Archive for the ‘reviews’ Category

i Read Book Tour Logo Medium

As I promised, I have my review of Death Logs In.

This is an interesting, deep, dangerous series that continues the story of Michael, his brother, Alex, and the many characters that make it happen.

I’ve included my review of the first book, Death Never Sleeps, so you don’t have to leave this post.

Come on in. Enter the world of sports betting, loan sharks, and corporate CEOs. A high tech modern story that brings to mind the title of a movie, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.

And don’t forget to enter the giveaway!

~~~

Death Logs In (Book Two)
.
Death Logs In
.
.

My Review

Book Two so I’ll try not to spoil it for you.

After reading the first book, Death Never Sleeps, I really liked Michael Cross. He was drawn into his brothers life, entered the world of sports betting and loan sharking, and came out of it intact. Well, not out of it. He”s still running his brothers business while maintaining his clean image as CEO of a large corporation. It’s the fact he’s still alive, is what I meant.

Right at the beginning, Michael does something that has me doing a 180 about him. It’s so typical, yet so maddening. I almost took away a star in my rating because of it. Then, I laughed at myself, realizing it’s not right to judge a person, even a fictional one. There’s no excuse , in my book, for what he did, but there ya go.

I also thought about it and it came to me that this could easily occur. Michael is moving in two worlds and his brother’s is seamy, yet alluring. It’s bound to change someone, moving through that life. I was hoping he would redeem himself.

From here on out I’m giving you a spoiler alert warning. So you may want to stop here if you haven’t read the first book. Nothing major but it does reveal some of what happened in the first book.

I’m finally able to talk about Alex. He’s dead, yet alive. Through his investment in artificial intelligence software, he’s alive, but only in the computer.

I believe this may come in the future. We’ve seen the movies. We’ve seen the explosion of new break throughs in the computer and cell phone areas. Why can’t someone transfer their memories, their personalities into a program, and then have that program take on a life of it’s own, learning and developing emotions, becoming that person.

Michael’s going to need his brothers help to dodge those out to get him. They are coming from different angles so he’s had to hire a bodyguard. The mysterious and deadly,Sindy Steele.

I had my doubts about her, and came to dislike her intensely. I didn’t trust Sindy and didn’t like what she was up to. But she was good at her job. I was left wondering who’s  interests she was really serving as the story progressed.

I finally got to read more about Michael’s wife, Sofia. I mentioned in my review of the first book that I wanted more of her, admired her mojo. She brought it to this story and had a much bigger role to play. I knew I’d love her.

Lots was going in this second book. The danger is ramped up, old and new characters have some intriguing stories to give you more to ponder, and the finale comes too soon.

I’m hoping for the next book. There has to be one. I want to know who lives, who dies, who does what to who next. And there is! Death Logs Out, the third book, will be releasing in the fall of 2015. Get started on this series now so you’ll be ready.

4 Stars

~~~~

Synopsis

Some of the most powerful people in the world want to kill Michael Nicholas. Only his brother, Alex can save him – the problem is that Alex is dead.It’s been almost a year since Alex Nicholas, a Queens based underworld Boss, was gunned down. After Alex’s brutal murder, Michael inherited not only his brother’s business – but his enemies. Michael is now a key player in a world he once feared. By day, he is the head of a Fortune 500 company by night, the CEO of Tartarus, one of the worlds largest illegal gambling operations.

Before his death, Alex invested heavily in breakthrough artificial intelligence software so that he could live forever. It worked. In his virtual form, Alex can communicate with Michael and monitor information – and people – in ways the NSA would envy.

It is Alex who discovers Michael’s life is in danger. He detects plots that reach from the darkest corners of Queens, to the highest officials in the Vatican – and they all want Michael dead.

Michael is now in a race to save his life, but he is never alone – Alex is there to help him navigate through this maze of life and death. Also protecting Michael from the forces closing in around him is Sindy Steele, a beautiful – and lethal bodyguard.

How far is Michael willing to go to save his own life – and that of his family? Guided only by a familiar face on a computer screen, will the information Alex discovers allow Michael to go from being the hunted to the hunter?

~~~

Death Never Sleeps (Book One)
.
Death Never Sleeps Cover
.
My Review
.
His well ordered life is about to change. Michael Cross is a corporate CEO with a wonderful wife and a successful career.
.
Then his brother, Alex, gets gunned down and he’s drawn into the underbelly of loan sharks and illegal betting.
As Michael digs to discover his brothers murderer, he becomes involved in his brothers business, with all of the ugliness and danger it entails.
.
A mysterious message has him wondering.
Is his brother really dead? Has to be. He saw the body, saw him buried. The author took me for a spin into the question of life after death, both philisophical and technical.
.
Other weird things happen and people are out to get him, even threatening the life of his wife. Now the race is on to solve the murder before everything he values is eliminated.
.
One of the things I enjoyed most about this book was Michael. His character rang true. The author shared his thoughts, which made his decisions and actions genuine and understandable.
.
I could see where the allure of the dark side of business would captivate Michael. He’s bored with his uptight legal career. Kind of like an early mid life crisis.
.
And keeping his brother distant in his life, trying to keep his brothers chosen life from tainting his, has left him feeling guilty.
.
Things took an interesting turn when Michael started getting messages. Messages from his dead brother, Alex. The author had me very intrigued and I wondered if Alex was really dead. As the story developed, I wondered even more. And wished he were alive. His character was very prominent even though he was dead. Very good mystery there.
.
From his brothers many ex wives to his right hand men, brothers Skinny and Fat Lester, a couple of characters more for show than for muscle, to the villains, of which there were some creepy ones, what you’d expect from the illegal side of money exchange, the characters were plenty and and entertaining, to say the least.
.
One thing I  felt was lacking was more about Michael’s wife, Sofia. I felt that she needed to play a more prominent role in the story. What I did read about her had me liking her mojo.  I hope to read more about her in the next book.
.
I zipped through this book quickly. The short chapters kept the pace flying. The characters were diverse and likeable, or not, and the suspense and mystery were developed well, keeping me interested and on my toes.
.
4 Stars
.
~~~~
.
 Synopsis

The problem with Alex Nicholas is that he won’t stay dead.Alex Nicholas was the consummate Queens bookie: fast cars and even faster women, and friends in all the wrong places. As an illegal sports betting and loan shark king in New York City, Alex was fearless-until the night his luck ran out and someone leveled the silver barrel of an automatic on him and pulled the trigger.

Michael Nicholas was everything his brother Alex was not: a powerful, married straight-arrow corporate CEO living the American Dream. Their two worlds collide when Michael discovers his brother’s secret laptop.

As Michael crosses the globe to find his brother’s murder, can he avoid his brother’s fate? And can the information contained in the laptop help Alex reach out to help Michael-from beyond the grave.

~~~

Author’s Bio:

death logs in E.J. Simon

E.J. Simon was the CEO of GMAC Global Relocation Services (a division of GM) and the Managing Director of Douglas Elliman, the largest real estate company in NY.

He is a consultant to many leading private equity firms and has held senior level positions at prominent financial services companies.

He is a world traveler, food enthusiast and lives in Connecticut. Death Never Sleeps is his first novel. His second novel, Death Logs In, will be available in October 2014.

Connect with him:  Website  ~  Facebook  ~  Twitter

Where to buy the book:

Amazon ~  Barnes and Noble ~Chapters Indigo

~~~

Trailer

~~~

giveaway photo: Giveaway Banner for 42nd giveaway.png

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

~~~

Click on the banner below to follow the tour for more fun stops!

i Read Button small

~~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

For all of my giveaways click on the  Southern Christmas Charm below.

christmas sleigh photo: Christmas abulb22.gif

A League of Her Own tour banner
This is my stop during the blog tour for A League of Her Own by Karen Rock.

