Twinsie Talk Book Reviews

#WOTR #Throwback – Banished by Elissa Daye

June 26, 2017 Kelly S Leave a comment

***COME CHECK OUT ELISSA! SHE’S COMING BACK!!!***

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My time here on this world was embittered from the start. As a carrier, I had very little choice in the matter. The demon inside had been planted long before I even had a voice. From the very minute my first breath entered my body, she was coiled inside like a venomous snake. The Brotherhood wanted to control me, to keep their demon Gladius inside a host that they could groom from birth, but as soon as my mother caught on, she ripped me away from their evil clutches and kept me hidden from their reach. Under her tutelage, I had learned how to keep the monster at bay.

In the darkest night, my life had spiraled to a meaningless end as my time as a mortal subsided, for I had fallen under a spell woven by the vampire Demetrius. After draining me to the brink, he tossed me aside and left me to die with the first morning light. My propensity for survival he had not calculated.

Now, I was left with a single purpose, destroy the man who had obliterated the calm control I had kept over my life, over the monster that slithered beneath.

This has it all! Demons, monsters, evil incarnate, vampires, cults, witches….I could go on and on. Grace is not your normal everyday girl. She was born into a world where things go bump in the night. She was born to bear a demon in her body and soul. The only thing is she was raised to be able to keep the demon at bay. She works and tries to stay off the radar to keep away from The Brotherhood. Their only mission is to bring Gladius, the demon inside of Grace, to the surface. She is enamoured by Demetrius and lets her guard down. He turns her to a vampire and leaves her to die. She is found by the Night Order who want to enlist her help to keep demons and vampires at bay. She is brought into a new world and is no longer on her own. She is with other vampires and mortals who want to help her rid the demon inside. Of course there is a love story here. She has been on her own for so long that receiving help from anyone and having any luck in gaining her trust has been incredibly difficult. She has things she must do to keep her sanity an one is going after the man that did this to her and to rid the demon.

Pity was for the weak, and that was something I never considered myself. I had been a fighter most of my life. From the time I was a child, I had learned that the world would never make it easy for me. I had to push against the machine if I wanted to survive, and I had pushed so hard that I carried battle scars, some visible, but many more that were not.

From the moment I was born, life was a series of missteps in directions that twisted and curled into roads where the streetlamps never seemed to work. Darkness had followed me like a harbinger, circiling around until I had no other recourse but to embrace the path that was paved in front of me.

The story has great characters with so many different personalities. I absolutely love paranormal and this has a great twist on something that can seem so overdone. Grace’s struggle is real and you feel it to the core. It is a fast paced read with lots of action and some hot scenes. A must read!

Elissa Daye

Ever since childhood, I have enjoyed reading stories as an escape from life. When I was a teenager I started to write my own stories that kept me entertained whenever I ran out of books to read. When I was accepted into Illinois Summer School for the Arts in my Junior year of High School, I knew I wanted to become a writer. I graduated from Illinois State University in December 1999 with a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education and began my teaching career, hoping to find moments to write in my free time.

After seven years of teaching, I decided to focus on my writing and made the decision to put my teaching years behind me so that I could create the stories I had always dreamed of. I am now happily married and a stay at home mom. I try my best to master the art of multitasking to get everything accomplished and write in any spare moment I can find.

#WOTR #Throwback – His Precious Cargo (The Heart Nebula Series #1) by Ava Cuvay

June 25, 2017 Kelly S Leave a comment

**COME CHECK OUT AVA! SHE’S BAAAACK!!!**

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One illicit lap dance becomes a flight for their lives.

A stripper with dreams of being a princess.
An intergalactic thief with a freighter of stolen cargo.

At the outskirts of space and away from the rigid control of Central Command, Granger entices Kaedi to break her strict no-lap dance policy. The repercussions force her to pack up and hitch a ride off-world in the same freighter he has hired. They discover a passion hotter than a super nova, but their plans are shattered by the untimely death of the ship’s captain and the duplicity of the co-pilot.

