Mundie Moms

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Blog Tour/ Book Review: Apollyon by Jennifer L. Armentrout


I'm so thrilled to be celebrating today's RELEASE Day of Jennifer L Armentrout's APOLLYON with today's blog tour stop. Before I share with you my review, here's your letter for today's stop.


Also, don't miss tonight's live chat with Jennifer at 7 pm EST, happening HERE! Believe me, you'll want to chat with her. Maybe she'll spill some secrets about Aiden. Okay, that's just wishful hoping...


By: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Published by: Spencer Hill Press
Released on: April 9th, 2013 TODAY
Source: ARC from publisher to review
Series: Covenant Series #4
5 Stars: I LOVED It
Purchase from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Add it to Goodreads

Fate isn’t something to mess with… and now, neither is Alex.

Alex has always feared two things: losing herself in the Awakening and being placed on the Elixir. But love has always been stronger than Fate, and Aiden St. Delphi is willing to make war on the gods—and Alex herself—to bring her back.

The gods have killed thousands and could destroy entire cities in their quest to stop Seth from taking Alex’s power and becoming the all-powerful God Killer. But breaking Alex’s connection to Seth isn’t the only problem. There are a few pesky little loopholes in the whole “an Apollyon can’t be killed” theory, and the only person who might know how to stop the destruction has been dead for centuries.

Finding their way past the barriers that guard the Underworld, searching for one soul among countless millions, and then somehow returning will be hard enough. Alex might be able to keep Seth from becoming the God Killer… or she might become the God Killer herself.


I love this series! It's captivating, thrilling, and leaves me wanting so much more. Jennifer Armentrout has created the perfect blend of action, suspense, twists, romance, and excitement that makes my heart race, and makes me wish I could turn the pages a little bit faster. I can't get enough of these characters. Each book in this series has gotten better and better. I'll admit, after Deity, I didn't think she could top all that happened in that book, but boy was I wrong.

Apollyon is an action packed, fast paced read that had me clinging to the pages, and holding my breathe for much of the story. There are shocking betrayals, fabulous twists, and those sweet moments I have loved since book one between Alex and Aiden. Don't worry, Seth is definitely ever present. The thing I wasn't excepting was to like a few characters that up until now, I didn't really care for. I like how things have changed in this book, some for the better, and some were surprising. Given all that has happened, things needed to change or else this story wouldn't be believable. What? Like you don't wish you had your own Apollyon or Sentinel? You know you do. *snickers*

I'm totally addicted to Jennifer Armentrout's writing. She has not only created this vivid world, but she writes these visually stunning, and beautiful moments between her characters. She creates these moments between her characters that are sensual and leave me breathless, and then a moment later she leaves me laughing over something snarky Alex has said. She throws in the right amount of danger that makes me heart race, and sneaks in these shocking twists that leave me on edge, while I try to decipher what's going to happen next. Aside from all that, this time around Jennifer takes readers deeper into her mesmerizing mythology, and treats us to a different side of her series. She introduces us to a different side of her Gods, and gives us more of her series's mythology. I loved it. The Underworld was fabulous!

Alex and Aiden. Alex and Seth. Alex and well Alex. Alex is a character whom I always thought was incredibly strong. Okay I've loved her for her snark and compassion, but I love that she's always held her own. This time around she battles herself, as much as she battles Seth. Seth..... I know I shouldn't want to like him, but like with Alex, he gets under my skin and I can't help it. I know. I know I shouldn't, but it's Seth. Don't get me wrong, I totally want to kick his butt as much as Alex does. 

After reading the other three books in this series I didn't think I could love Aiden more than I did, and I swear I say this every time, but wow! Aiden seriously steps it up in this book, and I love what he does for Alex. The love Aiden and Alex have for each other is taken to a whole new level, and I loved it! I loved seeing how the sacrifices they've made for each other up to this point in the series come full circle. The way Jennifer has created their relationship is well, lovely. I know that sounds lame, but it is. I love that it's complicated and simplistic. Ooh those moments with these two in this book! I did say Jennifer writes sensual well didn't I?! She does. 

I loved seeing some of my other favorite characters back in this book! I won't name names, but YAY for someone being in this book and the role they played in helping Alex. There are so many things I want to discuss about this book, but I can't. Like always, I do not want to spoil things for anyone. I am seriously in love with this series. I love that Jennifer keeps me on my toes with all that she throws into each of her books. Everything has a purpose in Jennifer's series. Her characters, her mythology, her scenes, the little things that have happened through out each book. Like always, Jennifer leaves me wishing her next book was already coming out, because I CAN NOT WAIT that long! I need more! If you're a fan of this series, I highly recommend that you pick it up TODAY!

The Giveaway:

Thank you to Spencer Hill Press through out the entire tour, followers can enter to win a SIGNED copy of Apollyon, Elixir and an Apollyon t-shirt! Open Internationally! To enter, please fill out this form:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal: SCORCHED by Mari Mancusi

I am so excited to have TX author, Mari Mancusi on the blog today to tell us a little bit about her upcoming YA release, SCORCHED, which will be out later this year from Sourcebooks. Not only does this book have one of those covers that you just want to sit and stare at all day, but this store sounds like one amazing fantasy read I won't be able to put down. Here's a little bit about SCORCHED from Mary herself:




It all started with one of those Scholastic Book Club flyers, being passed around my elementary school. As I scanned the pages my eyes fell to one particular book and I found I couldn’t look away. The cover depicted a mighty dragon, filling up almost the entire page—claws outstretched, teeth bared, fire blasting from its throat. At the bottom, there stood a girl, wielding a mighty sword, determined and unafraid as she took on a creature ten times her size.  

The book was Robin McKinley’s
Hero and the Crown. And the cover is still one of my favorites—even today. (As is the book itself!) In fact, I reread the paperback so many times it eventually fell apart. But my love for dragons has lasted forever.

Now I have my own dragon book. Set in our world—in our time—with one last dragon egg, unearthed from a melting glacier and ready to hatch.

But will this dragon have the power to save our world? Or will its very existence serve to tear us apart?

*********

Dragons!?! Yes PLEASE! I am so stringing excited for this book! Check out this seriously amazing cover!


What a sneak peak into SCORCHED? Believe me, you do! Continue reading to a sneak peak into Chapter 1:


They came at noon, black shadows dancing across the sky, drowning out the sun. Their cries echoed through chambers and courtyards. Their fire blazed down narrow streets.
Some dropped to their knees in prayer. Others tried to flee. But in the end, they all fell down—-ashes choking their lungs, flames singeing their flesh.
There was no place to run. No place to hide.
They would find you.
And when they did…you would surely burn.
—The Scorch
by Julian Bachman, year 54 PS

Part 1: Ice

Chapter 1
SCREECH!
Connor’s eyes flew open. Blinding white lights barreled toward him at breakneck speed. No time to think, he hurled himself to the side, adrenaline igniting the reflexes he’d honed in boot camp. A bright blue metal monstrosity shot past him, wailing an angry protest in its wake.
That was close. Too close. Sucking in a breath, he crawled up onto a nearby platform, trying to gain his bearings. Shiny hunks of metal machinery—-like the one that had nearly crushed him—-lined the road, dark and silent, while others cruised by, determined white lights chasing brilliant red tails. They reminded him of something he’d once seen on the Surface Lands. Cars, his father had called them. Of course they looked a lot different when living, breathing, and not caked with rust.
But that meant…A smile crept to his lips.
It had worked. It had actually worked.
“Well, what do you know,” he murmured, drawing in a lungful of the freshest air he’d ever breathed in all his seventeen years, with zero smoky aftertaste. It was crisp. Colder than they’d predicted for August in Texas. So cold, in fact, he could see his breath reflected in puffy clouds as he exhaled. Shivering a little—-his travel jumper was definitely not made for this kind of weather—-he found himself gazing up into an open sky littered with stars and anchored by a bright, full moon. The vastness of the universe unabashedly spread out before him made him a little dizzy.
Maybe I should make a wish, he considered, remembering the old rhyme his mother used to sing. Star light, star bright…
Wish my supplies would arrive all right, the solider in him finished, reminding him he wasn’t on some pleasant stargazing holiday. His eyes reluctantly left the sky, scanning the ground below, searching for his canister. One couldn’t travel with one’s belongings, they’d told him in the debriefing, except for specially designed clothing. Something about splitting up different types of molecules. The essential items they’d sent to aid his mission would be arriving separately. In a titanium pod. Right about—-
A large metal cylinder shot through the sky, almost knocking him out before bouncing harmlessly to the ground.
—-now.
“What in God’s good name was that?”
Connor whirled around to find the largest woman he’d ever seen exiting one of the nearby apartment buildings. He tried not to gape at her immense frame, wrapped securely in a black, puffy coat. What rations must these people be allotted in order to gain such girth? As three equally well--fed and well--dressed young boys filed out behind her, his mind flashed to the orphans of Strata--D. Their rail--thin frames, their hollow, hungry eyes…
He set his jaw. Just another reminder of how important this mission truly was.
As he watched, the three boys scrambled past their mother, eagerly circling the titanium capsule, eyes shining with interest. One reached down, daring to touch it…
Oh no they didn’t. Connor swept in, neatly scooping up his belongings. As the children squawked in protest, he held up his free hand. “It’s okay,” he tried to assure them. “It’s just my—-”
“Get away from my kids, you freak!” Mom was now on the scene, waving one hand threateningly at Connor, the other fumbling at her coat pocket. For a split second, he feared she was reaching for a weapon. Instead, she pulled out a small, black plastic device. Some kind of primitive transcriber?
“See something, say something,” she muttered to her children, waving them behind her, as she frantically started pressing at the screen. “That’s what they say to do. Can’t let the terrorists win.”
“Please,” Connor pleaded, taking a few steps backward, his mind desperately searching for a rational explanation for the canister falling from the sky—-preferably one that didn’t require prior knowledge of quantum physics. He was supposed to be blending in, not making a scene. He wasn’t exactly off to an auspicious start.
His eyes lit upon an open window, two stories up, red--checkered curtains fluttering in the night sky. “My…girlfriend,” he stammered, his mind reaching for the proper terminology as he waved his arm in the direction of the window. “She tossed me out.” He gave the woman his best sheepish smile, then held up the canister. “Told me to take my gear and never come back.” The woman narrowed her eyes, staring at him for a moment, then up at the open window. Connor realized belatedly that she could very well know the girl who lived in the apartment above or know that there was no girl to begin with. This wasn’t like back home; people here knew their neighbors, shared cups of sugar—-that sort of thing. Had he just made a huge mistake?
Believe me, he pushed, in a feeble attempt to try to bend her will. Believe me and walk away.
But it was no use. The trip had left him completely depleted. And he had no idea how long it would take to regenerate his spark. He’d be forced to do things the old--fashioned way—-at least for the foreseeable future.
“What’s her name?”
Connor was startled. “What?”
“Her name,” the woman repeated. “Your girlfriend who threw you out. Does she have a name?” She gave him a pointed stare, as if daring him to answer, her fingers still hovering dangerously close to her transcriber.
“Oh right. Her name is…”
His mind went blank. Completely blank. Come on, Connor. A name! Any name! He could feel her eyes upon him, sharp, assessing, as they took in his strange clothes with growing suspicion. He had to do something—-say something—-and fast. Before it was too late. “Her name is…”
