Book Review: Stained, by Ella James

Stained
Ella James

Rating: 3.5 Stars (very close to 4)

17 year-old Julia is devastated when an explosion takes the lives of her adoptive parents. Closing in on the age of 18, she doesn't want to go back to foster care. That thought, coupled with the fact that she sees the angel of death hovering over her burning house, she runs. It;s a good thing, too, because this bad-ass demon wants to kill her. And she runs into a dark and mysterious stranger that questions her about her birthmark (stain).

This is an action-packed, paranormal romance that has great characters, *terrific* prose, and a suspenseful plot that hasn't quite unfolded its wings in this story.

Julia is likeable enough; she seems typical in a teenager fashion, despite the slightly off-kilter life of a foster kid. Cayne is dark, handsome and mysterious. He's extremely tight-lipped, partially because he doesn't trust Julia, and partially because he's lost his memory. Seeing Cayne struggle to come to terms with himself and his past will make even the most detached reader empathetic.

Ella James has a gift for prose. In fact, I'd say her prose is one of the best I've seen in a long time.

The plot is fluid and changing as the couple barrel across the country looking for clues and answers about why demons want to kill Julia.

What didn't totally cut it for me? The dialogue isn't nearly as stellar as the prose. There were many mundane conversations that took place that didn't have a point. This, personally, bothers me. Also, about three quarters of the way through, the story completely stalled. I think there was almost 2 chapters devoted to a vision that, in the end, served no purpose that I could tell. And then a little too much time taken for the couple to 're-unite' after a falling out. Lastly, we were never told what the stain means...and I think this something we should have learned in the first book, since it is called Stained, after all.

Will I keep reading to find out what happens next? Absolutely. This was a very good read in the YA paranormal genre.

In the Hot Seat! Brandi Salazar

Taking a turn in the hot seat today is author Brandi Salazar. Brandi has a boat load of books under her belt, but her nextest and greatest, Spring Cleaning, is coming out on August 25th. So mark the calendars and get ready to get your copy!

Here's a bit about Spring Cleaning:

Sometimes, relationships can be deadly. 

Terri thought she was marrying a strong, loving man, only to find that beneath that handsome face lies something cold, brutal, and dangerous. After years of abuse, Randy takes things a little too far, and Terri finally summons the courage to take matters into her own hands and make her escape. But freedom comes at a price.

Forging a new life, Terri tries to forget her past, but she can't help looking over her shoulder at every turn. When prison bars can no longer hold Randy, and her past comes knocking, Terri finds that the strength to trust again may be her only salvation.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/14920365-spring-cleaning
Sounds wickedly great, right? Right.

So, on to the hot seat!

Dale: Tell us a little about Terri.

Brandi: Terri is the type of person who is strong inwardly, but doesn’t realize it. She has been suppressed and beaten down since childhood, she doesn’t value herself nearly enough, and can often be blind to peoples’ true nature. 

Dale: OK, now tell us something about Terri that we *don't* know...something that's not in the book.

Brandi: Despite the conditions Terri has found herself in, she is in love with two men, though I’m not sure either of them is right for her. A small detail that reader’s might get lost on surrounding what I said previously—and without giving too much away—is that Terri doesn’t make the best judgements, and, like real people, it’s a cycle that is tough to break. 

Dale: Where do you get your inspiration to write?

Brandi: Inspiration comes from everywhere. I like to learn new things, so some of what I draw from is history shows, like Ancient Aliens and The Fall of Rome, that type of stuff. Mainly, though, I dream up this craziness, and if I jump out of bed fast enough, I usually can make something of it.

Dale: What's the first book you read that made you catch your breath?

Brandi: There are a handful of those, but the one that really stands out and has earned a spot on my list of favorites would be Acheron, but Sherrilyn Kenyon. It was one of those books about abuse and redemption that ultimately brought me to tears. It was gut-wrenching, to say the least. 

Dale: If you were an animal, what would it be...and why?

Brandi: I guess I would be a hermit crab. Glamorous, I know, but I am quiet, shy, and generally like to keep to myself, so it suits.

Dale: If your book was to become a movie...

Brandi: I am so terrible at these things.

a. What would the theme song be?  

Brandi: Well, I am a bit of a metal head, so consider yourself warned. While I find most music to suit the mood of a particular scene, I would have to say that I am torn between Black Veil Brides’ God Bless You and Avenged Sevenfold’s Buried Alive as an overall theme for the book.

(Dale's doing the rockin' head bob in agreement)

b. Who would play Terri?

Brandi: Rachel Weisz

c. Who would play Randy?

Brandi: Chris Hemsworth

d. Who would play Luke?

David Boreanaz 

(Dale: I *love* this guy!)

