New story! Welcome to the Rhinoverse Launch

So if you follow me on Twitter, you’ll know I’ve been developing an interactive online serial about a girl with supernatural bad luck named Rhine Tseng.

And what better day to release that then Friday the 13th, right?

You can find the first blog post here, but if you’re not completely convinced yet, read the synopsis below. I promise you will not be disappointed.

Official Welcome to the Rhinoverse Synopsis

Rhine Tseng is the most unlucky girl in the world. Her bad luck is next level, it’s supernatural, it’s sentient. She can feel it grow and consume and want from inside of her. Which is sort of putting a damper on her plans to rule the world by the time she’s 30.

Not that she’s complaining, better her than someone else less equipped for the loneliness that comes with being the world’s biggest bad luck charm.

So far everything has worked out mostly okay for her. She’s a junior at UCLA, a genius statistician, and she’s an intern for the most prestigious company in the world, Kincaid Co.

But the other shoe is about to drop, throwing a curve ball of epic proportions. Rhine will have to race against the clock and battle an unseen enemy, a being that has always been a part of her, in order to prevent the end of the world.

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I am so excited to be sharing this with all of you. This has been a few years in the making now and honestly it’s one of my favorite stories I’ve written. So please, enjoy!

Without further ado, Welcome to the Rhinoverse.

Book Review: The Witches of Dark Hollow Ridge by Rena Marin

The Witches of Dark Hollow Ridge was a great read!

In my opinion, there is so much lead up to the actual plot that felt a bit unnecessary, but I actually really enjoyed this book. The romance between Sadie and Dorian felt really underdeveloped, though. It seemed a little like it was thrown in there as an afterthought, when in reality Sadie’s relationship to her “coven” and her younger sisters was a lot more interesting.

Instead, I got a story where I had to follow a lot of (red herring) threads and an uninspired romantic plot to get to the meat of it. The most interesting things in the book were the betrayal of the coven, Cleo’s plot, and the High Priestess arc which I genuinely enjoyed. 

However, take everything I say with a grain of salt because if romance isn’t a long, pining slow-burn I have an intensely difficult time getting into it. So, if you like quick romances I would recommend this story. 

I rated this 4 stars, though because the actual plot of the story is really gripping. I intensely enjoyed the plot with Cleo and Ebony. Though, I imagined the characters a lot differently in my head. Ebony’s description was a huge surprise for me. 

I also intensely loved the relationship between Victoria, Veronica, and Vivian. Even though for most of the book I confused Veronica and Victoria because the names are very similar and it took me awhile to figure out which of them I needed to be angry at. (Short answer: both)

I hope the second book in the series will focus more on the coven and also better explain the relationship between Sadie and Dorian. Also less whining about how often the younglings were lied to. I get it, it sucks, but I got it the first 3 times you were outraged, Sadie. You don’t need to keep repeating it.

I’m also really interested to see how Sadie will grow as a person and as a leader throughout this series. I was heartbroken at the ending for obvious reasons (You broke my whole heart, Rena Marin, and you know why) and I know Sadie is heartbroken too. I wonder how that will change her in the future. 

Overall rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
(4/5 Stars. )

Rating breakdown:
Prose: 👍👍👍👍
Plot: 😄😄😄
Characterization: 🧙‍♀️🧙‍♀️🧙‍♀️
Boredom meter: 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

I look forward to reading more from this world.

Flash Fiction: Silver & Sunlight

From Mine, 13’s, and Ariel LeAnn’s Asylum Wolves Story.

Darien is the first vampire he’s ever seen. He had no idea they would be so beautiful. Daciana and Areynn had always warned him away from them, the clans in the city didn’t get along with wolves, after all.

But he couldn’t help it. He was curious.

Darien Taylor was by far the most beautiful man he had ever laid eyes on. He had long silver hair and pale greyish skin that made him look godlike. Faizeel supposed that was the point of vampires. To look pretty so they could entice their prey to come to them.

Werewolves were different. At least, in Faizeel’s experience. Instead of preying on people they generally preferred animals. Or at least he did when he was hunting. He hadn’t been a wolf long enough to consider humans prey just yet.

Hell, four months ago he was human himself. He wouldn’t want to be eaten by some giant hell beast. So he would stick to moose for now.

“Greetings,” a man’s voice said from beside him. It was low and filled with amusement.

Faizeel nearly jumped out of his skin. When had Darien gotten beside him?

“For a wolf you’re not very observant,” Darien said.

“Wh-what?” Faizeel stammered, completely caught off guard.

Darien rested his hand on the wall beside Faizeel’s face and leaned into him. His eyes were bright red with a hint of black around the iris. “What brings you out here, wolf?” Darien looked him up and down, gaze lingering on his throat a little too long.

“Isn’t your kind nocturnal?” His gaze flicked back up from Fai’s throat to meet his eyes. He bit his lip, a hint of fang poking out.

“I could say the same thing about your kind, bat.” Fai snarled.

Darien straightened up and flashed him an easy smile. “Bat!” He guffawed, almost taken aback. “I suppose I should have expected that.”

Faizeel narrowed his eyes at him and crossed his arms over his chest.

