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Showing posts with label Hailey Edwards. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hailey Edwards. Show all posts
Monday, February 25, 2013
Review: A Cast of Shadows by Hailey Edwards
A Cast of Shadows
Author: Hailey Edwards
Release Date: Feb. 12, 2013
Publisher: Samhain
Araneae Nation, Book 2.5
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Format(s): e-book
Book Source: author
About the book
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Daraja has grown up watching her brothers journey down the river on the traditional Deinopidae rite of passage. Each returned with riches from their travels, and lovers with whom to share their lives.
Now she has reached the age where she would strike out on her own to seek her fortune—if she were male. Instead, she is expected to sit patiently, weave her nets and wait for the river to bring a husband to her.
Patience, however, has never been her strong suit.
Brynmor haunts the forest surrounding the city of Cathis, his disembodied spirit inextricably bound to the wild canis roaming his lands. Until the day he stumbles across a brazen trespasser in his woods.
Compelled to step in when the canis suspect her of poaching one of their own, Brynmor fears he has lost a piece of his ragged soul to the feisty, adventure-seeking female. And when the canis confront the real poachers, he is forced to choose which life to sacrifice. Hers…or his own.
What VampBard’s talking about:
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Readers of the Araneae Nation series won't want to miss this action-packed novella, set after A Feast of Souls, the second title in the series. Brynmor, former leader of Cathis and father to Vaughn, is running with the canis. He lives with them. They are now his family. We also are lucky enough to meet Daraja, an independent woman looking for what is clearly going to define who she is, upon return to her village.
Every story has a conflict. That's what makes us, as readers, invested in the plot. I struggled a little with figuring out the main conflict in A Cast of Shadows. Once I decided to step back and read this little 100-ish page novella for the entertainment value, and for furthering my knowledge of the Araneae, all was good. There's enough conflict in this novella that I'm hoping some will bleed into the next novel.
Daraja was on a journey that many of her clanswomen before her had taken down the river. She was looking for one of those defining moments. The clarity of what her future would be. I'm not going to mince words here. I really don't like the fact that women are expected to be married or contributing to the family in order to be valued. However, Ms. Edwards has established in her other novels that women ARE valued, and they don't necessarily need to be connected to a man. This is probably a tribal thing, and doesn't color my love for this series. If you're jumping in at this novella, however, keep in mind that this is **really** isolated.
Brynmor seems to be searching for some sort of defining moment for himself as well. Even though we have no idea how long he's been soul-bound (I think that crosses to a different series...) to Errol, a canis that leads the pack in the woods outside Cathis, Brynmor seems to be searching, and not completely satisfied with his 'life' as it currently stands. Enter Daraja. Without spoiling the story, let me just say that Brynmor starts off as the creepy stalker dude, but winds up the epic hero.
I think that anyone that's a fan of Hailey Edwards' Araneae Nation series will enjoy this explanation of what happened to Vaughn's father, Brynmor. It really does a fabulous job with filling-in that blank, without having a completely disconnected side plot in a longer novel. I'm glad Brynmor's story has been told, and I'm excited for the release of A Time of Dying, the third novel in this series, in July 2013!
VampBard’s Rating:
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Enjoyed - strongly recommend (A-)
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Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Review: A Feast of Souls by Hailey Edwards
A Feast of Souls
Author: Hailey Edwards
Release Date: Dec. 18, 2012
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Araneae Nation Book #2
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Format(s): e-book
Book Source: Author
About the book:
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The only way to save her is to bind their souls as one.
Born with the ability to communicate with the dead, few things take Mana by surprise. But when a canis lopes into her life, announcing himself as the long-dead father of a childhood friend, she’s shocked. To make matters worse, he has a dire message that she alone can deliver.
Now Mana must face Vaughn, the male who inspired one too many girlish fantasies, and impart the spirit’s message—without acknowledging her source—so the soul can be laid to rest.
With rumors of a burgeoning clan war setting his nerves on edge, the last thing Vaughn needs is for an innocent to get caught in the crosshairs. But the woman he remembers as an awkward girl refuses to leave his side until he’s heard her out. That’s not the only change in her that calls to him. Her kindness soothes his battle-scarred soul—and he craves her in ways a warrior shouldn’t.
When they are both captured, they learn of an even greater threat. The plague devastating the southlands has come to his clan home. And his best—and only—chance to keep his people alive is the female who walks among the dead.
What VampBard’s talking about:
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Ms. Edwards' second foray into the Araneae Nation series offers up A Feast of Souls for our literary enjoyment! This delightful, intense tale brings us Vaughn and Mana, our hero/heroine. We grow with them, through their trials and tribulations before we make it to their destiny. Well-written with a sense of urgency to move toward the end, I was completely engrossed for the second half of the title, reading it in one sitting and neglecting the short stories I should be grading.
Some of what completely fascinates me about the Araneae Nation books is trying to figure out exactly what – and not be too creeped out by – the paranormal-ness of the clans. They spin silk, have fangs and venom... Yup. Spiderpeople. Holy crow! We have a nation of Spidermen (Spiderpeople?)! I'm a closet super hero geek (shhh... don't tell anyone!), so I fell in love with this series when I read Book 1 of the series, A Hint of Frost. This title, A Feast of Souls could be a stand-alone, as Ms. Edwards explains with enough detail, as a reminder to her readers, events from the first book.
While I can see the value in the first half of the title, it moved a little slowly for me. I really liked the relationship building presented, but it just took me awhile to get into it (keep in mind, I started this book while my house was full of kids over holiday break...). There were a couple grammar errors, one of which made my eye twitch, but otherwise fabulous, skilled writing style!
Talk about fabulous fantasy world-building! I want to ride bears and dinosaurs! OK. They weren’t call bears and dinosaurs, but their descriptions made me picture bears and dinosaurs! I'm also impressed with the way the characters from the first book of the series, Lourdes and Rhys, were mentioned, and we get a closer glimpse of Rhys' backstory, albeit in a round-a-bout way. Lourdes also has importance in this story, although it is understated.
Mana and Vaughn are a pair of soul mates. It's plain as day for me from the very beginning of the story. I get soul mates. I believe in soul mates. I do, however, believe that they would have SOMEHOW known before now that they were destined to be together. I actually teared up a bit when we learned Isolde's story, and I was really hoping that Ms. Edwards wasn't heading us to a bait-and-switch. I may have thrown things. I LIKE Vaughn and Mana together! I'm really not even cool with Mana interacting with other characters unless Vaughn is around.
Vaughn is complete alpha male, mercenary. Magically, and oftentimes mysteriously, Vaughn is sweet and tender with Mana. It appeared as though all that knew him were surprised by his behavior with Mana. When I hit about the 60% mark, I kept thinking about the song from Wicked, For Good. I think the line that made me totally identify with Vaughn was 'Who can say I've been changed for the better? / But because I knew you / I've been changed for good.' Based on their shared past, I think that Vaughn would have been a different person if he hadn't spent as much time with Mana and her people as he did growing up. Even though he's spent his adult life as a mercenary, earning money to support his people, the paladin (like a king in this instance) will be a just leader, when his time comes.
Mana, which reminded me of the Hebrew super-food every time I ran across it in the book, was a dream walker. I have always been fascinated by the prospect of dream walkers. Even with a lot of baggage from her childhood, Mana seemed well-adjusted. I was excited that she believed throughout the book that she did have a soul mate. I envied her ability to see certain things clearly while retaining an innocence about her own future.
A Feast of Souls is an expertly crafted novel, able to keep the reader entranced through the twists and turns of an awesomely crafted plot. The romance provided was intense and built to an excellent culmination. Great read to start 2013!
VampBard’s Rating:
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Purchase Info:
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Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Review: A Hint of Frost
A Hint of Frost
Author: Hailey Edwards
Release Date: April 17, 2012
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Araneae Nation, Book #1
ISBN: (ASIN) B0065TF8Q6
Genre: Fantasy/Paranormal Romance
Format(s): e-book
Book Source: Author
About the book:
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When the head of the Araneidae clan is found poisoned in her nest, her eldest daughter, Lourdes, becomes their clan’s new maven. If her clan is to survive, she has but one choice: she must marry before her nest is seized. All she needs is a warrior fierce enough to protect her city and safeguard her clansmen. Such a male is Rhys the Cold.
Born the youngest son of an impoverished maven, the only things Rhys has to his name are his sword and his mercenary reputation. His clan is starving, but their fondness for the flesh of fellow Araneaeans makes them unwelcome dinner guests. Torn between loyalty to his clan and fascination with his future bride, Rhys’s first taste of Lourdes threatens to melt the cold encasing his heart.
Amid the chaos of battle, Lourdes’s sister disappears and is feared captured. Lourdes and Rhys pursue their enemies into the southlands, where they discover an odd plague ravaging southern clans as it travels north, to Erania. Determined to survive, Lourdes will discover whether she’s worth her silk or if she’s spun the thread by which her clan will hang.
Warning: This book contains one mercenary hero with a biting fetish, one determined heroine who gets nibbled, and an answer to the age-old question, “What does dragon taste like?” Matricide and sibling rivalry are available upon request. The house special is revenge, best served cold.
What VampBard’s talking about:
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A Hint of Frost, the newest title in Ms. Edward's catalogue, begins the Aranea Nation series. Lots of great world-building going on in this title. If you're into conspiracy theories, dragons, and alternate universe beings, this is a series you'll want to get into from square one!
Spider people. Whoda thunk... I wasn't even the slightest bit creeped out, either! When Lourdes, the new 'Queen' of Araneidae learns of the death of her parents, she snaps into action. She seems to be one of those people that's able to compartmentalize and get done what needs doing. No matter what the cost is to herself. After all, she's the leader of her people, and she needs to do whatever she can to keep her clan safe. Doesn't matter if she's happy or not. When the Araneidae people were betrayed by the clan that swore to protect them, Lourdes didn't hesitate to align herself with another clan that would be able to keep her people safe. Lots of selfless acts. Little did Lourdes know, the man to which she was betrothed would worm his way into her heart from their first meeting.
Rhys, who has been promised by his mother to Lourdes in consideration for riches and armor, actually is a sweet guy. He's very protective of Lourdes, and does not pressure her for any reason. It's rather refreshing to read about a true gentleman that values his virtue as well as that of his lady. It was interesting to see his reactions as protector as intense as they were from the beginning of the story. The primal growling and biting was a bit erotic, and actually helped the reader see that the couple were becoming more and more entwined.
The rising action for A Hint of Frost appeared to be the search for Lourdes' sister, thought to have left the stronghold of the familial home in an effort to hide her involvement in her parents' death. Prior to the binding ceremony taking place toward the end of the story, her trial is held, and we don't see her consequences for her actions actually unfold during this title. During the hunt for Lourdes' sister, Rhys is injured and nearly dies. It is only because of the involvement of his home clan, and his cousin, that Rhys survives.
While we could see Lourdes and Rhys' sexual tension building throughout the story, it felt like the ending was little more than wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am. The actual consummation of their union, while they had both been emotionally tied to the other, fell to the final scene in the story. (Those reading the e-book edition will note that the last 10% deals with the physical act and excerpts from other titles – and not just those by Ms. Edwards.) I was hoping that there would be more to the story.
Overall, A Hint of Frost is a great title to what promises to be a great series by Ms. Edwards. I look forward to seeing where the next title leads us.
VampBard’s Rating:
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Liked it a lot - recommend (B+)
Purchase Info:
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