COYER Mini-Review Marathon Time! Sterling, Holding On And Letting Go, and Turned at Dark

Is there such a thing as reviewer's block? Every time I sat down to tell you all how much I loved this and that, my mind scattered in a thousand directions. Here's my best shot at lassoing some of those thoughts.

5 STARS!! Sterling (Mageri Series: Book 1) by Dannika Dark took my breath away right out of the gate. Zoe Merrick is completely average and totally cool with it. That's the thing I liked about her from page one, she's a with it character who knows how to wield what she has. Then bam! She's attacked. Killed? Maybe, maybe not? In her very understandable freak out she runs into Adam Razor. Oh, my goodness. I love him. I'll just get that out right now. Adam helps her come back to life, but she has no vision for her future. How do you start over when you feel disconnected from everything and everyone? No worries because she meets Justus De Gradi who knows what's missing in Zoe's life. The road to the magical future she's meant to have is not a pretty one, but Justus vows to show her the way. There's flirting, kissing, and a whole lot of sexual frustration in this installment. My heart raced and swooned. There were moments I wanted to stand with Zoe and fight by her side. The bad guys are worthy of gruesome deaths. The good guys are all so damn hot, even Zoe is a little dizzy. I have book 2 already waiting for me. How's that for cleaning out my Kindle?

"May I have another taste of your cherry?" 

Justus to Zoe p. 113 (it's not what you think)

"And you don't see me carrying a wand, do you?"

"Well..."

"You've always got a counter for everything, don't you?"

Justus to Zoe p. 232

5 STARS!! Holding on and Letting Go by K.A. Coleman had me crying from the beginning. I knew this was a tearjerker. I stepped outside my wussy norm and risked my heart anyway. Emerson Caulfield lost the love of her life. If you're thinking some wild boy who died way too young, you're right. She lost her baby brother who had the most amazing spirit. He was the light of her life. Darkness swallowed her and kept her captive for two years until she returned home. Thing with letting light back in your life, any flicker hurts. Enter Matt, all american hottie, next door neighbor, and Emerson's long ago best friend. He's determined to be there for her. She's determined to continue putting on an act and mourning in private. Emerson's journey out of the dark is a painful, gritty one filled with angst and tears, but I couldn't get enough. I love Matt and Emerson's story. We all have one. We all lose our way at some point. 

"Sometimes it's yourself that you lose, and that may be the worst loss of all."
location 1899


3 STARS!! Turned at Dark (A Shadow Falls Novella) by C.C. Hunter gives us a glimpse of Della Tsang's life before she entered the spooky world of Shadow Falls. You see how she went from perfect daughter in love with the boy her parents actually approved of to the sullen vamped out chick we all know and love. I'm so excited that she has a spanking new spin off series coming May 2014. I enjoyed this quick read, but I wished it was meatier. My emotions weren't tugged in any direction. I'll be looking for Reborn in the spring. I hope you all check it out too!

Think Out Loud [33] The Boy Who Saved Christmas (sort of)

A couple days ago John put on his most solemn face. 

"Mom, is Santa Claus real?"

"Do you think he's real?" I asked.

"Um, no. I don't think so. Dad says he isn't."

"No, your daddy did not say that."

"Okay, you're right. Is he real?"

"Well, Santa means different things for-"

"Will, is Santa real?"

"Of course he is! We saw Santa at the mall last year."

John sat on that for a few seconds.

"Okay, okay. I was wrong. He's real."

And all was right in his world...until this morning when he told me Santa wasn't real but the Easter Bunny definetely was.

Happy Thanksgiving. I am so very thankful for the friendships forged in this awesome world of blogging, fangirling, and ranting. You all rock!

Sidekick Showcase [37] Creepy!!

This week's sidekick is CREEPY, and I had no idea who to pick until one name came to me. Eve's little jerk brother Jason Rosser. I'm talking Rachel Caine's Morganville series here. From the moment Jason skulks around the hot, dusty Texas town, you want him to stumble upon a scary vamp and get good and drained. I never liked him. Once or twice I felt a twinge of compassion. I hoped he would be this big turnaround character for Eve's sake, which only speaks to my unhealthy attachment to this series. Maybe there's hope for him because I can't remember what his character is up to. Every time I think about him, I see flashes of all the crap he's pulled over the years. As for casting someone to play his role, imagine a scrawny, blond, filthy, crazy-eyed, barely-past-puberty punk kid, with stick legs and long bony hands. The last two are all me, but that's the Jason in my mind. 

