The Keepers: Ethan – Romance, Witches And Action – A Powerful Fantasy Novel With Heart

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Title: The Keepers: Ethan (The Keepers #3)

Author: Rae Rivers

Publisher: HarperCollins

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Release Date: April 7th, 2016

Rating: 5/5 Stars

It is no secret that I am a Rae River’s fan. And her latest novel of the Keeper’s series: Ethan, only cemented that fact even further. Filled with action, romance, and emotional turmoil, this well-crafted novel grabbed me from the first page and never let me go. Check out the following blurb, courtesy of Amazon:

“Going to Ameera to find Hazel. Stealing the spell … You think you can pull it off?” he asked.
She nodded, not trusting herself to speak.
Just as she thought he’d kiss her, he reached for her jacket and said, “Then let’s go.”

A portal to another world has opened, unleashing dangerous creatures on earth. A dark witch is out for revenge. The stakes are high, a war inevitable.

One person can stop the madness. Jenna. She’s a Keeper to a powerful hybrid witch but she harbors a secret and if Jenna steps through the portal – seduced by the whispers of her hidden past – she may never return.

Fortunately, she has company… infamous Bennett brother and fiercely protective Keeper, Ethan. Their whip-cracking banter makes them perfect sparring partners in training, but how will they manage when their lives and everything they were born to defend are on the line?

When the battle lines are drawn, will Jenna and Ethan stand side by side – as friends, protectors, lovers … or as traitors?”

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Not being a fan of the whole vampire story obsession of the last few years, but longing for a good paranormal story, this book (just like every novel in this great series), satisfied my hunger for this genre. Yes, it has plenty of romance, but also plenty of action, with the main female character, Jenna, being as fierce as any Warrior out there. It is an emotional story, that had me all shook up at more than one point, only to be left breathless and with a great sense of relief at the end, for which I am very grateful for to Rae ( you will know what I mean, once you read the book – no spoilers here!) . I just wish the story did not have to  end  because I did not want to leave this world, these characters just yet.

If you love paranormal fiction and romance, with plenty of action that does not just happen in the bedroom, this book, actually this entire series is for you.Thanks to this series, Rae Rivers has become one of my absolute favorite Authors. The Keepers: Ethan is available on Amazon right now.

The Keepers: Ethan is available on Amazon right now.

 

Disclaimer: I was given this book for free via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Book Review: Got Luck by Michael Darling

 

Disclaimer: I was given this book for free in return for a honest review. This blog post contains affiliate links, see disclosure page for details

Title: Got Luck
Author: Michael Darling
Genre: Fantasy/Sci-Fi/Crime
Publisher: Future House Publishing
Rating: 2/5 Stars

The Premise:

Police-officer-turned-private-investigator Goethe “Got” Luck is known for rolling with the punches and never taking anything too seriously. When he picks up a seemingly dead-end murder case, his life begins to take a crazy turn. Shot at, chased by people he has never met, and attacked by an invisible liondog, Got quickly learns that there is more to this world than meets the eye.

He discovers the Fae. The Eternals. They who dwell in the Behindbeyond. Once, they ruled over ancient realms, but over the centuries, their power dwindled. Now someone wants to restore their rule and subjugate humankind. All it will cost is thousands of human lives.

The clock is ticking. Getting the world out of this one will take a couple friends, more than a few well-placed insults, and a whole lot of Luck.

I became interested in this book, because the above blurb sounded like a pretty cool premise, promising a fast pasted, interesting story with a  twist that is not your standard fair for a fantasy/crime novel. But sadly,  I was disappointed. To be honest, I really do not like 1st person narratives. It is rare that books written in this particular  form are something I can lose myself in, so I had a bias from the moment I actually received the copy. For a first person narrative to be great, I have to connect deeply with the main character, and that connection has to happen rather quickly, in order for me to see the story through their eyes and enjoy the view. That rarely happens.

But, because I have been proven wrong before, I stuck with it and read the book to the end. I was not proven wrong. The plot itself seems a bit confusing at first, not finding much flow until the second half of the book, by which time, I would have already stopped reading, would I not have made the commitment to finish reading the book. While the second half was a little bit more entertaining, it still took me longer than usual to get through, simply because I had to drag myself back to the story, rather than being pulled in. With the immense amount of competition of great indie fantasy Authors now available on Amazon, a novel has to be special to stand out of the crowd, and I am sorry to say that this will be lost in the shuffle. Not my cup of tea.

Featured Artist Of The Week – Nadine May

I love you by Nadine May

I met Nadine on Facebook where she posted some of her Zazzle designs, and knew that I had to get to know more about  her work. Thankfully, she agreed to sit down for an interview with me. Her bright and colorful florals are featured in her store “Just Kidding”, such as this  King Potrea Pillow while her store “The Awakening” features fantastical images that are stunning, beautiful and visionary.

Me: How long have you been working with Zazzle?

Nadine: The 14th of October 2015 was my first anniversary with Zazzle.
I found out about Zazzle when two friends were chatting to each other on a Skype group about Redbubble and Zazzle. I was clueless as to what they were talking about so I asked them. That was my first introduction to this wonderful possibility that anybody can design images for products and can earn royalty payments. For the rest of that week I looked, read, and practised while now and then chatting to my friends on Skype.
My normal job doing book cover designs for Kima Global Publishers was going through a quite rough time, so I found myself glued to my computer chair for hours creating images for the Zazzle templates. I thought of all the leather work, drawings and paintings I had done over the years and was keen to see them displayed on their products.
I love illustrating – telling stories through imagery, and today I love working with Photoshop. I’m self taught and learn each day what I can do with this amazing program.

Fairy Kingdom Postcard

Me: What made you choose Zazzle?
Nadine: Zazzle has a lot of products and a very easy platform to create an online presence for a designer.
Kima Global Gifts shop
An idea came to me one morning that I could use many of my book design covers and I format these for the Zazzle templates and at the same time promote the title of the book! I thought the authors would be my first customers! That has not happened so far….but they do like my efforts.
Just kidding shop
It is here that I post all my past and present artworks, especially the leather work. I still have to do a lot of scanning, but now I had to start organizing my computer by creating files for the many images and photos I want to use for my designs.
The Awakening shop
I write articles for Hubpages. Most of these posts are about the research I’ve done over the years for my visionary fiction novels. I love creating images for these articles, but they are more about very alternative topics, so I created a different shop for these designs and two weeks ago I started to prepare an online doodle workshop using Zazzle products. I can also add the article links to the designs for visitors just in case they are interested

Me: How would you describe your process as an artist?
Nadine: I’m a visionary fiction author and learned over the years that to write a book is a lot easier than selling a book, and so I know that the same applies to images. As an artist, I had to invent myself all over again. I’ve created two blogs for all my product designs. One with WordPress and one with Blogpost. I do have other blogs that are more connected with my published novels available on Amazon and many other platforms, and I often post a product image on there if it links to the topics of my writings. I learned a great deal from other Zazzle designers on Facebook, and the friendships I have made with them are an added bonus.
I share theirs and my own products on my own Facebook shopping page and on Pinterest and Google+. I try to be creative by using Polyvore for display purposes. Now all I need is to be able to stretch “TIME”

Spring Basket Gatherers

Me: What do you think are your greatest obstacles in creating and selling art for an online platform?
Nadine: To reach an exposure level that results in sales takes hard work and time.
Many people would never spend the hours that I do each day after I have told them what I have earned so far over the one year period, but I have every confidence that each year my earnings will multiply. What is for me the most important is that I LOVE what I do. I could never do anything solely for the money, no matter how financially lucrative it might be.

The Boot – A Flash Fiction

“The Boot” Vintage Design by Avalon Media
http://shrsl.com/?~8ptp

“Look what I found!”

Her voice was filled with such sweet excitement, that the older man could not hold back a smile. At one point he had dreaded to bring this young student with him to the site, not looking forward to the lack of knowledge an inexperienced person would surely bring along, but her enthusiasm made up for all of that and more. He reminded her of who he used to be, not too long before her arrival,  hoping to explore those hidden treasures, left by the civilizations before the Great War.

There was so much more to find, but the tedious work had taken his toll on him. So had the grim prospects of finding leftovers that showcased the detailed and widespread cruelty,  humankind had brought upon one another.
Her view was not tainted by such sights, not yet, and he hoped it would never come to that.

“What is it, Natasha?”, he answered, putting as much smile into his voice as its deepness allowed him to display.
“Behind that heavy broken thing you call furniture, I found this.”
She pointed at a faint painting, placed directly upon the aged wall and looked half questioning, half filled with pride.
“I have no idea, why anyone would use such a monstrously looking boot as a vase, yet in it’s strange composition it is quite pleasing, don’t you think?”
He glanced at the surprisingly well-preserved image in front of them and nodded softly. What alight-hearted, pleasing surprise, indeed.

Copyright Claudia H. Blanton 2015

The above image “The Boot” is available as a framed art print on RedBubble. Thank you for your support.

Drowning – A Haiku

“The Kiss” by HiddenRealms

still dazed and confused
a breathless kiss changed my world
I drown in your arms

Copyright Claudia H. Blanton 2015

The above image is by the talented designer of “Hidden Realms”, and is available here.

The Woods – A Haiku

Denizens of Diabolic Wood by Richard Fray available here:
http://shrsl.com/?~8mpk

did not heed the words
warnings whispered ’bout at night
“Don’t go to the woods!”

Claudia H. Blanton 2015

The above image is by a talented artist named Richard Fay. You can purchase this piece of art on RedBubble here

Book Review: The Witch of Painted Sorrows

Title: The Witch Of Painted Sorrows
Author: M. J. Rose
Publisher: Atria Books
Publication Date: March 17th, 2015
Rating 3.5 Stars
Like with many stories that are written in first person, I never connected with the novel. In order for it to work well, I must care deeply about the character who’s head I am about to spend time in, their thoughts and perception of the situation has to matter to me. The only way to do that is to make sure the writer connects the reader immediately, from the first page on. At no one point did  The Witch of Painted Sorrows, manage to do that for me.
Which in itself is a shame, I really wanted to love the story, wanted to know the many twists and turns the premise promised. While it was really well constructed, I never really cared deeply, feeling like a distant bored observer rather than an involved party.

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(Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book by the publisher via NetGalley, in return for an honest review)

The Forgotten

No one remembered The Forgotten, the outcasts, that were tossed from our society as if they were garbage, not human beings, who did nothing wrong.
Those people, hidden behind the deep walls that surrounded our cities, were simply different, not fitting in with the norm of prescribed standards of look or form.
Placed beyond the walls, to defend themselves, no one ever spoke of them again, no matter if they used to be friends, or where children.
Our fold had no place for them, but in the quiet, lonely hours just before dawn, comforted by the luxuries of our culture, I wept.

Copyright Claudia H. Blanton 2015

This post was inspired by this week’s Flash Fiction prompt “Forgotten”.

Waiting On Wednesday “A Deadly Web” by Kay Hooper

Now here is a blog hop, I am very exited about participating in: Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine, asks participants to post every Wednesday about a book they are looking forward to reading. This week, I chose a Paranormal book, that is a part of a series, I absolutely love:

Title: A Deadly Web
Author: Kay Hooper
Publisher: Jove
Genre: Paranormal Thriller/Romance
Release Date (aprox): April 7th, 2015

“John Brodie is a Guardian, a member of a secret network devoted to protecting the psychics in his charge from a ruthless—and virtually invisible—enemy.

Tasha Solomon is unaware of the Guardians’ existence—until the night the gifted psychic suffers a shocking and violent attack and Brodie saves her life.”

Tough and resilient, Tasha isn’t used to depending on anyone. But the assault has left her vulnerable. Tasha doesn’t know who wants her dead, or why, or when he will strike again. Now, she is forced to trust that Brodie can guide her through a tangled web of danger and deception toward a safe harbor—one she fears is more elusive with each dark and endless night. (From Kay Hooper’s Website)
I am a die-hard Kay Hooper fan, and every time there is any annoucement of a new book of hers to arrive soon, I am all happy. A Deadly Web is a part of her series “Bishop Files”, which re-visits my favorite FBI agents who all have “gifts”, psychic abilities of one form or another, and use these to hunt down killers of the most notorious kind. This is one book, I am hoping to be able to review via an advanced copy, but if not, I will be purchasing it the moment it is released. Can’t wait!

A Deadly Web (A Bishop Files Novel) will be available in Paperback and Kindle – you can pre-order it here

Transient

Undead was such an uncaring word. Zombie was not much fun either. There are better labels I would choose for myself if anyone that mattered would listen. Who did not matter where my sisters, who thought I was way out there, and well I was pretty cool, after all I still had all of my fingers and most of my hair. Transient was more descriptive of our state, technically a state between states, which, thanks to my crazy family had spread through the world like wildfire.

Claudia H. Blanton 2015