Month: February 2018 (Page 2 of 4)

BOOK REVIEW: Immortal Reign (Falling Kingdoms #6) by Morgan Rhodes

February 23, 2018 / Chelsea / 10 Comments

Immortal Reign (Falling Kingdoms #6)
by Morgan Rhodes
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
As two lethal elemental gods set out to destroy Mytica, sworn enemies must become allies in the final fight to save the kingdoms.

Jonas continues to willfully defy his destiny, but the consequences of plotting his own course are drastic. As the fight for Mytica rages on, he must decide just how much more he's willing to sacrifice.

Lucia knows there's something special about her daughter and she'll do anything to protect her, even if that means facing Kyan alone.

Amara is called back home to Kraeshia. Grandma Cortas has her own plans for Mytica's future. She promises Amara power, revenge, and dominance if she agrees to be part of her scheme.

Magnus and Cleo's love will be put to the ultimate test. Dark magic is causing widespread destruction throughout the kingdom. Enemies across the sea are advancing. And unrest is stirring throughout the land. Is their love strong enough to withstand the outside forces tearing them apart?

ARC provided by Penguin Teen (Yes, I read this forever ago….it took me forever to get my review on here, SORRY!)

“So the rumors about you are true,” he said solemnly.
She swallowed past the lump that had suddenly formed in her throat. “Most of them, I’m afraid.”
“Good.” He continued to hold her gaze when she wished she could look away. “Then be a demon, my beautiful daughter. Be whatever you need to be to put an end to the Kindred once and for all.”

It goes without saying that I’m a rabid fangirl when it comes to the Falling Kingdoms series. It started out with a ‘meh, I don’t know if I should continue after this first book’, and now it has [not so] slowly eased its way onto my favorite series of all time list. I’m not kidding when I say that I haven’t added a book to that sucker since 2014 or so. Maybe longer! So, you KNOW it’s a big deal when I choose to add onto it.

“Why did you choose Nic?” Magnus asked, hoping to distract Kyan somehow. “Wasn’t there anyone better?”
Kyan laughed. “Nicolo has a soul of fire.”
“Because of his hair? More the color of carrots thrown into a horse’s trough than fire, if you ask me.”

I’ll admit that it wasn’t a love at first sight type deal, either-besides Magnus (Yeah. More on that morsel later), I just didn’t wholly identify with anyone and not enough happened to satiate my thirst for peril and all things action and violence. If you didn’t know, I can be quite the violent sort when it comes to my books. Ahem…moving on. But, that’s all beside the point, because what have I continually said since I started heavily reviewing on GR?

Gaius’s eyebrows drew together. He looked pained. “Magnus loved you. He fought for you. He defied me again and again in order to save you, even if it meant his own destruction. He was worthy of you in a way that I was never worthy of Elena. I see that now. And for that alone, you must survive this, Cleiona Bellos.” Then he scowled at her. “But know this. I would personally kill you in an instant if it meant that my son could live again.”

All. I. Need. Is. SOMETHING. To keep me hooked in a book or series. Whether it be something as simple as a tortured look from the male lead, a beautifully written story that keeps my interest if only because it has descriptions that continually draw me in, or so much heart-breaking action that I couldn’t dare to put it down for a moment. It needn’t be huge, but it must be something. In this case? It was all about that dark, hate-to-love, practically forbidden, enemies to lovers romance, baby.

…
Of a beautiful golden princess who rightfully despised him. Whose blue-green eyes held only hate for so long that he didn’t remember precisely when her gaze had softened.
This princess who didn’t push him away when he kissed her. Instead, she kissed him back with a passion that very nearly matched his own.
Perhaps I’m only fantasizing all of it, he thought.

Sign. Me. UP. I loved my darling Magnus from page one of book one, mmkayyyy? But, unfortunately, there were dual POVs (not a huge fan of this) and I can’t commit to a story that is dull without something to give me hope. And, also unfortunately, it didn’t look like there was going to be any HOPE for my boy…There was just a wee lil smidge of incestual thoughts goin’ on there-and I didn’t see how this was something I could endorse, no matter how much I adored my main man.

He’d also heard of burying a victim in the ground up to their neck, then covering them with tree syrup and allowing a nest of hungry beetles to consume them slowly.
That would be nice.
Or perhaps Magnus would remove Kurtis’s remaining hand. Saw it off slowly with a dull knife. Or a spoon.
Yes, a spoon.

But then…THEN. This beautiful unicorn of a girl (You know who you are, Bones (LOLZ)) said-’Oh no. No no no. You mustn’t give up. There is a glorious ship. And BOY does it sail. And its not at all like it is now.’ So, I persevered-I picked up book two. And, while it certainly wasn’t perfect…far from it…my eyes lit up and my grin went from ear to ear-because there shone a glimmer of hope, right before my moonstruck, rabid fangirly eyes. It wasn’t going to be half bad if this ship sailed.

