About Books

  • Spring reads in my TBR pile …

    Well, it’s March now, which means that spring is right around the corner. Here are some of the books in my TBR pile. Note that the descriptions are from Amazon.

    The Last of AugustThe Last of August by Brittany Cavallaro

    In the second brilliant, action-packed book in the Charlotte Holmes trilogy, Jamie Watson and Charlotte Holmes are in a chase across Europe to untangle a web of shocking truths about the Holmes and Moriarty families.

    Jamie and Charlotte are looking for a winter break reprieve in Sussex after a fall semester that almost got them killed. But nothing about their time off is proving simple, including Holmes and Watson’s growing feelings for each other. When Charlotte’s beloved Uncle Leander goes missing from the Holmes estate—after being oddly private about his latest assignment in a German art forgery ring—the game is afoot once again, and Charlotte throws herself into a search for answers.

    So begins a dangerous race through the gritty underground scene in Berlin and glittering art houses in Prague, where Holmes and Watson discover that this complicated case might change everything they know about their families, themselves, and each other.

    My thoughts: I like Sherlock Holmes stories, and I enjoyed the first book in this series, A Study in Charlotte. If you’re looking for a different or YA take on the Holmes mythology, you might want to check out this series.

    Royally MatchedRoyally Matched by Emma Chase

    Some men are born responsible, some men have responsibility thrust upon them. Henry John Edgar Thomas Pembrook, Prince of Wessco, just got the motherlode of all responsibility dumped in his regal lap.

    He’s not handling it well.

    Hoping to help her grandson to rise to the occasion, Queen Lenora agrees to give him “space”—but while the Queen’s away, the Prince will play. After a chance meeting with an American television producer, Henry finally makes a decision all on his own:

    Welcome to Matched: Royal Edition.

    A reality TV dating game show featuring twenty of the world’s most beautiful blue bloods gathered in the same castle. Only one will win the diamond tiara, only one will capture the handsome prince’s heart.

    While Henry revels in the sexy, raunchy antics of the contestants as they fight, literally, for his affection, it’s the quiet, bespectacled girl in the corner—with the voice of an angel and a body that would tempt a saint—who catches his eye.

    The more Henry gets to know Sarah Mirabelle Zinnia Von Titebottum, the more enamored he becomes of her simple beauty, her strength, her kind spirit… and her naughty sense of humor.

    But Rome wasn’t built in a day—and irresponsible royals aren’t reformed overnight.

    As he endeavors to right his wrongs, old words take on whole new meanings for the dashing Prince. Words like, Duty, Honor and most of all—Love.

    My thoughts: I’m a sucker for royalty-themed stories, and I really enjoyed Royally Screwed, the first book in this series. I’m looking forward to reading this one.

    You Don't Know My NameYou Don’t Know My Name by Kristen Orlando

    Fighter, Faker, Student, Spy.

    Seventeen-year-old Reagan Elizabeth Hillis is used to changing identities overnight, lying to every friend she’s ever had, and pushing away anyone who gets too close. Trained in mortal combat and weaponry her entire life, Reagan is expected to follow in her parents’ footsteps and join the ranks of the most powerful top-secret agency in the world, the Black Angels. Falling in love with the boy next door was never part of the plan.

    Now Reagan must decide: Will she use her incredible talents and lead the dangerous life she was born into, or throw it all away to follow her heart and embrace the normal life she’s always wanted? And does she even have a choice?

    Find out if you are ready to join the Black Angels in the captivating and emotional page-turner, You Don’t Know My Name, from debut novelist Kristen Orlando!

    My thoughts: I’m also a sucker for spy books. Undercover teenage spy with romantic woes? Yes, please.

    What books are you guys reading this spring?

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    Frequently asked questions page …

    Back in December, I started a new feature called Monday Morning Mailbag that I post on my Facebook page every Monday morning. The feature is just a way for me to answer frequently asked questions that I get from readers.

    I have compiled some of the questions/answers here on my website on the Frequently Asked Questions page. So if you’ve missed some of the questions on my Facebook page, or just want to see what questions I’ve answered so far, you can check out the page here on my website. Here are a couple of sample questions:

    Question: How do you pronounce your last name?

    Answer: It is pronounced Eee-step — not Essstep.

    Question: Why do you use the word “toboggan” in your books to refer to a winter hat? Isn’t a “toboggan” supposed to be a sled?

    Answer: I get this question a lot — probably more than any other question, which I think is a bit strange. Who knew folks were so interested in regional word choices? ?

    In the South, where I am from and where many of my books are set, a “toboggan” refers to a winter hat — not a sled. A sled is just a sled in the South. We do not call those “toboggans”.

    Many folks have also asked why I don’t use the word “toque” when talking about a winter hat. That’s a Northern/Canadian word. The Southern characters in my books would never use that word, so it’s just a difference in regional word choices. Here’s a blog post that I did about the subject several years ago: https://www.jenniferestep.com/you-say-tomato/#.V-h9AySpn2A

    To see more, visit the Frequently Asked Questions page. I’ll try to update it with new questions/answers every few months or so.

  • · ·

    Snared, Elemental Assassin #16, to be released on April 25 …

    Book #16 Snared, book #16 in my Elemental Assassin urban fantasy series, will be released on April 25, 2017. Woot!

    As always, the cover was created by Tony Mauro, and the cover model is Alexa Martino. I love all the little details on this one, like the bloody spider runes on Gin’s hands and the spider rune in the title.

    You can pre-order Snared at all the usual book retailers:

    Amazon Kindle / Amazon paperback / Barnes & Noble e-book / Barnes & Noble print book / Books-A-Million / Google Play / iBooks / IndieBound / Kobo

    The audiobook will be available through Audible and Amazon, and the awesome Lauren Fortgang will once again be the narrator. The pre-order links for the audiobooks should be online sometime in March. I’ll share those links here on my blog and on my social media sites when they go online.

    Here is the description for Snared. Note: This contains some spoilers from previous books in the series, starting with Bitter Bite, book #14. So if you haven’t read that far in the series yet, you may want to avoid reading the description below:

    The sixteenth book in the New York Times bestselling Elemental Assassin urban fantasy series that RT Book Reviews calls, “An extraordinary series…[containing] one of the most intriguing heroines in the genre.”

    If you don’t know Gin “the Spider” Blanco, you don’t know dangerous female heroines.

    Irony 101—The Spider herself snared in someone else’s web …

    Another week, another few clues trickling in about the Circle, the mysterious group that supposedly runs the city’s underworld. Gathering intel on my hidden enemies is a painstaking process, but a more immediate mystery has popped up on my radar: a missing girl.

    My search for the girl begins on the mean streets of Ashland, but with all the killers and crooks in this city, I’m not holding out much hope that she’s still alive.

    A series of clues leads me down an increasingly dark, dangerous path, and I realize that the missing girl is really just the first thread in this web of evil. As an assassin, I’m used to facing down the worst of the worst, but nothing prepares me for this new, terrifying enemy—one who strikes from the shadows and is determined to make me the next victim.

    You can read the first chapter of Snared by going here. Scroll down, and click on the Read Excerpt tab.

    I hope that everyone enjoys Snared when it is released.

  • The weather might be frightful, but winter reads are quite delightful …

    The holidays are a distant memory, and we are well into winter now. That means cold temperatures and snow for many of us.

    Me? I love the cold weather, and I hope that we get buckets of snow this year. 🙂

    But I also find that the cold weather affects my reading habits. In the warmer months, I often find myself reading shorter books with lighter themes — things like contemporary romance or comics/graphic novels. Books that I can usually read in a night or two, in between all my other work and commitments.

    crooked-kingdomBut in the winter, I like to read longer, more involved books — things like epic fantasy and large collections of comics that often take me several nights to read. All the books that I never seem to have time to read during the rest of the year, like Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo.

    So why is that? I think a large part of it is the weather. The cold temperatures, the short days, the long nights — it all makes me want to stay inside where it is warm and toasty. Plus, once I sit down on the couch with my book, a microfleece blanket, and perhaps a mug of hot chocolate, I want to stay there for a while.

