Unwelcome - Michael Griffo - Blog Tour Review

Archangel Academy is more than a school to Michael Howard. Within its majestic buildings and serene English grounds, he's found friends, new love, and a place that feels more like home than Nebraska ever did. But the most important gift of Archangel Academy is immortality. . .

Life as a just-made vampire is challenging for Michael, even with Ronan, an experienced vamp, to guide him. Michael's abilities are still raw and unpredictable. To add to the turmoil, the ancient feud between rival vampire species is sending ripples of discord through the school. And beneath the new headmaster's charismatic front lies a powerful and very personal agenda.

Yet the mysteries lurking around the Academy pale in comparison to the secrets emerging from Michael's past. And choosing the wrong person to trust—or to love—could lead to an eternity of regret. . .

Synopsis taken from goodreads.

Title: Unwelcome (Archangel Academy)

Author: Michael Griffo

Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy, Vampires

Publisher: Kensington

Publication Date: August 30, 2011

Format: Softcover

Source: Received from publicist. Many thanks goes to Kensington Books, and Teen Book Scene for sending me a copy of this book for review. I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review. 

Blog Tour: Teen Book Scene blog tour. You can follow along with the tour here, or by clicking through the banner located below the review. 

Look for it: Amazon, Book Depository

My rating: 3.5/5 

Unwelcome picks up right where Unnatural left off. Michael is at Archangel Academy, and he is at the start of a new semester. After the events of the previous semester, he is hoping to just relax and enjoy the company of his new boyfriend. However, evil still lurks and is not done with Michael and Archangel Academy yet. The vampire factions are at the precipice of a war, and immortality may be cut short at any time. Danger and intrigue abound at Archangel Academy. Will Michael and Ronan survive, and will they still be united together? 
Unwelcome was an engrossing read. Many new characters were thrown at the reader, however they were a welcome addition to the Archangel Academy crew. New villains rose to the challenge, and previously reliable friends are unwittingly crossing into enemy territory. There is still a lot of head jumping in the book as the point of view switches between several characters per page. Once you are used to the narrative style, and know the characters, it is easy to follow along with the different perspectives. I did find that in Unwelcome the head jumping was more refined and fluid as it would follow a set train of thought with a few characters. Michael would be going to confront his father, and Brania would be going to confront hers and it would switch back and forth between both of their conversations, much like a tv show of sorts. 
Several new characters were added to the already large cast, and they brought both humour and suspense with them. We glean more insight into some of the new characters, and more tidbits are revealed about the different vampire factions, however there are still some aspects that are cloaked in secrecy yet. Hopefully they will be revealed within the next book as they will let us know more about the different factions and how they came to be. 
Many intriguing twists are revealed in Unwelcome and it kept the story moving. Griffo is not afraid of killing characters once he is done with them, so be warned, some of your favourites could end up on the chopping block. 
All in all, a solid follow-up to Unnatural. Relationships evolve to give us a new perspective on situations that we hadn't previously seen before. New family members entering the picture add another dimension as well as we get to see more of the vampire world and the inner workings of set family dynamics. I'm intrigued to know what will happen next for Michael, Ronan and their friends.

Blog Tour: Amaretto Flame - Sammie Spencer - Book Picks

Today, Sammie Spencer is here to talk books. She's here as part of the Teen Book Scene blog tour for her book, Amaretto Flame. If you haven't read it yet, you should, because it is fantastic. Thank you for being here, Sammie! You can follow along with the tour here, or by clicking through the banner. Enjoy!

Corrine has kindly allowed me to visit her blog today and talk to you guys about some of the books I love. For starters, I’m the author of Amaretto Flame, the first in the Eagleton Coven series. The book is about witches, and specifically one of them who is banished to a human town for a summer. It’s a fun read and I hope you’ll check it out! So, on with my favorites:

My very favorite book of all time would probably be Jane Eyre. I first read this book when I was probably 13 or 14 and fell in love. Mr. Rochester is priceless! If you haven’t read this, read it!

For YA, Richelle Mead and Cassandra Clare are a few of my favorite authors. I think the Vampire Academy series is wonderful. After the first book, I really started to fall in love with the characters, and I think they’re easy to identify with. The Mortal Instruments is also one of my favorites. The relationship between Jace and Clary is the kind of stuff I live for!

Lately, I’ve been reading a lot of indie books, and I think there are a lot that are way underrated. Blood & Spirits by Dennis Sharpe, Anathema by Meg Jensen, The Soulkeepers by G.P. Ching – these are all indie authors that I’ve read recently and I loved every one of these books.

