Jasmyn's Reviews

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer http://iamareader.com and sponsored by the participating authors & bloggers. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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Thursday, April 11, 2013

APRIL Kindle Fire Giveaway

Kindle Fire HD 7" Giveaway

The winner will have the option of receiving a 7" Kindle Fire HD (US Only)

Or $199 Amazon.com Gift Card (International)

Or $199 in Paypal Cash (International)

Sponsoring Bloggers & Authors

Giveaway Details
1 winner will receive their choice of a Kindle Fire 7" HD (US Only), $199 Amazon Gift Card or $199 in Paypal Cash (International). Ends 4/30/13

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer http://iamareader.com and sponsored by the participating authors & bloggers. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Prize value $199 US.

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Friday, July 27, 2012

Review: The Amaranth Enchantment by Julie Berry

The Amaranth Enchantment by Julie Berry

When a mysterious piece of jewelry and a strange visitor arrive in the jewelry shop where she works for her evil aunt, Lucinda's course takes a surprising turn. With the help of the Amaranth Witch, a young (and harmless) con-artist, and a prince, Lucinda uncovers secrets about her own royal past. A strong seller in hardcover, this original fairytale marks an exciting debut from a lyrical new voice

My Review: A sweet re-telling of the Cinderella story with a few twists. Lucinda is an orphan being raised in her Aunt and Uncle's jewelry store. Her Aunt (the wicked step mother) treats her horribly and Lucinda dreams of the days she remembers of living with her parents, who died when she was very young. When a strange women arrives with a magnificent pearl, everything begins to change.

Lucinda is a sweet girl that is perfect as a Cinderella role. She is just innocent enough without getting overly sappy and washing out her personality. She doesn't always make the right choices, but tries her best to make up for the mistakes she makes along the way. With the Amaranth Witch to help guide her to a better future, Lucinda may just find a new and better place for herself in the world.

Buy it now:

Barnes & Noble: The Amaranth Enchantment

Nook: The Amaranth Enchantment

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Review: Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu

Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu

A stunning modern-day fairy tale from acclaimed author Anne Ursu

Once upon a time, Hazel and Jack were best friends. But that was before he stopped talking to her and disappeared into a forest with a mysterious woman made of ice. Now it's up to Hazel to go in after him. Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen," Breadcrumbs is a story of the struggle to hold on, and the things we leave behind.

My Review: "The Snow Queen" was always a favorite of mine growing up. I had several different versions that I just couldn't get enough of. Anne Ursu's version live up to all that I remember "The Snow Queen" ever being. Hazel is a fantastic character, and the world she trales while trying to rescue Jack is full of surprises and fantastic characters waiting to either help her or hinder her. Hazel needs to use her wits to try and bring Jack back from the clutches of the Snow Queen.

This is a must read for lovers of fairy tales everywhere.

Buy It Now:

Paper: Breadcrumbs

Nook: Breadcrumbs

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Book Review: Thornspell by Helen Lowe

Thornspell by Helen Lowe

Helen Lowe reimagines the Sleeping Beauty story from the point of view of the prince who is destined to wake the enchanted princess in this lush, romantic fantasy-adventure.

Prince Sigismund has grown up hearing fantastical stories about enchantments and faie spells, basilisks and dragons, knights-errant and heroic quests. He'd love for them to be true—he's been sheltered in a country castle for most of his life and longs for adventure—but they are just stories. Or are they?

From the day that a mysterious lady in a fine carriage speaks to him through the castle gates, Sigismund's world starts to shift. He begins to dream of a girl wrapped, trapped, in thorns. He dreams of a palace, utterly still, waiting. He dreams of a man in red armor, riding a red horse—and then suddenly that man arrives at the castle!

Sigismund is about to learn that sometimes dreams are true, that the world is both more magical and more dangerous than he imagined, and that the heroic quest he imagined for himself as a boy . . . begins now.

My Review: Prince Sigismund has grown up sheltered and protected while his father's kingdom is at war. He has fallen in love with all the stories of enchanted creatures and heroes rescuing princesses. Then one day it all becomes real. A not-so-chance encounter with a sorceress sets events in motion that will change his life forever.

