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Shadow Walker by Allyson James

Stormwalker Series, Book 3

Again, as with the last book, Janet will not be the person who is the Shadow walker. The cover is really misleading but the book is still good and my favorite so far. The Shadow we encounter begins in the form of something being terribly wrong with Mick. If I say what it is, it will give it away but it's a pretty big damn deal. In addition to Janet having to have to deal with Mick, there is a mysterious blonde who's a piece of work, the sister has shown up again, and there's a hotel inspector that's poking around her hotel and finding fault in things that were fixed.

1.) Nash is becoming less annoying and more ... Tolerable. 2.) Maya is good for girltime, that is all. 3.) The 4th book will be called Night Walker so I'm hoping we get to meet the nightwalker (vampire) that's been staying in Janet's hotel. 3.) Mick has begun to get mushy and it's bothering me. 4.) Janet is getting to be badass but she's suppressing it too much for me. She took a step forward and then a step back. 5.) Coyote is useles ... Kill him already. 6.) Grandmother Ruby reminds me of an old school Black grandma who didn't take no ish. Love her. 7.) I want only the best for the magic mirror. 8.) Cassandra, can you get more badass please? I really like you but you're not owning up to my unrealistic expectations of you (Vonda is what I want you to be, but not bad). 9.) If Janet could fight ... Like really fist fight, I'd totally be all over her. That's what keeps me from giving this series a 5 star rating.

Better than the last book but not by much. I still can't give it a full 5 stars because Janet can't fight to save her life, lol. I'm trying to really love her and I really feel like she's in a bind at times when their are so many things going on at once. I will be reading and wonder 'damn, when will she sleep?' I feel for you, Janet, but learn to use your hands minus the power within.


4 1/2 Stars
IR: A whole lot of Native American

Firewalker by Allyson James

Stormwalker Series, Book 2

This one, titled Firewalker, is a bit misleading. It's not actually Janet with the fire, but her boyfriend Mick.

If you haven't read book one, this review will contain some spoilers from book one.

In book one, we find that Mick is a dragon and in this book, dragons are called Firewalkers. Book 2 focuses on the Beneath magic that Janet is wielding all while trying to keep the dragon council from frying Mick because he chose to allow Janet to live. By far, this book is much better than book one. Have you ever read something or watched something that was so good that you immediately began to curse uncontrollably and then realize that you NEVER say things like that? Yes, that's what happened to me.

1.) Janet finally turned into a badass, albeit was mostly verbal but still, I was pleased with her skills to punk certain individuals. 2.) I was also surprised by Nash. Not only was he freaking useful, but he didn't get on my nerves, I actually was ready to have him in on the action. 3.) Maya was a better person as well. I actually found myself not wanting to strangle her myself. It wasn't that she was useful, just a lot less annoying. 4.) Cassandra is a gem I hope I get to see more of. 5.) I'm sick to death of Coyote. I wonder if Janet can rid the world of this guy? I would applaud her for that. 6.) I thought this story flowed better than the story in book one. Undead Jim proved to be a mystery I wanted to deal with instead of a missing woman. 7.) Spoiler -> I loved Undead Jim coming to Janet's aid everytime she got in some trouble. It almost felt like she was unknowingly building an entourage of 'things' that would keep the 'good guys' from getting her. <- End Spoiler. 8.) The person at the end ... That's when you're going to completely curse like I did. I promise. 9.) The only gripe that I have is that I don't see Janet as Native American. I mean I do BUT I see as the Native American woman that doesn't have that hard Native features, but the softer ones.

Book two was so damn good, I may actually read it again in the future. For now, I will enjoy book three which has already started on a wild ride I'd rather not get off of. If book one turned you off, keep going, book two will pull you in!


4 1/2 Stars
IR: A whole host of Native American characters.
Casting: Janet - Jana Mashonee (perfect!) Mick (Daniel Henney, but a little younger)

Stormwalker by Allyson James

Stormwalker Series, Book 1

I'd purchased the entire series at once, MONTHS ago, but hadn't gotten around to reading it until I put it up as a challenge at IR & AA Paranormal (which I don't think anyone is participating in). This book was a tough read. It wasn't that it didn't turn out to be good, it was just that it was so slow moving into it, not to mention their were characters that I took no interest in.

Janet Begay is a young Native American woman who can harness the power of storms and use them for her bidding. Now you would think it would be amazing (if you want amazing storm power, see Eugenie Markham aka Dark Swan, but not the final book cause it's garbage), but since Janet is so ... Whack ... She kinda tries to deal with it in the quietest way possible. I mean sure, she has a reason. Her mother wants HER to be an all powerful badass (who wouldn't want that for their daughter?).

My main problem with this book is that I wanted the bad guy to win. That usually doesn't happen for me but with this, it did. I had nothing that really connected me to Janet other than the fact that she has mommy issues, a really hot boyfriend that I would love to take from her and a whole host of people in her life that don't matter. So why not let the bad guy win?

Her grandmother: God lover her. She's a fiery Native American woman with a lot of insight and a really cool trick. I dig her because she's very matriarchal but offers nothing to me other than her scowling she does when Mick comes around.

Her father: A boring man, probably beautiful, but a boring and plain father nonetheless. Not that there's anything wrong with it, but he offered me nothing.

Her 'friends': First there is Maya, the electrician, who I want to die a horrible death simply because she's a huge b!tch. Second, there's Fremont, the plumber, who's basically ... A sniveling man. Third, Coyote, a god who runs around as Coyote, then shape shifts into a naked man who wants to have sex with Janet while offering her advice.

Her boyfriend: Mick is a beautiful, magnificent, wonderous creature ... And I use that term losely ... Who should rid himself of Janet and find someone more worth his time. But I get it, the alpha male likes a strong female but VERY feminine. A damsel that needs saving. That's his Janet. I would really enjoy an entire book dedicated to Mick. His origin, what he's been doing with his time and what his future plans are.

Her mother: Goddess of Beneath. A witch of a woman who'd been inhabiting bodies of women in order to create a daughter she could use, because ... Well ... Janet wouldn't let her use her. Mother is very cut and dry, not really any depth at all.

A variable: Nash Jones, is a sheriff and a Null. A huge variable when it comes to the war Janet's mother is raging that she needs Janet to help her win. He's a single minded dick that I would like to die but live at the same time. I think I really just want him to open his eyes and stop being a dick.

Her: Janet ... Boring as sin. Apparently not as naive as she used to be, but still there is nothing interesting about her. She doesn't have a personality I like very much which is why I can't connect with her.

Overall, despite all the bad things I've said, the book is decent. I think that ALL the bad things I've said make for one big pile of shit that you can dig into. Yes, I actually put the book down for 2 weeks before I picked it up again, but after the halfway point, you can't put it down.


3 Stars
IR: Janet (NA), Mick (a mix of maybe Asian and White), all the rest are NA except Nash (W) and Maya (Mex).

2 Awards Won? What?

Cool hmm? Love it!

Here are the following Rules for this award:

1. Link back to the person that bestowed the award upon you. - The Muses Circle.

2. Follow the person that bestowed award upon you.

3. Post 10 Random Facts about yourself.

4. Pass the award along to 6 of your favorite Kreativ Bloggers!

10 Random Facts About Me

1. My favorite genre of music is NeoSoul despite the crazy amount of time I spend listening to country.

2. I am completely against any and all vampires that sparkle or do not rip out throats.

3. I like to think that I was an abusive drunk husband in my past life.

4. I'm excited to say that the book I'm writing will not be your cookie cutter paranormal.

5. I think food runs the world.

6. I actually think that I'm always right, lol.

7. In books, if I like the bad guy enough, I think he should get what he wants.

8. I absolutely hate my cell phone.

9. I plan on saving money to send myself somewhere awesome for a weekend. I've never been on a vacation alone.

10. I only see my BFF about twice or three times a year but we're as tight as ever.

6 Blogs To Receive This Award (I only know 3)

1. Offbeat Vagabond

2. Obfuscation of Reality

3. Danielle's Book Thoughts

Got this from The Muses Circle - Pass along to 15 bloggers. I only know 3.

1. Offbeat Vagabond

2. Obfuscation of Reality

3. Danielle's Book Thoughts

Fire Baptized by Kenya Wright

Habitat, Book 1

Lanore Vesta is a college aged fire mixie (mixed breed supernatural) who stumbles upon a murder. She then becomes overcome with curiosity and begins to investigate on her own.

I've been holding onto this review since I finished the book. But today, I started reading it for a second time and realized I couldn't hold it to myself anymore. The author, Kenya Wright gave me an ARC and I finished it in a day. It was a page turner, the characters are great. Gosh I really don't have a whole lot to say other than it was great and I can't wait for the rest of the series to be written!

1. MeShack is probably my favorite character over all. He's an African/Iranian mix were-cheetah. Lord is he fine. His anger issues are actually dead sexy to me too, lol. 2. Zulu is not to be overlooked either. It seems as though he could be your standard blonde/blue white guy, except he has long blonde dreadlocks and ... well ... his name is Zulu. Plus, the fact that he's crazy fine doesn't hurt either. 3. In the next book, I'm sure we'll see more of Dante, a 250 year old vampire who had mixie 'slaves' working for him that Zulu got released. Sort of. 4. OMG what happened to the merfolk? I wanted to cry. 5. Kenya, could we get some merfolk in the next book please? :-) 6. THe living situation at the end of the book actually tickles me and I can't wait to see how this will work out. 7. I believe theirs a reason why Ray calls Lenora 'Princess' but that's total speculation on my part. 8. I'm really hoping Lanore's powers grow so she can become a total bad ass. Being able to control fire is one of my favorite supernatural abilities. 9. "I turn into a big black guy." HA! I totally laughed. 10. I happen to think those pixies always playing around MeShack are so dang cute. 11. Theirs a piece of me that feels like MeShack got the short end of the stick. Well not necessarily that, but he should have gotten what he wanted.

Overall. I loved it. The men make me happy, Lanore didn't annoy me, but the segregation is unsettling. It's absolutely necessary for the book and won't at all deter you from reading it, but it's so easy to compare it to things in history along with immigration and things of that nature. Nonetheless, I'm really excited for this series. I want to see it all the way through to the end.


4 Stars
IR: Lanore (AA) Zulu (W) MeShack (African/Iranian) Ben (Asian?)
Casting: Zulu - Kellan Lutz (I can completely see him with no shirt and some dreads. Lord ...) Lanore - Tiffany Hines (she's on Nikita) MeShack - Sendhil Ramamurthy (if he were darker, he'd be perfect)

Chosen by Denise Grover Swank

The Chosen Series, Book 1

This is probably one of the best .99c buys like EVER. Anyway ... In Chosen, as soon as you begin reading, you're on the run. Emma and her son Jake are hightailing it out of a diner that Emma works at because some Bad Men are coming. A little after that, she meets Will, who Jake deems as safe. Jake apparently has some kind of telepathy and a lot more that is revealed later in the book. It takes about half way through before you get any kind of information on what's going on but oddly, even though I complained to myself about it, I didn't mind. Jake is apparently a wanted child by some unknown people and we can only get that he's wanted because he's special, but later, the script is flipped and you find Emma is who they're after. But then again ... Their are 2 groups. One is after Emma and one is after Jake. That's where things get hairy. You don't know who works for who, you just know that someone is wanted and they're running like hell to keep from getting caught. As far as Will goes, he's into some 'stuff' but ultimately has a change of heart when he realizes that he's falling for Emma and decides (around the time Jake throws something in his face) that he can't (no, really, he can't) go without her.

1.) Now you guys know how much I hate having to read about sex (unless it's an LA Banks book). Swank apparently knew I was coming for this because the sex in the book was more of a 'hand on breast, pants gone, a joining' and then I'm happy because the D and P words are not thrown around willy nilly. 2.) I really liked the connection Jake had with Will until ...... 3.) It was a non-stop rollercoaster ride. Really, it was. You never stop moving. And just as you get comfortable, you're on the run again! Non-stop action, blood and death via bullet (I'm more of a rip the neck out kind of girl but this will do). 4.) It wasn't paranormal enough for me (along the lines of Tornado Siren and Disillusionist Trilogy). If I'm reading something that's out there, I want it to be really far out. 5.) Oh, thank goodness. No this isn't IR or AA but our heroine wasn't a blonde either. Thank goodness!

Overall, their isn't much to say about this book other than the fact that it's good. Their aren't many bad points at all. I will definitely recommend this and am thinking of purchasing book 2 but I'm not quite sure if I'm up for another book of chase. It took me about a week to get through this one simply because I was tired, lol.


3 1/2 Stars

Fire Baptized GIVEAWAY!

GIVEAWAY!

A new book hit the market by Kenya Wright entitled Fire Baptized. I was given an advanced reading copy and will be posting my review up after the giveaway has ended.

Contest Rules!

1. Follow this blog.
2. Reply to his post with ...a.) Your name: b.) Goodreads Profile link or Email address:
3. Also in your reply tell me if you are a member of the Goodreads.com group African American and Interracial Paranormal?
4. Answer the question 'will you be joining in the reading challenge at AA & IR PN?'
5. Check back for a new blog posting featuring an interview by the author, Kenya Wright, and leave your comments or questions for her.
6. 1 entry per person. Worldwide winners! 5 people will win an e-book!
7. Contest ends February 28, 2011.
8. Tell your friends about this contest! (optional)