Mundie Moms

Monday, March 3, 2014

STEADFAST by Claudia Gray, Blog Tour; Book Review & Giveaway



Welcome to today's STEADFAST blog tour stop! Today I'm excited to share my review of Claudia's upcoming release (it's out TOMORROW). First, here's a little bit about the book.

About The Book



Published by: Harper Teen
To Be Released on: March 4th, 2014
Series: Spellcaster #2
Rating: 4 Stars - I Enjoyed It
Pre-Order from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Add it to Goodreads

The second book in the dazzling Spellcaster series from New York Times bestselling author Claudia Gray is perfect for fans of the Beautiful Creatures and Hex Hall series.

Nadia, Mateo, and Verlaine saved Captive's Sound from the dark sorceress Elizabeth . . . or so they thought. But despite their best efforts, a crack opened and a new, greater evil seeped through. With Mateo as her Steadfast, Nadia's magic is magnified but her training is still incomplete. And a darker magic has begun to call Nadia. . . .

With her Steadfast, Mateo, and her best friend, Verlaine, Nadia must fight the black magic that tempts her and stop the One Beneath before he comes to claim what is his.
As always, this is a SPOILER FREE review. There are too many plot twists and spoilers that I will NOT mention anything specific so that I don't spoil anything for anyone. 


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I love it when a series picks up right where it left off, and gives you just enough to refresh your memory of the important parts that happened previously, but doesn't retell the entire first book. Claudia Gray does a great job at diving right back into her exciting series. Nadia, Mateo and Verlaine have already been through a lot, but now things are about to get a little bit more exciting and a lot more twisted. Things they thought they took care previously, come back to haunt them in this book. That's saying a lot, without giving anything away. 

With reappearances of characters from Spellcasters, and Gray answering a lot of questions, it didn't take long for things in STEADFAST to pick up. Nadia, Mateo & Verlaine have a lot at stake in this book. Though together they have this strength and determination to not give up until they can stop the evil that's destroying their town and the people in it, individually they're all dealing with their own issues. While I still loved this group together, I really enjoyed getting to know Asa, this book's fabulously written villain / anti-hero. I love it when a new character enters the storyline, and totally surprises me. 

Asa is a character who enters the scene and immediately had me thinking he was going to be turn out one way, when in fact this character is full of surprises. I actually ended up liking him. He's a character who owns what he is, and doesn't try to pretend to be otherwise, though he's put in a position that does hide his true identity at first. That will make more sense when you first meet him. Another character I liked getting to know more about is Verlaine. I love that hot chemistry Asa and Verlaine have. It's one of the things that I loved about STEADFAST. 

Here's the thing I like about this series. While this over all story does focus on Nadia, I like the way Claudia allows some of the other supporting characters who also play bigger roles in this story, to have more of the limelight. It doesn't take away from Nadia's story, but it adds a lot more to the story, as this story centers more Nadia, her two friends and how they're going to stop what's happening in Captive's Sound. Steadfast has plenty of suspense, and tense moments in this book. I love that Claudia inserts moments of snark to relieve some of that, at just the right time. 

Nadia, I felt, is trying to figure out a lot. In doing so, she makes some choices that I didn't think fit the strong character she was in Spellcaster, but at the same time, given all that's happening in this book, it ended up making sense in the end. Nadia is more vulnerable in this book. She has to be. Her relationships are what keep her grounded, but when those closest to her have things they too have to figure out, it doesn't drive them apart as group, but it does forces them to refocus individually, and in doing so they're not as strong as they are when they're all together. Nadia herself has a lot to figure out. She has a lot on her mind, and things do get thrown off balance. It will be interesting to see what happens in the next book. 

If you enjoyed Spellcaster, then I'd definitely recommend picking this book up! Trust me, nothing is as it seems when the first book ended, and with the cliff hanger Claudia has at the end of this book, I have feeling things are about to get a lot more exciting in book three. 


About Claudia Gray: 

Claudia Gray is a pseudonym. I would like to say that I chose another name so that no one would ever learn the links between my shadowy, dramatic past and the explosive secrets revealed through my characters. This would be a lie. In truth, I took a pseudonym simply because I thought it would be fun to choose my own name. (And it is.)

I write novels full-time, absolutely love it, and hope to be able to do this forever. My home is in New Orleans, is more than 100 years old, and is painted purple. In my free time I read, travel, hike, cook and listen to music. You can keep up with my latest releases, thoughts on writing and various pop-culture musings via 

Follow Claudia via: 

The Giveaway

Enter to win one of 3 signed STEADFASTs, with swag bookmarks. Open Internationally
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule
Week One
2/24/2014- FiktshunGuest Post   
2/25/2014- Two Chicks on BooksGuest Post          
2/26/2014- Fantasy Book AddictInterview
2/27/2014- Magical Urban Fantasy ReadsCharacter interview with Verlaine
2/28/2014- Jenna Does BooksAuthor interview
Week Two
3/3/2014- Mundie MomsReview and an excerpt
3/4/2014- ParajunkeeInterview
3/5/2014- BookaliciousGuest Post         
3/6/2014- Tales of a Ravenous ReaderGuest Post
3/7/2014- YA SisterhoodGuest Post     

Pre-Order City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare; 1st Edition Info & Ordering Signed Copies

Shadowhunters and demons square off for the final show down in the spellbinding, seductive conclusion to the #1 New York Times bestselling Mortal Instruments series.
Darkness has descended on the Shadowhunter world. Chaos and destruction overwhelm the Nephilim as Clary, Jace, Simon, and their friends band together to fight the greatest evil they have ever faced: Clary’s own brother. Nothing in this world can defeat Sebastian—but if they journey to the realm of demons, they just might have a chance…
Lives will be lost, love sacrificed, and the whole world will change. Who will survive the explosive sixth and final installment of the Mortal Instruments series?
Check it out! The final installment in The Mortal Instruments series is now available for pre-order. You can pre-order your copy of City of Heavenly Fire!!
Pre-Order it from Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Walmart

As Cassie stated here, she did sign 2,000 first editions of CoHF for Barnes & Noble. Make sure if you pre-order it, is says SIGNED edition. You can also always buy signed books of Cassie's at Books of Wonder. 

**Currently there is no link to the signed copies from Barnes & Noble. As soon as one is live, I'll link to it here. 

Also stated here, Cassie said that ALL 1st editions of City of Heavenly Fire have a portrait on the inside of Jace, Simon, Maia, Alec & Isabelle done by Cliff Nielson, who does all her covers. ONLY the 1st editions sold by Simon & Schuster in the US & Canada will have the portrait on the inside cover. ALL the books will also come with a note from one of the characters in the end that is handwritten & printed, and leads into the Dark Artifices series. That comes with EVERY book. 

Cassie has also stated that: Every one (copies of the book) will also be stamped with a rune stamp, and some of them - totally randomly- have my sketch of Church in them. That's sort of a lottery, whether you end up with one of those, thought. 

The count down is on! Only 3 more months till this book is in our hands. 

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