“Michael, don’t,” Eve said. “He won’t hurt us.” And everyone rolled their eyes at that. Even Jason, which was borderline hilarious.”
― Rachel Caine, Carpe Corpus

Jason talking about Michael -
"Don't do me any favors, Glass Ass," Jason snapped.”
― Rachel Caine, Carpe Corpus

Sidekick Showcase, previously known as Sidekick Saturday, is a weekly bookish meme, hosted here by Jaclyn at JC's Book Haven. There are many secondary characters that are as great as the primaries. In some cases, the sidekicks actually steal the show and you like them better than the heroine or hero. Maybe they didn't have enough page time for how great they were. Anyone can play along! I will post my Sidekicks on Saturday, then whichever day during the week that you would like to post yours, you can put your link in on my page. Just do the following:

• Choose a sidekick *or someone other than the hero or heroine* that you would like to put in the spotlight that fit's in the week's topic

• Share a picture (if you can) and information about the character

• Give the title and author of a book the character can be found in

• Please don't include too many spoilers when describing why the character is such a great sidekick

• The day of your post, put your link in below and grab the code for your post so you can see the others that post their's throughout the week as well

Going dark this week, but I have great book news!

I'm out of commission this upcoming week. Will is on the slow mend from the stomach flu. He's sassing me finally, so all is right in my world. (Update...I have it now so maybe all is not right in my world, but I am thrilled Will is on the other side of this terrible bug.)


In book news, Soul Walker and Soul Bender have spanking new covers thanks to our wonderful Jaclyn at JC's Book Haven. We're planning a cover celebration hop/giveaway the first week in December. Anyone who wants to participate just drop a line.



Also, I'd hoped to publish Shadow Town this year, but it looks like January is going to be my magical book release month. Blame my publisher (dang, that's me). Shadow Town follows nineteen year old Maggie Lane. By day she's property manager of Pearl Estates, a housing community owned by her father and occupied by Shadows. By night she's a waitress at a local dive. When a girl at her night job disappears she goes into Scooby Doo mode. She might be able to handle a missing waitress on her own, but when a new Shadow moves in next door and turns her into a blushing, flirting, love-crazed girl, her need for answers reveals a world waiting, stalking, sharpening their teeth for her.

(I originally published this post Sunday night...but it was too depressing at the time since Will was breaking my heart, so I reverted it to draft...sorry for anyone clicking all over the place trying to find it)

Think Out Loud [32] Cussing Up A Storm

(WARNING: SWEARING AHEAD!)

A couple weeks ago Will demonstrated he'd moved on to the next big stage of Middle School. My mom scolded him for something he was doing. Will's response? "Shiiiiiiit." He has a high signsong voice and loves to stretch his words out. I tried very hard not to be amused. Total failure. A week after that, his other grandma informed me she'd heard him say the f-word under his breath. Time for a talk, I thought, but then my mind went to all those moments where swearing played a key part of the experience. Weird, but I have a cussing soundtrack to my life.

Nine years old, rough time for me. My mom ordered patterns in the mail to make pillows out of cartoon characters. My sister's arrived with mismatched pieces. I didn't take it well. "If they messed up my Strawberry Shortcake pattern, I'm going to be really pissed off!" Got grounded on the spot.

Fourteen, summer before my freshman year of high school. After being grossly hit on, I boldly and stupidly told the awful (and gargantuan) guy I could not stand him. He grabbed my boob and in my struggle to get away from him, he ripped my shirt. The shirt I had just gleefully stolen from my sister. "You tore my sister's shirt! You (three fast punches to his face) asshole!" I learned by the immediate rage that took over his entire body to flee first, feel properly pissed later. Our mutual friend stepped between us before the jerk could pummel me into the ground.

