Whoo hoo!  It’s the first of my Top 10 List posts!  I’ve got a crazy long list of future Top 10 Lists to come (feel free to Contact me if you have an idea for a Top 10 List), but I knew without a doubt that my first list would have to be Urban Fantasy pet peeves.  I was going to launch this on my own site, but when Jackie from Literary Escapism asked me to guest blog for her when she was due to deliver her baby, I thought this would be perfect.   I will give you a teaser though:

1. Sex breaks, not sex scenes

Defined as:
Sex breaks are when two characters inexplicably stop in the middle of the story, often during time sensitive dire situations, to have sex. Sex breaks are rarely isolated incidents, if one occurs you can typically expect two or more to follow. Sex breaks are easily distinguished from sex scenes in that they neither contribute to the development of the characters involved nor do they advance the plot of the book.

• An exaggerated example from the totally-made-up-not-an-actual-book: "Fangs with Dick and Jane" (as if you needed further proof as to why I’m not an author):

Dick gazed at Jane with naked desire on his face, "Jane, baby, I know that even as I speak the vampires are closing in on the children's orphanage/blind puppy shelter, but a man can only take so much." He eyed the backseat of the car significantly…

To learn the fate of the orphanage/blind puppy shelter and the rest of my Urban Fantasy pet peeves, you’ll have to check out Literary Escapism.

 

Book Description

IT’S A THIN LINE BETWEEN ALIVE AND UNDEAD.

Chess Putnam has a lot on her plate. Mangled human corpses have started to show up on the streets of Downside, and Chess’s bosses at the Church of Real Truth have ordered her to team up with the ultra-powerful Black Squad agency to crack the grisly case.

Chess is under a binding spell that threatens death if she talks about the investigation, but the city’s most notorious crime boss—and Chess’s drug dealer—gets wind of her new assignment and insists on being kept informed. If that isn’t bad enough, a sinister street vendor appears to have information Chess needs. Only he’s not telling what he knows, or what it all has to do with the vast underground City of Eternity.

Now Chess will have to navigate killer wraiths, First Elders, and a lot of seriously nasty magic—all while coping with some not-so-small issues of her own. And the only man Chess can trust to help her through it all has every reason to want her dead.

 Review

Book 3 in The Downside Ghosts Series

After devouring the first two Downside Ghost books in all their addictive, screwed up goodness, I had crazy, impossibly high hopes for CITY OF GHOSTS. And Stacia Kane didn’t disappoint in this action packed, scary cool, emotionally naked urban fantasy that I can still feel racing through my veins.

By far, CITY OF GHOSTS is the most emotionally rich story in the series so far.  By the end of Unholy Magic, Chess had spiraled into a pit of shame, guilt, and drug-induced regret culminating in gut wrenching ending where the guy she probably loved caught her about to screw the guy she definitely didn’t before he died and she risked her life to bring him back. 

When CITY OF GHOSTS begins, the rage and disgust that exudes from Terrible when he is near Chess is only surpassed by her own self loathing.  In her eyes, Chess is valueless and deserving of every drop of animosity that Terrible flings at her.  In his eyes, Terrible is what his name says he is.  He can’t process the pain she caused him, so he lashes out instead.  I’ve never seen two people hurt one another as deeply as these two do, and at the same time empathize with their bone deep hurt so that I understand why.  Their love is pitiful and painful enough to steal your breath. 

And if that emotional hell ride wasn’t enough, Chess is beaten, burned, cursed, magically Bound, and nearly raped in CITY OF GHOSTS all while having to face a threat that is seeking to undue the very thread that have held her life together: The Church.

The Downside Ghosts series is in turn scary and shocking.  The characters live daily in a personal hell that most people can’t fathom. Yes, Chess is a junkie who makes Rachel Morgan’s relationship decisions look healthy, but in CITY OF GHOSTS, she is more vulnerable and more honest with herself that I ever thought possible.  I imagine that she still has further down to go before she picks herself up, but I have no doubt that she will.  On her website, Stacia Kane says, "The fourth and fifth books in the series will probably be released in Fall 2011/Spring 2012.” I just hate that I’ll have to wait so long for my next Chess/Terrible fix. 

Sexual Content: References to sex.  References to rape.  Attempted rape.  Two graphic sex scenes.

My Rating (out of 5):
Near Perfect - Buy two copies: one for you and one for a friend.

Click HERE to read an excerpt from CITY OF GHOSTS

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Del Rey (July 27, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345515595
• ISBN-13: 978-0345515599
• Cover Art: Juliana Kolesova

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Disagree with my review?  Contact me with your review for this or any other book I’ve reviewed and I might use it for 2nd Opinion Review.

