New Author!

So, as you may know, lately I've been reading more independent authors and I've found another one that I like:  Rose Pressey.  I've read Me and My Ghoulfriends and Ghouls Night Out from the Larue Donovan series and No Shoes, No Shirt, No Spells from the Mystic Cafe series and really have enjoyed her characters and her stories.

Larue Donovan can see and speak to the dead.  She uses her abilities to help departed souls find the light and cross over to the other side.  However, during her attempts to help these souls cross, she usually finds herself hosting them as room mates for a while until they are ready to go.  Her side job as a ghost hunter usually brings her into contact with said souls, who then follow her home and hang around until they are ready to cross over.  Her 'friends' make her daily life a little complicated, since only her best friend knows about Larue's abilities (and she'd like to keep it that way). 

In both the books I have read, Larue gets mixed up with other 'supernatural' elements in her hometown that she never knew existed.  She encounters black magic witches, as well as the local white magic coven.  In both books, she is involved in a burgeoning romance with Callahan, the new guy in town, and her abilities make things a little complicated all around.  I have to say that I was somewhat disappointed with the plot similarities between the two books and hope that future plots are a little more creative, but I did enjoy the characters involved and hope to see more of this series in the future.

The Mystic Cafe series, however, is definitely my favorite of the two.  When her grandmother retires, Elly Blair finds herself the new owner of the Mystic Cafe, which her grandmother has run for all of Elly's life.  While she is a bit overwhelmed at the prospect of running her own restaurant, her grandmother throws in a surprise--magic.  Elly is skilled with magic, as her grandmother is, and it is now Elly's responsibility to not only feed the people in town, but to also add magic to their food in order to boost self-esteem, relieve pain or whatever the customer may need.  Unfortunately, things do not go smoothly for Elly and she must find a way to correct a spell gone awry before the powers that be close the cafe forever.

I really enjoyed the first installment and look forward to the next one, which is due out soon!  Rose Pressey also has a number of other series that I plan to check out in the near future :)

Another New Series!!

I have found another new series!  The Stacy Justice series by Barbra Annino.  I found this series through the compilation Every Witch Way But Wicked.  As you may know from previous posts, I can not stand to start in the middle of a series, so when I started reading "A Tale of Two Witches" by Christiana Miller and Barbra Annino and realized that the characters mentioned within were established in other series, I immediately stopped reading the story and started the respective series'.  I did enjoy Somebody Tell Aunt Tillie She's Dead by Christiana Miller (where some of the characters in the story originate) and will post my review soon.  However, I was really drawn in by Annino's Stacy Justice.  Opal Fire is the first book in the series and it introduces us to Stacy Justice, a woman born into a family of witches but does not want to accept her prophesied role as the Seeker.  She has recently moved back to the small town of Amethyst and the lives of her family, including her grandmother Birdie and great-aunts Fiona and Lolly, collectively known as the Geraghty Girls and revered as the local witches.  Stacy believes and understands the magic held by her family but refuses to embrace the magic as a part of her.  However, when her cousin Cinnamon's bar, The Black Opal, burns to the ground under mysterious circumstances, Stacy has to harness everything in her power, including her powers, to prove Cinnamon wrongly accused and bring justice to another lost soul.  In the second book, Bloodstone, Stacy is faced with accepting her role in the family in order to help a long lost sister (?) and protect a centuries old secret.  She must learn to face her own demons regarding magic and find her place within the family hierarchy.

Both books are well-written and contain compelling characters.  The Geraghty Girls alone are worth reading both books, but the other characters are as well-written and likable.  Stacy is real, with real problems, magic aside, and very likable.  She is surrounded by friends and family that are both skeptical about her family and supportive of the craziness.  You want to read about her, her life and the town and you want her to triumph over whatever circumstances she finds herself in.  I thoroughly enjoyed both Opal Fire and Bloodstone and look forward to reading the third Stacy Justice book Tiger's Eye due out in 2012.

Spell Bound by Kelley Armstrong

Spell Bound (Otherworld, Book 12), the latest in the Otherworld series, picks up where Waking the Witch (Women of the Otherworld, Book 11)left off.  Savannah is without her spell casting abilities and feels lost without them.  She doesn't really know who she is or where she belongs without her powers.  And, she's about to find out that she's a key player in a potential supernatural war.

I love the Otherworld series.  Until Waking the Witch (Women of the Otherworld, Book 11) Elena was my favorite character--they story of Elena and Clay is still my favorite in the series.  However, after reading about grown-up Savannah, she has taken the role of favorite character.  Armstrong always wrote Savannah as an interesting child, just finding out who she is and where she belongs.  She was always somewhat confident in herself and her abilities.  However, the adult Savannah is a complex and well-written character.  She is confident and arrogant, while still being vulnerable and insecure.  She knows what she wants but isn't always ready to go after it.  Her story, as told in both Waking the Witch (Women of the Otherworld, Book 11) and Spell Bound (Otherworld, Book 12) shows her maturing and finding herself and her place in the world.  She is a very likable character.

