Blurb: One bullet is all it took to transform eighteen-year-old New Yorker Jordan Amador into the last hope for souls of the dead. However, it also transformed her into a cantankerous asocial waitress with a drinking problem.

Jordan accidentally shot and killed a Seer: a person who can communicate with ghosts, angels, and demons. Worse still, she did so on the eve of her own awakening, making her the last Seer on Earth with no one to guide her. As penance, God gives her two years to help one hundred souls with unfinished business cross over from Earth to the afterlife or she will go to Hell. Just as she approaches the deadline, Jordan finds her hundredth soul: a smart-mouthed poltergeist named Michael whose ability to physically touch things makes him distinct from her usual encounters with the dead. However, the deeper she delves solving his sudden death, the more she realizes something sinister is on the horizon.

With time running short, Jordan stumbles across a plot that may unravel the fragile balance among Heaven, Hell, and Earth. Her life is plunged into chaos as she is hunted by demons that want to use her valuable Seer blood to bring about the end of the world and discovers that these creatures have a frightening connection to her family bloodline. Plus, the budding romance between Jordan and Michael makes it harder for them to let go of each other so he can become part of the eternal black parade.

My Review:

I really enjoyed this book. It had fantastic character development and a plot that just kept on coming at you. In fact, I really felt like I read an entire series by the time I got to the end. Not in a bad way, the book is divided into three different parts, and the author completely could have split the story into a trilogy and probably expanded and done a few short stories as well instead of selling it as all one novel, so this was actually a surprisingly good deal. Each part had fantastic build up, great world building, and characters that kept you invested. I loved Jordan and Michael and actually, now that I think of it, all the minor characters. The villains were suitably evil and scary, and the final resolution was epic.

My only complaint was something I actually liked most of the time. This book is full of pop culture references. The ones I got, I loved, but there were times when I felt like I was missing something because I didn’t understand the reference.

Otherwise, a fantastic read. It’s urban/Christian fantasy, but I at no point felt like I was being preached at. I don’t think the book went as irreverent as Supernatural did with its angels, but it’s more along those lines then say…a Peretti novel. In a bookstore it would more likely be found next to Kim Harrison (and let me tell you, it ranks right up there with the Hollows, seriously, if you enjoy Urban Fantasy, give this book a try.) And while it’s not in the YA genre, I’m pretty confident any of my readers that enjoyed Persephone would enjoy The Black Parade. Give it a try. It’s completely worth the read.

Mary Preston!

Blurb: The lofty realms of Olympus and the once-fertile land of Hellas are in chaos due to the wrath of a mother gravely affronted. The truth, however unpleasant it is, must be faced. And in the Underworld, Hades must face the repercussions of his actions. Can Persephone ever forgive him?

Persephone must find a way to make her life her own, but that is easier said than done. Caught between two worlds, she will have to make a stand for her destiny…

My Review:
Great end to a great series. The third book is just as strong as the first two. M.M Kin created well researched, detailed settings, wrote fantastic descriptions, and wonderfully complex characters. In particular, the character of Persephone developed amazingly over this series.

She was everything I’d hoped she’d become in the first two books. She became this strong, no-nonsense character that MADE every guilty party answer to every wrong they’d ever committed and possibly some they’d only considered. She grew into her powers, her body, and her confidence. I *really* enjoyed watching all the other characters in this series squirm.

I also thought the very ending, when time moved forward (phrasing carefully to avoid spoilers) was a nice touch. Very interesting take.

The only complaint I have to add, and this really is just me because I happen to like these gods, were the depictions of Ares and Aphrodite. I felt like every other character got super in depth development, but they were both pretty one-dimensional (which in itself is not a problem at all. They are minor characters, actually like sub-minor characters, it’s okay for them not to be developed, sometimes the pizza man is just the pizza man, you know? And there are a ton of books out there that *really* could have improved by letting the pizza man just be the pizza man) But they were one dimensional unfriendly characters. Aphrodite was pretty and shallow, Ares was violent and blustering. I just wanted more to them. Mythologically, they’re fascinating. Aphrodite was pretty and confident and embraced her sexuality in an era that *really* didn’t encourage women to do that. Ares was the god of war, that pretty much never won a single fight, was dumb enough to get stuck in a jar for a year, and is one of *the* only (greek version only) gods who not only didn’t rape women, but actively hunted down and destroyed rapists. But, I know there’s more in the works in this world so there’s still hope to see some major depth from these characters. I’m absolutely going to read anything that’s put out in this universe, because M.M Kin is a research queen. I’m really excited to see where this goes next.

In short, this was everything I could have hoped for ending this series. I can’t wait to see where this author goes next.

Have you ever heard of the Krampus? It’s a Christmas story everyone should know for their own protection. Because…

He sees you when you’re sleeping,
he knows when you’re awake,
he knows if you’ve been bad or good
so be good….

Or Else

For over a century this menace to society has been breaking into homes at night, and apparently watching you sleep. Even mice are paralyzed in fear by his presence.

No it’s not Edward Culllen, it’s Santa Claus. Nowadays we are not bought off by his gifts, and our children know better than to take candy from strange men.

What can you do to protect yourself from this holiday horror? Follow the simple instructions below and you can enjoy a silent night.

