Book Review: Eye of the Tempest by Nicole Peeler

Review: Eye of the Tempest
Series: Jane True – Book 4
Author: Nicole Peeler
No of Pages: 319
Release Date: 26 July 2011

Nothing says “home” like being attached by humans with very large guns, as Jane and Anyan discover when they arrive in Rockabill. Seeing Anyan fall awakens a terrible power within Jane, and she nearly destroys herself taking out their attackers.

Jane wakes, weeks later, to discover that she’s not the only thing that’s been stirring. Something underneath Rockabill is coming to life: something ancient, something powerful, and something that might destroy the world.

Jane and her friends must act, striking out on a quest that only Jane can finish. For whatever lurks beneath the Old Sow must be stopped…and Jane’s just the Halfling for the job.

My Thoughts:
Eye of the Tempest was another fast paced instalment in this fantastic series.

Jane accidentally short circuits herself when she pulls the water from several human beings to protect Anyan during an attack. It kills the men, and it nearly kills her as well. When she wakes up, a month has passed and strange occurrences are becoming more frequent in Rockabill.

Jane once again had me in fits of laughter; her trademark libido vs. virtue monologue is absolutely hilarious. Jane is growing as a character; those changes are quite obvious but also well earned. Her training is increasing and because of it she is becoming more powerful learning new tricks to impress us with in each new adventure.

Anyan was a little bit of a disappointment for me this time; I feel his real character is starting to show through. He has gone from this adorable, burly man who any woman would count their lucky stars to be with to more distant and a bit of a jerk. Anyan always seems to be around when Jane is naked or he even turns up to get her naked, but he doesn’t seem to treat her properly. When Ryu and Jane were sleeping together it was obvious that Ryu was using her for blood, but with Anyan it’s a little more subtle. The connection between them doesn’t seem to be there. As Jane pointed out herself Anyan always seemed to cop a feel, but they had never even kissed properly.

For me, this was a little bit of a letdown with Anyan, it might just be my natural distrusting ways, but if I were Jane I’d put my foot down and not give over anything until I knew where I stood.

The actual story was once again very well written. It didn’t have the adventure in that Jane actually stayed in Rockabill for nearly the entire novel, but it did have a deeper story. One in which Jane got to meet a being that was literally millions of years old. Jane also had to man up because Nell and Anyan, her two most powerful allies, were rendered completely helpless and it was up to Jane and Blondie, who Jane didn’t trust, to help them.

Peeler’s writing was once again superb; I do feel though that she is playing up a little too much on her Jane monologues. After such high praises of the ingeniousness of it in previous books, Libido and Virtue were appearing what felt like all the time. Every new situation Jane was put into it felt like those two felt the need to be heard, it was actually kind of annoying after a while because it was obvious what was happening, just because a device has worked in the past doesn’t mean you have to become a one trick pony.

Eye of the Tempest was once again a fabulous read, it kept me engrossed from start to finish and I once again cannot wait for the next instalment.

Others in this series:
Tempest's Rising
Tracking the Tempest
Tempest's Legacy
Tempest's Fury

Book Review: Bloodlines by Richelle Mead

Review: Bloodlines
Series: Bloodlines – Book 1
Author: Richelle Mead
No of Pages: 421
Release Date: 23 August 2011

SYDNEY PROTECTS VAMPIRE SECRETS – AND HUMAN LIVES.

Sydney belongs to a secret group who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the world of humans and vampires.

But when Sydney is torn from her bed in the middle of the night, she fears she is still being punished for her complicated alliance with the dhampir Rose Hathaway. What unfolds is far worse. The sister of Moroi Queen Lissa Dragomir is in mortal danger, and goes into hiding. Now Sydney must act as her protector.

The last thing Sydney wants is to be accused of sympathizing with vampires. And now she has to live with one…

My Thoughts:
We were never going to get another Vampire Academy, but what we did get was still surprisingly unique considering it was set in the same world.

