2010, Here I come

Happy New Year to all my fellow book chicks. If you are drinking tonight, please pass your keys to your designated driver. When you wake up ALIVE tommorrow, you'll thank yourself! I'm not going out this year, there are too many crazies out tonight. I'll stay home and get shit faced with a never ending blender of margaritas. LOL! I don't drink often, but on holidays and special occasions I like to have a good time. I wanted egg nog but every store I went to was out. Oh well...

I've been telling myself that I will do better in 2010, so here are a few things I will be working on:

1. Saving more money-with me working two jobs, I should be able to do this. But, as
always, more money, more problems
2. Lose some weight-this may be a little hard to do since I love to stuff my face
3. Make more time for myself-I rarely ever just stop doing everything and relax
4. Learn how to focus on one day at a time-I've always had four to five things going
at one time. I can barely keep up with all my activities.
5. Find a good man(and stay away from scrubs)-I'm 32 but still looking for my Mr.
Right, getting a little tired of Mr. Right Now. I have so many issues with
scrubs, and speaking of scrubs, listen to these two throwbacks-No Scrubs and Guess What

Dueces...

Seduce Me In Shadow by Shayla Black

Five stars

Caden MacTavish, an ex Marine who has shunned his magical heritage and English roots for a life in the States. His brother Lucan chose to stay in their homeland and embraced it, but Caden hopes that the magical gene has skipped him altogether because he wants no part of magickind. But when Sabelle Rion, a powerful witch comes to tell him of Lucan's illness, he fears that magic is about to take over his life.

Sabelle and her brother Bram, who is Lucan's best friend, have tried to care for his brother but fear he is on his death bed. Lucan's mate was brutally taken from him and is still missing. Lucan is mad with grief and must be restrained to avoid killing someone in his violent rage. His condition is getting worst by the minute, but Caden has a new problem-his own magic is slowly beginning to reveal itself. His life is quickly going to Hell in a hand basket.

While caring for his brother, Caden must take his brother's place in The Doomsday Brethren, a band of warriors sworn to protect magickind and the Doomsday Diary, a magical book that can bring about mass destruction. To make matters worst, the book was stolen and resurfaced in the hands of a human taboloid reporter and Caden has the task of retrieving it by seducing it away from her.

Sydney Blair is a reporter who knows shes on the verge of uncovering the story of the century. With the help of her anonymous source, a supposed witch that was raped and tortured by an evil wizard bent on taking over magickind, she's sure to win the praise she seeks. She'll do anything to be the first to scoop the strange happenings that no one else seems to be aware of.

When Caden shows up as her super hot new photographer, she is blinded with desire and would give anything to have him strip her naked. Despite her constant flirting and attention grabbing wardrobe, he shows her no interest beyond a professional relationship. He only seems to be interested in her mysterious source and the little red book she recently acquired.

The the little diary was given to her as a birthday present and is supposed to grant any sexual fantasy written on it's pages. Sydney doesn't believe it, but on a sleepless night with wild fantasies about Caden dancing around in her head, she writes her fantasy in the book and waits. Not only does she bring Caden to her bed, but an evil wizard who'd love to show her first hand what playing with magic can do.

Unaware that Syndney has written in the Doomsday Diary about him, Caden has already been trying hard to resist her. With his magical transition on it's way, he thinks of no one but her. Everything about her makes him want to Call to her (magical wedding vows) but given his brother's situation, and Sydney's dangerous obsession with magickind, he knows that their mating could only lead to disaster.

Like the other two in the Doomsday Brethren series, book two did not disappoint. I just wish I'd read it before I read book three, Possess Me At Midnight. Caden and Sydney's story was great. Sydney was a little annoying at first but I ended up liking her in the end. Caden, who wouldn't love him. The only thing I didn't like was the reference to his tight jeans. I do not-repeat-do not like a man in tight jeans. Doesn't that cut off their circulation or something? That cannot be comfortable, especially if they have a lot of junk to put in those jeans. Not to say that I like bagging jeans down to the ass, I just want the balls to be able to breathe!

I liked this book and gave it five stars because once I started reading it, I didn't want to put it down. I wanted to see what happened and didn't want to wait. It's becoming rare to find books that make you want to read the entire story rather than skim through it to get to the good parts.

Besides the developing romance of Caden and Sydney, there was also the beginning attraction of Sabelle and Ice. Anka was found and Lucan got better. The reason she chose to be Shock instead of Lucan was made clear. I don't think Shock is that bad of a guy even though he's playing both sides. If push came to shove, I think he'd side with the Brethren simply because of his love for Anka and what Matthias did to her. Oh, I wrote earlier that I was going to find out about the mind rape thing. Matthias is such an evil bastard that he kidnaps women, and forces them to have sex with him. If they are mated, he forces them to break their bond with their mate. He puts a spell on them so they know they are being repeated raped but their bodies are aroused and do whatever sexual act he asks them to do. Once he's finished, if he doesn't kill her, he passes her on to his soldiers to do whatever they like. Talk about some sick shit!