1) Write a letter pleading for your life. Explain what makes you valuable to society and why you should be passed over. Better yet, have your kid do it. Santa may have a soft spot for children. It worked on the Grinch. You can send Santa and email, call him, post to his Facebook page, or twitter.

2) Be on the look out for his misunderstood twin brother Krampus. Every year on the fifth of December this deformed creature roams the Alps ringing bells and dragging rusty chains as a harbinger of Santa’s arrival. (Go on, google it).

3) Know his whereabouts. Modern science allows us to track Santas movements. Simply type Santa into google maps or google earth to find up to the minute details on his location.

4) Deck the halls with boughs of holly: M Night Shamalan taught us that the beasts do not care for the color red. Red of course is the most proven way to deter Mr. Claus, but science has proven any bright color will do. Pay special attention to your roofs as strings of lights sometimes have the unintentional benefit of getting tangled in his sled.

5) Light the fire and hang your old socks. The heat and the smell may be enough to frighten Santa away from your abode.

6) Leave milk and cookies. If it doesn’t slow him down it may eventually lead to diabetes, protecting future generation from this night of terror.

Good luck! And have a safe and Happy Holiday Season!

Comment below with your own fun and creative way to protect yourself from the Krampus this holiday season for a chance to win an e-copy of Persephone. Winner will be chosen December 16th. 

The Unfinished Song (Book 1): Initiate by Tara Maya

DEADLY INITIATION

A DETERMINED GIRL…

Dindi can’t do anything right, maybe because she spends more time dancing with pixies than doing her chores. Her clan hopes to marry her off and settle her down, but she dreams of becoming a Tavaedi, one of the powerful warrior-dancers whose secret magics are revealed only to those who pass a mysterious Test during the Initiation ceremony. The problem? No-one in Dindi’s clan has ever passed the Test. Her grandmother died trying. But Dindi has a plan.

 

AN EXILED WARRIOR…

Kavio is the most powerful warrior-dancer in Faearth, but when he is exiled from the tribehold for a crime he didn’t commit, he decides to shed his old life. If roving cannibals and hexers don’t kill him first, this is his chance to escape the shadow of his father’s wars and his mother’s curse. But when he rescues a young Initiate girl, he finds himself drawn into as deadly a plot as any he left behind. He must decide whether to walk away or fight for her… assuming she would even accept the help of an exile.

 

 

EXCERPT

Blue-skinned rusalki grappled Dindi under the churning surface of the river. She could feel their claws dig into her arms. Their riverweed-like hair entangled her legs when she tried to kick back to the surface. She only managed to gulp a few breaths of air before they pulled her under again. 

 

She hadn’t appreciated how fast and deep the river was. On her second gasp for air, she saw that the current was already dragging her out of sight of the screaming girls on the bank. A whirlpool of froth and fae roiled between two large rocks in the middle of the river. The rusalka and her sisters tugged Dindi toward it. Other water fae joined the rusalki. Long snouted pookas, turtle-like kappas and hairy-armed gwyllions all swam around her, leading her to the whirlpool, where even more fae swirled in the whitewater. 

 

“Join our circle, Dindi!” the fae voices gurgled under the water. “Dance with us forever!” 

 

“No!” She kicked and swam and stole another gasp for air before they snagged her again. There were so many of them now, all pulling her down, all singing to the tune of the rushing river. She tried to shout, “Dispel!” but swallowed water instead. Her head hit a rock, disorienting her. She sank, this time sure she wouldn’t be coming up again. 

 

“Dispel!” It was a man’s voice. 

 

Strong arms encircled her and lifted her until her arms and head broke the surface. Her rescuer swam with her toward the shore. He overpowered the current, he shrugged aside the hands of the water faeries stroking his hair and arms. When he reached the shallows, he scooped Dindi into his arms and carried her the rest of the way to the grassy bank. He set her down gently. 

 

She coughed out some water while he supported her back. 

 

“Better?” he asked. 

 

She nodded. He was young–only a few years older than she. The aura of confidence and competence he radiated made him seem older. Without knowing quite why, she was certain he was a Tavaedi. 

 

“Good.” He had a gorgeous smile. A wisp of his dark bangs dangled over one eye. He brushed his dripping hair back over his head. 

 

Dindi’s hand touched skin–he was not wearing any shirt. Both of them were sopping wet. On him, that meant trickles of water coursed over a bedrock of muscle. As for her, the thin white wrap clung transparently to her body like a wet leaf. She blushed. 

 

“It might have been easier to swim if you had let go of that,” he teased. He touched her hand, which was closed around something. “What were you holding onto so tightly that it mattered more than drowning?”

 

 

LINKS

Tara’s blog http://bit.ly/12dFdNy

Tara’s Twitter http://bit.ly/162sCtE

The Unfinished Song on Facebook http://on.fb.me/1400mMq

Amazon http://amzn.to/15ciwYc

Barnes and Noble http://bit.ly/13yM5Dr

Kobo http://bit.ly/1aFhg1P

iTunes http://bit.ly/1baddhN

Smashwords http://bit.ly/17zK8Xn

 

Initiate is free everywhere except on Barnes and Noble (where it’s $0.99). You can download a free .epub version via Smashwords.