This blog tour is organized by Lola’s Blog Tours.

The blog tour runs from 1 till 14 December, you can view the complete tour schedule on the website of Lola’s Blog Tours.

A League of Her OwnA League of Her Own
By Karen Rock
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age category: Adult
Release Date: 1 December, 2014

Blurb:
He was attractive, talented…and way off limits.

Heather Gadway may have been a world-class college pitcher and a top university coach, but she’s a rank amateur when it comes to managing the Falcons, her father’s struggling minor league team. And when it comes to managing her aggravating attraction to Garrett Wolf, their talented new pitcher. It’s going to be difficult enough to make it as the first female manager in the league and prove to her overly critical father she’s worthy. No distractions. No missteps. And certainly no romances with players. Everything stands between them—including their troubled pasts—even as Heather’s world falls apart and Garrett’s the one who’s there to catch her…

~~~~~

MY REVIEW

This was a sweet romance. It also had a lot of depth to it.

Heathers return home after her father has a stroke is difficult. Even after proving herself as a winning pitcher and coaching a team of her own, her father is hesitant to let her manage their minor league baseball team.

 Heather felt like no matter how successful she was, her father was never satisfied. Determined to prove she can do it, she’s all business until she bumps heads with the new pitcher, Garrett Wolf. Her attraction to him is strong. But she knows better than to mix business with pleasure.

As her feelings for Garrett grow stronger, so does her need to prove herself to her father and to save the team.

Heather and Garrett are strongly written.

She’s  vulnerable where her dad is concerned. Still feeds a need to gain his approval. And her mother’s return after many years of absence has Heather reeling. I could understand what she wanted from her father, but felt she forgave her mother too easily. Growing up with a drug addict for a mother and then to be abandoned by her for years had to leave some lasting scars and a boat load of anger. How she chooses to forgive and to trust takes strength though.

Garrett also wrestles with some demons. His alcoholism is put to the test daily. He’s bound and determined to stay sober and take advantage of the second chance Heather’s father gave him when he signed him.  Can he accept Heather’s instruction to improve his pitching? Can he stay away from her? Resist her allure? The poor guy has a lot on his plate.

I liked his vulnerability. His determination. Garrett’s issues with alcohol stem from something that happened in his past. When he stepped in to mentor a foster boy, Levi, he showed his true character.

A feel good story with a slow blooming, sweet romance, flawed characters who have you pulling for them, and baseball. What more could you ask for.

4 Stars

A little tease I want to share from the book:

When he caught her stare, he nodded and shrugged, a small smile tugging up the corners of his handsome mouth. Inside, she melted. There was a difference between a good-looking man and a good-looking, good-hearted man, and Garrett was the latter. Infinitely more attractive.

~~~~

Enjoy this glimpse inside:

Garrett’s grumbling teammates filed out of the pre-game meeting, followed by the coaches and Heather’s father. Garrett, however, remained in his seat, watching the lithe young woman as she stood by the door.

At last she turned to him.

“We meet again. Garrett, right?”

He stood and strode to the door. When he stopped, her eyes widened, caution swimming in their depths.

“You mentioned having individual meetings,” he said, keeping his voice even, hiding the irritation shimmering through him. “I thought we’d have ours now.”

She blinked up at him, and her lips moved. Though he strained to hear, he couldn’t make out what she’d said.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t catch that.”

A bright pink suffused her cheeks, and he forced himself not to notice how pretty the color made her.

“I said that I haven’t finished my notes for you yet. I’ll watch you pitch tomorrow. We’ll meet after that.”

He had to give it to her. Soft-spoken or not, she had a direct way about her. He didn’t doubt that she could lead…just not professional baseball players. “That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. I’m requesting to be released from my contract. This isn’t the right place for me to advance in my career.”

Her mobile face stilled. “And why would that be?”

“Look, I’ll be blunt.” He tapped his fingers on the sides of his legs. “This team isn’t hustling, and it’ll be a long time before they come around to supporting you. Things will get worse instead of better. I have a limited window of opportunity to advance. Given these factors, my bottom-line pitching won’t look good with a losing team behind me. I’d like to help you, but selfishly, this is my last shot.”

A speculative gleam entered her eyes. “So you’re asking to be released because you think I can’t help you reach your goals.”

A long breath rushed out of him. She was going to be reasonable. “That’d be great. Thank you.”

She arched an eyebrow. “You’re wrong, and I’ll be as frank with you as you were with me.”

His relief turned to irritation. So she wasn’t going to make this easy. He held his tongue and waited to hear her out.

“I think you’re overvaluing yourself.” She nodded when his mouth dropped open. Guys talked this way to each other. Not women…especially not pretty women…to him.

“Your control isn’t where it should be, and if that’s not addressed, you’ll also be another reason why this team isn’t doing well. But you have potential, and I can help you.”

“Right,” he scoffed. What could a softball pitcher do for him? “No offense, but I need someone with more experience.”

She tapped her chin and angled her head, her eyes flashing up at him. “If I can change your mind about that, will you drop your request and give me your support and a hundred percent effort?”

He held in a laugh. Was she for real? There wasn’t a chance she could change his decision. “What do you have in mind?”

She stepped closer, and her subtle citrus scent curled beneath his nose.

“A contest. If I get more strikes out of twenty pitches than you do, you stay. If you have more, then I’ll release you.”

He stared at her. Processing. She couldn’t be serious. Sure, he had control issues, but he was still better than a college-level player. She was making this easy. But if she was foolish enough to offer him this out, he’d take it.

They eyed each other for a long, tense moment before he jerked his chin at her.

“You’re on.”

~~~~

You can find A League of Her Own on Goodreads.

You can buy A League of Her Own here:
Amazon (Kindle) ~ Barnes & Noble ~ Kobo ~ eHarlequin

Karen RockAbout the Author:
Karen Rock is an award-winning YA and adult contemporary romance author. She holds a master’s degree in English and worked as an ELA instructor before becoming a full-time writer. Currently she writes for Harlequin Heartwarming and her first novel for the line, WISH ME TOMORROW, has won the 2014 Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence, the 2014 Golden Quill Contest and a finalist in the Published Maggie Awards. The first novel in her co-authored YA series, CAMP BOYFRIEND, has been a finalist in the Booksellers Best and Golden Leaf awards.

.

You can find and connect with Karen here:

Website ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Goodreads ~ Tumblr ~ Quarterly Newsletter

~~~~

giveaway photo: Giveaway Banner for 42nd giveaway.png

I have two giveaways today.

The first is for an eBook copy of A League of her own (Open Internationally

or your choice of eBook or Print copy (Open US ONLY)

To enter, please leave your email address so I can contact you if you win and answer this question:

“What’s your favorite sport to go with your romance read?”

