Books from the Backlog is a fun way to feature some of those
neglected books sitting on your bookshelf unread. If you are anything
like me, you might be surprised by some of the unread books hiding in
your stacks.
Seventeen-year-old Ciardis has grown up in poverty, a cleaner in a small vale on the outskirts of the empire. But beneath her empire’s seemingly idyllic surface lies a hidden secret. Whispers of an inept crown Prince are growing ever louder—intensified by the five year anniversary of the soulbond initiations.
Amidst scandalous whispers, Ciardis finds herself chosen to train for the Companion’s Guild. She leaves her home and sets off on a personal journey to become a Court Companion. A position she’d never thought possible for a lowly servant to obtain, she must prove that she has the skills to attract a Patron.
But she must master those skills quickly. If the legends are true, only Ciardis can harness the power to raise a Prince in an Imperial Court sworn to bring him down.
This sensational series debut melds intricate storylines with remarkable characters and unforgettable magic. Sworn To Raise is ideal for fans of Kristin Cashore, Michelle Sagara, and Maria Snyder.
I added Sworn To Raise by Terah Edun to my TBR on 12.28.12, but I didn’t add it to my Kindle until 1.15.14, so I think it speaks for itself if I still wanted after that long. I love paranormal romance and I think the colors for that cover pop off the page. There are two covers for different formats and I love elements of both. What’s not to like? It has a lot of great ratings and reviews. Have any of you read Terah’s book or series?
Knight’s Ransom by Jeff Wheeler is my introduction to his writing and I am so happy to have met him and his characters. I loved the book and look forward to reading more of his work. I think I waited to long after reading Knight’s Ransom to write the review, because I don’t feel it reflects how I truly felt.
Ransom had been taken hostage by King Gervase. Now, the king is dead and he’s going home. He had met Claire while he was a hostage and she is the one who gave him his name, Ransom. The king had raised them both as if they were his own. Claire is very outspoken and I think Ransom will have his hands full with her. Will they become a couple. I don’t know yet, but I am going to find out.
The point of views bounce back and forth between Ransom and Claire.
Ransom wants to become a knight and leader, but the path will be fraught with danger and intrigue.
There is something special about Ransom and when he is at his lowest, something good comes his way.
So much betrayal, political machinations, kings fighting, always fighting. Seems to me they need to find something else to do. Maybe they have too much spare time and desire to dominate.
Ransom makes difficult choices, but his loyalty can never be questioned. He is caught in the courtly machinations going on, young royals being easily manipulated, then betrayed, sons going to war to depose their father as king, brothers fighting each other.
There are many characters and not all will survive, but this is Ransom’s story and it will be told over several books. I do like when an author is not afraid to kill off his characters, though some will be missed, others I will be glad are gone.
Medieval history is stretched and twisted in this brutal world, brilliantly spelled out through Jeff’s words. I am hooked and can hardly wait for the next book.
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of Knight’s Ransom by Jeff Wheeler.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown. A brutal war of succession has plunged the court of Kingfountain into a power struggle between a charitable king who took the crown unlawfully and his ambitious rival, Devon Argentine. The balance of power between the two men hinges on the fate of a young boy ensnared in this courtly intrigue. A boy befittingly nicknamed Ransom.
When the Argentine family finally rules, Ransom must make his own way in the world. Opportunities open and shut before him as he journeys along the path to knighthood, blind to a shadowy conspiracy of jealousy and revenge. Securing his place will not be easy, nor will winning the affection of Lady Claire de Murrow, a fiery young heiress from an unpredictably mad kingdom.
Ransom interrupts an abduction plot targeting the Queen of Ceredigion and earns a position in service to her son, the firstborn of the new Argentine dynasty. But conflict and treachery threaten the family, and Ransom must also come to understand and hone his burgeoning powers—abilities that involve more than his mastery with a blade and that make him as much a target as his lord.
ABOUT JEFF WHEELER
Jeff Wheeler took an early retirement from his career at Intel in 2014 to write full-time. He is a husband, father of five, and a devout member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Jeff lives in the Rocky Mountains. His books have been on the Wall Street Journal Bestseller list 5 times (for The Thief’s Daughter, The King’s Traitor, The Hollow Crown, The Silent Shield, and Prism Cloud) and have sold more than 4 million copies. His novels have also been published or will be published in many languages: Italian, Chinese, Hungarian, Turkish, Polish, Spanish, Russian, and German.
He is also the founder of Deep Magic: the E-zine of Clean Fantasy and Science Fiction (www.deepmagic.co), a quarterly e-zine featuring amazing short stories, novellas, and sample chapters.
You can usually find Jeff at Emerald City Comic Con, New York Comic Con or at writers conferences.
