Free Short Story Review: Victoria Gardella: Vampire Slayer - Colleen Gleason

A short story introducing readers to the Gardella Vampire Chronicles, a series about a female vampire hunter in 19th century London. Join Victoria as she navigates her way through balls and Society even as she works to rid the world of dangerous, bloodthirsty vampires.

This short story can be read online or downloaded free by clicking this link






The Gardella Vampire Chronicles:
Victoria Gardella: Vampire Slayer (Free Short story)
The Rest Falls Away
Rises The Night
The Bleeding Dusk
When Twilight Burns
As Shadows Fade

For more information visit Colleen Gleason's website

Review:
This short story is a great introduction to the Gardella Vampire Chronicles series by Colleen Gleason.  It highlights the difficulties that Victoria Gardella faces as a young lady making her debut into London society whilst trying to keep her life as a vampire hunter secret.  We are also introduced to 3 of her potential love interests who you will see more of in the books.

I have already read and enjoyed the first book in the series The Rest Falls Away and enjoyed the fact that this is both a historical and urban fantasy series.  If you're already a fan of the series I'm sure you'll enjoy this short story and if you've yet to discover the series this is a great way to get a free taster to see if you want to read more.  I'm looking forward to continuing with this series and following Victoria's adventures.
Source: Free ebook - can be read online or downloaded here

Review: Lover Awakened - J.R. Ward

In the shadows of the night in Caldwell, New York, a deadly turf war rages between vampires and their slayers. There exists a secret band of brothers like no other - six vampire warriors, defenders of their race.; Of these, Zsadist is the most terrifying member of the Black Dagger Brotherhood.

A former blood slave, the vampire Zsadist still bears the scars from a past filled with suffering and humiliation. Renowned for his unquenchable fury and sinister deeds, he is a savage feared by humans and vampires alike. Anger is his only companion and terror his only passion - until he rescues a beautiful female from the evil Lessening Society.

Bella is instantly entranced by the seething power Zsadist possesses. But even as their desire for each other begins to overtake them, Zsadist's thirst for vengeance against Bella's tormentors drives him to the brink of madness. Now Bella must help her lover overcome the wounds of his tortured past and find a future with her...

The Black Dagger Brotherhood Series:
The Story of Son (novella set in the BDB world but about completely unrelated characters)
Dark Lover
Lover Eternal
Lover Awakened
Lover Revealed
Lover Unbound
Lover Enshrined
The Black Dagger Brotherhood: An Insider's Guide
Lover Avenged
Lover Mine
Lover Unleashed
Lover Reborn
Lover at Last
The King
The Shadows
The Beast (2016)

The Fallen Angels Series:
(This is a spin off series set in the same world with a slight crossover of characters)
Covet
Crave
Envy
Rapture
Possession
Immortal

Black Dagger Legacy:
(A second spin off series that stars the original characters from BDB and the new recruits they're training)
Blood Kiss

Visit J.R. Ward's website for more information

Review:
Lover Awakened is the third book in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series and without a doubt one of my favorites. If you are new to the series then I would definitely recommend starting from book 1 (Dark Lover) so you get a full introduction into the world J.R. Ward has created and get to know all of the characters as the series progresses. This is definitely one of my favourite paranormal romance series and I'm sure you'll love it as much as I do.

Zsadist is a character that has intrigued me since he was first introduced in Dark Lover. He is so frightening that even the other warriors avoid him but as his story unfolds it becomes easy to see what made him the way he is now. After being tortured for a hundred years Z is messed up, he is scarred both physically and mentally and doesn't know how to trust others. He believes he has been tainted by what has been done to him and has continued to punish himself since his rescue from life as a blood slave.

As you can imagine Z's story is the darkest book in the series so far but his character is by far the one I've felt was most real. I absolutely loved watching him change as he begins to discover his feelings for Bella, it isn't easy for him to trust her and his path to happiness is tough but worth so much more because of the struggle. I also loved the way his relationship with his twin Phury and the other brothers changes over the course of the book.