Sydney Sage is a disgraced alchemist. After helping Rose to escape from prison whilst on a murder charge and befriending vampires and dhampirs, she is under constant surveillance from the Alchemists. Sydney is terrified of getting sent to a re-education centre and for her younger sister to get caught up in the Alchemist life.

Her newest mission is to keep Jill – Vasilisa’s sister – safe after being repeatedly attacked by people who want Lissa removed from the throne. They move to Palm Springs, a place that is very uncomfortable for vampires because of the heat. Jill is in for a struggle, but her safety is now more important than her comfort.

Sydney for me took a little time to warm to. She was never my favourite person in Vampire Academy purely because she was too uptight. Well, in Bloodlines she was still uptight, but being able to get into her mind, I also found that she was very human. Being raised in a cult like lifestyle full of rules and regulations Sydney hasn’t had the life of a normal teenager and once the full extent of that deprivation is explored, her upbringing is really quite sad.

Bloodlines took a few chapters for me to get into as well; I bought it purely because it had Richelle Mead on it and a Rose appearance in it. At first I was sceptical thinking that Bloodlines couldn’t possibly be as good as Vampire Academy, that Sydney was more of a consolation prize for Adrian to those of us who loved him in the first set of books.

There was actually no romance between them in this and I was so glad for it. Mead didn’t fall into the trap that I have found with so many authors lately of rushing relationships. She knows she has six books and it’s not even clear if Sydney and Adrian will get together. They are just friends for now which I am really happy about.

Bloodlines itself was more mystery than action. The mystery was fairly see-through but Mead’s incredible writing kept the pages turning even though I knew from the start which bad guys were going to do what.

Sydney started to come out of her shell towards the end of Bloodlines, making for a promising character to lead this series, she showed that she wasn’t the push over everyone seemed to think she was and I really started to like her.

The only thing that really disappointed me about this book was in the first chapter. Sydney narrated that she knew a secret about one of the other characters. I hate when people do that. Don’t tell me you have a secret about someone, it’s a cheap trick to try and entice us to keep reading. It’s what gave me the bad first impression, but I’m glad that Mead worked it up to a very good book in the end.

Mead left us with quite a few loose ends but no unbearable cliff hangers to carry us into the next book, the mystery behind the heritage of some characters and the future of others is quite enough to have me eager for more.

Others in this series:
The Golden Lily

Book Review: Human Blend by Lori Pescatore

Review: Human Blend
Series: Blend Trilogy – Book 1
Author: Lori Pescatore
No of Pages: 230
Release Date: 12 June 2010

Marion, Virginia seemed like a nice place to live a normal life, but she is not a normal girl. Laney has special abilities that keep her looking over her shoulder as she makes her escape from the men who had kidnapped her.

A young doctor’s interest is piqued when he witnesses her mysteriously curing a young child’s illness. He befriends her due to his growing fascination with uncovering the true nature of her abilities, but not without harbouring secrets of his own.

Laney’s budding relationship with a local boy puts both of them in danger when the men she was hiding from find her. All of their lives will change forever as ancient secrets become unearthed.

My Thoughts:

Human Blend was far better than I was expecting.

Laney/Julie is on the run from the men that stole her from her family. Stopping to rest in a small town that catches her eye she decided to stay when she meets a local boy and realises that she might have a chance at a normal life.

Laney needs to stay hidden so she assumes the new identity of Julie Miller when she arrives in the small town of Marion. Laney/Julie isn’t just a normal girl though, she has powers that let her “see” numbers meaning she’ll never lose a bet or the lottery and she can also heal others by taking the illnesses into herself and healing instantly.

Laney was a strong, independent character that expertly drove the story. She backed up her words with her abilities, not only her powers but also her survival skills and instincts. Laney was also extremely intelligent which was a refreshing change from the constant damsels in distress that we read about. Laney listens to her gut, and she doesn’t walk into her house alone in the dark after finding the door open, she gets help first from someone who is capable.

