Pyxis by K.C. Neal (Two Giveaways - One for a Kindle!!!)

Title: Pyxis: The Discovery
Author: K.C. Neal
Publisher: StoneHouse Ink

About the book: Corinne lives an average teenage life working at her dad’s cafe, hanging out with her best friend, and trying to forget a falling-out with her almost-boyfriend Mason. Things take a strange turn when she uses her late grandmother’s food dyes for a bake sale, and her customers suddenly find her irresistibly alluring. Then she discovers she and Mason are haunted by the same dreams of a dark force that consumes everything in its path.

Pursued by shadowy figures and a crazy woman with secrets from the past, Corinne must find out who her grandmother really was. In her quest to unravel her family’s history, she learns she is destined to protect this world--and the dark world of her dreams. She races to find the answers she seeks before her nightmares break free.


My thoughts: I really enjoyed this book.  It started out as what I would say as just a very gentle and nice read, pulling you in, making you want to find out more and more.  Little clues are dropped along the way, especially concerning Mason, and you want to know who this Mason is and what his relationship with Corinne is all about.

I was instantly drawn to Corinne and was kind of rooting for her, even though I didn't know who or what I was rooting against.  She just came across as a really nice girl - the kind you want your daughter to be friends with, or your son to date (lol). 

As the title of the book says Pyxis: The Discovery, Corinne is left a box by her Grandma Doris when she passes away.  It is a wooden box with the word PYXIS enscribed on the top and 5 bottles of liquid inside. Together with her friend Ang, they discover that these liquids have some kind of magical quality, though they don't seem to work the same on everyone.  This is only the beginning of what they find though.  Pyxis is much more than just a box of magical liquids.  Together with Mason and Ang, Corinne sets out to discover what her grandmother has really left her. 

Pyxis by K.C. Neal is touring right now with Airel by Aaron Patterson and Chris White, which I reviewed a couple of days ago (with a giveaway) and Arson by Estevan Vega.  For Pyxis, K.C. Neal is giving away a Pyxis notebook and pen and a signed Pyxis bookmark right here!  (I am jealous!  I want to win this!)  To enter for the Pyxis swag, just leave a comment with your email address.  This giveaway is for U.S. entrants only. 

In addition to that though, the author is also hosting a Kindle giveaway that you can enter using the Rafflecopter form below, or you can enter at her blog, K.C. Neal's Blog. 

Check out each of these books on Amazon!

99c on Amazon.com

Pyxis by K.C. Neal

Corinne lives an average teenage life working at her dad’s cafe, hanging out with her best friend, and trying to forget a falling-out with her almost-boyfriend Mason. Things take a strange turn when she uses her late grandmother’s food dyes for a bake sale, and her customers suddenly find her irresistibly alluring. Then she discovers she and Mason are haunted by the same dreams of a dark force that consumes everything in its path. Pursued by shadowy figures and a crazy woman with secrets from the past, Corinne must find out who her grandmother really was. In her quest to unravel her family’s history, she learns she is destined to protect this world--and the dark world of her dreams. She races to find the answers she seeks before her nightmares break free.

$2.99 on Amazon.com
Airel by Aaron Patterson and Chris White

Airel is a story about an angel who falls so deeply in love with a woman that he chooses to fall from heaven to be with her. She gives birth to a daughter in Arabia, 1250BC. The girl is pursued ferociously, relentlessly by an enemy in the deepest darkness. In present day Boise, Idaho is just a girl: Airel. She's just your average high school student...who turns out to be anything but average. It's because of who she is, because of her ancestry, because of her lineage. Past and present crash in on each other in the final pages as what has been twisted comes dangerously unraveled.

99c Amazon.com

Arson by Estevan Vega

Arson Gable feels like a freak. He can create fire. He never asked for it. He never wanted it. But he can't shut it off. Before now, three things were true: he both loved and despised his grandmother; his life was going nowhere; and he was alone. But when a strange girl--who feels more normal behind a mask than inside her own skin--moves in next door, Arson hopes to find something he's never had: purpose. Using what he fears most about himself, Arson must face his consuming past and confront the nightmare that is his present as he walks the fine line between boy and monster.

DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE A COMMENT FOR THE PYXIS SWAG WITH YOUR EMAIL!

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Airel by Aaron Patterson (Book Review and Giveaway)

Title: Airel (The Airel Saga, Book 1)

Author: Aaron Patterson, Chris White
Publisher: StoneHouse Ink


About the book: All Airel ever wanted was to be normal, to disappear into the crowd. But bloodlines can produce surprises, like an incredible ability to heal. Then there s Michael Alexander, the new guy in school, who is impossibly gorgeous...and captivated by her. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she can hear the sound of pages turning, and another, older story being written. It is the story of an ancient family, of great warriors, of the Sword of Light, and the struggle against an evil so terrible, so far-reaching, that it threatens everything. Airel knew change would be an inevitable part of life. But can she hold on when murder and darkness begin to close in and take away everything she loves? Will she have what it takes when the truth is finally revealed?

