17th March 2015 Releases

Happy Release Day to:

M. J. Rose
The Witch of Painted Sorrows (Daughters of La Lune, Book 1)
Simon & Schuster Atria (US & CA: 17th March 2015)
Buy (US) Buy (UK) Buy (CA) Buy (Worldwide)
Sandrine Salome flees New York for her grandmother’s Paris mansion to escape her dangerous husband, but what she finds there is even more menacing. The house, famous for its lavish art collection and elegant salons, is mysteriously closed up. Although her grandmother insists it’s dangerous for Sandrine to visit, she defies her and meets Julien Duplessi, a mesmerizing young architect. Together they explore the hidden night world of Paris, the forbidden occult underground and Sandrine’s deepest desires. Among the bohemians and the demi-monde, Sandrine discovers her erotic nature as a lover and painter. Then darker influences threaten – her cold and cruel husband is tracking her down and something sinister is taking hold, changing Sandrine, altering her. She’s become possessed by La Lune: A witch, a legend, and a sixteenth-century courtesan, who opens up her life to a darkness that may become a gift or a curse. This is Sandrine’s “wild night of the soul,” her odyssey in the magnificent city of Paris, of art, love, and witchery.

Jeri Smith-Ready
This Side of Salvation
Simon & Schuster Pulse (US, UK, & CA: 17th March 2015)
Buy (US) Buy (UK) Buy (CA) Buy (Worldwide)
Everyone mourns differently. When his older brother was killed, David got angry. As in, fist-meets-someone-else’s-face furious. But his parents? They got religious. David’s still figuring out his relationship with a higher power, but there’s one thing he knows for sure: The closer he gets to Bailey, the better, brighter, happier, more he feels. Then his parents start cutting all their worldly ties in preparation for the Rush, the divine moment when the faithful will be whisked off to Heaven…and they want David to do the same. David’s torn. He likes living in the moment, and isn’t sure about giving up his best friend, varsity baseball, and Bailey – especially Bailey – in hope of salvation. But when he comes home late from prom, and late for the Rush, to find that his parents have vanished, David is in more trouble than he ever could have imagined…

March 2015 Releases

Done with February 2015 Releases? Here are March 2015 Releases. For future releases, check Reading Wishlist. (NOTE: If reading via a feed-reader, the formatting may be wrong. Click the blog post’s title to take you to my WordPress, where it should show up fine.)

4 New Covers (Cross, Panitch, Rose, Vega)

Now Available for US Pre-Order

Kelley Armstrong: EMPIRE OF NIGHT: 7th April 2015: Buy (US)
Claudia Gabel & Cheryl Klam: ETHERWORLD: 20th March 2015: Buy (US)
Francesca Haig: THE FIRE SERMON: 10th March 2015: Buy (US)
Erica Hayes: SCORCHED (paperback): 31st July 2014: Buy (US)
Colleen Hoover: CONFESS: 17th February 2015: Buy (US)
Sarah K.: BOUND TO PLEASE (paperback): 14th August 2014: Buy (US)
Martin Leicht & Isla Neal: A STRANGER THING (paperback): 14th April 2015: Buy (US)
Martin Leicht & Isla Neal: THE WORLD FORGOT: 14th April 2015: Buy (US)
William Campbell Powell: EXPIRATION DAY (paperback): 14th April 2015: Buy (US)
M. J. Rose: THE WITCH OF PAINTED SORROWS: 17th March 2015: Buy (US)

6 New Deals (Carleson, Cross, Lowe, Meade, Rose, Ruby)

J. C. Carleson‘s Placebo Junkies (2015) to Knopf (North American rights). A gritty YA novel in the vein of Trainspotting, about street kids who make a living as test subjects in clinical drug trials. The novel is based on real accounts of “professional guinea pigs.”

Kady Cross‘s new series to Harlequin Teen (World English rights) in a three-book deal. Book 1, Abandon, follows twin sisters – one living, and one dead – who are able to communicate with each other. The series was pitched as “Supernatural meets Sweet Valley High“.

Ceri A. Lowe‘s dystopian YA trilogy to Bookouture. Set in a post-apocalyptic London, where inhabitants are routinely frozen until they are needed by “The Industry”. Woken from a fifteen-year sleep as a potential candidate for the position of Controller-General, Carter Warren discovers that the world has changed in ways that make him begin to question everything that he believes in. And it might just be worse than the end of the world… Book 1, The Start of Things due for publication in April 2014.

Kelly Meding (writing as Kelly Meade): New Paranomal romance trilogy, Cornerstone Run, to Intermix. Set in a world of hidden loup garou, their mystical Magi enemies, and the occasional vampire. The small, reclusive town of Cornerstone, Pennsylvania, houses an almost entirely loup garou population – one of only thirteen towns around the country that serve as a sanctuary for their nonhuman inhabitants, where the loup garou are free to be themselves. When a neighbouring sanctuary town is attacked by a vicious, unknown enemy, the three sons of Cornerstone’s Alpha must stand together to protect their people – and the women who steal their hearts. Trilogy titles are Black Rook (2014), Gray Bishop, and White Knight.

