The Shadow Wand by Laurie Forest

You guys, the cover for THE SHADOW WAND has been revealed and I think I just fainted a bit. 

HER WORLD-ALTERING SECRET CAN’T BE HIDDEN MUCH LONGER

Elloren Gardner hides the most powerful secret in all Erthia—she is the Black Witch of Prophecy, and destined to triumph…or be used as the ultimate weapon of destruction.

Separated from everyone she loves, isolated and hunted, Elloren must turn to the last person she can trust—her fastmate, Commander Lukas Grey. With the Mage forces of Gardneria poised to conquer all of Erthia, Elloren has no choice but to ally with Lukas and combine their power to keep herself out of the hands of Gardnerian leader Marcus Vogel…the holder of the all-consuming Shadow Wand.

With just weeks to train to become a warrior, and no control over her magic, Elloren finds unexpected allies among those under orders to kill her. It’s time to step up. To fight back. And to forge onward through the most devastating loss yet.

Grab it here!

        

Laurie's precious look so amazing together! 

Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa.

Synopsis

One thousand years ago, the great Kami Dragon was summoned to grant a single terrible wish—and the land of Iwagoto was plunged into an age of darkness and chaos.

Now, for whoever holds the Scroll of a Thousand Prayers, a new wish will be granted. A new age is about to dawn.

Raised by monks in the isolated Silent Winds temple, Yumeko has trained all her life to hide her yokai nature. Half kitsune, half human, her skill with illusion is matched only by her penchant for mischief. Until the day her home is burned to the ground, her adoptive family is brutally slain and she is forced to flee for her life with the temple’s greatest treasure—one part of the ancient scroll.

There are many who would claim the dragon’s wish for their own. Kage Tatsumi, a mysterious samurai of the Shadow Clan, is one such hunter, under orders to retrieve the scroll…at any cost. Fate brings Kage and Yumeko together. With a promise to lead him to the scroll, an uneasy alliance is formed, offering Yumeko her best hope for survival. But he seeks what she has hidden away, and her deception could ultimately tear them both apart.

With an army of demons at her heels and the unlikeliest of allies at her side, Yumeko’s secrets are more than a matter of life or death. They are the key to the fate of the world itself.

Review:

Yumeko goes from living in a calm, sheltered temple to fight demons in order to save her life and fulfill a dangerous task. A kitsune (half fox), she is given a powerful scroll to take to safety before it falls in the wrong hands.
A samurai on a mission who lives in constant risk of losing his soul to a powerful sword joins her and protects her, unaware of her true nature and that she carries with her what he seeks.
A ronin, a priestess and an aristocrat join her along the way, but the lies Yumeko has spun to protect herself and her mission put her at risk of losing it all.
There is action from beginning to end and humor, mostly courtesy of Yumeko's charming innocence and a sassy Ronin.
The ending left me with a hanging jaw, I did not see it coming at all!
The mythology and descriptions are beautiful, unique. I absolutely love the depictions of the Imperial Palace and quaint little towns.
I am keeping my fingers crossed that Yumeko chooses the sassy guy instead of the one who can't decide if he likes or wants to kill her, we'll see.
I am anxious to read the next book, Soul of the Sword.

Grab Shadow of the Fox.
Ebook: https://amzn.to/2IN3bZ0 
Paperback: https://amzn.to/2Me6CdD

The Witch's Ambitions Trilogy by Kayla Krantz

Get 3 awesome fantasy novels by the talented Kayla Krantz for only $1.99

See how it all ends in the final installment of The Witch’s Ambitions Trilogy, set to release 8/15

After joining the Elemental Coven, young witch Lilith’s eyes were opened to the truth that the Council has always been desperate to keep hidden. With only two Covens still standing, Lilith’s world is in real danger of collapsing and so is the Elemental Coven. After a mysterious illness begins to infect the Coven, witches are dying and not even coven leader Willow’s power of resurgence is enough to save them.

After the Battle of the Grove destroys Lilith’s good leg, and her ability to walk, she faces an internal war about her future that consumes her, dragging her further and further into the darkness. Willow is desperate to help Lilith find the light because Lilith isn’t just her sister, she is the Elemental Coven’s last hope of survival. As the Sage’s ex-apprentice, Lilith is the only witch capable of taking down the ancient ruler. 