It takes a lot for a book to make me cry but Lover Awakened achieves this even though this is at least the third time I've read it. This book will take you on an emotional rollercoaster - breaking your heart in places but ultimately leaving you feeling uplifted by the end. The story is lightened by the ongoing plots with other main characters and things are nicely put into place for Butch's story which is up next. Without a doubt this series is a must read for fans of the paranormal romance genre but Zsadist will always hold a special place in my heart.

Source: Purchased

Other reviews of this book:
All Booked Up
Story Wings
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

It's Monday, What are you Reading? (19)

This meme was started at J. Kaye's Book Blog but has now moved to One Person's Journey Through a World of Books run by Sheila.

News:

It's been a busy but fun week here.  Firstly I am organising my first UK ARC tour for Ivy Devlin's Low Red Moon - this is a new young adult paranormal romance and it looks fab, I can't wait for the ARC to arrive so I can read it!  If anyone is interested in joining the UK tour you can sign up for it here.

I was also very excited to kick off my new blog feature with a guest post by the fabulous Rachel Caine.  Rachel is the first author to take part in my Author's Animal Antics feature and she wrote a fabulous post about her pet iguana's - click here to read it.  I have some fantastic authors lined up to take part in the feature so keep an eye out for the posts every Thursday.

Finally we had the first UK YA Blogger Meet Up in London on Saturday.  I had a fantastic time and met loads of lovely bloggers.  To find out what we all got up to click here

Books read last week: (Click on the links to read my reviews)

1. When I Was Joe - Keren David
2. Fire In His Eyes - Stella & Audra Price
3. Moon Called - Patricia Briggs
4. Dead if I Do - Tate Hallaway
5. Succubus Shadows - Richelle Mead

What I'm reading now:

What I'll be reading next:

I'm currently reading Forget You by Jennifer Echols that I received as part of a book tour organised by Dwayne at Girls Without A Bookshelf.  Next up is an ARC of Linger that the lovely Lynsey of Narratively Speaking lent me on Saturday at the UK Bloggers Meet Up.  After that I've got some review books to read along with some library books that are due back soon.

Challenge updates:

100+ Reading Challenge - Read 92/200

Young Adult Reading Challenge - Read 28/50

Support Your Local Library Challenge - Read 34/25

Terry Pratchett Challenge - Read 1/12
L.J. Smith Reading Challenge (Vampire Diaries) - Read 0/5
Thriller & Suspense Reading Challenge - Read 3/12
New Author Challenge - Read 42/50
Awesome Author Challenge - Read 20/20 - COMPLETE

Paranormal Reading Challenge - Read 50/50 - COMPLETE

Speculative Fiction Reading Challenge - Read 24/24 - COMPLETE
April NAC Mini-Challenge - Battle Royale - Read 5/5 - COMPLETE

What are you reading?

Review: Succubus Shadows - Richelle Mead

Georgina Kincaid has formidable powers.  Immortality, seduction, shape-shifting - child's play to a succubus like her.

Helping to plan her ex-boyfriend's wedding is a different story.  Georgina isn't sure which is worse - that he's marrying another woman or that she's having to run around trying on bridesmaid dresses.  Still, there are distractions.  There's a new succubus in town who seems intent on corrupting Georgina's soon-to-be-wed ex.

But the real danger lies in the mysterious force that's taken to visiting Georgina's thoughts.  Soon she's going to discover who she can trust, who she can't - and that there are far worse places than Hell in which to spend eternity...

Georgina Kincaid Series:
Succubus Blues
Succubus Nights (Called Succubus on Top in the US)
Succubus Dreams
Succubus Heat
Succubus Shadows
Succubus Revealed

Visit Richelle Mead's website for more information

Review:
Succubus Shadows is the 5th book in the Georgina Kincaid series & continues the story not long after the ending of Succubus Heat.  While my review won't give you any spoilers for this book I can't help but give information about the previous books so if you're new to the series please don't read any further.  I'd highly recommend checking this series out though - so have a look at the reviews for book 1 Succubus Blues.

Georgina has a lot on her plate, not only has she gained one of her ex-boyfriends as a roommate but she is also helping to plan her best friend's wedding which would be fine if Maddie wasn't marrying the love of Georgina's life.  To top it all off there is a new succubus in town who seems intent on hooking up with Seth and she is being targeted by a strange supernatural force that wants to destroy her.  She is going to need the help of all of her friends if she is going to survive.

