Book Tour - New York Night by Stephen Leather

Title: New York Night (Jack Nightingale #6)

Author: Stephen Leather

Rating: 3/5 stars
 
Synopsis:

Teenagers are being possessed and turning into sadistic murderers. Priests can’t help, nor can psychiatrists. So who is behind the demonic possessions? Jack Nightingale is called in to investigate, and finds his own soul is on the line.

My thoughts:

Detective stories mostly bore me these days; I have read quite a lot of Agatha Christie and Conan Doyle when I was a teen and there was a point when I felt the crime genre cannot show me anything that would grip my attention anymore. With New York Night I was in luck, because this book is not simply a detective novel, but also a paranormal piece of writing.

I liked the relationship between our protagonist, Nightingale, and Perez, the policewoman who was helping him. I was very glad they didn’t get entangled with each other, I think the book was better for the lack of romance.

The story would make a good episode of a paranormal show on American TV, it had the structure and feel of a Supernatural episode. The investigation process the reader is led through in the book was mostly built up with care, although there were some connections that must have been obvious to Nightingale and Perez way before they discovered them. All in all however, those who enjoy novels that revolve around an investigation would like New York Night.

The book is part of a series, therefore there were some conversations that suggested continuity,

but it absolutely works as a standalone too.

(Beware, reader, New York Night is extremely violent in places due to certain paranormal creatures going on a rampage in the city. If you are squeamish, avoid this book, because I’m certainly not, and even I was shocked at times.)

On the whole, New York Night deserves three stars from me.

Goodreads

 Amazon 

Author:

Book promo - Thirst - Blood of my Blood by R. P. Channing

240+ Pages

WITH BEAUTIFUL PHOTOGRAPHS

~ Kira Sutherland ~

After a near fatal accident (and getting cheated on by her 'boyfriend'), and beating up the lead cheerleader (with whom the boyfriend cheated...), and being labeled as having 'issues' in her school because she, uhm, sees ghosts, Kira is left with two choices:

 1. Continue her 'therapy' (where she's told the ghost is a hallucination and also gets her legs ogled too often...)

Or

2. Go to Starkfield Academy, a boarding school for "Crazies and Convicts" (as the social media sites call them.)

She chooses the latter...

~ Cory Rand ~

Cory Rand has not had an easy life. His mother died in a car accident when he was twelve, and so did his mother's best friend...sort of. You see, Janice made a promise to take care of Cory just before she died, and so she lingers. Undead. A ghost that watches out for him.

Brought up in an abusive home, Cory quickly falls into a life of disreputable behavior. After his third offense (which was prompted by a girl, as usual - he has a weakness) he's left with two choices:

1. Be tried as an adult and share a cell with a guy named Bubba (he thinks...)

Or

2. Go to Starkfield Academy, which Cory is pretty sure is run by vampires. But, hey, at least he'll get an education.

He chooses the latter...

It's at Starkfield that Kira meets Cory Rand, a boy with an insatiable Rage who sees ghosts, too. As well as other things, other things from his past, things that confuse him, things like fire and witches and demons.

Things he's always ignored.

Until now.

Genres:

Young Adult Romance

Paranormal Romance

High School

Vampires, Demons, Witches

Dark Fantasy

Horror 

Buy Links

Amazon US
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B018M5GTLI
Amazon UK
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B018M5GTLI

Kindle Unlimited

$20 Amazon Gift Voucher Giveaway

At the back of the book there is a giveaway link. Once the book hits fifty reviews on Amazon, one of those reviewers will win a $20 (US Dollars) Amazon Gift Voucher!

Author Bio

R P Channing started writing three years ago, but never published anything even after churning out over a million words of fiction. Thirst: Blood of my Blood is the first book he dared to publish. When asked why, he said, “Because it’s the first thing I wrote that my wife actually enjoyed reading.” When not hammering away (most literally) at his keyboard, he can be found buried in a book, reading anything from romance to horror to young adult to non-fiction to comedy.

Author Links

Website
http://blog.rpchanning.com

Twitter

@rpchanning

Amazon

http://amazon.com/author/rpchanning

Review - The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

Title: The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet

Author: Becky Chambers

Publication date: March 16, 2015

Rating: 5/5 stars

Synopsis: 

When Rosemary Harper joins the crew of the Wayfarer, she isn't expecting much. The Wayfarer, a patched-up ship that's seen better days, offers her everything she could possibly want: a small, quiet spot to call home for a while, adventure in far-off corners of the galaxy, and distance from her troubled past.

But Rosemary gets more than she bargained for with the Wayfarer. The crew is a mishmash of species and personalities, from Sissix, the friendly reptillian pilot, to Kizzy and Jenks, the constantly sparring engineers who keep the ship running. Life on board is chaotic, but more or less peaceful - exactly what Rosemary wants.

Until the crew are offered the job of a lifetime: the chance to build a hyperspace tunnel to a distant planet. They'll earn enough money to live comfortably for years... if they survive the long trip through war-torn interstellar space without endangering any of the fragile alliances that keep the galaxy peaceful.

But Rosemary isn't the only person on board with secrets to hide, and the crew will soon discover that space may be vast, but spaceships are very small indeed.

My thoughts:

It’s always great when after dealing out a few lower ratings you can finally give a book five stars. The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet certainly deserves all the praise it gets. It is well-written science fiction that makes the reader feel all warm and fuzzy inside and keeps their attention without an unnecessarily overcomplicated plot.

The Long Way… follows a short period in the life of the crew of the Wayfarer. This patchwork of a tunneling ship houses nine individuals of different species: Ashby, the captain, Rosemary, the clerk, Sissix, the pilot, Kizzy and Jenks, the techs, Ohan, the navigator, Dr. Chef, the doctor/cook (aka my favourite character), Corbin, the algaeist and Lovey the AI. Since the novel is heavily character-driven by the end of the book I felt I knew this little group of people intimately and, in a way, I became a part of the family they formed.

I truly believe this novel can be life-changing for some people who read it at the right time, just when they need to ‘hear’ the message it holds. There are quite a few little lessons about life hidden between the lines and then in the end there is one greater thought to contemplate. This book is a wonderful teacher and I’m sure every reader can take something away from it, even those who normally don’t like science fiction. I wouldn’t miss this experience if I were you.

Goodreads | Amazon

Tiny Romantic Book Haul

When will I get tired of the Romantics?
The answer is never.

Behold the new additions to my bookshelf:

Selected Poetry of Lord Byron 
(Oxford World's Classics)

Goodreads

A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft

Goodreads

Shelley on Love: Selected Writings 

Goodreads

Review - The Determined Heart by Antoinette May

Title: The Determined Heart (The Tale of Mary Shelley and her Frankenstein)

Author: Antoinette May

Publication date: Sept 29, 2015

Rating: 4/5 stars

Synopsis:

The daughter of political philosopher William Godwin and feminist Mary Wollstonecraft, Mary Shelley had an unconventional childhood populated with the most talented and eccentric personalities of the time. After losing her mother at an early age, she finds herself in constant conflict with a resentful stepmother and a jealous stepsister. When she meets the Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, she falls deeply in love, and they elope with disastrous consequences. Soon she finds herself destitute and embroiled in a torturous love triangle as Percy takes Mary’s stepsister as a lover. Over the next several years, Mary struggles to write while she and Percy face ostracism, constant debt, and the heartbreaking deaths of three children. Ultimately, she achieves great acclaim for Frankenstein, but at what cost?

I received a free ebook copy of this book from the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My thoughts:

Being a fan of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein I couldn’t miss out on this biography. I have read about the Shelleys before; Daisy Hay’s Young Romantics enchanted me when I came across it years ago. I couldn’t help but think of Young Romantics a lot while reading this book, and this continuous, uncalled-for comparison made me like The Determined Heart less in the beginning. As I read on, however, I warmed to this nice novel.

It has a less academic feel to it than the previously mentioned work, even though it is just as widely researched and well put together as Young Romantics. What gives it a fiction-y tinge is that Antoinette May writes about Mary’s – or other characters’ – thoughts as if she knew exactly what was going on in their head. First I had some issues accepting this, but once I got over it I started to enjoy this book immensely. The writing was very enjoyable and I got to know some details from Mary and Bysshe Shelley’s story that were completely new to me.

Mary Shelley’s life was full of bitter tragedies and it is remarkable how she could start again so many times, how she could go on and live with such haunting memories.

In this book Mary’s two dominant sides are thoroughly discovered: Mary the mother and Mary the writer. Of course she was a multi-layered person, but I felt these two ‘layers’ were in focus. Beyond these we get glimpses of Mary the lover, Mary the friend, Mary the daughter etc. She was first and foremost an intellectual person, but of course the events of her personal life shaped her, inspired her and many times tore at her. 

I think Antoinette May managed to draw a vivid picture of this extraordinary woman who, with a novel which she wrote at a very young age, basically created a new genre: science fiction.

 
Goodreads | Amazon

Teaser Tuesday #15

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of A Daily Rhythm.
The rules:

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

This week's teaser is from The Determined Heart by Antoinette May:

Synopsis:

The daughter of political philosopher William Godwin and feminist Mary Wollstonecraft, Mary Shelley had an unconventional childhood populated with the most talented and eccentric personalities of the time. After losing her mother at an early age, she finds herself in constant conflict with a resentful stepmother and a jealous stepsister. When she meets the Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, she falls deeply in love, and they elope with disastrous consequences. Soon she finds herself destitute and embroiled in a torturous love triangle as Percy takes Mary’s stepsister as a lover. Over the next several years, Mary struggles to write while she and Percy face ostracism, constant debt, and the heartbreaking deaths of three children. Ultimately, she achieves great acclaim for Frankenstein, but at what cost?

My Teaser

The colour was back in Mary's cheeks, the sparkle in her eyes. Indicating the striking young man holding court in the parlor, Fanny whispered excitedly, "What do you think of him?"

What do you think she thought of him? Hahaaa ;)

Please leave a link to your TT post in a comment below. Also, tell me if you've ever read a book about the Shelleys. I love them.