Summer School!

Hey guys. I would like to apologize for not posting over the last couple of months but I am going to try to be better about it.

I have been in summer school taking 4 classes and I started a new job, so between homework and work I haven't even had time to finish a book for myself. But I hope to make time soon, and I have a couple of great books that I want to write about and I just wanted to thank everyone for being so patient, including a couple of the authors I have talked to, you guys are great!!

Thanks
Kelsea

Bloodraven by P.L. Nunn

         Hey, I'm trying to get caught up with school and stuff so it has been a while, but I am going to try my best to start catching up. This book that I am about to review I have seen on a lot of the lists on Goodreads that I have been skimming. I had it as a "to-read" for a while, but I read a lot of reviews saying that it was extremely violent and off putting so I was a little cautious of reading it. But I finally dug in my heels and started it.

         A son of a forest dwelling people, Yhalen knows little of the world outside the ancestral forest, until he is captured by a band of ogres on a slave-taking mission. Only grim tales of the barbaric giants had reached the forest, but Yhalen soon learns that even the darkest fireside story only hinted at the brutality of these Northern warriors. He discovers the meaning of true fear at their hands, and only the awakening of ancient magic saves him from destruction.

         Surviving ogre viciousness, he finds himself given to Bloodraven, the half ogre, half human war leader as a slave. Yhalen, refusing to bend, soon pays the price for offending prickly ogre pride.

         But Bloodraven is no mindless, violent ogrish beast. Bloodraven has an agenda and Yhalen finds himself drawn in the wake into human and ogre politics, into bloodshed and cruelty and into the forbidden magic that is damnation in the eyes of his own people, but which might mean the difference between death and salvation.

This book is available on Lulu.com

         This book was interesting... It was extremely graphic. There were many many many violent scenes that made my stomach turn. Poor Yhalen went through so much and still he had spirit. That was something that pissed me off though. Not the part about Yhalen having spirit, because I was so happy he anaged to struggle through it all, but that people kept telling him that he couldn't imagine the abuse that human slaves of ogres went through, and I was like YES HE CAN!! And even after he told Bloodraven about it Bloodraven kept telling him to lay low because he couldnt imagine the trauma of being tortured by ogres.  It made me so mad.

         I think there was a lot of miscommunication between the characters, but somehow despite all of that they got along extremely well. Even though Yhalen was forced into the relationship and he was extremely prideful, they still managed to find a balance that didn't cause too many problems. I thought that was a really amazing thing to have because it stopped things in the relationship from getting too dramatic. I like drama, but sometimes in forced relationships it gets too extreme for me.

         This was a very long book. I am not entirely sure how I felt about that because I thought the characters were incredibly interesting, but I also at times was thinking, man how much longer is there. There is also the fact that the least expensive version of this book was in PDF form, which for some reason made the book feel even longer than it already was. I did love the story though, with the violence aside, I thought it was a really touching story about how they found common ground and began to build a friendship and relationship off of it. Sure, Bloodraven was really pushy about sex, but he was always worried about Yhalen's well being and was always trying to think of ways to make life easier for Yhalen.

         I really liked the character Bloodraven. I feel like we learned more about Yhalen, because he went through the most brutal trials, but I wish that we had gotten to learn more about Bloodraven's life. When he was disowned by one of his only real friends I thought I was going to try, but at the same time i kept thinking it was worth it because Yhalen always ended up putting Bloodraven first, while Bloodraven's ogre friends never really cared about him that way. I liked Bloodraven's personality, how he thought Yhalen was amusing and didn't want to break him, how he seemed to care about who was hurt by his actions and how responsible he was. It was a wonder that he turned out to be such a caring person when he was raised among the ogres. I thought one of the most touching scenes was when he was trying to get Yhalen to use his magic and kept telling him to make the dog attack him, and Yhalen said he couldn't because the dog loved Bloodraven. And Bloodraven was floored because love isn't a concept known in ogre life, and Bloodraven mourns the fact that they will never know love.

         I really loved these characters and the story and I really love how they ended up so happy but I loved the most how Yhalen got revenge in the end. Ogres treated humans like trash and brutalized them, tore them apart and laughed at it, and then they just came across the wrong human, and when they tortured him, he snapped and then they got a taste of their own medicine and they hated it. And so I hope that in this world the humans are safe from the ogres in the future.

