Review: The Hob

by Dana Marie Bell
Rating: 4/5

Robin Goodfellow has met his match. When the Black Queen kidnaps one of the White Queen's nephews, Robin Goodfellow is sent to ensure that the young prince safely returns to the bosom of his family. True to his role as Oberon’s Hobgoblin, he is ready for anything…except meeting his truebond, the very delicious, very human Michaela Exton. Michaela has dreamed about a flame-haired rogue named Robin Goodfellow since she was a little girl, but everyone knows Puck doesn’t really exist. In real life, it’s a dark-eyed man named Ringo who makes her heart beat faster. She is closer to her dream man than she thinks, and nobody knows it better than Robin, who wears the guise of Ringo. But there’s competition for her love in the form of Lord Raven, who holds a secret that will rock the foundation of Robin’s world. As a Black Court delegate does the unthinkable, leaving an enraged, grief-stricken Robin hanging onto his humanity by a thread, only Michaela has the power to bring him back from the killing edge—if she survives. Product Warning: This book contains explicit sex, graphic language, Robin Goodfellow and... Really. Do I need to say any more?

Ah, Dana Marie Bell. One of my favourite authors, possessing the seal of complete trust from me. Which I’m sure she’s completely honoured by. The Hob is book four in the Gray Court series.

I was a little disappointed by this. Now if you pay attention to my ratings then you might wonder why I say that about a 4-star book. Yes it was very good and I try to review good books as much as possible and only give the worst books attention to warn others. I want to tell you about authors I like to give them a greater following and thus secure more books for me. But… I was expecting a 5-star read in this and it just didn’t quite get there.

Australia Day

Happy Australia Day fellow Aussies!

And for all you non-Aussies, 225 years ago a motley group of criminals landed in Australia. After deciding that Sydney Cove was close enough they started one of the greatest nations ever.

Currently Listening: Brother – Matt Corby

Review: Last Kiss Goodnight

by Gena Showalter
Rating: 3/5

The Sweetest Temptation . . . Black ops agent Solomon Judah awakens caged and bound in a twisted zoo where otherworlders are the main attraction. Vika Lukas, the owner’s daughter, is tasked with Solo’s care and feeding. The monster inside him yearns to kill her on sight, even though she holds the key to his escape. But the human side of him realizes the beautiful deaf girl is more than she seems—she’s his. The Ultimate Price . . . Vika endures the captives’ taunts and loathing, hoping to keep them alive even if she can’t free them. Only, Solo is different— he protects her. But as hostility turns to forbidden romance, his feelings for her will be used against him . . . and he’ll be put to a killer test

This is the first book in the Otherworld Assassins series. A spin-off of the awesome Alien Huntress series. Unlike some spinoffs this one starts with all new characters and starts a new storyline. Which is good but still leaves the question, “When will we get Dallas’ book?”

Review: He’s a Magic Man

by Susan Squires
Rating: 3/5

Drew is sure of her destiny. The Tremaine family carries a magic gene and hers will come alive when she meets the true love who shares the gene. Lightning strikes when she glimpses a gorgeous man on television and gets a vision of the future. Her power has arrived. She’s off to Florida in search of the man who is her destiny. Dowser, can find things, anywhere, anytime. But he only uses his gift to find sunken treasure for rich dilettantes when he needs money to stay drunk, trying to numb his pain. When Drew finds Dowser, she’s shocked. This derelict can’t be her destiny. Still, she’s undeniably attracted to him. And he’s attracted to her, guilty as that makes him feel. But fate has played a cruel trick on them both. The man who is Drew’s destiny still loves his dead wife, Alice. Now a shadowy group wants Dowser to find Talismans handed down from Merlin to intensify their power, and they can give Dowser the one thing he wants: Alice. Drew and Dowser must make choices, and they look like they’re going to be painful.

This is the second in the Children of Merlin series. This series is self-published by Susan Squires and I consider it at least a spiritual successor to the Companion/Da Vinci Time Travel series’ on account of the sentiment in The Mists of Time. I really liked Do You Believe In Magic? because it really captured the way that you can love your family and still feel like you don’t belong there.

Review: Gates of Rapture

by Caris Roane
Rating: 3/5

As a vampire and a warrior, Leto Distra is deadly. But after years of being forced to drink dying blood, he is now part beast—a wild savage thing lurking beneath the surface.  With war on the horizon, Leto is determined to help the Guardians of Ascension destroy the enemy who turned him into a monster. And there’s only one woman who can help him. Grace Albion is certain that she’s meant to be with Leto, but their future may be cut short by the impending battle. Now Grace must embrace her obsidian flame powers—and bind her powers with Leto’s—if they’re ever going to survive.  With the fate of the world at stake, they must tap into powers they never knew they had…and unlock their deepest passions.

This is the sixth and final book of the Guardians of Ascension series, with the story continuing later with The Darkening, which will be the second of the Dawn of Ascension spin-off novella series. This will be following on from Brink of Eternity.

Review: Knight Awakened

by Coreene Callahan
Rating: 35

In AD 1331, warlord Vladimir Barbu seizes control of Transylvania. But in spite of his bloody triumph, his claim to the throne remains out of reach. The king of Hungary opposes his rule, the Transylvanian people despise his brutal ways, and the high priestess needed to crown him has vanished without a trace. But Barbu hasn’t come this far only to be thwarted by a woman. He unleashes his best hunters to track her down and bring her to him—dead or alive. For Xavian Ramir, killing is the only life he has ever known. Torn from his family when he was a child, he was trained from an early age to be an elite assassin. But now he longs for something more, vowing to start anew after one last job. The bounty on his target’s head is enough to set him up for good—if he can resist the long-dead conscience that stirs to life when he meets his beautiful mark. Afina Lazar never wanted to become high priestess, but the brutal murders of her beloved mother and sister leave her no choice. Now she is running for her life, desperate to protect the magical amulet entrusted to her care. But when Barbu’s assassin comes for her, she realizes her only chance of stopping the warlord’s rise to power is to convince this enigmatic—and handsome—hunter that she is more valuable alive than dead.

I love Coreene Callahan’s Dragonfury series, love love, love it. I enjoy the way that the characters are all smart like normal people. Everytime I expect the heroine or hero to do something absolutely stupid to move the plot forward…. they don’t and it’s such a relief. Knight Awakened, book one of the Circle of Seven series however I wasn’t sure about. It appeared to be a straight historical set in medieval Transylvania. But it isn’t it’s a paranormal historical.