Hotbloods: A House of Slide Novel by Juliann Whicker

Hi there readers!

Welcome back to Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers....the place to FEED your NEED to READ any day of the week with a tastey bookish treat from our extensive menu.  Whether you are looking for something family friendly, paranormally enhanced, or a good chick lit story to pass an afternoon....there's something for everyone here (or so I'd like to think).

First, a little reminder about the "Be Nicholson's Agent" event going on now.  If you haven't heard of it, READ ALL ABOUT IT right here...and be sure to check out the author's blog (or website) all month long as we toot our bookish horns about this horror-ific writer.  No seriously!  I've read a few of his works (and reviewed them here on the site, just search to find them) and they're definitely goosebump raising stories but his children's book?  Totally unique and family friendly...yep, even though it has monsters galore, it works.  So, as I was saying, be sure to check out the post for all the details!  Moving on...

Today's post covers a few areas of the genre game all wrapped up in one little old title.  Okay, so it's not really that little as it's a series name and a first book name but you know what I mean.  Today we are diving back into the YA genre with loads of paranormal written all over it (much like the tattoos on some of the characters) and just a hint of romantic interests.  Book one in a series that, well...why don't I just let the book blurb entice you and then jump into my thoughts, sound good?  Here we go.  Today's book of choice is....

Hotblood, A House of Slide Novel

by

Juliann Whicker

From the author...

He stole a kiss from the wrong girl…

Left without a soul, 17-year-old Dariana Sanders waited to die. There was nothing left to live for, nothing to feel besides the aching cold that never stopped. Her parent’s marriage was in shambles, and her brother, the only one who understood, the only one who knew how to make the cold go away, was gone forever. The only thing Dariana knew with absolute certainty was that nothing could possibly be right again. Enter Lewis Axel Nialls. Luckily for her, impossible is right up his alley. He can save her from the forces that wish to destroy her. Of course who’s going to save him, from her?

 
Ever have a book you just couldn't wrap your mind around no matter how much you wanted to? Yeah...a bit of a case in point here. When I started this particular title, I had the best of intentions...and about 100 pages later my intentions were still there just not quite as strong. It actually took a friend asking me what I was reading and commenting on how (based on the title) it didn't sound like my usual fare. I can see her point, sorta sounds like a steamy romance novel at first glance...which although there is nothing wrong with, is not my preferred reading genre.  That caused me to pause...and proceed to "defend" my choice in reading it thereby exposing something I didn't see prior to the conversation....a level of understanding.

It seems that while I've been struggling with grasping what is actually occuring in the book while in the act of reading, my mind was sorting through the data and able to make some sense of it all on the back end. In short, I could tell her what it was about and what was currently transpiring even though had I been asked as I read each eletronic page, I would have sworn otherwise.  (Go figure.)

From where I stand, it breaks down to this. There are four types of other worldly creatures (for the most part...or at least that are the focus of the story)...Hotbloods, Coldbloods, Wilds and Nethers. This being book one, I can only presume that the other books will delve into each type...maybe? There's the rumor of a war that's been brewing forever and a day yet still hasn't exactly come to fruitation despite some clamoring to make it happen.  Like whenever you have differing groups of people, the tensions tend to run high and someone is always trying to be the "top dog"....these guys are no different which leads to a highly volatile situation that...I'll refrain from revealing.  But...there's more....


You see, that's the story running underneath the surface, like an underground stream of which we surface dwellers are unable to see.  The top layer all focuses on the soul or the lack of their own soul, how it happened, who is to blame and what it all means.  Sounds good, right?  Well,  it is for the most part;  I mean, there's a lot of raw emotion in here. Many situations you simply find yourself getting caught up in the middle of it all and then.....it just sort of let's you go. O-O  There were several times as I was reading that I literally went back and reread a passage because I thought I had missed something, the transition was that sudden.  Now, jumping back to characters....


I would have liked to learn a bit more about the possibly conniving Devlin (maybe an idea for a prequel?) and Satan's past (not as in the devil himself, but as in brother of the House of Slide and one of Dari's many uncle's) has got to be colorful to say the very least.  Darianna herself was really just discovering who she was since the awakening of, well...since the events transpired that did transpire.  Lewis is a conundrum that you'll keep trying to figure out but don't be surprised if what you guess isn't quite right.  He's a mystery any which way you look at it, but whether in dream or nightmare, a pleasure nonetheless.  To list out all those that leave their mark within this story, would be like creating a roster for your own football team...with opposition...and possibly fans in the stadium.  It's large, varied, constant and at points a tad overwhelming but without them, the story would be incomplete...just keep a close watch on who's who or a notepad close by to make those connections easier.  Now, let's touch on that ending....

 

The ending....whew.  It twists in upon itself til you don't know which way is up, but in a good way!  It's definitely not what you're expecting and I hazzard to say that after the sneak peek at book two at book's end, it's doubtful we've heard the end of the initial saga (yay!).  I'm one of those readers that prefers a neat and tidy ending for better or worse, just so that we've got some closure (know what I mean?) and even though this is the first book in a series, the author offers us that option here while still leaving room to grow.  Kudos on that accomplishment for certain!

All in all, an interesting read that I came to enjoy, even if it took some time to get into and a bit of reflection to see the forest for the trees (filled with Nethers and bloodhounds and....~shiver~).  A book for mid to older teen readers through adults, not quite certain any younger than that would appreciate the story quite yet nor handle the hunting, death, blood, and battles.  It's handled well in delivery, but still....too young is too young.  Though at first read I was feeling pretty certain that one book was all I could handle of this tale, I'm now curiously interested in what might await us in book two.  Yep...my curiosity has been snagged and much like the characters hold on each other emotionally, it won't simply let go.

Ebook for review courtesy of author Juliann Whicker thanks to the connection made from fellow author
Michelle L John (Lady of the Veils).  (THANKS!)  To find out more about this title as well as the continuation of the series, be sure to check out the author's blog, GoodReads page, or follow along on Twitter!


Until next time...happy reading!