Review: A Safe Harbor by Moira Rogers

A Safe Harbor

by Moira Rogers

ISBN: 978-1-60928-137-3

Length: Novella

Publication Date: July 13, 2010

Samhain Publishing

(Official blurb)

A bootlegger will save her life. A debutante will steal his heart.

Building Sanctuary, Book 1

Joan Fuller enjoyed a privileged life—until her wealth and connections garnered her the wrong sort of attention. Her rejection of a textile heir’s proposal comes back to bite her when he turns out to be a werewolf on the prowl for a mate.

She may have been turned against her will, but now that she’s part of his pack she sets out to protect all its women. Even if that means joining forces with a witch and a vampire—and leaving the comfort of Boston.

Former bootlegger Seamus Whelan has cleaned up his act, but when his old partner Gavin comes to him for help, he can’t say no—no matter how deadly the threat. Escorting some female wolves to safety should have been easy, except their leader is a prim ex-debutante with enough power to challenge Seamus himself.

Her courage captures his interest, and her first hesitant kiss ensnares his heart. But before they can build a haven for their kind, they must free themselves of the past—and the powerful man who’s out to teach her a lesson she may not survive…

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A Safe Harbor is book 1 in the Building Sanctuary series. This series takes place before Red Rock Pass, in the time of the Great Depression, when all werewolves were still at the mercy of corrupt alphas.

As most of you know, I’m addicted to the Red Rock Pass series. However, I hadn’t read a historical in years. I was finding the heroes too arrogant and I couldn’t relate to the heroines. I guess I was reading the wrong historicals because after reading about a cocky bootlegger and an uptight teetotaler, I’m fan-girling more than a little.

Joan may come across as uptight, but she is brutally honest with herself.

Bitterness welled up inside her, and she closed her eyes as the words spilled out, low and laced with her guilt and shame. “I’ve put on a magnificent act, don’t you think? Fooled everyone into believing I’m a leader? All I want to do is run away.”

And Seamus, the cocky bootlegger, stole my heart with just a few sentences.

“Not just here to save you, Joan.” He leaned back, just enough to press his skin more fully to hers. “I’m saving myself too. You might survive what happens to you, but I wouldn’t.”

I don’t want anyone to think A Safe Harbor is all about the deep emotions. Oh no. This book has some parts that are deliciously dirty! I had to bump the A/C more than once while reading.

If you haven’t read the Red Rock Pass series, this is a great starting point. A Safe Harbor shows you how it all started. If you are already caught up on Red Rock Pass, then I’ll just assume you already have this one on your wishlist 😉

***For anyone interested, Moira Rogers in hosting a contest right now with a Kindle as the grand prize. Head on over to their blog for more details.

Myths and Legends Winners!

The winner of the Jessica Andersen giveaway is:

Morning Glow

The winner of a PDF copy of The Valkyrie by Mandy M. Roth is:

Sherry S.

The winner of Red Demon by Deidre Knight is:

Raonaid Luckwell

The winner of a $15 gift certificate to All Romance ebooks is:

Anna Shah Hoque

Congrats to all the winners! Please  email me at lillie80 @ gmail.com (without the spaces) to claim your prize. All winners will have one week to contact me or a new name will be drawn.

Oops…

It looks like I was wrong. I promised a new post and giveaway daily for Myths and Legends Week but one of our guests was unable to make it. I’m sorry 😦

How about we just look at hot covers instead? They have nothing to do with myths or legends (however I do believe they may go down in history as 2 of the hottest covers ever) but they are awesome!

Insatiable by Lauren Dane

The Perfect Play by Jaci Burton

For a bonus entry in the All Romance ebook gift certificate giveaway, just leave a comment.  What covers have caught your eye recently? And can a cover influence whether you buy the book? Curious minds wants to know.  😀

Thank you everyone for joining us this week!

Our favorites

When we decided to do Myths and Legends Week, I didn’t realize exactly how many series fall under this theme. I spent more than a month saying “Oh! This one!” “Oh! This one!” Then I realized that we would never be able to fit all of our favorites into one week.  So Greta and I wanted to take this time to share some of our other favorites.

(All of the following blurbs were taken directly from the authors’ sites. Because lets face it, they can describe their series a lot better than I can.)

