Cover Crazy (12)

Cover Crazy is a weekly bookish meme hosted every Monday by Tawni at The Bookworms.

This week I'm crazy about:

Everneath by Brodi Ashton

What I love about this cover:

Her dress

It looks like she's walking toward something and the wind is blowing on her.

How the edges of her dress transition into smoke

It looks like she's walking above the clouds and there's a storm underneath her (earth maybe?)

What cover are you crazy for?

A Hidden Fire by Elizabeth Hunter ARC Review

A Hidden Fire by Elizabeth Hunter

Elemental Mysteries (#1)

Release Date: October 18th, 2011

Published by: E. Hunter (self-published)

Format: eBook, 293 pages

Source: An ARC copy provided by the author

Summary (from Goodreads):

"No secret stays hidden forever..."

A phone call from an old friend sets Dr. Giovanni Vecchio back on the path of a mystery he'd abandoned years before. He beer expected a young librarian could hold the key to the search, nor could he have expected the danger she would attract. Now he and Beatrice de Novo will follow a twisted maze that leads them from the archives of a university library, through the fires of Renaissance Florence, and toward a confrontation they never could have predicted.

A Hidden Fire is a paranormal mystery/romance for adult readers. It is the first book in the Elemental Mysteries Series.

Review:

First off, thanks to the author for sending in a copy of A Hidden Fire for us to review.

At first, I didn't really know what to expect from this book since I've never read a lot of adult fiction. But honestly, I was pleasantly surprised. Adult fiction didn't have too many differences with YA novels except for some mild sexual content. But at the same time, I was also super excited to read this novel since it was a paranormal/fantasy novel. This book was a little bit of both fiction and non-fiction since it included a little bit about the history of the Italian Renaissance.

The beginning wasn't exactly exciting for me, in fact, it didn't spark any interest for me at all. But I knew I had to patient with it, since not all great books have great beginnings. As the story start to progress, and things started to happen, I started to really enjoy this book. The vocabulary and detail in each page was written so well, it was like watching a film instead of reading a book. The humor in this book lightened up the story and made it exciting AND fun. And who says the elders can't find love? Caspar and Isadora? By far the cutest couple in all the books I've read.

As for the characters... Beatrice wasn't my favorite character, but I didn't hate her either. She's clever, bold, yet she would let her emotions take the best of her. But I could see where she got her boldness and cleverness from. Isadora, Beatrice's grandmother was definitely an interesting and witty character. Beatrice and Giovanni had this sort of relationship that was frustrating. Because Giovanni was a vampire, he had to learn how to control his urges, which is why he couldn't get too close to Beatrice, even if it meant driving Beatrice insane. But then again, it's not everyday you see a 22-year old female being attracted to a vampire that was over 500 years old.

After all the action happened and the mystery started to unravel and things were explained and I was no longer confused, it was already close to the end of the book. With an ending like that, it's impossible to not read the second book of the Elemental Mysteries series. I had all these questions going through my mind after I finished reading A Hidden Fire; what's going to happen to Lorenzo? What about Beatrice and Giovanni's relationship? Ms. Hunter sure knows how to keep her reader's guessing.

Rating: 4/5

Cover: 8/10

Character(s) I liked: Carwyn, Caspar, Isadora

Character(s) I disliked: Lorenzo, Dr. Scalia

First Sentence: "The man stole down the hallway, his footsteps echoing in the dimly lit basement of the library."

What the Author's Up To: Goodreads//Blog

Author Guest Post with Elizabeth Hunter

We are so excited to have Elizabeth Hunter, author of A Hidden Fire, to be a part of our blog today!

She is sharing some great and creative ideas on how to spice up your Halloween party!

A little bit about Elizabeth:

Elizabeth Hunter is the author and publisher of the Elemental Mysteries Series.

She is a graduate of the University of Houston Honors College in the Department of English (Linguistics) and a former English teacher.

A native of Central California, she now lives in Southern California with her husband, son, and an assortment of dogs. She enjoys reading, writing, travel, and bowling (despite the fact that she’s not very good at it.)

Someday, she plans to learn how to scuba-dive.

And maybe hang-glide ... but that looks like a lot of running.

What Elizabeth is Up To : Blog // Goodreads

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In my book, A Hidden Fire, one of the first times that Gio and Beatrice meet outside the library is a celebration for Dia de los Muertos. While many in the Southwestern United States are aware of this unique Mexican holiday, its popularity is growing, and many places around the U.S. and Canada now have their own Day of the Dead celebrations around Halloween.

