Fire on the Island
Author: J.K. Hogan
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Release Date: August 2, 2012
Publisher: Sapphire Publishing
Synopsis:
“She who wields the mark is the barrier between man and monster. She is the daughter of gods, the mother of man, protector of all. Vigilati Usque Ad Mortem”
All Isla Macallen wanted was a simple existence on her little Scottish island, free from her mother's insanity and the prying eyes of neighbors. What she got was embroiled in a war for the souls of mankind. A war of good versus evil, of witches versus demons, and Isla learns that she alone can end it.
Dr. Jeremiah Rousseau was a self-proclaimed nomad, traveling the world researching
paranormal phenomena. He doesn't expect his research to lead him to Scotland, and to the
woman who will turn his world upside down.
Together with a facetious shapeshifting animal spirit guide, Jeremiah and Isla discover that she is part of an ancient bloodline bred to protect the gateways between the human world and the spirit world, to keep evil demons from destroying them. They must find the key to defeating Alastore, the demon king, and closing the gate before Samhain, when the veil between the worlds is lifted.
Alastore does everything in his power to eliminate them but, unbeknownst to all of them, Isla is the only one with the ability to stop him for good.
Isla had stopped at the edge of the porch and stood, frozen, staring
out into the rainy darkness. Beyond her, Jeremiah could see the
silhouette of a man. His face was in shadow, but from the luminescent
eyes swirling with shadows, he knew it was Alastore.
When the
man stepped forward into the dim light cast through the open door of the
house, it became clear that he had a victim. Mhairi Mackay stood in
front of the demon, and he had a strong arm locked around her neck.
Jeremiah surged forward, determined to protect Isla's only remaining
family, but Marduk stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. With a
silent shake of his head, Marduk encouraged Jeremiah to think first and
act with care.
Trust nothing, question everything, because
things will most definitely not be as they seem. Marduk's earlier words
came back to him, and Jeremiah gave the man a quick nod to let him know
he understood.
Isla lifted a foot to step down off the porch.
"Think, Isla. Breathe. That's not really Mhairi. She's at Sacred Hearts,
guarded by doctors and nurses that didn't even want to let us in at
first, remember?" he said in a low tone.
He saw a shudder rack
her slender body but, much to his relief, she stayed put. Three pairs of
eyes fixed on the pale, glowing arm that had the projection of Mhairi
in a headlock.
Alastore threw his head back and cackled, before
pinning each of them with a hard glare. "You think you can defeat me? I
will lead you to your graves like lambs to the slaughter." His voice was
demonic, and they could hear the echo of pure evil behind it. It
sounded like a dozen demons living inside one body, speaking in unison.
Without warning, he wrapped his free hand around Mhairi's head and
twisted in opposite directions. They heard a gruesome snap before the
image of Mhairi crumpled to the ground.
A strangled cry ripped
from Isla's throat as the three of them bounded off the porch. They
ground to a halt as Alastore threw his hands up toward the sky, and the
pelting raindrops burst into incandescent flames.
The pellets of
flame singed their skin, forcing them back to the shelter of the porch.
Isla wailed as the spectre of Mhairi seemed to dissolve under the
onslaught of fire and rain combined. Alastore’s head swiveled back to
face them, his eyes gleaming with madness and hatred, pierced through to
Isla’s soul.
“The little witch thinks she can defeat me! I, who
can make the sky rain fire?” He took a step forward and Isla stood her
ground. He glared at her with his mouth turned up in a gruesome sneer.
“I will burn your life!” he spat at her.
“You’ll watch everything you care for turn to ash if you fight me!” He turned his cutting glare to the two
men standing shoulder to shoulder on her right and absently gestured toward them. “These will die. Everyone will die.”
Facing Isla again, he gave her a sickeningly sweet smile. “And you, my
dear…You will watch things fall apart. And then, you shall be mine.” She
shuddered when he licked his lips and leered at her.
Isla would
never be able to explain what came over her in that moment. As she
focused on the images the demon pushed into her head—the pain and
suffering, the dead and dying—it was the thought of Alastore turning his
wrath upon Jeremiah that sparked the bone-deep anger inside her.
Storming off the porch into the maelstrom of fire and rain, she felt
the breeze on the nape of her neck, when Jeremiah reached for her and
missed. Storming toward Alastore, she stopped a few feet in front of
him.
The balls of fire raining from the sky seemed to roll off
an invisible shield around her and fury radiated from her body. "The
hell I will!" she growled at him, gathering her energy low in her chest,
preparing for a strike.
Marduk's deceptively calm whisper
drifted over to Jeremiah. "He's goading her for a reason. Pushing her
buttons. He may be trying to funnel her energy into himself, leaving her
vulnerable for him to take her. Alastore does nothing without reason.
Stop her."
Jeremiah palmed the shotgun and whispered back to
Marduk. "If I shoot him, it's not going to stop him, right?" He waited
for the other man to nod before continuing. "But it'll hurt."
