Monday, August 12, 2013

Blog Tour: Snake In The Grass (Good Gods #2) by Staci Hart {Review + Giveaway + Guest Post}

Welcome to our stop on the SNAKE IN THE GRASS blog tour hosted by IMR BLOG TOURS. I am excited to bring you my review of book two in the Good Gods series by Staci Hart. Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to check out the GIVEAWAY below! -Hootie


{Click the banner to follow the tour}


Genre: Contemporary/Paranormal Romance
Age Group: 18+
Series: Good Gods #2
 Publication Date: July 30, 2013
Published By: Promise Socks Publishing
Format: Beta/ARC
Source: Provided by author for review


It’s Round Two of high stakes Love Connection on Olympus, and this time, everything has changed. For Aphrodite, at least. Ares is on deck, and Aphrodite is nervous. As much as she loves to hook up with him, she doesn’t trust him as far as she could throw him, which isn’t very far. He’s a big dude. They haven’t been together in a very long time, but she can’t resist him. She never could. Even when every part of her screamed that he was a liar. He has a plan to keep Aphrodite, for good this time. He wants to win the game, but he’ll hold back to get what he wants. He’s sitting on a chance that he’s been waiting thousands of years for, and he’ll do what he has to do to convince her to stay forever. The only thing that could stop him is the secret that he’s been keeping from her for eons. If she finds out, it will destroy everything. Aphrodite is getting crap for her choice in player, because from the outside, it looks like a match that would never work. Kat and Dillon have been through a lot, and everything has been to protect their younger siblings. They sacrificed everything to make sure their brother and sister would be safe. The players are tough and loyal. Fierce and determined. But they become each other’s weakness, even though they fight it, and even though it means danger for Kat and her sister. If Aphrodite can get the players over their egos long enough to see that they’re meant for each other, this competition will be a piece of cake. One that she’ll eat a la mode, right in front of Ares, if she beats him.




My Take:
After finishing Deer In Headlights, the first book in the series, I was hooked. It was funny, witty, interesting and romantic. To have been a debut novel it was very well written and upon going into Snake In The Grass I wondered if this one would be just as funny and witty. What I got was nothing like what I expected. Where Deer In Headlights was funny, sarcastic and upbeat, Snake In The Grass takes a more serious turn. Now that all the players have been introduced the games get more fierce. In this installment Aphrodite (Dita for short) is pitted against longtime on again off again rival and lover, Ares. He wants to win so he can finally claim her as his once and for all and stops at nothing to get what he wants. With Ares being the God Of War his choice in a human is more dark and mysterious than we saw in Deer In Headlights with Dean.


Enter Dillon. Irish Descent. Bare knuckle fighter and complete bad ass dude nobody wants to tangle with, his reputation in the ring is unmatched. He never loses and Ares believes him to be the one to finally take Dita down. Dillon has a tragic past that fuels his inner demons and makes him dangerous to anyone who gets close to him when he lets the hold on his control loose. Ares believes Dillon is way too damaged to actually be in a relationship. I have an extreme emotional attachment to Dillon's character and it's unexplainable. His character was dark, broody and fierce but there was something about him I couldn't help but be drawn to. Finding out that he was abused by his drunken father and being witness to something horrible as a young boy that changed the life of him and his brother solidified my devotion to him. Throughout his childhood he was subjected to beatings in place of his younger brother Owen. Dillon did whatever he could to protect him and often became a target because of it. He doesn't think he can be in a relationship because when he loses his temper, the only person who can bring him back is Owen. Until He meets Kat..



Kat is just as messed up being one of two daughters to a secretive Japanese mafia enforcer named Tanaka Katsu. Growing up Kat had to look out for her sister Kiki due to her father's enemies posing a threat to their safety. When the story opens the sisters are on the run from Kiki's extremely volatile ex boyfriend Eric. Leaving everything they love in Vegas they head to be with their father in New york to hide out. When the girls begin working at a local Irish pub/bar they are thrust into the lives of Dillon and Owen. Kat's character was one of those females I look up to. She was fierce, independent and protective. She felt that it was her job to look after Kiki and kept herself from serious romantic entanglements so she didn't lose her head in love. What surprised me the most about her character was her love of street racing. She turned out to be kick ass behind the wheel and in a sport dominated by testosterone she encounters a few men who hate losing. Especially to a woman. Behind her tough outer exterior she had a vulnerable side that called to the mother bear inside me. My heart went out to her having such serious responsibility thrust upon her at a young age. Apparently the Japs take their promises seriously and Kat felt her promise to her father was of the highest importance. 



The main thing I loved about this book and the series in general is how you get two COMPLETELY different stories within one book. Not only are the Gods in competition in this one also but the story between Dita and Ares develops into this emotional entity you can feel brewing from the start. For thousands of years Dita has loved Adonis and has pined for her murdered love. When she finds out the truth behind the events that took the life of her beloved, nothing will be left standing in the aftermath of her wrath. The relationship between Kat and Dillon is going on at the same time also and getting to watch Dita work her magic on them was very rewarding. These two people needed each other to be able to heal from their past experiences and by the time everything was resolved I was an emotional mess. Snake in The Grass was so well written that once you get settled into one side of the story the landscape changes and you get to take a break from one side and get to another. It never felt jarring or choppy and was so well written that I got lost in the plot. I was completely sucked into this world and for moments at a time almost forgot that this was Paranormal/Supernatural in nature. Yes it's about Greek Gods but the way it is written, with the Gods living in a modern setting takes you out of the realm of the unbelievable and makes you actually think this world exists. I love when a book can do that, I think it shows signs of a phenomenal writer. To be able to tell a story and make you forgot it's a story.


The secondary characters pulled me into their world just as much as all the main players. Katsu and Kim, the parents to Kat and Kiki became this amazing super couple in this book for me. I found myself getting small glimpses of them through their kids' eyes and wondered to myself what their story was. How did they meet? Fall in Love? and how have they stayed together through his marriage to another woman and her living on the other side of the country. The author pulls you into not only the Gods' world but the backup characters as well. It's very rare that I get drawn so heavily into the secondary characters that I beg for a book about them but with Katsu and Kim their relationship came off as so amazingly genuine and romantic that I couldn't help but want more from them.


The relationship between Owen and Kiki served as the catalyst to Dillon and Kat's union and for that alone I love them. They were a great supporting set of characters and watching Owen be so sweet to Kiki was refreshing after seeing her suffer at the hands of her ex.


Overall Snake In The Grass was an even bigger win for me than Deer In Headlights. It's more emotionally intense, romantic and Dramatic and proves this author knows how to write both humor and heart. I absolutely loved this story and can't recommend both books in the series enough. 



Quotes:

Now that Adonis was out of the picture entirely, for the time being at least, Ares was planning to take advantage. he know how she got when she hadn't had sex. Piece of cake. Ares slipped his hands under his head and smiled up at the ceiling. ~ Ares Beta/ARC 9%

She wasn't like the women he knew. They didn't care about him, they just wanted his money, to be connected to him. But Kat, she was her own beast, her own animal, her own force. He couldn't help but wonder what would happen if his force met hers, what kind of noise they would make when they collided. ~ Dillon Beta/ARC 21%

“You guys are so weird,” Perry said with her mouth full, then swallowed. “I’ll never understand it. I don’t know how you can compete against him so hard and still be fucking his brains out.” Daphne choked on a bite of hot dog, and Perry patted her on the back. “Sorry, Daphne.” Dita shrugged. “It’s what we do. The competition kind of fuels the fucking.” ~ Perry, Dita, & Daphne Beta/ARC 44%



{Click for Goodreads description about book 1 in the series}

Guest Post:
Inspiration and mythology

I have always loved Greek Mythology since I was a little girl. The first time I saw the D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths, I was hooked. I always enjoyed learning about it in school, finding them so fascinating, so human, despite all the weird, freaky stuff they did (like Zeus saving Dionysus from his dead mother and sewing the unborn fetus into his thigh. I'm serious.).

I hadn't thought much about mythology, outside of the occasional movie or references in fiction until a friend asked me, if I were ever to write, what would I write about? I knew that the answer would include:

1)      Fantasy. I've had enough real life, so I prefer my fiction with a bit of the supernatural.
2)      Romance, and comedy. Because who doesn't love a good love story? And I can't take much seriously.
3)      Happy Endings. I just need my characters to get what they want. I love a good satisfying ending where everything gets tied up all pretty.

When I thought about Fantasy and Paranormal, I knew I didn't want to write vamps/were/shifters. As much as I love them, I knew I wouldn't be able to write something with a horror/suspense element. The occult didn't speak to me, either. And then I remembered Mythology, and I knew that was it. It's a subject that I already knew quite a bit about, and I knew that I would enjoy researching.

From there, it was figuring out the conflict. How would it work? Who are these gods and goddesses? I loved the idea of the gods playing games with humans, and it being a romance novel, Aphrodite was the easy choice for protagonist. Then I decided that each god would choose a player and Dita would make them fall in love while her competitor would try to keep them apart. I chose my players from there, and then, it almost wrote itself. It was some of the most fun I've had in my life, and so rewarding to get to share with all of you!



Giveaway:
5 ebook sets of Deer in Headlights and Snake in the Grass
3 Deer in Headlights magnets
1 Signed paperback of Deer in Headlights
1 Signed paperback of Snake in the Grass
5 amazon gift cards for 2.99


a Rafflecopter giveaway








ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Staci has been a lot of things up to this point in her life -- a graphic designer, an entrepreneur, a seamstress, a clothing and handbag designer, a waitress. Can't forget that. She's also been a mom; she has three little girls who are sure to grow up to break a number of hearts. She's been a wife; even though she's certainly not the cleanest, or the best cook. She's also super, duper fun at a party, especially if she's been drinking whiskey. Her favorite word starts with f, ends with k, and there a uc in there. Just saying. From roots in Houston, to a seven year stint in Southern California, Staci and her family ended up settling somewhere in between and equally north, in Denver. They are new enough that snow is still magical. When she's not writing, she's sleeping, cleaning, or designing graphics. But let's be honest, she's mostly writing.



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11 comments:

  1. Like the quotes. Glad you enjoyed this one!

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  2. I liked the quotes too! And that you basically get two stories in one. Great review, chicky!

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  3. I cannot wait to read Snake in the Grass -)

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  4. I'm a little tired of Greek Myth revamps so I'll take a pass on this.

    P.S. I have Thoughtless, I think I want to torture myself and read that. I know Debbie hated that one at first too. I like infuriating characters, keeps my heart healthy.

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  5. I enjoyed your take on Snake in the Grass. Thanks for sharing it and the gveaway. Sounds like a good book evamillien at gmail dot com

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  6. Thank you for the great Inspiration and mythology guest post :)

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