Tag Archives: Vickie M.

ARTEMIS RISING by Cheri Lasota-a review

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Artemis Rising by Cheri Lasota- a review

Artemis Rising is young adult story based in the myth of Arethusa and Alpheus and Tristan and Isolde.  The beginning of the story has the main character, Eva, deciding to follow the pagan beliefs of her mother.  She was raised a staunch Catholic, but has decided to follow her mother.  Eva and her mother begin the ritual to dedicate Eva to Artemis, Goddess of the Moon, only to be discovered by her father and the ritual stopped.  They then begin their trip from America to the Azores aboard a ship that belongs to a wealthy man whose son, Diogo, is believed by Eva’s mom to be Alpheus.  The ritual is finally performed by Eva’s mother and Eva dedicates herself to Artemis and assumes the name Arethusa.

There is a storm that blows in and the ship crashes and Eva is rescued by a local boy, Tristao, who takes her to the orphanage where he lives.  And she discovers that she is the only survivor of the shipwreck.  Eva is resigned to the fact that she is on her own now and sets out to follow through with the plans her mother had laid out for her.  Diogo eventually shows up and Tristao is not pleased.  Diogo believes himself to be Alpheus and that Arethusa is his.  Through a series of events, Eva and Tristao are adopted by the padre’s brother, who then tells them of the legend of Tristan and Isolde and that he believes they are the embodiment of them.  Eva questions everything that she has been led to believe, and eventually makes her decision to follow in the path set forth by her adoptive father, as does Tristao.

This is the type of story that I would not normally read, but many enjoyed the story, so I gave it a go.  About half way through the book, I found myself wanting to see what happens next, then the story changed.  It went from the Arethusa and Alpheus legend to Tristan and Isolde.  At certain points I was confused as to which legend I was supposed to be following and honestly had trouble following the story as the storylines branched out.  And, if you’re familiar with the legend of Tristan and Isolde, there is not a happy ending.  This story stops before we find out if the legend comes to fruition.  With that said, I did like the main two characters, Eva and Tristao.  There are some sweet moments between them and the author does a good job of letting you feel their angst.  It was an interesting read.

Reviewed by Vickie M.

Copy supplied by author

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THE DIARY OF A SUBMISSIVE by Sophie Morgan-a review

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THE DIARY OF A SUBMISSIVE by Sophie Morgan-a review

The Diary of a Submissive: A Modern True Tale of Sexual Awakening (Release date September 4, 2012)

NOTE:  Storyline content contains explicit BDSM and sexual content. Mature readers only.

Blurb from the back cover:

In Diary of a Submissive, Sophie Morgan candidly explains what exactly an independent, 21st century woman gets out of relinquishing her power and personal freedom in a submissive relationship with a dominant man for their mutual sexual pleasure.

In the wake of Fifty Shades of Grey, here is a memoir that offers the real story of what is means to be a submissive and follows Sophie’s story as she progresses from her early erotic experiences through to experimenting with her newfound awakened sexuality. From the endorphin rush of her first spanking right through to being collared, she explains in frank and explicit fashion her sexual explorations. But it isn’t until she meets James, a real life ‘Christian Grey,’ that her boundaries and sexual fetishism are really pushed. As her relationship with James travels into darker and darker places, the question becomes: Where will it end? Can Sophie reconcile her sexuality with the rest of her life, and is it possible for the perfect man to be perfectly cruel?

Daring, controversial, and sensual, Diary of a Submissive is filled with a captivating warmth and astounding honesty such that no one— man or woman—will be able to put Sophie’s story down.

(Review)

Sophie Morgan begins her story telling about her normal childhood in a working class family. There was no corporeal punishment in her home for her or her sister. No kind of abuse whatsoever. However, while watching the movie Robin Hood when she was a child of about 13 or 14, Sophie was drawn to Maid Marian’s character, and not in the way one would normally think. She was taken with the scenes where Maid Marian was captured by the Sheriff of Nottingham and held in a dungeon, tied or in chains. To quote Sophie, “that struck a chord with me, made my heart race”. The story moves forward with her going to university and having her first experience in submission, which involves her first spanking. And she likes it.

Once she graduates, she gets her first job in journalism in a town several hours from home and meets the man, Thomas, who will be her first true dom. As their relationship progresses, Sophie sorts through her feelings, which at several points, are confusing to her and to me as a reader. She finally reconciles that she is a submissive in every sense of the word when it comes to her sexuality. After three years at a job that she sees no future in, she accepts a job that is closer to home. Even though she and Thomas remain friends, they end their D/s relationship.

Sophie eventually meets James, and it doesn’t take either of them long to figure out that each is into the D/s lifestyle. As their relationship progresses, she finds herself falling in love with him. She truly wants to find someone to settle down with and have a family without giving up the D/s lifestyle, and he seems to be the one. He pushes her boundaries like no one else ever has.

This book is touted as being a cross between Bridget Jones’ Diary and 50 Shades of Grey. Both of those were love stories. I didn’t read this story that way. This is not a romance. This is a first person account of someone discovering her sexual boundaries, boundaries that, in my opinion, are very blurred. A lot of the Dom/sub story crosses the hard-line into true savagery. The humiliation and true, hard-core pain that she endures is overwhelming. It was obviously her choice to endure all of these things as she NEVER uses her safe word. Not in any relationship she was in. Her need to be truly submissive in every way astounded me. To say this book is not for everyone is an understatement. If anyone who reads this has been in an abusive relationship or had traumatic sexual experiences, this is DEFINITELY not for them. Is this a book I would have read if I hadn’t been asked to review it? No. Even though I truly do not understand the lifestyle, and find a lot of this story abusive, I have to hand it to Sophie for laying herself bare (no pun intended) for all to read. I truly hope that writing this story was a cathartic experience for her.

Copy supplied by publisher.

Reviewed by Vickie M.

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CREDENCE (Foundation #1) by Marco Guarda-a review

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CREDENCE (Foundation #1)  by Marco Guarda-a review

 

CREDENCE (Foundation #1) by Marco Guarda-released May 2012

Credence (Foundation #1)  is a story set in a futuristic world of space travel and “believers”.  Detective Chris Trumaine is called in to solve the unexplainable murder of a renowned, award winning scientist, Aarmo Jarva and his wife.  Jarva was instrumental in developing the science of the believers at the Credence Foundation.  Basically, if you have enough who believe, it will become reality.  Whether it is moving spaceships from planet to planet or an individual from one place to another, Credence was big business.  And, if Trumaine can solve the case, he will be granted citizenship to Aquaria, a pristine planet where his wife now resides and works.

Trumaine enters the world of the believers and meets Benedict, who runs Credence.  It is determined that the only way to find the killer is for Trumaine to enter the believers’ chamber and tap into the “feed”.  Once Trumaine is in, things start to happen very quickly.  His boss, Captain Firrell is instrumental in getting him what he needs and clearance to do so.  Trumaine enlists the help of a believer, Faith, who plays a major role in helping Trumaine, until he thinks she is the one tainting the feed.

There is a lot that goes on in this book.  There is a suicide, which is determined to be another murder.  And just when you think you’ve got it figured out, there’s another twist.  We learn of a terrible tragedy in Trumaine’s recent past that he and his wife are trying to cope with, and has driven them apart.  I know that this book was originally written as a screenplay and, unfortunately it reads that way in a lot of places.  The vivid, lengthy descriptions of Trumaine’s surroundings are great for setting up a scene in a movie, but it made the story hard to read at times.  The story itself is a good one.  I just wish that there had been more story and not as much descriptive dialogue.  I did find myself wanting to know what happens next.  All in all, a good first effort.  And, the end surprised me, which doesn’t happen very often!

Copy supplied by author

Reviewed by Vickie M.

About this author:  from Goodreads

CREDENCE FOUNDATION was first developed as an original screenplay. It earned a finalist placement the same year I first submitted it, good sign that the project was in an advanced stage of development. I went through a lot of work to make it as challenging, meditative and thought-provoking as I could. I hope I have succeeded in my intent and that this book will be a truly satisfying read.

I’ve been writing consistently since 2006 and three of my screenplays have earned placements and a couple of prizes in various screeenplay competitions.

LINKS TO ORDER
Amazon Kindle
Amazon Paper Books
B&N Paper Books

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The Lady is a Vamp by Lynsay Sands-a review

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The Lady is a Vamp by Lynsay Sands-a review

 

The Lady is a Vamp (released July 31, 2012) by Lynsay Sands is Book 17 in The Argeneau Series

 

The immortals in The Argeneau Series are a different sort of immortals.  They are originally from Atlantis.  The Atlanteans were a highly developed race and way ahead of their time in technology.  A group of scientists developed nanotechnology and introduced the nanos to human hosts which rids humans of disease or sickness and keeps them at their peak condition.  The only drawback was that the nanos consumed massive amounts of blood, more than the human body could produce, so they had to be transfused.  When Atlantis fell, they remaining survivors ventured over the mountains and many died.  Over time, with the help of evolution, the remaining Atlanteans developed fangs which enabled them to “feed off the hoof”, which is their term for feeding off of human hosts.  With the advent of blood banks, laws were put into place that forbid the immortals from feeding off the hoof, unless in an emergency situation.  They can actually be out in sunlight but it causes the nanos to use more blood than normal, which causes them to have to feed more often, so they lead, for the most part, a nocturnal existence.

 

Every immortal is in search of their lifemate. The one person, human or immortal, that they can not read their thoughts and can’t control.  Some wait thousands of years for such a person and some are fortunate enough to only have to wait a short time.

 

The Lady is a Vamp is Jeanne Louise’s story.  She is a scientist and researcher at Argeneau Enterprises.  Leaving work one night, Jeanne is abducted and tranquilized.  When she awakens, she finds herself chained to a bed.  Her abductor is a handsome human coworker from Argeneau Enterprises named Paul.  Jeanne realizes soon after that she can’t read or control him and that he is indeed her lifemate.  She also soon realizes that he kidnapped her to save his daughter, Olivia, known as Livy, who is dying from a brain tumor.  One problem:  kidnapping an immortal is punishable by death and the Enforcers, along with Jeanne’s family are looking for her, and they are not happy.

 

Once Jeanne meets Livy, she falls in love with the little girl.  And would love to be able to turn her, however, each immortal is only allowed to turn one human into an immortal in their lifetime, and Jeanne wants to use hers on her lifemate.

 

They all go into hiding, where Jeanne and Paul become closer.  But, Jeanne is afraid to explain the lifemate business, afraid of him not wanting to spend an eternity with her.  Paul very soon realizes that he has feelings for Jeanne Louise.  They continue to run as the Enforcers are getting closer, while they are trying to figure out how to best handle their situation, and Livy is getting worse.

 

The Enforcers, lead by Jeanne’s Uncle Lucian (an original Atlantean and a force to be reckoned with) eventually catch up with them and an unfortunate accident sees Livy injured and dying.  Split decisions are made and everyone has to deal with the consequences, or do they?

 

I so enjoyed this book.  I love the way Sands writes with subtle humor and heart wrenching emotion.  And, yes, there were teary eye moments for me. I love that so many of her characters show up in this story.  With Jeanne Louise only being 102 years old, she is still considered young by immortal standards, and to say they are protective of her is an understatement.  I love the banter between the members of Jeanne Louise’s family and the Enforcers.  If you haven’t read this series, it’s a definite must!  They are easy, light and fast reads.  And, I for one, can’t wait for the next installment, Immortal Ever After, due out on February 26, 2013.

 

 Reviewed by Vickie M.
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Nice Girls Don’t Bite Their Neighbors by Molly Harper-a review

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Nice Girls Don’t Bite Their Neighbors by Molly Harper-a review

Nice Girls Don’t Bite Their Neighbors  (February 2012 release)– Book 4

Nice Girls Don’t Bite Their Neighbors begins with Jane finally saying yes to her boyfriend and Sire, Gabriel, who was forced to turn her when she had been mortally injured. She finally feels that she is in a good place (after being turned into a vampire) and ready to get married. Before the celebrations can start though, Jane’s grandmother, Ruthie, dies. Along with that, while Jane is outside of her bookstore in town, a car comes out of nowhere and hits Jamie, a young man that Jane babysat when he was a child and their families had been friends for years. Jamie was dying and Jane made the decision to turn him in to a vampire in order to save his life. Once that is done, Jane is required by the council to take care of her “childe”, which means he has to move in with Jane and Gabriel so that they can teach him how to live as a vampire. On top of that, Grandma Ruthie, who has never been approving of Jane, either as a human or a vampire, starts haunting where Jane, Gabriel and Jamie live. She is bound and determined to drive them from their home.

Jane and Gabriel are a little overwhelmed with everything going on and decide to leave the house for an outing, where they are attacked and Gabriel is shot with an arrow and poisoned. All of this while trying to plan a wedding. Jane’s mom and sister are great in helping out with the wedding plans, (even though they have not been close in the last little while), as are Andrea (Dick’s wife, and to say dick has more connections than any mafia don is an understatement) and Jolene (Zeb’s wife). Zeb is Jane’s best friend, who also happens to be a werewolf. All along though, accidents keep happening.

To say there are a few bumps in the road during this story is an understatement. A lot of humans are furious about Jane turning Jamie, and constantly deface her bookstore. Once folks figure out that Jane did it to save him, they eventually come around. Dick and Andrea are instrumental in helping sort out who keeps causing the accidents. And Jane’s aunt (who is a ghost and Grandma Ruthie’s sister), finally come up with a way to get rid of Grandma Ruthie’s ghost. In the end, Jane and Gabriel say their I dos and are off to enjoy their honeymoon.

I really enjoyed this book and getting to know the characters. I have not read the first three books in this series, but will definitely be going back to read them! I enjoyed the humor in the book and the crazy situations they constantly found themselves in. The leader of the Vampire Council was frozen into her immortality at 16, so the fact that everyone has to take orders from a teenaged looking girl is hysterical. Jane is quick-witted and plays beautifully off of the other characters. There are so many scenes that will literally make you laugh out loud. And when they all gather, ghosts and vampires alike, to vanquish ghost granny, it was hysterical. And the outcome of Jane’s kidnapping (while getting ready for her wedding) will have you laughing and shaking your head. If you like quick, fun reads, you’ll definitely enjoy this book!!

LINKS TO PURCHASE:
Amazon Kindle
Amazon Paper Books
KOBO
The Book Depository
B&N Nook and Paper Books

Reviewed by Vickie M.

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