MOONSET (Legacy of Moonset #1)

Moonset, a coven of such promise . . . Until they turned to the darkness.
After the terrorist witch coven known as Moonset was destroyed fifteen years ago—during a secret war against the witch Congress—five children were left behind, saddled with a legacy of darkness. Sixteen-year-old Justin Daggett, son of a powerful Moonset warlock, has been raised alongside the other orphans by the witch Congress, who fear the children will one day continue the destruction their parents started.
A deadly assault by a wraith, claiming to work for Moonset’s most dangerous disciple, Cullen Bridger, forces the five teens to be evacuated to Carrow Mill. But when dark magic wreaks havoc in their new hometown, Justin and his siblings are immediately suspected. Justin sets out to discover if someone is trying to frame the Moonset orphans . . . or if Bridger has finally come out of hiding to reclaim the legacy of Moonset. He learns there are secrets in Carrow Mill connected to Moonset’s origins, and keeping the orphans safe isn’t the only reason the Congress relocated them .. .

 

 

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Moonset is the very first book I have read by Scott Tracey. I love books that have witches, warlocks, drama, black magic, and awesome action scenes, and Moonset captures all of that into one amazing book!

The book surrounds five teenagers, but it’s told from Justin Dagget’s POV. I normally am not a huge fan of books told from male perspectives, but I was pleasantly surprised with this one. Justin had a really smooth and interesting quality about him, and I really liked having his voice sweep across the pages.

I did have a slight problem with there being five teenagers, because it bumped them up to main characters. That’s a bit too many main characters for my taste, not to mention all of the supporting characters in the book. Scott Tracey actually managed all of their individual voices and personalities very well. I was always able to tell who was who and nobody overlapped one another. Still, though, I would have preferred to see less main characters.

The plot of Moonset really grew and expanded as the book proceeded. It kept a very good pace and kept me interested throughout the whole book. Scott Tracey has such a unique and beautiful aspect to his writing that glues your eyes to the page from the get-go. I will say that the story was pretty predictable, but it really didn’t matter. The writing was so great, and the plot was so interesting, that I didn’t care if I knew what was going to happen. It didn’t matter. I just wanted more.

Moonset fascinated me, because it felt like it should have been a television show rather than a book. Instead of reading the book and having it be over, I wanted to watch a new episode of it every week. It kind of reminded me of today’s popular tv shows…..The Vampires Diaries, Merlin, The Secret Circle, Once Upon a Time…they all had a very similar feel to this book. I really enjoyed that.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves books about witches, magic, etc. It was a great paranormal read, and I cannot wait to read more from Scott Tracey in the future!

 

Pages: 384

Publication Date: April 8th, 2013

Publisher: Flux

Rating: :

 

About the Author

Scott Tracey is a YA author who lived on a Greyhound for a month, wrote his illustrated autobiography at the age of six, and barely survived Catholic school (and definitely not for the reasons you might think).

He is the author of WITCH EYES, chosen as one of Amazon’s Best LGBT Books of 2011, as well as an ALA Popular Paperback in the Forbidden Romance category. The final book in the WITCH EYES trilogy, PHANTOM EYES, will be released in the fall of 2013.

He is also the author of MOONSET, a new series which will be released April 8, 2013, as well as a contributor to the SHADOWHUNTERS & DOWNWORLDERS anthology, edited by Cassandra Clare.

His career highlights include: accidentally tripping a panic alarm which led to nearly being shot by the police; attacked in a drive-thru window by a woman wielding a baked potato, and once moving cross country for a job only to quit on the second day.

His gifts can be used for good or evil, but rather than picking a side, he strives for BOTH (in alternating capacity) for his own amusement.

LINKS:

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Week One

Mar. 25th - Me, My Shelf and I - Guest Post

Mar. 26th - Book Brats - Interview

Mar. 26th - In the Best Worlds - Review

Mar. 27th - Once Upon a Twilight - Guest Post

Mar. 28th - BookHounds YA - Interview

Mar. 29th - WinterHaven Books - Review

Mar. 30th - The Book Cellar - Guest Post

Mar. 31st - Magical Urban Fantasy Reads - Review

If there is one thing eighteen-year-old Aurora Sky wants, it’s to get off the iceberg she calls home. Being kissed before she graduates wouldn’t hurt either.

Then a near-fatal car wreck changes everything. Government agents step in and save Aurora’s life in exchange for her services as a vampire hunter. In Alaska. Basically she’s a glorified chew toy. All thanks to her rare blood type, which sends a vampire into temporary paralysis right before she has to finish the job… by hand.

Now Aurora’s only friends are groupies of the undead and the only boy she can think about may very well be a vampire. And if he’s a vampire, will she be forced to kill him?

For ages 16+

 

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Aurora Sky started out really strong. It’s about a girl who gets into a fatal car crash, and is revived on a military base. They renewed a lot of her important organs, but there was a catch. They also implanted a virus in her body. Now Aurora must get mandatory shots in order to stay alive. They put this virus in Aurora’s body so that her blood will be fatal to any vampire who bites her and sucks her blood. But Aurora doesn’t want this life. It’s something that she can’t get out of, and her life slowly starts to spin out of control.

I was a big fan of the very beginning of Aurora Sky. I thought that it was well-written, the characters were interesting and relatable, and the idea of the book was eye-catching and fascinating. I find the concept of vampire hunters really interesting. This is something that the YA community really hasn’t gotten a chance to read about. We’ve read about vampires before, sure, but vampire hunters? That’s a new idea…and one that I like!

The character of Aurora got on my nerves a little bit as the story progressed. Obviously she had some major changes happen to her, and she spiraled out of control. All of a sudden she was drinking, having sex, being a disrespectful little brat, and…well, she was just really upset. I don’t like reading about characters who are so out of control and depressed. This is just a personal thing though. I know that there are a lot of people out there who enjoy these types of characters.

