Tour! Rogue's Possession Review & Guest Post by the Author, Jeffe Kennedy!

Rogue's Possession (Covenant of Thorns #2) by Jeffe Kennedy 

Genre: Adult Fiction (Fantasy Romance)

Date Published: October 7, 2013

Publisher: Carina Press

The Blurb:

A human trapped in the world of Faerie, in possession of magic I could not control, I made a bargain for my life: to let the dangerously sensual fae noble known as Rogue sire my firstborn. And one does not break an oath with a fae. But no matter how greatly I desire him, I will not succumb. Not until I know what will happen to the child.

Though unable-or unwilling-to reveal the fate of human-fae offspring himself, Rogue accompanies me on my quest for answers. Along the way he agrees to teach me to harness my power, in exchange for a single kiss each day and sleeping by my side each night. Just as I am about to yield to temptation, I find myself in a deadly game of cat and mouse with an insane goddess. Now my search for the truth will lead me to the darkest of all Faerie secrets.

My Review:
Rogue's Possession is the second book in the Covenant of Thorns series by Jeffe Kennedy. If you haven't read Rogue's Pawn yet, check out my review! Rogue is... Rogue. *sigh* He is still entirely desirable yet he feels forbidden. So, naturally, I can't get enough of him. This alone kept me glued to the book.  Jennifer is never mentioned as 'Jennifer' within this book. She is going completely by the name Gwynn now. In fact, I forgot her human name was Jennifer until I looked over my review from book one. Rogue's Possession gave me more adventure and setting changes. While the romance was there, it wasn't always front and center. There was more going on in this story, and even more going on behind the scenes to keep you wondering. We are still not given the whole picture, but we are given pieces through the book that are building upon themselves towards something. What is that something? The author definitely knows how to keep her audience wanting more in every good way possible. The Covenant of Thorns' series is an addiction in the making. It's already too late for me, and it will be torture waiting for the next book!

I received the ARC of Rogue's Possession by Jeffe Kennedy from the Bewitching Book Tours for review. The opinions are my own.

Check out my reviews of the other two books in this trilogy!

A Guest Post by Jeffe Kennedy: Speculative Fiction, Fantasy Romance, and Twilight

From the very beginning, I've loved the name of this blog. It essentially poses the question, “what is out there for me after I've read and loved the Twilight Saga.” More, by asking that question, it firmly establishes what is true for so many readers: that Twilight and the sequels were the portal to reading speculative fiction.

I’m using that umbrella term to cover all forms of science fiction and fantasy, including those “in-between” genres like urban fantasy and paranormal romance, because learning to love one often leads to learning another. 

When I was growing up (and hiking through ten-feet of snow uphill to school, both ways), YA didn't exist as a genre. There was the Children’s section of the library, with bright colors and artfully wacky arrangements of books, and then the Adult Section, with towering dark shelves organized by relentlessly incomprehensible Dewy Decimal numbers. There was also a side area, kind of the bastard stepchild of the others, where mass-market paperbacks were thrust willy-nilly onto the shelves, in no particular order at all. 

So, when I exhausted the Children’s section (pretty early on), I plunged right into the adult world – and mainly those wildly random paperbacks, because their chaotic arrangement intimidated me less. I read everything from epic fantasy to hard-core sci fi. Once I learned the authors and genres I liked, I got better at finding them in the martial rows of hardbacks in the Dewey Decimal shelves. 

I remember very well the first time I heard about Twilight. It was back in 2005 and my BFF, who managed an indie bookstore, told me that her editor buddy in NYC had spent the weekend reading this new book. “It’s vampire,” she said, “but a new twist. And the relationship is totally chaste, but absolutely riveting. Since you’re thinking about writing this kind of thing, you should read it.”

And I loved it, too.

More, I loved how so many young people, the sons and daughters of my contemporaries, were gloming onto these books and loving them, too. In fact, when I started writing Rogue’s Pawn, book one in the Covenant of Thorns trilogy, way back then (it was a long time in the writing and revising, that first book), I thought it would be the kind of book that kids who read the Twilight books would grow up to read.

Look! Here you are!

What’s really funny to me is that Wikipedia calls the Twilight Saga “fantasy romance” – the same genre as Covenant of Thorns. 

Funny how the world unwinds, huh?