In Spell Bound (Otherworld, Book 12) things are heating up.  Savannah is kidnapped, again.  This time by an underground movement wanting supernaturals to 'come out' into the open.  Their leader, a cult like figure with an interesting back story, believes that Savannah fulfills one sign of a prophecy that will propel supernaturals in to the open and as superior to humans.  There are other signs of the prophecy as well, many of whom are Savannah's friends and family, and a few of whom seem to be references to Armstrong's YA series about Otherworld.  I'm very interested to see if the two series will intersect in the future.  This book brings most of the supernatural community into the story and seems to be setting up something big in future books.  All the players are here:  Jeremy, Elana, Clay, Jaime, Hope, Karl, Cassandra, Aaron,  Paige, Lucas and, of course, Adam.  Both the Nast and the Cortez Cabal are involved as well.  However, while this does set-up what sounds like a great future story-line, Savannah's story is excellent on it's own.  Her character really starts to mature in this novel.  Without her powers, she really begins to appreciate what others have to offer her in their own experiences and what her own strengths are outside of spell casting.  It's a great story and I look forward to reading the next installment in the Otherworld series.

Review: Halfway Hexed by Kimberly Frost

The third installment in the Southern Witches series brings us back to Duvall, Texas with Tammy Jo Trask, pastry chef and late-blooming witch. Still recovering from battling the fairies and werewolves, she is trying to focus on her 'normal' life and her career while avoiding the oh-so-sexy Bryn Lyons. Of course, ever since her magic started emerging, things rarely turn out like Tammy Jo plans.

Things in Duvall are a bit crazy. It seems that some of the townspeople that Tammy Jo helped during the battle are on a crusade to rid the town of witchcraft. On top of that, WAM is coming to investigate and dole out punishment to both Tammy Jo and Bryn. And, she finally hears of her mother & Aunt Mel: her mother is in fairy and Aunt Mel is trapped in England without her powers. So, who else can she turn to besides the incredibly handsome Bryn?

In Halfway Hexed (A Southern Witch Novel), Frost brings us deeper into Tammy Jo's relationship with Bryn. Tammy Jo really starts to acknowledge the depths of her feelings for Bryn--despite the family prophecy meant to keep them apart. With no one else she can depend on, she really begins to wonder just how bad can the prophecy be?

I enjoyed this installment, although the ending left me wondering if there will be another. While some things are resolved to a point where the story could end, there are still other things left unresolved. Nothing on Kimberly Frost's website gives the indication of future books. None the less, I have enjoyed reading the Southern Witches series and would recommend it to fans of paranormal fiction.

Review: Arcane Circle by Linda Robertson

Arcane Circle (Persephone Alcmedi, Book 4) is the 4th book in the Persephone Alcmedi series.  It picks up just after the end of Fatal Circle (Persephone Alcmedi, Book 3).  In fact, some of the issues from the previous book are still up in the air as this one begins.

I really enjoyed this book, but it's difficult to review without spoilers.  Some of the events from the previous book impact the plot of this story and I'm afraid that if I go into too much depth of review, I'll spoil the suspense for another reader.  So, I'll be keeping things somewhat vague in this one.

Robertson really begins to unlock some of the background of her characters in this story.  Elements from Persephone's and Johnny's pasts come into play during the story.  A large part of the story is focused on Johnny's being recognized as Domn Lup and the search to find the person who can unlock his power, which is being contained in his tattoos.  We learn a little more about Johnny and his struggles in dealing with losing his father figure and being acknowledged as Domn Lup, while accepting this truth about himself.  I enjoyed having more of the focus on Johnny, as the story was more focused on Menessos in Fatal Circle (Persephone Alcmedi, Book 3).  The relationship between Johnny and Persephone is explored more in this book and seems to be getting stronger, despite the temptation of Menessos.  Of course, the pressures and expectations of Johnny being Domn Lup have only just started to impact his relationship with Seph.

Not everything is resolved at the end of the book, leading me to believe that there will be another addition to the Persephone Alcmedi series and I look forward to reading it.

For anyone who hasn't read the Persephone Alcmedi series of books, Vicious Circle (Persephone Alcmedi, Book 1) is where to start :)

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

Deborah Harkness' debut novel, A Discovery of Witches: A Novel, is amazing.  I was drawn in from the first and did not want to put it down.  It's like a mature Twilight (The Twilight Saga, Book 1) meets The Da Vinci Code.  The characters are interesting and complex, the story is exciting without being too ambitious or overcomplicated.  The book held me spellbound and is responsible for a few hours of lost sleep. It's an historical-supernatural-romance-adventure-mystery--my favorite genres wrapped into an exceptionally good book.

Diana Bishop is not going to use her magic--at least, that's what she keeps telling herself.  She is the last in a long line of powerful witches, with a father as powerful as her mother.  However, having lost her parents when she was seven years old has turned her away from her heritage and her magic.  While researching alchemical manuscripts in the Bodleian Library, she comes in contact with a volume that reaches out to her magic.  Panicked, she returns the book to the stacks, but it is too late--word is out that she has discovered the lost Ashmole 782 and now all species of creatures are after her.

Enter Matthew Clairmont, renowned scientist and vampire.  He has been searching for Ashmole 782 for centuries and is determined to retrieve the book Diana has recalled.  He feels drawn to Diana, feeling the need to protect her from the other creatures, despite witches and vampires being notorious separatists.  They are thrown into an uneasy friendship when the worlds of witches, vampires and daemons descend upon Diana, all looking for the manuscript.

A Discovery of Witches: A Novel is one of the best books I've read in quite a while.  It's clearly written to have a sequel, possibly more than one, and I am anxiously awaiting the next book.  I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading.