Early Review: The Continent by Keira Drake #yalit #AroundTheWorldARCTours #BibPleaseReview

Title: The Continent (The Continent #1)
Author: Keira Drake
Publisher: Harlequin Teen (Harlequin)
Release Date: January 3, 2017
Acquired Via: Around the World ARC Tours
Get swept away in the majesty and danger of Keira Drake’s sparkling debut fantasy novel The Continent.

For her sixteenth birthday, Vaela Sun receives the most coveted gift in all the Spire—a trip to the Continent. It seems an unlikely destination for a holiday: a cold, desolate land where two “uncivilized” nations remain perpetually at war. Most citizens tour the Continent to see the spectacle and violence of battle—a thing long vanished in the Spire. For Vaela—a smart and talented apprentice cartographer—it is an opportunity to improve upon the maps she’s drawn of this vast, frozen land.

But an idyllic aerial exploration is not to be had: the realities of war are made clear in a bloody battle seen from the heli-plane during the tour, leaving Vaela forever changed. And when a tragic accident leaves her stranded on the Continent, she has no illusions about the true nature of the danger she faces. Starving, alone, and lost in the middle of a war zone, Vaela must try to find a way home—but first, she must survive.

Engaging with questions of social responsibility, the nature of peace and violence, and the value (and danger) of nationalism, Drake’s debut is as thought-provoking as it is fast-paced and surprising, a heart-pounding and heartbreaking story of strength and survival.

My Review

It has been a long time since I've read a book before there was even a cover. Hell, it's been a long time since I've read a physical book. (Audiobooks have been my jam since Life has gone crazy.) But this book. This. The Continent . It reminded me of why I'm a reader. I got adventure and escape from the unpleasantness and monotony around me. I got to hang out with a tough girl named Vaela Sun who should get the Survivor of the Decade award.

There's NOTHING better than finding a book to make you fall in love with books again. The Continent rekindled that romance.

Blog Tour (Review): The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter #TLCBookTours #Giveaway @genashowalter @HarlequinBooks

Happy Friday! Thank you so much for visiting my stop on the tour promoting Gena Showalter's Lords of the Underworld series! Today I'm reviewing The Darkest Night, the first book in the series. There is also a great giveaway at the end of the post, so be sure to check that out before you leave!



Title: The Darkest Night (Lords of the Underworld #1)
Author: Gena Showalter
Publisher: HQN (Harlequin)
Tour Organizer: TLC Book Tours
Release Date: May 3, 2008
All her life, Ashlyn Darrow has been tormented by voices from the past. To end the nightmare, she has come to Budapest seeking help from men rumored to have supernatural abilities, not knowing she'll be swept into the arms of Maddox, their most dangerous member--a man trapped in a hell of his own.

Neither can resist the instant hunger that calms their torments...and ignites an irresistible passion. But every heated touch and burning kiss will edge them closer to destruction--and a soul-shattering test of love....

My Review

I've never considered myself a romance reader. True, I'll read the occasional historical romance as a palate cleanser, but it's never been my go to genre-of-choice. I haven't read paranormal romance in years, as I tend to prefer high or urban fantasy. However, as I read The Darkest Night, I realized that there might be a romance reader inside me after all.

Harlequin Video Blitz & #Giveaway - Not to be Missed! #TLCBookTours #Romance @HarlequinBooks

I try not to participate in too many blitzes these days (I know a lot of readers don't like them), but this one is different. Not only do I love TLC Book Tours, who put it all together, but I watched this video yesterday, and I was laughing my head off. I know my co-workers thought I was insane. I really hope that you enjoy it as much as I did.


Giveaway


Here’s the giveaway! Readers get 17 free books when they sign up for the Harlequin newsletter! Easy peasy!

Link to website: http://bookpages.harlequin.com/romance/

If you're hesitating at all - I've already downloaded my books!

Blog Tour (Excerpt): Fighting Dirty by Lori Foster #TLCBookTours #Giveaway @LoriLFoster @HarlequinBooks

Title: Fighting Dirty (Ultimate #4)
Author: Lori Foster
Publisher: HQN (Harlequin)
Tour Organizer: TLC Book Tours
Release Date: February 23, 2016
He's the hottest MMA fighter in the game, but one woman is ready to try out a few steamy moves of her own in an unforgettable new novel from New York Times bestselling author Lori Foster

With the life he's led and the muscles he's gained, Armie Jacobson isn't afraid of anything. Except maybe Merissa Colter's effect on him. It's not just that she's his best friend's little sister. Fact is, she deserves better. Women pursue him for one night of pleasure, and that's all he wants to offer. Until rescuing Merissa from a robbery leads to the most erotic encounter of his life.

