Blog Tour Stop, review and Giveaway: Cinderella, Necromancer by F M Boughan

Welcome today's stop on the Cinderella, Necromancer by F. M Boughan Blog Tour presented by Month9Books and hosted by Chapter by Chapter.  Today's stop is a review as well as a chance to enter the great giveaway that is being run throughout this tour.

I am a sucker for fairy tale retellings especially the darker ones and this one is darker than most which is part of the fun. I really liked the different take on the Cinderella tale that this story took. It kept the essential elements of the Cinderella story but cleverly wove the necromancy idea around this tale.

I liked the fact that there was no fairy godmother, that Ella after finding the grimoire in her father's office, used it to get herself to the ball. I also was intrigued about the fact that the grimoire was based on a real grimoire from the 15th century. Ella herself was strong and loyal to her family and I think this shone through the tale well.

I also liked the author's take on the other characters in the tale and the way it fitted with what we know of the characters from the original tale.

Whilst there seemed quite a bit to set up at the beginning , the tale itself flowed well and kept me reading till the last page. If you like your tales more brothers grimm than Disney, then this is the book for you.

I enjoyed this read and happily give it 3 3/4 stars

SapphiredDragon xx

About  Cinderella, Necromancer 

Cinderella, Necromancer by F M Boughan

  Publication Date:  September 5, 2017

  Publisher:  Month9Books

Darkness can only be controlled by those with the darkest of hearts.

Ellison lost her mother at an early age. Now, sixteen, her father has found love again. He’s happy and doesn’t quite notice that Ellison does not get along with his new wife or her vicious daughters.

When Ellison discovers a necromantic tome while traveling the secret passages of her father’s mansion, she wonders if it could be the key to her eventual freedom.

Until then, she must master her dark new power, even as her stepmother makes her a servant in her own home. And when her younger brother falls incurably ill, Ellison will do anything to ease his pain, including falling prey to her stepmother’s and stepsisters’ every whim and fancy.

Stumbling into a chance meeting with Prince William during a secret visit to her mother’s grave feels like a trick of fate when her stepmother refuses to allow Ellison to attend a palace festival where she might see him once more.

But what if Ellison could see the kind and handsome prince again? What if she could attend the festival? What if she could have everything she’s ever wanted and deserved by conjuring spirits to take revenge on her cruel stepmother? And what if she actually liked watching her stepmother suffer?

As Ellison’s power grows, she loses control over the evil spirits meant to do her bidding. And as they begin to exert their own power over Ellison, it becomes harder to tell whether it is she or her stepmother who is the true monster.

CINDERELLA NECROMANCER is CINDER meets ANNA DRESSED IN BLOOD and was inspired by a real medieval grimoire of necromancy from 15th-century Germany

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ABOUT F. M Boughan

F.M. Boughan is a bibliophile, a writer, and an unabashed parrot enthusiast. She can often be found writing in local coffee shops, namely because it’s hard to concentrate with a cat lying on the keyboard and a small, colorful parrot screaming into her ear. Her work is somewhat dark, somewhat violent, somewhat hopeful, and always contains a hint of magic.

Author Links:  
  

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

The Giveaway

·       One (1) winner will receive an Echo Dot

 

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Review: Diary of a Teenage Jewel Thief by Rosie Somers

Title: Diary of a Teenage Jewel Thief 

Author: Rosie Somers

Published: 8 August 2017
Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC
Source: Entangled Publishing, LLC via Netgalley in return for an honest review
Reviewed: Sapphired Dragon
Rating: *** 3/4 

My Review:

I really enjoyed this story. It was sweet and engaging from the very first chapter. 17 year old Mari is from a family with long glorious tradition of jewel thievery and that has been the life she has led so far. After finding out a dangerous rival is out to get them, Mari and her mother head to New York to hide out and Mari has to pretend to be a normal teenager for the first time in her life.

Firstly, I liked this spin on the extraordinary teen hiding out as a regular teenager premise and Mari was a likeable main character. I thought the idea played out well in the story giving a plausible fun and intriguing story line. We got see both the jewel thief side of her in action as well as the regular teen and Ms Somers showed the contrasts well which really helped make mar are more rounded and believeable character.

The pace and flow of this story really hit the mark. I was in the story from the first page and quickly flew through this only putting it down briefly once. Mari's voice was relatable and I cared what happened to her and to Will. I liked the twists and surprises the author threw in and while i picked some of it, I still felt compelled to keep moving threw to the story to see how it all turned out.

