Category: book review

The spellbinding sequel to A Thousand Salt Kisses – A Thousand Salt Kisses Later.

About A Thousand Salt Kisses Later

Four years ago, Crystal White fell in love with Llyr, a prince of the magical mer colony living off the coast of Starfish Island. For one summer, he enchanted her with stories of jeweled palaces and underwater gardens, but then he left, returning beneath the waves with her heart in tow.

Now, graduated and with no job in sight, Crystal is forced to go back to the island she thought she had left in the past. By the sea again, she realizes she is far from over her first love, and when an opportunity arises to contact the merfolk, Crystal can’t resist.

Once more with the mer, Crystal is forced to come to terms with the fact that Llyr has moved on, and also with her own magical secret that has endangered her life, his throne, and every mer kingdom. Working against all odds, she has to try to save the people she has come to love and—if she can—rekindle the romance of her first summer on Starfish Island.

My Thoughts

The second novel in this series is just as amazing as the first! In this novel, we dive deeper in the mer world – which I was so excited for! In this novel, Crystal returns to Starfish Island. She is clearly not over her love for Llyr, no matter how hard she keeps trying (and being honest, who can blame her?). This novel takes on a whole new twist that I can honestly say makes me love it even more than the first one.

At times I found myself frustrated and angry with Llyr but as the story evolved my anger switched to those around him that have caused this change. The story takes on a twist that leaves you turning each page to see how Crystal can stop it (I would love to say more but doing so would give it all away). It is up to Crystal though to save all the people she has come to love – her mer friends and lost love and her family. A tough job for a young girl right? But she is definitely up to the task.

A Thousand Salt Kisses Later is a well written and planned out novel, a great addition for young adults and those who love a great adventurous and sweet romance. You are drawn right into the novel and feel like Crystal is one of the girls. You want to protect her, see her happy and keep cheering for her right to the end. I enjoyed every moment of this novel.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Josie Demuth is an author based in London. First published on Wattpad, her Salt Kisses series has garnered nearly four million reads and are now serialised on Radish Fiction. The second of this series, A Thousand Salt Kisses Later is her fourth novel.

Connect with the Author: Website  ~  Twitter ~  Facebook ~ Instagram ~ Goodreads

The Giveaway!

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Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

In this series starting with A Thousand Salt Kisses, seventeen-year-old Crystal White is the new girl on Starfish Island. Dragged to the remote community by her environmental activist father, she is eager to find fun that doesn’t involve touching fish guts or listening to local folklore.

About A Thousand Salt Kisses

Seventeen-year-old Crystal White is the new girl on Starfish Island. Dragged to the remote community by her environmental activist father, she is eager to find fun that doesn’t involve touching fish guts or listening to local folklore.

During a midnight swim with some new friends, Crystal is pulled out to sea by the waves. Convinced she’s going to drown; Crystal is rescued by Llyr, a handsome stranger. As she searches for him in the following weeks, she finds there may be more truth to the Starfish legends than she thought.

Over a sizzling rollercoaster summer, Llyr introduces Crystal to magic she’d only ever dreamed of. But as Crystal comes to love Starfish Island, it begins to drive her family apart. A nearby power plant is devastating local marine life, and her parents are stuck in the middle. As the magic and mundane parts of Crystal’s life converge, she finds herself risking everything to save Llyr, her family and herself.

My Thoughts

Who has dreamed of mermaids? The ocean has this magical and mysterious pull to it and I have always dreamed of even myself growing fins and swimming the sea. In this fantastic novel, Crystal moves to Starfish Island and is caught in the middle of her activist Father and her Mother who works for the enemy! She is alone, confused and maybe slightly angry. All of this is changed the day she is rescued by Llyr in the ocean when she is pulled out too far.

Llyr remains a mystery to her and is a mystery she is determined to uncover. What she finds out, I don’t think anyone could ever be ready for but is definitely super exciting. She uncovers a special and magical world that anyone would be jealous of. I know I am! The story speeds up here as we enter their world while still being rooted in the human world. Crystal finds herself torn between these two worlds, especially when her parents are directly connected to the plight of Llyr and his people.

A Thousand Salt Kisses was an amazing novel perfect for both young adults and adults alike. It is well written, a fantastic and interesting plot line that hooks you from the start. A definite must read for young adults and adults that love a good read.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Josie Demuth is an author based in London. First published on Wattpad, her Salt Kisses series has garnered nearly four million reads and are now serialised on Radish Fiction. The second of this series, A Thousand Salt Kisses Later is her fourth novel.

Connect with the Author: Website  ~  Twitter ~  Facebook ~ Instagram ~ Goodreads

The Giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

The Indian Queen would risk torture and worse to keep her secrets from these barbarians in suits of metal and their search for cities of gold. They never found the gold.

About Westobou Gold

The Indian Queen would risk torture and worse to keep her secrets from these barbarians in suits of metal and their search for cities of gold. They never found the gold. Empires rose; empires fell, the centuries passed. Legend became fireside myths, but no treasure was ever found. Yet, among the grey-green drapes of wisteria and wild jasmine along the misty shrouded lowlands of bayous and marshes of the Westo River, the folktales persist.

In the lazed creep of a near-tropical dawn lit the pungent Turkish coffee permeates Moccasin Hollow. Beyond the kitchen door Lucky, Craige Ingram’s German shepherd gnaws a favorite bone. Looted burial mounds seem a world away until plundered mounds on Moccasin Hollow land brings amateur archaeologist PI Craige Ingram into the cross-hairs of kidnapping. Stealthy hideaways are concealed in old colonial brick-lined river grottoes beneath the big house of Ardochy plantation. Sex-tape underage blackmail and thrill killings on federal land spur a medical examiner’s preliminary postmortem to more than a hired cleaner’s quickie cover-up passed off as drug deals gone sour. Greed tangles a witch’s pigswill of illicit affairs and murder-to-hide-murder. Shady investigators and shadier politics stir an unexpected concoction that threatens the lives of those at Moccasin Hollow in a spiteful plot against ex-SEAL Craige Ingram and the woman he loves.

My Thoughts

A well written and thought out mystery full of murder, lies, blackmail and more. I love the way Hawk writes – he puts so much into the story and every little bit is revealed when and where we need it. You are never left confused or wanting more.

Westobou Gold is a tale of greed, murder and suspense. We have a hidden treasure that we briefly here about in the beginning in the novel. It is this treasure that causes the murders and plot to unfold throughout the novel, something you don’t quite expect! At the centre of this is ex-SEAL Craige, who must help solve the mysterious murders, blackmail and more. It is through him that we can see the story evolve and all of the micro-connections that exist throughout this novel.

Hawk has put so much effort into not only the plot but the character development as well. It is well written and plays out excellently, his skill at writing is amazing and well appreciated as a reader. You are never left bored or confused in this novel. I loved every suspenseful moment!

You can purchase a copy of Westobou Gold on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Internationally acclaimed author and public speaker, Hawk MacKinney began writing mysteries for his school newspapers. He served in the US Navy Reserve for over 20 years, and was a tenured faculty member at several state medical facilities, teaching postgraduate courses in both the United States and Jerusalem, Israel. Since retiring Hawk has authored several novels that have received national and international recognition. Moccasin Trace, a historical novel, was nominated for the prestigious Michael Shaara Award for Excellence in Civil War Fiction and the Writers Notes Book Award. The Cairns of Sainctuarie, his science fiction series, includes The Bleikovat Event and The Missing Planets, with a third book in the works. Hawk’s latest project focuses on The Moccasin Hollow Mystery Series. Book 1 in the series, Hidden Chamber of Death, was released early 2016.

You can connect with Hawk on his website.

The Giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

What if you could choose your heaven now?

About The Extraordinary Journey of Vivienne Marshall

What if you could choose your heaven now? Go on a celestial shopping trip of sorts? Thirty-five-year-old Vivienne does just that, as she lies dying in the ICU; a fatal walk into the path of a truck. In her final week of life, Vivienne treks through the Heavens of a priest, a best friend, a homeless child, and a lover who never was. Vivienne’s guardian angel, Noah, who may just be her soul mate, escorts her through selections of Heavens and through the confusion Vivienne experiences as she flounders between a doubt of life and the certainty of death. Although her visits to varied afterlives provide peace and beauty, choosing proves not so easy: Vivienne’s love for her young son and her earthly father pull her from her colorful journey—and from her divine love of Noah.

The nature of love, the variety and magic of life, unending hope, and the importance of saying goodbye are central to this uplifting tale.

My Thoughts

Death is one of those frightening and yet fascinating topics. What happens when we die? What does heaven look like? Is there really a hell? Who do we meet there? The questions are endless and because of the love we have for those who have passed away it sometimes makes it painful to think about.

When I first started reading The Extraordinary Journey of Vivienne Marshall, I found myself a bit confused as we jumped around in the story but by a quarter of the way in I was hooked. We learn about Vivienne’s childhood – her fears, her family, her successes and even the great love she holds for Noah, her childhood best friend. This story alternates with the future story of her son (which I didn’t quite put together until halfway through the novel), her stay in the ICU and her visit to multiple different heavens with Noah. We watch as she faces the worst and happiest moments in her life with Noah and how this has made her into the woman she is. Her heaven is beautiful and full of promise, love, hope and faith.

The Extraordinary Journey of Vivienne Marshall was beautiful and made me smile and cry. Vivienne in her own confident and powerful way, showed her son such a great love and how to be a strong young man. What could have been a moment that would destroy people, is turned upside down and provides hope and faith. The story was uplifting and provides many great lessons about letting go, moving forward and loving with all your heart. I absolutely loved every moment of this story and it is a definite must read.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Shannon Kirk is the awarding-winning author of the international bestselling Method 15/33 (psychological thriller–bestseller in Colombia and Spain, will be lead title in Italy, 2017) and Heavens (Literary Fiction). Method 15/33 has received multiple accolades: 2015 Foreword Review Book of the Year (Suspense); Winner of 2015 National Indie Excellence Award, Best Suspense; 2015 USA Best Book Finalist; School Library Journal’s Best Adult Books for Teens (2015); and Finalist in 2013 William Faulkner William Wisdom Creative Writing Competition (when a Novella). Method 15/33 is optioned for a major motion film and has sold to nineteen foreign rights.

When not writing, she is a practicing lawyer, residing on Massachusett’s Cape Ann with her husband and son and two cat writing accomplices, Marvin Marquez (in honor of Gabriel Garcia Marquez) and Stewie Poe (Edgar Allen Poe).

Shannon enjoys writing in several genres: literary fiction, psychological thriller, young adult, and poetry. She has been honored three times by the William Faulkner William Wisdom Creative Writing Competition. ​

Connect with the author: Website  ~  Twitter  ~  Facebook

Book Trailer for The Extraordinary Journey of Vivienne Marshall

The Giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.