Review: Crucible of Fate (Change of Heart #4) by Mary Calmes

Rating: 5 stars

Domin Thorne should be on top of the world. He is the semel-aten, the leader of the werepanther world, ruler of the city Sobek in Egypt, the capital of the werepanthers. At his side are his new mate, Yuri the former shersuru of Logan Church as well as Mikail, Crane, and Taj from his former tribe, courtesy of Logan and Jin who knew it was crucial to have people he trusted around him as he began his rule.

But the tasks before him are even more formidable than he had imagined. The old priest who supported him has died, and the new priest is intent on undermining his authority. Crane is homesick and both Yuri and Mikail are not acting like themselves. And Domin finds himself short tempered, and impatient with the pace of change in the rules and regulations he wants implemented. Then his ex shows up just as a servant tries to kill him, and Yuri goes on a goodwill mission that turns deadly, and faced with his loss, Domin realizes that he truly loves Yuri, the only one to love him deeply and forever.

As his enemies gather all around him, Domin must prove to himself and all of Sobek that he is truly the semel-aten Logan believes he can be if he is to save those he loves and the werepanther world so desperately in need of change.

I hope that Mary Calmes intends to continue this series because with each book, it gets stronger, more deeply layered and complex. Crucible of Fate picks up after the events of Honored Vow, and the fight in the arena between Domin and the former semel aten, Ammon, a circumstance planned by Logan. Now in Sobek, the werepanther capital city in Egypt, we are given a Domin in crisis mode, inside and out. Everything has changed for Domin and it is overwhelming him on every front. Domin has a mate in Yuri and it is so new for them both that neither has adjusted to their new status. Yuri has always loved Domin, but Domin’s feelings for Yuri are still so brand new, bringing with them a measure of insecurity. Logan gave permission for several close members of his tribe to go with Domin to insure his safety and to insure he would have people around him he could trust but none of them are acting like themselves. Even the goals he wants to set for change within their society seem to distant to enact. Mary Calmes gives us this wonderfully volatile man puts him down within an equally volatile framework and lets the explosions start to happen.

The author places characters we have come to love into situations where their interpersonal relationships must expand and grow to their potential or all will be lost. And it’s not just Domin who must change, but Crane, Mikhail, Yuri and the entire court of Sobek. It’s wonderful because we get to see the start of a social revolution but from the person’s view point who is planning it all. Just a lovely touch. As this author has done in the past, she takes the facts she has given us and then uses them to turn everything we know on its head by the end of the story. All the little twists and turns she throws into the story takes Domin into a place I did not see coming, and I loved that.

And it’s not just the wonderful characterizations that greet us like old friends, but the vivid descriptions of Egypt, from the palace to the catacombs that help the reader visualize each and every scene our beloved werepanthers find themselves in. But no matter how wonderful the settings (and they have been outstanding, especially Mongolia), it is the characters that continue to bring all of us back for more. I never thought I would come to love Domin as I do when I initially met him. Then he was a bully, and a bit of a thug, deserving of a smackdown, which he got and then some. But over the series, we have watched Domin evolve into a man of honor, worthy of both respect and love. One of the true pleasures of this story, is Domin and Yuri’s story, watching their relationship deepen, strengthen and finally reveal itself as one between true mates. It is just so rewarding and satisfying, I can’t wait for you to experience it yourself.

In fact you won’t find a quibble here. Just the plea for another book. Ilia, Jin and Logan’s son is introduced here, and while not giving you any spoilers, let’s just say he is worthy of his own series. Crane has a wedding coming up, and so much more is on the horizon for them all that their story cries out to be heard (yes, that would be Danny’s voice we hear). So here I am keeping my fingers crossed and hoping the future will bring us more in the Change of Heart series. Until then I will return to the beginning and start over with Jin and Logan. Don’t miss out on any of them.

Here are the books in the series in the order they were written and should be read to understand the characters and the events that occur:

Change of Heart (Change of Heart #1)

Trusted Bond (Change of Heart #2)

Honored Vow (Change of Heart #3)

Crucible of Fate (Change of Heart #4)

December is here, the year is almost over and the week ahead in Reviews

Every year seems to go by more quickly than the last and 2012 is almost gone. It has been a tumultuous time here at home, in Maryland, and the entire northeast. From the scorching heat and drought of the spring and summer months to the recent Derechos which brought high winds and flooding, it has been a regular smorgasbord of geological happenings and meteorological events. We have had a major earthquake from which the National Cathedral and the Washington Monument and other buildings have still not recovered from. A heat wave and drought that killed much of the harvest from land and sea, with water levels down from lack of rain and snow to heat which baked the land and everyone on it. We had high winds, tornados and of course flooding that still did not mitigate the low water table. Really, 2012 has been our version of Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride and it’s not over yet.

