Book Review: Dead Wrong (Thorns and Fangs #4) by Gillian St. Kevern

Title: Dead Wrong: Thorns and Fangs, Book Four
Author: Gillian St. Kevern
Publisher: NineStar Press
Release Date: February 26, 2018
Heat Level: 3 - some sex
Pairing: Male/Male
Length: 110100
Genre: Paranormal, LGBT, Vampires, Werewolves, Alternate Universe, Demons, Occult, Suspense

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38235121-dead-wrong

Synopsis: 

Nate’s no supernatural expert, but even he knows a murdered man coming back to life to kill him can only mean one thing—the necromancer is back and out for revenge.

Recruited by Department Seven in a desperate attempt to stop Peter before he claims new victims, Nate quickly realizes he’s in way over his head. His powers are failing him, he’s haunted by Peter’s ghost, and he can’t even remember how he stopped Peter the first time—or why he feels that someone very important is missing from his life.

Ben is fighting for his afterlife. Trapped in the supernatural version of solitary confinement, he knows freeing himself will destroy New Camden’s fragile peace—but what choice does he have? The longer he spends in his magical prison, the harder it becomes to resist his inner vampire. But if Ben wants to help Nate prevent Peter taking over the city, he has to prove himself to his sire—Saltaire, a thousand-year-old vampire with no qualms about using his immense power to suppress Ben’s free will.

As the casualties mount and the city descends into chaos, Ben and Nate must overcome their worst fears and impossible odds—or be written out of existence entirely.

My Review:

I believe that this is the last in the Thorns and Fangs series, although I could easily see how the story might continue. I'm sad to see the last of Nate and Ben. Over the last couple of years, they have wormed their way into my heart.  Nate is by far, one of my favorite queer characters that I've stumbled across and primarily because of his supernatural abilities, which relates to plants. I won't really go much further than that, otherwise, I'd spoil everything. But I have hundreds of plants, and so there's a secret part of me that wishes I could be Nate.

In this installment, Ben, our conflicted vampire, has been entered into New Camden's Final Register. New Camden is the city where the story takes place, and it has a very high population of supernatural folk. In order to maintain law and order, and to protect both supes and normals alike, there are a series of books that have been spelled that maintain a classification system, as well as carrying out the worst of the worst sort of punishments for supernaturals. If you're entered into the Final Register you only exist to yourself. It's a permanent solitary confinement. At the end of Life After Humanity - book three in the series - Ben is entered into the Final Register. The final installment in the Thorns and Fangs series sees Ben and his struggles while on the Final Register, all while not being remembered by anyone, the effects of that type of confinement, Nate's reaction to all that, all while attempting to figure out why or how the Necromancer has returned from the dead, or has he?

I highly suggest St. Kevern's books. They are clever, well written, imaginative and she knows how to paint an interesting world. St. Kevern has another series called Deep Magic, and I'm anxious to get my paws on that.

Rating:

Available At:

NineStar Press: https://ninestarpress.com/product/dead-wrong/

Amazon: http://hyperurl.co/keiez4

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/789722

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dead-wrong-gillian-st-kevern/1127941397

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/dead-wrong-37

Meet The Author:

Gillian St. Kevern is spending Christmas in her native New Zealand, where the seasonal festivities include pavlovas, walks on the beach, and a distinct lack of sweaters, seasonal or otherwise. She will almost certainly get sunburnt at some stage.

Gillian reads and writes a variety of genres. She’s a huge fan of paranormal with an emphasis on vampires. The third and fourth books in her vampire series, Thorns and Fangs, are due for release in January and February 2018. She also explores Welsh Mythology in the on-going Deep Magic series. In 2018, she plans to explore another beloved genre―vintage mysteries. She loves discovering new books and authors, so please get in touch if you have any good book recommendations to share!

Author Links

Website: http://www.gillianstkevern.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gillian.stkevern

Twitter: https://twitter.com/GillianStKevern

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/gillianstkevern/

Book Review: A Dragon for Christmas by M.D. Neu

Title: A Dragon for Christmas
Author: M.D. Neu
Publisher: NineStar Press
Release Date: December 18, 2017
Heat Level: 0
Pairing: Female/Female
Length: 50 pages (12000 words)
Genre: Fantasy, Holiday, Young Adult, LGBT, Lesbian

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36654437-a-dragon-for-christmas

Synopsis:
Carmen is eleven years old and wants to get her dragon. Since she was seven years old, she understood two things. Once, she was going to be the strongest Dragon Keeper there ever eas. The Second was that she was going to marry her best friend, Mattie.

