When the clock strikes
(Paranormal Personnel Saga 0.5)
by Joanna Mazurkiewicz
Kindle Edition, 70 pages
Published March 1st 2014
Summary from Goodreads:
It's a short novella written from Nathaniel's point of view, can be read as stand alone or a prequel to £6.19 per Witching Hour (Paranormal Personnel Saga # 1)
I am a Dhampir - half vampire and half human. When my father died he was brought back to life by a vampire. He returned to my human mother as a vampire, and nine months later I was born.
Thoughts about Julia had corrupted my mind to the point that I couldn't function. Since Isabelle, I'd avoided getting involved in a real relationship, keeping things to sex only. I had my routine and women who wanted to sleep with me. But now I didn't want other women; I only wanted Julia.
Excerpt ~ When the clock strikes:
‘Mr. Porter, they are in the lift,’ said my secretary, walking in after a faint knock.
‘Great. Thanks, Emily. I’ll be out in five.’
‘Who are we meeting anyway?’ I asked , still feeling tense.
‘Julia Taylor and Jennifer Griffiths,’ Porter replied, flipping though the pages of a magazine that someone had left.
Plain names. Probably some nosy and very skilled witches. Many of them liked working with people, showing that they were giving something to the community.
‘Should I go and get them?’ asked Carter. I nodded and then turned around and sat next to Porter, planning to give them a hard time.
I didn’t get why Carter was so eager to begin. We should have let them wait and stew a little. My company was huge and would be a prize account for them to snag.
Carter opened the door and I heard him repeating the names of the two women from Paranormal Personnel.
‘My name is Carter. I work with Mr. La Caz here, and this is Mr. Porter,’ Carter said, painting a lazy smile on his face.
I looked at the dark woman who entered. She smiled widely, giving me one of those looks that I was used to. She was a mermaid, I could tell straight away. Her skin had that thrilling silver glow. She was pretty, but I hated women with short hair. So I pretended that I didn’t notice she was aiming her smile at me.
All of the sudden my heart thumped faster than it should, when my eyes set on the other woman who slid though the door. She was taller than the first one, blonde , lean and sexy, the way I liked them to be. I shifted in my chair, feeling caught off guard. She had an innocent look on her face. And something else. Something that shot through me like a charge of electricity.
Making me feel that same helpless pull that overwhelmed me five years ago when I first saw Isabelle.
My Review ~ When the clock strikes:
I received a free copy of the book from the author for my honest opinion.
Nathaniel La Caz a Dhampir, half vampire and half human; since he was a small child he never really had a father growing up. His father was in and out of his life for most of his childhood until one day his mother couldn't take it anymore and told him to leave and never come back. She couldn't take the pain of him leaving all the time and the things he was doing when he was gone; it broke her heart and she couldn't live with it any longer. Nathaniel's father was a vampire and was turned before he was born. After he was turned he returned home to Nathaniel's mother; a human and nine months later he was born.
When he was older Nathaniel met a girl Isabelle and fell in love with her big time. One day Isabelle disappeared and he searched everywhere for her a very long time. When he found her she had been turned into a vampire and no longer wanted anything to do with him. Her love and loyalty now belonged to her maker/master. It tore Nathaniel apart and swore he would never love anyone else as long as he lived.
When Nathaniel meets Julia, a half elf and half human several years later and on their first meeting he wanted her so bad and not just her blood either. No he wanted more than just her blood he wanted her and he wanted her in his bed. Nathaniel kept wondering what was wrong with him he never actually wanted a woman like he want Julia not since Isabelle broke his heart. Nathaniel was a player he used women for his own purposes and never dated. He only used them for sex and blood and when he was through with them he discarded them like an old dish rag and never felt any remorse for doing so. When Isabelle stomped on his heart Nathaniel learned real quick how to make his heart hard and every time he felt anything he would push it way down in his heart and pack it down like packing dirt so he couldn't feel the pain.
Julia had been taught all of her life to stay away from vampires and that elves and vampires didn't mix. Julia was a good girl and didn't pass herself around from man to man night after night so to speak. Besides the fact that Nathaniel was a vampire she had just broke up with her boyfriend who liked being in charge. Julia is a woman of her own and doesn't like being told what to do. With all the things that she went through with her ex she wasn't quite ready to start dating again herself either.
But after witnessing someone take her cousin Claudia Julia decides that she has to do everything in her power to find her before it is too late. After meeting Nathaniel she realizes that he might be able to help her find Claudia and that he would probably have more or different connections than her father does as a police officer. Nathaniel and Julia start investigating her cousin's kidnapping and run into a little bit of trouble and find out more than they bargained for. When more elves and fairies start coming up missing Julia gets very worried about her cousin and knows that she probably only has a certain time frame to find her cousin.
I love reading anything with magic, vampires, witches, fairies, elves or any paranormal creature. I love the Paranormal Personnel saga or the books that I have read so far. I love the world that Joanna Marzurkiewicz has created in the Paranormal Personnel sage. I love that she has created a world where all paranormal creatures has learned to live together and the fact that they can get along most of the time even though there are some that have not opened up their minds and still live by what their parents taught them instead of opening their minds to what is around them and seeing that there is good and bad in all creatures and who and what they are does not make them bad and that you shouldn't hate them for what they are. You should love them for what is in their heart and not what they are.
