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Wednesday, May 1, 2019

Ethereal Squadron by Shami Stovall - Book Tour - Book Review - Giveaway - Enter Daily!


Hello lovelies!  It gives me great pleasure today to host Shami Stovall and her new book, “Ethereal Squadron”!  For other stops on her Goddess Fish Promotions Book Tour, please click on the banner above or any of the images in this post.

Be sure to make it to the end of this post to enter to win a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble Gift Card!!  Also, come back daily to interact with Shami and to increase your chances of winning!

Thanks for stopping by!  Wishing you lots of luck in this fabulous giveaway!


Ethereal Squadron
by Shami Stovall

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GENRE: Fantasy

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BLURB:

It’s 1916, and the world is on fire.

The Great War has already consumed much of the globe, but a second, secret war between sorcerers threatens to crack it in two. The ruling families of Germany and Austria-Hungary, those with the chill of magic in their blood, will stop at nothing in their quest for power, and they’ve drawn the entire world into a bloody war because of it.

But Florence Cavell—codename Geist—means to stop them. She had to defy her family, cut her hair, and disguise herself as a man to join the legendary Ethereal Squadron: a joint US-UK division of the allied powers’ mightiest sorcerers. Armed with her powerful specter sorcery, which allows her to “ghost” through bullets and barbed wire alike, Geist fights a tireless battle to end the war once and for all.

Fans of Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld, Airborn by Kenneth Oppel, Shadow Ops: Control Point by Myke Cole, and The Roar by Emma Clayton will love this book.

This book is for anyone who likes reading about:

Strong female protagonists
Military fantasy
Historical fantasy
World War I
Adventure stories

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EXCERPT THREE:

The clack of the train wheels over the steel rails rang out a consistent ka-kak rhythm. The incessant noise was muffled by the thick polished redwood walls and deep green carpeting. Geist relaxed in her reclining chair, amused by the heavy curtains tied at the side of the train car windows. The posh and gaudy design reminded her of home.

They had a car all to themselves. The car behind them was full of socialite women—debutantes, the lot of them. Although Geist could steal glances of them through the windows of the cars, sound didn’t penetrate. Instead, she focused on her team and Victory’s advice.

Get them talking.
       
Victory and Blick shared small talk over a local newspaper. Battery stayed close, absorbed in organizing and reorganizing his rucksack. Dreamer and Vergess sat on the opposite side of the car, dead silent.

Even though discussing strategy had been the original excuse for acquiring the first-class car, there wasn’t much to discuss. Even Victory’s future sight couldn’t help them until they got closer to the OHL—and until then, they were flying blind. 

“We have eight hours until we reach Le Havre,” Geist said. “Let’s use our time wisely.”

The others turned to her.

Blick smiled. “I know exactly what you’re trying say.”

“You do?”

“Yes.”

“We need to discuss our experience with the ladies.”

“Wait, what?” Geist asked. “We don’t need to discuss women.” Anything but that. “But I was going to suggest we get to know each other a little more by—”

“Nothing is more revealing than how you handle yourself with the fairer sex,” Blick interjected with a snap of his fingers. “As veteran soldiers, it’s our sworn duty to teach new recruits how.” Blick raised an eyebrow and swirled an imaginary wine glass, speaking with all the class and sophistication he could muster.

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MY BOOK REVIEW:


This book was a captivating, entertaining, historical and fantasy adventure read!

I was very intrigued to find a book filled with historical and fantasy content on the same page.  This definitely made the book thought-provoking, compelling, and fascinating!

One of the best features of this book is the significant amount of accurate, intriguing World War I time-period detail that the author weaved into this book.  It is no wonder Ms. Stovall has a degree in history and is well-versed in the culture and customs that she was able to provide such cohesive knowledge and references in her writing.

I love books with strong female leads and I would have to say that this book fits that bill.  The main character, Florence, leaves home to join the Ethereal Squad and fight in the war.  Unfortunately, they, like as it was back then, only accepted men enlistees.  So, Florence changes her name to Geist and her appearance to reflect a man.  Only the team’s doctor, who is also a woman, knows her secret identity.  Geist clearly defines a strong female lead as she is fierce, powerful, and determined while she continues to fight in these intense, violent battles trying to end the war once and for all.

I was also intrigued by the author’s world-building and the creation of the magical abilities structure, like how the bloodlines worked by passing down abilities, and so on.  I felt the author did a skillful job at making sure all her bases were covered and that everything seemed to sync up.  Although this was a fantasy-based genre, for every out-there scenario the author seemed to have a way to explain her reasoning, how it was possible, or how it came about.  This is a huge factor for me with fantasy books.  I need to be told why the sky is purple instead of the sky is purple period.  This made the world-building that much stronger and easier to follow.

I really enjoyed the exciting, adventurous, kick-butt, magical, fighting scenes!  They were entertaining and spellbinding!  There was a lot going on during those scenes and some moments were a bit dark, but shockingly at times it was hard to look away.  I think the end of the real WWI might have turned out differently had there been sorcerers and magic involved and we all could be speaking a different language lol!!

There are some predictable scenes.  However, there are still a few very unexpected twists and turns that you won’t see coming!

This book is book one of The Sorcerers of Verdun Book Series.  This book can absolutely be read as a standalone.

All in all, I really enjoyed reading this book and would absolutely recommend it!  I think all historical, fantasy readers will like this book too!  So, add it to your TBR List and get to reading - you won't be disappointed!

**Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book and have voluntarily provided an honest, and unbiased review in accordance with FTC regulations.**

Did you find this review helpful?
If so, please, please, please mark it as helpful on Amazon here:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/review/R3BWMFYOCIQ5G7

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AUTHOR BIO:


Shami Stovall relies on her BA in History and Juris Doctorate to make her living as an author and history professor in the central valley of California. She writes in a wide range of fiction, from crime thrillers to fantasy to science-fiction. Stovall loves reading, playing video games, entertaining others with stories, and writing about herself in the third person.

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CONNECT WITH SHAMI:

Website:

Blog:

Newsletter:

Email:
s.adelle.s@gmail.com

Facebook:

Twitter:

BookBub Author Page:

BookBub Book Page:

Goodreads Author Page:

Goodreads Book Page:

Amazon Author Page:

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BOOK BUY LINKS:

Amazon Kindle eBook:

Amazon Paperback:

Barnes and Noble Paperback:

The Book Depository Paperback:

BAM! Books-A-Million Paperback:

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GIVEAWAY INFO:

Shami will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour.


**This post contains affiliate links and if clicked and a purchase is made, I may receive a small commission to help support this blog.  This does not cost you anything, it just helps pay for all those awesome giveaways on here.**

This contest is sponsored by a third party. Fabulous and Brunette is a registered host of Goddess Fish Promotions.  Prizes are given away by the sponsors and not Fabulous and Brunette. The featured author and Goddess Fish Promotions are solely responsible for the giveaway prize.

9 comments:

  1. Shami ~ Good morning! It is so great to have you here! Congrats on your new book and good luck on the book tour! I really enjoyed reading and reviewing your book, thanks for providing the copy! :)

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    1. Ally - Thank you so much for hosting! I really appreciate you taking the time to read and review my novel! :3

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  2. Would you ever like to see your book turned into a movie?

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  3. Thanks for sharing your book with us. I think we all enjoy hearing about new books we previously didn't know about. Also, thank you for the giveaway.

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  4. Which book would you like to see a sequel to?

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  5. What books are you looking forward to reading in 2019?

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