Overall the story is great blend of sweet romance, action and adventure with feels a plenty and a satisfying conclusion to leave you smiling.

I really enjoyed this and gave it 3 3/4 stars :-)

Sapphired Dragon xx

About The Book:

Diary of a Teenage Jewel Thief by Rosie Somers

Most sixteen-year-olds shouldn’t know where museums keep their rarest jewels (the basement) and they really shouldn’t know that vans make the worst getaway cars. But for Marisol Flores, a life of jewel thievery is a birthright handed down from generation to generation, even if she didn’t ask for it. So when a rival thief targets Mari and her mother, Mari’s more than happy to flee to the anonymity of bustling New York City.

Blending in is a dream come true for Mari, but keeping her former thieving ways a secret gets way more complicated when handsome Will Campbell sets his sights on her. She can’t help but like his terrible puns and charming grin…but when her past catches up with her, it’s not only her life—and her anonymity—that’s at stake.

Will could be the next target. 

Purchase: Amazon US  | Barnes and Noble  | Book Depository | Amazon.com.au | 

Blog Tour Review + Giveaway: Enigma (Schrodinger's Consortium #2) by Tonya Kuper

Welcome today's stop on the Enigma ( Schrodinger's Consortium #2) by Tonya Kuper  hosted by Chapter by Chapter   Today's stop is a review as well as a chance to enter the great giveaway that is being run throughout this tour.

Review:

Enigma is the second book of the Schrodinger Consortium series and takes up shortly after the end of Anomaly (book 1). Reid and Josie are currently on the run from The Consortium and Josie is having trouble dealing with the fact she killed Santos. This is one of the first things I really liked about this book. Unlike many action stories, it didn't make the killing of enemies, even with kick ass powers, glamorous. Instead showing very real consequences and reactions to having , albeit accidentally, killing someone.

I also liked that story kept momentum all the way through. An easy, entertaining read, with a well paced storyline that kept the reader moving through the twists and turns and guessing who the mole was until the end. As reader, I felt immersed in the story the whole way through.

I liked Josie. How strong she was, how she used her intelligence hand in hand with her compassion and protective spirit to protect her family and help those around her even as she dealt with her new abilities and the unimaginable power that came along with them. I loved Reid, his strength and protectiveness of Josie along with his swooniness. He was everything a good book boyfriend should be.

Overall though, what I most enjoyed was that the premise behind the story was quite different from things I had read before. The idea of being able to push and retract and the science behind it was a really intriguing idea which i thought quite well though out and believable. This created a world that I really wanted to know more about.

A very enjoyable read. I give this book 3 3/4 stars

Sapphired Dragon XX

   

Enigma (Schrodinger’s Consortium #2) by Tonya Kuper

Publication Date:  July 3, 2017

Publisher:  Entangled Teen

   

Worst. Road Trip. Ever.

Escaping with Reid Wentworth should have been fun, but how can I enjoy it when I just (accidentally) killed someone, my mom and brother are in danger, and the Consortium is trying to enslave humanity? (Yeah, they aren’t fooling around.) So feeling something for Reid Wentworth was not part of the plan. Trying to help unite the Resistance against the Consortium means I can’t be distracted by hot boys.

The Resistance secret hideout isn’t exactly the rebel base of my dreams. A traitor there wants me dead, but we have no idea who it is. And with both the Resistance and the Consortium trying to control me, the only one I can trust is Reid. If we’re going to have any chance of protecting my family, controlling my unstable powers, and surviving the clash between the Oculi factions, I’m going to have to catch this traitor. By using myself as bait.

Google Play | BAM | Chapters | Indies | Amazon | B&N | Kobo | TBD | iBooks

 

OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES:

Reality is only an illusion.
Except for those who can control it…
Worst. Birthday. Ever.

My first boyfriend dumped me—happy birthday, Josie!—my dad is who knows where, I have some weird virus that makes me want to hurl, and now my ex is licking another girl’s tonsils. Oh, and I’m officially the same age as my brother was when he died. Yeah, today is about as fun-filled as the swamps of Dagobah. But then weird things start happening…

Like I make something materialize just by thinking about it.

When hottily-hot badass Reid Wentworth shows up on a motorcycle, everything changes. Like, everything. Who I am. My family. What really happened to my brother. Existence. I am Oculi, and I have the ability to change reality with my thoughts. Now Reid, in all his hotness, is charged with guiding and protecting me as I begin learning how to bend reality. And he’s the only thing standing between me and the secret organization that wants me dead…

ABOUT  Tonya Kuper

Tonya Kuper is the author of ANOMALY, the first in the Schrodinger's Consortium Series, a young adult science fiction trilogy, released November 4, 2014 by Entangled Teen. She fell for Young Adult lit while earning her Masters degree in Reading Education. She's a mom to two awesome boys, an alt music junkie, a Star Wars nerd, and in love with Sherlock.