I loved that Laney just wanted to be normal even though she is so different. She went to work in a hospital just so she could be near people and use her powers to heal them, not for recognition just because she felt it was the right thing to do.

Laney also had a love interest in Austin, the local boy who takes a liking to her as soon as he meets her. Austin is a complete gentleman which is also a pleasant change from the controlling stalkers and the dangerous bad boys we are currently bombarded with in literature.

Human Blend was really well written and kept me completely engrossed from start to finish. It was not only an interesting storyline but a refreshingly new one as well. Pescatore didn’t conform to our current stereotypes of men, women and the paranormal but created something completely new and exhilarating to read.

Not only did we have a paranormal story with sci-fi themes mixed in, but we also had a beautiful YA romance that unfolded perfectly and without unrealistic devotion but with camaraderie and tenderness.

Human Blend was an excellent start to a promising new series and I absolutely can’t wait to get my hands on the next novel in this trilogy.

Also in this series:
Earth Blend

Book Review: Born Into Fire by Tarah Scott & KyAnn Waters

Review: Born Into Fire
Series: Shadow Elements – Book 1
Author: Tarah Scott & KyAnn Waters
No of Pages: 138
Release Date: 22 November 2010

Ryalda, the Element heroes of old, leak from the void and bring with them beauty, desire...and destruction.

Change is hard, but the unexpected metamorphosis into fire goes beyond any change Kenna Lang could ever have imagined. When she discovers her ancestors are actually ancient beings who exist in a void beyond our universe and the dragons of her childhood dreams are real, life as she knows it is over.

Erion, an Air Element, answers the call of Kenna’s emerging fire to discover a woman on the cusp of transformation. He’s drawn to her, the need to mate overwhelming. However, Erion killed once before by having sex in element form, and has sworn not to merge with another Element. But the discovery that a male Fire Element is intent upon enslaving Kenna’s soul forces Erion to get involved. He will save her. But he aches to do more than protect her. He wants to touch her -- to pleasure her, but he can't risk bonding his Element to hers.

Erion is unprepared for the emotions Kenna awakens in him -- or the lengths to which she will go to save him.

My Thoughts:

Born Into Fire was very hard to follow, but made for a very interesting story.

Kenna is a glass worker, a budding artist who is trying to break into the creative world. She has what seems to be a unique but unrealised ability when she works glass, being able to create life-like colours and shapes.

Kenna is being pursued by a seemingly interested buyer in the form of Hadyn. He seems a little odd and a little too eager to get close to her, but she forgets all of that when she bumps into Eric whilst shopping for supplies. They share an instant connection and he seems familiar, like he is from a dream.

Kenna made for an interesting but shallow character, trying to be a strong presence but not quite getting there. Her work and the insight gathered from the art of glass blowing was what made her interesting, even though we really didn’t get to see much of how she worked.

Eric or Erion as he is referred to mainly is an Air Element. He commands the winds and the air around him when he transforms into air. Erion is somewhat of a mate to Kenna, drawn to her and the heat of her Fire Element. Erion is interesting, he is perfect in many ways, his quiet, protective nature being the main draw point and yet he can be so infuriating in others. In trying to protect Kenna from himself he runs, leaving her confused and vulnerable.


Born Into Fire has an amazing storyline, the idea of people turning into elements when they reach a certain point in their lives is definitely something I haven’t come across before. But it was very hard to understand until right at the end of Born Into Fire exactly what Erion and Kenna were. The descriptions for me were completely overlooked, and what details were given was choppy and under-developed. It was very hard for me to form a picture in my head of what was actually going on.

Born Into Fire also had a lot of sex-breaks. Yes it is an erotic novel, and yes those sex breaks were extremely hot, but Kenna and Erion seemed to be getting down and doing the dirty at really odd times, like right in the middle of a battle with an evil Fire Element, or in the middle of Kenna blowing molten glass. Sure their sex produced more power but sometimes it almost seemed uncalled for and extremely repetitive in their actions and feelings.