I was also a bit bothered by the amount of sex and romantic scenes included in the book. I would categorize Aurora Sky as a new adult book, so it was perfectly acceptable for that genre. However, I had to skim a lot of those scenes. I’m not opposed to romantic scenes, but it bugs me with high school students. I know they do stuff…I was a high school student once…but it’s a little uncomfortable for me to read about.

The story itself was a little predictable, but I actually ended up really liking the storyline. Nikki Jefford’s is a very strong writer, and I found myself really drawn to the words that she created. I was also a BIG fan of Fane, the leading male character. He was SO gorgeous! I would recommend the book simply for him! You have to read about him!

Overall, I thought that it was a great first book in the Vampire Hunter’s series. I didn’t fall head over heels in love with it, but it kept me interested. Again, this is a New Adult book, so there are some scenes maybe not so appropriate for the younger crowd. Other than that, I would recommend that fans of paranormal reads give this one a chance!

 

Pages: 242

Publisher: Createspace

Publication Date: December 9th, 2012

Rating: :

Nikki Jefford is a third generation Alaskan who loves fictional bad boys and heroines who kick butt. She is the author of the Spellbound Trilogy and upcoming Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter series. Nikki married Sebastien, the love of her life, while working as a teaching assistant in France. They now reside in the not-so-tropical San Juan Islands, 70 miles northeast of Forks, Washington. (YAY for another WA girl!)

 

Stalk Nikki: Website Goodreads Facebook Twitter

 

 

 

 

Giveaway:

We are hosting two awesome giveaways. The first is for an Aurora Sky Door hanger (can also be used as a bookmark.) The second is the grand tour prize. The giveaway will be open internationally and will run from March 25, 2013 to April 5, 2015. The winner will receive their prize the week of April 15th.

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In the aftermath of a forbidden moment that rocked Sydney to her core, she finds herself struggling to draw the line between her Alchemist teachings and what her heart is urging her to do. Then she meets alluring, rebellious Marcus Finch-a former Alchemist who escaped against all odds, and is now on the run. Marcus wants to teach Sydney the secrets he claims the Alchemists are hiding from her. But as he pushes her to rebel against the people who raised her, Sydney finds that breaking free is harder than she thought. There is an old and mysterious magic rooted deeply within her. And as she searches for an evil magic user targeting powerful young witches, she realizes that her only hope is to embrace her magical blood-or else she might be next.

Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, the Bloodlines series explores all the friendship, romance, battles, and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive—this time in a part-vampire, part-human setting where the stakes are even higher and everyone’s out for blood.

 

Like most of you reading this, I have been a huge fan of Richelle Mead for years now. I devoured her Vampire Academy series, and I was crushed when it ended. I wasn’t an overly huge fan of Sydney in the VA series, but I was willing to give Bloodlines a chance. I remember that I read Bloodlines, and I just thought it was ok. It wasn’t Richelle’s best work ever, but there were also a couple books in the VA series that I was severely disappointed in. So, I read The Golden Lily when it came out, and I was impressed! It wasn’t the best book that I had ever read, but I liked it, and I was really excited to read The Indigo Spell when it came out. Unfortunately, I didn’t like it. At all.

I’ve always found Sydney’s character to be a little bland. I know that’s how she’s supposed to be, but I don’t really think that that makes for good reading. I want her to develop a spark. Yes, that spark is slightly developing, but I shouldn’t have to wait until book 4 or 5 to really start to see it.

The one upside about this book was Adrian. Adrian. Adrian. Adrian. I love him. I loved him more in VA, probably because I like Rose a lot better than Sydney, but he still has that charming, adorable, flirty, sexy quality about him in this series. He was the only reason I stuck with this book as long as I did. And he was the only reason that I skimmed the last half of the book.

I know that everyone was all excited about the whole Marcus Finch thing, but honestly…I just didn’t care. I didn’t care when it was mentioned in The Golden Lily, and I don’t care now. Who cares who Marcus Finch is? And I ended thinking that while reading The Indigo Spell. There was nothing special about Marcus Finch. If anything, I thought he was a creep. So, I didn’t really understand the whole hoopla about that, and I still don’t. I actually wish that that whole plotline would have been edited out or just edited better..

I did find the magic portion of The Indigo Spell very interesting, but I was so sick of having Sydney whine about using magic. She’s definitely come to terms with it a lot better than she had in the previous books, but seriously…get over it! I feel that Sydney just wants to be this giant goody two shoes, and I’m sick of it. I want her to be interesting! I want to root for her and Adrian…and I want to read an amazing book in this series…but I’m starting to think that that’s not going to happen.

I’m sorry, guys, I know how much a lot of you loved this book and love this series. And really…my review really doesn’t mean that much. The Indigo Spell has a 4.53/5 rating on Goodreads out of 2,059 reviews. That has to mean something, right? So, I think it comes down to the fact that this series just isn’t for me. I will be continuing the series, because I love Adrian so much, but I will not be buying another book in this series.

 

Pages: 401

Publication Date: February 12th, 2013

Publisher: Razorbill

Rating: :

 

Teaser Quote: “Because I can’t help doing it,” he said with a shrug. “And hey, if I keep loving you, maybe you’ll eventually crack and love me too. Hell, I’m pretty sure you’re already half in love with me.”

“I am not! And everything you just said is ridiculous. That’s terrible logic.”
Adrian returned to his crossword puzzle. “Well, you can think what you want, so long as you remember-no matter how ordinary things seem between us-I’m still here, still in love with you, and care about you more than any other guy, evil or otherwise, ever will.”

“I don’t think you’re evil.”

“See? Things are already looking promising.”