Diva Mail (21)

Good morning bookish peeps.  I haven't done much blogging due to my insane work schedule and sheer laziness, but I promise I will pull my self back together and get with it.  I've decided to change my blog design AGAIN, so I've been working on that too.  I'm playing around with some images to see what I like best but I should have it ready some time next week.


Anyhoo, it's time to share what books I got last week.  In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.  It's a weekly meme sharing what bookish things you bought, borrowed, won, or received for review. 


I didn't get anything in the mail last week and after the blow up I had with the FedEx guy about leaving my mail wherever the hell he decided (ie my shady neighbor and my apartment manager's office-which is closed when I get home) instead of just leaving a little ticket for me to pick it up myself, I'm seriously thinking about getting a P O Box.

I did buy two books this week.  I started reading Archangel's Consort by Nalini Singh (third book in the Guild series), knowing that I hadn't read the first two in the series.  Imagine my surprise when I liked the book but was completely confused about who's who and what's really going on in the story's background.  So, I ordered Angel's Blood and Archangel's Kiss so I could catch up enjoy Raphael and Dmitri, my newest book boyfriends.  


That's it, so what did you get this week?

Sexy Saturday

Diva Mail (20)

Good morning, peeps.  I'm feeling kind of sluggish this morning after a six hour birthday party at Incredible Pizza.  Didn't get home until after 11 last night. I have been traumatized by screaming and pushing children that I vow to never step foot in that hell hole AGAIN.

Anyhoo, it's time to share what I got in the mail  last week.  In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.  It's a weekly meme sharing what bookish things you bought, borrowed, won, or received for review.  I only got one book in the mail this week.  I won The Pursuit Of Pleasure by Elizabeth Essex from Goodreads' First Read giveaway.  I have not read anything by this author, but the book cover is scandalous so I'm excited to crack it open.

I got Dead, Undead, Or Somewhere In Between by J A Saare last week and forgot to mention.  I've been dying to read this and got it Kindle ebook from Amazon (reading on my laptop) at 99 cents.   I've heard too much about Rhiannon and Disco and will find the time to love them.

I also got Red Glove by Holly Black (got to read White Cat first), Evercrossed by Elizabeth Turner, and Whirlwind by Robin DeJarnett in ebook and will be reviewing them soon.

I wanted to go on a book spurge this week, but every place I hit, I couldn't find anything that I was really excited to read.  I did order a few online  so I could complete a few series that I already have a book or two from before I start reading the first book.  Well, that's my  IMM for last week.  What did you get?

 Thanks so much to Goodreads, Kensington Publishing, Simon and Schuster and Omnific Publishing  for my book loot.

Author Spotlight: Q and A with Allison Pang

Today I welcome author Allison Pang to the blog.  Ms Pang is the author of A Brush Of Darkness, a new urban fantasy that releases on January 25.  To read my review, click HERE.

A marine biologist in a former life, Allison Pang turned to a life of crime to finance her wild spending habits and need to collect Faberge eggs. A cat thief of notable repute, she spends her days sleeping and nights scaling walls and wooing dancing boys….Well, at least the marine biology part is true. But she was taloned by a hawk once.  She also loves Hello Kitty, sparkly shoes, and gorgeous violinists.

She spends her days in Northern Virginia working as a cube grunt and her nights waiting on her kids and cats, punctuated by the occasional husbandly serenade. Sometimes she even manages to write. Mostly she just makes it up as she goes.

Diva:  Describe Allison Pang in five words.

Allison Pang:  Snarky, tenacious, loyal, shy, pensive

Diva:  What favorite things do you have to have when writing?

Allison Pang:  Just a computer and some music (if it’s available). I try not to have too many snacks within reach, because I have a tendency to stress eat when I’m writing, so maybe a lack of food?   LOL!

Diva:  What is your favorite genre to read and who are some of your favorite authors?

