***Rinny Reviews*** The Originals : The Rise by Julie Plec

*** Disclaimer *** - I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis

Family is power. The Original vampire family swore it to each other a thousand years ago. They pledged to remain together always and forever. But even when you're immortal, promises are hard to keep. 

Arriving in New Orleans in 1722, Original vampire siblings Klaus, Elijah and Rebekah Mikaelson believe they've escaped their dangerous past. But the city is lawless, a haven for witches and werewolves unwilling to share territory. The siblings are at their mercy…especially after Klaus meets the beautiful and mysterious Vivianne. Her impending marriage is key to ending the war between the supernatural factions—and Klaus's attraction to her could destroy the uneasy alliance. As Elijah works toward securing a piece of the city for his family, and Rebekah fights her unexpected feelings for a French captain, will Klaus's volatile desires bring their world crashing down—and tear them apart for good?

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Review

I was so excited when I saw that there was going to be some books based on The Originals, I love the show and enjoyed The Vampire Diaries books. However I was skeptical that this book would live up to the show and my high expectations esp as the characters were derived from the vampire diaries and first seen in the show before getting their own spin off series. This book is the first of three a prequel to the tv series. I shouldn't have been. I could not put it down it was just so good. 

Even if you do not know much about the Mikaelson family the book does a good job on catching them up on their history.  With Julie Plec (the creator of the show) at the helm it is not a surprise that the characters in the book match their tv counterparts. Considering their situation and their history I still find it so interesting how different they are. Throughout the book we have chapters from Klaus, Elijah and Rebekah as they go about their own different missions to help cement New Orleans as their home. Of course each has situations that lead to trouble and misfortune, after all the Mikaelson family never have things all that easy.

Often bringing it upon themselves.

I was surprised to enjoy each of the POV's and their individual storylines. I am a huge Klaus fan (Who isn't?) and admire Elijah's qualities and his old fashioned ways, however Rebekah i usually have a hard time liking. I found them all to be reliable narrators and was glad that I got to dip in and out of each of their heads. I found Elijah in particular enjoyable to read, It was nice to see inside his head and understand his thinking more. 

The writing is not the best and not as well polished as some people may like, however this did not detract from my enjoyment in any way.There is plenty going on to keep you interested even with a slightly slow start. There is action, scandal, romance , betrayal and more than a few bitter sweet and heartbreaking moments. By the time I got to 70%, I was willing myself to read slower, I just did not want it to end. I cannot wait for the next instalment.

I would recommend this book to fans of The Vampire Diaries or The Originals shows. Even if you have not watched The Originals show i think you would enjoy it.  

MY RATING:

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*** Promo Blitz *** No Perfect Secret and No Perfect Fate by Jackie Weger FREE on Amazon for a limited time!

We have some exciting news to share with you all!  Two bestsellers by the award winning author, Jackie Weger will be FREE on Amazon for a limited time. Don't miss this chance to grab these must-read books.

No Perfect Secret by Jackie Weger will be FREE on Amazon from 27-30 January

A single secret begets a layer of lies. 

Anna Nesmith believes she has it all--a great marriage, a dream job and a home of her own. When a State Department investigator begins asking questions, Anna’s ordered world implodes. Frank Caburn is man to the bone and manufactures testosterone like Frito Lay does chips. Instantly attracted to Anna, he is determined to make her his own--if only she can pick through the emotional rubble to find her bruised heart can love once again. 

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No Perfect Fate by Jackie Weger will be FREE on Amazon from 28-31 January.

Cleo Anderson’s people skills are hesitant and her life broken, yet she is determined to leave her past behind. Alone is good and she is finding her way. On a whim, she parks her Play-mor in a fish camp in the wilds of the Okefenokee Swamp, where gators yawn, bears slumber, and snakes slither. The camp pace is slow, the owner kind, and the people friendly. Cleo encounters Fletcher Freemont Maitland and his goddaughter, eleven year-old Katie. Cleo didn’t know her life was about to unravel yet again, her heart would shatter, and that Fletcher Maitland would help her mend. But Cleo is about to find these things out the hard way. Both Fletcher and Katie will change her life and if Cleo does not learn to accept that life is bountiful and fate imperfect, she will lose both forever.

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About the Author

Jackie Weger has been writing novels for thirty years. She enjoys destination travel--going to new and strange places, meeting the natives, learning their customs, their foods, how they survive good times and bad. She lived part of one winter with trappers in the Louisiana Swamps, volunteered at a sister of Mercy Mission in Panama--and had one of the most interesting conversations in her life with an old man and his dog as they sat on a bench waiting for a train in the Village of Versailles. Jackie loves books, coffee, tea, cats, gossip and all things Southern.

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Viper Game by Christine Feehan - Review by Kimmy

Well hi there,

How have you all been?

I have been good.  Working away.  I'm off this week on holidays though.  Spending time with my recuperating husband.  I did plan to read...alot....well lets say that isn't going to plan at the moment lol.  Anywho, here is my latest review.  I do hope you enjoy!

Viper Game by Christine Feehan

*** Disclaimer ***
I received a free copy through (add info here) in exchange for an honest review.

Rating:

Synopsis:

GhostWalker Wyatt Fontenot knows the price he paid for the secret military experiments that gave him his special catlike abilities. After all, he left his home a healer and came back a killer. While Wyatt and his GhostWalker brother Gator may have known exactly the sort of game they were getting into, Wyatt never anticipated where it would lead - or to whom.

The swamps hold many mysteries, but few are as sinuously seductive as Le Poivre de Cayenne. The woman the locals call Pepper is every bit as enigmatic as the three little girls she's desperately trying to protect. From what, Wyatt is soon to discover. Right now Pepper needs a man like Wyatt. Passionately. But her secrets are about to take them both deeper into the bayou than either imagined-where desire is the deadliest poison of all.

Review

Christine Feehan is a new author to me.  The lovely Poppy from Little Brown Books approached me before the end of 2014, offering me the opportunity to read and review this book.  I loved the mysterious cover and the sound of the synopsis, after accepting, Poppy kindly sent me a copy to review before todays release date.

Reading this book, I didn't feel like I needed to have read any of the other series.  Although now I do want to read the rest to get to know more about the other characters mentioned throughout the book, in particular Wyatt's brother Gator.  I would have loved to have seen him in this book.  Anyways, yet more books added to my TBR lol.

I found the authors writing style enjoyable.  Christine creates an amazing world full of unique interesting characters.  Each character so detailed, you find yourself easily picturing and connecting with them.  The relationship between Wyatt, his brothers and Nonny is wonderful and I absolutely loved the little girls.  A story filled with suspense, danger, a lot of passion and much more.

Unfortunately for me, there was a little bit too much passion.  I found myself skimming quickly over it at times as I do feel it did have an impact on the pace of the story and took away from the plot.  Hence my rating.

My rating was also affected by Peppers numerous moments of insecurities.  Every woman has them.  However Pepper sometimes got a little carried away with hers.  Frequent eye rolling moments from me.  Sometimes I just wanted to grab her, give her a slap and say "Get over yourself woman and look at the bigger picture!"

However saying that, Pepper and Wyatt's relationship was intense.  They are connected on so many levels through everything they have been through.  Remove some of the foreplay etc and add in something deeper and it would have made a more enjoyable read for me.

Don't get me wrong, I did enjoy this book and I would have enjoyed it more if there wasn't so much sex.  I do recommend you give it a read however.  I'm sure you will enjoy it also.

Useful Links

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Possess (Mary Hades Series) by Sarah Dalton - Review by Kimmy

Well hello folks,

Hope you are all well and are making lots of headway with your 2015 Reading Challenges.  Please enjoy todays post and leave any comments below.  Lets get this show on the road:

Possess by Sarah Dalton

*** Disclaimer ***
I received a free copy through (add info here) in exchange for an honest review.

Rating:

Synopsis:

Mary Hades is drawn back into the world of the macabre as she moves with her family into the mysterious old house, Ravenswood. The mere mention of Ravenswood induces terror among the locals, and when strange things begin to occur, Mary and Lacey decide to get to the bottom of the secret hidden in the historic house once and for all.

As a dark power gathers, Mary finds her life becomes interconnected with the disturbing events that transpired in 1847 to eleven year old Liza Blair. The more Mary is drawn into Liza’s story, the more she realises someone close to her is in grave danger from the sinister energy at Ravenswood.