Dale: When you write, are you a plotter or a pantser?

Brandi: I have always been a bit of a pantser, but I am trying to become a plotter. I find it keeps away the dreaded writer’s block. I just don’t do well working within a framework. I like to break the rules a little, so it proves difficult a lot of the time. 

Dale: When did you first realize that you wanted to become a writer?

Brandi: I don’t have any times or dates that I can point to, I just know that I have always played with it. Since I was a child, I crafted little stories. By the time I was in junior high, I was having fun with it, creating little poems and shorts to pass the morning hours and get through boring lectures that I would share with my friends for a good laugh. Only in the last couple of years have I taken a serious look at writing. I still keep it as fun as possible, and I don’t try too hard to hold myself to it in a serious this-is-what-I-am-going-to-be-doing-for-the-rest-of-my-life kind of way. I am just taking it day by day, and if there is a voice in my head that wants to be heard, I try to breathe life into it. 
Dale: Do you listen to music when you write? If so, what music do you listen to?

Brandi: Oh, yes. I have several playlists jam packed with the stuff, and I write by it always because I find that it helps influence my moods and I am better able to bring that across in my stories. I listen to just about everything, but I lean more toward heavy metal than anything. Some say its angry music, but I find it soothing and uplifting in a weird way. My personal favorite right now, if you don’t mind me sharing, is Porcelain Black. Now there’s music designed to empower and entertain.
Dale: Is there a little of yourself in any of your characters? If so, who?

Brandi: Yes. I think, no matter how hard I try to separate myself from the characters, every one of them shares something of me. Whether it is sensitivity, shyness, awkwardness, wit, crassness, or just something that I would want to see in another person, they come from me, and so I don’t think it is possible to completely separate them from myself. An example would be Randy. He represents the darker side of things, which I am totally into. I won’t say that I am crazy, as he so obviously is, but warped may be a better word! 

Dale: If you could be any character, from any book, who would it be? Why?

Brandi: That’s a tough one. I’m going to go with Dr. Jane Whitcomb in J.R. Ward’s Lover Unbound.  Mainly, it’s because Jane is tough as nails, intelligent, hardworking, and loyal, but also because she catches the attention of a beastly womanizer with a hellacious past and is able to not just patch him up, but heal his wounds. 

Dale: What do you do to relax?

I hop into a comfy piece of furniture and crack open a (hopefully) good book or I watch an episode or two of Married With Children with my husband. 

Dale: Do you have a book-boyfriend? Who is it?

Brandi: Goodness. Trying to get me in trouble with the hubby, I see. Yes, I have many. The numbers are now triple digits, which probably make me a bit of a hussy, but I make no apologies. My top ranking “boyfriend” is currently Wraith from Passion Unleashed. 

(Dale: Sorry, hubby!)
Dale: Hot seat questions:

a. Beach or mountains? Beach
b. Summer or winter? Winter
c. White or dark chocolate? Dark chocolate 
d. Coffee or tea? Tea
e. Favorite TV show? Archer
f. Favorite color? Black
g. Favorite food? Chinese
h. Cats or dogs? Both? Cats
i. What was the last thing you ate? Chicken fried rice
j. Morning person or night owl? Definitely a morning person

Thank you Brandi for jumping in the hot seat today! I've enjoyed getting to know more about you and your new book, Spring Cleaning.

If you want to stalk Brandi, please do! 

http://twistingyourmindonewordatatime.blogspot.com/

http://brandisalazar.weebly.com/

Book Review: Angel Evolution, by David Estes

Angel Evolution
David Estes

Rating: 3 Stars

18 year-old Taylor is starting college, and she's excited to begin her life of independence and freedom. Her best friend, Samantha, is attending as well, and the 2 girls soon find themselves involved with a couple of pretty hot dudes who reflect both the good and bad sides of angels and demons.

Don't you dig the cover?

If you are looking for a unique twist to angels and demons, this is your stop. The author twists the view of what's good and what's bad, stretching the hard-and-true to a what-if scenario. If you are looking for a traditional take on the celestial beings, you're going to be disappointed, and this book probably isn't for you.

For me? I have to admit I had to warm up to the approach. But then I reached that moment where I wiggled down in a comfy position to accept how the world was being presented, and I did. I reminded myself that this is *fantasy*. Hello! The fact that the author has turned what we traditionally think of (spiritually) on its head is actually refreshing.

The author was really hitting his stride in the story in the 2nd half and, to my utter dismay, ended it at a really good part. Intentional, I'm sure, to entice the reader to pick up the next book.

If you follow my reviews, you know I'm a stickler when it comes to dialogue. I like tight, snappy dialogue that serves a purpose, sounds natural, and, above all else, is not mundane. The dialogue here could use some tightening and re-work to make it more natural-sounding. There also were as occasional random bits of information that didn't quite work into the flow of the story, but these are easily over-looked.