And there is a tour wide giveaway for the blog tour of A League of Her Own. These are the prizes you can win:
a 100$ Amazon gift card (INT)
a set of signed paperback of Wish Me Tomorrow, His Hometown Girl, Someone Like You and A League of Her Own (US only)

A League of Her Own Blog Tour Grand Prize

For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway


Lola's Blog Tours

~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

For all of my giveaways click on the  Southern Christmas Charm below.

christmas sleigh photo: Christmas abulb22.gif

the sham tour banner

I love the cover art for The Sham.

It makes you curious.

Is her hair blowing in the wind?

Is she under the water?

And what is The Sham?

Come on in and find out.

And don’t forget to enter the giveaway!

~~~

The Sham

by Ellen Allen

The Sham_ cover (1)

Release Date: 09/07/14

238 pages

MY REVIEW

The story starts near the end and then flashes back to the beginning, six months prior. When the killings first began

Many of you may want to stop reading when you get to the second part. The past six months. The argument or How “Muzzling a Sparrow” can kill a friendship.

What happens in the park when four teenage girls gang up on a small boy defies comprehension. They are brutal to the extreme, hardly human. And one girl, Emily(Em for short), is no match for them. If it weren’t for a stranger, Jack, she couldn’t have stopped them.

Don’t let this stop you from continuing. I won’t tell you there isn’t more blood shed. There is a serial killer preying on the teenagers. And one by one they disappear,  later to be found dead.

The small town of Clevesham in southern England is in an uproar. All fear to be out at night. And no one knows who will be next.

Surreal is a good word to describe how I felt while reading The Sham. Most of the time I felt like Emily was trying to describe a dream.

You know how hard that is. No matter what you try, words can’t describe the disjointed, out of body, out of mind, feel of a dream.

I pictured the town as nestled in a hollow, dreary and dank, as it’s winter. Kind of sets the mood for what happens next.

One by one the people in the park that night turn up dead. Dogs howl in the dark. Strange words are written all over town. As their numbers dwindle, I have no clue who will be next.

I was hoping Emily would be a survivor. That she’d make it to graduation and hightail it out of there. With or without Jack.

Where to begin about Jack. He had no memories before arriving in The Sham. He seemed to have to eat constantly to refuel. He appeared to feel what others are feeling. And he spoke in half sentences, his mind jumping all over the place. I figured he was either nuts, a liar, or something else. Maybe something not human.

I don’t think I’ve read a more disquieting story. I felt ill at ease through most of it. Like I stepped out of ordinary into strange, lacking need to know information.

When I finally got my answers I was floored. Not once, but twice. I finally knew who was doing the killing. And I finally knew what was up with Jack.

Looking back, there are a couple of clues I missed. I didn’t pick up on them because of how distorted the story was. The author did an excellent job of camouflaging them.

I’m left wondering where the story goes from here. I’d sure like to know.

4 Stars

~~~

Summary from Goodreads:

When love leads to death, be careful who you trust…

Eighteen-year-old Emily Heath would love to leave her dead-end town, known locally as “The Sham”, with her boyfriend, Jack, but he’s very, very sick; his body is failing and his brain is shutting down. He’s also in hiding, under suspicion of murder. Six months’ ago, strange signs were painted across town in a dialect no one has spoken for decades and one of Emily’s classmates washed up in the local floods.

Emily has never trusted her instincts and now they’re pulling her towards Jack, who the police think is a sham himself, someone else entirely. As the town wakes to discover new signs plastered across its walls, Emily must decide who and what she trusts, and fast: local vigilantes are hunting Jack; the floods, the police, and her parents are blocking her path; and the town doesn’t need another dead body.

WARNING: THIS BOOK IS UNSUITABLE FOR YOUNGER TEENAGE READERS. IT DEPICTS ADULT SITUATIONS, MURDER SCENES, CONVERSATIONS ABOUT SEX AND PROFANITY.

NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: The idea for this book came to me in a nightmare… It was so vivid that I imagined I was 17 again, at school, in the same group of 4 friends that I used to hang around with. We were involved in a murder and cover-up. I started writing partly as a way to get it out of my head and then the characters turned into real people… and Emily and Jack were born.

As some of the early reviewers have stated, it is quite extreme in chapter one, and necessarily so. This is the incident that sets up the whole book; something awful happens that sets off a train of events for the characters. This book is a mystery in two ways in that we’re: 1) trying to find out who killed Emily’s classmate; and 2) trying to work out who Jack is. I hope you enjoy it!

c8df8-add2bto2bgoodreads2bblack

Buy Links:

Amazon│Barnes & Noble│iBooks│Amazon UK

 

About the Author

the sham ellen allen

I’ve just finished writing my first book, so I’ve been busy trying to work out how all the pieces fit together – the planning, the plot, the rules, the imagination, the characters, the grammar, the structure, the endgame… there’s too much stuff to remember and a lot of the information that I’ve discovered online about how to write isn’t that good or even well written (the irony in reading advice on writing that isn’t well written…)

 

So I decided I needed to find somewhere to store the good stuff. Then it occurred to me that other people might find it useful too. So here it is. My online reference tool of all the useful (i.e. good) advice for writers-to-be. I only post here when I have something really useful to say about the craft (Twitter is for daily musings, Goodreads to review and Amazon to buy my work); it’s all about the quality here, folks, not the quantity… Enjoy!

 

Website│Goodreads│Twitter│Facebook

 

giveaway photo: Giveaway Banner for 42nd giveaway.png

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Book Tour Organized by:

YA Bound Book Tours

Click on the banner below to follow the tour for more fun stops.

YA Bound Book Tours

~~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

For all of my giveaways click on the  Southern Christmas Charm below.

christmas sleigh photo: Christmas abulb22.gif

i Read Book Tour Logo Medium

I’m always in for a good mystery.

E.J. Simon has a couple of winners in Death Never Sleeps and Death Logs In.

For today, I’ll be sharing my review of Death Never Sleeps.

Make sure to stop back by Thursday, the 11th, for my review of Death Logs In.

And don’t forget to enter the giveaway!

~~~

Death Never Sleeps (Book One)
.
Death Never Sleeps Cover
.
.
.c8df8-add2bto2bgoodreads2bblack
.
My Review
His well ordered life is about to change. Michael Cross is a corporate CEO with a wonderful wife and a successful career.
Then his brother, Alex, gets gunned down and he’s drawn into the underbelly of loan sharks and illegal betting.
As Michael digs to discover his brothers murderer, he becomes involved in his brothers business, with all of the ugliness and danger it entails.
.
A mysterious message has him wondering.
Is his brother really dead? Has to be. He saw the body, saw him buried. The author took me for a spin into the question of life after death, both philisophical and technical.
.
Other weird things happen and people are out to get him, even threatening the life of his wife. Now the race is on to solve the murder before everything he values is eliminated.
.
One of the things I enjoyed most about this book was Michael. His character rang true. The author shared his thoughts, which made his decisions and actions genuine and understandable.
.
I could see where the allure of the dark side of business would captivate Michael. He’s bored with his uptight legal career. Kind of like an early mid life crisis.
.
And keeping his brother distant in his life, trying to keep his brothers chosen life from tainting his, has left him feeling guilty.
.
Things took an interesting turn when Michael started getting messages. Messages from his dead brother, Alex. The author had me very intrigued and I wondered if Alex was really dead. As the story developed, I wondered even more. And wished he were alive. His character was very prominent even though he was dead. Very good mystery there.
.
From his brothers many ex wives to his right hand men, brothers Skinny and Fat Lester, a couple of characters more for show than for muscle, to the villains, of which there were some creepy ones, what you’d expect from the illegal side of money exchange, the characters were plenty and and entertaining, to say the least.
.
One thing I  felt was lacking was more about Michael’s wife, Sofia. I felt that she needed to play a more prominent role in the story. What I did read about her had me liking her mojo.  I hope to read more about her in the next book.
.
I zipped through this book quickly. The short chapters kept the pace flying. The characters were diverse and likeable, or not, and the suspense and mystery were developed well, keeping me interested and on my toes.
 .
4 Stars
.
 .
Synopsis

The problem with Alex Nicholas is that he won’t stay dead. Alex Nicholas was the consummate Queens bookie: fast cars and even faster women, and friends in all the wrong places. As an illegal sports betting and loan shark king in New York City, Alex was fearless-until the night his luck ran out and someone leveled the silver barrel of an automatic on him and pulled the trigger.

Michael Nicholas was everything his brother Alex was not: a powerful, married straight-arrow corporate CEO living the American Dream. Their two worlds collide when Michael discovers his brother’s secret laptop.

As Michael crosses the globe to find his brother’s murder, can he avoid his brother’s fate? And can the information contained in the laptop help Alex reach out to help Michael-from beyond the grave.

.
~~~~
Death Logs In (Book Two)
.
Death Logs In.
.
c8df8-add2bto2bgoodreads2bblack.

