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Alaskan Bookie
I am a passionate devourer of chocolate and books. I also listen to audio books and drink chocolate. When I die, I don't want to be embalmed, I want to be dipped!
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie Website at:http://alaskanbookie.com/review/dark-awakening/My ReviewI have found a new author to add to my favorites list! I loved all the different vampire dynasties in this story. Each different dynasty had their own special abilities or power. Most of them set up as monarchies and each believing they are better than the next. As with most monarchies, they had a class system that they were stuck in. If you weren’t highblood, then you were lowblood and the best any lowblood could hope for was servant status for the highblood.Lily Quinn is believed to be a seer and the Ptolemy dynasty want her. Tynan can shift into cat form, so the Ptolemy consider him a lowblood and they send him to go and bring her back to them so they can use her physic gift to see who has been killing their people. When Tynan finds Lily, she is more than he expects and now he isn’t sure he wants to bring her in.As the story goes, it just keeps building and building. There is such a mystery around Lily that other vampire clans start to take notice, now Lily and Tynan are running for their lives. This was a great story and was like a whole box of Godiva Chocolates. It had a variety of different of different well rounded characters. It also had great character and world building. I really enjoyed the whole thing and cannot wait to read the next in the series.The Narration ReviewThis audiobook was narrated by Pete Bradbury and I loved his voice! He had a really good story telling voice and a host of different voices and accents for all the characters. He definitely added to the enjoyment of this story. He was a pleasure to listen to!
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie Website at: http://alaskanbookie.com/review/into-the-mist/My ReviewThis was a very interesting story about a group of mercenary types who were hunting down another group of mercenaries. This story was like a chili chocolate bar. There is lots of action, suspense, and even romance in this great little story by Maya Banks. This was one of those stories that I had to find extra housework to do just so I could keep listening. I was drawn into the story of the shapeshifters and now I can’t wait to find out what happens next. This is the first book in the series and can be read as a stand-alone because the author was kind enough to give this part of the story a decent ending instead of just leaving us hanging. I will definitely be moving on to the next book!The Narration ReviewThis audiobook was narrated by Nia Partington who has a very enjoyable voice. She was easy to listen to with distinctive voices for the different characters. She would be a Hershey’s Chocolate bar in my narration book.** Note **I received this audiobook free from the Audio Jukebox Solid Gold Reviewer Program and AudioGo in exchange for an honest review. I received no chocolate or any other compensation in exchange for my review.
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie website at:http://alaskanbookie.com/review/dragon-call/There were things I like and things I didn’t like about this book. First the things I like: I liked that this was a whole new concept on dragons and the people they choose to be with. Very Unique. I liked when Cora called the dragons, she also called to the ‘owner’ of the dragon, or Dragonlord. Luckily she was already attracted to the Dragonlord, seeing how she was about to become a mate.Things I didn’t like: The main female in this book Cora was a toss between a chocoholic and a chocolate hater and she would switch back and forth at random. I mean if you really love something you go for it. You don’t throw all the chocolate out the window and promise never to look at chocolate again, only to stand in the window and gaze out at it longingly. One minute she is in love, the next she is moving to another state to get away.I really hated how no one would actually explain what all the Dragonkeeper, Dragonlord, and Dragonmate stuff was supposed to work and Cora was left trying to figure it out on her own. So going about clueless and making mistakes is bound to happen and no one should be disappointment when that is exactly what happened. To me (the reader) I felt as confused as Cora, which isn’t a good thing.This is part of a series of books, so you don’t get to find out what happens until the next book (or books) and that is always a disappointment. Just to leave off should be a criminal offense, punishable by removing all your chocolate for a year!
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie website at:http://alaskanbookie.com/review/out-of-reach/My ReviewThis was an interesting story about Gwen, who has hidden talents and Kade who wants to discover what those talents really are. The story started out kind of slow with lots of descriptive stuff about how Gwen was living her life as a researcher at a Pharmaceutical company. She has two close friends, Melanie and Kade, who hang out together all the time. Kade and Melanie also work at the same company as Gwen but in different departments.Gwen is working hard to discover a new drug but is having stability issues with the compound she is working with.Kade is a wanderer along with 11 of his other buddies and they are trying to control any slyphs that escape from their sylph globes. They need someone with Angel blood to help seal the slyphs back into their globes. Kade believes that Gwen is one such being and has been keeping tabs on her for years waiting to see if she manifests any special abilities.Through the book you find that Kade and Gwen may be getting closer and almost hope that something will happen between them. Although Gwen may have some feelings for Kade, she also has a relationship with a hot fireman so she is not willing to give into those feelings. Kade has no such reservations and is perfectly willing to run off with Gwen. This is the first in the Wanderer series and I was happy it did not end with a cliff hanger. It did end in a way that you just know that there will be more to tell about the whole Kade, Gwen, and the bad slyphs thing. I am looking forward to the next in the series. If it was already out, I would have started reading it right away!** Note **I received this book free from the Author and Pure Texuality in exchange for an honest review. I received no chocolate or any other compensation in exchange for my review.