The two lovers crash headlong into the clutches of Granger’s best-friend-turned-torture-happy-enemy. When Granger’s heritage is revealed, Kaedi relinquishes the pleasure she finds in his arms, believing herself unworthy. Granger chases after her, determined to convince her she is more precious to him than stolen cargo.

Oh my stars and planets! A stripper and an intergalactic thief! What more could you ask for?! This book was exciting from beginning to end. It grabs your attention and holds you right to the very end and leaves you wanting….no, needing more. Right from jump the author puts you in a seedy type of strip club with all types of characters. Granger is the intergalactic thief and he has hired Dex, a shady pilot, to get him off of the rock they are on. He runs into Kaedi, our dominant exotic dancer, and he cannot get her out of his mind. Kaedi decides at the last minute she is going to hitch a ride with the guys but they run into all sorts of trouble with Central Command. They lose their pilot and lots of cargo. Only to have to deal with ships tailing them and some not so savory back stabbers. Kaedi and Granger grow instantly close. They cannot keep to themselves and it’s not about number one anymore….its about them together. Absolutely action packed with crazy ship chases, crashes, and very hot scenes between these two! Just wow! This is my first book by Ava Cuvay and will absolutely not be the last. This is one of my new favorites!!!

Ava Cuvay

Ava Cuvay writes out of this world romance featuring sassy heroines, often-alien-but-always-sexy heroes, and an alcoholic beverage or two… Set in a galaxy far, far away. Think “Star Wars” meets “Firefly”, without Jar-Jar Binks, and with a lot more heat.

She resides in central Indiana with a hubby who makes her laugh and kiddos who are growing up way too quickly. She enjoys the world of wine and spirits, amusement park thrill rides, and laughing at her own foibles (yeah, she laughs a lot).

She believes life is too short to surround yourself with negative people, and Han Solo shot first. When not writing, Ava is thinking about writing. Or wine. And she’s always thinking about bacon.

#WOTR #Throwback – Girl Spoken For by Suzie T. Roos

June 24, 2017 Kelly S Leave a comment

**COME CHECK OUT SUZIE! SHE’S COMING BACK!!**

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What’s the point of making a New Year’s resolution when weeks later your life goes to the toilet anyway?

Sixteen-year-old Tatum Duncan’s life has turned upside down. Her best friend and grandmother has died, her mother is threatening to send her to an all-girls school for defending herself against a bully, and her abusive boyfriend nearly kills hers. 1989 isn’t turning out to be her year.

But just when it seems like all is lost, Tatum is saved by Zach Bertano, her longtime friend and secret crush. Her dormant attraction to him surfaces with his persistent attention. As her love for Zach grows, she comes to learn that he too has skeletons, and his issues could affect Tatum’s life in ways she never imagined.

Zach’s overlooked her baggage—can she overlook his?

I have Spoken For this story! This is a mixture between YA with some scenes that could move it into the NA category. I absolutely love that this is set in 1989. So refreshing! Tatum is a sophomore in high school and has just lost her best friend, her grandmother. She has always embraced being different and being her own person. She ends up with Kyle, the super hot jock. She then thinks that everything is great and how she is so lucky that he wants her. Tatum is extremely naive and keeps trying to give Kyle the benefit of the doubt when he gets extremely possessive and abusive. She is put in a situation that is life altering. This is where things get really emotionally unstable. She feels that she cannot go to anyone. Zach (the other super hot, dark and mysterious guy) knows something is going on but cannot resist being Tatum’s knight in shining armor….or mobster in black. So many conflicting emotions and crazy secrets start surfacing. Gauntlets are thrown. And Tatum always ends up in the middle. The characters in the story are well written, extremely relateable, and easy to fall in love with. In the end Tatum does get what she wants but it may be at an incredible price. I have to say that I picked this book up because of the cover. It’s absolutely gorgeous! The perk is that the story is even better. I could not put this down. I am looking forward to the rest of the series.

Suzie T. Roos

Suzie T. Roos is from, and has settled in, St. Louis with her husband, two children and a number of foster pets at any given time.

