Tag Archives: Sci-Fi

Deception (Dark Desires:Origins 2) by Nina Croft-a review

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DECEPTION (Dark Desires Origins #2) by Nina Croft

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / KOBO / Chapters Indigo / Google Play

RELEASE DATE: November 23, 2020

Brave new world or the same old crap?

Warlock Milo Velazquez has always dreamed of a day when “monsters” like him don’t have to hide in the shadows. Now, on a planet far from Earth, he’s hoping the old prejudices have been left behind. Though from what he’s seen so far—not a chance.

Their new leader could make life a living hell for Milo and the other immortals illegally transported across the galaxy. Under cover, he scopes out the threat, but he never expected to find a beautiful woman locked in a cell underground. He should ignore her and focus on his mission, but instead he sets her free.

Milo has met all kinds, paranormal creatures and humans, in his centuries of life, but Destiny is like nothing he’s ever encountered before. She’s flawless, and strangely naïve, though she can spout off facts like a walking encyclopedia. He isn’t sure who—or what—she is, or why someone so innocent would be a prisoner.

All he knows is Destiny is different…and finding out why could be their only hope for survival.

•••••••

REVIEW:  DECEPTION is the second instalment in Nina Croft’s sci-fi, DARK DESIRES: ORIGINS paranormal/ fantasy romance series. This is Warlock Milo Velazquez, and Destiny’s story line. DECEPTION can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story line is revealed where necessary. DECEPTION and the Dark Desires : Origins is a prequel series, set five hundred to a thousand years earlier, to the author’s DARK DESIRES series.

SOME BACKGROUND: One thousand years earlier Earth was dying, and one hundred and twenty thousand of Earth’s Chosen had set off in search of a new planet able to sustain human life. Fast forward five centuries wherein the seven surviving space ships and their crews find themselves following a self-declared profit and leader, and the formation of the Church of Everlasting Life. These are their stories.

Told from dual third person perspectives (Milo and Destiny) DECEPTION follows Warlock Milo Velazquez, and the crew of the Trakis Two as they are called to a meeting where the goal of the mission is about to be changed. Milo, along with Wolf shifter Dylan, have stepped in to represent the Trakis Two, a space ship manned by a crew of supernaturals, supernaturals considered to be abominations and against the law of God. But all is not well on the planet’s surface as Milo and Dylan will soon discover when an underground armament of nuclear weapons threatens the lives of thousands of people, and an intriguing young woman crosses paths with our hero. Enter Destiny. What ensues is the building romance and relationship between Milo and Destiny, and the potential fall-out as Destiny’s future is about to be revealed, and the crew of the Trakis Two are targeted for who they are, and their interference in the formation of a brand new Order.

Milo Velazquez is a warlock-the product of a demon/wizard breeding and as such is considered an abomination for his use of magic and power.Meeting Destiny, a young woman whose naïveté borders on innocence and childlike, but a woman who is quick to learn about life and everything it has to offer, gives Milo pause but our hero discovers there is more to the mission, a mission that is no longer focused on reestablishing a planet for Earth’s Chosen but a planet ruled and controlled by a chosen few.Destiny’s existence raises too many questions for the crew of the Trakis Two, an existence that shouldn’t be, yet an existence whose sole purpose is that of supply and demand.

The relationship between Milo and Destiny is one of immediate attraction yet there is something about our heroine that doesn’t quite fit into the objective of Earth’s Chosen and the Church of Everlasting Life. Destiny was ‘born’ while everyone else was in cryo- hibernation, and awoke to find herself without direction or purpose. Curious as the reality of her new-waking world, our heroine finds herself confined to a cell until a stranger’s visit affords Destiny the opportunity of freedom. The $ex scenes are intimate and erotic, without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text but I have to shake my head at the need for $ex when an entire army is on the hunt for our story line couple.

There is a large ensemble cast of secondary and supporting characters including wolf shifter Dylan, and Trakis Two captain vampire Rico; geneticist Elvira; self-proclaimed leader Luther Kinross, and Silas Wynch.