Some of the most powerful people in the world want to kill Michael Nicholas. Only his brother, Alex can save him – the problem is that Alex is dead.It’s been almost a year since Alex Nicholas, a Queens based underworld Boss, was gunned down. After Alex’s brutal murder, Michael inherited not only his brother’s business – but his enemies. Michael is now a key player in a world he once feared. By day, he is the head of a Fortune 500 company by night, the CEO of Tartarus, one of the worlds largest illegal gambling operations.

Before his death, Alex invested heavily in breakthrough artificial intelligence software so that he could live forever. It worked. In his virtual form, Alex can communicate with Michael and monitor information – and people – in ways the NSA would envy.

It is Alex who discovers Michael’s life is in danger. He detects plots that reach from the darkest corners of Queens, to the highest officials in the Vatican – and they all want Michael dead.

Michael is now in a race to save his life, but he is never alone – Alex is there to help him navigate through this maze of life and death. Also protecting Michael from the forces closing in around him is Sindy Steele, a beautiful – and lethal bodyguard.

How far is Michael willing to go to save his own life – and that of his family? Guided only by a familiar face on a computer screen, will the information Alex discovers allow Michael to go from being the hunted to the hunter?

Author’s Bio:

death logs in E.J. Simon

E.J. Simon was the CEO of GMAC Global Relocation Services (a division of GM) and the Managing Director of Douglas Elliman, the largest real estate company in NY.

He is a consultant to many leading private equity firms and has held senior level positions at prominent financial services companies.

He is a world traveler, food enthusiast and lives in Connecticut. Death Never Sleeps is his first novel. His second novel, Death Logs In, will be available in October 2014.

Connect with him:  Website  ~  Facebook  ~  Twitter

Where to buy the book:

Amazon ~  Barnes and Noble ~Chapters Indigo

~~~

Trailer

~~~

giveaway photo: Giveaway Banner for 42nd giveaway.png

a Rafflecopter giveaway

~~~

Click on the banner below to follow the tour for more fun stops!

i Read Button small

~~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

For all of my giveaways click on the  Southern Christmas Charm below.

christmas sleigh photo: Christmas abulb22.gif

bookshelves photo: Bookshelf bookshelves.jpg

This is my own version of a weekly book haul and all things new on fuonlyknew.

Another fun way to share your book news and enjoy others is The Sunday Post hosted by

Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer

Head on over and leave a link to your Sunday Post and hop around to visits others.

~~~

I had this great idea for a topic to discuss and Forgot it! LOL

I can’t believe it. I was lying in bed, and this great idea came to me. I practically wrote it in my head. Thinking, surely I won’t forget this, I didn’t bother to jot down any notes. Now, it’s been several days, and I still can’t remember what the idea was!

Have you ever had that happen? I’ve had it happen while reading a book. I have this great thought to put in a review and then don’t write it down. Wake up in the morning and no clue what I was thinking the night before. So now I keep a notepad and pen by my bed. I even keep pen and paper handy in my car, just in case I think of something awesome.

But did I use it the other night when I had my epiphany? Nope! And it’s driving me nuts. LOL

Not much new has happened this week. I do have a lot of new books to share with you.

So here ya go!

~~~

Here are my new books for review.

You can click the covers to check them out on Goodreads.

12814132  16066627  18601652

And the ARC of Racing The Storm, Jay’s upcoming new release in this series.

~~~

New ones just for me!

17335553  23666459

~~~

And here are some freebies for ya!

Click on the covers to get yours and remember to make sure they’re still free before you click that buy button.

18588895     

  16029571   

21863524     

And Anthony Renfro is making all of his stories available as free downloads this month!

Click HERE to check them out!

~~~

Books I reviewed this week.

Click on the covers for my reviews.

23480947  22576187

~~~

Books I’ll be reviewing next week.

20895802  23352726  16153780

23252231  22879003  23154680

~~~

Interesting posts from around the web.

Lola has an interesting post on her blog Lola’s Reviews about book blurbs.

Roger Colby’s post ~ 10 Worst Cliches in Fiction Writing

Check out Kat Kennedy’s post ~ How to name your blog

Donna Ansari talks about Endings and her Vampire in the City Series

~~~

What I won.

Nothing new this week.

~~~

Other Posts this week.

Bewitching Brews and Devilish Desserts Holiday Giveaway

A year in the Secret Garden ~ Blasy and Giveaway

Teaser Tuesdays #90 ~ Come Along With Me

Christmas Capers ~ Holiday Book Blitz

The Mystic Princesses and the Whirlpool ~ Blast Giveaway

A witching we will go…Rehab is for Witches ~ My Review

Two new books by David Estes! Slip and Grip ~ Blitz Giveaway

4 for Friday December Giveaway Blitz

Justice Jackson P.I. ~ Free short story from Tamaria Soana

The Claus Box Set Tour ~ Journey of a Snowman Excerpt and Giveaway

The Nancy Cat by M R Shields ~ Blast and Giveaway

Bash and Lucy Fetch jealousy ~ Blast Giveaway

Merry Christmas from Anthony Renfro! All of his stories will be free!

~~~

For all of my 2014 reviews go HERE

For a list of free books go HERE

For all of my giveaways go HERE

~~~

So, what did you get to read this week?

Got any recommendations?

I’d love to know and thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew.

I’m so happy to share Rehab Is For Witches. I’ve had to wait for my stop on the tour to introduce you to these authors and their witches.

There’s snark and snortable humor galore in these pages. Plus some sweet and some steamy romance.

Beware the villain, a bad one indeed.