Lords of the Underworld

By Gena Showalter

Long ago, twelve immortals warriors – each more dangerously seductive than the last — stole and opened Pandora’s box, unleashing the evil from within.  Now they carry that evil within themselves.  Violence, Pain, Death, Disease, Disaster, Misery, Doubt, Promiscuity, Defeat, Lies, Secrets, and Wrath.  When a powerful enemy returns, they will travel the world in search of a sacred relic of the gods – one that threatens to destroy them all.

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Doomsday Brethern

By Shayla Black

In today’s world of technology, science and logic, few people realize that magic lives and breathes-and walks on two legs-among mortals. Or that magickind possesses a weapon that can hurt, heal, comfort, destroy, grant fantasies, bring peace. Or, in the hands of someone terrible and strong enough to call forth its power, the weapon can bring about Doomsday.

Created during the days of the Round Table, it resurfaces in modern-day London and is sought by a wizard of evil brilliance with one goal: dominion over human and magical worlds alike. Only a band of wizards, enemies who must learn to become friends and accept love, can save the world from destruction.

The Warriors of Poseidon

by Alyssa Day

Eleven thousand years ago, before the seas swallowed the Atlanteans, Poseidon assigned a few chosen warriors to act as sentinels for humans in the new world. There was only one rule–desiring them was forbidden. But rules were made to be broken . . .

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Dark-Hunters

by Sherrilyn Kenyon

We are Darkness. We are Shadow. We are the Rulers of the Night.  We, alone, stand between mankind and those who would see mankind destroyed. We are the Guardians. The Soulless Keepers.

Our souls were cast out so that we would not forewarn the Daimons we pursue. By the time they see us coming, it’s too late. The Daimons and Apollites know us. They fear us. We are death to all those who prey upon the humans.

Neither Human, nor Apollite, we exist beyond the realm of the Living, beyond the realm of the Dead.

We are the Dark-Hunters. And we are eternal.

Yeah, yeah. Enough of the doom and gloom because, baby, that ain’t us. You want to know what a Dark-Hunter is? We are what the intro says. We’re Mad, Bad and Immortal. We’re ancient warriors with attitudes who fight rough, and play hard.

We are the scary things that go bump in the night. And we love every minute of it. So when you think you’re being watched. You just might be. The question is…is it something evil or is it one of us?

Well, there’s ours. Who are your favorites? Who did we miss?

Today’s giveaway will be a $15 gift certificate to All Romance ebooks. To be entered for a chance to win, just leave a comment. The winner will be drawn Sunday afternoon. Good luck! 😀

Deidre Knight’s Gods of Midnight

Last year, a friend asked if I wanted her extra copy of Red Fire by Deidre Knight. She had bought it and then won a signed copy in a contest. I had never heard of Deidre Knight (was I living under a rock?) but hey, free book, so of course I said yes and Red Fire was added to my TBR mountain. A few months later, in the midst of a serious reading slump, I pulled it out and started reading.

Eternity has become a prison for Ajax Petrakos. Centuries after he and his Spartan brothers made their bargain for immortality, Ajax struggles to maintain his warrior’s discipline. His only source of strength is his hope that he will soon meet the woman once foretold to him—the other half of his soul, Shay Angel.

Ajax searches for his destined mate on the haunted streets of modern-day Savannah, but he isn’t the first to find her. Shay, the youngest of a powerful demon-hunting clan, can see the monsters that stalk the steamy Southern night—an ability that draws the deadly attention of Ajax’s worst enemy.

As she and Ajax race to solve a chilling prophecy—one that could spell Ajax’s death if they don’t succeed—a fated passion arises, threatening to sweep away everything in its path.

I finished Red Fire in just a few hours and it was one of those books. You know the type I’m talking about. One of those where you have to have the next book RIGHT NOW! So I popped over to the author’s site, found out about Red Kiss, and headed for the bookstore.

Immortal warrior and Spartan slave River Kassandros has a special gift—the ability to transform into any weapon. But in a recent battle, he was trapped as a dagger, unable to become human again. His one hope of salvation is a mere mortal…

When Emma Lowery beaches her kayak on an uninhabited island off the coast of Savannah, an ancient dagger seems to call out to her. Compelled by dark forces, Emma draws blood with his blade, freeing River. Now he’s stronger, angrier—and exudes more sensuality than Emma can resist.