Hearing the tale of Sleeping Beauty from the prince's point of view was fantastic. He wasn't a hero, but had to learn how to be one. With several teachers to help him along the way, he must face powers that he could never imagine, even after reading all the old tales. He finds himself drawn to the enchanted forest, a place that is forbidden to all. When he discovers that his dreams of a princess trapped in the forest are all real, he knows what his destiny is.

Sigismund is not perfect, and this is one of the many things that makes the story so good. He is trustworthy to a fault and has to learn that not everyone is what they seem to be. Caught up in events that seem to be spinning out of control, and taken away to fantastic realms that are not his, he learns the lessons and skills that it will take to save the princess.

The resolution had everything you ask for in a fairy tale, along with a few extra surprises thrown in to keep things a little interesting.

Buy it now:
Paperback: Thornspell
Nook: Thornspell

Sunday, May 20, 2012

Book Review: Tuesday's Child by Dale Mayer

Tuesday's Child by Dale Mayer

Discription from Amazon: What she doesn’t want...is exactly what he needs.

Shunned and ridiculed all her life for something she can’t control, Samantha Blair hides her psychic abilities and lives on the fringes of society. Against her will, however, she’s tapped into a killer—or rather, his victims. Each woman’s murder, blow-by-blow, ravages her mind until their death releases her back to her body. Sam knows she must go to the authorities, but will the rugged, no-nonsense detective in charge of tracking down the killer believe her?

Detective Brandt Sutherland only trusts hard evidence, yet Sam’s visions offer clues he needs to catch a killer. The more he learns about her incredible abilities, however, the clearer it becomes that Sam’s visions have put her in the killer’s line of fire. Now Brandt must save her from something he cannot see or understand…and risk losing his heart in the process.

As danger and desire collide, passion raises the stakes in a game Sam and Brandt don’t dare lose.
My Thoughts:
Samantha's character grabbed me from the beginning. Struggling with her psychic abilities, not just mentally, but physically as each victim's wounds manifest on her own body. She fears that the next attack will lead to her death as well. She would do anything to help, and when Detective Sutherland finds out about her abilities a deep secret from her past rears its ugly head.

Detective Sutherland finds Samantha's ability both a god-send and a problem. While he truly believes in psychic abilities, he knows how the public will react if they ever found out that she was helping to solve a serial murder. As the case escalates, and more deaths are uncovered, Sutherland finds himself drawn in an entirely new way to Samantha. He only hopes that he can help her gain some control over her ability before its too late.

The story unfolds quickly and I was caught up in wanting to find out what Samantha was going to do right away. I wasn't nearly as fond of Sutherland. he seemed to be a bit of a stereotype police officer, with the exception of believing in psychics. He was quite the "macho man" and it grated on me a bit at times.

As one of Dale Mayer's first forays into the genre, it was very good story. I have read a few of Mayer's other books (reviews coming shortly), and I see only good and better things to come.

Friday, December 23, 2011

Book Review: In the Forests of the Night by Kersten Hamilton

In the Forests of the Night: The Goblin Wars, Book Two by Kersten Hamilton - The Goblin Wars Book Two

About the book:

The battle against goblinkind continues . . . but which side will Teagan be on?

Teagan, Finn, and Aiden have made it out of Mag Mell alive, but the Dark Man’s forces are hot on their heels. Back in Chicago, Tea’s goblin cousins show up at her school, sure she will come back to Mag Mell, as goblin blood is never passive once awoken. Soon she will belong to Fear Doirich and join them. In the meantime, they are happy to entertain themselves by trying to seduce, kidnap, or kill Tea’s family and friends. Tea knows she doesn’t have much time left, and she refuses to leave Finn or her family to be tortured and killed. A wild Stormrider, born to rule and reign, is growing stronger inside her. But as long as she can hold on, she’s still Teagan Wylltson, who plans to be a veterinarian and who heals the sick and hurting. The disease that’s destroying her—that’s destroying them all—has a name: Fear Doirich. And Teagan Wylltson is not going to let him win.