Come meet the witches of Little Raven. Discover their secrets. Find out why they ended up in rehab.

~~~

 Rehab is for Witches

Anthology

Various Authors

23480947

c8df8-add2bto2bgoodreads2bblack

Published By- SideStreet Cookie Publishing

Publication Date- October 31st, 2014

My review

Six authors. Six witches. And so much trouble brewing in their cauldrons.

Rehab is for Witches is just what it says. A place for witches to go when they misuse their magick. When the dark magick seduces them until they’re hooked.

There is no way I can pick a favorite story or a favorite character. Each story was so good and all of the characters came alive.

There was so much funny, so much sad, so much bad, and so much more. I loved this book.

A Diary Full of Names

Dierdre (Die for short) landed in rehab for selling bad love spells. Bear is like her probation officer. If I had to choose a favorite character, both of these would be at the top of the list.

The way her heart beats faster whenever he’s around, the way he ‘looks’ at her, listens to her, and the way he makes her blush when he teases her. These two make me feel happy.

Die is frustrated. No magick. It wasn’t her fault the penis exploded, yet she winds up in rehab with all of the other naughty witches.

Closet Full of Dreams

Behind those sunglasses and gloves hides Catherine. Sent to rehab for loving the dark side. For embracing the dark magick, for using it to control. It’s all about control with her.

Oran charms her. But Catherine is hesitant. He seems too good to be true.

And what’s with the waiter, Jorolf? He’s not a waiter, he’s something else, and he warns Catherine to watch out for Oran.

Full of attitude and bearing the scars of taking power that she shouldn’t, Catherine is half herself, half something less, or maybe more.

Cauldron Full of Goodbyes

Trista and Angus. Both duped. Both used and cast aside by someone. Someone so dark and malignant. They share that same someone.

Trista is in rehab for something really foul. She helped steal magick from a coven of witches. Drained them of their power. Not for herself though.

Angus needs her help. He’s appeals to her, hiding his true purpose. Playing on her guilt.

He did bad because of his mother. She did bad in spite of her mother.

Why did Trista’s mother throw away her magic? Maybe she should too.

His mother stole his magick. Can he get it back?

A Trunk Full of Peril

I bet a lot of people judge Circe by her looks. Lots of piercings and that blue hair. Maybe it’s her cover. A way to keep people away. She’s still in shock from a horrible loss.

Her parole office, Hadrian, wants to be so much more.

Her addiction still strong, can Circe resist the call?

Caring for her more than he should, will Hadrian set his job aside, or will he turn her in to save her?

A Basement Full of Secrets

Finally. I get to know what’s up with Gertie and her knitting needles. She’s weird but sweet.

And her love affair was tragic. Finally reunited with her childhood sweetheart, she lost him again.

Will she use her magick, her ability to bring the dead back, to have Mason again?

Should she?

A Suitcase Full of Revenge

Robie plays with fire, literally and figuratively. That’s why she stays at rehab.

She also knows things. Things about her father that could ruin his chances in the mayoral race.

Her decision on whether to expose her father is hers alone to make, as Jasper bailed on her.

Now they have come together to save someone. Can she trust Jasper? Will he bail on her again?

A Photo Full of Justice

At last we come to the end. Where all of the authors write together, each bringing their character to the grand finale.

This is where you meet the true villain, the one who can’t be mentioned.

All of the miscreants band together to face off against the dastardly foe who’s been stealing their magic. What a perfect villain.

This whole book was fantastic. Little Raven, a town for witches.

Each author gave their characters a strong voice, powerful personalities.

The therapy sessions were fun. That’s how each character is introduced as they tell why they were sent to rehab.

The snark, the dialogue, the sexy scenes.  The many quotable moments. It all charmed me.

Then the ending, which came to soon. I would love to read more about all of the characters. I’d like to know where they go from here. Do they get a happily ever after? Maybe some of them relapse. I want, I need more.

5 Stars

~~~

Blurb-

Welcome to Little Raven: an unsullied, beautiful woodland hamlet in the heart of the Midwest. The sort of place where furry creatures romp about and spend their days bursting into song.

Actually, that’s a giant pack of lies.

Little Raven is a town…for witches.

And some of those witches might have bent the rules. A teensy bit. When six magical miscreants dabble with black magic, they end up together at Incantations, the town’s rehab center for witches gone awry. It’s a slap on the wrist for naughty witches. Pretty much a daycare center so they don’t wander off and start turning people into newts on a whim. Each witch must work through her addiction to black magic, and follow the tenets designed to lead them back to the path of the straight and narrow, as boring as that sounds. Even if following the tenets sucks worse than a group round of kum-bay-ya. Which sucks. Horribly.

We will admit we are powerless over magic—that our lives have become unmanageable.

We will make a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of the Goddess as we understand Her.

We will make a searching and fearless moral and magical inventory of ourselves.

We will admit to the Goddess, to ourselves, and to another being the exact nature of our magical wrongs.

We will make a list of all persons or beings we have harmed, and become willing to make amends to them all.

We will make direct amends to such beings whenever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.

We are entirely ready to bow before the Goddess and have Her remove all our defect of character, even at the risk of being entirely stripped of our magic.

But this is just the start. There’s something rotten in Little Raven, something that seeks to take all the magic it can, and devour the inhabitants in the process. It will take the strength and power of all the witches to defeat the darkness seeping into their town, beat it back, and be rid of it forever…and maybe just make it through rehab while they’re saving the world.

The Authors & Titles-

Tara S. Wood – A Trunk Full of Peril

Tyffani Clark Kemp – A Diary Full of Names

Cynthia Valero – A Cauldron Full of Goodbyes

Miranda Stork – A Closet Full of Demons

  1. A. Howell – A Basement Full of Secrets

Elle J Rossi – A Suitcase Full of Revenge

Links-

Goodreads ~ Amazon US ~ Amazon UK ~ B&N

About the Authors-

Miranda Stork-

I’m Miranda Stork, and I’m addicted. Addicted to writing and reading books, anyway. And chocolate, but that’s another issue – no interventions, please.

I live in the middle of a forest in North Yorkshire, spending my spare time as the wild woman of the woods, scaring small children and upsetting the sheep. On the days that I feel like being civilized, or I haven’t got any unicorns to ride, I sit down and pour the tumbling thoughts in my head out onto digital paper. Mainly the thoughts and characters come out in paranormal form, with a good smattering of romance, because everyone likes a good cuddle. But you can also find strong elements of thrillers, myths, and even dystopia amongst the pages of all my novels. I’ve wanted to write books ever since I first realised that fairytales were not the newspapers of the fairy kingdom, but the imaginings of actual people who wanted to tell fancy made-up stories to other people. From that moment, I was hooked.

Why do I write? Good question. It might be easier to just keep the stories in my head, or even just to write them for myself. But I want to share them. There is no greater delight for a writer than when a reader devours your book, and declares, “Something in that novel resonated with me. And I want MORE.” So grab your lucky clover and a baseball bat (there’s some nasty paranormal creatures where we’re going), eat the cookie with ‘eat me’ tagged on it, and enter through the tiny door into the world of Miranda Stork…

