Monthly Archives: March 2012

DARK SLAYER by Christine Feehan -a review

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It is Thursday and Tynga’s Reviews is hosting- DARING YOU TO READ.

Every Thursday, we offer a previously published book or series and Dare You To Read. This week we offer: DARK SLAYER by Christine Feehan. Christine Feehan just released her new cover for her next Dark series book-DARK STORM to be released September 2012.
You can find Tynga at : Tynga’s Reviews

Dark Slayer by Christine Feehan

“Dark Slayer” by Christine Feehan, is different then most of her books in the Dark Series. Whereas, the majority of the books have a male Carpathian as the lead in the story, as he finds his lifemate, in “ Dark Slayer” the lead Carpathian is a female….the long thought dead, Ivory Malinov is our heroine. Christine does surprise her fans with this book, as she brings together two people, whom you never thought would have a story. Ivory, who we had learned in earlier books was killed by Draven, Mikhail’s brother; and her lifemate, Razvan, whom we had been led to believe was equally as bad as Xavier.

This is mostly Ivory’s story, as she is the strong warrior in this book. She had been left for dead centuries ago, having been cut up into pieces and left for the wolves. Ivory used her ability to talk to the wolves to help her, and they put all the pieces of her body buried together. Her promise to them was to take care of them and their pack forever. She ends up spending most of her life with the wolves, and at some point when they had been attacked by vampires, she finds the baby wolves barely holding on to life. Her grief overcomes her, afraid to be alone, as they were all she had, Ivory gave them life with her blood. Centuries later, these same wolves are still with her, magically enhanced by her blood, and converted to Carpathians.

The story of Ivory and the wolves is one of my favorite parts of this story. It is awesome to see how they work together to kill vampires, share blood when necessary, and you truly see their magical love bond. Having spent hundreds of years underground to recover from her horrific injuries, she lived to seek vengeance against vampires, as well as her determination to one day kill her enemy…Xavier. It is this will that makes her possibly one of the strongest Carpathians.Not only her physical strength, but her overall intelligence, ability to unravel spells, as well as her affinity with mother earth that makes her so powerful. She learned early on how Xavier’s mind works, and has spent these solitary years learning everything about him. She has trained herself to become a Mage, a strong warrior, and the Slayer, that is feared by all the vampires.

Razvan, who is Natalya’s brother, has been Xavier’s prisoner for centuries. We have been led to believe that he was evil, but unbeknownst to the Carpathians, Razvan has been forced against his will to commit horrific crimes against his family and the Carpathians. Xavier tortured Razvan beyond endurance. It is those terrifying memories that haunt him about his daughter (Lara), and his two aunts, whom were held prisoner by Xavier. Razvan, had already sold his soul to Xavier to save his sister, Natalya. Razvan was as hunted by the Carpathians, as was Xavier. After centuries, he finally escapes, and makes his way to meet the dawn, so he could die. As he lies dying, while the sun is close to rising, he is near Ivory’s hidden home.

Ivory, out hunting with her wolves, she sees someone lying in the snow. She immediately recognizes that he is her lifemate, and is compelled to save him, though he fights her to let him die. She has to knock him out, and takes him to her hidden home. Over time, while he recuperates, you see their romance slowly develop, since both have
had a brutal lonely torturous life. Ivory is determined to help Razvan recover, and he is still intent to end his life, as he fears Xavier will find him, as well as put her life in danger. Ivory tries to show him how strong he had to be to have survived Xavier’s torture all these years, she also tries to convince him that her goal is to kill Xavier, and she needs his help.

When she leaves him alone in her hidden enclave, as he is still recovering, Ivory comes across a child tied up in a trap. She tries to help the boy, Travis, and finds herself face to face with her brother Sergei, who is a master vampire. With Gary’s help, she was able to fend off Sergei, as Mikhail and Gregori arrive to help, just as Sergei escapes. Ivory is injured, but refuses Gregori’s help to heal her, as she wants nothing to do with the Carpatians.

Back in the hidden enclave, Razvan awakes to feel the sense of danger to his lifemate. He mind speaks to her for help to get out the cave, and he goes to her rescue. With a knife held against Mikhail’s neck, Razvan is convinced that they will not hurt her, and tells Ivory to allow Gregori to heal her. What Gregori finds out while healing Ivory, shocks him. He sees how she was cut into little pieces, cannot imagine how she survived such torture. He tells Mikhail that his brother was the one who did this to Ivory. Slowly, both Ivory and Razvan begin to trust them a little more. Then Gregori tries to help remove Xaviers shards from Razvan, with Ivory’s help, but two shards escape. The story from this point on becomes extremely exciting, as Ivory shows how powerful she really is. She is as good a warrior as any male Carpathian, and her powers are enormous. She saves them from the attack of the monsters Xavier has created.

But still, Ivory and Razvan, are hesitant to totally trust the Carpathians. They promise to come visit them and talk about her plans to kill Xavier. Gregori also wants Ivory to help with saving the babies, who are dying, since she knows all the spells of Xavier.

The action scenes were exciting and there were so many of them. It was non stop entertainment all the way through. You could not put this book down, as it went from one action packed moment to the next. Sergei turned out to be a great bad villain, and Xavier was truly evil. Some of best parts were when Sergei almost killed both of them, Ivory’s perseverance to fight him, and to do all she could to save Razvan. The Carpathians coming to help to heal them was great, as we got to see so many of our favorites in this book. Gregori, Mikhail, Raven, Savannah, Francesca, Shea, Natalya, Vikornoff, Nicholas, Lara, Skyler, Syndil, just to name a few.

When Sergei and Xavier’s plans to frame Razvan for Lara’s injury almost culminate in Razvan’s death, Ivory’s powers come full force. She is a weapon like they have never seen before. When they come to realize their error in accusing Razvan, Ivory is convinced by Gregori and Mikhail to use her ability to help break Xavier’s spell to save Savannah’s unborn twins. This part of the betrayal, the saving of the twins was one of the most exciting scenes in the book. I loved every moment of it. The ending was good, with Sergei now becoming the ultra evil to reckon with in the future. The acceptance of
Ivory and Razvan, his meeting of his many children, and their own acceptance that they are part of the Carpathians was also great and emotional.
I really enjoyed their romance, as it was different then the others. Razvan did not have the ego that the Carpathian males normally have, and he lets Ivory be the warrior that she was meant to be. They were true partners in every sense of the word, proven when they faced Xavier at the end, and having Natalya and Vik help was a nice touch. I loved the added element of the wolves, and loved how Ivory & Razvan interacted with them. Dark Slayer has become my favorite book of the Dark Series, and I loved Ivory. I found this story to be totally exciting, action packed, with suspense, drama, humor, discovery of family and their romance.

Reviewed by Barb

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Interview with Anne Bishop

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Interview with Anne Bishop

The Reading Café and Bodice Rippers Femme Fatales are happy to welcome the wonderful Anne Bishop to our sites.  Many of you already know some of Anne’s work, as we have posted some reviews of all three of her series.  Without further ado, let us begin the interview.

TRC/BR:  Our first few questions are probably one that you have been asked many times, but there are new readers to the world of fantasy and the paranormal who do NOT know the world of Anne Bishop.

Can you tell us something about yourself? A little biographical background into the ‘real’ Anne Bishop?

AB: I live in upstate New York and have a small herd of indoor unicorns. In the summer I putter in the garden, and in the winter I listen to music and watch DVDs to catch up on television shows I missed. And I try to read a few pages of something every day. Since I spend a lot of time writing stories, the real me leads a quiet life.

TRC/BR: Many authors start to write as children and teens, getting a feel for the rhythm of story lines and characters.  When did you first begin to write?  Have you always had a fascination with the world of the paranormal and fantasy?

AB: I probably started getting the feel for stories and characters before I knew how to form letters and write words. My interest then was in Westerns and animal stories. Rod Serling’s Twilight Zone was most likely my first exposure to the strange and eerie side of stories. I do remember writing some eerie Western stories around the time I was in junior high school, as well as teenage witch stories.

Ephemera

TRC/BR: Tell us about Bridge of Dreams, book #3 of the Ephemera series, which is expected to be released this month (March 2012).  We do know it is about Lee.

AB: It is about Lee, but it’s also about Danyal, who is a Shaman in the city of Vision, and Zhahar, who comes from a race called the Tryad. There is a saying in Vision: Is the sight that matters most the kind that is seen with the eyes or with the heart? That is a question Lee, Danyal, and Zhahar have to answer as part of their personal journeys. Danger is hidden, and the city of Vision as well as Zhahar’s people may be lost if Lee and the others can’t find a way to see the enemy.  

