Summer ARC Reviews: "Serpent & Dove" (Serpent & Dove #1) by Shelby Mahurin, "A Madness of Sunshine" by Nalini Singh, "The Burning Shadow" (Origin #2) by Jennifer L. Armentrout & "Lifestyles of Gods and Monsters" by Emily Roberson


Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Summary from GoodReads

For her sixteenth birthday, Louise le Blanc’s mother gave her three things: a sacrificial altar, a ritual knife, and a wicked scar.

Lou’s death would have ended the ancient war between the Church and witches, but Lou refuses to become a martyr. Forsaking her coven, she escapes to the gloomy city of Cesarine and hides her magic as a thief in the criminal underworld. But life in Cesarine has its own dangers. Huntsmen roam the city revered as holy men. Witches burn without trial. And the Archbishop, the Church’s austere patriarch, revels in violence.

As a huntsman, Reid Diggory lives by one verse: thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. 

He's devoted his entire life to eradicating the occult and making his surrogate father, the Archbishop, proud. Finally given the chance to capture a witch of his own, Reid is devastated when a foul-mouthed thief thwarts him—and doubly devastated when she too disappears. Hell-bent on bringing her to justice, Reid vows she won't escape again. But when Lou tricks him into public scandal trying to avoid capture, the two are forced into an impossible situation—marriage.

Marriage to a huntsman could provide real protection from the witches—if Lou can convince Reid she isn’t one herself. The secret proves difficult to keep as Lou begins practicing magic in secret within the heart of the Church, determined to prepare for her mother’s inevitable return. As time passes, however, Lou discovers yet another danger lurking: her own growing feelings for her husband. But Reid is still dangerous. He’s just as likely to tie her to the stake as defend her if he learns her true identity. With enemies closing in—and more than her own life at stake—Lou must decide who she can trust before it's too late…and she's not the only one with a secret.




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REVIEW

I received an e-ARC from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

Ah, how I missed a refreshing YA with witches, hunters, forbidden romance and lots of cursing! (well technically it's funny and not that bad).

Serpent and the Dove transport us into an Empire that reminds you the French empire of the 18th century but filled with different kinds of witches, zealot hunters who are hell-bent on destroying them and a plot that could destroy the whole world.

Lou is one witch in hiding, due to some really bad circumstances, and when one misunderstanding leads her on marrying Reid one of the best Hunters, her secrets are threatened. I liked how slowly both came to love each other. Arranged marriages in YA were usually for royal couples and I loved seeing something fresh and new.

The history of the world was quite interesting and I could let the book go. When action picked up my heart broke with the revelations. I seriously can't wait for the next book!




About the author:

Shelby Mahurin grew up on a small farm in rural Indiana, where sticks became wands and cows became dragons. Her rampant imagination didn't fade with age, so she continues to play make-believe every day—with words now instead of cows. When not writing, Shelby watches the Office and obsesses over her Twitter feed. She still lives near that childhood farm with her very tall husband, semi-feral toddlers, two dogs, and one cat. 

Shelby's favorite books include A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas, Uprooted by Naomi Novik, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, and, of course, Harry Potter.

Her debut novel, SERPENT & DOVE, will release from Harper Teen in Fall 2019, with a sequel to come the following year. She is represented by Sarah Landis of Sterling Lord Literistic.





A Madness of Sunshine by Nalini Singh
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Summary from GoodReads

New York Times bestselling author Nalini Singh welcomes you to a remote town on the edge of the world where even the blinding brightness of the sun can’t mask the darkness that lies deep within a killer…
On the rugged West Coast of New Zealand, Golden Cove is more than just a town where people live. The adults are more than neighbors; the children, more than schoolmates.
 
That is until one fateful summer—and several vanished bodies—shatters the trust holding Golden Cove together. All that’s left are whispers behind closed doors, broken friendships, and a silent agreement not to look back. But they can’t run from the past forever.
 
Eight years later, a beautiful young woman disappears without a trace, and the residents of Golden Cove wonder if their home shelters something far more dangerous than an unforgiving landscape. 
 
