"D" A - Z CHALLENGE

A to Z Team [2015]

Arlee Bird @ Tossing it Out
Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh
Jeremy @ Hollywood Nuts
Nicole Ayers @ The Madlab Post
Author Stephen Tremp
Heather M. Gardner
AJ Lauer
Pam @ An Unconventional Librarian
Matthew MacNish @ The QQQE
Zalka Csenge Virág @ The Multicolored Diary
S. L. Hennessy @ Pensuasion
C. Lee McKenzie @ The Write Game
Joy Campbell @ The Character Depot
Susan Gourley @ Susan Says
John Holton @The Sound of One Hand Typing
Lisa Buie-Collard, Author

1303 - The Dragonslayer (The 13th Floor series #3)

by Christine Rains

On the rooftop of neighboring building, dragonslayer Xanthus Ehrensvard fires at his target, Governor Whittaker. How he missed the shot, he doesn't know, but fleeing the scene, he picks up an unwanted passenger. Gorgeous reporter Lois King saw Xan's face, and she believes it's the story to make her career. Except he can't let her walk away knowing what he looks like. Xan has to show her the Governor is a bigger threat to the world than he is.

Xan knows dragons never went extinct. They evolved with human society, taking on mortal forms, and slithered their way into positions of great influence and power, just like the Governor. But it's no easy chore proving to someone that dragons still exist, and even more so, they're disguised as famous people. Xan must convince Lois or find another way to silence her. An option, as he gets to know her, he likes less and less.

After all, dragonslayers are no longer celebrated heroes but outlaws. Just as the dragons wish it. But this outlaw must make a plan to slay the dragon or risk its retribution.

REVIEW:

Xan, is a Dragonslayer and Lois a reporter. When the two find themselves caught together after Xan annihilates a group of dragonkin, ge finds a need to protect her and takes her back to Carmine, where her resides on the 13th Floor.

The dragon Xan need to slay is the governor and once Lois believes  dragons exist and the governor is one, she will stop at nothing to help him in his task.

Christine Rains has written another capturing tale with the Dragonslayer, in her 13th Floor series and anyone who enjoys the paranormal world with all its various creatures, (good and evil) will enjoy this book and the others which support the complete story in the series, 13th Floor.

Distraction

by J.L. Campbell

Three Jamaican women walk a tightrope of decisions when their lives are derailed by blackmail, deceit and infidelity.

JUSTINE CHARLES, sensible and self-contained, battles an addiction which could destroy her marriage, reputation, and relationship with her daughter.

DIONNE JONES, an aggressive go-getter, takes risks that cut a trail of devastation through her family and business.

KYRA MILLS, struggling single mother, is crippled by debt, bad judgment and destructive choices.

Can two of the long-time friends survive startling revelations involving their partners? And will the other push her obsession to the point of danger?
 

REVIEW:

 Distraction by J.L. Campbell is a complicated story about the lives of three women, Justine Charles, Dianne Jones and Kyra Mills.

The three friends live dangerous lives, mixing their family life with a second secret existence of passion, decept and destruction.

Distraction is a look into how these three women cope with their guilt and passions in their day to day lives and I am sure this book by J.L. Campbell would appeal to many readers.

Dead Radiance (Valkyrie #1)

by T.G. Ayer

Bryn Halbrook had always seen the glow. But it is only when her best friend dies that she discovers the meaning of those beautiful golden auras — Death. Alone, lost in the foster system, she struggles to understand who she is and why she was cursed with the ability to see the soon-to-be-dead.

The new foster kid, Aidan, isn’t helping any. Mr. Perfect seems to fit in no matter what, making her feel even more pathetic. But when his affections turn to her, Bryn finds him hard to resist. Impossible actually. A mystery himself, Aidan disappears, leaving behind a broken heart and a mysterious book that suggests Bryn might not be entirely human.

Bryn stands at the threshold of a journey of discovery. Will destiny help her find herself, find her purpose and her place in a world in which she’d never belonged?

REVIEW:

 Bryn Halbrook lives with her foster mother, Mrs Custer, who also fosters two other younger children. Bryn lost both her parents when when turned 13 and is now the sole heir to a fortune, which she will inherit when she comes of age.

Aiden Lee, a Ducati riding hunk joins the household as another displaced kid and Bryn is drawn to him.

Bryn herself has secrets, she hasn't eaten or drank anything for weeks and hides this from the caring Mrs Custer, but other things seem to be happening to her also. She dreams of strange faces, bronze armour and sword fighting and finds she can forsee the death of those around her.

