Ebook Review: Shades of Gray by L.M. Pruitt
File Size: 415 KB
Publisher: Red Hot Publishing (August 13, 2011)
Blurb: Jude Magdalyn Henries lives what many would call an unconventional life.
Orphaned at birth, raised by nuns, a teenage runaway living on the streets… she now earns a living at odd jobs, including one as a fake tarot card reader. Very little about Jude’s life appears normal, by any scale. When she accepts a gig to do a private reading, unconventional takes on an entirely new meaning.
Life as she knows it ends when she’s thrust into a world she never knew existed—one filled with magic, vampires, and her beloved New Orleans on the verge of an underground war. To make matters worse, she's got two men in her life vying for attention, Williams and Theo. Both call to a different part of her, but one scares her just a little bit. Can she step up to the challenges set before her and make the right choices for the greater, which may or not be the greater good?
My review: "I may have been named for saints and martyrs, but no way in hell did I have the disposition of either." Remember the name Jude Magdalyn Henries. Young. Tall. Street savvy. Tarot hustler. A mouth of sassy one-liners and witty comebacks. One of my favorite heroines of 2011.
I will say one of the nicest perks of book blogging--besides reading, meeting new writers and readers, participating in tours and such--are learning about new authors and novels. L.M. Pruitt is such an find. I signed on to the tour for Shades of Gray after I read the catchy blurb and began to read the book one night. At first, I was wondering where the story was going but by the end of the first chapter one thing I knew for sure: I was really liking the main character's voice. Jude was a tough woman but not the brash type. What she had was an incredible sense of sarcasm. Her snark had me laughing and jotting down favorite lines and laughing again. Don't think the story was just a comedy. No way. This novel had some wicked cool magic, a bunch of characters to love, and one woman to cheer for. By the time I reached the end of this incredible character's story, it had happened again. I had discovered another wonderful book and another series to keep an eye out for additional titles.
Shades of Gray is the incredible journey of a single woman, an orphan raised on the streets, who can take care of herself but would like someone to spend time with. She's also a con woman, using tarot cards to get people to part with their money. And it so happens one evening she discovers she might have a real ability--what it is exactly she doesn't know--but others do and they are suddenly out to locate her. Can she depend on the hot cop-type guy or the old lady with steely eyes? Pick up the ebook because I can't tell you. Jude's story is one paranormal fans will want to read. Loads of humor, action, a beguiling story, an off the wall heroine with some killer lines and potent magic (as long as she gets the hang of using it), with some smoking guys and a touch of romance, Shades of Gray will not let up once you join in with an unforgettable young lady named Jude Magdalyn Henries. All that's next is one question: Where is book number two Ms. Pruitt? I need to know.
Rating: Loved. The. Snark.
Favorite excerpt: "Hart held me in front of his body like a shield and I got my first look at the new dancers joining the fight. If the evening hadn't already taken more turns than a drunken man's road, seeing the gorgeous man from outside the Cat's Meow aiming a loaded crossbow at me would have been the cap on possibly the worst night of my life. It didn't help when I noticed more archers on either side of him, and to the far left--a woman old enough to be my grandmother--with a ball of fire in her hand.
Apparently, I'd been wrong. The night could get more messed up. "Release the girl, and I'll allow you to walk away tonight, Hart."
Hart laughed and it was the sort to make small children cry and flowers die. Well, maybe not, but it wasn't pleasant."
Cover comment: I like the new cover a lot better than the old one. The model has that look like she's about to lay a line on you and that's what I like about Jude (besides her awesome powers and taste in men).
Book source: Received from author for a book tour and my totally honest review.
I love this author, there is a second book out "shades of desire" the author may be re-issuing it at well. She has also written a real cute book called "New Moon Rising" that is not in the Jude series. She has a way with the snark that is just so fun to read.
ReplyDeleteI agree loves to dive!
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