All I can say is wow!  This latest installment in the series had me on the edge of my seat and gripped until the very last page.  We learn so much more about Georgina's past and get to understand how she got to where she is now and what life has been like for her as an immortal.  It's heartbreaking watching Georgina help Maddie prepare for her wedding to Seth but there are also laugh out loud moments with her friends.  Richelle Mead has done a fantastic job starting to tie the threads from the ongoing storyline together and the plot takes even more twists that I really didn't see coming.

I don't want to give anything away because I want you to be able to enjoy the unfolding story as much as I did.  I will just say that we get to see just how much Georgina means to her friends when they go all out to rescue her when she is in trouble.  We also get to see much more of both Carter and Jerome in this book & I enjoyed finding out more about them both.  If you're a fan of the series then you're going to love this installment which I think is probably my favourite book in the series so far.  The only disappointment I have is that I've got to wait a year to read the next book which will be the final book in the series!

Source: Library

Other Reviews:
I'd So Rather Be Reading
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Bloggers + Books = Lots of Fun!

Saturday was the UK YA Blogger Meet Up organised by Jo from Once Upon A Bookcase so I got to spend the afternoon meeting up with some of my favorite UK Bloggers & getting to know some others who I'm sure I'll be chatting to a lot more in the future.

We all met up in the coffee shop in Waterstones in Piccadilly which has got to be the biggest Waterstone's I've ever been in (5 floors of books - heaven for book addicts!).  It was so much fun meeting everyone and chatting about all of our favorite books.  We also had a couple of special guests Lauren & Kelly from Random House who brought us all a very special present - can you see from the grins on our faces just how excited we were?

Sammee, Becky, Caroline, Sophie, Cat, Nayu, Carly, Lynsey, Jo & me with our copies of Torment

Lynsey had just finished reading Fallen on the train & I wouldn't be surprised if she started Torment on the way home

Kelly & Lauren from Random House

Lynsey, Jo & me

Non, Sammee & Becky

Caroline & Sophie

Cat, Nayu & Carly

Caroline, Sophie, me, Cat & Nayu

After a couple of hours spent swapping books & chatting it was time to hit the bookshelves.  I wish I'd thought to take some pictures of everyone wandering around with their stacks of books to buy!  I only managed to stick to my book buying ban because I ran out of time & had to leave but I've added so many more books to my wish list.

I'd like to say a massive thank you to Jo for organising the meet up.  I had such a great afternoon & I'm already looking forward to meeting up with everyone again soon :o)

Who was there:

Becky - The Bookette
Carly - Writing From the Tub
Caroline - Portrait of a Woman
Cat - This Counts as Writing, Right?
Jo - Once Upon a Bookcase & Ink and Paper
Kelly - Random House Childrens Books
Lauren - Random House Childrens Books

Lynsey - Narratively Speaking
Nayu - Nayu's Reading Corner
Non - Catnip Publishing
Sammee - I Want to Read That
Sophie - So Many Books, So Little Time

In My Mailbox (20)

Thanks to Kristi at The Story Siren for hosting In My Mailbox every week.

London YA Book Bloggers Meet Up:
I had such an amazing week this week it's hard to know where to start!  I think I'll begin with yesterday's haul from the London YA Blogger meet up that was organised by Jo from Once Upon A Bookcase.  I had such a great time at the meet up - it was lovely to meet other bloggers and spend the afternoon chatting about books!  I'll be writing a post all about the meet up & hopefully get it posted tomorrow.

Thank you to Jo from Once Upon A Bookcase for copies of Lover Mine by J.R. Ward and Moon Sworn by Keri Arthur.  I can't wait to read these!!  Also thanks to Becky from The Bookette for copies of Magic Under Glass by Jaclyn Dolamore, Captivate by Carrie Jones and The Gypsey Crown by Kate Forsythe. 

