The Thirteenth Gate by Kat Ross Blog Tour: Review & Giveaway!!!

Hi there guys!

Back again so soon? Apparently yes! But truly, I could not miss being part of this Blog Tour because I adore Kat Ross and her books, so I wanted to spread the word about her newest series!


The Thirteenth Gate by Kat Ross
(Dominion Mysteries #2)
Published by: Acorn Publishing
Publication date: June 26th 2017
Genres: Historical, Mystery, Young Adult

Winter 1888. At an asylum in the English countryside, a man suspected of being Jack the Ripper kills an orderly and flees into the rain-soaked night. His distraught keepers summon the Lady Vivienne Cumberland—who’s interviewed their patient and isn’t sure he’s a man at all. An enigmatic woman who guards her own secrets closely, Lady Vivienne knows a creature from the underworld when she sees one. And he’s the most dangerous she’s ever encountered.

As Jack rampages through London, Lady Vivienne begins to suspect what he’s searching for. And if he finds it, the doors to purgatory will be thrown wide open…

Across the Atlantic, an archaeologist is brutally murdered after a Christmas Eve gala at the American Museum of Natural History. Certain peculiar aspects of the crime attract the interest of the Society for Psychical Research and its newest investigator, Harrison Fearing Pell. Is Dr. Sabelline’s death related to his recent dig in Alexandria? Or is the motive something darker?

As Harry uncovers troubling connections to a serial murder case she’d believed was definitively solved, two mysteries converge amid the grit and glamor of Gilded Age New York. Harry and Lady Vivienne must join forces to stop an ancient evil. The key is something called the Thirteenth Gate. But where is it? And more importantly, who will find it first?

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REVIEW

The Thirteenth Gate is the first proper book of the Dominion Mysteries series, since The Daemoniac was more of a prequel, and in this one we get to meet so old friends from the Fourth Element series!

I was so very excited to read more on the adventures of Harry and John and since there was a bit of a chance of pace with the re-introduction of Alex and Vivienne and magic into the more detective story that the prequel was... I felt a bit disconnected from the story till I connected again with Alex and Vivienne, as they were in this time and place. I feel like I should have re-read Queen of Chaos right before reading this one, so I would have not had to stop and rack my brains to make sure I remembered correctly who everyone was with the names I knew them from before!

I was so very fascinated by the mystery and the murder and how everything started following little threads to tie it all up together and be solved. I loved that Harry and John were once again back in the thick of it and solving things together, and how Harry had her worldview complete challenged and put upside down, and by her own hero figure!

As always, Kat manages to paint such a vivid picture of the time and place, no matter if it's London or New York. You can almost feel the mist and fog or the torrential rain... And you can feel the oppresiveness of a tunnel that descends to who knows where.

The characters and their relationships are, as always, very well written and Kat manages to add a few hints to romance here and there and makes us really feel for the characters, but always keeping the romance as a side dish and not as one of the main courses, so to speak. It can be great for allowing the story to unfold and the mystery and the magic to take the main stage, but it can also be a little frustrating when you as the reader want something to happen! I have high hopes for my ship and I feel quite despondent for another couple, but I guess we'll see in the next book!

I cannot wait till we get the next story and have Harry & John and Vivienne & Alex back to working together and learning from one another! Well deserved 4 stars!



About the author:

Kat Ross worked as a journalist at the United Nations for ten years before happily falling back into what she likes best: making stuff up. She lives in Westchester with her kid and a few sleepy cats. Kat is also the author of the dystopian thriller Some Fine Day (Skyscape, 2014), about a world where the sea levels have risen sixty meters. She loves magic, monsters and doomsday scenarios. Preferably with mutants.

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Friday Reads: My Hellion, My Heart by Amalie Howard and Angie Page: ARC Review!!!

Hello guys!

*once again dusts off blog*


I keep on trying to return to more regular blogging and I keep on failing... but I really don't want to give up on my blog!

I love books, I love sharing that love with the world and I love shouting about the books I love and helping authors get the word out there about their books, so how come I'm failing SO MUCH at blogging and reviewing??

Today I want to share my love for the latest installment on a historial romance series I've adored from two authors I love, Amalie Howard and Angie Page! Big shout out to my girl Alyssa of The Eater of Books for getting me into reading more romance and giving historical romance a try, btw! *waves at Alyssa*

I was so lucky to be approved for an early ARC on Netgalley for My Hellion, My Heart by the publisher, (THANK YOU!!!) but you guys can grab the book right now because it published this Monday, so GO GET IT!


My Hellion, My Heart by Amalie Howard

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I'm what I'd call a recent convert of the historical romance genre, so I'm by no means an expert but I've so thoroughly adored this entire series!

I really loved the previous books in the series, and I thought that the previous book, My Darling, My Disaster, all about North and Lana would be my favourite because I adored both characters since they were first introduced, BUT I was wrong! From the moment I started this one, Irina and Henry became my absolute favourites!

We met Irina as Lana's spirited little sister and when we meet her at the beginning of the book a few years have passed, but she's lost none of her spirit! As a princess she's a darling of society but also considered a bit of a hellion. She's been avoiding London and its season but finally returns after being nudged there by her friend, to both be closer to her sister and secretly to see again her first love.

I simply loved the interactions between Irina and Henry, there was so much chemistry from the very first moment! I had been a bit concerned about the age difference and how it would play in their relationship, but I soon realized it was handled great, without adding creepiness to the initial interactions between them in the previous book.

Henry has gone through so much since the previous book... When we met him, he was in the service of the Crown and on dangerous missions, but now he's trying and somewhat failing to return to normal life and Society. He's clearly suffering from PTSD after having survived very dangerous missions and having been captured and tortured as a spy & prisioner of war. He also feels rather guilty about his intense attraction to Irina, since she had been his ward as a young girl.

I love how Irina decided to own her fears and fight them and not let Society dictate her actions, because as a princess she has so many eyes on her but she also has a freedom that not many people enjoyed. She decided that she would not fight her love and attraction to Henry, even if she felt it made vulnerable, and once she saw it was not entirely one-sided, she decided to fight and get Henry to accept it and stop fighting the attraction.

Amalie and Angie did an amazing job to show the vulnerabilities and strenghts of both characters and how they could understand and help each other, and not just their amazing chemistry (have I mention that the attraction and sexual chemistry was so well done and off the charts? because oh boy, it so was!).

There's a thread of mystery and intrigue all along the book but it explodes towards the end, with betrayal and danger in a way that I wasn't expecting and that added that "dammit, not that everything seemed to finally be going well!" sort of feeling and I'm so very happy with how it was resolved!

All in all, an amazing book that I've loved! I really hope that Amalie and Angie will co-write many more historical romance books because I will be devouring them all!! 4.5 to 5 stars for sure!


View all my reviews