Bye Bye 2011... Welcome 2012!

It's only a matter of hours and it won't be 2011 anymore so, before it's gone I thought it would have been nice to thank it for some great things it brought me:

- Darkest Sins! (who doesn't love their blog!?)

- Awesome bookaholic friends whom rock my days, especially Kay, Bex and Michelle!!!

- Amazing authors, some of whom are real great friends and I'm so grateful to have them in my life!

- And last but not least... A home! Not that I was homeless before but trust me, I wasn't in a place I could call "home" for almost 3 years so, now that I am I'm all: WHOO-HOO!!!!

Of course there were problems during 2011, but let's be honest, is there a year you can say you don't have a single trouble of any kind? So, thanks 2011 and to 2012, I hope you will be the shiniest year ever! (remember I have a business to run and I'm gonna be 30 with you so, let's be very good, huh? ;P)

And now I leave you with my 100th book of the year finished *right on time* and this 100th post *YAY* wishing you:

HAPPY NEW YEAR! :)

"Demon's Slave" by Danielle D. Smith

DEMON'S SLAVE BY DANIELLE D. SMITH

SERIES: Black Dog and Rebel Rose #3
PUBLISHER: Rebel Rose Publishing
GENRE: Erotica/Paranormal
SOURCE: Free E-copy from Amazon

SUMMARY (from Goodreads)

Rose, Nephil daughter of a Warrior of Heaven, has betrayed her celestial heritage by falling for the guy from the wrong side of the tracks: Skriker, tattooed half-demon hunter, and the most irresistible chunk of hard meat that she has ever taken to her bed. Rose knows that there is no love in all of Creation more forbidden than that between an angel and a demon, and that knowledge has left her terribly fragmented, despite her passionate love for her Halfling bad boy. As Skriker's "Dirty 30" approaches, she will offer him the ultimate birthday gift: she will be his devoted sexual slave for three days and three nights, laying aside her angelic pride to fully commit to his pleasure (and hers) with every part of her being...and neither Heaven nor Hell will have any power to stop it.

MY REVIEW

The first time I read about Rose and Skriker was when the author contacted me to review "Coyote Night", and since I was so enchanted by this couple I couldn't resist "Demon's Slave"!

This book is all about sex and you think I'm here to complain? Please, I couldn't expect less from this couple! I loved every single scene, I just should have been bothered by Skriker and his constantly need to be reassured of the fact that Rose will never leave him or that she loves him, but truth is I LOVE him exactly for this! Don't get this wrong, he's a strong character but with a so lovely side that keeps you warm and sometimes leaves you a deep sadness that you would jump in the story just to confort him... Then yes, you'd want him to take you but for some reason I'm a little bit scared of Rose so, probably it would be better not to push this fantasy too far...

Is this an adult book? Absolutely. Is it full of strong, hard sex? Definitely. Why am I telling you this? Because I can't really stand people whom don't like this kind of books but keep buying them and then complain about the BDSM in it. Since they clearly can read, I doubt they can't see a Publisher's warning like: "This sordid tale contains graphic BDSM sex, including forceful oral and anal sex, bondage, blindfolding, slapping/spanking, nipple clamps, toe-curling dirty talk, hot wax, and crazy hardcore sex in a church." Now, I said something similar for a review of one of the books in the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series, but I feel like I need to make this point once more:  it's a personal taste, you can like it or not, but if you don't why, WHY you keep reading these books? Just to have something to bi**h about? When you decide to read a book like this you already know what you're gonna find so, I don't get you guys, really. What I get is that Danielle has fab writing skills and I think her book is a great piece of Dark Erotica!

RATING: 4/5

Merry Christmas Everyone!

My fave holiday has finally arrived and I'm more than ready to celebrate with great food and lots of presents!! :D Are you? I'm pretty sure you are! ;)

From the bottom of my heart,

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

Silvia

"The Scarlet Dagger" by Krystle Jones

THE SCARLET DAGGER BY KRYSTLE JONES

SERIES: The Red Sector Chronicles #1
PUBLISHER: Krystle Jones
GENRE: YA/Dystopian
SOURCE: Review copy received from the author

SUMMARY (from Goodreads)

After the Eclipse – the night vampires began openly slaughtering human victims – everything changed. Out of fear, the government salvaged what remained of the human population and enclosed them in massive, security-laden cities called White Sectors, while marking the vampire infested territory as Red Sectors. When seventeen-year-old Sloane McAllister’s twin brother disappears, she seems to be the only one who thinks he isn’t dead, and vows to stop at nothing to find him. Gathering her courage, she braves the Red Sector to search for clues to his whereabouts. By chance, she encounters Aden, a handsome, charismatic vampire with a hidden agenda. He turns Sloane against her will, and whisks her away to his underground city. Enemies quickly become friends as Sloane struggles against her attraction to Aden, and resists her growing loyalties to the creatures that ruined her life. But the vampires themselves are the least of her problems. The city is harboring a devastating secret, one that could change the tide of the war and threaten to destroy everything Sloane has come to believe in.

MY REVIEW

I've never been a huge dystopian fan, but this book totally got me from the very beginning and I have to say that a dystopian in a vampire society it's definitely something to try!

The whole theory of vampires is very interesting and during the story we met few characters whom you can hate, love or wonder about, but one thing is sure, you can't be indifferent to Captain Knight... And trust me, he's a revelation under many aspects... If this wasn't enough to catch your attention you should know that almost every chapter has a sort of cliffhanger that leaves you with no choice... You have to keep reading! I couldn't believe myself when I stopped, but every now and then everyone needs to eat and sleep, huh? Anyway, it was a fast reading, pleasurable, intriguing with lots of action always ready to jump on you, a few emotional moments and a couple of things at the end I didn't see coming at all (I love when it happens!) and a need to know what is going to happen next!

Krystle Jones what did you do? I'm in a desperate mood for book two!!

RATING: 4/5

Top Ten Tuesday (#5)

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created and hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. There's a new Top Ten list to answer every week to have fun with and a way to get to know your fellow bloggers!

This week's Top Ten list is:

Top Ten Books I Hope Santa Brings.

Dear Santa,
I know you're pretty busy and I'm not a kid anymore, but that doesn't mean I wasn't good this year, and I mean VERY good *fluttering eyelashes*, plus I'm broke at the moment so, you're kinda my only hope... Having said that, it could be great if you could stop by and have a look at my wishlist, wonderful if you could pick some of those books and put them in your sack for me! I will leave milk, chocolate, biscuits... A drink perhaps? *Shush, don't worry, I'm not telling anyone!* Seriously, name it and I will leave it under the tree!
Thank you!!!!
Your big fan,
Silvia

1. "Hit List" by Laurel K. Hamilton -> Do I really have to explain how much I love Laurell K. Hamilton and her Anita Blake's world once more? Because I can go on and on as much as you like, you know? ;)

2. "Succubus On Top" by Richelle Mead -> I read the first instalment of this series and I'm a desperate mood for book two since then! *ok, for book 2-3-4-5 and 6!*

3. "Shatter Me" by Tahereh Mafi -> I won't lie (especially because I hate lies), the book trailer is what made me decided to put it in the list. So captivating!

4.  "Across The Universe" by Beth Revis -> The cover makes me crazy and I always had good vibrations about it so, why I don't have it?

5. "Anna Dressed In Blood" by Kendare Blake -> Too many reviews made me damn curious about this book...

6.  "Gentlemen Prefer Succubi" by Jill Myles -> Who doesn't need some hot topic once in a while, huh? ;)

7. "Firelight" by Sophie Jordan -> Dragons... So fascinating...

8. "Pack Challenge" by Shelly Laurenston -> I'm intrigued about this book and I think it's been on my wishlist for a certain amount of time now...

9. "Supernaturally" by Kiersten White -> I miss the sound of that BLIP so much! ;P

10.  "Dark Lover" by J.R. Ward -> I feel like I waited too long and I need to be into this Brotherhood series...

And what about you guys? Any special request to Santa? ;)

"The Vampire Stalker" by Allison Van Diepen

THE VAMPIRE STALKER BY ALLISON VAN DIEPEN

SERIES: Stand-alone
PUBLISHER: Scholastic
GENRE: YA Paranormal
SOURCE: Purchased Paperback

SUMMARY (from the book)

Amy is in love with Alexander Banks. In fact, she's obsessed with him. He's brooding and handsome. He hunts vampires. He's perfect. The only problem is, Alexander doesn't exist. He's a character in a book. But, what if he showed up one day? What if he were somehow real?

MY REVIEW

I don't know exactly what I was expecting from this book so I can't really say it was disappointing, but a thing is certain, I'd surely have preferred something more exciting... Anyway, it was that kind of fast reading that you enjoy to do sometimes.