Amazingly it was a year ago yesterday when I rolled out by my first blog, scrambling to get my feet under me and figure out what I wanted to say, what I wanted to review, and everything in between. It took me a while to get my voice and now the mutterings can’t stop! The thoughts keep tumbling out, rolling over one another like pebbles in a stream caught in a swift current, some concerned with vocabulary, others focused on eBook covers and design and more still on book content, reviews to be exact. I hope I have helped some of you find your way to new authors or rediscover old ones that you have forgotten. Later this month I will be rolling out my Best of 2012 lists, from Books to Covers. I bet you have been making your lists too. Let me know what book(s) is on them, and do you have a favorite cover artist, like Anne Cain, or even a favorite model? Inquiring minds and all that.

So here’s to the beginning of the end of 2012. I love this time of year, so much to reflect on and yet so much still to look forward to, including the holidays no matter which one you celebrate. I’ll be talking to you soon. In the meantime, look what’s coming up this week:

Monday, 12/3: Private Dicks:Undercovers Anthology

Tuesday, 12/4: The Journal of Sanctuary One (Sanctuary #6) by RJ Scott

Wed, 12/5: Crucible of Fate (Change of Heart #4) by Mary Calmes

Thursday, 12/6: Too Careful By Half, a Roughstock story by BA Tortuga

Friday, 12/7: Eight Days by C. Cardeno (a Christmas story)

Sat., 12/8 3 Dreamspinner Christmas Advent Calendar stories

So now I will leave you with a Vodka Christmas Cake recipe. You simply have to try this…

Once again this year, I’ve had requests for my Vodka Christmas Cake recipe, so here goes.

Please keep in your files as I am beginning to get tired of typing this up every year!

(Made mine this morning!!!!)

1 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 cup water
1 tsp. salt
1 cup brown sugar
Lemon juice
4 large eggs
Nuts
1…bottle Vodka
2 cups dried fruit
Sample a cup of Vodka to check quality. Take a large bowl, check the Vodka again to be sure it is of the highest quality then Repeat.

Turn on the electric mixer. Beat one cup of butter in a large fluffy bowl. Add 1 teaspoon of sugar. Beat again.
At this point, it is best to make sure the Vodka is still OK. Try another cup just in case.

Turn off the mixerer thingy. Break 2 eegs and add to the bowl and chuck in the cup of dried fruit.

Pick the fruit up off the floor, wash it and put it in the bowl a piece at a time trying to count it. Mix on the turner.
If the fried druit getas stuck in the beaterers, just pry it loose with a drewscriver Sample the Vodka to test for tonsisticity.

Next, sift 2 cups of salt, or something. Check the Vodka. Now slift… shift the lemon juice and strain your nuts.

Add one table. Add a spoon of sugar, or somefink. Whatever you can find.
Greash the oven. Turn the cake tin 360 degrees and try not to fall over.

Don’t forget to beat off the turner.

Finally, throw the bowl through the window.

Finish the Vodka and wipe the counter with the cat ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Review of But For You (A Matter of Time #6) by Mary Calmes

Rating: 4.5 stars

Jory Harcourt finally has everything he has ever wanted. He has his husband, US Marshall Sam Kage, after many obstacles and stumbling blocks. They have their two adopted children, their son Kola and their daughter Hannah, and even a deranged cat named Chilly. They have a house in the suburbs, a minivan Jory loves and their family and friends are happy as well. So of course, this means that trouble is about to barge into their life and turn it upside down.

When Jory intervenes in a neighbors marital dispute by the curb, it figures that the only ones injured were Jory and his minivan. But during his visit to the hospital, the Doctor on call turns out to be someone Sam was involved with down in Mexico during the three years they were separated. Someone Sam has never told Jory about to Jory’s consternation. Then a hitman climbs their balcony of their hotel at the family reunion, and a missing informer may just not be missing after all. With criminals chasing them, and Sam after the criminals and Jory ending up in the middle, things are getting a little bit out of hand yet again. But now Jory and Sam have a family and a normal life and that’s worth fighting for! So the criminals had better beware.

