• Blog
  • About Me
  • Argetallam Saga
  • Daindreth’s Assassin
  • Fanged: A Novella Series
  • For Reviewers

Inkspelled Faery

~ Where words are magic.

Inkspelled Faery

Tag Archives: awesome

{Cover re-make + Excerpt + Giveaway} Thorn by Intisar Khanani

16 Thursday Jan 2014

Posted by Elisabeth in cover reveal, Uncategorized

≈ 11 Comments

Tags

awesome, cover reval, epic fantasy, fantasy, Giveaway, indie author, intisar khanani, thorn, ya

This book was incredible and one of the very first I reviewed here on Inspelled Faery. I think the new cover does a better job of capturing the story’s feel than any of its previous incarnations and I hope you’ll check it out!

My review of Thorn.

Thorn_CoverFnlRevFNLF_low_res

For Princess Alyrra, choice is a luxury she’s never had … until she’s betrayed.

Princess Alyrra has never enjoyed the security or power of her rank. Between her family’s cruelty and the court’s contempt, she has spent her life in the shadows. Forced to marry a powerful foreign prince, Alyrra embarks on a journey to meet her betrothed with little hope for a better future.

But powerful men have powerful enemies—and now, so does Alyrra. Betrayed during a magical attack, her identity is switched with another woman’s, giving Alyrra the first choice she’s ever had: to start a new life for herself or fight for a prince she’s never met. But Alyrra soon finds that Prince Kestrin is not at all what she expected. While walking away will cost Kestrin his life, returning to the court may cost Alyrra her own. As Alyrra is coming to realize, sometimes the hardest choice means learning to trust herself.

Amazon | B&N | Apple | Diesel | Sony | Goodreads

About the Author

Khanani_Author_Photo

Intisar Khanani grew up a nomad and world traveler. Born in Wisconsin, she has lived in five different states as well as in Jeddah on the coast of the Red Sea. She first remembers seeing snow on a wintry street in Zurich, Switzerland, and vaguely recollects having breakfast with the orangutans at the Singapore Zoo when she was five.

Intisar currently resides in Cincinnati, Ohio, with her husband and two young daughters. Until recently, she wrote grants and developed projects to address community health and infant mortality with the Cincinnati Health Department—which was as close as she could get to saving the world. Now she focuses her time on her two passions: raising her family and writing fantasy.

Intisar’s latest projects include a serial novella project titled The Sunbolt Chronicles, about a young thief with a propensity to play hero, and her arch-nemesis, a dark mage intent on taking over the Eleven Kingdoms. She’s also developing a companion trilogy to her debut novel Thorn, which will feature a new heroine introduced in her free short story The Bone Knife.

Website

Goodreads

Facebook

Pinterest

Twitter

excerpt button

“Princess Alyrra,” the king says. My eyes flick up to his, my legs frozen in their curtsy. He studies me as if I were a prize goat, his gaze sliding over me before returning to my face, as cold and calculating as a butcher. “We have heard tell of you before.”

“My lord?” My voice sounds unnaturally high even to me.

“It is said you are honest. An unusual trait, it would seem.”

I open my mouth, close it, force some semblance of a smile to my lips. My brother has gone rigid, his hands pressed flat against his thighs.

“You are most kind,” my mother says, stepping forward. The king watches me a moment longer, leaving my mother waiting. I cannot say what he thinks, why he would mention something sure to raise old grievances, why he would care. Or is he only toying with us? Laughing at us?

He turns to my mother, offering her a courtly smile, and at her words he accompanies her up the three stairs and through the great wooden doors of our Hall. My brother and I trail behind him, a mix of our nobles and the king’s entourage on our heels.

“Honest Alyrra,” my brother mocks, his voice loud enough for those nearest us to hear. “What a very clever, sophisticated princess you must be.”

I bite my lip. It is going to be a long week, watching my back and hiding down corridors. And with so many guests, the wine and ale will flow freely, which will make things even worse. Just leave, I think at the king’s back. Just go home and leave us alone.

giveaway button

Enter the Rafflecopter

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Friday Freebie #5 Beginnings: Prequel to The Guardians of Vesturon (The Guardians of Vesturon, # 0.5) by A.M. Hargrove

03 Friday Jan 2014

Posted by Elisabeth in friday freebie

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

aliens, am hargrove, awesome, book review, free for kindle, friday freebie, kindle freebie, novella, paranormal romance, ya, young adult

If you know of any Kindle books that are free today or on upcoming Fridays, I’d love to hear about them! (This series is freaking amazing.)