I give this book a 4 out of 5 stars

I love it when you guys rate and comment, so go crazy :)

Counterpoint (Song of the Fallen, #1) by Rachel Haimowitz

         It has been awhile people :) I was busy with finals and moving back home for the summer, but now I am back and I have a really good book for all of you guys. May I present: Counterpoint!

         It is the twilight of mankind. Depleted by generations of war with a dark race, the human kingdoms and their ancient alliance stand on the brink of extinction. The outlands are soaked with the blood of the fallen. The midlands are rotting with decadence and despair.

         Elfkind, estranged by past crimes, watches and waits for nature to run its course.

And then the two collide.

         Ayden's life has long been guided by two emotions: love for his sister, and hatred of all things human. When he's captured in battle, he must for his sister's sake swallow his pride and endure slavery in the service of a human prince, Freyrik Farr.

         Freyrik's always known elves to be beautiful and dangerous, but never has one affected him as deeply as Ayden. Can his life of service to his people leave room for this attraction? Dancing on a dagger's edge between duty and high treason, Freyrik discovers that some choices can change a life, and some an entire world.

         Between prejudice, politics, pride, and survival, Ayden and Freyrik must carve a new path, no matter how daunting. For nothing less than the fate of both their peoples rests on the power of their perseverance and their love.

Click to view on Amazon: Counterpoint

         I really liked this book, I was looking for something to read on the plane on the way back home from Boston and just picked this one off of a list on good reads. I like m/m romance, and this one seemed really unique and it turned out that it was really amazing.

         One of the big things that I liked about this book was the whole concept of the song, and how everything has its own song and I liked how the elves were able to tune into it to understand the world. I think it was really beautiful when Ayden started readings Freyrik's song. I think it really added to their relationship.

         I think it is safe to say that they fall in love, I don't really think that I am giving anything away, but I think it was a really beautiful love story. Ayden was so proud, but the more time he spent with Freyrik the more he realized that his pride was getting in the way of his possible happiness. I also loved how once he started liking Freyrik he viewed him as the only good human and that enabled him to put aside his pride in order to ebrace his growing love for Freyrik. There are so many good points in this book. I think Ayden was definitely my favorite character. I liked Freyrik, but sometimes he seemed too good and kind. Ayden had more flaws and was hilarious with his sarcasm and hatred of authority. But you could tell that he really was a very caring person, of course never towards humans, but towards animals and elves.

         I think some of the worst (parts that made my heart drop... so good parts?) parts of the book were when people discriminated against Ayden. Like when Kora was constantly ordering him to be beaten and how the people always wanted him whipped or imprisoned and Freyrik couldn't really do anything to stop it. And how as the book went on Ayden grew as a person and realized the limits of Freyriks power (and his own) and was at peace with his situation in a way he hadn't thought he would be able to be before.

         I felt that their love was very believable and because it too so long to blossom it seemed really genuine. Freyrik obviously fell in lust with Ayden at first sight, but he didn't get to love who Ayden  was until later. And it really sweet to see them start to slowly open up to each other and trust each other enough to have a relationship, but once they got to that point their bond was so strong it was really beautiful. It made me want to jump into the book and actually see them.

I give this book a 5 out of 5. You should really go read it.

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Daemon Whisperer by Candice Bundy

         Hey guys! Sorry that I have been out of touch for a while. It was my birthday and then I was sick and then this week there was the bombings in Boston and my school was locked down. So I haven't really had time to write reviews, but I am going to get on that now.

         I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. When I saw this book I just knew it was going to be awesome, I just didn't realize how awesome. I like demons, I like supernatural beings, is what I should actually say... Give me everything but a human. Just kidding humans are pretty great too. But the demons in this book were totally unique.

         Meriwether Storm discovered the grisly remains of her parents when she was only fourteen—the result of a failed daemon summoning. Meri immediately swore vengeance on the daemon who'd killed her parents, but there was only one problem: she had no idea which one had committed the atrocity. Before their untimely deaths, her parents trained her intensively in the arts, which Meri used to follow in their footsteps, ever seeking the daemon's name. Now, despite her years of searching, she's no closer to the truth and her time is running out.