Born Into Fire was a very interesting read for me, and although it was hard to follow at first, now that I am up to speed on who and what everybody is, I am eagerly awaiting the next instalment in the Shadow Elements series.

Book Review: Tempest Rising by Nicole Peeler

Review: Tempest Rising
Series: Jane True – Book 1
Author: Nicole Peeler
No of Pages: 344
Release Date: 1 November 2009

Living in a small town in Rockabill, Maine. Jane True always knew she didn’t quite fit in with so-called normal society.

During her nightly, clandestine swim in the freezing winter ocean, a grisly find leads Jane to startling revelations about her heritage: she is only half-human.

Now, Jane must enter a world filled with supernatural creatures that are terrifying, beautiful, and deadly – all of which perfectly describe her new “friend,” Ryu, a gorgeous and powerful vampire.

It is a world where nothing can be taken for granted: a dog can heal with a lick; spirits bag your groceries; and whatever you do, never – ever – rub the genie’s lamp.

My Thoughts:

Many have compared Jane True to Sookie Stackhouse; it even says it on the back of the book. Tempest Rising is in a complete league of its own and although Sookie is good, she is nothing like Jane.

Tempest Rising was an awesome rollercoaster ride that took us through the pains and perils of Jane True a rather odd young woman who has a passion for swimming in the middle of storms.

During one of the nightly swims she encounters a dead body floating in her sea and pulls him out, entangling her in the world of supes and magic as she becomes part of the investigation trying to track the dead man’s murderer. The investigator is none other than Ryu (pronounced Roo), a handsome vampire detective who is head of the case.

There are many things I love about Tempest Rising, the first is the characters. Jane is strong, although she doesn’t feel it, she has been through the pain of a whole town hating her and wrongly accusing her of killing the love of her life, Jason. She has been so traumatised by this that she now believes it too, although she could have done nothing to save him.

Jane isn’t dumb and when she knows that she is in danger, she doesn’t blindly plough on; she stops and asks for help or just stays within reach of someone who can help her, which I didn’t see as weak for a second, because she can hold her own.

Jane is also exceptionally funny, I think we can safely say that she is borderline certifiably insane. This is understandable once again from the past; she talks to herself, not out loud, but in her head and the conversations are absolutely hilarious. Her virtue and her libido are constantly quarrelling over what she does with Ryu, old weak Jane pipes up every now and again when new strong, alive Jane moves in for her time to shine, down-to-earth Jane sighs irritably when girly vain Jane pops her head out to drool at some pretty shoes.

I also loved Ryu; he is someone that personally I wouldn’t go for, why? He’s short. Taller than Jane but only five foot nine, and I loved it, he was definitely very good looking, but the fact that he wasn’t some six foot six hulking, brick out house of a man made him that much more real, because he too was unique.

I loved the style of Tempest Rising as well, the sex was there, and was detailed every once in a while, but it wasn’t constantly being thrown in our faces and many a time was glossed over with only some very provocative insinuation. The characters were just about flawless in their reality, in their actions and in their words. The relationship between Jane and Ryu was again, so real. They weren’t professing their love for one another, and Jane freely admitted she was in lust, and considering Ryu’s profession and the fact that he lived in Boston didn’t expect anything more than a fling.

The smattering of such different characters was absolutely intriguing, we didn’t just have standard Vampires, Were-wolves and shape shifters, we had goblins, gnomes, kelpies, fire elementals and elves that would probably kill you for calling them elves. The mythology and folk lore packed into this tale was absolutely stunning and seamlessly put together.

Peelers writing was real, and it’s what kept me going back for more and the detail was subtle and just enough to keep it colourful and still quickly paced.

I absolutely can’t wait for the next Jane True novel, Tracking the Tempest, and if you didn’t know it, you would never ever pick Tempest Rising as a debut novel, it was that good.

