Friday, April 6, 2018

Interview + Giveaway: Never Fear the Reaper by Ashley Pagano

UFI welcomes Author Ashley Pagano. Thanks for Joining us!!

What do you enjoy doing on your down time? 
I have a beautiful family and an extraordinary baby girl whom I am honored to be her mother.  Most of my free time is devoured by her but with the little time and energy I have left, I workout.  Running, Crossfit, or Insanity are my stress-relieving outlets (yes, even authors need outlets).

What is your Favorite part of writing?  

Honestly, if you know me than you know I love a challenge. Therefore, I always knew which climactic scenes I wanted to tie into my stories so the most challenging part, and my favorite part, is getting from one to the next.  Linking them together while keeping the nail biting, edge-of-your-seat feeling up. I like all the space and dialog in between.

What would your ideal career be, if you couldn't be an author?  

I think something to do with fitness instruction.  I’d love to inspire woman by using my personal workouts, which I’ve uniquely modified.  

Do you have any certain routines you must follow as you write? 

No really. Once I have a blank piece of paper in front of me I just let my wild imagination run rampant.

What are some of your Favorite books or Authors in the Urban Fantasy/ Paranormal Genres? 

I’m going to be honest, yet cliché, here and say J.K. Rowling for her indescribable imagination and Stephenie Meyer for how she writes about all- consuming, challenging, meant-for-each-other love.

How would you pitch Never Fear the Reaper to someone who has not heard of it before?

She’s been to the other side and back again . . . But she’s never met anyone like him.  He can see things no one else can . . . But he only sees her. From the moment he witnesses her do the impossible . . . he is obsessed.  

When Chase hires the mysterious ghost exterminator, Ryder, to cleanse his house from a pesky poltergeist he gets way more than he’s paying her for… There’s just something about Ryder that has him mesmerized.

Is it the fact that he’s witnessed her do the unexplainable? Or the fact that she’s absolutely breathtaking? Or perhaps it’s that eerie familiar feeling that they’ve met before, perhaps in another lifetime.  

Chase desperately tags along with Ryder on a whirlwind of life threatening adventures in exchange for a few precious moments of alone time with her. With the Grimm Reaper’s Scythe as their defense, Chase developing some supernatural gifts of his own, and an intense crush developing between them what crazy supernatural force will target them next?  

This story will make you cringe, bite your nails, shimmy to the edge of your seat, and excessively fan yourself.

Can you tell us a little bit about the world that Never Fear the Reaper is set in? 

It takes place around my hometown in New Jersey in the current time period.  However, there’s a parallel, paranormal world, that only Ryder and Chase are in tune with, happening all around us.  They constantly jump in and out of it while desperately trying not to fall in love with each other.

Do you have a favorite scene in Never Fear the Reaper?  

Yes, in chapter 4 when Ryder tells Chase her back-story, that she’s died once before, encountered the Grim Reaper and has seen all his terrifying details, and stolen pieces of his deadly Scythe in order to escape death.  When you meet Mister Grim, from her perspective, it’s one you’ve never heard before or can barely fathom.

Which one character out of all your books was your favorite to write about? What about the hardest to write about? 

I think the story’s protagonist, Ryder, was my favorite to write about because I modeled her after my own personality mixed with the woman I strive to be. Her sassiness, independence, and my strong will are all reflections of my own.  The hardest character to write about was her love interest, Chase, because I needed him to be her opposing personality yet appealing enough to spark her interest. He needed to challenge her and hold his own against her demanding and lethal attitude.       
 
What Other Projects can we look forward to reading from you?

Besides, the other two books in this series, I’m in the process of writing a completely different book.  It’s another YA, paranormal romance but the characters are much different and there’s more of them to fall in love with.  This one takes place in a completely different, inventive setting.
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Ashley Pagano has always dreamed of being an artist both figuratively and literally. Her love of art was instilled by her mother who always inspired her to be creative either with a paintbrush or with a pen and paper. As far back as she can remember her life was always centered around introspection, storytelling, and imagination. Because she is so artistic, she took to the idea of creative writing very passionately. Her ability to describe a scene, person, or place, she compares to painting a picture, where she can describe every detail vividly in order to make the reader feel like they’re truly living in the story. Her works of writing usually center around a powerhouse female protagonist (which reflect her own personality), who progresses through many wild and extreme obstacles. Ashley loves to write stories that end with a cliffhanger, that leave the reader begging for more and questioning what happens next. Her most recent novel sets the stage for the paranormal romance of the century and includes ghosts, poltergeists, and demons who just love to get in the way of true love. Ashley has won awards for her design, art, and writing.

Ashley doesn’t believe in down time whatsoever and actually loves having a full “To-Do”list. Ashley is a wife to her wonderful husband, Eric and a mother to a beautiful little baby girl named Dakota. She is also a Graphic Designer and a health and fitness coach. Her husband and daughter inspire her to be the best person she can be and encourage her to pursue any of her dreams (no matter how extravagant they may be).

Find Ashley and her books
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Never Fear the Reaper
Never Fear the Reaper #1
Amazon BN Kobo iTunes
She’s been to the other side and back again . . . But she’s never met anyone like him.

He can see things no one else can . . . But he only sees her.

From the moment he witnesses her do the impossible . . . he is obsessed.


When Chase hires the mysterious ghost exterminator, Ryder, to cleanse his house from a pesky poltergeist he gets way more than he’s paying her for… There’s just something about Ryder that has him mesmerized.

Is it the fact that he’s witnessed her do the unexplainable? Or the fact that she’s absolutely breathtaking? Or perhaps it’s that eerie familiar feeling that they’ve met before, perhaps in another lifetime.

Chase desperately tags along with Ryder on a whirlwind of life threatening adventures in exchange for a few precious moments of alone time with her. With the Grimm Reaper’s Scythe as their defense, Chase developing some supernatural gifts of his own, and an intense crush developing between them what crazy supernatural force will target them next?

Excerpt:


Suddenly, from behind me, a calm, raspy voice breaks the silence. “Are you Chase? I’m Ryder,” she asks rather firmly, extending her long fingers for a professional handshake.
Oh God, please don’t be her, please don’t be her, please don’t be her, I repeat over and over again to myself. This girl is too young and far too beautiful to be a ghost hunter. Inconveniently, she is literally my definition of perfection, dressed all in black. Long, dark brown hair, perfect bronze skin, bright green eyes that are surrounded by the longest eyelashes I’ve ever seen, a gorgeous pearl-white smile, and a slim yet slightly muscular build. I can’t help but let her catch me looking her up and down. Her appearance makes me even more uncomfortable with my situation. I even notice a colorful, feathery angel-wing tattoo that creeps down her left arm, which is ironic, given her profession. Come on, this girl cannot be doing a job like this.
She smirks in response before I can conjure up an excuse for my gawking.
“Not at all what you expected, huh,” she says, while gesturing to the hostess with two of her fingers.
“Honestly, no you’re not…not really.” I figure it’s better to be honest with her right now. Finally, I build up enough courage to return her handshake. I’m embarrassed when my clammy palm touches her soft, cool skin.
As we follow the hostess to a booth at the far end of the dining area, she responds, “Don’t worry, no one ever does. They expect some older, more spiritual looking woman who’s all decked out in crucifixes.”


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Thursday, April 5, 2018

Promo: Twice Bitten by Lynsay Sands


Twice Bitten
Argeneau #27

Amazon  |  Avon Romance  |  Barnes Noble  |  Google Play  |  iBooks

Thrilling, witty, and oh-so-sexy, Lynsay Sands’ Argeneau novel brings together a beautiful Immortal and the man who is her destiny…
 
For someone who’s been around for over a hundred and forty years, immortal Elspeth Argeneau hasn’t done a whole lot of living. Now that she’s moved away from her controlling mother, she’s tracking down rogue vampires and enjoying some overdue freedom. A fling would be fun. A life mate can wait. Yet to Elspeth’s surprise, her landlady’s hot grandson checks both boxes.

