Pirate's Alley by Suzanne Johnson: Review and interview!!

I was lucky enough to get an advance readers copy of this book and...OMG!!!

Wizard sentinel DJ Jaco thought things might settle down, at least a little bit. No such luck, since New Orleans post-Katrina is still full of the preternatural, and they really don't get along. The major factions, the elves, the vampires, and the fae, are trying to create a council that will rule the city together. If they can't make this work, it could mean war.

Meanwhile DJ is assigned a simple guard/spy duty. Unfortunately her "client" is the sexy pirate Jean Lafitte, who has just returned from his latest "death" with vengeance foremost in his mind. He's sneaky and doesn't play fair, and he has the council - and DJ - very worried.

As if this weren't enough, New Orleans is experiencing some very unusual weather - it's freezing, snowing, sleeting, etc. Eugenie, DJ's best friend, also has an unusual condition to report - and this one will test loyalties. While DJ is on the side of what's best for her friend, her shifter boyfriend, Alex, is firmly on the side of duty. For him everything is black and white, no matter the consequences for the people involved.

This installment of Sentinels of New Orleans was absolutely amazing. I loved getting sucked back into DJ's world even as the suspense almost killed me. I stayed up late reading, totally unaware of the time, because I just had to see what happened next. And the ending...WOW! I cannot wait to read book five! (Seriously. I'll be stalking the author's blog for teasers and hints.)

Johnson, Suzanne. Pirate's Alley (Sentinels of New Orleans Book 4). New York: Tor Books, 2015. Publication Date: April 21, 2015. 5 stars. 

Speaking of the author, I asked Suzanne Johnson five questions. Her absolutely honest answers may surprise you...

What song makes you dance no matter where you are? 

It varies according to what I’ve been listening to the most. Lately, it’s “Embarque ma Belle” by Kaïn, a Canadian band. The song’s about ten years old, but even if you don’t understand the lyrics, I defy you not to at least dance in your chair ☺.

What is your favorite guilty pleasure TV show? 

Er...um...sigh. “General Hospital.” I DVR it. Don’t judge. How long is it gonna take for poor Jason to regain his memory? And Elizabeth’s toddler, Aidan, has been napping upstairs for over a year!

What is your writing process? Do you outline and block out scenes, write the whole thing chronologically, or piece it together? Are you a plotter or a pantser?

I don’t plot down to the color of the draperies, but I do map out every scene before I start writing it and know the beginning, ending, and major turning points and relationships in the book before I start. I spend about 2-3 weeks plotting before I start writing, then go straight from beginning to end.

Are you a collector? What do you collect? What would you collect if money and space were no option?

I’m a fickle collector. I collect obsessively, then get swayed by another shiny thing to collect and abandon the previous one. I’ve collected and sold collections of dolls, colonial blue thumbprint Fenton glass, and Early American Pattern Glass. Currently, I seem to be obsessively collecting art supplies. 

What traits have you picked up from your parents? 

I am a leg-jiggler, like my dad was. The creative streak comes from my mom, and, like her, I dabble in art. I come by stubborn honestly, from both of them.

Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The thoughts and opinions expressed in the review are mine alone. 

Keep Me Safe, Maya Banks' newest thriller

When millionaire Caleb Devereaux’s little sister is kidnapped he doesn't turn to the police or private security, He tracks down the elusive psychic Ramie St. Claire. Caleb is shocked when he finally finds her living in a secluded shack - she’s so tiny and fragile, and she has a broken look about her. Nevertheless, disregarding her seemingly callous refusal to help, Caleb forces her to hold his sister’s scarf. ..and watches in horror as it links Ramie’s psyche to Tori’s and Ramie lives everything Tori is experiencing at the hands of a murderer and rapist. Ramie finally surfaces enough to tell Caleb where Tori is being held. Despite his guilt over what he’s made Ramie experience, he must leave the broken woman, rushing off to prevent his sister’s murder. He leaves, but not before promising to return.

He does try to find Ramie once his sister is home, but the psychic is once again off the grid. She stays that way for a year. Until the night Caleb receives a frantic phone call: It seems Ramie has been hiding not from notoriety or the pain of helping victims. She has been on the run, constantly moving from place to place, chased and stalked by a psychotic, probably psychic, serial killer. She needs help, and the only person with the resources to protect her is Caleb Devereaux.

It’s not often that I enjoy a book so much when I don’t particularly care for the main character. But while I was annoyed by the repetitive reassuring conversations with and constant neediness of Ramie, I also understood that those traits were the result of losing every scrap of hope while being stalked relentlessly for over a year. The character truly came to life for me, and while she drove me nuts, I also hurt for her.

I absolutely devoured this novel. This was, in fact, one of the most enjoyable books I’ve read all year. I finished it in less than 24 hours, something I haven’t done since the last Harry Potter novel came out. Maya Banks has a true talent for crafting a novel. The plot was tight and never really slowed down; the writing carried me along even when I really needed to stop for awhile; and the characters were very well-drawn - so realistic that I wanted to shake them. In particular Ramie, who was so...needy...had a tendency to make me crazy. But Banks made me understand that Ramie's annoying traits were the result of losing every scrap of hope while being stalked relentlessly for over a year. The character truly came to life for me, and while she drove me nuts, I also hurt for her. And when I finished Keep Me Safe I wasn’t satisfied…I need the rest of this series. I must find out what happens to the rest of Caleb’s broken family. I really want to know how their stories continue...and end.

Banks, Maya. Keep Me Safe: A Slow Burn Novel. New York: Avon, 2014. 4.5 stars.

Disclaimer:  As an Avon Addict I received a copy of this novel free from the publisher  in exchange for an honest review. The thoughts and opinions expressed in the review are mine alone.

Unexpected pleasure

The waters of Alabama hold secrets. Some are magical and ancient, beautiful and deadly. Others are simply dead.

Shelly Connors moved to the Alabama bayou community to live with her cousins, Jet and Lily, after the death of her parents. As a half-mermaid, she needed the connection to her own kind...and to the waters of the Gulf. By day she works as a water therapist and at night she transforms and swims in the waters near the family home. Life is peaceful and easy. Until the night something wrapped in plastic is dumped in the water near Shelly as she is out swimming.

Shelly can feel the wrongness of the large, oblong, plastic-wrapped object even before she slices it open to see what’s inside, but the shock of seeing the young woman’s face, eyes gouged out, is almost more than she can bear. Shelly surfaces and comes face-to-face with the man who dumped the victim – and becomes a target herself. Now Shelly must protect herself, and her cousins, from the very real threat of retribution from a serial killer. A serial killer who knows their secret.

This debut novel from Alabama author Debbie Herbert is not what I expected. With Harlequin Nocturne as the publisher, I thought Siren’s Secret would be…fluffy. Instead the novel is a well-plotted, intriguing, thriller with a believable romance and a leaning toward the paranormal.  It was still a quick read, but mostly because I didn’t want to put it down. I would recommend this genre-crossing novel to fans of romantic suspense and paranormal fans who are looking for something different.