As the war destroys the last of the covens, Lilith knows there is only one way to end the chaos for good—a final showdown against the Sage that only one of them will walk away from.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07S4GTVD7/

Get the rest of the series for free!

Just click on the images.

 

Movie Night: Captain Marvel

Captain Marvel Review

So, I finally did it, and I am so happy! #Captainmarvel is everything I ever wanted and more. 

I was hooked from the start thanks to the action which always gets my attention, but what sold me was Carol's sass. I LOVE me some sass and the girl's got it. 

 

The Skrulls are quite interesting, their shapeshifting abilities are fantastic and the special effects were completely on point. There is an unmistakable parallel between the war wagging among Kree and Skrulls with the conflict of our day and age. One faction trying to suppress the other by any means necessary, crying out terrorism when one side refuses to become absorbed by a powerful empire.

The chemistry on screen between Brie Larson and Samuel L Jackson was perfect. One of my favorite elements of the movie has to be them sassing each other. 

I love the relationship between Maria and Carol, how their friendship survives years of separation. Not to mention Maria is a total badass, a single mother, a great pilot, a voice of reason. We all need a friend like Maria. Although I must confess I totally ship them.

I got chills when this moment came. 

Now, I find it impossible to talk about this movie and not mention the controversy, the commentaries I came across on social media ranged from negative to downright misogynistic. And despite myself, I started to wonder if there was any truth behind the most common complaints.  
*"Brie Larson was a bad choice!" Erm, no. I knew she could pull off strong emotion after watching The Room and her acting was on point. 
*"She shows no emotion." Yet another lie prolonged by the smart edits done to show clips or pictures in the ones Carol is either holding back an emotion or simply not smiling. Oh, and she does smile btw, just not all the time because she is a warrior caught in the middle of a battle between two alien races, not a beauty queen.
*"Too much feminism." Not at all, it was perfectly balanced. There are no cringy lines about girl power or anything like. Carol is an unapologetic badass, a hero, her motivations are not based on any sort of romantic entanglements, so I guess that displeased some.

I was so satisfied with the way Captain Marvel portrayed a female hero. No over-sexualization, I had no idea how much I needed that until now. Brie is beautiful, and it's obvious, but there are no long pannings of her body to show off her curves, no oops-I'm-half-naked scene, no flirting to get out of a dangerous situation. 
While she does display intense emotion several times, there's no hysterical crying/screaming scene. Not all females become over-emotional when under pressure, and it needed to be shown. 

The most powerful scene in the movie ^

Overall, a great movie. I thought no movie could beat Captain America as a superhero origin movie, but I was proven wrong. The Stan Lee cameo and homage were beautiful. 

If you haven't watched Captain Marvel, you need to! And you can rent or buy it here with the extra content that is soooooooo worth it:

Buy with bonus content: https://amzn.to/2IFTsmm

Rent: https://amzn.to/2KfP2pP

Peter Green and the Unliving Academy by Angelina Allsop

Synopsis:

Fourteen-year-old Peter Green can’t remember how he died.

All he has are his pajamas, a silk tie, and a one-way bus ticket to Mrs. Battisworth’s Academy and Haven for Unliving Boys and Girls, a strange and spooky school for dead orphans like himself. But that’s all he needs: the Unliving Academy has everything, from vampires in the hallways, to monsters in the cafeteria, to ghosts in the basement.

And that’s just the teachers; the students are far stranger.

As Pete learns to fit in with his new supernatural schoolmates, he starts to discover his own uniquely undead abilities, and even begins enjoying his life after death…but he just can’t shake the feeling that he’s forgotten something (or somebody!) important. 

Somebody he left behind in the land of the living.

Somebody he loved very much.

Somebody who’s in terrible danger. 

Rating: 5 Stars

Review:

So I was looking for something different, something to get me out of a funk and this book has most definitely achieved that. With the Academy feel of Harry Potter and the crazy action of Percy Jackson, Peter Green and the Unliving Academy has earned its rightful place among my favorite books.

Pete is easy to relate to, bit awkward and can't talk to girls without forgetting his name. And memory is one of his main issues, he's forgotten something important but doesn't know why. The clues are scarce and he has to rely on instinct and the sporadic visions of a girl with brown eyes he wants to keep safe.