Allison Pang:  Definitely fantasy. It’s what I pretty much grew up reading and it’s what I gravitate toward on a regular basis. Sometimes I’ll read historical fiction or more literary stuff (a la The Time Traveler’s Wife), but fantasy is definitely where my reading heart lies. Favorite authors would be Jacqueline Carey, Robin Hobb, Kate Elliott, Lynn Flewelling and Charles de Lint, among many others.

Diva:  If your book was made into a movie, what actors would you pick for Abby and Brystion?

Allison Pang:  Hmmm. Probably Natalie Portman as Abby. Brystion, I honestly don’t know. I picture someone with a lot of arrogant and seductive traits (rather like Stuart Townsend’s portrayal of Lestat, perhaps), but I don’t have anyone in mind.

Diva:  If you could be anyone of your characters from A Brush Of Darkness, which one would you be and why?

Allison Pang:  That’s a bit of a trick question, because they’ve all got a piece of me in there. Abby would be the obvious choice, but there’s something about Melanie and her supreme self-confidence (and a touch of arrogance, perhaps) in her own musical playing ability that I find rather appealing.

Diva:  What was the main inspiration behind writing A Brush Of Darkness?

Allison Pang:  I’m not sure there was one. The main ending scene started out as a dream where I was walking through this empty house trying to find someone. It intrigued me enough that even years later, it was still in the back of my mind. So I wrote that scene up and decided to find out what the rest of the story was about. The concept of The Dreaming was born out of that and I thought it would be really fascinating to explore it with the heroine...and of course that easily led into an incubus hero.

Diva:  Are you working on anything new that you can tell me about?

Allison Pang:  The draft for the second book was just turned in and I’ve started working on the third. Those two will probably take most of my focus for the next few months, but I’ve also got an epic fantasy that I’ve been working on and off for a while, as well as a Steam punk fantasy thing in the planning stages. (Hopefully I’ll be able to sell them as well.)

Thanks so much to Allison Pang for stopping by the blog and for making time to answer my questions.

ARC Review: A Brush Of Darkness by Allison Pang

Series:  TBA (yes there will be more!)

Genre:   Urban Fantasy

Release Date:  January 25, 2011

Publisher:  Pocket Books

Author Website:  http://www.heartofthedreaming.com/

Format I Read:  ARC Paperback

Pages:  343

Source:  Publicist

Reading Challenge:  Kick Ass Heroine Challenge

Read an excerpt

Book Blurb

The man of her dreams might be the cause of her nightmares.

Six months ago, Abby Sinclair was struggling to pick up the pieces of her shattered life. Now, she has an enchanted iPod, a miniature unicorn living in her underwear drawer, and a magical marketplace to manage. But despite her growing knowledge of the OtherWorld, Abby isn’t at all prepared for Brystion, the dark, mysterious, and sexy-as- sin incubus searching for his sister, convinced Abby has the key to the succubus’s whereabouts.

Abby has enough problems without having this seductive shape-shifter literally invade her dreams to get information. But when her Faery boss and some of her friends vanish, as well, Abby and Brystion must form an uneasy alliance. As she is sucked deeper and deeper into this perilous world of faeries, angels, and daemons, Abby realizes her life is in as much danger as her heart—and there’s no one she can trust to save her.

Awesomeness:

My back arched instinctively.  Whatever his attitude, the incubus certainly knew his business, and the heat that burned at my core wanted it.  Badly.  And yet…I was standing on a dark pier, dry-humping a guy I barely knew, in return for what?  Helping him find his missing sister?

My Thoughts

Damn, damn, damn!  Those were my thoughts when I came to the end of this book.  A Brush Of Darkness had me hooked from the beginning.  It’s full of action, colorful characters, and plenty of magical drama.

Abby is human with a painful past.  On an emotional whim she accepts a magical contract with a faery.  Unsure of her actual duties and clueless to the extend of her magical talent, Abby suddenly finds herself in the middle of a magical mess.  Her mentor is missing, an incubus is stalking her, and she becomes the unexpected caretaker of a perverted miniature unicorn.   