TRC/BR: What made you decide to do a novella “The Voice”, a month prior to the release of Bridge of Dreams?

AB: The first line of the story–“They called her The Voice because she had none”–haunted me for a long time. A few years ago, the story that had been forming around that first line emerged, and I wrote it. I wasn’t sure what to do with an Ephemera story that size, so I put it away, but the idea of going back to the city of Vision stayed with me. When I thought about Lee’s journey and where it might take him, Vision was waiting for me. Because the novella takes place in the same landscape as the novel and has some of the same characters, I showed the story to my editor. I was thrilled that we were able to offer it as a kind of prequel in ebook and audiobook formats.

TRC/BR: Is Bridge of Dreams the end of the Ephemera series?

AB: I don’t have a particular storyline in mind at the moment, but it doesn’t feel like the end. Ephemera has possibilities yet to be explored.

TRC/BR: Belladonna left things open for Glorianna and the Eater of the World.  Will we see a happy ending for her?

AB: We see more of her journey, and while I don’t think it would be considered a typical happy ending, I feel good about where the journey is taking her.

TRC/BR: How did you come up with the idea of Ephemera, it’s heroine- Glorianna Belladonna, and it’s world?

AB: Like all of my stories, many ideas and pieces have to come together over months–and sometimes years–to create a place. At the time the first seeds for Ephemera were taking root, I was reading some self-help/psychology books, and I was intrigued by the idea that our outer world is a reflection of our inner world. I pondered what would happen if that idea was literal–that a person lived in landscapes that were a reflection of his or her own heart. Then there was the idea that in the twilight of waking dreams it would be possible to cross over to a kind of dreamscape that was another world. That got me far enough to rough out a short story about an incubus named Sebastian who lived in a place called the Den of Iniquity. And while I was pondering this character named Sebastian and how he came to live in a place like the Den, I found his cousin Glorianna Belladonna and the Landscapers. The idea of dreamscapes became transformed into a world of landscapes called Ephemera, and I slowly learned its broken history. I found Lee and Nadia and Lynnea and Teaser and the Eater of the World. Once I had found that much, the only way to learn more was to tell their story. Since I’m an organic writer, the story grew out of the characters and the choices they made, and the characters grew out of the story, which, in turn, helped shape the world.

Black Jewels Series

TRC/BR: What was your inspiration for The Black Jewels series?  Did you have an outline where you knew in what the direction the story would evolve?

AB: Keep in mind that it’s been 25 years since I began playing with the ideas that evolved into the Blood and the Realms. Inspiration? Lots of things. Reading fantasy stories that had a dark wizard and his army led me to wondering how the story might look from his point of view, and that led to wondering what a culture would be like if its roots began in the dark images of fantasy and mythology. Reading about sexual practices throughout history led to playing with gender reversal for some of the sexual mores. Wanting a blend of romance and fantasy combined with an adult kind of grittiness began my shaping of the Blood and their culture. Playing with the idea of animals having the same kind of magic as humans was the first step to the kindred. From there it was creating races and daydreaming scenarios to see how the Blood’s society played out; watching characters develop or, like the High Lord, simply appear. And then one day I looked at this complex, dark society where so much of the Blood’s survival depended on the strongest acting with honor and wondered what would happen if things went wrong.  That’s when all those ideas and characters clicked into place. At that point, I had a father and his estranged sons, and I had a three-part story of what happens when a child comes into their lives who has the power to change their world–if she can survive to maturity. So three years after that first idea surfaced, I began writing the story that became the Black Jewels Trilogy. There wasn’t an outline. I’m a very organic writer. I knew the three story arcs. I wrote the story to find out how the characters reached those points in their lives.

TRC/BR: The world of The Black Jewels and its characters tend to ride the spectrum from light to dark, in varying shades of personality.  For example, Daemon Sadi.  We see him as a man capable of most vial acts, yet he is a gentle, loving son, brother and husband. He will kill to protect the one’s he loves, sadistically torture those who would threaten his family and then breakdown in tears at the feet of his father.  How do you develop a character such as Daemon Sadi?