He needed food. Drink.
Vengeance.
But first and most importantly, he needed to know that Cleo was safe.

Then something else happened…and another…then another! The action became breathtaking because I actually cared for more than just one person. The romances began to fly (and die. Then fly again….rinse and repeat). The stories became very interesting. Everything began weaving together so intricately on each page that I couldn’t stop to take a breath. I had a whole new series to devour with endless possibilities…and I had almost put it down forever. Thank God for the power of friendship (and trust bones from Brittney).

And now, here I am, receiving (and having received) the last two books (FINISHED HARDBACKS!) from the lovely publishers for reviewing, and each time it has made my year. This was just the most wonderful start to 2018 (along with my other favorites so far: Everless, The Cruel Prince, Love, Life and the List…). When I received this book I jumped around, I screamed, I cried…I [attempted] to devour it immediately. I literally bought a book light, people. A BOOK LIGHT-so I could get this sucker done. And I truly wasn’t disappointed. Not by a long shot.

Paelsians burned their dead.
Auranians worshipped the goddess of fire and air, so one would think they would fsuavor the Paelsian burial ritual. But rich Auranians favored coffins chiseled from marble, while those of lower status chose wooden boxes.
“Kurtis had me buried like an Auranian peasant,” Magnus muttered.
Surely, this had to be the former kingsliege’s final insult.

More than once I couldn’t breathe. More than once I had to put the book down, take a breath, release it, and just try to breathe because my heart was furiously pounding out of my chest, my stomach was in knots…and I just couldn’t even stand it. I might be a bit of a loser when it comes to this series, but I have no regrets-NONE. Frankly, it’s all because of one couple. Let’s be real. And let’s just get down to it:

“I think I scared him.”
She nodded. “You can be very scary.”
“Yes. And I can also be scared. And I am, right now.” Magnus took her hands in his, his gaze locking with hers. “I want to help you.”
Tears welled in her eyes. “I know.”
“What do we do, Cleo?” He hated the weakness that had crept into his voice. “How am I supposed to save you from this?”

Magnus. Magnus and Cleo. I can’t. I truly can’t even. And I suppose I shouldn’t be able to say anything after that ambiguous end to the previous book (OMG I LOVED IT OMG SO EPIC-but perhaps I’m alone in this because, as I’ve stated many a time, I am a masochistic book nerd), but….Morgan Rhodes has released quotes about what we know can’t be the end….so I guess I’m clear??

“Ashur,” Magnus said with an impatient sigh. I’m going to the palace now. Are you going to join me, or do you wish to call out names while sacrificing random forest creatures?”
“You don’t believe,” Ashur said.
“What I believe is irrelevant. What I need is to get to Cleo.”

But I’ll be good. So…yeah…ummm….THE REUNION. IS. EVERYTHING. HA! I LIED. Hypothetically, it might have been in a certain jelly situation. Hypothetically it may have taken FOREVER for the two to be in the same damn space and connect and….hypothetically…it might have made my heart stop for a moment (No. For real. Ask my friend, Jen-I literally text her and was like yeah…I need to put this down because the feels have taken over my ability to BREATHE). Ha. But I may be alone here-I think that’s just the possessed fangirl talking again. WHAT. It’s been a YEAR. I’ve waited a YEAR. I can be as happy as I please, thank you very much.

He knew she was angry with him for scaring Bruno, for acting disrespectful and ungrateful toward Ashur. For wanting to crush anything that stood in the way of finding the answers he needed to save the girl standing before him.
To hell with the rest of the world; Cleo was all he cared about.

HE didn’t let me down. HE was a perfect husband. HE would do anything for the girl he loves. HE….he would come back from the grave for her-and he shows it tirelessly here. His love is endless and boundless and I adore him. Their love is insurmountable and they’d burn the world down for each other-I truly love this couple and I am going to miss them so so dearly. But isn’t that the best? When a series is large and you STILL didn’t want it to end? That’s only happened here, for me. So, for that, Morgan Rhodes will always be a Rockstar in my eyes. AND-honorable mention: I didn’t care about any of the other POVs before book 5, but in book 5 and this one, they all won me over and I didn’t feel the need for that incessant skimming I did throughout the others-that’s just…it’s amazing.