“I’ll let you in on a little secret though, wolf,” Darien said, exposing his fangs, “Vampires don’t actually turn into bats. Or, at least not all species of vampires. Most turn into mist or wind or something equally as useless. Teleporting would have been so much easier.” He looked wistful.

“There’s more than one species of vampire?” Faizeel asked.

Darien chuckled. “Of course. There are also multiple species of werewolves. Different species evolve in different ways.”

Faizeel hadn’t thought of it that way. Daciana and Areynn had told him there were other wolves out there that were different from them, but he just thought it had to do with what they ate. He never thought there could be an evolutionary thing.

“Your kind of werewolf is severely allergic to both silver and wolfsbane,” Darien continued, “There are species out there immune to both of those with a severe allergy to gold or even the sun depending.”

“I thought a sun allergy was a vampire thing.” Fai said.

Darien smirked at this. “I suppose that is an issue for some vampires, but.” he paused to gesture to the sun high in the sky, “Not all of them.” His gaze settled back on Fai before he continued in a low voice, “You have much to learn, pup.”

Faizeel felt goosebumps erupt on his skin. No one other than Daciana and Areynn had ever called him that before. Something about the way Darien said it made his stomach clench and head rise up in his cheeks.

“You should run along home now,” Darien said, flashing his fangs again, his eyes darting to Faizeel’s throat.

Faizeel’s heart pounded in his chest. Logically he knew he should leave. Vampires and werewolves didn’t mix. He had learned that from TV and books even before he was part of this world. Another part of him desperately wanted to know the feeling of Darien sinking his teeth deep into his neck and draining him dry.

“Do vampires have hypnosis?” Faizeel asked, biting the inside of his cheek, fighting against whatever urge Darien seemed to be pushing on him.

The vampire took in a deep breath, leaning closer. His lips brushed against the shell of Faizeel’s ear. He stroked his fingers over Fai’s arm from his elbow all the way down to his wrist and Fai shivered.

“You were mine the second you started watching me,” Darien whispered.

Flash Fiction: Stitches

From mine, 13’s, and Ariel LeAnn’s story asylum wolves. 

“If you don’t hold still it’s going to hurt worse,” Daciana barked.

Faizeel whimpered under her touch and flinched away when she pressed the needle into the skin of his arm. He had been cut by a silver blade infused with wolfsbane by one of the local wixen.

Daciana had warned him not to get too close to the magical folk. They could easily sense creatures like them and they were NOT friendly.

“Why is it not healing?” Faizeel asked with a yelp when she threaded the needle through his arm and finally began to sew up the wound. It was rare she would ever have to give any of her pack stitches. Mainly because it was only her and Areynn (before Fai) and Areynn wasn’t an idiot.

“Because wixen carry silver,” Daciana growled, “Like I warned you before. Normally silver wouldn’t do this much damage, but this one was particularly smart and infused her blade with wolfsbane.” She bit the suture off with her teeth, severing it from the needle.

“I warned you, Faizeel. I told you they were dangerous. You’re lucky you got back to the asylum before it started festering.” Daciana just barely resisted the urge to hit him.

“She didn’t seem so bad,” Fai argued.

Daciana rolled her eyes. Sometimes she regretted turning him. “I hope you’ve learned your lesson.”

Fai’s face flushed and he glanced at the mess of black sutures on his arm. “I don’t really understand,” he said, much to Daciana’s dismay, “I wasn’t even doing anything other than talking. She seemed lost, I wanted to help.”

Daciana’s hard expression softened and she patted Faizeel’s shoulder. “I know, pup,” she said, using hers and Areynn’s nickname for him. In many ways Faizeel was similar to a youngling. He was too trusting, not yet hardened by the world in the same ways she and Areynn were. It was frustrating, but also heartwarming in small doses.

Fai smiled weakly at her, leaning forward and nuzzling his face into her neck for a brief moment to show his gratitude.

Daciana froze. This was the first time he had expressed any sort of pack intimacy towards her. He had been with them such a short time there hadn’t really been any cause for it. She patted the back of his head. He was going to fit in just fine.

Books: Marjorie Diaz Book One

Girl meets boy. Girl falls in love with boy. Boy hunts girl for sport. In Marjorie Diaz’s book 1, nothing is safe! 

Purchase your copy here.

It’s even on #KindleUnlimited if you have it!

MORE ABOUT MARJORIE DIAZ

Girl meets boy. Girl falls in love with boy. Boy hunts girl for sport.

Marjorie Diaz has no idea who Patrick Watkins is. When he saunters into her senior seminar class during her last semester of college, the last thing she expects is to fall in love with him. 

She’s swept up into a whirlwind—and often times fairytale-esque—romance. That is, until his family kidnaps her and sends her to a place she never thought she would go again. 

Now, with the help of her best friend Lucian Maravalle, she has to run for her life, and try not to think too hard about the fact that all of the important people in her life has been keeping a dangerous secret. A secret that could cost Marjorie her life.

Book one in the Marjorie Diaz series.

Cover art by Ariel LeAnn of Cat’s Paw Media

**THIS TITLE IS LGBT WITH A FULL LGBT AND POC CAST** 

GET YOUR COPY HERE