Wednesday, August 6, 2014

Waiting on Wednesday #81: No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency #15



Waiting on Wednesday is a wonderful meme created by Jill from Breaking the Spine where we highlighted an upcoming release that we're eagerly anticipating.


The Handsome Man's Deluxe CafĂ©: No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency 
(No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency #15) 
by Alexander McCall Smith 
Hardcover, 240 pages 
Expected publication: October 28th 2014 
by Pantheon
Goodreads 

The newest installment in the beloved and best-selling series. 

In this delightful fifteenth installment, Mma Ramotswe has her hands full both at home and in the office. To add to her current challenges, her devoted partner, Grace Makutsi, has decided to branch out on her own and open The Handsome Man's De Luxe Cafe. But even “Miss 97 Per Cent” can't quite meet all the demands of running a business—not to mention those that a lightning strike makes on her building. Eventually, she'll have to accept all the help she can get—even if it comes from a completely unexpected source.


Aside from reading YA fantasy, I do read cozy mysteries now and then. The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency is certainly one of my favourite mystery series of all time. It's charming and somewhat quirky characters captivated my heart from the very beginning. I just can't wait for this new installment to come out to find out what new adventures Mma Ramostwe and Mma Makutsi have gotten themselves into this time.

Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Book Blitz & Giveaway: Accession



Hi, everyone! Today I'm having a Book Blitz for the book Accession by Terah Edun.


Accession 
by Terah Edun
(Sarath Web #1)
Published August 5th 2014


Sixteen-year-old Katherine Thompson wasn’t trained to rule a coven. That was her sister – perfect, beautiful Rose. But when a mysterious plane crash kills off the heir presumptive of the Sandersville coven she has no choice. After stepping in to fill her sister’s shoes, Katherine realizes she didn’t have a clue – faery wars, depressed trolls and angry unicorns are just the beginning.

For centuries, her family has served the high Queens on both sides of the Atlantic but it is a well-known rule that mid-level witches stay away from high-level Queens. But when Katherine’s youngest cousin vanishes without a trace in the Atlanta court and no one wants to investigate, Katherine decides to step into the darkness on her own. She soon discovers that nothing, especially in the Atlanta High Queen’s court, is as it seems.

When she accidentally opens a rift in the search for her cousin, Richard LeCross, the Queen’s warlock, decides that Katherine is more trouble than she’s worth. He determines that this mortal, dangerously close to becoming a High Queen, needs to die. But killing Katherine is easier said than done. For a young woman who’s always believed in right versus wrong, she’s about to go head over heels into the dark side.


Goodreads Amazon 

 Terah Edun's next YA Fantasy novel, BLADES OF MAGIC - Crown Service Book #1 (set in the Algardis Universe), will release on March 31, 2014. Book Five of Courtlight, SWORN TO DEFIANCE, will release in April 2014. Her favorite writers include Mercedes Lackey, Tamora Pierce, Kristin Cashore, Robin Hobb and Maria Snyder. Check out Terah's author website (teedun.com) for more information about her books, find her online @TEdunWrites and subscribe to her newsletter (bit.ly/SubscribetoTerahsNewsletter) to be notified of upcoming releases





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Friday, August 1, 2014

Review: Dolls

The Dolls (Dolls #1) 
by Kiki Sullivan
Paperback, 384 pages 
Published September 2nd 2014 
by Balzer + Bray
ARC from Edelweiss
Goodreads 

Eveny Cheval just moved back to Louisiana after spending her childhood in New York with her aunt Bea. Eveny hasn’t seen her hometown since her mother’s suicide fourteen years ago, and her memories couldn’t have prepared her for what she encounters. Because pristine, perfectly manicured Carrefour has a dark side full of intrigue, betrayal, and lies—and Eveny quickly finds herself at the center of it all. 

Enter Peregrine Marceau, Chloe St. Pierre, and their group of rich, sexy friends known as the Dolls. From sipping champagne at lunch to hooking up with the hottest boys, Peregrine and Chloe have everything—including an explanation for what’s going on in Carrefour. And Eveny doesn’t trust them one bit.

But after murder strikes and Eveny discovers that everything she believes about herself, her family, and her life is a lie, she must turn to the Dolls for answers. Something’s wrong in paradise, and it’s up to Eveny, Chloe, and Peregrine to save Carrefour and make it right.


After reading Beautiful Creatures, I'm always looking forward to a YA fantasy with a Southern setting. So I'm all excited to read this in the beginning.



The promise of a murder mystery, magical secrets and some vodoo did intrigued me when I first started this book. But honestly after a few chapters, I found myself slowly losing interest. This book is filled with YA cliches' like instant romances, love triangle, popular mean girls and the main character who turned out to be some super special zandara queen in Lousiana. 


It just didn't feel right for someone like Eveny and her popular 'dolls' friends to be so powerful and rich out of the blue. Yup, I know the girls inherited their powers but still if only the girls use those powers to good then maybe I'll probably like them more. But in the end, this turned out to be a disappointing mix of spoilt Gossip Girls and Charmed which really turned me off.