Now-even though this book is absolute perfection to me, I must mention some things that I [I guesss] weren’t perfect. Okay. I guess there were some things that happened that came off as repetitive. IE they happened a couple too many times? And, even though I loved said thing happening a few times, others might roll their eyes. And I DO think the, ahem, ‘escaping?’View Spoiler ». That’s not really a spoiler, but I don’t want to hinder anyone’s thoughts on the matter before they go in (I HATE WHEN THAT HAPPENS TO ME AND I ALWAYS COMPLAIN AFTER). I loved that it happened, and I know it couldn’t have happened any other way, but I do wish it would have View Spoiler »been more dramatic « Hide Spoiler. Though…I suppose if I read them back to back, it wouldn’t have mattered because hey, boy went through some Hell, am I right? Perhaps here I was too harsh. And finally, I think I wanted an even BIGGER bang of an end-but, honestly, I still adored it.

I think I’m still being a pissy pink elephant, though, because I wanted one tiny (it wasn’t tiny) thing to happen that didn’t. BUT it would have ruined the possible HEA so I need to shh.

OKAY. Now I’m just rambling. So I’ll end it here. Mags, Cleo, Jonas (my favs the whole time)…Amara, Lucia, Felix, etc. I really did like the end of it all. I really hate long series because, as they progress, they truly do lose something-But that never happened here. In fact, I only loved each installment more and more-so that is something truly special in my eyes. And yes, this is more of a fangirl review and not all poetic and pretty with the words like I know I can do…but sometimes you gotta let that freak flag fly-and if you can’t do it for one of your favorite characters and favorite series of all time…when CAN you do it? If you have read every book and are just waiting on this installment….have fun. I know you will love it, or at least really like it. Not everyone can love all the POVs. If you haven’t read this series? Shame on you. Shame shame shame. If you are considering it? I’ll forgive you. Just this once….but you MUST read it-or I’ll rescind my forgiveness and take all my kindness away lol. Go forth…and enjoy. <3

***************

Oh guys. This book. You know when it’s the final book and nothing can compare to your wild expectations? Well…this is me at work:

But inside….Inside THIS is me and WAS me the whole entirety of this beautiful novel:

Because frankly, Magnus has become close to a number one bbf in the span of less than a year. Because this book made it so I literally felt like I couldn’t breathe, like the butterflies MIGHT just take over my stomach and come out through my mouth. Because this book, aside from maybe ONE teensy thing I wanted to happen (because, again, I am a masochistic butthole), was everything I could possibly have hoped for. Because this book…it was perfection.

But like with all wonderful series…I’m sad to see it end. But I couldn’t be prouder of this author and how she managed to end with integrity and with a series that never lost steam, but actually GAINED more fans as it progressed. That is SO rare and I am OBSESSED with it. In fact, this might be a top 3 or 4 on my list-and nothing has broken onto that list since, like 2013. So. Yeah.

RTC.

*****************

Whooooo loves Penguin Teen? Chellllseeaaaa loves Penguin Teen. Is it truuuuuuue??? MMHHMMMMMMM.

I do I do I DO-ooooooooo

Did I mention I have ALL THE LUCK?! ALL OF IT.

***Sorry for 5 reposts. I coudn’t get my sharing photo site to work!!!!!!!!!!

View all my reviews

BOOK REVIEW – More Than We Can Tell by Brigid Kemmerer

February 20, 2018 / Jen / 10 Comments

More Than We Can Tell by Brigid Kemmerer
Purchase on: Amazon
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
With loving adoptive parents by his side, Rev Fletcher has managed to keep the demons of his past at bay. . . until he gets a letter from his abusive father and the trauma of his childhood comes hurtling back.

Emma Blue's parents are constantly fighting, and her only escape is the computer game she built from scratch. But when a cruel online troll's harassment escalates, she not only loses confidence but starts to fear for her safety.

When Rev and Emma meet, they're both longing to lift the burden of their secrets. They connect instantly and deeply, promising to help each other no matter what. But soon Rev and Emma's secrets threaten to crush them, and they'll need more than a promise to find their way out.

From the author of Letters to the Lost comes a new compulsively readable story for fans of Nicola Yoon.

Review:

More Than We Can Tell was an emotional book that was the perfect mixture of heart-wrenching and oh so sweet. So I definitely wasn’t surprised that I had tears in my eyes, when I was only a few chapters into this story. It was a testament to how easily these characters captured my heart. And while this can be read as a standalone, I recommend picking up Letters to the Lost too. That story first introduced us to Rev, and it was one of my favorite books from last year.

I think of the girl beside the church.
You’re afraid.
I’ve spent years learning how not to be afraid. And now, with a few short sentences, my father has sliced through all my defenses. – Rev

Confession time – I had already fallen for Rev Fletcher in Letters to the Lost. He was Declan’s best friend, and we saw what an amazing man he was. He was always there for Declan, had so much compassion in his heart, and was such a good guy. Even though it was obvious that he suffered from his own personal demons. So to start off the book with his world exploding? Oh. My heart ached so badly for him. And it was all because he received a letter from his biological father. The man who raised him till he was eight, and who physically and mentally tortured Rev. All in the name of God. And from just that one letter, Rev started to spiral down into a dark abyss.