It’s not long before the dark past collides with the haunting present and deadly secrets come to light.





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REVIEW

I received an e-ARC from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

I love Nalini Singh and her books. I've devoured every one of them and listened to the audiobooks. So I was quite surprised when she announced her debut in the suspense/thriller genre. A Madness of Sunshine takes place in New Zealand, where there is beauty and wilderness and monsters lurk in the dark.

It's in the Golden Cove, a small town, where Anahera returns after the death of her husband. The first line hooks you from the beginning and as the mystery progress with lots of suspects and hidden secrets, you realize that nobody is safe. The romance took second place in the book and I liked the outcome quite much.

The surprise of the true murderer left me astonished! I didn't expect this and it was a very satisfying feeling to have a book that kept me on my toes and surprised me.

I don't know if Nalini will write anymore in this genre but I wouldn't mind her if she did! She is an amazing author.



About the author:

I've been writing as long as I can remember and all of my stories always held a thread of romance (even when I was writing about a prince who could shoot lasers out of his eyes). I love creating unique characters, love giving them happy endings and I even love the voices in my head. There's no other job I would rather be doing. In September 2002, when I got the call that Silhouette Desire wanted to buy my first book, Desert Warrior, it was a dream come true. I hope to continue living the dream until I keel over of old age on my keyboard.


I was born in Fiji and raised in New Zealand. I also spent three years living and working in Japan, during which time I took the chance to travel around Asia. I’m back in New Zealand now, but I’m always plotting new trips. If you’d like to see some of my travel snapshots, have a look at the Travel Diary page (updated every month).

So far, I've worked as a lawyer, a librarian, a candy factory general hand, a bank temp and an English teacher and not necessarily in that order. Some might call that inconsistency but I call it grist for the writer's mill.







The Burning Shadow by Jennifer L. Armentrout
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Summary from GoodReads

#1 New York TimesUSA Today, and internationally bestselling author Jennifer L. Armentrout returns to the world of the Lux with The Burning Shadow, the steamy, shocking second installment of the Origin series that will leave readers reeling.

When Evelyn Dasher crossed paths with Luc, she was thrown headfirst into the world of the Lux―only to discover that she was already far more involved in their world than she ever suspected.

Because the Luxen aren’t the only ones with a hidden past. There’s a gap in Evie’s memory, lost months of her life and a lingering sense that something happened, something she can’t remember and nobody is willing to tell her. She needs to find out the truth about who she is―and who she was. But every answer she finds only brings up more questions.

Her search for the truth brings her ever closer to Luc, the Origin at the center of it all. He’s powerful, arrogant, inhumanly beautiful, extremely dangerous…and possibly in love with her. But even as Evie falls for him, she can’t help but wonder if his attraction is to her, or to the memory of a girl who no longer exists.

And all the while, a new threat looms: reports of a flu-like, fatal virus that the government insists is being spread by Luxen. A horrifying illness that changes whoever it touches, spreading panic across a country already at its breaking point.
 





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REVIEW

I received an e-ARC from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

Well, you have to give credit to Jennifer for always keeping me on my toes and having my heart being torn open! WOWOWOWOW!

What happened? How did we go from a mystery about the true enemy back to a conspiracy and tragedy!? I have to admit that despite the slow pacing, the book dropped hints about everything and as Luc, Evie and gang tried to solve everything they realized that the enemy is everywhere.

I liked the second book; I can honestly admit that I never suffer from SBS (Second Book Syndrome) while reading Jennifer's books. The romance progressed in a hot, swoony way, there was action, wild action with fighting and both winning and losing and Evie was the one who had to discover everything in the hardest way. The ending was also a cliffhanger so I guess 2020 can't come fast enough?




About the author:

# 1 New York Times and # 1 International Bestselling author Jennifer lives in Charles Town, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time reading, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell Loki. In early 2015, Jennifer was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a group of rare genetic disorders that involve a breakdown and death of cells in the retina, eventually resulting in loss of vision, among other complications. Due to this diagnosis, educating people on the varying degrees of blindness has become of passion of hers, right alongside writing, which she plans to do as long as she can.

Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Tor, HarperCollins Avon and William Morrow, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen. Her Wicked Series has been optioned by PassionFlix. Jennifer has won numerous awards, including the 2013 Reviewers Choice Award for Wait for You, the 2015 Editor’s Pick for Fall With Me, and the 2014/2015 Moerser-Jugendbuch- Jury award for Obsidian. Her young adult romantic suspense novel DON’T LOOK BACK was a 2014 nominated Best in Young Adult Fiction by YALSA. Her adult romantic suspense novel TILL DEATH was a Amazon Editor’s Pick and iBook Book of the Month. Her young adult contemporary THE PROBLEM WITH FOREVER is a 2017 RITA Award Winner in Young Adult Fiction. She also writes Adult and New Adult contemporary and paranormal romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.

She is the owner of ApollyCon and The Origin Event, the successful annual events that features over hundred bestselling authors in Young Adult, New Adult, and Adult Fiction, panels, parties, and more.
 





Lifestyles of Gods and Monsters by Emily Roberson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Summary from GoodReads

Sixteen-year-old Ariadne’s whole life is curated and shared with the world. Her royal family’s entertainment empire is beloved by the tabloids, all over social media, and the hottest thing on television. The biggest moneymaker? The Labyrinth Contest, a TV extravaganza in which Ariadne leads fourteen teens into a maze to kill a monster. To win means endless glory; to lose means death. In ten seasons, no one has ever won.

When the gorgeous, mysterious Theseus arrives at the competition and asks Ariadne to help him to victory, she doesn’t expect to fall for him. He might be acting interested in her just to boost ratings. Their chemistry is undeniable, though, and she can help him survive. If he wins, the contest would end for good. But if she helps him, she doesn’t just endanger her family’s empire―the monster would have to die. And for Ariadne, his life might be the only one worth saving.

Ariadne’s every move is watched by the public and predestined by the gods, so how can she find a way to forge her own destiny and save the people she loves?





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REVIEW


I received an e-ARC from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

The ever knowing myth of the Minotaur gets a new, mote twisted and yet amazing, version in Emily Roberson's book. Think about what would happen if the Minoan antiquity met with the Kardashians, Greek Mythology and also had a splash of The Hunger Games.

Terrifying right?

Ariadne lives a life in the cameras. Despite desperately trying to avoid attention her life is filled with them. King Minos, Daedalus, and Icarus use the Labirynth and the Minotaur as a game of death where every year 14 youths from Athens have to compete. Whoever kills the Minotaur becomes as rich as Hades and yet no one has ever won. When young Theseus arrives and he meets Ariadne the clock will start ticking for all and deadly secrets will rise.

First of all, I have to say that there is mention to bestiality here. If you know the myth then you know how Minotaur was born. Another interesting aspect is the absence of the gods. Everyone claims that they act as the gods want and yet truly everyone succumbs to their own vices and hurtful choices. This was well pointed in the book.

Ariadne's family is the worst role model you will ever have. Well, truthfully few families in the mythological chronology were actually good role models but this one gets the award of the worst. Emily Roberson has researched about the mythological royal family and it shows. Ariadne's sisters live a life in the cameras, to the point of pimping themselves, Minos is the man behind everything, a true channel owner/mafia king and Pasiphae, the queen is the worst mother, who encourages her daughters to act the way they do. All in the name of revenge.

The ending was satisfying; it may have felt a little rushed and I would have wanted a different ending, but I think that above all, Ariadne was the one who found her true peace; she became free.




About the author:


Emily Roberson has been a bookseller in Little Rock, a newspaper reporter in Vicksburg, a marketing manager in Boston, and a writer in Chapel Hill and Dallas. She is an Arkansas native who graduated from Brown University and has a masters in English from the University of Texas at Austin. She lives in Arkansas with her husband and three sons.

Emily's facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Emily-...

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