The first book in the new THE SPELLSPINNERS OF MELAS COUNTY series about a modern-day witch who must betray everything she knows to save her magic and her forbidden love.

I wasn’t sure how I would feel about one of my favorite contemporary authors going speculative. I also wasn’t sure how I would feel about a choose your own path serialized 10 part series. I went into this book with a hopeful heart and I loved every minute of the story. I even read it twice! So that I could choose all the choices and see the story from both ways.

One part Melissa de la Cruz with a heaping dose of L. J. Smith, Kling’s speculative debut delights the supernatural purist in me. It is obvious that painstaking amounts of research on witchcraft was done by Kling, unless she herself is a witch which is a possibility. I have seen her wear some crazy shoes.

The story follows witches who are constantly hyper aware of the fact that warlocks are out to get them and steal their powers to survive. A curse, a prophecy and a love story are unfolding as you read Witch’s Brew and with the choice function you hold power over the destiny of our protagonists. And yes, that is just as super cool as it sounds.

The story and the characters had a very contemporary feel and I liked that Kling was able to keep that aspect of her writing in this book as well. Kling has a talent for writing believable teens in up to date fashion and that really has a chance to shine through in a paranormal setting.

This book and others from the new digital publisher Coliloquy based in the Silicon Valley are available only on Kindle e-ink devices to provide the most enhanced technology to guide the reader through the book and the choices.

The next installment of Witch’s Brew cannot come fast enough for me. I am dying to see what happens to our ragtag group of witches next.

From Hicklebee’s: New soul

Ana is new. For thousands of years in Range, a million souls have been reincarnated over and over, keeping their memories and experiences from previous lifetimes. When Ana was born, another soul vanished, and no one knows why.

No soul

Even Ana’s own mother thinks she’s a nosoul, an omen of worse things to come, and has kept her away from society. To escape her seclusion and learn whether she’ll be reincarnated, Ana travels to the city of Heart, but its citizens are afraid of what her presence means. When dragons and sylph attack the city, is Ana to blame?

Heart

Sam believes Ana’s new soul is good and worthwhile. When he stands up for her, their relationship blooms. But can he love someone who may live only once, and will Ana’s enemies–human and creature alike–let them be together? Ana needs to uncover the mistake that gave her someone else’s life, but will her quest threaten the peace of Heart and destroy the promise of reincarnation for all?

Jodi Meadows expertly weaves soul-deep romance, fantasy, and danger into an extraordinary tale of new life.

Ana has only lived one life. This makes her strange to the rest of the population who have lived countless lifetimes. Ana is a no soul. She lives with her mother outside of the city Heart. Her father left when she was born. Someone else was supposed to be born but Ana came in her place. They think she is a murderer and her life is incredibly tough living alone with a mother who hates the sight of her. Until she meets Sam…

Sam says she is a new soul, which is a far cry from being a no soul. He takes her to Heart and does everything in his power to help her find out why she was born. The more Ana digs the more questions she has.

Meadows delivers a unique take on reincarnation in Incarnate. Sam and Ana are both very likable characters. The evil guy was evil but had a pitiable quality that I genuinely enjoyed seeing. The plot was tight and there was many a surprise to be had.

The ending completely threw me for a loop and I wish book two would have been available for me to read right away. I loved all the mythological beasts and creatures and how they fit in to the day-to-day for the citizens of Heart.

My favorite part? The sexytimes at the masquerade ball!

I encourage you to take a look at Incarnate when it comes out next month.

From Hicklebee’s: As vampires from all over the world descend on the Drake farm for the Blood Moon gathering, security is ramped up. Lucy has been temporarily banned, for her own safety—and to allow Solange some time to adjust to her new existence. But their enemies realize how much Lucy means to the family, and plan to abduct her to use her for leverage against the new royal family. Instead, Lucy’s cousin Christabel is kidnapped by mistake—and Connor Drake immediately heads off in pursuit, but isn’t in time to prevent Christabel’s infection by the Hel Blar. He can’t save her human life, but he can still try to save her new vampire life, and is willing to put his own life on the line for the girl he has grown to care so much about. Can he save Christabel, the Blood Moon, and his mother’s newly forged Vampire Alliance?

Buy it now from Hicklebee’s.

I think I have reviewed every book Alyxandra Harvey has ever had published here on this blog. She has a style that I just adore to pieces and I can tear through one of her works in small time and be completely satisfied. Bleeding Hearts is classic Drake Chronicles through and through, I loved it to pieces.

Possibly the most fun part for me in this story was Cristabel. She is Lucy’s cousin and it was fun to read the stark differences between her and Lucy. While Lucy is full of pop culture and pizzaz, Christabel is more into dead poets and darkness. I loved her immediately.

Bleeding Hearts also gives us insight into a Drake brother we haven’t learned a whole lot about. Connor may not take the title of favorite Drake boy in my book but he is a close second. He’s techy and funny and completely loyal to his family and friends. All great traits.

The Drake’s lives haven’t calmed down at all, in fact their situation is probably more hectic than ever. There is a special vampire get together and Lucy is all but banned from being around the family. She’s training with Hunter and the Helios Ra and trying to hide all the crazy supernatural stuff from her cousin at the same time.

Solange in this book was strange. There wasn’t much on her but what we did see was her going through some major vamp-y crises and I am more than anxious to see what is up with her in the next book.

The romance between Connor and Christabel wasn’t the normal flowery Drake Bro kind. It developed in its own new way and I enjoyed watching them fall for each other quite a bit.

If you love The Drake Chronicles I urge you to pick this volume up and if you haven’t read any of the books start with Hearts at Stake which was an absolute riot.

From Goodreads: Two Spartan boys grow up together, and become inseparable friends. One is a prince of Sparta , destined to rule this ancient Greek state, the other a slave, or helot, who serves the young prince. In the harsh training camps, or agoges, where boys are groomed to become the great warriors of Spartan fame, their skills are honed and brutally tested. Only citizens may aspire to the warrior’s Red Cloak, and one of the tests is the annual crypteia, or hunting of the helots. A beautiful and mysterious young Sibyl speaks of an uprising of the slaves. The Oracles warn of a deadly conflict between two ruling factions. Evil forces will challenge the two boys and test their loyalties, as secret truths about their own identities are revealed.

Buy it now from Hicklebee’s.

Heidi From Ya Bibliophile sent me this book. I promised to read it fast and pass it on (which I have done) but I was nervous. I knew Heidi had loved it and I have this rule that I don’t read self published books, it keeps me from reading something bad quality right?

Song of the Red Cloak put a chink in my gatekeeper armor. This book was fabulous. It reads like you are watching Troy or Clash of the Titans (but its actually good) and I found it absolutely unputdownable. Acevedo touches on the most fascinating points of Spartan history and lore to accent her story.

We begin the book with two fathers pouring wine over their just born babies faces. One cries, one does not. A sibyl says that the princes will betray each other and cause upheaval in Sparta, it is decided that one of the two must die. As the father of the chosen child- the one who didn’t cry- stands over the crack in the earth ready to end his just born babies like, it is then he begins to cry. The father lost his nerve and brought shame to his family for not going through with killing the child.

Skip ahead a few years and you meet Galen. A helot slave to the agoge and best friends with one of the two princes. The other wishes him dead for sullying the royal line with his filthy helot friendship.

Sparta has been without a Sybil for twenty years, when one is found and kidnapped Galen swears to do everything in his power to keep her from being sent to the rock. THe new sybil sees that Sparta will be undone and Galen works with his friends to stop the prophecy from coming true.

Song of the Red Cloak is a story about friendship, betrayal and finding yourself in a world where everyone has mistreated you. The characterizations were interesting, well fleshed out and completely authentic to me. Much like the ballad of the 300 these Spartans have a bitter sweet story and the author did a fabulous job bringing it all together for one thrilling chariot ride through Sparta.

I loved Song of the Red Cloak and urge you to pick it up as well. Especially if you are a lover of fabulous characters, Greek Myth, prophecy, and love stories.

From Hicklebee’s: In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street—and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends.

With the help of the handsome, self-destructive Will and the fiercely devoted Jem, Tessa discovers that the Magister’s war on the Shadowhunters is deeply personal. He blames them for a long-ago tragedy that shattered his life. To unravel the secrets of the past, the trio journeys from mist-shrouded Yorkshire to a manor house that holds untold horrors, from the slums of London to an enchanted ballroom where Tessa discovers that the truth of her parentage is more sinister than she had imagined. When they encounter a clockwork demon bearing a warning for Will, they realize that the Magister himself knows their every move—and that one of their own has betrayed them.

Tessa finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, though her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will—the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers about who she is and what she was born to do?

As their dangerous search for the Magister and the truth leads the friends into peril, Tessa learns that when love and lies are mixed, they can corrupt even the purest heart.

I feel very confident saying that Cassandra Clare is one of the most stunning fantasy authors in YA Literature. I have dutifully read each and every one of her books and I have found myself in love with each book for different reasons. Her Infernal Devices series is my favorite of her two. If you haven’t read Clockwork Angel this review will hold spoilers from that book. Also, if you haven’t read Clockwork Angel – get on that now. I promise you won’t regret it.

There are a great many things I loved about Clockwork Prince. The evolution of Jem from being pitiable and weak to a strong young man with a brilliant disposition on life. Jem was understanding, constantly there for Tessa and isn’t bitter with the lot he has been given. He is swiftly becoming my favorite character from Clare’s cannon.

Will on the other hand acted like an entitled ass through most of the novel. Yes, it is explained why he is an ass, and its sad tear-worthy even- especially when you learn the truth about him and Magnus Bane helps him solve his biggest life mystery. It was the last few pages of the book and his “Jem can take it” attitude that made me incredibly mad at him. I am in awe of Clare’s ability to elicit such strong emotions from me, especially related to the characters.

Tessa is still Tessa, smart, funny and well read. We are little closer to finding out what she really is at the end of the novel and the wait for book three where I hope we do find out is going to kill me. Tessa grows so much in this novel, she goes from proper American lady living in England to kick ass down and dirty I will do anything to save any of you and that was my favorite part of this novel.

The Lightwoods are introduced, Morty is still deliciously evil, there are still clockwork devices but they aren’t the main focus of the book. I did enjoy how the devices took a backseat here for plot and I have a feeling they will play a major part in book three.

The most important thing Henry is still awesome. Charlotte is going through a very hard time in Clockwork Prince and I hope everything works out and she and Henry become very happy together; they deserve it.

New characters, new hints and mysteries are introduced. The world building is superb and if I had the next book I would have dove into it immediately. If you haven’t had a chance to read Clare I highly suggest you drop everything and do that now.

For those who have read Clockwork Prince here is the balcony scene re-imagined by Vanya from VLC Photo:

From Hicklebee’s: Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.

So did his father before him, until he was gruesomely murdered by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.

When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn’t expect anything outside of the ordinary: track, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, now stained red and dripping with blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.

But she, for whatever reason, spares Cas’s life.

There are not many things that truly freak me out. I’ve watched/read/ingested so much horror in entertainment form that I can pass a ‘how long will you survive a horror movie’ quiz with at least an 85% score. Still a few things remain that can freak me out. Anything to do with fingernails in horror movies, spiders, and now finally Kendare Blake.

Cas is a great character as is Anna. They have both been through very traumatic things in their lives and their subjective views of the situations they are in are great fodder for the reader. The story isn’t what I would call quick to read, you can submerge into the thrills for hours while reading.

The entire time I was reading I had a movie playing out in my mind. Anna Dressed in Blood is a very visual novel and its been a long time since I read something that gave my brain so much to wonder about while I was going along.

The story is full of creepy ghost myths with a side of contemporary ghost hunter lore thrown in for good measure. It was a monster mash of everything I love about ghost stories updated with the latest myths and legends. I adored the novel and cannot wait for the next book in the Anna series.

From Goodreads: Laying hands upon the injured and dying, Avry of Kazan assumes their wounds and diseases into herself. But rather than being honored for her skills, she is hunted. Healers like Avry are accused of spreading the plague that has decimated the Territories, leaving the survivors in a state of chaos.

Stressed and tired from hiding, Avry is abducted by a band of rogues who, shockingly, value her gift above the golden bounty offered for her capture. Their leader, an enigmatic captor-protector with powers of his own, is unequivocal in his demands: Avry must heal a plague-stricken prince—leader of a campaign against her people. As they traverse the daunting Nine Mountains, beset by mercenaries and magical dangers, Avry must decide who is worth healing and what is worth dying for. Because the price of peace may well be her life…

Some of the best fantastical worlds in recent history are penned by Maria V. Snyder. Whether we are following a prisoner turned food taster, or a pipe cleaner turned revolutionary Snyder brings top notch world building to the page.

In this latest series for the adult market Avry is a healer on the run. When the plague came to Avry’s world the healers were unable work their magic to make it go away. They became hated, and then they became the hunted. Avry heals a dying child and is turned into the authorities by the child’s father. She is broken out of prison by a strange man she learns that by going with him she escaped one death to faced with another.

She is the last of her kind. The only healer left and it has become her duty to heal a prince so that he can save the kingdom from civil unrest and utter destruction. Even under the threat of world war Avry is reluctant to heal the prince. When she tries to run away from the group who stole her way from the jail, she learns much about who they are and why she must do what is right.

Touch of Power is a dynamic fantasy with dystopian elements. It covers romance, genocide, and features compelling character interaction and friendships. I think the book crosses over well to the YA audience and should be on the ‘must read’ list of any fantasy lover.

I cannot wait to see what happens in the sequel.

From Hicklebee’s: The Hematoi descend from the unions of gods and mortals, and the children of two Hematoi-pure-bloods-have godlike powers. Children of Hematoi and mortals-well, not so much. Half-bloods only have two options: become trained Sentinels who hunt and kill daimons or become servants in the homes of the pures.Seventeen-year-old Alexandria would rather risk her life fighting than waste it scrubbing toilets, but she may end up slumming it anyway. There are several rules that students at the Covenant must follow. Alex has problems with them all, but especially rule #1: Relationships between pures and halfs are forbidden.Unfortunately, she’s crushing hard on the totally hot pure-blood Aiden. But falling for Aiden isn’t her biggest problem–staying alive long enough to graduate the Covenant and become a Sentinel is. If she fails in her duty, she faces a future worse than death or slavery: being turned into a daimon, and being hunted by Aiden. And that would kind of suck.

It is no secret that I go Geek for Greek. Armentrout has a swift and to-the-point writing style that I adore. We learn half blood and pure blood lore and everything is updated with a 21st century feel. Just as you would expect, the pure bloods hold the real power. They are rich, pretty, and make up the government. Half blood citizens are either drugged and sent into a life of slavery to the pure or train to kill daimons. The highest level a half can obtain is to be a sentinel, a daimon killer.

Alex’s mother wanted her out of the life, Alex never knew why but as a half blood she really never questioned pures, not even her mother. She lived in the mortal world for three years always moving – life in constant flux, until the day her mother is killed by a daimon. Alex runs straight back into the arms of The Covenant, more specifically into the arms of Pure Hottie McHotterson Aiden St. Delphi.

Most pure bloods wouldn’t dream of becoming a daimon killer. They were all too fragile for that, even though they can control the elements. It was too dangerous, only half bloods can see through a daimon’s magic, and only pure bloods can be turned into a daimon.

Alex is taken back to The Covenant by Aiden. The dean of the school threatens to drug her and put her into servitude. It seems that Alex traded one crap life for another until Aiden speaks up for her. He offers to train her in kickassery and get her caught up so that she can begin school and possibly realize her dream to become a sentinel.

Everything is going great, Alex is learning to be less of a hot head and her fighting style is getting better every day. Then her pure step-dad comes into the picture and the plot takes off on electrifying turn after turn to a stunning conclusion.

I adored Half-Blood for the mystery, the greek lore, the choices and problems that plagued the main character. I loved the side characters and the pretty demi-god boys. Half-Blood is out now, and if you also go geek for Greek I suggest buying and reading it. You won’t be sorry that you did.

From Hicklebee’s In the violent country of Ludania, the language you speak determines what class you are, and there are harsh punishments if you forget your place—looking a member of a higher class in the eye can result in immediate execution. Seventeen-year-old Charlaina (Charlie for short) can understand all languages, a dangerous ability she’s been hiding her whole life. Her only place of release is the drug-filled underground club scene, where people go to shake off the oppressive rules of the world they live in. There, she meets a beautiful and mysterious boy who speaks a language she’s never heard, and her secret is almost exposed. Through a series of violent upheavals, it becomes clear that Charlie herself is the key to forcing out the oppressive power structure of her kingdom….

I was very much looking forward to The Pledge. The idea of a fantasy with dystopic vibes based on an evil monarchy had my geek senses tingling. Derting – whose work I have appreciated in the past – has completely outdone herself with this very different and unique story.

As many of you know, my family is multi cultural, my husband and his family speak Dutch and I do not. So when that side of my family is here I am left out of the conversation quite a bit. It is something you really never get used to and it helped me connect with Charlie. Derting uses language as a caste system. The servants speak one language and that is it. Merchant class – like Charlie and her family – speak the servant language and a merchant language. The privileged speak both those and have their own fancy language as well that no one below them can understand. The problem is, Charlie has a very dangerous gift. She can understand all languages – even those she isn’t allowed to understand.

When Charlie hears, and understands, a language she has never heard spoken before she knows her life is about to change. War is coming, and Charlie may be the key to winning. Will Charlie be a beacon for the resistance or Royals? The crown prince is the most interesting boy she has ever met.

Charlie is pulled in so many different directions, she fears for her family, realizes her baby sister is also gifted and in danger from the crown. The Queen is old and dying slowly – she needs a new heir for only a queen can rule. Boy children are disregarded completely.

I love the feministic views in the book, the writing and heck who doesn’t want to be a queen? I do, and I would go dark side if need be.

The Pledge is a perfect blending of fantasy and dystopia. I can’t wait for book two! The book comes out tomorrow! Go grab it and tell me what you think.

From Hicklebee’s: Everything is made of steel, even the flowers. How can you love anything in a place like this?

Daphne is the half-demon, half-fallen angel daughter of Lucifer and Lilith. Life for her is an endless expanse of time, until her brother Obie is kidnapped – and Daphne realizes she may be partially responsible. Determined to find him, Daphne travels from her home in Pandemonium to the vast streets of Earth, where everything is colder and more terrifying. With the help of the human boy she believes was the last person to see her brother alive, Daphne glimpses into his dreams, discovering clues to Obie’s whereabouts. As she delves deeper into her demonic powers, she must navigate the jealousies and alliances of the violent archangels who stand in her way. But she also discovers, unexpectedly, what it means to love and be human in a world where human is the hardest thing to be.

This second novel by rising star Brenna Yovanoff is a story of identity, discovery, and a troubled love between two people struggling to find their place both in our world and theirs.

I didn’t really know what to expect going into The Space Between I had bought but never gotten around to reading Yovanoff’s debut. Upon seeing the cover and synopsis of the review copy for this book I became incredibly excited. There are a lot of angels and demons stories out there now, but none quite like this.

The settings in the book were fantastical. Daphne lives in hell, but it isn’t all fire and torture and brimstone – at least not for a princess – daughter of Lucifer and Lilith. For several hours a day the fires burn and Daphne has to hide her earthly possessions that her brother Obie brings to her from the surface or they would burn up. Hell is made of metal, and Daphne lives in an interesting tower, with interesting sisters borne of Lilith and lesser demons who go topside to seduce unwary men. Daphne however doesn’t have the urge and she has never been to earth.

Then one day a boy is brought to hell and Daphne asks him to be returned to the surface. Obie takes the mysterious boy back and stays on the topside. Obie is Daphne’s everything, so she ventures forth from hell to find her brother and bring him back to hell before an avenging angel and his demon eating beast find and kill Obie.

The story sets off at a frantic but perfect pace and Daphne learns so much. She learns about life, really living – love, and infinite sadness. The plot is thick and syrupy and so much is going on in The Space Between it makes the novel wholly unputdownable.

I loved every second of reading time. Daphne’s world, her coming of age, and her dangerous bravado make Yovanoff an author to put on my watch list. I can’t see what her mind comes up with next.

The writing and pace was perfect, I couldn’t have asked for a more smooth ride through hell. This book comes out on the 15th – I ain’t saying you should be standing in line – but you should.