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie website at: http://alaskanbookie.com/review/perfect-mate/Lillian Rosewood doesn’t know what she is getting herself into by trying to help the wounded solider, Captain Jack Harper, who has been brought into her facility. Although the part of the facility that holds the solider is an off-limits military wing, that doesn’t stop her from trying to find out if he is alright. Lillian doesn’t know that Captain Harper has decided that she is his mate and he wants nothing more than to get released so he can be with her. While Lillian is at Captain Harper’s bedside one of the military doctors come in and finds her in the restricted area. The military doctor decides he is going to take Lillian and teach her a lesson. She is a pretty lady and he won’t take no for an answer. As the doctor starts to force himself on Lillian, he doesn’t realize that the restraints holding Captain Harper down are nothing to his animalistic need to help Lillian. This book has the perfect mix of paranormal and romance. It also has a lot of action and kept me flipping pages like there was a box of chocolates waiting for me when I finished. From beginning to end I loved this book. I am looking forward to the second book in the series!
The Summons: A Goblin King Prequel (Shadowlands, #0.5)
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie Website at:http://alaskanbookie.com/review/the-summons/This was a brief introduction into the world of the Goblin King. Although I feel you could read the rest of the series without this nice little morsel, I would recommend reading it anyway. In this little preview, you come to learn about the legend of the Goblin King through a wish that Eliza makes for him to take her away. But does she know what she is really asking? Does she really want to be taken by a goblin?This book was like a tasty little chocolate. Just enough to let you know it was good, but small enough that you wanted more. It did not end in a cliff hanger so that was a definite plus. I will go on to sample the rest of this series, one taste was not enough!**Note**This book is currently FREE on Amazon!
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This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie Website at:http://alaskanbookie.com/review/five-out-of-the-dark/This was an interesting story about a group of kids that discover they have supernatural powers. They decide to use their power to fight evil forces in the world. It all has to be trial and error fighting because none of them knows what they are doing. The story starts out with Paige discovering she has some sort of special abilities and as she is trying to figure them out, her parents find out her secret. They are convinced that her power comes from evil sources and are ready to send her off to be ‘cleansed’ when she escapes into the city. Once there, she finds Johnathan who has special abilities also. One by one the find the others until there are five in their group. Each person has slightly different abilities and only by working together can they defeat the powers of evil.This was an enjoyable story, but had several ‘out of book’ experiences. You know the kind that make you go ‘There is no way that would go over in the real world.’ Yes I know its fantasy, but in reality if a whole school of high school kids started acting all weirded out and killing themselves or trying to kill others, there would be several real repercussions in the real world that did not happen in this book. Other things, like huge demon battles in the middle of town can be overlooked because the author gave them a nice cloaking ability. Overall this was a good teens-save-the world type book. This book is part of a series, but can also be read as a stand-alone and completely enjoyed that way. The author gave a nice satisfying ending with enough left that you would want to go on and read more in the series.** Note **I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I received no chocolate or any other compensation in exchange for my review.
This review was originally published on my Alaskan Bookie Website at: http://alaskanbookie.com/review/the-djinn/My ReviewThis was such an awesome story woven into tales of biblical times to modern day. The Djinn is a boogeyman type character, told to children to get them to behave, but as with most legends, a hint of truth will keep the adults wondering. When mysterious things start happening around Baron Gregory’s men, whispers of the Djinn start to come out everywhere. Even those who don’t believe will question themselves over the mysterious happenings. The closer the Baron gets to the discovering the mysteries of the vault, the more the Djinn is determined to stop him.The Djinn used the old legends surrounding his existence, the shadows, and the sword to discourage any discoveries. He knew the dangers involved in awakening the abominations and tried to make the Baron see the danger too. The Baron was set on discovering the power that the clay men would give him and was determined not to let any mystical creature, such as the Djinn, stop him from obtaining it.The ending was totally awesome! I won’t give it away, but the ending took me by surprise. It wasn’t that the author took some little known thing and stuck it in but that the culmination of the story ended with a perfectly rounded tale. Just like when you are making brownies, the brownie batter is delicious on its own, but once baked in the oven … Awesomeness!!The Narration ReviewThis audiobook was narrated by Wayne Farrell and he was very clear and his voices and accents well done. His reading added all the right emotions to the tale, making it easy to follow along and be captivated by the story. ** Note **I received this audiobook free from the Audio Jukebox Solid Gold Reviewer Program and Seven Realms Publishing in exchange for an honest review. I received no chocolate or any other compensation in exchange for my review.