And here is an excerpt from A Closet Full of Demons
Counsellor Fitzsimmons finally appeared Catherine sneered down at the buffet of soggy finger sandwiches and half-baked sausage rolls. These meetings always brought out the food snob in her, and this one was no different. Swallowing back her distaste, she settled on a plastic cup of orange squash, hugging her grey woollen coat close as she reached for it. Her dark grey eyes hidden behind fashionable shades, she spun around to view the rest of the reprobates who had turned up.
None of them looked vaguely interesting, but they certainly were eclectic. Catherine stifled a yawn as she checked her silver watch for the twentieth time. It didn’t matter how often she looked, she was certain someone had cast a spell to make the time drag on. Her fingers tingled with the temptation to speed it up, but a droning voice in the back of her head reminded her of the warning she had received. Huffing to herself, she glanced away and curled her hand tightly once more. She winced as she took a sip of the badly mixed juice, scanning the peeling cracks in the ceiling of the building.
Little Raven was a dump, anyway. Catherine had no idea what she was really doing here, never mind getting into trouble here. The only reason she had travelled from England to this goddess-forsaken town was because she had felt it. An energy so strong it had called to her from the other side of the world. But it was dark, full of all the wicked things witches knew they shouldn’t touch. It’s probably why none of them answered its call when I did, Catherine smirked to herself, trying to hide it behind another slurp of tepid liquid. ‘Heavy Magic’, her mother used to call it. Black magic so intense you could lose your head over it, sink into it, drown in it. And never come up for air.
with a clipboard in hand, clearing his throat in the irritating way that only therapists were able to produce. “Ladies? Let’s sit down, shall we?” He smiled broadly, a fakery for the witches gathered in the sparse waiting area. Catherine held back rolling her eyes, and settled for squeezing the empty plastic cup in her hands until it crushed in on itself instead. Dropping it casually onto the table, she tucked a loose strand of her corn-blond hair behind her ear, stepping across to the ring of chairs in the centre with the others.
Catherine settled back in her chair, crossed her legs, and closed her eyes behind her shades. Hopefully I’ll die of boredom before they get to me, she thought to herself, letting out a soft sigh. Counsellor Fitzsimmons prattled on to one of the other witches, droning on about consequences and resolving them. It was all old hat to her—this wasn’t her first meeting of this kind. Rehab. Even the word left a bad taste in her mouth. If only she could spit it out. She was damn well sick of going into it.
It wasn’t that Catherine Middling was a bad person, quite the opposite, in fact. She loved her parents. She loved her friends. And cooing over kitten and puppy videos on YouTube was dangerously close to an online obsession. But she liked to be in control. Of everything. And control required power, lots of it. She had tapped so many sources of energy that she shouldn’t, it was a wonder her fingers were still attached to her hand. A hard shove on her shoulder woke her up, snapping her back into the room with a jolt. Catherine shook her head violently to wake up, and straightened herself in the chair, grunting in annoyance.
The mousey-haired witch next to her hissed, “He was talking to you. Wake up, or we’re going to be here forever.”
Casting the witch a cool stare, Catherine cleared her throat and jerked her head towards the group. “Yeah, uh…I’m Catherine Middling, I’m a magical miscreant, and I’m bored shitless already.” There were a few sniggers and smirks from the other witches, and Catherine gave a hard shrug to the counsellor’s deep frown.
“Now, Catherine…language. You know that’s not going to help. Why not tell us why you’re here?” He gestured towards her shades with a chewed biro. “And how about removing those so we can all see your face? Hmm?”
She sighed. “No way. I don’t remove anything on the first date, counsellor. Besides, why should I? People have turned up here with faces full of paperclips and safety pins, and you want me to take off my Dolce and Gabbana glasses? No chance.” Catherine pointed with one black leather glove towards a punky witch on the other side of the circle, who scowled at her fiercely before turning back to inspect the floor. “Fine. I’m here because I can no longer control my magic. I like to change the circumstances if they’re not working for me. Good enough for you, Counsellor Fitzsimmons?”
Her clipped northern British accent rang out into the room as she folded her arms, hoping to slip back into her nap.
The pen wagged in the air. “Not good enough, Catherine. Tell us a little more. What kind of magic?”
His persistence rankled her, and a pang of deep anger burned through her veins. She sprang forwards in the cheap plastic chair, whipping her glasses off to reveal her eyes. A collective gasp filtered through the witches as they took in the dark, blood-red stains around her grey irises, the sliced scar running across both eyes. The leather of her glove squeaking, Catherine pointed sharply towards them, her voice dripping with venom. “This is what kind. Black magic. This is why I’m here, sat in the middle of the ladies’ knitting circle, with my magical finger stuck up my arse.” She nodded towards a nervous-looking girl, sat literally with a pair of knitting needles in her lap. Goddess only knew what she thought she was doing here, she looked like she was as much out of place as Sandwich Girl. “Because real power, real control, frightens everyone. But it didn’t frighten me. I did something wrong with it, tapped into some real bad juju that split me in half. And my other half still wants to come out. Want to see her? She really doesn’t play well with others.”

 

Links-

Goodreads ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Website

Tara S. Wood-

Tara Wood divides her time between creating domestic bliss and creating hot paranormal romance with the occasional side of kink. When not playing June Cleaver for her hubby and daughter, she can be found at the local Starbucks slamming back Frappuccinos and plotting out her next idea. Or she’s watching the BBC. Tara resides with her wonderful and tolerant family in the suburbs of Houston, Texas. She is currently at work on several projects, one of them being the next book in her In Blood series.

Links-

Goodreads ~ Twitter ~ Website ~ Facebook

Elle J. Rossi-

Elle J Rossi is a writer of Dark Paranormal and Fantasy Romance. Overly fond of the happily ever after, Elle lets her characters take control as they lead her down dark and twisted paths on their haunting journey toward love.

When not writing, you’ll more than likely catch her hanging with her husband, two kids and a cat who truly does rule the roost, or stealing the mic from her friends as the duel over country karaoke.

Links-

Goodreads ~ Twitter ~ Website ~ Facebook

Cynthia Valero-

Cynthia Valero is an award-winning author of three paranormal romance novels and two anthologies written with Beth Ciotta as CB Scott. Her newest solo novella, A Cauldron Full of Goodbyes, is one of six dark and edgy stories in the anthology, Rehab is for Witches. A student of Natalie Goldberg, Zoetrope All-Story, and The Writers Studio, Cynthia is currently writing a rich tale of forbidden love and deadly feuds set off the coast of 1904 America. You can visit her on Facebook at Cynthia Valero Books or at cynthiavalero.com.

Links-

Goodreads ~ Twitter ~ Website ~ Facebook

J.A. Howell-

J.A Howell is an office drone by day, and a writer by night. Her love of writing took off when she was eleven years old and decided to fill a composition notebook with stories to read to her friends. Many years (and notebooks) later, not much has changed. She still loves writing and sharing her works with others. When she isn’t writing, she can often be found trying her hand at whatever artistic pursuit strikes her fancy. J.A. Howell resides in Apopka, FL with her husband and their menagerie of animal children.

Links-

Website ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Goodreads ~ Pinterest ~ Youtube ~ Amazon Author Page

Tyffani Clark Kemp-

Tyffani Clark Kemp might be the quietest person in the room, but that just means she’s probably the biggest freak too. She is a multi-genre author with a gift for the written word and a desire to help all Indies reach their full potential. In 2012, she and her best friend Kimberly Fudge started SideStreet Cookie Publishing for authors who want to remain independent, but don’t have the time or the knowledge to do it all themselves. From the age of eleven she dedicated her life to writing and making sure she was good at her craft. Now, she passes that knowledge on to others. Her friends would describe her as determined and giving. She may be quite, but she always has a story to tell.

Links-

Goodreads ~ Blog/Website ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Pinterest

~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew!

bookshelves photo: Bookshelf bookshelves.jpg

This is my own version of a weekly book haul and all things new on fuonlyknew.