He welcomes hearing from readers: jgwheels /at/ gmail dot com
If you are interested in purchasing signed
copies of his books for friends, family, or your own collection, please
e-mail: WOJWbooks /at/ gmail dot com
Books from the Backlog is a fun way to feature some of those
neglected books sitting on your bookshelf unread. If you are anything
like me, you might be surprised by some of the unread books hiding in
your stacks.
Surviving exile and imprisonment should have been a victory, but the battle is just beginning. With a new awareness and tenuous control of her growing power, Janir returns home to find half the Brevian High Lords want her dead.
When Saoven is ordered by his king to remain close, it seems the elves suspect her as well. To make matters worse, whispered rumors claim that a Stlavish noble house, the Vanmars, are plotting to invade and Karile is sure that Janir’s childhood home is a part of it.
Ensnared in the machinations of kingdoms, Janir must confront the power that is her heritage before everything she loves is destroyed.
I added The Secrets of the Vanmars by Elisabeth Wheatley to my TBR on 10.16.23 and I received it from the author. I have been reading Elisabeth Wheatley’s stories for some time now and I don’t know how I missed this one. I’ll be remedying that as soon as I get caught up on my review books. The Secrets of the Vanmars is the second book in the Argetallam Saga. It’s a teen/young adult novel of fairy tales and folklore and sword and sorcery. I love getting lost in a fantasy world and Elisabeth Wheatley makes it so much fun.
Books from the Backlog is a fun way to feature some of those
neglected books sitting on your bookshelf unread. If you are anything
like me, you might be surprised by some of the unread books hiding in
your stacks.
When Peter Fisher sets out for school one morning, he has no idea that trouble is stirring in his hometown. With the unexpected arrival of his new Candonite friends from Maple Town, Peter and Lina have extra help saving their beloved town and loved ones from the clutches of the one villain they had hoped they would never see again. Humorous and thought provoking, this unforgettably entertaining story teaches a valuable lesson about standing up and facing one’s fears.
I added this to Goodreads on 10.12.12 but picked it up on Amazon on 12.22.12. I have read some of her work and loved it, so this was a no brainer. If the kiddos need some reading material, I think they will enjoy Crystal Marcos’ Bellyache series.
Isn’t this such a cute cover for Bad Fairy by Elaine Kaye?
Title: Bad Fairy
Series: A Bad Fairy Adventure (Book One)
Author: Elaine Kaye
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Fantasy Middle Grade
Length: 66 pages
Age Range: 8-12
BLURB: Thistle Greenbud is not a bad fairy. She
simply doesn’t like rules, and it’s just her luck that her homework is to
create a new rule for the fairy handbook. But first, she has more important
things to do. Like figure out how to get back at Dusty and Moss for playing tricks
on her.
Before she can carry out
her plan, though, disaster strikes and she finds herself working alongside the
very fairies she wanted revenge on. Can they work together and trust each
other, or will things go from bad to worse?
As we watch the boys,
the wind picks up, making the fern lay flat, exposing us. We gasp and make a
dash for the closest tree. Behind it, we huddle together.
“Boogles! A branch just
hit me,” Weedy says.
The sky turns black.
Wind swirls dust and leaves, and spits pebbles at us. This is not good. We have
to get going now or else our payback will get blown away.
“Let’s go!” I scream and
lead the group from behind the tree, but the wind makes it hard for us to move
forward.
Rose and Lilly grab
hands as they run, screaming, toward the creek. Lacey stumbles over a fallen
twig, landing flat and hitting her face hard on the ground. When she doesn’t
move, I race to her as sand and pine needles prick my skin.
I help Lacey to her
feet. Luckily, she only has a few cuts on her face. A tiny bit of blood streaks
down her forehead. She looks at me. Fear is bright in her eyes. She needs help.
We all need help. I peer toward the creek. The boys are still there, frantically
trying to lift the bag full of stones.
Shouting a warning and
waving my arms, I hurry to the creek, trying to get their attention. Finally,
Dusty sees me. He looks as if he’s been caught with his hand in the pixie jar.
I point to the sky and
wave them to come our way. Rain starts to fall. Dusty pulls Moss from the
creek. Fat drops of water pelt my head and wings as I wait for the boys to
reach me.
“It must be a twisty!”
Dusty screams. “We better find shelter.”
GIVEAWAY:
3 Signed Paperback Picture Books –
Pea Soup Disaster, Doctor Mom, The Missing Alphabet
Eligibility: International
Number of Winners: One
Giveaway Ends: July 1, 2020 12:00am Eastern Standard Time
Elaine Kaye is the author of A Gregory Green Adventure series. She first created Gregory Green after her son, who loved her homemade pea soup, thus inspiring the story Pea Soup Disaster. Bad Fairy is her middle grade debut and the first of A Bad Fairy Adventure series.
Kaye has worked as a
library assistant and teacher’s assistant in elementary schools in the Sunshine
State. She currently lives in Florida, but she has called Michigan; Honolulu,
Hawaii; and Okinawa, Japan home. She is a grandmother of three boys.