M. J. Rose‘s three books. The first, In the Witch’s Blood, is a Gothic tale of erotic possession set in Belle Epoch Paris.

Laura Ruby‘s two books to Balzer + Bray (North American rights). The first, Bone Gap (2015), is told from two points of view: that of a beautiful girl who is kidnapped from a sleepy Midwestern town and imprisoned by a mysterious man, and that of the one witness, a boy who cannot forgive himself for being unable to identify her kidnapper.

[REVIEW] The Venus Fix – M. J. Rose

M. J. Rose
The Venus Fix (Morgan Snow, Book 3)
Harlequin Mira (US: 1st July 2006)
Buy (US) Buy (Worldwide)

I am so disappointed M. J. Rose stopped writing erotic fiction, especially the Butterfield Institute series. Dr Morgan Snow herself doesn’t appeal, but her clients do, and the depth of psychology is absolutely fascinating. With edgy, intriguing content, you’re pretty much guaranteed a great read.

And The Venus Fix is great. First published in 2006, technology has changed since then, which may date this book. Web-cam girls die on screen, apparently poisoned, and one of Morgan’s clients may be involved. More striking, however, is her case with a group of teenagers – Amanda’s story is transfixing.

The foreshadowing is obvious, the symbolism/metaphors unsubtle, but the investigation is thrilling. Less so is Morgan’s own personal life. Her thirteen-year-old daughter Dulcie is performing in a Broadway production, with an invitation to audition for a TV version. Morgan’s mother was a child actor, and things didn’t end well for her – drugs, booze, and whatnot.

Morgan’s ex wants to get back with her, and she’s actually considering it so that their daughter won’t be tempted by Hollywood. Something like that, anyway – Morgan’s logic is kind of stupid, but smart people don’t like to admit to being less than intelligent.

And I just don’t care about Morgan’s relationship with a detective. The bloke’s a Southerner, the best at his job, a fabulous cook, a talented jazz musician, impeccably mannered…where are the flaws? Because he doesn’t seem realistic, it’s hard to connect with him.

And you know what really sucks? Morgan and Dulcie’s special bond. They aren’t like ordinary mothers and daughters – even separated they can FEEL when the other is hurt. Morgan claims it’s not psychic, but “inevitable”. I’m more likely to believe that between twins, but what is this trying to say – that you’re not the best parent or child if you don’t have this “inevitable” bond? Come off it! And of course Dulcie is talented in the theatre – a fiction heroine’s children rarely are ungifted, mediocre folk.

But for all my whinging, the murder investigation almost cancels out the annoying characteristics. Bring back the interesting psychology and get rid of the faff!

March 2012 Releases

Done with February 2012 Releases? Here are March 2012 Releases. To see future titles, check Reading Wishlist.

February 2012 Releases

Finished with January 2012 Releases? Here are February 2012 Release. To see future releases, check Reading Wishlist.

10 New Covers (Armstrong, Brewer, Elrod, Guran, Hart, Pettersson, Rose, Tentler, Vincent)

[REVIEW] In Session – M. J. Rose

M. J. Rose
In Session: Dr. Morgan Snow with Steve Berry’s Cotton Malone, Barry Eisler’s John Rain & Lee Child’s Jack Reacher (Anthology of 3 short stories)
(US: 15th October 2011) [eBook & audio only]
Buy (US) Buy (UK)

I’ve never read anything by Steve Berry, Barry Eisler, or Lee Child, and before now have never read anything featuring their characters. Got to be honest, when authors write using other authors’ characters, this fan fiction makes me nervous. Even though M. J. Rose has the authors’ blessing.

She’s an author I’ve read before. Starting with erotic fiction, she’s moved into thrillers, all featuring psychology. I really like the standalones and the Morgan Snow novels, even though I don’t care much for her character – I love reading about Morgan’s clients and their therapy.

As for the Reincarnationist novels…not for me. Read the first, and haven’t been inspired to try the next two. Reportedly the fourth, The Book of Lost Fragrances, will have more psychology. Fingers crossed.

Anyhoo, In Session is an anthology of three short stories, available only in eBook and audio format. It’s only 58 pages, which explains why there’s no print edition. The first tale, “Extenuating Circumstances”, is the weakest story, a quiet tale of an erotic art book, and how discussing it brings out the bookseller’s past. The second, “Decisions, Decisions”, is the strongest, about ethical issues and a well-known man’s threats. The final story, “Knowing You’re Alive”, starts with action, but do we ever find out who the bomber is? Just Nina’s unnamed patient? Bit anticlimactic, but I guess we’re supposed to be focused on Jack Reacher’s tale.

M. J. Rose is a strong writer, even though Dr. Morgan Snow talks a lot about designer pieces and whatnot. But I’m lower-middle class, so I can’t relate. Still, this collection reminds me that I still have The Venus Fix, the third Morgan Snow novel, to read.