But a sinister power wants to claim River’s destiny, and his precarious freedom. The pair must join the Spartan warriors to fight Ares himself. But can they face sacrificing their love to protect humankind from the war god’s demonic plan?

Red Kiss was an all-nighter. River’s strength and humbleness amazed me, his insecurities broke my heart, and I couldn’t quit reading until he got the happiness he deserved. Once again, I was online looking for the next book and discovered, to my horror, that it didn’t even have a release date yet. *insert sobbing here* As most of you know, patience is not a virtue I posses so I did what any responsible reader would do. I stalked Deidre Knight’s website, her blog, followed her on Twitter, and anywhere else online where I might hear more info about this series. And there was much squeeing when June 1st was announced as the release date for Red Demon!

After assuming the power of life and death for the immortal Spartan brotherhood, Aristos Petrakos still hasn’t mastered his unpredictable, newfound abilities. And now a medium brings him a message from the other side—a romantic message Ari doesn’t want to hear…

A century ago, the love of Ari’s immortal life, Julianna Tiades, drowned herself in the Savannah River—after she learned about Ari’s shapeshifting abilities. Desperate to reveal the truth about her death, Julianna makes a bargain with a Djinn demon, who offers to give her physical form. But as Julianna and Ari are reunited in passion, the debt must be paid—in souls and spirits…

Due to deadlines, Ms. Knight is not able to join us for Myths and Legends Week but she has offered a fantastic prize for us to give away. One lucky commenter will get a signed copy of Red Demon! That’s right, one of you will be getting the book I’ve been wanting forever *insert more fan-girl sobbing*  😉

All you need to do to be entered for the giveaway is leave a comment and the winner will be drawn Sunday afternoon. Good luck!

Q&A with Mandy M. Roth

Hi Mandy! Thank you for joining us today.

Thanks for having me. I ‘m excited to be here.

Can you tell everyone a little bit about yourself?

Sure thing. I’m a multi-published, award winning (saying out loud always makes me giggle), bestselling (yeah, that one makes me snicker too) author of paranormal romance. I still, even after six years as a professional author, look behind me when someone mentions author. This still doesn’t feel like a job to me and I love every second of it.

What made you decide to do a book about Valkyries?

I’ve had a fascination with mythology from a very early age. Doesn’t matter what type of mythology, I enjoy it and love learning about it. The draw to Norse Mythology and Valkyries in particular came from all they’re rumored to be able to do. They hold men’s lives in their hands. That is awesome power—to pick and choose. And there is something about having it involve warriors that really speaks to me. They’re like angels of death in a sense. I cringe whenever I read about them serving Odin and mortal men like handmaidens so I did tweak anything to do with that portion of the later myths. I like my heroines to be kick ass and able to find love.

For me, the chance to explore Valhalla and the Valkyrie, through the eyes of a misfit one, was just too tempting to resist.

Do you plan to have more books involving Norse Mythology?

At this time, I don’t have anything on the burner aside from continuing the Valkyrie series. It’s a three-book arc and from there, several books following new heroines are already written. These continue my spin on the Valkyrie mythology.

Can you tell us about your latest release, Point of No Return?

This is a futuristic paranormal. I set up the world to be one where supernaturals are a known threat, though, Earth firmly believes it ended all risk to itself hundreds of years ago when it packed up several large spacecrafts will all the supernaturals and sent them to uninhabited planets. Problem is, only one shuttle stayed on course. The rest crashed on other planets. Fast forward hundreds of years. These planets where the shuttles crashed are living with the aftereffects and it’s not always a good thing. Then again, some of them are hiding secrets they wouldn’t want the Commission finding about either. I mean, doesn’t everyone have a few surprises in their blood lines?

This is book three in the Project Exorcism series and its Jordan and Nina’s story. They’re two hot-headed lead characters who have just as much of a chance of igniting their tempers as they do heating up the sheets.

If you could switch lives with one of your characters, who would it be & why?

