THE WINGS OF WAR SERIES by Karen Ann Hopkins - Excerpt and Giveaway

Have you read The Wings of War series? Now is the time!

EMBERS, book 1, is available now for only $.99.

Discover this world of angels and demons.

"Embers, The Wings of War, is a story about angels and the continuing struggle between good and evil. There is action, adventure, drama, moments of intense horror, and forbidden love." (from my review of Embers, Jan.2015)

"My anxiety levels were high as I read these heart-pounding scenes. . . . a thrilling follow-up." (from my review of Gaia, Sept 2015)

Embers

Karen Ann Hopkins

(Wings of War #1)

Publication date: March 15th 2015

Genres: Dystopian, Paranormal, Young Adult

There are descendants of angels walking among us. Ember is one of them.

Embers is an epic paranormal adventure/romance about a seventeen year old girl who discovers that she’s immune to fire and any other injury when she’s in a horrific car crash that kills her parents. Following a violent episode with her aunt’s boyfriend, Ember flees Ohio to live with an old relative in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. Ember’s exuberance at escaping a bad home life soon turns to trepidation when she learns that she’s a Watcher, a descendant of angels.

While Ember is instructed about her heritage and the powers that go along with it, she strikes up friendships with two teenagers who live in a frightening walled compound in the forest. Inexplicitly drawn to one of the young men in particular, an impossible romance develops. But it’s cut short when Ember discovers that her new friends are fighting on the opposite side of a war that’s been raging between two factions of Watchers for thousands of years. When the compound’s inhabitants threaten the townspeople, Ember takes action, sealing her fate in the ancient battle of good versus evil, and the grayness in between. Ember is up to the challenge, until she realizes that she isn’t only fighting for the lives of the locals and the souls of her new friends. She may be one of the few champions willing to make a stand for all of mankind as the rapture approaches and the end of days begin. 

Embers is the first novel in the dark and gritty YA paranormal romance series, The Wings of War.

The complete series:

Goodreads / Amazon

**Grab Embers – book 1 – for only 99 CENTS for a limited time!**

—

EMBERS EXCERPT:

Sawyer sobered quickly. The obvious hurt on his face made me regret my words.

“You’re right. I’m a monster. I won’t argue on that account. But your kind isn’t squeaky clean either. Just because your ancestors were arch angels doesn’t give you the right to police the world.” His eyes narrowed. “Do you know how many humans have died from wars that Watchers caused?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I lied.
I was already suspicious about Watchers. Ila scared the crap out of me sometimes with her demeanor and righteous words.
But Sawyer didn’t need to know that I questioned the Watchers myself. His opinion didn’t count.
When I turned back to him, ready to change the subject, I wasn’t prepared for the darkening of his already almost black eyes. He leaned in closer and our breaths mingled. In and out I breathed, allowing his familiar woodsy scent to fill my nose. I know Sawyer. Oh, I know him.
Don’t do it, Ember.
But I couldn’t stop.
When he kissed me, my lips parted automatically.
Deep down, I wanted him, desired him madly, and had from the first time I’d seen him in my dreams.
In that instant, I didn’t care that he was a Demon.

Author Bio:

You can visit Karen Ann Hopkins at her website: www.karenannhopkins.com.

Karen Ann Hopkins resides in northern Kentucky with her family on a farm that boasts a menagerie of horses, goats, peacocks, chickens, ducks, rabbits, dogs and cats. Karen's main job is home schooling the kids, but she finds time to give riding lessons, coach a youth equestrian drill team, and of course, write. She was inspired to create her first book, Temptation, by the Amish community she lived in. The experiential knowledge she gained through her interactions with her neighbors drove her to create the story of the star-crossed lovers, Rose and Noah.

Karen grew up about a mile from Lake Ontario in Upstate New York. She was bitten by the horse bug at the age of five, and after diligently taking riding lessons for several years, was rewarded with her first horse at the age of eleven. The feisty horse's name was Lady, a Quarter Horse-Thoroughbred cross, who became Karen's steadfast companion. Through the years, the constant force in her life was horses. Eventually, she found her place as a riding instructor herself. Before accepting her fate in the barnyard, she worked a short stint as a paralegal, traveled abroad, and guided tourists on horseback riding tours in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee.

Karen is currently working on her Amish mystery series, Serenity's Plain Secrets, along with the YA paranormal/fantasy series, The Wings of War, and the continuation of the Temptation series. Karen is also excited to announce the Temptation series has been optioned for TV by Pilgrim Studios and is available on Audible.

"I loved joining Rose and Noah during their journey in the Temptation series by Karen Hopkins."-Katie McGarry, acclaimed YA author

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

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EMBERS by Karen Ann Hopkins: Review and Giveaway

EMBERS

(The Wings of War #1) 

by Karen Ann Hopkins

Publication Date: October 21, 2014

Pages: 357

Add to Goodreads

Purchase: Amazon 

Synopsis 

There are descendants of angels walking among us. Ember is one of them. And she may be the only hope mankind has as the rapture approaches and evils rises.

Embers is an epic paranormal adventure about a seventeen year old girl who discovers that she's immune to fire and any other injury when she’s in a horrific car crash that kills her parents. Following a violent episode with her aunt's boyfriend, Ember flees Ohio to live with an old relative in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. Ember's exuberance at escaping a bad home life soon turns to trepidation when she finds out that she's a Watcher, a descendant of angels. While Ember learns about her heritage, and the powers that go along with it, she strikes up friendships with two teenagers who live in a frightening walled compound in the forest. Inexplicitly drawn to one of the young men in particular, an impossible romance develops. But it is cut short when Ember discovers that her new friends are fighting on the opposite side of a war, one that’s been raging between two factions of Watchers for thousands of years. When the compound’s inhabitants threaten the townspeople, Ember takes action, sealing her fate in the ancient battle of good versus evil, and the grayness in between. Ember is up to the challenge, until she realizes that she isn’t only fighting for the lives of the locals and the souls of her new friends. She also might be one of the few champions who will make a stand for all of mankind as the rapture approaches and the end of days begin.

Embers is a dark and gritty YA novel that’s the first book in the series, The Wings of War.

My Thoughts

If you regularly follow my blog, you'll know that I've reviewed all of Karen's published books and jump at the chance to share them with readers. When I discovered that she was starting a new young adult series, I knew immediately that I would read it. I love her stories and the obstacles she places between her main characters. Embers, The Wings of War, is a story about angels and the continuing struggle between good and evil. There is action, adventure, drama, moments of intense horror, and forbidden love.

Going in reading Embers and knowing it is a series, I expected a lot of back story and world building and it was there. I got just enough detail to keep it interesting, but not too much detail that it was overwhelming or distracted from the story. There were a lot of characters introduced and each played their own role in the story. There were situations in the story that reminded me of Twilight (I know there are other books to compare it to, but Twilight is what I initially thought of, and hey, I like Twilight so this is a good thing), especially the histories of the older characters and how their lives influenced what was happening in the current day. 

Embers is a very action driven story. We meet Ember and she is thrust into this new life living with her aunt, going to a new school (for the first time), and she learns that she has powers that she never knew she possessed. She seems to take it all in stride, until she meets the boy from her dream, Sawyer. There is an immediate curiosity which becomes attraction. I wouldn't call it insta-love, because whatever is there, it is a part of them, and it can't be fought.  

The moments between Ember and Sawyer were intense. Sometimes smoldering (read the story and you will understand the pun). I got to see glimpses of who they were, but I wanted to know more about them. I wanted more moments between them when they weren't overwhelmed by the dangerous drama of their lives. I hope that there are more of those "normal" interactions between them in the next book.

There are some unanswered questions (as with any first book of a series), but Embers doesn't end with a major cliffhanger. I know that there is more to the story and expected it to end with an introduction to a new element to the story. And I can say that it makes me wish I had the next book in the series IN MY HANDS RIGHT NOW!  I can't wait to find out what happens!!

Disclaimer:  I received this e-ARC from Kismet Book Touring in exchange for my honest review. I was not compensated in any way other than the e-ARC provided. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

 

Giveaway Details:

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Must be at least 16 years old to enter

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Cover Reveal: Witch Hearts by Liz Long

I recently connected with Liz Long through Twitter when my friend who follows her tweeted about Liz's upcoming novel Witch Hearts. I then learned that Liz is a local author and I'm all for supporting local authors and am more than happy to participate in this cover reveal.

