Sunday, December 24, 2017
Christmas Dessert: Cranberry-Apple Nut Crunch
Ingredients
3 cups chopped peeled apples
2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
Topping
3 packets (1.51 ounces each) instant oatmeal with cinnamon and spice
3/4 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
Whole cranberries for garnish
Vanilla ice cream, optional
Directions
1. In a large bowl, combine first four ingredients and mix well.
2. Place in a 2-qt. baking dish; set aside.
3. For topping, combine oatmeal, nuts, flour, sugar and butter in another bowl.
4. Mix well; spoon evenly over fruit mixture.
5. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 50-60 minutes or until fruit is bubbly and tender.
6. Garnish with cranberries. Serve warm with ice cream if desired.
Yield: 8 servings
Saturday, December 23, 2017
Bunny Express Saturday 2017 (Dec 23)
Bunny Express Saturday is hosted every Saturday at Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews.
I received this in the mail this week.
When a murder desecrates the somber, book-lined halls of New York City’s iconic 42nd Street Library, Raymond Ambler, the library’s curator of crime fiction, has a personal interest in solving the crime. His quest to solve the murder is complicated by personal entanglements involving his friend― or perhaps more-than-friend ― Adele Morgan. Not only does Adele’s relationship with the young woman staffer who was murdered get in the way of Ambler’s investigation, more disturbing for him is Adele’s growing interest in a darkly handsome Islamic scholar.
Soon the Intelligence Division of the New York Police Department takes over the case from NYPD homicide detective Mike Cosgrove, Ambler’s friend and sometimes partner-in-crime solving. Ambler suspects that the murder of the young woman, who’d been working at the library under an assumed name and the curious intervention of NYPD’s intelligence division are connected. The trail of intrigue leads to a seemingly unrelated murder in an upstate prison and a long ago murder of a trade union reformer.
No one else sees the connections Ambler is sure are there ― not an unusual state of affairs for Ambler. But with the city’s law enforcement establishment determined to stop his investigation, the inquisitive and intrepid librarian faces challenges that may put his very life at risk.
Thanks Minotaur Books!
Friday, December 22, 2017
Christmas Dinner: Herbed Prime Rib
Ingredients
4 to 6 pounds rib eye roast
2 1/2 cups beef stock
4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 tablespoon dry ground mustard
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
1 teaspoon granulated onion powder
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon whole celery seeds
1 tablespoon olive oil
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. line a roasting pan with foil and pour in beef stock; set aside.
To make herb rub: In a small bowl whisk together salt and pepper, dry mustard, granulated garlic, onion powder, thyme, oregano, coriander and celery seeds until well blended.
Using a sharp knife, make 6 small slits along the fat side of the roast to about 1 1/2-inch depth. Rub olive oil all over roast.
Sprinkle rub evenly over roast. Rub it in with your fingers, pressing down as you go. Make sure to rub it in and around the slits. The silts will allow the herbs to penetrate the roast.
Place the roast fat-side up in prepared roasting pan with beef stock. Cook uncovered for approximately 1 3/4 hours to 2 3/4 hours (depends on poundage) or until a meat thermometer registers 135 F for medium-rare and 150 F for medium.
Remove from oven, cover with foil and allow to sit 15 minutes before carving and serving.
NOTE: Serve with au jus sauce or a creamed mixture of 1 cup sour cream, 1 tablespoon horseradish, 1 tablespoon finely chopped green onion, 2 teaspoon Dijon mustard, 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar and 1/4 teaspoon salt.
4 to 6 pounds rib eye roast
2 1/2 cups beef stock
4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 tablespoon dry ground mustard
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
1 teaspoon granulated onion powder
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon whole celery seeds
1 tablespoon olive oil
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. line a roasting pan with foil and pour in beef stock; set aside.
To make herb rub: In a small bowl whisk together salt and pepper, dry mustard, granulated garlic, onion powder, thyme, oregano, coriander and celery seeds until well blended.
Using a sharp knife, make 6 small slits along the fat side of the roast to about 1 1/2-inch depth. Rub olive oil all over roast.
Sprinkle rub evenly over roast. Rub it in with your fingers, pressing down as you go. Make sure to rub it in and around the slits. The silts will allow the herbs to penetrate the roast.
Place the roast fat-side up in prepared roasting pan with beef stock. Cook uncovered for approximately 1 3/4 hours to 2 3/4 hours (depends on poundage) or until a meat thermometer registers 135 F for medium-rare and 150 F for medium.
Remove from oven, cover with foil and allow to sit 15 minutes before carving and serving.
