Name the last three books you have read...

The Avalon Chronicles




Layla Cassidy has always wanted a normal life, and the chance to put her father’s brutal legacy behind her. And in her final year of university she’s finally found it. Or so she thinks.

But when Layla accidentally activates an ancient scroll, she is bestowed with an incredible, inhuman power. She plunges into a dangerous new world, full of mythical creatures and menace—all while a group of fanatics will stop at nothing to turn her abilities to their cause.

To protect those she loves most, Layla must take control of her new powers…before they destroy her. All is not yet lost—there is a light shining, but Layla must survive long enough to see it.





Avalon stands revealed, but the war is far from over. For Layla Cassidy, it has only just begun.

Thrust into a new world full of magic and monsters, Layla has finally come to terms with her supernatural powers—and left her old life behind. But her enemies are relentless.

Sixteen months after her life changed forever, Layla and her team are besieged during a rescue attempt gone awry and must fight their way through to freedom. It turns out that Avalon has only grown since their last encounter, adding fresh villains to its horde. Meanwhile, revelations abound as Layla confronts twists and betrayals in her own life, with each new detail adding to the shadow that looms over her.

As Layla fights against the forces of evil, her powers begin to increase—and she discovers more about the darkness that lies in her past. As this same darkness threatens her future, will she be ready to fight for everything she holds dear?




There’s thunder on the horizon, and the lightning of war is about to strike.

After years of struggle, Layla Cassidy has finally mastered the dark powers that threatened to control her and turned them to good. She’s ready to fight, but the next battle will be her greatest test yet.

The forces of Avalon are growing ever stronger, reinforcing their dominance with almighty displays of brutality. When Abaddon comes close to crushing Layla and her friends, it’s clear that the thunder of war is about to give way to lightning—and that they have no chance of surviving it alone.

The final battle against Abaddon is drawing closer. Now Layla and her friends must fight for themselves—and the future of the world. To win, they will need every power and ally they can muster. But even with all their strength, will it be enough to stand against the impending doom?


Author Steve McHugh continues the saga he started in his Hellequin series by sidelining main protagonist Nate Garrett and introducing a new protagonist in the form of Layla Cassidy bringing in a new take on the war against the machinations of King Arthur & his evil global domination network of Avalon. Good action fantasy read.

 

A Missing Ferryman. An Undead Dilemma. An Immortal Detective.

An emissary from the Dark Council has just materialized in the office of the Montague & Strong Detective Agency, and makes Simon Strong an offer he can’t refuse. Charon is missing. The legendary ferryman responsible for transporting sorcerer souls across the river Styx hasn’t been seen in days. And with each passing hour, those unable to cross the river are left to walk among the living, tilting the world further out of balance.

Meet Simon Strong, an immortal, who is also the best private detective in New York City. Together with his surly partner-Tristan Montague, a mage of indeterminate age, they must find the Ferryman and get him back to work before another Supernatural War ravages the earth, destroys humanity, and Simon’s local coffee shop.

Time is running out. His landlord wants the rent and Karma with a capital K is paying him a visit, and she can be a real…

Join the Montague & Strong Detective Agency and help them locate Charon, so he can restore balance to the universe, put the dead sorcerers to rest, and maybe solve the age old conundrum-coffee or tea?



She will teach them the meaning of fear—it will be the last thing they learn.
Michiko Nakatomi, an ancient vampire and leader of the Dark Council, is missing. After giving up control of the blood blades—weapons designed to destroy supernaturals—the Dark Council challenged Michiko’s leadership…and her right to exist.

Rising tensions within the alliance of vampires, mages, and weres, are threatening to tear the Dark Council apart. Some within the Council feel it’s time for supernaturals to step out of the shadows and take what’s rightfully theirs, by invoking the Blood Protocol—an ancient ritual created to eliminate mankind.

Michiko disagrees…violently.

Michiko must now face overwhelming odds, bitter betrayals, and unrelenting assassins, to prevent the Dark Council from plunging the world into another Supernatural War—one that could destroy them all.




When it’s all at risk and you’ve lost hope…don’t call them.
You’ve been warned.
Meet Robert Bangers & Steven Mash, Paranormal Investigators of the Arcane.
When danger terrorizes the city, Bangers & Mash take it upon themselves to investigate, despite everyone advising against it.
They won’t let common sense and the threat of a horrific creature capable of ripping them to shreds stop them.
There’s no case they can’t make worse, but this time they may have bitten off more than they can chew.
Join Bangers & Mash—the newest paranormal investigators to wreak havoc on the city as they take their cases from bad to disastrous!

Three books from a shared universe from author Orlando A Sanchez. The first book is book one of a fourteen book series in the Montague & Strong series which serves as the centerpiece for his shared series. The second book is the collected edition of a story originally written as three separate novellas centering on vampire Michiko Nakatomi, a supporting character from the Montague & Strong series & love interest for one of the series protagonist, Simon Strong. Third book is more of a lighter take (if the name isn't a give away) on the more darker activities of this shared universe featuring to novice paranormal investigators discovering there is far more to the supernatural profession that they have chosen than what they originally believe. All decent reads. Would probably read follow ups to the Bangers & Mash story however as it features a character called the Grey Warden, another supporting character from the main Montague & Strong series who also appears in Rule of the Council books. His background & personality is far more interesting than the Montague & Strong characters (at least from what I've read in their first book compared to the two appearance of Grey Warden in the other two books) as he is set up to be mentor/protector for the two novice investigators.