Also in this series:
Tracking the Tempest
Tempest's Legacy
Eye of the Tempest
Tempest's Fury

Book Review: Burned by PC Cast & Kristin Cast

Review: Burned
Series: House of Night – Book 7
Author: PC Cast; Kristin Cast
No of Pages: 323
Release Date: 27 April 2010

Y’all need to get yourselves together. Here’s a newsflash from the only High Priestess you have left at this dang school: Zoey isn’t dead. And believe me, I know dead. I’ve been there, done that and got the fricken t-shirt.

Zoey Redbird is the youngest High Priestess in the House of Night history and is the only person – vamp or fledgling – that can stop the evil Neferet from raising all kinds of immortal trouble. And just she might have a chance if she wasn’t so busy being dead.

Well, dead is too strong a word. Stevie Rae knows she can bring her BFF back from her unscheduled va-cay in the Otherworld. But it’s going to take a lot more than hoping to bring Zoey back. Stevie Rae might have to give up a few secrets of her own...

My Thoughts:

The seventh instalment in the House of Night series has somehow kept me intrigued in continuing on in Zoey’s journey.

Continuing directly on from Tempted, Burned launches straight into the predicament that Zoey’s soul has been shattered and Aphrodite must work with the nerd-herd and Stark to get her back. We also have Stevie Rae’s ongoing struggle with her feelings for Rephaim, the raven mocker.

I did like that Burned didn’t focus wholly (it ended up being rarely) on Zoey and all her “me, me, me”. We got a good insight into the other characters, Stevie Rae especially. It felt like nearly the whole story was flipping back to Stevie Rae whenever it could. It wasn’t entirely bad, but in the middle of Burned, it became extremely tedious to hear her stuff up and summoning evil beings by accident.

I think my favourite character, apart from Stark and Zoey (yes, I like her even if she is self-centred), is Aphrodite. She is continuing to grow into what it really seems Nyx has planned for her. Everything that is thrown at Aphrodite she completely takes in her stride, whilst also managing to keep everyone else together as well and still successfully pulling off her “I’m a bitch” routine.

It was Aphrodite that kept Zoey’s body safe, Aphrodite who figured out how to help her and ultimately, Aphrodite who saved the day, which was really cool on her part considering her lack of Vampyrness now.

Although I do love the Cast ladies writing style, I am really starting to get over the language. It’s not bad or vulgar; it just seems to try way too hard now. Before it was cool, unique and well done. Now it’s just overused and really tiring to think you just read someone speaking terrible English and having to go back and confirm that the House of Night doesn’t teach grammar lessons.

Aside from the characters voices, the only other thing that is puzzling me is how on earth they are going to drag this out for another five books...I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, Kalona and Neferet are only so evil, there isn’t too much more that they can do.

Aside from those things though, Burned kept me intrigued for the most part, and I think we’re in for Zoey, Stark, Aphrodite and especially Stevie Rae to do some major maturing in the next couple of books because it looks like Zoey is going to be taking on some pretty big roles in the next instalment, one in which I am looking forward to reading.

Others in this series:
Marked
Betrayed
Chosen
Untamed
Hunted
Tempted
Awakened

Book Review: Spirit Bound by Richelle Mead

Review: Spirit Bound
Series: Vampire Academy – Book 5
Author: Richelle Mead
No of Pages: 489
Release Date: 18 May 2010

SALVATION HAS ITS PRICE...

The words stunned Adrian for a moment, but he kept going. “You’re lying. What you’re describing is impossible. There’s no way to save a Strigoi. When they’re gone, they’re gone. They’re dead. Undead, Forever.”

Robert’s next words weren’t directed at Adrian. They were spoken to me. “that which is dead doesn’t always stay dead...”