DECEPTION is a story of secrets and lies, deception and betrayal; friendships, relationships and love. The character driven premise is edgy, engaging and captivating; the romance is passionate; the characters are colorful , energetic, and charismatic.

Click HERE for Sandy’s review of book one MALFUNCTION.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

MALFUNCTION book ONE is ONLY 99¢ for a limited time

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••••••••••

BREAK OUT book one in the DARK DESIRES series is FREE

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Sentience by Courtney P Hunter -Review & Giveaway

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Sentience by Courtney P. Hunter -Review & Giveaway

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date October 30, 2020

Robots, sex, lies, adventure, and chaos. Who can you trust when you can’t trust yourself? And what truly defines humanity and consciousness?

Running from a violent past, Leo Knox desperately decides to participate in a scientific experiment conducted by the infamous and greedy tech-giant, AlgorithmOS. Soon, Leo learns that she has agreed to take part in a Turing Test, a test that measures the ability of artificial intelligence to blend in among humanity, but what she doesn’t know is that the test set to take place is unlike any other of its kind.

Leo enters Eden, the contained preserve where the test will occur, with twenty-three others. While everyone appears to be human, four of the individuals are an indistinguishably advanced form of humanoid AI. The task is simple: identify the AI while trying to survive. The twist? The four AI are completely unaware of their nature, causing every participant to question what they know as reality.

The group embarks on a journey within the preserve, rigged with obstacles devised by the controllers of the experiment to elicit human response and emotion. Quickly, madness ensues and divides form, partnering Leo up with Avery Ford, a Marine who wears his demons on his sleeve. Romance falls together for the two as the world around them falls apart, revealing the lengths people will go to protect those they love, to achieve monetary gain, or simply to survive.

Back at AlgorithmOS, the story unfolds on the screens of Nathan Aimes, a scientist responsible for monitoring the experiment’s surveillance cameras. Nathan studies the humans involved as they wrestle with where they stand on the polarizing issue of AI and its applications. He watches the AI unknowingly fight to prove their humanity just to leave the experiment unscathed. All the while, Nathan is intimately aware of his company’s plans to weaponize or commodify the AI should they pass the test, and he must reconcile this with the chaos that plays out before him.

•••••••••

REVIEW: SENTIENCE by Courtney P Hunter is a sci-fi story line, set in the not too distant future focusing on a sociological and psychological experiment grouping AI (Artificial Intelligence) with human beings.

NOTE: Due to the graphic nature of the story line premise, there may be triggers for more sensitive readers

Told from several third person perspectives SENTIENCE follows twenty-four volunteers and recruited participants on a dangerous journey of survival. The tech-giant AlgorithmOS is conducting a closed experiment known as the Turing Test to determine if artificial intelligence is able to integrate into human society without being detected. Unaware of which four of the twenty-four are human or machine, two weeks together will prove that humanity, whether real or artificial, is unable to resist the drive for power. Emotions running high, injuries, murder, the fight for food, issues of trust, and a struggle for control split the group where survival of the fittest plays out on the screens of AlgorithmOS.

The group of twenty include physician and lawyer, prisoner and biker, former service men, teacher, student, priest, dancer, architect ,corrections officer, FBI forensic artist librarian and more. The mixed blend of professionals and ideologies is perfect fuel and fodder to pit man against man, whether real or machine.

SENTIENCE is a haunting, twisted and edgy amalgam of Westworld™, The Hunger Games™ , I,Robot, and Lord of the Flies™. A sociological experiment, of ‘man’s inhumanity towards man’ regardless of the real or perceived, SENTIENCE delves into the perspective of Karl Marx’s Conflict Theory where social order is maintained by power, domination and control. On the flip side, can artificial intelligence be aware, autonomous, conscious or able to distinguish between right and wrong-if they are soulless, will punishment fit the crime if the conscious is not aware?. As AlgorithmOS directs the story line, the end result will prove whether or not artificial intelligence can be programmed to be the ultimate weapon in man’s ability to survive.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