Shayla Black is a badass writer. If you haven't read her work, you are seriously missing out. I have enjoyed all three of her books. I still have to read the short story, Fated, which is FREE to download. The story takes place between book one and two. Her next book won't out until November 2010. (sigh) The plus side of that is that she'll be putting out back to back books. Book four in November and book five in December. Woohoo!

Tempt Me With Darkness by Shayla Black

Five Stars

I am loving me some Shayla Black.This is book one in her Doomsday Brethren series. I recently read book three, Possess Me At Midnight, and needed to get the first two books. I bought this one as an e book from Barnes and Nobles because I couldn't find it in my regular book spots and didn't want the hassle of trying to hunt it down. It was quick and easy and cost less than if I had bought it in paperback.

Marrok of Cadbury is an immortal who has lived fifteen miserable centuries. He was cursed by a powerful and vengeful witch named Morganna le fay for being the ultimate playboy. Because he refused to love her, Morganna cursed him with immortality without love or the ability to enjoy pleasure with another woman. He can have as much sex as he wants, but he never orgasms. Geez, some of us have been faking it for years, but I beat it's a bitch for a guy that can't get off! Talk about a major case of blue balls-no, a never ending case of blue balls!

Anyway, Morganna cursed him by using the Doomsday Diary, a mythical book that is suppose to grant any wish written on it's pages. It is also said that in the wrong hands,the book's powerful magic could lead to Doomsday. Thing about the book is that it was created to give only females ultimate power so it can never be used by a male. They may possess it, but can never harness it's power.

Marrok succeed in stealing the book centuries ago but has never discovered how to use the book to end his curse. Centuries of life has taken it's toll on Marrok so he lives alone, carving beautiful works of art and awaiting the day that he can finally die in peace.

Olivia Gray is a gallery owner looking for a great artist to keep her business afloat. She could also use the extra cash so she can continue her search for a father she has never met.

Olivia has always been different but until she meets Marrok, she has no idea what deadly skeletons are in her family's closet. She goes from being a simple unloved American girl to a witch from the powerful bloodline that cursed Marrok. On top of that, she has a striking resemblance to her ancestor Morganna. She has no idea that opening up this can of worms could cost her her life and the lives of anyone around her.

Marrok and Olivia are thrown together by Bram Rion, a powerful wizard who has a hidden agenda for pairing the two up. Marrok is furious that he has to endure Olivia because he believes that she is Morganna and still trying to make him suffer for not returning her love. He has no idea what "Morganna" has in store for him, but does not want to play her games anymore. She will release him from his curse-willingly or forcefully.

Olivia is confused because she doesn't know her father or his family and is clueless about her magical abilities. She is fearful of Marrok and doesn't understand why he keeps calling her the wrong name. If he wasn't so damn gorgeous and talented, she probably wouldn't waste her time with him. Despite their obvious distrust of each other, they find themselves mysteriously drawn to each other.

I loved this book. Marrok and Olivia's story was so sweet. SB is a great story teller and all of her books have drawn me in. Her heroes are cave men and irritating as hell. Sometimes they are so clueless about relationships that you just want to kick them in their balls and enjoy their pain. They could use a lot of instructions on how to court their females, but that's have the fun. Once they find their mates and speak the binding words (much like wedding vows), they become the most lovable males you'd ever see and learn very quickly how to please their women. They also become possessive as hell, but who wouldn't want to be possessed by these fearless warriors?

I loved all the characters. SB creates a modern world with a touch of old world mythical magic. I've never really been into wizards and witches or anything magical, but this series has changed my mind. I've read a couple of books with fairies, but that's about it. I'll take a break from my vampires, werewolves, and shape shifters to check out other books involving magical beings. These books have proven to be just as entertaining..

I'm on to book number two, Seduce Me In Shadow, and hope it will be as good as book one and three.

Merry Christmas

 

Merry Christmas to all my fellow book chicks! Santa is on his way to my house. I hope he has everything that I asked for, if not, I might have to jack him up!

Yep, I'm a book whore

Why can't I keep my attention on one book at a time? They are all so good that I just can't stay faithful to one before I get turned on to the next one. LOL! I laughed until I cried when I thought about that one.

I have two books on my BIR (books I'm reading) shelf, about five on my TBR (to be read) list, and I stopped at Wal-Mart, after work today, to get a new one. I downloaded two new ebooks from Barnes and Noble last night. Then I stayed up until 3am trying to start reading one of them. Keep in mind that I had to be at work at 9:30 this morning.

Possess Me At Midnight by Shayla Black

Five Stars

Book Summary
As a mysterious dark cloud drains the life of her beloved brother, Doomsday Brethren leader Bram, Sabelle Rion can think of little else. Still, every time she meets Ice Rykard's intense green gaze, her body aches with need for the sexy warrior. Their attraction is explosive, incredible-and forbidden. As dangerous as he is unpredictable, Ice is her brother's sworn enemy. But as Bram weakens, a more sinister force is gaining power.

Evil Mathias and his ruthless Anarki army are on a bloodthirsty hunt for the Doomsday Diary. Sabelle must guard the potent book with her life-and Ice vows to protect the beautiful witch with his. Duty demands that Sabelle deny her lover's fiery call of possession and mate with a man who can sway the magical Council against the impending rebellion. With the fate of magickind hanging in the balance, will she forsake the burning desires she can't ignore or turn her back on her people for the courageous man she can't resist?