    Also, the winter months, especially January, always seem to feel a little less hectic, especially after all the hustle and bustle of the holiday season. It just seems like a good time to slow down, rest, recharge, and read a book.

    Here are some more books on my TBR this winter:

    The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima

    The Queen of Blood by Sarah Beth Durst

    Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake

    What about you guys? Do you find yourself reading different kinds of books at different times of the year? Why or why not?

  • Winter reads …

    The holidays are over for another year, so let’s talk about the fun stuff — books. 🙂

    What books did you guys get for Christmas? Here are some of the books that I got for the holidays that I’m looking forward to reading this winter. Note that the descriptions are from Amazon:

    Black WidowBlack Widow Vol. 1: S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Most Wanted by Mark Waid and Chris Samnee

    They wowed you with Daredevil, now the Eisner Award-winning team of Mark Waid and Chris Samnee take Black Widow to new heights -by forcing her to go on the lam! Natasha has a lifetime of secrets, and when some of the darkest ones are made public, nobody is safe. As S.H.I.E.L.D. turns on its once greatest asset, she seeks out her own answers in a knockdown drag-out tale of action and espionage! But will the Widow’s hunt for the Weeping Lion send her back to the one place she never wanted to go? And, when a S.H.I.E.L.D. funeral makes the assembled top brass an attractive target, it’s lucky for them that the Black Widow is still on their side, even if they aren’t on hers.

    COLLECTING: BLACK WIDOW 1-6

    My thoughts: I’m always up for a Black Widow story, and I’ve heard good things about this series.

    dc-comics-bombshellsDC Comics: Bombshells Vol. 1: Enlisted by Marguerite Bennett and Marguerite Sauvage

    The incredibly popular DC Collectibles line is brought to life in these stories that reimagine the course of history!

    As Word War II rages across Europe, the Allied forces issue a call to arms for the greatest heroines the world has ever known: THE BOMBSHELLS!

    KATE KANE, the all-American Batwoman; DIANA OF THEMYSCIRA, warrior Princess of the Amazons; KARA STARIKOV and KORTNI DUGINOVNA, defenders of Mother Russia; and MERA, royal daughter of the legendary Atlantis! With aid from their allies at home and abroad, these mighty women will turn the tide of war and defend those inviolable rights of Truth, Justice and Freedom.

    From writer Marguerite Bennett (BATGIRL, EARTH 2: WORLD’S END) and featuring artists including Marguerite Sauvage (HINTERKIND), Laura Braga (Witchblade), Bilquis Evely (Doc Savage), Mirka Andolfo (Chaos) and Ming Doyle (CONSTANTINE: THE HELLBLAZER) comes DC COMICS: BOMBSHELLS VOL. 1: ENLISTED. Collects DC COMICS: BOMBSHELLS #1-6.

    My thoughts: This looks like an interesting and different take on Wonder Woman and other classic comic book heroines.

    the-demon-kingThe Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima

    One day Han Alister catches three young wizard setting fire to the sacred mountain of Hanalea. Han takes an amulet away from Micah Bayar, son of the High Wizard, to ensure the boy won’t use it against him. The amulet once belonged to the Demon King, who nearly destroyed the world a millennium ago. With a magical piece so powerful at stake, Han knows that the Bayars will stop at nothing to get it back.

    Meanwhile, Princess Raisa ana’Marianna has her own battle to fight. She’s just returned to court after three years of riding and hunting with her father’s family. Raia aspires to be like Hanalea, the legendary warrior queen who killed the Demon King and saved the world. But it seems that her mother has other plans for her-plans that include a suitor who goes against everything the Queendom stands for.

    The Seven Realms will tremble when the lives of Han and Raisa collide in this stunning page-turner from best-selling author Cinda Williams Chima.

    My thoughts: I’ve heard a lot of good things about this series, and I’ve been wanting to try it for a long time.

    What about you guys? What books are you looking forward to reading this winter?