In a Treacherous Court by Michelle Diener

In a Treacherous Court by Michelle Diener(Cover picture courtesy of Michelle Diener’s website.)

1525: Artist Susanna Horenbout is sent from Belgium to be Henry VIII’s personal illuminator inside the royal palace.  But her new homeland greets her with an attempt on her life, and the King’s most lethal courtier, John Parker, is charged with keeping her safe.  As further attacks are made, Susanna and Parker realize that she unknowingly carries the key to a bloody plot against the throne.  For while Richard de la Pole amasses troops in France for a Yorkist invasion, a traitor prepares to trample the kingdom from within.

Who is the mastermind?  Why are men vying to kill the woman Parker protects with his life?  With a motley gang of urchins, Susanna’s wits, and Parker’s fierce instincts, honed on the streets and in palace chambers, the two slash through deadly layers of deceit in a race against time.  For in the court of Henry VIII, secrets are the last to die…

Brilliantly revealing a little-known historical figure who lived among the Tudors, Michelle Diener makes a smashing historical fiction debut.

[Full disclosure: I requested a review copy from Michelle Diener and was sent a free physical copy in exchange for an honest review.]

As much as I’ve read about the Tudors I never actually heard of Susanna Horenbout or John Parker.  It’s strange because you’d have thought that a female illuminator would be mentioned frequently (if only because it was such a rarity) but Susanna really hasn’t been recognized by history.  Michelle Diener meant to remedy that in this book.

Susanna is an amazing character.  I like how she’s constantly trying to prove herself in a world where men don’t really believe she is a talented artist.  It’s not a typical girl empowerment story so much as a very realistic portrayal of the attitudes of the time.  At the same time, Susanna loves her art.  She loves to draw and paint and she’s good at it.  Inspiration strikes her at odd times but she’s not your typical day-dreaming artist either.

She has a good head on her shoulders and she’s more than a match for the cunning, somewhat ruthless John Parker.  John Parker is also a fascinating character.  His horrible childhood combined with his ruthless determination to serve King Henry VIII would make him interesting enough, but it’s his change in personality caused by Susanna that really makes him memorable.  Both characters change as they spend more and more time in each others’ company.

The plot was very fast-paced, but obviously not at the expense of character development.  There’s assassins lurking behind every corner, romantic intrigue aplenty as well as plots that strike at the heart of England’s court.  Michelle Diener did fabricate some of the details but in her note at the end I liked how she justified her decisions to change history just a little bit.  She blended history and speculation together perfectly and it all came together in a great novel.

From the moment you read the first sentence, you’re sucked back in time.  From its filthy streets to the hostile/merry court of Henry VIII you feel like you’re right there with Susanna and John.  You feel their emotions as their own, especially their pain, love and determination.  I can’t honestly speak to the total historical accuracy of In a Treacherous Court but I can tell you that the major details are accurate and Michelle Diener certainly created a very authentic feeling with the details of daily life in Tudor England.  That’s what’s really important in historical fiction.

Basically, this was a great debut novel and I can’t wait to read about the rest of Susanna and John’s adventures.

I give this book 5/5 stars.

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The Forever Song by Julie Kagawa

The Forever Song by Julie Kagawa(Cover picture courtesy of (un)Conventional Bookviews.)

VENGEANCE WILL BE HERS

Allison Sekemoto once struggled with the question: human or monster?

With the death of her love, Zeke, she has her answer.

MONSTER

Allie will embrace her cold vampire side to hunt down and end Sarren, the psychopathic vampire who murdered Zeke. But the trail is bloody and long, and Sarren has left many surprises for Allie and her companions—her creator, Kanin, and her blood brother, Jackal. The trail is leading straight to the one place they must protect at any cost—the last vampire-free zone on Earth, Eden. And Sarren has one final, brutal shock in store for Allie.

In a ruined world where no life is sacred and former allies can turn on you in one heartbeat, Allie will face her darkest days. And if she succeeds, triumph is short-lived in the face of surviving forever alone.

[Full disclosure: I received a free ebook copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]

I seriously had my doubts about Julie Kagawa being able to end her Blood of Eden trilogy well.  It’s a very complicated world with more problems than you can count so how could she possibly come to a satisfying conclusion?  Even when reading it I had my doubts but I didn’t need to.  Julie Kagawa pulled it off once again.

I’m seriously impressed.  With that horrible cliffhanger at the end of The Eternity Cure I was very anxious about getting my hands on the final book.  Allison is still brooding from Zeke’s death and she’s turning into the monster that her brother Jackal is, the kind of vampire Kanin tried to prevent her from becoming.  I can’t go into much detail without some major spoilers but let’s just say Allie’s true colours show through when she finally decides what kind of vampire she wants to be.