I keep worrying about my father, wondering when something is going to snap inside me. Wondering when I’m going to turn vicious and cruel, just like he did. – Rev

While Rev found himself sinking into a horrific darkness, he met someone who was suffering too. Emma Blue. Within that first interaction, they shared a tiny piece of what they were feeling. I loved that with just a few words, they felt that connection. They made each other not feel so alone in the world. And from there, each time they ran into one another or met up, they let each other in just a little bit more. It was such a beautiful progression to watch their friendship blossom. They listened, they offered advice, they confessed and they found solace in each other. But within it all, was butterflies and the possibility of a first love.

I block him.
Then I slam my laptop shut. I flip over in bed and scream into my pillow.
I scream so loud and so long that I forget what silence is like.
I scream until I run out of breath. – Emma

I was so thankful that Emma met Rev. Because it felt as though she had no one at times. She struggled in her relationships with her parents. They weren’t supportive of her, weren’t around, and they treated her like an inconvenience. On top of that, she seemed to be drifting away from her best friend. As if that wasn’t enough, she suffered from horrific online bullying. And while I loved how outspoken and tough Emma could be at times, I did struggle with her. She had a habit of pushing others away or saying hurtful things. And the few times she did that to Rev, well it hurt me too. Even though I saw where she learned that behavior from, and I got why she did it, I still didn’t like it at all. But thankfully Emma made up for it again and again.

“Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For seeing me.”
Then he turns, jogs across the street, and disappears into the darkness beyond.

There were so many beautiful messages in this book, that I believe are extremely important. They ranged from bullying, to trusting the wrong people, to discovering solace in the ones you love and to also finding acceptance within yourself. And on top of the messages, there were other people that added so much heart to this story. Such as Declan, Rev’s adoptive parents and Matthew! Ahhh I can’t say anymore, but I’d love to read Matthew’s own book someday *fingers crossed*! So I found myself closing the book extremely happy with how it all ended. It’s a fabulous read, and I definitely recommend it!!

PS If you want to read my 5 Star Review of Letters to the Lost, the book the first introduces us to Rev, you can read it here.

*ARC kindly provided by Bloomsbury USA Children’s Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT & PRE-ORDER LAUNCH – Moonlight Seduction by Jennifer L. Armentrout

February 19, 2018 / Jen / 8 Comments

Jennifer L. Armentrout will be emailing an exclusive de Vincent bonus story for pre-ordering Moonlight Seduction! Confession time…..I am still in love with the FIRE IN YOU Bonus Story I received for per-ordereing the book back in 2016. I kid you not lol! So I’m beyond excited about this one too! So check out what the book is about below, read the first chapter and links are included to add this book to your tbr and pre-order. Enjoy! ♥

About Moonlight Seduction:

Title: Moonlight Seduction by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Release date: June 26^th, 2018

The de Vincent brothers are back—and so is the intrigue that surrounds them—in New York Times bestselling author Jennifer L. Armentrout’s sizzling new novel…

Nicolette Bresson never thought she’d return to the de Vincents’ bayou compound. It’s where her parents work, where Nikki grew up… and where she got her heart broken by Gabriel de Vincent himself. Yet here she is, filling in for her sick mother. Avoiding Gabe should be easy, especially when so much of Nikki’s time is spent trying not to be stabbed in the back by the malicious hangers-on who frequent the mansion. But escaping memories of Gabe, much less his smoking-hot presence, is harder than expected—especially since he seems determined to be in Nikki’s space as much as possible.

Gabriel spent years beating himself up over his last encounter with Nikki. He’d wanted her then, but for reasons that were bad for both of them. Things have now changed. Gabe sees more than a girl he’s known forever; he sees a smart, talented, and heartbreakingly beautiful woman… one who’s being stalked from the shadows. Now, Gabe will do anything to keep Nikki safe—and to stop the de Vincent curse from striking again.

A Sneak Peak of Chapter 1!!:

[scroll-box]

Moonlight Seduction by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Chapter 1

Six years later . . .

It took every ounce of self-control for Gabriel de Vincent to stand back and do nothing. Just stand there and watch him being led away, but that’s what he had to do, because that’s what he’d promised and Gabe tried to be a man of his word.

Sometimes he failed at that. Failed at that in ways that haunted him late at night, but he wouldn’t go back on this.

He’d promised them three uninterrupted months. That’s what he was going to give them. His jaw ached from how hard he was clenching it as the Rothchilds walked back into the restaurant. He didn’t take his eyes off them, not until he couldn’t see them anymore. Only then did he look at the slip of paper.

Looking down at the drawing of puppy on a piece of blue construction paper, he felt the worst mix of emotions. Sadness. Pride. Helplessness. Hope. Fury that he’d never tasted before. He had no idea how one person could feel all of that at once, but he did.

A wry smile tugged at his lips. There was definitely talent in the drawing. Real skill. The de Vincent knack for the arts was still kicking around it seemed.

His gaze flickered over what was written in a blockish handwriting. He’d already read in three times, but couldn’t bear to read it a fourth time. Not right now. He didn’t want to fold the paper and created creases in it, so he was careful as he carried it back to where he was parked.

“Gabriel de Vincent.”

Frowning at the vaguely familiar voice, he turned around. A man stepped out from behind a truck. Dark, square sunglasses shielded half the man’s face, but Gabe recognized him.

He sighed. “Ross Haid. To what do I owe the honor of seeing you in Baton Rouge?”

The reporter for the Advocate gave one of what Gabe assumed was a trademark half grin; the kind that probably got him into a places and events he sure as hell didn’t belong in. “Headquarters are here. You know that.”

“Yeah, but you work out of the New Orleans office, Ross.”

He shrugged a shoulder as he neared Gabe. “I had to come up to headquarters. Heard through the grapevine that a de Vincent was in town.”

“Uh-huh.” Not for one second did Gabe believe that. “And you just happen to hear that I was at this restaurant?”

The smile kicked up a notch as he ran a hand over his blond hair. “Nah. Seeing you here was just luck.”

Bullshit. Ross had been sniffing after his family for about two months now, trying to get to one of them when they were out at dinner or at an event, showing up at nearly every damn function one of them was attending. But back home, in New Orleans, Ross had trouble getting near them. Well, he had troubled getting to the one he really wanted to talk to which was Gabe’s older brother.

Didn’t require any leap of logic to figure out what was going on. Somehow Ross had heard that Gabe was here, and that’s why Ross conveniently ended up here. Normally he could tolerate Ross’ incessant questioning. Hell, he sort of liked the guy, appreciated his determination, but not when Ross was here and something he didn’t want a reporter finding out mere feet away.

Lowering his sunglasses, Ross eyed Gabe’s ride. “Nice car. Is it one of the new Porsche 911s?”

Gabe raised his brows.

“Family business must be going well. Then again, the family business is always going strong, isn’t it? The de Vincents are old money. The one percent of the one percent.” Gabe’s family was one of the oldest, linked all the way back to the days the great state of Louisiana was being created. Now they owned the most profitable oil refineries in the Gulf, coveted real estate all around the world, tech firms, and once his older brother married, they’d be in control of the one of the largest shipping industries in the world. So, yeah, the de Vincents were wealthy, but the car and nearly everything Gabe owned, he bought it with the money he worked for. Not the money he was born with.

“Some say that your family has so much money, that the de Vincents are above the law.” Ross straightened his sunglasses. “Seems that way.”

Gabe really didn’t have time for this. “Whatever you want to say, can you stop beating around the damn bush and get to it? I’m planning to head home sometime in the next year.”

The reporter’s smile faded. “Since you’re here and I’m here, and it’s damn hard to talk to you all any other time. I want to chat about your father’s death.”

“I’m sure you do.”

“I don’t believe it was a suicide,” Ross continued. “And I find it also convenient that Chief Cobbs, who openly and publicly wanted your father’s death investigated as a homicide ended up dead in a freak car accident.”

“Is that right?”

Frustration hummed off Ross about as loud as the damn locusts. “Is that all you got to say to me about this?”

“Pretty much.” Gabe grinned then. “That and you have an overactive imagination, but I’m sure you’ve heard that before.”

“I don’t think my imagination is nearly vast enough to compete with all the things the de Vincents have had their hands in.”

Probably not.

“Okay, I won’t ask you about your father or the chief.” Ross shifted his weight as Gabe opened his driver’s door. “Also heard some interesting rumors about some of the staff at the de Vincent compound.”

“I’m started to feel like you might be stalking us.” Gabe placed the drawing facedown on the passenger’s seat. “If you want to talk about staffing, then you need to have a chat with Dev.”

“Devlin won’t make time to talk to me.” “That doesn’t sound like my problem.” “It seems like it is now.” Gabe laughed, but the sound was without humor as he reached inside, grabbing his sunglasses off the visor. “Trust me, Ross, this isn’t my problem.”

“You may not think so now, but that’ll change.” A muscle twitched along the man’s jaw. “I plan to blow the roof of every single damn secret the de Vincents have been keeping for years. I’m going to do a story that not even your family can pay to keep quiet.”

Shaking his head, Gabe slipped his sunglasses on. “I like you, Ross. You know I’ve never had a problem with you. So, I just want to get that out of the way. But you have got to come up with some better material, because that was cliché as shit.” He rested his hand on the frame of the car door. “You’ve got to know you’re not the first reporter to come around thinking they’re somehow going to dig some skeletons out of our closets and expose us for whatever the hell you think we are. You’re not going to be the last to fail.”

“I don’t fail,” Ross said. “Not ever.” “Everyone fails.” Gabe climbed in behind the wheel. “Except the de Vincents?” “You said it, not me.” Gabe looked up at the reporter. “Some unasked for advice? I’d find another story to investigate.” “Is there where you’re going to tell me to be careful?” He sounded oddly gleeful by the prospect. “Warn me off? Because people who mess with the de Vincents end up missing or worse?”

Gabe smirked as he hit the ignition key. “Doesn’t sound like I need to tell you that. Seems like you already know what happens.”

Nikki stood in the center of the quiet and sterile kitchen of the de Vincent mansion, telling herself that she was not the same little idiot that almost drowned herself out in the pool six years ago.

She sure as hell wasn’t the same idiot who had spent years making an utter fool out of herself, chasing after a grown man. An act, which resulted in one of the worst ideas she’d ever had in the history of bad ideas.

And Nikki had a remarkable history of making not the brightest of all decisions. Her dad said she had a bit of wild streak in her, taking after Pappy, but Nikki liked to blame the de Vincents for the recklessness. They had this really bizarre talent of making everyone around them stick one toe into Recklessville.

Her mother claimed that most of Nikki’s bad decisions came from having a good heart.

Nikki had the habit of picking up strays—stray cats, dogs, a lizard here and there, even a snake, and humans, too. She was a bleeding heart, hating to see anyone she cared about in pain and she was oftentimes a bit overly affected by the troubles of strangers.

It was why she avoided the TV around the holidays, because they always played those heart-wrenching videos of freezing animals or children left to starve in war-torn countries. She hated everything about New Year’s Eve because of that and spent the week between Christmas and the first of January moping around.

There was a lot of Nikki that was the same as she was the last time she walked through this house. She still got emotionally invested in animals that didn’t belong to her—that was why she volunteered at the local animal shelter. She still couldn’t turn away from someone who needed help, and she still found herself in weird situations but reckless? Wild?

Not anymore.

Not since the last time she’d been in the house, right before she left for college. That had been four years ago and now she was back, and nothing and everything had changed.

“You okay, hon?” her father asked.

Turning to find her father standing just inside the large kitchen, she pulled herself out of her thoughts and smiled widely for him. Goodness, her dad was starting to look his age, and that scared her—truly terrified her. Her parents had her late in life, but she was only twenty-two, and she wanted another fifty years or so with them.

Nikki knew that wasn’t going to happen. Especially now. She forced those thoughts from her head. “Yes. I’m just . . . it’s weird being in here after being gone so long. The kitchen is different.” “It was remodeled a few years back,” he replied. The mansion was constantly being remodeled it seemed. After all, how many times had this place caught fire since it was built? Nikki had lost count. Her father drew in a deep breath, and the lines around his mouth became more pronounced. He looked so tired. “I don’t know if I’ve said this to you or not, but thank you.”

She waved him off. “You don’t need to thank me, Dad.”

“Yeah, I do.” He walked over to where she stood. “You went away to college to do something better than this—better than cooking dinners and running a household. To become something better.”

Offended on his behalf, she crossed her arms and met his weary gaze. “There’s nothing wrong with cooking dinners and running a household. It’s good, honest work. Wok that put me through college. Right, Dad?”

“We take great pride in our job. Don’t get me wrong, but what your mother and I did all these years was so you could do something else.” He sighed. “So, it means a lot that you would come home to help us out, Nicolette.”

Only her dad and mom called her by her full name. Everyone else called her Nikki. Everyone except a certain de Vincent who shall remained nameless. He and only he called her Nic.

Her parents had worked for the de Vincents, one of the wealthiest families in the States and possibly the world, since long before she was born. It was weird growing up in this house, being privy to a lot of strange stuff—things the public has no idea about and would probably pay a large sum of money to learn. And personally? It was like she had a foot in two different worlds, one absurdly wealthy and the other middle working class.

Her father was basically a butler, except she always had a small suspicion that her father had . . . taken care of things for the de Vincents that no normal butler did. Her mother ran the day-to-day functions of the house and prepared the dinners. Both her parents loved working for the family and she knew both had planned to continue to the day they died, but her mom . . . .

Nikki’s chest squeezed painfully. Her mom was not well and it had happened so fast, coming out of nowhere. The dreaded C word.

“Honestly, this is perfect. I got my degree and this will give me time to figure things out.” In other words, figure out what the hell she wanted to really do with her life. Get to work or go for her master’s? She wasn’t sure yet. “And I want to be here while Mom is going through everything.”

“I know.” His smile wobbled a little as he brushed a strand of blondish-brown hair out of her face.

“We could’ve hired someone else to step in while your mother—”

“No, you couldn’t have.” She laughed at the mere thought of that. “I know how weird the de Vincents are. I know how protective you two are of them. I know how to keep my mouth shut and not see what I’m not supposed to. And you two don’t have to worry about someone new not keeping their mouth shut and not seeing what they’re not supposed to.”

Her dad arched a brow. “A lot of things have changed, honey.”

She snorted as she took in the white marble countertops with gray veining. Mom had filled her in on some of those changes during one of her chemo treatments. After all, what else did they have to talk about while she was being pumped full of poison that would hopefully kill only the cancer cells building in her lung?

Things in the de Vincent mansion that had changed.

For starters, the patriarch of the family, one Lawrence de Vincent, had hung himself a few months back. An act that had shocked her because she figured that man would’ve outlived a nuclear bomb. And Lucian de Vincent apparently had a live-in girlfriend and they were about to move into their own place. That was even more insane, the idea of Lucian settling down.

The Lucian she remembered put the play in player. He’d been an incorrigible flirt, leaving a string of broken hearts across the state of Louisiana and beyond.

She hadn’t met his girlfriend yet since they were away on some kind of trip; the rich rarely seemed to have much of a schedule. She just hoped whoever his girlfriend was, she was nice and nothing like Devlin’s fiancé.

Nikki might not have been around the de Vincents in four years, but she remembered Sabrina Harrington and her brother Parker.

Sabrina had just begun seeing Devlin the year before Nikki had left for college and that had been a year’s worth of snide comments and rather impressive disdainful looks. Nikki could deal with Sabrina though. If she was the same woman as she was before, she could be as mean as a cornered rattlesnake, but Nikki normally didn’t even register on her scale of people to pay attention to.

Parker though?

Nikki suppressed a shudder, not wanting to worry her father who was watching her like a hawk.

Parker had often stared at her the way she’d wanted Gabe to look at her, especially when she had grown brave enough to move from a one-piece bathing suit to a two-piece.

And Parker . . . he had done more than look.

She drew in a deep breath. She wasn’t going to think about Parker. He wasn’t worth a single thought.

What happened to Lawrence, and Lucian’s new romance weren’t the only things her mom had told her. She filled Nikki in on the whole sister reappearing and then disappearing again thing. Something that she knew the general public had no idea had even happened. She didn’t know the details around it, but Nikki knew that in typical de Vincent fashion, it had to the most drama-llama-est thing possible.

And she also knew better than to ask questions about it. Her father stepped back. “The boys are all out.” Thank God and baby Jesus. “Devlin should be back this evening for dinner. He likes dinner to be ready at six. I believe Ms. Harrington will be joining him.” Well, thanking God and baby Jesus lasted all of five seconds. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes and make a gagging sound. “Okay.” “Gabriel is still in Baton Rouge, or at least, that’s the last I heard,” her father continued, ticking off the brothers’ schedules while she wondered what Gabe was doing in Baton Rouge. Not that she cared. She totally didn’t care whatsoever, but she wondered if it had anything to do with his woodworking business.

The man was talented with his hands. Really talented. Her cheeks flushed as an unwanted memory of how his calloused palms felt pierced her straight through the chest. Nope. Not going there. Absolutely not. There were examples of Gabe’s skill all around the house—the furniture, chair rails, and trim, even in the kitchen. All of the woodwork was designed and created by Gabe. As a little girl, she’d been fascinated with the idea of picking up a piece of wood and turning it into something that was truly a work of art. That fascination had turned into quite the hobby for Nikki.

It had started one long, fall afternoon when she was ten and she’d found Gabe outside, whittling away on a piece of wood. Out of boredom, she’d asked him to show her how he did it. Instead of shooing her off, Gabe had given her small scrapes of wood and showed her how to use a chisel.

She’d gotten pretty good at it, but she hadn’t picked up a chisel in over four years. Nikki refocused on what her dad was telling her. “We’re a little understaffed right now,” her dad continued. “So there’s a lot of dusting in your near future. Devlin is very much like his father.”

Great.

That was not a compliment in her book. “Is it the ghosts?” She half joked. “Scaring off the staff?” Her father shot her a look, but she knew damn well that her parents believed this

house was haunted. Hell, they wouldn’t even come here at night unless it was a dire emergency. None of the staff would and everyone in town knew the legends about the land the de Vincent mansion sat on. And who hadn’t heard about the de Vincent curse more than a time or two?