Valerie, from The Valkyrie. She’s a modern day girl with the power to jump to any point in history. She can see everything as it’s unfolding. I would love to be like a fly on the wall and witness so many of history’s great moments.

If you could ask readers any question, what would it be?

To borrow from you, if you could switch lives with any one of my characters, who would it be and why?

Where can readers find you on the internet?
www.mandyroth.com
www.ravenhappyhour.com
@mandymroth (twitter)
Links to my facebooks and myspace pages can be found by accessing my website, as well as buy links to my publishers

Thanks for having me!

***Mandy will be giving away a PDF download of The Valkyrie to one lucky commenter. Good luck! 😀

Jessica Andersen and The Final Prohecy

Hi Jessica. Thank you for joining us today!

Hi Lillie, and thanks so much for having me!

Can you tell everyone a little bit about the Final Prophecy series?

Love to!  The Nightkeeper books are sexy paranormal thrillers about the magic-wielding men and women sworn to protect us from the 2012 doomsday predicted by the Mayan calendar.

As the end date approaches and the barrier between the earth and underworld thins, the Nightkeepers must unravel ancient legends, find lost artifacts, and win their destined mates in order to prevent terrible Mayan demons from coming to earth and enslaving mankind.

However, these magi are the last dozen survivors of their kind, and lots of their spells and prophecies have been lost over time. In addition, they were raised as humans like you and me, which means they’re struggling to update the ancient magic and figure out what comes next!

My latest release is the fourth book in the series (though they can be read by themselves). DEMONKEEPERS is my ‘nerds that roared’ book: It’s the story of Lucius, an Indiana Jones wannabe who never quite measures up until a twist of magic gives him powers beyond belief and reunites him with Jade, the one-night stand he never forgot.

What made you decide to write a series about Mayan legend?

Well, I guess my best answer is that I’m a huge fan of books and movies that have lots of action and romance in them, but are spiced up with interesting factoids that I didn’t already know (National Treasure, DaVinci Code, etc.).

So when I came across a reference to the end of the Mayan calendar in 2012, I immediately saw the potential for a high-action, high-intensity series based on a mythology that hasn’t been done to death in the paranormal romance and urban fantasy markets.

Part of my fascination comes from having spent time down in the Yucatan as a kid. My parents would pull me out of school for a few weeks every spring (much to my teachers’ relief, I suspect) and we would go investigate the ruins, which were in the process of being restored at the time.

They’re far more regulated and tourist-ified now, but back then, ruin ratting was a total Indiana Jones, creep-through-the-collapsing-tunnel experience. I try to bring that to the books.

Which is easier to do, writing a story-line based on a known legend or writing straight from the imagination, where the only rules you have to follow are your own?

I think it probably would have been easier in a sense to make up everything from scratch, because then you can let your imagination run wild. Personally, though, I love having the framework of an existing mythology to work with.

I think it gives the stories a real-world authenticity that they might lack otherwise. The Nightkeepers are real people living in the real world, but their reality has been shifted by the fact that they’re now being asked to believe in—and learn how to use—the magic of an ancient culture.

Will we be getting another Final Prophecy book this year?

Absolutely!  BLOOD SPELLS: A NIGHTKEEPER NOVEL will be released on November 2. Even better, it’ll be followed pretty quickly in Feb 2011 by the first Nightkeeper novella, CRYSTAL SKULL, which will be part of IN THE HUNT, an anthology with Gena Showalter, Shannon K. Butcher, and Deidre Knight.

If you could switch lives with one of your characters, who would it be & why?

Hmmmm… I really relate to Jade, the heroine of DEMONKEEPERS. She’s a bookworm who is working hard to break out of her current role as support staff, and become a warrior in her own right. I can relate to the feeling of wanting to be bigger, tougher and more capable than my fallback mode, and love it when she starts really growing into herself.

But at the same time, she and Lucius are racing to uncover the Nightkeepers’ ancient library, which contains many of the spells and prophecies they need. That totally appeals to my inner Lara Croft. And so does Lucius. 😀

If you could ask readers any question, what would it be?

Who do you prefer, the Bad Boy or the Good Guy? Why?

