Book Review: Darkness Rising: {Legends of Marithia Book #2} by Peter Koevari

Title: Darkness Rising
Series: Legends of Marithia
Author: Peter Koevari
Publisher: self
Date of Publication: November 15, 2011
Source: ebook, 260 pages (received copy from author for my honest opinion of it)
Get Your Own: Amazon | Barnes and Noble

Synopsis:In the aftermath of the Battle of the Elven Woods, the two legends of Marithian prophecy are both dangerously close to the dark grip of death as Marithia suffers under the powers of the Blood Red Moon.
Vartan, prophesised to save Marithia, lays spellbound under the protection of the mythical dragons. The vampire sorceress Kassina, prophesised to bring about their Armageddon has been moved to the underworld by the demon lord himself, Shindar.
A seed of the gods has grown and their greatest gift to Marithians, Anakari, makes her fated journey to discover her purpose.

A former shining jewel of Marithian peace, castle Greenhaven, remains in ruins after its defeat under Kassina's forces and the elves rebuild their war torn city of Veldrenn.
Talonsphere must be found before Marithia merges with the Underworld and Shindar brings about the world's end

My Thoughts:
Please visit my review of the first book in the series here.

Peter Koevari does a fantastic job of world building in this novel.  We learned about Marithia in the first book, and yet I find that I am still being immersed in another side of it in this second installment.  This story has it all : noble dragons, loyal elves, fragile humans, and fierce vampires.  Yes!  I just said vampires!  That is what initially brought me to this series-the concept of having a high fantasy with all your classic characters but then vampires were added to the mix.  It definitely gives fantasy a new twist.
I really liked this idea but I noticed I had a hard time getting into the second novel.  There were parts that seemed to drag on and on without really getting to the point.  This was in the beginning but towards the middle and definitely the end, I found myself going, "Oh my goodness, didn't see that coming!"
Vartan is a strong male lead who is noble and always thinking of his country, his people, and his freedom.  It is filling watching Vartan make the choices he makes and the way he puts himself in the path of danger to save one person.  It was also crushing to see his reaction to Tusdar.
Speaking of Tusdar...wow!  He has been crucial to the story; much more than I thought he would.  I really liked him in the first book and so it is nice to see him still around in the second book.  I can't really talk about him that much because I don't want to give anything away, but he is in love just as much as Vartan is with his love.
In fact, we get to see the concept of love from both sides: good and evil.  It is a nice touch to a story that likes to blur the lines between good and evil.  I feel like there is a lot of the gray area in this story.
We also meet some new characters in the story and we finally get a small but explosive peek into what the gods really are doing.
I still find myself confused by the whole concept of the Talonsphere.  I understand what it will do, who needs to activate it (and who doesn't), and the reason it was made; but I guess I am just anxious for it to be brought to the front.
Nevertheless, there are so many surprising twists in the story you will literally be shaking your head, never seeing it coming.  
Darkness Rising is a high fantasy story that takes many different elements into consideration to take us on an  imaginative journey through a land that is on the brink of falling apart without its hero finding his true potential.
I give it four hearts.

Connect with Peter Koevari a few ways:
Goodreads | website | Facebook

ARC Review: Hacienda Moon (The Path Seekers) by KaSonndra Leigh

Title: Hacienda Moon
Author: KaSonndra Leigh
Series: The Path Seekers
Publisher: TriGate Group
Date of Publication: July 28, 2012
Formats:  ebook 280 pages
Source: received a copy from author for my honest opinion
Barnes and Noble / Amazon

Good Reads Summary:
Love, obsession, and betrayal, the most powerful human emotions, are spun together in this gothic novel. Tandie Harrison is a police medium who has just suffered a divorce after losing both her psychic visions and her daughter in a car accident. When she leaves New York City to start a new life near her hometown, she moves into the alluring plantation house, Chelby Rose, and falls for its charismatic caretaker, Eric Fontalvo. Their burgeoning affair ignites a centuries old curse, ensnaring them in a web of danger, deceit, and intrigue. Soon Tandie learns that in placid Bolivia, the worlds of the living and the dead are dangerously connected.

Hacienda Moon is a seductive tale of one woman’s journey to confront the demons of her past and find the courage to face her future. It is a mesmerizing novel that explores the deepest depths of human nature, and the characters will hold and haunt you long after you have read the final chapter.

My Feelings:

Most importantly, I need to scream at the top of my lungs, " Wow!!!  I fell completely in love with this book from the very first page!!"
The very first page already had me on the same emotional coaster that our heroine was on, the writing is so good that I literally had to put my Kindle down to grab a tissue and get my tears under control.  I kept repeating to myself over and over, "Why??!!?"  But the book had me hooked like a fish in the pond.

I loved the fact it was set in the south, especially a creepy quiet town that has its fair share of ghost stories that even adults still fear.  And yes there are some very interesting small towns out there in rural America that will have you afraid of the dark from the histories.
 It is strange for me; I am scared to hear the stories but I can't help but listen, kinda like when you cover your eyes but peek through your fingers at a gory movie.  That's me basically!
But Hacienda Moon was a haunting take on love that travels through the generations and curses that still affect people today.  It was eerie, romantic, scary, funny, and really breathtaking.  I was floored by this novel.
The plot was well planned out and every detail of the story plays an important part in our character, Tandie's life.  I can't stand when a story will go off on a tangent and it have no basis on the actual story.  Hacienda Moon doesn't do this at all.  Every encounter, even if it seemed small, ties in so expertly that it leaves you saying to yourself wow I never thought about it like that.
Tandie is definitely an interesting character.  She is a medium who worked with the police for many years until something terrible happens and she loses her "sight".  She tries to put her life back together by moving away to an old house with its own troubled past.
Besides Tandie, we have a lot of supporting characters that are so mysterious I had a hard time figuring out who to trust and who to keep my eyes on.
And of course Saul Chelby was one of my guilty favorites.  That is all I am going to say about the lovely Saul.  (I loved the names in the stories, they are so awesome!)
Annnnd Enter Eric.  What a southern gentlemen!! Scratch that: a sexy southern gentlemen who has his own secret past that makes everything a little more touchy and hot.
  As I read through the novel, I felt more and more like Chelby Rose Manor was more of a character than the setting.  It is so full of life and mystery.  The illustration  on the front cover is a beautiful recreation of the house our author, KaSonndra Leigh, crafts in the pages of her novel.
Hacienda Moon is one of those wonderfully written books that can't be contained in just one genre, but instead delves into many like mystery, a paranormal thriller, romance, and a little bit of some historical fiction in it for good measure.

I am absolutely in love with this new series and I had to give Hacienda Moon 5 hearts!

I have found a new author that I will keep my eyes on and a new series destined to be one of my favorites!