Dancer's Flame by Jasmine Silvera

Over the weekend I had the pleasure of welcoming author Jasmine Silvera back to the GSMC Book Review Podcast for Episode 80 (astute readers might be wondering what happened to Episode 79? Never fear! That's the link for that episode, it just happens to be a non-interview episode). Jasmine was one of my first guests on the podcast; the first time was almost a year ago when we talked about her debut novel, Death's Dancer, on Episode 17. She came back this time to talk about the second book in her Grace Bloods series, Dancer's Flame.

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With the help of a god, Azrael and Isela exposed a conspiracy within and altered the world’s balance of power. But for Azrael, victory comes with dangerous new powers he can't control. Will accepting his future mean losing everything he’s gained — his allies, his territory, and his consort?

Isela’s found a home when she stepped into Azrael’s protection, and his arms. But if accepting her new role as consort means giving up the life she’s worked for will the price be too high?

When an impossible creature shows up in Prague bearing a dire warning, the search for answers divides them. Now Isela must forge a bond with the power within her while Azrael fights to keep from tearing himself apart. And time is running out. Gods don’t forget or forgive, especially a betrayal from one of their own. (Source)

Dancer's Flame picks up where Death's Dancer left off. I don't want to give too much away from the first book if you haven't read it, but part of the arc of this second book is watching Azrael's and Isela's relationship continue, and evolve, after the happily ever after of that first book. We also learn more about Azrael's cohort and Isela's family.

Genres:

• Urban Fantasy
• Contemporary Fantasy
• Romance

What I enjoyed:

• Getting more of the world and the characters I grew to love in the first book. I'm so happy this is a series so I can continue on with them for awhile!
• The arc of Azrael's and Isela's relationship. During the interview Jasmine said that she writes what she knows, and while she doesn't know what it's like to be in a supernatural relationship, she does know what it's like to be in a long-term relationship, and all of the pros and cons and challenges that go into making that relationship work. Some couples argue about money, Isela and Azrael argue about how to keep each other safe with a variety of supernatural beings trying to kill them. But it boils down to the same elements of communication and trust.
• All of the other relationships in the story. There are a LOT of secondary characters, but all of them serve a purpose and have a place within the story, and it's both fun and fascinating to watch as all of those relationships intertwine and evolve, and what that means for the rest of the characters.

Quotes:

• "[Azrael] would not define her by their relationship, yet he put it between her and the vast unknown of what she had become. Once she had been a loose end, even among her own large and complicated family.
  Azrael had changed that."
• "She would rebuild. She always did. That was the key to immortality - being able to start again no matter how many times you must."
• "'All godsdancers have something special, something that makes them different from any other dancers,' she said firmly. 'Trouble is, nobody knows quite  what it is. You can only train so far. It's why so many who begin fail to advance. And you, Isela Vogel, were the best of the best.'"

Where you can find Jasmine online:
Website: http://jasminesilvera.com/
Blog: http://jasminesilvera.com/blog/
Facebook: @JasSilvera
Facebook Group: The Academy
Twitter: @jassilvera
Instagram: jassilvera
Pinterest: Jasmine Silvera
Amazon Author Page: Jasmine Silvera
GoodReads: Jasmine Silvera
BookBub: @JasSilvera

Author Bio:

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Jasmine Silvera has loved reading and telling stories about imaginary worlds for as long as she can remember. She acquired a love of sci-fi, fantasy, and comic books from her dad, who thought the Hobbit was a perfectly acceptable bedtime story for a ten-year-old. She filled long hours as a volunteer at the church thrift store by reading boxes of donated Harlequins.

In college she published short stories and essays before earning a degree in Broadcast Journalism. In 2012, Jasmine quit her day job in web production to walk the Camino de Santiago and focus on her writing.

Inspired by and written during her two years living in Prague, her first published book, Death’s Dancer, was released on December 27, 2016 by Kindle Press. It was selected as part of the Kindle Scout Program.

She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and their small, opinionated human charge. (Source)

Do you want to get involved in the world of the Grace Bloods and read Dancer's Flame? Today is your lucky day because we have a giveaway! Jasmine has been kind enough to provide 3 copies of Dancer's Flame and one of them could be yours! All you have to do is go to either our Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram pages and comment on the post with Jasmine's interview. It's as simple as that: just comment on Episode 80 on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, and you'll automatically be entered to win Dancer's Flame! The last day to enter is May 19th and winners will be announced on May 21st.

To hear the interview with Jasmine, please click here.

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.