Friday, November 1, 2013

Slayers: Friends and Traitors by C.J. Hill ~ A mother/daughter review

The Slayers – teens who have powers to fight dragons—are back by popular demand in this high-octane sequel, now with a new cover package!

Tori is at a White House dinner party when she hears a horrifying sound: dragon eggs hatching. It means in less than a year, the dragons will be mature and dangerous. The Slayers are well-trained, but their group is not yet complete, and Tori is determined to track down Ryker Davis, the mysterious Slayer who has yet to surface.

What Tori doesn’t bargain for, however, is the surprising truth about her powers: she isn’t a Slayer after all, but a Dragon Lord, with a built-in predisposition to protect dragons, not kill them.
How will she overcome this to save the lives of her friends?

How long have I be waiting for this book?  It feels like forever.  I'm so, so happy it finally made it's way to me.  :)

I think I may have enjoyed this book even more than the first.  That's saying something good for this book because usually second books in the series are not quite as thrilling as the first.  But, not this one.  It was just as good, if not better.

There are a couple things that I really love about these books.  First, the pacing.  The story flows so well and I never felt the need to skim.  (Did I just admit that I sometimes skim?!  maybe...)  There is action, action, action.  I love that.  The feeling of getting wrapped up altogether in a book is a good feeling.

Another thing I really love about this book is the teamwork.  This group of kids have formed a team.  They have been taught how to work together for the best interest of the whole group.  They all have a role to play, they all feel needed.  I just love the whole working together thing.

I enjoyed the DC scenery through the book.  I lived there for a couple of years and it brought me back to lots of favorite places with good memories.  :)  One of the best things for me about this book is that it is clean.  This is a book I can recommend to my nieces, my mother or anyone.  (hi mom!)  No swearing, no sexual situations.

My teenage daughter loves this series too.  It's one of her favorites.  Her review may contain a bit of a spoiler so you may want to skip it if you haven't read the first book or if you want the second book to be a complete surprise.  

The second book in the Slayers series was a really enjoyable read; I grew to love the characters more and more with each page. The book would have been amazing without the love triangle between Tori, Dirk, and Jesse, but there it was, and my mind was blown. I really like love triangles, but this one was one of the few I started rooting for the "bad" guy. I grew to love Dirk, and it’s like that Anakin thing all over again; I love him and he WILL turn good in the end! If I were in the book, I would for sure be going after my favorite character Dirk.


Overall, this book was special because it made me root for the person I never do; the "bad" guy. I loved the love triangle set up and I cannot wait for the next book! The plot and many twists buried inside created a fun, crazy adventure with just enough romance to make me turn the next page, and the next, and the next. Seeing as how I finished this book in two days… Let’s just say I love it. What a great, unique read!

I'm so happy to be a part of this tour.  My thanks to Fire and Ice for letting me tag along with them.  

CJ Hill is a pen name for a YA author who is best known for writing romantic comedies. (Slayers will be her 18th published book.) Her writing has shifted away from the romantic comedy genre, so her editor thought a pen name would be a good idea. (New books will include: dangerous dragons, time travel to dystopian worlds, and flesh-eating beetles.) Since the publisher refused to let her have the pseudonym : The Artist Formerly Referred to as Princess, she chose a name to honor her mother. CJ Hill was her mother's pen name, or at least it would have been if her mother had published. Her mother wrote a few children's books and a middle grade novel but was taken by cancer before she had fully learned the craft.

(Most writers' first novels aren't publishable. CJ Junior's first novel wasn't, but somehow was published anyway. Now, even though it is out of print, it remains forever available on Amazon, where it taunts her with its badness. This was another good reason to use a pen name.)

CJ Hill has five children, three of whom like her on any given day depending on who is in trouble. She has lived in Arizona for the last half of her life, but is still in desert denial and hopes that one day her garden will grow silver bells and cockle shells or maybe just tomatoes.


Visit all the stops on the Slayers: Friends and Traitors blog tour hosted by Fire and Ice

Heather at Fire and Ice- October 15- Guest Post
Taffy Lovell- October 16- Review
Elana Johnson- October 17- Interview
Rebecca Lamoureaux- October 18- Interview
Heidi at Geo Librarian- October 19- Review
Robin Ambrose-October 20- Character Interview
Rachel at Fiktshun- October 21- Guest Post
Kathy at I'm A Reader- October 22- Guest Post
Shanda at LDSWBR- October 23- Review
Kathy at Clean Teen Fic- October 24- Review
Sheila Staley- Why Not? Because I Said So!- October 25- Review
Heidi at YA Bibliophile- October 26- Guest Post, Tens List
Cindy Bennett- October 27- Excerpt
Tressa at Tressa’s Wishful Endings- October 28- Review
Tamera at Being a Mom and Loving It- October 29- Guest Post, Tens List
Mindy Holt- Min Reads and Reviews- October 30- Review
Kelly at Kindle and Me- October 31-Guest Post
Elizabeth at Elizabeth’s Book Reviews- November 1-Review
Aimee Brown at Getting Your Read On- November 1- Review
Mindy from Magical Urban Fantasy Reads- November 2- Character Interview
Amber at Me, My Shelf and I- November 3- Guest Post

Purchase Slayers!


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