13563073

You met the Guardians of Vesturon in Survival and Resurrection. Now read about how their parents, Rowan and Annalise met in Beginnings, the novella Prequel to The Guardians of Vesturon. Learn more about Rowan and how Annalise unwittingly captured his heart and how his chance meeting of her took him on a journey of forbidden love.

Read my review of Beginnings!

Download Beginnings! (perma-free)

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Friday Freebie #4 Sora’s Quest (The Cat’s Eye Chronicles, #1) by T.L. Shreffler

27 Friday Dec 2013

Posted by Elisabeth in friday freebie

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

awesome, epic fantasy, fantasy, indie author, kindle freebie, self-published, sora's quest, the cats eye chronicles, tl shreffler, ya, young adult

If you know of any Kindle books that are free today or on upcoming Fridays, I’d love to hear about them! (This book is one of my All Time Favorites and I FREAKING LOVE THE WHOLE SERIES.)

13606393

This book is permanently free on Amazon, BN.com, Apple, Kobo and more!

Sora Fallcrest always dreamed of adventure, but as a member of the nobility, she learned the ways of a Lady instead. Now seventeen, she is expected to choose a husband and marry. She plots to run away, but just as she is stepping out the door, she runs into a mysterious man–and is kidnapped.

Abducted from her manor, Sora is plunged into a world of magical races, arcane jewelry and forgotten lore. She finds herself at the mercy of a dangerous assassin, haunted by an even darker past. She yearns for freedom, but he won’t let her go–not when her Cat’s Eye necklace is the only thing that can save his life.

But the necklace itself presents a problem. It is an ancient device from the long forgotten War of the Races, and its magic has the ability to steal souls. Can Sora learn to wield its power — or will the power wield her? (Winner of the SKOW 2006 Best Fantasy Award)

Read my review of Sora’s Quest!

Download Sora’s Quest! (perma-free)

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Review: Volcrian’s Hunt (The Cat’s Eye Chronicles, #3) by T.L. Shreffler @poetsforpeanuts

09 Monday Dec 2013

Posted by Elisabeth in review

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

awesome, book review, fantasy, indie author, indie book review, indies, magic, self-published, series, the cats eye chronicles, tl shreffler, volcrian's hunt, ya, young adult

13606971

A plague is spreading across the land. Crops are rotting. People are dying in the streets. Sora, with the help of her magical Cat’s Eye necklace, is the only one who can stop it.

She must travel overseas to the Lost Isles, a place of legend and mystery. Only there can she destroy the bloodmage, Volcrian, putting an end to the curse. She is accompanied by Crash, a lethal assassin who once threatened—and saved—her life. But Sora is beginning to question her dark companion. He seems to be carrying a secret; a hidden past that could endanger them all.

Meanwhile, they are hunted by an underground society known as the Shade. For centuries, the Shade has waited for the perfect opportunity to step into the light. Now they are perilously close to resurrecting a Dark God and unleashing a wave of unimaginable destruction. They only need to collect the three sacred weapons, and Sora has already found two….

Blurb and cover from Goodreads

5 out of 5 stars

Note: This review may be less professional and longer than most because fangirling is likely to occur. You were warned.

This is by far one of my All Time Favorite series. Volcrian’s Hunt picks up a few days after Viper’s Creed left off, with Sora and Co. on board a ship destined for the Harpy islands. It doesn’t take long for the adventure/trouble to start and once it does, there’s never a dull moment! I find myself becoming more and more engrossed in this series, this world, and these characters with each new installment. This is by far one of the better books I have read and Ferran’s Map cannot arrive soon enough for me!

The plot:

This book caps off the word count at over 100k, but it felt much, much shorter. I became so caught up in the story that before I knew it I had reached the end and was yearning for more. The plot is well structured with no loopholes and a cocktail of suspense, action, and magic with a shot of romance. We learn more about the Harpies as well as their archenemies, the Unnamed or the Sixth Race, Crash’s race.

