Review: SHADOW STUDY

Shadow Study by Maria V. Snyder
Narrated by Gabra Zackman
Book 1 in the Soulfinders series / Book 4 in the Study series
Genre: fantasy

About Shadow Study:

Once, only her own life hung in the balance…

When Yelena was a poison taster, her life was simpler. She survived to become a vital part of the balance of power between rival countries Ixia and Sitia.

Now she uses her magic to keep the peace in both lands — and protect her relationship with Valek.

Suddenly, though, dissent is rising. And Valek’s job — and his life — are in danger.

As Yelena tries to uncover her enemies, she faces a new challenge: her magic is blocked.And now she must find a way to keep not only herself but all that she holds dear alive.

A CHRONICLES OF IXIA NOVEL

Source: Info in the About Shadow Study was from GoodReads at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16130758-shadow-study on 03/02/2016.

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My Thoughts:

Like any other author, Maria V. Snyder has her ups and downs. I love the Yelena Zaltana trilogy! The Opal Cowan one however... not so much. In fact, that one was a disappointment. But, it seems that the author has gotten her groove back, because this book is a very good start to a fresh new trilogy in the Yelena Zaltana world!

So the world building and the chracter development had been established long ago. And those books were such a success that Maria V. Snyder decided to write this new trilogy, to the joy of all her fans! (including me!) And this book has the same of that fantastic world building and character development. I liked reading about old characters I loved in the previous serieses in this world. It's like meeting old friends again. Had I had a chance, I would have re-read my old copies of the Yelena Zaltana trilogy and the Opal Cowan trilogy before reading this book. As it is, I had to pause for, like, a minute or two to remember who Fisk was. Anyway, it all came back to me eventually, and the world of Yelena Zaltana bloomed once again in my mind's eye! Wonderful reading experience!

Empirical Evaluation:
Story telling quality = 4.5
Character development = 4.5
Story itself = 4
Writing Style = 4
Ending = 4
World building = 5
Cover art = 4
Pace = 3.5
Plot = 4
Narration = 5

Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5 cherries

Books in the Study series:

About Maria V. Snyder
	Meteorologist turned novelist, Maria's been writing fantasy and science fiction since her son was born. Maria has won numerous prizes for her writing including the Golden Leap Hall of Fame, Wirral Paperback of the Year Award, Compton Crook Award and the Salt Lake County Library Reader’s Choice Award. She’s been on the New York Times bestseller list and earned her Master’s degree in Writing from Seton Hill University. Traveling is one of her biggest distractions from writing and Maria hasn't said no to a trip yet. She has visited China, Dubai, Malaysia, Europe, Central America, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada -- all provided wonderful fodder for her stories. Maria lives in Pennsylvania with her family.
www.mariavsnyder.com | blog | facebook | facebook author page | google+ | google+ author page | instagram | goodreads

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Thank you to the publicity team for the review copy received.

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FTC Disclosure:
The paperback review copy of this book was received for free in exchange for an honest opinion. The audiobook and ebook copies of this book were purchased with private funds.

Review: DREAMWALKER

Dreamwalker by Allyson James
Book 5 of the Stormwalker series
Genre: urban fantasy
Format: kindle ebook

About Dreamwalker:

All is quiet at Janet Begay’s Crossroads Hotel, where the paranormal is normal, until Emmett Smith, the most powerful mage in the world, arrives to announce his intent to steal Janet’s smart-mouthed magic mirror.

Janet already has her hands full trying to keep her sister Gabrielle under control as well as plan her upcoming wedding to her dragon-Shifter boyfriend Mick and taking care of the weird creatures that suddenly turn up at Barry’s biker bar.

When Janet is knocked out fighting the creatures, she wakes up seemingly in the past, when she and Mick had first met and traveled across country by motorcycle, alone and free. The dream seems so real that Janet begins to forget it isn’t.

The dreams call her back, each one more powerful than the last, until she can no longer distinguish between past and present — and she’s not the only one affected. Janet and her friends — Mick, Cassandra, Nash, Gabrielle, Coyote, and the dragon — must band together to thwart this greatest of magics before it splits them into fragments and leaves the world vulnerable to the most evil of evils.

Source: Info in the About Dreamwalker was from GoodReads at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17621449-dreamwalker on 26/01/2016.

Buy Link(s):

Review:

I think this dragon softail bike would be an awesome ride for Janet Begay! :)

By the way, the cover art sucks! The last book was not the best in this series so I went into this one a little apprehensively. Glad to find that Allyson James got her mojo back! This book was an enjoyable read! Plus of course it got dragons and I am a huge fan of dragons! Specially the hot, sexy male kind! Anyway, it has been a long time since the last book so the sting of Nightwalker has faded considerably already. As in, I have forgotten my ire about it. So this book got a fresh start, so to speak. Which was a good thing. I ended up enjoying this book as opposed to the last book in this series. And of course, the wonderful world building is still there. I also love meeting the characters again like long lost old friends. Learning more on how Gabrielle is turning out. That was good! I liked that one! The plot though... felt just a tad bit flimsy to me. It barely eked out through a story. A wrong move and it wouldn't be there at all... That's how it felt like. So the plot was a downer. But it was not enough to bring the rating of this book down to less than 4. I enjoyed this book and looking forward to Dragon Bites!

