Archangel's War

Archangel's War (Guild Hunter #12 )- Nalini Singh
Berkley/Penguin Group
Release Date: September 24, 2019

Rating:
📚📚📚📚📚

Warning: Spoilers Ahead!

Synopsis: Wings of silver. Wings of blue. Mortal heart. Broken dreams. Shatter. Shatter. Shatter. A sundering. A grave. I see the end. I see. . . .

The world is in chaos as the power surge of the Cascade rises to a devastating crescendo. In furiously resisting its attempts to turn Elena into a vessel for Raphael’s power, Elena and her archangel are irrevocably changed. . .far beyond the prophecy of a cursed Ancient.

At the same time, violent and eerie events around the world threaten to wipe out entire populations. And in the Archangel Lijuan’s former territory, an unnatural fog weaves through the land, leaving only a bone-chilling silence in its wake. Soon it becomes clear that even the archangels are not immune to this deadly evil. This time, even the combined power of the Cadre may not be enough. . . .

This war could end them all.

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If you're like me, and you've been waiting for this book since October 30, 2018 when you put down Archangel's Prophecy than you have already guessed- there's no way to avoid at least some spoilers in reviewing Archangel's War. If you are new to the series, put down this book and at least read Prophecy before coming back.  You'll be pretty lost on some major issues otherwise.

With that out of the way, Archangel's War does not disappoint those of us who have been waiting desperately to find out what was happening to Elena.  The last time we saw her, she and Raphael were fighting a prophecy that would turn Elena into a vessel for Raphael's increasing power.  And there was the whole chrysalis thing at the end.  Without giving away details, sorting that out is a big part of War (to the surprise of no one. It was kind of a big deal). 

The Cascade has awakened new Ancients before their time, China is a horror movie waiting to happen (hopefully I was not the only one seeing the Miranda scenes from Serenity playing in my head when Elena and Raphael were in China), weather across the globe has turned chaotic and deadly.  If you thought you'd seen Lijuan as creepy-crazy as possible, think again.  It would be easy for a less talented author than Singh to focus on these big picture problems and lose the people along the way.  But War balances nicely the personal issues Elena and Raphael face as they settle into their new 'normal' and the global issues the archangels as a Cadre face thanks to everyone's favorite Angel of Death. Archangels whose defining traits before this had been their oversized egos and personalities prove that they are capable of putting their egos aside and fighting together when faced with a terrible enemy.  Elena especially helps ground the story and the fighting with the people everyone fights to save.  Fans will be happy that Dimitri, Illium, and the rest of the Seven each get some action- and will certainly love one of the personal moments between Illium, Aodhan, and the Hummingbird when we learn that even powerful and deadly angels can be reduced to guilty children by a mom like the Hummingbird.

Once again, Nalini Singh exceeds all expectations for her Guild Hunters series.  Her world-building skills are top-notch, her pacing of the story a perfect blend of war and stolen personal moments. Fans will rejoice in this newest, much anticipated, release- Nalini Singh doesn't disappoint!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Immortal City

The Immortal City (Magicians of Venice)- Amy Kulvalainen
BHC Press
Release Date: September 19, 2019

Rating:
📚📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: In the heart of Venice, a woman is sacrificed to a forgotten god, sparking a mystery lost for thousands of years.

Dr. Penelope Bryne is ridiculed by the academic community for her quest to find the remnants of Atlantis, but when an ancient and mysterious script is found at a murder site, she flies to Venice determined to help the police before the killer strikes again.

Penelope has spent her entire life trying to ignore the unexplainable and magical history of Atlantis, but when she meets the enigmatic Alexis Donato, everything she believes will be challenged. Little does she know, Alexis has spent the last three years doing his best to sabotage Penelope's career so doesn't learn the truth--Atlantis had seven magicians who survived, and who he has a duty to protect.

As Alexis draws her into the darkly, seductive world of magic and history, Penelope will have to use her heart as well as her head if she is to find the answers she seeks. 

With the new MOSE system due to come online, and Carnivale exploding around them, Penelope and Alexis will have to work together to stop the killer and prevent dark magic from pulling Venice into the sea.

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Dr Penelope Byrne has become a pariah on the outskirts of the academic world, ridiculed for her theories on the lost island of Atlantis.  When symbols appear at a Venetian murder scene that match symbols she believes belong to Atlantis, Penelope goes to help the investigation.  But she doesn't come close to the truth until meeting the mysterious Alexis Donavato.  He may be able to help find the murderer, but only by exposing new secrets: that the city of Venice, and the rest of the world, are in danger from an evil Alexis thought drown with Atlantis ten thousand years ago.

