Moon Craving (Children of the Moon, Book 2)

A paranormal Scottish historical featuring a werewolf laird and a deaf English heroine that won’t leave you wanting to hit the characters on the head.

Talorc, laird of the Sinclair clan, is a Chrechte, part of an ancient tribe of werewolves that integrated itself into the clans of the Picts in Scotland to preserve their heritage. As the laird, he’s a subject of the King of Scotland, who orders him to marry an Englishwoman. Abigail became deaf through a childhood affliction. As a survival mechanism, she has learnt to speak clearly and to read lips. Her relationship with her family has led her to believe that she will be shunned because of this affliction, and as a result she has learnt to hide it well, and continues to do so with her new husband.

This is a beautiful love story of two people coming together. Talorc is tough and gruff, like the typical Highlander in most novels but he has a gentleness about him, despite his wolf nature that is well interpreted. Monroe also does a good job of showing Abigail’s vulnerability and how she holds herself together and tries to be strong. (more)

On the Edge by Ilona Andrews (The Edge, Book 1)

There’s a reason we visit bricks and mortar bookshops, and at the top of the list is finding great books like this one.

Rose Drayton lives with her 2 much younger brothers in the ‘Edge’, a world between worlds: the ‘Broken’ or normal everyday earth; and the ‘Weird’, a supernatural kind of place not unlike faerie. She possesses a power normally reserved for bluebloods of the Weird, and that power has been both a blessing and a pain in the arse. Mostly a pain in the arse.

One day, this hot, kick-arse blueblood named Declan shows up at her doorstep, ostensibly to marry her so they can breed children who have her power. He also has a few secrets (of course), and he knows more than what he says (of course). Then the baddie shows up in town, trying to do away with Rose’s brothers. Rose now has to get together with Declan and save them and the whole town from whatever the baddie really wants.

At the risk of sounding like a male skateboarding preteen who reads Alex Rider novels (good books!) I have to say this is a really cool book. (more)

Brainchild of Marg from Reading Adventures and Kailana from The Written World

Yes, I’m late for my Advent Tour post. The good news is … everything here is FREE! Plus…

BOOK GIVEAWAY: Read on for a chance to win a copy of Desperate Duchesses by Eloisa James. The contest ends midnight on Wednesday, January 6 AEST.

But first, something for the 2009 Blog Advent Tour, the brainchild of Marg from Reading Adventures and Kailana from The Written World. (Yes, even though it’s now Boxing Day.)

Last year, I posted links to a bunch of free stories online because hey, what’s an Advent calendar without free stuff? So in keeping with tradition, I asked tweeples and ARRA members for links to free stories online. Here they are for your holiday reading pleasure. (Thanks to everyone who sent me links!)

Free stories by Australian authors

Hellcursed by Erica Hayes – A prequel to Shadowfae, one of my favourite debut novels for 2009 (more)

The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker by Leanna Renee Hieber (Strangely Beautiful, Book 1)

An original paranormal Gothic romance for readers who love their alphas melting into a puddle and their melodrama dial set for ‘high’.

Percy Parker was raised in a convent, where she was left abandoned as a baby. At the age of 18, she is sent to the Athens Academy, a quiet, secluded place of learning in the centre of London where both men and women have the opportunity to learn and make something of themselves. (Not bad for the 19th century.) It is a tumultuous time, for the Ripper has come to the streets of London, striking fear into the hearts of everyone.

Unbeknownst to Percy and the rest of London, the Ripper is a manifestation of chaos, and the only thing that prevents him and other spirits from tormenting the city are the six guardians: Alexi, Rebecca, Michael, Elijah, Josephine and Jane, who were selected in childhood by the goddess to protect the city. Each of them has a special gift, and aside from defending London they commune on a regular basis in a chapel in Athens Academy, (more)

Soulless by Gail Carriger (Parasol Protectorate, Book 1)

Gail Carriger’s steampunk paranormal historical romance mixes Victorian manners, werewolves and hickeys in a book that’s a little different from the average paranormal fare.

Alexia Tarabotti is a souless (literally!) spinster with a fondness for parasols, living in a Victorian London populated by supernaturals who are well organised and fully integrated into society. One day she accidentally kills a vampire, and Lord Maccon, head of the Bureau of Unnatural Registry (BUR) is compelled to investigate. (Did I mention Lord Maccon is a hot werewolf?) Alexia’s propensity to get herself into trouble—though by no real fault of her own—means that she and Lord Maccon are constantly being thrown together, with expected and unexpected results.

Soulless is what I would call a steampunk romance. There’s enough technology and innovation to constitute an exploration of that theme, and there’s enough kissing and werewolf hickeys to make it a romance. It’s a good intro to steampunk for urban fantasy readers who are looking to try it (more)

I managed to read 7 books for the challenge (total of 8 for the month), when for the past 5 months I’d only managed 2-5 a month, so I think I achieved what I set out to do and that was to get over this slump and read more.

