Cathy Reviews: Lady Midnight

My mother-in-law Cathy is back today with her latest review!

LADY MIDNIGHT
The Dark Artifices #1
Cassandra Clare
Paranormal Young Adult
668 pages
Margaret K. McElderry Books
Available Now
Source: ARC from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Amazon)
It’s been five years since the events of City of Heavenly Fire that brought the Shadowhunters to the brink of oblivion. Emma Carstairs is no longer a child in mourning, but a young woman bent on discovering what killed her parents and avenging her losses.

Together with her parabatai Julian Blackthorn, Emma must learn to trust her head and her heart as she investigates a demonic plot that stretches across Los Angeles, from the Sunset Strip to the enchanted sea that pounds the beaches of Santa Monica. If only her heart didn’t lead her in treacherous directions…

Making things even more complicated, Julian’s brother Mark—who was captured by the faeries five years ago—has been returned as a bargaining chip. The faeries are desperate to find out who is murdering their kind—and they need the Shadowhunters’ help to do it. But time works differently in faerie, so Mark has barely aged and doesn’t recognize his family. Can he ever truly return to them? Will the faeries really allow it?

Glitz, glamours, and Shadowhunters abound in this heartrending opening to Cassandra Clare’s Dark Artifices series.

CATHY'S THOUGHTS
Lady Midnight introduces us to a new set of Shadowhunters living in the Los Angeles Institute. Ms. Clare does a seamless job of bringing us up to date on what has been occurring in their world since the earlier books, making this storyline easy to follow without having read the previous series.

This story begins after a war between the Shadowhunters and some of the Downworlders. We meet our new heroine, Emma Carstairs, a Shadowhunter trying to solve the mystery of who killed her parents. Emma is strong-willed and strong-minded, with her major motivation in life being revenge. This tunnel-vision results in numerous instances where she rushes blindly ahead into danger with very little forethought, something that may be frustrating for older YA readers but a little more accepted by a younger reader. I kept wanting her to stop and think but then I am old! But it does endear Emma to us and we want to protect her. Emma does have someone who tries to curb her rashness–Julian Blackthorn. He is a wonderful character who is responsible, caring, and brave, but there is something underneath that peeks out and lets us know that there is something more to be seen. 

Emma and Julian are bonded as Shadowhunter partners, parabatai, which works perfectly when they are out fighting, but as you continue to read it becomes a problem personally. This is where the romance and the angst begins and grows. There is that smoldering forbidden love that we have to watch and worry over.

Ms. Clare creates a well developed plotline of murder, deception, and mystery. There is a series of murders that Emma believes is somehow related to her parents' death. As they work together to solve these crimes, old secrets come to light and enemies need to join forces. You never know who you can trust. Just what I look for in a good suspense tale. Since this is the first book in this new series, there are a lot of characters introduced throughout the book. Ms. Clare manages to balance them all without confusing the reader too much. This is partly accomplished so well because this is a long book– almost 700 pages! Do not let that scare you, this story is compelling enough that it is a page turner and you come to know these characters so well that you are truly invested in them.

Lady Midnight manages to give something to everyone – mystery, paranormal, suspense and romance. Ms. Clare leaves with several questions and a new character to have us checking for the release date for the next installment.

Rating: 4/5

Find Cassandra:

Website • Facebook • Twitter • Goodreads • Amazon

This book was sent to me by the publisher free of charge for the purpose of a review. 

I received no other compensation and the above is Cathy's honest opinion.

Guest Post: Kady Cross + Sisters of Salt and Iron

Today I'm so pleased to have author Kady Cross to the blog to talk a little bit about Sisters of Salt and Iron, the sequel to last year's Sisters of Blood and Spirit. As you guys already know, I thoroughly enjoy this series and the relationship between sisters Lark and Wren, and I highly recommend it to those who love a good YA paranormal read.

Wren is an extraordinarily fascinating character, so when I had the chance to ask her a single question, I made sure to be a little nosy when it comes to her:) Welcome to Supernatural Snark, Kady!

Wren doesn't know what it's like to be alive other than what she's experienced through her sister. If she could be fully alive and in her own body for a single day, what are three things she'd be sure to do?

1. She would eat as much as she could from as many types of food as she could get her hands on. And she would stop to smell each dish as well.

2. She would probably kiss Kevin. Probably a lot, even though he hurt her.

3. She would simply enjoy being able to be with her sister and her friends on the same plane of existence.

Thanks so much for stopping by Kady!

• • • • • • • • • • • • • •

SISTERS OF SALT AND IRON

Lark Noble is finally happy. She’s trying to move on and put the events of the past behind her: the people who avoided her because she talked to the ghost of her dead twin sister, the parents who couldn’t be around her anymore and even the attempt she made on her own life. She finally has friends—people who know her secrets and still care about her—and she has Ben, the cute guy she never saw coming.

Wren Noble is lonely. Unable to interact with the living, she wants to be happy for her sister’s newfound happiness, but she feels like she’s losing her. It doesn’t help that Kevin, the very not-dead guy she was starting to fall for, seems to be moving on.

Then Wren meets Noah, the spirit of a young man who died a century ago. Noah is cute, he’s charming and he makes Wren feel something she’s never felt before. But Noah has a dark influence on Wren, and Lark’s distrust of him drives the sisters apart for the first time in their lives. As Halloween approaches and the veil between the worlds thins, bringing the dead closer to the world of the living, Lark must find a way to stop whatever deadly act Noah is planning, even if it means going through her sister to do so.

Find Kady:

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Review: A Good Rogue is Hard to Find

A GOOD ROGUE IS HARD TO FIND
The Lords of Worth #2
Kelly Bowen
Historical Romance
368 pages
Forever
Available Now
Source: Bought

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
HE THOUGHT HE'D SEEN IT ALL . . .

The rogue's life has been good to William Somerhall: He has his fortune, his racehorses, and his freedom. Then he moves in with his mother. It seems the eccentric Dowager Duchess of Worth has been barely skirting social disaster-assisted by one Miss Jenna Hughes, who is far too bright and beautiful to be wasting her youth as a paid companion. Now home to keep his mother from ruin, William intends to learn what's afoot by keeping his friends close-and the tempting Miss Hughes closer still.

. . . UNTIL HE MEETS HER

He's tall, dark, and damnably intelligent-unfortunately for Jenna. She and the duchess are in the "redistribution business," taking from the rich and giving to the poor, and it's going great - until he shows up. But even as William plots to make an honest woman out of her, Jenna will use all her wiles to reveal just how bad a rogue he can be . . .

MY THOUGHTS
A Good Rogue is Hard to Find is an outstanding second installment in the Lords of Worth series, focusing on the inner workings of a family who existed on the periphery of the first book and absolutely stole the show every time they appeared. 

Despite the serious nature of the job the hero and heroine of book one undertake as their romance unfolds, there were select laugh out loud moments when a duchess backing their cause played up her eccentric reputation and created a spectacle of herself in public to distract from more covert operations. That duchess is front and center of this second book, with her son William and her "paid companion" Jenna our new romantic leads, and her antics give this installment a much lighter feel than we found in the start of this series. Her love for allowing live poultry to run amok during dinner parties and balls just to watch the feathers fly and the chaos ensue brings a smile to our faces throughout, knowing she's playing her part so that she and Jenna can continue to help those less fortunate.

William, for his part, takes just a little time to warm to simply because he threatens to be a wrench in the well-oiled machine that is Jenna and the Dowager Duchess of Worth (and it's impossible not to be rooting for the two of them to stick it to those members of the Ton who believe social status trumps the need to be a decent person). It doesn't take long for William to find his way into our good graces though, and his pursuit of Jenna is nothing if not swoon-worthy. Though he at times forgets that his title keeps a true relationship between them from ever becoming a reality, Jenna is quick to remind both him and herself, ensuring she doesn't get too swept up in something that can never be. Her honesty (about everything save the exact specifics of her role in taking from the rich to give to the poor that is) is one of her finest attributes, calling things as she sees them without dwelling on any words or actions that might initially leave a mark, and always moving forward toward achieving her goal of helping others.

