It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (April 15, 2013)

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.

It’s Monday!  What Are You Reading, is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.  It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.

I had great plans for the past week. I was all set to go to the Spotlight on Books Conference near Grand Rapids, MN for Friday and Saturday. A friend and I were planning to leave after school on Thursday, spent the night with my brother in Duluth to celebrate his birthday, and travel on to Grand Rapids Friday morning. The weather forecast all week was threatening but should have been over by our travel time. Unfortunately the storm moved more slowly than expected. School was cancelled here on Thursday because of icy roads but my friend and I checked the road conditions map and decided that we could try to go.

We left about 10:30 Thursday morning on roads that were mainly wet or slushy. However, the further north we got, the worse the roads became. For the last 50 miles to Duluth we couldn't even see the road and wind gusts meant we couldn't see anything at else either. The usual four hour trip to Duluth took well over six hours and, once we managed to wedge my car into my brother's driveway, we were stuck. We watched it snow all the rest of Thursday and until mid-afternoon on Friday. We got over a foot of snow that was blown around by strong winds leaving more than two feet of snow in the driveway. It took my brother with his snowblower and my friend and I with shovels about two hours to clear the driveway Friday evening.

Theoretically, we could have gotten to Grand Rapids on Saturday but the roads were not good and Saturday was supposed to be the only good travel day of the weekend though more snow was expected Saturday evening. We decided to leave for home Saturday mid-morning and got back around 4 PM. We are getting a snow/sleet mixture here even as I am writing this post on Sunday afternoon.

I keep asking myself why I live in Minnesota and really haven't been able to come up with a good answer.

I did get some reading done between watching the snow fall, chatting with my friend, and playing hours and hours of Facebook games.

Sharp by Alex Hughes is a great urban fantasy novel which has a unique main character and wonderful world building. My review will be posted on April 18.

The Mystery Woman by Amanda Quick is the latest in her Ladies of Lantern Street historical paranormal romance series. It had a good mystery and a really nice romance too. My review will be posted April 24.

The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd was the only YA book I finished this week. This story uses H.G. Wells' The Island of Dr. Moreau as its inspiration and is the story of his daughter. I thought the Gothic atmosphere was well done and the characters interesting. I thought the science fiction was way beyond believable. I was a little disappointed at the ending of the story too and do wonder what the rest of the trilogy will be like. My review will be posted on April 18.

Next on my stack is The Rules by Stacey Kade. This is also a science fiction story but a contemporary one. I got this eARC from NetGalley. The book will be released on April 23

Next week's list has one more April 23 release and three April 30 releases.

Adult Review Books

Behind the Lies by Robin Perini is a romantic suspense novel that I got from Amazon Vine. It will be released on April 23.

Battleship: A Daring Heiress, a Teenage Jockey, and America's Horse by Dorothy Ours came to me as part of St. Martin's Press @ NetGalley. I don't usually read nonfiction but this one sounded really good.

YA Review Books

One + One = Blue by M. J. Auch is the last of the bunch of books I got from Macmillan Children's Publishing Group's Winter 2013 titles. 

Sketchy by Olivia Samms is an eARC from Disney-Hyperion via NetGalley. This paranormal mystery sounded very interesting. 

Hopefully, this week will be much less unsettled (and unsettling) and I will be able to meet my reading goals. What do you have planned for the week?

Stacking the Shelves (April 14, 2013)

Tynga of Tynga's Reviews has a meme to spotlight the books we receive each week. Visit her site to check out the linky and see what everyone gets. I guarantee that your TBR pile will grow.

This week I added seven books to my book collection but only one of those was a print book. Here is my haul.

A friend of mine was reviewing Pooka in my Pantry by R. L. Naquin and telling me how good it was. I decided to add both Pooka in My Pantry and the first book in the series Monster in My Closet to my Kindle. 

I reviewed both Clean and Sharp by Alex Hughes. Since I enjoyed these urban fantasy novels with a unique main characters, I decided to add finished copies to my Kindle this week too. At least these two aren't adding to my TBR mountain.

I liked the sound of Wrecked by Shiloh Walker and added the print book to my stack this week. I bought the print book because it cost 10% less than the Kindle book.

Stealing Home by Jennifer Seasons is a sports romance. I love those! I read it about it on someone's blog and saw it was available for a great price for my Kindle. 