 

The Shades of Magic Trilogy





Kell is one of the last Antari—magicians with a rare, coveted ability to travel between parallel Londons; Red, Grey, White, and, once upon a time, Black.

Kell was raised in Arnes—Red London—and officially serves the Maresh Empire as an ambassador, traveling between the frequent bloody regime changes in White London and the court of George III in the dullest of Londons, the one without any magic left to see.

Unofficially, Kell is a smuggler, servicing people willing to pay for even the smallest glimpses of a world they'll never see. It's a defiant hobby with dangerous consequences, which Kell is now seeing firsthand.

After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She first robs him, then saves him from a deadly enemy, and finally forces Kell to spirit her to another world for a proper adventure.

Now perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, they'll first need to stay alive.





Four months have passed since the shadow stone fell into Kell's possession. Four months since his path crossed with Delilah Bard. Four months since Rhy was wounded and the Dane twins fell, and the stone was cast with Holland's dying body through the rift, and into Black London.

In many ways, things have almost returned to normal, though Rhy is more sober, and Kell is now plagued by his guilt. Restless, and having given up smuggling, Kell is visited by dreams of ominous magical events, waking only to think of Lila, who disappeared from the docks like she always meant to do. As Red London finalizes preparations for the Element Games-an extravagant international competition of magic, meant to entertain and keep healthy the ties between neighboring countries-a certain pirate ship draws closer, carrying old friends back into port.

But while Red London is caught up in the pageantry and thrills of the Games, another London is coming back to life, and those who were thought to be forever gone have returned. After all, a shadow that was gone in the night reappears in the morning, and so it seems Black London has risen again-and so to keep magic's balance, another London must fall...






As darkness sweeps the Maresh Empire, the once precarious balance of power among the four Londons has reached its breaking point.

In the wake of tragedy, Kell—once assumed to be the last surviving Antari—begins to waver under the pressure of competing loyalties. Lila Bard, once a commonplace—but never common—thief, has survived and flourished through a series of magical trials. But now she must learn to control the magic, before it bleeds her dry.

An ancient enemy returns to claim a city while a fallen hero tries to save a kingdom in decay. Meanwhile, the disgraced Captain Alucard Emery of the Night Spire collects his crew, attempting a race against time to acquire the impossible.


Overall solid & entertaining fantasy adventure series with some horror elements thrown in (primarily in the third book). There is also a prequel graphic novel, The Steel Prince, that is centered around Prince Maxim Maresh, the King of Red London in the Shades of Magic Trilogy, years before he became the king and adoptive father to Kell.

 

I'm recovering from surgery so all I have really done the past week is read:

 

It has been great. I had surgery last Tuesday and I've finished five books since then. Maybe six. I kinda lost count, but I have definitely rediscovered my love for reading!

 

When Celine Moro took a job as a Blackcoat, an elite agency tasked with investigating crimes throughout Union space, she thought she had finally put her past to rest.

Now, betrayed by her allies, her world is falling apart. Running from the corrupt politicians that she had sworn to bring to justice, Celine is dusting off the skills of her old trade in order to bring truth to light.

The only thing bringing her comfort is knowing how much worse her friends are eventually going to feel about their betrayal.





Daniel Carter was a London cop who just wanted to do the right thing. But during a raid on an organ-selling chop shop, he is almost torn to pieces by monsters. And no one believes him. Hurt and crippled, his career over and his life in ruins, Daniel is suddenly presented with a chance at redemption. And revenge. It seems that more than two centuries ago, the monsters of the world disappeared—into the underworld of crime. Guild-like Clans now have control over all the dark and illegal trades, from the awful surgeries of the Frankenstein Clan, to the shadowy and seductive Vampire Clan, to the dreaded purveyors of drugs and death, the Clan of Mummies. And there’s always the Werewolf Clan, to keep order.

Only one force stands opposed to the monster Clans: the super strong, extremely sexy, quick-witted Hydes! Now Daniel is just one sip of Dr. Jekyll’s Elixir away from joining their company. At Jekyll & Hyde Inc.




You may know me as a dangerously handsome, effortlessly stylish half-demon Luther Cross. That part remains true, but everything else has changed.

There's a war brewing between Heaven and Hell. My only concern is staying off angel radar, but with a power vacuum in Chicago's supernatural underworld, I'm looking at a full-blown demonic turf war--one that will most certainly bring the angels down from their clouds.

That would be inconvenient for me, to say the least. If I'm going cover my own ass--meaning put a stop to this--I'll need some help. Unfortunately, my ally of choice is a centuries-old demon who isn't doing jack for me unless I first do something for her.

And that, well. That's going to piss off a lot of powerful people, including some I once called friends.

Good reads. The first two books are possible Book Ones for ongoing series if reader demand dictates it and the third book is number three of a six book series.

 

I started with Into the Wild and can't stop reading Jon Krakauer books. I've never been one to enjoy non-fiction books, but he is the exception. His books are so enjoyable to read. I'm currently reading "Under the Banner of Heaven" and finding it difficult to read it, though. Reading about older men marrying girls who are 13 or 14 is extremely difficult to read. It's taking me a bit longer to get through that book.

 

Nice hun!! I love your taste in books!

 

How did the into the wild book compare to the movie? I cried like a baby at the end of the movie lol. It was such a beautiful story yet just so tragic and the movie was put together so well. I had high hopes of being able to visit the site until I found out the van had been removed (so sad).