NOTE: Serve with au jus sauce or a creamed mixture of 1 cup sour cream, 1 tablespoon horseradish, 1 tablespoon finely chopped green onion, 2 teaspoon Dijon mustard, 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar and 1/4 teaspoon salt.
Wednesday, December 20, 2017
Christmas Side: Herbed Fingering Potatoes
Ingredients
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoon Herbes de Provence
1 1/2 to 2 pounds scrubbed fingering potatoes
1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves minced or pressed garlic
Directions
1. In a small bowl, mix together salt, pepper and Herbes de Provence until well blended; set aside.
2. Place potatoes into a large bowl, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle in garlic and toss to completely coat potatoes.
3. Generously sprinkle half of the seasoned-salt mixture over potatoes, toss and sprinkle the remaining amount of mixture over potatoes and toss again.
4. Place potatoes in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet and toss for 25 - 30 minutes, turning occasionally until tender when pricked with a fork.
5. Remove and serve while warm.
Wednesday Wish List
Please list the books/manga/manhwa/yaoi manga from your wishlist that you are hoping to add to your shelves in a comment, thanks.
Dear Reader,
No Turning Back is a romantic suspense novel I wrote early in my career. It was originally published in the 90s as If You Believe, under the pseudonym Nancy Kelly. I’m thrilled that it’s now available again in this repackaged edition.
They find the body deep in the woods, lying beneath a carpet of wet leaves, eyes still open in a sightless stare. Three dark stains across his chest, and another bullet hole in his forehead.
Child psychologist Liz Havers made a mistake sixteen years ago, and she’s ready to face it. That means confronting Detective Hawthorne “Hawk” Hart, who’s come back to Woodside, Washington, after a case in LA went tragically wrong. His teenage son, Jesse, is finding it difficult to adjust, and stumbling across a dead man doesn’t help.
Bad things never used to happen in the small town of Woodside. Now no one is safe. And the more Hawk tries to untangle a terrifying web of greed and murder, the more desperate his adversary becomes to hide the truth, even if that means killing again and again.
With its new title and new cover, No Turning Back feels like a whole new book to me — one I hope you will enjoy as much as I do.
Nancy Bush
It seemed like a simple case — before the bodies starting piling up. Investigator Elvis Cole and his partner, Joe Pike, take on the deadliest case of their lives, in the new masterpiece of suspense from the #1 New York Times–bestselling author
When single mother Devon Connor hires private investigator Elvis Cole, it’s because her troubled teenage son Tyson is flashing cash and she’s afraid he’s dealing drugs. But the truth is devastatingly different. With two other partners in crime, he’s been responsible for a string of high-end burglaries, a crime spree that takes a deadly turn when one of them is murdered and Tyson and his girlfriend disappear.
They stole the wrong thing from the wrong man. Determined to get it back, he has hired a team that is smart and brutal, and to even the odds, Cole calls in his friends Joe Pike and Jon Stone. But even they may be overmatched. The hired killers are leaving a trail of bodies in their wake. A few more won’t make any difference.
Labels:
Wednesday Wish List
Tuesday, December 19, 2017
New Release 2017 (Dec 19)
New Release
A is for Akri, and B is for…barbecue! Learn the Alphabet Simi-style! Join everyone’s favorite adorable little demon from Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark-Hunters as she explores the alphabet in her own unique and colorful way in this delightful new children’s book.
Simi is one of the most recognized and adored characters from Kenyon’s Nick Chronicles® and Dark-Hunters®. Now you can join her for a thrilling adventure unlike any other as she explores the world of Dark-Hunter® while learning her alphabet.
This picture book showcases the imaginative artwork of the Dabel Brothers and the artist Juno, and features all your most beloved Dark-Hunter® characters, including Acheron, Menyara, Nick, and even some of the villains. Menyons of all ages will be enchanted by this brilliant new look into the Dark-Hunters® universe.
It’s the Simi book fans have been clamoring for, and one they can enjoy with their kids for generations to come!
Labels:
New Release 2017 (Dec 19)
Monday, December 18, 2017
Christmas Breakfast: Lemon Blueberry Bread
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup melted butter
3/4 cup sugar
3 Tablespoon lemon juice
2 beaten eggs
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries (if frozen, make sure they are thawed)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease an 8 x 4 inch bread pan and cut out parchment paper or silicon pads to fit the bottom of the pan.
2. In a small mixing bowl, mix together flour, salt and baking powder; set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, beat together butter, sugar, lemon juice and eggs. Alternately add flour mixture and milk to wet ingredients; mixing well after each addition.
4. Fold in blueberries. Pour into prepared loaf pan and bake for 50 - 60 minutes or until a toothpick entered into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack. Drizzle icing on bread while still warm. Let cool completely before serving.