After a long and heartbreaking journey to Dimitri’s birthplace in Siberia, Rose Hathaway has finally returned to St. Vladimir’s—and to her best friend, Lissa Dragomir. It’s graduation, and the girls can’t wait for their real lives outside of the Academy’s cold iron gates to finally begin. But even wit the intrigue and excitement of court life looming, Rose’s heart still aches for Dimitri. He's out there, somewhere.

She failed to kill him when she had the chance, and now her worst fears are about to come true. Dimitri has tasted her blood, and she knows in her heart that he is hunting her. And if Rose won't join him, he won't rest until he's silenced her...forever.

But Rose can’t forget what she learned on her journey- whispers of a magic too impossible and terrifying to comprehend. A magic inextricably tied to Lissa that could hold the answer to all of Rose’s prayers, but not without devastating consequences. Now Rose will have to decide what – and who – matters most to her. And in the end, is true love really worth the price?


My Thoughts:

I am always at a loss for words when it comes to trying to express my love for this series.

Spirit Bound kicks off a couple of months after Rose gets back from Siberia at the end of Blood Promise.

Rose is about to take her trials to finally become a guardian, which is the only thing she has been able to focus on ever since the beginning. We are thrown straight into the fray of her fighting off imaginary strigoi on a bridge and watching her come up with something completely unexpected to get out of the situation, like cutting the bridge.

But after her wonderful success of completion and finally getting out of St. Vladimir’s Academy, Rose’s world comes crashing down after she goes off on a last hare-brained attempt to save her ex, Dimitri, from being a strigoi.

Rose and two friends manage to spring Victor Dashkov, the evil guy that tried to enslave Lissa and use her spirit powers, from one of the most heavily guarded prisons in the vampire world. Even as I say it, it sounds so completely far-fetched, but Mead’s writing leave us believing every single word.

After freeing Dashkov and finding out that they might have a chance at saving Dimitri, they go back to The Royal Court to face the consequences. This is where life for Rose starts to unravel, she may have been able to get away with her schemes at school, but the Court doesn’t want her risking Lissa’s life, even if she proves to be more than capable of keeping her safe.

Ironically enough, when Lissa leaves Court to look around her new university and Rose gets left behind, Lissa gets snatched...by Dimitri.

After witnessing the attack we see how much Rose has really grown over the last couple of books, instead of going on a rescue mission by herself, she stops, and asks for help.

I love Rose so much, and I love how much she has grown, especially in Blood Promise and Spirit Bound. She is still the impulsive, vulgar, bad ass chick that we met in Vampire Academy, but she has matured into so much more without losing those qualities.

We also see a lot into Lissa’s mind through her and Rose’s connection, we see more how she feels and how she thinks and it comes across effortlessly how much Lissa has also grown, and become so much stronger. We also see how she thinks in regards to Christian now, since their breakup a couple of months ago it has become a battle of wills that Rose has been put in charge of resolving. The quips and comments that come out of Lissa and Christian lighten the whole mood of the story.

Another who also lightens Spirit Bound’s mood is Adrian, ah Adrian *drools*, Adrian and Rose’s budding relationship is funny, unique, mature and yet so innocent. We see the softer side to Adrian, how much he truly cares for Rose, how much he is willing to endure for her and from her whilst she struggles to get over Dimitri. They have that innocence of young love, and yet they also act on occasion, like an old married couple.

I will have it known freely, that I am whole-heartedly on Team Adrian, although I can anticipate what is probably going to happen, I am still on Team Adrian all the way.

Mead’s writing was provocative, thought inducing, emotional and almost too powerful. What she does with words is absolutely magical, and the feelings she stirs in you as you’re reading Spirit Bound are absolutely intense.

Spirit Bound is yet another perfect instalment to this absolutely fabulous series. Mead has left us with a massive cliff-hanger that was extremely cruel, but also has me eagerly anticipating Last Sacrifice, the final instalment in this epic series.

Also in this series:
Vampire Academy
Frostbite
Shadow Kiss
Blood Promise
Last Sacrifice