AB: How do you develop such a character? I don’t know. Daemon was a gift from the Muse. That spectrum of emotion he shows is, in large part, a reflection of Daemon being a Warlord Prince. The Blood have a dark, violent culture that demands a strong code of honor in order for the majority of people to survive the strongest among them. In that sense, Daemon Sadi is an example of his society and his caste. But he is also a result of his own brutalization in childhood, which provided him with the examples and the tools to become a sadistic kind of predator.

TRC/BR: In Daughter of the Blood, there is an intimate moment between Saetan and the ‘daughter of his soul’- Jaenelle- an almost ethereal moment, where the reader wonders if Saetan would have pursued a relationship with Jaenelle when she reached adulthood, even though he knew that Jaenelle was fated as Daemon’s mate. Had you ever considered Saetan as Jaenelle’s love interest? 

AB: Never. From the moment those characters appeared, Daemon was always the lover and Saetan was always the father. There is a sensuality to Saetan and Jaenelle’s relationship because he is a Warlord Prince and she is a Queen, and also because the Blood are who and what they are. And sometimes he is envious of the relationship Daemon has with her. But Saetan was promised a daughter in Cassandra’s vision and he understood from the beginning that Jaenelle needed a father who would be her protector, so he drew a line that he never crossed.

TRC/BR: The SaDiablo men have all been tortured, yet grew into loving and caring men (although their demons still rode them hard). How difficult is it to write and think about the torture these beautiful men endured..at the hands of such evil women?

AB: I was able to write those scenes by knowing that the Black Jewels was and is, at its core, a love story, so I knew the men would survive the bad stuff and be all right in the end.

TRC/BR: Twilight’s Dawn neatly wrapped up several storylines, but 70 years in the life of Daemon and Jaenelle are missing.  We understand you had many readers wanting to know what happened to Daemon and Jaenelle, and Twilight’s Dawn was the book you wrote to let the fans know about their life.  If and when will you consider writing more about these wonderful characters?  Have you any plans at the moment to continue this series?

AB: Right now all of my creative energy is going into the new series, and the Black Jewels characters are resting, as they have at other times. I don’t know what will come from that fallow time. When other stories are ready to be told, they tend to rise to the surface of my awareness.

TRC/BR: Luciver’s storyline and background was only a short story in Dreams Made Flesh , although he has been included in most of the other books.  And now that Daemon and Surreal have a daughter, have you considered writing a new series, based on the next generation of the SaDiablo family?

AB: Daemonar has expressed some interest in being in a story, but not until he’s older.

TRC/BR: How did you come up with the haunted house theme in “Tangled Webs”.  It was a fun story, yet so different from the other books.

AB: Having read a lot of mysteries, I thought it would be fun to write a locked room mystery. That idea drifted around for quite a while. And the idea of doing a story that spotlighted Surreal was also drifting in the part of my mind that holds the stories. And then one autumn, while looking at Halloween decorations and signs for haunted house amusements, I wondered what the Blood would do as an equivalent. Then I wondered what Jaenelle would do as an equivalent and how everyone else would respond. That’s when all those different ideas began to come together as a potential Black Jewels story.

TRC/BR: The Shadow Queen and Shalador’s Lady was a wonderful continuation in the Black Jewels series.  What made you decide to create a new storyline with Cassie and Gray as the leads.?

AB: I have a scribbled story idea about Theran that dates back to the time I was writing The Invisible Ring. But that’s all I had for a long time: Theran bringing a Queen from Kaeleer to Dena Nehele after the purge. So we’re talking about a gestation period that lasted for years before a story began to emerge. I thought Cassidy and Theran would be together, but when I started working on the story and the personalities emerged, I realized they didn’t like each other. And then Gray showed up, and he was so right for Cassie. And then Vae showed up. And Ranon. From there the story grew from what those characters wanted or needed, especially when those wants and needs were in conflict. I also wanted to do a story about Blood who weren’t the high-powered aristos like the SaDiablo family. I had originally thought Daemon, Jaenelle, and the rest of their family would be secondary players. I should have known better, but I thought that. Instead their story was interwoven into Cassie and Gray’s story. So the initial thought for the story occurred years before the first line was written, and by then, as typically happens, it wasn’t really the same story at all. It was so much more.

TRC/BR: How did you come up with the wonderful Kindreds?  They were great in the trilogy, but also added so much humor in Shalador’s Lady.

AB: Ladvarian was one of the first characters to emerge when the Realms and the Blood were taking shape. He’s a Sceltie. I got herded into bringing in more races of kindred. What else can I say?