Check out my interview with Jeffe Kennedy

About the Author:

Jeffe Kennedy is an award-winning author with a writing career that spans decades. Her fantasy BDSM romance, Petals and Thorns, originally published under the pen name Jennifer Paris, has won several reader awards. Sapphire, the first book in Facets of Passion has placed first in multiple romance contests and the follow-up, Platinum, is climbing the charts. Her most recent works include three fiction series: the fantasy romance novels of A Covenant of Thorns, the contemporary BDSM novellas of the Facets of Passion, and the post-apocalyptic vampire erotica of the Blood Currency.  

Jeffe lives in Santa Fe, with two Maine coon cats, a border collie, plentiful free-range lizards and a Doctor of Oriental Medicine. Jeffe can be found online at her website: JeffeKennedy.com or every Sunday at the popular Word Whores blog.

She is represented by Pam van Hylckama Vlieg of Foreword Literary.

To learn more about Jeffe Kennedy and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, and Twitter.

Cover Reveal!! Rogue's Posession by Jeffe Kennedy!!

Before you see the cover for Book 2, Rouge's Possession, here's come info on book 1. I thoroughly enjoyed Rogue's Pawn, Book 1 in the Covenant of Thorns series. It's a definite guilty pleasure. 

Rogue's Pawn (Covenant of Thorns #1) by Jeffe Kennedy

Genre: Adult Fiction (Fantasy Romance)

Expected Publication: July 16th 2012
Publisher: Carina Press

Blurb:
This is no fairy tale…

Haunted by nightmares of a black dog, sick to death of my mind-numbing career and heart-numbing fiancé, I impulsively walked out of my life—and fell into Faerie. Terrified, fascinated, I discover I possess a power I can’t control: my wishes come true. After an all-too-real attack by the animal from my dreams, I wake to find myself the captive of the seductive and ruthless fae lord Rogue. In return for my rescue, he demands an extravagant price—my firstborn child, which he intends to sire himself…

With no hope of escaping this world, I must learn to harness my magic and build a new life despite the perils—including my own inexplicable and debilitating desire for Rogue. Check out my review!!

Now, check out the cover of Rogue's Possession!!!

Rogue's Possession (Covenant of Thorns #2) by Jeffe Kennedy 

Genre: Adult Fiction (Fantasy Romance)

Date Published: October 7, 2012

Publisher: Carina Press

The Blurb:

A human trapped in the world of Faerie, in possession of magic I could not control, I made a bargain for my life: to let the dangerously sensual fae noble known as Rogue sire my firstborn. And one does not break an oath with a fae. But no matter how greatly I desire him, I will not succumb. Not until I know what will happen to the child.

Though unable-or unwilling-to reveal the fate of human-fae offspring himself, Rogue accompanies me on my quest for answers. Along the way he agrees to teach me to harness my power, in exchange for a single kiss each day and sleeping by my side each night. Just as I am about to yield to temptation, I find myself in a deadly game of cat and mouse with an insane goddess. Now my search for the truth will lead me to the darkest of all Faerie secrets.

About the Author:

Jeffe Kennedy is an award-winning author with a writing career that spans decades. Her fantasy BDSM romance, Petals and Thorns, originally published under the pen name Jennifer Paris, has won several reader awards. Sapphire, the first book in Facets of Passion has placed first in multiple romance contests and the follow-up, Platinum, is climbing the charts. Her most recent works include three fiction series: the fantasy romance novels of A Covenant of Thorns, the contemporary BDSM novellas of the Facets of Passion, and the post-apocalyptic vampire erotica of the Blood Currency.  

Jeffe lives in Santa Fe, with two Maine coon cats, a border collie, plentiful free-range lizards and a Doctor of Oriental Medicine. Jeffe can be found online at her website: JeffeKennedy.com or every Sunday at the popular Word Whores blog.

She is represented by Pam van Hylckama Vlieg of Foreword Literary.

To learn more about Jeffe Kennedy and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, and Twitter.

Rogue's Pawn Tour! An interview with Jeffe Kennedy Plus an Excerpt!

I'm super excited about this tour! If you read my review of Rogue's Pawn, then you know it makes my day to have Jeffe Kennedy on the blog today!

How long have you been writing?
Since about 1996. I came to writing later in life, after I discovered a career in science wasn’t for me. But I started out as an essayist and writer of narrative nonfiction, so I’ve only been publishing fiction in the last 3-4 years.