Print Length: 404 pages Publisher: 47North (March 1, 2020) Publication Date: March 1, 2020 Sold by: Amazon.com Services LLC Language: English ASIN: B07RJQPB63 Praise for THE KILLING FOG
“Wheeler (Broken Veil) opens the Grave
Kingdom series with this winding tale of valor and sacrifice, set in a
realm where using magic summons a heavy fog that kills every living
thing it touches. [T]he threat of the fog looming in the background adds
atmosphere and tension…This excellent introduction to the prolific
Wheeler’s work will appeal to fans of Asian-influenced fantasy.” —Publishers Weekly
The Wall Street Journal bestselling
author of the Kingfountain series conjures an epic, adventurous world
of ancient myth and magic as a young woman’s battle with infinite evil
begins.
Survivor of a combat school, the orphaned Bingmei
belongs to a band of mercenaries employed by a local ruler. Now the
nobleman, and collector of rare artifacts, has entrusted Bingmei and the
skilled team with a treacherous assignment: brave the wilderness’s
dangers to retrieve the treasures of a lost palace buried in a glacier
valley. But upsetting its tombs has a price.
Echion, emperor of
the Grave Kingdom, ruler of darkness, Dragon of Night, has long been
entombed. Now Bingmei has unwittingly awakened him and is answerable to a
legendary prophecy. Destroying the dark lord before he reclaims the
kingdoms of the living is her inherited mission. Killing Bingmei before
she fulfills it is Echion’s.
Thrust unprepared into the role of savior, urged on by a renegade prince, and possessing a magic that is her destiny, Bingmei knows what she must do. But what must she risk to honor her ancestors? Bingmei’s fateful choice is one that neither her friends nor her enemies can foretell, as Echion’s dark war for control unfolds.
You can purchase The Killing Fog at the following Retailers:
Bingmei turned back to watch the struggle between Kunmia and
the Qiangdao leader. If only it were the man who had murdered her grandfather.
She’d hoped to find him this season, to make him pay for what he’d done. But
this was the first band of marauders they’d come across.
Kunmia’s weapon was soon the only one shining, and the fog’s
sickly haze was drawn toward it like a flock of moths. Magic lured the fog. It
was why the artifacts were used sparingly, if at all.
And then the leader went down, his skull cracked by the staff.
“Lieren!” Kunmia shouted in warning. The valiant man continued
to fight, not seeing the creeping mist that licked at his adversaries’ ankles
as if to taste them. He was still surrounded. And then the fog suddenly surged
forward, engulfing him and the others near him.
“Please!” Marenqo gripped the young man’s arm, hoisting him to
his feet. The fisherman’s boy saw the fog then, the scene illuminated by the
glow of Kunmia’s staff. No further warnings were needed. The boy leaped into
the boat and began unfastening the ropes, working quickly. Screams of panic
started. The fog had begun its deadly work.
“Kunmia!” shouted Zhuyi. “The boat!”
Kunmia stood transfixed, gripping the weapon that had helped
summon the death of her friend, her companion in arms. Bingmei saw the anguish
in her face, which was quickly replaced by implacable determination. The leader
of the ensign rushed toward the boat, the staff’s glow slowly decreasing. Still
it lured the fog to follow her. Knee-high tendrils of mist snaked through the
grass, chasing after Kunmia.
Photo Content from Jeff Wheeler
Jeff Wheeler took
an early retirement from his career at Intel in 2014 to write
full-time. He is a husband, father of five, and a devout member of The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Jeff lives in the Rocky
Mountains. His books have been on the Wall Street Journal Bestseller
list 5 times (for The Thief’s Daughter, The King’s Traitor, The Hollow
Crown, The Silent Shield, and Prism Cloud) and have sold more than 4
million copies. His novels have also been published or will be published
in many languages: Italian, Chinese, Hungarian, Turkish, Polish,
Spanish, Russian, and German.
He is also the founder of Deep Magic: the E-zine of Clean Fantasy and Science Fiction (www.deepmagic.co), a quarterly e-zine featuring amazing short stories, novellas, and sample chapters.
You can usually find Jeff at Emerald City Comic Con, New York Comic Con or at writers conferences.
He welcomes hearing from readers: jgwheels /at/ gmail dot com
If you are interested in purchasing signed
copies of his books for friends, family, or your own collection, please
e-mail: WOJWbooks /at/ gmail dot com
I love unicorns and dragons and have read The Unicorn Key, Book I of the Realm of LIght and Fire series, so when I saw the ARC for The Unicorn Quest, Book II, I had to have it.
I have been waiting for The Unicorn Quest, seeing that the series does not stand alone. Have to keep reading to know the ending, and there is more to come.
I love unicorns and dragons, so this is a perfect fit for me. I’m back with some familiar friends, humans, unicorns and dragon shifters, and a couple of pixies.