Tight Quarters by Samantha Hunter was another book I saw on someone's Teaser Tuesday post. I thought it sounded like a nice romance and the price was right for my Kindle. 

What couldn't you resist this week? Leave me a link and I'd be glad to stop by and admire your new additions (editions). 

ARC Review: Wicked Cravings by Suzanne Wright

Wicked Cravings

Author: Suzanne Wright

Publication: Montlake Romance; Unabridged edition (April 16, 2013)

Description: For years, wolf shifter Jaime Farrow has harbored a not-so-secret crush on gorgeous Dante Garcea. But the time has come for Jaime to face facts: despite her best efforts, Dante just isn’t interested. And that’s probably for the best. The last thing Jaime needs is for anyone—particularly Dante—to find out about her little “problem.” The one that haunts her past and threatens to destroy her and everyone she loves…

As the pack Beta, workaholic Dante Garcea doesn’t have time for distractions—especially the kind promised by Jaime Farrow. It’s all he can do to keep her at arm’s length and his desire at bay. Yet when her flirtations abruptly end, Dante becomes suspicious. She’s hiding something, something big, and unless he can convince her to trust him, their entire pack could be in danger. He knows hot-headed Jaime will resist him…but Dante never takes no for an answer.

This book contains explicit content and is recommended for mature readers.

My Thoughts: WICKED CRAVINGS was an entertaining paranormal romance that was decidedly erotic. It follows FERAL SINS and focuses on a different pair of characters. This time Beta Dante Garcea has to deal with Jaime Farrow. 

Jaime and her brother have recently joined the pack and Jaime is keeping a big secret. She isn't the submissive wolf that she is pretending to be. She is actually dominant but her wolf has been traumatized by events Jaime witnessed when she was younger. Jaime is keeping her wolf in a mental cage because it is likely to attack any other wolves it she lets it free. She is afraid that, if her wolf gets control, she won't be able to regain control and will turn rogue. Rogue wolves are killed.

One thing she isn't keeping secret is her attraction to pack Beta Dante Garcea. Dante has been ignoring her because he had a really bad break-up earlier and also doesn't have relationships with fellow pack members. Dante is also a world-class workaholic.

But when a wolf from another pack says that Dante is her mate and has rejected her, problems start for both Dante and Jaime. Glory involves her pack's Alpha and her brothers in forcing her claim. The Alpha knows that Glory is a liar but her brothers want revenge for her imagined slight. They decide to attack Jaime after Glory confronts her about staying away from Dante and Jaime beats her up.

An added complication in the person of the woman who threw Dante over for his brother just adds to the mix. Laurie is determined to get Dante back despite the fact that he has now formed a relationship with Jaime.

I had some question about the whole werewolf mythology in this book that I think were probably answered in the first book. I didn't quite understand how they found their true mates or how they imprinted on each other. I'll have to read FERAL SINS to see if my questions are answered.

I also had a little bit of trouble with the explicit nature of the sexual relationships in the story. The sex was graphic and borderline kinky. It just stayed on the right side of the line between consensual and non-consensual. Dante was very dominant and wasn't going to take no for an answer. Jaime, being dominant herself, wasn't a pushover though. I liked that they both had issues to overcome before they could form a relationship. And I liked that once they did, they still had to be conscious of their issues and work at them.

Fans of darker, grittier paranormal romances will enjoy this story. 

Favorite Quote:

Although he had always been aware that he was without the other half of his soul, he hadn't truly understood what that meant until he mated with Jaime and felt their bond begin to form. He hadn't known there were so many hollow spaces inside him until she came and filled them, hadn't realized just how incomplete he was until her soul fused with his. 

I chose this ARC from the Amazon Vine newsletter. You can buy your copy here.

Friday Memes: Wicked Cravings by Suzanne Wright

Happy Friday everybody!