What inspired you to write your first book?
A dream. A lot of my stories come from dreams and Rogue’s Pawn was particularly that way. It was the first novel I wrote. I woke up on a rainy Saturday morning with the story in my head and sat and wrote on it for half the day.

When you first started writing Rogue's Pawn, did you plan for it to be a series?
I did—just because that initial idea for the story was so big. I wouldn’t have planned it that way, but I knew from the beginning that it would take a while to tell all of Gwynn’s journey.

What can you tell us about the sequel?
Oooh. I’m in the thick of writing it and it hasn’t been an easy book. Rogue and Gwynn take a lot of good steps to understand each other and then things happen. Gwynn ends up with a lot of responsibility on her shoulders. Starling is really growing as a person and confronting the reality of being a half-breed. Darling discovers his battle name at last!

Which of your characters do you relate to most and why?
Definitely Gwynn. As much as I try to cultivate her to be her own person – and she has grown – she is still, in many ways, my avatar. She’s my most difficult character to write for that very reason.

What is a secret about you that nobody else knows?
Nobody at all? Hmm. That’s a hard one. I’m kind of an open book. There are many things only my man or my mother knows. Or my cats—they see a lot that should never be mentioned.

What book have you read too many times to count?
Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey. The binding has come apart.

What is the best piece of writing advice you ever received?
To write every day, at the same time every day. I spent a lot of years resisting this advice. When I finally followed it, I became a writer.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?
That I’m not the storyteller – that the story comes from outside of me. It’s a huge act of faith for me to sit down at the keyboard and trust that the story will come to me. Scary, too!

What do you like to do when you're not writing?
I love to read – whenever I can. It’s even better if I can sit in the sun while reading. I also love to garden and take long walks.

Are any of the things in your books based on real life experiences or purely all imagination?
The beginning of Rogue’s Pawn is based on real life. I was a PhD student in Neuroscience at the University of Wyoming for many years and I dated THAT guy. *shudders* I’ve also stayed at the inn at Devils Tower and Frank is the real owner, who talks just like that. After that point, well…. ;-)

If you could hop into the life of any fictional character, who would it be and why?
Phedre no Delaunay, because I want to know what it would be like to be her!

An Excerpt from Rogue's Pawn

“Enough,” a male voice said.

As if I’d ceased to exist, Tinker Bell blinked her eyes and regained her lovely self, face smoothing, shining once again in sunny elegance. Reboot and resume program. She gracefully stood and glided to the tray, set the bowl precisely in the center, lifted the tray and left the room without hesitation.

Booted footsteps crossed the room toward me. Act II, scene ii. Exit Nasty Tinker Bell, Enter God-Only-Knows-What-Now. My face was sticky with whatever the brothy stuff had been, my hair wet and fouled. I stank. I hurt. I was chained to a bed in a place so completely unknown I couldn’t begin to understand it. I tried to squeeze my legs closer together, but the chains seemed at the limit of their reach. The energy of my brief triumph evaporated, allowing tears to well up again.

Oh, please, please, please, do not cry. The threatening sting worsened. I closed my eyes and one tear leaked out. He stopped next to me, surveying me.

“You’re certainly a mess.” His wry voice was rich and smooth.

My eyes snapped open to glare at him through the blur. Fifty different smart remarks flew across my tongue, most along the lines that any failures of appearance on my part could be laid on the doorstep of someone besides myself. But even the buzz of the first word on my vocal chords brought searing agony. Relieved to have a legitimate reason for the tears, I almost welcomed the searing sensation.

“No, don’t try to talk—no one needs to hear what you have to say, anyway. Not that we can help it, since you think so loudly. And you have a decision to make. We have a quandary.” He began pacing, boots echoing against stone. “No one can heal you while you’re bound in silver and we can’t release you from the silver until you have yourself under control. Which will take a considerably long time—perhaps years of training—if you’re even able to accomplish it at all.”

I thought of the birds crashing in increasing cacophony with a small shudder.

“Exactly,” he confirmed. “And yes,” he said from the window behind my head where he seemed to be gazing out, “I can hear most of your thoughts—another reason to save trying to speak aloud.”

My stomach congealed in panic. Had he heard my secret thoughts? Don’t think of them, bury them deep, deep. Think of other things…like what? Think of home, think of Isabel. Isabel, my cat—Clive hated her. What would happen to her now? How could I not have thought of her until this moment? Abandoned, wondering why I never came home for her… And my mother—she’d be frantic. How long had I been gone? They could be all dead and buried, lost to me forever. The anguish racked me.