First of all, I am a cover whore, so I like covers that relate to the story and entice you to wonder what’s behind the pages.  I liked this cover.  I can easily imagine the cover model as Abby.  Fierce, feisty, with a magical air. 

I think Allison Pang did an excellent job with this book.  I liked the story because it was easy to follow and kept me entertained.  The characters were funny at times, but easily shifted into dangerous creatures you might not want to piss off on the regular. 

Abby was a great heroine.  She was a little snarky, and in serious need of guidance, but I enjoyed reading about her adventures.   Her relationship with Brystion was what kept me turning pages.  Their HEA is not what I expected, but will keep me reading future books to see how their relationship develops.

My favorite character was Phineas, the little unicorn.  He was a drunken pervert, but often the voice of reason.  He was a strange little addition to the story, but he kept Abby on her toes and was the source of a lot of funny moments.

Overall, this book was very good and a recommended read and I look forward to future books.

Rating

4 flowers of love.  Very good and a recommended read

Other Reviews Of This Book:

Goodreads

Shelfari

Sexy Saturday

ARC Review: Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa

Series:  Iron Fey, Book #3

Genre:   YA, Paranormal, Fantasy

Release Date:  January 25, 2011

Publisher:  Harlequin Teen

Author Website:  http://www.juliekagawa.com/

Format I Read:  ARC eBook

Pages:  362 (Nook pgs)

Source:  Net Galley

Reading Challenge:  Kick Ass Heroine Reading Challenge

Read an excerpt

Book Blurb

My name is Meghan Chase.

I thought it was over. That my time with the fey, the impossible choices I had to make, the sacrifices of those I loved, was behind me. But a storm is approaching, an army of Iron fey that will drag me back, kicking and screaming. Drag me away from the banished prince who's sworn to stand by my side. Drag me into the core of conflict so powerful, I'm not sure anyone can survive it.

This time, there will be no turning back.

Awesomeness:

“You alright?” he asked, steadying me as the last of the nausea faded.

Anger flared.  No, I wasn’t all right.  I was a freaking faery who couldn’t use glamour!  Not without fainting, throwing up, or getting so dizzy I was practically useless.  I was allergic to myself!  How pathetic was that?

My Thoughts

I was recently turned on to this awesome series by some fellow book bloggers.  I read the first two books and novella back to back and anxiously awaited to get my hands on this latest book.  I have to say that I was not disappointed because I easily finished it in one day.  All 362 pages!  The book is full of action, unlikely alliances, and some heartbreaking scenes that disrupted the HEA that I was so sure would happen.

Iron Queen continues with the Iron Fey wrecking havoc in Nevernever making the dysfunctional Summer and Winter courts hell bent on sacrificing Meghan to save their own necks.  Meghan isn’t the same girl, which is a good thing because she finally tells King Oberon and Queen Mab where to stick it.  She is still learning, but I felt like she made better choices and handled things a little bit better this time.  She realizes her destiny and accepts her place.

Puck continues to annoy the hell out of me.  To be honest, the Three Musketeer act could easily be a twosome and I would love it.  I know that Puck is put in the story as sort of a comic relief to lighten the dark mode that this book takes on, but I found myself skipping over his parts and not caring what I missed.  Yes, I am a Puck hater.

Ash is the man.  From the time he was introduced to the story, I knew he would end up with Meghan.  He was a prick at first, but his love and devotion to Meghan is what draws me to the series.  Now this is a love story, rated PG, but still a great love story.  It’s tragic that destiny keeps pulling them apart, but in the end I know the HEA will be worth the frustration of having to wait.

Overall, the story was easy to follow, the characters were good, and the plot was even better than the last.  If you are a fae fan and haven’t gotten around to reading this series, you are missing out on some good reading.