         When a mysterious daemon named Azimuth offers Meri a deadly summoning in exchange for information about her parents’ murderer, she takes it immediately and without intimidation. What does worry her is her attraction to Azimuth: when he touches Meri, her pulse races and she breathlessly awaits the feel of his lips upon her skin. Meri knows she should keep him at arm's length, but her traitorous thoughts obsess over him night and day.

         Blinded by her desperation for the truth and her desire for Azimuth, Meri places her trust in the creatures who are her sworn enemy, jeopardizing her need for vengeance. After Meri discovers there's more to the deal than the daemon cabal first promised, can she accept all they have to offer?

         When retribution is the only thing that drives you, how much are you willing to sacrifice before you lose yourself to the cause?

Click to view on Amazon: The Daemon Whisperer

          I really liked this book. It had a gritty quality that I really enjoyed. I always like those deteriorating civilization stories and this was right up that alley, with an oppressive government, and deamons slaughtering people.

          I liked Meri, she was a really tough character. She had to be that way in order to survive in the world she lived in, but I also liked seeing the more vulnerable human part of her at times, like when she wanted to stop and help the fools who thought that they could properly summon daemons, she didn't though. I think the only thing that frustrated me was her determination to find her parent's killer. I mean, I totally understand wanting to do that, but at the same time I felt like it was destroying her and later we find out that that really is the case.

          I liked Azimuth, not only how he looked, but I loved his interactions with her, especially later in the book, when he is the only one who has faith in her. I like these two characters together, I think they play well off each other and I really want to read more about them.

          I thought the coolest part of this story was how Candice Bundy created the summoning aspect of it all. I thought the tattoos were awesome, and I haven't read any other books that have anything like that. I also really liked how they were able to absorb the daemons that they killed. I thought it was a little convenient that Meri absorbed some really powerful daemons and was able to handle them so well, but I am glad she did.

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I just want more!!! I give it a 5 out of 5!

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Servant of the Gods by Valerie Douglas

          I have always loved anything Ancient Egyptian, and when I saw this book on Amazon I thought I would give it a try. And man, this book to me on a roller coaster ride. I couldn't stop reading. I am really glad that I picked it up.

         Orphaned as a child, Irisi became a mercenary to survive.

          Captured by the Egyptian army and made the spoils of war, she finds herself drawn to their commander. Though the attraction is mutual even he can't save her from enslavement and she's forced to fight in the ring for entertainment.

         In a desperate attempt to regain her freedom she throws herself on the mercy of the Gods, only to discover that her fate is written in prophecy...

Click to View on Amazon: Servant of the Gods

         So this book is set 3,000 to 4,000 years in the past, in Ancient Egypt . It follows the story of Irisi, the High Priestess of HIsis. The opening scene.... the opening scene is of Irisi being mummified alive. I didnt know that was possible, and it was horrifying to think about, and sounds extremely painful. And then Irisi must say goodbye to her love, Khai, the only surviving general of the Egyptian army. The story then goes back to the beginning where you learn how Irisi and Khai met and what happened in between that moment and the mummification.

So there will be a lot of spoilers ahead. So, go read the book now if you don't want anything ruined.

         I really loved this book and I cried reading it, at the beginning and the end (it was really awkward too, because I was reading it during one of my classes). This book is an amazing mix of history, ancient religion, culture, and magic. I think that the author does a splendid job of not only showing us details of the life of Egyptians, but also a peek into their religion and how powerful it was to them. Some of my favorite scenes were those that took place between the priests. I also thought Kamenwati was super creepy.

         The only think that detracted from the story was the obvious plot. I thought it was unique that we know how the story "ends", but the rest of the plot was pretty predictable. Kamenwati was very obviously the bad guy, there is no thinking needed to figure that out. And a sad plot point, that I can't hold against Douglas because this tore me apart emotionally (yay, we all know how much I love that), was that we know that no matter how great the love story is, Irisi will not end up with Khai, she will instead be mummified. I cried like a baby. So I guess I am saying I liked knowing she was going to be mummified, but I wanted a little more secrecy surrounding who the bad guy was.

         Now, the Djinn, these things were really cool (evil) creatures that were kind of confusing/fascinating. They were like the ancient version of zombies, vampires, and werewolves. I was confused about them being called djinn because I always thought djinn were a part of Indian/Asian religion. But the djinn were terrifying and I am not sure why they were so much stronger than the chosen of the other gods. (the Djinn belonged to Set.)