So there you have it, just a few of my favorites! I’m super-interested to hear what your favorites are.

Awesome book list, Sammie! I have yet to read Jane Eyre. I think I should get on that, but I love VA and TMI! Glad to see you love them too!! 

Thank you so much for being here today!

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When Olivia Landry screams, people die. No wonder she's been shunned by humans her whole life. When Olivia makes a huge mistake, she's banished for a summer to a human town; forced to live as one of them. She's out for revenge when she discovers the humans are different than she imagined, especially the rugged, sexy guitarist, Jackson Vance.

Pretending to be human isn't as hard as she thought it would be...until the witch hunters attack. Now Olivia must somehow protect herself, her family, and her new human friends. There's a problem with that. When you go around screaming, people are bound to learn your secret. Can love really conquer anything?

Synopsis taken from goodreads.

Blog Tour: The Vampire Stalker - Allison van Diepen - Author Interview

Today, Allison van Diepen (and fellow Canadian) is here with an author interview courtesy of the Teen Book Scene blog tour for her new release, The Vampire Stalker. Thank you for being here, Allison!  You can follow along with the tour here, or by clicking through the banner. Enjoy!

What inspired you to write The Vampire Stalker? 

I was watching the 1980s video “Take On Me” on YouTube in which a girl gets pulled into a comic strip and falls in love with the hero. At the end, he’s struggling to join her in her world. I got to thinking about how a lot of us wish our favorite characters were real. And I thought it would be wild to write a book about that.

Any secrets you would like to reveal to us? 

I’ll reveal that writing this book was pure wish fulfillment.

What is the writing process like for you?

Writing the first draft of The Vampire Stalker was a fast, exhilarating process. I let the story flow through my hands onto the screen, and I’m typing quickly so I can keep up. When the first draft is done, I go back and make changes, rearrange and tweak some things. This part of the process can take even longer than the first draft.

Tell us something that would be included in your perfect day.

When I envision my perfect day, I see myself lying on the beach. I am not busy, not stressed, just

feeling the sun on my skin and listening to the waves. 

I read you are a high school teacher, what is teaching high school students like?

Entertaining. Intriguing. Exhausting!

Was anything about Alexander inspired by your husband? 

My husband loves this question! (grin) I have to admit that one of the reasons I love Alexander is that he has some of the qualities I’m attracted to in a man—like my husband, he’s physically strong, serious, with a razor-sharp mind.

What would you say if someone you knew told you they were a vampire? 

I’d probably be speechless at first, but then I’d tell them their secret was safe with me as long as I knew they weren’t going to hurt people. Maybe I’d volunteer at the local blood bank and steal blood for them.

Where do you see yourself/what do you see for yourself in the future? 

Hopefully striking a good balance between my personal and professional life.

Love your answers, Allison! Thank you so much for being here today! 

Allison can be found on her website and on twitter.

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What if the characters in a vampire novel left their world--and came into yours?

Amy is in love with someone who doesn't exist: Alexander Banks, the dashing hero in a popular series of vampire novels. Then one night, Amy meets a boy who bears an eerie resemblance to Alexander. In fact, he IS Alexander, who has escaped from the pages of the book and is in hot pursuit of a wicked vampire named Vigo. Together, Amy and Alexander set out to track Vigo and learn how and why Alexander crossed over. But when she and Alexander begin to fall for each other, Amy wonders if she even wants him to ever return to the realm of fiction.

Synopsis taken from goodreads.

Sara Curran-Ross Guest Posts about Knight of Swords, and Her Inspiration.

INSPIRED BY THE TAROT: KNIGHT OF SWORDS

I had a lot of fun writing Knight of Swords. I had wanted to write a vampire story for a long time but after many false starts I decided that I didn’t have the confidence to finish one. It wasn’t until I began looking into tarot cards that I found the inspiration for Knight of Swords.

As the title suggests, my novel is based on the tarot card, Knight of Swords. I’d had a couple of tarot card readings and this one kept coming up in the spread. There were also a few others that persisted in appearing, usually swords, which meant I was facing some kind of challenge in my life. They all began to play upon my writer’s imagination. After all, there are many characters and stories in the tarot. My emotions and quite often frustrations at the continued manifestation of these cards in my readings began to form into a story, giving me the ability to express the meanings I have personally attached to them. If you read Knight of Swords you will find many scenes and characters that resemble the tarot cards.

When I write I see my story visually. I often think of it as a movie that gradually develops providing me with scenes that I will eventually link together in a coherent piece of writing. Knight of Swords and my main character Nathan were very vivid in my mind. At times I felt as though I was inside my movie watching and recording all that transpired. I felt the snow on my face and loudly heard the clash of swords around me in the battles and duels Nathan fought to save his Queen of Swords.

I was still in the middle of writing my book when I went on holiday with family to a cottage in Exmoor in the UK. The whole holiday and picturesque area with its rolling hills, jagged coastline, sea caves and quaint old nineteenth century villages brought more scenes for my movie thick and fast. The images became intense and more vivid. One early morning my husband and I decided to walk the dog at Saunton Sands. The moment I stepped onto the beach I was treated to a vision of a large group of sleek black horses charging across the sand out of the blue haze towards me. All of their swords were drawn and Nathan was at the front leading his men into battle. I could almost feel the rush of air as they passed by me and faded into the distance.

Another huge inspiration for Knight of Swords was the music I listened to when I wrote. I can’t seem to write without music. It always helps to conjure up images, scenes and more importantly a character’s feelings and emotions. I couldn’t stop playing 30 Seconds to Mars and their ‘This Is War’ album. In particular, my favourite tracks, ‘Hurricane’ and ‘Stranger in a Strange Land.’ It was ‘Hurricane’ that helped me write down the scene with the charging horses. Their music and words just seemed to fit Nathan’s emotional temperament and the mood I wanted to create in Knight of Swords.

Quirky stuff, I know, but writers end up doing all kinds of strange things to stimulate the muse. Looking back over the story I can’t help wondering if it isn’t a personal tarot reading for myself, and not just the influence of watching too many dodgy black and white swashbuckling movies with Errol Flynn in them as a child. I recently went to see a very good tarot practitioner who told me I was writing from a very deep place and that it was no wonder I felt a strong connection with my characters, I had known them all before in past lives!!!

Scary! But there are stranger things in heaven and earth…. Let’s just hope they weren’t vampires as well.

Very interesting, Sara! Love the gorgeous and picturesque setting that brought KNIGHT OF SWORDS to life! Thank you so much for being here today! 
For more information on Sara, you can visit her at her website, or her blog. You can also view her previous guest post on Lost For Words here.

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Lord Nathan Valancourt is stinking rich, a darling of London's social set in 1893 and a notorious womanizer. He had never believed in the supernatural but when a vampire killer masquerading as a clergyman begins haunting his dreams and forcing him to endure visions of the murder of his previous female conquests, Nathan determines to amend his frivolous ways.

When the killer turns his attention to Nathan's beautiful ward, Juliet, Nathan is anxious to protect her. As they battle the monster, Nathan and Juliet gradually realise that they share a psychic connection. This close bond triggers the discovery of their true heritage as descendents of human-vampire unions and leads to the gradual revealing of powers beyond their imagination that offer them hope of victory.

Synopsis taken from goodreads.

Felicity Heaton Guest Posts About Anime, RPGs & Her New Release, Ascension

What does a paranormal romance author do when she’s not writing?

Lost for Words gave me a fantastic topic to write a piece on and it’s something I don’t think anyone has ever asked me before. As an author, I’m always neck-deep in writing, editing or all the little things that go with the job description. I write dark paranormal romances and also some science fiction romance too, and with several series on the go, as well as new ones starting this year, I rarely have downtime. When I do manage to sneak some time off, or when I feel I need a break, I tend to gravitate to only a handful of things that are guaranteed to relax me or improve my state of mind. No, it’s not reading. I do read paranormal romance novels, but I generally wait until I’m between writing or edits to read them as I don’t like the books I read influencing my characters or style.

This is where I reveal my inner geek to you all and hope you find it endearing rather than freaky. When I’m stressed out and take a breather, I love nothing more than drawing, either sketching on paper or digitally with my drawing tablet, and generally my doodles revolve around my deep love of anime and manga. I love pretty much everything Japanese and have been to Japan four times now. I love reading manga or drawing manga versions of my characters, or characters from anime that I watch. Now that I’m a full time author, I start my day with a coffee and a couple of episodes of anime. Yeah, I watch cartoons in the morning just like any other kid (well, big kid in my case). I’ll also spend time learning or revising my Japanese when I can, and I’m hoping to learn my basic kanji this year. If I’m not indulging in my Japanese-related past times, I’m playing games on my PlayStation 3 or 2, mostly epic RPGs like Final Fantasy games or games such as Assassin’s Creed, Castlevania, and Devil May Cry or Prince of Persia.

Yes, I’m a geek and proud of it. I even have a collection of Gundam models and characters from anime I love, but don’t hold that against me. There are no giant robots in my stories, just vampires, immortals, gods and goddesses, werewolves and demons, as well as some witches. Paranormal has always been in my heart, setting up home there when I was a small child and used to love reading about Dracula and Frankenstein’s monster or witches and werewolves in my books. I spent days at school and college dreaming of vampires, and I think that’s where my creative writing spark came from. I would create a world for them in our world and play out scenes in my head during class. It was much more fun than studying.

I’ve always been a very creative person and I think that shows in my writing and in the covers I produce for my books, as well as the websites I design and build. I’m also a professional web developer and love nothing more than tinkering with code.

I’ve really enjoyed talking about what I do when I’m not writing or doing writing-related work. If you’d like to find out more about my books, or perhaps take a look at the covers I design for them, then you can find them on my website: http://www.felicityheaton.co.uk

My latest release is Ascension, an urban fantasy romance novel that is available now in e-book format direct from my site, on Amazon Kindle, and other retailers, and will be available next month in paperback.

Ascension

Felicity Heaton

A witch on the verge of achieving phenomenal power, Lealandra must turn to her half-breed demon ex-lover Taig for protection from the dark force that is after her and also from her own magic.

With her Counter-Balance dead and her coven against her, Taig’s blood and power is the only thing that can help her control her magic and survive the ascension and gain the strength to defeat her enemy.

Old feelings come flooding back as Taig allows her into his world and Lealandra finds herself fighting not only for survival but to win his broken heart again and heal the pain in their past. Can he forgive her for walking out on him all those years ago and will he ever believe her when she tells him that he’s not a monster but the man that she loves?

Read the excerpt or find out where to buy: http://www.felicityheaton.co.uk/

Biography:

Felicity Heaton is a romance author writing as both Felicity Heaton and F E Heaton. She is passionate about penning paranormal tales full of vampires, witches, werewolves, angels and shape-shifters, and has been interested in all things preternatural and fantastical since she was just a child. Her other passion is science-fiction and she likes nothing more than to immerse herself in a whole new universe and the amazing species therein. She used to while away days at school and college dreaming of vampires, werewolves and witches, or being lost in space, and used to while away evenings watching movies about them or reading gothic horror stories, science-fiction and romances.

Having tried her hand at various romance genres, it was only natural for her to turn her focus back to the paranormal, fantasy and science-fiction worlds she enjoys so much. She loves to write seductive, sexy and strong vampires, werewolves, witches, angels and alien species. The worlds she often dreams up for them are vicious, dark and dangerous, reflecting aspects of the heroines and heroes, but her characters also love deeply, laugh, cry and feel every emotion as keenly as anyone does. She makes no excuses for the darkness surrounding them, especially the paranormal creatures, and says that this is their world. She’s just honoured to write down their adventures.

If you want to know more about me, or want to get in touch, you can find me at the following places:

My website: http://www.felicityheaton.co.uk

My blog: http://www.indieparanormalromancebooks.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/feheaton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/felicityheaton

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/felicityheaton

Thank you so much for being here today, Felicity! Ascension sounds absolutely fabulous!

It looks like you have a great time when you aren't writing! :) 

Out of Sight - Stella Cameron

Psychic master talent Sykes Millet can vanish at will, read minds and control others with hypnosis. What Sykes cannot do is escape his destiny—an ancient curse foretelling the misery his dark beauty may bring to everyone he loves.

Poppy Fortune knows all too well the burden of having paranormal talent. The supernatural world has fractured her entire family—now it's keeping at bay the one man she wants more than life.

Driven by hatred for the Millets, a killing force has attacked New Orleans. The evil Embran race has no conscience and intends to terrorize the city into submission. Sykes and Poppy must set aside old distrust and use their bonded talents to save their families, themselves...and New Orleans.

(Synopsis taken from goodreads.)

Title: Out of Sight (A Court of Angels Novel)

Author: Stella Cameron

Genre: Adult Fiction, Paranormal Romance

Publisher: Mira

Publication Date: May 1, 2010

My Rating: 3/5

This is the third novel in the Court of Angels story arc. The storyline was okay, though I had a hard time figuring out who or what exactly the "Embran" were. They never were fully explained, but that could be because they were probably explained more fully in the first book.

I enjoyed the chemistry between Sykes and Poppy, and I liked the secondary characters, however some of the scenes weren't quite believable. Specifically one between Poppy and Sykes. Poppy doesn't argue about something I think she should have raised more questions about.

Other than that, the story was okay, I just had a hard time connecting with it and the characters.

