Hellentic Immortal by Gene Doucette

Title: Hellenic Immortal
Author: Gene Doucette
Publishing Date: May 3, 2012
Source: Publisher
Summary (from Goodreads):

 “Very occasionally, I will pop up in the historical record. Most of the time I’m not at all easy to spot, because most of the time I’m just a guy who does a thing and then disappears again into the background behind someone-or-other who’s busy doing something much more important. But there are a couple of rare occasions when I get a starring role.”

--Adam the Immortal

An oracle has predicted the sojourner’s end, which is a problem for Adam insofar as he has never encountered an oracular prediction that didn’t come true . . . and he is the sojourner. To survive, he’s going to have to figure out what a beautiful ex-government analyst, an eco-terrorist, a rogue FBI agent, and the world’s oldest religious cult all want with him, and fast.

And all he wanted when he came to Vegas was to forget about a girl. And maybe have a drink or two.

“I am probably not the best source when it comes to who invented what. For a long time I thought I invented the wheel.”

--Adam the Immortal

The second book in the Immortal series, Hellenic Immortal follows the continuing adventures of Adam, a sixty-thousand-year-old man with a wry sense of humor, a flair for storytelling, and a knack for staying alive. Hellenic Immortal is a clever blend of history, mythology, sci-fi, fantasy, adventure, mystery and romance. A little something, in other words, for every reader.

                                Review
 

I’m always a little nervous when starting the second book in a series, especially if I loved the first book. Will it live up to my expectations? What if it doesn’t? What if I find it mind numbingly boring because of a crappy plot and characters that lost the zest they had in book one? Will the author’s eagerness to publish the next installment ruin what I loved about the series to begin with?

Thankfully, I didn’t have to worry about any of that with Hellenic Immortal.

Adam’s continued journey kept me intrigued and wanting more the entire read. Maybe even more so than Immortal did. I admit I didn’t read the summary before receiving the book – that may have had something to do with me being so damn excited to read it that I really didn’t care what it was about. However, considering how Immortal ended, I expected it to be about Adam going off to find “Eve”. Or maybe even a story about Adam and Clara.

Nope. Not even close. Of course if I had read the summary I would have realized that. The story was so much more than I expected and I once again loved every single page of it. The new supernatural characters Doucette threw into the mix actually made me want to research and see just how much truth there was to the gods he wrote about. Of course I knew some of them were true, but the fact that he made me want to learn more about ancient History is… well, pretty much a miracle.

I had a thing for Mike the second he appeared in Adam’s hotel room. And the more I learned about him, the more I loved him. That also might have had something to do with the mystery behind his being. And I really liked how it was revealed; how Mike didn’t seem to have a clue that he was different.

Ariadne. For a character that didn’t have a whole lot of story time, she sure made up for it towards the end. Although, because of the lack of face time she got in the novel, I found that I didn’t really have any feelings toward her one way or another. I didn’t care about her character or what happened to her even though she turned out to be a fairly important part. I didn’t dislike her, I just didn’t care.

I would have liked some returning characters, like the red-headed woman. It would have been interesting if she had somehow been tied into all that was happening, but I’m not terribly disappointed that she wasn’t part of the book – aside from the little glimpse Adam gets of her at the end.  The same can be said for Clara. Considering she’s now also an immortal I fully expected her to be  more apart of  Adam’s life, but the fact that she wasn’t didn’t really upset me either. And that’s only because Doucette made it to me by writing such fascinating new characters.

Second Chances by Lauren Dane

Title: Second Chances
Author: Lauren Dane
Publishing Date: October 25, 2010
Source: Bought
Summary (from Goodreads):

 Ten years ago, Rori Simon left town shy, unattractive and with zero self-esteem. Now she’s back, older, stronger and finally loving herself—and it shows. Hot men are soon knocking at her door, including Jude Callahan, the bad boy who starred in her teenage daydreams…and her adult fantasies.

Jude can’t believe the sexy, confident woman before him is actually Rori! She’s gotten under his skin like no other woman has…and brings out secret desires he can’t resist. He wants to dominate Rori with every fiber of his being. Wants to own her and pleasure her. To cherish her as he makes her his.

Rori discovers she likes being controlled. She also knows Jude is not a one-woman man. Everything changes when she meets Zach Helm. Edgy, sensual Zach knows just what she needs, and before long, she’s in love. Jude watches them together and wonders if he’s lost his chance forever…

                                 Review

*deep breath*

I cried. I screamed at my e-reader. I muttered every curse word I know at Lauren Dane as my heart broke towards the end of this book. But I’m getting a head of myself. Let me start at the begging.

This book is hot. THIS is what I’ve been looking for. It does have some light BDSM, but it’s the kind I like to read about. D/s relationship remained only in the bedroom and there was no controlling every aspect of our female character’s life. Being controlled in the bedroom? Oh yeah, I can get behind that!

Rori is a strong, sassy heroine in the novel. She moves back home after living in Paris for a while and immediately gets involved with her teenage fantasy Jude. I wasn’t a fan of Jude to begin with, but he did grow on me towards the end.

Zach stole my heart as quickly as he did Rori’s. I was enthralled with Zack the second he was introduced on the pages and my love for him grew the more I read. He was sweet and charming and sexy and so. very. hot in the bedroom.

You know, you just KNOW, while reading this book that something terrible is going to happen because you also know right from the start that two of these characters belong together. I read with baited breath, swept up in the romance of Rori and Zach, hesitating every time I moved onto the next page because I was terrified of what was to come.

And then the screaming and weeping and heart break began. I had to set the book down and just take a few deep breathes my heart ached so badly. Of course I couldn’t stay away too long because I had to find out what happened next.

Considering how the plot took a twist, I thought I wouldn’t be satisfied with the ending, but I was. It felt right and natural and almost made me forgive the author for putting me through emotional hell.

 Dane creates a sexy love story that has you reaching for the Kleenex and your goodie draw throughout the book. 

 

Liebster Award

                                         

Thank you, Kelsey, for nominating me for a Liebster award! Confession? I had no idea what they were until this morning but I am so excited to be apart of it!

So what is a Liebster Award? The Liebster Blog Award is an award given to blogs that have less that 200 followers. Of course there are some other rules:

1. Each person must post 11 facts about themselves
2. Answer 11 questions the tagger has given you and give 11 questions for the people you've tagged
3. Choose 11 people and link them in your post
4. Tell them you've tagged them
5. No tag backs 

So, let's get started!

11 facts about me:

1. I have an irrational fear of statues that are heads. There is just something crazy scary about a mounted head.
2. I hate seafood
3. People who cannot park piss me off. The space is bigger than your car, there's no reason you should be over the lines
4. I have a tiny crush - and by tiny I mean I would give up anything to be with him - on Ian Somerhalder
5. When people ask if I speak any other languages I tell them yes. In truth, I only know the dirty sayings but I figure that's gotta count for something
6. I hate feet
7. Puppies breath is my favourite smell in the whole world
8. Monkeys freak me out
9. I screen all my calls. Yes, I'm admitting that for everyone to see. I rarely answer my phone
10. I want to marry whoever thought to put mint and chocolate together. Best idea ever.
11.  I only had kids so I had an excuse for watching Disney movies. Kidding. But I am a Disney addict. 

Questions from Kelsey Hearts Books

1. If you were stranded on an island with only one book, which book would you choose? Water for Elephants

2. Where is your favorite place to read? In my living room curled up in my huge comfy chair

3. What is your favorite book series? The Southern Vampire Mysteries

4. Do you read ebooks? Yes

5. How long have you been blogging? About three months

6. What is your favorite thing to do besides reading? I love to cook

7. What was your favorite book as a child? Charlotte's Webb

8. What book have you hated the most? Beyond Eden by Kele Moon

9. Do you ever cry over books? All the time

10. Who is your favorite author? Lauren Dane is definitely one of them

11. How do you feel about books being made into movies? Most of the time the movies cannot live up to the books because they don't follow the plot or the actors are terrible. There have only been a handful of books turned movies that I've loved - like Harry Potter.

Blogs I tag:
The Little Death 
Auggie Talk
Faery Tales Are Real
Far Past Midnight
Hooked In a Book
Vintage Cobweb
Harley Bear Book Blog
Storm Goddess Book Reviews
Josie's Haven
Zrinka Jelic - Romance powered by history
Jeanette Hornby Books

My Questions for tagged Bloggers
 

1. What is your favourite book?

2. Which actors would you choose to play the lead male and female characters?

3. If you could go back in time what year would you pick to visit and why?

4. Must need snack at the movies?

5. What supernatural being do you wish was real?

6. Do you believe in soul mates?

7. If you could only read one genre of book for the rest of your life what would it be?

8. What are five places in the world you’d like to travel to?

9. Chocolate, vanilla or strawberry milkshake?

10. What book do you wish was a movie?

11. Edward Cullen or Christen Grey?

Yes, I had to stick that last one in there. To me they are the same person and I’m not a fan of either, but the answer to that question always interests me from others.

Enjoy!

Immortal by Gene Doucette

Title: Immortal
Author: Gene Doucette
Publishing Date: March 8, 2012
Source: Publisher
Summary (from Goodreads):
  
“I don’t know how old I am.My earliest memory is something along the lines of fire good, ice bad, so I think I predate written history, but I don’t know by how much. I like to brag that I’ve been there from the beginning, and while this may very well be true, I generally just say it to pick up girls.”