If you love reading about all paranormal creatures and have not read any of the Paranormal Personnel saga then I highly recommend that you pick up your copy today. It is filled with magic, mystery, suspense, heartbreak, vampires, witches, elves, fairies ect…. It has a little something for everyone who loves the paranormal.
Past the Witching Hour
(Paranormal Personnel Saga #2)
by Joanna Mazurkiewicz
Kindle Edition, 274 pages
Published March 10, 2014
Summary from Goodreads:
Julia is determined to forget about her recent break up and just move on, but this doesn't come easy when she have to deal with her ex-boyfriend's company every day.
When her regional manager Rufus, asks her to attend a networking event she can't wait to break the routine and just have some fun. The same night he disappears and Nathaniel La Caz who was supposed to be in Switzerland interrupts Julia's sales pitch.
Yet again Julia can't control her magic and Nathaniel insists that he wants her back. Her mind screams no, but the flames of desire are instantly rekindled.
Moreover her best friend Ella witnesses a terrible crime and becomes immune to the memory spell. Apart from dealing with kidnapping, knocking out rapists in the dark alley and just getting on with life itself Julia discovers that her regional manager had been kidnapped. The rival agency is ready to take over the contract with La Caz Corporation and Ella wants nothing to do with her.
Soon she is caught between the devil and the deep blue sea.
Can she find happiness with a half vampire when everyone else is against it?
*Adult Paranormal Romance, contains graphic sexuality, violence and harsh language, It is only suitable for ages 18+
Excerpt ~ Past the Witching Hour:
Half an hour later, I was on my way to my parents. Dad was off today and I was looking forward to catching up with him on his investigation at work.
Since my breakup, mum couldn’t stop talking about Nathaniel. I knew that as soon as I walked through the door she would keep on the subject. She scolded me often enough because I hadn’t done ‘enough’ to keep my perfect boyfriend close. Nathaniel brightened up her prospects about a ‘perfect’ son in law. I couldn’t tell her what went on between us, but of course she just assumed that it was all my fault. My mother was a human— she had no idea what I had to go through just to date a vampire. She loved me but she was also very critical and kept me on my toes.
When I got there, I sat down with Dad, hoping to cure my hangover with chocolate. Nathaniel was out of my life so Dad was much happier with me. He would never discriminate, but he wasn’t crying over the fact that we broke up.
My Review ~ Past the Witching Hour:
I received a free copy of the book from the author for my honest opinion.
Julia wants nothing more than to forget about her ex-boyfriend and just get on with her life. But how is she going to do that when his company La Caz Corporation is Paranormal Personnel's (the company she works for) biggest money making job. If La Caz Corporation wasn't their biggest client it still wouldn't matter because Nathaniel won't leave her alone. If he is not following her around or giving her a ride home then he has his driver to keep an eye on her and to drive her where ever she wants to go. Julia tells him to stay away from her that it is over between them but he won't listen to her. Besides when the two of them are together her magic is all over the place. Julia is a half elf who has never been able to control her magic and so it builds up in her until she is just about to lose her mind. When Julia and Nathaniel make love she starts blasting things with her magic which helps her to get rid of the excess and it makes her feel lots better.
Julia's boss and friend Rufus a giant disappears the same night that he asks her to go to a networking event. Just when Julia is doing her job of trying to gain more clients and business for Paranormal Personnel Nathaniel interrupts her and causes her to lose their business. He tells her not to worry about it he will make it up to her later, which of course he does.
Julia decides to tell Nathaniel about her boss missing hoping she can get him to help her find him. Her dad is a police officer in the paranormal department but she is thinking that with Nathaniel being half-vampire that he would have different connections than her father would have. Nathaniel agrees to help her in any way that he can to find her boss.
Julia's human friend Ella witnesses a murder of a paranormal it upsets her real bad and healers try to erase her memory of the murder with a spell but it doesn't work on her. Julia figures out that her friend whom she thought was human ever since they were little girls is not human after all or is only half human. Julia tries to explain to Ella that she is a paranormal like herself but Ella doesn't believe her. She thinks Julia is crazy and is lying to her and wants nothing else to do with her ever. But Julia doesn't give up easily on anything or anyone she will fight for what she believes in or wants.
Julia is a tough and very independent woman who doesn't like someone watching over her and trying to tell her what to do all the time. She is very stubborn at times and thinks she can take care of herself and she also needs some alone time. So when she leaves work sometimes after working late or working the night shift she runs into trouble and usually has to call on someone to come and bail her out. She knows that she shouldn't be walking around by herself at night when there are people after her but she gets so mad and fed up at times that her mind just flies right out the window sometimes and won't listen to no one.
I love the world that Joanna has built in the Paranormal Personnel Saga. I love reading about all paranormal creatures living together in the same world. I love the idea of having a paranormal staffing company. Paranormal creatures need jobs and a way to make money just like humans do. If you have not read any of the Paranormal Personnel books then I highly recommend that you head on over to Amazon and grab your copy and get started reading them today.
Half Past the Witching Hour
(Paranormal Personnel Saga #3)
by Joanna Mazurkiewicz
Kindle Edition, 247 pages
Published July 1, 2014
Summary from Goodreads:
After months of anguish and pain Julia's life is finally getting back on track. She is seeing a handsome giant, an art dealer named Quentin, the agency is getting a lot of business and she is finally over her ex.
All of the sudden her peaceful life shifts, when she blacks out and wakes up several hours later with blood on her hands and with no recollection of what's happened to her. But life must go on and Julia carries on with her morning, stressed and worried about the future. When she arrives at La Caz Corporation, she stumbles upon a dead body, her ex- co worker Jennifer Griffiths. She starts seeing visions of herself wandering around streets with a knife, the same knife her ex-co worker has been murdered with.
Sadly this is just the beginning of her problems as more petrifying visions keep haunting her thoughts. She begins seeing her mother dying in the fire, screaming for help, and when a new enigmatic elderly elf shows up with an offer that she can't turn down, nothing seems to be making sense anymore.
She knows for sure that she has to do everything in her power to prevent her visions from happening, which means that she has to start taking some magic lessons and learn to put her trust in strangers.
She gets pulled into the most dangerous game of desire, death and magic. She has to fight her beliefs, understand herself and face the internal struggle of what's wrong and what's right. It's going to be tough but Julia has no choice other than to pull through.
Excerpt ~ Half Past the Witching Hour:
‘So, are we feeling better today?’ Kate asked, eyeing me from head to toe as soon as I walked through the door.
‘Fantastic, absolutely brilliant, never felt better,’ I sang, smiling widely. Kate pinched her eyebrows, looking at me like she knew that I was giving her a lot of crap.
‘Good, so I guess you’re ready then ?’ she asked, while I flopped in my chair.
‘Ready for what?’
‘Our meeting with Kelsie and Lucinda, you know, in an hour or so?’
I stared blankly at her for more than ten seconds wondering what the hell she was talking about.
What meeting with Lucinda and Kelsie?
I wanted to slap myself. Instead I took my diary out and turned to today’s date. Kate was right. The meeting with Lucinda Grabovsky was set for today, marked in red on my calendar. My chest heaved as I took a deep breath. Lucinda was going to want facts and figures. I was screwed because the meeting was in an hour and I was completely unprepared.
Unfortunately this was just the beginning of today’s nightmare.
My Review ~ Half Past the Witching Hour:
I received a free copy of book from the author for my honest opinion.
Julia is back and she is still trying to get over her break up with her ex-boyfriend Nathaniel the boss at La Caz Corporation. She is dating a giant named Quentin who is an art dealer. Quentin is very nice and wants to move in with Julia but she is not quite ready for that yet. Julia cares for Quentin a great deal but he will never be Nathaniel and he will never make her feel like he does. But she does try really, really hard to be the girlfriend that Quentin deserves.
Just when she thinks she is getting her life back on track she starts having blackouts and when she comes to she has blood all over her. She thinks she is losing her mind. When she starts having visions or bit and pieces of herself killing someone she knows that she is going to have to get her magic under control and find someone to teach her how to control her magic. She is going crazy wondering if what she is remembering is real or not. But when she finds a dead body at La Caz Corporation and it is the same person that she saw in her dreams or visions then has to pull herself together long enough to find out if she is the killer or if it is someone else.
When she starts having visions of her killing her own mother she races against the clock to find out who the killer is if it is her or someone else. She has to find a way to stop her visions coming true. Does she have dark magic inside of her and it may be causing her to commit murder? Can she learn to control this dark magic that may be inside her before it is too late to save her mother?
Julia has some of the best friends in the world that will do anything they can to help Julia find the truth. They will put their own lives in danger to save Julia and she would do the same for them. That is when she is in control of her own self and her dark magic has not taken over. Is Julia running around killing people or is it someone else who is trying to hurt Julia and make her life a living h3ll? Who is killing all these people? Why would anyone want to hurt Julia?
Half Past the Witching Hour is an awesome book. It is filled with murder, magic, witches, vampires, shifters, elves, fairies and more paranormal creatures than I can name. I love the world that Joanna has created with all of the different paranormals. Half Past the Witching Hour will grab you by the seat of your pants and have you bouncing all over the place with Julia and her on again off again relationships. It will take a hold of you with its magical powers and won't let go until you read the very last word and even then it will have you hanging on wanting more.
About the Author:
Joanna Mazurkiewicz was born in Poland. She moved to United Kingdom when she was only nineteen and just finished high school. She had aspired to be a writer upon completion of the Harry Potter series but also enjoyed reading books like 'Gone with the Wind', 'Animal Farm' and 'The doll'. She graduated from Swansea University with a bachelor degree in American Studies. While studying in the UK she made a decision to start writing fiction in English.
The "Whispers of the Sprite" is her first debut novel and she is currently working on the other projects. Joanna lives in Cowbridge, a small town in South Wales near Cardiff with her boyfriend Bruce. She enjoys cycling around Welsh countryside some of which has become the settings in her first series.
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