FOLLOW: Website/ Twitter/Instagram/ Facebook/Goodreads/Reedsy

Courtney Hunter is a serial creator from Philadelphia, PA with experience in writing, the fashion industry, and live performance. After eighteen years of studying contemporary dance, she set out to carve herself a path in fashion and retail buying. Upon graduating from Philadelphia University and settling into her career, she turned back to dance. While working as a retail buyer for Burlington Stores, Courtney began producing contemporary dance and burlesque performances under her production company Stolen Fire Collective, aptly named after Prometheus the fire-stealing god. Sentience, her debut Science Fiction novel, is a written extension of a contemporary dance piece that was produced for the Philadelphia Fringe Festival in 2017 based on artificial intelligence.

A lifelong Sci-Fi fan (her favorite movie as a little girl was and still is Jurassic Park), Courtney loves anything Promethean in nature and her favorite books, movies, and television shows are the ones that challenge the ethics of the future that we are rapidly heading towards. Some of her favorites include Jurassic Park (obviously), The 100, The OA, Westworld, The East, and Ex Machina.

She still resides in Philadelphia with her partner, Will, and her rescue pups, Rickie and Billie. In her free time, she records a podcast called The Sentience Podcast, which started as a behind the scenes look at the making of her novel and has evolved into an auditory hub for all things science fiction, creative process, true crime, and the occult.

Sentience is due out Friday, October 30, 2020, three years to the date after Courtney first started writing it.

Courtney P Hunter is graciously offering a paper copy of  SENTIENCE  to ONE lucky commenter at The Reading Cafe.

1. If you have not previously registered at The Reading Cafe, please register by using the log-in at the top of the page (side bar) or by using one of the social log-ins.

NOTE: If you are having difficulty commenting after logging onto the site, please refresh the page (at the top of your computer).

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3. Please LIKE & follow Sentience the Book on Facebook

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5. Please LIKE The Reading Cafe on FACEBOOK and then click GET NOTIFICATION under ‘liked’ for an additional entry.

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9. Giveaway open to INTERNATIONALLY

10. Giveaway runs from October 30-November 4, 2020

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Treoir Dragon Chronicles of the Belador World #1 by Dianna Love

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Treoir Dragon Chronicles of the Belador World #1 by Dianna Love

 

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Description:
New York Times Bestseller Dianna Love has a brand new series from the Belador world for first time readers as well as current Belador fans and it’s full of explosive reveals. Dragons didn’t just show up out of thin air centuries ago and not all of them died in the Dragani war.

Atlanta hovers on the edge of chaos and pandemonium as rumors fly about supernatural beings living among humans. Deadly preternaturals predators have been held in check for many years by the most formidable pantheons. One angry being has had enough and accesses majik of an ancient grimoire to release abominations capable of taking down the most powerful of humanity’s supernatural protectors.

As the dragon-shifter king over Beladors living secretly among humans, Daegan is tortured by having failed to save his loved ones two millennia ago when a vindictive goddess captured him. With a second chance at life, he’s vowed to protect his new family and destroy anyone who harms them. He’ll have to find all the parts of a grimoire divided up and hidden thousands of years ago for any hope of saving his captured people and a world ready to launch high-tech weapons to wipe out unnatural beings.

The entire human race has one hope of surviving what’s coming for them, but only if fear of the unknown does not drive the humans to kill their greatest protector first.

*This is book 1 of a 9-book spinoff series for first time readers as well as current Belador fans. All 9 books will release within a year and be available in e-book, print, and audiobooks.

 

 

Review:

Treoir Dragon Chronicles of the Belador World by Dianna Love is the 1st book in her new 9 book series Arc.  I have been a huge fan of Dianna Love for a long time, having loved her Belador & other series.  With this new arc in the same world, I am excited to return there.

