It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #1

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a meme hosted by Book Journey and is a great way for others to find out what you are planning to read this week and, best of all, see what others are reading.

What I Read Last Week:

It's been a slow week, what with me trying to catch up on studying and all. I really hate it when real life (bitch!) gets in the way of my reading, but there's nothing much I can do.

This week though I'm hoping to get more reading done, so here's my list:

   

*phew* That's a long list, but I'm hopeful, ya know? 

What about you? What do you plan on reading this week?

Guest Post: Vanessa Morgan

Please welcome Vanessa Morgan, author of A Good Man.

 

 

A Good Man  by Vanessa Morgan

Blurb: Do you like Dexter and American Psycho? Then chances are you will love A Good Man. 

Louis Caron is a good man – he's a vegetarian, feeds homeless people, takes care of animals and is converned with the ecological well-being of the planet. But his altruism has a sinister edge – he's a vampire and local detective Taglioni becomes increasingly suspicious of him. Louis' attempt to escape the police will take him on a journey into his own private hell where he is not only forced to confront his worst fears, but where he will also destroy the lives of those he cares about.

PLACES WHERE I HAVE WRITTEN A GOOD MAN

I often get asked during interviews if I have a favorite place to write. Usually, it's from the serenity of my home - at my desk, or, if it's freezing outside, in bed with my cat, a giant cup of hot tea, extra blankets and a radiator on maximum heat. I also write wherever or whenever I can: public transport, waiting room, etc. However, some places outside the house do lend themselves perfectly to write. Here are some of the places where I have written my latest release, A Good Man:


Airport

I live only a couple of minutes away from the airport of Zaventem, Belgium. Once 10 o'clock in the evening, there are no more departing flights and the departure hall is eerily empty. As Starbucks in Zaventem Airport stays open all night, it becomes the perfect place to work – soft jazzy sounds, cheesecake and hot chai tea create the perfect ambience to write for hours.

Zaventem Airport is also a good place to write during day-time, especially if you can get a spot in one of those restaurants with a panoramic view of the departing airplanes. Working can be really enjoyable when it's something you're passionate about and in a place you love.



Offscreen

I wrote the third act of A Good Man in the inviting cellar bar of Cinema Nova during the OffScreen film festival. For those who wouldn't know, OffScreen is a film festival in Brussels, Belgium, that specializes in cult films.The spooky decorations of the festival definitely add to its inspiring atmosphere.

For those of you who are interested in some other favorite writing spots of mine. Here's another post about my all-time favorite writing spots: http://vanessa-morgan.blogspot.com/2012/01/best-places-to-write.html

About Vanessa Morgan


Screenwriter and novelist Vanessa Morgan is known as the 'female version of Stephen King'. You can find out more about Vanessa Morgan and her work by going to her personal blog http://vanessa-morgan.blogspot.com. If you like cats, you might also like the web comic about her cat Avalon at http://avalon-lion.blogspot.com.


Other books by Vanessa Morgan


The Strangers Outside

Two sisters, Jennifer and Louise, return to their remote holiday cottage after a day at the seaside. But little do they know they're being surrounded. Soon after their arrival, the girls will come face to face with the strangers outside. When the assailants make their intentions known, things take a shockingly terrible turn and an intense battle for survival will begin.



Drowned Sorrow

Megan Blackwood has just lost her son in a terrible accident. Now she has come to Moonlight Creek with her teenage daughter Jenna, hoping that a change of scenery might help to put her life back together. But something odd is going on in Moonlight Creek. When rain falls over the village, the inhabitants commit grisly murders, leaving the village deserted with the first rays of sunshine. Beneath the lake's surface, an eerie presence watches... and waits... Waits to reveal a tragic past drowned in mystery and fear. One that doesn't bode well for visitors. By the time Megan realizes that her daughter is in danger, it might already be too late.

Follow Friday (16)

Welcome to Follow Friday hosted this week by Parajunkee and Alison!
The main idea behind FF is just to go see a bunch of new blogs you may never have seen before, and follow the ones you like (and they’ll follow you back!) It’s a total win/win, so take a peek around!


This week’s question is:



Q: What is one thing you wish you could tell your favorite author?


Well, I'd shamelessly beg Sherrilyn Kenyon for a Savitar book. And I'd beg for it to be released today. NOW. I know, I sound like Gollum, but I do love Savitar :D I'd also ask J.R. Ward for a Muhrder book. Hmm, I'm pretty sure that if I think about it long and hard, I'd have a think to tell (beg, bribe, whimper) to all my favorite authors.

What about you?

Book Review: Lowcountry Punch by Boo Walker

Author: Boo Walker

Source: review copy from the author

My Rating: 5 cups

Blurb: (from Goodreads):

After the worst Christmas Eve of his life, DEA Agent T.A. Reddick leaves Miami for the magical city of Charleston, South Carolina, hoping a return to his roots will heal a broken heart and the guilt of killing a friend. The sleepy and sultry town of Charleston is filled with echoes of the Old South: genteel playboys, society debutantes, and quiet cobblestone streets. But as Reddick will soon discover, there's danger lurking under her charming veneer. When a movie star's death shines a national spotlight on Charleston's underground cocaine trade, he must go undercover to find the main supplier and shut him down. As a hurricane bears down on the port city and the DEA gets ready to spring its trap, Reddick must contend with more than he ever could have imagined.

Brash and bold, TA Reddick is a hero you won’t soon forget. Lowcountry Punch is an action-packed novel that will have you on your knees begging for more.

This is one of those "don't judge a book by its cover" situations. Of course, now that I read the book I understand the cover more than I did before.

I'm glad I got to read this book. It made me stay glued to my e-reader and glare at anyone who dared to interrupt me (yes, I'm that type of reader). It was a very fast-paced mystery novel and I truly, truly loved it.

It's been a while since I've read a story that's told only from the hero's perspective. I forgot how fun it was to be inside a guy's head. TA Reddick is actually a fun character. I liked his sense of humor, the fact that he was brutally honest with everyone, the fact that he was able to admit his feelings without thinking he was less of a man for talking about them. I loved his sense of justice and the fact that he was able to do the right thing even if he didn't like it. I respected him for that a lot and that's probably why a lot of the people he worked with and people who knew him respected him. He was an incredible character, one of those that stick with you even after you've finished reading the book.

There were a lot of scenes full of suspense and those scenes kept me on the edge of my seat a lot. Also, there were moments that were very funny and tender moments and some sad ones. It had everything I could ask for from a mystery novel and I couldn't be happier.

I'm actually sitting here hoping there will be a second book with this character. It's easy to love him and I feel like I could spend a lot of time reading about his adventures and his cases. I think this is one of those "must-reads". Especially if you're a mystery thriller fan.

April In Retrospect

April's gone. bringing us closer and closer to summer *happy dance* I can't wait to spend long, lazy days on the beach reading on my e-reader and swimming in the sea. I'll probably spend more time swimming than reading during those days at the beach, but that's a different story.

April was a better month than the others have been. I managed to read a lot more books than I expected and I discovered some must-read authors. Just when I think there can't possibly be another author out there to make me fall in love with their work, I find one that kills that idea quickly.

Here are the books I read in April:

1. Behind Closed Doors by Sherri Hayes
2. An Untimely Love by Tendai Huchu
3. The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa
4. The Binding by L. Filloon
5. Social Punk by Monica Leonelle
6. Dance With The Devil by Sherrilyn Kenyon
7. Everlong by Hailey Edwards
8. A Hint Of Frost by Hailey Edwards
9. Fighting the Devil by Jeannie Walker
10. Night Embrace by Sherrilyn Kenyon

I'm still behind with my reading or so Goodreads is telling me. Of course, I'm not counting the books I'm rereading in my 100 books goal this year. So I think May needs to be fuller. Darn real life, getting in the way of my reading :P

Anyway, here are the reviews I wrote this month:

1. Behind Closed Doors - Sherri Hayes
2. An Untimely Love - Tendai Huchu
3. The Immortal Rules - Julie Kagawa
4. The Binding - L. Filloon
5. Socialpunk - Monica Leonelle
6. Dance With The Devil - Sherrilyn Kenyon
7. Everlong - Hailey Edwards
8. Fighting the Devil - Jeannie Walker

In April I did my first interviews with authors Mary Parker and Sherri Hayes.

Reading Challenges Progress:

1. New Author Challenge  15/25 
2. 100 Books In A Year Reading Challenge 23/100

If you happen to hear a smacking sound, that's me slapping myself for forgetting about the Women Of The Otherworld challenge. Yes, for once I forgot to read a book o.O But anyway, I have time to make up for it :D 

All in all, I'm pretty proud of how I did this month. I hope I can do at least just as good in May. How did your April look like?

Book Review: Everlong by Hailey Edwards (Re-read)

Author: Hailey Edwards
Series: Daughters of Askara #1
My Rating: 5 cups
Blurb (from Goodreads):

The most damaged heart can fly with the right pair of wings.
Madelyn’s life is far from fairytale perfect. She is second in line for the throne of a corrupt, brutal monarchy. Or at least she was until her dark guardian sacrificed his life to hide her safely in a realm of infinite possibilities.
For years she’s lived among a colony of escaped slaves as her guardian’s widow. Even in this simple life, though, nothing is as it seems. Her hero kept a secret—a younger brother named Clayton Delaney. Warrior, winged demon…and the man who now wants to lay claim to her heart.
No longer cast in his brother’s shadow, Clayton meets all obstacles head on, including one named Maddie. His infatuation with her reaches the breaking point when she undergoes a royal rite of passage, going into heat and pushing them both over the edge.
Just as Maddie learns that some risks are worth taking, she discovers that her guardian may be alive. And she’s forced to make a choice between the man she’d thought she loved, and the demon willing to lend her his wings.

You know what I love? A book that's very good the first time you read it and even better when you read it a second time. This week I'm doing more rereading than I had planned. That's probably because I've got a case of goldfish memory (or it's going to be a full moon soon or something :P). Anyway, for some reason, the only thing I remembered from Everlong was a scene full of suspense and me wanting to scream each and every time a certain demon appeared in front of Madelyn.  Ok, there was another scene, but that I HAD to remember. I mean, how could I forget that one with the hot male, wet shirt and dishes and...oh my! *fans self*

Like I was saying, I really loved Everlong. I know I say this a lot, but I do love unique approaches and new worlds. Everlong definitely has that. And what's really good about it is that you don't see a stereotype anywhere. I've never read about winged demons (*sigh*) so I was very happy (and in love, yes!) when I read about Clayton and the other hot demons.

The thing I liked above anything else is the way you get to see the relationship between Maddie and Clayton evolve before the hot sex happens. Probably because of Maddie's story, but I really loved that we get to see that. Also, it gives Clayton a chance to prove that he loves Maddie for her, not for some physical, hormonal thing.

Speaking of Clayton. Can I swoon now? The guy is not only hot and funny, he also has a lot of charm. But the thing I liked most about him was that he didn't try to copy Harper. He didn't try to become someone other than himself and I loved that. And his feelings for Madelyn are so strong and powerful that he'd be willing to do anything for her, including letting her be with another man if that's what makes her happy. That makes him even more manly in my eyes. I loved that about him. Also, the man has wings :D

Maddie broke my heart a few times. Made me want to kill her stepdad more than once. And torture her mom. See, that's another reason I loved this book and I'm sure a lot of readers can agree. It's one thing to say "oh, this character had some really bad stuff happen to them, I'm so sorry blah blah blah" and it's a very different thing to feel what the character feels and to want to jump inside the story and kill a few bad guys. For me, while I do get captivated by a book, it's not something that happens very often, that besides my mind that gets captivated by the story,  my actual emotions are "present" there also. So that's another reason to love Everlong.

So if you love paranormal/fantasy, you should really try this series :)