As Christmas approaches the magical charms Carmen has to use to fight off her curse are taking a toll on her health. But that can't stop her from taking her final test to become a Dragon Keeper. If she passes her test she gets her dragon if not, she has to start all over relying on different magical charms to fight the curse for her. That is something Carmen doesn't want to have to go through. The testing is difficult and charms make her sick. Carmen has decided that if she doesn't get her dragon this Christmas she's not going to go for a third attempt, even if that means she can't marry Mattie when she grows up.

My Review:

M.D. Neu has done it again! You may recall that I read and reviewed his vampire novel, The Calling. Although both The Calling and  A Dragon for Christmas would both fall into my definition of Urban Fantasy, A Dragon for Christmas is unabashedly sweet, with just enough sadness to make it a perfect Christmas Story.

And yes, before you get all "but it's April - why are you reading Christmas stories?", let me just say that a good Christmas story is good at any point of the year.  Like who doesn't want Christmas in July, or October, or even April. So there. Deal. (I'm looking at you right now with a cocked eyebrow. That's a challenge for you to defy me and tell me I'm wrong.  Go ahead, do it...)

I digress.

As I've said many times before, I don't like giving away a story's twists and turns, but I have to spill a little bit of the beans on this one.  Neu has written this story from the perspective of an eleven-year-old girl. It is uncomplicated and straight to the point - just like any other girl would be at this age. The words aren't big, the concepts aren't twisted, and big grown-up problems aren't addressed - but we see them. We see it all through the eyes of Carmen who is honest, optimistic, but sometimes moody. (Just like every eleven-year-old girl I have known!).

You see, Carmen is cursed. We're never really told what that curse is, or how she got it, but that is the reality. The only thing that will help her is by having a dragon of her very own. There are many things that cursed children have to do in order to obtain their dragon, and Carmen is on that journey.

You can't help but make some comparisons to kids with cancer, or other life-threatening diseases, and it pulls at the heartstrings.

In Neu's world, Dragon's carry potent magic, and it is that magic that staves off curses. Hence, Carmen needs her own dragon to be healthy. Dragons, it would seem, are abundant in nature (I wish!). In fact, I was delighted with Neu's portrayal of the flying lizards.  With common names like Blue Bottom, Yellow-Tip, and Canadian Whites, you would think we were talking about various subspecies of finches, not dragons. By the way, I have to say I was pleasantly tickled by the Canadian Whites. Living in the Great White North myself, it currently being April, and with snow still on the ground, I thought Canadian dragons being white, and of course, I would assume ice-liking, was perfect. I can only extrapolate from that concept that Canadian dragons only appear in the winter, and hibernate during the summer, or perhaps migrate to either the Arctic or the Antarctic where they live out their days in glacial snow valleys and polar ice caps.

But again, I digress.

Carmen, our cursed little girl, relies on her best friend Mattie in order to get her through her struggles. Also of note, in Neu's world, same-sex pairings are the norm. It's a matter of fact. No one makes a big deal out of it. And Carmen has made it very clear that she loves Mattie, and one day, the two will marry.

That's all I'm going to tell you. You'll just have to read the rest yourself. But even though there are images that will make you feel sad, the hope and promise of getting a Dragon for Christmas, in order to cure Carmen of her curse will make you zip through this short story with the wild abandon of a Blue Bottom dragon.

Well done, Neu, well done.

Rating:

Purchase Links:

NineStar Press: https//ninestarepress.com/product/a-dragon-for-christmas/

Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/y6uzd3p4 

Barnes & Noble: https://tinyurl.com/yac67ojl 

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/a-dragon-for-christmas-1

Meet the Author:

M.D. Neu is an LGBTQA Fiction Writer with a love for writing and travel. Living in the heart of Silicon Valley (San Jose, California) and growing up around technology, he’s always been fascinated with what could be. Specifically drawn to Science Fiction and Paranormal television and novels, M.D. Neu was inspired by the great Gene Roddenberry, George Lucas, Stephen King, Alice Walker, Alfred Hitchcock, Harvey Fierstein, Anne Rice, and Kim Stanley Robinson. An odd combination, but one that has influenced his writing

Growing up in an accepting family as a gay man he always wondered why there were never stories reflecting who he was. Constantly surrounded by characters that only reflected heterosexual society, M.D. Neu decided he wanted to change that. So, he took to writing, wanting to tell good stories that reflected our diverse world.