She and her husband have lived everywhere from Philadelphia, PA to out West in Santa Monica, Ca. They’re thankful they could expose their children to different American lifestyles and cultures.

Besides writing, Suzie’s hobbies include movies, traveling, and especially concert going with her husband and friends.

She’s always been an animal lover and animal rights advocate. She is certified by FEMA in IS-00011.a Animal in Disasters: Community Planning. She’s also an active volunteer at the Humane Society of Missouri.

#WOTR #Throwback – Dangerous Waters (Sisters in Blood #1) by C.M. Michaels

June 23, 2017 Kelly S Leave a comment

**COME CHECK OUT C.M., HE’S COMING BACK!!!**

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For Emily Waters, a nature-loving, small-town girl with an overprotective father, heading off to Boston University to study conservation biology is a dream come true—until a chance encounter catapults her into a mythical world she’d do anything to escape.

The latest victim in a rash of abductions near campus, Emily is brutally attacked before being rescued by a powerful new friend. She survives the ordeal, only to find herself held captive and presented with an impossible choice.

While preparing for the unimaginable life she must now embrace, clues soon emerge that Emily may not be entirely human, and her physical transformation awakens goddess-like powers that her new family cannot begin to explain.

Dealing with her human first love, the not-so-platonic relationship with her coven “sister,” and her new vampire sort-of-boyfriend further complicates matters, not to mention being secretly hunted by the psychopaths who attacked her. And as the only known offspring of a once all-powerful race, the climactic battle is just the beginning of her journey.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review.

This starts with a bang and grabs your attention! Great first book in this series. Emily is experiencing a lot of firsts lately. First time away from home, starts college, new roommates, people coming up missing, vampires, love, sisterhood………… Do you see a pattern?? Emily is attacked by a group that take control of her body. She is going crazy trying to figure out what is going on when she is saved by a new friend. She is then catapulted into a new supernatural world that is absolutely captivating. She is given two choices….life or death. Each choice comes with life altering changes. She faces a choice to become part of a new family or leave the one she was given behind. All the while she is secretly being hunted by the crazy people who attacked her.

“You can never assume anything is going to go as planned.”

This author does an incredible job with getting your attention and keeping it. Great job with the world building and character development. Each character that Emily is in contact with is special to her one way or another. I felt that some parts moved a little slow but this was mainly due to the amount of information you are being given to be sure nothing was left out. Awesome buildup to the story as well. This has the potential to be a really amazing series! Looking forward to reading the next!

C.M. Michaels

C.M Michaels grew up in a small town in northern Michigan as the youngest child of a close-knit family of seven.

He met his wife, Teresa, while attending Saginaw Valley State University.
Together they’ve provided a loving home for several four-legged “kids”, including Sophie, their eternally young at heart, hopelessly spoiled Spaniel.
He has always enjoyed writing, and still has fond memories of reading his first book, a children’s novella, to local grade schools when he was 14. C.M. is currently working on the third book in the Sisters in Blood series along with a Fantasy romance called Kerrigan’s Race.

An avid reader since discovering Jim Kjelgaard novels in early childhood, his favorite authors include Kelley Armstrong, Peter V. Brett, Richelle Mead, Rachel Caine and Laini Taylor. When he’s not writing, C.M. can be found curled up with a good book, watching movies or hitting the hiking trails with his wife.

C.M. currently resides in Louisville, Kentucky.

#WOTR #Throwback – Beyond the Veil of Whispered Dreams (The Veil Book #1) by Jolanthe Aleksander

June 22, 2017 Kelly S Leave a comment

***CHECK OUT JOLANTHE ALEKSANDER! I DID!!***

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Things are not always simple or what they seem.
Daria McClaren is content. She has her dance school, her cousin Celine and the man of her dreams. Literally.

Iauron is uneasy. As the High King of the Fae, his chosen Queen Verisiel is calling to him, but he cannot find her. The court insists that she has crossed over. He is not so sure that is the case. He has searched every realm looking. Every realm, but the human one.

The race is on. Beyond the veil lie truths waiting to be revealed. Which one will have the courage to look? Will they be in time?