Empirical Evaluation:
Story telling quality = 4.5
Character development = 5
Story itself = 4.5
Ending = 4.5
World building = 5
Cover art = 2.5
Pace = 4
Plot = 3

Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5 cherries

About Allyson James
	Allyson James writes paranormal romance, urban fantasy, and erotic romance (paranormal and futuristic). She is a nationally bestselling author, a multiple RITA nominee, an RT Award winner, and a Prism winner. She also writes romance (paranormal and historical) as Jennifer Ashley. See Allyson's website for current and upcoming books. See also Allyson's GoodReads bookshelves for all books under all pseudonyms.
www.allysonjames.com | twitter | facebook | google+ | pinterest | amazon | goodreads

Books In The Stormwalker Series:

             

FTC Disclosure:
This book was purchased with private funds.
No money received for this review.

BORROWED MAGIC #BookBlast & #Giveaway

The Book

Borrowed Magic by Shari Lambert
Genre: urban fantasy

About Borrowed Magic:

After a three-year siege, Lord Kern, the dark mage, is dead. Magic has left Tredare, and life is almost back to normal.

For everyone except Maren, that is.

Before the siege, an attack by Lord Kern left Maren near death and with a sliver of magic buried deep inside her. Now, for reasons Maren doesn’t understand, that magic has been triggered, giving her the ability to “see” the truth: that her world is nothing more than a magical façade; and that the kingdom’s hero may not be a hero at all.

But this gift of sight comes at a high cost. Maren is in constant pain, and fears her own death is imminent. Plus, no one believes her suspicions that another Dark Mage has risen, and that Tredare may be in just as much danger as it was when Kern was alive.

With the country’s future in the hands of a man who’s vowed revenge on its king, Maren must convince someone else of the truth. Unfortunately, the only person powerful enough to help is also the one man she can’t trust; the man she almost married; the man who abandoned her and disappeared for three years: Kern’s son.

As Tredare crumbles around them, Maren must persuade him to help – before the king is murdered by the very hero he reveres; and before the same magic that gives Maren the gift of sight also takes her life.

Source: Info in the About Borrowed Magic was from the press kit from the publicity team.

Buy Link(s):
       

Excerpt:

The siege had ended. Lord Kern, the dark mage, was dead.

Maren pushed her forehead against the warm glass, straining for a better view of the commotion below. A cheer went up from the crowd, and she searched for any sign of the man making his way to the castle. The man who’d saved the city – and the kingdom.

All she could see was a mass of bodies, crowding the path leading up from the city gates.

It wasn’t uncommon to see people in the streets of Delorme. They’d come every day for the past two and a half years, standing in subdued silence as they waited for the daily rations that grew more and more meager as the weeks went by. But today the crowd wasn’t silent. Today was different.

The tent cities beyond the wall, once teeming with soldiers draining the city of life, were now abandoned, destroyed, thin plumes of smoke the only movement. What was left of the lush, green fields sat charred and barren. Desolate.

“Anything?”

Maren jumped back from the window and felt the color rise to her cheeks.

“It’s all right, Maren,” Adare said, trying to get her own view of the street below. “We’re all curious. And you have more right than the rest of us. You knew him better than anyone.”

The dull, familiar ache in her chest forced Maren to hesitate until she was sure she could speak without her voice breaking. Even then, she couldn’t meet the queen’s eyes. “I’m not sure I knew him at all.”

Praise for Borrowed Magic

"I was enthralled from the very beginning up until the very end. This is one of those rare stories that has been created by a truly talented author, that captivates its readers and pulls them in. I felt every emotion as it reached its final conclusion, and I was able to breathe a sigh of relief that we were given the ending we so desperately hoped for." -Tasha Williams, Red’s Midnight Readers

“Borrowed Magic is a spellbinding story, and the mystery kept me turning pages well after I should have gone to bed. Completely engrossing.” -Dawn Rae Miller, New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author of Larkstorm (The Sensitives Trilogy)

"Shari Lambert has a way of capturing your mind and transporting you into her fantasy world. Filled with royalty and dark forces at court, Borrowed Magic reminds me of a Phillipa Gregory novel with the bonus of magic.” -Jamie Blair, author of Leap of Faith

Books In The Borrowed Magic Series:

Amazon

Amazon

FREE EBOOK

Siege: A Borrowed Magic Novella

For six years, peace has reigned over the kingdom of Tredare. Lord Kern, the dark mage who murdered the king and queen eight years prior, is imprisoned in a magical tomb.

Or so everyone thought – until one night when Kern appears during a ball at the royal castle, and life in Tredare changes for the worst.

Especially for innocent Maren.

Unbeknown to her, Maren’s father has a past history with Kern, and now she’s crossed Kern’s path, getting in the way of something he wants. Angry and boiling with dark magic, Kern vows to destroy those who dare defy him – including Maren, who protects the current King and Queen.

Despite Maren’s best efforts, Kern lays siege to Tredare for three years. Years Maren spends plotting revenge on the man who’s determined to ruin Tredare.

Meet The Author

About Shari Lambert:

Shari has always loved to read. “Bookworm” may even be an understatement. But when she discovered Georgette Heyer in high school, her love of reading exploded. Ms. Heyer’s books were not only entertaining, witty, and smart, but they saved Shari from the awkward, unromantic teenage years. To this day, Shari’s favorite books all have romance in them.

Although Shari spent a good deal of her time at Brigham Young University on the ballroom dance team, she did manage to get a BA in History and English before going on to get a Juris Doctorate. After graduation, she decided her first priority was to be a mom -- a career she’s stuck with and loved.

In between cleaning, laundry, and homework, Shari writes. Just like with reading, she wants to get lost in a world, whether imaginary or historical.

She lives just outside of Salt Lake City, Utah with her husband and four children.

sharilambertbooks.com | twitter | facebook | pinterest | goodreads

Giveaway

BookBlast Giveaway

$50 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash

Ends 2/23/16

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 and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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