.

Author Links:   

Twitter | Website | Facebook | Instagram | Google + | Goodreads

 

Giveaway :  

One (1) winner will receive :

 

• Signed Copy of Anomaly and Schrodinger's Consortium swag

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Review: Emerge (Mer Chronicles #1) by Tobie Easton

Title: Emerge

Author: Tobie Easton

Published: 18 April 2016
Publisher: Month9Books
Source: Month9Books in exchange for an honest review
Reviewed: Sapphired Dragon
Rating: *** 3/4

My Review:

I have always like stories about mermaids and this is on of the most engaging ones I have read in a while. I easily slipped in to the tail and was kept there from beginning to end. I really like the different angles , this story brought to the mermaid Myth ie the connection to the little mermaid and the Hans Christian Anderson tale but also the idea of being exiled on land due to war. This exile was padded out well with a believable mythos behind it as a well thought out way of life for the mermaids co-existing with humans on land.

I wasn't a huge fan of Lia and thought she made some bad choices in the book. That being said though, i liked seeing there be consequences of the bad choices and the fact that she wasn't portrayed as the all perfect heroine.

I also liked that even when I was able to predict certain plot points, there were also things that came as a surprise and others that made me just enjoy the journey. The story and the writing flowed well, keeping me invested in the story till the end. I wanted and need to find out how it would all turn out.

This story works as a stand along however Goodreads does have it as book 1 of the Mer Chronicles. I am really hoping that means we get to read stories about some of the other characters in the Mer World. In particular i would love to read Caspian's story, I was really intrigued by his character, his insatiable need for learning, languages on particular, and what he and his family had experienced from other Mer as result of his siren Aunt.

I really loved this story and this world and gave it 3 3/4 stars!

Sapphired Dragon xx

About The Book:

Emerge (Mer Chronicles #1) by Tobie Easton

Goodreads | Book Depository | Booktopia

      
 
Lia Nautilus may be a Mermaid but she’s never lived in the ocean. War has ravaged the seven seas ever since the infamous Little Mermaid unleashed a curse that stripped Mer of their immortality. Lia has grown up in a secret community of land-dwelling Mer hidden among Malibu’s seaside mansions. Her biggest problems are surviving P.E. and keeping her feelings for Clay Ericson in check. Sure, he’s gorgeous in that cocky, leather jacket sort of way and makes her feel like there’s a school of fish swimming in her stomach, but getting involved with a human could put Lia's entire community at risk. So it’s for the best that he’s dating that new girl, right? That is, until Lia finds out she isn't the only one at school keeping a potentially deadly secret. And this new girl? Her eyes are dead set on Clay, who doesn't realize the danger he's in. If Lia hopes to save him, she’ll have to get closer to Clay. Lia’s parents would totally flip if they found out she was falling for a human boy, but the more time she spends with him, the harder it is for her to deny her feelings. After making a horrible mistake, Lia will risk everything to stop Clay from falling in love with the wrong girl.

   

Blog Tour Stop and Giveaway: Claire Daly : Reluctant Soul Saver by Michele Brouder

Welcome today's stop on the Claire Daly : Reluctant Soul Saver by Michele Brouder Blog Tour  hosted by Chapter by Chapter.  Today's stop is a review as well as a chance to enter the great giveaway that is being run throughout this tour.

Review:

This book was an extremely enjoyable read

With a bit of slow burn to start as it found its groove, I found myself swept up in the story and out the other side quicker than I anticipated in the outset.

I liked the premise of this novel and was looking forward to seeing how it would play out. Thankfully I wasn't disappointed. The main character claire Intrigued me and i found myself like her in spite of myself. I like that we saw her struggle with reconciling her new identity with her old and I liked seeing the learning curve as she started to slowly develop into her new self.

The pace of the story was also good, I found myself moving along well and had finished the entire novel in a matter of hours which, for me, is a sign that the story was a good one. Ms Brouder's writing style flowed well, really keeping you involved in the story. I liked that i could lose myself in it for the most part.

I wasn't so sure about her relationship/crush with Chas as I really had no idea what she saw in him and if it comes down to it, I think I would be team Ari all the way. That being said, I thought her relationships with her family and co-workers etc were written really well and I could really feel the dynamics of those relationships, particularly with her mam and little brother, whereas Chas just left me with me with...Meh...

