Cloud Nine by Melissa A. Smith

About the book:
Cloud Nine (A Paranormal Romance of the Guardian of Man) by Melissa A. Smith
Format: Nook Book, Lendable, 221 pages
Publisher: Smith Books, Young Adult
Series: The Guardians of Man, #1

Synopsis

What happens when you receive a guardian angel?
What if you don't believe you need one?
What if one wants you removed?

My Thoughts:
Claire is a 17 year old high school senior whose parents seem to be too busy and leaves her to her own devices quite a bit. She wakes up one morning to get ready for school and finds a floating fog in her room named Sterling. Not only does she see a fog cloud in her room, but she can hear the voice of a male coming from the cloud in her head. Of course she believes she's dreaming. But wherever she goes, the cloud follows and can only be seen and heard by her. The cloud explains to her that he has been  sent to her as her Guardian to help her with her "needs". As a teenager she of course doesn't believe she needs anything.


Eventually Claire comes to terms, kinda, with having a Guardian which happens to be a floating cloud that she can converse with in her head. Claire then of course being the teenager she is, she begins to ask the cloud questions he's not used to. She then asks him if he can transform into a human. This is a request he's never had to grant in the past but he does for Claire. And there is the beginning of a budding romance. Once she sees him, she immediately becomes attracted to him and figures out how to shut him out of her thoughts. This confuses him because he's never had someone he's guarding shut him out of their thoughts before. He seems to experience quite a bit of 'firsts' with Claire.


Throughout all this however, Claire's ex of over six months decides he wants back in life and will do anything to get her back, including toeing the stalker line. This of course drives Sterling nuts. At one point I thought he was going to use some kind of magical power and have the ex disappear. However, Claire isn't the only one with a psycho ex. Except, Sterling's ex is also a Guardian and can appear wherever Claire is. Which she does and she also threatened her life not once but twice and the second time included a dagger.


Cloud Nine was a simple yet refreshing YA romance with a little bit of a paranormal twist to it. There were laugh out loud moments and moments where I thought I was going to cry. This is the author's first book and she is an indie author. Outside of the editing errors, I thought the book was an easy and quick read. For the price, I will definitely read the next installment to see how Claire handles Sterling's ex.

DISCLAIMER: I was in no way compensated to review this book. These are my opinions of a book in which I purchased on my own.

Tempted by Fate (The Guardians of Destiny) by Kate Perry

About the Book: Willow Tarata is a Guardian who trusts no one. She hunts those who prey on the vulnerable. And she's driven by a vengeful goal-find the man who murdered her mother. Yet suddenly Willow's quarry now has her on the run . . . straight into the sights of San Francisco's most dangerous detective.
Three bizarre murders have Inspector Rick Ramirez baffled-and determined to uncover the truth. But to catch the real killer, he needs the help of his prime suspect, Willow Tarata, even though this fierce and sexy blonde is challenging his professional cool. And now, unless they believe in each other and trust their deepest instincts, a relentless evil will end both Willow's and Rick's life-and claim this Guardian's extraordinary powers forever . . .
About the Author:As a little girl, Kate dreamt of many things. Like becoming a ninja. Dressing up in black and carrying a big sword? Seemed like a no brainer.
However, Fate had other plans for her, and she studied Kung Fu San Soo instead. A Kung Fu Master, Kate now has more weapons than she ever imagined-including several swords.
She lives in San Francisco. Voted by her friends as the woman they'd most want to stroll with down a dark alley, Kate's as likely to be spotted at the opera as she is doing tai chi in Golden Gate Park. Usually wearing black-in both cases.
For more info on Kate, check out http://www.kateperry.com.
My Thoughts: When I received this book, I did not realize it was a part of a series, let alone the third in the series. Even though it is the third book in the series, I did not feel like I was missing anything about the story. The author gave great detail that allowed me to piece things together and not feel like I was missing anything. 


The story begins where Willow, the now Guardian of Wood, has been handed over the task of protecting the scroll, The Book of Wood and was also witness to her mother being murdered by "The Bad Man". Twenty years later, Willow is drawn to San Francisco where a slew of strange murders are happening. However, all evidence is pointing to her and this is where we meet the handsome but tightly wound homicide detective Rick Ramirez. Although all the evidence points to Willow, Rick realizes that she may be the help he needs to solve them.


Tempted by Fate begins strong and continues that way throughout the story. The story flows nicely and the characters are well built with the storyline. If you like paranormal stories and romance, this is a great book to read. I believe I will be adding the first two in the series to my TBR list in 2011.

I GIVE THIS BOOK

DISCLAIMER: I was in no way compensated to review this book. These are my opinions of a book in which I received from Anna Balasi with Hatchette Group. 

Resurrection - Sara Reinke

About the Book: Jay Frances has always found his ability to raise the dead more of a curse than a gift until he finds Jo Montgomery brutally murdered. Jo is the first person he's able to restore body, mind and soul, and as a mutual attraction grows between them, so, too, does someone else's interest. Jo's killer is following them now, a psychotic sadist who wants to see Jay resurrect the dead again. And again.

My Thoughts: I learned about Resurrection through Barnes and Noble's Nook boards. It was being offered as a free eBook and I thought what the heck, why not try it. If I don't like it...it was free. Well, I'm glad I downloaded.


Resurrection begins with Jay walking back to his car from shopping for his daughter's birthday present and feeling a tingling in his hand. In Jay's mind, as much as he tried to ignore the tingle and avoid what comes next, the power that he has controls him more than he would like it to. Jay's power is to raise the dead, however, he's never been able to raise one fully with mind, body and soul. They've always been better off dead. Until of course, this day in the parking garage stairwell where he sees a woman who was brutally murdered and the tingling in his hands would not allow him to turn away.


From begin to end, the story moves quickly and grabs you. There were times I found myself thinking, is that him, is that the killer. There were a few gasps and a few times I screamed in my head 'no, no , no...that can't happen.' I felt 100% captivated by the story and I'm glad to say there is a follow up to this story that was also being offered free that I downloaded. Other than a few grammar and spelling issues, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

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DISCLAIMER: I was in no way compensated to review this book. These are my opinions of a book in which I purchased on my own.

Night of the Vampire - Heather Graham

About the book: As a soldier, Cole Granger fights to restore peace to a world divided by war and evil. His extraordinary talents are enlisted to prevent the president's horrific premonition from becoming reality. Nothing—and no one—will stop him from fulfilling his duty. Especially the mysterious young woman who claims to be his comrade's sister. Enemy or ally, he can't yet determine. But one thing he knows for certain is that he must keep her close. Very close.
Megan Fox's quest to uncover a family secret leads her to the center of vampire riots in West Virginia. To find the answers she needs—and clear herself of suspicion—she must join forces with Cole. They work undercover to bring justice, but they can't disguise the potent attraction and need that draw them together. Yet trust doesn't come easily for Cole…and when Megan unearths the grim, dark truth, can she trust him to believe her?


About the author: New York Times bestselling author Heather Graham has written more than a hundred novels, many of which have been featured by the Doubleday Book Club and the Literary Guild. An avid scuba diver, ballroom dancer and mother of five, she still enjoys her south Florida home, but loves to travel as well.


My Thoughts: This is my very first time reading Heather Graham although I do have a couple of her books sitting in my TBR pile. I found this story to be full of action and a very easy read. I also found that with the setting being during the Civil War, it was interesting to read how she combined history, mystery/thriller, romance and paranormal all in one to make a captivating story of a sheriff, an ex-military, a half-breed vampire fighting the war, not the war of the North v. South, but a war against the spread of the blood disease that humans are being infected with. Then we meet the sister of the half-breed vampire who tries to gain the trust of these men and help them fight the war.
Although there were a few times where the incorrect name was being used in a scene, the story flowed very well. The characters were well developed and the historical pieces of the story seemed to be well researched. What I enjoyed much about the book was that it was not predictable and although I'm known to read the end of a book before I get to the end, I did not do that with this books. The story moved quick enough that I didn't have time to think about who was changing people into vampires. At the end, I did not expect it to have been the person it was.

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DISCLAIMER: I was in no way compensated to review this book. These are my opinions of a book in which I from Harlequin through NetGalley.

Review: Angelic Avengers by Kaye Chambers

Angelic Avengers by Kaye Chambers

Book Description:

The road to hell is paved with heavenly desire-

Angelic Avengers, Book 1

Fetch a soul

? No problem. Quell a little shape shifter rebellion? Sh

e can do that, too. Just an

average day in the afterlife of Arabella -Bella- Morrison. Or, what she hopes will become an afterlife after restoring the cosmic

imbalance caused by her suicide over a love affair gone bad.