Freya and River have become more than friends. Their romance is a slow burn and I love that they take their time, getting to know each other.
I am curious about River’s mom. Is it good? Bad? Why does he not want Freya to meet her?
The gang is off on a new adventure when Jet, a unicorn shifter that holds a key, is kidnapped. They know the why, but who has taken him? And where?
They travel through mountains, cities, on a river in their quest to find their unicorn friend and protect the world from the evil that wants to bring it down.
Danger, betrayal and treachery come from known and unknown sources as they search for the pendants that can keep the world safe.
We do find time for love and romance and new friends.
They had one success and one failure on their mission and that leaves us with another story. Unicorns, dragons, witches, some familiar and some new supernatural beings, making me question, who is friend and who is foe?
I enjoyed the fact that I didn’t know all that would happen and the end was not known until I got there. The writing is great and the storyline is one I enjoy. I didn’t feel that, I can’t put it down feeling, an urgency to race through the pages. Is it because it wasn’t aimed at me, but teens and young adults? Is it because I have been devouring books and want that shock factor? Either way, I enjoyed the story and look forward to finding all the answers and saving the world.
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of The Unicorn Quest by J A Culican
3 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
Unicorns and Dragons and Shifters oh my!
With
everything back to normal and a new boyfriend, my life couldn’t be
better. That is until my unicorn shifter friend is kidnapped by forces
unknown, along with the key he was holding.
With the Dark Fae
Lord beaten, the only conclusion to come to is that there is another foe
out there, one far more deadly and this time they aren’t looking for
just one unicorn, they want them all.
The Unicorn quest is the
exhilarating second in series by the USA Today Bestselling authors who
brought you the Dragon Tamer series. Realm of Light and Fire is
guaranteed to have you hiding under your blankets with your flashlight,
turning the pages.
ABOUT J A CULICAN
J.A. Culican is a teacher by
day and a writer by night. She lives in New Jersey with her husband of
eleven years and their four young children.
J.A. Culican’s inspiration to start writing came from her children
and their love for all things magical. Bedtime stories turned to
reality after her oldest daughter begged her for the book from which
her stories of dragons came from. In turn, the series The Keeper of
Dragons was born.
I downloaded a copy of Hidden by Megg Jensen a long time ago, 12.16.15, to be exact, but before that. I think it had been made free since I had signed up to review the book through Xpresso Book Tours. I finished reading the book on 1.3.15 and did rate the book on goodreads, but did not write the review.
The living conditions put people’s true character to the test. Such close living makes it hard to hid their true colors. The characters are vindictive, revengeful, heroic and brave. I love ’em and hate ’em.
What is the fog? Is it treacherous, benign, hiding something? What happens to those who go into the fog?
I was engrossed from the beginning. The fog had me very curious and I wanted to walk into it with Tressa. When I first started reading the book, I was looking for dragons, but once I met Tressa, it became all about her. I love her strength. Her personality demanded she do what is right, no matter the consequences. She wasn’t reckless, she felt it was her duty to her people…as if she were their leader. Bastion, her true love since childhood, meant, fated, to be together.
The longer I read, the more I find is going on. I am loving my journey to the answers. It is exciting and dangers at the same time. I was bummed when a favorite of min bit the dust, added an unexpected twist, but I love when an author doesn’t walk the usual line and isn’t afraid to kill of their characters. Not predictable and plenty of surprises. Would love to read more.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Hidden by Megg Jensen.
4 Stars
GOODREADS BLURB
The mystery enshrouding
Hutton’s Bridge is as impenetrable as the fog that descended at its
borders eighty years ago. Each year, three villagers enter the mist
searching for answers. No one ever returns.
Then a dragon falls
from the sky to the town square, dead—the first glimpse of an outside
world that has become nothing more than a fairy tale to Hutton’s Bridge.
Except to Tressa.
Tressa grew up with Granna’s stories of the
days before the fog fell. When Granna dies, leaving Tressa without any
family, Tressa ventures into the fog herself, vowing to unravel the foul
magic holding Hutton’s Bridge captive.
What she discovers beyond the fog endangers the lives of everyone she loves
ABOUT MEGG JENSEN (from Amazon)
Megg Jensen is all sorts of strange things: medieval history buff, Ren Faire goer, fairy garden builder, swing dancer, and lover of movies everyone else hates. She spends too much time waiting for The Doctor.
She is the USA Today bestselling
author of Dragonlands, Dragons of the Nether, Forsaken Stars Saga, Cloud
Prophet Trilogy, The Swarm Trilogy, and Shucked.
For more information on Megg please visit her website at http://www.meggjensen.com/.
Want a FREE gift? Newsletter: http://www.meggjensen.com/#!newsletter/ch36 Hang out & chat with Megg on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/meggjensen