Over all I think this was a great start to a new series and am looking forward to see what happens in volume II .

I give this title 3 3/4 stars

Sapphired Dragon XX

Claire Daly : Reluctant Soul Saver by Michele Brouder

Title: Claire Daly : Reluctant Soul Saver

Publication date: September, 2015.

Author: Michele Brouder
Genre: YA,Paranormal Romance

 

When seventeen year-old librarian wannabe Claire Daly is dragged kicking, screaming and cursing from everything she loves—her mam, her cozy Irish village and the dreamy boy next door—to take up arms in the battle of good versus evil, she learns the hard way that sometimes you don’t get to choose your own destiny, destiny chooses you.

Claire’s life plan is simple: head off to university to get her degree in library studies, summon up the courage to tell her best friend Chas that she loves him and live happily ever after. She never once entertained the idea that she might possess divine powers, that she might be predestined to battle Hell’s demons, or, to complicate matters further, that another love of many lives past might turn up on her doorstep. But life doesn’t always go as planned, and when a co-worker is viciously attacked by a demon and her own family threatened, Claire must face the truth: she is called to a higher purpose and has no choice but to answer. Claire sets aside her dreams and begins learning how to deal with the Unholy once and for all. Armed with only a crash course in soul saving and her wits, she gears up for the ultimate show down in Hell. But will it be enough?
 

BAM | Chapters | Amazon | B & N |  TBD 

 

ABOUT Michele Brouder

I was born in western New York, the oldest of 5. I've loved reading since I was very little. From the age of 9, I've wanted to be a writer. In high school, I wrote a lot of angst-ridden civil war dramas ala Gone With The Wind, knowing more about the Battle of the Bull Run than a normal teenager should know. I dabbled in writing after that but didn't get serious about it until 2006, when I decided that this was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

I've had many interesting jobs but my passion has always been writing.

I lived in Ireland from 2006-2013 with my husband and 2 boys. We moved back to the US and settled in Florida briefly (2 years) before returning back to Ireland in August 2015.

Author Links:  Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest 

The Giveaway (ends December 4, 2015)

• One (1) winner will received a $25 Amazon Gift Card, a copy of Claire Daly: Reluctant Soul Saver, a book mark, a coffee mug, and some other stuff for 'readers' from the author (INT)

• Three (3) winners will receive a copy of Claire Daly: Reluctant Soul Saver by Michele Brouder (INT)

 

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Review: Ten Things Sloane Hates About Tru by Tera Lyn Childs

Title: Ten Things Sloane Hates About Tru

Author: Tera Lynn Childs

Published: 14 September 2015
Publisher: Entangled Crush
Source: Entangled via Netgalley
Reviewed: Sapphired Dragon
Rating: *** 3/4  

My Review:

What a great start to a new series by Tera Lyn Childs. I really enjoyed this novel.

Sloane and her Mother have moved to Texas after an incident that left Sloane in a whole heap of trouble back in New York. All Sloane wants is to go back to New York and her old life and resents her mother for moving her so far away.

Truman (Tru) is her next door neighbour and according to her mother a bad influence and not someone she want should be friendly with if she ever hopes to get back to new York. However Tru is not what he seems and he has secrets of his own and as Sloanes connection with Tru grows stronger, Sloane starts to question some of her previous assumptions.

Tera Lynn Childs first foray into YA contemporary is in my opinion definitely a success. In this fresh and sweet story, she has created characters that I care about and am interested in and want to know more about.

Whilst the book itself works as a stand alone within itself, Ms Childs also sows the seeds for subsequent books with threads that have been started and flow through the book creating the background tapestry and you just know ( or at least I am hoping) that they will form part of the frame work of subsequent stories in the series.

I loved the way Ms Childs drew both Sloane and Tru. With all her whinging to go back to New York, Sloane could have become very annoying very quickly but Ms Childs was able to balance the whininess with the thought and growth Sloane Makes during the novel.

As the reader, we learn some very big secrets Tru very quickly, which immediately makes him a sympathetic character rather than just the bad influence that Sloane believes him to be. This also helps the story along as we are rooting for the two them from the beginning which makes all the difference. The novel is also split between Sloane and Tru's point of views which also helps to round out the story.

The story itself is reasonably simple, straight forward and flowing. There are some twists but many will guess much of the ending in advance. However this is not so important. at least for me, as I had developed enough feelings for the characters to follow the rest of their journey and will most definitely be reading on in this series. This is however the main reason why I didn't give this story a higher rating.