The plot is insane.  There are so many twists and turns that I could barely keep up.  Some were completely unexpected whereas others were fairly predictable but overall it was an exciting, surprising plot.  The ending wasn’t abrupt in the way that some authors end trilogies, but instead there was a nice detailed epilogue that gives you an idea of what will happen to this horrifying world of humans, vampires and rabids.  There is, of course, a little ambiguity left but I was satisfied by the fact that most loose ends were tied off.

As usual, the characters were amazing.  Allie changed so much over the course of the story and we learned quite a bit about Kanin and Jackal.  All the characters that the plot centered around were well-developed and I really connected with them on a deeper level compared to the previous books.  I was honestly very surprised about how connected I felt to the characters because I haven’t been emotionally involved in a book for at least a month now.  It was a nice change.

Basically, if you’ve read the previous two books you’re going to love The Forever Song.  I know I did.  So go ahead and pre-order it!  It releases on April 15 of this year.

I give this book 5/5 stars.

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Andromeda’s Fall by Abigail Owen

b1cc9-andromedasfall_ebooklg(Cover picture courtesy of Masquerade Tours.)

Mountain lion shifters have allied into ten groups called Dares which together form the Shadowcat Nation. A rocky alliance at best, its success is vital to their survival against other species of shifters who threaten their very existence.

Andie Reynolds is being hunted. After witnessing her mother’s violent death at the hands of a pack of wolf shifters, Andie has devoted her life to protecting her community of cougar shifters from a similar fate. But now, a greater threat lies within her own dare, and she must run. If she stays, Kyle Carstairs will try to force their Mating, seeking the added power their union would provide.

Andie would rather chew off her own foot than end up with Kyle. Though, knowing him, she won’t live long either way. Andie’s only hope of survival is to Mate the Alpha of the Keller Dare with which she is seeking asylum. But before she can get to him, Andie must first go through A.J., one of the Alpha’s Protectors. The incredibly frustrating shifter insists on challenging her story, her skills, her trust… and her heart.

Andie is running out of options and out of time. But risking the life of someone she loves – just to save herself – goes against every instinct she has.

[Full disclosure: I received a free ebook copy through the Andromeda’s Fall blog tour in exchange for an honest review.]

I was quite pleasantly surprised by Andromeda’s Fall.  It was my first real shapeshifter book so I didn’t quite know what to expect but I’m definitely pleased with how the book turned out.

First off, the characters are awesome.  Andie is probably one of my favourite heroines in paranormal romance because she’s just an incredible woman.  She’s a high-ranking female in a world where high-ranking females are few and far between.  At the same time, not many people recognize and/or respect her power.  They still see her as just a woman in her old dare, which is why I like how Andie is allowed to show her real self in the Keller Dare.  Her uncertainty of her position in the new dare as well as her growing feelings for A.J. certainly make things interesting plot-wise.  But the thing I liked most about Andromeda’s Fall is how she slowly comes to realize that the Keller Dare is her new home and that maybe, just maybe, she’s found where she really belongs.

The world-building in this book was excellent.  I like how Abigail Owen had the characters maintain some of their cat-like personalities while in human form.  Cougar shifters don’t like being cooped up and they certainly prefer their own company in human form, creating just that extra bit of tension for the novel.  Not a lot of authors do this, but I liked how there was just a brief one page introduction to the history of the formation of the cougar dares before the novel even started.  It wasn’t an info-dump, but rather it gave us important background information that was just enough to get the story started.  I don’t think an intro like that should be used often, but it definitely worked for this book.

The plot was incredibly fast-paced considering that this novel was largely character-driven.  Abigail Owen played A.J. and Andie off each other well, heightening the character tension while at the same time, having external forces try to keep them apart.  By the end you’re really wondering whether they’re going to end up together or not, but I won’t spoil the ending by telling you how it turns out.  I will tell you, however, that the ending is very satisfying.

In short, even if paranormal romances aren’t really your thing, you’ll probably like Andromeda’s Fall.  This was an excellent book and I can’t wait to see how the rest of the series plays out.

I give this book 5/5 stars.

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*Not available.

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As a bonus for the tour there’s a giveaway for a $40 Amazon gift card or PayPal cash!  It’s open internationally.  All you have to do is click the Rafflecopter link below to get started on entering.  But hurry!  The giveaway ends on April 7.

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My Interview with John Heldt (3)

John HeldtJohn Heldt is the author of the now-finished Northwest Passage series (The Mine, The Journey, The Show, The Fire and The Mirror).  This five-book series was his writing debut and they all focus on time travel and romance during some very exciting times in American history.  Read on to see our discussion about men writing from women’s points of view, saying goodbye to a series and what he would do differently now that’s he’s finished the series.

 

1. You’ve lived and breathed the Northwest Passage series for years. What’s it like to say goodbye to the series?

Like other authors who have parted with a series, I have mixed emotions. I’m excited about starting a new series but sad to see this one go. I grew attached to the characters and their stories and believe I could have done more with them. One of the things I enjoyed most about writing The Show and The Mirror, in particular, is that I was able to build on a previous book. I look forward to doing more of the same in future series.

2. Of all of the times you could have set The Mirror, why did you specifically choose 1964?

I chose 1964 because it offered opportunities that other years did not. Like 1941 in The Mine, it was a transitional year that was firmly rooted in two distinctly different decades.
Though music, fashion, and cars from the late fifties were everywhere, so were signs of coming change – particularly social change. With a presidential election, the Gulf of Tonkin incident, the Civil Rights Act, the Mississippi Burning tragedy, and the Beatles’ first North American tour, the year was also historically significant.

3. In the series you decided never to go into the nitty-gritty scientific explanation for time travel. Why?

Writing novels involves making choices, setting priorities, and acknowledging limits.

I decided at the start I would treat time travel as fantasy, rather than science fiction, because I wanted to put the focus on people and not machines. The thing I liked best about the Back to the Future series was not the DeLorean or the flux capacitor but rather how Marty McFly interacted with his ancestors. I wanted readers to see themselves not as scientists who volunteered for a highly technical time-travel mission but rather ordinary people who involuntarily traveled back in time by stepping into the wrong gold mine or restroom or haunted house.

4. Three out of five of the books you wrote have predominantly female viewpoints.
As a male writer, was it challenging for you to write from a female POV? What was
challenging about it?

For the most part, it wasn’t challenging at all. I grew up with sisters and female friends. I have a wife and two daughters, including one who is the same age as the twins in The Mirror. I’ve known strong, articulate, and resourceful women my whole life. Writing about such women in the Northwest Passage series was relatively easy. That said, I made a point of enlisting the help of several women in preparing each of the novels. Their assistance in making sure I got things right was invaluable.

5. Can you give us a hint about any future writing projects you’re taking on?

I have already started work on the next project, a five-book series of time-travel novels that will be structured much like the Northwest Passage series. My protagonists will interact with their ancestors in the not-so-distant past of twentieth-century America. The difference is that the protagonists in the new series will pass through a common time portal and travel beyond the Pacific Northwest.

6. Looking back on the series, was there anything you would have done differently either writing-wise or marketing-wise?

Yes. I would have written The Mine, The Show, and The Mirror as a trilogy and written
The Journey and The Fire as a separate series. I would have also paid more attention to point of view and description issues in the early books and perhaps made better use of advertising options in the first year. For the most part, however, I would have done things exactly the same. It’s been fun.

Cover Reveal: Prophecy of the Most Beautiful by Diantha Jones

The Oracle of Delphi series is one that I’ve loved for over a year.  That’s why I chose to do this cover reveal for Diantha Jones’ awesome new cover for her first book!  I loved the original cover of Prophecy of the Most Beautiful but this one is excellent as well.  Enough of my rambling; here’s the new cover and blurb:

Prophecy of the Most Beautiful by Diantha Jones

She has a destiny so great that even the gods fear her.

Constant hallucinations and the frequent conversations with the voices in her head, have earned eighteen-year-old Chloe Clever the not-so-coveted title of “Whack Job” in her home town of Adel, Georgia. With the onslaught of prescription medications and therapists threatening to push her over the edge, she wishes for a life far away from the one she has, a life where she is destined to be more than the butt of everyone’s jokes and mockery.

Be careful what you wish for has never rung more true.

After living through an attack from her worst nightmare, she awakens to find herself far from home, surrounded by glorious riches and servants…and a few demigods who enjoy killing things. Upon learning that her favorite rockstar is an Olympian god, she is thrust into her new life as the Oracle of Delphi, the prophesier of the future, and the great Pythia that the gods have been anxiously awaiting to arrive for centuries. Setting out to fulfill the prophecy she has been given and to keep her family safe from a demigod Princess that wants her dead, Chloe learns of how great she is to become, all the while fighting mythical monsters, evading divine assassins and trying to outwit the ever-cunning Greek gods who harbor secrets of their own. In the hopes of discovering the Most Beautiful and the truth of her destiny, she strives to uncover the mysteries of the demigod Prince who has sworn to protect her with his life…and threatens to win her heart in the process.

Isn’t it gorgeous?  I love how the 12 Zodiac signs are included in the design because they become very important in the series.  And of course we have the awesome protagonist, Chloe, as the main attraction.  For my review of the first book (and a glimpse at what the original cover looked like), click here.

Diantha JonesDiantha was born on Thanksgiving Day so that explains why her mother calls her a “turkey.” She spent the first 16 years of her life as an official Army brat (now she’s a retired one), and has spent the last twelve years living in Georgia (Atlanta, then Savannah). She now resides in Washington D.C. She loves to read and watch movies (Quentin Tarantino is her fave director), and she loves cold weather and french fries (with cheese if possible).