If you are looking for a way to give your Halloween party a unique and beautiful twist, here’s five ideas to incorporate some elements of Dia de los Muertos into your party!

1. Take decorations to the next level. Instead of the regular old cobwebs and gravestones that most parties feature, try using traditional elements like skeletons, crosses, roses, and marigolds. Use the saint candles available in many markets to add atmosphere. You’ll give your party a different look and avoid finding those pesky cobwebs all over the house for the next six months!
2. Choose some different background music. Looking for something different that fits a Dia de los Muertos party? You may not be a fan of mariachi, but have you checked out Julieta Venegas? How about Daniela Mercury? Juanes or Bacilos? There are so many Spanish or Portuguese-language artists out there, you just might find a new favorite, even if you do need to translate the lyrics.
3. Who needs a mask? Face paint is beautiful! Forget the same old costume, dress as a calavera (“skull”) by copying some of the elaborate and beautiful face paints you can find online. Wear a black or white outfit, put roses in your hair, and dress like as La Catrina, a beautifully decorated skeleton featured in Dia de los Muertos art and symbolism.
4. Keep it light and fun! The whole point of Dia de los Muertos is to celebrate the dead, instead of mourn, so keep the party light by asking friends to tell their worst jokes or most embarrassing stories. Have a funny poem contest or watch a movie featuring black comedy like Death Becomes Her, Beetlejuice, or (of course) The Nightmare Before Christmas.
5. Eat tacos. Why? Is this even a question? Tacos are delicious and make perfect party food! Yum.

The absolute, best preparation for Dia de los Muertos or Halloween is reading my paranormal romance, A Hidden Fire. Why? Well, here’s what Rachel had to say on Goodreads:

“The story is infused with the right blend of emotion, humor, fear and love. I found myself hanging on to the emotions of the characters one minute, and laughing so hard I cried the next.I am eagerly anticipating the next installment of this series... If only I had the patience of a vampire to get me from now until its release.”

Humor, fear, and love? Sounds like the makings of a great book to go along with a great party! Have a fabulous Halloween, and I hope you check out A Hidden Fire, at Amazon and Barnes & Noble right now. For more information about my books, please visit ElementalMysteries.com!

Thanks for reading,

Elizabeth Hunter

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A Hidden Fire by Elizabeth Hunter

eBook (ARC) : 293 pages

Oct 18th, 2011

Series: Elemental Mysteries #1

"No secret stays hidden forever ..."

A phone call from an old friend sets Dr. Giovanni Vecchio back on the path of a mystery he’d abandoned years before. He never expected a young librarian could hold the key to the search, nor could he have expected the danger she would attract. Now he and Beatrice de Novo will follow a twisted maze that leads them from the archives of a university library, through the fires of Renaissance Florence, and toward a confrontation they never could have predicted.

A Hidden Fire is a paranormal mystery/romance for adult readers. It is the first book in the Elemental Mysteries Series.

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A Hidden Fire is scheduled to be released on October 18th (that's today!), so hurry and get your own copy!

Purchase A Hidden Fire : Amazon // Barnes & Nobles // Smashwords

Teaser Tuesdays (19)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading

Any one can play along! Just do the following:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two (2) teaser sentences from somewhere on that page

BE CAREFUL TO NOT INCLUDE ANY SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)

Share the title and author, too, so that the other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers!

This week I'm reading an ARC of A Hidden Fire by Elizabeth Hunter

"Giovanni kissed her for a few heated moments, stealing her breath and causing her head to swim. His fang nicked her lip and she felt his tongue swipe at the trickle of blood near the corner of her mouth before he gave a deep groan and pulled away." - page 109

What's your teaser for this week?

Cover Crazy (11)

Cover Crazy is a weekly bookish meme hosted every Monday by Tawni at The Bookworms

This week I'm crazy about:

The Pledge by Kimberly Derting

What I love about this cover:

I love that majority of the cover is black, with only her face and her milky white skin showing.

This cover gets me very curious because I'm asking all sorts of questions; where is she looking at? Why does she have her hood on?

The words pledge in shadowy and in a big font in the background.

The only pop of color are her lips.

A cover that I would definitely pick up at a bookstore/library and read the summary.

What do you think of this cover?