I think I can speak for all of the other bloggers too when I say how surprised and excited I was when we were given an ARC of Torment by Lauren Kate by Random House!  I want to say a massive thank you to the Lauren & Kelly from Random House for coming out to meet us and especially for bringing us such a lovely gift!!  I also had to do a happy dance when Lynsey from Narritively Speaking offered to lend me her ARC of Linger by Maggie Stiefvater!!!  Thank you so much Lynsey - I can't wait to read Linger & it will definitely be coming back to you by recorded delivery so it doesn't go missing in the post :o)

What an amazing day - it was like Christmas with all the wonderful books I received - the only trouble I'm going to have is deciding what to read first!

Books Purchased:

I'm trying to be good and stick to my book buying ban but I've just started doing voluntary work for my local Cancer Research shop & I couldn't resist picking up the Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks for Ant.  It looks really good and was a bargain lol.

Gifts:

I met up with a friend I haven't seen in a while & was given a late birthday present of His Darkest Hunger by Juliana Stone and Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles.  I actually forgot what books I'd mentioned to her that I wanted so I've already read both of these but you know what that means - giveaway time!  I've been planning a big giveaway for when I reach 150 followers so these are both going to be added to the prize pile & I'm happy I'm going to be able to share both of these fantastic books!

Library Finds:

I wasn't planning on picking up any more library books either but one of my reservations (Kissing Sin the second book in the Riley Jenson series by Keri Arthur) had come in and when I spotted they had the first 3 books in the Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead I couldn't resisit them either.

For Review:

1. I'm taking part in a UK book tour for Forget You by Jennifer Echols that has been organised by Dwayne from Girls Without A Bookshelf - this looks really good and Dwayne gave it a great review so I'm really looking forward to reading it!
2. I received a copy of Fallen by Lauren Kate from Random House along with a very special ARC of Torment (see above) - I've heard such great things about Fallen & I can't wait to read both of these!
3. I also received a copy of Lonestar Homecoming by Colleen Coble from the Booksneeze blogger review program

Won:

I received Voices in the Dark by Catherine Banner and Crawlers by Sam Enthoven after winning a giveaway at Book Chick City.  These aren't the kind of books I'd usually pick up but the both look really interesting and I'm looking forward to giving them a try.

What was in your mailbox this week?

The Download Dante Party - Giveaway with Stella & Audra Price

Released Today!

You Burn Me: A Tale of the Eververse

A priestess of The Morrigan, Xxieda Rolla is a woman who has known success in her business, fulfillment in her family life and is only missing one thing: the love of the man that would have her for always. Sent to Shadow Heights New York by her goddess to find him, she meets the ever tasty, ever surly Dante Barratt. Sparks fly, and so does Amaretto Latte.

Dante, a dealer of rare and illegal commodities, and a very tempestuous fire demon might want the woman who's brown eyes haunt him, but knows better then to get involved with someone who just screams purity. Shes hot, and successful in ways he never could be, and knows a man that just gave away his soul like he did didn't deserve a woman like that.

After a chance encounter on a dark street corner, and an earth shattering kiss, Both are powerless to deny the chemistry between them... until Xxieda tells him her secret: shes a virgin.

Caught between his head and his heart, can Dante accept the fact that Fate sometimes gives us exactly what we really need, not what we think we want?

Authors Note: This is a novella and answer to the question several readers have had of "What happened to Dante?" after his little cameo in Sugar and Sin.

And guess what? the book is Amazingly priced at 99 cents! that's right, a full 45k novella for only 99 cents! You know you wanna read about Dante and the woman that turns his world upside down, and now you can, for CHEAP!

Giveaway Details:

And how would YOU like to win 3 Ebooks from our backlist, YOUR CHOICE? Its simple! You have three chances to win:

1. Send your snail mail address to: stella@stellaandaudra.com with "Dante's contest" in the subject
2. Follow our Blog (http://stellaandaudra.blogspot.com/) And let us know you have
3. Buy 'You Burn Me' and answer the question: "Who do we thank first and foremost in the dedication? Send your answer to stella@stellaandaudra.com with "Dante's book answer" in the subject.

Winner will receive 3 books from Stella & Audra's backlist in ebook form.

You can read my review of You Burn Me by clicking here
I'm also very happy to announce that Stella will be dropping by my blog next week to take part in my new Author's Animal Antics feature, don't forget to drop by on Thursday to read Stella's guest post.