Being in this house as much as she had been in the past, she had seen some weird things and heard some stuff that couldn’t be explained. Plus she grew up within minutes of New Orleans. She was a believer, but unlike her friend Rosie, whom she met in college, she wasn’t obsessed with all things paranormal. Nikki operated on the whole if- you-don’t-acknowledge-ghosts-they-can’t-bother-you theory and so far it had worked so far wonderfully.

Then again, Nikki had only come here at night once in her life, and that had not turned out well at all. So maybe ignoring ghosts didn’t work, because she liked to think

she was possessed by one of ghosts that supposedly wandered the halls, and that was what provoked her to do what she’d done that night.

Nikki was well aware of how the house was run because she’d spent most of her summer vacations in the house watching her mom, so she got to work pretty quickly once her father left her.

First thing first was tracking down what staff they did have at the house. Understaffed her butt! The only staff they had left was her dad; the landscaper who was constantly mowing grass it seemed or re-mulching; the de Vincent driver; and Mrs. Kneely, an older woman who’d done the laundry services since Nikki was a little girl.

Beverly Kneely actually owed her own laundry business and only came to the house three times a week to take care of the linens and clothing.

According to Bev, whom she found in the large mudroom at the back of the house, packing up clothing that needed to be dry-cleaned, over the last couple of months, nearly everyone had quit.

“So, let me get this straight.” Nikki smoothed back a few strands that had escaped the knot she’d pulled her hair up in. “The waiters are gone, as are the maids?”

Bev’s buxom chest heaved as she nodded. “It’s just been your parents for the last three months. I think all that work was wearing poor Livie down.”

Anger flashed through Nikki. Hadn’t the de Vincents noticed how thin and tired her mom had been getting? How quickly she got out of breath? “Why didn’t the de Vincents hire someone to help?”

“Your father tried, but no one around here wants to come close to this place, not after what happened.”

She frowned. “You’re talking about Lawrence? What he did?”

Bev tied up the bags. “Not like that wasn’t bad enough, but that wasn’t the straw the broke the camel’s back around here.”

Nikki had no idea what she was talking about. “I’m sorry. I don’t think I’ve been updated on all the crazy. What else happened?”

Looking around the room, Bev arched her brows as she headed toward the side door. “Walls got ears. You know that. You want to know what’s been going on here, you ask your father or one of the boys.”

Her lips pursed. She was so not asking the boys.

Bev stopped at the door and looked back. “I don’t think Devlin is going to be happy when he sees what you’re wearing.”

“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” It was jeans and a black tee shirt. No way was she going to dress like her mom or her dad. Her willingness to help her parents did not extend to wearing uniforms.

She looked down at herself and saw the hole just below the knee. Nikki sighed. Devlin was probably going to have a problem with the hole, but what Nikki wanted to

know was what the hell had happened in this house to drive almost all the staff away? It had to be something. Not just because the de Vincents paid extraordinarily well, but also because her father hadn’t told her. And that meant it was something really bad.

Moonlight Seduction is out June 26^th, 2018!

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About Jennifer L. Armentrout:

# 1 New York Times and # 1 International Bestselling author Jennifer lives in Martinsburg, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time reading, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell Loki. In early 2015, Jennifer was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a group of rare genetic disorders that involve a breakdown and death of cells in the retina, eventually resulting in loss of vision, among other complications. Due to this diagnosis, educating people on the varying degrees of blindness has become of passion of hers, right alongside writing, which she plans to do as long as she can.

Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance.

She is published with Spencer Hill Press, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen. Her Wicked Series has been optioned by PassionFlix. Jennifer has won numerous awards, including the 2013 Reviewers Choice Award for Wait for You, the 2015 Editor’s Pick for Fall With Me, and the 2014/2015 Moerser-Jugendbuch- Jury award for Obsidian. Her young adult romantic suspense novel DON’T LOOK BACK was a 2014 nominated Best in Young Adult Fiction by YALSA. Her adult romantic suspense novel TILL DEATH was a Amazon Editor’s Pick and iBook Book of the Month. Her young adult contemporary THE PROBLEM WITH FOREVER is a 2017 RITA Award Winner in Young Adult Fiction. She also writes Adult and New Adult contemporary and paranormal romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.

She is the owner of ApollyCon and The Origin Event, the successful annual events that features over a hundred bestselling authors in Young Adult, New Adult, and Adult Fiction, panels, parties, and more. She is also the creator and sole financier of the annual Write Your Way To RT Book Convention, a contest that gives aspiring authors a chance to win a fully paid trip to RT Book Reviews.