Carries Book Reviews

Obsidian Sky
Amy Braun
(Dark Sky #3)
Publication date: February 7th 2017
Genres: Dystopian, Fantasy, Young Adult

The final struggle against the Hellions has arrived. A trapped engineer and a desperate marauder scramble to fight an enemy with unspeakable power on its side. Time is running out, and one world will be destroyed…

After sacrificing herself to save the lives of her friends and family, Claire Abernathy struggles to outwit her Hellion captors. They torment and terrify her into working on a weapon with the sole purpose of obliterating the world, friends, and love she has struggled to save. If Claire has any chance of saving those she loves, she must delve deeper into the Hellion world, and witness nightmares she could never imagine.

In Westraven, Sawyer Kendric is desperate to find the woman he loves. To do so, he must finally embrace his family’s atrocious past and heal the wounds it has caused. He will be forced to make new allies, uncover secrets that change all he knows, and find the courage to lead a ragtag crew into the darkest, deadliest battle of their lives.

Claire and Sawyer fight to save their broken world in the final installment of the epic DARK SKY trilogy.

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Previous books in the series:

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Author Bio:

Amy is a Canadian urban fantasy and horror author. Her work revolves around monsters, magic, mythology, and mayhem. She started writing in her early teens, and never stopped. She loves building unique worlds filled with fun characters and intense action. She is the recipient of April Moon Books Editor Award for “author voice, world-building and general bad-assery,” and the One Book Two Standout Award in 2015 for her Cursed trilogy. She has been featured on various author blogs and publishing websites, and is an active member of the Writing GIAM and Weekend Writing Warrior communities. When she isn’t writing, she’s reading, watching movies, taking photos, gaming, and struggling with chocoholism and ice cream addiction.

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Gilded Cage by Vic James
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

In Gilded Cage the world is ruled by Equals who are aristocrats with magical gifts. Everyone else are known as commoners and at some point during their lifetimes they have to serve the Equals for a period of ten years as their slaves. Commoners can choose to serve at any point in their lives from 10 to 80 years old.

After Luke’s younger sister turns ten his family breaks the news to him that they have signed up the entire family to serve their slave days. Luke’s older sister Abi has arranged for the family to do work together at a plantation owned by England’s most powerful family of Equals. But upon arrival the paperwork has been messed up and Luke is shipped off to a slave town separate from the rest of his family.

I was a bit back and forth reading Gilded Cage by Vic James the entire time. Some of this book I really enjoyed and would get caught up in what was going on but other parts just felt really slow to me. The idea behind the serving ten years of your life kept me engaged as wanting to know what would happen though and in the end I decided to give this read 3.5 stars.

I think for me following Abi, Luke and the rest of their family and the others around those characters were the more interesting parts of the story. For whatever reason I kept feeling a disconnect when the chapters would switch to the point of view of the Equals. Giving up ten years of your life and deciding when to do that just had my mind spinning so perhaps that was why I was more interested in that side.

Overall, not a bad start to the series at 3.5 stars, some slower parts for me but still an interesting story.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

The Story of Us
D. Nichole King
Publication date: February 9th 2017
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

Moments.

Every life is made of thousands of them, each one strung together with the next. Some are yellow and happy, some are blue and sad, and some…

Some wipe out color altogether.

“I love you,” is what I should have told Maverick.

“I’m sorry.”

“I’m still fighting.”

Instead I just watched him leave.

Now my husband, my everything is battling for each breath, and all I can do is stare at the machines as the clock ticks off precious minutes.

The doctors said the first twenty-four hours are critical—but every moment is critical.

You never know which will be your last.

This is our story, and I’m not ready for it to end.

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EXCERPT:

I’m in the front seat of the police car. My purse is on my lap. I didn’t bring anything else. I didn’t even change my clothes.

We’ve been driving for ten minutes, I think. I’m not sure. I’ve asked the officer questions, and he answered what he could. But I’m stuck on “St. Luke’s Hospital” and “found non-responsive.”