With one fluid movement, he ripped open the capsule, his fingers diving for his gun. Before the woman could even grasp his intentions, he had the weapon trained on her face. “Her name is get the hell back!” he growled. “And I suggest you do as she says.”
The woman’s eyes bulged and a small squeak escaped her lips. Staggering back, she held up her hands in surrender, her transcriber falling from her meaty grasp and clattering to the pavement below. Her children screamed, latching on to their mother, their innocent little faces mirroring her terror as Connor narrowed his eyes, doing his best to look desperate and dangerous. As if he were the type of guy who shot down mothers and children in cold blood every day before breakfast.
“Please, mister,” the woman begged, fat tears streaming down her cheeks. “You can have everything. Just let us go.” She shrugged her bag off her shoulder, allowing it to fall to the ground. “There’s plenty of cash in there. Take it all. Just don’t hurt my kids.”
Connor sighed, lowering his gun. And…so much for blending in.
“It’s okay,” he tried to assure her, guilt gnawing at his insides. He’d meant to stop her from making her call, not scare her and her family half to death. “I promise I’m not going to hurt you.”
I’m the good guy, he wanted to add. The one they sent to save your world.
But of course he couldn’t tell her that. It would just bring up too many unanswerable questions. And he had to get a move on anyway—-catalog his gear, get changed, locate the museum. Do a little preliminary scouting before introducing himself to the girl. He had a lot to accomplish in the next four months—-before the Reckoning day—-and, as his father would say, there was no time like the present.
Or the past, in this particular case.
He gestured to the woman’s bag with an apologetic look. “Take your stuff. Just walk away and pretend you never saw me, okay?”
Yeah, like that was going to happen. He could tell from the look in her eyes she’d remember this incident till her dying day. Her children too. But it couldn’t be helped, he reminded himself. And they would thank him if they knew the truth. They would get down on their very knees.
The woman’s face crumpled in relief. “Thank you, sir!” she babbled. “Thank you, thank you so much.” She scurried to grab her bag, then collected her cracked transcriber. “Merry Christmas,” she babbled as she gathered up her children and turned to leave. “Merry Christmas to you and yours.”
Connor had started to walk away. But the woman’s words made him pause. “Wait, what? What did you just say?” He turned back to her questioningly.
The woman whimpered, holding her hands in front of her face, as if she was afraid he was going to hit her. “Um, I just said merry Christmas,” she stammered. “Or, you know, whatever holiday you celebrate—-Happy Hanukkah? Kwanza?”
“But…” Connor protested, his mind racing with sudden confusion. “It’s August.”
The woman stared at him, as if he’d lost his mind.
“It has to be August,” he repeated, panic welling up inside of him. “They told me it would be August. Four months before the Reckoning.”
“Um, I don’t know what that is,” the woman sputtered. “But it is Christmas. I promise you, it’s Christmas Eve. In fact, I was just about to take the boys over to see the tree. They’ve never seen it lit up and—-”
She kept babbling, but Connor was no longer listening. He dug into the capsule again, heart pounding wildly in his chest as he searched for his transcriber. There had to be some mistake. The woman had to be lying. Because there was no way…
His hands closed around the device and he pulled it from the pod with shaking fingers. He flicked it on, waiting anxiously for the screen to illuminate, scarcely able to breathe.
December 24th, the device read. 7 p.m.
“No,” he whispered in horror. “That can’t be right.”
But it was, he realized. The signs had been there from the start. August in Texas—-it should have been a hundred degrees out—-not cold enough to snow.
Something must have gone wrong back at the base. Someone must have pressed the wrong button, turned the wrong dial.
“I was supposed to have four months!” he cried, looking up at the woman with wild eyes. She gave him a helpless shrug, then turned and fled down the street as fast as her thick legs could carry her, her kids scrambling to catch up. Connor watched them go, suddenly feeling as frightened as they must feel. But for a very different reason.
“I was promised four months,” he whispered to no one.
With four months, he could have secured a strong link with the girl. He could have made sure the egg never fell into her hands. He could have gotten a jump on the government…
…and saved his father’s life.
Now he had exactly fifteen minutes. Fifteen minutes to find the museum. Fifteen minutes to retrieve the egg and the girl. Fifteen minutes to figure out a way to make this all turn out right.
Or the apocalypse that ripped apart his world would begin…all over again.

***********


I don't know about you guys, but I can not wait to get my hands on this book!

About the Book:
Sixteen-year-old Trinity Brown is used to her grandfather's crazy stories, so she never believed the latest treasure he brought home was a real dragon's egg. Not until their home is invaded by soldiers trying to steal it and a strange boy who tells her the world as she knows it will be wiped out in a fiery dragon war—unless they work together to stop it. Meantime, there's a different voice whispering to Trinity, calling to her, telling her what to do...the dragon inside her egg is not ready to give up without a fight

To find out more about SCORCHED, go HERE. You can pre-order it from Amazon here. Add it to Goodreads.

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