All graphics were created by Aentee at Read at Midnight, and character art is courtesy of CW from Read, Think, Ponder. I do not claim ownership of any graphics used and use them on my blog and/or social media only with the intent of sharing and spreading the word about this challenge
Hello my lovelies! A few days ago I saw this wonderful event being mentioned by a lot of book bloggers and as I found out more details I decided to sign up as soon as the Sign-up post was published. Which was during the weekend.
Now I know what you're thinking. Do I really have time for yet another reading challenge? I have to make the time, because this particular challenge sounds fantastic!
So, here are a few details. The Reading Quest is hosted by Aentee from Read At Midnight and I am stupidly excited to start reading for this challenge.
You basically can choose between 4 types of challenges, or 4 classes of characters for those of us in love with video games. Since I've felt the need to read some less known books and authors, so I'm going to choose to start with the path of the Rogue.
ROGUE: These adventurers have absolute mastery over stealth and speed, and they slip in and out of the quest through the Fifth Across path. They celebrate underappreciated books and half-forgotten stories.
Once you choose your path, you have to complete the BINGO board, or Quest Board:
Here are the books I've chosen to read:
A book with a one word title: Embers by Karen Ann Hopkins (also for Mage)
A book published by a small press: Air Awakens by Elise Kova
A book with < 500 ratings on Goodreads: Suspended by Sarah Noffke
A book with a partially obscured face: The Square Root Of Summer by Harriet Reuter Hapgood
A banned book: The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz by Frank Baum (also for Bard)
Because I have two other reading challenges going on, the Beat The Backlist and ARC August, and because I love playing a video game with each character class available, I've decided to also check and see if any of the books I have planned for those challenges fit with this one, and so I picked out the books for the rest of the character classes as well.
The first book of a series: Roar by Cora Carmak (Mage and Knight)
A book with a verb in its title: Dream Me by Kathryn Berla (Knight)
A book with a weapon on its cover: Skullsworn by Brian Staveley (Knight)
A book with a red cover: Red Sister by Mark Lawrence (Knight)
A book that has a TV/movie adaption: The Martian by Andy Weir (Knight and Mage)
A book set in a different world:The Children Of Hurin by J.R.R.Tolkien (Mage)
A book based on mythology: Marked by Elizabeth Naughton (Mage)
A book that contains magic: The Faerie Guardian by Rachel Morgan (Mage)
A book translated from another language: The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún by J.R.R. Tolien(Bard)
A book cover with a striking typography: Becoming Bonnie by Jenni L. Walsh
A fairy tale re-telling: The Step-Spinsters by Madina Papadopoulos (Bard)
As for the side quests, I came up with this:
POTIONS: A book concocted by 2+ authors: Once Upon a Zombie by Billy Phillips and Jenny Nissenson
MULTIPLAYER: Buddy read a book: Hopefully The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
GRIND. A book with 500+ pages: Unfinished Tales y J.R.R. Tolkien
TIME WARP. A book set in either the past or the future: Artemis by Andy Weir
OPEN WORLD. Read whatever you want: Spellbinder by Thea Harrison
RESPAWN. Read a book you previously DNF: Rock Me Two Times by Dawn Ryder
EXPANSION. Read a companion novel or a short story: Urban Enemies by Jim Butcher; Kevin Hearne; Seanan McGuire; Kelley Armstrong; Jonathan Maberry; Jeff Somers
MINI-GAME. Read a graphic novel, novella, or poem collection: Overwatch by Robert Brooks
ANIMAL COMPANION. Book referencing an animal in the title: The Language of Sparrows by Rachel Phifer
*phew* Finally managed to compile my TBR list for this challenge. Most of these books are also on the ARC August and Beat The Backlist TBR piles, so it shouldn't be a problem. Now let's hope I manage to read them.
We are absolutely thrilled to bring you the Release Day Launch for 1001 Dark Nights: Bundle Ten, brought to you by 1001 Dark Nights. Introducing Discovery Authors Jenna Jacob and Sierra Simone, the Bundle contains 6 novellas, including novellas from New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors Tessa Bailey, Lexi Blake, Larissa Ione, and Laurelin Paige! Grab your copy of this incredible bundle today!
From New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors Tessa Bailey, Lexi Blake, Larissa Ione, Laurelin Paige, and introducing Jenna Jacob and Sierra Simone.
Six Dark Tales. Six Sensual Stories. Six Page Turners.
ROUGH RHYTHM: A Made In Jersey Novella by Tessa Bailey
Band manager James Brandon never expected to find the satisfaction he’d been chasing, let alone stumble upon it in some sleezy Hollywood meat market. Yet the girl’s quiet pride spoke to him from across the bar. But after losing the grip on his dark desires that one fateful night, James has spent the last four years atoning for letting her down. Rock band drummer Lita Regina has had enough of James’s guilt. She wants the explosive man she met that night in Hollywood. And she’ll stop at nothing to revive him.
DEVOTED: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella by Lexi Blake
Amy Slaten has devoted her life to Slaten Industries. After ousting her corrupt father and taking over the CEO role, she thought she could relax and enjoy taking her company to the next level. But an old business rivalry rears its ugly head. When Flynn Adler realizes the woman he’s falling for is none other than the CEO of the firm he needs to take down, he has to make a choice. Does he take care of the woman he’s falling in love with or the business he’s worked a lifetime to build?
Z: A Demonica Novella by Larissa Ione
Zhubaal has spent decades searching for the angel he loved and lost nearly a century ago. Not even her death can keep him from trying to find her. But as time passes, he’s losing hope… As an emim, Vex has always felt like a second-class citizen. But if she manages to secure a deal with the Grim Reaper she will have earned her place in the world. The only obstacle in the way of her plan is a sexy hardass called Z. Soon it becomes clear that they have a powerful connection rooted in the past…
FALLING UNDER YOU: A Fixed Trilogy Novella by Laurelin Paige
Norma Anders has always prided herself on her intelligence and determination. She climbed out of poverty, put herself through school and is now a chief financial advisor at Pierce Industries. She’s certainly a woman who won’t be topped. Not in business anyway. But she’s pretty sure she’d like to be topped in the bedroom. Unfortunately most men see independence and ambition in a woman and they run. Then the most unlikely candidate steps up. Boyd, her much-too-young and oh-so-hot assistant surprises her one night with bold suggestions and an authoritative demeanor he’s never shown her in the office.
CRAVING HIS COMMAND: A Doms of Genesis Novella by Jenna Jacob
Mercy O’Connor—known as Symoné at Club Genesis—craves the chance to experience true surrender. The only problem is, she’s set her sights on sexy, commanding Sir Justice, who studies her with his dissecting, arousing stare…but never offers to show her his ropes. If Kellan Graham let himself believe in love at first sight, Symoné would own his heart. After having his life ripped apart, he’s spent years inventing ways to resist simple lust, but each time this beautiful submissive turns her pleading eyes to him, she ignites a complicated conflagration of desire Kellan can’t fight.
AMERICAN QUEEN by Sierra Simone
It starts with a stolen kiss under an English sky, and it ends with a walk down the aisle. It starts with the President sending his best friend to woo me on his behalf, and it ends with my heart split in two. It starts with buried secrets and dangerous desires…and ends with the three of us bound together with a hateful love sharper than any barbed wire.
Every Dark Nights tale is breathtakingly sexy and magically romantic.
*Disclaimer: I received an eARC of this book from InkSlinger PR in exchange for an honest review. This does not influence my rating or the content of this review in any way.
Rough Rhythm by Tessa Bailey
I absolutely loved this story! I felt pretty confused about what had happened between James and Lita when they first met, but I figured it had to be pretty important for James to act like such a scared cat all the time. Lita is a relentless woman. She knows what she wants, and she wants James, no matter what he tries to do to keep her away from him. I simply adored seeing her make tiny dents into his walls with her antics.
The thing that I loved most about this story is the fact that it says it like it is, that there's a huge difference between BDSM and abuse, and for that alone I'm going to love this story and keep it in my heart forever and ever. I don't think that this fact has been as plainly stated in other books as it was in this story, and for that alone I'm going to put Bailey on my auto-buy from now on.
Rating: 5 cups
Devoted by Lexi Blake
I see Lexi Blake on a cover and I'm already hooked. No questions asked. I liked to see two strong characters find their way in the crazy world that is the Masters and Mercenaries series and the BDSM lifestyle.
I did however have a teeny tiny problem with Flynn not being honest with Amy. I thought that he should have told her from the very start who he was. Yes, he makes up for it, but I would have wanted for them to have a completely honest relationship from the start.
As always however, Blake knows just how to spin a story enough for that aspect of the plot to make me fall in love with the characters, flaws and all.
Rating: 4 cups
Z by Larissa Ione
Every new story to the Demonica series makes me giddy and happy as a clam. Not only does this story finally explores Zhubaal's story, it also hints to what will happen in the future, which OMG I have a feeling it will be epic.
In the spirit of Ione's stories, there's more to Vex and Zhubaal than meets the eye, and I adore the differences between their story and your typical soulmate story. It's even different than some other angel stories from within the Demonica series. I love how Vex challenged Zhubaal, or Z, and how she was completely opposite to what he thought she should be. I also liked reading about his inner struggle. It was, as expected, a really good story and a nice addition to the Demonica world.
And again, holy hell if what Revenant said ties in to the next generation of Demonica books, it will be epic.
Rating: 5 cups
Falling Under You by Laurelin Paige
I liked this story a lot. Not because of the sex, although that was hot, but because of the chemistry between Norma and Boyd, which went beyond sex, it was a chemistry that translated very well in their professional lives as well. I liked the fact that they managed to find a balance between being work partners and romantic partners. I liked the idea that you could be both romantically and professionally involved with someone, something that I normally don't see so well explored, but Paige made it work perfectly. It kind of made sense for them to end up together and to make such a great team.
I'll definitely read more books by this author.
Rating: 4.5 cups
Craving His Command by Jenna Jacob
If the first novella of this bundle said that BDSM and abuse are two very different things, this one proves it. I don't know if this was made on purpose or if it was coincidence, but I love the fact that these two stories were put together as they were.
Mercy and Kellan have an interesting story. I felt sad a lot of the times for them, because they had really sad pasts. Mercy's was scary, but important to be told because that's what makes this story important I think. And even though I was furious about the outcome and the fact that she didn't get what she wanted (sorry, I don't want to give out spoilers, but you'll read it and you'll know), it made sense for the story to be this way because unfortunately real life is full of these stories. And so maybe, just maybe, reading about it will hopefully help in changing that truly horrible fact.
I also like that just because he knows about her past, Kellan doesn't treat her like a victim, but as someone who went through something horrible, survived, and can be treated like a normal person, which she is. I enjoyed reading that. This is another author that I'll definitely read more of.
Rating: 4.5 cups
American Queen by Sierra Simone
This was a very interesting story. A very hot, interesting story. A story that I want to know more of.
Embry, Ash and Greer make an interesting threesome, and I love that there's more darkness in them than in the rest of the threesome stories I've read about before.
There's a lot of intrigue and mystery in this story that makes this novella so unique to me. It's not only the sex, it's the questions that I have about what happened when Greer was a child, as well as what will happen in her future. In their future, actually.
I will definitely keep reading this series, because I am sooo curious to learn what happens next.
Tessa Bailey – Tessa Bailey is originally from Carlsbad, California. The day after high school graduation, she packed her yearbook, ripped jeans and laptop, driving cross-country to New York City in under four days.
Her most valuable life experiences were learned thereafter while waitressing at K-Dees, a Manhattan pub owned by her uncle. Inside those four walls, she met her husband, best friend and discovered the magic of classic rock, managing to put herself through Kingsborough Community College and the English program at Pace University at the same time. Several stunted attempts to enter the work force as a journalist followed, but romance writing continued to demand her attention.
She now lives in Long Island, New York with her husband of eight years and four-year-old daughter. Although she is severely sleep-deprived, she is incredibly happy to be living her dream of writing about people falling in love.
Lexi Blake – New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Lexi Blake lives in North Texas with her husband and three kids. She began writing at a young age concentrating on plays and journalism. It wasn’t until she started writing romance that she found success. Lexi believes in happy endings no matter how odd the couple, threesome or foursome may seem.
Larissa Ione – Larissa Ione is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. An Air Force veteran, she traded in a career as a meteorologist to pursue her passion of writing. She now spends her days in pajamas with her computer, strong coffee, and supernatural worlds. She believes in celebrating everything, and would never be caught without a bottle of Champagne chilling in the fridge…just in case. She currently lives in Wisconsin with her U.S. Coast Guard husband, her teenage son, a rescue cat named Vegas, and her very own hellhound, a King Shepherd named Hexe.
Laurelin Paige –Laurelin Paigeis the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestselling Author of the Fixed Trilogy. She’s a sucker for a good romance and gets giddy anytime there’s kissing, much to the embarrassment of her three daughters. Her husband doesn’t seem to complain, however. When she isn’t reading or writing sexy stories, she’s probably singing, watching Game of Thrones and the Walking Dead, or dreaming of Michael Fassbender. She’s also a proud member of Mensa International though she doesn’t do anything with the organization except use it as material for her bio.
Jenna Jacob – USA Today bestselling and award winning author Jenna Jacob lives out her happily-ever-after in Kansas with her Alpha husband, adult children, and animal babies. When she’s not pounding the keyboard she’s likely riding a Harley, camping and fishing, reading, or cooking. Dubbed the “Goddess of Gravy” by Lexi Blake, Jenna enjoys tantalizing the taste buds of family and friends with her famous fried chicken dinner.
But don’t let her conventional innocence fool you. Jenna has been involved in the BDSM lifestyle for over twenty years. With experience and knowledge she delves deep into the emotional psyche of strong Dominants and sassy submissives with her Doms of Genesis series and The Doms of Her Life series (co-authored with Shayla Black and Isabella LaPearl).
Her works have been called: savagely beautiful,captivating, and emotionally riveting.
A hopeless romantic, Jenna paints a softer picture with her contemporary romance: Sky Of Dreams. A lover of life and laughter, she sets her zany sense of humor free in the romantic comedies: Sin On A Stick and Wet Dream.
No matter the genre, you’ll want a box of tissues handy, Jenna tugs hard on the heartstrings.
Sierra Simone – Sierra Simone is the USA Today bestselling author of American Queen and Priest. She's a former librarian who spent too much time reading romance novels at the information desk. She's also a 4th degree black belt in kenpo karate, a narcoleptic, a former living history interpreter and is licensed to perform marriages in exchange for beer. She lives with her husband, two kids and a big, brown dog in Kansas City. You can also email her at thesierrasimone@gmail.com.
We’re so thrilled to share this sale with you! All three books; Race the Darkness, Hunt the Dawn, and Saving Mercy are on sale for 99¢ (reg $6.15).
RACE THE DARKNESS
Series: Fatal Dreams Series, Book 1
Genre: Dark Romantic Thriller
Cursed with a terrible gift...
Criminal investigator Xander Stone doesn't have to question you-he can hear your thoughts. Scarred by lightning, burdened with a power that gives him no peace, Xander struggles to maintain his sanity against the voice that haunts him day and night-the voice of a woman begging him to save her.
A gift that threatens to engulf them
Isleen Walker has long since given up hope of escape from the nightmare of captivity and torture that is draining her life, her mind, and her soul. Except...there is the man in her feverish dreams, the strangely beautiful man who beckons her to freedom and wholeness. And when he comes, if he comes, it will take all their combined fury and faith to overcome a madman bent on fulfilling a deadly prophecy.
Her gaze locked with his—locked so hard the entire world vanished and all that existed were her and him and his hand feeling the steady beat of her heart. Whatever the fuck she was about to say, he was gonna believe her. She could tell him he was a two-headed, purple squirrel, and he’d go out, find a nut, and climb a tree.
“Xander. I vow to protect you from pain. I vow never to leave you unless you want me to leave. I vow never to hurt you the way Gran hurt your father. Because hurting you would be hurting myself. Your pain is my pain. And my pain is yours. But together we are strong and invincible. Don’t you feel it when we touch? It’s all I can feel. All I want to feel. You and me. Us. Together.”
Her words did more than enter his ears; they melded into him as bone-deep truth. He’d never do anything to hurt her and—damn—he trusted that she wouldn’t hurt him. As sick as it sounded, maybe his faith in her was born from the suffering she’d endured. She understood pain. Understood the depth and damage pain caused in a way few others ever would. That kind of knowledge made her incapable of wounding anyone else.
“Say something. You’re looking at me funny.” Her voice trembled just a bit. He could practically hear her doubting whether she should’ve spoken the words of her heart.
“What you said… Those words…” Christ. He didn’t have experience talking about his feelings. “Everything.”
She cocked her head to the side, questions wrinkling her forehead.
He was screwing this up. “Your words mean everything to me.” He could show her easier than he could tell her. He slid his hands up her neck, framing her face, staring at her, absorbing every detail. “You’re my…” Fearless. He caught himself before he said the word. To base how he felt on a story wasn’t real. She was real. And the emotions warming him were real. “Everything.”
He lowered his mouth to hers. She tasted sweet, of cinnamon and sugar, and for some reason, his heart ached with a fullness of feeling it had never experienced before.
He scooped her up in his arms, cradling her to his chest, his mind flashing back to the day he found her—and to holding her this same way. God, she had weighed so little, had seemed so fragile, but she was strong. Stronger than he’d ever be. Knowing what she’s gone through, what she’d survived—yeah. Strong was too weak a word to describe her.
He carried her up the stairs to his bedroom, his mouth never leaving hers. With a gentleness born of reverence, he settled her on the bed. He broke the kiss to stare at her once more. Her eyes were closed, her face relaxed, her lips deliciously puffy and pink from a good kissing. He fucking loved pink.
HUNT THE DAWN
Series: Fatal Dreams Series, Book 2 (stand alone)
Genre: Dark Romantic Thriller
Out of darkness and danger…
You can't hide your secrets from Lathan Montgomery-he can read your darkest memories. And while his special abilities are invaluable in the FBI's hunt for a serial killer, he has no way to avoid the pain that brings him. Until he is drawn to courageous, down-on-her-luck Evanee Brown and finds himself able to offer her something he's never offered another human being: himself.
Dawns a unique and powerful love
Nightmares are nothing new to Evanee Brown. But once she meets Lathan, they plummet into the realm of the macabre. Murder victims are reaching from beyond the grave to give Evanee evidence that could help Lathan bring a terrifying killer to justice. Together, they could forge an indomitable partnership to thwart violence, abuse, and death-if they survive the forces that seek to tear them apart.
While he hauled his motorcycle onto the road, he didn’t look away from her. She stood bereft in the middle of the pavement, staring out over the pasture. Emotions infused the air around her. Shame. Hate. Embarrassment. Sadness. Fear. Desperation.
He recognized that tangled combination of scents. Knew them intimately. Knew the feeling of being hurt and vulnerable and powerless to stop the pain. Knew how memories, like the one he witnessed, had left wounds on her soul and Junior had just ripped off all the scabs.
She was raw, bleeding emotionally in front of him and yet holding it together by a spider’s thread. He could see the effort in the way she stood straight and stiff.
Fury simmered low in his gut. After he got her squared away, maybe he’d pay a visit to Junior. Show the asshole what it felt like to be the victim.
He walked the bike to her. After he straddled the seat, he held out his hand to her. She grabbed him, her grip hungry.
“Climb on up.”
She tossed her leg over the seat, using his hand to balance her weight.
He sat at the same time she did, her body settling against his back.
Holy Jesus. He couldn’t activate the ability to think—his brain short-circuited from her nearness. Everything disappeared but the feeling of her open thighs wrapped around his ass with nothing but a tiny pair of black shorts and his jeans between them.
Her sweet musky scent, almost like honey, but better—way better—folded around him like a celestial pair of wings. The scent of her entered his nose, flowed into his lungs, then out to his extremities, spreading a cooling wave of solace that he wanted to savor, but couldn’t. Not with her perched behind him, waiting for him to drive down the road.
He placed her hand against his stomach, pressed it tightly to him. His abdominal muscles twitched under her touch.
“Hold on.” He let go of her hand and she slid her other arm around his waist. She pressed her front to his back, holding as tightly to his body as she’d held his hand. She was a clingy little thing. Not that he minded. Her touch felt like—what was the word he wanted to use—kismet. Exactly as he’d always imagined a lover’s touch. Two pieces fitting perfectly together.
He kicked the machine in gear, trying to ease it forward instead of his normal burst of speed. She rested her head on his spine, nestling her cheek across the fabric of his shirt before settling.
His heart grew, straining against his chest wall, threatening to come up his throat in a shout of
absolute ecstasy.
SAVING MERCY
Series: Fatal Truth Series, Book 1
Genre: Dark Romantic Thriller
He’s found her at last…
Cain Killion knows himself to be a damaged man. His only redeeming quality? The extrasensory connection to blood that he uses to catch killers. His latest case takes a macabre turn when he discovers a familiar and haunting symbol linking the crime to his horrific past—and the one woman who might understand what it means.
Only to lose her to a nightmare
Mercy Ledger is brave, resilient, beautiful—and in terrible danger. The moment Cain finds her the line between good and evil blurs and the only thing clear to them is that they belong together. Love is the antidote for blood—but is their bond strong enough to overcome the madness that stalks them?
The rain came down gray and thick as a shroud, blurring his vision of the world. He flipped on the wipers and pulled out of the hospital parking lot onto the road. Fat blobs of smacked the windshield loud as marbles being tossed against the glass. Was that hail? As if it mattered. His car was trashed.
Cain had covered the passenger seat and all Mac’s blood with a blanket he kept in the trunk. Even though his view of all that crimson was blocked, his mind knew it was there and his eyes kept wandering to the blanket, calling up the image of the dark stickiness coating the seat and the floor. All that blood was playing touchy-feely with his sanity. And he wasn’t in the mood for games.
He drove past a gas station, a fast food restaurant, a person walking alongside the road. His foot hit the brake before his brain had a chance to talk him out of it.
Mercy.
Her hair was slicked to her skull, her clothes—his clothes—were sucked to her body, doing a shitty job of hiding her curves. At least the T-shirt she wore was black, not white. He pulled over to the berm and watched her in the rearview mirror.
She stopped walking, stared at the car—knew it was him—but didn’t move. Could he blame her for not wanting to be around him after what he’d said to her? Not really. And yet, he couldn’t leave her alone and walking in the rain with Payne still out there. Not to mention that she didn’t have anyone or anywhere to go.
She still hadn’t moved from her spot. He left the car running, opened his door and got out. The rain slapped him—frigid, bordering on icy, soaking his clothes and dripping in his eyes. The pressure of it hitting the wounds in his bicep and shoulder made him wince. But that was all the attention he’d give to the pain.
“Get in the car.” The words came out harsher than he’d intended.
She crossed her arms in front of her chest, lifted her head, and somehow managed to stare down her nose at him even though she was almost a foot shorter. “No.” She said the word as if it didn’t matter that they were standing in the middle of a downpour.
“Get in the goddamned car.” This time the words came out loud and angry sounding. Like that was going to win her over. What was his problem?
“Fuck you.” She looked miserable—all wet and shivery and yet feisty and taking none of his crap.
He should soften his tone. He should try to be nicer. He should, but his inner asshole seemed attracted to her inner bitch. “Where are you going? No where. You don’t have anywhere to go. You don’t have any money. You don’t have friends.” His voice softened and filled with some emotion he couldn’t name. “You don’t have anyone looking out for you, caring for you, able to help you in a pinch. You got no one.” He sucked in a breath and when he spoke next his voice was soft and pleading. “Except me.”
The moment he finished speaking he wanted to retract every goddamned one of those words he’d spoken. “I’m…Shit…” He ran a hand through his soaking hair. “Goddamn it. I’m a dick. Okay?” He softened his tone. “Now will you please get in the car?”
Her shoulders straightened, her chin lifted, and she walked forward without looking at him. He expecting her to stomp past the car, but she yanked open the passenger door and got in. Seconds passed where he just stood here, getting even more wet, and staring at the back of her head poking above the headrest.
“Now what?” He asked himself. Just what was he going to do with her? Drop her on Dolan? Yes. No. Yes. No. No. No. The last time he tried dropping her on someone she’d almost gotten hurt. If Mac hadn’t been able to keep her safe, he sure as shit wasn’t going to trust Dolan with her.
He got back in car. Every inch of him soaked. He brushed his hair back off his face and wiped the water from his eyes.
She stared out the passenger window, refusing to look at him. He reached over and touched her shoulder. Underneath his hand, her body tensed, then trembled. Shit. Was he scaring her?
He wrenched his hand off her and wanted to use the damned thing to slap himself around a little. Maybe then he’d get it through his stupid brain that she was fucking frightened of him. Too many words flooded his mind and he didn’t know which ones to say. The I’m-sorry ones. The I-won’t-hurt-you ones. The I’m-an-asshole ones. The I-don’t-know-what-to-do ones.
She turned to him. Rain slicked her cheeks. Or was that tears? Her beautiful eyes were the color of tropical waters—deep and fathomless. He held up his hands in a show of surrender and she flew across the console at him.
He closed his eyes, braced for the blows, but none came.
Instead, slender arms wrapped around him, her hair, cold and wet dripped against his chest, but her cheek over his heart was warm—so warm.
Maybe he’d had a stroke or something because this felt like she was hugging him. And that couldn’t be. Could it? He opened his eyes and looked down at her.
Yep. She was wound tight around the front of him. And suddenly his brain let him feel the total sensation of it. Of being held tight as if he mattered to her. He let his arms fall around her and squeezed, pressing her tighter to him. Damn, this felt good. She felt good. It was oddly comforting to have her clinging on to him so tight.
He closed his eyes and memorized the pressure of her arms around him and the way her hands pressed into his back. The way she felt in his arms, the subtle ripple of her spine and ribs underneath his fingers, the way her skin felt warm against his when every other part of him was cold.
If he’d been given a Stop Time button. This was the moment he would’ve used it. Here, holding her—the gentle lullaby of rain playing in the background—was the only perfect moment of his entire life.
About Abbie Roads
Abbie Roads is a mental health counselor known for her blunt, honest style of therapy. By night she writes dark, emotional novels always giving her characters the happy ending she wishes for all her clients. SAVING MERCY is the first book in her new Fatal Truth Series of dark, gritty, romantic suspense with a psychological twist.
The very fine ladies from Read.Sleep.Repeat are hosting the 5th edition of ARC August, and I am definitely signing up. Although this year I've been a good girl (mostly) and haven't requested as many ARCs, I still have a bunch from last year, because I've been in a reading/blogging funk AND work has been killing me! So I'm taking advantage of the summer break and reading as many ARCs as I can. I don't really have a set number for this, I just know that my actual number 1 goal is to reach an 80% review ratio on Netgalley, so I'll try to make that happen this year. I dread writing those DNF reviews tho, people!
Anyway, I'll be updating my dedicated Goodreads shelf with the books I'm reading. Wish me luck!
Oh, also, do sign up for this event! It will be super fun, as usual!
From New York Times Bestselling author Elisabeth Naughton, comes HUNTED,a new novella in her Eternal Guardians Series, brought to you by 1,001 Dark Nights! Be sure to grab your copy today!
Erebus – Dark in every sense of the word, a skilled and lethal warrior, and sinfully sexy by design.
Since the dawn of modern man, Erebus was Hades’ secret weapon in the war between the immortal realms. Until Hades lost the minor god in a bet to his older brother Zeus. For the last hundred years, Erebus has trained Zeus’s Siren warriors in warfare and the sexual arts. But he’s never stopped longing for freedom. For a life filled with choice. And lately, he also longs for one Siren who entranced him during their steamy seduction sessions. A nymph he quickly became obsessed with and who was ripped from his grasp when her seduction training was complete. One he’s just learned Zeus has marked for death because she failed the last Siren test.
Before Erebus can intercede on the nymph’s behalf, she escapes Olympus and flees into the human realm. In a fit of rage, Zeus commands Erebus to hunt her down and kill her. Erebus sees his opportunity to finally go after what he wants, but he’s torn. Freedom means nothing if the Siren at the center of his fantasies doesn’t truly crave him back. Because defying the gods will unleash the fury of Olympus, and if he chooses her over his duty, whether she joins him in exile or not, the hunter will become the hunted.
*Disclaimer: I received an eARC of this book from InkSlinger PR in exchange for an honest review. This does not influence my rating or the content of my review in any way.
If I ever doubted that I need to read this series, now I don't.
I loved that this book explores the ruthless side of the ancient gods, something that I've missed reading about, to be honest. I liked the fact that Zeus is portrayed as a bad guy, and I'm super excited to see how that will play out in future stories.
Erebus is pretty much a mystery for the entire story. I didn't feel like we get to know him well enough, but that is appropriate, since he doesn't know himself all that much. He doesn't remember his past, he doesn't know much beyond being a slave to the gods, and that makes him hard to understand to be honest. I would have wanted to see that side explored a bit more, but since this is a novella I kind of get why his story remains a mystery. All I know is that he is pretty sexy.
Sera is a good heroine. I spent a lot of time wondering about her, but once the full story was revealed, I understood why she ran away, why she stole something precious to Zeus, and why she tried everything in her power to keep the god from getting the object back. I truly felt sorry for her, especially once her past was revealed. I also couldn't help but admire how stubborn she was, even though it made no sense at the time.
I got to the end of this book and, I'll be honest, I was a bit miffed that it ended as fast as it did. I wanted to read more, which I'll definitely do, because all this mystery surrounding the war between Zeus and everybody else is making me curious. Also, I love how Sirens are portrayed in these books, like they're the ultimate army that Zeus has. Or does he?
The book is pretty sexy, and Erebus and Sera have a ton of chemistry *fans self*. I also like how they eventually allow themselves to be vulnerable around each other. I'm only sorry we didn't get to see more than a glimpse into their past as trainer and trainee. I bet that was fun. The book is really fast paced and I finished it pretty quickly. The ending was surprising, especially by how simple it all turned out to be, which I loved.
As I said before, I'll definitely be reading the entire series in the future, because I'm truly curious to see how it all started and also what it all means.
“I want to know where you’re taking me,” she said as he pulled her around switchbacks in the tunnel, her breath heavy at his side, her skin so hot against his he was starting to sweat.
He didn’t owe her an explanation. She was lucky he hadn’t decided to kill her after the way she’d lashed out. Or taken her to Zeus already. The second he’d recognized her he’d decided not to do either, though. Not because she didn’t deserve one or both but because he had his own plans for her. Plans that didn’t include the King of the fucking Gods, at least not yet.
Eventually he knew Zeus would want her back for punishment, which could include anything from having her reassigned as a servant or handmaiden or even a sex slave. And though Erebus wasn’t wild about any of those options—especially the last, unless she was his sex slave—he knew he had time. Time to have his own fun before his life-long obligations to Olympus drew him back.
Hell, he deserved some fun after the years he’d spent in servitude, didn’t he? As far as he was concerned, he deserved more than a little fun simply because he had to deal with Zeus’s incompetent Siren trainees on a daily f*cking basis.
“I’m taking you to the half-breed ruins,” he said, tugging her around another corner in the dark, deciding he didn’t want her completely defiant. Oh, he enjoyed an adrenaline-amping fight now and then, but it was so much more enjoyable when he could coax a female’s reluctance into cries of sensual pleasure. With Sera’s nymphomaniac tendencies, he knew it wouldn’t take much persuading.
“No one’s there,” she argued. “The half-breed ruins have been empty for twenty-some years.”
Exactly. No one was there. No one could hear her screams from inside its walls. No one would even know a minor god had gone off the grid there with a cheeky little nymph who made him so hard he hurt.
She tugged against this grip. “Erebus, please. This is a bad id—”
It was the please that brought him around. Or maybe it was the way she said his name. He wasn’t sure which, but something in her voice made him whip back and push her up against the cold rock wall.
Elisabeth Naughton’s HUNTED – Review & Excerpt Tour Schedule:
Elisabeth Naughton is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. From Elisabeth: “I was never one of those people who knew they wanted to be an author at the age of six. I didn’t have imaginary friends. I didn’t write stories in my journal or entertain my relatives by firelight after Thanksgiving dinner. For the most part, I was just a normal, everyday kid. I liked to read, but I wasn’t exceptional at it. And when my teachers complimented me on my writing abilities, I brushed them off. I did, however, always have a penchant for the unique and absurd. And as my mother told me all throughout my childhood, I should have been an actress—I was a drama queen before my time.
“Years ago, my husband bought me Scarlett: The Sequel to Gone With The Wind. If you ever saw the book, you know it’s a long one. I sat and read that thing from cover to cover, and dreamed of one day being a writer. But I didn’t actually try my hand at writing until years later when I quit my teaching job to stay home with my kids. And my husband? After that week of reading where I neglected him and everything else until I finished Scarlett, he vowed never to buy me another book again. Little did he know I’d one day end up sitting at a keyboard all day drafting my own stories.
“My writing journey has not been easy. I didn’t just sit down one day, decide I was going to write a book and voila! sell my very first attempt. As most authors will probably agree, the path to publication is filled with hours of work, pulling all-nighters I thought I’d given up in college, sacrifices, rejections, but a love I discovered along the way I just can’t live without. Instead of a big, thick book to read by lamplight (I do read much smaller ones when I get the chance), I’ve traded in my reading obsession for a laptop. And I’ve never been happier.
“I’m one of the lucky ones. I have a wonderful family and fabulous husband who put up with my writing—and obsessive personality—even when life is chaotic. More than once my kids have been late to swimming or baseball because I needed just five more minutes to finish a scene. Their support and encouragement mean the world to me. I also have amazing friends and a support network I couldn’t survive without. So to all of you out there who have encouraged me along the way, sent me emails and fan letters, phone calls and congratulations, I just want to say, thank you. You make this whole writing gig that much more enjoyable. I truly wouldn’t be here without you.”
When I was in high school I used to watch a lot of movies, but out of all of the movies I saw then, only one was my favorite: Dirty Dancing. I used to watch it every day, sometimes more than once, that's how much I loved it. I knew all the lines by heart, and if I know anything ever remotely close to dancing, it's because of this movie.
So it wasn't easy to hear that the movie was getting a reboot. There's no way anyone could be able to play Johnny and not make me cringe. Here's the thing with me and dancers: there is Patrick Swayze and then there's the rest. So in my head there was no way anyone could be as good as him. Then I heard that the movie was going to have 3 hours. 3 hours of dancing? With Johnny and Baby? Sign me up! I was ready for the expanded version of their story, kind of like the collector's edition sort of, but instead I didn't get that. I got a musical...
It would be easier to start with what I liked. Before I go on though, let me tell you that there are going to be MAJOR SPOILERS ahead. So be warned.
I liked the fact that we get more time focused on Penny and Baby. We see them having a "just girls" dance, and I liked that. Nicole can really dance, and it was fun watching her. I also liked that Baby's father, Jake, tells her the repercussions of what she did by helping Penny were. Harsh maybe, but he was right. There's one dance sequence that I loved, which is the famous watermelon/"Do You Love Me" dance. I mostly liked the fact that they did their own thing, instead of copying Patrick and Cynthia's routine for that dance. And I also liked the cover they did for that song. I love the original, but their version has something fun about it, and I don't know what exactly, between the singer's growls and the piano and guitar solos.
I also liked that at one point Johnny teases Baby, telling her to imagine to have rhythm, which, when you think about it, is a terribly sad truth about the actress. I'm so sorry for Abigail, but she's just one of those people who cannot dance.
While Colt, the guy who played Johnny, didn't seem like such a great actor in this movie, he sure knows how to dance. Remember when I said there's Patrick and then there's the rest of the male dancers? Well, Colt is definitely one dancer that I enjoyed watching perform.
*deep breath*
What I didn't like. Man, this is a long list. The lift, the unnecessary background drama, the fact that it seemed to me that Johnny had more chemistry with Penny than with Baby, the last dance, which should have been spectacular, instead it wasn't, and the ending. That ending is what made me so mad, enough to want to watch the original version immediately. Here's the thing. I'm a romantic at heart, and Johnny and Baby have been my ultimate OTP since before I knew what OTP meant. Which means that in my head, after that last dance, they ride off into the sunset. The movie definitely seems to point to that, otherwise WHY WOULD HER DAD APOLOGIZE TO JOHNNY???? I always saw that scene between Johnny, Baby and Baby's dad as a sort of "welcome to the family" scene, a scene in which Jake accepts that Johnny is the one for his little girl. So to me, they are good. It's been 30 years since the movie came out and probably 20 years since I first saw it, and I still believe the same thing: they make it, get married, live happily ever after. The remake, however, shoots my dreams right in the pachanga, because they do not do that. No, they crush all of my romantic ideas, by making Johnny look like a soccer dad with a bad hair day, and Baby look like what I imagine Lisa should have looked like. It makes no sense. None whatsoever. Also, why a musical? Just...why?
VERDICT: It's possible that someone who has never seen the original will enjoy this movie, although they'd have to be living all alone, with no friends, no internet, no family, basically no human soul near them, in order to not be introduced to the greatness that was the original Dirty Dancing. I also feel like 3 hours was a little too much for this movie. I'm not sorry for losing those 3 hours, because I watched it after a very stressful day, but I am definitely sorry Hollywood felt the need to remake a classic.
