Tour Stop ~ The Lens and the Looker by Lory S. Kaufman

Title: The Lens and the Looker
Author: Lory S. Kaufman
Series: The Verona Trilogy #1
Genre: YA, Sci Fi

Synopsis:

THERE'S HOPE FOR THE FUTURE,
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE PAST?

It’s the 24th century and humans, with the help of artificial intelligences (A.I.s) have finally created the perfect post-dystopian society. To make equally perfect citizens for this world, the elders have created History Camps, full sized recreations of cities from Earth’s distant pasts. Here teens live the way their ancestors did, doing the same dirty jobs and experiencing the same degradations. History Camps teach youths not to repeat the mistakes that almost caused the planet to die. But not everything goes to plan.

In this first of a trilogy, we meet three spoiled teens in the year 2347. Hansum almost 17, is good looking and athletic. Shamira, 15, is sassy, independent and an artistic genius. Lincoln, 14, is the smart-aleck. But you don’t have to scratch too far beneath the surface to find his insecurities.

These three “hard cases” refuse the valuable lessons History Camps teach. But when they are kidnapped and taken back in time to 1347 Verona, Italy, they only have two choices; adapt to the harsh medieval ways or die. The dangers are many, their enemies are powerful, and safety is a long way away. It’s hardly the ideal environment to fall in love – but that’s exactly what happens. In an attempt to survive, the trio risks introducing technology from the future. It could save them – or it could change history.

Review:

I thought that this book was very interesting.  From the premise right down to the characters.  I'm very glad that I was approached about this book as well as the second book in the trilogy as well.

The story takes place in 2347 where humans have been able to create a utopian type society after a massive disaster nearly wiped out humanity and the world as a whole.  This is where we meet our main characters Hansum, Shamira and Lincoln.  Three privileged teens who have never known any other society besides this "perfect" society.  In their world they are babied by artificial intelligences that were created with the absolute sole purpose of keeping the kids safe and happy.  Which has led to this particular trio to be so spoiled I felt the need to slap them a couple times.  But in the book, this particular problem is solved by their schools and parents agreeing to send them to History Camp.  Which to me sounded like a futuristic version of Boot Camp.

Then these three kids are kidnapped by a rogue time traveler who transports and drops them in the middle of "real time" medieval Italy.

Which is where things get interesting...Really interesting.  Overall, I thought that the world and the characters that Mr. Kaufman created were very original and very realistic.  Personally, I was extremely fascinated by the A.Is. They too were written in a very realistic and believeable manner.  I was very impressed by all the descriptions of 12th century Italy.  It had to be a blast to research all that history?! (I'm a little bit of a history buff)  Though I did think that the futuristic world that was created was a little bit bland. Because of the blandness of the beginning I did have a little trouble getting into the book but once I go into it I was really happy with the results.

RATING:

3.75/5

If you are interested in this book, Mr. Kaufman’s website is here: http://www.history-camp.com/.

Blog Tour ~ Hunter's Fall by Shiloh Walker (Attempt #1)

Title: Hunter's Fall
Author: Shiloh Walker
Release Date: 6/7/2011
Source: ARC received as part of The Book Vixen's tour

Synopsis:

Nessa lost her memory following a near-death experience. Dominic is a Hunter dealing with his own problems with memory and sanity. When the two are put together to battle the forces of darkness-while trying to restore what they've lost-their all-consuming passion becomes an even greater unknown.

Review:

This review is actually pretty difficult for me to write.  So far I'm seeing a fair amount of 3, 4 and 5 star reviews for Hunter's Fall and I wish I felt the same.  I was all excited about being a part of the tour for this book and up until this point I hadn't found a Shiloh Walker book that I couldn't put down.  I'm not sure what happened or didn't happen but I just could NOT get into Hunter's Fall.

I'm hoping that part of the problem is that I hadn't read any of the other books leading up to this one.  I've already decided that I am going to see if the Hunter books are available in my library system.  I don't want to completely give up on Hunter's Fall.  From the other reviews that I've been seeing about this book, it sounds very promising.  Maybe I just had too much paranormal all at once.

So here's the breakdown...I'll start with my list of positives first.

I was really excited about the opportunity to read another one of Shiloh Walker's new books.  She's had me hooked since I read Broken.  I was also very excited about the premise for the book.  I really hadn't ever read a book about witches that also dealt with the "issue" of re-incarnation.  Also, I hope that the cover that is available on Goodreads is the final cover...I REALLY like it a LOT, very much a less is more cover. 

Now for my list of negatives....