         Something else that was confusing was the ethnicity of Irisi. She came from the north and she was very fair. The druids helped raise her and taught her some magic. She also incorporated Celtic knots into the protective charm necklace that she gave to Khai. So, she is from some Celtic place (Wales) so how did that happen? How did she end up in Egypt. I didn't know the Celts were raiding during that time period, I thought it was later in Egypt's history that that happened. That being said. I liked how different she was. I thought it added to her character.

         I just want to touch really quick on the lions that Sekhmet gave to her. They were so great, and it really broke my heart when the priests and priestesses decided to put them in the tomb with Irisi, to keep her company. They were turned into statues that would come to life when she called to them. It just made me start crying that they were so loyal they were willing to face eternity in a tomb with her, and then there was the fact that they would be her only company while everyone she had known would die and she wouldn't.

         As for the end, ugh, my heart hurts just thinking about it. Irisi was put in that tiny stele and was closed into the tomb, and Khai was expected to just be okay with it and walk away. I would never have been able to walk away. And the only time Irisi could come out was when someone was trying to break into the tomb, and even then she came out only to kill them before she had to go back into the dark. But!!! I was so mad when I read that Khai had had children. I understand that the woman he had children with was mourning her husband just as much as he mourned Irisi. And I get that he wanted to be a father, but he could have been a father with just one child! But he chose to have 4!!! I was a little skeptical and super pissed about that. Having read the second book I understand why he had to have children, but still, it made me want to punch something. That being said, it was really touching and heartbreaking how in every statue of himself he left an empty beside him where she should have been. And how he chose to put his tomb next to hers so that he could protect her from the afterlife. I literally wept when Irisi felt him die and then move on to the afterlife and she couldn't follow him. It was also sad how she felt so detached about it as well, and how she started to forget who she was and was trapped there forever in the dark. But there is a ray of light! She wakes up and confronts a tomb robber and starts on a new journey.

I give this a 4 out of 5 stars for some of the inconsistencies. But I really loved it and I will get the next book up soon :)

Concubine by Jill Knowles

         This is another one of those books that I always passed over... Maybe it was because for a while I wasn't into the whole M/M thing, and sometimes I get tired of the BDSM thing too. But I was, once again, an idiot for skipping over this book. I really liked it! Which is surprising because dubious consent romance usually makes me a bit uncomfortable. Though I ended up looking upon this book as more of an arranged marriage kind of thing.

         Scholar, captain...war prize. Prince Kael of Korai is stunned when his father gives him to an enemy warlord in a desperate attempt to salvage Korai's reputation. With his country's honor at stake, Kael resolves to submit to Warlord Taren's every debauched whim.

         But life in Zandria isn't anything like what Kael imagined. Instead of pain and cruelty, Warlord Taren seduces Kael until the bewildered prince craves his Master's every intimate caress. As he sinks into the decadent, sensual life of a concubine, Kael makes a powerful enemy, one who wants him removed from Zandria by any means necessary. Betrayed by his body, trapped by his honor, Kael must learn to trust his Master or get them both killed.

Click to View on Amazon: Concubine

         The first thing that I want to say about this book is that I thought that Taren was really sexy. Not only did he have cool scales, but they were purple, which is my absolute favorite color, so I was inclined to like him right off the bat. I thought Kael was a little whiney and at first I was annoyed but then I reminded myself of the situation he was in and decided he deserved to be  whiney. It wasn't his choice to be a concubine, especially to another male. He deserved to be upset.

         I think that Knowles showcased a very interesting psychological struggle within Kael. He had to struggle with not wanting to submit to another man, his disgust with himself  for being interested in Taren, his fear of what was to come, and his need to preserve the honor of his country by giving in. I do think it is endearing how he likes being with Taren, and I think that Taren is amazing at handling the situation and doing his best to make Kael comfortable about adjusting into his new role in life.

Spoilers ahead! Beware! Go read the book then come back!

         I like how they ended up mating, but I didn't understand why the whole guild was dying to Taren as a customer. From what he said he never was interested in using the guild and he never enjoyed it, so I don't understand why they claimed that they were losing such a great customer. I also didn't like that Taren's past lover worked so close with him and that he tried to pursue a relationship with Taren even after he was obviously interested in Kael.