This YA by T.G. Ayer is written well and is an enjoyable read, bringing to life the possibility of the Valkyrie, Odin, Freya, Locki and the other gods into the world of modern day.

Demons at Deadnight 

(Divinicus Nex Chronicles #1)

by A&E Kirk 

 

For seventeen-year-old Aurora Lahey, survival is a lifestyle.

DEMONIC DESTINY
Aurora has the crappiest superpower on the planet. And it's just unleashed a hit squad from hell. Demons are on the hunt, salivating to carve her carcass into confetti.

CHARISMATIC KILLERS
The Hex Boys--mysterious, hunky, and notorious for their trails of destruction--have the answers Aurora needs to survive. But their overload of deadly secrets and suspicious motives makes trusting them a potentially fatal move.

LETHAL ALLIES
The battle to save her family, herself, and stop demonic domination may cost Aurora everything worth living for, and force her to reveal her own dark secrets. But no worries. She needs the Hex Boys to pull this off, and, chances are, teaming up with these guys will get her killed anyway.

REVIEW:

Believing the country will be safer, Aurora and her family move back to their old home to escape an "incident" which happened to Aurora when they lived in the city. Aurora is a little different to most girls, she fights demons.

She meets seven hunky guys who live close by. They have forgotten that she already knows them form her childhood when the eight of them were inseparable.

When Aurora and her siblings start at the local school - hell breaks loose and Aurora finds the seven boys are also able to see demons and posses their own magic to fight them.

Written in a humorous style, this book by A. & E. Kirk is an entertaining, light read, mixing kick arse fighting, teenage romance and magic. It is fast paced and action packed with a bit of a twist thrown in to capture the readers interest.


 

Dark Realms

by Kristen Middleton

 

Six stories of paranormal fantasy and horror written by bestselling author - Kristen Middleton

Vampires, witches, and zombies - all under one cover!
Wicked
Blur
Enchanted Secrets
Zombie Games (Origins)
The Coin Collector
Venom

Warning - Adult language and situations - recommended for ages sixteen and above.

Wicked (A Night Roamers Short)

When eighteen-year-old Emily wakes up to find herself being held captive in a barn with four other women and tries to escape, she finds herself being hunted by a dark presence through the deep woods of Montana.

Blur (Book One of Night Roamers)

Danger lurks in the dead of night...
Seventeen year old Nikki and her twin brother, Nathan, move to the small town of Shore Lake to start over after their mother is brutally attacked. When a missing teenager washes up on shore during their first night at the cabin and there are whispers of vampires in Shore Lake, Nikki begins to realize that there are things roaming in the darkness that are far more sinister than what they left behind in the city


Enchanted Secrets (Book One of Witches Of Bayport)

Magic, murder, and mayhem...
Eighteen-year-old Kendra learns that her mother has been keeping secrets, the biggest being that she and her twin sister, Kala, are descendants of a long line of witches. Unfortunately, where magic reigns, so does danger and she is forced into an adventure that leaves her racing against the clock to stop an evil curse.

The Coin Collector (Stand-alone Short)

In their small Iowa town, children start to go missing on their tenth birthday. The hot Irish girl across the street claims her creepy father, Mr. O'Darby, is a leprechaun who collects more than just gold coins, and 17-year-old Trent begins to fear for the safety of his brother, Ben, whose tenth birthday grows near.

Zombie Games (Origins) Book One

Seventeen-year-old Cassandra Wild thought that living in the chaos of her mother's home daycare and dealing with new feelings for Bryce, her martial arts instructor, was a struggle until her world turned upside down. When an untested vaccine kills more than just a rampant flu virus, Cassie learns how to survive in a world where the dead walk and the living... run!

Venom – (Derived from Night Roamers)

When Melody Williams goes missing at a concert, at Club Nightshade, her eighteen-year-old cousin, Chelsey Fairfax, sneaks into the club to find answers. Little does she know that some mysteries are better left hidden.

Meanwhile, Venom is in town, a hot new band from Europe, and the owner of Club Nightshade wants them there permanently...
REVIEW:

Dark Realms by Kristen Middleton is a collection of six short stories, a mix of paranormal fantasy and horror.

Included in this collection are the titles -  Wicked, Blur, Enchanted, Secrets, The Coin Collector, Zombie Games and Venom.

I must say each held me fascinated and wanting more. This collection is a mix of tales about Immortals, Zombies, Witches and Vampires. This dark collection of stories have an adult audience in mind and I found myself drawn into each story.