Penelope is a strong, stubborn woman who refuses to stay down when her parents, her colleagues, and the academic world knock her down.  She thinks of herself as an ordinary, risk-adverse person, but can't deny the part of her imagination that wishes magic and dreams were real, and that there is something special she is supposed to do with her life.  So when a Venetian detective asks for her help on a case, Pen is on a flight to Venice before she thinks about it.  Penelope is a wonderful heroine- pragmatic, logical, yet a dreamer with an open mind about the world around her.  She accepts that things aren't always what they seem, and more importantly, she accepts that love and fate can arrive when they are least expected. She wasn't looking for a man, but when she meets Alexis she is willing to accept that not all life's plans fall out the way we expect.

Alexis is a man who takes things seriously: protect his people, protect Atlantis' secrets, and stay away from mortals.  He's seen death and destruction so often over the years he can't see himself as anything but a jaded warrior.  But Penelope gets under his skin before he knows what's happened, and he is helpless to deny the incredible pull between them.  As he helps Penelope solve the mystery that brought her to Venice, he realizes that the threat is worse than mortals can imagine, and he and the magicians of Atlantis need to work past their fears to protect the world again.

The Immortal City is a fantastic book that gives magic lovers an entirely new world to enjoy, and leaves you waiting breathlessly to see what will happen next.  Well written, edge of your seat action, and marvelous chemistry between Alexis and Penelope kept me reading until I had devoured the book in one sitting, and was only disappointed that there wasn't a sequel out yet to go on to!  Full of delightful secondary characters that I can't wait to find out more about (I especially loved Marco and hope he shows up in more of the series! Loved his "Venetian" version of CPR at the end!), magic to learn, and pasts to explore, the Magicians of Venice promises to be a must-read series for fantasy lovers!  

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Strangers She Knows

Strangers She Knows (Cape Charade 3)- Christina Dodd
HQN Books
Release Date: September 17, 2019

Rating:
📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: I have three deadly problems:

1. I've seriously offended a maniacal killer.

2. I just had a bullet removed from my brain.

3. My new daughter is growing up too fast--and she's in the line of fire.

Living on an obscure, technology-free island off California means safety from the murderer who hunts Kellen Adams and her new family.... Or does it? Family time becomes terror-time, and at last, alone, Kellen faces a killer playing a cruel game. Only one can survive, and Kellen knows who must win...and who must die.

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After years of fighting for it, Kellen Adams is finally starting to have the life and family she always wanted.  Her only problems now consist of recovering from brain surgery and her daughter Rae growing up too fast- while Kellen is only just getting used to even having a daughter! Then Kellen and husband Max learn that their old enemy, psychotic serial killer Mara Phillips, has escaped prison and is hunting them down.  The small family moves to a tiny, technology-free island off the coast of California for safety while the professionals track Mara down.  Family time has potential for bonding time, but also for danger when Mara and a typhoon visit the island.  Kellen knows it's up to her to face Mara- and only one of them can come out of this game alive.

Strangers She Knows concludes Christina Dodd's Cape Charade series (Dead Girl Running, What Doesn't Kill Her) in intense style. The trilogy has followed Kellen Adams: Army veteran, hotel manager, and a woman who has had more than her share of hardships, danger, and surprises in life, as she becomes part of a family with Max and Rae while still balancing danger and duty. The first part of Strangers focuses mostly on Kellen getting herself back together both physically and mentally, and the three of them creating memories and bonds that they missed out on as Rae was growing up without Kellen.  This includes some humorous father-daughter bonding over repairing (or trying to) a F-100 truck, discovering the story of the previous owners of the island, and wonderful reactions to dynamite in the fridge that are classic Kellen and Max. 

 Mara Phillips (Dead Girl Running) was supposed to be locked up forever, but in true criminal mastermind fashion, Mara escapes and comes after Kellen and anyone else she believes betrayed her.  When Dodd decides to go for a crazed and disturbing villain, she comes up with a villain who will chill your blood- and Mara is definitely her crowning achievement! The last hundred or so pages of Strangers, where Mara truly sets her plans into motion, is a non-stop terrifying roller coaster of action and emotion.  

New readers won't feel completely lost since enough background is provided to Kellen's former life and Mara to keep them going, but I think readers will certainly get the most out the characters and their growth by reading the trilogy in order. And I don't think I'm giving away any spoilers when I say I hope I'm not the only one who had the ending of Jaws in the back of their minds when reading the grand finale of Strangers. Followed closely by thinking: I never saw that coming and of course that's what would happen.   Readers of suspense thrillers by Jayne Ann Krentz and J.D. Robb, and Christina Dodd's earlier thrillers, will defiantly enjoy the adventures of Strangers She Knows!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Well Met

Well Met- Jen DeLuca
Berkley/Penguin Group
Release Date: September 3, 2019

Rating:
📚📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: Emily knew there would be strings attached when she relocated to the small town of Willow Creek, Maryland, for the summer to help her sister recover from an accident, but who could anticipate getting roped into volunteering for the local Renaissance Faire alongside her teenaged niece? Or that the irritating and inscrutable schoolteacher in charge of the volunteers would be so annoying that she finds it impossible to stop thinking about him?

The faire is Simon's family legacy and from the start he makes clear he doesn't have time for Emily's lighthearted approach to life, her oddball Shakespeare conspiracy theories, or her endless suggestions for new acts to shake things up. Yet on the faire grounds he becomes a different person, flirting freely with Emily when she's in her revealing wench's costume. But is this attraction real, or just part of the characters they're portraying?  

This summer was only ever supposed to be a pit stop on the way to somewhere else for Emily, but soon she can't seem to shake the fantasy of establishing something more with Simon or a permanent home of her own in Willow Creek.

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Emily was in a rough place in her life and completely ready to drop everything and move to a small town in Maryland to help her older sister when she had a car accident that put her out of commission for a few months.  Driving to appointments, chauffeuring her teenage niece Caite around, no problem. Emily (like so many of us) is way more comfortable fixing someone else's life than her own.  Then she gets roped into volunteering with Caite at the town's annual Renaissance Faire and meets English teacher Simon.  Simon sees the Faire as his brother's legacy and believes he's the only one who can run things the way they need to go.  So Emily's relaxed approach to life and wenching don't go over well with him- which reminds her too much of her jerk ex-fiancé.  They seem to clash every time they meet: until the Faire is on.  Because Simon's sexy pirate and Emily's tavern wench hit things off a lot better than their mundane counterparts.  Can Faire and real life mix into a happily ever after or is this a well met summer fling that will end when summer is over?

Debut author Jen DeLuca gives readers a romance that is both familiar and fresh.  Emily and Simon can't seem to get along, always say the wrong things, and poor first impressions make it look like it's going to be a long summer for them both.  Using the Renaissance Faire as the way for the two to get to know each other in new ways is a great twist and tons of fun.  DeLuca's own Faire experiences come through loud and clear and whisks readers into a weekend world where suddenly far more is possible than in mundane life.  Emily, who has always felt like an outsider, slowly becomes a part of the Faire world and through the Faire she becomes a part of small Willow Creek town life.  She's friendly and caring, always willing to do what she can to help others, always putting others first.  At the same time she feels like the odd one out, who others let do things for them but forget as soon as she isn't needed.  Her jerk ex-fiancé used her and left her wondering if she deserves to come first in anyone's life- from family to friends to herself.  It's wonderful watching Em begin to regain the confidence she must have once had and grow into herself over the course of the book.  

Simon is a little harder to get to know because Well Met is told through Emily's point of view, so we only see him through her eyes.  But she's not too proud to admit when she starts to see beneath Simon's surface and who he could be if he gives himself the chance. Simon has lived in his older brother's shadow all his life and now Sean is gone and Simon has to figure out what happens next for him.  Like Em, the reader can't help but be attracted to Simon's pirate alter-ego during the Faire, and you can't help but be thrilled when she gives the growing chemistry between them a chance. 

Deluca thrills is this wonderful romantic debut, full of sparkling, snarky dialogue; delightful, laugh out loud  humor; delicious chemistry; and two main characters you're cheering for each step of the way as they find themselves behind the shadows of uncertainty and the expectations of others.  Well Met is a definite must read for fans of romantic comedy like Christina Lauren and Janet Evanovich and is a book that's probably going to become one of my staple, feel good rereads. DeLuca has set a high bar for her future books- I can't wait to see what she brings us next! 

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Bringing Down the Duke

Bringing Down the Duke- Evie Dunmore
Berkley/Penguin Group
Release Date: September 3, 2019

Rating:
📚📚📚

Synopsis: England, 1879. Annabelle Archer, the brilliant but destitute daughter of a country vicar, has earned herself a place among the first cohort of female students at the renowned University of Oxford. In return for her scholarship, she must support the rising women's suffrage movement. Her charge: recruit men of influence to champion their cause. Her target: Sebastian Devereux, the cold and calculating Duke of Montgomery who steers Britain's politics at the Queen's command. Her challenge: not to give in to the powerful attraction she can't deny for the man who opposes everything she stands for.

Sebastian is appalled to find a suffragist squad has infiltrated his ducal home, but the real threat is his impossible feelings for green-eyed beauty Annabelle. He is looking for a wife of equal standing to secure the legacy he has worked so hard to rebuild, not an outspoken commoner who could never be his duchess. But he wouldn't be the greatest strategist of the Kingdom if he couldn't claim this alluring bluestocking without the promise of a ring...or could he?

Locked in a battle with rising passion and a will matching her own, Annabelle will learn just what it takes to topple a duke....

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Annabelle Archer, destitute and living on her cousin's charity as an unpaid house drudge, gets the opportunity to become one of the first women accepted to Oxford.  She is offered a stipend to attend in exchange for supporting a women's suffrage movement.  When handing out pamphlets causes her to meet Sebastian, Duke of Montgomery, things quickly spiral out of control.  Trying to convince Montgomery to support the movement brings her into a world of house parties, Christmas dinners, and high company she isn't sure how to handle- and a stubborn, blue-blooded duke she knows she shouldn't fall in love with.  When they keep getting thrown together, can passion overcome society's obstacles or will they both be restricted by their duties?

Bringing Down the Duke is a debut novel by Evie Dunmore and has been getting a lot of advance hype.  I have to admit it's a hard book for me to review because I'm not really sure how I felt about it- or whether I even liked it.  It has some of the standard tropes I count on to make a good plot/conflict: our hero is a duke on a mission to get back his ancestral home and rebuild the fortunes that his father gambled away, our heroine is a poor commoner trying to earn independence.  He instantly misjudges her as an opportunist out to get money and/or marry into the nobility.  She has some baggage about nobility in her past and isn't very impressed by overbearing men.  He expects to say 'jump' and have people ask 'how high?' while she is more likely to look him in the eye and ask 'why should I?'  The book also focuses on a time period and subject that don't usually get highlighted in romance novels: the 1879 women's suffrage movement and attempting to repeal the Married Women's Property Act. Annabelle is a smart woman who (rightfully) resents having to live off the charity of her stupid cousin- especially when that charity means she's allowed to live in his house and work as an unpaid servant and have no life of her own. She sees the chance to go to Oxford and study ancient Greece as a step towards gaining independence.  So far, so good. It's after that that things got a little shaky for me.

For one thing, it was hard for me to get a good idea of what Annabelle wanted with her life.  Ok, she doesn't want what she has now and she wants to be treated with some respect and have a say in her own life.  But I never got a real sense that she had a goal past that. She studied ancient Greece because that's what her father studied and taught her and she was good with Latin and Greek.  Was it fascinating to her? Did she have a drive to go to archaeological sites and do her own research and present her own theories? I don't know.  Was she interested in getting an education so she could go back home and be a paid governess of the local gentry? That's what she says in order to go, but probably wasn't really the plan. I never got a sense she had a goal in mind.  Did she really care about the suffrage movement? You get the feeling at first that the answer is no: she participates because that's what it takes to keep her stipend.  Was she interested in the movement and applied because of that? Where did she hear about the stipend in the first place? Maybe not important things but it all made me question how deeply we were getting to see her.  She does argue the logic of why a woman should be able to keep her property on marriage and gets in the face of anyone who suggests that she isn't a man's intellectual equal but takes that as a personal attack instead of for women in general.  

Sebastian is pretty closed off for the whole book.  You know what he wants: to get his ancestral seat back, to restore his family's good name and fortune, to have his younger brother do what he's told, and to have Annabelle as a mistress.  The more time he spends with her, the more he wants her- probably because she is one of those rare people who treats him as a person and not a duke.  He admits if she were more his social equal he'd marry her, but sees nothing wrong or insulting with saying that since that isn't the case, she should be his mistress.  He's insulted she doesn't see this as a great opportunity, since she clearly is attracted to him.  It's an attitude he carries through pretty much the whole book and with all his interactions with everyone: I know best, I am the best, don't question me. That makes it really hard to like him.  

There is a lot of angst and longing because of the obstacles in the way of Sebastian and Annabelle's happily ever after.  Secondary characters are mostly flat and unknowable.  Some, like Sebastian's brother Peregrine, are completely unlikable (he's the party-going frat boy type who rebels against the idea of taking up any responsibility by acting like a spoiled brat of 5 and running away from home when his brother signs him up for the Navy at the rather improbable age of 19). 

The writing is choppy, especially in the beginning. Things would go from fine to awkward: Sebastian would be getting address as Your Grace and then suddenly getting called "Duke", Annabelle would suddenly be speaking or thinking far too modernly, and (while I'm no expert) her clothing styles seemed to me more 1812 than 1879.  Maybe these are mistakes that could be explained away as being a writer's first novel, but they made things jarring for me.  On the other hand, I did keep reading and hoping for some kind of a happy ending.  And (spoiler alert) while it happens far too fast and improbably conveniently, in the end our heroes do get there.  Whether I liked the journey enough to read the next book in the series Dunmore comes up with, I'm not sure.

I was up and down on this book, but there is potential in it.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review