But for You is the last book in the saga of Jory Harcourt and US Marshall Sam Kage which started with A Matter of Time novels. And it has taken Jory and Sam and the readers on a long and complicated journey to get to their Happily Ever After. Mary Calmes has had our boys separated on more than one occassion, they both have been shot and injured, miscommunication and sometimes just bad timing has at one time or another interfered in their passionate courtship but eventually Mary Calmes always brought Jory and Sam back together come hell or high water. When the author created Jory Harcourt and Sam Kage, she endowed each of them with such staying power both as individuals and as a couple, that they are often nominated as favorite couple at poll time.

Jory Harcourt has been a memorable persona right from the start in 2009. Full of life, nosy, loyal, and trouble on two feet, Jory captured the imaginations and hearts of readers immediately. How could you not love someone who could turn a mere errand into a disaster with citywide implications in a matter of minutes? Meet someone, have a conversation and coffee with them and have their new friend turn out to be a sought after mobster? That would be Jory. Lovable, klutzy, and way too endearing for his own good. The readers loved Jory immediately. Then Mary Calmes created Sam Kage as his soul mate because goodness knows only someone with the shear mass and attitude of a US Marshall would be enough to keep Jory under control, at least most of the time. But of course, getting Sam to see that Jory was perfect for him was not a easy task, including the fact that Sam had to accept his own “gay” card in order for that to happen. So their meeting, courtship, curtailed courtship, renewed courtship was carried out over a series of books. I can tell you their roller-coaster of a romance caused much angst and heart flutterings along the way. And each time we think their relationship is safe and secure, something or someone comes along to shake them and the status quo up but good. It never mattered how wild the complication or how bad the criminals involved, Sam and Jory (whether Sam wanted it or not) were in the thick of things.

Now comes the last Jory and Sam story and I will be so very sorry to see such an entertaining and adorable couple go. But Mary Calmes has given us a heartwarming portrait of a contented happily married couple with the kids they have always wanted, complete with house, cat and minivan to take with us as we leave them behind. For one thing, it is easy to see that the author is a mother herself. Kola and Hannah behave and talk like real children and I loved them. It doesn’t matter whether six year old Kola is telling four year old Hannah not to lick Chili their cat or if looking at a magnificent hotel fountain makes Hannah need to pee, the children come across as realistic as any child I know. When Kola makes retching sounds when his parents kiss, I was cracking up because I have heard and seen children do exactly that. And when Hannah goes into a 20 minute description about a bug and a leaf, yep that happens too. And then there are Sam and Jory’s reactions to their kids. Trying not to laugh when they know they should be stern? Absolutely. Horrified when someone abuses their power at school and their kid gets hurt? You betcha! All real, all wonderfully familiar, at least to any of us that have children. And I love that they are still as passionate and crazy about each other no matter how complicated their lives get. These great characterizations are why we feel in love with Jory and Sam to begin with.

The Cartel storyline that has carried through all of the books is finished here and loose ends are tied up. Of course, not without Sam disappearing and Jory getting into trouble. It wouldn’t seem like a Jory and Sam story if that wasn’t the case. And all of their family members are here too to say goodbye. Dane and Aja and their kids, Dylan and her kids, Sam’s family and more. Even Aaron (remember him?) and Duncan are here as well. Jory and Sam are hunted by criminals and Sam in turn hunts them right back. There is danger and there is resolution. And in the end, Jory, Sam, Hannah and Kola and even their cat Chili are moving into a new house and happy in their lives together.

Do I have any quibbles? Sure, I wish it would have been longer, I wish I could have had more of Sam and Jory together, more of Sam and Jory with their children, more of……well, you get my drift. But if they have to go, then their creator has done them proud and sees them off in fine Sam and Jory style. There’s laughter, some pouts, tears and lots of sex. Goodbye, Jory. Goodbye, Marshall Sam. You will be missed.

Here are the Jory and Sam stories in the order they were written and should be read:

A Matter Of Time – Books 1 through 4

Bulletproof (A Matter Of Time #5)

Just Jory (A Matter of Time 5.5) find it here.