         I thought that the mastermind behind everything was a pretty good twist. I did not expect Mendon to be the killer. I didn't like him at first but then when he obviously disliked Taren's past lover as much as I did he began to grow on me, and he seemed to warm up to Kael so it really came as a surprise to me when he turned out to be the one behind everything. Or maybe I was just so wrapped up in the relationship between Taren and Kael that I might have missed some clues that Mendon was behind it all.

         I love how the beast within Taren recognized  Kael right away and that in giving into the beast and the man, Kael was freed from his own doubts and he was able to fully embrace the relationship. It was really steamy too, some very very sexual scenes, so it is not a book for the faint of heart. i give it a 4 out of 5 stars!

Duck! by Kim Dare

         I always saw this book in a bunch of the Goodreads lists that I go through and I was always wary of it because of the exclamation point in the name. And looking back I think that is the silliest reason ever not to read a book. But I finally did read it, and man, I wish that I had read it sooner! it was amazing and this is a book that I definitely want to read again.

         A modern day M/M, BDSM retelling of The Ugly Ducking Fairy Tale using avian shifters.

         Raised among humans, Ori Jones only discovered he was an avian shifter six months ago. Unable to complete a full shift until he reaches his avian maturity, he still can’t be sure of his exact species.

         But with species comes rank, and rank is everything to the avians. When a partial shift allows the elders to announce that they believe Ori to be a rather ugly little duckling, he drops straight to the bottom rung of their hierarchy.

         Life isn’t easy for Ori until he comes to the attention of a high ranking hawk shifter. Then the only question is, is Ori really a duck—and what will his new master think when the truth eventually comes out?

Click to view on Amazon: Duck!

         I was surprised at how good this book was. Lately I think the BDSM thing has been over played, maybe it is because of the craze of 50 Shades of Grey, but sometimes it just gets a bit crazy. But that being said this book was great!! Maybe it is because I tend to be a very timid person that I loved Ori so much. I just thought he was very endearing, I do wish that he had a bit more of a personality outside of worshiping his "master", but Ori was very sweet so I guess that made up for it.

         I liked Ryland, and I really liked how he thought that Ori deserved respect no matter what. I also thought he was a really caring Dom, I feel like there are a lot of books out there where the Dom is less than nice to the sub, but in this one I could see the love between the two of them.

Spoilers ahead! Read the book then come back!

         Of course we knew from the start the Ori would end up being a Swan, something that confused me though was the fact that the hierarchy between the birds was based on who was the strongest, who was the most predatory, but swans are not like that at all and yet they are at the top of the chain. Also, Swans in real life are kind of mean so I was a bit confused as to why they would be so nice in this book. I am not complaining about that, I liked how gentle Ori was, I just thought it was a bit confusing.

         One of my favorite parts of the story was when Ori fell while cleaning the cabinet in the dining room, and was really hurt. Ryland came home and lost it, and that was the first time we had an inkling that Ori was more to him than a sexual partner. And I liked the punishment that Ryland gave to him, because I feel like in most BDSM books the sub would have been physically punished, which usually turns into pleasure, but Ori was punished psychologically and he got no pleasure out of it and I think it was such an appropriate punishment because Ryland was so scared.

         I was so pissed though at how Ryland behaved after he found out what Ori was. I felt it was a little out of character because he had been so supportive and accepting of everything that Ori was, so it didn't make sense to me that he would all of a sudden switch directions and abandon him. I understand that he thought that everything he was doing was for the best because a swan was above him in rank so there was no way Ori could be his sub, but man it made me mad. Especially when it was obvious that Ori was really suffering while he was away from Ryland. I just thought that was a dumb thing for Ryland to do.

         This was my first time reading a book written by Kim Dare, and I really really loved it. I love her writing style and I love how she puts the characters into the roles that they are suppossed to say. Something I realy love is how natural she make submission seem. In a lot of books I have read the subs alwaysstruggle to submit and have to be convinced that that is what they want, but what I have read in this book and other books by Kim Dare she just has the characters fall into it in such an easy natural way, and it really is exciting to read, because then we get to see more of the actualy interactions between and Dom and a sub instead of that weird inbetween period where the sub doesnt want to give in.

I really liked this book and it made me go back and read more of her books! I give it a 5 out of 5 stars :)