IN MY MAILBOX

In My Mailbox (currently 'Monday Mailbox' on my blog) is now a meme that I am participating in with Blog Host, The Story Siren. Over 200 bloggers are currently participating in this weekly meme. The rules are simple:

How IMM works:

1.Make your own IMM post! The Story Siren does a post every week, but you don’t have to. You can do one week out of the month or every other week it’s up to you. Be sure to link back to The Story Siren blog, so that other people wanting to participate know where to get the information to do so!

2.I post my IMM on Sunday, but choose a day of the week that works for you.

3.Once you have your IMM posted, come back to The Story Siren on Sunday and add your link to the list.

4.Try to post a comment on other bloggers IMM posts. I don’t expect you to post a comment on every single one, but pick a few!

5.All book bloggers are welcome, while I’d like to keep the theme to exclusively YA literature-- it’s NOT a requirement.

**You do not have to get permission to participate in this weekly meme-Simply make a post, and join by including your link here.

Here are my book purchases for this past week:

1.  I have recently discovered author, Laura Griffin. Last week, I borrowed her first book, One Last Breath, from my local library--and I was hooked. Romantic Suspense is one of my favorite genres. If you are a fan of Roxanne St. Clair, you'll love Laura Griffin's books. Sooooo, I went a little crazy and purchased 5 books by this fabulous author.

2.  I have never read the author, Yasmine Galenorn, but I have been looking for her first book of her Otherworld series, so that I can give it a try.

3.  I have also wanted to start reading the A-Tac series by author, Dee Davis....so I got her first book as well.

4.  I am behind in reading Lydia Dare's Trilogy, Regency Vampyre....I was missing the last book, Never Been Bit.

5.  Then I bought a couple of hardbacks, a rarity for me, as I usually only purchase paperback or eBook format.

But this first book called out to me. I am a sucker for Military Romance, in fact--I am writing one. So, yeah--I claimed that I needed it for research purposes :)

 

6.  And the second hardback I purchased was the debut book by author, Scott Spear, called Immortal City. I finished this book last night and I loved it. It had a different spin on Angels---

ARC reviews from NET GALLEY:

Here is the list of ARC's I received that I will be reviewing on my blog--

 Whew---I'm gonna be one busy chicka for a while---

What did you add to your TBR this past week?

 

 

MONDAY MAILBOX

Wow--It's been a while since I have done one of these...I have been struggling to keep up with everything in real life and have had let some things slide. But today is a new day, a new week, and a new beginning to get my shit together --

What books did you get over the weekend?

I have been feeling the YOUNG ADULT buzz and got a couple of books to read and add to my pile.

1. Infamous ~ Sherrilyn Kenyon --Chronicles of Nick--Book Three

I haven't read book two yet, but I'm a sucker for punishment, so I bought it. Book One was fabulous and I lurved it. I am dying to see just how Sherrilyn 'talks' her way out of her predicament. For those that follow the Dark Hunters series, you know who Nick Gautier is. What you might NOT know, is that the young adult series follows Nick from his first introduction with these Dark Hunters and things get a little dicey. In order for the world as we know it not to be destroyed---things in the past must change.

So just how in the hell will this work out for future Dark Hunter books? I highly suggest reading this series if you follow the Dark Hunter Series--they have the same 'feel' as her Dark Hunter series, just minus all the hot smexy factor...but the books rock!

2.  Tempted Again ~ Cathie Linz

I have only read one of Cathy's books--BIG GIRLS DON'T CRY--and I loved the humor sprinkled in her writing. The excerpt caught my attention for her newest book--

Marissa Bennett needs to start over, but the last thing she needs is a new man in her life. Enter sexy lawman Connor Doyle-the high school bad boy who took her innocence. She knows she should turn the page on her past, but Connor is irresistible. Has she come all the way home just to get her heart broken again?

 3.  Embrace ~ Jessica Shirvington --- The Violet Eden Chapters Book One-Young Adult Book

This cover called to me and the premise sounded really good.

It starts with a whisper: “It’s time for you to know who you are…”

Violet Eden dreads her seventeenth birthday. After all, it’s hard to get too excited about the day that marks the anniversary of your mother’s death. As if that wasn’t enough, disturbing dreams haunt her sleep and leave her with very real injuries. There’s a dark tattoo weaving its way up her arms that wasn’t there before.
Violet is determined to get some answers, but nothing could have prepared her for the truth. The guy she thought she could fall in love with has been keeping his identity a secret: he’s only half-human—oh, and same goes for her.

A centuries-old battle between fallen angels and the protectors of humanity has chosen its new warrior. It’s a fight Violet doesn’t want, but she lives her life by two rules: don’t run and don’t quit. When angels seek vengeance and humans are the warriors, you could do a lot worse than betting on Violet Eden.

4. The Danger That Is Damion ~ Lisa Renee Jones (Book 3 of the Zodius Series).

The first two books blew me away--I loved them. They had a splash of unique to the paranormal genre with a sizzling doze of primo Alpha males that are drool-worthy. Also a gripping plot with twists and turns made it a great read that I had trouble putting down. I am eager for Damion's story. 

MONDAY MAILBOX

I had a very slow weekend as far as books go, but I did manage to get one to add to my TBR pile:

The Coven of the Unbinding never forgets what's theirs.

Juliet Carpenter thought of the coven as family, but when she falls for a man who betrays them all, she's left alone and desperately searching for a reason why. Caleb Leigh has spent the past year in hiding, unable to escape his demons. When Juliet finds him again, her need for vengeance clashes with the hunger still burning between them.


It's a fight born from the embers of a half-forgotten attraction and the wounds of a past too raw to ignore. With enemies circling and secrets threatening to consume them all, Caleb has no choice but to fulfill a promise made long ago--protect her, save her. Even if it costs him his blood, his body... and what's left of his mind.
 
I haven't read the first two books of this series--but I have heard good things. **crosses fingers**
How about you? What books did you add to your TBR pile?
 
Leave me a comment and let me know!

MONDAY MAILBOX and a BOOK REVIEW EXTRA!

WOW! This weekend was AWESOME for picking out a fantastic read and new-to-me-author. After several good friends suggested I read a very well-know author, Linda Howard, I decided to give her a try. I had never read any of her myriad of books-and she has a ton of them. She is the award winning author of over 50 Romantic Suspense books. You can find out more about this talented author at Random House.

The book that totally rocked my world this week-end:

Book Blurb:

What would make the perfect man?

That's the deliciously racy topic that Jaine Bright and her three girlfriends are pondering one night at their favorite after-hours hot spot: Mr. Perfect. Would he be tall, dark, and handsome? Caring and warmhearted -- or will just muscular do? As their conversation hears up, they concoct a tongue-in-cheek checklist that becomes an overnight sensation, spreading like wildfire at work and sizzling along e-mail lines. But what began as a joke among friends turns deadly serious when one of the four women is murdered....Turning to her neighbor, an unpredictable police detective, for help, Jaine must unmask a killer to save her friends -- and herself. Now, knowing whom to trust and whom to love is a matter of survival -- as the dream of Mr. Perfect becomes a chilling nightmare.

Book Review:
This was a new-author-to-me and I wish I started reading her a long time ago. What a super-freakin' fantastic book. It's filled with a gripping plot from page one. I read through most of the night, until my eyes couldn't stay focused on the words.
I seriously couldn't stop laughing--there are so many zingers in this book-while reading, and my hubby questioned my sanity at one point.
Here is one of my faves:

Marci leaned over the table. "And while I'm at it, I want my Mr. Perfect to have a ten incher!"
"Oh my!" T.J. pretended to swoon, fanning herself. "What I couldn't do with ten inches--or rather, what I could do with ten inches!"
Jaine was laughing so hard she had to hold her sides. Keeping her voice down was an effort, and her words shook with hilarity. "C'mon! Anything over eight is strictly for show-and-tell. It's there, but you can't use it. It might look good in a locker room, but let's face it-those extra two inches are left overs."
"Left overs,"  Luna gasped, holding her stomach and shrieking with laughter. "Let's hear it for l-leftovers!"

Have you ever met someone who provoked you, pushed your buttons, and was completely not what you thought at first?
That's Jaine's dilemma at the beginning of this hilarious and sexy read. Jaine Bright has just recently settled into her first home. She loves her neighbors, the tree-lined streets, and has made her house a home. There's just one catch--her neighbor is a surly, red-eyed, shabby clothed drunk. Or at least, she thinks he is. He is constantly banging his door at odd hours of the night, drives a hunk of metal that has seen better days, and has the nerve to complain to Jaine that she is too loud--at 2 pm in the afternoon--while he is trying to sleep. Their first conversations are pretty damn funny and you can feel the underlying tension between the two. The dialogue is witty, snarky, and spot-on for placing the reader in the actual scene.

Jaine finds out that her drunk of a neighbor, Sam Donovan is actually a cop. And he likes to drink from the OJ container in front of his fridge--butt nekked--early in the morning. Oh yeah--and Jaine's window is in perfect position to see all of his manly parts while sipping her coffee. Screw Maxwell House--THAT would be the best part of waking up, lol.

What follows is a rousing, page-turning, and jocular read that I will hold close to my heart-and on my keeper shelf.

Thank you Melissa, Rao, and Lisa Renee Jones for pointing me toward this amazing and talented author.



4.5 HORNY DEVILS



So here is what I also purchased over the week-end:

 



ARC from Net Galley

So what books did you not resist and buy?