Treoir Dragon Chronicles centers around the Belador King, Daegan, as he is called to rescue one of his Beladors.  We see that three Beladors in separate spots, are taken down by a powerful Immortik (thought dead thousands of years ago), and even Daegan nor  Tristan cannot help the kidnapped members.  Daegan, who is ultra-powerful, and can secretly shift to a Red Dragon, but to his surprise, he feels the Immortik is able to disable him; he is given a warning; the Beladors have two weeks to find two missing ‘grimoire’ that was divided up and hidden two millennias ago, or his people will be killed.   Daegan has no choice and calls his team together to Treoir to find a way to stop the Immortik, get the grimoire before Maeve, Viper, Cathbad or Macha find it themselves.  On top of this issue, there is an unknown group creating videos to show humans that supernaturals do exist, and showing a red dragon on the screen.  Daegan is determined to find who this fake Red Dragon is, not to mention who is behind this chaos to create fear to humans. 

It was great to see all of our favorites again, such as Evalle, Tristan, Adrianna, Quinn, Storm, Tzader, Brina.  The information on the Immortiks and the grimoire is difficult to find, as it dates back thousands of years ago.  Daegan with help from Tristan, searches for a female squire who is able to find old books, and going back to his old homes to look for family that may have survived his 2000-year captivity. 

We do get two POV’s from the evil Cathbad and the squire, giving us more information as to what Daegan doesn’t know.   Daegan, the Beladors and humans are all in danger as the world as they know it is about the change. Daegan is a great leader, loyal and protective of his team, and determined to defeat the enemy.

I am not going to tell too much more, since I do not want to give spoilers.  What follows is an exciting pulse pounding paranormal, suspenseful adventure, with many of our wonderful heroes from the previous books.  Keep in mind that these are shorter books in this 9-book arc, and be warned that this one ended with a cliffhanger.  If you are a Belador fan, do not miss this new series.  If you are new and love paranormal, urban fantasy, suspense, romance, great characters, you should be reading Dianna Love.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy supplied for review

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The Moonlit World by Edward Willett – a Review

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The Moonlit World by Edward Willett – a Review

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Description:

Fresh from their adventures in a world inspired by Jules Verne, Shawna Keys and Karl Yatsar find themselves in a world that mirrors much darker tales. Beneath a full moon that hangs motionless in the sky, they’re forced to flee terrifying creatures that can only be vampires…only to run straight into a pack of werewolves.

As the lycanthropes and undead battle, Karl is spirited away to the castle of the vampire queen. Meanwhile, Shawna finds short-lived refuge in a fortified village, where she learns that something has gone horribly wrong with the world in which she finds herself. Once, werewolves, vampires, and humans lived there harmoniously. Now every group is set against every other, and entire villages are being mysteriously emptied of people.

Somehow, Karl and Shawna must reunite, discover the mysteries of the Shaping of this strange world, and escape it for the next, without being sucked dry, devoured, or–worst of all–turned into creatures of the night themselves.

Beneath the frozen, gibbous moon, allies, enemies, surprises, adventures, and unsettling revelations await.

 

 

Review:

The Moonlit World by Edward Willett is the 3rd book in his Worldshapers series. Brief refresher:  Shawna Keys lives in a perfect world, one she shaped to fit her, and she doesn’t remember how she learned to shape worlds. But when the evil Adversary enters her world, and slowly begins to shape people to his needs, and not know Shawna.  Karl, who is sent to help Shawna understand her powers, convinces her she needs to leave her world behind, and find a way to defeat the Adversary. Together they enter other shaped worlds.

When we left off in the second book (Master of the World), Shawna Keys, our heroine, managed to fix and leave the Jules Verne shaped world and with Karl, enter a portal into a new unknown world.  Upon entering this world, they end up being chased by flying creatures (bats), which they suspect are vampires, and Karl ends up being captured by those vampires. Shawna manages to escape and runs to safety, only to end up in a small village of humans, run by a priest, who makes her go through tests to see if she is a vampire or a werewolf.   Karl is taken to the Vampire Queen Patricia, with the vampires believing Karl is a spy sent from the Werewolf Queen.

When Shawna manages to leave the village, she is captured by the werewolf pack, who is run by Queen Stephanie.   They too believe that Shawna is a spy sent by the vampire queen.  Shawna realizes all is not well in this world, as both Stephanie and Patricia, who were best friends, and were the shapers of this peaceful world, which has changed so much, that they are now enemies. 

Karl escapes and joins Shawna, as they try to find the reason for the world change and destruction to many.  They discover a rogue shaper, who viciously kidnaps the young humans for his benefit, and brings chaos to both the vampire and werewolf world. This is a difficult review to write, as there are so many details and characters, and to tell too much would ruin the storyline. I do love Shawna, as she is a great heroine.

What follows is an exciting adventure where Shawna with help from Karl, will learn more on how to use the powers she has to shape things on her own, and find a way to stop this rogue shaper.  There were some very good secondary characters from both the vampires and the werewolves, as well as the human Priest. The Moonlit World was a detailed, exciting, and entertaining story line. 

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

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The Mother Code by Carole Stivers-a review

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The Mother Code by Carole Stivers-a review

 

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date August 25, 2020

The year is 2049. When a deadly non-viral agent intended for biowarfare spreads out of control, scientists must scramble to ensure the survival of the human race. They turn to their last resort, a plan to place genetically engineered children inside the cocoons of large-scale robots–to be incubated, birthed, and raised by machines. But there is yet one hope of preserving the human order–an intelligence programmed into these machines that renders each unique in its own right–the Mother Code. 



Kai is born in America’s desert southwest, his only companion his robot Mother, Rho-Z. Equipped with the knowledge and motivations of a human mother, Rho-Z raises Kai and teaches him how to survive. But as children like Kai come of age, their Mothers transform too–in ways that were never predicted. When government survivors decide that the Mothers must be destroyed, Kai must make a choice. Will he break the bond he shares with Rho-Z? Or will he fight to save the only parent he has ever known?

In a future that could be our own, The Mother Code explores what truly makes us human–and the tenuous nature of the boundaries between us and the machines we create.

•••••••

REVIEW:THE MOTHER CODE by Carole Stivers is a sci-fi, futuristic, apocalyptic story line focusing on a biological weapon that spread out of control.

In the year 2049, the US military secretly deployed a weapon of biological warfare ( a synthetic nucleic acid nanostructure NAN) in a remote region of Afghanistan. Although immediately deemed a success, the virus quickly mutated, and with the help of mother nature, would eventually engulf the entire world. Knowing that the end of mankind was near, researchers, scientists and bio-engineers built and programmed fifty ‘Mothers’ to incubate and raise the only children expected to survive.

Told from several third person perspectives following three different time lines THE MOTHER CODE focuses on the possibility of a manmade cataclysmic virus; a biological weapon of war that once introduced is unable to be controlled. Years would pass wherein the US military and all of their power found themselves incapable of finding a vaccine, and in the ensuing time, would become the target of revenge. In an effort to ensure some of humanity survived, fifty embryos would be placed in robotic cocoons, where the implanted ‘Mother Code’ would ensure their survival at all costs. Ten years would pass, the children who thrived, along with their ‘Mothers’, would search for any remaining survivors, but in doing so would catch the attention of the few forsaken remnants of mankind, men and women who are hoping to bring home the children who survived.

THE MOTHER CODE is a haunting and thought provoking story of power and control; of possibilities and probabilities; of what ifs and whys; of motherhood, acceptance and love. The stupidity of man to presume he can control that which he does not know, and the betrayal by those in power believing they have the ability and authority to control the world. THE MOTHER CODE looks at what it is to be a mother; the evolution of technology and cybernetics; sentience, self awareness, consciousness; and the ability to evolve, accept, love and protect.

The story line is awash in technical jargon, military lingo, science fact and fiction, as well as futuristic terminology that may be overwhelming to some readers but such is the nature of science fiction and fantasy.

Released during the COVID19 pandemic, the story line may hit too close to home for more sensitive readers.

Copy supplied by the publisher

Reviewed by Sandy

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Blood World by Chris Mooney-dual review

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Blood World by Chris Mooney-dual review

 

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo / Google Play

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date August 18, 2020

A drug that makes the blood of carriers a fountain of youth, a psychopath who doesn’t care how many bodies he leaves in his wake, and an LAPD detective hopelessly compromised by a dark secret. Together, they’re an explosive mix that’s going to shatter the city of Los Angeles into a million corpuscles.

The most valuable commodity on earth is the blood of “carriers.” These young people hold within them a virtual fountain of youth. Those with the right genes produce blood that, when treated with a new wonder drug, cures disease, increases power, and makes the recipient a virtual superman.

It also makes the carriers targets. Blood farms filled with kidnapped children spring up around the country, and Los Angeles is at the center of this blood-dealing world. The police are overwhelmed.

Ellie Bautista became an LAPD officer specifically to fight this evil as a member of the Blood Squad, but she has been consistently denied a transfer to the prestigious unit–until the day she and her partner are ambushed during a routine stop. The resulting events plunge her into an undercover world more dangerous than she could have ever imagined.

A madman has found a way to increase the potency of the blood to levels previously unimagined. As he cuts a bloody swath through the already deadly world of blood cartels, Ellie is the only hope to stop him before the body count rises.

•••••••

Sandy’s REVIEW: BLOOD WORLD by Chris Mooney is an adult, sci-fi, futuristic thriller line focusing on the fight for control of the fountain of youth.

Told from third person perspective BLOOD WORLD follows several paths including that of LAPD police officer Ellie Bautista. Desperate to secure a position on the Blood Squad, Ellie goes undercover in an effort to ferret out the people responsible for a series of kidnappings and missing persons known as carriers, people who carried the fountain of youth in their blood. A play for power and control of the blood carriers finds several powerful men vying for the top position in the world of illegal blood trade, and the use of specific drugs known to enhance the benefits of the blood’s use. As Ellie begins to work with some of the men responsible for the local blood farms, a fight for control turns into an all out war where the price for endless youth is indeed high.

BLOOD WORLD is a futuristic story line set in California, the playground of the rich and famous where eternal youth is a commodity very few have the money to pay. The discovery of the fountain of youth has provoked a hunger for power, the power to control the ultimate prize.

Chris Mooney pulls the reader into a what if story line. What are you willing to do? What are you willing to pay? Will you sell your soul to eternal youth? An edgy and dramatic story line; a thought provoking and intriguing tale of desperation, power and control.

______________

Barb’s REVIEW:
Blood World by Chris Mooney is a standalone Sci-Fi thriller.  I did not know what to expect, as this was a different kind of story line, but once you get past the beginning, as we learn the world building and characters, this caught my attention.

In this world, blood is a commodity, especially in the young, who are carriers. Their blood is able to produce drugs that have amazing results; curing disease, improve aging by years, increases power, improved body functions, etc.  The blood farms hold the kidnapped young carrier children, who supply the blood to those who will pay an exorbitant amount.

We meet our heroine, Ellie Bautista, an LAPD police officer, who happens to be checking a possible drug site, when they are ambushed, and her partner is killed.   Ellie talks to the police chief, desperately asking to be on the ‘blood team” investigations.  With an ulterior motive, Ellie has wanted to be on this team, because she is trying to find her twin brother, who was kidnapped years before at the age of six. Because of her knowledge of the blood drugs, and is a good cop, she is asked to go undercover, which she accepts.

Sebastian Kane is one of the leaders of the “blood world”, and he claims he treats the carriers with care.  He trusts no one but his close associates, such as Frank.  When Ellie goes undercover working for Anton, another leader, she is eventually transferred to Sebastian’s team, working mostly for Frank.  This plunges her into a dangerous world that puts her life in constant danger, especially as they keep a close eye on her. 

Sebastian has his hands full, as a war between him and his step son Paul, escalates into a full blown out, wild nonstop action filled escapade.  For every step Sebastian makes, he is stymied with losing most of his people, as Paul, who is evil and a sociopath, is one step ahead.  At this point, Ellie begins to work closer with Sebastian, since most of his people have left or are gone.  She learns though Sebastian is one of the bad guys, he insists he treats people good, and when he learns his ex is now in danger from Paul, who kidnaps the ex’s daughter, who turns out to be his.  This will push Sebastian to the max to find her, and Ellie determined to find her brother, goes along with him.  All hell will break out with so much violence and everyone in danger.  I can’t tell too much more, as you need to read this book to find out who if any survive.

I loved Ellie, who was a great heroine, and though under close watch, her expertise helped her survive the many situations she was in.  Blood World was a different kind of story, which was intense, violent and dark; and very well written by Chris Mooney.

Copies provided by Publisher

 

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Sentinel ( Shadowborn Rebellion #2) by Cyndi Friberg-a review

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SENTINEL (Shadowborn Rebellion #2) by Cyndi Friberg

 

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date July 18, 2020

Determined to spend some time alone with the feisty human he wants as his mate, Salvo Xett invites Natalie Marino to Ghost City. He’s afraid she will find the abject poverty shocking after the relative luxury of the other villages, but he must know her reaction before he claims her. Ghost City is his home. His mate must be able to see beyond the scorched ruins to the forgotten people desperately needing their help.

No sooner do Salvo and Natalie arrive in Ghost City than they are asked to rescue a kidnapped child. Their investigation takes them on an inadvertent tour through the seediest parts of town. Natalie is horrified yet filled with compassion and determination. Her intense attraction to Salvo might have brought her to Ghost City, but a burning need to help the “urbanites” convinces her to stay. Pleased by her reaction to the conflict, Salvo is even more convinced that he has found his soulmate and will stop at nothing to claim her as his own.

••••••

REVIEW: SENTINEL is the second instalment in Cyndi Friberg’s adult SHADOWBORN REBELLION erotic, sci-fi fantasy series- a spin off from the author’s Outcast series, which in turn is a spin-off from Battle born, which is a spin-off from the Shadow Assassins series ;). This is Sentinel Sarronti Salvo Xett, and human chef Natalie Marino’s story line. SENTINEL can be read as a stand alone but I recommend reading the series in order for backstory and cohesion as there is a continuing premise throughout, and each additional story builds upon the one before.

SOME BACKGROUND: The humanoid aliens known as Rodytes needed a home and settled on two uninhabited planets but to their shock a race of elf-like creatures, known as the Sarronti, live underground away from the light. Without any available mates, the male only Rodytes sent teams of Outcasts to kidnap or persuade any and all human females from Earth in an attempt to repopulate and find mates for their struggling males but procreation came at a price including the need for genetically matched DNA, a mutual metamorphosis, and magical intervention. A test for compatibility is filed and there may be as many as five males matched to a single female DNA. Thirty percent of the females returned back to Earth, and the struggling males begin vying for the female’s affections. Outcasts are battle born-their mothers were Bilarrian prisoners forced to breed, with their Rodyte captors, in the hopes of restoring magic to the Rodyte people. To complicate matters, the planet they now inhabit hides a secret deep beneath the planet’s surface, an elven like being known as the Sarronti, who must live underground to avoid exposure to the sun’s damaging rays.

Told from several third person perspectives including Salvo and Natalie, SENTINEL follows several paths including the building relationship between Sentinel Salvo Xett, and human chef Natalie Marino, and the murderous attack in Ghost City. Ghost City is a city of mutants whose exposure to the sun’s dangerous rays has created an above world of creatures never to be accepted by ‘normal’ society (think Total Recall and the mutant inhabitants of Mars). On the hunt for a missing child, Natalie and Salvo will begin an investigation into a murder for hire where ‘weapons of unknown origin’ have wreaked havoc on their intended victims in an effort to confuse the people investigating the crime. A plot to kidnap Sarronti General Malik’s mate Kara, along with imprisonment of a powerful sorcerer by Sarronti rebels finds Salvo and Malik on the offensive when Natalie and Kara are used as bait to determine who is responsible for the prelude to war. What ensues is the quick building romance and relationship between Natalie and Salvo, as our couple work behind the scenes in an effort to prevent further damage.

The relationship between Natalie and Salvo is one of immediate attraction. Salvo has wanted our heroine from the first time they met but Salvo believed that Natalie was attracted to someone else. In an effort to ‘get to know’ our heroine, Salvo invites Natalie to Ghost City wherein our couple will soon discover their mutual attraction leads to a bonding as mates. The $ex scenes are passionate and intimate without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

SENTINEL is a story of betrayal and vengeance; power and control; discrimination and rebellion. A ‘Total Recall’ esque world of mutants and orphans rejected by ‘normal’ society, SENTINEL reveals the heart breaking and painful discrimination, and segregation of those Sarronti mutated by radiation. The premise is intriguing and sensitive; the romance is fated and spicy; the characters are colorful, energetic, powerful but tragic. Saying that, the abrupt ending is a little disconcerting-a happily ever after –for now type scenario wherein nothing has yet to be revealed, divulged or clarified. And the cover…speechless~

Click HERE for Sandy’s review of book one SLAYER

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy

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Bishop to Queen by Lexy Wolfe-a review

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Bishop to Queen by Lexy Wolfe-a review

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Google Play

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release date July 23, 2020

Will synthetic intelligence evolve to reflect the best or worst of their creators?

Ravenhawk, Cybercorps Corporations rogue synthetic creation, and Viktor Chernovich, a renegade pure human, have joined a secret society known as Caïssa’s Gambit to fight corrupt corporations and a government corrupted by those corporations to protect society from collapse. But another threat, once considered a mere philosophical possibility, lurks behind it all that if mishandled, could spell the end of both human and synthetic futures

•••••••

REVIEW:BISHOP TO QUEEN is the second instalment in Lexy Wolfe’s sci-fi, futuristic, dystopian series focusing on cyborg Ravenhawk, and human Viktor Chernovich as they traverse a world of artificial intelligence. BISHOP TO QUEEN should not be read as a stand alone. I recommend reading RAVENHAWK (book one) first for back story, history and cohesion.

Told from third person perspective BISHOP TO QUEEN is a story line divided into two parts. Part one focuses on a scrappy Russian thief named Viktor Chernovich, as he is saved from execution, and forced to be the companion to Rebeka, an assassin and pilot whose reputation as a killer has preceded her introduction to Viktor Chernovich. But Rebeka has made an enemy of the man in charge, and her life is no longer hers to control.

Part two follows Viktor as he becomes part of a secret society known as Caissa’s Gambit to fight both government and corporate corruption at Cybercorp as the leaders continue to destroy the people he loves. As one of the few remaining pure humans, Viktor’s rogue family of cyborgs (cybernetic organisms), synths (synthetics), VI (virtual intelligence) and AI (artificial intelligence) protect our hero as he navigates a world that is becoming increasingly hostile, leading to war between man and machine. As the AI/VI/Cyborg and Synths slowly become self aware and sentient, the humans are determined to destroy the machines of which they built.

Ravenhawk is a cyborg whose backstory is told in book one RAVENHAWK, a story that focuses on Raven’s developing self awareness, and the small remaining human connection she has to the outside world. A powerful cybernetic organism whose majority make up is synthetic, Raven struggles with what was, and what is. Having spent her earlier existence ‘collecting and preserving data’ for Cybercorp, Raven battles with the memories of the atrocities she was commanded to do.

Lexy Wolfe has built a detailed and complex world of what ifs- a world that continues to see discrimination and segregation; specieism and bigotry; inequality, intolerance, destruction and fear. A philosophical and sociological tale of man and machine; of culture, change, relationships, interactions and values. The corrupted bureaucrats and government regulatory systems force the resistors, the rogues and the gangs to take back what was once theirs including their freedom and right to survive.

For followers of science fiction or fans of movies and television shows there are numerous similarities and the familiarity of Blade Runner, The Matrix, Star Trek, I Robot, and William Gibson’s Neuromancer-the book on which The Matrix was based. A gritty , intriguing and thought provoking premise BISHOP TO QUEEN is a dramatic and tragic tale of a society destroyed by power and control, that ends on a slight cliff hanger-you have been warned.

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy

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