--Adam the Immortal

Surviving sixty thousand years takes cunning and more than a little luck. But in the twenty-first century, Adam confronts new dangers—someone has found out what he is, a demon is after him, and he has run out of places to hide.Worst of all, he has had entirely too much to drink.

Immortal is a first person confessional penned by a man who is immortal, but not invincible. In an artful blending of sci-fi, adventure, fantasy, and humor, IMMORTAL introduces us to a world with vampires, demons and other “magical” creatures, yet a world without actual magic.

At the center of the book is Adam.

“I have been in quite a few tight situations in my long life. One of the first things I learned was if there is going to be a mob panic, don’t be standing between the mob and wherever it is they all want to go. The second thing I learned was, don’t try to run through fire.”

--Adam the Immortal

Adam is a sixty thousand year old man. (Approximately.) He doesn’t age or get sick, but is otherwise entirely capable of being killed.His survival has hinged on an innate ability to adapt, his wits, and a fairly large dollop of luck.He makes for an excellent guide through history . . . when he’s sober.

Immortal is a contemporary fantasy for non-fantasy readers and fantasy enthusiasts alike

                                 Review

When I first heard of Immortal I admit I wasn’t all that interested. Not because I didn’t think it could be a good story but because I didn’t think it was a story I would like.

I was wrong.

I cannot even begin to explain how much I loved this book. Absolutely loved it. The plot was captivating, the characters were interesting, it was funny and amusing – just one of those books I didn’t want to put down and once I had to I couldn’t stop thinking about it. At times I felt like I was getting a history lesson but one that was hilarious and kept me wanting to learn more. Let me tell you, if History was anything like this in high school I wouldn’t have had my daily naps.

Doucette created a character in Adam that just made me smile a lot through the story – even when things are taking a turn for the worse. I’m not usually a fan of novels written in first person, but I loved the way this one was done. The narrative style sucks you in and makes you feel like you’re right there. Adam’s wit and storytelling of the past had me laughing out loud so many times, especially when it came to the “real” versions of how things went down years ago. Like David and Goliath? Not being a religious person myself, I found it utterly comical the way Adam described the “truth” to that little tale.

I really enjoyed how so many supernatural beings were involved in the book also. Vampires, demons, dragons, pixies – loved the pixies! Doucette even brought something different to the table with Jerry, the iffrit. Who, I thought was kind of charming in an offensive sort of way in the beginning.

I also really liked how the plot wasn’t all that predictable. And the stuff that I did figure out before it was revealed I didn’t even care that I knew because I was in such a hurry to get onto the next part.

Adam, the alcoholic immortal, is definitely a win in the fictional world. 

** I received an ebook copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review 

Buck Tanner's FAQs: Volumes 1-10

Title: Buck Tanner's FAQs: Volumes 1-10
Author: Buck Tanner
Publication Date: April 20, 2012
Source: Author
Summary (from Amazon):

Have you ever wondered...

- Is my Russian Bride a spy?

- Do all vampires have erectile dysfunction?

- Why does the President keep a machete in the Oval Office?

- Why does my sex robot have a submarine piston in her vagina?

- Is my Genie an alcoholic?

- Why can't we eat soup at the Stonybridge Nudist Colony?

- Why is my unicorn attacking my dog?

- Are you sure Hitler is an anti-Semite? He seems like a pretty decent fellow.

Find answers to these questions and many more in...

Buck Tanner's FAQs: Volume One through Ten

                              Review

I read this book a few days ago and I’m still not entirely sure how I feel about it. Is that a bad thing? No, not really.

The book is made up of ten volumes of short stories that are told in FAQs format. The concept of writing stories this way is unique and entertaining and that I applaud the author for. If you ever wondered about vampire sex, Russian mail order brides, unicorns or living on a nudist colony, well, this “answers” those questions.

Now, while I didn’t enjoy all the volumes – I was actually very uncomfortable with the Little Buddy volume – there was a quote from Vampire Sex that I found highly amusing and giggled for a while over:

“A friend of mine went to Forks and she met a vampire. She fell in love, just like in the books. Was he not a real vampire?

Unfortunately, your friend fell victim to a common scam. Sparkly skinned con-men have flocked to Forks, Washington to prey on the numerous lonely and desperate women who visit the city….”

Sparkly skinned con-men! Love that. Because really, what else was Edward Cullen?

It’s sick, dark humour. Again, that’s not a bad thing. It is definitely not for those who are easily offended - especially if you’re a fan of the president.

Now, while I can’t really say these collections are my type of books, I do think there would be fairly wide audience that it would appeal to. If you’re a fan of David Feldman or Gilbert Gottfried (both of which I admit I have never read anything by, but the friend’s hubby says that’s what this book sounds like) then maybe this would be your thing – the “bathroom” humour type of book, I guess.

 **I received an ebook copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.