Book Feature: Unnatural & Unwelcome by Michael Griffo (Archangel Academy 1 & 2)

Unnatural

Publisher:Kensington

Publish Date:February 22, 2011

Paperback, 480 pages

ISBN: 9780758253385
Fiction, Young Adult, Paranormal

Archangel Academy #1
About the Book:
In the town of Eden in northwestern England stands the exclusive boarding school known as Archangel Academy. Ancient and imposing, it’s a place filled with secrets. Just like its students…

For Michael Howard, being plucked from his Nebraska hometown and sent thousands of miles away is as close as he’s ever come to a miracle. In Weeping Water, he felt trapped, alone. At Archangel Academy, Michael belongs. And in Ciaran, Penry, and especially Ciaran’s enigmatic half-brother Ronan, Michael finds friendship deeper than he’s ever known.

But Michael’s only beginning to understand what makes the Academy so special. Ronan is a vampire—part of a hybrid clan who are outcasts even among other vampires. Within the Academy’s confines exists a ruthless world of deadly rivalries and shifting alliances, of clandestine love and forbidden temptations. And soon Michael will confront the destiny that brought him here—and a danger more powerful than he can imagine…

Unwelcome

Publisher:Kensington

Publish Date:August 1, 2011

Paperback, 352 pages

ISBN: 9780758253392
Fiction, Young Adult, Paranormal
Archangel Academy #2

About the Book:
 Archangel Academy is more than a school to Michael Howard. Within its majestic buildings and serene English grounds, he's found friends, new love, and a place that feels more like home than Nebraska ever did. But the most important gift of Archangel Academy is immortality. . .
Life as a just-made vampire is challenging for Michael, even with Ronan, an experienced vamp, to guide him. Michael's abilities are still raw and unpredictable. To add to the turmoil, the ancient feud between rival vampire species is sending ripples of discord through the school. And beneath the new headmaster's charismatic front lies a powerful and very personal agenda.
Yet the mysteries lurking around the Academy pale in comparison to the secrets emerging from Michael's past. And choosing the wrong person to trust—or to love—could lead to an eternity of regret. . .


About the Author:

Michael Griffo is an award-winning writer and one of six playwrights whose career will be tracked by WritersInsight.com until 2010. He is a graduate of New York University, has studied at Playwrights Horizons and Gotham Writers Workshop, and has written several screenplays.

*** I'm currently reading these so expect my reviews tomorrow - I've really enjoyed delving into the world Michael Griffo has created in Unnatural and look forward to seeing more of it in Unwelcome, so stay tuned for the reviews.***

Guest Blog, Book Review and Giveaway: The Comforts of Home by Jodi Thomas

As fall settles in around the Panhandle of Texas, I’m getting excited about THE COMFORTS OF HOME coming out Tuesday, Nov 1, 2011. My favorite time of year is fall with the cool nights and sometimes rainy days.  The perfect weather to curl up with a book.

Since the idea of a small town of Harmony first began to form in my mind, I wanted to write about not only the ‘important’ people in a place who make the community run, but also about the quiet people who live their lives and get lost in their dreams.  COMFORTS is a book full of possibilities in love and life.  Read it on a cool winter day and I promise it’ll warm your heart.

In a closing note, I’d like to add that you are going to love a new character I introduce.  He’s just a kid (17) with long hair, and a dream to make it big in the music world.  We’ll be watching him grow up and fall in love several times before he figures women out. 

Come along with me to Harmony.  We’ll have a grand visit with the people there.

Wishing you much love and laughter in your life,

Jodi Thomas

www.jodithomas.com

www.facebook.com/JodiThomasAuthor

The Comforts of Home by Jodi Thomas

Publisher: Berkley

Publish Date: November 1, 2011

Paperback, 320 pages 
Fiction, General Fiction with romantic elements
 ISBN: 978-0425244487

My Review:
Coming back to Harmony with each book is like coming home to me.  Jodi manages to make the town of Harmony, Texas feel like my own home town and it's inhabitants like people I know and run into at the store.  Even though there are usually six months between installments, I fall right back into town life and the life of the people the story focuses on.  Yet if this was the first Harmony novel you were to pick up, I think that would be fine as well.  Jodi goes into enough back story to familiarize you with a character so a new person to the Harmony books wouldn't feel lost.

The Comforts of Home is different from the first two Harmony novels which focused mainly on one couple while focusing on the town too.  Now of course those two couples are settled down and we get to see some of them in this book which is a real treat.  But in this installment, several story lines are focused on.  Here several romances are given the spotlight and several characters with minor roles in earlier books are also given the spotlight.  Reagan and Noah are ever-present and I am glad for that - I want to continue to see them grow up in the town of Harmony.  I also love how Jodi uses people of all different ages in her books.  She doesn't focus on 20-something couples or even 30-somethings.  There is even a couple who broke up in WWII in this one who are either trying to reignite the fire or keep it going, depending on who's gossip you believe.

So there is romance, and that is wonderful, but the characters are what really make these books and The Comforts of Home is no exception.  Getting a closer look at Tyler, Kate, Ronelle and several others was great in this book.  Such different people with different lives, yet they can all come together when needed.  And of course some new faces are introduced and there are some definite interesting ones there as well that I can't wait to see more of in future books.

I won't give too much away but suffice it to say that the plot moves along swiftly.  I never wanted to put it down and I didn't want it to end.  I definitely don't want to wait until April for the next book, but I guess I will have to.  Until then I have the various stories going through my head and hopes and dreams for the characters to come.  So far Ms. Thomas has not disappointed and I don't expect her to anytime soon.  The Harmony series is like a roaring fire on a cool fall or winter day, comforting and relaxing, something that just makes you feel like you are at home.  That's what The Comforts of Home is like and it's perfect for these coming late fall/early winter days so make sure you get a copy and see for yourself.


My Rating: 5.0/5.0

About Jodi

Jodi Thomas is the NY Times and USA Today best-selling author of 34 novels and 11 short story collections. In June 2011, WELCOME TO HARMONY won a RITA, the highest award for contemporary
fiction. Jodi currently serves as the Writer in Residence at West Texas A&M University in Canyon,
Texas.


Website
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About The Comforts of Home:

In Harmony, Texas, twenty-year-old Reagan Truman has found her place, and found her family. But with her uncle taken ill and her friend Noah lost and disheartened with his life, Reagan is afraid of ending up alone again, and she's not the only one. When a terrible storms threatens the town, the residents of Harmony are forced to think about what they really want. Because making the connections they so desperately desire means putting their hearts at risk...

Giveaway:

I have been given 1 copy of The Comforts of Home by Jodi Thomas to giveaway to the readers of this blog. Simply leave name and email in Rafflecopter to enter.  Additional entries are available but not required.  Giveaway open to US/Canada only.  Giveaway runs through October 25, 2011.

FTC Information: I received this book from the publisher for an honest review.

Teaser Tuesday - October 18

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! 

"Can't believe you're a sophomore already;  my little guy's gettin' to be a man."  She was standing in front of the oak bookshelf looking at the spines of the books Michael had read and would most likely read again. They were his escape.  It didn't take a genius to figure that out.

From Unnatural by Michael Griffo

About Unnatural


In the town of Eden in northwestern England stands the exclusive boarding school known as Archangel Academy. Ancient and imposing, it’s a place filled with secrets. Just like its students…

For Michael Howard, being plucked from his Nebraska hometown and sent thousands of miles away is as close as he’s ever come to a miracle. In Weeping Water, he felt trapped, alone. At Archangel Academy, Michael belongs. And in Ciaran, Penry, and especially Ciaran’s enigmatic half-brother Ronan, Michael finds friendship deeper than he’s ever known.

But Michael’s only beginning to understand what makes the Academy so special. Ronan is a vampire—part of a hybrid clan who are outcasts even among other vampires. Within the Academy’s confines exists a ruthless world of deadly rivalries and shifting alliances, of clandestine love and forbidden temptations. And soon Michael will confront the destiny that brought him here—and a danger more powerful than he can imagine…