Overall, a nice read. Angel Evolution is the first book in a series, and I do plan on reading more.

In the Hot Seat! Eric Edstrom

Hey Pretties! I have author Eric Edstrom in the hot seat this week! Eric is the author of the awesome Undermountain Saga series, Undermountain and Afterlife.

Take a look....

From Goodreads:
Two teens from from different worlds . . .
Danny Michaelson, sixteen, just wants is a little time away from his troubled home in Nashville. So when he joins a group of teens in the Canadian Rocky Mountains for a ten day hiking excursion, he's primed for adventure.

Breyona Lewis, sixteen, is a beautiful rich girl from Chicago. Outwardly cheerful, she conceals a dark secret. One she tries to deny even to herself.

Have the encounter of a lifetime . . .
Six days into the hike, Danny and Breyona encounter a creature of legend--an eight foot tall beast they tag as "bigfoot." But it's not a missing link, not a mere animal. And it does not want humans knowing its secrets.

Because there are thousands of them here on Earth living in a hidden city deep beneath the mountains. Waiting for the day humans are "ready."

And learn the limits of friendship, love, and loyalty . . .
Separated from each other and told they may never return home, Danny, Breyona, and the others race to escape. To survive.

In a struggle to survive amidst a galactic war.
One is made more than human, one is made less.
One must fight, one must surrender.

Both must face the truth of who they are.

Sounds pretty good, right? So on to the hot seat!

Dale: Tell us a little about Danny and Breyona and their adventures.

Eric: Danny is from Nashville, TN. He’s almost 16 when the story starts. He loves sports, video games, girls, music. But what he doesn’t like is his mother’s boyfriend, Vincent. So, on the summer vacation after Danny’s freshman year, he enrolled in a hiking expedition in the Canadian Rockies. That’s where Undermountain picks up. But two things irritate him about the trip. For one, Vincent paid for the whole thing, and two, Danny’s older sister, Em, went with him.

Breyona comes from an affluent family in Chicago. She’s cheerful, beautiful, and caring. But something very dark happened to her at her school, something she’s trying to put behind her and forget all about. She decides to go on the expedition in Canada to get some distance between her and her past. She has no idea how bad things are going to get!

Dale: OK, now tell us something about Danny and Breyona that we *don't* know...something that's not in the book.

Eric: Danny is extremely intelligent, but he isn’t a particularly good student. He doesn’t see the point of most of his classes.

Breyona owns a horse and is an accomplished dressage rider.

Dale: Where did you get your inspiration for the The Undermountain Saga?

Eric: It started as a small idea. A really silly idea. For no particular reason, I started thinking about the legend of Bigfoot. This was before the current “Finding Bigfoot” TV show. Anyway, I decided that if bigfeet exist did, they’re probably more technologically advanced than humans. That explains why they’re so hard to find. That lead to my conceiving of the high-tech bigfoot city of Undermountain hidden deep under the mountains. The story developed out of that.

Dale: What's the first book you read that made you catch your breath?

Eric: An obscure kids book from the 1941 called The White Panther, by Theodore Waldeck. It was written from the POV of a panther, and it followed his adventures as he grew from an orphaned cub to a full grown jungle cat. It was funny and exciting (for a ten-year old). It’s what got me into reading. It took me weeks to finish a hundred page book, but I did it. I’ve been an avid reader ever since. More recently, I was moved to tears by A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini.

Dale: If you had a super-power, what would it be?

Eric: Instant Teleportation. I’d go everywhere. Heck, with that power, I could live in other people’s vacation homes and they’d never know!

Dale: If you were an animal, what would it be...and why?

Eric: A little baby fox. Because everyone who saw me would say, “Awwwwwuhh!”

Dale: If your book was to become a movie...

a. What would the theme song be?

“Stronger” by Kelly Clarkson

b. Who would play Danny? How about Brett Davern. He plays Jake on Awkward.

c. Who would play Breyona?

Someone on goodreads suggested Keke Palmer. I think she’d be great.

Dale: When you write, are you a plotter or a pantser?

Eric: I am a plotter, plotter, plotter. I would never finish anything if I didn’t have an outline. I wouldn’t even want to write if I didn’t know where I was headed. I like to get a first draft done quickly so I have something to work with. The real fun happens during the second draft.

Dale: Where is your favorite place to write?

Eric: I can write anywhere, but I prefer my studio, which is quiet and has all my guitars in there to distract me. I also like to work in noisy public places, like airplanes and coffee shops. I don’t know why.

Dale: Do you listen to music when you write? If so, what music do you listen to?