I ask because the heroes of DEMONKEEPERS and BLOOD SPELLS are both good guys at their core. Yeah, they’ve got issues, but they’re loyal, centered, honest and have huge hearts. The hero I’m writing now (for next June’s book), though, is a MAJOR bad boy. And I’m so digging him!

Which is making me wonder whether I’ve got a thing for the hardcore alpha, borderline butthead types, or if it’s the variety that’s turning me on. I’m not sure yet, but I’m sure having fun trying to figure it out!

Where can readers find you on the internet?

For more on the Nightkeepers, check out www.jessicaandersen.com. There, you can subscribe to my quarterly newsletter, email me, and find me on Facebook (via the Contacts page, or search for ‘Doc Jess’ or ‘Jessica Andersen’ on FB).

***To be entered in Jessica’s giveaway, just leave a comment answering her question. The winner will be drawn on Sunday afternoon. Good luck! 😀

Myths and Legends Week

Welcome to Myths and Legends week!

After doing Shifter Week here, I realized something. I like theme weeks. A lot! So when Greta and I started discussing more themes, myths and legends was the first thing that came to my mind. These are the stories where an author has taken a familiar myth or legend and put their own unique spin to it.

This week, we’ll be talking about the books involving Mayan legends, Norse and Celtic mythology, and a lot of stuff in between. And, of course, the romance. Because, for me, it’s all about the romance. We’ll have some fabulous guests joining us and be giving away some great prizes.

We will have new posts daily and all winners will be drawn on Sunday, May 30th. Please stop by and join the fun! 😀

Review: Sanctuary Unbound by Moira Rogers

Release date: June 1, 2010

From Samhain Publishing

I have to put a spoiler warning on this one. I did my very best to write it without including spoilers for the previous books but I just couldn’t do it. So much from the first 3 books play a huge part in Sanctuary Unbound that the only thing I can say in the review without including the spoilers is “Wee! Read the book!” So if you haven’t started this series yet, you might want to walk away now. 🙂

Sanctuary Unbound starts off with a scene that breaks my heart. Gavin,  the Alpha of Red Rock Pass, has had another heart attack and it has become obvious that this war is killing him. He is no longer a young man and it’s time for Keith (hero of Cry Sanctuary) to take over, whether Gavin and Keith are ready or not.

Keith’s greatest ally in this war is Adam Dubois, vampire lumberjack. Adam has the power to help Red Rock win but the last time he used that power, he lost everything. Now he’s being asked to risk it again. He’s also being asked to stay away from the pack’s sexy doctor, Cindy. Adam is more than willing to help Red Rock Pass but staying out of Cindy’s bed is asking too much. As Adam and Cindy realize that what they need is more than physical and their relationship starts to develop, the war brings itself to Red Rock Pass.

Now it’s up to Keith to ban together his rag-tag group of allies.  A reluctant leader, a novice witch, and a determined vampire are all that stands between evil and the freedom of all werewolves.

This book was it for me. That perfect squee-worthy book. As soon as Bree (half of the Moira Rogers duo) mentioned “lumberjack vampire” on Twitter, I wanted this book. And once I got the ARC, I had to read it immediately. Then I had to reread the entire series 😀  My expectations for Sanctuary Unbound were pretty high but the book actually exceeded those expectations. I expected adrenaline-pumping action and it delivered. I expected to fall in love with the hero and to be able to relate to the heroine.  Once again, I got it. What I didn’t expect was the nostalgia I felt when reading it. In the free short story Becoming, we meet Gavin and Samantha. Gavin is already Alpha and Samantha is so unsure about her place in this new world. Now they are older,  time has taken it’s toll, and it’s time for the next generation to take up the fight. Keith is no longer the too-wise-for-his-age child we meet in the same story. He has become the leader he was raised to be.

All in all, Sanctuary Unbound is not just a sqee-worthy book but a sigh-worthy one as well. Moira Rogers has created a world that I don’t want to see end anytime soon.

You can read more about Sanctuary Unbound and all the Red Rock Pass books (including free short stories) at the Moira Rogers website.

Winner: Tracy Cooper-Posey guest blog

The winner of  Dead Double by Tracy Cooper-Posey is:

Alicia L.

Please email me at lillie80 @ gmail.com (without the spaces) with  your  preferred format.