I wasn't able to get through the whole book so I don't know at this time if this particular issue cleared itself up or not as the book progressed, but I had a really hard time connecting with the main characters. From the portion of the book that I did get read I felt disconnected from the characters.  I also had moments where the story confused me. There were points where I was confused as to what tense the story was in.

Overall, I really wanted to get into Hunter's Fall but at the time I just was not able to.  I'm also hoping to make a second attempt to read Hunter's Fall cover to cover after it is released.  I do want to thank The Book Vixen for letting me be a part of this tour...I just wish I was able to get into the story.

RATING:

DNF

The Tour Schedule:

Tour Schedule:
5/30 - The Book Vixen
5/31 - Alice White Blogs
6/1 - My Overstuffed Bookshelf
6/3 - Jamie's Bookshelf
6/6 - Lush Book Reviews
6/7 - Seduced by Books
6/9 - Tori @ Smexy Books

Blog Tour/Giveaway ~ The Shepherd by Ethan Cross

Title: The Shepherd
Author:  Ethan Cross
Genre: Suspense/Thriller

Synopsis:

Marcus Williams and Francis Ackerman Jr. both have a talent for hurting people. Marcus, a former New York City homicide detective, uses his abilities to protect others, while Ackerman uses his gifts to inflict pain and suffering. When both men become unwilling pawns in a conspiracy that reaches to the highest levels of our government, Marcus finds himself in a deadly game of cat and mouse trapped between a twisted psychopath and a vigilante with seemingly unlimited resources. Aided by a rogue FBI agent and the vigilante's beautiful daughter--a woman with whom he's quickly falling in love--Marcus must expose the deadly political conspiracy and confront his past while hunting down one of the most cunning and ruthless killers in the world.


Review:

I was approached about joining the blog tour for this book a little while ago and I agreed based on the premise alone.  The Shepherd sounded like a book that would trip my trigger so to speak.  I'm glad that the book lived up to my expectations for it!

Marcus Williams is a former New York City homicide detective, who has just moved to town.  He really didn't think that his first job would come so soon after moving to town.  It seems that a mad man has made his way to the town that Marcus now calls home.  Now Marcus and our mad man are going to face off, unfortunately, there can be only one winner. Will evil prevail? or will good triumph?  In the end, who is going to be The Shepherd?

Francis Ackerman Jr. is our mad man.  He has basically been conditioned from a young age to become the monster that he is today. Ackerman has escaped a mental health facility and is making a terrifying tour across many states.  Only leaving behind a trail of bloody and mangled bodies.

If you are a person who enjoys suspense/thrillers I highly recommend this book.  There has been a fair amount of praise bestowed upon the book and I found that The Shepherd was definitely worthy of the praise.  If you do pick up this book, read it while it's light out (big mistake on my part).  It has THAT much creep factor to it.  The Shepherd, I found to be a very fast read with plenty of twists and turns and creep factor. 

RATING:

4/5

GIVEAWAY:

I am giving away my gently used copy of The Shepherd.

Rules:

1. Open to US/Canada addresses.

2. Please leave your email address in the comments section below.

3. Giveaway will conclude on May 26 @ 11:59 pm.

4. Winner will be announced Friday May 27.

Blog Tour ~ A Creed In Stone Creek - Giveaway and BONUS features!

Good Morning everyone!  I hope it's the beginning of a beautiful day for you!  Today is my day along the blog tour for Linda Lael Miller's new trilogy.  And have I got surprises for YOU!  Let's start with the delicious YUMMINESS found on Take a Cowboy Home, a web page specifically designed for this new trilogy.

Here is a little blurb about each of the books in the new trilogy.

When single attorney Steven Creed becomes the guardian of an orphaned five-year-old boy, he trades his big-city law firm for a ranch near his McKettrick kin in the close-knit community of Stone Creek, Arizona. Taking care of little Matt and fixing up his run-down ranch house with its old barn loosens something tightly wound inside him. But when Steven takes on the pro bono

defense of a local teen, he meets his match in the opposing counsel—beautiful, by-the-book county prosecutor Melissa O’Ballivan. It’ll take one grieving little boy, a sweet adopted dog and a woman who never expected to win any man’s heart to make this Creed in Stone Creek know he’s truly found home.

Conner Creed knows exactly who he is: a hard-working rancher carrying on his uncle’s legacy in Lonesome Bend, Colorado. Maybe a small-town cowboy’s life isn’t his dream, but he owes the man who took him in as a kid. Then the wild twin brother he’s been estranged from for years shows up. The timing of Brody’s return couldn’t be worse. Conner has just met Tricia

McCall, a beautiful woman who knows what it’s like to live someone else’s dreams. Brody betrayed Conner’s trust all those years ago—riding out of town with his girlfriend. Now Brody’s threatening to put down roots in Lonesome Bend, and Conner vows there will be hell to pay if Brody so much as tips his hat at Tricia.

Rough-and-tumble rodeo cowboy Brody Creed likes life on the move and on his own terms—until a chance encounter with his long-estranged twin brother brings him “home” for the first time in years. Suddenly Brody is in Creed territory—a restless bad boy among family with deep ties to the land and each other. And a secret past haunts him as he tries to put down

roots. Carolyn Simmons is looking for Mr. Right in Lonesome Bend, as the tick-tock of her biological clock gets ever louder. Then she falls for gorgeous Brody Creed, the opposite of everything she thinks she wants. But as fate would have it, taming his wild heart just might end up giving both of them everything they need.

Plus, there is the book trailer, "a behind-the-scenes video of the cover photo shoot, webisodes and a sexy photo gallery."  Ok, so I can't resist showing you the book trailer....

And if ALL THAT yumminess wasn't enough.  There is a photo contest being held on Book Trib, looking for THE sexiest cowboy (Click "THE sexiest cowboy" to learn more).  The Winner receives the following:

"One lucky winner will receive a custom-made “Creed Cowboys”-inspired buckle from our sponsor Montana Silversmiths, a signed copy of A Creed in Stone Creek with a special message from Linda, and a personal donation to A Horse Connection, a nonprofit equine therapy organization. The winning photo will also be featured on Linda’s Facebook page."

For the record, I LOVE Montana Silversmiths stuff!

NOW for the giveaway!

 I am giving away 1 copy of A Creed In Stone Creek to a lucky winner!  Now here are the rules:

1. Please leave a comment with an email address so that I can contact you if you win.

2. Open to US and Canada

3. Contest closes at 11:59 pm on March 18.

Blog Tour ~ A Creed In Stone Creek by Linda Lael Miller

Title: A Creed In Stone Creek
Author: Linda Lael Miller
Series:
Publication Date: February 22, 2011

Synopsis:

When single attorney Steven Creed becomes guardian of an orphaned five-year-old boy, he trades his big-city law firm for a ranch near his McKettrick kin in the close-knit community of Stone Creek, Arizona. Taking care of little Matt and fixing up his run-down ranch house with its old barn loosens something tightly wound inside him. But when Steven takes on the pro bono defense of a local teen, he meets his match in the opposing counsel—beautiful, by-the-book county prosecutor Melissa O'Ballivan. It'll take one grieving little boy, a sweet adopted dog and a woman who never expected to win any man's heart to make this Creed in Stone Creek know he's truly found home.

Review:

Steven Creed comes to Stone Creek, AZ to make a new life for himself with his newly adopted son Matt.  Personally, Matt was the best part of the story for me.  Kids say the darngdest things!  Not long after arriving in Stone Creek and buying a "run down" ranch he meets Melissa O'Ballivan, a Stone Creek native. When Steven and Melissa meet there are sparks and an instant attraction. But they have both endured bad relationships in the past which makes the falling in love part very interesting.

Worse yet...They are both attorney's.  Melissa is a prosecutor and Steven is in the process of setting up his practice in Stone Creek as a defense attorney.  Oil and water!  When a local case comes up and these two end up going against each other in court they definitely butt heads.  But no matter how bad it gets their values and love for family are still the same and in the end help each of them.  Once they each get over their individual hang ups and insecurities they are well on their way to a happy ending. That last sentence makes it sound simple, but nothing is ever simple when two VERY stubborn people are added to the mix.

My main hang up with this particular book was Melissa.  I think that at times she was written as a borderline "man hater."  I think she definitely met her match in Steven Creed though.  He's a very determined guy.  Like I said above, I think little Matt was my favorite part of the book.  He kept the story "young and fresh."

RATING:

4/5

Blog Tour and Giveaways on Nitty Gritty

The From Scotland With Love Blog tour rolled through Nitty Gritty yesterday and I wanted to share the links with you if you are interested in winning copies of Seduced by Destiny or Highland Master.  The Links are as follows:

Review and Giveaway of Highland Master by Amanda Scott

Guest Post and Giveaway by Kira Morgan author of Seduced by Destiny

Review of Seduced by Destiny by Kira Morgan

Blog Tours and Giveaways

Coming up on March 4th there will be a blog tour rolling through Nitty Gritty.  There will be chances to win a copy of 2 different books...If you have a thing for historical Scotland these are right up your alley!  There will also be a guest post by one of the authors.  I hope you'll drop by and check it.