Fortunately, he makes friends with unique skills who help him navigate this new life, and he starts feeling more alive than ever even though he's technically dead. 

A charming book with a unique world and endearing characters that made me laugh and cry. I can't wait to see what comes next for Pete and company.

Take a peek here: https://amzn.to/2HT0zZB

Thanks to Maria Inot from TCK Publishing for the ARC! 

http://www.tckpublishing.com/

Phoenyx in Flames by Daisy St. James

Synopsis

As a child, Jane heard voices. Felt what others could feel. 

She was witness to the things that went bump in the night and could tell a person's deepest, darkest thoughts with only a touch. Until tragedy changed her life completely, thrusting her into the care of Hutton Grimshaw.

Esteemed chair member of The Order of the Flame, Hutton does what he must. Training young Jane to be the one thing the shadows feared. Now, at the age of twenty-five, she is known as Phoenyx, the world's deadliest supernatural assassin. 

The hard and fast rules change when she finds Judas, a vampire, suffering in a back alley with no memory of who he is, or why he's becoming more and more human every day. With a price on her head and the survival of humanity at stake, Phoenyx finds herself . . . Changing. Her true nature is slowly beginning to reveal itself and mysteriously, Hutton is the only one who seems to know why. 

After years of taking down the supernatural beings that plague her hometown of Crystal Haven, Phoenyx finds herself teetering on the fine line between good and evil. While her attraction to Judas begins to consume her, growing like a fire out of control, one thing becomes undeniably clear . . . 

If you play with fire, you’re going to get burned.

***Contains mature subject matter, sexual content, 18+ readers only.*** 

Rating 4 stars

Review

Don't you just love an unapologetically badass female MC? I do, and Phoenix is just that. 
The secondary characters were great too, I love Cortez (demon) and I'm intrigued by Monroe (succubus).
There is no shortage of hot guys and steamy moments, and despite being fast-paced there was just enough description for me to fully imagine all the scenarios and characters.
There was enough action and mystery to keep me reading, I finished it in only two reading sessions.
Must confess I had a pretty good idea of what Phoenix would become near the end, but maybe that's because I have a similar character.
I'm intrigued by what comes next.

Take a look at Phoenix in Flames here: https://amzn.to/2LWPieL

THE CURSED KEY by Rebecca Hamilton and Miranda Brock

Synopsis:

A FORGOTTEN PAST, A DARK MAGE,

AND AN UNYIELDING CURSE.

Another team beat free-spirited archaeologist Olivia Perez to the dig of a lifetime, and now she’s left with the choice to wait for scraps or brave a dangerous, dusty tomb in hopes of finding other priceless artifacts. Her reward? A mysterious key she has no idea is cursed. Soon, Olivia realizes she’s brought home more than just an ancient rarity.

Malevolent visions begin to plague her. Unnerved by what they reveal, she casts away the key…unknowingly placing it into the waiting hands of a dark mage bent on destruction. Only when a shifter agent from the Paranormal Intelligence and Tracking Organization arrives searching for the key does Olivia realize what a huge mistake she’s made. 

Forced to team up with the ill-tempered shifter, her journey to reclaim the cursed key leads down a twisting path of dark histories, dangerous magic, and deadly obstacles. But Olivia’s efforts to take back the ancient relic before the dark mage can destroy the lives of humans, shifters, witches, and fae alike are thwarted by her own dark past…and a price steeper than what she’s willing to pay.

Fans of Tomb Raider and Ilona Andrews will love the blend of urban fantasy, magical adventure, and paranormal romance in THE CURSED KEY from Miranda Brock and New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Hamilton!

Get THE CURSED KEY HERE:

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2VZ37gE

Apple: https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-cursed-key/id1459894682

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-cursed-key 

Nook: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-cursed-key-miranda-brock/1131266178?ean=9781949112078 

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BEYOND THE BLACK - Through The Mirror

"Watch you spin in your veils of protection
Layer on layer of dark colors unwind
Shake them off but you never forget them
Show your scars to the mute and the blind

Only showin' your face to the lonely
Wear a mask for the masses so cold
Choosin' roads that are broken and stony
Let me tell you my dreams of our destiny

Speak to me, sing to me, bare your soul to me
Step through the mirror, join me inside
Run to me, stay with me, till eternity
Show me the face that you hide
You hide, oh"