Blog Tour: Rise of the Dawnstar

Welcome to A Redhead's Ramblings! I am excited to be a part of the blog tour for Rise of the Dawnstar! I am currently reading it and am in love with the story and the cover! How gorgeous is that? 

An Inside Look Into the Kitchens of the Crystal Castle: The Rise of the Dawnstar Tour

Come enjoy teatime at the Crystal Castle in Elfi, crafted by Guido, the best pastry chef in the seven kingdoms. Guido is a brownie or a house sprite as they are called in the Fae lands, and his sugar cream rolls are unmatched in Elfi and beyond.

 1.    Sugar cream rolls

 2.    Rose cake cream sandwiches

 3.    Raspberry Meringues 

 4.    Vanilla and Cardamom sugar buns

 5.    Cream bun cake (Aurora’s Favourite)

 6.    Cherry Blossom mini cakes

 7.    Chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream filling topped with wild berries.

 8.    Lavender and lemon bars

 9.    Butter cookies with sugar icing

 10.    Buttermilk scones with clotted cream and fresh raspberry jam.

What is your favorite teatime sweet from the list? I would love to have some sugar cream rolls!

Giveaway! 

For each stop on tour, there will be a special number at the end of the post. Collect all the numbers, add them up, and enter to win one of three prizes! Once you have all the numbers you can enter the giveaway here: http://farahoomerbhoy.com/rise-dawnstar-now/ 

The giveaway closes on May 21st, 11:59pm Eastern US time. 

My number is 25.

Good luck!

Book Review: A Season in London

Goodreads Summary

From the publisher of the USA TODAY bestselling & #1 Amazon bestselling Timeless Romance Anthology series in Clean Romance, comes A SEASON IN LONDON.

Three brand new Regency Romance novellas by Elizabeth Johns, Heather B. Moore, and Rebecca Connolly.

POOR RELATIONS by Elizabeth Johns
As a ‘poor relation,’ Emma Standrich has already pre-empted her dismal Season by applying for a governess post. Her aunt and cousin are kind enough to sponsor her, but in truth, Emma is just waiting for it to all be over. Emma’s grief over the death of her brother while in military service casts a pallor on everything else in her life. When Colonel Shelton, the man who was her brother’s superior, asks her to dance at her first ball, Emma is more surprised than anyone. But she has questions for him, and soon she’s caught up in an intrigue she wasn’t expecting—both of the heart and the mind.

EDWARD & EMILY by Heather B. Moore
As a second son, Edward Blackwood never anticipated becoming heir to his family estate, or the need to find a wife and secure that inheritance. But with the death of his older brother, Edward is thrust into a life he never wanted. When his mother encourages him to be kind to his long-time neighbor Emily Foster, a girl he’d hardly paid attention to while growing up, Edward realizes that returning home might not be such a set-back after all.

A SPORTING SEASON by Rebecca Connolly
Daphne Hutchins is no simpering female who aims for a husband with a fortune. In fact, she’d be more than happy to live her life free of the heartache that men seem to bring. So when she sets out to play the fool in front of the ton during her first Season in order to send all eligible men running, she’s quite unprepared for James Woodbridge. Bored, but with a sense of family duty, James arrives for the Season, anticipating going through the expected motions befitting any gentleman. What he isn’t prepared for is Daphne Hutchins and the way she completely upends his heart.

Review

I love these Timeless Regency anthologies! This version focused on, you guessed it, Seasons in London, which I find the whole idea behind Seasons fascinating. The first story, Poor Relations was exciting and had some mystery to it. Emma was more rational than her cousin, but both women were good characters. Colonel Shelton was also great. The story is a good fit for a short story and wraps up nicely. The second story, Edward and Emily was so sweet! Emily has what could be seen as an unusual talent for the day but Edward does, too, so they were perfect for each other! I would have liked this story to be longer, but I am satisfied with what I got. The last story, and my favorite one, was A Sporting Season. I would love a full length version of this story! Daphne was such a great character who had been through something difficult two years prior. This Incident, as it is referred to in the book, has influenced how she feels about having a Season. We meet James early on and I instantly loved him! Both he and Daphne have a sense of humor I just loved. Seeing their relationship develop was a treat!

A copy of this book was provided for free in exchange for an honest review.

