How Big is My RAK? (September/October Wishlist)

RAK (Random Acts of Kindness) is a really great program that Vanessa and Isalys of Book Soulmates have started. Basically, it gives bloggers, book lovers and readers the chance to brighten someone's day by sending them a book that they've put on their wishlist.

Sent:
To Danielle
The Iron Duke by Meljean Brook

To Mariya
Storm's Heart by Thea Harrison
Kindling the Moon by Jenn Bennett

To Amber
Dark Fever by Karen Marie Moning

To Michelle
The First Days by Rhiannon Frater
Dragon Bound by Thea Harrison
Viper Moon by Lee Roland

To Angela
Nightshade by Michelle Rowen
A Werewolf in Manhattan by Vicki Lewis Thompson
The Darkest Hour by Maya Banks

Received:
From Natasha at My Disorganized Ramblings:
Nightfall by Ellen Conner

From Amber at Awesome Sauce Book Club:
Spirit Storm by E.J. Stevens
Bookish Swag

From Michelle at Michelle's Ramblins:
Nightfall by Ellen Conner
Plain Fear: Forsaken by Leanna Ellis

Thank you so much to everyone who sent me something from my wishlist!


So, here's my wishlist for October. I'm happy to accept new or gently-read ARCs and finished copies of books. I also love e-books, but they have to be in epub or pdf format, thanks.

TOP FIVE:
1. Anna Dressed In Blood by Kendare Blake
2. Another Kind of Dead by Kelly Meding
3. The Renfield Syndrome by J.A. Saare
4. The Shattering by Karen Healey
5. Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins


YA
Sweet Venom by Tara Lynn Childs
Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon
Always a Witch by Carolyn MacCullough
Angel Fire by L.A. Weatherly
Flying Blind by Deborah Cooke
Everblue by Brenda Pandos
Crusade by Nancy Holder
Nevermore by Kelly Creagh
Entangled by Cat Clarke
This World We Live In by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Hourglass by Myra McEntire
Liar's Moon by Elizabeth C. Bunce
Luminous by Dawn Metcalf


Adult
Second Grave on the Left by Darynda Jones
Sexiest Vampire Alive by Kerrelyn Sparks
Black Night by Christina Henry
Holly's Inbox: Scandal in the City by Holly Denham
Stolen by Kelley Armstrong
The Greyfriar by Clay Griffith
Body of Sin by Eve Silver


Want to join the RAK-ers this month? Here's how you do it.

RULES RE-CAP:
*NEW INFO ADDED*
Sign up each month that you'd like to participate.

* Show off your participation by grabbing our RAK button :)

* Create a wish list (on Amazon, Goodreads, or your blog etc) and post it in the Google Doc located in each R.A.K post for the month.

* If you choose to do a R.A.K for someone, check out their wish list and contact that blogger for their address.

* *NEW* Please, once you receive a RAK, send us an our new email to [rakbybooksoulmates @ gmail . com] dedicated to RAK so that the Google Doc can be updated. IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU SEND EMAILS TO THIS ADDRESS.

* *NEW* E-book participation is limited to files being gifted directly to a person from the e-book store. Amazon's Kindle Store is set up to allow this, as well as the Kobo store and we believe Barnes & Noble as well.

* At the end of the month, SHOW US YOUR R.A.K! Make a post saying 'Thank You' to whoever granted one of your wishes and share it with us :)


OPEN TO EVERYONE!
Let's keep our International bloggers in mind and in our hearts.
Remember, there's always the Book Depository and they offer FREE shipping!

Easy peezy!!

Unruly Magic E-Book Winner!

Prize: One E-book copy of Unruly Magic by Camilla Chafer

Winner: Scroll down Rafflecopter to see!







Congrats Julie! I will be passing along your information to the book blitz organizer, so that she can arrange for your prize.

If you didn't win, I hope you'll come back to Read My Mind for more review, author interview, guest post and book content, as well as giveaways and contests.

Review Duo: Jennifer Estep's Spider's Revenge and Touch of Frost

Book: SPIDER'S REVENGE
Author: JENNIFER ESTEP
Genre: URBAN FANTASY
Published: September 2011, POCKET (SIMON AND SCHUSTER)

Series: Elemental Assassin #5
Spider's Bite (Elemental Assassin #1
Web of Lies (Elemental Assassin #2
Venom (Elemental Assassin #3
Tangled Threads (Elemental Assassin #4
Source: Publisher via Authors After Dark Conference, no other compensation given for an honest review

From Good Reads:
...Killing used to be my reg­u­lar gig, after all. Gin Blanco, aka the Spi­der, assassin-for-hire. And I was very good at it. Now, I’m ready to make the one hit that truly mat­ters: Mab Mon­roe, the dan­ger­ous Fire ele­men­tal who mur­dered my fam­ily when I was thir­teen.

