GODDESS OF LOVE

GODDESS SUMMONING #5 : GODDESS OF LOVE
                                                  
With "humor and verve," (Publishers Weekly) Cast tells the story of the mythical Venus who comes to life to help a nerdy woman find her inner goddess.

Pea Chamberlain needs a makeover-shoes, hair, clothes, make-up-if she wants to attract an ?bersexy fireman. And who could better coax Pea out of her pod than the Goddess of Love, whom she invokes in a moment of desperation?

Venus works her magic on Pea, but who will help her when she falls for that same sexy fireman? Could Venus need a love makeover for herself? Check out the five-alarm heat when the Goddess of Love unexpectedly loses her heart.

REVIEW :

This was the first Goddess Summoning book I read. It was an amazing story, the way P.C Cast makes the goddesses and gods into real people is mind blowing.
Venus is quite funny, with her special way of cussing and advice. Her loyalty is another special feature of Venus, she and Pea quickly become friends (in an odd way, yes).
The goddess summoning books have some elemants in common, one of those is that there is always a handsome but troubled guy that unexpectedly finds himself in te situation of falling in love with the mortal human main character. This is also the case in goddess of love, though it become's clear in a very unique way. Pea has a big crush on Griffin and Venus wants to help Pea being noticed by him, so you think that this book will end with Pea and Griffin happily ever after. That's were you're wrong and I'm not going to spoil anything, just read the book.

 It's amazing how P.C Cast fits everything perfectly togheter and gets that mind blowing ending that leaves you breathless and which I love.

DIVINE BY BLOOD

THE GODDESS OF PARTHOLON SERIES #2 : DIVINE BY BLOOD

Conceived in a lie and trapped in a tree throughout her gestation, Morrigan's birth was truly magical. After that start, she spent the next eighteen years raised as a normal girl in Oklahoma. Upon discovering the truth of her heritage, her rage and grief take on a power of their own, carrying her back to the world of Partholon. Yet, instead of being respected as the daughter of the goddess Incarnate, Morrigan feels like a shunned outsider.

In her desperation to belong in Partholon, she confronts forces she doesn't fully understand or control. And soon a strange darkness draws closer....

REVIEW:
I gave this book 4,5 roses.
This book was (as are all pc casts books) a really great read.
It was just that in this book she told the story of morrigan, while I love shannon and would have really loved a less tragic story about her and myrna and clanfintan.
Shannon didn't appear as much in this book as I would have liked. But that doesn't make it a bad book, as I neared the end I was satisfied at how she ended the trilogy. It was a beautiful and happy ending, which I love. And looking at the book afterwards I really wouldn't have want to miss it.

GODDESS OF THE ROSE

GODDESS SUMMONING #4 : GODDESS OF THE ROSE

It's not green fingers that have kept the Empousai family's roses blooming for centuries - it's the drops of blood that their women secretly sacrifice for their gardens. But Mikki would rather forget this family quirk and lead a normal life. Until the day she unwittingly performs a ritual and ends up in the strangely familiar Realm of the Rose. As its goddess, Hecate, reveals to her, Mikki has the blood of a high priestess running through her veins. And the realm has been waiting for her ...In a long ago flash of temper, Hecate cursed her Guardian beast with a slumber that only her priestess can undo - and Hecate is counting on Mikki to set things right. At first the beast terrifies Mikki - but soon he intrigues her more than any man ever has. But the only way he and the realm can be saved is for Mikki to sacrifice her life-giving blood - and herself ...

REVIEW :
I just keep loving these books. I love them, I devoured them. 
This story is an adult and way more interesting version of "beauty and the beast".
Mikki is a strong person, and Asterius is such a special character. Asterius is the beast in the story, he is troubled and distrusting because he was betrayed by the previous empousa (the bitch ;) ). He is fascinating and so sad, and that's why I love the ending and the way that the love between Mikki and Asterius grows and developes.
The goddess Hecate seems a little harsh, but I think that under that harsh layer is a loving and forgiving goddess. Which I find a lovely aspect of a goddess.

If you are looking for a special and romantic story, you should really read this book.
The goddess summoning books are pretty predictable, but that's NOT a bad thing. The set-up and plot are pretty basic, its the turns, twists, worlds, love and characters that Ms Cast creates that are the reason that this series has a special place in my (book) heart.
I just keep screaming and crying (mentally) near the end of the book, when there is a special turn where you think "noooo, why". But there is always a little voice in the back of my head that says "Ms Cast would never leave you with that feeling at the end of her books", and trust me she never does, she leaves you with a "happy sigh feeling" (I hope you know what I mean by that), and that's a comforting thought (to me).

I give this book 5 roses (I know, it seems like I'm giving all these books 5 roses, except goddess of light.)

GODDESS OF LIGHT

GODDESS SUMMONING #3 : GODDESS OF LIGHT

Tired of dating egomaniacs, interior designer Pamela Gray has nearly given up on men. She wants to be treated like a goddess - preferably by a god. As she whispers her wish, she unwittingly invokes the goddess Artemis, who has some tricks up her celestial sleeve...Twins Artemis and Apollo have been sent to the Kingdom of Las Vegas to test their mantle. Their first assignment: make Pamela's wish come true. So Artemis volunteers her golden brother. After all, who better than the handsome God of Light to bring love to this lonely woman? It might be a first but here in Sin City, where life is a gamble, both god and mortal are about to bet on a high-stakes game of love.