TRC/BR: Who are your favorite characters for The Black Jewels series and why? 

AB: Saetan, Daemon, and Lucivar. The Black Jewels Trilogy was a love story about the price a person is willing to pay for a dream. Different kinds of love, but the story was shaped around the relationship those three men had with Jaenelle.

TRC/BR: Which character holds a ‘special’ place in your heart and why?

AB: Daemon Sadi. Why? Because he’s Daemon.

Tir Alainn

TRC/BR: How did you come up with the story of Tir Alainn and the Fae’s.

AB: Again, a long gestation. When I started thinking about what I wanted to write after the Black Jewels Trilogy and The Invisible Ring, I knew I wanted a different kind of magic, and using earth magic as the basis for it appealed to me. That led me to thinking in terms of a more traditional kind of witch, and that led to thoughts about the persecution of those who are different, and that led to bringing in the shadow of the Inquisition. A cloud formation on the horizon was the inspiration for the world where the Fae lived. And that began the process of considering the details of the world and the limitations of the magic, and how the Fae traveled from Tir Alainn to the mortal world, and who the characters were. And when Morag the Gatherer appeared, the relationship between witches, humans, Fae, and Inquisitors began to fall into place.

TRC/BR: Tir Alainn had one of the most vile characters in Adolpho–the Witch’s Hammer.  How hard was it to write some of the horrific things he did in this trilogy?

AB: When I’m writing a story and am in a character’s point of view, I have to see with his eyes and believe what he believes while I’m working on that scene. So from Aldopho’s point of view, nothing he did was horrific. That said, after the Tir Alainn trilogy was published, I’ve never been able to go back and read one of the scenes that was from Adolpho’s point of view. I skip over them when I pick up any of the books to visit the characters.

TRC/BR: Will you ever go back to Tir Alainn?  Will we ever get to see what happens to Ari & Neall, and their daughter?  Selena and Liam?  Breanna and  Falco?

AB: I hope so. I circle back to them to see if anything resonates in a way that tells me there is a story close to the surface. So far, the world of the Fae has been quiet.

TRC/BR: Our hearts broke when Morag was killed, is there any chance of her coming back, if you did another story?

AB: Again, I hope so, but I won’t know until the story chooses to be written.

Miscellaneous

TRC/BR: We hear you are doing a new series, with a change in genres for you….Urban Fantasy.   Can you tell us a bit about this new series, and how did you come up with doing Urban Fantasy.

AB: I’ve enjoyed reading Urban Fantasy for a number of years and thought I would like to try a story about shape-shifters and vampires someday. I carried that thought around for several years, gathering pictures and making notes about things that resonated with that forming world. When I pondered what I wanted to write after finishing Twilight’s Dawn, the ideas for place and story came together, and the characters said “Our turn.” As for the series, it’s a contemporary urban setting, but it’s not Earth, so that world and the story have shaped themselves around each other. There are two books planned for these characters right now, which is great because I’m having a lot of fun with them.

TRC/BR: Who were your favorite characters in each series?

AB: Saetan, Daemon, and Lucivar from the Black Jewels, Sebastian and Glorianna from Ephemera, Ashk and Morag from Tir Alainn, and Simon and Meg from the new series.

TRC/BR: What are you working on today?

AB: I’m working on the first book in the new series, which is due in March.

TRC/BR: Do you have any plans to publish a book of short stories, involving all your different series?

AB: I haven’t yet written short stories in all the series. I may do a collection of my short fiction someday, but that’s still in the future.

Thank you Anne, for taking the time to talk with us.  This has been a wonderful interview.  We all wish you the best with your release of Bridge of Dreams, and look forward to your new series. 

To learn more about Anne, you can visit her at the following sites:

http://www.annebishop.com

www.facebook.com/darkrealms

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞GIVEAWAY∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

The Reading Cafe and Anne Bishop are offering a GIVEAWAY to two (2) of our eligible  members. 2  eligible members will each receive ONE signed copy of one of Anne’s books.

PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT

1.  You MUST be a member of The Reading Cafe.  If you are not a member, register today.

2.  The giveaway is open to registered members in Canada and US only. 

3.  Giveaway dates March 14 to March 17, 2012-Winners to be announced on March 18, 2012

4.  Bridge of Dreams OR Twilight’s Dawn (sorry no choice)

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Angel Betrayed and Angel in Chains by Cynthia Eden

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TITLE: Angel Betrayed

AUTHOR: Cynthia Eden

RELEASE DATE: July 2012

Sammael–call him Sam–was an angel once. An Angel of Death. But the dispassionate, watch-from-above thing just wasn’t working for him when it meant watching evil torture innocent souls day in and day out. It might have cost him his wings, but these days he gets to apply the direct method on the bad guys. Problem is, what’s making his life difficult is a bad girl…

Seline O’Shaw needs protection, and with the hounds of hell on her tail, she’s not going to quibble too hard about where she gets it. Sam’s virtue is questionable, but he’s smoking hot, massively powerful, and owes her a favor. So what if she’s getting a little case of angel lust? There are some damn deadly sins after her hide…

 

 

TITLE: Angel in Chains

AUTHOR: Cynthia Eden

RELEASE DATE: December 2012

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.cynthiaeden.com/

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Exclusive: Rachel Caine Cover Reveal

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Exclusive: Rachel Caine Cover Reveal

 

Rachel Caine has just revealed the cover of her upcoming book Two Weeks Notice, which is coming out August 12th.

Bryn Davis is adapting to her new life as the living dead … hooked on the pharmaceutical drug Returne, she’s still got a lot of challenges ahead of her. Now, new enemies surface who want to control the after-death business, and Bryn is a candidate for a hostile takeover.

 

 

 

 

This is the link to the first chapter of the book, which is the second book of her Revivalist series.


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Anne Bishop Biography and Book Listing

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Anne Bishop – Biography/Book Listing/ Artwork

Anne Bishop Biography

Anne Bishop is the New York Times bestselling author of Bridge of Dreams, as well as fourteen other novels, including the award-winning Black Jewels Trilogy. Recent stories include The Voice: An Ephemera Novella, and A Strand In the Web, which will appear in the anthology Stranded (August 2012). Her books have been translated into several languages including Czech, French, German, Japanese, Portuguese, Polish, and Russian. She recently completed the first book in a new urban fantasy series. When she’s not writing, Anne enjoys gardening, reading, and music. You can visit her at www.annebishop.com.

Anne Bishop Book List

Black Jewels – Realms of the Blood
Daughter of the Blood — paperback 1998/trade paperback 2007
Heir to the Shadows — paperback 1999/trade paperback 2007
Queen of the Darkness — paperback 2000/trade paperback 2007
The Black Jewels Trilogy omnibus edition — 2003
The Invisible Ring — paperback 2000/trade paperback 2008
Dreams Made Flesh — trade paperback 2005/paperback 2006
Tangled Webs — hardcover 2008/paperback 2009
The Shadow Queen — hardcover 2009/paperback 2010
Shalador’s Lady — hardcover 2010/paperback 2011
Twilight’s Dawn — hardcover 2011/paperback 2012

Ephemera – The Landscapes of Ephemera
SEBASTIAN — hardcover 2006/paperback 2007
Belladonna — hardcover 2007/paperback 2008
Bridge of Dreams — hardcover 2012/paperback 2013
The Voice – eSpecial novella 2012

 

Tir Alainn – The World of the Fae
The Pillars of the World — paperback 2001
Shadows and Light — paperback 2002
The House of Gaian — paperback 2003

Mossy Creek
Summer in Mossy Creek — trade paperback 2003

Chanandra’s Special Artwork for Anne Bishop’s Black Jewels Characters

The Reading Cafe wants to thank Chanandra for allowing us to post her wonderful artwork on many of the Black Jewels characters.  This tribute is for Anne Bishop from The Reading Cafe and Chanandra.

Jaenelle and Daemon

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lucivar Yaslana

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Karla                                                                                    Surreal

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                               Gabrielle

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DIVINE BY CHOICE by PC Cast -a review

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DIVINE BY CHOICE by PC Cast

DIVINE BY CHOICE by PC Cast

Divine by Choice is the second book in PC Cast’s Divine series. The continuing story of Shannon Parker and Clanfintan, but Divine by Choice returns Shannon to her own time period and the man who is the mirror image of her husband.