The characters:

I understand that the bad@$$ heroine has come into vogue and while I can be fond of the Xenas and Celaenas, I find a character like Sora, with a certain vulnerability and innocence, to be refreshing. Sora isn’t a fool or completely helpless, but she’s not a smoldering virago either. She does what she does for the sake of doing the right thing and while she has her fears and doubts, it’s her courage that pulls through in the end.

Crash has grown a lot since the first book, but the author still does a good job of reminding us who he is and where he comes from. That doesn’t change the fact that he is my favorite character and I have shipped him with Sora since the scene they met. He’s become very protective of her, but not in a possessive way (possessiveness is overrated in my opinion). I thought I couldn’t adore him any more, then came this one part where :SPOILER: he could have seduced Sora :END SPOILER: and you could tell he wanted to, but didn’t because he respected her and wanted what was best for her. My thoughts at that point were simple—AWESOME!!! If I didn’t already love him to bits, I certainly would now.

On a side note, Crash’s shirts seem have a rather short life expectancy in this book. I didn’t think the poor articles of benign clothing deserved their untimely demises, but if dear T.L. Shreffler disagrees…oh, well.

There was a female character called Krait introduced toward the end of Viper’s Creed of the same race as Crash. I’m not sure why, but I think I like her. She has that certain creepy zealot appeal and I’m looking forward to reading more about her. We also meet Caprion, a Harpy general who becomes fast adversaries with Crash. Caprion came across as a bit lofty and self righteous to me, but I’m kind of wondering if my opinion will change when I read Caprion’s Wings, the prequel novella set to come out in January. Apparently, Caprion and Krait have something in common according to the author’s website and I’m twisting my mind into knots trying to figure it out. I have my suspicions, but…

I thought Volcrian had lost it in the second book, but it was nothing compared to this one. He’s become a psychotic sociopath, hardly able to tell his own thoughts and desires from those of the Dark God who, unbeknownst to him, is using the mage to gain a foothold in the world of the living.

Though the bloodmage is a more than adequate villain, we also see a brief glimpse of Cerastes, Crash’s former mentor, who is bent on reviving the Dark God and ending all life. Though we meet him in only two scenes through the eyes of Krait, it is more than enough to tell he is going to be an unprecedented antihero for Ferran’s Map.

I think I’ve rambled on long enough, so I will sum up by saying this is a YA Epic Fantasy series worthy of obsession and definitely one to watch.

Find Volcrian’s Hunt on Goodreads

Find Volcrian’s Hunt on Amazon

Find Volcrian’s Hunt on BN.com

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Freebie Friday #1 Captured (The Captive, #1) by Erica Stevens

06 Friday Dec 2013

Posted by Elisabeth in friday freebie

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

5 stars, awesome, Erica Stevens, freebie, friday freebie, indie author, indie book review, kindle, paranormal romance, review, self-published, Vampire, ya, young adult

I thought I’d try starting a new meme on Fridays since I LOVE my Kindle and I LOVE freebies. So here it is! The inaugural and pilot post of Friday Freebies. If you know of any other books that are free for Kindle today or on an upcoming Friday, I’d love to hear about them!

15059301

Blood Slave.

Captured, taken from her beloved family and woods, Aria’s biggest fear is not the imminent death facing her, but that she will be chosen as a blood slave for a member of the ruling vampire race. No matter what becomes of her though, Aria knows that she must keep her identity hidden from the monsters imprisoning her. She has already been branded a member of the rebellion, but the vampires do not know the true depth of her involvement with it, and they must never know.

Though hoping for death, Aria’s world is turned upside down when a vampire named Braith steps forward to claim her. He delays her execution, but Aria knows it’s only a matter of time before he drains her, and destroys her. Especially once she learns his true identity as a prince within the royal family; the same royal family that started the war that ultimately brought down humankind, reducing them to nothing more than servants and slaves.

Aria is determined to hate the prince, determined not to give into him in anyway, but his strange kindness, and surprising gentleness astonish her. Torn between her loyalties to the rebellion, and her growing love for her greatest enemy, Aria struggles to decide between everything she has ever known, and a love she never dreamed of finding.

