Today’s Spooky Legend is a well known ghost story told by a girl who sees ghosts.  I’m talking about C.C. Hunter’s Kylie Galen from the Shadow Falls series about a camp for supernatural teens that reminded me of Camp Half Blood from the Percy Jackson series except with older teens and lots of romance.  The second book in the series, AWAKE AT DAWN is in bookstores everywhere today from St. Martin’s Griffin and thanks to C.C. two of you will win a copy!  See details below.

Click to see the Spooky Legends Master List with links to all the previous posts and giveaways

Kylie Galen on Where Did She Go? 
by
C.C. Hunter

People say urban legends are absurd.  I say they don’t know what I know. Albert Camus, a French writer and philosopher, once said, “The absurd is the essential concept and the first truth.”   I sometimes wonder if Albert was a supernatural like me.  Did he see things that no one else could see?  And by things, I mean the dead, spirits . . . ghosts.  They are here amongst us.  Not everyone can hear or see them.  I can do both. 

A while back, I lived an urban legend.  I was home for the weekend, driving back from seeing Sara, my old best friend.  Well, she’s still my best “human” friend.  But we’ve sort of grown apart since I learned that I’m not human and moved to Shadow Falls.  Anyway, as my wheels hummed and ate up the asphalt, the sound of the rain splattered on the windshield.  I could see the lightening flash in the dark sky to the north. 

*This title will be released on March 29, 2011*

Title: Born At Midnight Author: C.C. Hunter Series: Shadow Falls #1 Cover Art: N/A Genre: Paranormal YA Excerpt: Yes Source: LibraryThing Reviewed by: Abigail Reading level: Young Adult Paperback: 416 pages Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; First Edition edition (March 29, 2011) ISBN-10: 0312624670 ISBN-13: 978-0312624675 Sexual Content: Kissing.  A few scenes of mild sensuality. References to sex. Teen Pregnancy. References to masturbation. My Rating: Good - A fun read with minor flaws. Maybe read an excerpt before buying.

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Description

Don’t miss this spectacular new series that will steal your heart and haunt your dreams,  Welcome to Shadow Falls camp, nestled deep in the woods of a town called Fallen…

 

One night Kylie Galen finds herself at the wrong party, with the wrong people, and it changes her life forever.  Her mother ships her off to Shadow Falls—a camp for troubled teens, and within hours of arriving, it becomes painfully clear that her fellow campers aren’t just “troubled.”  Here at Shadow Falls, vampires, werewolves, shapshifters, witches and fairies train side by side—learning to harness their powers, control their magic and live in the normal world.

 

Kylie’s never felt normal, but surely she doesn’t belong here with a bunch of paranormal freaks either.  Or does she?  They insist Kylie is one of them, and that she was brought here for a reason.  As if life wasn’t complicated enough, enter Derek and Lucas.  Derek’s a half-fae who’s determined to be her boyfriend, and Lucas is a smokin’ hot werewolf with whom Kylie shares a secret past.  Both Derek and Lucas couldn’t be more different, but they both have a powerful hold on her heart.

 

Even though Kylie feels deeply uncertain about everything, one thing is becoming painfully clear—Shadow Falls is exactly where she belongs…

 

Review

BORN AT MIDNIGHT is like Camp Half Blood from the Percy Jackson series, except that the Shadow Falls campers are older teens, and instead of demigods there are werewolves, vampires, witches, fairies, and other paranormal creatures.  Plus there is a whole lot of romance.

 

BORN AT MIDNIGHT starts off a little slow.  Meeting all the campers at Shadow Falls and learning all the camp rules etc.  is not as interesting as I would have hoped.  Specifically Kylie’s hormone driven responses to several of the male campers while still lusting after her ex made me lose a lot of respect for her.

 

Fortunately, the second half of BORN AT MIDNIGHT is significantly better than the first.  Kylie’s cabin mates gain some depth and dimension.  One, a new vampire being torn between two sides of her family, the other a dyslexic witch struggling to overcome her disability and not disappoint her parents.  Best of all, the three guys vying for Kylie’s attention begin to distinguish themselves from one another and she starts to finally examine her attraction for each guy and consider their true motives (sex, control, and maybe love?).  Even the issues with her parent’s divorce and her perception of both her mom and dad takes an interesting twist. 

 

The key to launching a new series is finding a balance between giving answers while holding back enough to generate interest in future books.  BORN AT MIDNIGHT does that beautifully.  I’ll definitely be back for the next book in the Shadow Falls series called AWAKE AT DAWN when it’s released in October 2011. 

Previous Books in Series	Also Reviewed By:
Prequel story: Turned At Dark	Blkosiner's Book Blog Urban Fantasy Investigations Looksie Lovitz: Books and Wits

*Cover Art may not be final*

Click author names to visit their webpages & click titles to pre-order from The Book Depository or Goodreads if it isn’t available for pre-order. 

Sirensong by Jenna Black

Series: Faeriewalker #3 Date/Publisher: July 5th 2011 by St. Martin's Griffin Cover Artist: N/A Cover Source: Jenna Black via Twitter Author Comments: Since I see it's up on Amazon & therefore it's OK for me to go public, here's the cover for SIRENSONG.http://yfrog.com/h8cb5cj My Thoughts: My least favorite of the three.  The full face is a little too stereotypically YA and the colors are to vibrant. SHADOWSPELL was so killer but I don’t love this follow-up.  Still totally want to read it though.

Description:

Previous Book in the Series:

Kindling the Moon by Jenn Bennett

Series: Arcadia Bell #1 Date/Publisher: June 28th 2011 by Pocket Cover Artist: Tony Mauro  Cover Source: Book Chick City Author Comments: Ta-da! It’s Arcadia standing in front of her bar, Tambuku Tiki Lounge. Everything is just so damn right about it! Pocket Books: I totally heart you. I also heart Tony Mauro, who is the talented cover artist. I’m in heaven. My Thoughts: Very cool.  Tony Mauro always does great work, but his equal emphasis on both the girl and the setting is just perfect for an UF cover.

Description:

MEET ARCADIA BELL: BARTENDER, RENEGADE
MAGICIAN, FUGITIVE FROM THE LAW. . . .

Being the spawn of two infamous occultists (and alleged murderers) isn’t easy, but freewheeling magician Arcadia “Cady” Bell knows how to make the best of a crummy situation. After hiding out for seven years, she’s carved an incognito niche for herself slinging drinks at the demon-friendly Tambuku Tiki Lounge.

But she receives an ultimatum when unexpected surveillance footage of her notorious parents surfaces: either prove their innocence or surrender herself. Unfortunately, the only witness to the crimes was an elusive Æthyric demon, and Cady has no idea how to find it. She teams up with Lon Butler, an enigmatic demonologist with a special talent for sexual spells and an arcane library of priceless stolen grimoires. Their research soon escalates into a storm of conflict involving missing police evidence, the decadent Hellfire Club, a ruthless bounty hunter, and a powerful occult society that operates way outside the law. If Cady can’t clear her family name soon, she’ll be forced to sacrifice her own life . . . and no amount of running will save her this time.

Previous Book in the Series:

N/A

Darkness Unbound by Keri Arthur

Series: Dark Angel #1 Date/Publisher: October 2011 by Piatkus Books Cover Artist: N/A Cover Source: Keri Arthur Author Comments: Here's the UK cover for Darkness Unbound, the first of the Dark Angels novels. I love it My Thoughts: FYI, this is the UK version not the US version, but it’s showing up everywhere so… Well, her arms are crossed and there is a motorcycle in the background…if only there was some way we could find out if she’s tough or not…Meh, I’m holding out for the US version.

Description:

Risa Jones is as extraordinary as her heritage. Born from a lab-enhanced clone mother and an Aedh father, she can not only talk to the souls of the dying and the dead, but she can see the reapers and walk the gray fields that divide this world from the next.

They are skill she rarely uses, however, preferring to concentrate on the business she shares with her two best friends. But when her mother asks her to help the parents of a little girl locked in a coma, she reluctantly agrees. What she discovers scares the hell out of her. Because the little girl’s soul no longer resides in her body, and it wasn’t death and the reapers that took her.

Someone had ripped her soul from her flesh.

As it turns out, a creature consuming the souls of the innocent–and not so innocent–is the least of her problems.

Because someone wants to rip open the gates that divided hell from earth, and Risa is a key component in their plans.

And the only person standing between her and disaster is a reaper who isn’t exactly on her side.

Previous Book in the Series:

N/A

Awake at Dawn by C.C. Hunter

Series: Shadow Falls #2 Date/Publisher: October 2011 by St. Martin's Griffin Cover Artist: N/A Cover Source: C.C. Hunter Author Comments: I got my first glimpse of Awake At Dawn’s cover.  Amazingly, they depicted the scene where Kylie first saw the falls.  I love it. My Thoughts: Really pretty.  I like how this series is giving such an emphasis on one basic feature, first the tree and now the falls.  A really nice distinctive look for these books.

Description:

N/A

NOT AVAILABLE FOR PREORDER Visit Goodreads page

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The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore

Series: Lorien Legacies #2 Date/Publisher: August 23rd 2011 by HarperCollins Cover Artist: N/A Cover Source:  Imperial Beach Teen Blog Author Comments: N/A My Thoughts: Yes, technically not paranormal, but alien powers and magic are a lot alike.  As for the cover, the colors are a bit harsh.

Description:

Second edition in the Lorien Legacies, a YA alien series.
“I can feel it in my bones that he is one of us. And I know somehow, that I must find him.”

Previous Book in the Series:

Dark Heart Rising by Lee Monroe

Series: Dark Heart Forever #2 Date/Publisher: June 2nd 2011 by Hodder Children's Books Cover Artist: N/A Cover Source: Love Fantasy Sci-Fi Novels Author Comments: N/A My Thoughts: Wow are these covers gorgeous…the muted colors, the way he’s holding her...  Has anyone read the first book?

Description:

Jane and Luca’s story continues ... but not quite as they had planned. When challenges and threats from the immortal world of Nissilum rip the young lovers apart, Jane is bereft. Without Luca’s dancing green eyes, and gentle smile, Jane feels lost, sad and alone. But then a trip to Paris with her grandmother thrusts her in the path of the amiable Soren - a kindred spirit who may be just the distraction she needs ... Meanwhile in Nissilum, Luca struggles with the loyalties and expectations that come with being a part of the immortal world. A world that is about to be shaken at its very core: rumblings of mounting unrest are spreading, and with rumours of an angel rebellion growing no creature is safe – especially not a mortal girl who has fallen in love with a wolf boy...

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Crave the Moon by Lori Handeland

Series: Nightcreatures #11 Date/Publisher: June 28th 2011 by St. Martin's Paperbacks Cover Artist: N/A Cover Source: Escape Between The Pages Author Comments: N/A My Thoughts: Standard romance guy meets Lolita farmer Barbie.

Description:

Hunger and desire can lead to a dangerous place
THE ENEMY
Gina O’Neill will do anything to hold on to her beloved ranch that has been in her family for generations. Enter Mateo Mecate, an archeologist whose greatest wish is to dig there. Prepared to despise Matt—and to thwart his agenda—Gina cannot deny the shocking desire she feels for him.
THE PASSION
Matt believes that the Nahua Springs Ranch holds an important key to Aztec history—one that will restore his standing in the archeological community. But he never expects to go head-to-head with the maddeningly sensuous owner, Gina. The ranch seems to have cast a spell on them both...
THE WAR
When Gina and Matt delve into the secrets of this ancient place, they awaken something unspeakably evil—a shapeshifter who is centuries old. A werewolf with vengeance on its mind. A sorcerer of incredible power. Can Gina and Matt defeat this enemy—even as their conflicts deepen…and their attraction grows more dangerous?

Previous Book in the Series:

And my picks for Best & Worst…

Best Cover	Worst Cover

So any new to you covers? Which are your Best & Worst picks?