Oh, I don’t think the mis­sion will be easy, but turns out it’s a bit more prob­lem­atic than expected. The bitch knows I’m com­ing for her. So now I’m up against the army of lethal bounty hunters she hired to track me down. She also put a price on my baby sister’s head. Keep­ing Bria safe is my first pri­or­ity. Tak­ing Mab out is a close sec­ond.

Good thing I’ve got my pow­er­ful Stone and Ice magic — and my irre­sistible lover Owen Grayson — to watch my back. This bat­tle has been years in the mak­ing, and there’s a chance I won’t sur­vive...

My Review:
Every time I read a book that is 4 or later in a series without having read the previous books, I feel the need to state this right off in my review. I also feel the need to state that I read books out of order all the time, and the mark of a really great writer is being able to capture my attention without an info dump of the previous plotlines and characters. But at the same time, I don't want to feel like I have missed something. Jennifer Estep did not fail in any way on either of these points.

SPIDER'S REVENGE dropped me right into the action from the very beginning. The opening page, the opening chapter made it clear that here was a long-term rivalry that was going to come to a head before the end of the book. With other books, I'll admit to reading through the “other stuff” to get to the inevitable confrontation of two characters, but not here. Gin is a fascinating character, not just because she isn't the “good girl triumphant over bad”, but because her love and fear for the safety of those in her family (not just blood relative) directly motivate her actions. She's an assassin, but she's not an emotionless machine.

Estep makes the pages come alive with her writing in SPIDER'S REVENGE. There is constant danger, there are awesome fight scenes, and there are even some emotional scenes. But, one of the best things about this book, in my eyes, is the fact that there is a humming intensity underlying everything. Even when Gin is just doing a shift at her restaurant, there is nothing boring here. Every page exposes more of Gin, Bria, and their group of friends cum protectors. Every page drives the plot and brings the reader closer to the face-off of Mab and Spider.

Absent the expectations of what the other books in this series might have given me, I really enjoyed reading SPIDER'S REVENGE. And, I'm not even sure that if I had been expecting anything that my hopes would have been let down. I honestly think that any urban fantasy lover would have to read not just this book, but the whole series to date or be missing something good.

4.5/5 for plot
5/5 for characters
4.5/5 for language

My Rating: 14/15 (5 stars) Must Read


Purchase book at:
Barnes and Noble | Amazon

Available formats: Nookbook, Paperback (mass market), Kindle

Challenge Participation:



Find the author at:
Website | Blog | Twitter | GoodReads


Book: TOUCH OF FROST
Author: JENNIFER ESTEP
Genre: PARANORMAL YA
Published: July 2011, KENSINGTON TEEN

Series: Mythos Academy #1
First Frost (Mythos Academy #.5)
Halloween Frost (Mythos Academy #1.5)
Kiss of Frost (Mythos Academy #2)
Source: Publisher via Authors After Dark Conference, no other compensation given for an honest review

From Good Reads:
My name is Gwen Frost, and I go to Mythos Academy — a school of myths, magic and warrior whiz kids, where even the lowliest geek knows how to chop off somebody's head with a sword and Logan Quinn, the hottest Spartan guy in school, also happens to be the deadliest.

But lately, things have been weird, even for Mythos. First, mean girl Jasmine Ashton was murdered in the Library of Antiquities. Then, someone stole the Bowl of Tears, a magical artifact that can be used to bring about the second Chaos War. You know, death, destruction and lots of other bad, bad things. Freaky stuff like this goes on all the time at Mythos, but I'm determined to find out who killed Jasmine and why—especially since I should have been the one who died. . .

My Review:
Having received (and gotten signed!) both of these books from Estep at Authors After Dark 2011, I chose to read SPIDER'S REVENGE first. I am an avid urban fantasy reader, and lately I had been finding paranormal YA lackluster and derivative. While TOUCH OF FROST certainly has elements that have been seen before in YA, I enjoyed reading it.

As an adult reader of YA, I always weigh my feeling on the technical structure and language of the book against the fact that I am not, nor should be the target audience of the particular book. That said, I would recommend TOUCH OF FROST to readers of the full spectrum of YA, in terms of the language. Estep includes elements in the story that keep the pace up, but don't make it feel rushed. At the same time, I was very aware that this was the first book in a series, because I could see that an overall plot arc had been created. I could also see that the student body, teachers, and even Gwen herself, would have many characteristics and abilities come to light that were not just going to fit into one book (even if it hadn't been called Mythos Academy #1).

No, the writing was not as complex as the writing in SPIDER'S REVENGE, but it was good. In fact, there are many times when I can tell that a writer previously wrote adult books, by the inconsistency in teenage language, thought processes and habits. Estep managed to avoid this pitfall, and I finished TOUCH OF FROST wanting to read the next MYTHOS ACADEMY book.

4/5 for plot
4.5/5 for characters
4/5 for language

My Rating: 12.5/15 (3.5 stars) Highly Recommend

Purchase book at:
Barnes and Noble | Amazon

Available formats: NookBook, Paperback (trade), Kindle

Challenge Participation:

Book Review: Dark Souls by Paula Morris

Book: DARK SOULS
Author: PAULA MORRIS
Genre: PARANORMAL YA
Published: August 2011, SCHOLASTIC

Series: none
Source: Around the World Tours, no other compensation given for an honest review.

From Good Reads:
...Miranda Tennant arrives in York with a terrible, tragic secret. She is eager to lose herself amid the quaint cobblestones, hoping she won't run into the countless ghosts who supposedly roam the city. . . .

Then she meets Nick, an intense, dark-eyed boy who knows all of York's hidden places and histories. Miranda wonders if Nick is falling for her, but she is distracted by another boy -- one even more handsome and mysterious than Nick. He lives in the house across from Miranda and seems desperate to send her some sort of message. Could this boy be one of York's haunted souls?

Soon, Miranda realizes that something dangerous -- and deadly -- is being planned. And she may have to face the darkest part of herself in order to unravel the mystery -- and find redemption.

My Review:
DARK SOULS is a very atmospheric book that incorporates much of the history of York between its pages. Not your typical ghost story, it drew me into the life of Miranda Tennant and her family. While DARK SOULS is in a contemporary setting, it has a bit of a historical feel. Perhaps because the basis of the plot deals with Miranda, a person who can see ghosts, now living in what's reputed to be one of most haunted cities in the world. Perhaps because ghost stories necessarily have to harken back to the past. Either way, the plot was entrancing. As a self-professed anglophile, it was also in a setting that piqued my interest.

However, I found that several things drew me out of the story and had me shaking my head in exasperation. Without giving spoilers, it's hard to adequately express why I felt this way, but there was one occasion when Miranda's ability was clearly at play, and she herself knowing that she had this ability, reacted in a ridiculous way around her family.

There was also some dialog where Miranda was either exaggerating for effect or humor, or the author hadn't done research that would have shown up in 2 minutes on Google. Because I couldn't figure out which it was, and because I had to even make the consideration, I was utterly pulled out of the book.

Ultimately the plot, the reactions of most of the characters, and their motivations were fairly predictable for me. While this won't always make me dislike a book (I have a knack of predictions that most people wouldn't see or seem too outlandish to occur), there needs to be something there to keep me reading the book. With DARK SOULS, it was the descriptions of present York, the history described, and the over all idea of a “ghost-whisperer” being amongst so many ghosts.

I'll be honest, I wasn't bowled over by this book, but I would recommend it to anyone who likes a ghost story, mixed with history and mystery.

3.5/5 for plot
3/5 for characters
3/5 for language

My Rating: 9.5/15 (2.5 stars)

Worth Trying, if you liked:
The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff
Shadow Hills by Anastasia Hopcus

Find the author at:
Website | Blog | GoodReads

Purchase book at:
Barnes and Noble | Amazon

Available formats: NookBook, Paperback (trade), Kindle

Challenge Participation:



Tour Participation:

COVER REVEAL! Touch by Jus Accardo

I'm honored to be among the group of bloggers selected to take part in Jus Accardo's cover reveal of her upcoming YA paranormal, TOUCH.


Find Jus Accardo at: Website | Blog | Twitter | GoodReads | Facebook

Official Blurb:

When a strange boy tumbles down a river embankment and lands at her feet, seventeen-year-old adrenaline junkie Deznee Cross snatches the opportunity to piss off her father by bringing the mysterious hottie with ice blue eyes home.

Except there’s something off with Kale. He wears her shoes in the shower, is overly fascinated with things like DVDs and vases, and acts like she’ll turn to dust if he touches her. It’s not until Dez’s father shows up, wielding a gun and knowing more about Kale than he should, that Dez realizes there’s more to this boy—and her father’s “law firm”—than she realized.

Kale has been a prisoner of Denazen Corporation—an organization devoted to collecting “special” kids known as Sixes and using them as weapons—his entire life. And, oh yeah, his touch? It kills. The two team up with a group of rogue Sixes hellbent on taking down Denazen before they’re caught and her father discovers the biggest secret of all. A secret Dez has spent her life keeping safe.

A secret Kale will kill to protect.

--Coming November 2011, ENTANGLED PUBLISHING

What do you think? I know I can't wait to read more!

Press Release: Unruly Magic by Camilla Chafer

It's a book release and book blitz at Read My Mind today! Welcome to Camilla Chafer and her new book, UNRULY MAGIC, which is book two in the STELLA MAYWEATHER series. Check out this blurb:

A witch on the run.
A quiet little town where everything is far from normal.
A fractured witch council threatening to tear the supernatural world apart.

Life hasn't been easy for novice witch Stella but small town life seems to be agreeing with her. When a frightened young woman appears in Stella's house and begs for her protection, Stella is pulled into a dangerous game where she'll need both her magic and her wits to unravel the secrets that surround her.

Just what is her new home town's big mystery? Is Stella's new charge really on the run from the Council or is she a dangerous murderer ready to manipulate her way to freedom? And with old friends and new seemingly ready to help, who can Stella trust when she's not even all that sure that they don't have their own agenda.

With bewitching friends and two super-sexy mysterious men by her side, Stella must uncover dangerous truths, fast, before she ends up paying the ultimate price.

Author Bio:

Hi, I'm Camilla and I'm the author of Illicit Magic and Unruly Magic, the first two books in the Stella Mayweather Paranormal Series. The series starts with a lonely young English woman, Stella, who has been caught up in a terrifying witch hunt and is whisked thousands of miles away to what she thinks is safety to learn her craft. The series is a blend of magic and mystery with a splash of romance and a dash of humour - and while the girls really do go all out to save themselves, there's always a hunky guy or two on hand to help them out.

I live in London, UK but I try to travel as often as I can - lately I've been to Paris, all over Denmark, Luxembourg, and several US states. In my day job I'm a journalist and editor so I write for magazines, newspapers and websites throughout the world (my favourite assignment was spending a week riding rollercoasters - if you listen carefully you can probably still hear me screaming).

Author Links: Website | Blog | Twitter | GoodReads | Facebook

Book Links: Barnes and Noble | Smashwords | Amazon | Amazon UK


Wanna hear the great news? Camilla Chafer is kindly offering an e-book giveaway of UNRULY MAGIC! This is a short giveaway, ending on Tuesday, September 27 at 11:59pm. So get your entries in!

Read Your Own Book A-Thon Finish Line

Sunday
Hours Read: 7/18.5
Pages Read: 454


Sunday 10am - 1pm

Total Hours Actually Spent Reading: 2.5
Total Pages Read: 156
I finished EXCLUSIVELY YOURS. Somehow, I had hoped that it wouldn't take quite as long, so I had postponed lunch until I finished, and was famished by the end. Therefore, I took an afternoon break, instead of starting my next book while I ate.


Sunday 2pm - 5pm

Total Hours Actually Spent Reading: 3
Total Pages Read: 213
I jumped right into the next book in the Kowalski series, UNDENIABLY YOURS by Shannon Stacey; started and finished this in a much more timely manner than I read the first one.


Sunday 7:30pm - 9pm

Total Hours Actually Spent Reading: 1.5
Total Pages Read: 85
I know that it was down to the end, and I really did manage to accomplish much reading, but I figured that I would start on the next book that I really wanted to read for pleasure, HOW TO SEDUCE A DUKE by Kathryn Caskie. I was able to get 85 pages read before the end of the read-a-thon.


Final Read-A-Thon Stats:

Hours Read: 24.5/72
Pages Read: 1991
Books Read: 7.25

Tempest by Julie Cross
Forbidden: The Ascension by Samantha Sommersby
After Dark With A Scoundrel by Alexandra Hawkins
Seven Years To Sin by Sylvia Day
Love Story by Jennifer Echols
Exclusively Yours by Shannon Stacey
Undeniably Yours by Shannon Stacey
How To Seduce A Duke by Kathryn Caskie (1/4)

Overall, I am really happy with the dent that I made in my personal TBR. Though I started off the read-a-thon slowly, I accomplished my goal of prioritizing books that had languished too long on my bookshelf. I think I also might be more motivated to pick up the other books that were originally on my read-a-thon to-read list that I didn't have a chance to fit in.

Check out the other two posts that I made during the read-a-thon to see my original list of books, and my progress.

Starting Post
Read-A-Thon Update


Did you take the challenge? How did you do?

Read Your Own Books-A-Thon Update

Thursday
Hours Read: 0/3
Pages Read: 0


Thursday 9pm (start) - 12am
Unfortunately, Thursday was a really harrowing day personally, so I got no reading done for the beginning of the read-a-thon.


Friday
Hours Read: 9/19.5
Pages Read: 892

Friday 12:30am - 3am

Total Hours Actually Spent Reading: 2.5
Total Pages Read: 352
Started and finished TEMPEST by Julie Cross. Great book to start out the read-a-thon with because it was very engaging, and I had no problem reading through it quickly. I took a break at 3am because I did have to get up for work, and I didn't want to be too exhausted.


Friday 11am - 3pm

Total Hours Actually Spent Reading: 4
Total Pages Read: 248
Started and finished FORBIDDEN: THE ASCENSION by Samantha Sommersby. Again, a great book for this event. One, because it really caught my attention. Two, the page count wasn't overwhelming, so I figured that I could finish it quickly.


Friday 3:45pm - 5:15pm, 6pm -7:30 pm

Total Hours Actually Spent Reading: 2.5
Total Pages Read: 292
Started and finished AFTER DARK WITH A SCOUNDREL by Alexandra Hawkins. Work interrupted my reading a couple of times, but I was able to squeeze in some quality reading time. One of the reasons that I have been devouring so many historical romances of late, is because I can read an enjoyable one in just a few hours, and I had really been anxious to check this one out, after seeing it in the library.


Saturday
Hours Read: 8.5/31
Pages Read: 645

Saturday 9:30am - 4:30pm

Total Hours Actually Spent Reading: 6
Total Pages Read: 452
Started and finished SEVEN YEARS TO SIN by Sylvia Day. Another historical romance that I greatly enjoyed. At this point, I knew that it was better to aim for starting and finishing a book in one sitting, and then taking a large break after, rather than taking little breaks in between. I really felt that I would be able to devote larger chunks of time to the read-a-thon, but my weekend was turning out to be pretty full in the evenings, so I had to make the most of my morning /afternoon time. Also started LOVE STORY by Jennifer Echols, once I finished SEVEN YEARS TO SIN.


Saturday 11:00pm - 2:30am

Total Hours Actually Spent Reading: 2.5
Total Pages Read: 193
Finished LOVE STORY by Jennifer Echols and started EXCLUSIVELY YOURS by Shannon Stacey. Will resume later in the morning and finish EXCLUSIVELY YOURS. Maybe one or two more books in addition, before the 9pm end date.

A Flash Of Fiction 3 (September) Tangled Past by Leah Braemel

Book: TANGLED PAST
Author: LEAH BRAEMEL
Genre: HISTORICAL ROMANCE/EROTIC ROMANCE
Published: June 2011, CARINA PRESS

Series: Tangled #2
Texas Tangle (Tangled #1)
Source: Publisher via NetGalley, no other compensation given for an honest review

From Good Reads:
Forced to marry a man she just met, Sarah McLeod clings to the hope that she’ll finally find the love and acceptance she’ s always craved. Her tenuous dreams of a happy life on the frontier are in danger of being dashed by the one thing she can’ t change—her husband’ s love for another man.

Jackson Kellar’s determined to do right by his bride, yet he’s torn between his newfound love for Sarah and his still-burning desire for Nate.

Ranch owner Nate Campbell loves them both. He hates to see Jackson’ s loyalties so divided, and doesn’t want Sarah hurt either. How can they fix the tangled mess they find themselves in? Nate suggests a possible solution—a permanent threesome...

I Liked -- Plot: As with Leah Braemel's other book in this series, TEXAS TANGLE, I liked the different approach to a threesome that is presented. There is more of an element of M/M/F (as opposed to M/F/M), which I quite enjoyed. I will admit up front that pretty much all of my historical reading focuses on the European Regency and Victorian time setting, so I am not as familiar with the American west landscape. However, it almost seemed like TANGLED PAST didn't really need to be in a historical setting. In fact, I liked the story as much as I liked TEXAS TANGLE, but the first being in a contemporary western setting has given it a half-star edge over this one.

I Liked -- Character: Jackson Kellar was an interesting character. On the one hand, I didn't like him as much as I liked either Sarah or Nate. Jackson has unmistakeable feelings for another man, but gets swept up in marrying Sarah. Because he more or less is the cause of unhappiness in Sarah, as I read, I tended to appreciate Nate more. Regardless, Braemel did a good job of exploring the feelings of all three characters so that the reader could dig a little deeper into all three characters' motivations throught the novel.

My Rating: 12.5/15 (3.5 stars) Highly Recommend

Find the author at:
Website | Blog | Twitter | GoodReads | Facebook

Purchase book at:
Barnes and Noble | Carina Press | All Romance E-Books | Amazon

Available formats: Epub, NookBook, Kindle, Pdf,

Challenge Participation:

A Flash Of Fiction 2 (September) Goddess With A Blade by Lauren Dane

Book: GODDESS WITH A BLADE
Author: LAUREN DANE
Genre: URBAN FANTASY
Published: June 2011, CARINA PRESS

Series: none
Source: Publisher via NetGalley, no other compensation given for honest review

From Good Reads:
Rowan Summerwaite is no ordinary woman. Physical vessel to the Celtic Goddess Brigid and raised by the leader of the Vampire Nation, she's a supercharged hunter with the power to slay any vampire who violates the age-old treaty.

A recent string of murders has her at odds with Las Vegas's new Scion, the arrogant and powerful Clive Stewart. The killings have the mark of Vampire all over them, and Rowan warns Clive to keep his people in line—or she'll mete out her own brand of justice.

I Liked -- Plot: I have never hidden how much I like Lauren Dane's novels. Her writing pretty much hits the trifecta of a good romance for me: great writing, awesome characters, and insightful plot development. GODDESS WITH A BLADE is really no exception to me. Though the urban fantasy aspect is something that I haven't read from Dane before, there was really nothing that I didn't enjoy.

I Liked -- Character: Rowan Summerwaite; what can I say about this character? She was an awesome force of nature, not just because she hosts a goddess, but because she has this absolute sense of who she is, and what she is meant to do. Even better, Rowan doesn't deny her attraction to the man that is her adversary. Having females that own themselves and their actions and their feelings is one of Dane's specialties, and I think that she pulls it off well in GODDESS WITH A BLADE.

My Rating: 13.5/15 (4 stars) Must Read

Find the author at:
Website | Blog | Twitter | GoodReads | Facebook

Purchase book at:
Barnes and Noble | Carina Press | All Romance E-bookB | Amazon | Audible

Available formats: NookBook, Epub, Pdf, Kindle, Audiobook

Challenge Participation:

Read Your Own Books-A-Thon (September 15-18)

I participated in this read-a-thon last year, hosted by Monica from The Bibliophilic Book Blog. This year she's in Korea, but still hosting, and since I had such fun previously, as well as clearing a good amount of books from my personal TBR, I wanted to take part again.

Want to join me?

Here's all the details:

- Read Your OWN books
- Runs from 9pm on Thursday the 15th (EST)...some of my posts might be a bit off since I am 11 hours ahead of EST in KST. Sorry for that...anyway it will run until Sunday the 18th at 9pm (EST). This should give everyone some time to participate.
- GIVEAWAYS (DUH!?!) I personally am giving away a Nook original in a cover. I am also giving away multiple audiobooks and whatever else strikes my fancy. In order to enter the giveaway for the Nook you must participate....it will be finished when the read-a-thon is over. So...start planning. (International Welcome)

*in order to be entered for the giveaway you must sign in and out on the read-a-thon start and close pages when they are posted*

September has also been designated Read Your Own Books Months by a group of bloggers/readers, so be sure to check out #SIRYOBM on Twitter.

I'll be coming back to this page to list the books I wish to complete during the read-a-thon. Right now, I'm thinking of going for at least 7-10 books (whether I can actually read that many is up in the air!) to really give myself a run for my money.

Are you up for the challenge?


1. Tempest by Julie Cross (this is technically a review request for a blog tour, but I was so excited to read it regardless, that I wanted to include it in my list of books!) Finished
2. Forbidden: The Ascension by Samantha Sommersby Finished
3. After Dark With a Scoundrel by Alexandra Hawkins Finished
4. Seven Years to Sin by Sylvia Day Finished
5. Plain Fear: Forsaken by Leanna Ellis
6. Nightfall by Ellen Connor
7. Love Story by Jennifer Echols Finished
8. Never a Gentleman by Eileen Dreyer
9. Exclusively Yours by Shannon Stacey (e-book)
10. Undeniably Yours by Shannon Stacey (e-book)

Ruling Passions by Alyxandra Harvey

Exciting News for The Drake Chronicles book lovers or those new to the series!

A one-book bind-up on sale September 27th, will be available from Bloombury, which will include (links to GoodReads page):

Hearts At Stake
Blood Feud
Out For Blood


You can also check out excerpts from each book at the following links:

Hearts at Stake
Blood Feud
Out for Blood


If you haven't had a chance to read The Drake Chronicle books yet, here is a great opportunity to pick up all three for virtually the same price as one would cost on its own. And, if you're like me and think it's a pretty awesome series, here's a chance to have them all in one anthology. Go forth. Buy! Read! Love!

A Flash Of Fiction 1 (September) Steam and Sorcery by Cindy Spencer Pape

Book: STEAM AND SORCERY (GASLIGHT CHRONICLES)
Author: CINDY SPENCER PAPE
Genre: FANTASY/STEAMPUNK
Published: March 2011, CARINA PRESS

Series: GASLIGHT CHRONICLES #1
Photographs and Phantoms (Gaslight Chronicles #1.5)
Source: Publisher via NetGalley, no other compensation given for an honest review

From Good Reads:
Sir Merrick Hadrian hunts monsters, both human and supernatural. A Knight of the Order of the Round Table, his use of magick and the technologies of steam power have made him both respected and feared. But his considerable skills are useless in the face of his greatest challenge, guardianship of five unusual children. At a loss, Merrick enlists the aid of a governess.

Miss Caroline Bristol is reluctant to work for a bachelor but she needs a position, and these former street children touch her heart. While she tends to break any mechanical device she touches, it never occurs to her that she might be something more than human...

I Liked -- Plot: Steampunk is growing into a popular sub-genre, and I have wholeheartedly embraced it. While I like the machinery and the airships and the danger that can go along with steampunk stories, Pape's novel had more of the historical aspect included in the plot, and I always enjoy reading about Regency/Victorian England, so it was just the right thing to capture my attention. There was a great balance between the heat between the hero and heroine and the steampunk element. As an equal opportunity science-fiction, fantasy and romance lover, all of the right spots for me, were hit with STEAM AND SORCERY.

I Liked -- Character: There wasn't any one character that I liked more than the rest. Pape truly rounded out both the male and female main characters, so that neither one seemed flat or superfluous or even only there to spotlight the other. What I really liked though, was the fact that the children that Caroline Bristol was supposed to be in charge of, did not fade into the background. In other words, they were characters and important to the story other than putting her in the sphere of Hadrian in order to create a romance between the two.

My Rating: 14/15 (4.5 stars) Must Read

Find the author at:
Website | Blog | Twitter | GoodReads | Facebook

Purchase book at:
Barnes and Noble | Carina Press | Audible | Amazon

Available formats: NookBook, Epub, Kindle, Audiobook

Challenge Participation:

Fall ARC Fest Giveaway Winners!

Graphic by Casey of Dark Readers

Well, the ARC Fest Giveaway is over, and I am so excited over how many entries were done! Thank you to all who entered, but unfortunately there can only be three winners. They have already been contacted, but if you are curious to who won, scroll down to the bottom of the rafflecopter.

Rafflecopter did all the work collating the entries, and choosing the winners, so it was completely random. Congrats to the winners! If you didn't win this time around, don't worry I'll have plenty more giveaways. I hope that all of my new followers keep coming back and enjoy the content that I have here at Read My Mind.

I'm in the process of updating my template to make the site easier to navigate and a joy to read by everyone. Thank you once again to all of my old followers, and welcome to all the new!

Book Review: Turn It Up by Inez Kelley

Book: TURN IT UP
Author: INEZ KELLEY
Genre: CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE
Published: August 2011, CARINA PRESS

Series: None
Source: Author, no other compensation given for an honest review

From Good Reads:
Dr. Bastian Talbot and self-proclaimed sex goddess Charlie Pierce heat up the air waves with their flirty banter as radio hosts Dr. Hot and the Honeypot. Off the air, they're best friends…but Bastian wants to be so much more. He wants Charlie—in bed, and forever.

Problem is, Charlie doesn't do commitment. Sure, she's had X-rated fantasies of Bastian, but he was always just a friend—until he impulsively proposes and unleashes the lust they've been denying for years. Charlie's willing to explore where their wild chemistry leads, but she won't marry him. And he won't have sex with her until she accepts his proposal, despite her seductive schemes.

What are Dr. Hot and the Honeypot to do? Ask their listeners for advice on how to tame a sex kitten and turn a perfect gentleman into a shameless lover. The Race to Wed or Bed is on…who will turn up on top?

My Review:
What I really liked about TURN IT UP was the banter between "Dr. Hot" and the "Honeypot". On air the two had a great chemistry, and they bounced off of each other really well. Not only did this serve to make their outside relationship believable (in the context of how close they were, as radio co-hosts as well as real-life friends), but the dialog had the dual purpose of advancing the plot AND establishing the construct of the relationship of Kelley's two key characters.

I've read several of Kelley's novellas that definitely turned up the heat between a male and female, to the point that they set the sheets on fire. Her stories usually establish that the two characters have had a previous relationship, which works well for getting them in bed together quickly. However, TURN IT UP had a different feel to me. I really liked the previous novellas that I read, but this time I felt like I could relax into the story. It did seem to move at a different pace, and not just because of the longer word count. I liked the idea of the wager, and I enjoyed the ride while Bastian and Charlie tried to best one another.

The bottom line, I've never read an Inez Kelley book that I didn't like, but with TURN IT UP, I think I have a new favorite.

