Review: A Long, Long Sleep by Anna Sheehan

A Long, Long Sleep

by Anna Sheehan

Available Now

Published: Candlewick Press

Format: e-ARC

Source: Publisher via Netgalley

BLURB (courtesy of Netgalley)

Rosalinda Fitzroy has been asleep for sixty-two years when she is woken by a kiss. Locked away in the chemically-induced slumber of a stasis tube in a forgotten sub-basement, sixteen-year-old Rose slept straight through the Dark Times that killed millions and utterly changed the world she knew. Now, her parents and her first love are long dead, and Rose—hailed upon her awakening as the long-lost heir to an interplanetary empire—is thrust alone into a future in which she is viewed as either a freak or a threat. Desperate to put the past behind her and adapt to her new world, Rose finds herself drawn to the boy who kissed her awake, hoping that he can help her to start fresh. But when a deadly danger jeopardizes her fragile new existence, Rose must face the ghosts of her past with open eyes—or be left without any future at all.

MY REVIEW

Rosalinda Samantha Fitzroy has been in stasis for over 60 years. After being discovered by Brendan Sabah in the basement of her old apartment she is immediately swept into a media frenzy. She learns that her parents are dead and so is her boyfriend Xavier. She also has skipped out of the worst times that have every been lived thru called Dark Times and now she is the sole surviving heiress to an interplanetary empire, UniCorp. UniCorp sets her up with guardians until she is of age, because even though she is well over 100, she has been frozen in time as 16. Rose attends UniPrep and meets Otto Sextus who was engineered by UniCorp by using human embryos implanted with Europa microbe DNA. In a way, they are similar. They both are looked upon as outsiders. Rose is also attracted to Brendan and wonders why she has such strong attraction to him. She has only known that kind of love with her boyfriend Xaviar and she knew him his entire life.

Throughout A Long, Long Sleep we learn of all the tragic events that lead to the Dark Times along with Rose in her history class and thru Brendan. We learn that the first factor was the steady population increase and then the economic boom leading to widening gaps between the rich and the poor. Then the resurgence of tuberculosis and the bubonic plague. The final nail in the coffin was infertility. Rose is just devastated after learning all this and she pictures her parents and all the people she loved dying these horrible deaths. 

Having to deal with catching up on over 60 years of lost time is tough enough but now Rose has a Plastine, a human corpse that has been plasticized, sent after her and will not stop until she is either returned to the person who programmed it or terminated. Who wants her dead and why?

The revelations unfold throughout A Long, Long Sleep. Just when you think you know what is going to happen, Sheehan slams you with a twist! I’m not big on futuristic or dystopian novels but I found myself reading late into the night wanting to know what was going to happen to Rose. When you find out how long Rose’s parents stassed her just so they could go on vacation, your heart breaks. They never let her grow up. This book is very age appropriate and if you like light sci-fi aspects then this book is for you!

MY RATING

PURCHASE A LONG, LONG SLEEP

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Quick Review: Devil Without a Cause by Terri Garey

Devil Without a Cause
by Terri Garey
Available Now
Publisher: Avon
Source: Publicist
Format: Paperback

BLURB(courtesy of Avon)

Idle hands are the devil's workshop. Temptation and seduction are the tricks of the Devil's trade, and when offered the chance to regain his wings by playing guardian angel, he's hell-bent on doing things his way . . . 

Faith McFarland is in need of a miracle. So desperate to save her sick child, she's willing to make a deal with the Devil: steal a ring worn by Finn Payne, the bad-boy rockstar who long ago sold his soul for rock 'n roll. Temptation and seduction become necessary evils, yet Faith's salvation means Finn's damnation . . . because the ring is all that stands between him and Hell. Falling in love was never part of the bargain, but now that they've tasted heaven in each other's arms, can they convince the Devil to give up his due?

MY REVIEW

The angel Gabriel has given the fallen angel, Samael, a chance to get back in the good graces of God. All he has to do is be a guardian angel to a lost soul. Seeing it has a chance to get his “Ring of Chaos” back and Finn Payne’s soul, Samael immediately takes the job. By presenting the lost soul, Faith McFarland, with what she desires most, her son’s life, he has no problem swaying Faith to seduce and steal the ring from Finn. What Faith didn’t count on was her instant attraction to Finn. Things are about to get more complicated. Finn has his own tribulations. He has to get the ring back otherwise he forfeits his soul to Samael. He too falls instantly in love with Faith but the ring is more important right now.

If anyone can make me fall in lust with Satan, it is Garey. Granted the main story is centered on Faith McFarland and Finn Payne but with Samael pulling the strings and battling his own inner demons it proved to be a riveting read. I will definitely be picking up Garey’s Nicki Styx’s series which features Samael. Must read for paranormal romance readers!!

RATING

PURCHASE DEVIL WITHOUT A CAUSE

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Teaser Tuesday: The Vampire's Curse

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two "teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page!

The plan was to make a sandwich and a cup of caffeine-free tea, watch a little of the evening news and then fall into my bed. As I was spreading a thin layer of mayonnaise on a slice of bread, there was a knock at the front door. I was damn sure it was not an encyclopedia salesman. Probably a vampire. Wonderful.~pg.11 (pdf)

Summer Hop Giveaway WINNERS

Thank you EVERYONE that entered and HELLO to all my new followers! This was super fun and I am so glad I participated! The winners were chosen by Random.org and they are:

Prize #1-Jane Was Here

#42-Janelle Ashton

Prize #2-To The Lakes and Eternal on the Water

#32-Andrea I

Prize #3-Dark Descendant and Demon

Judy Cox

*confirmed*

The winners have been sent an email (check your spam) and have 48 hours to confirm or I will choose another winner.

Review: Drowning in the Dark by Allison Karras

Drowning in the Dark
by Allison Karras
Series: The Demon Walks, Book 1
Available Now by You Come Too Publishing
My Format: e-Book
Source: Author for review

BLURB (via Amazon)

There’s a demon walking the streets of Freeport. And only teenager Samantha Carver can stop it. It’s hard to outrun your past. But that’s what Sam thought she could do. After moving to a sleepy town on the Oregon coast to live with relatives, she thought she was safe. She thought she could be someone different. She thought she could be a normal teenage girl. However, the quiet coastal town of Freeport is no refuge. After a girl at the high school is brutally murdered, the police believe Samantha’s cousin and best friend, Terry, is responsible.

But Samantha knows what her friends, teachers, and the police don’t. The murderer isn’t human. Samantha has seen this before. Too many times. She has witnessed the dead rise from their graves and do unspeakable things. She carries the scars on her skin and the sorrow in her soul to prove it.The evil that she thought she had left behind in the rotting graveyards of her past is still stalking her.

Will Samantha be able to save Terry, Freeport, and herself from the malevolent power that threatens to rip her world apart? Or will she succumb under a surging tide of evil and drown in the growing darkness that surrounds her?

MY REVIEW

Zombies are real and they know Samantha’s name. Ever since she was bit when she was young she has been able to detect them when they are in the area. This are not just the mindless zombies…these zombies are possessed by an evil spirit and are hell-bent on destruction. Samantha always thought she was alone in this world since her father died but now that she has moved to live with her aunt and uncle, Belinda and James and their adopted son, Terry. When a student is murdered, Terry is the prime suspect and Samantha knows he didn’t do it, a zombie did. But this is different, she didn’t feel this one coming and now she is worried. Lucky for her, Shane Damon, has come to town to help. He too was bit and can feel them. Together they hope to stop this evil from spreading.

Drowning in the Dark took me completely by surprise. This twist on the zombie story makes for a fascinating read. Karras throws a few twist and turns to keep things interesting and a fast-paced read. Recommended for young adult zombie lovers!

