Tag: legends of persia

Blog Tour Review and GIVEAWAY: Son of the Moon – Jennifer Macaire

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Happy Monday guys!! Is there such a thing?

Well yes, there is! Since I signed up to the blog tour for Son of the Moon I’ve been excited about this post. I began reading the series in January this year and it’s fast becoming one of my favourite works of historical fiction. The series is based around the life of Ashley, a time-travelling journalist and her accidental life with Alexander the Great. She travels back in time to interview him and gets stuck in his timeline. She becomes his lover and follows him as he builds his Empire and legacy. The Greeks are convinced she is Persephone, a Greek goddess and her place beside Alexander is met with mixed feelings.

 

Son of the Moon

 

Alexander the Great journeys to India, where he and Ashley are welcomed with feasts and treachery.

With their son, Paul, being worshipped as the Son of the Moon, and Alexander’s looming death, Ashley considers the unthinkable: how to save them and whether she dares to cheat Fate?

 

Purchase Links:   Amazon     Accent Press Books

 

My Thoughts…

I’ve been following the series since January, touring The Road to Alexander and then more recently, Legends of Persia in April.

Son of the Moon continues our enjoyable jaunt across countries as Alexander builds his Empire. Ashley, ever at his side since being stranded in his timeline, is revered (and feared) as the Greek Goddess Persephone. Danger finds both Ashley and Alexander in this third instalment of the series. Ashley, all too aware of Alexander’s mortality, struggles with the knowledge that she cannot share with him and her peers.

Each book of the series thus far has allowed us to explore new regions of the Ancient world. Jennifer Macaire does an excellent job of vividly describing both the lavish beauty of the living world and the power of destruction only an army is capable of. Along their journey, we get to enjoy both the highs and lows of their relationship. Treachery by another of Alexander’s wives, Roxanne, would see the two separated. The fierce love between Ashley and Alexander really shines through though, and their emotional intimacy with each other is endearing.

As I have mentioned time and again reviewing this series, I love the combination of science fiction time travel and historical fiction. Watching events unfold from the eyes of someone who has lived in something closer to our own world makes it very approachable to the reader. Along with Ashley, as the reader we find ourselves gradually becoming accustomed to the different cultures, attitudes and lifestyle in the book. Now more than ever, we are hurtling towards a point in time that could change history forever. Will Ashley choose to risk it all for the man she loves the most? What repercussions will that have?

Maybe we’ll find out in the next book!

 

Author Bio –

Jennifer Macaire lives with her husband, three children, & various dogs & horses. She loves cooking, eating chocolate, growing herbs and flowering plants on her balcony, and playing golf. She grew up in upstate New York, Samoa, and the Virgin Islands. She graduated from St. Peter and Paul high school in St. Thomas and moved to NYC where she modeled for five years for Elite. She met her husband at the polo club. All that is true. But she mostly likes to make up stories.

Social Media Links –

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TimeforAlexander/

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/jennifermacaire/

twitter @jennifermacaire

https://jennifermacaire.wordpress.com/

 

 

 

Giveaway to Win a $10 Amazon gift certificate and a mug (Open INT)

*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then I reserve the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time I will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

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Sunday Summary

Sunday Summary – 14th April 2019

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Hi friends! Back again with another post today! Two posts in one day? Am I feeling alright? Yes, yes I am. It’s been a busy weekend and I’m looking forward to summarising the week’s shenanigans for you.

So, just what have I been up to? This week has been dominated by blog tour posts. I have signed up to four tours this month and these two came along in quick succession! I have a week’s respite before the next two come in thick and fast. On Thursday I published my review of Arbitrage by Collette Kebell – a financial crime novel that managed to teach me something about my own job industry. Fancy that! Then, earlier today, I posted my review of Legends of Persia by Jennifer Macaire. I started her series back in January with The Road to Alexander and I am already looking forward to the next two books I’m scheduled to review.

 

Books Read

I feel like I’ve made some respectable progress on the reading front this week too. In addition to the usual reading, I have made a little progress on my copy of Copyediting and Proofreading for dummies and worked my way through some course material I have signed up to. I can’t remember if I have mentioned it before or not, but I guess now its official. I’m learning the tricks of the trade as a proofreader and copyeditor! I’m only looking at the proofreading side of things at the moment, but I’m really enjoying it!

Along those lines, one of the first books I started making progress on was Ewan Pendle and the Castle of Nightmares by Shaun Hume. This is a light proofread project, (in addition to reading for review).

My primary focus of the week was Legends of Persia, for what I hope are obvious reasons. I started reading the book last week ahead of the tour, but I read the majority of it this week. Okay, yesterday. I wasn’t procrastinating, I promise. Do you know what I mean if I say I knew I had it so under control that I wasn’t worried about leaving it a little late? Well, it worked out fine anyway.

In addition to Legends of Persia, I have also made a start on the next ARC on my list – Trust Me by K. J. McGillick. I’m already just shy of 40% through the book, so I have a good head start ready for my review post at the end of next week. We also have a long weekend, which I am TOTALLY looking forward to!

Now for audiobooks! Around midweek I finished listening to Scythe by Neal Shusterman. It is completely different from anything I have read or listened to before. My next audible credit arrives sometime this week (I think?), so I’ll be using it to buy Thunderhead. I might not listen to it straight away, but it’s firmly on my list!

 

Books Discovered

I’ve been keeping my head in the sand this week, so nothing to report here!

 

Coming Up…

So, what can you expect on the blog this week then? On account of the bank holiday weekend giving me some extra time, I have time scheduled for four blog posts. Again, two of those have to be on Sunday, which has partly influenced my decision.

As we have had a couple of reviews already this week, I want to start next week on a lighter note. I’ve decided to share another Top Ten Tuesday post, as it’s been a while since I last did one of those. They’re really fun! On Friday, I want to take another look at the TBR and have a clear out of the books that I no longer want to read.

Early on Sunday, I’ll be posting my blog tour review of Trust Me, my current read. I’ll be following up at the end of the day with my usual summary!

What are you reading this week? Have any nice plans for the Easter weekend?

 

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Blog Tour Review & Giveaway: Legends of Persia – Jennifer Macaire

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Whether you are new to my blog or a frequent visitor, hello and welcome! I trust you are having a lovely weekend? In today’s post, I get to share my thoughts with you about Legends of Persia by Jennifer Macaire, book two in the Time For Alexander series.

In addition to my review, there is also the chance to win a $10 Amazon gift certificate; you’ll find the details for that below.

Legends of Persia

When Ashley Riveraine jumped at the chance to travel back in time to meet her hero Alexander the Great, she never thought she would end up staying there…

Following Alexander the Great’s army on its journey across Persia, Ashley is walking the knife edge of history. As a presumed goddess, Ashley is expected to bless crops, make sure battles are won and somehow keep herself out of the history books.

Can Ashley avoid the wrath of the Time Institute while keeping the man she loves alive?

Goodreads – Legends of Persia

Purchase link – Legends of Persia

 

My Thoughts…

Picking up this second book of the series is like getting into your “old faithful” pair of jeans. They’re familiar, comfortable and you know they fit. Having read and reviewed The Road to Alexander earlier this year, I was in the perfect position to pick this up and follow on from the events that transpired in book one.

Interestingly, one element that I really enjoyed about the first book is barely mentioned in the second! The historical fiction and science fiction crossover in The Road to Alexander isn’t one that I have seen all that much of. Okay, to an extent they go hand-in-hand where time travel is concerned. In my experience though, I haven’t seen it in any great detail; Jennifer Macaire’s writing is the exception.

To help readers, the circumstances of Ashley’s long-term presence in Alexander the Great’s time zone are recapped briefly. As a recap though, these versions don’t touch on the scientific explanations of how the time travel happens, as they did in book one. I don’t think that as a drawback though – Legends of Persia stands as a brilliant historical fiction novel without the need to include the science fiction as an element of intrigue.

An additional advantage of picking up Legends of Persia immediately after an epic like A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin, is that it is really easy to read. I sat and engorged on 30% of this novel without even looking up in my first sitting. It didn’t take long to read either, and being so involved in the storyline and the characters trials and tribulations makes it so much easier. I say this a lot, but the writing style is make-or-break for me. I can get a good idea of how well I will get on with a book based on the first couple of pages alone. Jennifer Macaire’s writing style is very easy to read.

One of the other things I talked about in my review of The Road to Alexander was the sex and nudity throughout the novel. I went into Legends of Persia knowing what to expect, so I wasn’t so bothered about it this time around. The intimate moments aren’t so graphic in detail that it makes you uncomfortable as a reader, or so prolific to negate the actual storyline.

