New Review from Sadie: Covern by Chrissy Lessey (Adult, Fantasy)

The Coven 
by Chrissy Lessey 
(The Crystal Coast Series 1) 
Published by: Tenacious Books Publishing
Publication date: June 27th 2017
Genres: Adult, Fantasy

The future queen awakens…

Newly single mother Stevie Lewis divides her time between raising Charlie, running a store with her best friend, and avoiding the meetings of her mother’s Beaufort Historic Society. Although her life has its challenges, it’s altogether average. Just the way she likes it.

When Vanessa, a ruthless dark witch, launches an attack against young Charlie, Stevie’s simple life derails, and her long-dormant powers awaken. A 300-year-old secret is exposed, revealing her destiny to one day rule the clandestine community of witches who hide in plain sight.

Now she must master her own magical powers before it’s too late. Because Vanessa’s on the warpath, and only Stevie can stop her.

Oops.

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This story follows a family of witches who are hiding in plain sight.  The original coven coming to America on BlackBeard’s ship have staked claim on the waterfront and have lived there for generations, passing their magic down through the ages.  Now, set in present day, Stevie has a enough on her plate with an ex-husband and autistic son, but finding out she is a witch only adds to her daily list of things to deal with. Another new thing to deal with is Vanessa, a dark witch who is coming home to kill the coven that would not accept her or her mother.

Here is what I liked about the story: it is a fun, fast read. It will occasionally switch from Stevie’s point of view to Vanessa's, which is something I like. It adds to give a more rounded story.  I also like the truthfulness in the character of Charlie, the son with autism. The author kept it simple but showed all the quirks, if you will, of what a 5 year old with Autism would be like.

Downside. There is a big build up to the finale. It was lackluster at best. With all the build up, I expected more. This is not Harry Potter where there is magic everywhere. The magic is kept very simple, which fits since they are trying to maintain being like everyone else.

Chrissy Lessey is a beach bum with a deep appreciation for good jokes, strong coffee, and salt air. She lives on the beautiful Crystal Coast of North Carolina where she finds endless opportunities to procrastinate and daydream. A long-time fan of rock music, Chrissy married a talented drummer. She still loves listening to him play - as long as it’s not in the house. Together, they have two energetic children and an ill-mannered dog.

She enjoys connecting with her fans both in person and online. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to stay up-to-date on her latest book news and upcoming appearances.

Review: Final Hours by Cate Dean

Book One of an exciting new romantic suspense series - now *free*!

One man's death will change the future.

Only two people can save him - if they have the courage to trust each other.

Elizabeth Barritt fought hard to put her childhood behind her. Now she has the chance to move forward, to reach out for a new future.

And she does - straight into Jackson Kane's path. He is a time traveler, from the future, and on the hunt for a rogue agent.

When Kane is injured protecting Elizabeth, she makes a decision that will change her life. She takes him home.

Once Kane is healed, he goes after the agent. But his journey back to war-torn London takes a sideways turn, forcing Elizabeth to make another choice. She follows him into the past, to help him stop one man from changing their future.

Final Hours is a romantic time- travel story by Cate Dean. A chance encounter by Elizabeth and Kane sets history on a new course. Together the two will fight to keep the past as it is written. Going back to Europe in 1941 the couple must learn to trust each other. Both having been orphan from different time eras they understand each other more than either would like to admit. While fighting to keep alive and save the lives of other around them they learn that attachment to another can be a good thing. With the help of their tech savvy friend Mac, who can calibrate their transports for the two to find each other, Elizabeth and Kane are able to find their way back to each other.

Like the character Elizabeth it took me awhile to understand that Kane and his comrades weren’t magical beings but time-travels. Not normally a sci-fi kind of girl I really enjoyed the story. I liked that Elizabeth started off seemingly weak was able to find her inner strength and peace. The men that crossed her path weren’t their just to save her but to help her save herself. Kane was a great balance of man of mystery and true gentleman. He was tender when needed to be but would kill to save the lives of those he cared about. When these to finally come together physically it is sweet and spicy. Even the sub-plots in the story were intriguing and I wanted to know more about the other characters. 

F

abulous, intriguing read. I loved this book. There is the suspense, the romance, there are sad parts, there are funny parts,there is even some action. The story was written well, the author kept me right there in the story, I read it in one sitting, couldn't put it down. Now I am anxiously waiting until I can read book 2. 

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Review: Gray’s Skye by Vanessa Noble

After a devastating divorce Lucy, a young adult novelist, escapes to Scotland to recover. What she finds instead is a gorgeous neighbor who makes her question her future. Gray is a teacher who has lived on Skye his entire life. The two start a friendship but Gray wants more. How can he make her see it is worth giving him a chance?

               Gray’s Skye by Vanessa Noble primarily takes place in Scotland were Lucy Cutter has decided to move to find herself. Leaving the comforts of her Chicago life and family Lucy treks halfway around the world to work on her novel and figuring out the rest of her life. Her life had once been all about Alex, her high school sweet heart and now ex-husband due to Lucy finding out the he had cheated on her with her friend and neighbor. This was going to be her time, find the woman deep inside she was meant to be. While living in Scotland she befriends her handsome new neighbor, Gray. The two become fast friends but take their time before becoming romantically involved. With a deadline to return to the states looming over her, Lucy stress to figure out does stick to her original plan or follow her heart and see where it will lead her.

             

             This story is a sweet romance. I enjoyed that the couple took their time to become friends and build a foundation before falling into a hot romance. The couple are both extremely family oriented and keep their family morals as there compass. It was great that they didn’t jump into bed quickly and then figure out if they truly were in love. As much as I enjoyed the story and the characters there were a few flaws in this book to contend with. One had to do with the location. None of the characters that lived in Scotland spoke in dialect nor was there much about the scenery. Lucy traveled around Scotland with her family and Gray yet we, the reader, didn’t get much of the experience. There was one spot where we got to see the fairy pools and I would have loved to have seen more of Lucy’s surroundings being that she was from the states and this was a foreign land. The book was on the wordy side; fortunately I was involved with the characters and wanted to know more.