Very promising beginning to a new series! This is a story where the Fae Queen is missing but is found in the human realm. She is no longer in fae form but reincarnated as a human. The Fae King finds her and is hell bent on making her remember her past life so she can be the queen she once was. The story starts with Daria, a young woman who is still trying to find herself, when she “runs into” Ian, a very hot client. A very fast and hot relationship starts and then the rollercoaster begins. You are thrown in the passion that Ian feels and the issues he has trying to get Daria to remember….while trying to make Daria believe that she loved him once. There is a traitor amongst the Fae and this traitor is the reason the queen is a human now. The king is faced with finding and dealing with this traitor and making his queen remember. It is quite the story!

“Day and night cling to each other like lovers torn apart. The few moments they are allowed to exist in the same time and space is brief and fleeting, and loathe though they are to leave each other, they paint the sky in beautiful colors as remembrance of their love for one another. And, during the day, the world is such a busy place that when dusk finally does arrive, it feels as if the world finally gives itself permission to take a deep breath and relax.”

“It was beautiful. She couldn’t deny it. It was also a cage. ‘A beautiful cage of snow and ice that is preventing me from returning home.’”

I absolutely recommend this book. The reason for giving it 3 3/4 stars is that some parts of this story are very rushed and at times I was left needing more. Nothing from the main story is missing but there are some side notes that could have been drawn out more and the story jumps around a bit. This is very promising and it is left with a cliffhanger. I am anxious to continue the Fae King and Queen’s story.

Jolanthe Aleksander

Jolanthe is a Marine Corps Brat and proud of it. The nomadic life of the military helped develop her love of reading and books became her friend.

A dancer, Jolanthe appeared in several productions in high school and later in the area theatres. She gave up her role of dancer/actress for her greatest role to date, that of Mother to a son who reminds her every day to find joy in the simplest of things and to use her imagination.

Missing the stage, and at the prompting of some on-line friends, Jolanthe gave rp-ing with an internet group a try. There she found and developed her skill as a writer.
When not working, writing, or keeping up with her son, Jolanthe can be found scouring antique shops, used bookstores, and of course, reading.

Dark Dark and more Dark, Erotica

#REVIEW – Taken by Elena M. Reyes and N. Isabelle Blanco

June 21, 2017 Jo-Anna W Leave a comment

I was drugged.
Now, I’ve woken up in a dark, luscious room.
A deviant playground.
I’m not alone.
The person that was drugged and taken with me is here, too.
My confident.
Someone that I had come to see as a brother.
My best friend.
Suddenly, there’s a voice coming through the speakers, telling us we’ve both been chosen to die.
The only way out? Do everything we’re told to do.
This person wants to watch us. They want to be entertained. As she says, “I want to see you come.”
It’s simple: either we sleep together, or die.

WARNING: This story isn’t for everyone. Please read with caution. Contains graphic violence and explicit situations some might find disturbing. Read at your own risk.

Twinise Jo’s Review:

Um…okay…wow.

When Twinsie Angie said to me “Hey JoJo, it’s hot and it’s like SAW”, I was sold.

Ivy and Noah are taken and told to do…well…anything the “voice” tells them to do. They have to listen or else. Really? Crazy right?

With Ivy and Noah being best friends, he will do anything to keep her safe. Feelings come to light that neither of them knew the other had. The “voice” knows them. She knows things about them that are supposed to be kept secret. Maybe they don’t even know it about themselves.

This story is short but it packs a punch. These authors can write some of the best tension I have ever read. Like seriously. The build up is off the charts hot. I thought my kindle was going to explode.

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#review #TwinsieForTheDayJordan – Accepting the Moon by KS Haigwood @KSHaigwood

June 20, 2017 Angie J Leave a comment

Accepting the Moon (Moonrising #1)

There is a new Alpha Wolf in town, and she is about to change everything.
Mena had all she wanted in life: a nice house, money, a successful husband who treated her like a queen.
That was, until she found out her marriage was all a lie, and things she never thought could exist, did.
Vampires are real.
Werewolves are real.
And Mena is not human anymore.