New Releases ~ week of 04/28/2014

A Husband's Regret by Natasha Anders (#2 Unwanted)

Abducted by a Prince by Olivia Drake (#3 Cinderella Sisterhood)
Alien Escape by Geronimo Stilton (#1 Geronimo Stilton Spacemice)
Alpha's Tale by Erin Hunter (#4.5 Survivors)
Antiques Con by Barbara Allan (#8 Trash 'n' Treasures Mystery)
Apart at the Seams by Marie Bostwick (#7 Cobbled Court)
Athena the Proud by Joan Holub, Suzanne Williams (#13 Goddess Girls)
Attack on Titan 12 by Hajime Isayama (#12 Attack on Titan)
Bad Hair Day by Sarah Mlynowski (#5 Whatever After)
Best Kept Secret by Ann M Martin (#3 Family Tree)
Black Lies, Red Blood by Kjell Eriksson (#5 Ann Lindell)
Countdown by Natalie Standiford (#3 39 Clues: Unstoppable)
Breaking Point by Lindsay McKenna (#5 Shadow Warriors)
Burning Dawn by Gena Showalter (#3 Angels of the Dark)

Darkest Flame by Donna Grant (#1 Dark Kings)
Divided We Fall by C Alexander London (#4 Dog Tags)
Flirting With Forever by Molly Cannon (#3 Everson, Texas)
Forged by Jacquelyn Frank (#4 The World of the Nightwalkers)
Half Moon Harbor by Donna Kauffman (#2 Bachelors of Blueberry Cove)
Heart of Gold by Beverly Jenkins (#5 Blessings)
How to Lose a Duke in Ten Days by Laura Lee Guhrke (#2 American Heiress In London)
How to Seduce a Vampire (Without Really Trying) by Kerrelyn Sparks (#15 Love at Stake)
Inn at Last Chance by Hope Ramsay (#8 Last Chance)
King of Thieves by Jane Kindred (#2 Demons of Elysium)
Live to See Tomorrow by Iris Johansen (#3 Catherine Ling)

Liz at Marigold Lake by Callie Barkley (#7 Critter Club)
Morningside Fall by Jay Posey (#2 Duskwalker Cycle)
Nash by Jay Crownover (#4 Marked Men)
Natchez Burning by Greg Iles (#4 Penn Cage)
Never Entice an Earl by Lily Dalton (#2 One Scandalous Season)
Once Bitten, Twice Burned by Cynthia Eden (#2 Phoenix Fire)
Pumpkin Eater by Jeffrey Round (#2 Dan Sharp Mystery)
Ready To Kill by Andrew Peterson (#4 Nathan McBride)
Redemption of the Duke by Gayle Callen (#3 Brides of Redemption)
Searching for Perfect by Jennifer Probst (#2 Searching For)
Secrets of Seduction by Nicole Jordan (#3 Legendary Lovers)
Silver Mirrors by A.A. Aguirre (#2 Apparatus Infernum)
Soul Surrender by Katana Collins (#3 Soul Stripper)

Starfall by Michael Griffo (#3 Darkborn Legacy)
Talk Dirty to Me by Dakota Cassidy (#1 Plum Orchard)
The Break-up Artist by Philip Siegel (#1 Break-up Artist)
House on Blackberry Hill by Donna Alward (#1 Jewell Cove)
The Luck Uglies by Paul Durham (#1 Luck Uglies)
The Marathon Conspiracy by Gary Corby (#4 Athenian Mysteries)
The Masterful Mr Montague by Stephanie Laurens (#2 Adair's Casebook)
The Scandalous Adventures of the Sister of the Bride by Victoria Alexander (#3 Millworth Manor)
The Taking by Kimberly Derting (#1 Taking trilogy)
The Titanic Locket by Suzanne Weyn (#1 Haunted Museum)
The Treatment by Suzanne Young (#2 Program)
The Unexpected Duchess by Valerie Bowman (#1 Playful Brides)
Thornlost by Melanie Rawn (#3 Glass Thorns)
To Being an Outlaw by Christopher Healy (#3 The Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom)
Valour and Vanity by Mary Robinette Kowal (#4 Shades of Milk and Honey)
When We Met by Susan Mallery (#13 Fools Gold)

Review ~ Templar

Templar

by Jordan Mechner
illustrated by LeUyen Pham, Alex Puvilland
published by First Second
genre: Graphic Novel, Historical Fiction

Summary (Goodreads): Martin is one of a handful of Templar Knights to escape when the king of France and the pope conspire to destroy the noble order. The pope and king aim to frame the Templars for heresy, execute all of them, and make off with their legendary treasure. That's the plan, anyway, but Martin and several other surviving knights mount a counter-campaign to regain the lost treasure of the Knights Templar.

With gorgeous illustrations by LeUyen Pham and Alexander Puvilland and lush coloring from Hilary Sycamore, this 480-page, full-color, hardcover graphic novel by Jordan Mechner is itself a treasure.

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this story and the fact that it was a graphic novel even though it was 480 pages. The graphics fit with the feel of the story and added another dimension to it. They kept the story going and kept me interested even when there would have been a lag for a book this long.
The setting of Templar trials was something I am not as familiar with so don't know how accurate this is. Using it as a backdrop was perfect for the criminal/treasure hunter story, mixed in with a little romance and a group of men that have a strange sense of loyalty given everything that is happening around them.
Overall, this was an entertaining read. It had a great premise and graphics that went along well with the story.

Rating: 4

Book Review ~ Camelot Burning

Camelot Burning (Metal & Lace #1)

by Kathryn Rose
published by Flux
expected release date: May 8, 2014
genre: Steampunk, retellings, author debut 

**e-galley received from netGalley/publisher in exchange for honest review.

Summary (Goodreads): By day, Vivienne is Guinevere's lady-in-waiting. By night, she's Merlin's secret apprentice, indulging in the new mechanical arts and science of alchemy. It's a preferred distraction from Camelot’s gossipy nobility, roguish knights, and Lancelot’s athletic new squire, Marcus, who will follow in all knights’ footsteps by taking a rather inconvenient vow of chastity.

More than anything, Vivienne longs to escape Camelot for a future that wouldn't include needlework or marriage to a boorish lord or dandy. But when King Arthur's sorceress sister, Morgan le Fay, threatens Camelot, Vivienne must stay to help Merlin build a steam-powered weapon to defeat the dark magic machine Morgan will set upon the castle. Because if Camelot falls, Morgan would be that much closer to finding the elusive Holy Grail. Time is running out and Morgan draws near, and if Vivienne doesn't have Merlin's weapon ready soon, lives would pay the price, including that of Marcus, the only one fast enough to activate it on the battlefield.

My Thoughts: This story combines steampunk and a loose interpretation of Arthurian legend. The author did a good job with good vs evil aspects of this story, represented in the better known Arthur/Morgan and also machine/ magic.
Vivienne was a curious and interesting character. She played the part of the lady in waiting to the Guinevere but did not thin twice about running off to Merlin's tower whenever she could (which was more often than you would think). I liked how many of her reactions were not that of the normal court lady. She spoke up even when she shouldn't and was more likely to be found standing by the knights in a battle than hiding in the castle. Her relationship with Marcus was odd/awkward. Not really sure how I feel about it. It seemed to be there more to move certain plots along or create tension between characters.
One of my main problems with this book was the feeling that things were missing.  Vivienne's whole relationship with Azur was never explained and yet we are supposed to understand why he would expect her to leave Camelot with him to get away from everything happening. I took it to mean they had met before but don't know more than that. There was also Arthur's metal, it was just a big and well guarded thing but I never really understood the when/how it got to where it was and why.
Also, the final battle was a little lack luster, there was a lot happening but the death's of Morgan and Mordred just seemed to happen too quickly. The story was in the heat of battle and then the next sentence they are dead. There was more to the earlier battle than this main part. I had to reread the paragraph a couple of times to figure out what exactly happened.
That being said, I still enjoyed the story overall. The riddles from the Lady of the Lake and why Vivienne knows where the Holy Grail is and how she is going to help bring Camelot back. I can see myself taking the time to read book 2.

Rating: 4

Review ~ Zeus: King of the Gods

Zeus: King of the Gods (Olympians #1)

by George O'Connor
published by First Second
genre: Mythology, Graphic Novel

Summary (Goodreads): George O'Connor is a Greek mythology buff and a classic superhero comics fan, and he's out to remind us how much our pantheon of superheroes (Superman, Batman, the X-Men, etc) owes to mankind's ORIGINAL superheroes: the Greek pantheon.

In OLYMPIANS, O'Connor draws from primary documents to reconstruct and retell classic Greek myths. But these stories aren't sedate, scholarly works. They're action-packed, fast-paced, high-drama adventures, with monsters, romance, and not a few huge explosions. O'Connor's vibrant, kinetic art brings ancient tales to undeniable life, in a perfect fusion of super-hero aesthetics and ancient Greek mythology.

Volume 1 of OLYMPIANS, ZEUS: King OF THE GODS, introduces readers to the ruler of the Olympian Pantheon, telling his story from his boyhood to his ascendance to supreme power.

My Thoughts: One of my favorite things to read is mythology mixed in with paranormal. These are a nice refresher on the basics of Greek mythology.
It starts with Gaea and goes through Zeus defeating his father Kronos to become the King of the new generation of Gods. It shows (briefly) his journey from the cave he grew up in to Tartarus to gain his birthright (and his brothers).
As well as having great graphics I also enjoyed the author notes and the geek/greek notes. Looking forward to reading more in this series.

Rating: 4

Happy Holiday Weekend!

by  kotorikurama

For all my followers that celebrate... Have a Happy and Safe Easter weekend.

by RobbVision