May Group Read: A Rush of Wings Wins!

[Theresa]

NOTE: I am going to be out of town right in the middle of our normal nominating/voting time so we're going to get started on May's Group Read a bit early.

Without further ado... Time to start nominating titles for May...

The rules for submitting a book title:
1) One submission per UF member
2) Please submit the title and author
3) UF titles are preferred, but supernatural, sci-fi, and fantasy are okay too.
4) It must be the first book in a series or a stand-alone title
NOTE = If the title is in a series, but can be read without previous knowledge of the earlier books, feel free to submit it.
5) If we have already read and discussed the first book in the series as a group, the second title can be submitted.

Let's go to a total of 10 nominations or an end date of Thursday, April 16th - whichever comes first.

For voting, we're going to use the Polls option again instead of submitting votes in the topic.

Please start nominating titles... and newcomers, please don't be shy - we would love to hear from you!

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1. Marked by Passion by Kate Perry
2. The Man With the Golden Torc by Simon R. Green
3. Young Wizards, Book 1 So You Want to Be a Wizard (20th) Twentieth-Anniversary Edition by Diane Duane
4. Touch the Dark by Karen Chance
5. A Rush of Wings by Adrian Phoenix
6. The Traveler by John Twelve Hawks
7. Demon Hunter, Book 1 by T.L. Gardner
8. Jacob by Jacquelyn Frank
9. Midnight's Daughter by Karen Chance
10. Any Given Doomsday by by Lori Handeland
11. Death's Daughter by Amber Benson

[Parisa]

Marked By Passion by Kate Perry. (urban fantasy/romance.)

[Shanon]

I'd like to nominate The Man With the Golden Torc by Simon R. Green

[Jenny]

So You Want to be a Wizard by Diane Duane is old, but completely unappreciated. The following series (which can all technically stand alone are also super-excellent!)

Also I like Cassandra Clares stuff!

[Kieraanne]

I'd like to nominate Touch the Dark by Karen Chance. "Cassandra Palmer can see the future and communicate with spirits;talents that make her attractive to the dead and the undead. The ghosts of the dead aren't usually dangerous; they just like to talk; a lot. The undead are another matter.

Like any sensible girl, Cassie tries to avoid vampires. But when the bloodsucking Mafioso she escaped three years ago finds Cassie again with vengeance on his mind, she's forced to turn to the vampire Senate for protection. The undead senators won't help her for nothing, and Cassie finds herself working with one of their most powerful members, a dangerously seductive master vampire—and the price he demands may be more than Cassie is willing to pay."

[DarkHeart "Vehngeance"]

I'm putting in another vote for Adrian Phoenix's A Rush of Wings. I could post the blurb for it, but I don't think it really does it justice. It's a wonderful book though.

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[Nia]

DarkHeart wrote: "I'm putting in another vote for Adrian Phoenix's [b:A Rush of Wings|2081569|A Rush of Wings (The Maker's Song, Book 1)|Adrian Phoenix|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I......"

Oh, I thought about nominating this one, too. Jeaniene Frost recommended it in her Lifejournal and and I already put it on my wish-list.

[Kathryn]

I nominate The Traveler by John Twelve Hawks.

I've noticed many readers placing this book on sci-fi shelves and though there are many technological and sci-fi type elements, this book is strong urban fantasy, in a "closed" world, with lots of action. The third book in the series comes out this year in September.

[Margaret]

I thought that I added my suggestion but I don't see it so here goes The Demon Hunter by T.L. Gardener

Demon Hunter is a hard hitting, fast paced, romantic thrill ride. The story follows a young African American man, named Elijah Garland, who has come to the decision that his life was never meant to be. Convinced that love and happiness will never find him, he gives up, but finds out that his life has only just begun, and that there was a reason for all of the tragic events in his life. Elijah learns that there is a deity directly responsible for all of his misery, and as the overwhelming truth is slowly fed to him, Elijah realizes just how small a player he is in this game -- a game being played by Angels. Elijah has been chosen to represent a god that he has never placed faith in to do a job that the Angels are too busy to do at the moment: destroy demons.

[[deleted user]]

Jacob (Nightwalkers Series 1) by Jacquelyn Frank*

[Heather]

I also want to go with Karen Chance but nominate Midnight's Daughter.

[Jenny]

Kieraanne wrote: "I'd like to nominate Touch the Dark by Karen Chance. "Cassandra Pa..."

Touch the dark sounds good!

[Jed]

Death's Daughter by Amber Benson of Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame.

[Theresa]

Summary of each of the titles submitted for the May Group Read... 1-5 (Summaries from Amazon.com):

1. Marked by Passion by Kate Perry
Out of the blue one day Gabrielle Sansouci Chin receives an ancient scroll that she discovers she was destined to protect. Her possession only means one thing...her father is dead. Gabe has no idea how she is going to balance her new responsibilities as a Guardian with being a painter by day and a bartender by night. But it seems like her luck has run dry when she's ill-trained to take her proper place as guardian, having a dry spell at painting, and for some reason can't help but fall for Rhys Llewellyn, the sexy Brit who offers his help in more ways than one.

2. The Man With the Golden Torc by Simon R. Green
Meet Shaman Bond, aka Eddie Drood, scion of the ancient Drood family, devoted to protecting humanity from the forces of darkness. Eddie faces arcane dangers with healthy doses of wry self-confidence and sarcasm. Then the family matriarch sends him on a mission that turns out to be a deadly setup. Declared a rogue, Eddie teams up with short-tempered witch Molly Metcalf to find out why he's been betrayed. This spy yarn is packed with enough humor, action and plot twists to satisfy fans who prefer their adventure shaken, not stirred.

3. Young Wizards, Book 1 So You Want to Be a Wizard (20th) Twentieth-Anniversary Edition by Diane Duane (from BN.com)
As two young wizards embark on a mission to preserve the universe they encounter an eerie version of Manhattan.

4. Touch the Dark by Karen Chance
Cassandra Palmer has been in hiding for three years since she escaped Antonio, the master vampire who raised her after he had her parents killed when she was only four. A gifted clairvoyant, Cassandra was Antonio's useful tool until she discovered his complicity in her parents' deaths and fled his estate. Tony has finally caught up with her, but he isn't the only one. The vampire senate is after her, too, and they've sent sexy vampire Tomas, who insinuated himself into her life by pretending to be an abused runaway, to watch over her. After Cassie and Tomas are attacked, he brings her to the senate. There she learns that the mages are gunning for her, too, as is the powerful vampire Rasputin, who is gearing up to challenge the senate.

5. A Rush of Wings by Adrian Phoenix
Smart, sexy FBI Special Agent Heather Wallace has been trying to catch the Cross-Country Killer for three years when the trail leads to New Orleans and Club Hell, where Dante Prejean performs with the Inferno, an industrial/goth rock band. Dante is a Cajun and a born vampire whose memories of his terrible past have been erased, leaving him vulnerable to the psychopathic killer, E, who knows all that Dante has forgotten. As E begins targeting Dante's loved ones, Heather must swallow her skepticism and work with Dante's vampiric friends and family to save him.

[Theresa]

Summary of each of the titles submitted for the May Group Read... 6-11 (Summaries from Amazon.com):

6. The Traveler by John Twelve Hawks
The time is roughly the present, and the U.S. is part of the Vast Machine, a society overseen by the Tabula, a secret organization bent on establishing a perfectly controlled populace. Allied against the Tabula are the Travelers and their sword-carrying protectors, the Harlequins. The Travelers, now almost extinct, can project their spirit into other worlds where they receive wisdom to bring back to earth—wisdom that threatens the Tabula's power. Maya, a reluctant Harlequin, finds herself compelled to protect two naïve Travelers, Michael and Gabriel Corrigan. Because the Tabula has engineered a way to use the Travelers for its own purposes, Maya must not only keep the brothers alive, but out of the hands of these evil puppet-masters. She succeeds, but she also fails, and therein lies the tale.

7. Demon Hunter, Book 1 by T.L. Gardner (from Goodreads.com)
The story follows a young African American man, named Elijah Garland, who has come to the decision that his life was never meant to be. Convinced that love and happiness will never find him, he gives up, but finds out that his life has only just begun, and that there was a reason for all of the tragic events in his life. Elijah learns that there is a deity directly responsible for all of his misery, and as the overwhelming truth is slowly fed to him, Elijah realizes just how small a player he is in this game - a game being played by Angels. Elijah has been chosen to represent a god that he has never placed faith in to do a job that the Angels are too busy to do at the moment: destroy demons.

8. Jacob by Jacquelyn Frank
Since time began, there have been Nightwalkers - the races of the night who live in the shadows of the moonlight. Love with humans is absolutely forbidden, and one man makes certain to uphold this ancient law: Jacob, the Enforcer. Immune to forbidden desires, uncontrollable hungers, or the curse of the moon, his control is total... until the moment he sees Isabella on a shadowy New York City street. But the moment he holds her in his arms and feels the soft explosion of her body against his, everything changes.

9. Midnight's Daughter by Karen Chance
Dorina Basarab is a dhampir—half-human, half-vampire. Unlike most dhampirs, though, Dory has managed to maintain her sanity. Now Dory’s vampire father has come to her for help— again. Her Uncle Dracula (yes, the Dracula), cruelest among vampires, has escaped his prison. And her father wants Dory to work with gorgeous master vampire Louis-Cesare to put him back there. Although Dory prefers to work alone, Dracula is the only thing that truly scares her—and when she has to face him, she’ll take all the help she can get…

10. Any Given Doomsday by by Lori Handeland
Psychic ex-cop Elizabeth Phoenix reluctantly takes the case after her foster mother, Ruthie, is murdered by monsters. Soon she's pointing out demons to her ex-boyfriend Jimmy, a half-vampire battling an army of Nephilim who plan to enslave and destroy humanity. They fight their way from Wisconsin to the southwest, where Jimmy leaves Elizabeth with Sawyer, a powerful Navajo shape-changer who awakens her libido as well as her psychic powers. Elizabeth's wry demeanor and complex relationships with Sawyer and Jimmy share center stage with the dramatic story line.

11. Death's Daughter by Amber Benson
Calliope Reaper-Jones so just wanted a normal life: buying designer shoes on sale, dating guys from Craig’s List, web-surfing for organic dim-sum for her boss. But when her father—who happens to be Death himself—is kidnapped, and the Devil’s Protege embarks on a hostile takeover of the family business, Death, Inc., Callie returns home to assume the CEO mantle— only to discover she must complete three nearly impossible tasks in the realm of the afterlife first.

[Danielle The Book Huntress]

I vote for Death's Daughter.

[DarkHeart "Vehngeance"]

Gatadelafuente (Danielle) wrote: "I vote for Death's Daughter."

You'll want to head over the Poll to cast your vote! =)

[Danielle The Book Huntress]

Done, thanks.

[Nichole (DirrtyH)]

Hey, DarkHeart, looks like A Rush of Wings is in the lead. Your perseverance has paid off! Victory is in sight!

[DarkHeart "Vehngeance"]

I'm preparing my victory dance! ;)