With great characters and an enjoyable plot, I give this novel 3 3/4 stars.

 

Sapphired Dragon xx

About The Book:

Ten Things Sloane Hates About Tru (Creative Hearts #1) by Tera Lyn Childs


When life gives you a blank canvas, make art.
Sloane Whitaker hates everything about moving to Texas. She hates leaving behind her friends and half her family in New York, starting over senior year at Austin’s NextGen Academy, and having to say she lives in Texas. Most of all, she hates that it’s all her fault. If she wants to earn her way back to the Big Apple, she has to prove she can still be the perfect daughter.
Which means no vandalism art, no trouble at school, and absolutely no Tru Dorsey, her serial screw-up neighbor, who loves nothing more than pushing her buttons.
But from the moment he vaults onto the roof outside her bedroom, there is something about him that makes her want to break every rule. Suddenly it’ s not the ten things she hates about Tru that are at the top of her list. It’s the ten reasons she doesn’t want to be without him.


 Amazon | Book Depository   

Review: Insidious (The Twixt #3) by Dawn metcalf

Title: Insidious (The Twixt #3)

Author: Dawn Metcalf

Published: 1st September 2015
Publisher: Harlequin Teen Aust
Source: Harlequin Teen Australia
Reviewed: Sapphired Dragon
Rating: *** 3/4  

My Review:

I really enjoyed the third book in Dawn Metcalf's The Twixt series. I was mistakenly under the impression that this was a trilogy so this was the last book. Imagine my surprise when I reached the end and realised it wasn't.

Actually I was pretty glad as I don't think I was ready for this series to end just yet.

Book three starts shortly after the end of Book 2. It is the last couple of weeks of Summer, and Joy is adjusting to her new status as one of the twixt and starting to learn how this will affect her relationships with her family and friends. Things like being unable to lie can be tricky when those closest to her are unable to see the twixt and she is not allowed to tell.

However what her family now *can* see is Ink and this has made things a little easier for Joy who is happy to be able to show off the boy that she loves.

However there is more to becoming one of the twixt than just having a signatura and therein lies the crux of the story for Joy, and for the reader, as Joy is drawn further into the ways and rules of the twixt and starts to uncover deeper secrets that threaten not just her but both of the worlds she is straddling, and evil thought long gone may just come back to haunt her.

I liked the direction of this new book and the way Ms Metcalf draws the reader deeper into the Twixt world she has created. MS Metcalf is incredibly adept at slowly revealing the layers of this world of the Twixt and each layer is more detailed and more interesting and more surprising than the one before. The world building is thorough from the rigid rules of the twixt to the history that we begin to delve into in this story, and the more I learn, the more I want to find out.

The story itself has all the elements that a good story needs in just the right combination. There is action aplenty through out much of the book and for the majority is well paced adding to rather than overshadowing the rest of the story and in nice balance with the information we are given along the way. There are plenty of twists to keep the reader guessing and nothing is what it seems, which adds to the suspense to the tale. There is also an attention to detail that gives this story an added oomph and each story element is cleverly incorporated and never seems to be wasted.

However what I love most about this novel is the relationships between Joy and those around her; Ink, Stef, Monica, Graus Claude. It is through these interactions that we truly see Joy's character and we are able to feel more emotionally attached to the story as a whole. I really enjoyed seeing how these relationships change and grow through out the novel, with a few surprises along the way.

I loved where this story ended even though ( as previously mentioned) it was with surprise that this wasn't the final book. However it does make much more sense with the story and I can't wait to see where it will go from here as I get the feeling that things are not going to go quite the way Joy expects.

I very much enjoyed this novel and I give this book 3 3/4 stars.

Sapphired Dragon xx

About The Book:

Insidious (The Twixt #3) by Dawn Metcalf

True evil is rarely obvious. It is quiet, patient.
Insidious.
Awaiting the perfect moment to strike.
Joy Malone finally knows who she is, where she comes from and how to live in two worlds at once. And now she can introduce her family and friends to her mysterious boyfriend, Indelible Ink. But when Ink's twin sister, Invisible Inq, calls in a favour, Joy must accept a dangerous mission to find a forgotten door between worlds—a door hiding a secret that some will kill to keep.
Unseen enemies, treasonous magic and an unthinkable betrayal threaten both the Twixt and human worlds as Joy races to expose an ancient conspiracy and unleash the unalterable truth—some secrets cannot remain secret forever.






Purchase: Amazon | HarlequinTeen Aust  | Book Depository