Rating

5 flowers of love.  An awesome new favorite for the bookshelf

Other Books In This Series:

The Iron King, Book #1

Winter’s Passage, Novella

The Iron Daughter, Book #2

The Iron Knight, Book #4 Coming Soon

Other Reviews Of This Book:

Goodreads

Shelfari

ARC Review: Mystify by Artist Arthur

Series:  Mystyx, Book #2

Genre:   YA, Paranormal

Release Date:  January 18, 2011

Publisher:  Kimani Tru

Author Website:  http://www.artistarthurbooks.com

Format I Read:  ARC ebook

Pages:  248 (Nook pgs)

Source:  Net Galley

Read an excerpt

Book Blurb

Sometimes being an outsider is the best way to fit in… 

Sasha Carrington has grown up feeling like an outsider, and her parents are too concerned with scaling the Lincoln, Connecticut, social ladder to even notice her. They’d be really horrified to know about the supernatural abilities Sasha and her friends Krystal and Jake possess. But as part of the Mystyx, Sasha has found her place.

Now her parents have suddenly taken an interest in everything she does, and their timing couldn’t be worse. Sasha’s father wants her to become BFFs with snooty Alyssa Turner, who hates Krystal for stealing her boyfriend. Then there’s Antoine Watson, the boy Sasha has liked forever, the boy her parents would never approve of. But with the dark side getting more dangerous by the day, and the Mystyx’s own powers growing in unexpected ways, Sasha is facing choices that could affect her friends, her love life—and even her destiny…"

Awesomeness:

“Life is not about what we want, Sasha.  It’s about what’s best for us, for our family, our legacy.  Want rarely comes into play.”

What he really means is that want rarely comes into play where I’m concerned.  My parents seem to have everything their chilly little hearts desire.  Me, on the other hand, well, let’s just say I’m not like my parents.  Some days I wake up and even consider requesting a DNA test.

My Thoughts 

This is another YA series that I continue to enjoy. Artist Author has created a paranormal adventure featuring a teenage clique of supernaturals that keep me tagging along as they deal with their personal dramas and use their powers to deal with the Darkness that is stalking them.

In the latest book, the story turns to Sasha.   Her friends continue to judge her and think she’s a stuck up “Richie” simply because her parents are.  I thought she was a likable character, a little bratty and spoiled at times, but overall she was more mature than her friends, Krystal and Jake. 

Jake and Krystal got on my nerves in this book.  I always thought that Krystal was self centered, but she really out does herself in this book.  And Jake has serious anger issues.  His story is the next book, so hopefully I’ll be able to have a better understanding of who he is and what he’s dealing with personally before I start to hate him.

A new member was introduced to the supernatural clique and she seems to balance out the trio which is a good thing because their friendship was seriously headed for an ugly break up.

I am anxious to figure out the mystery of the “M” birthmarks and how all the kids ended up in the same town or exactly why they have their powers.  The mysteries are slowly unfolding, giving me just enough bits of information to keep me following the story.  

Overall I really liked Mystify and will continue reading the series.  I am very interested to know what in the world is going on with the Darkness and what it’s really after. 

Rating

4 flowers of love.  Very good and a recommended read.

Other Books In This Series:

Manifest, Book #1

Mayhem, Book #3 (August 2011)

Other Reviews Of This Book:

Goodreads

Shelfari

To Be Read Tuesday

Hi, book lovers.  It's Tuesday and time to pull something new from the bookshelf.  Here is what I will be reading this week.  What's on your TBR?

 

Archangel's Consort by Nalini Singh
Vampire hunter Elena Deveraux and her lover, the lethally beautiful archangel Raphael, have returned home to New York only to face an uncompromising new evil… 

A vampire has attacked a girls’ school—the assault one of sheer, vicious madness—and it is only the first act. Rampant bloodlust takes vampire after vampire, threatening to make the streets run with blood. Then Raphael himself begins to show signs of an uncontrolled rage, as inexplicable storms darken the city skyline and the earth itself shudders. 

The omens are suddenly terrifyingly clear. 

An ancient and malevolent immortal is rising. The violent winds whisper her name: Caliane. She has returned to reclaim her son, Raphael. Only one thing stands in her way: Elena, the consort who must be destroyed…

The Countess by Lynsay Sands

The fairy tale courtship did not turn into a happily-ever-after . . .