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie Website at:http://alaskanbookie.com/review/storm-warrior/This book starts out with Rhys fighting for is life against the Romans. They had captured and then enslaved him to use as a fighter in the arena. After his escape he is wounded and crawls into a cave only to be captured by the Tylwyth Teg (the Fae) and starts his enslavement all over again. Only this time instead of fighting in the arena, they turn him into a Grim and use him as a foreteller of death to those that see him.This story had the perfect mix of Paranormal and Romance. The main characters, Rhys and Morgan, feel an attraction to each other but Morgan fights the attraction every step of the way. She believes he is mentally unbalanced and doesn’t want get involved with a crazy person. Just when she thinks she is over her weird attraction to Rhys, he does something that makes her more attracted to him than she was before. When she finally does decide to give in, she cannot get her head around the strange story that Rhys tells her about his past and sets her mind (and her traitorous body) against him again.Though Rhys believed he was free from the Tylwyth Teg, he quickly finds that that is not the case. They have their sights set on him and will use his friends against him in order to lure him back. He uses all his old tricks to keep them from getting close to Morgan, but it will not be enough.This story was like baking brownies. You are surrounded by the tantalizing smell so you know there is chocolaty goodness baking and you know you will not be satisfied until the last gooey morsel melts on your tongue. I enjoyed this book to the very last byte. I look forward to the next book in the series. Just like another box of brownie mix - I will definitely continue on!
Dead Sexy Dragon (Dragon Heat, #1)
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie Website at:http://alaskanbookie.com/review/dead-sexy-dragon/Dead sexy Dragons is a new dragon shapeshifter series that falls into the Paranormal Erotica category. When I first saw the cover (total eye candy) and the author name (Lolita) I kind of knew what type of book this was going to be, but my love of dragons had me looking forward to this one anyway.In the beginning of the story when the Stig was trying to avoid Cora, I was thinking things might be get really hot before they were lead to the bedroom, but I was kind of wrong. I say kind of because the first sex scene happened in a dream not in reality. But she was in her bed, so it kind of counts. Then in the dungeon, which isn’t really a bed but it is where Stig was at the time. So it was kind of his bedroom.There were many different interesting things happening that would have been cool if they were explored more in depth (besides the sex) but I think the author left those details for another story. This story gave enough of a whiff of chocolate to get you interested if this is your kind of thing or to let you move on if it wasn’t.Even though this was a short story (97 pages) there were at least 4 different descriptive sex scenes between our main characters. So if you’re not into that type story, you may want to stay clear of this book. If you are, then this is the book for you.
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie website at: http://alaskanbookie.com/review/demon-possession/My Review:Analia was weak in body but not in spirit when she escapes her enslavement and hides aboard the merchant ship Marada. Having only know degradation and torture her whole life, it is at first hard to accept that she will not be treated just as badly aboard the merchant ship. As she comes to adjust in her new world she finds herself a bit overwhelmed with strange new feelings she has never known before.There was just the right mix of excitement and passion to make this an excellent read. The author allowed a romance to build up with Analia and Sebastian to make this more into passionate romance and not so much erotica. Although there were sex scenes, they were tastefully done and didn’t dominate the story.I loved this book and I will absolutely be moving onto the next in the series!
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie website at: Everlasting Hunger Review.This book follows Ellie Dawson as she is introduced to the vampire world club scene. Her boss, Ian, is a vampire and part owner of the Vampire Club, Everlasting. He agrees to escort Ellie and give her a firsthand look into the workings of a Vampire Club. Ellie doesn’t know that humans entering the club will be used as ‘drinks’ or that those drinks will come with some heavy duty erotic feelings.There was a lot of sex and sex related stuff going on with the book. Vampires are portrayed as very sensual creatures that enjoy lots of touchy feely action with their ‘drinks’. They are not one-woman type men and even if you are chosen as a mate, you can expect your vampire hunny to be after any sexy ‘drink’ they can get their hands or mouths on.This book definitely goes beyond sizzling romance and lands with a hissssss right onto the Erotica category. This book will melt your prude-o-meter at 500 feet. ** Note **I received this book free from the author and Pure Textuality in exchange for an honest review. I received no chocolate or any other compensation in exchange for my review.