The story centers around Sabelle who is Merlin's (yeah, Merlin the magician) granddaughter. Sabelle is the dutifull sister and friend that steps in and saves the day no matter what the cost is to herself.

She's busy caring for her brother, Bram, and his best friend, Lucan. Both men are members of the Doomsday Bretheren, a band of warriors who are sworn to protect all of magickind from Matthias, an evil murderous magician who wants be the supreme ruler. He will brutally kill anyone who gets in his way. He has placed Bram under a spell that is slowly killing him and he kidnapped (and mind raped) Lucan's mate Anka. After her ordeal, she is no longer the same person and has abandoned Lucan to seek another lover.

Losing a mate can make a wizard go insane with grief. If the person in mourning is not taken care of sexually (this gives them energy), they will die. Sabelle is the only person brave enough to assist the deranged wizard in his time of need. She provides him with sex to restores his energy. Yeah, in their world, sexually healing is the only cure.

Now that Lucan is better, things between he and Sabelle have become a little awkward. She not sure if Lucan is really interested in her or still using her to get over Anka. Things are especially awkward with Ice Rykard staring her down with all out lust and possession written all over his face.

Ice Rykard is a fellow Doomsday warrior who comes off as a deranged killer and is Bram's sworn enemy. Even thought they fight for the same cause, none of the other wizards trust him and Bram has been given strict orders for him to stay the hell away from his sister. Despite his known dislike for her brother, Ice makes it obvious that he wants Sabelle. Both Sabelle and Ice know that Bram will never allow them to be together, but neither can deny their sizzling attraction.

This is my first book by Shayla Black, but the third book in her Doomsday Brethren novels. I was so into this book that I couldn't put it down. At first I wanted Sabelle to be with Lucan because he had been so hurt by Anka's rejection, but then you see that he would never love her the way she deserved.

You don't want her to be with Ice because he's suppose to be crazy and Bram has warned her about him, but then you see how he treats her. It's so clear that he obviously loves her. He may not be the best choice of men for her but he is the one.
Possess Me At Midnight was the perfect title for this book. Once you read about their first night together, you'll see why.

I loved the fact that Ice was a warrior when he needed to be, and a sweetheart when his woman needed him to be. He was so in love with her, that he would have stepped aside and let her mate with someone else if that's what made her happy. He always put her needs above his own, no matter what.

Bram and Lucan were such SOBs. I wanted Ice to kick both of their asses. Bram was perfectly fine with his friend using Sabelle for his own sexual needs. He didn't care if thefre was love between them or not. He only cared about keeping his ass safe. Anyone could see the love still between Lucan and Anka and everyone knew that Sabelle could not replace what or come close to what the two of them shared. I still think maybe those two will get back together in the future.

I have got to read her first two novels to find out WTF is going on with this mind rape thing and this mate mourning. I got the gist of it in this book, but need the full understanding. Aside from that, I did really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone. All of her books are going on my TBR (To be read) list because her books are off the chain.

Doomsday Brethren Novels
Tempt Me With Darkness-Book 1 Read the first chapter
Seduce Me In Shadow-Book 2 Read the first chapter
Fated-e-novella FREE download

Reading Meltdown

I have been MIA for awhile because I am having a book meltdown. I have been trying to get to my TBR (To Be Read) pile, but I keep picking up older books so that I can catch up with the new books in the series. I feel lost because I don't know who all the characters are or who's doin' who.

I've had Shadowlight by Lynn Viehl on my BIM (Books I'm Reading) shelf for way to long but since it's a first in the series, I won't have to back track when I finally get back to it. I started it, then another book, and another book, and another book, and another caught my eye so I didn't get a chance to finish. I think I'm going to have to start over because it's been so long and I've read so many other books that I can't recall what I've already read.

Right now, I'm trying to track down all the Carpathian Dark Novels by Christine Feehan. I started reading the latest Dark Slayer, but they kept mentioning this person and that person and I was like "Who in the world is this?", so I stopped and started with the first book, Dark Prince. I love the books but there are so many of them. So far their are 20 books in the series. If you've got to wait a few months to get your hands on a long awaited book by your fav author (not to name names but-J R Ward, Kresley Cole, Shelly Laurenston and Charlaine Harris), these books can keep you occupied. She also has three other series that are on my TBR list.

Each Carpathian Dark book is worth a read but her editor (or lack of) sucks. Her first books are good reads but full of repetition. She does a good job describing her alphas (hot, sexy, and dominating), but she does it over and over. I just wanted her to get on with the story.

I have also created a BTG (Books To Get) list and it gets longer everyday. I'll probably end up in Reading Rehab. I'm so addicted. I just can't pass up a book. I've got tons of books that I've bought and have been on the shelf for months because I can't get to them. I will definitely have to get one of those electronic readers (Nook or Kindle) because I don't think a book shelf could hold all the books that I'd like to have. I haven't decided which one I'll get but I like to look at things and try them out in the store before I spend so it probably won't be a Kindle.