When M.D. Neu isn’t writing, he works for a non-profit and travels with his biggest supporter and his harshest critic, Eric his husband of eighteen plus years.

Links:

Website: http://www.mdneu.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Writer_MDNeu
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mdneuauthor/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17206592.M_D_Neu

Book Review: Souls for Sale by Asta Idonea

Title:  Souls for Sale

Author: Asta Idonea

Publisher:  NineStar Press

Release Date: March 26, 2018

Heat Level: 3 - Some Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 51600

Genre: Paranormal, LGBT, humor, demons, angels, nerds-geeks, artists, hell

Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39004760-souls-for-sale

Synopsis

When demon Saul persuades comic book artist Tom to sign over his soul in exchange for a night of passion, little does he know what lies in store. Demons can’t fall in love—or so he’s been told—but he finds himself smitten and attempts to destroy the contract, desperate to save Tom from an eternity of torture.

With Saul and Tom forced to run, a showdown between Heaven and Hell ensues as the angels and demons argue over who owns Tom’s soul. But does either party have a stronger claim than Saul?

My Review:

This was a quick, hot, devilish read!

I have to give kudos to Asta Idonea for writing this novel in first person, present tense. As an author, I have attempted this writing style and failed miserably. There's a certain skill required in telling a story from this perspective, a skill I don't possess. 

The story revolves around Saul, a demon from hell, who is a top-notch salesman in obtaining satanic contracts, signed by silly humans willing to give up their souls for an eternity of damnation in exchange for their deepest desire.

A very familiar storyline. And yet, Idonea kept me entertained the entire way through the story by injecting present day realness into the tale. I giggled out loud when Saul exclaims that all demons watch the TV show Supernatural. And in fact, it was required watching. Hilarious - and deeply wonderful, as the TV series antics of demon-hunting brothers Sam and Dean are a regular show at my household. 

I was also pleasantly surprised when Saul, the demon, turns to the reader of the story and actively includes them in the narrative. Here's an excerpt just before Tom and Saul are about to have sex, as an example of what I'm talking about:

"While I'm not always adverse to an audience, I don't really want a bunch of comic book superheroes watching. Oh, don't worry, you can stay. I wouldn't send you packing just as things are getting interesting. Not after you've come so far on this journey with me already you sneaky little voyeur, you."

I'm not entirely certain that our inclusion isn't a 'breaking of the fourth wall', but it was a decidedly odd technique to ensure the reader was wrapped up in the story - as we became part of it! It worked well and I loved it - and thinking back, I don't believe I've ever read another story that utilized such a device to include the audience.

It's no secret that I like my dark and creepy stories, but Idonea's version of hell and demons, although dark, and potentially gruesome never truly 'went there' for me. We were given hints as to what hell would be like, and we met a couple of different types of demons, but the focus was on Saul and his decidedly human physical attributes. Throughout the story, we definitely watch his burgeoning humanity as he falls in love with Tom. And I was tickled with the notion that demons love luxury, so the next time you check into the Four Seasons hotel - make sure you're on the lookout for a sexy demon. They should be around in droves.

All in all, this is a great read, a sexy dark temptation of giving up your soul to love.

Rating:

Available At:

NineStar Press: https://ninestarpress.com/product/souls-for-sale/

Amazon: http://hyperurl.co/v19qd7

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/803834

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/souls-for-sale-asta-idonea/1123356857

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/souls-for-sale-3

Meet the Author

Asta Idonea (aka Nicki J Markus) was born in England but now lives in Adelaide, South Australia. She has loved both reading and writing from a young age and is also a keen linguist, having studied several foreign languages.

Asta launched her writing career in 2011 and divides her efforts not only between MM and mainstream works but also between traditional and indie publishing. Her works span the genres, from paranormal to historical and from contemporary to fantasy. It just depends what story and which characters spring into her mind!