Angel Burn by L.A. Weatherly Review

Angel Burn by L.A. Weatherly

First book in Angel trilogy

Release Date: May 24th, 2011

Published by Candlewick Press

Format: Hardcover, 449 pages

Source: Own Copy

Summary (from Goodreads):

Willow knows she's different from other girls, and not just because she loves tinkering with cars. Willow has a gift. She can look into the future and know people's dreams and hopes, their sorrows and regrets, just by touching them. She has no idea where this power comes from. but the assassin, Alex, does. Gorgeous, mysterious Alex knows more about Willow than Willow herself. He knows that her powers link to dark and dangerous forces, and that he's one of the few humans left who can fight them. When Alex finds himself falling in love with his sworn enemy, he discovers that nothing is as it seems, least of all good and evil. In the first book in an action-packed, romantic trilogy, L.A. Weatherly sends readers on a thrill-ride of a road trip - and depicts the human race at the brink of a future as catastrophic as it is deceptively beautiful.

They're out for your soul... and they don't have heaven in mind.

Review:

• This was a thrilling, action-packed, drama-filled, (somewhat cheesy) romance novel. It was addicting and made me flip page after page because I had to know what was going to happen. It was definitely hard to put down.
• Alex and Willow's relationship definitely had it's similarities to that of Bonnie and Clyde.
• This was the first book ever to make me hate angels and see them as something that harmed humans instead of helped them.
• Willow had the ability to know someone's future, their past, and their thoughts just by holding their hand. I would've liked to read more of Willow's reading because they were really interesting. It definitely would've been useful to detect if someone was lying or not. And it was thanks to Willow's ability that her and Alex were safe till the end.
• Alex and Willow's love was something very powerful, and they were willing to do anything for each other, even if it meant running miles and miles to find them. Although... I couldn't help but cringe at some cheesy things they said to each other. I'm just not really the cheesy romance novel type.
• I liked the alternating POVs from Alex to Willow to Jonah to the angels. I got to know everyone's side of the story and what they were thinking and feeling.
• I thought finding about Alex's feeling for Willow, and Willow's feelings for Alex, and them slowly falling in love with each other would make me dislike this book because of past experiences. But I was pleasantly surprised. it got me frustrated... in a good way... if that makes sense... I couldn't help thinking, JUST KISS HER ALREADY.
• The ending was not the best, in some way, it was a cliffhanger ending. And now, I MUST read the second book to know what happens!!!
• I was VERY frustrated and upset that the CIA's plan failed, and nothing was resolved.
• The author definitely did well in bringing out the reader's emotions.

Rating: 4.5/5

Cover: 5/10

First sentence: "Is that your car?" asked the girl at the 7-Eleven checkout counter. "The shiny black one?"

What the Author's Up To: Goodreads//Blog//Twitter

Teaser Tuesdays (18)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading

Any one can play along! Just do the following:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two (2) teaser sentences from somewhere on that page

BE CAREFUL TO NOT INCLUDE ANY SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for other!)

Share the title and author, too, so that the other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers!

This week I'm reading The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

"She always hated being born in January," I continued, my voice blank as I stared at the lifeless plant in front of me. "Said she never felt like celebrating when there weren't any flowers and all of the trees were dead." - page 210

I've only read the first few pages of this book. But the beginning has already made me very curious to read on....

What's your teaser for this week?

Cover Crazy (10)

Cover Crazy is a weekly book meme created and hosted by Tawni at The Bookworms

This week I'm crazy about:

Lost Voices by Sarah Porter

What I love about this cover:

I love the color of the water.

I love the water. Period. haha

I want the mermaid's tale. It's just so mesmerizing and pretty *.*

The direction she's swimming, I wonder where she's going.

The sunlight seeping through the water illuminates the mermaids tale.

What do you think of this cover?

In My Mailbox (12)

In My Mailbox is a weekly book meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.

This week I borrowed

The Goddess Test (Goddess Test #1) by Aimee Carter
Radiance (Riley Bloom #1) by Alyson Noel
Ink Exchange (Wicked Lovely #2) by Melissa Marr
Need (Need #1) by Carrie Jones
Freak Show by James St. James
Witches of East End (The Beauchamp Family #1) by Melissa de la Cruz
Across the Universe (Across the Universe #1) by Beth Revis

Baby in Boyland by Jody Gehrman

Coffeehouse Angel by Suzanne Selfors

What's in your mailbox?