My thoughts: Where to start?  This was a very complex story - actually two stories.  The book opens in the present day in Idaho.  You begin to learn about a young girl named Airel, with all the typical teenage angst that is normal.  What is not normal is that seemingly overnight Airel's appearance is changing.  Her complexion is becoming flawless, her hair luxurious. Even though she sees the changes in the mirror, she still questions when the boy of her dreams, Michael, appears to be infatuated with her.  When she discovers that she has the ability to heal quickly, she wonders who or what she really is.

The second storyline takes place in Arabia in 1250 B.C.  Kreios, a fallen angel, has lost his wife right after the birth of his daughter and is on a journey to now save his daughter's life.  In order to achieve this, he has to, quite literally, take flight.  This flight attracts the unwanted attention of The Brotherhood.  These are demons whose mission is to destroy all the angels who came to earth and married a mortal.  The description of these demons, as well as the angels and the world they live in is told in great detail. 

Even though the stories are thousands of years apart, they are eerily similar.  You see, the demons are on the trail of Kreios in Arabia, and there is a killer on the loose in Idaho as well.  Airel and Michael are kidnapped soon after Airel witnesses a killing while at the movies.  They are taken to an unbelievable house seemingly buried in the forest.  Airel doesn't know whether the killer has kidnapped her or saved her from being killed.  What she does know is that she is falling in love with Michael and learning about who she really is. 

I did enjoy this story, but felt like I kind of got bogged down in the center.  The beginning grabbed me, but when it first flipped to Arabia, I kind of got lost.  I stuck with it though and am glad that I did.  The ending left me wide-eyed with - 'You can't stop there!' on my mind. 

The second book in the series, Michael, is due out in May of this year.



~I received a complimentary ebook of Airel from StoneHouse Ink in exchange for my unbiased review.~


You can find out more about Airel on Facebook and Twitter.

Airel
Publisher/Publication Date: StoneHouse Ink, August 2011
ISBN: 978-0982607862
425 pages



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Echoes of Savanna by Lucinda Moebius (Book Review)

Title: Echoes of Savanna
(Book one in the Parent Generation)
Author: Lucinda Moebius
Publisher: Stonehouse Ink

About the book: Every generation has their defining moments, events that change history and turn the course of lives. Forever will the children of that generation be identified by those moments.

Savanna Taylor is a medical doctor in 2036, the same year terrorists release a series of plagues and viruses into the world. She is a nineteen year old Brain Trust whose task it is to find a cure for the diseases and develop vaccines to prevent their further spread. The world is thrown in turmoil and Savanna needs to find a way to survive with her sanity and family intact.

Can Savanna cope in a world in constant flux brought on by war and disease? Can she save the world and protect her loved ones or will she make the ultimate sacrifice? How will she be defined?

My thoughts:  This book starts out by throwing you right into the action. We meet Savanna as she is coming to work at an emergency clinic that has had a huge influx of smallpox victims.  A disease that the world thought it had eradicated. 

Savanna's DNA was altered by her father, a geneticist.  He has worked on creating babies for years because of the infertility that the world is experiencing.  The population is actually declining.  He has created a facility known as Haven that reaches out to (mainly) women and children who have addictions, been abused, need some sort of help.  Haven is completely self-contained - food, water, resources - all grown or obtained on the property.  You even have to go through special sanitizing showers upon entering and "containerize" all outside belongings until it is time for you to leave.

Savanna is only working outside of Haven until she feels she has enough experience to go take over for her father.  This time comes too soon and the responsibility is thrust upon her.

This book was good in creating the world as it could be in 2036.  There is much dissension among the population due to governmental control. Much of the population is left homeless, hungry and without health insurance due to refusing to have a microchip implanted in them with all of their personal information.

Savanna doesn't experience much of this first hand as she lives in her self-contained bubble at Haven.  The outside world starts to infringe on Haven as transients become more desperate in their search for food.  Savanna and her family are separated because of the situation that seems to be escalating every day.

Savanna is only nineteen when the book starts - and as we know she is a genius because she is already a doctor - she is still only nineteen, a teenager.  She seemed too mature for a nineteen-year-old though.  I never felt that she was that young.  The book covers the first 10-12 years fairly slowly with lots of detail and many different things happening both to Savanna and the world, but then all of sudden the next 5-6 years are jumped through and the book ends.  It just seemed like the ending was rushed, especially since this is just the first book in the series.   That would probably be my only criticism.  I definitely want to know what else could possibly happen in the next book.

~I received a complimentary copy of this ebook from Media Guests in exchange for my review.~

About the author: Lucinda Moebius grew up in the mountains of Idaho and Eastern Oregon. Her mother taught her to read when she was four years old and since that time books have been her constant companions. She has a Bachelors Degree in English Teaching, a Masters in Educational Leadership, and is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Education. Lucinda supports her writing habit by teaching High School and College. She currently lives in Boise, Idaho with her husband and their dog and cat. Lucinda is the author of Echoes of Savanna, a Haven Novel, part of the Parent Generation.

 You can connect with her at her website, blog, and facebook.

Echoes of Savanna (Parent Generation)
Publisher/Publication Date: Stonehouse Ink, Aug 2010
ISBN: 978-0982770535
400 pages