her.