Another fun way to share your book news and enjoy others is The Sunday Post hosted by

Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer

Head on over and leave a link to your Sunday Post and hop around to visits others.

~~~

I hope ya’ll had a marvelous Thanksgiving.

So now it’s the countdown to Christmas. Are you ready? Are you the type to get your shopping done early or are you the type who likes to wait til the last minute? Do you make a list and know what you are looking for or do you just get out there and browse the aisles?

I have a fun question for you and would love for you to participate. What is the most memorable present you received when you were a young child? The one you still feel that amazing awe about?

I’ll share mine. There were six of us kids and to keep us from knowing who the presents were for, my parents would choose a theme, putting characters names on the presents and keeping it secret until Christmas morning. Each year was different. Sometimes it would be cartoon characters names for each of us. Sometimes it would be Santa’s reindeer. You never knew which name on the gift was yours until they revealed the list. It made it so fun and really ramped up the excitement.

One year I accidentally walked in my mom while she was wrapping presents. There was this awesome set of children’s luggage and this sweet little stuffed turtle. Being the youngest girl in the family, I knew it was for me. Imagine my disappointment Christmas morning when I unwrapped all of my presents and there was no sweet, cuddly, soft turtle. I don’t recall saying anything. I do recall the crushing sadness. I really loved that turtle.

Imagine the joy, the bliss, when I opened one small piece of the new luggage and there was my turtle! I still feel that magical moment. My parents must have been smiling inside, waiting for me to find that turtle.

On a happy note, I just had a birthday yesterday. Yep, my son’s birthday was the 20th and mine was the 29th. His due date was on my birthday but he came early! I look at him, over 6ft. tall, and still see that little baby. I spent the day decorating for Christmas, then we had pizza and a bunch of movies. We stayed up way late and ate a lot of popcorn. Fun times!

Now for the book news. Got lots to show you and a bunch of freebies for ya!

~~~

Here are my new books for review.

23605741  23377843

23463692  16120342

~~~

New ones just for me!

20804029  23551181  21412284

22493897  18079234

~~~

And here are some freebies for ya!

Click on the covers to get yours and remember to make sure they’re still free before you click that buy button.

    19315981  8857125

17155022  16290097  13563073

  18683414  22055854

23119944  8815123  20899144

~~~

Books I reviewed this week.

Click on the covers for my reviews.

22018588  23612082  My Ex From Hell (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy, #1)

~~~

Books I’ll be reviewing next week.

These are ones I was going to review last week. But with the holiday, I decided to wait and post them this coming week.

18711778  22576187  16292113

 

And these are more I’ll be reviewing this coming week.

23480947  23435276

 

~~~

Interesting posts from around the web.

Candace had this to say on her blog – Making Peace with your To-Be-Read Pile.

How To Market Your Book – An interesting post by Beckie at Bittersweet Enchantment.

Dionne Lister’s post – Review Cheats – Shameful Author Behavior

Jessi’s post on Novel Heartbeat – Do you continue reading a series if you hate the first book?

~~~

What I won.

22430443

I won a signed print copy of The Scale from a giveaway at Tome Tender.

Thanks Dianne and thank you Mika Jolie.

~~~

21481587

I won Standing By from a give away on Ali’s Books Blog.

Thanks Alison and thank you Claudia Burgoa.

~~~

Other Posts this week.

Devil Music ~ A different kind of demon story by Carly Orosz

Teaser Tuesdays #89 ~ Rehab Is For Witches

The Trouble With Demons ~ Release Day Special Sale

Check out Tahlia Newland’s YA Fantasy Series ~ Diamond Peak

If a mermaid could be so lucky…Under The Moonlight Tour and Giveaway

The Clock Strikes Midnight by Joan C. Curtis ~ VBT and Giveaway

A Zombie Thanksgiving

Can a pitcher catch her? A League Of Her Own ~ Pre-Release Giveaway

My EX From Hell ~ Giveaway and my review

The Bleaklisted Books ~ Teaser Tour and Giveaway

What are you worth? Meritropolis ~ Author Interview and Giveaway plus a special sale

~~~

For all of my 2014 reviews go HERE

For a list of free books go HERE

For all of my giveaways go HERE

~~~

So, what did you get to read this week?

Got any recommendations?

I’d love to know and thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew.

 

Happy Thanksgiving ya’ll!

I have just the book for the holiday.

I was visiting my blogging sis Emily and she shared this awesome book on her blog.

Emily is also an author and she does these awesome Pay It Forward Friday posts featuring other authors. Check out her blog HERE.

I just knew I had to read it and was thrilled when she contacted the author and he got in touch with me.

I now have my very own signed print copy.

23197216

There are three stories in this book.

A Zombie Thanksgiving.

A Zombie Christmas.

A Zombie New Year.

Plus a bonus one – A Vampire At Christmas.

I knew immediately how I wanted to review these, each individually to coincide with the holidays.

First up is A Zombie Thanksgiving.

Lets get to it!

~~~

A Zombie Thanksgiving

by Anthony Renfro

23612082

 

c8df8-add2bto2bgoodreads2bblack

My Review

They say the holidays are no longer celebrated because of the zombie apocalypse.

Try telling that to Dawn. All she wants is to bring a little bit of normalcy into their lives. To remind them they are human, that they are still alive, that there is hope.

Guns and knife in hand, Dawn sets off to the grocery store to see if she can find a turkey. I know, this sounds nuts. But people get desperate for the old days, the easy days.

As Dawn stumbles over dead bodies and crashed, abandoned vehicles, she inevitably runs across some shufflers. She takes care of them coldly, efficiently. This is the new way of life.

Meanwhile, back at the safe place, George is handed a note by another survivor in their group. It appears Dawn has left to get food. Fool girl. Doesn’t she know there are zombies out there. What is so important she’d risk this by herself?

I can’t quite put my finger on it, but somehow the author had me feeling the warmth of Thanksgiving. Even As Dawn and George fought off the ravenous zombies that want them for dinner.

Dawn’s fierce determination has me adding her to my list of top female protagonists. She’s not going to stop until she finds that bird!

And George is just as determined. Determined to find Dawn and get her safely back where she belongs. All limbs attached. I liked how his initial frustration turned to alpha male, to lover, as he set out to find her.

I had my fingers and toes crossed for these two. The ending was not set in stone just because it’s Thanksgiving. Maybe the zombies got a nice dinner. Nobody told them they don’t celebrate the holiday.

5 Stars

~~~

Stay tuned for my other reviews as each holiday approaches.

