Giveaway! 3 Copies of Dracula in Love by Karen Essex

In honor of Halloween, and thanks to the lovely Karen Essex, I have three copies of Dracula in Love to giveaway today! Haven't heard about this book (you haven't?!)?  Here's what it's about:


In this wonderfully transporting novel, award-winning author Karen Essex turns a timeless classic inside out, spinning a haunting, erotic, and suspenseful story of eternal love and possession.

From the shadowy banks of the river Thames to the wild and windswept Yorkshire coast, Dracula’s eternal muse, Mina Murray, vividly recounts the intimate details of what really transpired between her and the Count—the joys and terrors of a passionate affair that has linked them through the centuries, and her rebellion against her own frightening preternatural powers.

Mina’s version of this gothic vampire tale is a visceral journey into Victorian England’s dimly lit bedrooms, mist-filled cemeteries, and asylum chambers, revealing the dark secrets and mysteries locked within. Time falls away as she is swept into a mythical journey far beyond mortal comprehension, where she must finally make the decision she has been avoiding for almost a millennium.

Bram Stoker’s classic novel offered one side of the story, in which Mina had no past and bore no responsibility for the unfolding events. Now, for the first time, the truth of Mina’s personal voyage, and of vampirism itself, is revealed. What this flesh and blood woman has to say is more sensual, more devious, and more enthralling than the Victorians could have expressed or perhaps even have imagined. (from Goodreads)

I reviewed Dracula in Love and reviewed it on The True Book Addict.  You can read that review HERE.

To enter, fill out the rafflecopter form.

Happy Halloween!

HAVE A SAFE AND HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Book Review: The Darkness by Crystal Connor

My thoughts:
I really don't know quite what to say about this book.  I mean, the bare bones of the story are excellent, but there is such convolution mixed in, it was really hard to stay focused.  Maybe that was the aim here.  I don't know.  Something that really bugged me was the sudden introduction and bios of all of Adam's friends in the middle of the story.  Did we really need to know all of that?  I guess she was just trying to show Adam as a normal kid, but I think that part was unnecessary.

I read a review of this book on Goodreads and the person said that neither main character is likable.  I would have to agree, to a certain extent.  Both women are evil, the difference is that one, Inanna, recognizes it in herself and that it comes from a tragedy in her past.  The other, Artemesia, is just pure greed and personal gain...how much so she keeps well concealed.  Artemesia is a character you think you hate, then you don't, and then...wow, what a slap in the face.  This alone is one reason why--despite my feelings about this book--I will probably read the next book, Artificial Light.  Honestly, the story line was intriguing enough for me to keep reading.  Ordinarily, if I really don't like a book, I will not keep reading.  What I would suggest with this book would be to go into it skeptically and give it about 100 pages or so.  Then you can judge whether you want to keep reading or not.  I did this and I kept reading.


About the book:
Artemisia, a scientist who also practices alchemy, is wealthy beyond imagination. She is one of the founding members of the Skyward Group, a privately funded, secret, research facility conducting experiments that erase what tradition has established as the boundaries separating the realm of man from the realm of God. Artemisia has everything she wants - money, fame, knowledge and power - except for a child. Inanna is a powerful and dangerous witch, also wealthy beyond imagination. Her powers are greater and more deadly than any in the long tradition before her. Inanna has everything she wants - money, knowledge and God-like power - except for a child. The Child has nothing. At three months of age, he knows only what he has experienced through the bars of his locked cage. He has nothing. He doesn't have a mommy. He doesn't have a daddy. He doesn't have a name. The scientists who created him do not handle him, because they know The Child is dangerous. In The Darkness, Two women clash in a vicious battle that has been fought since the days of King Solomon - the fight over a child. One woman unleashes the nightmarish arsenal of modern science while the other dispatches the weaponries of witchcraft. And as The Child grows up, his love for one and resentment for the other will change the fate of both these women, forever.

Visit Crystal Connor's WEBSITE

Reviewed for:

FTC Disclosure:  I received a copy of this book from Pump Up Your Book Promotions in exchange for my honest review.  I was not monetarily compensated for sharing my views on the book.

Horrifying Mailbox Monday

Mailbox Monday was created by Marcia and is currently on tour. This month's host is Serena at Savvy Verse and Wit . (Click the book covers to read a book description on Amazon)



WON:
Children of the Night by Dan Simmons...from Midnyte Reader


PURCHASED FROM LIBRARY SALE:
Madman by Tracy Groot
The Collector by John Fowles