Riveted - Book Review

Riveted (Iron Seas #3)
by Meljean Brook

What is it about:
A century after a devastating volcanic eruption forced Iceland’s inhabitants to abandon its shores, the island has become enshrouded in legend. Fishermen tell tales of giant trolls guarding the land and of seductive witches who steal men’s hearts. But the truth behind the legends is mechanical, not magic—and the mystery of the island a matter of life and death for a community of women who once spilled noble blood to secure their freedom.

Five years ago, Annika unwittingly endangered that secret, but her sister Källa took the blame and was exiled. Now Annika serves on the airship Phatéon, flying from port to port in search of her sister and longing to return home . . . but that home is threatened when expedition leader David Kentewess comes aboard.

Determined to solve the mystery of his own origin, David will stop at nothing to expose Annika’s secrets. But when disaster strikes, leaving David and Annika stranded on a glacier and pursued by a madman, their very survival depends on keeping the heat rising between them—and generating lots of steam . . .

What did I think of it:
I will confess it took me some time to pick up this book.

I wasn't impressed by the romance in Heart of Steel (book 2 in this series) and I was afraid that Riveted would disappoint me as well.

I couldn't have been more wrong.

This book is right up there with The Iron Duke and Here There Be Monsters. There's a thrilling adventure, a sweet romance and plenty of cool action. I really liked the romance between David and Annika. They were a perfect fit in my opinion and I liked seeing them growing closer.

I did miss the zombies I must confess, but there's lots of other stuff happening that I won't hold the lack of zombies against this book.

There were some personal pet peeves that made me annoyed at this story at times, but as those were very personal I won't go into them here.

Overall this was a more than enjoyable book that restored my trust in this series. I really hope Brook will write more books in this setting.

Why should you read it:
It's an action packed Steampunk Romance

Heart of Steel - Book Review

Heart of Steel (Iron Seas #2)
by Meljean Brook

What is it about:
Growing up in the dangerous world of the Iron Seas, the mercenary captain of the airship Lady Corsair, Yasmeen, has learned to keep her heart hard as steel. Ruthless and cunning, her only loyalty is to her ship and her crew-until one man comes along and changes everything...Treasurehunter Archimedes Fox isn't interested in the Lady Corsair-just the captain and the valuable da Vinci sketch she stole from him. When it attracts a dangerous amount of attention, Yasmeen and Archimedes journey to Horde-occupied Morocco- and straight into enemy hands.

What did I think of it:
I'm in two minds about this book.

The story and setting are really cool. There's zombies, creepy assassins, airships, you name it. I loved reading about the grim world Brook created and I loved the action and adventure.

Yasmeen and Archimedes however....

I don't think they made a believable romantic couple. It might be just me, but I couldn't feel the connection between them. Don't get me wrong: Both characters are very cool and interesting and I really wanted them to succeed and to find happiness, just not with each other.

This mismatched romance kept me from losing myself completely in the story and while I was totally engrossed in the story when reading The Iron Duke and Here There Be Monsters, here I kept feeling a distance.

I will certainly continue reading this series, because The Iron Seas world is the coolest and darkest Steampunk setting I've come across, but Heart of Steel is my least favorite addition to this series so far. (Although the zombies did make up for the botched romance I will say ;-)

Why should you read it:
It's a cool Steampunk adventure.

Wild and Steamy - Book Review

Wild & Steamy by Meljean Brook, Jill Myles and Carolyn Crane
ebook - anthology

What is it about:
The Blushing Bounder by Meljean Brook - An Iron Seas novella of 15,000 words:
The search for a killer puts Detective Inspector Mina Wentworth's life in danger and her assistant, Constable Newberry, in the line of fire. But Newberry faces a danger of another kind: to his heart, by the woman forced to marry him. What will it take for this prudish bounder to convince his wife to stay?

Vixen by Jill Myles - A shifter novella of 15,000 words:
Miko's denied her were-fox nature for far too long and turned her back on her vixen heritage. But when she meets two very sexy cat-shifters, she has to decide if she truly wants to give up on her frisky side, or embrace it. Because the were-fox in her doesn't want to choose between both men...it wants them both.

Kitten-tiger & the Monk by Carolyn Crane - A Disillusionists novella of 20,000 words:
Sophia Sidway, Midcity's most dangerous memory revisionist, seeks out the mysterious Monk in the wasteland beneath the Tangle turnpike, hoping for redemption...but it turns out that the Monk is not all that pious, and the turnpike is no turnpike at all.

