Teaser Tuesdays - Darkness Calls

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
- Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Grant grabbed Mary's arm, but not before she smiled fiercely and laughed.
"Gabriel's hounds will kill you," she said, and looked from me to the priest.
(page 28, Darkness Calls (Hunter Kiss #2) by Marjorie M. Liu)

Wanderlust - Book Review

Wanderlust (Sirantha Jax #2) by Ann Aguirre

What is it about:
Broke and unemployed, "Jumper" Sirantha Jax accepts a diplomatic mission for the government— only to find herself up against Syndicate criminals, man-eating aliens, and her own grimspaceweakened body.

What did I think of it:
I loved Grimspace, the first book in this series. This book however frustrated me beyond reason. Where I loved Jax before now she acts in ways that made me want to kick her senseless. The writing, the other characters (especially Vel), the setting and the story are all still just as awesome as in Grimspace, it's just Jax I couldn't stand in this book. Weirdly enough I only just noticed these books are written in present tense when Jax started to frustrate me, so that's saying something about Aguirre's writing skills, which are superior in my opinion. I will certainly try book 3 in this series if only to see if Aguirre manages to make me love Jax again.

Why should you read it:
It's a well written SciFi story with lots of action and cool characters.

Vicious Circle - Book Review

Vicious Circle (Persephone Alcmedi #1) by Linda Robertson

What is it about:
Being a witch doesn't pay the bills, but Persephone Alcmedi gets by between reading Tarot cards, writing her syndicated newspaper column, and kenneling werewolves in the basement when the moon is full — even if witches aren't supposed to mingle with wolves. She really reaches the end of her leash, though, when her grandmother gets kicked out of the nursing home and Seph finds herself in the doghouse about some things she's written. Then her werewolf friend Lorrie is murdered...and the high priestess of an important coven offers Seph big money to destroy the killer, a powerful vampire named Goliath Kline. Seph is a tough girl, but this time she bites off more than she can chew. She needs a little help from her friends — werewolf friends. One of those friends, Johnny, the motorcycle-riding lead singer for the techno-metal-Goth band Lycanthropia, has a crush on her. And while Seph has always been on edge around this 6'2" leather-clad hunk, she's starting to realize that although their attraction may be dangerous, nothing could be as lethal as the showdown that awaits them.

What did I think of it:
This is a great read. The world building is very original and the characters really cool. I can't even begin to pick a favourite character as they're all awesome (bad guys included). The story is interesting and able to stand on it's own, but also gives plenty of intriguing story hooks for future books. Persephone might be a witch, but she's so human in how she thinks and acts that she feels like she might be your next door neighbour (well, if your next door neighbour had a kennel for werewolves). I like how she's not some superhero character, but an almost normal person who's forced into action by the things coming her way. I'm already looking forward to reading more in this series.

Why should you read it:
It's a cool UF story with witches, werewolves and vampires.

Love & Rockets - Book Review

Love and Rockets edited by Martin H. Greenberg, Kerrie Hughes (Anthology)

What is it about:
Space...the final frontier. Or is it? Many say there's no frontier more forbidding than a romantic relationship between a man and a woman. But what if one's a human, and the other's an alien? Here is an original collection of space opera stories where authors take love (unrequited or not), on a spaceship, space station, or planetary colony, and add enough drama, confusion and mayhem to ensure that the path to true love-or short-term infatuation-is seldom free of obstacles.

What did I think of it:
I must say I'm getting all happy when I spot an anthology by Greenberg as I've read several of those now that had a great selection of short stories. And as this anthology also had a short story by Anita Ensal (one of Gini Koch's pen names) I just had to get this book.

And let me tell you this anthology didn't disappoint me!
It's filled with cool, fun, intriguing, romantic SciFi stories. Even with the theme Love & Rockets, the stories are very diverse. Some were perfect just as they are, others made me wish there was lots more to read and some fell short in my opinion, but overall this anthology is a really cool read.

My favourites:
Wanted by Anita Ensal
An Offer You Couldn't Refuse by Sylvia Kelso and Lillian Steward Carl
Dance of Life by Jody Lynn Nye

Why should you read it:
It's a great mix of SciFi Romance stories

Love

Once Upon A Time In Space - A Book Review by Voodoo Bride

Once Upon A Time In Space by Heather Massey
ebook

What is it about:
In the sea of stars, an epic love story is about to begin...
Earth is dying. Nick Venture, the last living descendant of Christopher Columbus, embarks on a dangerous mission to find a new planet and save humanity. This places him on a collision course with Raquel Donovan, the deadliest space pirate in the galaxy.
Raquel lives for one purpose: revenge against a horrible demon from her past. When an attempt to hijack Nick’s starship backfires, Raquel becomes his protector in order to avoid capture by the tyrannical Space Defense Corps. Nick and Raquel are irresistibly drawn to one another despite the forbidden nature of their attraction. But the conflicted pirate’s deepest secret could tear the couple apart even as humanity’s time runs out…

What did Voodoo Bride think of it:
A very tasty SciFi romance with just the right mix of adventure and romance. Massey creates a believable future that is gritty and bleak, but also gives it colour by writing a story that's full of action, hardship, heroics and hope. I really liked the cast of minor characters who made the story come further alive. My favourite has to be Twitch, Nick's pilot and practically his second in command. The romance between Nick and Raquel is steamy, intense and skirting the edges of frustrating, but that makes the good parts all the more satisfying. All in all a great read.

Why should you read it:
It's an action packed, steamy SciFi romance with Space Pirates!

Jess Haines Extended the Deadline!!

I really shouldn't be telling you this, but Jess Haines extended the Deadline of her really cool giveaway! (Yes, that's an ARC of her next H&W Investigations book!)

Click here to find out more.

Teaser Tuesdays - Vicious Circle

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
- Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Vivian hit the desktop. Her glare blazed. "Don't you dare quote the Rede to me as if I don't know it! You have no right to quote that to me, hypocrite."
(page25, Vicious Circle by Linda Robertson)