RATING

PURCHASE DROWNING IN THE DARK (ONLY $0.99 on Amazon)

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Review: The Tudor Throne

The Tudor Throne
by Brandy Purdy
Available Now
Published by Kensington Publishing Corp.
Format: Paperback
Source: Publisher for review

Henry VIII has died and on his death bed he knows that his son Edward, son of Jane Seymour, is not strong enough to rule and will be himself ruled by the sixteen men appointed to guide him until he is old enough to take the throne but he fears that if Mary, daughter of his first wife Katherine of Aragon, becomes queen all will be lost. His one true regret is that Elizabeth (Bess), daughter of Anne Boleyn, wasn’t a boy. He knows she has what it takes to rule but since she is a girl and third in line to the throne, he knows there is no hope that she will be queen.

After the death of Edward, Mary and Bess embark on a battle for the crown. Even though Mary had basically raised Bess like a daughter she knows that she is also her biggest enemy. Bess is truly beloved by the people and Mary knows that. Bess is also the reason that Mary’s husband –to-be, Philip, says he won’t come over. Until she is gone he doesn’t feel safe, or so that was what Mary is told.

Both ladies have a very different view on how the kingdom should be ruled as does their advisors. There were times that your heart just breaks for Mary and her quest for love turns her into a sniveling weak minded woman. She was one who definitely let her emotions rule. Elizabeth’s approach was quite different but started the same. Her love of Thomas Seymour destroyed her also but in the wake made her stronger and more determined never to let emotions rule her. Her heart hardened and she vowed to never let anyone see her weaknesses.

At first I was unsure about how I was going to like the chapters written in Mary’s POV and then in Elizabeth’s POV. I truly enjoyed having both viewpoints put forth for me and they are mainly focused on how each woman felt at this moment or that moment. We are swept from the death bed of Henry VIII all the ways through Bloody Mary’s rule and end up with the Virgin Queen taking her rightly place on the throne.

I highly recommend The Tudor Throne for all those historical fiction fans of the Tudor Era.

RATING

PURCHASE THE TUDOR THRONE

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Review: Touch of Frost by Jennifer Estep

Touch of Frost by Jennifer Estep

Mythos Academy, Book 1

Published by Kensington

Available Now

Source: Author

Format: e-ARC

Gwen Frost is sent to Mythos Academy to learn about her gypsy powers. Her ability which is thru touch and allows her get pictures, emotions, and background from objects and people she touches (which you can about imagine her dating life is non-existent). Her grandmother thinks it is best since Gwen’s mother died and we get the feeling that grandma knows something we don’t . Once instilled at the Academy, she finds herself alone even though she is surrounded by many students but everyone seems to be paired by what they are and since she is the only Gypsy she is a little on the outside looking in. There are Spartans (enter Logan Quinn!!), Amazons, Romans, and Valkryies all warriors are the last line of defense if the Chaos War comes about, which it seems is quite imminent. Now a student is dead and the Bowl of Tears, an artifact used to bring about the Chaos War is missing. Gwen’s sleuthly side comes out and she gets her Nancy Drew on to solve this case before something worse happens.

Gwen Frost is my new favorite heroine and Logan Quinn is definitely a hot bad boy (my favorite). Like Estep’s heroine from her Elemental Assassin series, Gwen is a feisty and snarky and in the heat of battle always has to inject humorous comments. The soft side of Gwen comes when we learn about the death of her mother and the love of her grandmother. With the new rise in mythology based fantasy books, I personally have not been a huge fan. But, Estep introduces us to the myths and legends without overwhelming the reader with a history lesson. Since Gwen isn’t as up on her history as she should be before attending Mythos Academy, we learn along with her. 

Fantastic first book in a series that I will be anxiously awaiting to read! Highly recommended for YA readers but with a cautionary warning: there are parts of the story that touches on the child molestation of a friend of Gwen.

RATING

PURCHASE TOUCH OF FROST

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