Set in the backdrop of an unsettling forest, and with strange neighbour Emmaline Delacroix obsessed with death and séances, Possess will take you even deeper into the murky depths of Mary Hades’s unusual life.

Book two in the Mary Hades series.

Review

I was lucky enough to cross paths with the author Sarah Dalton in 2014.  I read many of her books last year and without a doubt Sarah has become one of my favourite authors.  I find Sarah's story telling mesmerising and get easily drawn into all her worlds she creates.

Possess is another fantastic addition to the Mary Hades series.  This book takes us into the darker side of the paranormal world that Mary lives in.  Sarah's writing as always, captured me almost immediately and had me hanging off every word.

I love how this book focuses on the relationship between Mary and her mother.  Mary always had a stronger, closer bond with her father.  Her mother always seemed to be either trying too hard or appeared to be on edge around Mary.  And finally we find out why.  It was like opening a present on christmas morning!

Lacey isn't as prominent in this book.  I did miss her.  I love Lacey and I love the relationship between both her and Mary.  I do understand though that Lacey kind of taking a back seat was clearly needed in order for the story to play out the way it was meant to.  However Sarah does not let us forget about Mary's concern about the future of their friendship and ensures this is addressed in the story also.  I was a total bundle of nerves at that part of the story!

Thanks to Sarah's fantastic story telling ability, everything is woven together perfectly to create yet another fantastic read!

If you haven't read any of Sarah's books, you really need to get on it, like now.  Trust me, you will not be disappointed!

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*** Rinny Reviews *** The Unbelievable Story Of How I Met Your Mother by Preston Randall

*** Disclaimer *** - I received a free copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis

Daniel Zurenski feels like a total loser, but he's about to encounter a crazy array of characters who are going to change his life forever. It starts with Fred Zimmerman (and his unique pet) who scrubs pots at The Spaghetti Barn restaurant and accidentally sets off a disastrous chain of events. There's the volatile restaurant manager Paolo and his greasy head chef nephew Tony. Then there's a fanatical sports reporter named Bruce Jagerski who dreams of winning a marathon if only he didn't have such a bizarre running style. All come together during marathon race weekend in this hilarious tale which will keep you guessing right to the finish line.

Goodreads

Review

Wow, this short story is fast paced and Jam packed full of crazy characters and action. From the beginning it is all go and it does not stop until the last couple pages where it all comes together. Even then your left thinking what did I just read? You left wanting too re read immediately just to double check that everything happened the way you think it did. 

The writer’s style is hard to get used too at first, as at first you feel you have been chucked into a whole bunch of crazy with no path. However once you get used to the writing style it all just simply works. We meet a varied range of characters all with their own distinct and varied personalities, throughout the book. The writer does an awesome job at packing in more action than you could ever hope for in a short story.

This story is a witty and humorous tale of fate. As we progress through a range of accidents, consequences, choices and actions through the different everyday lives of the characters, we see how just it all effects everyone. It makes you realise just how magical and funny fate can actually be. Leading us to see the bigger picture, as their stories intertwine with each other’s, mixing and coming to a nice neat tied up ending.

I have to say that some bits in the story did turn my stomach ever so slightly. I did find myself chuckling along too. However, the thing that makes the whole story even better is Rambo, the little scene where we get inside his head is absolutely priceless.

This story is a good, quick, easy, action packed chucklefest, perfect for when you have to run down 10-20 minutes you have spare or for that dreaded commute to or from somewhere.

My Rating: 

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Preston Randall was born in Philadelphia but moved to Canada at an early age and currently resides in Victoria, British Columbia. After graduating with a B.Sc. in Biology he pursued an administrative career spanning thirty years, seven of which were spent in the Caribbean. Although always interested in creative writing, it wasn't until after returning to Canada in 2007 that he published his first short story.

A dedicated distance runner, Preston has a personal best of 2:35 in the marathon and completed the Boston Marathon in a respectable 2:47. He now runs for fun and fitness and only competes in the marathon vicariously through the characters in his latest story.

Preston has won awards in a number of writing competitions and is well-known for his unique brand of off-beat humour, plot twists and memorable characters. In spite of the many laugh-out-loud situations and descriptions, however, there is often a serious undertone.

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