T5W - Summer Book Covers

Sorry this is so quick.  I've been a tad tardy on my updating recently but I hope to post some pics of my new - and beautiful - books soon ;-D

In the meantime, I'm back for another Top 5 Wednesday.  This week we're looking at Summer Book Covers.  You know, those books you look at an immediately think of summer - even in the middle of winter (which I am heading into!).

click image to enlarge

It took a lot of searching to come up with some Summer-type themes let me tell you.  I chose these because they each represented either the heat of summer, or had something identified uniquely with summer, like swimming or the beach.  The piggy bank was just a fun, bright and cheerful cover that I immediately associated with Summer, the sunnies just sealed the deal ;-D

Well, I don't think there's anything left to say about my choices.  Do they scream Summer to you?  Let me know in the comment area what you think.  I'd also love to hear what your favourite covers for summer are? 

If you're interested in becoming part of the Top 5 Wednesday family, then head on over to the Goodreads group {here}.  Also don't forget to check out some of the great BookTube videos, namely the lovely Lainey at GINGERREADSLAINEY - who created this series!

Until next time,

 

Top 5 over 500!

Hello, and welcome to another Top 5 Wednesday list!  This week we are demolishing our shelves, trying to find our top 5 books over 500 pages.  Yes, that's right - 500 pages!  Luckily I do have rather a few huge books on my shelves but as I was riffling through I realised that a few of them were in my TBR shelves.  Bugger!  Can't put those in my top 5, so this is what I ended up with...

 

Through Wolf's Eyes by Jane Lindskold

608 pages

This is the first book in the Firekeeper Saga, and essentially is about a girl who lost her parents when she was a young child and happened to be found and taken in by a pack of intelligent wolves.  Years later, they send her back to the humans {as they'd promised her mother} and the humans think that she is the lost heir to the throne (I think?) and there is a lot of political manoeuvring involved.  Set in an equivalent medieval era, it is a great introduction to Jane Lindskold if you love adult fantasy.

PS - this item is no longer available on Book Depository, etc.  Can find it on sites like AbeBooks.com {that's where I just ordered mine from ;-D}

 

Divine by Mistake by P.C. Cast

698 pages

This is the first book in Cast's Partholon Trilogy.  The story revolves around Shannon Parker, a teacher, and during her summer vacation she purchases, at auction, a Celtic vase and finds herself magically transported to the world of Partholon where she becomes the Goddess Incarnate of Epona and must find a way to return to Oklahoma before war erupts - oh, and she is married off to a centaur! ;-D

Much better than her series with daughter, this is an light, adult contemporary/fantasy trilogy.

 

 

Gladiatrix by Rhonda Roberts

582 pages

I love it when I can plug a great book from an Australian author!

When time travel was invented, everyone thought it would solve their problems. But for 22-year-old Kannon, it's about to turn her life upside down. Left for dead in the Blue Mountains when she was just a baby, Kannon has now discovered that an American Time Marshal, Victoria Dupree, could be her real mother. But Victoria has gone missing in ancient Rome while investigating the Hierophant, the mysterious leader of the Isis cult.  Kannon desperately wants to find Victoria, but the US National Time Administration is standing in her way ...

So amazing!  The next two books in the series have been published, Hoodwinked (set in the 20's I think), and Coyote (which is set in Wild West USA).

 

A Kiss of Shadows by Laurell K. Hamilton

521 pages

I love this series, and stumbled across A Kiss of Shadows when it was first published way back when.  It is an adult contemporary fantasy series with explicit sex scenes, so if that's something that bothers you then I'd recommend you either skim those scenes, or try another book.  This series is NOT FOR YOUNGER READERS!

Merry Gentry, princess of the high court of Faerie, is posing as a human in Los Angeles, working as a private investigator specializing in supernatural crime. But now the queen's assassin has been dispatched to fetch her--whether she likes it or not. Suddenly Merry finds herself a pawn in her dreaded aunt's plans. The job that awaits her: enjoy the constant company of the most beautiful immortal men in the world. 

The reward: the crown--and the opportunity to continue to live. 

The penalty for failure: death.

 

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

690 pages

A world of witches, daemons and vampires. A manuscript which holds the secrets of their past and the key to their future. Diana and Matthew - the forbidden love at the heart of it. When historian Diana Bishop opens an alchemical manuscript in the Bodleian Library, it's an unwelcome intrusion of magic into her carefully ordered life. Though Diana is a witch of impeccable lineage, the violent death of her parents while she was still a child convinced her that human fear is more potent than any witchcraft. Now Diana has unwittingly exposed herself to a world she's kept at bay for years; one of powerful witches, creative, destructive daemons and long-lived vampires. Sensing the significance of Diana's discovery, the creatures gather in Oxford, among them the enigmatic Matthew Clairmont, a vampire geneticist. Diana is inexplicably drawn to Matthew and, in a shadowy world of half-truths and old enmities, ties herself to him without fully understanding the ancient line they are crossing. As they begin to unlock the secrets of the manuscript and their feelings for each other deepen, so the fragile balance of peace unravels...

OMG! Such an amazing trilogy!  Can't say enough great things about these books, and would recommend anyone who loves magic, witches, forbidden love and history to pick up this book!

plus an

 

At just a smidge under the 500 page limit - 487 pages to be exact - I had to include Written in Red by Anne Bishop as an Honourable Mention as I love this book so much!  While not targeted as a YA fantasy, this book is a great read for anyone (of any age!) that loves shapeshifters, elemental beings, vampires with a difference, and other magical beings and wants to segue into adult fantasy. 

This is the first book in The Others series, the second book, Murder of Crows, is currently out in hardcover/trade while the third - and hopefully not last - book in the series, Vision in Silver, is due for release next March!   I so want an ARC copy of ViS! - if anyones listening {*hint hint *} :-D

So if you loved Written in Red and are looking for more of Anne Bishop's books that are aimed at an adult audience, then I would highly recommend that you try her Black Jewels series.

You'll might have noticed 3 a glaring omission from this list.  There is no LOTR, nor any Harry Potter books.  I've tried to stay away from YA (sorry The Diviners and Harry!), and I only read LOTR every couple of years and since it was originally published in 3 parts, I don't really think I could put it here - that and I didn't want to be that predictable ;-D

Okay, so that's me done for another week.  I hope you found something new to read, and if you want to find out more about this series, it was created by the lovely Lainey at GINGERREADSLAINEY and I'll include a link to the Goodreads group {here} if you would also like to participate.

If you have any questions, or comments, I'd love to hear from you... and you know what to do down below ;-D

So until next time,

 

Classic Read: Divine By Mistake

Divine By Mistake
Parthalon Bk 1
P.C. Cast

Published: September 2006
(Originally published as Goddess by Mistake, 2001)
LUNA, Mass Market Paperback, 698 p.
ISBN: 978-0-373-80247-0

The most excitement teacher Shannon Parker expected on her summer vacation was a little shopping.  But then her latest purchase - a viase with the Celtic goddess Epona on it - somehow switches her into the world of Parthalon, where she's treated like a goddess.  A very temperamental goddess...

It seems that Shannon has stepped into another's role as the Goddess Incarnate of Epona.  And while it has some very appealing moments - what woman doesn't like a little pampering now and then? - it also comes with a ritual marriage to a centaur and the threat of war against the evil Fomorians.  Oh, and everyone disliking her because they think she's her double.

Somehow Shannon needs to figure out how to get back to Oklahoma without being killed, married to a horse or loosing her mind...

All hail Epona!  In the 6 years since I discovered Parthalon, this is still my favourite of all the books in the series.  Originally published as Goddess by Mistake in 2001, then undergoing a name change and reissue in 2006, Divine by Mistake is one of the best books in the fantasy romance genre that I have ever read.

Though the book clocks in at nearly 700 pages, there is just something so enticing about it that you don't notice how thick the book is while you're devouring it.  Shannon Parker is just your average woman, nothing magical about her, no special talents or powers.  It is only her resemblence to the Goddess' Chosen on Parthalon that gets her dragged into this mess.

I found Casts portrayal of Parker to be so witty.  The smart remarks that fall from her lips (or thought in her head) are some of the best quips I've heard.

That's it.  He was probably the mirror image of an Oklahoma bubba.  I could see it now, he would want to call me his sweet thang and slap me on the butt.

And her confusion with the similarities to her world, and her friends dopplegangers, is fun to read.  Her close relationship with Alanna is sweet, and I loved the relationship between Shannon and ClanFintan as it's not often that an author crosses the species barrier quite so thoroughly.  Seriously, a Centaur!  That's a little weirder than a vampire or werewolf, isn't it?  But Cast does it so well that you don't even question the pairing.

The use of mythology in this book is great.  I'm a bit of a mythology nerd, and the way Cast uses the Celtic myths and legends to bring Parthalon to life is wonderful.  Fomorian's, false gods, nasty Goddess Incarnate and a Celtic Goddess.  What more could a girl ask for?

Although this book is the start of a trilogy (with 3 further titles published later), I find that this is the book I return to time and time again.  A great addition to any paranormal romance readers library.  I just wish we could have had more time with Shannon and ClanFintan.  Just don't try and read it at work, you just don't get any done - I certainly didn't ;-D

Goddess Summoning series

Yesterday I found the next book in the Goddess Summoning series by P.C. Cast that is being re-issued in Australia - with new covers of course.  Goddess of Spring is the tale of Hades, God of the Underworld, and how he falls in love with his queen.

"Lina's trendy bakery in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is proving to be less than lucrative and when she stumbles upon an Italian Goddess cookbook, she can't help but think she's found the answer to her problem - even if it meanbs invoking a goddess to save her business.  Soon enough, Lina finds herself face to face with Demeter, who has a plan of her won.  She proposes that Lina exchange souls with the Goddess of Spring, Persephone, who will breathe new life into the bakery.  In return, Lina must bring order to the Underworld.

Now that she embodies the enchantingly beautiful Persephone, Lina has weightier things on her mind than dough and second dates - like the formidable task of bringing spring to a world of spirits.  But when the handsome, brooding Hades kindles a spark in her heart, Lina wonders if this Lord of the Underworld might be the man of her dreams . . ."

This book was an enchanting read.  I have previously devoured her Goddess of Legend, the Roses, and of Troy, but was a little hesitant about the story of Hades and Persephone/Lina.  Thank God that I ignored my concerns and dived in.  Cast has a way of breathing new life into mythology and making it more of a modern day romance than a 2000 year old story.  Hades is wonderfully insecure with Lina and Lina is just magical, including her connection to animals, especially the dread steed of Hades, Orion, and a certain three headed canine guardian of the Underworld.  While not a long and complicated story, it will transport you into a world of Gods and Goddesses.  Try it, I heartily recommend this series.

Rating: 3½ / 5