Protect a willful fallen angel? That takes a little more teamwork than she's accustomed to. Especially when the team includes Gray Devereau, a sexy, half-breed angel who's got an eye on her, in more ways than one. Their attraction could set fire to Heaven itself. Normally not a problem for Bella, but Gray-s sights are set on something more than a fly-by-night affair.
Save mankind from chaos? Bring it on. Let her heart trust a man enough to love again? It-ll be a cold day in hell
Warning: Sexy angels running amok. Heroine hell-bent on saving the world, the rules be damned. Hero bent on making her his, come hell or high water.
About the author: Kaye Chambers has led a wild life. With her college degree in hand, she set off on an adventure to find herself. She’s soaked in the hot springs in Iceland in the middle of a blizzard, sat on a volcano to watch the magic of the Northern lights, stood on the coast in the eye of a hurricane, and been awed by ruins of pagan temples. Somewhere along the way, she found herself along with her wonderfully supportive husband. Marriage, children, and life went in a different direction and her personal goals went with off in another.
Finally, she decided it was time to return to those goals she’d left behind when she began her adventure all those years ago. Writing. With the new laptop her husband gave her for the effort, she hunkered down and found a writing group. This small group of women took her in hand, helped build her confidence, and encouraged her to do what her heart wanted her to. Finally, she started pounding out pages. When it was done, she had no idea what to do with it.
So, she started entering contests. Then she started revising…and entering more contests. Encouraged by the comments, she started submitting it out to publishers and agents while turning her hand to other projects.
Making friends along the way, she’s beginning to see the results of her efforts. Come look into her Chamber of Secrets and share her vision of reality…

My Thoughts: I thought Angelic Avengers was a pretty good read. It was light, filled with humor and beautiful men...hehe. Arabella Morrison's mantra has been to not do anymore favors for angels. Arabella, who committed suicide after her fiance leaves her, has been paying off her "sin" by taking a job as the grim reaper. Bella is contracted to harvests souls, keeps the local population of shifters in line, and - as she often gets talked into doing - does side jobs for the angels that pop in and out of her apartment. What she did not expect from one of her side jobs was to fall into a "relationship" with Mr. Gray Devereaux, half angel; become the guardian of a child whose mother was murdered by a rogue angel who is out to kill the child which in turn throws her into an engagement so that they can keep the child out of foster care. Oh and truly fall in love...NOT SO MUCH.

Bella holds a one-way ticket to hell because of her suicide. However, due to her living life on her terms and no one else's, you don't ever want her to cash in that ticket. Her relationship with Gray makes you smile, her friendships and banter with the angels are humorous and of course, do not forget Foras, the Devil's General who has always had a thing for Bella. Of course she never noticed. But between Foras and Gray, the testosterone level around her and that's just another thing Bellas has to deal with.

Angelic Avengers was well written and left me wanting more. Hopefully in the next installment of the series we will see more of Foras.

I GIVE THIS:

DISCLAIMER: I was in no way compensated to review this book. These are my opinions of a book in which I purchased or borrowed on my own.

Review: Lessons From An Evil Mind by Shawna Lynn

Lessons From An Evil Mind by Shawna Lynn

Book Description: It was the day I had been waiting for, the day I was to marry the love of my life.
I would have never thought I would spend that day and many more to come in a house filled with torture and evil.
I wake up, it's a new day. I look down at my hands, they are still covered in blood from the last punishment I had to endure. I wonder to myself when my body will finally give in . . . when I will die. I try not to let the depression overcome me, but with every new lesson I receive, my soul becomes weaker.
My mind begins to wonder as I think back to the day that I took another's life A chill runs through my body as I fi nd the memory hard to escape. I did not want to hurt her but I had no choice he was coming and it right thing to do.
Who would of thought me taking the life of another would bring on a chain of events that would lead to a different live . . . the life I now live.

About the Author: Shawna Lynn, born in California, raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is the youngest of nine children. At 14 she met the love of her life, later marrying him at 18. Together they now have three wonderful children. Suffering from an illness at age 29 she lost her memory and became chronically ill. Determined not to let it overtake her life she returned back to school where she is presently working towards her bachelors in literature and Psychology. Thanks to her son's suggestion, she once again began to write.

My Review: Despite some grammatical errors in this book, I enjoyed reading it quite a bit. This book made me cry, laugh, get angry, get a little scared...basically go through more emotions in one sitting than I would probably go through in a month. I loved Angel and John, I got mad at Lue sometimes, however I also feared for her life. I hated the masked man and worried sometimes that he or someone like him existed. Although this book was pure fiction, I often wondered and imagined if such evil can exist in real life. At the end of the book I found myself crying and now I sit waiting for the second installment in the series.

The author is a new author and this is the first in a four book series. Lessons from an Evil Mind is disturbing in many ways but it also makes you not want to put the book down. The second book in the series, Seeds from Evil comes out in late August and it will be on my "To be read" list.

I give it:

DISCLAIMER: I was in no way compensated to review this book. These are my opinions of a book in which I purchased on my own.