Posted Wednesday, 6 December, 2017 by jorielov (Narrator) Lauri Jo Daniels, Colourless, Rita Stradling, Self Published 0 Comments
Acquired Digital Audiobook by: I am a blog tour hostess with Audiobookworm Promotions wherein I have the opportunity to receive audiobooks for review or adoption (reviews outside of organised blog tours) and host guest features on behalf of authors and narrators alike. I have been hosting for nearly a year now and I appreciate the diversity of genre selections and styles of stories to choose from whilst I navigate the audiobook realms!
I received a complimentary audiobook copy of “Colourless” via Audiobookworm Promotions in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
Why I wanted to listen to this story:
When I first saw this blog tour coming up on the calendar, I thought the premise was quite uniquely different – especially, as I was starting to get into the mood for reading Speculative Fiction per my annual participation in #RRSciFiMonth (Sci Fi November) wherein I have a steady focus on Science Fiction. The aspects of the story-line which intrigued me most were how there is a Speculative angle within it – the condition of losing one’s colour – not just in the context of your skin tone but in the objects and world round you – where everything truly is disappearing into the shadows of being colourless.
The only thing I worried about going into this novel is if I would be able to connect to the world-building as there are certain things set in the world of this novel which felt a bit confusing at first glance. Being Speculative at it’s core, I knew there was a layer of fantastical etched into it but there was a part of me which worried about the elements of how this world functions and how it’s put into order. Nevertheless, what truly intrigued me was the main aspect of what gave it’s most chilling Suspense – how does a person become devoid of colour and how does the world they live in suddenly feel erased?
Colourless
In Domengrad, there are rules all must live by: Fear the Gods. Worship the Magicians. Forsake the Iconoclasts.
To Annabelle Klein, the rules laid down by the Magicians are the mere ramblings of stuffy old men. As far as she’s concerned, the historic Iconoclasts, heretics who nearly destroyed the Magicians so long ago, are nothing but myth. She has much more important matters to worry about.
Heiress to a manor mortgaged down to its candlesticks and betrothed to her loathsome cousin, sixteen-year-old Annabelle doubts the gods could forsake her more.
Then Annabelle is informed of her parents’ sudden and simultaneous deaths, and all of the pigment drips out of her skin and hair, leaving her colourless. Within moments, Annabelle is invisible and forgotten by all who know her.
Living like a wraith in her own home, Annabelle discovers that to regain her color she must solve the mystery behind her parents’ murders and her strange transformation.
Meanwhile, hundreds of the Magicians’ monks, with their all-black eyes and conjoined minds, have usurped control of Annabelle’s family manor. An Iconoclast is rumored to be about—a person who they claim goes unseen, unheard, and lost to memory, yet is the greatest threat to all of Domengrad. For the first time in a hundred years, the monks plan to unleash the dire wolves of old.
Their only target: Annabelle.
Places to find the book:
Add to LibraryThing
ASIN: B075ZZZV23
on 2nd October, 2017
Length: 9 hours, 22 minutes (Unabridged)
Self Published Audiobook
This is the first book of the Colourless series
Formats Available: Paperback and Audiobook
About Rita Stradling
Rita Stradling is the author of Ensnared, Making Bad Choices, The Deception Dance series, the Dakota Kekoa series and The Fourteen Day Soul Detox Novella Serial. She has a BA in Art History and a particular love for modern and medieval art.
Rita lives with her husband and son in Northern California. She has an insatiable novel addiction and mostly reads young adult and adult: romance, paranormal, urban fantasy and high fantasy.
Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads
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Posted Wednesday, 6 December, 2017 by jorielov in Audiobook, Audiobookworm Promotions, Blog Tour Host, Dark Fantasy, Fantasy Fiction, Indie Author, Self-Published Author
Posted Tuesday, 14 November, 2017 by jorielov (Narrator) Rita Page, Patrice Wilton, Self Published, Someone to Love 2 Comments
Acquired Digital Audiobook by: I am a blog tour hostess with Audiobookworm Promotions wherein I have the opportunity to receive audiobooks for review or adoption (reviews outside of organised blog tours) and host guest features on behalf of authors and narrators alike. I have been hosting for nearly a year now and I appreciate the diversity of genre selections and styles of stories to choose from whilst I navigate the audiobook realms!
I received a complimentary audiobook copy of “Someone to Love” via Audiobookworm Promotions in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
I especially enjoy reading series in order:
When I first signed on for this particular blog tour, I was thankful I could listen to two of the novels in the series – which at this time has three novels. I am unsure if this series will continue or if it will remain a trilogy – the joy for me was being able to start at the beginning. Even in series which are not necessarily inter-connected by characters, there is a lot to be said for going back to the beginning to better understand how the author began the series – you have a better foundation for what is yet to come in next installments. This is why I don’t agree about series having ‘stand-alone’ titles as through my readings of series, each installment builds on the last – even if it is to see the transitions and nuanced changes the writer is making in their style as the series moves forward.
Thereby, this is what my main takeaway was by listening to A Heavenly Christmas:
Despite the few things which wrinkled my brow as I listened to the story, one thing I liked about how Ms Wilton writes her Contemporaries is how she writes gentle stories of where her characters need to come to a personal awakening or fork in the road where they can sort through the things they are allowing to prevent themselves from moving ‘forward’ in their lives. She has a particular style I generally enjoy reading – even if there were a few things which I felt took my joy away here or there, I found myself rooted into the story-line. She’s taken a small towne atmosphere (which I love!) and populated it with a small cast of characters who make this towne called: Heaven come to life! It’s similar to how those tv movies set in small townes give you the impression you’ve spent time there yourself by the time the story ends. In this, the best part is getting caught up in how Jennie and her daughters (along with her parents) find that sometimes the things your thinking your seeking out of life might not be exactly what you need – sometimes, life has a way of switching up your plans in order to give you something to consider you hadn’t thought was necessary.
This is a light-hearted story despite the dramatic obstacles facing Nick and Jennie – even though I had my brow wrinkling here or there, one thing that was lovely was seeing how layered the story had been written – how there were realistic reasons why Jennie and Nick were having trouble sorting out their futures. The story ambled through their transitions – of allowing the reader time and space to understand why they couldn’t see the future they wanted as readily as you might have hoped they could have realised sooner – there was a lot of growth stitched into this novel and the author gives you plenty of insight into why Nick and Jennie needed the ‘extra time’ to resolve what conflicted them.
-quoted from my review of A Heavenly Christmas
A Heavenly Christmas
Subtitle: Book Two in the Heavenly Christmas series
First came A Heavenly Christmas and now we have the riveting sequel, Someone to Love. This book is light on suspense and heavy on romance, and a perfect listen any time of the year!
Allison Cornwall was forced to leave her hometown in Connecticut and live life on the run from an ex-boyfriend turned stalker. She changed her name and hunkered down in Heaven, PA.
The small, idyllic town was a safe haven where no one could find her. And yet, after a year and a half of peace, he did. Police Chief Ian Brown is determined to keep crime out of Heaven. When Ally fears for her life, he's there to protect. Recently divorced, he's not looking for love, but this innocent young woman touches his heart. Can they put their pasts behind them and open themselves to the miracle of Christmas, learning once again to trust and to love?
Places to find the book:
Add to LibraryThing
ASIN: B01M5FBGFC
on 26th October, 2016
Length: 6 hours, 41 minutes (Unabridged)
Self Published Audiobook
A Heavenly Christmas series:
A Heavenly Christmas (Book One)
Someone to Love (Book Two) (Synopsis)
Christmas Wish (Book Three) (Synopsis)
Formats Available: Paperback and Audiobook
About Patrice Wilton
Patrice Wilton knew from the age of twelve that she wanted to write books that would take the reader to faraway places. She was born in Vancouver, Canada, and had a great need to see the world that she had read about.
Patrice became a flight attendant for seventeen years and traveled the world. At the age of forty she sat down to write her first book—in longhand! Her interests include tennis, golf, and writing stories for women of all ages.
She is a mother of two, has four lovely grand-daughters and one grandson, and a wonderful man at her side. They live in West Palm Beach, Florida, where he teaches her golf, and she teaches him patience.
She has twenty-five books published on Amazon, and is a NY Times and USA Today best selling author.
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest
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Posted Tuesday, 14 November, 2017 by jorielov in 21st Century, Audiobook, Audiobookworm Promotions, Blog Tour Host, Content Note, Fly in the Ointment, Indie Author, Modern Day, Self-Published Author, Small Towne Fiction
Posted Tuesday, 7 November, 2017 by jorielov (Narrator) Cassandra Richardson, L.A. Kelley, Rimrider, Rimrider Adventures, Self Published 4 Comments
Acquired Digital Audiobook by: I am a blog tour hostess with Audiobookworm Promotions wherein I have the opportunity to receive audiobooks for review or adoption (reviews outside of organised blog tours) and host guest features on behalf of authors and narrators alike. I have been hosting for nearly a year now and I appreciate the diversity of genre selections and styles of stories to choose from whilst I navigate the audiobook realms!
I received a complimentary audiobook copy of “Rimrider” via Audiobookworm Promotions in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
Why this particular audiobook interested me:
Each Sci Fi November, I like to take stock of #newtomeauthors, Classic stories within the realms of SF I love to read and overall, have this plethora of bookish and geekery fun throughout the month – where I not only read the stories, but I seek out the tv series or movies which also interest me as well. When it came to choosing to listen to ‘Rimrider’ – I nearly came to the party a bit late – I was happiy surprised I could jump on the blog tour, as at the time I was sorting out how to re-listen to the first novel in a series of Cosy Mysteries whilst finishing two other reviews I had to re-schedule as well for audiobooks. Those were for ‘The Supernatural Pet Sitter’ (see also review) and the Non-Fiction Memoir which truly touched my heart: ‘Life as a Spectrum Mom’ (see also review) which showcases being a Mum to special needs children who live on the Autism spectrum. Truly a captivating read!
I personally LOVE Space Operas – I grew up on ‘Star Wars’ (still only watch the films Lucas created!), ‘Star Trek’ (only watching Roddenberry’s vision of the franchise) whilst having an appreciation for ‘Battlestar Galactica’ (the original series) and several other impressionable ‘Classics’ which set the standard for the genre being explored in motion pictures and television. Space Opera held an equal interest for me in written form – which is why I like to explore new story-tellers who are carving out their own niche within this wicked sweet genre we all have a mutual passion for exploring.
I had a good feeling about ‘Rimrider’ – I wasn’t sure if I liked the tagline – as I never liked the expression ‘fight like a girl’ – but in regards to the potential for the setting and the layered narrative scope – I had a sixth sense about this one – almost as if it was the one title which might happily take me by surprise and wouldn’t have expected to have found otherwise; had I not been on the blog tour! This also ‘fit’ well with being the ‘first’ featured story during my showcases for #RRSciFiMonth – wherein, I’ll be happily surprising both the participants and visitors of the event throughout November by the stories I am reading but not disclosing in advance! I think it makes it more enjoyable, really – to just happily duck into whichever story interests you in the moment to read and then, talk about how it impressed you. For me, it’s a new approach — I had always pre-planned a tight schedule for Sci Fi November – this year? I’m going to be a vagabond travelling through Science Fiction!
Rimrider
Subtitle: A real space pirate fights like a girl
by L.A. Kelley
Source: Audiobook via Audiobookworm Promotions
Narrator: Cassandra Richardson
Awakened by her father, teenager Jane Benedict is ordered to memorize a mysterious code. Hours later, Mathias Benedict is dead and Jane and her brother, Will, are wards of United Earth Corporation.
To evade the company's murderous clutches and uncover the meaning of her father's last message, Jane leads Will on a desperate escape across the galaxy aboard the Freetrader smuggler ship, Solar Vortex.
Tangled in the crew's fight for freedom, Jane saves the life of young smuggler, Mac Sawyer, and learns her father's code identifies a secret cargo shipment. The trail leads to the planet Rimrock and the massive prison complex of Golgotha.
Undercover as a spy, Jane stumbles into a conspiracy that can spell doom for the entire Freetrader cause and the extinction of an alien race. Can she escape the prison confines and deliver a warning before it's too late?
Piracy, intrigue, romance, space battles, and a daring rebellion from Earth wait on the galactic rim. Will Jane answer the call to adventure and find new purpose, or is death for high treason her fate?
Genres: Science Fiction, Space Opera Places to find the book:
Add to LibraryThing
ASIN: B074YYKQSN
Published by Self Published
on 22nd August, 2017
Format: Audiobook | Digital
Length: 9 hours, 57 minutes (Unabridged)
Self Published Audiobook
The Rimrider Adventure series:
Rimrider (Book One)
Outlaw Jane (Book Two) | Synopsis
The Boneyard (Book Three) | Synopsis
Formats Available: Paperback, Ebook and Audiobook
About L.A. Kelley
L. A. Kelley is from Florida and has been writing Fantasy and Science Fiction adventure stories for all ages since she was old enough to chew on a number two pencil. All her books have adventure, humor, and a little romance because life is dull without them. She doesn’t write graphic sex or gore so your mama would approve, but does add a touch of cheeky sass so maybe she wouldn’t. In her spare time she calls in Bigfoot sightings to the Florida Department of Fish and Wildlife. They are heartily sick of hearing from her.
Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Amazon
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Posted Tuesday, 7 November, 2017 by jorielov in Audiobook, Audiobookworm Promotions, Blog Tour Host, Brothers and Sisters, Coming-Of Age, Family Drama, Family Life, Hard Science Fiction, Indie Author, Life Shift, School Life & Situations, Science Fiction, Self-Published Author, Siblings, Space Opera, Speculative Fiction, Teacher & Student Relationships, Teenage Relationships & Friendships
Posted Sunday, 5 November, 2017 by jorielov (Narrator) Rita Page, A Heavenly Christmas, Heavenly Christmas series, Patrice Wilton, Self Published 0 Comments
Acquired Digital Audiobook by: I am a blog tour hostess with Audiobookworm Promotions wherein I have the opportunity to receive audiobooks for review or adoption (reviews outside of organised blog tours) and host guest features on behalf of authors and narrators alike. I have been hosting for nearly a year now and I appreciate the diversity of genre selections and styles of stories to choose from whilst I navigate the audiobook realms!
I received a complimentary audiobook copy of “A Heavenly Christmas” via Audiobookworm Promotions in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
Why this particular audiobook interested me:
I personally love curling up inside Christmas Romances as soon as the chill starts to dip into the air, Thanksgiving starts to approach and the holiday seasons kick-off properly starting with Halloween! This particular period of the year is my favourite – Autumn and Winter, have personal joys wrapped inside nostalgic memories. The reason I like reading Christmas stories is because it helps bring the holiday season into your mind and heart. Each story has its own appeal – I try to find new authors and stories to read each year, thereby expanding the collection of holiday stories I can return too once I find the ones I love the most to re-visit. This was a new tour which alighted into sight right when I was trying to decide ‘what to read’ for the holidays this year – as unlike last year, this Thanksgiving and Christmas felt a bit ‘lighter’ as they approach — yet similar to last year, this was going to be a year of thankfulness and blessings received.
A Heavenly Christmas
Subtitle: Can the magic of Christmas mend a young woman's heart?
Jennie Braxton and her two small children are traveling to Philadelphia for Christmas with her family. Car trouble lands them in a magical town called Heaven, PA. Everything about this sweet place seems too good to be true, especially Nick Ryan, a local chef with a heart as big as her own. His sensual smile tempts her from mourning the loss of her husband, to look into the future. Can her dreams of finding happiness again come true, or will her heart hide safely in the past?
Places to find the book:
Add to LibraryThing
ASIN: B01LYGP90H
on 15th September, 2016
Length: 6 hours, 11 minutes (Unabridged)
Self Published Audiobook
A Heavenly Christmas series:
A Heavenly Christmas (Book One)
Someone to Love (Book Two) (Synopsis)
Christmas Wish (Book Three) (Synopsis)
Formats Available: Paperback and Audiobook
About Patrice Wilton
Patrice Wilton knew from the age of twelve that she wanted to write books that would take the reader to faraway places. She was born in Vancouver, Canada, and had a great need to see the world that she had read about.
Patrice became a flight attendant for seventeen years and traveled the world. At the age of forty she sat down to write her first book—in longhand! Her interests include tennis, golf, and writing stories for women of all ages.
She is a mother of two, has four lovely grand-daughters and one grandson, and a wonderful man at her side. They live in West Palm Beach, Florida, where he teaches her golf, and she teaches him patience.
She has twenty-five books published on Amazon, and is a NY Times and USA Today best selling author.
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest
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Posted Sunday, 5 November, 2017 by jorielov in 21st Century, Audiobook, Audiobookworm Promotions, Blog Tour Host, Content Note, Family Drama, Family Life, Fly in the Ointment, Indie Author, Life Shift, Modern Day, Mother-Daughter Relationships, Self-Published Author, Siblings, Small Towne Fiction
Posted Wednesday, 25 October, 2017 by jorielov (Narrator) Barbara Goldie, Diane Moat, Self Published, The Magic Thief series, The Supernatural Pet Sitter 0 Comments
Acquired Digital Audiobook by: I am a blog tour hostess with Audiobookworm Promotions wherein I have the opportunity to receive audiobooks for review or adoption (reviews outside of organised blog tours) and host guest features on behalf of authors and narrators alike. I have been hosting for nearly a year now and I appreciate the diversity of genre selections and styles of stories to choose from whilst I navigate the audiobook realms!
I received a complimentary audiobook copy of “The Supernatural Pet Sitter” via Audiobookworm Promotions in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
Why this particular audiobook interested me:
I happen to have an affirmative appreciation for stories of the Paranormal & of characters who have a whimsical attachment to the supernatural realms! This is hinted at by how much I loved the first story within the Tipsy Fairy Tales (and each story to follow in the series!) inasmuch as how keen I was on the first Halfway Witchy novel! Reading these kinds of stories in the *Autumn!* is a great joy of mine – as I used to pick up a different novel of the Ghost Harrison series by Heather Graham – something I need to return back to doing in the forthcoming years, as her series has taken on a life of it’s own since I first discovered it eight years ago! Ha!
Though seriously – whether it’s for adults or children, I like seeking out wicked good stories which encourage the fantastical elements of story-telling – where we can disappear inside a magically spun world where characters and creatures populate a story with elements of the paranormal!
Notation on Cover Art: The creepiest part of the ‘cover art’ is how I missed something quite critical about the design of it – which is why I’m sharing the larger scale version of the cover for my readers so they can see what I accidentally ‘missed’ when viewing this in a smaller edition! However, it is the cover art for the second novel in the series ‘The Supernatural Pet Sitter: The Curse’ where I think the illustrator truly tapped into the essence & likeness of the lead character, Pepper! I liked her definition in the second cover a bit more than this first rendition – however, the close affection she has for her familiar charges is shining through as is the sinister danger lurking around them!
The Supernatural Pet Sitter
Subtitle: The Magic Thief
Every animal can talk to you. You just have to know how to listen.
Pepper Neely is better at this than most, especially because she is in charge of pet sitting all the familiars in her neighborhood.
A familiar is a pet magically linked to a witch or warlock. As a gnome, Pepper is no stranger to spells and sorcery. She also knows that, despite their special name, familiars aren’t all that different from regular animals. They get anxious when separated from their people, so Pepper uses her special gnome powers to calm them down. She watches Cranky the high-strung ferret, Frank the laid-back parrot, King Arthur the elderly tortoise, and many others.
Then, something terrible begins happening to the familiars.
Someone is stealing their magic! It not only prevents Pepper from communicating with them but breaks their magical connection with their people. When King Arthur’s magic is stolen, his owner’s powers stop working too. Pepper can sense that the tortoise is very scared.
In order to protect the animal's magic, Pepper decides to track down the culprit. With the help of her best friend, Luna, and her brother, Jax, Pepper fights to protect all of the special pets.
Places to find the book:
Add to LibraryThing
ASIN: B074G2QDKT
on 3rd August, 2017
Length: 4 hours, 3 minutes (Unabridged)
Self Published Audiobook
The Magic Thief series:
The Supernatural Pet Sitter: The Magic Thief (Book One)
The Supernatural Pet Sitter: The Curse (Book Two) (Synopsis)
Formats Available: Paperback and Audiobook
About Diane Moat
Diane Moat lives in Tennessee and works as a nurse and legal professional. When not at work, she fosters Chihuahuas. Her six rescues inspired her to write The Supernatural Pet Sitter children’s series, which features a gnome who can communicate with animals.
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Amazon
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Posted Wednesday, 25 October, 2017 by jorielov in Audiobook, Audiobookworm Promotions, Blog Tour Host, Book Review (non-blog tour), Brothers and Sisters, Childhood Friendship, Children's Literature, Coming-Of Age, Content Note, Earthen Magic, Familiars, Family Drama, Family Life, Fantasy Fiction, Fly in the Ointment, Good vs. Evil, Gothic Literature, Gothic Mystery, Indie Author, Juvenile Fiction, Life Shift, Middle Grade Novel, Mother-Daughter Relationships, Parapsychological Gifts, Premonition-Precognitive Visions, Self-Published Author, Siblings, Small Towne Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Supernatural Creatures & Beings, Supernatural Fiction, Superstitions & Old World Beliefs, Teenage Relationships & Friendships, Telepaths & Telepathy, Witches and Warlocks