Welcome Liz!

Hi everyone! I want to thank the amazing authors and bloggers who volunteered to help with today's cover reveal. Indies wouldn't be here without their help and of course, you guys. I am so excited to show off the cover for my new book - I've been looking forward to this for weeks!

Witch Hearts is my second novel, an adult paranormal thriller meant for those who liked to be a little creeped out and also enjoy a murder mystery. My first book, Gifted, A Donovan Circus Novel, is about a murder at a supernatural circus, and is available at Amazon on Kindle and paperback. Now without further ado, the cover for Witch Hearts!

Witch Hearts Synopsis:

How does a witch stay safe if a killer can get through her protection spells?

Witches like Ruby and Courtney can take care of themselves. So when Courtney is murdered, Ruby’s world crashes to a halt. The only thing keeping her grounded is the return of Courtney’s brother, Cooper. He seeks revenge, but Ruby wants to help other witches stay alive. To do that, she’ll have to reunite with her old coven’s High Priest, who also happens to be her cheating ex-boyfriend.

If that wasn’t awkward enough, when the killer gets too close, Cooper temporarily moves into Ruby’s place while a police officer tails her every move. Cooper’s presence distracts Ruby as they fight their desire against their need to stay safe. Then Courtney begins to haunt Ruby’s dreams and secrets are spilled, things from Cooper’s past that could get them both killed. The killer continues to stalk Ruby and the more she discovers, the more she fears she won’t be able to keep her heart in her chest.

About the Author:

 

Liz Long is lucky enough to have a dream career in magazine publishing as an editor and writer, yet still have time to create adventures on the side. If you catch her staring off into space or talking to herself, don’t worry – it’s just her imagination at work.

 Liz graduated from Longwood University with a BA in English, though her professors might be disappointed to hear she reads more fantasy fiction than literary novels. She also loves action and thriller genres. This book probably won’t change your life, but she hopes it steals you away from reality for a while.

Her first book, Gifted, a Donovan Circus Novel, is also available for paperback and Kindle on Amazon.

To learn more about Liz, visit her website: http://lizclong.com

The Mind Readers by Lori Brighton

Cameron Winters is a freak. Fortunately, no one but her family knows that Cameron can read minds. When Lewis Douglas arrives, he tempts her with possibilities of freedom. Determined to embrace her hidden talents, Cameron heads to a place where she meets other Mind Readers. But when the Mind Readers realize the extent of Cameron’s abilities, they want to use her powers for their own needs. (from Goodreads)



 The Mind Readers is the first young adult novel by Lori Brighton and the first book by Brighton that I have read. I was immediately drawn into the story of Cameron when I first heard her voice describing the thoughts of the people in the diner she was sitting in. She hears one man describing how he wants to kill his girlfriend and another is thinking about robbing the diner. Before either man does anything, knowing that only one of them will actually proceed with his plan, she gets up and walks away. 


After years of living with her grandmother, Cameron knows when to use her mind reading ability and when to keep it a secret. Exposing her abilities  had only caused problems for her before and she kept them hidden from everyone. But when Cameron and her friend discover the body of another friend washed up on the beach, Cameron must use her abilities to find out who killed her friend and help protect whoever may be next. At this same time Lewis, a mysterious new guy, comes to town and he may just have a few dangerous secrets of his own. 


The story opens with the mysterious murder but lends itself to so much more. In exposing the murderer, Cameron's abilities become common-knowledge in her school and instead of becoming the hero, she is ostracized by her friends and classmates. In what seems like a rash decision, Cameron leaves town with Lewis to learn more about her powers and find solace with those who are like her. This is where the story really begins. Not knowing who to trust and what to believe, Cameron begins to question if she has done the right thing by leaving her grandmother. Who are these people she is has chosen to live with? Is she ready for what may be coming her way?

Brighton has written a fantastic story about paranormal abilities. Every fast-paced moment is filled with tension as I, like Cameron, questioned is this really happening? Who is lying? Who can be trusted? The Mind Readers, likely written as a first of a series, allows for so many possible ways for this story to continue. Filled with characters who definitely have their own stories to tell, I cannot wait to read what will happen next.