Overall, A Good Rogue is Hard to Find is a quick and enormously fun read, the Dowager Duchess's relationship with Jenna ensuring we can't turn the pages fast enough to see what scheme the two of them will cook up next, while the romance with William adds a delightful flush to our cheeks and an immediate desire to pick up the next book as soon as we close the back cover.

Rating: 4/5

Find Kelly:

 

Website • Facebook • Twitter • Goodreads • Amazon

FLAWED Blog Tour + Giveaway!

Today I'm thrilled to be a part of the blog tour for Flawed, the young adult debut from P.S. I Love You author Cecelia Ahern! I'm a huge fan of dystopian stories, especially ones featuring strong young women, so I'm beyond excited to get my hands on a copy of this one. Also, P.S. I Love You made me sob like a little girl. SOB I TELL YOU!

As part of the tour, I get to share with you a quick little teaser quote to whet your appetite (fear not though, Flawed released yesterday so you can dive in immediately if you want!), but first here's a little more about Flawed:

You will be punished…

Celestine North lives a perfect life. She’s a model daughter and sister, she’s well-liked by her classmates and teachers, and she’s dating the impossibly charming Art Crevan.

But then Celestine encounters a situation where she makes an instinctive decision. She breaks a rule and now faces life-changing repercussions. She could be imprisoned. She could be branded. She could be found flawed.

In her breathtaking young adult debut, bestselling author Cecelia Ahern depicts a society where perfection is paramount and flaws lead to punishment. And where one young woman decides to take a stand that could cost her everything.

And now, your teaser!

Find Flawed:

Amazon • B&N • Goodreads

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 

CECELIA AHERN

Cecelia Ahern was born on September 30, 1981 in Dublin, Ireland. She is the daughter of the former Irish Taoiseach Bertie Ahern. On 14th December 2009 it was announced that Cecelia had given birth to her first child with partner David Keoghan, a girl named Robin. She was secretly married on 11 June 2010 in County Kildare, Ireland. Her older sister, Georgina Ahern is married to Nicky Byrne of Irish pop group Westlife. Cecelia was a member of the Irish pop group Shimma who finished third in the Irish national for the Eurovision Song Contest in 2000. She attended Griffith College Dublin and obtained a degree in Journalism and Media Communications.

Cecelia Ahern wrote her first novel, PS. I Love You when she was twenty-one. It was published in 2004, the number 1 bestseller in Ireland for 19 weeks and sold in over forty countries. The book was adapted as a motion picture directed by Richard LaGravenese and starring Hilary Swank and Gerard Butler and released in 2007 in the United States.

Her second book, Where Rainbows End (US title: Love, Rosie or Rosie Dunne) won the German CORINE Award in 2005. She contributed with short stories to charity books and is also the co-creator and producer of the ABC comedy Samantha Who?.

Her other works include If You Could See Me Now (US title: A Silver Lining), A Place Called Here (US title: There's No Place Like Here) Thanks for the Memories (US title: Desire Lines) The Gift The Book of Tomorrow.

Website • Facebook • Twitter • Instagram

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 

GIVEAWAY

Thanks to the team over at Feiwel and Friends, one lucky winner will receive a very special prize pack including swag from both sides of the pond as well as both the US and UK editions of FLAWED. To enter, please fill out the Rafflecopter form below. Giveaway is open to US/Canada only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Be sure and check out all the stops on the tour for more chances to win!

April 5- Nite Lite Book Reviews (US)

April 5- Two Chicks on Books (US)

April 5- Green Bean Teen Queen (US)

April 5- Luna's Little Library (UK)

April 5- Writing.ie (Ireland)

April 5- Overflowing Library (UK)

April 6- Icey Books (US)

April 6- Supernatural Snark (US)

April 6- Paper Cuts Blog (US)

April 6- Serendipity Reviews (UK)

April 6- Bleach House Library (Ireland)

April 6- Bart's Bookshelf (UK)

April 7- Forever Young Adult (US)

April 7- Bumbles and Fairytales (US)

April 7- Rainy Day Ramblings (US)

April 7- Swoony Boys Podcast (US)

April 7- A Daydreamer's Thoughts (UK)

April 7- The Bibliomaniac (UK)

April 7- Kirstyes (UK)

April 7- Wrath Queen's Books (UK)

Review: Burning

BURNING
Danielle Rollins
Paranormal Young Adult
352 Pages
Bloomsbury Childrens
Available Now
Source: ARC from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
After three years in juvie, Angela Davis is just a few months shy of release, and she'll finally be free from the hole that is Brunesfield Correctional Facility. Then Jessica arrives. Only ten years old and under the highest security possible, this girl has to be dangerous, even if no one knows what she did to land in juvie. As strange things begin happening to Angela and her friends that can only be traced to the new girl's arrival, it becomes clear that Brunesfield is no longer safe. They must find a way to get out, but how can they save themselves when the world has forgotten them?

MY THOUGHTS
Burning is a quick and engaging read, the day to day life for Angela and her cellmates at Brunesfield drawing us in before the paranormal element even comes into play, thus forcing us to make the nearly impossible choice between getting some much needed sleep and staying up all night to see how everything plays out.

Despite the fact that Angela is one of the more serious offenders currently residing at Brunesfield, she's easy to root for from the beginning, and we quickly find ourselves counting down the days until her release right along with her. She's madly in love with her younger brother Charlie, living for the letters he sends even though her dyslexia keeps her from reading them herself, and is simply trying to keep her head down so her release date isn't pushed back once again. She's fiercely loyal to friends and cellmates Issie and Cara (and eventually Jessica), helping to to keep their spirits up by regaling them with stories late at night and managing to keep a level head on her shoulders even as the new doctor shows up and charms all the girls with promises too good to be true.

The mystery surrounding Jessica and the new doctor unfolds slowly, not so slowly as to be boring, but rather perfectly paced so we have plenty of time to question and wonder where we're being led. The only problems with this story arise in the final few chapters, loose ends everywhere left blowing madly in the breeze by the time we reach the last page to leave us with the kinds of questions that are more frustrating than delightfully intriguing. That being said however, though I haven't found any mention of this being the first in a series, it's entirely possible that is the case, and if so, the lingering questions make far more sense and undoubtedlyshift that sense of frustration to one of anticipation.

Rating:  I'm going to split my rating since it's unclear (to me) if this is going to be a series or not:)

If a standalone - 3/5
If book one in a series: 4/5

Find Danielle:

Website • Twitter • Goodreads • Amazon

This book was sent to me by the publisher free of charge for the purpose of a review. 

I received no other compensation and the above is my honest opinion.

Friday Flourish: When They Come Calling

Happy Friday Everyone!

This will be the last Flourish post for a couple weeks as I have a few things planned for the coming Fridays, but I still have 18 recent covers I've yet to share with all of you, so more Flourish posts will be forthcoming!

The past several cover designs have all been illustrated, so today I thought it would be fun to share one that was completely different style-wise from what you've seen from me of late. My very favorite thing about this job is the wide variety of projects I get to work on, and the unique challenges each one presents. Some push me to fine tune my skills with type, some force me to watch an online tutorial or five to learn a new special effect in Photoshop, and then others require me to put some time into dusting off my drawing skills and putting my pencil to paper. After each one is wrapped up I end up feeling like a better designer than when I started, and the cover I'm going to share below was no different.

While I love covers that are full of color and texture and showoff some fun special effects, there's definitely something to be said for the more understated covers as well, especially when we're talking about a ghost story. For me, there's something infinitely creepier about what I don't see than what's right in front of me, as what my mind conjures up in an attempt to fill in the blanks is likely far, far worse than the real thing.

With When They Come Calling I really wanted to play up the eeriness of suggestion, giving readers just a tease of what this story holds in store for them so they can then let their imaginations run wild when they take in the cover design and title together. I hope you guys love it!

Physician Anna Roberts runs a free health clinic in Kansas City where she spends her days taking care of the living and avoiding the spirits of the dead. A late night accident leaves Anna at the mercy of the strange man who saved her life, but Anna soon learns that meeting Jed was no coincidence.
As Anna is drawn into Jed's dangerous world and a feud three thousand years in the making, she must come to terms with her own secrets and decide what she will do, when they come calling.

Amazon • B&N • Goodreads 

You can check out more of my cover design work at Seedlings Design Studio!