New Releases ~ week of 07/24/2017

A Bride for the Bronc Rider by Liz Isaacson (#3 Brush Creek Brides)

A Ghostly Secret by Tonya Kappes (#7 Ghostly Southern Mystery)
A Toast to Murder by Allyson K. Abbott (#5 Mack's Bar Mysteries)
Accidental Sire by Molly Harper (#6 Half Moon Hollow)
Age of Swords by Michael J. Sullivan (The Legends of the First Empire #2)
Assassin's Price by L E Modesitt Jr (#11 Imager Portfolio)
Before the Dawn by Cynthia Eden (#2 Killer Instinct)
Bittersweet by Shirlee McCoy (#2 Sweet Haven)
Blackthorne’s Bride by Joan Johnston (#4 Mail-Order Brides)
Blood Gamble by Melissa F Olson (#2 Disrupted Magic)
Buried Heart by Kate Elliott (#4 Court of Fives)
Dark Rites by Heather Graham (#22 Krewe of Hunters)
Darkness Of Dragons by Tui T Sutherland (#10 Wings of Fire)

Deadfall by Linda Fairstein (#19 Alex Cooper)
Every Day Above Ground by Glen Erik Hamilton (#3 Van Shaw)
Eye Candy by Jessica Lemmon (#1 Real Love)
Falling by Simona Ahrnstedt (#2 High Stakes)
Fatal Threat by Marie Force (#11 Fatal)
Fire and Ashes by Elaine Viets (#2 Angela Richman)
Hate to Want You by Alisha Rai (#1 Forbidden Hearts)
Hope Restored by Carrie Ann Ryan (#3 Gallagher Brothers)
Hunters by Robert J. Crane (#15 Out of the Box)
Killing Is My Business by Adam Christopher (#2 L.A. Trilogy)
Knot What You Think by Mary Marks (#5 Quilting Mysteries)
Love in a Sandstorm by Zoe York (#6 Pine Harbour)
Muffin to Fear by Victoria Hamilton (#5 Merry Muffin Mystery)
Murder at Chateau Sur Mer by Alyssa Maxwell (#5 Gilded Newport Mystery)

Need You by Stacy Finz (#1 Garner Brothers)
One True Pairing by Cathy Yardley (#2 Fandom Hearts)
Paradise Valley by C. J. Box (#3 Cassie Dewell)
Redemption by Cristin Harber (#3 Delta)
Say No More by Liliana Hart (#3 Gravediggers)
Scot on the Run by Janice Maynard (#4 Kilted Heros)
Serpent Road by J L Bourne (#2 Chronicles of Max)
Strange Practice by Vivian Shaw (#1 Dr. Greta Helsing)
The Alpha's Arrangement by Ryan Michele (#16 Howls Romance)
The Difference Between Us by Rachel Higginson (#2 Opposites Attract)
The Fangs and the Freelance by Drew Hayes (#4 Fred)
The Five Daughters of the Moon by Leena Likitalo (#1 The Waning Moon)
The Hunting Grounds by Katee Robert (#2 Hidden Sins)

The Lady's Guard by Christi Caldwell (#3 Sinful Brides)
The Monster's Daughter by Paul Gamble (#2 The Ministry of SUITs)
The Painted Queen by Elizabeth Peters (#20 Amelia Peabody)
The Scandal of It All by Sophie Jordan (#2 Rogue Files)
Too Scot to Handle by Grace Burrowes (#2 Windham Brides)
The Shadow City by Dan Jolley (#2 Five Elements)
Until You Loved Me by Brenda Novak (#3 Silver Springs)
Vanguard by Ann Aguirre (#4 Razorland)
Well Built by Carly Phillips, Erika Wilde (#3 Book Boyfriend)
When I Need You by Lorelei James (#4 Need You)
Wildfire by Ilona Andrews (#3 Hidden Legacy)
Worth the Wait by Lori Foster (#2 Guthrie Brothers)
Wrong Side of the Paw by Laurie Cass (#6 Bookmobile Cat Mysteries)

Book Review ~ The Bone Witch

The Bone Witch (The Bone Witch #1)

by Rin Chupeco
published by Sourcebooks Fire
release date: March 7, 2017
genre:  YA, Fantasy, Paranormal, 

**Received arc from publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Summary (Goodreads): Tea is different from the other witches in her family. Her gift for necromancy makes her a bone witch, who are feared and ostracized in the kingdom. For theirs is a powerful, elemental magic that can reach beyond the boundaries of the living—and of the human.

Great power comes at a price, forcing Tea to leave her homeland to train under the guidance of an older, wiser bone witch. There, Tea puts all of her energy into becoming an asha, learning to control her elemental magic and those beasts who will submit by no other force. And Tea must be strong—stronger than she even believes possible. Because war is brewing in the eight kingdoms, war that will threaten the sovereignty of her homeland…and threaten the very survival of those she loves.