My thoughts (may be spoilers if you have not read book one - I try to keep them to a minimum)
Teagan, Finn, and Aiden have made it back to our world and out of Mag Mell - along with some friends and with some knowledge of Teagan's past that they all could have done without. The Dark Man is still on her trail, but is trying to be more persuasive, by trying to go after Teagan's friends and family. When the group finds themselves back in Mag Mell on a search to stop the growing goblin inside of her.

While I enjoyed returning to Teagan's world again, I had a much harder time following this story than the first. There were more "main" characters, and they each had their own agenda. On the other hand, they each brought out a little more of the old mythology which I absolutely loved. This book seemed to fall into the trap that many second books in a series seem to do - it was more of a wrapping up of loose ends and setting the stage for more than a story that I could really get into. I'm hoping there's a third book still. I love Teagan, and all her family and friends, there just need to be a little less going on in the background.

3/5

The Last Awakening (Curse of the Phoenix, Book One)

The Last Awakening by Rachel Firasek - Curse of the Phoenix Book 2

About the book:
For three hundred years, Arabella’s life has been one meaningless death after another. In a cruel twist of fate, Osiris gifts the phoenix her mortality and long-gone voodoo magic with a warning that she must save her next soul within a week without using magic, or she’ll lose her power forever.

Ex-soldier Greyson Meadows desperately wants to be freed from the nightmares and guilt that haunt him. Confronted by a waif of a woman who forces him to face the truth about his past, he runs fast and hard, fighting the need to prove himself worthy despite his perceived failures.

When Ari becomes the target of her own magical blunder, the weak will find strength and the strong will fall. One will have to give up everything so the other can have peace, but will love’s magic withstand the loss?

My Thoughts:
The thing I like most about this series is that even though the stories are short, they jump right into the action and carry you along right until the very end. Arabella is a fiesty voodoo priestess, or at least she was. Something went wrong with a spell one day and she ended up serving as one of Osiris's phoenixes until she learns her lesson. While serving as a phoenix may sound glamorous, it's actually quite the opposite. Having to die over and over again in the place of others wears thin quickly. Then one day Ari saves Greyson and everything changes. Ari is willing to risk her soul to try and help him fight his inner demons (which are pretty nasty), but she is only given a week to do it.

Now, Greyson is ex-military, and has carried around guilt from his time in the service for years. When Ari shows up and tries to show him that he has nothing to be guilty about, he runs the opposite way at first, not realizing just how much he needs her. As Ari tries to help Greyson, she realizes that she needs his help as well, and fast. Osiris has given her a time frame to save Greyson and it's quickly approaching when she finds out that everything she knew about her past was wrong. Facing this will push both of them to their emotional limits.

I really liked Ari in the first book of the series, The Last Rising, and was excited to see her starring in her own. I've become attached to the characters and I really hope to see a third book come out.

3/5

Monday, December 19, 2011

The Mers by Ami Blackwelder- Bewitching Book Tours

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By Lockerz

The Mers: A Mermaid Dystopian
By Ami Blackwelder
Book 1 Mer Chronicles

What lies beneath the surface?

One hundred years from now, the world has changed and brought with it, new forms of life.

Who are the Mers? Who is Mira?

Mira always knew she was different. Growing up with Mers, she never quite fit in. When Mira breaks the rules and takes Niren across the border that divides Ellis Island and New Jersey, a border that divides two vastly different worlds, she thought the journey to find out who she really is would be an easy one.

But as the world in Jersey proves to be a convoluted mix of Aristocrats who hate the Mers, Pirates who want to sell them, and Magi who want to use them...finding her true identity will be a challenge, especially when her best friend Niren is a Mer willing to fight to the death.

About The Author:

Ami Blackwelder is a forbidden romance writer in the paranormal, scifi, and historical genres. Growing up in Florida, she went to UCf and in 1997 received her BA in English and teaching credentials. She travelled overseas to teach in Thailand, Nepal, Tibet, China and Korea. Thailand is considered her second home now. She has always loved writing and wrote poems and short stores since childhood; however, her novels began when she was in Thailand. She also wrote three nonfiction spiritual books at this time.

Acheivements:

In university, having won the Best Fiction Award from the University of Central Florida (Yes, The Blair Witch Project University;), her fiction From Joy We Come, Unto Joy We Return was published in the on campus literary magazine: Cypress Dome and remains to this day in University libraries around the country. Later, she achieved the Semi-Finals in a Laurel Hemingway contest and published a few poems in the Thailand’s Expat magazine, and an article in the Thailand’s People newspaper. Additionally, she has published poetry in the Korea’s AIM magazine, the American Poetic Monthly magazine and Twisted Dreams Magazine.

http://amiblackwelder.blogspot.com

I was scheduled to have a review ready this morning, but had some major technical difficulties with my Nook, and can only read for so long on the computer screen. So, I will be posting the full review once I have the book completed. I'm currently about two thirds of the way through and it is fantastic so far. Mira is a fascinating character and it is great to watch her search for her birth parents and learn so much about their world. The divide between the human and mer lands is great and nothing is quite like Mira thought it would be.

Nov 30 Interview

Illusions of Intimacy

http://www.MarshaAMoore.blogspot.com

Dec 18 Promo

Snowdrop Dreams of Books
http://www.snowdropdreams.ca

Dec 19 Spotlight and review

Jasmyn's Reviews
http://jasmynninestuff.blogspot.com

Dec 20 promo and review

Wendy @ Rage, Sex and Teddy Bears

http://ragesexandteddybears.blogspot.com/

Dec 27 Guest Blog

www.pavarti.com

Jan 16 Guest blog and review

Aislynn @ Stitch Read Cook
www.stitchreadcook.com

Jan 17 Book Spotlight

Read 2 Review

Jan 17 Guest Blog

Flutey Wordshttp://authoraubrie.blogspot.com

Jan 18 Interview

Meredith Allard

www.meredithallard.com

Jan 18 Guest Blog and review

Mama Knows Books

http://mamaknowsbooks.blogspot.com

Jan 19 promo and review

That Bookish Girl

Jan 20 Interview

Kay Dee Royal
http://www.kaydeeroyal.blogspot.com

Jan 24 Guest Post and review

Book Briefs- http://bookbriefs.blogspot.com

Jan 26 Character Interview

http://RavencraftRealm.blogspot.com

Jan 27 review and promo

Beverly @ The Wormhole

http://wormyhole.blogspot.com

Jan 30 Guest Blog

I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read!

http://www.sithereandread.com/

Feb 5 Review

Nov 30 Interview

Illusions of Intimacy

http://www.MarshaAMoore.blogspot.com

Dec 18 Promo

Snowdrop Dreams of Books
http://www.snowdropdreams.ca

Dec 19 Spotlight and review

Jasmyn's Reviews
http://jasmynninestuff.blogspot.com

Dec 20 promo and review

Wendy @ Rage, Sex and Teddy Bears

http://ragesexandteddybears.blogspot.com/

Dec 27 Guest Blog

www.pavarti.com

Jan 16 Guest blog and review

Aislynn @ Stitch Read Cook
www.stitchreadcook.com

Jan 17 Book Spotlight

Read 2 Review

Jan 17 Guest Blog

Flutey Wordshttp://authoraubrie.blogspot.com

Jan 18 Interview

Meredith Allard

www.meredithallard.com

Jan 18 Guest Blog and review

Mama Knows Books

http://mamaknowsbooks.blogspot.com

Jan 19 promo and review

That Bookish Girl

Jan 20 Interview

Kay Dee Royal
http://www.kaydeeroyal.blogspot.com

Jan 24 Guest Post and review

Book Briefs- http://bookbriefs.blogspot.com

Snowdrop Dreams of Books
http://www.snowdropdreams.ca

Feb 9 Interview

Sarah Ballance

sarahballance.wordpress.com

Feb 10 Promo and Interview

JeanzBookReadNReview

http://jeanzbookreadnreview.blogspot.com/

Feb 13 Promo

www.readergirls.blogspot.com

Feb 13 review

Braintasia Books

http://www.braintasiabooks.com/

Pages

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Friday, July 27, 2012

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Sunday, May 20, 2012

Friday, December 23, 2011

Monday, December 19, 2011