Amy reflects very well the majority of the real teenegers, but her love for a book character is something in common with girls of every age! (Don't you dare telling me you don't have a big crush on a fictional character, I wouldn't buy it!) I found very realistic the excited fans and their run for the latest book of their favourite series, the one under the spotlights that can drive a fan crazy. That made me laugh because I assisted to a scene like that when Breaking Dawn was released. Gosh, you couldn't put a foot in the bookstore, neither in the strees where the bookstore was, there was craziness everywhere! Don't get me wrong, I love Twilight but sometimes fans can be as esuberant as scary...

I feel like I have to spend some words about the cover... It's usually the thing that catches your attention first, we all know that, but in this case if the USA cover has something fascinating, the UK one is totally unattractive... Maybe the girl on the cover reflects better the physical characteristics of Amy, but let's be honest, you haven't read the book when you pick it up so, you can't do that comparison at first sight and you should attract my eyes in every way possible, don't you agree? Too bad because generally the UK covers are anything but disappointing.

RATING: 3/5

A big vampire-like gift from an amazing friend!

What do you say to a friend who sent you a package with the first 6 books of a big series of 11 so far? Do the titles "Glass Houses", "The Dead Girls", "Midnight Alley", "Feast Of Fools", "Lord Of Misrule" and "Carpe Corpus" say anything to you? Exactly, I practically opened a door to the Morganvilles this morning! ;D

So Kay, I know you told me I shouldn't consider them a "real" Christmas gift, but still: Merry Christmas to me! :P Seriously, I almost cried (ok, a couple of tears fell for real) when I opened your package and I really, REALLY couldn't have wished for a more special gift!

From the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU!!!! ♥ 

"Veiled Innocence" by Krystle Jones

VEILED INNOCENCE BY KRYSTLE JONES

SERIES: The Soul Cycle #1
PUBLISHER: Krystle Jones
GENRE: YA Paranormal
SOURCE: Review copy received from the author

SUMMARY (from Goodreads)

Lianora has never placed much stock in the gods or in the lore of the land. She especially never believed the legends that spoke of a lost ancient magic, a magic woven from the fabric of people’s souls. So when she discovers the teardrop necklace, she thinks it to be nothing special – until the visions begin, horrific glimpses of an approaching evil, mingled with fragments of a legendary empress’ shattered past. Try as she might, Lianora cannot ignore the omens. As the visions worsen, she finds herself internally battling a shadowy voice that seems bent on consuming her whole. When tragedy strikes her home, she is forced to flee and team up with Vishka, a beautiful, fierce warrior shrouded in mystery, and Rowan, a brooding young knight. Together, the reluctant allies must find a way to conquer the darkness threatening to overtake the land of Eresea, and Lianora will have to come to terms with the destiny she never asked for.

MY REVIEW

What can I say? I think it's impossible not to be charmed by this book!

Divided into two parts, the first was definitely the one to give me goosebumps... A Lady, a Knight, a forbidden love... Romance fulfilled practically every chapter and I couldn't help myself but completely fall for the gorgeous Knight... What it starts as an intriguing story alternated by lovely/seducing moments with heartbroken ones, results in a picture bigger than that and an unexpected event breaks that kind of magic for another one, a "real" one... That's when the second part begins and we enter in an exciting circle of events, action and revelations! There was nothing predictable and for me this is one of the things that made a book a great read. I had just a little lack of interest in a couple of occasions during the last few chapters, but nothing a good cliffangher like the one in this instalment couldn't adjust.

A captivating story, a fascinating world with beautiful characters, an amazing writing style... Krystle Jones, I'm desperately waiting for the second book of your Soul Cycle series!

RATING: 4.5/5

Top Ten Tuesday (#4)

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created and hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. There's a new Top Ten list to answer every week to have fun with and a way to get to know your fellow bloggers!

This week's Top Ten list is:

Top Ten Books I Want To Give As Gifts.
(and to who...even if you won't actually give them!)

Christmas is very close and I'd love to buy many books for every special friend of mine, but unfortunately this is not a good year for me, at least not economically speaking (please 2012, be good to me, thanks!)... So, here's a list of the books I couldn't buy but as they said "It's the thought that counts"! *hope so*

(in no particular order)

1. "Half-Blood" by Jennifer L. Armentrout to my sister -> So she can finally see her sister in the praise page and read something wonderful at the same time! ;) (but of course she needs to improve her English better first...)

2. The whole "Riley Jenson Guardian series" by Keri Arthur to my precious B! -> I think she perfectly knows how much she HAS to read this series, but just to be sure I'm gonna give her a word of encouragement: Quinn! ;P

3. "Silence" by Becca Fitzpatrick to Kay -> Our beautiful friendship was born thanks to our common passion for the same genre and since we always talk about our reads and we practically are always on the same line, I can't wait for her to read this third book of the series since the disappointment on the second one... Don't worry Kay, this is far better! ;)

4. "Stray" by Rachel Vincent to Michelle -> Because I know she wanna read the Shifters series and she has it listed in her TBR pile for the new year!

5. "Adversary" by Kate Kaynak to Cheree -> She loved the first book of this amazing series and since I'm a huge Kaynak fan I extremely recommend her to keep reading it! (Oh well, I recommend the series to everyone!)

6. "Paranormalcy" by Kiersten White to Lindsay -> I'm sure she'd love it especially because of the humour in it!

7. "Starcrossed" by Josephine Angelini to Cameo -> I loved this book, I have an admiration for Josie and I'm totally sure my lovely friend Cameo would agree after reading it! :)

8. "Die For Me" by Amy Plum to Emily -> They're not zombies zombies but... I think Emily wouldn't be disappointed with what they are... ;)

9. "Pleasure Unbound" by Larissa Ione to Sinn -> I'm pretty sure it's still on her wishlist and Larissa Ione can't stay in a "wishlist" but only on I-am-gonna-read-it-right-now list! ;)

10. "Blood Law" by Karin Tabke to Franny -> She's the last one only because she already has a book from me under the tree... So, guess what Franny? This is not the ONE! ;PPPP

So, what books would you like to gift your friends?

"Torment" by Lindsay Anne Kendal

TORMENT BY LINDSAY ANNE KENDAL

SERIES: Bloodlines #2
PUBLISHER: World Castle Publishing
GENRE: New Adult Paranormal
SOURCE: Borrowed from a friend

SUMMARY (from Goodreads)

In this second gripping instalment of the Bloodlines trilogy Keira and her friends – Lily, Lucian, Tyler, Jake and Danny – continue to try and understand their elemental powers, and protect themselves from their enemies, whose ultimate goal is to destroy them. This time, the stakes are higher – what seems to be a demon rebellion has broken out in hell and the Earth is plunged into chaos. Their problem is, no one – not even Lucifer himself – knows who the rebel leader is. It seems only Keira, her frightened but determined friends, and a new ally – a demon named Eligos - can find out who this person or thing is, why they are suddenly causing so much bloodshed, pain and upset for everyone, and destroy them.

MY REVIEW

I had a conflict with this second instalment, it was an enjoyable reading but despite the previous book, there was something that bothered me...

The characters are over twenty but looking at how they act, react and talk here, they definitely seem more like they're sixteen, and I saw this especially during the first part of the book. That annoyed me together with how everyone took every news. It was like nothing was shocking or particularly relevant to see a huge reaction. Of course there were very aggressive moods and actions but I was definitely expecting some resistance to accept things that should have made you think and mentally freak out...

Then I really liked how many different events happened in every chapter, they never follow a succession and that's why you keep going on and on with the reading. That and of course Eligos! He's a beautiful character, I loved his soft side (even if sometimes a certain kind of paranoia bothered me) and I would have loved to be with him but Keira preceeded me so... Plus I finally found out which character is my fave... Danny. See? Not always the main characters are the one who catch your attention the most.

In conclusion I loved the first instalment, I like this one and now I'm very curious to know what I have to expect with the third and final book!

RATING: 3/5

"Bloodlines" by Lindsay Anne Kendal

BLOODLINES BY LINDSAY ANNE KENDAL

SERIES: Bloodlines #1
PUBLISHER: World Castle Publishing
GENRE: New Adult Paranormal
SOURCE: Borrowed from a friend

SUMMARY (from Goodreads)

Keira Jameson used to lead a normal life, she just had a gift, passed down through the generations of her family. Now, after hearing voices, having strange dreams of others calling out to her, and her grandfather's last words haunting her, she sets out to find other families like hers. Along with her best friend Lily, the only person outside her family to know about her gift, Keira begins a hunt for her ancestors. A chance meeting with a young man, Lucian Turner, sets them on the right track, but their discoveries change the way Keira will see herself for ever more. Fear, superstition and heritage are shaping Keira's future and she must face her enemies, even if this could mean losing her life.

MY REVIEW

The story has a great potential, it catches your attention from the very first chapter and makes you wonder. There's only a thing that I didn't particularly liked and it's the way the bound between the characters happens. It was too fast for me and that's why I didn't find it particularly believable... But then some of the best parts were the ones in which I could read about the moments the characters spent together and so after a while how the bond happened didn't bother me too much anymore. That's definitely a good thing because I've been able to appreciate every character and find out different aspects of everyone that made me want to know them all.

Keira is a kick-ass girl, extremely powerful and with a particular charm, and danger or not it's kinda difficult not to want to be in her shoes. Of course that could be for the guys around her, too... Well, it's not my fault if they're intriguing! Lucian is the perfect boyfriend material guy, Tyler is the one who gives you a hard time to concentrate only on Lucian and then there is... surely someone else, read the book and then we can talk about intriguing guys!

Action, unexpected and the Buffy-style horror keeps you involved until an end that definitely doesn't sounds like one at all... Great thing I have the second instalment ready to be read!

RATING: 4/5

Interested in a blog makeover?

Hey guys!!

Here we go with the third surprise in a row, are you ready???... After all your great comments about my new design and some lovely words by two great friends of mine, whom pushed me hard for a long day to do something about my creativity (you girls are so the best!! ♥), I decided to open a little business here on Darkest Sins! So, there's a special section now where you can request a design for your amazing blogs! It's called "Interested in a blog makeover?" and there you will find pricing, a form to fill and of course my portfolio!

Hope you like this surprise and of course I hope to hear from you and receive some requests! :)

Dark Mind Book Tours!

Yesterday I told you to stay around because something was in the air...

Me and Franny @ Mind Reader are really in LOVE with the magic world of Paranormal (I know, it's pretty clear, huh? :P) and since we know there are so many authors of this genre out there whom try hard to promote their books, and many bloggers ready to help and support them, we thought it would have been nice to do something about it. Soooo... Dark Mind Book Tours launches today! Bloggers/reviewers with a big passion for Urban/Dark Fantasy, Paranormal Romance and even Dark Erotica, authors of this genres wanting to promote your book, we're definitely waiting for you! ;)

* It would be because Christmas is so close, I don't know, but something is telling me I will have another surprise tomorrow... ;)

New Design!

Hey guys,

what do you think about the new design? I'm very proud of it, especially because of the header (Gosh, I missed Photoshop! ♥) so, I really hope you like the new style! :)

If you previously grabbed my button and put it on your blog, could you please change it with the new one? You can find the code in the sidebar on the right, thanks in advance!

Enjoy the weekend and be sure to come back tomorrow, I'm pretty sure something is in the air... ;)

xo

"Carrier Of The Mark" by Leigh Fallon

CARRIER OF THE MARK BY LEIGH FALLON

SERIES: Carrier Trilogy #1
PUBLISHER: Harper Collins Children's Books
GENRE: YA Paranormal
SOURCE: Borrowed from a friend

SUMMARY (from the book)

When Megan Rosenberg moves moves to Ireland, everything in her life seems to fall into place. After growing up in America, she's surprised to find herself feeling at home in her new school. She connects with a group of friends, and she instantly drawn to darkly handsome Adame DeRís. But Megan is about to discover that her feelings for Adam are tied to a fate that was sealed long ago - and that the passion and power that brought them together could be their ultimate destruction.

MY REVIEW

Let's be honest, hands up who hasn't read the Twilight Saga yet... So, you agree with me that it's kinda difficult not to recognize a copy of it, right? And doesn't this bother you? Because I gotta say I have a hard time when it happens and when it's something so obvious, like this book, I explode in a very disappointed mood. The events follow step by step the Twilight story, the characters are practically the same except for the fact that we have no vampires and no werewolves here, the similiarities are so disturbing that I seriously took in consideration the idea of stop reading it. But since I'm a stubborn person I have to finish the book I picked and so I went on until the very end... It wasn't an easy thing to do, the semplicity of everything and the way the characters acted and interacted didn't make me feel a single emotion during all the reading except a huge, deep disappointment.

It's a shame because it even had potential, but unfortunately it didn't see the light, it was ruined thanks to the Twilight clone the author choose to do. And the way I see it, you can like or dislike a book, but have an original plot with its own characters is what makes you respect any book, good or bad.

RATING: 1/5