Synopsis

A short story about a woman who risks life and limb in a Zombie Apocalypse in order to keep the Thanksgiving tradition alive.

~~~

Click on the covers to get your own copies.

23612082  17160534  23208929

23612040  23197216

Author Anthony Renfro

Anthony Renfro

Anthony Renfro lives in Apex, North Carolina. He is a reader, writer, runner, husband, father, and stay at home dad – one of the toughest jobs anyone could ever do. He was born in Bristol, Tennessee, and is a graduate of UNC-Greensboro.

You can find him at many spots on the web, but if you really need to find his center in the social media storm it would be at his blog, apoetryjourney.wordpress.com.

Now reach out, just beyond the light, right into that big black space, and let him take your hand on a journey into cold dark places. You will be scared, and you may even be terrified, but in the end you might just find you liked the ride.

 

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew!

I was supposed to review this for the tour hosted by Novel Publicity but had blog complications and wasn’t able to post.

Now that I’m up and running again I’d love to share Devil Music with you.

A special thanks goes out to Naomi. She posted my review as a Guest Post on her blog Naimeless during the tour. Stop by and check out her blog and say hi.

Devil Music

by Carly Orosz

22018588

c8df8-add2bto2bgoodreads2bblack

My Review

I’m fascinated by demons. Fascinated and terrified by them. After reading the description for Devil Music, I was intrigued.

Cain is a demon. His master, Warwick, uses dark arts to bind him with a slave collar, and uses him for power and financial gain.

Under Warwick’s thumb, Cain is sent on errands. After which, his memory is wiped clean. He has no memories of the errand he’s been sent or of his previous life.

On his current errand, Cain impulsively buys a guitar and discovers a hidden talent. He skyrockets to rock music fame and breaks free from his master.

I wasn’t too keen on Cain at first. He seemed kind of wimpy for a demon. Then, I put together his wiped memories and the horrible abuse he suffered at the hands of his master, and came to understand the weight of his hopelessness. I was thrilled with his rise to stardom and his freedom. He even got a girlfriend and some solid friends. He had a life of his own.

Then, a serial killer starts stalking the music scene and Cain, along with his friends, must move quickly to discover the killer’s identity as the victim count rises and the killer draws near.

This was a huge book at over 700 pages. The beginning was a fast read as I met the characters and entered the author’s world.

The pace slowed down in the middle. Not much happened and I felt it would have been a great place to give us some background on the secondary characters, flesh them out more so I could connect better.

My curiosity kept me going as I started to get an idea who the killer might me. I needed to know what his motive was and had fun reading how the characters discovered the identity of the killer.

I didn’t get answers to all of my questions at the end. I did get enough to wrap up this plot but was left needing more. I wanted to know more about the other character’s lives. I wanted to know about Cain’s previous life and how the slavery changed him. Perhaps I’ll get those answers in the next book.

I was looking for a different kind of demon story and found one.

4  Stars

Thanks so much to Novel Publicity and Carly Orosz for the opportunity to read and review Devil Music and for being so understanding while my blog was down.

About the book

  Cain Pseudomantis leads a miserable life. Bound to the mortal world by a powerful spell no demon could hope to break, he must obey his human master’s every command or face harsh punishment. He finds solace in the rock music which he listens to when he isn’t running unsavory errands for his master. Then everything changes. While on a mission in a seedy section of 1980s Los Angeles, Cain impulsively buys an electric guitar and discovers an unusual talent for music, a talent that catapults him to hair metal stardom. With three super-powered human band mates and his beautiful girlfriend Michelle by his side, his life starts to look a lot better. But Cain soon finds that even rock stars have troubles. The crusading televangelist Nathaniel Breen—who happens to be Michelle’s father—accuses him of turning the city’s youth to Satan worship. Meanwhile a mysterious killer known only as the Engineer terrorizes the Los Angeles rock scene with a series of brutal murders. When Cain and his friends attempt to unmask the killer, they discover a deadly secret that could cost Cain his hard-won freedom, and possibly his life.

Get Devil Music through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or iTunes.

~~~

About the author

Carly Orosz

Carly Orosz lives in Kalamazoo, Michigan with her husband. She graduated from Kalamazoo College and went on to earn an MFA in poetry from Sarah Lawrence College. Her poetry has been published in Wavelength Journal and SpoutMagazine. In her spare time she enjoys cooking, weaving on a hand loom, and studying the art and cultures of pre-Columbian Mexico.

Connect with Carly on her website, Facebook, Twitter,or GoodReads.

~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew!

bookshelves photo: Bookshelf bookshelves.jpg

This is my own version of a weekly book haul and all things new on fuonlyknew.

Another fun way to share your book news and enjoy others is The Sunday Post hosted by

Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer

~~~

I’m back. Those of you who follow my blog probably noticed that WordPress shut me down. I was guilty of violating their Terms Of Service. I admit, I was. But still not too sure what all I did wrong. They don’t go into detail, so I suspect it’s like a form letter they send out when they shut you down.

So, now I’m self-hosted and free to do as I please, at some cost.It was worth it to be able to transfer all of my content. I was horrified when I was shut down. All those lovely posts and reviews, gone! But, I have them back and now I’m looking forward to sharing more with ya’ll. Still trying to figure out how to change to Leave a reply thingie at the bottom. Is it odd for you to comment and does anyone know how I can personalize it? I’ve searched everywhere in my dashboard and can’t find a way to change it.

Last Sunday Post I mentioned rearranging my living room and now having no place for my Christmas tree. I took Katherine’s and Trisha’s advice and moved some things into the guest room and now have the perfect spot! But first, I had to get the new bed for my sons room out of there, so I finally finished his room and everything looks good.

I had a huge dilemma at the grocery store. They were out of my favorite tea, Twinings Irish Breakfast and also the English Breakfast Tea I fall back on. So, I bought some Earl Gray and it tastes odd. There’s a lingering aftertaste, spicy and heavy that I can’t figure out. Not liking it much but since I spent the money on it, I’ll probably drink it.

My oldest brother and my mother came down from Michigan last week and they brought that winter vortex with them. We had some frigid days here on the Gulf Coast and it brought back memories of the ice age we experienced last year. LOL Now it’s blustery and cloudy and humid as hell. Around the 70’s and sticky! Funny how quickly the weather shifts near the water.

I hope you all had a great week and lets get to some of what I’ve been doing book wise. Not as much as I couldn’t post, but I did a lot of reading.

~~~

Here are my new books for review.

20737767  23308727

~~~

New ones just for me!

18298413  22011876

~~~

And here are some freebies for ya!

Click on the covers to get yours and remember to make sure they’re still free before you click that buy button.

12430013  10241239  21690183

17377553  18892284  12757262

22896422    http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41udpKqE19L.jpg

~~~

Books I reviewed this week.

Click on the covers for my reviews.

20702316 

22741384  20737737

~~~

Books I’ll be reviewing next week.

22018588  18711778

22576187  16292113

 

I have a few more, just not sure which ones I’ll post about this week. And working on some others.

~~~

What I won this past couple of weeks.

18406503

I won a print copy from the giveaway on Beckie’s blog Bittersweet Enchantment

Thanks so much Beckie and thank you Barbara Holstein

~

721012

I won a print copy of this book from a giveaway on Shellie’s blog Layers of Thought

Thanks so much Shellie and thank you Washington Irving.

~

16292113

I won a print copy of this book from a giveaway on Erin’s blog Jump Into Books

Thanks so much Erin and thank you Kerry Smith

~~~

Other Posts this week. Not too many as I’ve just started up my new blog.

Christmas in Dogtown ~ Blitz Review and Giveaway

M9B Friday Reveal and Giveaway ~ The Perilous Journey of the Not-So-Innocuous Girl

The Friday 56 #45 ~ Torn ~ A Fire Born Novel

The Afterworld Series ~ Recruitz & Alibiz ~ Tour Giveaway

Twinkle by S J Parkinson ~ A Sci Fi Thriller Review

Blitz Giveaway ~ Come celebrate Tony Bertauski’s new release ~ Flury: Journey of the Snowman #3

Christmas, Actually ~ Mistletoe Kisses Grand Finale Blitz Giveaway

~~~

For all of my 2014 reviews go HERE

For a list of free books go HERE

For all of my giveaways go HERE

~~~

So, what did you get to read this week?

Got any recommendations?

I’d love to know and thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew.