Monday Book Review: DARKWALKER, by Kat de Falla

Darkwalker, by Kat deFalla
Published 2016 by The Wild Rose Press

About the Book:

For years, Seamus Bran has been a hermit in a small English town. But when two seers arrive from America seeking the cup of salvation his family has hidden for over two centuries, Seamus must decide whether to protect his blood line or save a woman he's never met.

Adrienne Perdu is a wealthy orphan living in Paris. She has no idea the weekly meetings she attends are a group of Darkwalkers, pulling humanity in the selfless dredges of soullessness. But Seamus changes everything with a kiss. The illusion of her life is shattered when her eyes are opened to the world as it really is, with angels and demons walking among us.

At Mont Saint-Michel, a rocky inlet in Normandy, France the demons attack trying to gain possession of the Cup of Salvation. As Adrienne and Seamus grow closer, the danger of the ancient war between good and evil crescendos to envelop angels, demons, and seers alike. Will Seamus be able to save the woman he now loves and his family's prize possession?

My Take:

This is the second story in this series, where the characters and conflict are more fully introduced in the first book. If you haven't read The Seer's Lover yet, I would recommend starting there before jumping into this second story. (Find my review HERE on my blog)

Also, you need to enjoy personified angels versus demons end-of-days stories to really get into this series, where the angels sometimes act petulant and less than heavenly, the dialogue is uber-contemporary (except for when it's not) and the demons can sometimes redeem themselves back into God's grace.

While the love story between Lucas and Calise is central to the first book, this one gives us dueling love stories: the first between Ellen (Calise's angel best friend) and Shane (Calise's fallen angel college beau) and the second between new characters we meet in Paris.  Ellen has always had a thing for Shane, and when they are forced to work together, things between them heat up.

Shane almost kills Calise, and Lucas goes on a quest for the holy grail ( as in, THE holy grail) that takes him to Europe where he meets Seamus and his guardian, the angel Gabriel, as well as a dark walker named Adrienne. Dark walkers are humans who have lost their way and are pursuing selfish, if not evil, lives. Seamus has sworn to be the end of his line...until he meets Adrienne and decides love might be worth it after all.

The chapters  alternates between the U.S. and Europe, until the story lines finally converge at a monastery in Minnesota where the final showdown between good and evil forces (at least for this book) occurs.

While some of the dialogue and interactions drew me out of the narrative, I enjoyed reading this story and rooting for the good guys all the way through. The epilogue left things wide open as to where the story goes from here, as the author has made no secret that this is an end-of-days series and the horsemen of the apocalypse are on their way.

If you're a fan of the Supernatural series on television, you should check out Kat de Falla's take on angels and demons. Find your copy on AMAZON.

Monday Book Review: THE DEVIL YOU KNOW by Shawna Romkey, #YA

The Devil You Know, by Shawna Romkey
Speak of the Devil Book Three
Published February 2016

About the Book:

Holy Hell!

After battling her way back from Hell only to discover Luc didn't make it out, Lily must rally the angels to descend back into the Devil's domain. Now she has thirty days to rescue her angelic warrior boyfriend and break the curse to free God before Lucifer and his demon army destroy all of humanity on Earth. Forget passing the eleventh grade. Lily must face the ultimate final exam to give the Devil his due and save the world before the reapers catch up and deliver the death she cheated from them a year ago.

My Take:

I've been a fan of Ms. Romkey's  work since the very first book, and have been anticipating the end of this trilogy for a very long time. Luckily, the book didn't disappoint. The Devil You Know once again takes our heroine to Hell and back again, both physically and emotionally.

Poor Lilly is never going to graduate high school at this rate.

Between acting as an intermediary form of communication between heaven and earth, fighting off demons, and falling in love with an angel, she missed out on prom, exams... and, oh yeah, any kind of normal life. And now she's got the angels of death hot on her trail, eager to correct their earlier mistake when she survived the car accident that started it all. Did I mention that Lucifer is still after her? You know, the Devil himself.

We all hate spoilers in reviews, so I'm really trying not to go there.... except to comment I wasn't at all sure how this series was going to be able to tie up the loose ends or come up with a satisfying ending. I mean, there was a lot at stake by the end of book two and things seemed bleak for our heroes. How could true love triumph against the Devil himself?

With some neat twists and a few sad surprises, the author is surprisingly able to wrap the story into a satisfying conclusion to the series.

If you like angel-versus-demons YA (which might as well be its own sub-genre), I definitely recommend giving this series a try.

Book one is Speak of the Devil, Book two is The Devil Made Me Do It, and then this final one,  The Devil You Know.  The first one? I had to read three times before book two even came out. Kinda like when I read Hunger Games when it first came out and got to that tragic last line "end of book one"... and threw the book across the room. The hardcover library book. You're so lucky as a reader, because this trilogy is complete and waiting for you. As Pokemon would say, Gotta catch 'em all! 

Buy all three on AMAZON:

SPEAK OF THE DEVIL 

THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT

THE DEVIL YOU KNOW

Monday Book Review: ANGEL DREAMS, #New Release by Jody Kessler

Angel Dreams, by Jody Kessler
Published January 15, 2015
Book 2 in An Angel Falls series

About the Book:

Supernatural boundaries will be crossed as Angel of Death, Nathaniel Evans, risks his eternal soul to save the one he loves, the paranormally gifted and nature-loving, Juliana Crowson.

While working with a new client, Nathaniel finds out that pissing off a demon-wielding warlock in order to help a suicidal teen with misplaced sexual tendencies may be the last thing he ever does as an angel. Unable to stand aside, Juliana’s involvement in Nathaniel’s new case quickly develops into a misadventure with gun-toting bikers, table dancing, and a shamanic exorcism performed by her temperamental Native American friend, Chris Abeyta.

Can Nathaniel and Juliana’s love endure blood-letting rituals in the forest while helping a terrified teen find the will to live, or will fate and the rules of the afterlife tear them eternally apart?

My Take:

I totally loved the first book in this series, Death Lies Between Us, even re-reading it again recently before getting the opportunity for an ARC of book 2.  If you haven't read the first book yet, definitely grab a copy and immerse yourself in this world.

Jody Kessler has done it again with another absorbing tale of angels working with humans to combat the darkness, set against the lush beauty of the Colorado mountains. ANGEL DREAMS is a great sequel packed with action, romantic tension and suspense. Her characters are complex and believable, even as they find themselves in totally incredible supernatural situations.

Nineteen-year-old Juliana Crowson has unique abilities that even she doesn't fully understand. The fact that she can see see angels and spirits is only the start. Her boyfriend Nathaniel Evans is not only an angel, but an angel of death. Or rather, he was until botching his last assignment.

Nathaniel has been reassigned to another division, and given the task of helping a scared girl with suicidal tendencies. But there is more to this girl's story than Nathaniel realizes and it drags both him and Juliana into a dark and twisted adventure.

Nathaniel has his own inner conflicts to work through, but he is my favorite angel book hero boyfriend. I love that he has layers of emotion and self doubt, and his feelings for Juliana are also so complex and so sweet.

Some secondary characters from the first book appear in this story, including the local native medicine man, Chris Abeyta, who is more fully fleshed out than he was in the first book, making him a real person with real feelings and motivations. One of the new characters we meet was so super evil he made my skin crawl, and I couldn't stop reading, wondering how in the world Juliana would defeat such a monster.

While the plot and characters are not as straight forward as the first book, I enjoyed this quite a bit and can't wait for the third book in the series. Totally recommend this author and this series to fans of angel/demon paranormal romance!

(And it's on sale NOW for 99 cents for your Kindle. Grab a copy today! And visit Facebook for more great opportunities and giveaways at Jody's Angel Falls celebration event!)

About the Author:

When Jody isn’t navigating the terrain of her imagination and writing it down, she can be found exploring the wilderness of Colorado with her family, or in the kitchen baking cookies & brownies – and then trying not to eat them all. She’s passionate about continuing to learn and reads anything and everything that catches her interest. Jody is a full time mom, a Reiki Master, and has taught Hatha yoga for over a decade.

Jody’s debut novel, Death Lies Between Us, is the winner of RomCon’s Readers’ Crown award for best Paranormal Romance in 2014. She is currently working on a historical time travel series set in Montana in the 1860’s. The first book in the series, The Night Medicine, will be published in March 2015.

Jody A. Kessler invites you to visit with her at: www.JodyAKessler.com, or on Facebook & Twitter
For a chance to win a $10 amazon gift card or a signed paperback of the Death Lies Between Us (An Angel Falls, #1) please enter the rafflecopter!

BOOK REVIEW: City of Heavenly Fire, by Cassandra Clare

City of Heavenly Fire (Book #6 of The Mortal Instruments), by Cassandra Clare
Published May 2014 

About the book (from Goodreads):

In this dazzling and long-awaited conclusion to the acclaimed Mortal Instruments series, Clary and her friends fight the greatest evil they have ever faced: Clary's own brother.

Sebastian Morgenstern is on the move, systematically turning Shadowhunter against Shadowhunter.  Bearing the Infernal Cup, he transforms Shadowhunters into creatures out of nightmare, tearing apart families and lovers as the ranks of his Endarkened army swell.

The embattled Shadowhunters withdraw to Idris - but not even the famed demon towers of Alicante can keep Sebastian at bay.  And with the Nephilim trapped in Idris, who will guard the world against demons?

When one of the greatest betrayals the Nephilim have ever known is revealed, Clary, Jace, Isabelle, Simon, and Alec must flee - even if their journey takes them deep into the demon realms, where no Shadowhunter has set foot before, and from which no human being has ever returned...

Love will be sacrificed and lives lost in the terrible battle for the fate of the word in the thrilling final installment of the classic urban fantasy series The Mortal Instruments!

My Take:

First let me say how much I have loved this series and these characters, so I may be slightly biased in favor of liking this book too. That said, I liked this book a lot. But I didn't love it. 

I think Ms. Clare does an excellent job of intimately describing heart wrenching emotional trauma, and similar to George RR Martin, she has no problem killing off characters to further a plot line, so you never feel too secure in who will live and who will die, and who will find their happily ever after.

Clary and Jace are back together, but Jace is still filled with Heavenly Fire from their last encounter with Clarys evil brother Sebastian. Which means he's afraid to touch her or anyone else he loves for fear of burning them with the uncontrollable fire burning through his veins.  Simon and Isabelle are still a couple but have yet to DTR or define their relationship. Alec and Magnus are still broken up and miserable about it. Maia is still conflicted about her feelings for Jordan but has yet to talk about it with him. Luke and Jocelyn's wedding is still on hold.

And then all hell breaks loose. Literally.

Okay, when I write it like that, it starts sounding like a K-drama or something equally cheesy.  But if you've read the rest of the series, you know what I'm talking about and will enjoy the ways in which these relationship conflicts get resolved. Each of the characters continues to grow and evolve, and the Clave reminds them and us several times along the way that despite what they have been through and experienced, they are still children. Not considered adults until they turn 18 or whatever. Alec is the only one old enough to vote, but his relationship is forbidden in other ways. 

This is not a stand alone book, but the last in a wonderful series. But unlike the other books in this series, City of Heavenly Fire makes many references, both overt and obscure, to the prequel series that Ms. Clare started publishing after she was halfway through The Mortal Instruments series. So many references, in fact, that it began to feel like a not so subtle ad for the other series.

The ultimate growth of the main characters, the resolutions of their various story lines, and the sheer volume of emotions poured forth in this book make it a must read for any fans of this series, these characters, or this author. Ms. Clare gives each character the satisfying ending they deserve. She gives us the post-war epilogue that jumps us a bit into the future, but only months, not years. She hints at futures without the ten-years-later, where-are-they-now epilogue that the Harry Potter series ended with.

In short, if you're a fan of the series, you'll enjoy this last installment. If you haven't read any of them, you've got a full summer of reading right in this series to look forward to!

#New Release: THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT, by Shawna Romkey

The Devil Made Me Do It

Book Two: Speak of the Devil series, by Shawna Romkey

Coming July 1 - Go to hell!

The demons strike back!

Lily is working with the angels to stifle the last of the demon outbreaks and to figure out how to stop the Silence of God, so life can get back to boring normality. But all hell breaks loose when she’s stolen from school and brought face to face with the devil himself. Lily has to find her way back home to Luc, crack the prophecy that breaks the curse silencing God, and figure out how she and Luc can ever really be together; but Lucifer has other plans for her that don’t include her ever getting out of Hell in tact.

Book One, Speak of the Devil, is currently on sale for $2.99 for the Kindle.

Excerpt

Why me? I asked this question a lot, when I died, when I lived, when I’d lost my friends, when I’d hooked up with angels, when I was chased by demons, so it seemed trivial to ask it now, but why me? Why couldn’t I have a regular non-angel boyfriend to make out with and not worry about ruining, well, everything for everybody everywhere?

Snap out of it, Lily, I told myself. You have an amazing ability and super-hot— too hot— angel boyfriend, a blessed life that someone upstairs seems to think is valuable and worthy of protection. Quit feeling sorry for yourself and girl up.

“Right, girl up. I can do this,” I said aloud. My body was under control finally and I felt like I could go back to class as long as we got a new scene to work on. But I’d hurt Luc. I had to talk to him. I had to fix it and make it right. He was suffering with this as much as I was and probably more so since he had to have that pious-angel behavior and all.

I stood to go, pushing the vanity chair back as I did so.

“Lily!” someone whispered.
“What?” I turned to see if Cassie was there.
“Lily, look!” It was difficult to tell if it was a male or female voice since it was a whisper.

The voice was coming from behind me. I looked back around – that’s when I saw the surface of the mirror tremble, as though it were liquid. It rippled from the center. “Lilith!” The whisper came from the mirror.

Too late I remembered something Luc and Belle had said about mirrors. The surface splashed out toward me, and though I reflexively turned away and pulled back, the watery mirror grabbed me with its newly formed reflective arms and pulled me inside.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

Shawna Romkey, teacher by day, writer by night (or day or whenever anyone leaves her alone long enough to get some work done). Bestselling YA / NA paranormal author of Speak of the Devil. The second in the series, The Devil Made Me Do It, released July 1.

Shawna is from Kansas City, Missouri, but resides in Nova Scotia in a house by the sea with her husband, two sons, and currently two dogs but that’s subject to change depending on the local homeless dog population.

For more info, check out her website at www.shawnaromkey.com.

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