Read my review of Captured

Download Captured! (perma-free)

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Release Day Review: Sunbolt (The Sunbolt Chronicles, #1) by Intisar Khanani

17 Monday Jun 2013

Posted by Elisabeth in anouncement, blog tour, review

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

awesome, book review, fantasy, indie author, indie book review, indie review, intisar khanani, magic, novella, ya, young adult

Sunbolt (The Sunbolt Chronicles, #1)

The winding streets and narrow alleys of Karolene hide many secrets, and Hitomi is one of them. Orphaned at a young age, Hitomi has learned to hide her magical aptitude and who her parents really were. Most of all, she must conceal her role in the Shadow League, an underground movement working to undermine the powerful and corrupt Arch Mage Wilhelm Blackflame.

When the League gets word that Blackflame intends to detain—and execute—a leading political family, Hitomi volunteers to help the family escape. But there are more secrets at play than Hitomi’s, and much worse fates than execution. When Hitomi finds herself captured along with her charges, it will take everything she can summon to escape with her life.

Blurb and cover from Goodreads

5 out of 5 stars

It seems to be a matter of course that I love what this author writes—probably because she writes about a lot of fighting and a lot of magic. Sunbolt is a fast-paced, quick read that still has excellent character development and world-building packed into less than 200 pages.

The plot:

This novella is clearly setting it up for the rest of the series as we are introduced to a cast of dynamic, dimensional, and diverse characters in a short space of time. This story moves quickly, yet still manages to flesh out the individuals and the setting in a way that they are memorable and have stuck with me. There are a lot of questions asked throughout this book and though it ends satisfactorily, by the end we are left ravenously hungry for answers, a cruel plot by the author, no doubt, to make us lust after the next series installment.

The characters:

Hitomi was a type of character I have been missing lately—strong, brave, smart, yet compassionate. I especially like how she was willing to forfeit her life for people she barely knew, even ones who had betrayed her, and how she was courageous even when it looked like there was no way out. She’s been through a lot, will doubtless go through a lot more, but doesn’t crack under pressure and tries to do the right thing.

I’m trying to figure out if I can mention one of my favorite characters without giving spoilers… We’ll just say that I am passionately hoping we get to meet him again in the next novella. Dangerous, dark, more than capable of brutality, yet still with an underlying sense of honor and more good than he cares to show. I think he likes Hitomi, but I might be reading that into the story, I’m not sure.

I cannot wait for the next novella in this series. I adore this series and I highly, highly recommend this book as well as the author’s other works. So go, go, go! Read this and then we can all gush over it!

Add Sunbolt to Goodreads

Find Sunbolt on Amazon

Find Sunbolt on BN.com

Find Sunbolt on Kobo

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Release Day Review: Salvation (The Captive, #4) by Erica Stevens

04 Tuesday Jun 2013

Posted by Elisabeth in anouncement, review

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

awesome, dystopia, Erica Stevens, indie book review, paranormal romance, the captive series, vampires, young adult

Salvation (The Captive, #4)

4th and last book in the Captive Series.

Imprisoned by Caleb and at the mercy of the king, Aria is determined not to let them break her. However, the more atrocities she witnesses, the more she realizes there are some horrors no one can withstand, and sometimes survival isn’t always the best option.
Tormented by the loss of Aria, Braith is forced to choose between his need to rescue her, and the impending rebel war he’s been chosen to lead. Fighting against the darkness which threatens to drag him into its tempting depths, Braith struggles not to become like the one thing he hates the most, his father.
Faced with their own separate challenges, Aria and Braith must come to terms with who they are, what they want, and the likelihood that they can never be together as the inevitable war looms on the horizon. A war that all of them will fight but not all of them will survive.

Blurb and cover from Goodreads

5 out of 5 stars

Oh, yes, I’m on another severe Reader’s High (a sense of lingering euphoria resulting from reading an outrageously good book) and suffering a wicked Book Hangover (the inability to start a new book because one’s mind is still trapped in a previous book’s world). I received an ARC of Salvation from the author and I admit I kind of giggled in excitement and ridiculous self-satisfaction when I got to read it nine whole days before everyone else. I am a huge fan of this series, ever since I read the first one last autumn and this is by far one of my favorite series of all time. I finished Salvation in about five hours (probably more like four if you subtract dishwashing time, stopping check on little brother, stopping to chat with another little brother, etc.) and I don’t even mind that it’s the last in the series because I’m so happy right now! There were quite a few places where I actually laughed (especially in the parts told from Jack’s perspective and the banter between Aria’s brothers) and I may very well have enjoyed the finale more than the others.

