The Silver Dagger by Alistair Cross (The Vampires of Crimson Cove #2)

Synopsis:

Brother against Brother

Life in Crimson Cove has been good to the Colter Brothers since Gretchen VanTreese was staked and her horde of vampires scattered. Brooks is once again human, and Cade, the rare Sire Gretchen had determined to take as her mate, is in love. Then the unthinkable happens: Gretchen rises from the grave, and the brothers are torn apart, their lives - and the peace between them - shattered.

A Trail of Blood

When Cade comes into possession of an ancient ceremonial dagger he awakens a power so deadly it defies comprehension. Meanwhile, a serial killer is stalking the little mountain town, leaving a trail of blood that leads to a truth Sheriff Ethan Hunter doesn't want to face. And unknown to either of them, Gretchen is preparing to reopen her notorious nightclub, The Crimson Corset - and building an army to destroy her enemies and reclaim Cade Colter as her own.

A New Breed of Evil

The streets are no longer safe, nor are the forested paths, for a new and unknowable evil has come to Crimson Cove and everyone - vampire and human alike - must come together in order to survive.

My review:

Oh what a perfect series, but I wan book three now! Please don’t leave me hanging and thirsty (pun intended) for more…I am hooked and and now my teeth are well and truly sank into this series I can’t stop thinking about what is to come next. But enough silly puns, here’s my views.

First book left me nice and warm inside, feeling as accomplished as Brooks, Cade and Ethan were feeling. We were all happy and living in a land of friendly vamps only and nothing could spoil the happy picture. We unless you are still a vampire in retrograde i.e. Brooks, and you maker gets a wake-up call. So yes, happiness over, please welcome feelings of fear, anger and misery all round.

Book two is so different. The author deals with a deep an dark depression of the main character Cade following just one tragic death too many and gosh does he deal with it. Anyone that has ever experienced depression either from themselves or from a loved one, will be familiar with everything Cade is going through.

And then we have the vampires. The goods ones (but are they) and the bad ones, that we were all hoping were asleep forever. Ethan is awesome by the way, he has a lot on his shoulders and tries to do right by all and it only gets him into more trouble. Brooks is dealing with his own guilt and transformation and suddenly I really like him – he has grown into a brilliant character that you just want to read about.

This book has it all: blood, death, tragedy, love, ex-wives, fiancés, hunger, revenge, depression, hope…the list could go on. It’s edge of the seat book and I really cannot wait for the next book brings. Please hurry!

Massive thanks to Alistair Cross for writing such a perfect series and his publicist for introducing me the books.

My rating: 5/5

Available to purchase from:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

The Crimson Corset by Alistair Cross (The Vampires of Crimson Cove #1)

Synopsis:

Welcome to Crimson Cove

Sheltered by ancient redwoods overlooking the California coast, the cozy village of Crimson Cove has it all: sophisticated retreats, fine dining, and a notorious nightclub, The Crimson Corset. It seems like a perfect place to relax and get close to nature. But not everything in Crimson Cove is natural.

When Cade Colter moves to town, he expects it to be peaceful to the point of boredom. But he quickly learns that after the sun sets and the fog rolls in, the little tourist town takes on a whole new kind of life – and death.

Darkness at the Edge of Town

Renowned for its wild parties and history of debauchery, The Crimson Corset looms on the edge of town, inviting patrons to sate their most depraved desires and slake their darkest thirsts. Proprietor Gretchen VanTreese has waited centuries to annihilate the Old World vampires on the other side of town and create a new race – a race that she alone will rule. When she realizes Cade Colter has the key that will unlock her plan, she begins laying an elaborate trap that will put everyone around him in mortal danger.

Blood Wars

The streets are running red with blood, and as violence and murder ravage the night, Cade must face the darkest forces inside himself, and perhaps even abandon his own humanity, in order to protect what he loves

Review:

Well this might just be one of my favourite supernatural series. It is a mature mixture of Vampire Diaries, Dracula and Anne Rice books and somehow it works. It is a bit dirty; it has great characters, fabulous setting and secrets of night creature that are being slowly revealed throughout the story.

Cade turns up in Crimson Cove after the death of his mother, he comes to live with his brother Brooks that has made the little town his home a few years back. Things are going great for the brothers, until strange characters start turning up around Cade – pale, cold people that makes the hairs on his neck stand. Throw in the strangely protective behaviours of local Sherriff and friend Ethan and you have a great mix to start up paranoia in anyone.

And then Brooks gets a new, secret girlfriends and that’s when all goes downhill for Cade and Ethan. Cade gets a quick lecture on the night life creatures that have been roaming the woods of Crimson Cove for centuries and a battle to save his brother commences.

It’s a great-paced novel that keeps you on the edge of your seat. I thoroughly enjoyed the first book and am already reading the second instalment. Alistair Cross has skilfully married the good and evil here and shown that not all that appears evil actually is.

Thank you to the publisher and author for copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Rating: 5/5

Available from:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

The Lost Ones by Anita Frank

Synopsis:

Reeling from the death of her fiancé, Stella Marcham welcomes the opportunity to stay with her pregnant sister, Madeleine, at her imposing country mansion, Greyswick – but she arrives to discover a house of unease and her sister gripped by fear and suspicion.

Before long, strange incidents begin to trouble Stella – sobbing in the night, little footsteps on the stairs – and as events escalate, she finds herself drawn to the tragic history of the house.

Aided by a wounded war veteran, Stella sets about uncovering Greyswick’s dark and terrible secrets – secrets the dead whisper from the other side…

Review:

Stella Marcham is grieving. She has seen evil in the blooded fields of the great war and that same evil has taken the love of her life. On the brink of being sent into an asylum for ‘rest’, Stella is approached by her sister’s husband Hector, asking her to keep Madeleine company in her last months of pregnancy at his home estate Greyswick. He mentions Madeleine’s unease and bad feelings about the house and hopes Stella’s company will help settle his wife back to her happy self.

How wrong he is! Stella arrives at Greyswick, excited to see her sister’s new home, happy to lend her hand and provide comfort to the one person that stood by her when she lost Gerald. But there is something wrong. With the house, the people living in it. From the first day, when she discovers a toy soldier in her bed, things grow stranger and stranger. There are secrets buried deep within the walls of the house and it is up to Stella and her unwilling maid Annie to uncover them and set them free.

Brilliant book – I’ve always loved Wilkie Collins’ Woman in White and can see clearly the inspiration here. But this novel is spookier and even tense and reading in the dark of my bedroom wasn’t the best of my ideas. The characters were very well portrayed within the time period lending an authenticity to the story. Let’s be honest, most old manor houses look haunted, so Greyswick lends a perfect hand in setting the scene. I loved the opposites of opinions and beliefs that were given to us in the characters of Annie Burrows and Tristan Sheers. The believer and the sceptic-scientist, both willing to go the distance to prove their own truths.

Bravo – love this book and will certainly look out for more books by Anita Frank. This will be in my top five books I’ve read this year. And the cover - simple beautiful.

Thank you very much to TBConFB, the author and NetGalley for this book.

Rating: 5/5

Available to pre-order from:

Amazon UK – publication date 31 October 2019

Amazon US – publication date unconfirmed

The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes

Synopsis:

When Alice Wright agrees to marry handsome American Bennett Van Cleve and leave behind her stifling life in England for a new adventure in Kentucky, she’s soon disenchanted by her newlywed status and overbearing father-in-law, owner of the local coal mine. So when a call goes out for a team of women to deliver books as part of Eleanor Roosevelt's new travelling library, Alice signs on enthusiastically.

The leader, and soon Alice's greatest ally, is Margery, the smart-talking, self-sufficient daughter of a notorious local criminal, a woman who's never asked a man's permission for anything. Alice finds Margery as bracing and courageous as anyone she's ever met--and comes to rely on her, especially as her marriage starts to fail. 

They will be joined by three diverse women and become known as the Horseback Librarians of Kentucky. 

What happens to these women--and to the men they love--becomes a classic drama of loyalty, justice, humanity and passion. Though they face all kinds of dangers--from moonshiners to snakes, from mountains to floods--and social disapproval to boot. But they believe deeply in their work bringing books to people who had never had any, expanding horizons and arming them with facts that will change their lives.

Based on a true story rooted in America's past, the storytelling itself here is enthralling--the pages fly, and the book is unparalleled in its scope and its epic breadth. Funny, heartbreaking, and rewarding, it is a rich novel of women's friendship, of true love, and of what happens when we reach beyond our grasp for the great beyond.

Review:

I absolutely love Jojo’s books. She picks a subject and just runs with it. You can always tell when an author completes a good research as it allows them to engage their readers with places and characters in their work. This is definitely the case of The Giver of Stars.

This novel is another direction of work for Jojo, completely different from her other bestsellers and she has excelled in it. It takes you on a journey through rough Kentucky wilderness, the hard life families had to contend with, the unfair treatment of women in days that are not that long ago. All the ladies in this book are brilliantly woven into the story of the Kentucky Horseback Library and, together with historical moments, bring together a novel that is educational as well as enjoyable.

Alice makes an unlikely friend in the librarian’s leader Margery and thanks to her, becomes the woman she was perhaps always meant to be. They all have to learn various things about themselves and the people around them and not always through pleasant ways, but they get down to it and they don’t let anyone stop them. These are great women, made strong through their past, their present and their social standing.

This book is empowering, inspiring and beautifully written and is a fantastic example of why Jojo Moyes is one of the best international authors of today.

Rating: 5/5

Available from:

Amazon UK

Amazon US