Icing
1. Whisk together all ingredients into a thin icing. (If to thick, add a little almond milk to achieve the desired consistency.) Drizzle over loaf while still warm but not hot.
Weekly Book Reads (Dec 18)
Weekly Book Reads
Weekly Book Reads is a weekly Monday Meme that is hosted by Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews:
Post the books read last week and books you plan on finishing this week.
Read Last Week:
1. Death in the Stacks - Jenn McKinlay
2. A Cajun Christmas Killing - Ellen Bryon
3. Hunting Prince Dracula - Kerry Maniscalco
Weekly Book Reading:
1. Edge of Darkness - Karen Rose
2. Sleep Like a Baby - Charlaine Harris
3. The Retribution of Mara Dyer - Michelle Hodkin
Julie Seedorf's The Discombobulated Decipherers Blog Tour with a Spotlight and Giveaway
I am so excited to have Julie Seedorf here at Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews with a Spotlight and Giveaway.
Thanks Julie and Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours for allowing me to join The Discombobulated Decipherers Blog Tour!
Please take it away, Julie!
The Discombobulated Decipherers: A Brilliant, Minnesota Mystery
Cozy Mystery
2nd in Series
Self Published (November 21, 2017)
Print Length: 195 pages
ASIN: B076Z3YFYQ
It’s Christmas in Brilliant, Minnesota, and Brilliant is known for its glitzy Christmas traditions. A world-renowned Christmas pageant, the town square decked out with Santa’s Village and a live nativity scene bring visitors to Brilliant each year. Just as the tourists arrive, Jezabelle Jingle and her mystery writer friend, Miranda, find the body of Ernest the elf dead and wrapped in a bundle of Christmas lights in the town square. Is Ernest part of a new holiday puzzle the Discombobulated Decipherers need to solve? Or is dead Ernest part of a bigger plot? Will Jezabelle decipher the clues so Brilliant can celebrate Christmas in peace? Or will Jezabelle be the next gift-wrapped box under the village tree?
About the Author
As human beings, we are always a work in progress. From birth to death we live, hurt, laugh, cry, feel, and with all of those emotions we grow as people, as family members, and as friends. I am a dreamer and feel blessed to have the opportunity in my writing to pass those dreams on to others. I believe you are never too old to dream and to turn those dreams into a creative endeavor. I live in rural Minnesota and I am a wife, mother, and grandmother.
I have worn many hats throughout my lifetime such as working as a waitress, nursing home activities, office manager and finally computer repair person eventually owning my own computer repair business. I never forgot my love of writing and quit my computer business in 2012 after signing a contract with Cozy Cat Press for Granny Hooks A Crook, the first book in my Fuchsia, Minnesota Series.
Adding four more books to the Fuchsia Series, adding a new Brilliant, Minnesota Series and writing a column for local newspapers feeds my writing creativity.
I also dabble a bit in watercolor painting and hope to eventually add pictures to my children’s book series, Granny’s In Trouble.
Oh, and did I tell you I like to be a little bit silly.
Author Links
Website: http://julieseedorf.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/julie.seedorf.author
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/julieseedorf
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/julie_seedorf
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/julieseedorf
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/author/julieseedorf
Sprinkled Notes Blog: http://sprinklednotes.com
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/JulieSeedorf
Merchandise from my books: https://www.zazzle.com/hermiony
Purchase Link – Amazon
Giveaway
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/02887792648
Please follow the rest of the tour here, thanks:
http://www.escapewithdollycas.com/great-escapes-virtual-book-tours/books-currently-on-tour/discombobulated-decipherers-julie-seedorf
Sunday, December 17, 2017
Library Haul 2017 (Dec 17 - 23)
Library Haul
Here's the list of books/manga/manhwa/yaoi manga I picked up this week at the library:
Hardcover:
1. Edge of Darkness - Karen Rose
2. Sleep Like a Baby - Charlaine Harris
Labels:
Library Haul 2017 (Dec 17 - 23)
Saturday, December 16, 2017
Bunny Express Saturday 2017 (Dec 16)
Bunny Express Saturday is hosted every Saturday at Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews.
I received this in the mail this week.
Piper Prescott and Police Chief Wyatt McBride might have gotten off on the wrong foot but, over the past year, their interactions have evolved into a friendship of sorts. And when the body of Shirley Randolph is found floating in a fishing hole, their relationship reaches entirely new territory.
Shirley, the town's Realtor of the Year, was also Wyatt's suspected romantic interest, and now the residents of Brandywine Creek are speculating that Wyatt is responsible for her death. As the town council moves to suspend the handsome lawman, Piper springs into action to save his reputation and possibly his freedom. She enlists the aid of her BFF, Reba Mae Johnson, along with Wyatt himself, to help solve the puzzle and find Shirley’s real killer.