A sob swells in my chest, but I hold it in. Somehow, I’m not falling apart on the outside, although my insides are so big they might explode. I rub my arms for warmth. I hadn’t realized I was cold.

The officer is quiet now. It’s probably better this way. I was unresponsive to what he said, nodding my head to the words I didn’t hear clearly. I think he explained the accident, but I’ve already forgotten the details. I can only focus on one thing at a time.

The highways are empty except for the occasional semi that passes. I try to concentrate on the road and the scenery. The broken white line dividing the lanes. The green signs stating the up-coming turn-offs. Streetlights illuminating the way. Anything but the burn in my eyes and the emptiness in my chest.

“Found unresponsive.”

I don’t know what that means. Could he not speak? Was he breathing? Was he moving? Was his heart beating?

Oh, God!

I must’ve finally let out the sob, because the officer turns to me.

“It’ll be all right,” he reassures me, touching my arm. But how does he know? No one knows that; we only hope. And right now, hope isn’t good enough. I have to see Maverick for myself.

The officer doesn’t understand. Mav’s been my rock. He rescued me from myself. Mav, my Mav, he owns me.

My heart grows heavier, pressing against my ribs.

“Can you pull over, please?”

“Of course,” the officer answers.

The car slows down and moves to the side of the road. I’m unbuckled before we’ve stopped completely. A moment later, I throw open the door and vomit.

Author Bio:

d. Nichole King was born with a book in her hand. During her school years, she’d hide books inside textbooks, read during recess, changing classes, and while walking home from school. She wrote her first book at the age of 11, and the re-worked version of that book is her debut novel, LOVE ALWAYS, KATE.

Her YA urban fantasy series, THE SPIRIT TRILOGY, along with her NA contemporary series, LOVE ALWAYS, was acquired by Limitless Publishing and includes a total of six books. BREAKING THROUGH, an NA science-fiction romance, is her first self-published novel.

d. Nichole King currently resides in a small town in Iowa with her supportive husband, four amazing kids, a dog, a cat, a fish, and a turtle.

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Bryce
Nana Malone
Publication date: February 7th 2017
Genres: New Adult, Romance, Sports

Money, power, prestige…failure. Bryce Coulter is The Player.

Don’t call it a come back….Because no one else is. Poised to live up to his legacy, tennis player, Bryce Coulter, loses it all on one swing. Now, with the pressure on and his future in jeopardy, the last thing he needs is a smart-mouthed, training partner with attitude and a killer swing — or maybe she’s exactly what he needs.

Rich, spoiled and moneyed — seen that, been dragged through the dirt behind that. Tami Ivey, gets enough of the bad boy trust fund kids at work. She doesn’t need it in her sanctuary too. Playing tennis is the only way to connect to the girl she used to be before tragedy struck. The day Bryce Coulter turns up at her court, she turns on that classic attitude. If there’s anything she’s learned it’s how to make a guy run. Except, he’s not running. And maybe she doesn’t want him to….

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EXCERPT:

Had he scared her away? Had he been too much of a creeper watching her last night? Maybe it came down to the simple reason that she didn’t practice every day. Or, not at the same time every day. She very likely had a job, and depending on what she did for a living, her hours might not be the same every day. Although, he mused, regardless of whatever it was that she did for a living, he was sure that she should be playing tennis.

Why are you so pressed? She’s just a girl.

No. There was something about her. He just needed the chance to talk to her again. Okay, yes, if he was being totally honest with himself, it was in part because he wanted her, but he also wanted to find out more about her, and why she wasn’t playing the way she should. He couldn’t be the first person who knew about tennis to have seen her play.

“Where d’you think you’re going, gimpy?” A voice called from behind.