Wyatt fell instantly in love with Elspeth four years ago. He’s stunned to run into her again, especially as she has no memory of him. Then again, there are a lot of things about Elspeth that don’t make sense, like the miraculous speed with which her wounds heal. And the chemistry that transforms every touch into an explosion of desire. But with mysterious “accidents” besieging Elspeth, the ex-Special Forces soldier appoints himself her bodyguard. But time is running out to uncover the truth about her enemies—and rediscover the man determined to love her for eternity.

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LYNSAY SANDS is the nationally bestselling author of the Argeneau/Rogue Hunter vampire series, as well as numerous historicals and anthologies. She’s been writing stories since grade school and considers herself incredibly lucky to be able to make a career out of it. Her hope is that readers can get away from their everyday stress through her stories, and if there’s occasional uncontrollable fits of laughter, that’s just a big bonus. Please visit her on the web at http://www.lynsaysands.net.

website facebook twitter goodreads Amazon icon
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To celebrate the release of TWICE BITTEN, we’re giving away five paperback copies of A QUICK BITE, the first installment in the Argeneau series by Lynsay Sands!
 
GIVEAWAY TERMS and CONDITIONS:  Open to US shipping addresses only. Five winners will each receive a paperback copy of A Quick Bite by Lynsay Sands.  This giveaway is administered by Pure Textuality PR on behalf of Avon Romance.  Giveaway ends 4/6/2018 @ 11:59pm EST. Avon Romance will send the winning copies out to the winner directly. Limit one entry per reader and mailing address.  Duplicates will be deleted.  CLICK HERE TO ENTER!



Wednesday, April 4, 2018

Review: Unraveled by Kate Jarvik Birch

Unraveled
Release Date: April 3, 2018
Publisher: Entangled: Teen
Perfected Book #3
ISBN:  163375913X
ISBN13: 9781633759138
Genre: Young Adult Dystopian
Review Copy Source: NetGalley

Ella isn’t anyone’s pet anymore, but she’s certainly not free.

After exposing the dark secrets about NuPet’s breeding program, forcing them to repeal the law that allowed genetically modified girls to be kept as pets, she thought girls like her would finally be free. She never dreamed that it would backfire. NuPet may have convinced the public of their intentions to assimilate pets back into society, but Ella knows it’s a lie.

They aren’t planning mass rehabilitation...they’re planning a mass extermination.

Now, with the help of a small group of rebels, Ella and Penn, the boy she’d give up her life for, set out to bring down NuPet for good. But when her group gets implicated in a string of bombings, no one is safe. If she can’t untangle the web of blackmail and lies that extends far beyond NuPet’s reach, she won’t just lose her chance at freedom, she’ll lose everyone she loves.

A great ending to the Perfected series!

It's been a while since I read books one and two so I was a little hesitant to jump into UNRAVELED. I honestly couldn't remember half of what happened in book two and was worried that I would be lost. Thankfully things started to come back to me pretty quickly and those things that didn't, did not distract from my enjoyment of the story.

Ella fights for all the NuPet's that have been taken and are set to be killed. She works with a team of past NuPet's as well as those that just care about their well being. Ella and Penn continue to fight for their love for one another, there are a few bumps and hard decisions along the way. There is a lot of action as well as plenty of surprises.

Overall UNRAVELED did a great job of wrapping up the story and left me with the feeling that it was complete.

I gave it 4/5 stars

* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Monday, April 2, 2018

Promo + Giveaway: Esher by Felicity Heaton



Esher
Guardians of Hades # 3
Amazon.com | iBooks | Barnes and Noble | Kobo Books | Google Play
Prince of the Underworld and Lord of Water, Esher was banished from his home by his father, Hades, two centuries ago and given a new duty and purpose—to keep our world and his from colliding in a calamity foreseen by the Moirai.

Together with his six brothers, he fights to defend the gates to the Underworld from daemons bent on breaching them and gaining entrance to that forbidden land, striving to protect his home from their dark influence. Tormented by his past, Esher burns with hatred towards mortals and bears a grudge against Hades for forcing him into their world, condemning him to a life of battling to keep a fragile hold on his darker side—a side that wants to kill every human in the name of revenge.

Until he finds himself stepping in to save a female—a beautiful mortal filled with light and laughter who draws him to her as fiercely as the pull of the moon, stirring conflict in his heart and rousing dangerous needs long forgotten.

Aiko knows from the moment she sets eyes on the black-haired warrior that he is no ordinary man, just as she’s no ordinary woman. Blessed with a gift, she can see through his stormy façade to the powerful god beneath, and the pain and darkness that beats inside him—pain she grows determined to heal as she falls deeper under his spell and into his world.

When the daemon bent on turning Esher against his brothers makes her move, will Esher find the strength to overcome his past and fulfil his duty, or will the lure of revenge allow the darkness in his heart to seize control, transforming him into a god intent on destroying the world?
BOOKS IN THE SERIES
Book 1: Ares
Book 2: Valen
Book 3: Esher
Book 4: Marek – Coming in 2018

 Excerpt

Esher tuned his brothers out as he sank into the glorious vision building in his mind, one where he overcame the wraith and captured him, not for information as Keras would want, but for the sheer pleasure of revenge. He would bind and torture the wretch until he broke and confessed what he had done with Calindria’s soul, and then he would send him screaming into the darkest pit in the Underworld, and would inform their father about what the wretch had done. Gods, Hades would see to it the bastard suffered eternally.
His lips twisted in a slow smile.
Fuck, he would beg his father to give him a front row seat for that show.
A dark voice whispered in his mind, seductive words that tempted him to listen to them, coaxed him into ignoring his brothers’ wishes and obeying the gnawing hunger inside him—the need to hunt. He wavered as the city beyond the garden flickered to the otherworld, the future of Earth should he and his brothers fail to stop the calamity the Moirai had foreseen—a calamity their new enemy intended to bring about by doing something to the gates.
A calamity part of Esher wanted to see.
The darker part.
The part that had been born centuries ago, and had whispered to him ever since, rising to steal control at times when he wasn’t strong enough to hold it at bay.
A beast he fought to keep locked inside him.
A monster he had failed to contain more than once.
It had been hard enough to fight it when the only threat to his family had been the daemons and the humans, but it was growing impossible now that he knew the wraith had been responsible for Calindria’s end. His war with it was constant, and he wasn’t sure he could win.
He needed to avenge his sister.
His eyes narrowed on the flames that spiralled high into the black sky beyond the pristine white wall of the mansion grounds, sparks dancing like golden fireflies as the wind caught them, looking as if they were rising on the screams of the mortals whose flesh burned and the shrieks of the creatures who hunted and preyed on them.
A shudder wracked him, a shiver of pleasure that rolled through him as their screams surrounded him, creating a symphony that tugged at the darkness in him, made him yearn to make this future real so he could bask in the glory of it.
“Esher.” The male voice intruded, shaking the vision of beauty before him.
He snarled, launched his left hand out and wrapped it around the offender’s neck, squeezing it hard.
The male growled and countered him, and icy cold gripped his throat, burned like fire as it swept over him beneath his clothes.
“Get a fucking grip,” Daimon snarled and shoved hard, sending him staggering backwards onto the raised wooden walkway that enclosed three sides of the smaller courtyard garden and shaking Esher’s grip on him.
His back slammed into one of the thick square pillars that supported the overhanging roof.
His breath exploded from him as the timber cracked.
The sound of dropping water had his head snapping to his right in time to catch a glimpse of brightly coloured koi suspended in the air for a moment before they dropped back into the pond.
“Fuck,” Esher muttered and got a grip on himself, pushing out the damned voice that still taunted him, told him to take pleasure in the destruction he wrought, not be ashamed of it, tempted him with thoughts of heading beyond the protective walls of the mansion to the city and unleashing the fury he had bottled inside him on the weak creatures who inhabited it.
It would be glorious.
“No.” He grasped the sides of his head and squeezed until it hurt. “No!”
He didn’t really want that. He was just tired and weak from the wraith’s attack, worn down and vulnerable. Yes, vulnerable. He was too susceptible right now, not strong enough to shut out the damned voice and the things it wanted him to do.
“Listen to me, Esher,” Daimon whispered, and he focused on his brother, using the sound of his voice to shut out the darker one just as they had practiced. “You’re all good. Everything is fine. Everyone is fine.”
But they weren’t.
He saw that as he lifted his head and spotted the unmistakable trace of red beneath his brother’s nose where Daimon hadn’t quite managed to wipe all the blood away to hide it from him, and the dark bruises emerging around his throat just above the collar of his navy turtle neck.
“I’m sorry,” Esher murmured, pain closing his throat as he considered what he had done.
He had hurt the ones he loved.
The ones he had vowed to protect.
The only ones who mattered.
“I’m fine.” Daimon managed a smile and rubbed at his throat. “No harm done.”
A lie.
He noticed the way Daimon’s fingers trembled as he neatened his spiked white hair, acting casual when he was shaken.
Esher averted his gaze, but the pain and guilt lingered as he looked at the pond and the koi that were flapping around on the gravel surrounding it. He stepped off the walkway, crossing the pebbles without feeling them biting into the soles of his feet, and stooped to carefully pick up the fish and place them gently back into the pond.
He breathed easier as he counted them all, checking each one in turn, and saw none of them had been hurt.
His brothers’ voices filled the silence behind him as he watched the fish, their words distant and lost on him, and he sensed them departing one by one.
Until only Daimon remained.
Had he harmed any more of his brothers? Gods, he hoped he hadn’t.
It was getting harder to control himself.
His rage should have been directed solely at the daemons and the humans, not at his family. His family were the only ones who mattered. The Underworld was the only place that mattered too.
This world could burn for all he cared.
But if it burned, then the Underworld burned with it.
He watched a black and white koi he was particularly fond of, one he’d had for decades, swim past to join the group waiting near the walkway where it jutted out over the pond to his right, by his quarters.
An ache started behind his breast, one that was familiar to him.
He wanted to return to the Underworld.
He couldn’t handle things here anymore. Today was proof of that. He wasn’t strong enough to hold back the darker part of himself that viewed all the mortals as a threat to him and his family, and his world.
Just thinking about hunting them, watching them suffer, had been enough to have him slipping.
Hurting the ones he loved.
“You alright?” Daimon eased into a crouch beside him, his long black coat pooling around his feet on the pale gravel.
“Sorry.” He kept his eyes on the fish, shame eating at him as he thought about what he had done.
Daimon had given as good as he had got. Esher’s throat was sore, and it stung a little to breathe and speak, but the pain didn’t make him feel better about what he had done.
“The moon is just fucking with you. It’s almost full.” Daimon ghosted a hand over his shoulder.
Esher wished he would touch him, because he needed to feel it, needed someone to hold him together right now because he felt as if he was falling apart.
He focused on the moon, picturing it in an attempt to soothe himself. It was distant from him, on the other side of the planet. He wanted to see it. Needed to see it. He needed the calming influence it had on him.
He forced himself to remain where he was though, because stepping that distance would drain some of his strength, and he had to remain strong in case the attack came tonight.
He rested his elbows on his knees as he remained crouched on the gravel at the edge of the pond, his eyes on the fish as they all slowly grouped before him, clearly having decided he was going to feed them from this spot instead.
They were beautiful as they glided around, the pattern of their colours constantly shifting.
His left fingers drifted across to his right arm as the sight of them soothed him, calming the turbulent waters in his soul.
The sensation of calm grew stronger still.
“Any injury you had would be healed by now.” Daimon’s careful words, softly spoken, floated through his mind and he looked down to find he was playing with the bandage again. His brother’s pale blue eyes lifted from his arm to rest on his face. “Why are you so reluctant to discard it? Did a daemon get you? Are you infected somehow?”
Esher opened his mouth, but the words caught in his throat.
He stepped rather than answering him, appearing briefly at the front porch of the mansion to grab his long black coat and jam his feet into his leather boots, and then teleporting again.
The guilt over hurting his brother mingled with new shame as he landed on top of the covered footbridge that spanned the gap between two large buildings, allowing humans to come and go between them above the busy road that cut a path straight ahead of him and intersected with an equally as crowded road just two hundred metres from him in the heart of the Shibuya district.
Why couldn’t he just tell his brother what had happened?
He was closest to Daimon, and they had shared everything in the past, leaving nothing unsaid between them. So why did he want to keep the female a secret?


