Book: 2:05 a.m. (An Ice Era Chronicle, Book 2)

Author: C.M. Moore

Genre: Dystopian Military Romance #2.05Tour

Synopsis

After spending all her life trying to be normal, Nova has given up. She knows she isn’t like everyone else and after her break-up, she decides to dive into her work. Even though she’s settled in her private world and has no wish to change, she finds herself sucked into a trip that takes her away from her safe and secluded world.

Arrow has been trapped in a cage for, well, he can’t recall, but he is ready to be free. As fear that the crumbling water base around him is going to crush him before he can escape, an angel appears. She is what he’s been searching for and his soul knows her. The only problem is, she doesn’t know who he is and is begrudging when it comes to helping him.

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As these two broken people meet and start a friendship, a train ride will change them forever. Before long they will uncover the dark past that hunts Arrow and the even darker future that awaits them both. Life for Arrow is about to become real, but for someone as crazy as Nova, this one man turns out to be the balance she’s always needed.

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Review

With this entire series, you are guaranteed a book that strays from the norm. There is nothing normal about the characters in this book either. Not even remotely. In fact, it's one of the reasons I like the series so much. You get a unique type of post-apocalyptic read where most of the population lives underground and railways still exist. Nova is Gears and Luna's adopted daughter. She has blood red eyes and crazy mood swings to match it. She goes on a little trip to help get her brother back, but encounters a locked up stranger named Arrow. Their attraction is quite intense and rather unsatisfying for quite some time. There's always something or someone in the way. Arrow's talent is quite unique. It's not every day you meet someone who can see heart strings. Another interesting character is Joe, Mac and Karma's son. Of course they all get in plenty of trouble. I would like to see more of Joe. He seems like an interesting character. I would strongly suggest reading the entire series so you know who is who. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and the whole series so far.

5 out of 5 stars!!

Author Bio

C.M. Moore is a retired solider, and a romantic at heart. After being blown up in Afghanistan and receiving a purple heart; he began writing. Connor’s first book 1:05 am is a mixture of love, sex, and action. Today if you are looking for Connor, you can find him volunteering with veteran organizations, and harassing his military buddies. You can also find him attempting to “hunt” in the woods and ponds of Minnesota. In the event you find him in the woods, don’t be scared, he can’t hit anything. 

If you want to contact him message him at c.m.moore.author@gmail.com ...OR...

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United (Exalted: Book 3) by Tara Elizabeth

   Things are rapidly changing after the Republic falls and the truth about the pump has been exposed to everyone there.  Mena and Ryker find that some of their friends are missing and are determined to get them back.  They travel to Toledo Lake where they meet some more of the Exalted.  Everyone is either off of the pump now or coming off of it and their emotions are returning rather suddenly.  Everything at Toledo Lake is what we would think of as normal, and it's something to get used to for the Exalted that haven't really been outside of the Republic.
   Since the pump was exposed, things are happening rapidly now for those deemed "marauders" by the loyalist Exalted and those with them.  There is a war coming and they must protect the innocent people who live in Toledo Lake.  There are women and children there too.  Mena and Ryker know that they will all be killed if the villages don't ready themselves for this war.  And when it comes, there is always loss with it.

   This was another really good read by Tara Elizabeth!  I have really enjoyed reading this particular series and am a little sad to see it end.  It was a little quick in some spots.  I think more detail about a few things would have made it even better.  However,  we get to see some happy endings and some goodbyes as well.  So there is happiness mixed in with a little sadness. It's a good mix and the ending is wrapped up nicely.

A solid 4 out of 5 stars!!


Buy this book here:  http://www.amazon.com/UNITED-Exalted-Trilogy-Book-3-ebook/dp/B00RNAX1GA/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1422681376&sr=1-1&keywords=tara+elizabeth&pebp=1422682066440&peasin=B00RNAX1GA


Blurb for United:


In this last chapter of the Exalted Trilogy, Mena and her friends discover the meaning of freedom and the costs to keep it. 

With Mena’s parents and friends missing, she and Ryker set out on a journey to find them and to warn the people of Toledo Lake about the imminent threat of retaliation from the First Republic. Things don’t go as planned, and Mena struggles to stay strong through all of her emotional perils. 

New friendships form. Old friendships fade. War will do that to people—even the strongest of people. 

Will Toledo Lake survive the wrath of Dr. Fredericks and his army? Will the Third Republic join in the attack? 

Strength be with you, Mena. 



Blurb for Exalted (Book 1):

After the fall of mankind, the Exalted became the protectors of the people. As an Exalted trainee, all Mena ever wanted was to be strong, to serve and to fearlessly protect the people of the United Republic of the Saved. All Exalted feel the same. In fact, that’s all they feel. Only when Ryker, an outsider, crashes into Mena’s life, does she learn that people are meant to feel much more. 

In this bleak future, set in what’s left of the southern United States, the trainees must compete in three Trials to earn their position amongst the strongest Exalted. In these Trials, female is pitted against female and male against male in demonstrations of weaponry, fighting and survival skills. The outcome: the United Ceremony, pairing trainees together for life based on how they place. The ultimate hope is to breed stronger Exalted and even better protectors. 

Upon learning from Ryker that the supplement she's taken her entire life is actually an emotion-blocking drug, her path takes an unexpected shift. Without the veil of “The Pump” blocking her emotions, Mena struggles with competing in the Trials and with her new, confusing love life. She’s experiencing new feelings with not one but two different guys, will Mena choose to leave with Ryker and be free or stay with her childhood friend, Ethan, and be United? 


Buy here:  http://www.amazon.com/EXALTED-Tara-Elizabeth-ebook/dp/B008RBYUZU/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1422681376&sr=1-3&keywords=tara+elizabeth&pebp=1422682316387&peasin=B008RBYUZU

Blurb for Denounced (Book 2):


Mena, an Exalted trainee, is the on the other side of a difficult choice: to leave the United Republic of the Saved with Ryker or return with Ethan and be United. Her decision changes everything . . . things she never considered. She has to overcome shocking realizations and tough challenges in the new life she has chosen. The people she thought she knew are not who she thought they were. Secrets come to light that were never meant to be known, by Exalted and citizens alike. The truth about the Republic is worse than Mena thought possible. Though she struggles, she continues on her mission to save the people of the Republic from the emotion-controlling drug called the Pump and set them free. She will do whatever she has to do for them and the people she loves.

Buy here:  http://www.amazon.com/DENOUNCED-EXALTED-Book-Tara-Elizabeth-ebook/dp/B00EGWCX3A/ref=sr_1_4?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1422681376&sr=1-4&keywords=tara+elizabeth&pebp=1422682449583&peasin=B00EGWCX3A



Tara Elizabeth's page: 

http://authortaraelizabeth.com/

Reign of Blood (Book 1) by Alexia Purdy

   April should be trying to finish high school.  Instead, she's killing vampires and raiding abandoned stores for food and supplies that she, her mother, and brother need to survive.  A year ago a virus overtook the world and now nothing is how it was.  Almost everyone died and those that didn't, turned into these zombie-like vampires with fangs and a taste for blood.  This is the world she now lives in.  April and her family live in this underground bunker that has solar powered energy and even showers.  Everything gets recycled and there is a lot of non-perishable food there.  But her mom doesn't want them using it unless they absolutely have to.  So they raid the empty stores in Las Vegas.  Then one of the worst things that can happen does; her family is taken.  She has no idea who has them or even where they could be.  So she starts searching for them in the numerous casinos.  Her new-found rage for the loss of her family causes April to get reckless and vengeful, burning some of the casinos and the vampires within them.  Then things change a lot.  Apparently there is more than one type of vampire out there.  There are ones out there that are so very similar to humans it is hard to see the difference except for their glowing, strange eyes, fangs, and incredible speed.  As much as she dislikes these creatures, they are the only way she will find her family.  So for now she must rely on what had been her enemy to find them.  Once April enters their hive though, she hopes she doesn't get murdered by the others before she can get the help she needs.

   I liked reading this book.  It was a different look at post-apocalyptic Vegas and what it would be like with vampires roaming the place.  The best part?  The diversity of the vampires.  It brings a whole new spin to the story.  There is so much that changed when the virus hit and you don't even find out the full extent of it until near the end of the book.  Even April has a few surprises about herself!  However, there were some slow spots in the book that bring down its rating for me personally.  Otherwise, this is a pretty fascinating read!

Virulent Books 2 & 3 by Shelbi Wescott

   After reading the first one in the Virulent series, I had to read the other two to find out what happens to Lucy, Grant, and the others.  So I am taking the time to give you a little idea of what books 2 and 3 are like. Part of what I love about the series is how the background information about some of the key players is slowly told.  No one's story is just immediately out there for everyone to see and just understand.  It requires careful attention and it requires you reading all three to really understand the reasons behind some of the things happening in the series.  Motive is a big deal in a book.  Without it, the book can turn out boring.  But this series has some powerful motives behind it.

The System: Book 2

   Grant and Lucy left in a hot air balloon to find the rest of the King family.  Lucy has no idea what she expects to find when she reaches the coordinates that her dad left as a clue.  Meanwhile, they are traveling the best that they can.  They find cars with gas still in them and drive as much as possible, but otherwise they are on foot.  The sight they see outside of their own town makes them realize just how bad things are.  This is basically the apocalypse, and possibly the end of most of humanity.  Grant and Lucy wonder if there are any others out there that survived since Grant did.  Grant was never immunized against the virus that swept through the entire world.  But he survived while everyone else died.
   Scott King's directions lead Lucy (his daughter) and Grant to Brixton, Nebraska.  Literally a town with only a handful of people.  But what they find is not what they expected.  They start finding bodies that were dead way before the virus, all of them executed.  A whole town was wiped out.  When they find the secret underground lair of Huck Truman (the man in charge of the virus and everything underground now), things get even more dangerous, especially for Grant who is an anomaly.  He is proof that others could have survived, and that goes against Huck's plan.  What's worse is that when Lucy is reunited with her family, they seem different.  They seem to be trying to settle into this new life under Huck's rule while Lucy hates it down underground.  And it puts her at odds with Huck and his family as well as her own family.
   Meanwhile, Ethan is still back at home waiting to see if Lucy and Grant will bring back people to rescue them from their situation.  Ethan's crushed legs have gotten worse and he is fighting for his life.  The doctor there is doing what she can, but she can only do so much when they have limited resources.


The Variables: Book 3

   Lucy and Grant are finally together after having a hard time freeing Grant from her own father's experiments.  Huck wanted to know as much as possible about why Grant was immune so that another virus could be created to kill those immune to the old one.  Although Scott King seems cold and distant, he is trying his best to keep his family protected.  Being protected means going along with whatever Huck wants or else.  Lucy is still at odds with her parents over how they are acting about their new home and is constantly fighting with them about it.  To make matters worse, Huck has started his reign of terror in Book 3.  He wants absolute power and for no one to question him so he starts making examples of people with the new virus Scott made.  Ethan is back with his family as well as the boy Teddy.  While Teddy is living with the Kings, his future is uncertain as well.  There is another within the system wanting to raise the boy and they may very well get their wish.  In fact, in this book the fate of the whole King family is in a precarious position.  Circumstances have put them in all in danger.  Everyone in the family is also unhappy with the happenings around them, causing even more tension.
   While the Kings are underground, Darla (Teddy's mom) and Dean (Grant's dad) are making their way to Brixton to find their children.  When help came for Ethan, everyone else in their little group was killed besides them, Ethan, Teddy, and Ainsley.  Ethan is Ainsley's only friend.  Her mom was the doctor tending to Ethan.  She was killed during the "rescue".  The three of them are going to face harsh circumstances themselves.  They can only hope to get to Brixton in time to save everyone before the underground group is relocated to their permanent residences.



 

The Burn (The Burn Series Book 1) by Annie Oldham

  Before WWIII, the United States took away all freedom of speech and personal privacy in a dramatic attempt to eradicate terrorism.  They had watchers in every classroom, every home.  There was even a bill in congress for personal identification implants so the government could always track their citizens' movements.

 Sixteen-year-old Terra lives where someone would only read about in science fiction and fantasy novels.  She lives below the surface of the ocean, down in the depths on the very bottom.  It is a secluded colony with a controlled climate.  She lives in a bubble.  Before WWIII (the Event) started, many scientists got together and formed these colonies in the ocean to escape what would inevitably happen.  When the war broke out, those living in the colonies were safe.  One hundred years later, their existence was just a rumor.  And the colony wants it to stay that way.  People don't ever go to the surface, what they call The Burn.  It is said to be an awful, desolate, and lawless place.  But Terra isn't happy with living in the colony.  To her it feels like living in a prison.  She longs to get out and see what The Burn is.  Mostly, she just wants to escape the colony.  Unfortunately everything in the colony is controlled and monitored heavily.  Escaping is difficult and she must leave behind her loving sister and controlling father.  Her mother hadn't been seen in a very long time.  Terra blames her father for that because of the strange circumstances of her mother's departure.  With the help of one of her teachers and the mysterious Gaea, she leaves for what had been Washington at one time.  Now all of the states have been dissolved and it is just called New America.  And it is nothing like she thought it would be.

"...Politically.  New America is the most stable nation at the moment.  Though that's nothing to brag about, given the way they're enforcing stability.  Their citizens are required to live in designated cities.  Anyone found outside is incarcerated in a labor camp.  So many other nations broke out into civil war after the Event and war with each other as well.  I suppose the relative peace in New America is admirable, but I wouldn't ask its citizens about it...."

When Terra reaches Washington, things are chaotic.  The first thing she does is rescue a guy who was drowning.  But he doesn't know who rescued him and she follows him and his friends back to their settlement.  Dave, the guy she rescued, takes to her quickly and likes her.  She likes him too.  But there is Mary, who Dave has a serious history with.  Mary also doesn't trust her.  The more she gets to know the people within the settlement, the more she feels like a liar and feels like she is betraying her new friends by not telling them the truth of where she came from.  Then again, she can't really talk.  The sacrifice for her to come to The Burn was her tongue.  So the group at the settlement thinks she is from Arizona.  The longer she stays and participates, the more she wonders if she should have stayed at the colony.  Even if it did eat at her from the inside out.  Here on The Burn it sometimes comes down to kill or be killed.  People didn't hesitate to take whatever they wanted or needed from you and you had to stay on your guard almost constantly.  Staying alive meant hard work and going out for meds and supplies sometimes, which could be extremely dangerous.  Should Terra stay?  Could she survive here in this new reality?

I left the colony to find a place I belong.  Instead I find I am capable of unspeakable violence.

One can only see the similarities in what happened before WWIII with the limitation of freedoms and how things are today.  History does repeat itself at times.  And although Terra lived in a safe and very controlled environment, is it really worth giving up her freedom for feeling like you're in prison?  Can you trade your freedom for safety and comfort?  Even though most would that lived in these colonies, she wasn't one of those.  The chance to find out who she really was and where she really belonged had a much bigger pull on her than the safety and comfort of the colony.  But what she found changed her.  Things out on The Burn were harsh.  A reality she never expected that made her question her decision to come there.  Want to hear the whole story?  Go check out The Burn!!

Quotes from The Ravening Series

Been reading The Ravening Series again by Erica Stevens.  Cannot wait for the third book to come out!  Be looking for it!!

"The girls at school had called him the black devil due to his cold demeanor, midnight hair and onyx eyes.  I had never given much thought to the nickname, I'd thought it was silly and that they were absurd for saying it.  Standing in his presence now though I completely understood it, and couldn't shake it from my mind." 
-Ravenous (Book 1)

"There was no way to become used to this.  To become accustomed to the lack of noise in a world that had once been alive and thriving with it.  To do so would mean that I was ok with the reason behind the quiet.  And I was not, nor would I ever be, ok with the death and mayhem that the aliens had unleashed upon us.  Never be ok with the horror, terror, and loss that had unfolded because of them."                -Taken Over (Book 2)

Exalted by Tara Elizabeth

   Imagine a world you lived in where there are no emotions.  And everyone around you is like that.  No one smiles.  No one laughs.  The single most thought in your head being that you should be strong and defend The United Republic Of The Saved...

 This is the world of Mena.  Every day is the same.  Always training, always eating the same thing, sitting with the same people at lunch, and the single most dominating conversation piece always being The Republic.  But Mena knows no better.  She grew up in The Republic.  It has been her mindset since she was a small child.  She was an Exalted, a protector of The Republic.
   Long ago an apocalypse had happened, and the world was now a different place.  There had not been many survivors afterward, but those that did banded together.  They built a new colony.  And out of that rose those that were different than the rest.

    They were strong, fast, and fearless.  They were gods.

So it was that the Exalted, as they were called, were defenders of this new colony.  There were mere Citizens who needed the protection, as well as the Ambassadors. The Ambassadors were the ones in charge.  The strange thing was that the Citizens and the Ambassadors had emotions.  Mena starts to notice how their faces change, how they have tears that fall sometimes.  This is not a world she knows anything of, but she pays close attention.  Meanwhile, everyone is getting ready for the Trials.  The Exalted go through tests of strength and agility and are paired up to be United forever based upon their scores of these trials.  There is no falling in love.  It is purely to breed to have more like them.  The only problem is that although Mena doesn't feel love, she does not want to be paired with just anyone.  Her first choice would be her friend Ethan.
   Before the Trials begin, she meets an outsider by the name of Ryker.  He tells her that the purple pill they take every day, called the Pump, is causing her to have no emotions.  So she gets off of the Pump to see if he is right.  She wants to be stronger for the Trials.  She wants to be number one.  Sickness overtakes her for days.  Then she starts experiencing things like she never did.  And unfortunately that involves feelings for both Ethan and for Ryker, which confuses Mena because she has never been in love and doesn't really understand it.  And now that Mena knows what it feels like being off the Pump, things are changing for her, and she has decisions to make that she has never had in the past.  Choices.  A brand new concept..


   This book sucked me in!  It is a whole new concept to me reading, a novel about such a cult-like group of people.  They all have no idea what is really going on, and even though you don't see very much of that in this book, you get the feeling there is some really weird mess going on behind closed doors.  The Exalted are basically being controlled by the Pump and the Ambassadors.  Children go to live in dorms at the age of 5 and start taking the Pump.  Afterwards, all they want to do is be the best fighter and protect their Republic.  It is brainwashing 101.  This has gone on so long that no one blinks an eye when all of this stuff happens.  If someone dies in the Trials, which sometimes happens, they are deemed as having been weak and their name is no longer spoken.
   I, myself, cannot imagine a world without laughing, smiling, and love.  Even not having grief or anger would run a person mad if they knew it existed and knew what it felt like, but couldn't have it.  Perhaps that is why none of them care about these emotions.  They grew up just like this.  And everyone around them was the same way.  Crazy!  But a total cliff hanger at the end!  Can't wait for the next book! (which should be coming out pretty soon)

                                                      http://authortaraelizabeth.com/


*image via Tara Elizabeth
*quote via Tara Elizabeth