Two years ago fresh off my divorce and about as fragile as anything, my dad called using his overly calm voice. My brain went into overtime to keep the emotions in check because I knew something bad was coming. "...and the doctor said I'd die of old age before the leukemia got me." I tried my best not to cry because I absolutely hate crying over the phone. In my effort, my brain grasped for anything to hold on to. Swearing. "Shit," was all I could say. Then he kept going, talking about white blood counts and diet. I nodded until, "Do you know the odds of Ella May and I both having leukemia?" "Wait. Grandma has leukemia too?" "Yes." "Shit." 

I don't know what landscape of life Will has in store, or what his cussing soundtrack will be. So last week after picking Will up from school, I turned off the car and had our talk. 

"Will, I don't want you saying shiiiiiit." He chirped the way he usually did. If I could draw musical notes you'd get a better idea of how he sounds.

"Anything else, Mom?"

"Uh...yeah, don't say damn."

"Okay."

"Or ass."

"You mean like Get your ass in here?"

"Wait, what? Where did you hear that?"

"Where did I hear Get your ass in here?" I nodded. "On my game at Dad's."

"Well, don't say that."

"You mean ass?"

"Grrh. Yes, ass."

"Anything else?"

"Don't say pissed off, God dammit, or Jesus Christ."

"How about bitch?"

"Oh my goodness, don't say bitch. Do not say bitch. Really. That's a terrible one."

"Bitch is terrible?"

"Yes, it's terrible!"

"I won't say bitch, but you can't say bitch either, as in son of a bitch!"

"Uh, my bad. Okay...And Will?" 

"Yes, Mom?"

"Don't say fuck."

chirp, chirp, chirp

Think Out Loud is one seriously awesome post whatever you want meme. I mean, I freaking love it! (I couldn't pull the trigger there on all-out cussing). 

Wild Sci-Fi Gory Awesome World! robgirlbooks' Review of Clutch (I Am Just Junco #1)

Clutch (I Am Just Junco #1)

by J.A. Huss

Publisher: Science Future Press (9/15/12)

NA Sci-Fi (awesomeness)

4.5 STARS!!

Junco Coot is a soldier. She's all alone. And her world is filled with monsters. Thing is, this pint-sized, foul-mouthed killer is a monster too. It took me a few days to adjust to such a different kind of story, but finally I realized my brain absorbed the words as if I was watching a movie. The images were so vivid, the characters so real, the blood so right in your face. The simple act of hitting a buck in the road felt like a slow motion movie reel. I couldn't look away. I also had to adjust to a female character with minimal introspection/whining. This girl just goes and goes. Got a bloody head and busted shoulder? Suck it up. Got a military faction after your ass? Take em' down and run for it. Then enter Tier. An actual winged man wrapped in a shroud of mystery, mayhem, hotness, and murder. He wants to help Junco, but we're never sure what he really wants.

There are so many deeply rooted conflicts in this story. Earth is in a state of constant conflict with military factions and all the politics it takes to crush ordinary folk in the name of peace. We have hatred between humans and the winged aliens. And we have freaking scary beasts like the moondogs that will eat you. They'll howl and sing and munch you down. J.A. Huss pulled me into Junco's world by creating a wonderfully captivating, flawed, and raw character. Did I hop on over to Amazon and one-click Fledge (book 2)? Yes I did.

I'm down three books on my list for the E-reader challenge and I've purchased book 2 for two of them. Math-wise, I'm not doing so good. Entertainment-wise? I'm rocking it out! I hope you all are having a great time reading!

Sidekick Showcase [36] Lady's Man

This week's challenge is super fun, LADY'S MAN!

I'm sure there are a few unattached man whores out there my mind has conveniently glossed over, but I'm going with a recovering lady's man: Bones from the Night Huntress Series. His former slut status is a wonderful addition to the story because Cat is hilarious when she's jealous. She never takes the high road. If she has to grab Bones' crotch in front of a room full of people to stake her claim, so be it. I love it! Because of his British accent and platinum blond hair when we first meet him, I can't shed the Spike from Buffy image in my head. So Bones is Spike when he was at his most wicked, but without the moping.

“Juan gave Bones the most admiring look he’d bestowed on him yet. “You talked her into going without panties all these years? Madre de Dios, now that’s impressive. I could learn a great deal from you, amigo.”

― Jeaniene Frost, One Foot in the Grave

“Is that a stake, Bones, or are you just happy with my new dress?”

