THE SCARLET VEIL By Shelby Mahurin

September 11, 2023 by Leave a Comment

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

THE SCARLET VEIL By Shelby MahurinThe Scarlet Veil by Shelby Mahurin
Series: The Scarlet Veil #1
Published by HarperTeen on 9/26/23
Genres: Fantasy & Magic, Paranormal, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 640
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Buy on Amazon

Six months have passed since Célie took her sacred vows and joined the ranks of the Chasseurs as their first huntswoman. With her fiancé Jean Luc as captain, she is determined to find her foothold in her new role and help protect Belterra. But whispers from her past still haunt her, and a new evil is rising—one that Célie herself must vanquish, unless she falls prey to the darkness.

Short and Sweet Review

Six months ago Célie took her vows and became the first woman chasseur. Now she lives in chasseur tower with her fiancé Jean Luc, and she’s determined to prove herself worthy of the chasseur name. When Célie comes across a murder she sets into action trying to find the killer but darkness by the name of Michal finds her instead.

I loved the Serpent and Dove trilogy but I have a feeling that The Scarlet Veil is going to blow us all away when its finished. I may have liked the witches in the other series but they have nothing on the vampires that are introduced in this book. Célie is now to being a chasseur and she has to prove herself because its hard being the only woman in a place where men think they’re superior and are always in charge. There has been a string of murders around town and Célie is left in the dark about them until she finds one of the victims. This spurs Célie to try to find the killer but instead she meets Michal and his cousins Odessa and Dimitri who basically kidnap her and bring her to the Isle of Requiem. Célie learns that the island is dying and although he may be a brooding vampire Michal needs her help. On the island Célie learns that she can see ghost and that there’s something different about her but she’s not sure what exactly it is.

This book was so good! I haven’t read a book with vampires in a while and was a bit apprehensive but these vampires were serving and it reminded me of the vampires we would see in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Anyway there’s some tension between Célie and Michal and I loved every minute of it especially when one of them would give in. We see a lot of character growth from Célie and she proves that she’s stronger than people give her credit for and that she’s not only there to look pretty. Célie did annoy me a few times in her bid to be morally right mainly because she tried to do the right thing in every situation which is great and all but sometimes it would just be better if she chose the other option which is what other characters would try to get her to understand. We also get to see characters from the past books which was great and interesting to see how they still played a part. The quest Célie goes on here was so much fun the Island of Requiem was like a darker version of wonderland and even included a talking cat and I still can’t get over the vampires. The ending to this book was chaotic but in the best way and I want the next book immediately!

The Scarlet Veil was an amazing book and I could not put it down! If you loved the Serpent and Dove series get ready to fall in love with Célie and the vampires in The Scarlet Veil because they’re unforgettable and will leave you wanting more!

Filed Under: Reviews

GODS & MONSTERS By Shelby Mahurin

May 17, 2023 by Leave a Comment

I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

GODS & MONSTERS By Shelby MahurinGods & Monsters by Shelby Mahurin
Series: Serpent & Dove #3
Published by HarperTeen on 7/27/21
Genres: Fantasy & Magic, Paranormal, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 624
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
Buy on Amazon

Lou has spent her whole life running. Now, after a crushing blow from Morgane, the time has come to go home—and claim what is rightfully hers.

But this is no longer the Lou her friends knew. No longer the Lou who captured a chasseur’s heart. A darkness has settled over her, and this time it will take more than love to drive it out.

Short and Sweet Review

*Let me just start out saying that this review may have some spoilers, and for that I’m sorry!*

Gods & Monsters continues where Blood & Honey left off. (It took me a long time to read this book after I read #2 so don’t really remember what happened before.) Lou, Reid, Coco, and Beau are still traveling trying to avoid Morgane and the blood witches and trying to find allies to help them end this war. The synopsis says that there’s something wrong with Lou, and there is, she’s being possessed. After the group figures that whole situation out they continue their quest, make a few alliances and prepare for the battle that will end it all.

I will say that I did enjoy this book a lot more than Blood & Honey, there was more action and more meaningful decisions being made. We see Reid sacrifice his memories to save Lou’s life, and I just liked seeing Lou make Reid fall back in love with her it reminded me of the first book and how it went from him hating her to loving her. I would say that having Beau and Coco along for the ride was amazing and I kind of wish those two were a couple. Coco is the one who is always thinking logically, and Beau he was always cracking jokes even when it wasn’t the right time for it. I did like seeing all the sacrifices that had to be made and seeing Lou realize that it does pay off to have hope. The ending was good, it wasn’t spectacular, but we’ve been working up to this moment since the first book.

Overall, this trilogy had a lot of ups and downs and I do think that Gods & Monsters left everything off on a good note!

Filed Under: Reviews

BLOOD & HONEY By Shelby Mahurin

August 21, 2021 by Leave a Comment

I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

BLOOD & HONEY By Shelby MahurinBlood & Honey by Shelby Mahurin
Series: Serpent & Dove #2
Published by HarperTeen on 9/1/20
Genres: Fantasy & Magic, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 538
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
Buy on Amazon

Lou, Reid, Coco, and Ansel are on the run from coven, kingdom, and church—fugitives with nowhere to hide.

To survive, they need allies. Strong ones. But as Lou becomes increasingly desperate to save those she loves, she turns to a darker side of magic that may cost Reid the one thing he can’t bear to lose. Bound to her always, his vows were clear: where Lou goes, he will go; and where she stays, he will stay.

Until death do they part.

Short and Sweet Review

After the last book, Lou, Reid, Coco, Ansel, and the rest of the gang are trying to find allies to help them defeat Morgane. Lou and the gang are fugitives on the run from the church, coven, and kingdom, and really have nowhere to hide especially with Morgane trying to bait them.

Alright I feel like this review in particular is going to be very short because there’s not much to say. There wasn’t a lot going on in this book I was so bored I felt like the whole time they were trying to find allies and that was 80% of the book. It took me 8 months to read this book because of how many times I picked it up and put it back down, there was nothing that was holding my interest. Reid and Lou were insufferable I swear it to you all they would do was argue and it’s just like didn’t they fall in love in the last book? Now it’s like they can’t stand each other. The difference between Serpent & Dove and Blood & Honey is day and night. After reading this I can’t decide if I want to read the final book. I would do it just to finish the trilogy but if it’s as bad as this book was that’s 623 pages I wasted reading.

Filed Under: Reviews

SERPENT & DOVE By Shelby Mahurin

August 26, 2019 by Leave a Comment

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

SERPENT & DOVE By Shelby MahurinSerpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin
Series: Serpent & Dove #1
Published by HarperTeen on 9/3/19
Genres: Fantasy & Magic, Young Adult
Pages: 528
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Buy on Amazon

ReviewedbyDani

Two years ago, Louise le Blanc fled her coven and took shelter in the city of Cesarine, forsaking all magic and living off whatever she could steal. There, witches like Lou are hunted. They are feared. And they are burned.

As a huntsman of the Church, Reid Diggory has lived his life by one principle: Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. But when Lou pulls a wicked stunt, the two are forced into an impossible situation—marriage.

Lou, unable to ignore her growing feelings, yet powerless to change what she is, must make a choice. And love makes fools of us all.


Short and Sweet

Lou is a thieve and that’s the only lifestyle she knows after leaving her coven and swearing off magic. Reid is a  Chasseur (a witch hunter) sworn to the church to do his job. When Lou and Reid cross paths they end up in an unfortunate situation that ultimately ends with them being married. Now Lou has to figure out how to survive with one of her greatest enemies, but she finds herself falling for him.

Characters

Lou: Lou is our main character and sadly her past wasn’t the best, because her mother tried to sacrifice her on her 16th birthday. Ever since then Lou has been on the run and she gives up magic and anything having to do with it. Lou becomes a thief and this is how she ends up crossing paths with Reid. I love Lou her dialogue is amazing and funny and she has no problems with making people uncomfortable and pushing the limits, she honestly what makes the book so enticing.

Reid: Reid is our other main character and his past isn’t that great either. As a baby Reid was left behind and the church adopted him which is how he became a Chasseur. Reid takes his job very seriously and doesn’t believe that a witch should be allowed to live. I love Reid too, I mean even though he didn’t want to be married to Lou he took his vows seriously and he protected her and made sure she was safe and theres just so much more to him than the Chasseur Reid who follows rules.

Coco: Coco is one of Lou’s best friend, mainly her only friend. Coco is a blood witch which is different from what Lou can do. I love the friendship between these two, they care a lot about each other, and just when you thought that Coco made it to safety she actually found a way into the Chasseur’s tower just to be closer to Lou and look out for her.

Ansel: Ansel is an initiate and his job is to make sure that Lou doesn’t get into trouble while Reid is away. I loved Ansel he takes his job seriously but he’s also caring and even when he finds out that Lou is a witch he doesn’t kill her like he’s supposed to he ends up considering her a friend, which is what I loved most about him.

Romance

Lou and Reid: These two didn’t get together because they loved each other or even liked each other, they ended up together under circumstances that neither one foresaw. I like how the relationship slowly progressed and how they got to know each other. The chemistry was there and I like that Lou was able to get Reid to be more carefree.

My Thoughts

~ We get both Lou and Reid’s POV and I enjoyed both of them I didn’t prefer one over the other I think both were great.

~ The book is also set in a French inspired world which I thought was interesting I liked it. I like how authentic it felt and Lou usually spoke more French than Reid did.

~ Lou’s mother thinks that by sacrificing her it will end a feud between witches and the Chasseurs but in the end Lou ran away. So Lou’s mother has been searching for her ever since.

~ There’s a twist near the end of the book that I wasn’t expecting and I’m sure most of the characters weren’t expecting it either.

~ I love how Ansel and Lou became friends and that in the end he realized that not all witches are bad like he’s been taught and he’s the one who convinces Reid to stay with her.

~ Even though Reid and Lou were married she had to keep her secret from him which was hard especially when she found herself falling for him.

~ I found that I couldn’t put this book down and the ending was great and I just want to know what the group will do next.

Overall

Serpent and Dove was one of the best books I’ve read this year! Everything about it was amazing; the characters, the plot, the progression, and the ending! I need the sequel now, there was a cliffhanger and I just need to know what happens next. Definitely read this book because its amazing and its one you won’t be able to put down!

SmileRatingsSmileRatingsSmileRatingsSmileRatingsSmileRatings

Filed Under: Reviews