What did I think of it:

The Blushing Bounder by Meljean Brook:
This story was set in Brook's Iron Seas world, but where the other two stories in this series are dark and gritty, this story is so sweet you can't help but smile while reading it. It's a lovely addition to a terrific series.

Vixen by Jill Myles:
What can I say.
It's well written, but this piggy doesn't like menages, so this is not a story for me.

Kitten-tiger & the Monk by Carolyn Crane:
I've been dying to learn more about the Monk ever since he was mentioned in Mind Games, so Crane catered to my wishes with this story. But it's not just the Monk that made me love this story: Crane's writing, her world building and the story itself of course are all brilliant.

Why should you read it:
If you're a fan of at least one of these authors you need to get this anthology!

Find out where you can buy this ebook: Here

On McPig's Radar

These two ebooks just released this week and Voodoo Bride and me are so looking forward to reading them.

Check out: Wild & Steamy
This ebook has three stories of which 2 are must reads for me: one is set in the Iron Seas world by Meljean Brook and one is set in the Disillusionist world by Carolyn Crane!!

Check out: Feeding the Vampire
According to Voodoo bride no one should be able to resist reading post-apocalyptic, vampire erotica!

We picked up our copies of these ebooks today and are all set to read them. Make sure you get a copy as well!

Wild Thing - Book Review

Wild Thing by Maggie Shayne, Meljean Brook, Marjorie M. Liu and Alyssa Day

What is it about:
Atlantis, demon hordes, guardian angels, and an animal whisperer. Wild Thing has this and more.

What did I think of it:
As this is an anthology I will tell something about every story.

Animal Magnetism by Maggie Shayne
I really liked this story. It's about an animal doctor who can 'talk' with animals. She's not too fond of humans though, but she might have to change her views when she gets dragged into a series of violent crimes because of her gift.
The action storyline and the romance storyline melt well together and I liked both Macy, the lead character and Jay, her love interest. I might pick up other books by this author.

Paradise by Meljean Brook
I really couldn't get into this story about vampires and guardian angels. I tried to like it as I love Brook's Iron Seas series, but in the end I gave up on this story as it just didn't appeal to me.

Hunter Kiss by Marjorie M. Liu
My absolute favourite story of this anthology!
Maxine Kiss is a demon hunter who get help from a couple of demons that are bound to her in the form of tattoos by day but which are released at night.
Ok: there are now two authors who can write in present tense without me getting annoyed by it! I LOVE this short story. The setting, the characters, the writing: it's all awesome! I'm so going to read the Hunter Kiss series and luckily I already have it in my tbr-pile.

Wild Hearts in Atlantis by Alyssa Day
Voodoo Bride enjoyed this story about an Atlantean warrior and his fated mate, a half breed shapeshifter more than me, but still it's a nice story. I could have done with a little less romance and a bit more action I must confess. There were a couple of storyhooks that weren't used to their full potential and that's always a shame to see.

Why should you read it:
This book is worth reading for the Marjorie M. Liu story alone, but you even get 3 other Paranormal Romance stories as well!

The Iron Duke - Book Review

The Iron Duke by Meljean Brook

What is it about:
After the Iron Duke freed England from Horde control, he instantly became a national hero. Now Rhys Trahaearn has built a merchant empire on the power — and fear — of his name. And when a dead body is dropped from an airship onto his doorstep, bringing Detective Inspector Mina Wentworth into his dangerous world, he intends to make her his next possession.

Mina can’t afford his interest, however. Horde blood runs through her veins, and despite the nanotech enhancing her body, she barely scratches out a living in London society. Becoming Rhys’s lover would destroy both her career and her family, yet the investigation prevents her from avoiding him…and the Iron Duke’s ruthless pursuit makes him difficult to resist.

But when Mina uncovers the victim’s identity, she stumbles upon a conspiracy that threatens the lives of everyone in England. To save them, Mina and Rhys must race across zombie-infested wastelands and treacherous oceans — and Mina discovers the danger is not only to her countrymen as she finds herself tempted to give up everything to the Iron Duke.

What did I think about it:
For a story that is promoted on the back of the book with the description 'zombie-infested wastelands' it had very few zombies I must say. Do I hold that against it?

Absolutely not!!