But For You (A Matter Of Time #6)

Cover art by Reese Dante. Aww, loved it and a perfect way to send them off.

Hurricane Sandy Relief Organizations, Donations, Plus the Week Ahead in Reviews!

Brrrrrr, it’s gotten cold here in Maryland. While most of Maryland got very lucky with respect to Hurricane Sandy, she brought the artic air from Canada down with her swirling air masses so we have 3 ft of snow in Western Maryland and our ski resorts are very happy indeed to get a jump on the season. Our fall ended with the roar of winds and rain as the remaining autumn color fell with the torrential rains. We might actually have a real winter once more. And looking at all the fallen leaves and branches, I am reminded that people not that far away desperately need our help.

My thoughts and hopes go out to all those in need in New York and New Jersey. The devastation is unbelievable and Hurricane Sandy’s impact on human lives continues to widen along with the death tole. There are several reputable organizations that are accepting donations to the Hurricane Sandy relief effort. The Red Cross is one of them. The American Humane Society is another. I have a list below that will link you directly to the organizations accepting donations.

One close to my heart is the Ali Forney Center for housing homeless GLBTQ youth in NYC. It was badly damaged. Here is the link. Every dollar counts. If you can spare $1 or $5, everything is needed, everything helps. However you can help, even if it is just re-tweeting the call for donations, all assistance is appreciated and direly needed.

Red Cross

Ali Forney Center Housing for Homeless for GLBTW Youth

ASPCA

Humane Society of the United States

So, turning away from the subject above, here are the books I am reviewing for the upcoming week. Don’t be surprised if I throw in some extras. Without further ado:

Monday 11/5/2012: How To Raise An Honest Rabbit by Amy Lane

Tuesday 11/6/2012: One True Thing by Piper Vaughn and MJ O’Shea

Wed. 11/7/2012: But For You by Mary Calmes

Thursday 11/8/2012: Ralston’s Way by Talia Carmichael

Friday 11/9/2012: Long Hard Ride by Talia Carmichael

Sat. 11/10/2012: Back To Hell by Amber Kell, Whispered Secrets and Hidden Eyes by Amylea Lyn

Review of Mine by Mary Calmes

Rating: 4.75 stars

Trevan Bean and Landry Carter have a relationship that not many understand but that words for them completely. From the first time Trev saw Landry two years ago at a party, they have been inseparable. Before Trev Bean came into his life, Landry Carter was a troubled young man. He was repudiated by his family for being gay and tumbled into a mess of low self esteem, depression and endless anonymous sexual acts. Then one night, everything changed, Trevan Bean saw him, picked him off his knees, took him to Trev’s home and told Landry he belonged to Trev alone and no one else. From that moment on, Landry began his recovery from pathetic mess to functioning happy human being, at least most of the time. As long as he followed his routine, and knows that Trev is always there, he can run his jewelry store and create the gorgeous things he is becoming known for and be content knowing he is loved.

Trevan Bean, half Cuban half African American, is a complicated man. He comes from a loving family who have depended on him since his father died. To help out his family, he became a money runner for a gambling mob, a job he has to this day. And while Trev has never carried a gun or had to hurt someone, Trev knows it is an illegal job, full of dangerous people and accepts the risks he has to take to make money. Trev plans on buying a restaurant someday and he and Landry have been saving to buy their own house in the not so near future.

So far, he and Landry have been balancing all the complications in their lives and it has been working fine. Until Landry’s youngest brother shows up out of nowhere and wants Landry to come home to see his ailing mother. And Landry starts to unravel. Then one of Trev’s runner associates ends up in a hospital, beaten by a rival mobster and Trev’s job is thrown into chaos by a gang war. Not only is his safety threatened, but so is the wellbeing of everyone he loves, including Landry. Their carefully maintained balancing act is demolished, their lives in jeopardy and it will take everything they have and more to make sure they come out of this mess with their relationship intact and their love stronger than ever.

I just loved this book and think it is one of Mary Calmes strongest stories yet. The characters she has created are two of the most complicated and damaged people she has ever produced. One, Trev Bean, is an interracial mobster with his own slippery morality, a strong code of loyalty and an unwavering love for Landry Carter. He is aware that Landry has some serious emotional problems that can cause Landry anxiety, manic behavior, and even result in self destructive acts. But Trev also knows he is the key to Landry’s stability, and whether he is an enabler or not, Trev will do what he thinks is right to keep Landry safe and happy. Trev is under no illusions about his own morality or mental issues as well. He accepts it all as it comes with a forthright manner and calm demeanor. Just an amazing protagonist, compelling in every way.

Landry is also as damaged and riveting a persona as Trev, the yin to Trev’s yang. He is the flickering flame to the earthen rock that is Trev. His instability, his is a luminescence which will burn too brightly unless contained by Trev and a strict routine, His emotional problems are never given a diagnosis but OCD is mentioned briefly. He is just as likely to flair with anger as he is with passion and you can see as a reader how badly Landry has needed someone like Trev in his life to bring him the balance and limitations he has always needed so badly. For some, these two men represent an unhealthy relationship, something even Trev recognizes. But what they have together also works for them, and they will fight to keep each other and their relationship intact. Convoluted, messy, passionate, occasionally crazied and absolutely committed, what an amazing relationship to bring to life in this story. And Mary Calmes does bring it vividly to life in every possible way. These characters cry, threaten, have hot, passionate sex, and tender moments and we are there with them through every event, every step forward, and all threats to their happiness. I loved both men from the start, and by the end of the book, hated to let either of them go.

And there are other fascinating characters within Mine that I wanted much more of, the most visible and intriguing of them is Conrad, a hit man’s hit man, an enforcer so dangerous that just his name means protection. Conrad doesn’t have many he counts as friends but Trev is one of them. The man remains an enigma even as his very presence adds weight to the events that occur within the story. From what I understand, this is a stand alone story so we cannot expect to see these characters again. And that is a shame for these are such interesting, gripping people and we have become so invested in their lives and happiness that wanting to know more about them and their future is a given by the end of the book.

I only wish we had a little more exposition at the end, a little more resolution to the dramatic events they had just gone through. But perhaps that’s just being greedy and not wanting the story to end. If you like unusual main characters, if you like your protagonists with a twist as well as love, pick this book up and be prepared to not put it down until you are finished. It is that good!

Cover: Reese Dante’s beautiful torso with the all important L tat is gorgeous. My only complaint and to be honest I am not sure how it could have been done, is to have made that skin color more in line with the racial makeup of Trev’s caramel or dark bronze coloring as he calls it. At any rate it is gorgeous and sexy and so very hot.

It’s Almost Halloween and The Week Ahead in Reviews!

The leaves are starting to turn some startlingly beautiful fall colors, crimson, rich golds and brilliant shades of orange. I love this time of year. I love pulling out favorite sweaters and my feet love the warmth of my Uggs and my winter slippers. My morning coffee tastes better when the first sip is taken outside watching the birds start their morning trips to my backyard feeders.

My pumpkins were carved and what a time that was. The wild weather during the growing season has made for some unusually thick pumpkins, great for professional carvers. Not so great for the amateur. Not only did I manage to destroy all the little carving implements I bought for pumpkin carving, I also broke 2 kitchen knives, bent a steak knife and ended up swinging a huge thing that looked like it should have been carried by Jim Bowie in the wilderness. I am talking hours here, folks! So what should occur when I put it outside? Well overnight and into the next morning, I had visitors that appreciated my pumpkin on an entirely different level. They ate it! Sigh. Oh well, at least someone enjoyed my efforts.

There are so many great books being released now that I am getting a little overwhelmed, but in a good way. So this is my schedule for next week. If it does play out this way, well chalk it up to my Fall crazies and Halloween overload:

Monday: Love Comes Silently by Andrew Grey

Tuesday: Chase The Stars by Ariel Tachna

Wednesday: Mine by Mary Calmes

Thursday: Gleams of a Remoter World by Fiona Glass

Friday: Torquere Sip Short Stories

Saturday: Theory of Attraction by Cleon Lee and Just A Summer Fling by Lily Grace

Any how that’s what I am aiming for in addition to pulling out my witch’s costume and putting new feather in my hat! The ghostly jester skeleton is hanging in the breeze and the raven is soon to follow. So much to do……

Review: Steamroller by Mary Calmes

Rating: 4 stars

Vincent Wade is more than tired these days. He is absolutely exhausted. Between his college classes (Vince plans on solving world hunger) and working full time at Ace Graphics to pay his rent, he barely has time to eat and sleep. So when a jock comes barging in at the end of an extra shift at the store and demands that he drop everything and run a guy’s poster project now and for free no less? Well, it was lucky for the football player that all Vince did was throw the thumb drive into the nearest trash can. Again and again, the staff and Vince tell the jocks, now two, that the machines were already running, the store was closing, and if they wanted their project done, they had to go elsewhere, which they finally did but not without a veiled threat or two.

But some people just end up pushing into your life and who does Vince see on his way home from work but the two jocks in another Ace Graphics store trying to get their project printed. The store manager sees Vince and pulls him into the store to fix the printing machine so their project can be run. That’s when Vincent realizes that one of the two football players is none other than Carson Cress, the college’s superstar quarterback who is all but guaranteed to go pro at the end of the school year. Carson Cress is gorgeous, and all but worshiped by everyone on campus. Everyone but Vincent that is.

Vincent is small, gay and a bit of a loner so why is Carson Cress pursuing him? Vince can’t wrap his mind around the fact that the biggest man on campus seems to want him, bio nerd that he is. Especially when Vince thought along with everyone else on campus that Carson Cress was straight. Then one night turns into a date and Carson makes it plain he wants a relationship with Vince but he can’t be out. What is Vince to do when the man of his dreams comes with secrets and different goals in life?

In Vincent Wade Mary Calmes has once again given her readers a character to love and cheer for. Vincent Wade has overcome many obstacles in his young life. Small in stature and pretty features made him an easy target in a high school that let bullies have their way. When Vincent came out in school, his mother and ultra conservative step father threw him out of the house. Only his best friend’s parents kept him from being homeless. Vincent is uber smart, sarcastic and a little bit edgy. I just loved him. Mary Calmes has paired him up with a god of the football field in the form of Carson Cress, Emerson’s golden boy. On the surface, Carson Cress is that superficial jockstar we have seen time and again. But Mary Calmes gives Carson hidden depths and problems not readily apparent. It’s not just the university that has high expectation but his family as well. His father expects his son to turn pro and lives out his own football dreams through his son’s talents. No one has ever asked Carson what he would like to do with his life and he has gone along with his family’s expectations without an argument. If Carson Cress is the steamroller of the title, Vincent Wade is no pushover to my utter delight. His hormones may be saying “go” but Vince still manages to listen to his brain before committing to a relationship with someone who is closeted and will remain there to play in the NFL.

There are plenty of other characters to dwell on and revel in. Matt Cooksey, Vincent’s best friend and his family are at the top. Matt is so adorable that you forgive him just as Vincent does when Matt comes strolling back after a year’s absence to the apartment that should have been his and Vincent’s all along. And honestly? There is this friend of Vince’s, Kurt Butler. Every year Vince spends hours cooking for Kurt’s birthday party and Kurt has been his friend since their first semester at college. I don’t know what it is about Kurt but he really intrigued me and Mary Calmes has him looking at Vince in that “bend you over the counter” sort of way. Sooooo by the end of the book, I am thinking I would rather see Vince end up with Kurt than with the golden boy. I know, I know, sacrilege right? But that’s what happens with you populate your stories with people who make you sit up and take notice, even if they aren’t the main characters.

There is some angst and a traumatic event to get through. It is, after all, a Mary Calmes story. But that ending, well like I said. Vince seems so anchored in Lubbock with his job, and wonderful friends (Kurt, Kurt, Kurt) and degrees to finish that I found it a little difficult to get behind the ending. That is my quibble with this story, Vincent is just too darn stubborn and interesting for his own good. He is also as complicated as a Rubik’s Cube and deserves someone of that same intensity. And Carson for all his gorgeousness and nice personality seems like someone more to be steamrolled by Vince than the other way around.

So here I sit wondering how Mary Calmes feels about bribes. I could see a sequel to this, really I could. One where Kurt makes a reappearance. Do you think she would go for that? If you see her, just put a whisper in her ear. I will thank you for it, yes I will. In the meantime, pick up this book and make Vince Wade’s acquaintance. I just love that boy and you will too.

Thank you, Nationals and the Week Ahead in Reviews

Well, as everyone knows by now, the Cards rallied and the Nats lost. But oh what a season they gave us! The Nationals had an outstanding year, giving the city something we haven’t seen in close to a century, a winning baseball team in DC. We have Davey Johnson, Stephen Strasburg, Bryce Harper, Jason Wurth, Gio Gonzales, Ryan Zimmerman and all the others to thank for all the glorious play, the unbelievable pitches, the outstanding hits and the high drama of the outfield. It was great! And now we have all winter to dream of the return of the Boys of Summer. Great job and thanks for the wonderful memories!

The weather seems more like November than mid October these days with our first frost occurring on Friday. A portent of a hard winter to come? Perhaps. We didn’t actually have a winter last year but I just hope Mother Nature doesn’t feel the need to make up for that and give us the snow and ice for two winters. At any rate, the plants are getting mulched and the gardens prepared, just in case. The generator is in, new roof on and gutters as well. I hope we are prepared but you never know until it comes. At least I have lots of books to read and pumpkin spice coffee to drink. Sigh.

Here is the week ahead in book reviews:

Monday: Steamroller by Mary Calmes

Tuesday: Texas Heat by RJ Scott

Wednesday: The Gravedigger’s Brawl by Abigail Roux

Thursday: Rocking Out by Emily Veinglory

Friday: Three of Swords by Theo Fenraven

Saturday: Theory of Attraction by Cleon Lee and Just A Summer Fling by Lily Grace

Just a Quick Reminder!

October is one of my most favorite months. Autumn is in full swing by then, bringing with it all the colors associated with Fall. Rich reds, all shades of orange and yellow, with white, and purple mixed in. This October will bring some marvelous book releases as well from Andrea Speed’s Infected: Lesser Evils, the latest in the outstanding Infected series to But For You by Mary Calmes. This is Sam and Jory’s last book. You may remember them from A Matter of Time (4 books in all) and the sequel Bulletproof. If you love them as much as I do, this is for you. Another I am looking forward to would be Sean Kennedy’s Tigerland, a sequel to Tigers and Devils, a great book. And the one to start off October for me? That would be My Regelence Rake by JL Langley. This is her long awaited sequel to The Englor Affair and the next in her Sci Regency series that started with My Fair Captain.

So all next week, from Monday to Sunday, I am running a contest to give away a copy from Samhain Publishing of My Regelence Rake to one person who comments during the week. I will be recapping the previous books and talking to JL about Sci Regency, a term she coined. So much is happening around here that I can get a little scattered. So mark this down, please. I look forward to hearing from you all. And what books are you looking forward to? New ones I don’t know about? New authors you have fallen in love with? Give me a shout and fill me in! TTFN!

Three Fates by Andrew Grey, Mary Calmes and Amy Lane

Rating: 5 stars

The Fates sit, spin and weave the fabric of all human life. Some people’s threads are guided to the path of true love, some are lucky in love and life while others have their lives or threads cut short, their loves lost , while others still have waited many lifetimes to find their true love again. All human life woven into a tapestry by the Fates with some surprising and unexpected results, even to the Fates themselves. Three Fates weave the stories of three very different couples, from werewolves in Germany to Scandinavians in California.

Fate Delivers A Prince by Andrew Grey gives us a young werewolf with a terrible itch who visits Germany with his family only to run into a prince who takes his royal duties very seriously. Only an intervention by Clotho will put these two on a path to love.

Jump by Mary Calmes brings us into the lives of Egyptian gods and the Fates. When one god loses his mortal lover, he renounces his immortality and dies. Bereft his brother God begs the Fates interference to bring the two together again, no matter how many lives each must live before they find each other again.

Believed You Were Lucky by Amy Lane stars Loki and Thor as the Nordic gods whose meddling changes the patterns of two families, giving one the abundance of luck after stealing the luck from another. When Lief, the lucky bike messenger saves the life of Hacon, who is laboring under a family curse, the Fates have a chance to right a wrong as the Gods look on.

What a remarkable trio of stories by three amazing authors. In each story, the Fates weave out the pattern of peoples lives but things never go as planned, not without a little interference by the weavers themselves. If you have ever heard someone say “well, it must have been fate” and you believed it, then these stories are for you.

In Andrew Grey’s story, he brings the Greek Gods, or rather Clotho , the youngest of the Moirai or Fates to help two young lovers accept their destiny. Clotho is responsible for making decisions, weaving the human story. When it looks like Cheyanne the young were is going to listen to his insecurities and poor self image instead of attending the ball, Clotho sends the appropriate dress and instructions to send him to the ball and a meeting with his prince. Chey is young endearing young man, whose position in the family as the baby plus an undiagnosed skin disease has turned him into someone who craves a library and books over human interaction and society. The descriptions of Chey interactions with his father were so touching and had that authentic feel of a father and son trying to navigate their issues with each other. In fact all the relationships here feel very real whether it is family dynamics or odd man out at the ball. Reading this story gave me the feeling of being there watching it all unfold. Andrew Grey gives us a great sense of setting with his descriptions of the buildings and streets in Munich, Germany combined with terrific characterizations.And the idea that love is an itch you must scratch as well as the balm? Priceless. And so is this gentle tale of love and a forever prince from Andrew Grey.

Anubis and Horus come to life in this touching tale of love lost and centuries later found once more. Haven’t you ever looked at someone and sensed an immediate connection beyond all logic? I did and let the moment and the person go by to my everlasting regret. So this story had a special resonance for me. When Raza and Cassidy meet and seem to know one another, I almost wept so right did Mary Calmes get that feeling, that moment in time. And the character of Cassidy Jane is someone I have never seen from her before. Short, skinny, bald and wearer of bowties! I kept thinking where did you come from? And I loved him! And Raza, seemingly implacable until Fate smacks him in the chest in the form of Cass and they put right what went horribly wrong so long ago. But this is a Mary Calmes story, so you have two lovable and oh so human best friends for our two main characters, Snow Drake and Jamie Kidd. I loved them too. And there is angst, and anxiety towards the end that it will all go wrong again but the Fates have other ideas, and so does Anubis. That climatic scene at the end? Scary and fun? Ah, Mary Calmes, you did it again. This was wonderful. I so love Cass! Can we please see all of these people again?

Our third and last weaver of human destiny is Amy Lane. Here she invokes the Gods of Asgard and the Fates called Verdandi (neccessity), Urdh(fate), and Skuld (being). Here the Fates or Norns, also known as the three sisters, live under the world tree,Yggdrasil, in the realm of Asgard. They weave together the destinies of men and gods as well as the changing laws of the cosmos. Their tapestry was interrupted, the pattern broken when Loki comes and steals a golden thread of luck from one baby and gives it to another. The Fates are horrified at Loki’s act, Skuld takes the broken threads and spit splices them together as best she can. This results in “The family with the thread, they shall be lucky, long-lived, and blessed—mostly. And the family without? They shall be unlucky and doomed—but optimistic and intelligent and resourceful.” A temporary fix until a solution comes around in the form of sons from each family that meet and heal the break in their destinies in a most extraordinary way. Here we meet two of the most remarkable creations, two sons of Norway residing in California, undeniable in their uniqueness and depth of character. Lief, the lucky “Thundergod” of bike messengers glows his way off the pages and into our hearts, his personality larger than can be contained within this story. Hacon Haldor aka Hake took a little longer to creep into my heart. Dark, thin, brooding, he can kill tanks of tropical fish by freezing them and make his mother’s plants turn black as he passes, although he doesn’t really believe he is to blame no matter what his ex boyfriend and brother says. Flanking these remarkable beings are Lethal, a pint sized bit of attitude and energy who is Lief’s best friend, Andre who is Hake’s ex boyfriend and cop, and two unforgettable cats, Loki (of course) and Vanir who have their own roles to play. Element upon element, layer upon layer, the yarn Amy Lane has woven intertwines until we are given a story tremendous in scope, as large as Asgard itself. We have mythological elements, the scary world of bike messengers, marvelous explanations of the meaning of stories and hero figures, knitting, and some of the best cussing phraseology that has come down the pike. I am talking some memorable wall hangings and cross stitch pillows just screaming out to be made with those phrases in mind. And no I cannot repeat them here. You will have to read the story! Uh hem.

I loved these stories. They spoke to my mind and my heart. Clearly these wonderful authors were fated to write them as we are to read them, enjoy them and bring them close. Don’t pass these by, don’t give Loki a reason to make more mischief (like he needs any). Whether you believe in Fate or happenstance, these stories are for you. No quibbles here. Trust me. You’ll love them.

Cover art by Christine Griffin. Love it. What a great sexy cover. Amy Lane says she is the Fate in the hoodie. Of course she is. So who do you think are the other two?

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