Throughout the series, the characters are more emotional than we are. Men cry and rejoice and love freely. There aren’t the constraints that the reader may expect; modern religion and society as we know it is yet to be born. I’m not all that versed in the sexual habits of people at the time, but I like the inclusion (and normalisation) of same sex relations between the characters. Love is for a person for who they are and doesn’t discriminate by sex or gender.

I’ve really enjoyed delving into both The Road to Alexander and Legends of Persia and re-living a historical time period largely unknown to me. I have already agreed to reading and reviewing the next two books in the series! I cannot wait for those!

 

Author Bio

Jennifer Macaire lives with her husband, three children, & various dogs & horses. She loves cooking, eating chocolate, growing herbs and flowering plants on her balcony, and playing golf. She grew up in upstate New York, Samoa, and the Virgin Islands. She graduated from St. Peter and Paul high school in St. Thomas and moved to NYC where she modeled for five years for Elite. She met her husband at the polo club. All that is true. But she mostly likes to make up stories.

Social Media Links –

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TimeforAlexander/

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/jennifermacaire/

twitter @jennifermacaire

https://jennifermacaire.wordpress.com/

 

Giveaway to Win a $10 Amazon gift certificate (Open INT)

*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then I reserve the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time I will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/33c69494212/?

Sunday Summary

Sunday Summary – 7th April 2019

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Don’t the weekends just come and go so fast?! It only feels like 5 minutes ago since I was writing last week’s Sunday Summary post. I hope you have had a good week, whatever you have been up to!

Me? Well, mine has been quite a busy one. It’s rare for me to post four times a week, but that’s exactly what I have done! I published April’s reading list at the beginning of the week; I am taking part in a lot of blog tours, so the official list is dominated by ARC’s. As it happens, I am going to have more time on my hands than usual this month in terms of reading. I didn’t want to commit to reading more though, because I’ll probably balance my time with other little projects. Plus, I also have the freedom to pick up any book I like. Reading list posts are great motivators; I have proven I cannot do without them – but they can also feel a little restricting sometimes.

In addition, I have also published my review of The End of Magic by Mark Stay and a Q&A post with him. There is a chance to enter yourselves into a giveaway for a signed copy of the book, but you’ll have to be quick as it closes at 11:59 pm local time tonight.

 

Books Read

It’s been a pretty good week of reading here, which I’ll admit I am surprised about. I thought my blog post schedule might knock out some of my reading time, but I managed to work around it quite well! As promised, the first couple of days of this week were dedicated to finishing Arbitrage by Colette Kebell. I work in an industry that overlaps with the subject content of this novel, and I actually learned something new from it. Every day is a school day, right?

Next, I moved back to reading A Storm of Swords. I have been reading it for weeks now, just because it is so long. Guys… I did it! I have finished it! It was a long haul, but I got there in the end.

The advantage of reading really long, epic novels is that once you pick up a smaller book, you find yourself a third of the way through it without you even realising. That’s exactly what’s happened with my next read, Legends of Persia by Jennifer Macaire. I achieved that in one sitting too. I’m quite proud…

I’ve also kept up with listening to my latest audiobook, Scythe by Neal Schusterman. I didn’t know how I was going to deal with the comedown from Jay Kristoff’s Godsgrave, because damn that shit is fantastic! I am really enjoying Scythe as well though! It’s different, but that’s why I like it.

 

Books Discovered

 

I have not added any books to my TBR this week because I have been really good.

Who am I kidding?! Truth is, I’ve just been really busy – busy at work, personally, blogging, reading and playing Minecraft in my downtime, I haven’t been looking for new books. That’s an honest answer!

 

Coming Up…

I’m pleased to say things are going to slow down from the breakneck speed of last week. It’s fun, occasionally, but that’s not a blogging schedule I can keep up with reliably.

My blogging schedule is going to be thrown off a little bit as a result, because I have blog tours coming up on Sunday’s for the next couple of weeks. I’ll still be posting three times, but effectively I’ll be posting twice in one day – my review in the early morning and my Sunday Summary will drop in the late evening. Having a few days grace is going to work to my advantage because I have some catching up to do with a proofreading project.

My first review post is for Arbitrage, the ARC I finished up early this week. That post is being published on Thursday, so I hope you can check that out! My second review, on Sunday, is for my current read, Legends of Persia by Jennifer Macaire. What are you looking forward to next week? What will you be reading?