The Outlaw Demon Wails by Kim Harrison

This was a book I had in my TBR box for a while, mainly because someone had spoilt something in the previous book, For a Few Demons More, so I was a bit put off reading that one and not about to jump ahead. I finally read For a Few Demons More before the challenge and decided to forge ahead with The Outlaw Demon Wails while the details of the last book were still fresh in my mind.

Rachel Morgan is determined to squash her inner adrenaline junkie and make wiser decisions that won’t land her and her friends in so much trouble. But a request for her help in obtaining an elf DNA sample from the ever-after leads to a revelation of Rachel’s true origins and changes her perspective on family and risk-taking. (more)

Marked has an interesting premise, but it’s let down by preachy writing, stilted dialogue and heavy-handed foreshadowing. (But it’s still not as bad as Twilight.)

When 16-year old Zoey Redbird is Marked as a vampyre, she leaves her family and friends to live in the House of Night—referred to by human kids as the Vampyre Finishing School—to spend 4 years learning about her new life and undergoing profound physical changes. Although she’s Marked, there’s no guarantee that she’ll survive the Change from human to vampyre.

On the way to the House of Night, Zoey has a vision of the vampire Goddess, Nyx, who tells Zoey that she’ll be the first of Nyx’s true disciples. But first Zoey has to figure out her new high school. The school’s most powerful student, Aphrodite, has it in for her. And what’s more, Zoey kind of likes Erik, who happens to be Aphrodite’s not-by-choice-ex-boyfriend.

It soon becomes apparent that Zoey has powers beyond that of a newly Marked (more)

Night's Cold Kiss by Tracey O'Hara (Dark Brethren, Book 1)

Our obsession with vampires isn’t over, with a new series hitting the shelves this week. Debut author Tracey O’Hara shows us why we love to be seduced by danger and darkness.

Antoinette Petrescu, haunted by her mother’s murder at the hands of a vampire, makes her living tracking down Necrodreniacs—rogue vampires addicted to the death-high that occurs when they drain, and therefore kill, a human. But when a series of murders forces her to work closely with Christian Laroque, an Aeternus vampire, Antoinette discovers that she has a few things left to learn about vampires—they’re not all vicious murderers, and she’s not as immune to their charms as she’d thought.

Humans and parahumans co-exist in this world under a peace treaty that’s beginning to unravel. Not everyone is interested in peace, and resentment has endured long after the end of a bitter and bloody war between vampires, Animalians and humans. Antoinette and Christian suspect there’s a mole within the Council for Human and Paranormal Relations (CHaPR), leaking information and trying to disrupt the tenuous peace (more)

Scent of Darkness by Christina Dodd (Darkness Chosen, Book 1)

Once upon a time, Konstantin, a warrior from the Russian steppes, made a deal with the devil. In exchange for a priceless icon that had been in his family for generations (plus his soul, of course), he and his sons—and they only bred sons—would be given a special power enabling them to hunt all their enemies down.

Fast forward to about now. The latest Konstantin escaped his family to build a new life in America. He’s made a prosperous life for himself, and he has 4 children—including a daughter.

One day, his ex-gypsy wife has a vision that tells them how to break the pact and free themselves from their curse. The 4 books in the Darkness Chosen series cover just how they end up doing that.

Scent of Darkness is about Jasha, the eldest son, and his personal assistant, Ann. Ann has a thing for her boss, and one day she goes off to his house, looking hawt, to deliver important papers and try to seduce him. Part 2 of this plan goes rather well, but only after she gets scared out of her wits by discovering his special power: he’s a shapeshifter. (more)

Slave to Sensation by Nalini Singh (Psy-Changeling Series, Book 1)

Slave to Sensation was one of the first paranormal romances I ever read—could I have asked for a better introduction to the genre? This book has a permanent spot in my keeper shelf and remains my favourite in the Psy-Changeling Series.

Slave to Sensation was the first book I ever bought based purely on online buzz after author Nalini Singh ran a viral marketing campaign through Dear Author. I’ve never regretted my decision, and this series, currently up to its sixth book, is still an auto-buy for me.

Slave to Sensation begins with a chilling prologue that introduces Silence—a process of conditioning Psy children into suppressing all emotion in order to stamp out the growing violence and insanity in the Psy population. Gifted with advanced mental capabilities, the Psy consider themselves perfect in their Silence.

Sascha Duncan has always suspected she’s flawed. Lately, she’s been leaking emotion, and only her ability to mimic Silence protects her from being forced into rehabilitation. When Sascha meets Lucas Hunter, alpha of the DarkRiver changeling pack, to negotiate a historic business deal, his emotional changeling nature batters at her mental shields. (more)