Overall, not a great read for me, but I'm sure fans of Cameron's works will enjoy it.

Disclaimer: This book was obtained through netgalley, free of charge, in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks to Harlequin Teen for sending me this copy to review.

Need - Carrie Jones

Pain shoots through my head.
Fireworks. Explosions. All inside my brain.
The white world goes dark and I know what's
about to happen.

Zara White suspects there's a freaky guy semi-stalking her. She's also obsessed with phobias. And it's true, she hasn't exactly been herself since her stepfather died. But exiling her to shivery Maine to live with her grandmother? That seems a bit extreme. The move is supposed to help her stay sane. . . but Zara's pretty sure her mom just can't deal with her right now.
She couldn't be more wrong. Turns out the semi-stalker is not a figment of Zara's overactive imagination. In fact, he's still following her, leaving behind an eerie trail of gold dust. There's something not right--not human--in this sleepy Maine town, and all signs point to Zara.
In this creepy, compelling breakout novel, Carrie Jones delivers romance, suspense, and a creature you never thought you'd have to fear.

Title: Need
Author: Carrie Jones
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal, Romance, Suspense
Publisher: Bloomsbury
My Rating: 4/5

I just want to say before I get started on my review that I find it disturbing how many books are rated by Twilight's standards. Sure, Twilight was a good book, but it wasn't spectacular, it just happened to fill the void when Harry Potter finished off. All supernatural elements have been around a lot longer than Twilight, so I'm not sure why Twilight was picked as the how-to guide for vampire/supernatural books.

That said, on with the review.

I really enjoyed Need. I liked the take that Carrie took on with the "Pixie" mythos. I did find that there were some gaping holes in the story, but nothing so bad as to throw the book down in frustration. I loved the characters. Right off the bat I had everyone pretty well figured out, I don't know if she was going for surprise at all, but there were a lot of dead giveaways as to who was good and/or bad. It was effectively creepy in the places it was meant to be creepy. I enjoyed the evocative imagery, or lack thereof to help bring about the overall creepy factor. I found though, that the main characters didn't really balk at who or what they thought was stalking Zara, or hunting in their backwoods town. It just seemed to come together too quickly in that sense. I was surprised that the climax of the book came about as easily as it did as well. I was expecting it to be more laid out and in depth, however we'll probably get more detail as to why/what happens next in the next book, Captivate. I also think that the bad guys in this book need to be fleshed out more, as we only see them as "bad" we don't get the chance to develop any conflicting feelings for them. Overall, I enjoyed this book, I loved how quirky Zara is, and I liked how the phobias were incorporated into the book. I think that this was a good read, and fans of the supernatural should enjoy this one.

This book counts toward the 2010 100+ Reading Challenge hosted over at J. Kaye's book blog.

Be Still My Vampire Heart - Kerrelyn Sparks

One look at her was enough to stop his heart . . .

If it was still beating. Angus MacKay has been undead for almost five hundred years and it's not often something, or someone, surprises him. Until Emma Wallace. The sight of this luscious agent from the CIA's elite Stake-Out team was enough to stop Angus in his tracks. But then he discovers that she's a vampire slayer, intent on killing the "monsters" who killed her parents. And it's Angus's job to stop her.

The only good vampire is a dead vampire. It's been Emma's motto since she committed her life to the destruction of these things. Now Angus MacKay wants to convince her differently. Sure, he's a sexy Highland warrior who seems to have stepped off the cover of a romance novel, complete with brogue, kilt, and sword, but he's also one of them. And it's her job to kill him.

The war is on, but will it end in the destruction of one or both of them . . . or in total surrender to a passion for the ages?

Title: Be Still My Vampire Heart
Author: Kerrelyn Sparks
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Sub-Genre: Vampire Fiction
Publisher: Avon Books (An Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers)
My Rating: 4/5

This is the third installment in the Love at Stake series. I've read all of them out of order, and I recommend that they be read chronologically. This book was excellent. I enjoyed the comraderie between the male vampires. I really like Angus's character as well. He and Emma seem to just flow well together. At first, the fact that Angus keeps checking under his kilt to make sure that "everything" is still there after he teleports was funny. It wears thin the tenth time that he does it though. The story was engaging, with Angus trying to stop Emma from killing vampires and to realize that there are two different factions of vampires; that some aren't necessarily evil. We get to see their relationship evolve, and see how far they are willing to go to save each other. Casimir, the leader of the Malcontent's makes an appearance as well, and there is another fight between "good" and "evil"... It is definitely a light and funny read.