My Thoughts: I've had a hard time reviewing this. I was initially drawn in by the gorgeous cover. Then I was intrigued by the world the author created. It kind of reminds me of geisha's magic. I even liked the characters. Tea and her mentor Mykaela along with Tea's newly risen from the dead brother take us on quite a journey.
Unfortunately, It couldn't keep my attention for any length of time.  I don't know if it was the jumping back and forth between Tea's story of how she trained as a bone witch and her current life that caused it but they never mixed for me. Also, while some books are under-descriptive, this one may have been too descriptive.
That said, I still liked the overall story and want to know more. I want to know why Tea ended up on that road marching with her beasts and a surprising friend(?) ready for war. That could also be part of the problem, I seemed to miss why she is going to war and what happened to her friends that she had throughout the whole book until this point. I will probably be reading book 2 when it comes out just to try and get some answers.

Rating: 4

This Week's Reads

Waterfall
by TsaoShin (DeviantArt)

Kushiel's Avatar by Jacqueline Carey
Phedre's Trilogy #3 (Goodreads)
**Finally getting back to this series. This is the final book in the first trilogy. Phedre along with Joscelin are looking to rescue Hyacinthe.

Dreamer's Pool by Juliet Marillier
Blackthorn & Grim #1 (Goodreads)
**Been reading a lot of fantasy lately and this is another set to add to the list. Something about the covers made me want more. Blackthorn is duty bound to help anyone who asks for it and with the help of Grim the adventures begin.

New Releases ~ week of 07/172/017

A Desolate Hour by Mae Clair (#3 Point Pleasant)

Arabella and the Battle of Venus by David D Levine (#2 Adventures of Arabella Ashby)
Armistice by Harry Turtledove (#3 Hot War)
Assassin Next Door by Eve Langlais (#1 Bad Boy Inc.)
Blotto, Twinks and the Stars of the Silver Screen by Simon Brett (#7 Blotto, Twinks)
Casual Impressions by Kennedy Layne (#4 Safeguard)
Collared by David Rosenfelt (#16 Andy Carpenter)
Cornered in Conard County by Rachel Lee (#33 Conard County : The Next Generation)
Do You Take This Cowboy? by Vicki Lewis Thompson (#11 Thunder Mountain Brotherhood)

Elemental Mating by Milly Taiden (#1 A.L.F.A. Novel)
Escape with a Hot SEAL by Cat Johnson (#12 Hot SEALs)
Ghosts by Nicholas Sansbury Smith (#2 The Hell Divers Trilogy)
HOT Valor by Lynn Raye Harris (#11 Hostile Operations Team)
Killer Party by Lynn Cahoon (#9 A Tourist Trap Mystery)
Look Behind You by Iris Johansen (#5 Kendra Michaels)
Lucky Charmed by Sharla Lovelace (#2 Charmed in Texas)
Manhunt on Mystic Mesa by Cindi Myers (#3 Ranger Brigade: Family Secrets)
Mischievous Prince by Michelle M Pillow (#5 Captured by a Dragon-Shifter)
Protection Detail by Julie Miller (#4 Precinct: Bachelors in Blue)
Rocky Mountain Home by Vivian Arend (#11 Six Pack Ranch)

Secret Agent Surrender by Elizabeth Heiter (#3 Lawmen: Bullets and Brawn)
Seeds of Malice by Dale Mayer (#11 Psychic Visions)
Shadow by Colleen Oakes (Wendy Darling #3)
Soul Cage by Tetsuya Honda (#2 Reiko Himekawa)
Spellbinder by Thea Harrison (#2 Moonshadow)
Strange Dogs by James S A Corey (#6.5 Expanse)
The Emperor of Mars by Patrick Samphire (#2 Secrets of the Dragon Tomb)
The Ends of the World by Maggie Hall (#3 The Conspiracy of Us)
The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell
The Late Show by Michael Connelly (#1 Renée Ballard)
The Library of Light and Shadow by M J Rose (#3 Daughters of La Lune)
Vegas Wedding, Weaver Bride by Allison Leigh (#16 Return to the Double-C Ranch)

Children's Review ~ The Adventure of Thomas the Turtle

The Adventure of Thomas the Turtle

by Stuart Samuel
illustrated by Nathaniel Dailey
published by Jupiter Scientific
expected release date: July 18, 2017
genre: children's, picture book

Summary (Goodreads): Thomas the Turtle lives with his family on a picturesque pond. He is told by his mother not to go to a forbidden region of the pond. But Thomas's curiosity gets the better of him and one day he ventures too close and is swept away. What follows is a battle with nature as Thomas struggles to reunite with his family.

**Received from netgalley/publisher in exchange for an honest review.

My Thoughts:  This is a cute story about a young turtle who one day, decides to go against his mother's rules, going to the forbidden region. Thomas' father was lost in the forbidden region of the pond and never seen again. Thomas goes on a wild ride and ends up far from home and struggles to find a way back. Fortunately, two children are there to assist him.
The illustrations made this book for me. They were very well done and do a great job showing Thomas' story from home, to the forbidden region, and back again.

Rating: 4