“Shh.” The man sat on the side of my bed now, heavier than Nasty Tinker Bell. He brushed the hair back from my forehead, then placed his long fingers over my brow and, with his thumbs, rhythmically smoothed along my cheekbones, wiping away the tears that now flowed freely.

I stifled a sob. I had cried more in the past day than I had in years. The sweeping along my cheekbones soothed me, melting warmth through my skull. The rhythm became part of my breathing. Deep breaths. Smooth, easy. The awful tightness in my chest gave a little sigh and released.

“Let’s try again, shall we?” The man pulled his hands away. I could hear him brush them against his thighs. Soup, tears and blood. Yuck.

My eyes cleared enough for me to see him. Ebony-blue climbed over half his face. The winding pattern of angular spirals and toothy spikes swirled out of his black hair on the left side of his face, placing sharp fingers along his cheekbone, jaw and brow. For a moment, the tattoo-like pattern dominated everything about him. Ferocious and alien.

Once I adjusted, I could see past the lines. His face echoed Tinker Bell’s golden coloring. He could be her fraternal twin, with those same arched cheekbones. But where she was golden dawn, he was darkest night. Midnight-blue eyes, that deep blue just before all light was gone from the sky, when the stars have emerged, but you could see the black shadows of trees against the night. He shared Tinker Bell’s rose-petal mouth, but with a curious edge to it. I suppose a man’s mouth shouldn’t remind one of a flower, and there was nothing feminine about this man. Where she wore the pink sugar roses of debutantes and bridal showers, his lips made me think of the blooms of late summer, the sharp-ruffled dianthus, edges darkening to blood in the heat. His bone structure was broader than hers but still seemed somehow differently proportioned, his arms hanging a bit too long from shoulders not quite balanced to his height. Inky hair pulled back from his face fell in a tail down his back. One strand had escaped to fall over his shoulder and I could see a blue shimmer in its silk sheen.

He arched his left eyebrow, blueness in the elegant arch, repeating the deep shades of the fanged lines around it.

“Shall we?” he repeated. 

I stared at him. What was the question?

Don't forget to check out my review of Rogue's Pawn!

To learn more about Jeffe Kennedy and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter.

Rogue's Pawn Tour: Book Review of Rogue's Pawn by Jeffe Kennedy

Rogue's Pawn (Covenant of Thorns #1) by Jeffe Kennedy
Genre: Adult Fiction (Fantasy Romance)
Expected Publication: July 16th 2012
Publisher: Carina Press

Blurb:
This is no fairy tale…

Haunted by nightmares of a black dog, sick to death of my mind-numbing career and heart-numbing fiancé, I impulsively walked out of my life—and fell into Faerie. Terrified, fascinated, I discover I possess a power I can’t control: my wishes come true. After an all-too-real attack by the animal from my dreams, I wake to find myself the captive of the seductive and ruthless fae lord Rogue. In return for my rescue, he demands an extravagant price—my firstborn child, which he intends to sire himself…

With no hope of escaping this world, I must learn to harness my magic and build a new life despite the perils—including my own inexplicable and debilitating desire for Rogue. Pre-order Rogue's Pawn Here.

My Review:
Rogue's Pawn brings you on a thrilling adventure with Jennifer as she wakes up in a world that is not her own. I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading, but it immediately reeled me in with Jennifer's witty internal monologues. When Rogue enters the scene, I was a lost cause. This book had me hook, line, and sinker. This is odd for me, because I'm not usually attracted to fairy type books. Maybe I've been missing out on something all this time. There were some moments of naughtiness within the story. Rogue's Pawn was addictive and tantalizing, and I probably liked it a lot more than I should have. I didn't realize it was the first book in what will be the Covenant of Thorns series until I finished reading the book. I'm excited to know that the story doesn't end here, and I can't wait for more! This series just may be my new guilty pleasure. Pre-order Rogue's Pawn Here.

To learn more about Jeffe Kennedy and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter. Check out my interview with Jeffe Kennedy too!

I received the ARC of Rogue's Pawn by Jeffe Kennedy from the Bewitching Book Tours for review. The opinions are my own.

Check out my reviews of the other two books in this trilogy!