Book Beginnings on Friday is now hosted by Rose City Reader. The Friday 56 is hosted at Freda's Voice. Check out the links above for the rules and for the posts of the participants each week. Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

This week I am spotlighting Wicked Cravings by Suzanne Wright. I chose this one from the Amazon Vine newsletter when I saw the wolf on the cover. I am a huge fan of wolf shifters. This paranormal will be released on April 16. Here is the description:

For years, wolf shifter Jaime Farrow has harbored a not-so-secret crush on gorgeous Dante Garcea. But the time has come for Jaime to face facts: despite her best efforts, Dante just isn’t interested. And that’s probably for the best. The last thing Jaime needs is for anyone—particularly Dante—to find out about her little “problem.” The one that haunts her past and threatens to destroy her and everyone she loves…

As the pack Beta, workaholic Dante Garcea doesn’t have time for distractions—especially the kind promised by Jaime Farrow. It’s all he can do to keep her at arm’s length and his desire at bay. Yet when her flirtations abruptly end, Dante becomes suspicious. She’s hiding something, something big, and unless he can convince her to trust him, their entire pack could be in danger. He knows hot-headed Jaime will resist him…but Dante never takes no for an answer.

This book contains explicit content and is recommended for mature readers.

Beginning:

Dante shot a fierce scowl over his coffee mug at Dominic, Tao, Trick, and Marcus. "She's not my mate," he repeated for the tenth time. 

Friday 56:

"I came to take you to lunch." And interrogate the hell out of you, he wisely didn't add. Although he'd be lying if he said he wouldn't enjoy spending time with her. 

Book Review: Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs

Frost Burned

Author: Patricia Briggs

Publication: Ace Hardcover; First Edition edition (March 5, 2013)

Description: Mercy Thompson returns in the seventh novel in the #1 New York Times bestselling series.

Mercy Thompson’s life has undergone a seismic change. Becoming the mate of Adam Hauptman—the charismatic Alpha of the local werewolf pack—has made her a stepmother to his daughter Jesse, a relationship that brings moments of blissful normalcy to Mercy’s life. But on the edges of humanity, what passes for a minor mishap on an ordinary day can turn into so much more…

After an accident in bumper-to-bumper traffic, Mercy and Jesse can’t reach Adam—or anyone else in the pack for that matter. They’ve all been abducted.

Through their mating bond, all Mercy knows is that Adam is angry and in pain. With the werewolves fighting a political battle to gain acceptance from the public, Mercy fears Adam’s disappearance may be related—and that he and the pack are in serious danger. Outclassed and on her own, Mercy may be forced to seek assistance from any ally she can get, no matter how unlikely.

My Thoughts: This seventh story about Mercy Thompson, coyote shifter, is filled will the action, adventure, and excitement that is a trademark of this series. Mercy and her step-daughter Jesse are out catching the early Black Friday deals when someone manages to capture Adam and the rest of the pack. Mercy doesn't know about it until a car accident that causes her to call home for a ride doesn't get answered. Nor can she contact anyone else from the Pack.

Ben is the only werewolf from the Pack that manages to get away, though he was shot with the silver solution invented by a villain in one of the earlier books in the series, and is in bad shape. Together they contact Jesse's boyfriend Gabriel and make their way to Mercy's shop. Mercy's mate bond lets her know that Adam is still alive but that he and the rest of the Pack have all been poisoned with silver and are in great danger. 

After attempting and failing to contact Samuel, Mercy stashes Jesse and Gabriel with Gabriel's estranged family and then sets about checking on the few pack members who were not captured. One of the first she checks on is Kyle who is the human mate of third in command Warren. She learns that he is being held captive by the some members of the same group who got the Pack in the hopes of luring her in to try for a rescue.

Mercy is quite short of allies with Samuel away and with Zee back on the hidden reservations of the Fae. She contacts her vampire friend Stefan, and after managing to call Zee and get some hints, Zee's son Tad.  And Bran has sent Asil, also known as the Moor, the assist. All werewolves are scary but old werewolves who have gotten the taste for killing are the scariest. Asil is a very old werewolf. All of her allies are scary dudes and Mercy is just the one to lead them. 

This story has Mercy developing new talents that even scare her and doing all sorts of risky things because they are the right thing to do. It includes conflicts with government agents, rogue government agents, mercenaries, and vampires with agendas.

Fans of the series won't want to miss this strong series entry. 

Favorite Quote:

"'Obstreperous,' huh," said Tad. "I see you've been using that Big Word of the Day calendar I got you last Christmas."

"That is irrefragable," I told him solemnly.

I bought this you. You can buy your copy here.

Book Review: Prophet of Bones by Ted Kosmatka

Prophet of Bones

Author: Ted Kosmatka

Publication: Henry Holt and Co. (April 2, 2013)

Description: Paul Carlson, a brilliant young scientist, is summoned from his laboratory job to the remote Indonesian island of Flores to collect DNA samples from the ancient bones of a strange, new species of tool user unearthed by an archaeological dig. The questions the find raises seem to cast doubt on the very foundations of modern science, which has proven the world to be only 5,800 years old, but before Paul can fully grapple with the implications of his find, the dig is violently shut down by paramilitaries.