Good girl meets bad boy. It's a story that rarely ends well. But Merissa is taking matters into her own hands. No matter how he views himself, the Armie she knows is brave, honorable and completely loyal. And as past demons and present-day danger collide, they're both about to learn what's truly worth fighting for...

Excerpt

Bestselling author Lori Foster shares a fighting scene from the last book in her Ultimate Series, Fighting Dirty
Fighting Dirty by Lori Foster is the final book in her addicting and wicked hot MMA-themed Ultimate Series. Check out the excerpt below to see just what we mean. Happy reading!

***
Merissa loved her brother. She’d always seen him as Superman, larger than life, a rock whenever she’d needed one. He was only a couple of years older than her, but for as long as she could remember he’d seemed grown-up.

Right now, Superman was in her kitchen, insisting on getting her a drink when all she really wanted was the time alone to let go. She knew if she fell apart in front of him, Cannon would never leave her.

He didn’t need to be a savior, not right now.

Blog Tour (Excerpt): Untamed by Diana Palmer #Giveaway #Western #Romance @TLCBookTours @HarlequinBooks

Title: Untamed
Author: Diana Palmer
Publisher: HQN (Harlequin)
Tour Organizer: TLC Book Tours
Release Date: June 30, 2015
Stanton Rourke lives life on the edge. The steely mercenary is dangerous in every way…especially to Clarisse Carrington's heart. She and Rourke were playmates as children, but she's not the innocent girl he once knew. When tragedy robbed Clarisse of her entire family, her life was changed forever. Besides, she's a grown woman now, and there are secrets that hold her back from succumbing to her pursuer. As she struggles to keep her distance, sparks as hot as a Texas summer fly between them. But danger is following Clarisse, leaving her no choice but to rely on Rourke, even as the old wounds lying dormant between them flare up again…

Excerpt

Chapter 2

Rourke spent the night getting drunk. He was out of his mind from his father’s revelations. Tat had loved him. He’d pushed her away, for her own good, but in doing so, he’d damaged her so badly that he’d turned her into little better than a call girl.

He remembered her in Barrera, her blouse soaked in blood that even a washing hadn’t removed, the stitches just above one of her perfect small breasts where that animal, Miguel, had cut her trying to extract information about General Emilio Machado’s invasion of the country.

Blog Tour (Excerpt): A Match for Marcus Cynster by Stephanie Laurens #Giveaway

Title: A Match for Marcus Cynster (Cynsters #23)
Author: Stephanie Laurens
Publisher: MIRA (Harlequin)
Tour Organizer: TLC Book Tours
Release Date: May 26, 2015
Duty compels her to turn her back on marriage. Fate drives him to protect her come what may. Then love takes a hand in this battle of yearning hearts, stubborn wills, and a match too powerful to deny. #1 New York Times bestselling author Stephanie Laurens returns to rugged Scotland with a dramatic tale of passionate desire and unwavering devotion. Restless and impatient, Marcus Cynster waits for Fate to come calling. He knows his destiny lies in the lands surrounding his family home, but what will his future be and with whom will he share it?

Of one fact he feels certain: his fated bride will not be Niniver Carrick. His elusive neighbor attracts him mightily, yet he feels compelled to protect her—even from himself. Fickle Fate, he’s sure, would never be so kind as to decree that Niniver should be his. The best he can do for them both is to avoid her.

Niniver has vowed to return her clan to prosperity. The epitome of fragile femininity, her delicate and ethereal exterior cloaks a stubborn will and an unflinching devotion to the people in her care. She accepts that she cannot risk marrying and losing her grip on the clan’s reins to an inevitably controlling husband. Unfortunately, many local men see her as their opportunity.

Soon, she’s forced to seek help to get rid of her unwelcome suitors. Powerful and dangerous, Marcus Cynster is perfect for the task. Suppressing her wariness over tangling with a gentleman who so excites her passions, she appeals to him for assistance with her peculiar problem.

Although at first he resists, Marcus discovers that, contrary to his expectations, his fated role is to stand by Niniver’s side and, ultimately, to claim her hand. Yet in order to convince her to be his bride, they must plunge headlong into a journey full of challenges, unforeseen dangers, passion, and yearning, until Niniver grasps the essential truth—that she is indeed a match for Marcus Cynster.

Excerpt

In the end, it was agreed that, without any fanfare, Sir Godfrey would reopen the cases of her father’s and the Burns sisters’ deaths, and exonerate Nigel of the crimes by virtue of Nolan’s confession and the subsequent confirmation that it was, indeed, he who had been the villain in all three cases. Catriona, who, through her position as Lady of the Vale, maintained a close connection with the local minister, volunteered to explain matters to Reverend Foyle, thus easing the way for the clan to arrange the appropriate funeral and burials.

Waiting on Wednesday (106): Cast in Honor by Michelle Sagara

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



Title: Cast in Honor (Chronicles of Elantra #11)
Author: Michelle Sagara
Publisher: MIRA (Harlequin)
Release Date: November 24, 2015
In the aftermath of a vicious battle between darkness and light, the city of Elantra has emerged victorious. But Shadows continue to haunt every corner of its streets...

Elantra stands strong, but countless numbers of Hawks, the city's staunchest protectors, were lost in the brutal attack. Humans, Barrani, Aerians, Leontines—none of the races emerged unscathed from the defense of the city. Homes were lost, families were scattered…and the outcast Barrani Lord Nightshade is missing from his castle in the fiefs.

Yet as the chaos surrounding the battle begins to wane, Private Kaylin Neya's duties must resume, despite her grief. Called in to investigate a triple murder in a quiet part of town, Kaylin and her companions are soon embroiled in a case that is anything but routine. Evidence of the deadly Shadows that still threaten the city leads to hints of ancient, forgotten magics. And a visit to the Oracular Halls points directly to Ravellon—the heart of the Shadows and the darkness they contain.

But it is there that Lord Nightshade will be found—if he still survives.


The Chronicles of Elantra is a solid fantasy series, and I can't wait to read the next one. The world has a really cool concept, and it's one that I really hadn't quite seen before. It was a little hard to grasp for the first book, but by the third book I was hooked. The series is even better on audio, because the fabulous Khristine Hvam narrates. I need to check out Sagara's other series, which she sometimes writes as Michelle Sagara West or Michelle West.

What are you waiting on this week?

Waiting on Wednesday (92): Shadow Study by Maria V. Snyder

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



Title: Shadow Study (Soulfinders #1)
Author: Maria V. Snyder
Publisher: Mira (Harlequin)
Release Date: February 24, 2015
Once, only her own life hung in the balance.

Oddly enough, when Yelena was a poison taster, her life was simpler. But she'd survived to become a vital part of the balance of power between rival countries Ixia and Sitia. Now she uses her magic to keep the peace in both lands and protect her relationship with Valek.

Suddenly, though, they are beset on all sides by those vying for power through politics and intrigue. Valek's job - and his life - are in danger. As Yelena tries to uncover the scope of these plots, she faces a new challenge: her magic is blocked. She must keep that a secret - or her enemies will discover just how vulnerable she really is - while searching for who or what is responsible for neutralizing her powers.

Yes, the days of tasting poisons were much simpler. And certainly not as dangerous


Poison Study is one of my all-time favorite fantasy books. The trilogy kind of went a little crazy with book three, but I have high hopes for this new series. Plus, I get more Yelena and Valek, one of my all-time favorite couples! YES!! It's not available for pre-order on Audible yet, but I'm hoping it will be available on release day.

What are you waiting on this week?

Blog Tour (Review and Giveaway): Freedom to Love by Susanna Fraser

Title: Freedom to Love
Author: Susanna Fraser
Publisher: Carina Press (Harlequin)
Release Date: January 5, 2014
Acquired Via: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours
Louisiana, 1815

Thérèse Bondurant trusted her parents to provide for her and her young half-sister, though they never wed due to laws against mixed-race marriage. But when both die of a fever, Thérèse learns her only inheritance is debt—and her father’s promise that somewhere on his plantation lies a buried treasure. To save her own life—as well as that of her sister—she’ll need to find it before her white cousins take possession of the land.