Eric: I listen to instrumental stuff while writing. Mostly soundtracks. My favorite is “The Last Samurai.” Hans Zimmer knows how to score a film! When I’m revising, I allow singing in my music. I have a Spotify playlist called “Epic Metal.” It has bands like Within Temptation and We Are The Fallen. Girl singers with big, loud guitars.

Dale:  Is there a little of yourself in any of your characters? If so, who?

Eric: There is a little of me in all of them. My humor is in Wa, my cheerfulness is in Breyona, my intellectual curiosity is in Shiv, my crotchety side comes out in Harvin, my risk aversion is in Em, my feeling of being in over my head is in Danny. Bronson is my selfishness.

Dale: If you could be any character, from any book, who would it be? Why?

Eric: Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice. And I’d go swimming in the pond every day.

(Dale: Uh, yeah...best pond in the world!)

Dale: What do you do to relax?

Eric: I like to watch Mad Men or something on Netflix with my wife.

Dale: Hot seat questions:

a. Beach or mountains?

Eric: That’s a hard one . . . I don’t actually like being on a beach that much, but I like being in places where a beach is nearby. I’m going to go with mountains, but only in the summer.

b. Summer or winter?

Eric: Summer is the only correct answer. I live in Wisconsin, so if I never saw snow again, I wouldn’t miss it.

c. White or dark chocolate?

Eric: Dark

d. Coffee or tea?

Eric: Coffee (delicious Kona, infused with the magical vitality of Hawaii)

e. Favorite TV show?

Eric: The Dick Van Dyke Show

f. Favorite color?

Eric: Black

g. Favorite food?

Eric: Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with ice cold milk

h. Cats or dogs?

Eric: Dogs. I’m too narcissistic to abide cats, although my wife has one living in our house.

i. What was the last thing you ate?

Eric: A dish of mixed nuts and chocolate chips.

(Dale: Yummy!)

j. Morning person or night owl?

Eric: Morning! Asleep by 10:30 pm.

Thanks so much Eric for jumping into the hot seat today! I enjoyed learning more about your books and yourself.

 

Blog Award

I was nominated for the Versatile Blog Award!

Isn't that cool? I was nominated by Josheka Chauhan over at http://reading24x7.blogspot.in/. Thank you Josheka!

Rules:

1. Thank the blogger who nominated you: ✓
2. Add the Versatile Blogger award picture to your post: ✓
3. Share seven random facts about yourself: ✓
4. Nominate 15 fellow bloggers: ✓
5. Let the nominees know that they’ve been nominated: ✓

Seven random facts about me

>We have a dog, cat, 8 ducks, and 11 chickens.
>I love pizza and M&Ms for breakfast.
>I hate the heat.
>I'm addicted to T.V.
>I love the beach, but am afraid of the water.
>I watch cartoons with my kids...and enjoy them.
>I wish I was as flexible as a cat.
 
15 Blogs I Nominated

1. http://tc-bookedup.blogspot.com/
2. http://book-spark.blogspot.com/
3. http://www.curiositykilledthebookworm.net/
4. http://daydreamingintext.blogspot.com/
5. http://kasi-kcblake.blogspot.com/
6. http://nightlyreading.wordpress.com/
7. http://katysozaeva.blogspot.com/
8. http://paranormalwastelands.blogspot.com/
9. http://parlezmoiblog.blogspot.com/
10. http://paradox-theangelsarehere.blogspot.com/
11. http://rantsandravingsofasaneperson.blogspot.com/
12. http://www.nerdalien.com/
13. http://lenahillbrand.blogspot.com/
14. http://traceymoraitthescribbler.blogspot.com/
15. http://www.thefairytalenerd.com/

Friday Funnies!

OK, I couldn't resist. Interesting places to eat, to say the least!

Book Review: Silence, by Becca Fitzpatrick

Silence
Becca Fitzpatrick

In book 3 of the Hush, Hush series, Nora is out of it, and Patch makes sacrifices (as usual). But they need to work together to take down the bad-ass. It's sort of like starting over for them, because Nora can't remember anything...which sucks when someone's trying to kill you.

This is another great installment, and the plot thickens in the continuing saga. The story picks up where #2 leaves off, but we are not left scrambling to remember what occurred before, as the author nicely weaves in the information from previous books that we need to continue on. We have twists and turns, and see some familiar faces...though we don't see as much of Vee in this book as I'd like, because she is a great character!

I wanted to strangle Nora at times, especially when she comes across as a selfish, spoiled little brat. She redeems herself in the end, but as usual, Nora's attitude knocks a star off my rating. She's like a polar opposite of Patch, who would (and does) sacrifice everything for Nora.

The series continues to rock, however, and I highly recommend it.