Not until her husband dropped dead, that is. He had been horrible enough to Christiana during their short marriage, and she was not going to allow the traditional period of mourning to ruin her sisters' debuts as well. So she decides to put him on ice and go on as if nothing's happened . . .

Until the real earl appears. Richard Fairgrave had every intention of confronting his villainous twin who had robbed him of his name and title . . . only to discover that he had died. Quietly assuming his identity, Richard must now deal with a maddening desire for his ravishing inherited "wife"— certainly a gold digger and possibly a murderess. And Christiana must deal with an unwanted new "husband" . . . and they both must figure out what to do before the ice melts!

Diva Mail (19)

It's Sunday bookish peeps and time to share my book loot for last week.  In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren. It's a cool way to share bookish things you bought, won, checked out of the library, or got in the mail. 


I only got one book this week.  It's an ARC for a regency romance that scheduled to release in May.  The book blurb is promising so I'm thinking I should enjoy it.  I got tons of bookmarks, excerpt booklets and other swag in the mail for giveaway.  


Thanks so much to Kate Pearce, Pat Rouse, and Stefanie Sloane for my week's book loot.  What book goodies did you get this week?

For Review

The Devil In Disguise by Stefanie Sloane

Sexy Saturday

I pretty much didn't care what this guy looked like from the neck up because from what I can see, he is so worthy of my OMG stare!

Book Blogger Hop

I haven't participated in the Book Blogger Hop in a while so I decided to join in the fun.  If you stop by, please leave me a comment.  

Book Blogger Hop With Jenn @ Crazy For Books

The Book Blogger Hop is a weekly book party and an awesome opportunity to say hi to new and old  bloggers.  To participate, visit Crazy For Books to grab the logo,  post about the hop on your blog, and start HOPPING through the list of blogs on the Linky list.

Here's the question of the week

"Why do you read the genre that you do?  What draws you to it?"

My favorite genre to read is romance.  I just love romance and happy endings.  I also like the drama that goes along with finding love and figuring out how to keep it.  Corny, yeah, I know.

Winner: New Year's Reading Resolution Giveaway Hop

Thank you to all that entered the New Year's Reading Resolution Giveaway Hop.  Out of the 118 entries, there can be only one winner, and that winner is dum da dum dum...dum da dum dum duuuuum...
Pixie 13
Congrats, Pixie 13, please email me at thedivasbookcase@gmail.com with your mailing addy to claim your books.  

To Be Read Tuesday

It's Tuesday and time to let you know what I will be reading this week.  I have two books that I got distracted from, but plan to finish reading this week.  Once I get those two read and reviewed, here is what I've pulled off the shelf to read this week.  What are you reading this week?

Wither by Lauren Destefano

What if you knew exactly when you would die? 

Thanks to modern science, every human being has become a ticking genetic time bomb—males only live to age twenty-five, and females only live to age twenty. In this bleak landscape, young girls are kidnapped and forced into polygamous marriages to keep the population from dying out. 

When sixteen-year-old Rhine Ellery is taken by the Gatherers to become a bride, she enters a world of wealth and privilege. Despite her husband Linden's genuine love for her, and a tenuous trust among her sister wives, Rhine has one purpose: to escape—to find her twin brother and go home. 

But Rhine has more to contend with than losing her freedom. Linden's eccentric father is bent on finding an antidote to the genetic virus that is getting closer to taking his son, even if it means collecting corpses in order to test his experiments. With the help of Gabriel, a servant Rhine is growing dangerously attracted to, Rhine attempts to break free, in the limted time she has left.

Spirit Storm by E J Stevens

"Let the spirits guide you, but never let them take you." 

Spirits of the Dead are coming... 

Yuki is about to face an army of lost souls on Samhain, the night of Halloween, when the spirits of the dead roam free. Yuki will need all the help she can get from her friends. But will Calvin be there for her when she needs him the most?