Paul flees with two of his friends, yet within days one has vanished and the other is murdered in an attack that costs Paul an eye, and very nearly his life. Back in America, Paul tries to resume the comfortable life he left behind, but he can't cast the questions raised by the dig from his mind. Paul begins to piece together a puzzle which seems to threaten the very fabric of society, but world's governments and Martial Johnston, the eccentric billionaire who financed Paul's dig, will stop at nothing to silence him.

My Thoughts: PROPHET OF BONES was a curious book. It is science fiction and alternate history both. In this story, when the evolutionists and the Creationists debated, the Creationists won the argument. Science is very much under the control of the churches which don't want anyone to find any evidence that life began earlier than 5800 years ago. They are aided in covering up any contrary information by billionaire Martial Johansson who is busy playing God and creating his own genetic crosses.

Paul Carlsson is a scientist who is an expert on bones. He is recruited to look at some at an isolated dig in Indonesia. What he sees doesn't fit in with anything he knows about. Someone else has found out about the discovery too and is eager to kill anyone who might spread the word. Paul's friend is killed and Paul loses an eye but manages to make his way back to the United States. Unknown to the attackers, Paul has brought some samples of the bones with him. 

The story keeps building in intensity as everyone Paul brings in to the search for what the bones are is killed shortly after giving Paul additional information. Everyone is in danger and Paul has no one that he can trust. 

This is science fiction with a strong emphasis on the science. I don't know enough about genetics to know if the quotations that begin many of the chapters are real or made up. I will say that they are certainly written as though they were from academic papers. I also wasn't at all able to follow the very convoluted information about the genetic samples. This made it hard reading. 

The only way that I knew Martial was the villain was because his henchmen left a trail of bodies behind them.  The only way I knew that Paul was the hero was that he only left the bodies of those who attacked him behind. I think the book lost some intensity for me because I couldn't connect with Paul. As a character, he was opaque to me. I had no idea what kind of a person he was or what his goal was. 

Lacking an understandable plot, strong characters I could relate to would keep me reading. This missed on that aspect too. My ARC has positive blurbs by Clive Cussler, Nelson DeMille, and Steve Berry. Either they are more well versed in genetics or they read a different book than I did. I don't know who the audience for this one would be but I know I wasn't the right one. 

Favorite Quote:

"It's easy to pretend that it's just theories we're playing with—ideas dreamed up in some ivory tower between warring factions of scientists like it's all some intellectual exercise." Gavin looked at him, his dark eyes grave. "But then you see the actual bones; you feel their weight in your hands, the sheer factual irrefutability of their existence..." Gavin stared at the road ahead. Finally he said, "Sometimes theories die between your fingers." 

I received this ARC for review from Christine at Henry Holt. You can buy your copy here.

Teaser Tuesday: Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week my teaser comes from a book that I have been anticipating. Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs is the seventh book in the Mercy Thompson series. I love these urban fantasies! Here is the description:

Mercy Thompson returns in the seventh novel in the #1 New York Times bestselling series.

Mercy Thompson’s life has undergone a seismic change. Becoming the mate of Adam Hauptman—the charismatic Alpha of the local werewolf pack—has made her a stepmother to his daughter Jesse, a relationship that brings moments of blissful normalcy to Mercy’s life. But on the edges of humanity, what passes for a minor mishap on an ordinary day can turn into so much more…

After an accident in bumper-to-bumper traffic, Mercy and Jesse can’t reach Adam—or anyone else in the pack for that matter. They've all been abducted.

Through their mating bond, all Mercy knows is that Adam is angry and in pain. With the werewolves fighting a political battle to gain acceptance from the public, Mercy fears Adam’s disappearance may be related—and that he and the pack are in serious danger. Outclassed and on her own, Mercy may be forced to seek assistance from any ally she can get, no matter how unlikely.

Teaser:

"Did you find out if they found out anything about them?" I asked.

Kyle gave me a look, then busied himself making me a peanut butter and huckleberry jelly sandwich. "What really bothers me is that I understood that question. You will eat this and go to sleep, so your pronouns get their antecedents back."