“In this case, it’s a stake. You could always feel around for something more, though. See what comes up.”
― Jeaniene Frost, Halfway to the Grave

“I am a nice young girl here to pick up your granddaughter for the weekend... We're going to a Bible retreat to scare the devil out of her. - Bones to Cat's grandparents”
― Jeaniene Frost, Halfway to the Grave

“Don't care for her tongue, do you? How strange. I find it one of my favorite parts.
Bones to Gregor”
― Jeaniene Frost, Destined for an Early Grave   (I haven't read this one yet)

“Bones has always been smart," I muttered. "His intelligence was just camouflaged under a mountain of p**sy."
Cat”
― Jeaniene Frost, Destined for an Early Grave  

Sidekick Showcase, previously known as Sidekick Saturday, is a weekly bookish meme, hosted here by Jaclyn at JC's Book Haven. There are many secondary characters that are as great as the primaries. In some cases, the sidekicks actually steal the show and you like them better than the heroine or hero. Maybe they didn't have enough page time for how great they were. Anyone can play along! I will post my Sidekicks on Saturday, then whichever day during the week that you would like to post yours, you can put your link in on my page. Just do the following:

• Choose a sidekick *or someone other than the hero or heroine* that you would like to put in the spotlight that fit's in the week's topic

• Share a picture (if you can) and information about the character

• Give the title and author of a book the character can be found in

• Please don't include too many spoilers when describing why the character is such a great sidekick

• The day of your post, put your link in below and grab the code for your post so you can see the others that post their's throughout the week as well

Think Out Loud [31] Music that reaches inside and holds on

I fell in love with Say Something by A Great Big World, featuring Christina Aguilera. They performed it on The Voice last night. So I'm sharing it with you guys.

 Is anyone else out there watching The Voice this season? Any favorites? I love Caroline, James, and Preston. 

robgirlbooks' Clean Out Your e-Reader Challenge Reviews of Prince of Wolves and Winter's Thaw

So I have a little dilemma. I read a pretty innocent YA book (Prince of Wolves) and then jumped right into a hardcore steamy read (Winter's Thaw). Is it bad form to review them together? Maybe. But I'm gonna do it anyway. 

3.5 STARS! Prince of Wolves by Quinn Loftis is one fun read. Despite there being a serious case of insta-love and a trio of teens whose chatter revolves solely around boys, I read this book in three days. I loved Jaque's nicknames for Fane. The friendship with the girls took me back in time to my high school days when all we did was goof off and insult each other. I thought this was a pretty light read with a handful of copy editing issues and a little too much relationship reflection, but the quick wit and colorful characters propelled me through and left me smiling. I can see why this series is so popular. Prince of Wolves sets up a great cast.


4 STARS! Winter's Thaw by Mari Carr and Jayne Rylon is awesome, heartwarming, and mega hot. I love the characters, though the cover actors look nothing like my Sienna and Daniel. Sienna is not a wild girl. She's not damaged. She doesn't even have a hard life. But the girl is robotic in her pursuit to marry her lackluster high school sweetheart. Enter hot, easy going, sex God Daniel. These two had crazy good chemistry. I loved Sienna's journey to learn more about herself. Winter's Thaw is book one in a new series, but it's a spin off from the Compass Brothers series. Just to warn you, if you like your sex scenes mostly left to your imagination or if you like it completely vanilla, maybe this isn't for you, or maybe it's exactly for you!

The Vamps are Loose and It Gets Hairy for Mohawk Jenny! robgirlbooks' reviews of Bound by Night and Dragon's Game

5 STARS! Bound by Night is my first Larissa Ione book, and boy oh boy have I been missing out. The prologue took my breath away with a terrifying view of the world through the eyes of little Nicole Martin. We quickly discover there will be no warm fuzzies, not with counterpart Riker, the human hating, extra snarly, heartless vamp. Even the love story is going to be a jagged edge. There's a nice balance of traditional vampire attributes, like the ability to mystify humans, the ability to make the vamp bite an erotic or terrible experience, and the concept of mates, with a fresh alternate world where humans enslave vampires and vampires aren't so keen on that. I read this book in two days, that's how thoroughly the story hooked me.


5 STARS! Dragon's Game by E.J. Wesley is the 4th installment in the awesome NA urban fantasy Moonsongs novelette series. Did I stalk Amazon and E.J.'s website for a release date for this book? Yes I did. Book 3 (Dark Prelude) left us on the edge and worrying about our favorite tomahawk wielding heroine. Oh, Jenny can beat the crap out of any big bad, but I've always seen her as emotionally fragile. In Dragon's Game, I loved seeing her on her own and realizing for the first time how much it sucked to really live as an island. E.J. takes us on location to a nightclub in Houston. Would she have gotten into so much trouble if she had chosen a community center in a wholesome little town? Probably. If you haven't started this series and have a thing for heroines with an attitude problem, add it to your TBR list right quick. In about 14,000 words we get snark, a different take on our favorite monsters, and a friendship you can't help but cheer on. It's so good.

Sidekick Showcase [35] Fairytales!

This week's sidekick showcase is Fairytales!!! 

What an exciting challenge. I couldn't get enough Cinderella and Snow White when I was a little girl. Then I discovered Disney movies. Beauty and the Beast has always been one of my favorites and not for the typical reasons. I loved the Beast. Growly and mean and sad, but he had loyal friends. Sure they wanted the spell broken, but they cared for the master of the house. I've read Beastly and watched the movie, a modern day Beauty and the Beast and I enjoyed both, but they missed the mark on how cool Belle is and how gruff and secretly charming the beast is. So I choose the big furry jerk. (I found this drawing on the web.)

“If he could learn to love another, and earn her love in return by the time the last petal fell, then the spell would be broken. If not, he would be doomed to remain a beast for all time. As the years passed, he fell into despair and lost all hope. For who could ever learn to love a beast? -Beauty & the Beast”

― Walt Disney Company

Beast: You will join me for dinner!
[screaming]
Beast: That's not a request!

(quotes from the Disney movie)

[Belle is washing the Beast's wounds]
Beast: [roaring] Aaargh! That hurts!
Belle: If you'd hold still, it wouldn't hurt as much!
Beast: Well if you hadn't have run away, this wouldn't have happened.
Belle: If you hadn't *frightened* me, I wouldn't have run away!
Beast: Well *you* shouldn't have been in the west *wing*!
Belle: Well, *you* should learn to control your temper. Now, hold still. This might sting a little.
[presses cloth to wound; the beast growls in pain]
Belle: By the way, thank you for saving my life.
Beast: [stops growling] You're welcome.
(quotes from the Disney movie)

Now for my own sidekick portion of the showcase. My sister jumped around a lot with this one. At one point she went with a character from The Wizard of Oz because her favorite show Supernatural just had an Oz storyline. I guess Dorothy ran off into the sunset with a girl, which is plain cool. Then she said Three Blind Mice and I was about to throw a french fry at her (we were at lunch). Finally she picked Aslan from Chronicles of Narnia. Aslan, how can I hit her with my attitude problem at that pick. He's practically Jesus in that story. So I LOVE her choice. My mom first went with Cinderella. Might have been because I made her listen to the movie record a million times when I was a girl. But she finally settled on the wolf from Little Red Riding Hood. She also said the wolf looked a little like Matthew Mcconaughey. Imagine that.

Sidekick Showcase, previously known as Sidekick Saturday, is a weekly bookish meme, hosted here by Jaclyn at JC's Book Haven. There are many secondary characters that are as great as the primaries. In some cases, the sidekicks actually steal the show and you like them better than the heroine or hero. Maybe they didn't have enough page time for how great they were. Anyone can play along! I will post my Sidekicks on Saturday, then whichever day during the week that you would like to post yours, you can put your link in on my page. Just do the following:

• Choose a sidekick *or someone other than the hero or heroine* that you would like to put in the spotlight that fit's in the week's topic

• Share a picture (if you can) and information about the character

• Give the title and author of a book the character can be found in

• Please don't include too many spoilers when describing why the character is such a great sidekick

• The day of your post, put your link in below and grab the code for your post so you can see the others that post their's throughout the week as well

(By http://flickr.com/photos/nieve44/ (http://flickr.com/photos/nieve44/418072188/) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons)