Alchemy's Hunger by Cynthia Diamond

Episode 73 of the GSMC Book Review Podcast features an interview with author Cynthia Diamond about her book, Alchemy's Hunger, the fourth book in her Wyrd Love series. The books are standalone novels but have interconnecting characters, and the first 3 books feature the stories of the 3 Constance sisters. Alchemy's Hunger tells the story of Nick and Faith, both of whom are running from troubled pasts and both of whom have the power to save the other.

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After escaping the terrors of his dark cabal, Tony Harris craves redemption. With just one ritual, he could resurrect the mother he accidentally killed. All he needs is a Conduit- a being that holds an endless well of magic. But when the Conduit turns out to be a quirky, optimistic woman named Faith, his world is turned upside-down. Now Tony must choose; bring Cybil Constance back to life or give his heart to someone who believes in him. With the cabal hot on his tail, Tony is unsure he’ll survive long enough to make the choice.

Faith Conway longs to forget her abusive ex-boyfriend but between emotional scars and an overprotective mother, she has lost all confidence in herself. Now, thrust into a strange place called the Wyrd, a devastatingly handsome mage appears to protect her. All she has to do is help him with one mysterious, magical ritual. Despite his smooth promises, Faith wonders if Tony’s motives are honorable or if his devilish smile will only lead to more heartbreak. (Source)

Tony is brooding, in search of redemption, and quite possibly not a good person. Faith is quirky, running from her own demons, and quite possibly too good of a person for Tony. But Tony needs Faith, who is a conduit, to perform the ritual that will (he hopes) earn him the redemption he seeks. Faith doesn't realize she needs Tony, but he might be the person to help her heal from her own past.

Faith and Tony are from different worlds. Faith is from the mundane, human world, while Tony comes from the Wyrd, the world of magic and mythical creatures that exists alongside our own. Tony is aware of both worlds, but Faith has no idea the Wyrd exists, let alone the fact that she has any connection to it. She has a steep learning curve, and isn't inclined to be trusting, so Nick has to find some way to convince her to help him.

I love high fantasy, but I also like urban fantasy where the magical world exists with our own world, we just can't see it. Cynthia blends these two worlds together and makes the reader want to take another look at the space around them to see if maybe, just maybe, there's something else there that they've never noticed before. She has a love of writing dialogue and this passion is evident in this book. Her characters are witty and their conversations are, well, conversational, as well as funny and engaging.

Genres:

• Contemporary Fantasy
• Urban Fantasty
• Romance

What I enjoyed:

• When you listen to the interview you will hear Cynthia say, "what if?" a lot. She sees the world and wonders, what if X, Y, or Z was happening? For instance, what if vampires were responsible for that building over there or some event that you or I might not ever think when looking at the same building or event. The magical and mundane worlds coexist in her novels, and you can absolutely see in the writing how Cynthia's what-iffing creates the world underneath the regular world we see every day. (Why yes, I did just make if a verb...thank you for noticing!)
• Faith's quirkiness. She is a little bit goofy, but very kind, and she made me smile on nearly every page.
• The dialogue, especially Faith's inner (and often not-so-inner) monologues.
• The fact that Faith reads Harry Potter when she can't sleep.

Quotes:

• "But she had ridiculous taste in clothing. Faith was clad in neon pink skinny jeans, a baggy sweater vomited over with rainbow hearts, and a pair of scuffed combat boots. Around her neck was a chunky necklace of chipped rhinestones, the brass chain tarnished. Faith Conway looked like she had wrestled a  Goodwill and lost. Horribly."
• "The subject was dropped but it didn't make Faith feel any better. The whole 'you're too naïve' conversation was wearing thin on her nerves. When would she be considered old enough to ' know better'? Fifty? Sixty? Dead?"
• "'I mean, I figured it would be a lot more entertaining for both of us if we just met up, took a walk, see if we could find a place open now. Though the only place I know open at this time is the Seven-Eleven but we could get a Slurpee I guess if you're into that sort of thing.' She moaned. 'Oh God. I know you're not the type to be into Slurpees. Forget I mentioned Slurpees. Actually, forget I mentioned any of this!'"

Where you can find Cynthia online:

Website: https://cynthiadiamondauthor.wordpress.com/

Facebook: @cynthiadiamondauthor

Twitter: @cinsdiamond

Instagram: cinsdiamond

Booksprout: Cynthia Diamond

Tumblr: cynthiadiamond

Pinterest: Cynthia Diamond

Amazon Author Page: Cynthia Diamond

GoodReads: Cynthia Diamond

BookBub: @cynthiadiamond

Author Bio:

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Since she was a child, Cynthia craved anything that featured heroines with strong personalities. Now she writes books for sassy nerds with a sharp sense of humor. Starting her adult life in theater, she earned a Masters of Fine Arts in Costume Design, but her first love was telling stories. After some encouragement, she dove down the rabbit hole and created the Wyrd Love series.

When not telling tales about hot dragons and werewolves with tight behinds, Cynthia is an SCA geek and an amateur artist. She resides in sunny San Diego, California with her husband Max, two cats of varying intelligence, and a ton of goldfish. (Source)

Do you love Urban Fantasy? How about romance? Does Alchemy's Hunger sound like a book you'd like to read? Well hooray for you because I have 3 copies from Cynthia to give away! All you have to do is go to either our Facebook or Twitter pages and share the episode with Cynthia's interview, or go to Instagram and comment on that post. Simple as that: just comment on, share, or retweet episode 73 and you'll automatically be entered to win Alchemy's Hunger!

To hear the interview with Cynthia please click here.

The Devil's Poetry by Louise Cole

Louise Cole was my guest for yesterday's episode of the GSMC Book Review Podcast. We talked about her book, The Devil's Poetry, in which the heroine, Callie, discovers that she is a Reader and she just might be able to save the world.

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Callie’s world will be lost to war – unless she can unlock the magic of an ancient manuscript. She and her friends are being drafted and many of them won’t come back. When a secret order tells her she can bring peace just by reading from a book, it seems an easy solution – too easy. But how do you make the right decision when no one will tell you the truth? Callie soon finds herself hunted, trapped between desperate allies and diabolical enemies. There are only two people Callie can trust – her best friend and her ex-Marine bodyguard. And they are on different sides. Callie alone must decide: dare she read this book? What’s the price – and who will pay? (Source)

In many ways The Devil's Poetry follows fairly standard themes for Young Adult books: Callie lives (and has a complicated relationship) with just her father after the death of her mother when she was six. She knows nothing of being a reader until seemingly random circumstances thrust her into a life she didn't know existed. And there is a very handsome young man that comes with that new life. But things aren't always what they seem, and you soon realize, along with Callie, that her new role as a Reader isn't as simple as it appears. Read from the book, save the world. Not complicated, right? Except that it is, and there are many twists and turns throughout the story as Callie tries to figure out who she can trust, just what her powers may or may not accomplish, and whose side is the right one.

The Devil's Poetry is the first book in a trilogy, and I am very interested to find out what is going to happen to Callie next, as well as to learn more about the origins of the book, the order that protects it, and the group that wants to destroy it.

Genres:

• Young Adult
• Fantasy
• Contemporary

What I enjoyed:

• All of the literary references. Callie loves to read and frequently makes references to the stories and characters of books she's read and loved.
• That the reader affects the book just as the book affects the reader, both in terms of Callie as the heroine and as someone who loves books.
• The gray areas.  Things aren't so easy as right and wrong, and the moral questions make the story that much more interesting.

Who should read the The Devil's Poetry?

• Fans of Young Adult stories with strong heroines.
• Fans of contemporary fantasy.
• Fans of books with lots of literary references.

Quotes:

• "I'd planned to bury myself in a book. I always hid in someone else's story when things got rough."
• "It was kind of bizarre hanging out in a coffee lounge with an empath, sipping bad lattes, while waiting for a couple of soldiers to come and rescue us from fear-inducing demons."
• "My father always used to say: when something seems too good to be true, it usually is. And saving the world simply by reading from a book definitely fit the too good to be true category."

Where you can find Louise online:
Facebook: @louisecoleauthor
Twitter: @louisecole44
Instagram: louise_cole_books
Amazon: Louise Cole
GoodReads: Louise Cole
BookBub: @louisecole

Author Bio:

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Louise Cole has spent her life reading and writing. And very occasionally gardening. Sometimes she reads as she gardens. She can be seen walking her dogs around North Yorkshire - she's the one with a couple of cocker spaniels and a Kindle. She read English at Oxford - read being the operative word - and hasn't stopped reading since.

In her day-job she is an award-winning journalist, a former business magazine editor and director of a media agency. She writes about business but mainly the business of moving things around: transport, logistics, trucks, ships, people.

Her fiction includes short stories, young adult thrillers, and other stuff which is still cooking.

Her YA and kids’ fiction is represented by Greenhouse Literary Agency and she is also published on Amazon as one of the Marisa Hayworth triumvirate. (Source)

Does the Devil's Poetry sound like a book you'd like to read? You're in luck as I have 3 copies from Louise to give away! All you have to do is go to either our Facebook or Twitter pages and share the episode with Louise's interview. Simple as that: just share or retweet episode 64 and you'll automatically be entered to win this wonderful book!

Facebook: @GSMCBookReview

Twitter: @gsmc_bookreview

For the interview with Louise please click here.