4/5 for plot
4.5/5 for characters
4.5/5 for language

My Rating: 13/15 (4 stars)

Highly Recommended, if you liked:
Fast Track (series) by Erin McCarthy
Coin Operated by Ginny Glass
Brown Siblings (series) by Lauren Dane

Find the author at:
Website | Twitter | GoodReads | Facebook

Purchase book at:
Barnes and Noble | Carina Press | Amazon

Available formats: Epub, NookBook, Kindle

Challenge Participation:

Welcoming the Fall Giveaway ARC Fest

Graphic by Casey of Dark Readers

It's September 1st, which means that fall is just around the corner. I know that I haven't been posting on the blog as faithfully as I would like to, but that's because I have been making some behind the scenes improvements. One of those is creating a Facebook page for Read My Mind. And, the page is going to get its debut with this AWESOME ARC fest that I am a part of. 5 other bloggers and I got together to offer a bunch of really great ARCs for our readers to win. And yes, I said our readers, so following the 6 blogs is required to enter. But, really we want you to enjoy the content that we all have to offer. Not to sound immodest, but this group of bloggers are just as awesome as the books we are giving away!

I'm using rafflecopter (for the first time, so please excuse me if there are kinks) for everyone to enter, and I think it is pretty self-explanatory, and user-friendly. So without further ado, here are the books that 3 winners will be able to choose from:


The MG Collection
Wildwood by Colin Meloy
The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann

The YA Collection
WinterTown by Stephen Emond
Cold Kiss by Amy Garvey

The Bloomsbury Collection
Shifting by Bethany Wiggins
After Obsession by Carrie Jones and Steven E. Wedel

I will choose 3 winners. The first gets to choose their prize pack, then the second, and the third gets the remaining prize pack.


ARC Fest Bloggers:
An Avid Reader's Musings
Books With Bite
Dark Readers
Good Choice Reading
Once Upon A Twilight

Make sure you follow all of their blogs, and check out the books they have up for grabs, and good luck to all!

RAK: August Update/September Wishlist

RAK (Random Acts of Kindness) is a really great program that Vanessa and Isalys of Book Soulmates have started. Basically, it gives bloggers, book lovers and readers the chance to brighten someone's day by sending them a book that they've put on their wishlist.

Sent:
Deceived by the Others by Jess Haines to Natasha

This was a bit of a screw-up by the post office. For July, I tried to send the book to Natasha, but I guess someone in U.S. or Canadian customs was interested in the book also! So, for August I tried again, with a copy that I managed to get signed and a t-shirt from the author.

Received:
Nothing for August


So, here's my wishlist for September, as I love signing up for this program. I'm happy to accept new or gently-read ARCs and finished copies of books. I also love e-books, but they have to be in epub or pdf format, thanks.


YA

Always a Witch by Carolyn MacCullough
Possess by Gretchen McNeil
Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake
Flying Blind by Deborah Cooke
Vixen by Jillian Larkin
Everblue by Brenda Pandos
Crusade by Nancy Holder
Nevermore by Kelly Creagh
Spirit Storm by E.J. Stevens
Entangled by Cat Clarke
This World We Live In by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Hourglass by Myra McEntire
Liar's Moon by Elizabeth C. Bunce
The Liar Society by Lisa and Laura Roecker
Luminous by Dawn Metcalf


Adult

Another Kind of Dead by Kelly Meding
Second Grave on the Left by Darynda Jones
Black Night by Christina Henry
Nightfall by Ellen Conner
The Renfield Syndrome by J.A. Saare
Holly's Inbox: Scandal in the City by Holly Denham
Stolen by Kelley Armstrong
The Greyfriar by Clay Griffith
Body of Sin by Eve Silver
Plain Fear: Forsaken by Leanna Ellis



Want to join the RAK-ers this month? Here's how you do it.

RULES RE-CAP:
*NEW INFO ADDED*
Sign up each month that you'd like to participate.

* Show off your participation by grabbing our RAK button :)

* Create a wish list (on Amazon, Goodreads, or your blog etc) and post it in the Google Doc located in each R.A.K post for the month.

* If you choose to do a R.A.K for someone, check out their wish list and contact that blogger for their address.

* *NEW* Please, once you receive a RAK, send us an our new email to [rakbybooksoulmates @ gmail . com] dedicated to RAK so that the Google Doc can be updated. IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU SEND EMAILS TO THIS ADDRESS.

* *NEW* E-book participation is limited to files being gifted directly to a person from the e-book store. Amazon's Kindle Store is set up to allow this, as well as the Kobo store and we believe Barnes & Noble as well.

* At the end of the month, SHOW US YOUR R.A.K! Make a post saying 'Thank You' to whoever granted one of your wishes and share it with us :)


OPEN TO EVERYONE!
Let's keep our International bloggers in mind and in our hearts.
Remember, there's always the Book Depository and they offer FREE shipping!

Easy peezy!!