Review:   (SPOILER ALLERT, also don't read this review if you haven't read Rapture from Lauren Kate)
The beginning was quite slow but when it finally got up to speed it's really worth the wait. 
Pamela is a fun character, the way she discribes the architecture and design is quite funny.
Eddie is great as a character on the side, he has his own kind of wisdom, and his advise is remarkable accurate most of the time. Artemis is in the beginning a real bitch, but as she meets Eddie and falls in love with him she softenes quite a bit.
What I love about this book is that Lina and Hades (from goddess of spring) frequently come back in this book because of their friendship, Apollo kind of needs their advise.
The ending is beautiful and I would have never expected it to end like that but honestly I didn't like it very much, I like the happy endings in the goddess summoning books and with this ending I wasn't completely sattisfied. (When I read Rapture from the Fallen series from Lauren Kate I got a little deja vu, Daniel and Luce's ending was almost the same, but in that book I did like the ending like that) 
I strongly recommend reading goddess of spring first before starting goddess of light, because of the reappearance of Hades & Lina.

I give this book 4,5 roses because of the ending, over all it was a nice read that I really enjoyed.

GODDESS OF SPRING

GODDESS SUMMONING #2 : GODDESS OF SPRING

Lina's trendy bakery in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is proving to be less than lucrative and she must come up with a plan to save it. When she stumbles upon an Italian Goddess cookbook, she can't help but think she's found the answer to her problem - even if it means invoking a goddess to save her business. Soon enough, Lina finds herself face-to-face with Demeter, who has a plan of her own. She proposes that Lina exchange souls with Persephone, the Goddess of Spring, who will breathe new life into the bakery. In return, Lina must set order to the Underworld. Before all this, Lina's problems mostly involved dough and second dates. Now that she embodies the enchantingly beautiful Persephone, Lina has weightier things on her mind - like the formidable task of bringing Spring to a world of spirits. But when the handsome, brooding Hades kindles a spark in her heart, Lina wonders if this Lord of the Underworld might be the man of her dreams...

Review: 
Goddess of spring was my personal favorite in the goddess summoning series. I can't say one bad thing about this book.
Who knew that Hell could be so much fun and so beautiful.
Before I started reading this book I had heard about the Mythe of Hades and Persephone.
"Hades spots a beautiful young girl while she is pikking flowers and he abducts her to the underworld, bla bla bla."
Hades is the bad guy in the mythe but this book made me see him from a different perspective.
He wasn't the horrible god of the underworld, he was a brooding, handsome guy who is the misfit among the gods and has lost faith in love (although he loves soulmates).
When Lina comes in the body of Persephone (which she had to from Demeter, the mother of Persephone) she changes his world, and it becomes a sweet and very interesting lovestory.
Lina is a great strong, motherly kind of character who takes Eurydice (she is the little spirit who accompanys Lina to the underworld) under her wing. 
The ending is just the ultimate happily ever after, which left me with a big goofy smile and a happy sigh at the end.
All by all it was a really great book that I certainly recommend to anyone who loves mythology an a good lovestory.

I give this book 5 roses with a ribbon ;), I think it's obvious why.

GODDESS OF THE SEA

So, here it goes, my first, ever, book review (or talk, or something ;) )

GODDESS SUMMONING #1: GODDESS OF THE SEA

On the night of her twenty-fifth birthday, alone in her apartment, Air Force Sergeant Christine Canady wished for one thing: a little magic in her life. After drinking way too much champagne, she performed, of all crazy things, a goddess-summoning ritual, hoping that it would somehow make her life a little less ordinary...but she never believed the spell would actually work.

When her military plane crashes into the ocean, CC's mission overseas takes an unexpected turn. She awakens to find herself in a legendary time and place where magic rules the land—occupying the body of the mythic mermaid Undine. But there is danger in the waters and the goddess Gaea turns this modern, military gal into a beautiful damsel so that she can seek shelter on land.

CC is soon rescued (literally) by a knight in shining armor. She should he falling in love with this dream-come-true, but instead she aches for the sea and Dylan, the sexy merman who has stolen her heart.

Review:
This is not your typical mermaid story, okey there is the call of the sea and the beauty of underwater life, but that's not the main thing in this book.
This book was a rollercoaster of feelings (which I have to say is with all the goddess summoning books). One moment I was totally annoyed at Andras and Abbot William (and Sarpedon), and the next I was totally drooling over Dylan (who is just so swoonworthy) and loving Gaea and CC bonding
CC is a great character, she has her flaws but everyone has those and without them it would become a boring story.
The book begins slow, but when it gets up to speed you don't want to put  it down. This is a book that I didn't want to put down and wanted to read so badly that it was the first thing I did when I got home, woke up or had a spare moment.
These goddess summoing story's are an enchanting mix of mythology, magic, love and strong women.

I give this book 5 Roses, because it has all the elements I love in a story (I'm a little prejudiced with Cast's books, but what the hell, it's really really a great read ;))

P.C & Kristin Cast in Cologne

First of all I want to say that I'm a total P.C Cast fan. I love her books, the way she writes , the characters and worlds she creates, the romance in her books. Most of the time, while I'm reading one of her books, I'm laughing out loud from the funny dialogues. Sometimes I like to quote her too ;)

I went to her (and Kristin's) book signing in Cologne November 30th, and they were just sooo nice.
They were doing a tour through France and Germany to advertise (is that the right word?) Hidden (book #10 in their House of Night series).
I got some of my books signed (Hidden, Marked, Divine by Mistake and Goddess of Spring) which was just awesomesauce ;)

Here are a few pictures from the sigining (I'm standing on the left on the second picture, this is a rare thing because I really really hate being photographed);