May's Wine Club Selection: South of Surrender by Laura Kaye (Review)

Wine Selection: Rosso di Montalcino

*A full bodied wine known for its depth of black cherry and wild-berry fruit, and careful use of oak revealed in a hint of spice and vanilla. 

Paired with the book choice of the month: South of Surrender by Laura Kaye 

Lexi: Like the Rosso di Montalcino, South of Surrender is a full bodied book. Laura Kaye’s Hearts of the Anemoi series is a well written paranormal romance with strong undertones of Greek Mythology and hints of fantasy. A perfect blend and refreshing to read something so well written. Your overall impressions of South of Surrender ladies?

Crystal: Wow. I know I should no longer be surprised by the awesomeness that Laura Kaye puts out but South of Surrender truly blew me away. The foundation of the series is unique in itself but the world of the Anemoi really came together in this installment. The story was emotionally riveting as well, and not just the relationship between Chrys and Laney. It's a beautiful Sunday on a holiday weekend and here I am, bawling my eyes out the whole last half of the book. And I loved every minute of it! ☺

Crystal L: I really liked this book. I was leery of reading it at first because I kind of waffled on liking the first book, but I'm glad I picked up this one. I really like Kaye's unique world, and her inspiration behind using some of the lesser known Gods in mythology. (just a tad bit mythology geek here) I loved Laney's character and her optimistic view of her condition, as well as her realistic fears. The chemistry between Laney and Chrys was a sweet one, which balanced out nicely with the rougher bedroom play. All in all, the book displayed a variety of nicely written emotions that kept the pages turning for me.

Lexi: Gotta love those Greek gods, demigods, and overall mouth watering males. My favorite is Eurus, something about him just grabs me. I can see him holding onto my arms, scowling down at me. Yeah, yeah, I know he is the big baddie of the series. But something about him tells me there is a lot we don’t know, pain we haven’t glimpsed yet. How bout you ladies, which direction....er, character is your favorite? Owen, Zeph, Chrys? 

Crystal: Owen with his beautifully mismatched eyes and penchant for ice cream will always have my heart but in South of Surrender Chrys claimed a good portion of it. He seemed to shoulder the blame for his whole dysfunctional family and instead of giving up on Eurus like everyone else, he strived to save him. Willing to put his life on the line to do so. And then his love for Laney, even before he knew it was love, just melted my heart. He had so many layers to his character you can't help but fall in love with him. 

Crystal L: Well, let me be the odd ball here and say that the only God that speaks to me personally right now is Eurus' son, Devlin. There's just something about his tortured personality, and his questionable involvement on the bad side that interests me. *sighs* I've always loved the bad boys...

Lexi: Laura brought us quite the heroine, Laney, who is nearly blind. Through her writing I could see through Laney’s eyes, the limited vision, the uncertainty of not being able to see everything around her. And when she is able to see for the first time in years, wow! I felt as if I were seeing her purple bed and trophies in a dazzling new light too! Did Laney’s lack of sight add to or hinder your enjoyment of the book?

Crystal: I love Laura Kaye's writing style, it's so vivid the worlds she creates easily come to life for readers, and here was no exception. Laney's limited vision added a whole new dimension to the story for me and I agree, it was like seeing through her eyes. It was easy to picture the fields, barns, horses, everything as she saw them with Chrys, as well as her surroundings when she only had a pinpoint of vision. Laney was a multifaceted heroine that I loved.

Crystal L: Kaye did a phenomenal job writing Laney's eye condition in my opinion. She described things so well that it made everything believable, and I often could picture what Laney dealt with. That's true writing talent. 

Lexi: Whenever I pick up a book by Kaye I know I have a hot read in my hands, and this book didn’t disappoint. The steamy scenes add to the intensity of the developing relationship, Chrys and Laney sure know how to use a hot tub! What did you girls think, did this scene steam up your wine glass?

Crystal: Holy smokes! I was pool side while I read that specific scene and no lie, it felt like I was in a hot tub too! *fans self* Thankfully I had an icy glass of wine beside me to cool off. And what made it even hotter was the bond that formed between them when Chrys realized that Laney got it, got him and all his issues, and when Laney felt free to tell him what she wanted. 

Crystal L: *whistles* I had to de-fog my glasses. Chrys may have had some crazy reasons for being dominant in bed, but I could have over looked them for some of that action. It was hawt, with a capital H.

Lexi: I loved this book and I can’t wait for East of Ecstasy. I am crossing my fingers it will be about Eurus. If any author can redeem a murdering mad-man it is Laura. 

Crystal: The Hearts of the Anemoi series is definitely an all-time favorite of mine and if you love romance, mythology and fantasy you'll want to pick up these books ASAP. I recommend you reading them in order though, you won't want to miss a moment with these captivating characters. As for East of Ecstasy, don't hate me Lex but I am kinda hoping for Devlin. Is he good? Is he is bad? Who's side is he truly on? And the way that Laney described his aura, the purple with slashes of dark, intrigued me. I'm looking forward to putting together that puzzle and of course seeing more of Owen and Megan's developing story. 

Crystal L: I'm with Crystal on this one. I'm hoping for Devlin. He's mysterious mixed with a bit of bad boy, and that gets my motor running. Of course, I have to go back and read book two before I can give a verdict on the whole series. I was a bad, bad reader and read these books out of order! I'm looking forward to see if Zeph's story is as hot as Chrys'.

Lexi: Thanks for joining us for our May Wine Club! Make sure to come back and see what hot summery read we find for June!

South of Surrender

Hearts of the Anemoi #3

by Laura Kaye

Kindle Edition & Paperback 400 pages

Published: May 28th, 2013 by Entangled Publishing

ISBN: 9781620610336

*ecopy courtesy of Entangled Publishing

She’s the only one who can see through his golden boy façade to the broken god within…
Chrysander Notos, Supreme God of the South Wind and Summer, is on a mission: save Eurus from his death sentence and prove his troubled brother can be redeemed. But Eurus fights back, triggering vicious summer storms that threaten the mortal realm, dangerously drain Chrys, and earn the ire of the Olympic gods who ordered Eurus dead.
Laney Summerlyn refuses to give up her grandfather’s horse farm, despite her deteriorating vision. More than ever, she needs the organized routine of her life at Summerlyn Stables, until a ferocious storm brings an impossible—and beautiful—creature crashing down from the heavens.
Injured while fighting Eurus, Chrys finds himself at the mercy of a mortal woman whose compassion and acceptance he can’t resist. As they surrender to the passion flaring between them, immortal enemies close in, forcing Chrys to choose between his brother and the only woman who’s ever loved the real him.

Goodreads

Available for Purchase at Amazon Kindle, Amazon Paperback, Barnes & Noble, and The Book Depository