Pointing them toward high-powered real estate tactics and possible affairs, the investigation soon becomes personal when Piper's shop, Spice It Up!, is burglarized, and she’s forced off the road late one night, narrowly escaping serious injury. Realizing that she must be close to uncovering the truth, and that the evidence against Wyatt is no longer circumstantial, Piper resorts to drastic measures to prevent a grave miscarriage of justice.
Thanks Minotaur Books!
Wednesday, December 13, 2017
Wednesday Wish List
Please list the books/manga/manhwa/yaoi manga from your wishlist that you are hoping to add to your shelves in a comment, thanks.
A is for Akri, and B is for…barbecue! Learn the Alphabet Simi-style! Join everyone’s favorite adorable little demon from Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark-Hunters as she explores the alphabet in her own unique and colorful way in this delightful new children’s book.
Simi is one of the most recognized and adored characters from Kenyon’s Nick Chronicles® and Dark-Hunters®. Now you can join her for a thrilling adventure unlike any other as she explores the world of Dark-Hunter® while learning her alphabet.
This picture book showcases the imaginative artwork of the Dabel Brothers and the artist Juno, and features all your most beloved Dark-Hunter® characters, including Acheron, Menyara, Nick, and even some of the villains. Menyons of all ages will be enchanted by this brilliant new look into the Dark-Hunters® universe.
It’s the Simi book fans have been clamoring for, and one they can enjoy with their kids for generations to come!
Labels:
Wednesday Wish List
Tuesday, December 12, 2017
New Release 2017 (Dec 12)
New Release
Piper Prescott and Police Chief Wyatt McBride might have gotten off on the wrong foot but, over the past year, their interactions have evolved into a friendship of sorts. And when the body of Shirley Randolph is found floating in a fishing hole, their relationship reaches entirely new territory.
Shirley, the town's Realtor of the Year, was also Wyatt's suspected romantic interest, and now the residents of Brandywine Creek are speculating that Wyatt is responsible for her death. As the town council moves to suspend the handsome lawman, Piper springs into action to save his reputation and possibly his freedom. She enlists the aid of her BFF, Reba Mae Johnson, along with Wyatt himself, to help solve the puzzle and find Shirley’s real killer.
Pointing them toward high-powered real estate tactics and possible affairs, the investigation soon becomes personal when Piper's shop, Spice It Up!, is burglarized, and she’s forced off the road late one night, narrowly escaping serious injury. Realizing that she must be close to uncovering the truth, and that the evidence against Wyatt is no longer circumstantial, Piper resorts to drastic measures to prevent a grave miscarriage of justice.
Labels:
New Release 2017 (Dec 12)
Monday, December 11, 2017
Weekly Book Reads (Dec 11)
Weekly Book Reads
Weekly Book Reads is a weekly Monday Meme that is hosted by Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews:
Post the books read last week and books you plan on finishing this week.
Read Last Week:
1. Dying Breath - Heather Graham
2. Intensity - Sherrilyn Kenyon
3. Enigma - Catherine Coulter
Weekly Book Reading:
1. Death in the Stacks - Jenn McKinlay
2. A Cajun Christmas Killing - Ellen Bryon
3. Hunting Prince Dracula - Kerry Maniscalco
Sunday, December 10, 2017
Library Haul 2017 (Dec 10 - 16)
Library Haul
Here's the list of books/manga/manhwa/yaoi manga I picked up this week at the library:
Hardcover:
1. A Cajun Christmas Killing - Ellen Bryon
Labels:
Library Haul 2017 (Dec 10 - 16)
Saturday, December 9, 2017
Bunny Express Saturday 2017 (Dec 9)
Bunny Express Saturday is hosted every Saturday at Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews.
I received these in the mail this week.
A stunning new novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author ― an epic of hope and horror, chaos and magick, and a journey that will unite a desperate group of people to fight the battle of their lives.
It began on New Year’s Eve.
The sickness came on suddenly, and spread quickly. The fear spread even faster. Within weeks, everything people counted on began to fail them. The electrical grid sputtered; law and government collapsed ― and more than half of the world’s population was decimated.
Where there had been order, there was now chaos. And as the power of science and technology receded, magick rose up in its place. Some of it is good, like the witchcraft worked by Lana Bingham, practicing in the loft apartment she shares with her lover, Max. Some of it is unimaginably evil, and it can lurk anywhere, around a corner, in fetid tunnels beneath the river ― or in the ones you know and love the most.
As word spreads that neither the immune nor the gifted are safe from the authorities who patrol the ravaged streets, and with nothing left to count on but each other, Lana and Max make their way out of a wrecked New York City. At the same time, other travelers are heading west too, into a new frontier. Chuck, a tech genius trying to hack his way through a world gone offline. Arlys, a journalist who has lost her audience but uses pen and paper to record the truth. Fred, her young colleague, possessed of burgeoning abilities and an optimism that seems out of place in this bleak landscape. And Rachel and Jonah, a resourceful doctor and a paramedic who fend off despair with their determination to keep a young mother and three infants in their care alive.
In a world of survivors where every stranger encountered could be either a savage or a savior, none of them knows exactly where they are heading, or why. But a purpose awaits them that will shape their lives and the lives of all those who remain.
The end has come. The beginning comes next.
From the world's #1 bestselling author comes the newest book in the blockbuster PRIVATE series.
Santosh Wagh quit his job as head of Private India after harrowing events in Mumbai almost got him killed. But Jack Morgan, global head of the world's finest investigation agency, needs him back. Jack is setting up a new office in Delhi, and Santosh is the only person he can trust.
Still battling his demons, Santosh accepts, and it's not long before the agency takes on a case that could make or break them. Plastic barrels containing dissolved human remains have been found in the basement of a house in an upmarket area of South Delhi. But this isn't just any house, this property belongs to the state government.
With the crime scene in lockdown and information suppressed by the authorities, delving too deep could make Santosh a target to be eliminated.
The charges: explosive
Alex Cross has never been on the wrong side of the law - until now. Charged with gunning down followers of his nemesis Gary Soneji in cold blood, Cross is being turned into the poster child for trigger-happy cops who think they're above the law. Cross knows it was self-defense. But will a jury see it that way?
The evidence: shocking
As Cross fights for his professional life and his freedom, his former partner John Sampson brings him a gruesome, titillating video tied to the mysterious disappearances of several young girls. Despite his suspension from the department, Cross can't say no to Sampson. The illicit investigation leads them to the darkest corners of the Internet, where murder is just another form of entertainment.
The People vs. Alex Cross: the trial of the century
As the prosecution presents its case, and the nation watches, even those closest to Cross begin to doubt his innocence. If he can't convince his own family that he didn't pull the trigger with intent to kill, how can he hope to persuade a jury? But even with everything on the line, Cross will do whatever it takes to stop a dangerous criminal even if he can't save himself.
Thanks Hachette Book Group Canada and St. Martin's Press!
Friday, December 8, 2017
Maria Vale's The Last Wolf Blog Tour with a Spotlight, Excerpt and Giveaway
I am so excited to have Maria Vale here at Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews with a Spotlight, Excerpt and Giveaway.
Thanks Maria and Source Books for allowing me to join The Last Wolf Blog Tour!
Please take it away, Maria!
The Last Wolf
(The Legend of All Wolves #1)
by Maria Vale
Mass Market Paperback, 320 pages
Expected publication: February 6th 2018 by Sourcebooks Casablanca
ISBN 1492661872
For three days out of thirty, when the moon is full and her law is iron, the Great North Pack must be wild. Silver Nilsdottir is a lone runt with a crippled leg, facing a life of endless submission in the Pack.
Then Tiberius Leveraux stumbles wounded into their territory with a plea for protection. If Silver is to make a real place for herself, she must fight for Tiberius—her only chance at ever having a mate. And in the end, she is forced to shield all of them—the Pack, the land, and the man she loves — from ancient enemies.
AMAZON | B and N
EXCERPT
In which Silver, in an act of mercy, kills her former shielder
The circle of wolves in the Clearing tightens around Ronan, and for the first time since my Dæling, I am deeply grateful that I am not Pack. I am just a guest and don’t have to be part of this.
But when I start to lope away, Ti doesn’t move. He doesn’t understand what is happening, so I nip at his pant leg. The Alphas of each echelon are taking up their positions at the front of the circle. Everyone wants this over with quickly.
Opening a passage for Charlie, John nudges Ronan’s father toward his son. In its mercy, Pack law allows First Blood to Ronan’s family, so that when the Pack eviscerates him, Ronan won’t feel anything. I plant my front paws and pull Ti harder, because I really don’t want to watch Charlie rip out his son’s throat.
Ti doesn’t move.
John nudges Charlie again, but Charlie just stares at Ronan, his head cocked, his mouth open. Then his eyes roll around the circle searching for help he won’t find, because to be on Pack land as an exile is bad enough, but the only response to an attack on a pup, is a Slitung, a flesh-tearing, and every wolf shows teeth. Charlie throws himself on the ground in front of John, his feet up in the air, his hips shimmying back and forth in a clownish show of submission.
John snaps at him.
Charlie follows our Alpha around, one ear up, the other down, his mouth open in a rabid leer, until with a quick look over his shoulder, John signals Tara to drag the broken wolf away from the Pack. Tara grabs his muzzle tight in her powerful jaws and drags him off mewling. I run beside him whimpering too, begging Charlie to come to his senses long enough to do this last kindness. He seems not to even see me, more interested in the furry thing following behind him. As soon as Tara lets him go, he starts to chase his tail, barking.
Tara turns her back on him with a growl and a dismissive kick of rain-sodden soil. She heads back to the Pack, which clears a path for her. As John’s Beta, Tara has a place of honor, but she also has a place of responsibility and is expected to be right up front for the Slitung. I stick to her slipstream and push through to the whimpering Ronan.
Rubbing my muzzle against his, I turn to John, my body down, my head between my paws. I’m not sure he will accept my claim to First Blood, but I have a better chance if I at least smell like the wolf who had been my schildere but who never wanted to be my mate.
Then John’s nose bumps against mine, telling me to get up. With a quick snap of his jaws, the Pack retreats, giving us room. John is a good wolf and a great Alpha and, if given a choice, will always choose mercy.
First Blood allows for one bite only, and if Ronan decides to fight me, I doubt I’ll be able to make the kill. But after everything that has happened, the once-upon-a-time Alpha of the 14th Echelon seems to understand that his luck is not going to change again.
He lies back with his chin stretched high, staring at the mountains and the pinpoints of stars and the real world, the world of men, that he so wanted to be a part of.
Opening my jaws wide, I gently take his throat between them. It’s what we do, and it means trust me. It means I see you at your most vulnerable.
I bite down fast and hard on the cartilage tube, giving it the same fatal break I would for a deer. Ronan struggles a little, and blood spurts into my mouth. I curl my tongue against the back of my throat, because I don’t want to swallow this blood. I don’t want to be nourished by this death.
The pulse of his blood slows, but I don’t lift my head until it stops.
Before I even stumble out of the way, the Pack surges forward, eager to be done with this particular bit of ritual butchery.
I race for Clear Pond, my paws sinking through the cold, thick mud and dying sedges until I am in deep. Pushing the air out of my lungs, I sink and stay down until my own throat is on the verge of collapse, and the blood that had already started to stiffen on my muzzle and chest and legs begins to melt away from my fur. Maybe there was so much that all of Clear Pond is tainted, but no matter how many gulps of water I take, my mouth still has the sharp, metallic tang of blood, and there’s something stuck in my teeth.
I start to change, and as soon as I’m finished, I pick at the thing with my fingers until it comes loose. I don’t look at it before throwing it into the weeds. I think the change was a mistake though, because in skin, I feel the intense cold of the schist on my naked body and the icy water running from my hair down my back and the taste of death in my mouth. I can’t stop shivering. I try to get wild again, but my muscles are spasming so hard that I can’t. I lurch up on all fours and then to my legs and stumble only a few steps before collapsing again, my head on my knees.
A warm coat that smells like angelica and green corn and the earth before a storm settles around my shoulders. “Put it on,” says that quiet voice, and Ti lifts me, guiding my arms into the sleeves, and then pulls me close to his even-warmer body. He says nothing, just holds me tight, letting me shiver against him.
“I killed him,” I finally stutter.
He lifts my sodden hair out from under the collar of the coat.
“Yes, you did. And if you hadn’t, he would have died in pain and the whole Pack would have had the burden of it. Now only you do.”
Ti doesn’t say that I wasn’t responsible or that I shouldn’t feel guilty, but rather that it’s a burden worth carrying and one that I’m strong enough to bear. His faith calms me in a way that no amount of coddling ever could.
It’s one of the things I love about him….
“I can’t get the taste of blood out of my mouth.”
He doesn’t respond. I guess he didn’t hear, or knowing him, he did hear, but doesn’t think there’s any point in responding. It doesn’t matter. I settle my head back on his chest and listen to his heartbeat.
Did I say love?
He frees one arm and lifts my chin. It’s dark for my poor human senses, but he’s not like me and the nearly full moon lights up the green glow of the lucidum in his eyes.
He hesitates, his lips hovering above mine, like a boy nervously contemplating his first kiss. But I know what he’s hiding, and I stretch up as high as I can and wrap my arm around his neck, feeling the shape of his skull under the roughness of his cropped hair. I feel his mouth against mine, firm and ripe and warm and still closed.
Nuzzling the seam of his mouth, I catch his lower lip gently between my fangs, pulling him closer. I know you, Tiberius. I know the wildness that you’ve always hidden there, but I am not human and I want the untamed, inhuman sharpness of your mouth.
I let go and lick my lip before gently circling his, my breath feathering his sensitive skin.
Finally, his lips open softly and I seal my mouth around his, because this is his first kiss and mine too, and I am his shielder in all things.
About the Author
Maria Vale is a journalist who has worked for Publishers Weekly, Glamour magazine, Redbook, the Philadelphia Inquirer. She is a logophile and a bibliovore and a worrier about the world. Trained as a medievalist, she tries to shoehorn the language of Beowulf into things that don't really need it. She currently lives in New York with her husband, two sons and a long line of dead plants. No one will let her have a pet. Visit her at https://www.mariavale.com/.
Giveaway
Wednesday, December 6, 2017
Wednesday Wish List
Please list the books/manga/manhwa/yaoi manga from your wishlist that you are hoping to add to your shelves in a comment, thanks.
Piper Prescott and Police Chief Wyatt McBride might have gotten off on the wrong foot but, over the past year, their interactions have evolved into a friendship of sorts. And when the body of Shirley Randolph is found floating in a fishing hole, their relationship reaches entirely new territory.
Shirley, the town's Realtor of the Year, was also Wyatt's suspected romantic interest, and now the residents of Brandywine Creek are speculating that Wyatt is responsible for her death. As the town council moves to suspend the handsome lawman, Piper springs into action to save his reputation and possibly his freedom. She enlists the aid of her BFF, Reba Mae Johnson, along with Wyatt himself, to help solve the puzzle and find Shirley’s real killer.
Pointing them toward high-powered real estate tactics and possible affairs, the investigation soon becomes personal when Piper's shop, Spice It Up!, is burglarized, and she’s forced off the road late one night, narrowly escaping serious injury. Realizing that she must be close to uncovering the truth, and that the evidence against Wyatt is no longer circumstantial, Piper resorts to drastic measures to prevent a grave miscarriage of justice.
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Wednesday Wish List
Tuesday, December 5, 2017
New Releases 2017 (Dec 5)
New Releases
A stunning new novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author ― an epic of hope and horror, chaos and magick, and a journey that will unite a desperate group of people to fight the battle of their lives.
It began on New Year’s Eve.
The sickness came on suddenly, and spread quickly. The fear spread even faster. Within weeks, everything people counted on began to fail them. The electrical grid sputtered; law and government collapsed ― and more than half of the world’s population was decimated.
Where there had been order, there was now chaos. And as the power of science and technology receded, magick rose up in its place. Some of it is good, like the witchcraft worked by Lana Bingham, practicing in the loft apartment she shares with her lover, Max. Some of it is unimaginably evil, and it can lurk anywhere, around a corner, in fetid tunnels beneath the river ― or in the ones you know and love the most.
As word spreads that neither the immune nor the gifted are safe from the authorities who patrol the ravaged streets, and with nothing left to count on but each other, Lana and Max make their way out of a wrecked New York City. At the same time, other travelers are heading west too, into a new frontier. Chuck, a tech genius trying to hack his way through a world gone offline. Arlys, a journalist who has lost her audience but uses pen and paper to record the truth. Fred, her young colleague, possessed of burgeoning abilities and an optimism that seems out of place in this bleak landscape. And Rachel and Jonah, a resourceful doctor and a paramedic who fend off despair with their determination to keep a young mother and three infants in their care alive.
In a world of survivors where every stranger encountered could be either a savage or a savior, none of them knows exactly where they are heading, or why. But a purpose awaits them that will shape their lives and the lives of all those who remain.
The end has come. The beginning comes next.
An unfathomable loss or an unthinkable crime? #1 New York Times bestselling author Tami Hoag keeps you guessing in her most harrowing thriller yet.
A panic-stricken woman runs in the dead of night, battered and bloodied, desperate to find help.
When Detective Nick Fourcade enters the home of Genevieve Gauthier outside the sleepy town of Bayou Breaux, Louisiana, the bloody crime scene that awaits him is both the most brutal and the most confusing he's ever seen. Genevieve's seven-year-old son, P.J., has been murdered by an alleged intruder, yet Genevieve is alive and well, a witness inexplicably left behind to tell the tale. There is no evidence of forced entry, not a clue that points to a motive. Meanwhile, Nick's wife, Detective Annie Broussard, sits in the emergency room with the grieving Genevieve. A mother herself, Annie understands the emotional devastation this woman is going through, but as a detective she's troubled by a story that makes little sense. Who would murder a child and leave the only witness behind?
When the very next day P.J.'s sometimes babysitter, thirteen-year-old Nora Florette, is reported missing, the town is up in arms, fearing a maniac is preying on their children. With pressure mounting from a tough, no-nonsense new sheriff, the media, and the parents of Bayou Breaux, Nick and Annie dig deep into the dual mysteries. But sifting through Genevieve Gauthier's tangled web of lovers and sorting through a cast of local lowlifes brings more questions than answers. Is someone from Genevieve's past or present responsible for the death of her son? Is the missing teenager, Nora, a victim, or something worse? Then fingerprints at the scene change everything when they come back to a convicted criminal: Genevieve herself.
The spotlight falls heavily on the grieving mother who is both victim and accused. Could she have killed her own child to free herself of the burden of motherhood, or is the loss of her beloved boy pushing her to the edge of insanity? Could she have something to do with the disappearance of Nora Florette, or is the troubled teenager the key to the murder? How far will Nick and Annie have to go to uncover the dark truth of the boy?
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New Releases 2017 (Dec 5)
Monday, December 4, 2017
Weekly Book Reads (Dec 4)
Weekly Book Reads
Weekly Book Reads is a weekly Monday Meme that is hosted by Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews:
Post the books read last week and books you plan on finishing this week.
Read Last Week:
1. Dark Rite - Heather Graham
2. The Ultimatum - Karen Robards
3. Much Ado About Murder - Elizabeth J. Duncan
Weekly Book Reading:
1. Dying Breath - Heather Graham
2. Intensity - Sherrilyn Kenyon
3. Enigma - Catherine Coulter
Sunday, December 3, 2017
Library Haul 2017 (Dec 3 - 9)
Library Haul
Here's the list of books/manga/manhwa/yaoi manga I picked up this week at the library:
Hardcover:
1. Intensity - Sherrilyn Kenyon
2. Dying Breath - Heather Graham
3. Death in the Stacks - Jenn McKinlay
4. Count to Ten - James Patterson
Labels:
Library Haul 2017 (Dec 3 - 9)
Saturday, December 2, 2017
Bunny Express Saturday 2017 (Dec 2)
Bunny Express Saturday is hosted every Saturday at Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews.
I received these in the mail this week.
It's a predator eat predator world for the Were-Hunters. Danger haunts any given day. There is no one to trust. No one to love. Not if they want to live.
An orphan with no clan that will claim him, Wren Tigarian grew to adulthood under the close scrutiny and mistrust of those around him. A forbidden blend of two animals ― snow leopard and white tiger ― Wren has never listened to anyone when there was something he wanted. Now he wants Marguerite.
Marguerite D'Aubert Goudeau is the daughter of a prominent U.S. Senator who hates the socialite life she's forced to live. Like her mother before her, she has strong Cajun roots that her father doesn't understand. Still, she has no choice but to try and conform to a world where she feels like an outsider. But the world of rich and powerful humans is never to meet the world of the Were-Hunters who exist side by side with them, unseen, unknown, undetected. To break this law is to call down a wrath of the highest order.
In order to have Marguerite, Wren must fight not just the humans who will never accept his animal nature, but the Were-Hunters who want him dead for endangering their world. It's a race against time and magic without boundary that could cost Marguerite and Wren not just their lives, but their very souls.
With plenty of one-pot meals, dinners ready in under half an hour, and innovative flavor combinations to spice up your go-to proteins, Everyday Dinner Ideas author Addie Gundry has the answers. This third book from the RecipeLion collection is poised to become a go-to resource for singles, couples, and families. Driven by the recipes homecooks search for most on the web like lasagna, salmon, pork chops, and ground beef, this book presents 103 great everyday dinner ideas that real people are searching for daily.
In Easy Cookie Recipes Addie Gundry adds elegance to no-frills baking with delicious results. From Apple Pie Bars to Red Velvet Thumbprints, No-Bake Coconut Graham Cracker Cookie Bars, and the best chocolate chip cookies ever, 103 Easy Cookie Recipes shows you how to use expert tips and shortcuts to make over a hundred types of cookies, plus plenty of customizations to make these recipes your own. Once you have your baking basics down, you can explore fun inventive types of cookies. This book is a collection of 103 playful recipes that add to, change up, and make old recipes new and exciting, while maintaining what makes cookies classic. Each recipe is paired with a gorgeous, full-color photo.
Thanks St. Martin's Press!
Friday, December 1, 2017
December Releases
5th
Year One - Nora Roberts
The Boy - Tami Hoag
12th
Ginger Snapped - Gail Oust
19th
The Simi's ABCs: Adventures with Dark-Hunters - Sherrilyn Kenyon and Alethea Kontis
26th
No Turning Back - Nancy Bush
The Wanted - Robert Crais
Labels:
December Releases (2017)
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