As a day job, Asta works as a freelance editor and proofreader, and in her spare time she enjoys music, theater, cinema, photography, and sketching. She also loves history, folklore and mythology, pen-palling, and travel, all of which have provided plenty of inspiration for her writing. She is never found too far from her much-loved library/music room.

Author Links

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/NickiJMarkus
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NickiJMarkus

Book Review: The Moth and Moon by Glenn Quigley

Title:  The Moth and Moon

Author: Glenn Quigley

Publisher:  NineStar Press

Release Date: March 19, 2018

Heat Level: 2 - Fade to Black Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 63000

Genre: Alternate Universe, Historical, LGBT, historical, gay, friends to lovers, sailor, baker, pirates, family drama

Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38750078-the-moth-and-moon

Synopsis

In the summer of 1780, on the tiny island of Merryapple, burly fisherman Robin Shipp lives a simple, quiet life in a bustling harbour town where most of the residents dislike him due to the actions of his father. With a hurricane approaching, he nonetheless convinces the villagers to take shelter in the one place big enough to hold them all—the ancient, labyrinthine tavern named the Moth & Moon.

While trapped with his neighbours during the raging storm, Robin inadvertently confronts more than the weather, and the results could change everything.

My Review:

I think it would be safe to assume that for most readers, we want to be swept away by a story. We want to be fully immersed in the setting, live in the characters heads and completely escape from our own present reality.

Well then, have I got a book for you. Let me introduce you to Glenn Quigley and his debut novel The Moth and Moon.

I don't think I managed to get to the end of the first page before I found myself already swallowed up by the storytelling. Quigley masterfully snatches the reader and plunks them down into a 1700's fishing village where the world might be devoid of all the technology we have today, but is lush and full of details. I swear I could smell the ocean as I read this - and I live in a land-locked Canadian province. There isn't a huge body of water anywhere near me. And yet, I was walking along the shores of Blashy Cove, passing through the various stores and merchants, and having a strong apple cider in the local village hub - The Moth and Moon.

The entire story revolves around Robin Shipp, a big bear of a man, clumsy, yet endearing, whose family's history colours how the townsfolk interact with him. And yet, despite their repugnant treatment of the man, he continually shows grace and kindness. Note to self - a good lesson for all of us to learn.

Of note - in Blashy Cove, the residents are perfectly able to take up and marry or be involved with any individual they'd prefer, and in fact, the matriarchs of the town often conspire to match-make couples of any gender configuration. What a delight - perhaps we'll get there in our own timeline sometime soon.

The author does a stupendous job of creating stress and tension as the impending storm seeks to bring about destruction - and having lived through two hurricanes myself (when I attended University on the East Coast of the US), I can assure you that Quigley adequately captured the intense feelings that come with the weight of doom that Mother Nature is quite apt in dolling out. The attention to detail is staggering, and yet, it never detracts from the story.

As the storm arrives, the interconnectedness of the citizens of Blashy Cove come to a front, as histories and prejudices are aired and confronted. The characters are real, their situations and reactions are believable, and I found myself rooting for Mr. Shipp on every page, despite the horrendous treatment he receives, and the lies that he discovers.

The book is utterly heart-warming. The connections between the townspeople need to be mentioned as well. In a small town, everyone knows or knows of, everyone else. Stories are shared and told, truths are stretched and sometimes broken altogether. The dynamics were perfect, the scandals are relatable as similar situations continue to occur even today. In other words, despite the time frame, this story has something that everyone can nod and say, "Yup, I know someone that happened to."

That right there is what I call "relatableness" (Yes, I know, that's not really a word, but I'm making it one) and that quality is, as far as I'm concerned, what makes a book stand out from all the others.

This is a definite must-read, and I am eagerly awaiting anything else that Mr. Quigley puts to paper.

Rating:

Available At:

NineStar Press: https://ninestarpress.com/product/the-moth-and-moon/

Amazon: http://hyperurl.co/k8ovud

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/800120

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-moth-and-moon-glenn-quigley/1128116541

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-moth-and-moon

Meet The Author:

Glenn Quigley is a graphic designer originally from Dublin and now living in Lisburn, Northern Ireland. He creates bear designs for www.themoodybear.com. He has been interested in writing since he was a child, as essay writing was the one and only thing he was ever any good at in school. When not writing or designing, he enjoys photography and has recently taken up watercolour painting.

Author Links

Website: http://www.glennquigley.com/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/Glennquigley