Giving him a devious grin, Marduk nodded again. "It sure will. When he's
in corporeal form, he'll feel the same pain a human would, he just
won't die. It will send him back to the locus to recharge."
"Good enough for me." Jeremiah pumped the forestock of the shotgun,
drawing Alastore's attention. The demon snarled at him but didn't seem
overly worried. That didn't bode well.
Bracing the buttstock of
the twelve gauge on his shoulder, he took aim and pulled the trigger.
Nothing happened. Cursing, he expelled the dead round and pumped again.
Trigger pull, nothing.
Howling with laughter, Alastore returned
his attention to the 110 pounds of livid woman that stood in front of
him. He cocked his head, like an animal hearing a strange sound. "So
pretty, and yet so easy," he began, "just like your mother."
"Christ," Jeremiah hissed as he saw flames spike out from Isla's
fingertips. She was playing right into Alastore's hands, but she just
couldn't see it. Shoving the shotgun into Marduk's hands, he turned
toward the house.
"I think he's somehow jamming the gun. Maybe if I find something with no mechanics, he won't be able to stop it."
"Hurry."
Well, duh. Jeremiah bounded into the house and began tearing through
cupboards and rifling through drawers. He thought about grabbing a
knife, but he didn't think any of them should get that close to the
demon.
Inspiration struck when he found an unopened bottle of
vodka, dusty and forgotten in a cabinet. Grabbing a kitchen rag, he
ripped it in half. Emptying a third of the bottle down the sink, he
stuffed the rag down into the neck, making sure that it was in far
enough to soak up the alcohol.
He snagged a lighter from a
drawer and rushed back outside. "Get her out of the way," he ordered
Marduk as he passed, not even stopping to make sure the other man heard
him. He didn't need to stop, because Marduk ran to catch up with him as
he was lighting the rag on fire.
Marduk grasped Isla by the
shoulders and yanked her back into his arms as Jeremiah tossed the
burning bottle at Alastore's feet.
The projectile immediately
exploded, engulfing the demon in a huge wall of fire. The surge of heat
was so intense, Jeremiah backed up several steps. He stood, watching as
the skin melted off of Alastore's corporeal form to reveal a blackened
skeleton.
An inhuman screech rent the air as Alastore pointed a
bony finger at them. "You're mine," he croaked as what was left of him
dissolved into ash and flame.
"Yeah, yeah, and our little dog, too. Got it," Jere grumbled.
"Hey!" Marduk's indignant tone said he didn't appreciate the dog
reference, but Jeremiah didn't much care. Pulling Isla away from
wolf-boy, he enveloped her in a tight hug. Resting his chin on the top
of her head, he allowed the shudders he had been suppressing to roll
over his body. Giving her one last squeeze, he set her away from him and
brushed past her, stalking into the house, slamming the door behind
him.
Review:
Fire on the Island is a great paranormal romance that is full of demons, witches, and a war of good versus evil. The novel is set in Scotland, which I thought was a perfect setting - it was a primitive and wild feeling island, so I think it made the right impression on the reader of the feel of the story.
The narrative was really interesting. I love any type of fiction that deals with witches, so this book immediately drew me into its pages with its focus on witches along with an age-old war with demons. The story had great flow and was written very well, which made the book a page-turner for me. The action parts of the book were very fast paced and left me eagerly reading to find out what was going to happen. The characters were interesting, especially Isla - the heroine. She had a realistic feel to her and I was able to empathize and identify with her almost immediately. The romance part of the story was well done, with a good amount of buildup and an interesting subplot to the main narrative. I thought that this book was a great start to a new series and I will definitely be reading the next installment.
About the Author:
J.K. Hogan has been telling stories for as long as
she can remember, beginning with writing cast lists and storylines for
her toys growing up. When she finally decided to put pen to paper, magic
happened. She is greatly inspired by all kinds of music and often
creates a “soundtrack” for her stories as she writes them.
J.K.
resides in North Carolina, where she was born and raised. A true
southern girl at heart, she lives on a farm with her husband and their
three horses, one miniature donkey, one cat, and two champion agility
dogs.
In addition to writing, she enjoys training and competing
in dog sports, spending time with her large southern family, camping,
boating and, of course, reading! Please feel free to visit J.K.’s
contact page—she’d love to hear from you!
Links:
Twitter: @JK_Hogan
*Disclosure of Material Connection: I am a member of Reading Addiction Blog Tours and a copy of this book was provided to me by the author. Although payment may have been received by Reading Addiction Blog Tours, no payment was received by me in exchange for this review. There was no obligation to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are entirely my own and may not necessarily agree with those of the author, publisher, publicist, or readers of this review. This disclosure is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commision’s 16 CFR, Part 255, Guides Concerning Use of Endorcements and Testimonials in Advertising*
Thanks for the giveaway! It sounds interesting and the cover is beautiful
ReplyDeleteLoved the excerpt and cover. Thx for giveaway.
ReplyDelete