Book Review: First Light

Goodreads Summary

Seventeen-year-old Adrielle doesn’t believe in magic; she merely possesses it, though no one has ever mentioned that her unusual gifts—exceptional speed, a flair for fire, and an intimate knowledge of flora—aren’t things she was born with. When Adrielle starts a fire that burns down the family home, she must deal with both her grief and her siblings’ hurtful rejection.

While journeying to far away Tallinyne, in search of her older, estranged sister—the only relative who might take her in—Adrielle is separated from her escort when the carriage is beset by thieves. Alone, she is thrust into a dangerous and unfamiliar world where she encounters fairies and gypsies, a wild boar, a drunk cook, and an evil queen whose curse is sweeping death across the land. Adrielle also finds love, falling hard for a kind, funny, handsome—and completely unavailable prince.

From the glowing pearls tucked beneath her mattress and keeping her awake at night, to Queen Nadamaris’s curse that seems to thwart Adrielle’s every effort, Adrielle struggles to navigate a world of magic she never imagined, where people she knows and loves are not always what they appear to be. With the glowing pearls—and her fondest desire—within her grasp, she is forced to make a choice no girl should ever have to—satisfying her own heart or saving the kingdom. 

   This story was a charming fairy tale, with elements from Sleeping Beauty. Adrielle was a great heroine. Her life isn't easy and she goes through some pretty difficult things in this book. I don't want to give anything away, but when she discovers her purpose and what she can do, it is wonderful to watch it unfold. She is brave, kind, and everything else a leading lady of a fairy tale should be! 

   The hero of First Light is Christian, who is, you guessed it, a prince! His relationship with Adrielle was not insta-love, and I loved seeing them be friends before they got romantic. He had every princely quality I would want ;). 

   The villain of the book is truly horrible. Queen Nadamaris is probably to most cruel and just plain despicable villain I've encountered while reading in a while. The queen's hatred of Adrielle is almost palpable. I think Nadamaris could give all the other Disney villains a run for their money. 

   Overall, a great read. I can't wait for the next book in the series to be released!

I was provided a free copy in exchange for an honest review. 

Book Review: Perfekt Balance

Goodreads Summary:

Elsa Fredriksen knows there’s a thin line between love and fear. As High Healer, she rights the wrongs committed by Asgard’s enemies. But even the gods’ secret weapon can’t undo every injury—especially when her fate is completely entwined with the god she’s trying to save.

Elsa’s in love with the Norse God of Justice. But Forse’s heart is ruled by fear—fear that the past will repeat itself; fear that opening his heart will compromise his ability to do his job; fear that he’ll hurt the one girl he desperately wants to protect. Again.

When Elsa faces off against the very monster she once swore to protect, her survival depends on a power she isn’t sure she can control. And when Forse’s worst nightmare unfolds in front of him, Elsa has to decide whether it’s more important to hold the realms in perfekt balance . . . or hold onto the guy she can’t imagine existing without. 

Before I start the review, I thought I'd share pictures of who I picture as Elsa and Forse. For future book reviews, if I see pictures of who I picture certain characters as, I will be adding them to reviews, just for fun. 

Gabriella Wilde for Elsa:

And an unknown, but nevertheless very cute guy for Forse:

Now for the review!

This is the third book in the Aere Saga by S.T. Bende. This book focused on Elsa, Tyr's younger sister, and Forse, who is the God of Justice, Tyr's friend, and Elsa's longtime friend and crush. It was shorter than the other two in the series so far, but it was still packed with action and romance! Forse and Elsa's relationship was so cute! I hope we see more of their developing relationship. I liked getting more of a backstory on the characters and also on what happened leading up to Tyr and Mia's parent's deaths. I thought that Runa, the villain (or is she?) of the story was developed well. I'm very interested to see where her story goes, and without spoiling it, the revelation regarding her and another character was one that I definitely didn't see coming, but I liked it nonetheless. The action scenes are always so well written in S.T. Bende's books, I felt like I was right there. I also loved seeing all the techy gadgets that have been developed. I think my favorite part of the book was when (highlight to see spoilers) Forse proposed to Elsa. So cute! Now if only Mia and Tyr can get on the engagement train and I'll be happy! ;) End spoilers. Overall, a good continuation in the series. Too bad we have to wait till 2017 for the next one. :(

I was provided a free copy in exchange for an honest review.