My Top 5 UF Picks for April!

Lots of Urban Fantasy new releases in April! Here are my top 5 Urban Fantasy Picks, beginning with a debut author and her new series!

Royal Street (Sentinels of New Orleans #1) - Suzanne Johnson

April 10th

As the junior wizard sentinel for New Orleans, Drusilla Jaco's job involves a lot more potion-mixing and pixie-retrieval than sniffing out supernatural bad guys like rogue vampires and lethal were-creatures. DJ's boss and mentor, Gerald St. Simon, is the wizard tasked with protecting the city from anyone or anything that might slip over from the preternatural beyond. 
Then Hurricane Katrina hammers New Orleans' fragile levees, unleashing more than just dangerous flood waters. 
While winds howled and Lake Pontchartrain surged, the borders between the modern city and the Otherworld crumbled. Now, the undead and the restless are roaming the Big Easy, and a serial killer with ties to voodoo is murdering the soldiers sent to help the city recover. 
To make it worse, Gerry has gone missing, the wizards' Elders have assigned a grenade-toting assassin as DJ's new partner, and undead pirate Jean Lafitte wants to make her walk his plank. The search for Gerry and for the serial killer turns personal when DJ learns the hard way that loyalty requires sacrifice, allies come from the unlikeliest places, and duty mixed with love creates one bitter gumbo.

Devil's Punch (Corine Solomon #4) - Ann Aguirre

April 3rd

Corine Solomon can touch any object and learn its history. But right now, she's trying to rebuild her pawnshop and her life despite her being marked as a witch. When demons from her past kidnap her best friend, Corine puts everything on hold to save her...

Previous Books in the Corine Solomon series:

Blue Diablo
Hell Fire
Shady Lady 

The Prophet (Graveyard Queen #3) - Amanda Stevens 

April 24th

My name is Amelia Gray. 

I am the Graveyard Queen, a cemetery restorer who sees ghosts. My father passed down four rules to keep me safe and I’ve broken every last one. A door has opened and evil wants me back. 

In order to protect myself, I’ve vowed to return to those rules. But the ghost of a murdered cop needs my help to find his killer. The clues lead me to the dark side of Charleston—where witchcraft, root doctors and black magic still flourish—and back to John Devlin, a haunted police detective I should only love from afar. 

Now I’m faced with a terrible choice: follow the rules or follow my heart

Magic Without Mercy (Allie Beckstrom #8) - Devon Monk

April 3rd

Allison Beckstrom's talent for tracking spells has put her up against some of the darkest elements in the world of magic. But now, magic itself has been poisoned, and Allie's undead father may have left the only cure in the hands of a madman.

Previous Allie Beckstrom books:

Magic to the Bone

Magic in the Blood

Magic in the Shadows

Magic on the Storm 

Magic at the Gate

Magic on the Hunt

Magic on the Line

Summoning The Night (Arcadia Bell #2) - Jenn Bennett
April 24th
After narrowly escaping her fate as a sacrificial scapegoat, Arcadia Bell is back to normal. Or at least as ordinary as life can be for a renegade magician and owner of a tiki bar that caters to Earthbound demons. She's gearing up for the busiest day of the year--Halloween--when a vengeful kidnapper paralyzes the community. The influential head of the local Hellfire Club taps Cady to track down the fiendish bogeyman, and now that she's dating red-hot Lon Butler, the Club's wayward son, she can hardly say no.

Cady and Lon untangle a gruesome thirty-year trail of clues that points to danger for the club members' children. But locating the person behind the terror will require some metaphysical help from Cady's loyal bar patrons as well as her potent new Moonchild powers--and she'd better figure it out before the final victim disappears and her own darkest secret becomes her biggest enemy.

So, let's hear it. What are YOUR top picks for April?! 

Spaz Reviews: Wrong Side of Dead - Kelly Meding

My new review of Wrong Side of Dead by Kelly Meding is up at Wicked Lil Pixie!

After the emotional roller coaster of book 3, Another Kind of Dead, in which Evy suffers some pretty awful torture, we are now dealing with the aftermath of said kidnapping and torture. But war takes a break for nobody, and as she is dealing with *pardon my French* the really fucked up shit that was done to her, she is immediately jolted in to a race with time as Wyatt and her friends deal with the aftermath of an ultimate betrayal. And that is the only kind of recap you are going to get from me 

I am just going to dive right in and start off with saying that I loved the world building in Wrong Side of Dead and I appreciate that Kelly Meding is still bringing us this amazing Urban Fantasy setting and tone by book 4 of the Dreg City series. I thoroughly enjoyed being taken through Evy’s new home base, the Watchtower, and how it was set up in the former Mall. So dang cool!! The story is dense and rich, never lagging in pace, as she desperately tries to find the villain Thackery before it’s too late. And her relationship with Wyatt… Sigh. It’s a very very rough ride for them in this book, but when is it not? The payoff, however, left me one very happy reader. Continue reading...

Slap happy!

Life... it's crazy right now. Our house finally went under contract in January, yay!! But we haven't found a new home to buy yet, boo!! This past week, we moved our entire life in to a storage unit, then ourselves and our 2 dogs in to an Extended Stay hotel, and closed on the house yesterday. On top of it all, my hard drive died in my MacBook Pro right before the move. I am on a loaner machine for work, but am trying not to leave too much of a digital foot print on it. So. I am definitely posting less than usual the next week or so, and anything I do post has already been published and scheduled.

With that, I leave you this video from an episode of South Park we caught last week (when we had cable). It's what I have felt like dishing out today to everyone at work :P This makes me giggle, and giggle, and giggle! Enjoy :) And please cross your fingers we find "the one" house soon, y'all, because living in this long term living hotel room with hubs and our dogs? NOT GLAMOROUS. 

(video contains NSFW language, hello! it's South Park!)

Spaz Reviews: Deep Dark Secret - Sierra Dean

My newest review of Deep Dark Secret (Secret McQueen #3) by Sierra Dean is up at WLP! 

Secret McQueen is back in her Jimmy Choos, and kicking major ass, y’all! After the events of the previous book, Something Secret This Way Comes, Secret has earned herself a seat on the vampire Tribunal. She has staked and clawed her way to the top, proving she is the biggest baddest b!tch on the block. She is also trying to learn all the social nuances of her role of pack protector, and also consort to Lucas, King of the Eastern wolf pack. As a she tries to balance herself in the world of vampires and the world of werewolves, Secret seemingly rolls with the punches. Likewise, while she is bonded to Lucas, she is also bonded to Desmond, whom she lives with and loves. Continue reading...

Spaz Reviews: Not Wicked Enough - Carolyn Jewel

My new review of Not Wicked Enough by Carolyn Jewel is up at Wicked Lil Pixie! 

This is my first Historical Romance novel... and sweet fancy cheeses, I loved it! First things first, screw the plot. There was one, and it was entertaining enough, but mostly I just loved wondering how Lily and Mountjoy are going to eventually find their HEA. From the first moment Lily meets the Duke, it is so freaking hot. She has pretty much given up on ever loving again; and he is a farmer at heart who has found himself in his position of Duke, to be married to someone suitable for his position in society; yet neither can ignore their smoldering attraction to one another and thank gods for us, they don't! From their very first encounter, I was fanning myself with my hand. As their encounters occur throughout the vast Estate and their attraction only grows, I could not put Not Wicked Enough down!

Continue reading...

This Week in New Covers: Ilona Andrews, Nicole Peeler, Meljean Brook, & Eileen Wilks!

Ilona Andrews revealed the new cover for Gunmental Magic (Kate Daniels 5.5) this week, with Andrea on the cover!! It's her book, after all. She is even wearing a bulletproof vest! This one is out July 31st, and omg I cannot freaking wait. 

Some people have everything figured out — Andrea Nash is not one of those people. After being kicked out of the Order of Knights of Merciful Aid, Andrea's whole existence is in shambles. All she can do is try to put herself back together, something made easier by working for Cutting Edge, a small investigative firm owned by her best friend, Kate Daniels. 
When several shapeshifters working for Raphael Medrano — the male alpha of Clan Bouda and Andrea's former lover — die unexpectedly at a dig site, Andrea is assigned to investigate ... and must work with Raphael. As her search for the killer leads her into the secret underbelly of supernatural Atlanta, Andrea knows that dealing with her feelings for Raphael might have to take a backseat to saving the world ..

And then another of my all-time favorites, Nicole Peeler, revealed the latest cover for Tempest's Fury, the fifth Jane True book! It will be out on June 26th, wooohoooo!

Jane's not happy. She's been packed off to England to fight in a war when she'd much rather be snogging Anyan. Unfortunately, Jane's enemies have been busy stirring up some major trouble -- the kind that attracts a lot of attention. In other words, they're not making it easy for Jane to get any alone time with the barghest, or to indulge in her penchant for stinky cheese.
Praying she can pull of a Joan of Arc without the whole martyrdom thing, Jane must lead Alfar and halflings alike in a desperate battle to combat an ancient evil. Catapulted into the role of Most Unlikely Hero Ever, Jane also has to fight her own insecurities as well as the doubts of those who don't think she can live up to her new role as Champion.Along the way, Jane learns that some heroes are born. Some are made. And some are bribed with promises of food and sex.

Next, Meljean Brook revealed the cover and title of the third The Iron Seas book, Riveted. It is to be released in September! 

There is no description for the book yet, but here is what Meljean has to say about the book on her blog. For all the good tidbits on Riveted, visit her blog post:

Who are the main characters? David Kentewess and Annika Fridasdottor — he’s a vulcanologist with mechanical parts (some are indicated on the cover, some aren’t so obvious); she’s an engineer on an airship (and in a troll’s belly.)
Have we met them before? No, and we won’t see any characters from the other books in the series, either, except for (vague) references to events in those books and other Easter Eggs. I want most of the books in the Iron Seas to stand alone as much as possible, and I also want to travel around the world. This means I have to leave some familiar characters behind…but I’ll get around to them again eventually (coughTheBlacksmithcough).

And last but definitely not least, Eileen Wilks released the cover late-February for her upcoming Mortal Ties (World of the Lupi, #9) and I think it is FANTASTIC! It might be one of my favorite covers yet in the series, and is due out in October. I adore Lily Yu!! 

FBI agent Lily Yu is living at Nokolai Clanhome with her fiancé, lupi Rule Turner, when an intruder penetrates their territory, stealing the prototype of a magical device the clan hopes will be worth a fortune--if a few bugs can be worked out . . . 

But the prototype can be dangerously erratic, discharging a bizarre form of mind magic—and it looks like the thief wants it for that very side effect. Worse, whoever stole the device didn't learn about it by accident. There's a Nokolai traitor in their midst. Lily and Rule have to find the traitor, the thief, and the prototype. One job proves easy when the thief calls them--and his identity rocks Rule's world. As they race to recover their missing property, they find Robert Friar's sticky footprints all over the place. Robert Friar―killer, madman, and acolyte of the Old One the Lupi are at war with―an Old One whose power is almost as vast as her ambition to rock the entire world . . .

New Cover Alert - Spellcrossed by Barbara Ashford

Now that a cover has been released for Barbara Ashford's Spellcrossed, I wanted to be sure to highlight it. After discussing the subject with Nat and Tori we agreed that the cover of Spellcast didn't entice readers to pick it up. Spellcast was one of my top 5 Picks of 2011, as well as Nat's, and it made lot of other book blog lists. So why so little hype? I have yet to meet someone who hasn't gushed over this book. The only logical conclusion is the unassuming cover and description, neither of which really give you any idea what all the book is about. As much as I get annoyed with hot nekkid dudes on the covers of Romance books, the nekkid hot cover dudes... sell the books. With Spellcast, all you're given is a barn... And it's so much more than a barn with a sign, people!!! There is fantasy, drama, romance, all the good stuff. Don't just take my word for it, here are some links to my fellow book bloggers' reviews of Spellcast:


Wicked Lil Pixie *5 Stars
The Bookaholic Cat *5 Paws
My Bookish Ways *5 Stars
Parajunkee *4.5 Skulls
Smexybooks *B+
A Buckeye Girl Reads
Spinecracker *5 Stars


So without further ado, here is the cover of Barbara Ashford's follow up novel, Spellcrossed:

I know it looks a little Holiday-ish with the holly and the red, but holly plays an important role in the story and mythology. I am quite pleased with the cover, as we get a view of what we can only assume is one of the characters from Spellcast who shall remain nameless, to avoid spoilers. I know I speak for all of us fans of Spellcast when I saw OH MY GOD IS IT JUNE YET?? And oh yeah, Spellcrossed has a release date of June 5th. More information is available at Barbara Ashford's website.


UPDATE on 3/6: Barbara stopped by to tell us more about this cover!


"Thanks for the post, Pamela! I've been so engrossed in page proofs that I didn't even know the final cover had been revealed. This one is very close to the concept I sent my editor. (I even included a dreadful line drawing to show what I wanted - thank you, Miss Control Issues.) The "holly" is actually white roses and leaves climbing up the red stage curtain - you can see that better on the actual cover - and references The Secret Garden, one of the musicals they're doing. And the "forest" references Into the Woods, another of the shows. Thanks for sharing with everyone - and for your great comments about Spellcast. Three months till Spellcrossed's release day! YAY!"

Spaz Reviews: Something About Witches - Joey W. Hill

My new review of Something About Witches by Joey W. Hill is up at WLP! 

This is my first Joey W. Hill book and I am very enthusiastic over picking up more! Something About Witches is the first book in her new Arcane Shot series and I thought it would be a perfect time for me to start in with her and a new series. I was right, because I definitely am a fan of her writing.

Derek Stormwind is this fantastically sexy sorcerer who has lived a long life, taking every chance to learn from his mistakes, and live within the codes of the earth and the arcane. The past between he and Ruby is just too painful for him to move on from and they must reconcile if harmony between Lord and Lady is kept balanced. But more than that, Derek realizes he has been misled and what he thought he knew, he didn't know at all. He becomes fiercely intent on saving Ruby from the Darkness and from herself, at whatever cost. Discovering the layers of affection and respect and love he has for Ruby is truly so intriguing, and makes him the epitome of the charmingly alpha hero you long to find in stories. Continue Reading...