Showing posts with label Jean Johnson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jean Johnson. Show all posts

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Hellfire by Jean Johnson

                                      



5 out of 5 stars

Hellfire by Jean Johnson is part of the enthralling ‘Theirs Not to Reason Why’ science fiction series.  Ia is a massive precognitive who is also known as the Prophet to some of the Feyori and has honed many of her skills, including electrokinesis and her ability to use what she calls the timeplains.  She has become captain of the ship known as Hellfire which is armed with the Godstrike cannon and staffed it with a handpicked crew who are known as Ia’s Damned and who become her greatest asset in the war against the Salik.  Ia constantly navigates the narrow path that she sees as the only way to save the most beings in the future but she is sorely tested in her convictions, and challenged by her need to deal with the ‘Meddlers’, the Feyori who object to her half-blood connection to them.  The struggle to constantly juggle a myriad of potentially fateful choices exert a horrendous pressure upon the driven female but she never loses sight of her goal, no matter how many obstacles she has to destroy, avoid or restructure.  She just has to make sure she has the right beings around her at the right time.  Simple for a precognitive, right?  Definitely not.


This exciting addition to a fantastic space opera series continues to provide a mesmerizing multi-layered read.  It is exhausting to think of all of the constant consultations performed by the heroine to make sure that events are unfolding as they should and the stark example of the ‘butterfly effect’ made a significant impression, not only because it showed that Ia is capable of great emotion but it also demonstrated her dedication to her cause and willingness to put her body on the line for her beliefs.  I was thrilled to see the reappearance of those important to Ia and enjoyed watching her crew (including the requisite spies) being won over to the cause.  There are plenty of exciting descriptions of military engagements for those who are fond of such things but there is a beautifully emotional depiction of the price required to ensure that the final goal is feasible, no matter who it harms or how much regret is engendered.  The understated humor and veiled insults that Ia wields in addition to her firm conveyance of the logic behind her actions is contrasted with the reactions evoked in those she interacts with, whether alien or human, and the exquisite way she tailors her actions to the audience.  I think that it would be easy to fall into the spell woven by this wonderfully talented author if one hasn’t read the rest of the series but this story is best savored by starting at the beginning with “A Soldier’s Duty”.  That way you can fall under the spell and join me as I cheer for Ia’s accomplishments and mourn for her losses and anxiously await the next installment of her adventures.
 
© Night Owl Reviews

I received a copy of this yummy title in return for an honest review.


 Hellfire (Theirs Not to Reason Why) (Amazon buy link)



 The first books in the series:
(my post about them is at this link)


                                              


Tuesday, July 30, 2013

A Touch of Lilly (Adult title), Guest Post, review and Giveaway

A Touch of Lilly           
by Nina Pierce is my feature today, a yummy science fiction ADULT title.

I am delighted to have a guest post from the author.

******


The Fascination of Science Fiction

 by Nina Pierce


I’m pretty sure I can say, without exception, all writers were readers first, and that includes me. Before I even thought about putting fingers to keyboard, I was an avid reader. Not as fast as many, but a couple of novels a month for most of my adult life.

And when it comes to genres … I’m kind of all over the place. But my favorite by far, is first off a romance and usually something that falls in the paranormal or science fiction suspense realm.

I remember reading my first science fiction book in fourth grade. I kept up the love through middle school when even my English teacher knew how much I enjoyed stretching my imagination and chose this really awesome book about stars and witches and mountains for me … I remember LOVING it (though I have no idea the title or author). I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough to find out where the characters were going to take me. It’s that fascination with other worlds and the possibilities of something different from our reality that keeps me picking up science fiction stories.

Madeleine L’Engle’s A WRINKLE IN TIME is still one of my all time favorite series. It’s the story of a young boy whose father disappears and he and his sister take a perilous journey through space and time to find him. The story so captured my imagination, decades later I can still recall many of my favorite scenes in vivid detail.

As I got older, I found myself drifting to the science fiction section of our little town library and read my way through a better part the books. Many of the authors I can’t recall, though I did pick up William Shatner (his brief stint into a writing career … don’t bother), but also found Isaac Asimov’s FOUNDATION series. But the one that got me, the one that pulled me completely into her worlds and kept me coming back for more is Anne McCaffrey’s FREEDOM series. (She’s also the author of the Dragon-Riders of Pern series.) She’s got this great combination of love story, action and other worlds, including aliens, that just makes a science nerd like me go all weak in the knees.

And since my reading life was supplemented by television series like Star Trek and Stargate and movies like Logan’s Run and Total Recall, it was no wonder my writing drifted into the futuristic and fantasy realm as well. I’ve got paranormal stories whose main characters are vampires and another series with cougar and wolf shifters. My first foray into a dystopian future is a very sexy romantic suspense involving humans trying to repopulate the earth after a devastating plague. But my newest release, A TOUCH OF LILLY, is my first foray into deep space.

Like Ms. McCaffrey, I let my imagination take over and created a solar system very different from our own. A TOUCH OF LILLY is at its heart—a romance—but murder, revenge and yes, a little bit of space travel will hopefully keep readers turning the pages.

What about you? Have you ventured “out of this world”?  Please leave your e-mail address and a comment stating the most recent science fiction title you have read or watched.


(A note from ELF:  I LOVED A Wrinkle in Time and still fondly think of the concept of tesseract that I was introduced to in that book, The Ship Who series by Ms. McCaffrey definitely expanded my horizons and I am so excited that Jean Johnson has just released a new book in her Theirs Not to Reason Why series called Hellfire!)






A Touch of Lilly
by Nina Pierce


BLURB:

Ex-Chicago detective LILLY D’ANGELO has a secret she doesn’t share with anyone. A master of the one night stand, she’s given up ever finding a soul mate and thrown herself head first into her career. That is, until she captures the wrong alien. Kidnapped and sold into the sex slave trade, she’s shipped into deep space. Barely escaping with her life, Lilly now travels the galaxy working as a bounty hunter using her secret talents to bring down criminals and seeking revenge on the one male who ruined her life. 

Agent DALLAS SAWYER works for deep space’s version of the FBI. After a disastrous mission that left several of his team members murdered, a president executed, and Dallas near death, he’s determined to take down the assassin targeting government officials. When a sexy human female gets between him and his goal, Dallas and his alien partner find themselves on the receiving end of a passionate night they won’t soon forget and a proposition that may very well blow up in their faces.

Because in deep space … true love can happen with just a touch.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Excerpt:

Dallas threaded his way through the crowded sidewalk back to the alley. He’d learned over the past month the residents of this territory on Garalon Five were night owls. Not that they had a choice. Things wouldn’t slow down until the first two moons were well below the horizon and the third just beginning to rise. The lack of daylight had thrown him when he’d first arrived. Though the Nebulae Galaxy had a major star at its center, the weak light didn’t reach a good portion of the planets. Heat on the inhabitable planets came from deep within their crusts.

He didn’t give a shit about the specifics, just that the interminable darkness was fraying the ends of his taut nerves. Another two days, a week tops and this mission would be finished and Dallas could return to Earth for a much needed vacation with some human companionship.

Working for the government was a lonely business. Lonelier still when he was out in deep space away from his own species. Five years ago, when Dallas had graduated from Quantico, he’d envisioned this life—traveling the stars in search of bad guys and adventures. But working for QAL wasn’t all the pamphlets had promised. It seemed even in space, shit happened, people died and no matter how far he ran, he couldn’t outrun a broken heart.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~




 


AUTHOR Bio and Links:

USA Today Bestselling author, Nina Pierce, grew up in a house full of readers. Nina's discovered the passionate side of romance with her sexy stories. For her, it's all about the sweet scent of seduction mixed with the heartwarming aroma of romance.

Nina resides in New England with her high school sweetheart and soul mate of twenty-eight years and several very spoiled cats who consider her "staff". When she’s not writing she enjoys spending time with her three grown children, one love-sick son-in-law and a heart-melting grandson.

You can keep up with her new books at her website or by following her on Facebook or Twitter

Nina will be awarding A print copy of HEALER’S GARDEN and author swag (Shipping to US winner only. International winner will receive a $25 Amazon OR BN Gift Card in lieu of print book and swag) to a random commenter during the tour.

Please leave your e-mail address and a comment stating the most recent science fiction title you have read or watched, then visit some (or all) of the other tour stops for additional chances to win.

Tour stops:
July 29:  Illustrious Illusions
July 30:  The Reading Addict
July 30:  Deal Sharing Aunt
July 31:  Books and Other Spells
August 1:  Erotica For All
August 2:  Tina Donahue Presents
August 5:  Beyond Romance
August 6:  Wickedly Wanton Tales
August 7:  Wicked Readings by Tawania
August 7:  Smoldering Heat
August 9:  Words of Wisdom from The Scarf Princess
August 9:  Literal Hotties Naughty Books Reviews 


My review:

4 out of 5 stars
“A Touch of Lilly” by Nina Pierce is an erotic science fiction romance novella.  Lilly is a bounty hunter who has a few extra assets that others don’t, she has the ability to drive males mad with lust and she was trained as a police officer until she lost her position.  She is struggling to survive in the Nebulae Galaxy after escaping the threat of sexual slavery.  Unfortunately, her activities cause her to cross paths with Dallas Sawyer and his partner Thaegan who are out to catch a traitor and thwart an assassination.  Now they have to decide whether to become allies or enemies.



This was a fun and sensual story.  There is a nice blend of familiar elements such as Quantico, bounty hunters and political machinations combined with aliens, a galaxy with twelve planets that are populated by a variety of beings and an imaginative history involving the interaction of humans with an ancient alien race.  I enjoyed the interaction between Lilly and Dallas although I had a little trouble accepting the abrupt about-face of Thaegan’s attitude.  The author has done a nice job of world-building and has lain the groundwork for more exciting science fiction romance tales that connect to this one.  I look forward to additional stories in this universe.





 


Thursday, October 11, 2012

A Soldier's Duty and An Officer's Duty

A Soldier's Duty and its sequel, An Officer's Duty

                     

are both fantastic science fiction novels written by Jean Johnson that focus on a being who has officially changed her name to Ia.  She was born on a planet that is designated as a heavyworld because its gravity is more than 1.5 times that of Earth and is located at the edge of explored space.  Her enhanced physical abilities are balanced by other incredible mental powers and these two books detail the beginning of her quest to save the universe as she knows it.  An intriguing description of military training filtered through the lens of space.  I am a big fan of space opera and I really enjoyed both of these tales but they are definitely not for those who are looking for a nice tame romance but rather for fans of action-packed imaginative science fiction tales.  My Amazon review for A Soldier's Duty is at this link.  My Amazon review for An Officer's Duty is at this link.  It is my understanding that this wonderful series will continue with a new title next summer and I had the great good fortune to win one of this author's paranormal titles so I will explore a different facet of her talents and explore her 'Sons of Destiny' series in the future.

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

More contests and an interview

There is a Halloween Trick or Treat contest sponsored by Romance Books "4" Us at this link.  Don't forget to look at the author pages...many of them include contests which are separate from the main one.

The Full Moon Scavenger Hunt is still going on at Night Owl Romance at this link.  There are also other contests at this link and don't forget to look at the two separate blog pages, authors often give insights into their writing and sometimes offer giveaways.

Writerspace is having its monthly author contests at this link.
(and don't forget to check the chat rooms, they are great opportunities to chat with authors, not to mention sometimes you have very good opportunities to win a book)

Fresh Fiction has author contests at this link.

Coffee Time Romance has links to all kinds of contests at this link.  Don't forget to wander around, there are usually several author contests taking place elsewhere on the site.

I am swamped with a job and unwritten reviews so I haven't had a chance to wander around but there are a plethora of bloghop contests taking place.

And...personally exciting news!

I have had the privilege of being interviewed for the Romance Books "4" Us blog at this link.  What fun!


I am on a sci-fi and military romance kick the past couple of weeks.  I just read Jean Johnson's A Soldier's Duty and An Officer's Duty.  I love space opera and these two books were fantastic reads!  My review will be up in a couple of weeks.
 



Have a great day, I certainly am tickled!