The Watcher "Review-Only" Power Blog Tour + giveaway

Welcome to our stop on The Watcher Review Only Power Tour presented by InkSpell Publishing. We are honored to be included on this tour. Our review is posted below and there's a unique tour-wide giveaway below.

The Watcher by Lisa Voisin 

YA Paranormal Romance

Paperback/eBook, 541 pages 

Published March 4th 2013 by InkSpell Publishing 

Millennia ago, he fell from heaven for her. 

Can he face her without falling again? 

Fascinated with ancient civilizations, seventeen-year-old Mia Crawford dreams of becoming an archaeologist. She also dreams of wings--soft and silent like snow--and somebody trying to steal them. 

When a horrible creature appears out of thin air and attacks her, she knows Michael Fontaine is involved, though he claims to know nothing about it. Secretive and aloof, Michael evokes feelings in Mia that she doesn’t understand. Images of another time and place haunt her. She recognizes them—but not from any textbook. 

In search of the truth, Mia discovers a past life of forbidden love, jealousy and revenge that tore an angel from Heaven and sent her to an early grave. Now that her soul has returned, does she have a chance at loving that angel again? Or will an age-old nemesis destroy them both? 

Ancient history is only the beginning. 

Lisa Voisin 

About the author: Website | Twitter | Goodreads

After studying English literature at the University of Toronto and creative writing at Simon Fraser University, Lisa Voisin had the great fortune of being mentored by Nancy Richler and A.M. Dellamonica through Betsy Warland's Vancouver Manuscript Intensive solo program. She is also a teacher of meditation with the Training in Power Academy

A member of the SCBWI (Society for Children's Book Writers and Illustrators), she can usually be found writing at a local cafe in her home town of Vancouver, B.C. 

A self-proclaimed coffee lover, when Lisa's not writing, you'll find her meditating in the mountains to counteract the side effects of drinking too much caffeine!

"He tilted his chin to look up at me through his long, dark lashes and there was something so intense, so intimate, about his gaze that my breath froze in my chest."

Mia is the narrator of The Watcher by Lisa Voisin, an involved, engrossing and unique YA paranormal novel. The guy she is referring to in the quote is Michael Fontaine. I finished the book a short time ago but my heart is still on the pages with this unforgettable couple. 

From the first pages, this story was engaging. The Watcher begins with Mia finding what she thinks is the body of a homeless man in the woods. He isn't dead, yet, but things turn creepy quickly when dark shadows began to move, grow, take shape and then growl. I certainly sat up and took notice. From then on, I was sucked into Mia's world.

Mia may be human but she's been seeing and hearing things lately. Strange things. The mysterious guy watching her from the park turns up in unexpected places, like the mall and school, and there's this feeling she knows him. Ha, don't mistake that "she knows him" as another typical insta-love story. The Watcher is more. Michael confuses Mia by acting aloof with her, then looking at her as though he cares. Their  relationship took a while to blossom and Michael had his reasons. Then we learn their connection spans time and I mean time as in centuries, eons, millennium. I will say Michael and Mia's story is frustrating, romantic, touching and forbidden. I won't say more since I want to avoid spoilers.

For a novel over five hundred pages long, most of the time I wasn't aware of the story's length. There were a few slow spots here and there. I wasn't worried though, I was fully invested. Michael's world is a rich, inventive one sporting quite a cast of characters from a mentor angel who looks like a Victoria's Secret model to fallen angels, demons capable of possessing others to fiendish hell hounds. The mythology and history is vast and often times thought provoking. Mia is a nice girl, stubborn, caring, and someone I gladly supported. I do wonder about her ability to hear things. It was great to see she has a caring mother and older brother, even if Bill was away at college (he visited and called). Her closest friends, Fiona and Heather, and their boyfriends, and also Farouk, were all worthy secondary characters. 

As much as I wanted to rush through reading, I took my time to better understand what was going on once Michael began to reveal information to Mia about his world and their past. At one point, I thought the story was ending when there was a showdown involving Damiel Lucas and I was wrong. Things were just getting started and the story took a different turn. The Watcher is quickly turning this vampire fan into an celestial being fan girl and Lisa Voisin is an author to watch. 

Rating: 4

Cover comment: 

I like the pose of the model and the fluttering feathers. The woods has a glow to it and completes the mysterious, ethereal look.

Book source: 

I received a promotional copy from the publisher in return for my honest review during a blog tour.

Giveaway:

The paperback and eBook sleeve giveaway is open for US, UK and Canada. The ebook giveaway is open worldwide. The eBook sleeve giveaway is customizable  (pictured above) . The winner will get to choose from a lot of designs and the name will be sewed in too if they wish.

a Rafflecopter giveaway