I loved this book! The world Brook created is wonderfully gritty, grim and fascinating. She knows just how to make a world truely Steampunk, instead of it just having a few steampunky details. And it's not just the setting I fell in love with: her characters and the story are amazing as well. The story breathes the same grim and gritty atmosphere as the world where it takes place and even the romance was affected by it, which made it stand out from other romances in my opinion. It did have the over-used 'I love you, but as I'm a macho guy I'm not going to say it or even explain my actions, so you will misunderstand me' moment, but as it was used to keep an action storyline going in the right direction I won't hold that against Brook much.

My final verdict:
Great storytelling and superior worldbuilding. Keep the books coming in this series and I'll be reading them even when there's only a few zombies in them.

Why should you read it:
It's got Steampunk, (Ex)Pirates, Mercenaries and other cool stuff!



This review is entered in vvB32 Reads Iron Seas Challenge
(And I won this book at the same challenge as well :-D )

Steampunk Mail

There was mail from the US for me today.

It turned out to be from Velvet from vvB32 Reads. She send me a card with info on Steampunk and on the book 'The Iron Duke' by Meljean Brook because I'm participating in her Iron Seas challenge.

I hope I will win the challenge as that will mean I win 'The Iron Duke'. It's got zombies! And I probably shouldn't say this as it will lower my chances, but you can still enter!

Burning Up - Book Review

*
Burning Up by Nalini Singh, Angela Knight, Virginia Kantra, and Meljean Brook

What is it about:
Nalini Singh returns to the world of her Psy-Changeling series as a woman in lethal danger finds an unlikely protector-and lover.

Angela Knight pairs a vampire warrior and his seductive captor in a battle against demonic predators.

Virginia Kantra continues the haunting tales of the Children of the Sea in her story of a wounded soldier rescued by an enigmatic young woman.

Meljean Brook launches a bold new steampunk series about a woman who strikes a provocative-and terrifying-bargain for freedom.


What did I think of it:
You'll find my review of the story Here There Be Monsters by Meljean Brook here

As I said in my review of Brook's story, this anthology is about hot paranormal romance, so all of the stories have romance as the main storyline, one doing a better job at it than the other. I'll give a short overview of my thoughts about each story.

Whisper of Sin by Nalini Singh
I really liked this one. It was well written, had cool secondary characters and the romance and action had a nice balance for a short story like this. I will certainly check out other books in this series.

Blood and Roses by Angela Knight
This story was ok, but could have been better. The romance was more smut than romance and felt very rushed and unnatural. I liked the world building for as far as it was shown, but didn't care much for the story.

Shifting Sea by Virginia Kantra
My least favourite of the stories in this anthology. It was too much romance, too little other storylines in my opinion. I also thought the characters lacked originality and there was little depth to the story.

All in all, a decent anthology with Here There Be Monsters being my absolute favourite, but taken my love for Steampunk and pirates into account that doesn't come as a big surprise.

Why should you read it:
Lovers of paranormal romance will love this anthology

* I won this book at vvB32 Reads

Here There be Monsters - Short Story Review

*
Here There be Monsters by Meljean Brook (from the Anthology Burning Up)

What is it about:
Two years ago, blacksmith Ivy, desperate to flee London, purchased her overseas passage by agreeing to spend the voyage in the bed of the pirate captain, Mad Machen. Saved at the last minute by his rival, Ivy scraped out a new life in Fool’s Cove…until Mad Machen finds her, forces her to accept a job that will create a monster, and reminds her that she still owes him the price of a journey…

What did I think of it:
This Steampunk story is part of an anthology that's all about hot paranormal romance, so not too surprisingly the focus of the story is a romance, which is quite intense and worth reading all by itself. That being said: for a short story there's some amazing world building and Brook paints a Steampunk setting that has me excited and hungry for more. There's even mention of zombies, although unfortunately enough it's just a mention, but as this story is a set up for a series I think we can expect the zombies to make a real appearance in future stories. I really like how the characters in this story are affected by the Steampunk influences around them both physically and mentally and I must say I'm looking forward to reading the next book in this series - The Iron Duke - to learn more about this cool and intriguing world and the characters that populate it.

Why should you read it:
Steampunk and Pirates! Need I say more?

* I won this book at vvB32 Reads and this review is entered in vvB's Iron Seas Challenge

(expect a review of the other stories in this anthology soon)