The plot:

This book stressed me out. I was in a state of absolute agony, up until about the 97% mark because I was so scared about how it would wrap up. At around 43% I was freaking out because I kept thinking “alright, that was too flipping easy, where’s the catch? I demand to see the catch!” It turns out I was right, but we won’t talk too much about that for fear of spoilers…

The characters:

It was interesting to see how everyone had matured a bit since the beginning, particularly Braith. Yes, the nine hundred and fifty-two-year-old vampire still had a little growing up to do and I liked how by the end he was finally willing to consider everyone else, but still made Aria a priority.

I started to like Ashby in the previous book, but I grew quite fond of him in this one. Same with Xavier, Max, and Aria’s family. I thought the side characters became much more fleshed out and dimensional in this one and I was surprised to find myself worrying about them almost as much as Braith and Aria (because who are we kidding, I always worry about the couple the most).

I liked the part where everyone gets the chance to take revenge on the people who’ve wronged them and they show mercy while the bad people still get their comeuppance (eventually). The line between vengeance and justice can get a bit blurry at times and I was pleased by how well I thought the author handled the subject.

All in all, this was an incredible finale to an incredible series. I highly, highly recommend all these books to fans of vampire romance, upper YA romance, and maybe even dystopian romance. This series will forever hold a place on my bookshelves and I cannot wait for the author’s next book!

Download Captured for free on Amazon!

Add Salvation on Goodreads

Find Salvation on BN.com


Find Salvation on Amazon

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Impressions of Brevia II

08 Friday Mar 2013

Posted by Elisabeth in just for fun, my books

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

art, awesome, dark lord, enchantress, fantasy, fantasy art, griffin, magic, photo manipulations, warrior queen, white horse

So I was just going to do that one post, but you guys seemed to like the last one and I’ve found lots of awesome fantasy images since. I find that looking at images of fantastical subjects helps get the creative juices flowing and unfortunately, it’s been a little tough working on the fourth Argetallam Saga book. But if anything good has come from my writer’s block, it is finding these photos to share with you all!

IMG_1910

 

IMG_1950

 

IMG_1915

 

IMG_1954

 

IMG_1913

 

IMG_1944

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

My Christmas Playlist

23 Sunday Dec 2012

Posted by Elisabeth in just for fun

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

awesome, celtic thunder, christmas music, eggnog, funny, irish, straight no chaser

So I thought it was about time I did a Christmas-themed post considering how much Christmas-themed stuff has been sucking away at my writing time. 😦 So today I’m going to share with you a few songs from my Christmas playlist. My playlist is basically two albums, one by the Irish variety group Celtic Thunder and the other by the ten-man a capella group, Straight No Chaser. Both are totally awesome groups, by the way.

This YouTube video is actually how SNC got discovered. Take a listen and find out why they got picked up by Atlantic Records!

 

And an original SNC song, The Christmas Can-Can

 

Who Spiked the Eggnog?!

 

And now some Celtic Thunder specials!

 

This kid has got one heck of a voice.

 

That’s just a small sampling, but now you have an idea of what I’m jamming to whilst cleaning, wrapping presents, and wrestling little brothers away from unwrapped gifts.

 

So what’s on your Christmas playlist?

 

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Fanged Princess Teaser!

05 Wednesday Dec 2012

Posted by Elisabeth in just for fun, my books

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

awesome, fanged princess, teaser, Vampire

Here’s a teaser from Fanged Princess! Enjoy! =)

So is anybody wondering how she ended up in that predicament? =)

Fanged Princess comes to Amazon January 22, 2013. Until then, you can see what your friends are saying on Goodreads!

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...
← Older posts

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 9,330 other subscribers

Social

  • View ElisabethWheatleyYAFantasyAuthor’s profile on Facebook
  • View wheatley_e’s profile on Twitter
  • View inkspelledfaery’s profile on Pinterest

Recent Posts

  • NEW BLOG
  • Interview: Tenaya Jayne @TenyaJayne
  • Girls that defy society for absolutely no reason
  • 7 ways to identify a fantasy villain
  • Reading Outside: Does it even happen?

  • Follow Following
    • Inkspelled Faery
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Inkspelled Faery
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

    %d bloggers like this: