Goddess, Awakened
The Goddess Connection Book 1
By Cate Masters
Fantasy/paranormal romance novel
About 89,700 words
Blurb
With a little help from a goddess, battling evil is a piece of cake for Jocelyn Gibson.
A descendant of the goddess Iris, Jocelyn Gibson may have forgotten about the realm of magic, but it hasn't forgotten her. When Eric Hendricks is targeted by a demon, Joss must step in to battle the evil and save the town's awkward, but endearing, vet…who also happens to be the man she loves.
Joss's new inn, a culinary career specializing in cooking with lavender and a new love all make for a fine recipe of disaster. She needs to embrace her inner goddess and harness the powers she never knew she had before it's too late.
Excerpt
The sting remained with Joss long after Eric fled the inn. Deep-rooted pain emanated from him when he'd first entered, and his palm against her arm sent an electric shock straight to her bones. The poor man. Grief kept him its prisoner. Joss understood how easy it was to fall into that dark trap. The way he'd held her, he sought escape. Comfort.
He awakened deep-seated sensations in her. In the few moments with him, she'd felt more alive than she had in three years.
So strange. Normally, one look allowed her to see the person inside. With Eric Hendricks, her receptivity went into overload. His soul, pent up for years, stirred to life and churned up love, fear, joy, hopelessness, yearning, jumbled and shifting faster than light. He displayed great strength in his firm stance and gentle touch. Beneath a hard veneer of sheer pain, one other trait came through clearly-purity of spirit, and integrity enough for many men.
The arrival of more guests drew Joss to the foyer again. Another matronly witch and an older man wearing a checked flannel shirt, jeans, and boots stepped inside, followed by a princess and a boy in a fabric turtle shell.
Joss recognized the girl as one of the riders whose horse was boarded at the inn's stable. After greeting them and pointing them toward refreshments, she returned to Lydia. "Sorry about Dr. Hendricks."
"Don't apologize. It's wonderful you have so many guests." Lydia fingered the flowers in the vase on the table.
One woman stood in the archway to the front room, her bright-eyed glare directed at Joss. Wearing a short white shift adorned with large red hearts, the woman held a wand topped with a glittering red heart.
Confused by the woman's malevolence, Joss approached and fought to overcome the negativity oozing from her. "Did you try some of the booscotti?"
The woman tilted up her chin. "I'm not hungry, Mrs. Gibson," came her familiar nasal reply.
Recognition finally hit. Of course-the girl who worked at the diner in town. "Sheree?"
At her curt nod, Joss forced a smile. "I love your costume."
Sheree's gaze darted her length. "Likewise."
What could be her problem? The woman wielded her wand like a weapon, ready to strike. "Please have a drink and make yourself at home."
"Thank you." Her narrowed eyes swept the room as if suspecting an ambush, and then she moved stiffly away.
Joss crossed the room to Lydia. "That was weird."
Lydia whispered, "Be careful of her."
"Sheree? I can't imagine why." Could she be nervous the inn would take away some of the diner's business? Though Joss would have liked to think it was the cause of her strange behavior, Sheree's vibes told Joss otherwise. Business had nothing to do with it. The waitress directed her bad juju at Joss personally. Had Joss unintentionally insulted Sheree? She'd barely met the woman.
Leaning close, her aunt spoke sternly, "I warned you to watch for others who seek the power of this place."
Sheree? Her aunt must be mistaken. The woman's terrible attitude resulted from something. Maybe an imagined slight? Joss would find a way to put Sheree at ease.
More guests entered, and Joss excused herself. She left Lydia deeply inhaling the air. Joss couldn't deny the charged atmosphere was one of the reasons she'd bought the place. Not to tap into any lines of power for herself, but maybe to enhance the lavender field she planned. Joss needed the garden to thrive so the inn would as well.
My Review
I received a free copy of the book from the author for my honest opinion.
Jocelyn Gibson is a descendant of the goddess Iris with magical powers of which she thought she had put on the back burner because of her husband. But Joss has been in morning for the past three years and decides it is time to move on with her life. So she buys an old bed and breakfast in the small town of Boiling Springs, Pennsylvania that she plans on renovating. She knows it is going to take a lot of time and hard work but she has her friend Annie and her family to help her.
Even though Joss is now trying to make a new life for herself she is still not ready or has no plans for another man in her life. That is until she meets the town vet who just happens to live and work across the street from the inn. Eric Hendricks like Joss is not ready for a relationship either. Joss is also morning his wife, Karen but when the two of them meet sparks start to fly. In the beginning they both try to fight the feelings they are having. Neither one of them knows excatly what is happing nor what they are feeling. They push their feelings away and try to hide them from themselves and everyone else. But they can't hide from other people.
I think Eric realizes before Joss how he feels about her and that he wants her in is life. But there is a woman that works at the diner in town who has her eyes set on Eric and will do whatever she has to; to make him hers even sell her soul to the devil. She makes a deal with a demon to get Eric. When Joss finds out she enlist the help of her family to help her save Eric before it is too late. Joss with the help of her Grandmother, Aunt and other family members must fight evil in order to save Eric, the inn, the town and the people who live there as well.
Goddess, Awakened is filled with love and evil that will have you feeling real good one minute and the next minute it will have you hanging on for your life or more like one of the character's lives. You just want to reach into the book and give the woman that was after Eric a shake and just tell her to leave him alone. But at the same time you knew that she couldn't totally be blamed for everything she was doing. The demon that she made the deal with is more to blame than her. Although she was evil from the beginning before the demon ever came into the picture or she would never had made a deal with him.
If you like reading about goddess, demons, love and goddess and demons fighting then you need to give Goddess, Awakened a try. I really liked reading about a older age group of main characters for a change, it was refreshing.
About The Author
Cate Masters has made beautiful central Pennsylvania her home, but she'll always be a Jersey girl at heart. When not spending time with her dear hubby, she can be found in her lair, concocting a magical brew of contemporary, historical, and fantasy/paranormal stories with her cat Chairman Maiow and dog Lily as company. Look for her at her website and in strange nooks and far-flung corners of the web.
Giveaway