Shannon Parker, aka the high priestess Lady Rhiannon to the people of Patholon, is sick. With an unexplained stomach ailment and her shape-shifting centaur husband away with his troops, Shannon fights a battle with lethargy, nausea and weight loss, that even she cannot explain. When Clanfintan returns and realizes his mate is sick, the healer is called for a diagnosis. They are expecting their first child- a daughter and Shannon has morning sickness.

A young stone-cutter wishes to meet with the priestess and explains about his affinity with the elements. Kai explains that the ‘stone’ talks to him and shows him the answers to his questions. Intrigued, Shannon tests to determine if she has an affinity and she is able to send the whispers. When a horseback ride into the forest, finds Shannon and Clanfintan in the old Oak grove, a mysterious emanation beckons Shannon. Investigating the strange phenomenon and thinking she has an affinity to the earth, Shannon is suddenly hurled through a time portal back to the 21st century, alone, pregnant and without her mate.

Shannon awakens in a cabin with a man who is the mirror image of her husband. Clint Freeman, is a retired war hero, a Shaman with an affinity to the earth. But what is more amazing is that he knows about the portal exchange between Shannon and the real Lady Rhiannon. As Clint explains, Rhiannon vowed never to return to Parthelon while she enjoyed the modern conveniences of the new world. But Clint is saddened when he reveals that he was seduced by Rhiannon, and was drawn into her games of violence and death. When Shannon explained what had happened to her, she asks to be taken to the spot where she was found. Hoping to connect with Clanfintan, Shannon ‘whispers to the oaks’ and is rewarded with a brief contact with her mate in Parthelon. But that brief connection has released an evil into the world-Nuada.

Meanwhile, Clint is falling for Shannon. Knowing that Clint was involved with Rhiannon, Shannon dismisses his feelings, but not before, she learns that Rhiannon played Clint for a fool, and broke both his heart and his soul. As Shannon learns of Rhiannon’s deceptions, it isn’t long before, everything that Rhiannon touched in Shannon’s life, will be tainted with evil and death.

Needing to see her father, Clint drives Shannon to a local store for clothing, where she finds her best friend, Suzanna who is no longer friendly. Apparently, Rhiannon has turned Shannon’s life around in Oklahoma with drug dealing, sex and making bitter enemies of friends and family. But before Shannon is able to explain, Suzanna is hit by a car and immediately killed. Shannon remembers her the magic sleep, where Nuada threatened everyone she loved, and she realizes that she is not the target but her friends and family. Hoping to save her father, Clint and Shannon make their way through a heavy snow-storm, that becomes worse with the every passing moment.

Shannon arrives to see that her father is not a judgemental man. Trying to explain what had happened to her, he soon realizes, that the woman who all but destroyed the lives of everyone she knew, is not the woman in his home. Hoping to return to Parthelon, Shannon explains that she is mated and pregnant to Clanfintan, to the surprise of both Clint and her father. But Nuada has other plans, and before Shannon is able to return, her father faces a near death experience in the icy waters of Oklahoma, and Clint and Shannon must face the reality that perhaps she will never be able to return to Parthelon.

Throughout the storyline, Shannon enters into the magic sleep, where the Goddess Epona reveals the truth about the many people in her life. When Epona reveals the horror of Rhiannon’s past, Shannon becomes more sympathetic, but not enough to forgive her for the damage she has cause both Clint and Clanfintan.

When her sleep visions reveal Rhiannon performing a ceremony to return to Parthelon, Clint and Shannon must confront Rhiannon before she escapes to the other world. Shannon is desperate to return to Clanfintan and her friends in Parthelon, but Clint begs her to stay with him in Oklahoma. He is falling in love with the real Shannon Parker and offers his home and his life. But the pull of Clanfintan and the love of her mate, are stronger than her feelings for Clint. When Clint and Shannon confront Rhiannon about her past, Rhiannon discovers that she has a softer side-one that involves a need to be loved. But Rhiannon reveals that the only way to return to either world, will involve a blood sacrifice –a death. Hoping to save both Shannon and Rhiannon, Clint sacrifices himself and Rhiannon, by performing a Shaman ceremony to help return Shannon to her husband and friends.

Divine by Choice is once again filled with magical creatures and evil monsters. The love story between Shannon and the two men in her life,will break your heart, when she must decide where her heart truly belongs. If you have never read any of PC Cast’s adult storylines, I recommend her Divine series. PC writes about a romantic paranormal adventure without foul language, gratuitous sex or graphic violence. The final book in the trilogy is Divine By Blood, and like the title suggests, this time, the Divine is family-the next generation in both Parthelon and Oklahoma.

Reviewed by Sandy

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Bridge of Dreams by Anne Bishop (New Release) – a Review

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Bridge of Dreams by Anne Bishop – a Review

 

Bridge of Dreams by Anne Bishop, is the third book in her Ephemera series.  The first two books were Sebastian and Belladonna.  A lot was left open in Belladonna, when she stopped the Eater of the Word, at a large cost to her soul, where her heart split into two..good & evil.   But Michael saved her at the end, but still a long way from recovering, if she ever will.  Bridge of Dreams picks up pretty much after the end of Belladonna. 

If you are reading this, and do not understand what is Ephemera? It is another one of Anne Bishop’s fascinating worlds.  The world of Ephemera is divided into many different landscapes, mostly small and disconnected from each other. There are bridges that connect some of the places, all by the discretion of the Landscaper who builds them.  The landscapes in Ephemera are driven by the hearts of the people who live there, and those hearts are both good (light) and evil (dark). The landscaper can help control the world.  But most of the Landscapers were killed by the Eater of the World, and all that remains is Glorianna Belladonna, who is the most powerful of them all.  With just thought, or talking to Ephemera, she can change this world. 

Lee, who is a Bridge and Belladonna’s brother, is the hero in this story.  Though we will see many of our favorites from the first two books, such as Sebastian, Michael, Nadia, Lynnea, Yoshani, Teaser, Caitlin, as well as Glorianna Belladonna, who plays a major part in this book too.  Lee, who is still upset, that he could not help his sister, when she took on the dark to save the world, as he has a hard time dealing with her two halfs.  He also feels that he is losing his sister to her lover, Michael. Lee keeps his distance, and others in the family, including Glorianna see him pulling away.

Walking alone doing his rounds, Lee is attacked by the evil wizards that are still alive or not locked up where Belladonna left them.  He recognizes that they are looking to find Belladonna, so Lee does what he must do to save his sister and mother.  Using his powers, he cuts his ties to Ephemera, and his sister and sends himself and his attackers away.  He ends up in Vision, a city that cannot see the evil wizards destroying their city, as it slowly being taken over by the dark wizards.  Lee, is blinded and drugged by the wizards who captured him, and he is locked away in Asylum. There he meets Danyal, who is a Shaman, that was recently assigned to Vision to help save it.  Lee also meets and falls in love with Zhahar, who is hiding a big secret.

Danyal is different then most Shamans, who have failed to prevent the dark evil from spreading in Vision. With Zhahar’s help, and her sisters, they convince Danyal to help Lee.  The key is for all of them to escape and find their back to Belladonna, and his family to get assistance to help stop the evil in Vision.  

Anne Bishop has a wonderful way of creating new characters, new worlds that are mind boggling.  In this book, she has created a new race, called Tryad’s.  Zhahar is a Tryad, who are three into one.  Very interesting and I really did enjoy this new, yet almost impossible race.  I liked Zhahar, and her other two sisters, Zeela and Sholeh.  They play a major part of this story, especially when they all go back to the Den and Sanctuary.

Glorianna Belladonna, Lee, Danyal (with help from Yoshani) and the Tryads are the focus of this story.  The ending was very good, as you couldn’t put the book down to find out what happens.  You marvel at Belladonna’s powers; enjoy how she and Lee make up, even have fun with their mud fight; you totally thrown, as to how the Tryad’s live and how could Lee and Zhahar have a life together?   There is an ending that satisfies some things, but so many questions are left open.  My original thought when reading this series, was this was the end.  But with so many questions still to be answered, such as Lee and Zhaher and her sisters;  the remaining Dark guides and wizards; is Ephmera safe forever from the Eater of the World, (who did not appear in this book).

I loved Belladonna, and how you can see both sides of her, and how she is working to control her dark side.  Love her closeness to her family, Michael, Nada, Sebastian, Lynnea, and to Lee.  Love her ability to talk to Ephemera, who was the wild child.  Loved how Ephemera would talk back to her, Michael…those were fun and precious moments.   This is a complex world though, as most of Anne Bishop’s worlds are.  You do need to read the first two books to really understand the story, and what is Ephemera. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and hope Anne Bishop will continue the series, as I feel there are still some open questions.

Reviewed by Barb

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