Leave me a comment: I'd love to hear from you.



Monday Mailbox

It was a light delivery for me this Monday--I have only received two ARC's--but I am very excited about them.

Title:  Untouched (The Amoveo Legend, Book Two)
Author:  Sara Humphreys
Expected Release Date: April 1, 2012
**Upcoming Book Review
ARC copy provided by NetGalley

Book Excerpt

She may appear to have it all,but inside she harbors
a crippling secret… Kerry Smithson’s modeling career assures her that she will be admired from afar—which is what she

wants, for human touch sparks blinding pain and mind-numbing visions.

Dante is a dream-walking shapeshifter—an Amoveo,

who must find his destined mate or lose his power

forever. Now that he has found Kerry, nothing could

have prepared him for the challenge of keeping her

safe. And it may be altogether impossible for Dante to

protect his own heart, when Kerry touches his soul.
 

Title:  Enraptured  (Eternal Guardians, Book Four)
Author: Elisabeth Naughton
Expected Release Date: April 1, 2012
**Upcoming Book Review
ARC provided by NetGalley
 
 
Book Excerpt
 
ORPHEUS—To most he’s an enigma, a devil-may-care rogue who does whatever he pleases whenever he wants. Now this loose cannon is part of the Eternal Guardians­--elite warriors assigned to protect the human realm--whether he likes it or not.
 
Orpheus has just one goal: to rescue his brother from the Underworld. He’s not expecting a woman to get in the way. Especially not a Siren as gorgeous as Skyla. He has no idea she’s an assassin sent by Zeus to seduce, entrap, then ultimately destroy him.
Yet Skyla herself might have the most to lose. There’s a reason Orpheus feels so familiar to her, a reason why her body seems to crave him. Perhaps he’s not the man everyone thinks… The truth could reveal a deadly secret as old as the Eternal Guardians themselves.
 
What came in your mailbox today? Any particular titles you're dying to get tomorrow on release day?
Leave me a comment~ I'd love to hear from you!
 
CS Maxwell

Monday Mailbox

After posting on Friday about how many books we had in our TBR pile, it's kind of ridiculous that I purchased books over the weekend. My cup overfloweth a bit, no?

But yes, I did.  I can't help it. I'm an addict. I must leave no book unread.

So, I headed over to my fave store~ Mr. K's....and bought 3 books.

Title:  Dark Descendant (Descendants Book One
Author:  Jenna Black

From the acclaimed author of the Morgan Kingsley, Exorcist books comes the gripping first novel in a new series about a private eye who discovers, to her surprise, that she’s an immortal huntress.


Nikki Glass can track down any man. But when her latest client turns out to be a true descendant of Hades, Nikki now discovers she can’t die...

Crazy as it sounds, Nikki’s manhunting skills are literally god-given. She’s a living, breathing descendant of Artemis who has stepped right into a trap set by the children of the gods. Nikki’s new “friends” include a descendant of Eros, who uses sex as a weapon; a descendant of Loki, whose tricks are no laughing matter; and a half-mad descendant of Kali who thinks she’s a spy.


But most powerful of all are the Olympians, a rival clan of immortals seeking to destroy all Descendants who refuse to bow down to them. In the eternal battle of good god/bad god, Nikki would make a divine weapon. But if they think she’ll surrender without a fight, the gods must be crazy
 

This is a new author for me, but I have heard good things--

 

 

 

 
 
Title:  That Old Black Magic (Living In Eden, Book 3)
Author: Michelle Rowen
 
Reluctant witch Eden Riley knows that codependent relationships aren't good, especially when you're possessed by a sexy but troublemaking demon. Darrak's physical form makes good girl Eden want to go bad, but the constant itch to use the soul-destroying black magic she's recently acquired might force Eden to explore her dark side in an entirely different way.


And when her magic starts manifesting itself without conscious effort, both Eden's life and the possibility of a future with Darrak are threatened-since only one of them might be able to survive this...

I have read Book One, and enjoyed it--Book Two is in the humongous TBR pile (360 books, people).
So, I had to add this one as well--AGAIN--Me=Addict.

Title: Blood Oath (Nathaniel Cade, Book One)
Author: Christopher Farnsworth

Nathaniel Cade is a 160-year-old vampire who has sworn to protect and serve the President of the United States. In this gripping series starter, the Commander-in-Chief's very own blood sucker has secrets of his own that extend far beyond national security.
 
This book was rec'd from a great friend who never steers me wrong.
She said it was a "meaty" read--and I love to lose myself in a great story.
 
 
 
What books did you add to your TBR pile over the weekend? Have you read any of the three that I purchased? If so, what did YOU think? I'd love to hear from you --You know what to do now---I am such a comment HOOR.
 
Ciao,
CS Maxwell