British officer Henry Farlow, dazed from a wound received in battle outside New Orleans, stumbles onto Thérèse’s property out of necessity. But he stays because he’s become captivated by her intelligence and beauty. It’s thanks to Thérèse’s tender care that he regains his strength just in time to fend off her cousin, inadvertently killing the would-be rapist in the process.

Though he risks being labeled a deserter, it’s much more than a sense of duty that compels Henry to see the sisters to safety—far away from the scene of the crime. And Thérèse realizes she has come to rely on Henry for so much more than protection. On their journey to freedom in England, they must navigate a territory that’s just as foreign to them both—love.

Praise for the novels of Susanna Fraser

“[Susanna Fraser is] a go-to writer for Regency romance that is actually set in the Regency rather than in that Never-Neverland mash-up that’s been dubbed ‘The Recency’ or ‘Almackistan.’” — Willaful at Karen Knows Best

“This is easily one of the best historical romances I’ve read.” — Romantic Historical Reviews on An Infamous Marriage

“…the romance in this story was very sweet. Sydney was immediately relatable and likeable, because she faced such a serious conflict and wanted to make an ethical decision that would preserve the lives of her loved ones.” — Dear Author on Christmas Past

My Review

I enjoyed Freedom to Love even though I don't normally read historical romance set in pre-Civil War America. I liked that it discussed tough issues surrounding slavery and mixed-race couples in that time period. I wish that it would have been set more in New Orleans (less than 20% is set there) and had less of a concentration on English customs in the later parts of the book.

Blog Tour (Excerpt & Giveaway): Night of a Thousand Stars by Deanna Raybourn

Title: Night of a Thousand Stars
Author: Deanna Raybourn
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Release Date: October 1, 2014
Acquired Via: Historical Fiction Blog Tours
New York Times bestselling author Deanna Raybourn returns with a Jazz Age tale of grand adventure...

On the verge of a stilted life as an aristocrat’s wife, Poppy Hammond does the only sensible thing—she flees the chapel in her wedding gown. Assisted by the handsome curate who calls himself Sebastian Cantrip, she spirits away to her estranged father’s quiet country village, pursued by the family she left in uproar. But when the dust of her broken engagement settles and Sebastian disappears under mysterious circumstances, Poppy discovers there is more to her hero than it seems.

With only her feisty lady’s maid for company, Poppy secures employment and travels incognita—east across the seas, chasing a hunch and the whisper of clues. Danger abounds beneath the canopies of the silken city, and Poppy finds herself in the perilous sights of those who will stop at nothing to recover a fabled ancient treasure. Torn between allegiance to her kindly employer and a dashing, shadowy figure, Poppy will risk it all as she attempts to unravel a much larger plan—one that stretches to the very heart of the British government, and one that could endanger everything, and everyone, that she holds dear.

Excerpt

Chapter One
March 1920

“I say, if you’re running away from your wedding, you’re going about it quite wrong.”

I paused with my leg out the window, satin wedding gown hitched up above my knees. A layer of tulle floated over my face, obscuring my view. I shoved it aside to find a tall, bespectacled young man standing behind me. His expression was serious, but there was an unmistakable gleam in his eyes that was distinctly at odds with his clerical garb.

“Oh! Are you the curate? I know you can’t be the vicar. I met him last night at the rehearsal and he’s simply ancient. Looks like Methuselah’s godfather. You’re awfully young to be a priest, aren’t you?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at him.

“But I’m wearing a dog collar. I must be,” he protested. “And as I said, if you’re running away, you’ve gone about it quite stupidly.”

Review: The Lost by Sarah Beth Durst

Title: The Lost (The Lost #1)
Author: Sarah Beth Durst
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Acquired Via: NetGalley
Release Date: May 27, 2014
Award-winning author Sarah Beth Durst has been praised for her captivating novels that merge the darkly imagined with very real themes of self-discovery and destiny. In The Lost, we'll discover just what it means to lose one's way…

It was only meant to be a brief detour. But then Lauren finds herself trapped in a town called Lost on the edge of a desert, filled with things abandoned, broken and thrown away. And when she tries to escape, impassible dust storms and something unexplainable lead her back to Lost again and again. The residents she meets there tell her she's going to have to figure out just what she's missing—and what she's running from—before she can leave. So now Lauren's on a new search for a purpose and a destiny. And maybe, just maybe, she'll be found…

Against the backdrop of this desolate and mystical town, Sarah Beth Durst writes an arresting, fantastical novel of one woman's impossible journey…and her quest to find her fate.

My Review

The Lost has been my most surprising read of 2014 so far. The story was not at all what I was expecting from the synopsis. In fact, I almost put the book down after a few pages. I don’t read anything sad that has someone suffering from cancer. But, by the time I had read that, I had already fallen in the love with Durst’s writing style. There were multiple times that the main character’s inner thoughts made me laugh out loud. And I connected completely Lauren from the beginning. It was one of the few books that I’ve read that the writing itself could have made me read the entire book, not the plot, not the characters, not the mystery. Just the writing. Good thing that the plot, mystery and characters were also spectacular.

Review: The Girl with the Windup Heart by Kady Cross

Title: The Girl with the Windup Heart (Steampunk Chronicles #4)
Author: Kady Cross
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Acquired Via: NetGalley
Release Date: May 27, 2014
In 1897 London, a final showdown is about to begin.

London's underworld is no place for a young woman, even one who is strong, smart and part-automaton like Mila. But when master criminal Jack Dandy inadvertently breaks her heart, she takes off, determined to find an independent life, one entirely her own. Her search takes her to the spangled shadows of the West End's most dazzling circus.

Meanwhile, taken captive in the Aether, Griffin King is trapped in an inescapable prison, and at the mercy of his archenemy, The Machinist. If he breaks under the hellish torment, The Machinist will claim his powers and control of the Aether itself, and no one in either world will be safe-especially not Finley Jayne and her misfit band of friends.

Finley plunges headlong into the Aether the only way she knows how, by temporarily dying. But she cannot parry The Machinist's maneuvers for long. To defeat him for good, Griffin will have to confront his greatest fear and finally come face-to-face with the destructive power he wields.

My Review

I really loved the first book in the series, The Girl in the Steel Corset, and its The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen feel. But each book has gotten progressively less enjoyable to me. It took me a long time to read The Girl with the Windup Heart, a lot longer than any other book has taken in the past few years other than the Song of Ice and Fire series (and those books are at least twice as long as this one). Partly because life has gone crazy and I barely have time to do anything just for me, but partly because I wasn’t compelled to read it. I didn’t have that urge to pick up the book, needing to know what happened. Which is strange because a lot of situations in this book should have been suspenseful.

Waiting on Wednesday (55): The Dark World by Cara Lynn Shultz

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



Title: The Dark World (The Dark World #1)
Author: Cara Lynn Shultz
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Release Date: May 27, 2014
Paige Kelly is used to weird--in fact, she probably corners the market on weird, considering that her best friend, Dottie, has been dead since the 1950s. But when a fire demon attacks Paige in detention, she has to admit that things have gotten out of her league. Luckily, the cute new boy in school, Logan Bradley, is a practiced demon slayer-and he isn't fazed by Paige's propensity to chat with the dead. Suddenly, Paige is smack in the middle of a centuries-old battle between warlocks and demons, learning to fight with a magic sword so that she can defend herself. And if she makes one wrong move, she'll be pulled into the Dark World, an alternate version of our world that's overrun by demons-and she might never make it home.


This comes out next week! I just adore that cover. And, of course, the synopsis had me at warlocks and magic sword. Plus, I've been meaning to read Shultz's Spellbound series, anyway. Maybe I'll start with this one instead.

What are you waiting on this week?

Waiting on Wednesday (32): Taste of Darkness by Maria V. Snyder

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



Title: Taste of Darkness (Healer #3)
Author: Maria V. Snyder
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Release Date: December 31, 2013

She's fought death and won. But how can she fight her fears?

Avry knows hardship and trouble. She fought the plague and survived. She took on King Tohon and defeated him. But now her heart-mate, Kerrick, is missing, and Avry fears he's gone forever.

But there's a more immediate threat. The Skeleton King plots to claim the Fifteen Realms for his own. With armies in disarray and the dead not staying down, Avry's healing powers are needed now more than ever.Torn between love and loyalty, Avry must choose her path carefully. For the future of her world depends on her decision.


Maria Snyder’s Study series was phenomenal, and this Healer series has a similar feel. And after the cliffhanger ending in Scent of Magic, I am dying to get my hands on this one!

What are you waiting on this week?