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• Review: City OF Ghosts By Stacia Kane (smexybooks.com)
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The aptly named people from Wunderkind PR are offering a copy of Marjorie M. Liu’s third Hunter Kiss novel, A WILD LIGHT, to one commenter.  See details below.

Have you read any of the previous Hunter Kiss books?  Here is the official series concept in a nutshell:

The Hunter Kiss series is about the last living demon hunter on earth -- a woman covered in living tattoos that peel off her body at night to form her own personal demonic army -- an army that is her only family, dedicated to saving her life -- and destined to end it.

If you read paranormal fiction on a regular basis, you know Liu is not alone in prominently featuring body art in her stories.  Here are a few other books where tattoos play a vital role:

Title	Description
The Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney Publication date: February 1, 2011	Freak. That’s what they called seventeen year-old Donna Underwood in high school after a horrific fey attack that killed her father when she was just a child. Her injuries and rehabilitation resulted in magically enhanced strength, thanks to the iron tattoos branding her hands and arms. As a child of the alchemists, she is both blessed and cursed with a magical heritage that permeates her life with duty and sacrifice. Now, after ten years of wishing for a normal life, she finally has to accept her role in the centuries-old war against the darkest outcasts of Faerie: the Dark Elves. Aided by a gorgeous half-fey dropout, Donna must race to save her best friend’s life – even if it means betraying the secret of immortality and confronting the very thing that destroyed her family.
Inked (anthology) by Karen Chance, Marjorie M. Liu, Yasmine Galenorn, Eileen Wilks Publication date: March 4, 2010	Four tales of urban fantasy and paranormal romance explore body art that is more than it seems—in a world of magic and mayhem that always leaves it mark . . . This captivating tattoo theme surrounds each author's popular characters and worlds: Karen Chance's war mage Lia de Croissets, Marjorie M. Liu's demon-hunter Maxine Kiss, Yasmine Galenorn's Otherworld Intelligence Agency operative Camille D'Artigo, and Eileen Wilk's Lupi world.
Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr Publication date: April 2, 2009	Unbeknownst to mortals, a power struggle is unfolding in a world of shadows and danger. After centuries of stability, the balance among the Faery Courts has altered, and Irial, ruler of the Dark Court, is battling to hold his rebellious and newly vulnerable fey together. If he fails, bloodshed and brutality will follow. Seventeen-year-old Leslie knows nothing of faeries or their intrigues. When she is attracted to an eerily beautiful tattoo of eyes and wings, all she knows is that she has to have it, convinced it is a tangible symbol of changes she desperately craves for her own life. The tattoo does bring changes—not the kind Leslie has dreamed of, but sinister, compelling changes that are more than symbolic. Those changes will bind Leslie and Irial together, drawing Leslie deeper and deeper into the faery world, unable to resist its allures, and helpless to withstand its perils. . . .
Unholy Ghosts by Stacia Kane Publication date: May 25, 2010	THE AFTERLIFE IS ONLY THE BEGINNING. The world is not the way it was. The dead have risen and constantly attack the living. The powerful Church of Real Truth, in charge since the government fell, has sworn to reimburse citizens being harassed by the deceased. Consequently, there are many false claims of hauntings from those hoping to profit. Enter Chess Putnam, a fully-tattooed witch and freewheeling Debunker and ghost hunter. She’s got a real talent for nailing the human liars or banishing the wicked dead. But she’s keeping a dark secret from the Church: a little drug problem that’s landed her in hot and dangerous water. Chess owes a murderous drug lord named Bump a lot of money. And Bump wants immediate payback. All Chess has to do is dispatch a very nasty species of undead from an old airport. But the job involves black magic, human sacrifice, a nefarious demonic creature, and crossing swords with enough wicked energy to wipe out a city of souls. Toss in lust with a rival gang leader and a dangerous attraction to Bump’s ruthless enforcer, and Chess begins to wonder if the rush is really worth it. Hell, yeah.
Magic to the Bone by Devon Monk Publication date: January 8, 2009	"Using magic meant it used you back. Forget the fairy tale hocus-pocus, wave a wand and bling-o sparkles and pixie dust crap. Magic, like booze, sex, and drugs, gave as good as it got." Everything has a cost. And every act of magic exacts a price from its user--maybe a two-day migraine, or losing the memory of your first kiss. But some people want to use magic without paying, and they offload the cost onto an innocent. When that happens, it falls to a Hound to identify the spell's caster--and Allison Beckstrom's the best there is. Daughter of a prominent Portland businessman, Allie would rather moonlight as a Hound than accept the family fortune--and the many strings that come with it. But when she discovers a little boy dying from a magical offload that has her father's signature all over it, Allie is thrown back into the high-stakes world of corporate espionage and black magic. Now, Allie's out for the truth--and the forces she finds herself calling on will overturn everything she knows, change her in ways she could never imagine...and make her capable of things that powerful people will do anything to control.

What are some of your favorite tattoo themed titles?

Giveaway

Giveaway courtesy of Wunderkind PR

One (1) copy of A WILD LIGHT by Marjorie M. Liu

Book Description

For too long Maxine Kiss has felt an inexplicable darkness inside her-a force she channels into hunting the demons bent on destroying the human race. But when she finds herself covered in blood and crouched beside her grandfather’s dead body with no memory of what happened, Maxine begins to fear that the darkness has finally consumed her.

Click HERE to read an excerpt of A WILD LIGHT

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Giveaway Guidelines

1. Open to US only
2. Leave a comment that includes: 
   1. Your favorite tattoo themed title or why you want to win?
   2. A way to contact you if you win
3. Entries must be received by Midnight MST on August 14th.

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Interested in offering a giveaway on All Things Urban Fantasy? CONTACT ME

 

Kristi from The Story Siren has her Dear Story Siren posts where she shares her extensive blogging knowledge by answering questions from bloggers.  Rachel from Parajunkee’s View has her Book Blogging 101 posts where she covers all sorts of blogging basics.  Inspired by their efforts, I’m launching my own blogging advice feature called How I Blog. 

Believe it or not, I actually do get the occasional email from bloggers asking how I handle various blog related details.  I basically give out the same advice, recommend the same tools, and explain the same protocols every time.  My way may not always be the best way, but I have discovered a number of useful tips and tricks gleaned from other bloggers and my own experience that I feel compelled to share including (in no particular order):

How I…

• Build my posts
• Handle interviews & guest blogs
• Review
• Acquire ARCs
• Run giveaways
• Manage time
• Use blog design
• Schedule
• Utilize the best plug-ins & tools
• Approach collaborations
• Work with publishers, publicists, and authors

And probably more.  I have no set schedule for these posts, they will pop up whenever I have an opening in the schedule or receive a specific request/question, so feel free to contact me if there is a topic you want me to cover.   The first How I Blog topic was a no-brainer.  It’s my absolute favorite blogging tool.  I use  it for every single post I build including this one:

Windows Live Writer

“Windows Live Writer, developed by Microsoft, is a desktop blog-publishing application that is part of the Windows Live range of products. It features WYSIWYG authoring, photo-publishing and map-publishing functionality, and is currently compatible with Windows Live Spaces, SharePoint blogs, Blogger, LiveJournal, TypePad, Wordpress, Telligent Community, PBlogs.gr, JournalHome, the MetaWeblog API, the Movable Type API, Blogengine and all blogs that support RSD (Really Simple Discoverability).” – Wikipedia

Basically, Windows Live Writer is a free downloadable program that bloggers can use to build posts, save drafts, and publish posts.  There are tons of reasons why I love this program:

What you see is what you get (WYSIWYG)

• Writer lets to build your posts with a WYSIWYG editor.  If you’re completely HTML challenged, you can use writer just like you would a Word program. If you like to edit HTML, it also lets view and edit the source code.
• You can change font, size, color, bold, italicize, underline, strikethrough
• Easily adjust spacing, and headlines.
• Add numbering, bullets, or block quotes. 
• Insert hyperlinks, pictures, tables, and videos.  If you’ve ever struggled with embedded videos that  were too wide, Writer automatically sizes them for you:

Preview your posts before you publish

Using a feature called theme detection (View>Refresh Theme), Writer can show you a preview of what your post will look like before you post it. This is super helpful when dealing with images and spacing.

Customize Writer with plug-ins

My favorite thing about Writer is the plug-ins. (Tools>Options>Plug-ins)There are over 150+ plug-ins available.  Here are my favorites:

• Template Plugin – (Insert>Template) Best. Plug-in. Ever.  Do you post the same kind of posts each week?  Do you format them the same way each time?  Even if you just set up a Review template like mine below you will save tons of time:  
• Title Link - (Insert>Title Link) You copy a link, for example: http://allthingsurbanfantasy.blogspot.com/2009/09/my-review-policy.html and it turns into: All Things Urban Fantasy: My Review Policy. I lived for this plug-in when I did my Win on Wednesday posts and I still use it all the time.
• Amazon Book Linker - (Insert> Amazon Book Linker) This is another time saver.  With one click you can add the picture and info for any book on Amazon. It’s fully customizable with HTML to include whatever details you like, and you can even set it up to automatically use your Amazon Associates ID in the link. Now if only it worked with Book Depository…

Lots More

There many more helpful features in Writer. The longer I use it, the more I discover.  Do yourself a favor and try it.  You can download it HERE

 

Book Description

Curiosity is definitely going to get me dead one of these days. Probably real soon.

I'm Gin Blanco.

You might know me as the Spider, the most feared assassin in the South. I’m retired now, but trouble still has a way of finding me. Like the other day when two punks tried to rob my popular barbecue joint, the Pork Pit. Then there was the barrage of gunfire on the restaurant. Only, for once, those kill shots weren’t aimed at me. They were meant for Violet Fox. Ever since I agreed to help Violet and her grandfather protect their property from an evil coalmining tycoon, I’m beginning to wonder if I’m really retired. So is Detective Donovan Caine. The only honest cop in Ashland is having a real hard time reconciling his attraction to me with his Boy Scout mentality. And I can barely keep my hands off his sexy body. What can I say? I’m a Stone elemental with a little Ice magic thrown in, but my heart isn’t made of solid rock. Luckily, Gin Blanco always gets her man . . . dead or alive.

 Review

Book 2 in The Elemental Assassin Series

~Reviewed by Julia~

Five minutes prior to the start of WEB OF LIES, Gin Blanco is enjoying a good book, blackberry ice tea, and retirement from her profession as a high-end assassin. The story opens with armed robbery and Gin’s snarky inner monologue, and though she subdues the intruders without causalities (there are witnesses around, after all), Gin’s idyllic time reading at the Pork Pit counter-top and taking classes at the community college is over. As much as I loved seeing Gin enjoy a good book, I didn’t mind the change of pace.

I though WEB OF LIES was at its strongest when Gin is doing what she does best: going on reconnaissance, assailing magically and physically fortified buildings, and killing bad guys so egregiously evil you cheer when they hit the floor (or get run over by a car. Twice.). Estep did a wonderful job of making me feel like I was at Gin’s side, listening to her threat assessments and problem solving. (Though there were times when Gin would finish tallying up the attributes of a giant and move onto how she was going to kill him when I was still back on, “Wait, he’s 7 feet tall, can survive a direct shotgun blast to the chest, and could break your neck with one punch? And you’re going to attack?! Shouldn’t we talk about this?”) In Gin’s world, local politics is a near-constant stream of graft, murder, and exploitation, allowing me to support her murderous justice wholeheartedly and enjoy the mayhem that ensues.

As with Spider’s Bite, however, Gin and I part ways once she turns her attention from killing to dating. I agree with Abigail’s assessment of the relationship between Gin and Donovan Caine in her review of Spider’s Bite:

The way she objectified him, the way he fought his lust for her because of moral reasons…we’ve seen it before in a hundred other books (and movies) with the roles reversed. It sounds like it would be a fun switch, but I found it off-putting.

I, too, found it off-putting. In particular, I never felt that the author made a distinction between Donovan not liking Gin’s profession and him not liking her. Gin is sympathetic enough that she deserves better than a man that avoids her, is disgusted by her choices, and, oh, by the way, can’t resist her body. Donovan’s shortcomings are highlighted by the introduction of Owen Grayson. He’s powerful, handsome, and a good big brother. He also hits on Gin, no matter how many knives she’s wearing on her body. This, in my mind, more than makes up for the whiff of organized crime that trails him. I don’t want to spoil the Donovan/Owen competition by saying much more, but both readers who enjoy the physical chemistry between Gin and Donovan, and those of us who dislike their relationship dynamic, will find something to love in WEB OF LIES.

While WEB OF LIES did contain hints of my least favorite parts of Spider’s Bite (Anita/Richard-esque discussions about murder being one of them), it also contained great action and a main character whom I enjoy. WEB OF LIES has made me anxious to pick up Venom, in the hopes that the best parts of the series have yet to come.

Sexual Content: An explicit sex scene. References to rape. References to prostitution. Description of oral sex.

My Rating (out of 5):
Good - A fun read with minor flaws. Maybe read an excerpt before buying.

Click HERE to read an excerpt from WEB OF LIES

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Pocket; 1 edition (May 25, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 143914799X
• ISBN-13: 978-1439147993
• Cover Art: Tony Mauro  

*Disclosure: I received this book courtesy of Jennifer Estep

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Disagree with this review?  Contact me with your review for this or any other book reviewed on ATUF and I might use it for 2nd Opinion Review.