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie website at: http://alaskanbookie.com/review/the-stranger/My ReviewThis was a great little mystery set in Sweden. I loved the way the author built up the mystery and kept adding to it so you got a nice rounded story. There was no pulling out a mystery character at the end, the author drew you toward the final conclusion. Each of the characters in the story were well thought out and gave their own bit of personality to the complete story.The author had several different stories going on at once and I wasn’t sure how they were all going to be connected at first, but the author did tie everything together gradually through the book so you weren’t left out in the field wondering which path was going to lead you to the chocolate prize at the end.Even though this was book 4 in the Fjällbacka stories, I felt that you could read this as a stand-alone without having read the other three. This book was not originally written in English, the translator, Steven T. Murray, did a great job getting the translation correct so it did not feel like I was listening to a book with incorrect English terminology. The Narration ReviewThis audiobook was narrated by Simon Vance and he did a great job with the characters and the accents in this story. One good thing about a narration is when the narrator makes you forget that you are listening to a single person narrating a book and completely draws you in so it feels like you are listening to a group of people. Simon Vance did that. His voice was clear and his narration had good inflections. He didn’t just read the story it was more like he was feeling the story and his voice reflected the feelings and emotions of the characters right to me.** Note **I received this audiobook free from the Audio Jukebox Solid Gold Reviewer Program and HighBridge Audio in exchange for an honest review. I received no chocolate or any other compensation in exchange for my review.
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie Website at: http://alaskanbookie.com/review/the-devil-you-know/Rating 3.5 StarsSomeone is killing Guardians and hunting the secret stone that will allow a portal to be opened and demons to be unleashed into the world. The Half-Demon Deziree along with her vampire boyfriend, Vegas, and his brother Lucas try to head off the killer before he can get the portal opened. The trio soon discovers that someone has been helping the killer and now they are not sure who can be trusted. Their race around several continents will finally come to an end when they find the killer and attempt to stop the portal from opening.There were several things I liked about the book and several that I didn’t like. I loved the cover, great work on that. I loved the romance building between Dez and Vegas. I loved the extra abilities that Dez picked up while hunting for the killer.I didn’t like the romance between Dez and Vegas. I know that seems like a contradiction from what I just said, but the romance was a love/hate thing. I love you but lets not get physically involved (again) until we build a solid relationship? Really? 400 Years isn’t long enough to know?Another thing I thought was a bit hookey was when Dez discovered one of her killer powers. Instead of telling Vegas about it, she decides to test it out on him. Really? I think I have control, but I’m not sure so lets just see if I can start and then stop something that has the potential to kill you. Now that’s love, right?Finally, the ending. This was sort of a mystery with who could be helping the killer. Instead of giving hints or clues along the way, suddenly Dez just knows who it is. Not only that but it is completely out of character for the guilty party. So, no, I didn’t guess before the big reveal, but that was like pulling a chocolate bar out of the hat.JMHO** Note **I received this book free from the Author and Pure Textuality in exchange for an honest review. I received no chocolate or any other compensation in exchange for my review.
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie Website at: http://alaskanbookie.com/review/burning/My Review:This was a quick little book used as a jump start to the Demon Legacy series. And what a jump it was! This jump start was like using a semi-truck to jump start my chocolate warmer. There was a lot of stuff packed into this little series opener. There was a witch and a vampire falling in love, a demon out to steal something from the witch even if he has to kill her to get it, and two brothers who must come to terms with their differences.I knew it was a short story when I started but I was so not ready for it to end just like that. I went looking for the next in the series, The Devil You Know, but it isn’t out yet. WaaaaaaaaaI will be watching for the next one with chocolate bated breath!
This review was originally posted on my Alaskan Bookie Website at: http://alaskanbookie.com/review/cast-in-dark-waters/My ReviewThis was a great little paranormal pirate story. The lead pirate was a lady named Crimson. That’s right a girl pirate and boy was she tuff! She was paid for a voyage to help a couple find and return their daughter, who they believe is being held against her will on a haunted island. Crimson believes her husband was also lost on or near the island so she is determined to find the island and recover them both.The life of pirates always makes for a great adventure story and this story hits the mark. At first it was a bit confusing for me, but as the story got going and I got comfortable with the terminology, it really picked up speed. It was a little too short for me and the ending did leave a bit of mystery to continue on to the next story.Even though this was number 11 in the series, I think they are all stand-alone books and I did feel like you could listen to this book without hearing the previous 10 books.The Narration ReviewThis audiobook was narrated by Leah Frederick. She has a clear voice and did well for the different character voices and accents she used in this story.** Note **I received this audiobook free from the Audio Jukebox Solid Gold Reviewer Program and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I received no chocolate or any other compensation in exchange for my review.