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Felicity Heaton is a New York Times and USA Today international best-selling author writing passionate paranormal romance books. In her books, she creates detailed worlds, twisting plots, mind-blowing action, intense emotion and heart-stopping romances with leading men that vary from dark deadly vampires to sexy shape-shifters and wicked werewolves, to sinful angels and hot demons! If you're a fan of paranormal romance authors Lara Adrian, J R Ward, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Gena Showalter and Christine Feehan then you will enjoy her books too.

If you love your angels a little dark and wicked, the best-selling Her Angel series is for you. If you like strong, powerful, and dark vampires then try the Vampires Realm series or any of her stand-alone vampire romance books. If you’re looking for vampire romances that are sinful, passionate and erotic then try the best-selling Vampire Erotic Theatre series. Or if you prefer huge detailed worlds filled with hot-blooded alpha males in every species, from elves to demons to dragons to shifters and angels, then take a look at the new Eternal Mates series.

If you want to know more about Felicity, or want to get in touch, you can find her at the following places:

WEBSITE | BLOG | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | GOODREADS | INSTAGRAM
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Enter the grand tour-wide giveaway to win a $75, $50 or $25 Amazon Gift Card at the Esher book page. This giveaway is international and open to everyone, and ends at midnight on April 8th. 

Enter now:  

Sunday, April 1, 2018

Week in Review: 3/25-3/31



Books Received for Review

Nothing this week!

Books I've Read

Thirst by Graceley Knox
Tempt by Graceley Knox
Dragon's Guard by Eva Chase
Dragon's Tears by Eva Chase
Dragon's Desire by Eva Chase
Dragon's Fate by Eva Chase
The Wife Protectors by Charlie Hart + Chantel Seabrook
The Wife Lottery by Charlie Hart + Chantel Seabrook

Reviews Posted

Judgment Road by Christine Feehan
Honor Among Thieves by Rachel Caine and Ann Aguirre

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* New Releases for the week. Was there anything you were looking forward to reading?

* Monday- Promo for Coming Darkness by Susan-Alia Terry

* Thursday- Promo + Giveaway for X-Ops Exposed by Paige Tyler

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* Did you know you can follow UFI on these other sites?

You can also add me (as in Stacy) to your friends on these sites if you're on them.
 

 * I love comments so if you see something you like (or not) please comment away and let me know.

Friday, March 30, 2018

Review: Honor Among Thieves by Rachel Caine and Ann Aguirre

Honor Among Thieves
Release Date: February 13, 2018
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
The Honors Book #1
ASIN:   B0722MH4X8
Genre: YA Science Fiction
Review Copy Source: Edelweiss

Petty criminal Zara Cole has a painful past that’s made her stronger than most, which is why she chose life in New Detroit instead of moving with her family to Mars. In her eyes, living inside a dome isn’t much better than a prison cell.

Still, when Zara commits a crime that has her running scared, jail might be exactly where she’s headed. Instead Zara is recruited into the Honors, an elite team of humans selected by the Leviathan—a race of sentient alien ships—to explore the outer reaches of the universe as their passengers.

Zara seizes the chance to flee Earth’s dangers, but when she meets Nadim, the alien ship she’s assigned, Zara starts to feel at home for the first time. But nothing could have prepared her for the dark, ominous truths that lurk behind the alluring glitter of starlight.

HONOR AMONG THIEVES started out strong, but then it took a turn towards weird.

I honestly don't even know where to start with this one. Zara seemed to be a strong yet flawed character. I enjoyed the settings that were introduced and the situations that happened. Then about 1/3rd of the way in Zara went to space and the story totally lost me.

I'm actually surprised that I didn't mark this as DNF. I guess I just hoped that things would turn around and unfortunately it didn't. I didn't get the connection between Zara and Nadim—the sentient ship. It's romantic in a way and I just couldn't get over the weirdness of that. There are a ton of questions that don't get answered and I honestly was just really bored. Did I mention that there is sexual tension between Zara and the sentient ship? Yeah I just couldn't.

I don't plan to continue the series.

I gave it 1.5/5 stars

* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.