Bryce turned to see who’d spoken, and a foot shot out, kicking one of his crutches out from under him and sending him sprawling. Fuck. He landed on his bad knee. He writhed as the pain shot from his knee up his quad and down his shin. “Fuck, fuck. Motherfucker.” In the next moment, a man was on top of him with a switchblade in his face. All he could see was the knife, as sour, cigarette-scented breath fouled up his oxygen supply.

“I want your wallet and your keys,” the asshole demanded. “And if you even think about—”

But the guy’s words were cut off. His head bobbed forward. Something hit him again on the back of his head and he sagged on top of Bryce. He glanced up. Above them, Tami scowled at the guy, her grip on her mangled racket turning her knuckles white.

Author Bio:

USA Today Best Seller, Nana Malone’s love of all things romance and adventure started with a tattered romantic suspense she “borrowed” from her cousin.

It was a sultry summer afternoon in Ghana, and Nana was a precocious thirteen. She’s been in love with kick butt heroines ever since. With her overactive imagination, and channeling her inner Buffy, it was only a matter a time before she started creating her own characters.

While she waits for her chance at a job as a ninja assassin, in the meantime Nana works out her drama, passion and sass with fictional characters every bit as sassy and kick butt as she thinks she is.

Want to know when the next book is coming? Hit up her Newsletter here. You’ll only get updated when there is a new release or a special promotion for her Sexy, Sassy Readers. http://eepurl.com/2PeXb

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Reason to Love
Sedona Venez
(Credence Curse #3)
Publication date: March 15th 2017
Genres: Adult, Paranormal, Romance

Can sworn enemies cross the line and fall in love?

Reason Orlov, a vampire-human, is the princess of the vampire coven. Never quite feeling like she fits in, the hybrid has spent her life trying to rise to the expectations of her father, the vampire king.

Jack Alagona—better known as Jackal—is the second-in-command in his wolf pack. Set in his domineering alpha ways, the wolf-shifter closed off his heart long ago when vampires took what was most precious to him.

Even though a relationship between vampires and shifters is practically forbidden, all Reason knows is that she wants Jackal with a passion she’s never felt.

And, although Reason drives him crazy in a way that he thought he wouldn’t feel again, with memories that rule his present life, Jackal can’t risk being more than friends.

Can Reason convince Jackal to let her into his heart, or will their pasts get in the way?

Reason to Love is the third book in the Credence Curse Saga, a series of adventure-packed shifter romance tales. If you like dark magic, powerful women, steamy love scenes, heart-pounding romance, and piles of sexy shifter secrets, then you’ll love the latest romp from author Sedona Venez.

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EXCERPT:

He arched down, grabbing my face between his callous palms, and a weird jolt of energy pulsed through me. Instead of pushing him away, strangely, the only thing I could think of was how long it’d been since I felt a man’s hands on my skin. His full focus was on me, the attention sending little tremors of

awareness through me, as we stared at each other, speechless, our faces mere inches apart.

Move, Reason. Just fucking go.

My mind and body staged a mutiny by refusing to cooperate, as if daring the shifter to make another move. He did by pressing his lips against mine.

No, no, no. This will not do.

Reaching up, I slapped my hands against his wide shoulders with every intention of shoving him away. Instead, my fingers gripped him tight, pulling him closer. My lips parted before he sucked my tongue into his mouth.

Oh, baby Jesus. Why does he taste like my three favorite things—coffee, mint, and cinnamon?

Author Bio:

Sedona Venez is a romance author with a dirty mind. She lives in New York City with her hot ex-military hubby–hooah–and their fur baby. She loves writing sizzling, sexy intricate stories about strong but broken characters who push limits, overcome their fears, and risk it all for love.

You can chat with her on Facebook (www.facebook.com/SedonaVenez), Twitter (@SedonaVenez), and her kick-ass romance website, (www.sedonavenez.com).

If you’re interested in getting your hands on an advanced release copy of her upcoming books, sneak peek teasers, you can join her newsletter list (http://eepurl.com/2ixqj) and get those details delivered right to your inbox.

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