Traditions and a special surprise!

Here in Germany we have a special tradition for the 6th of December. It´s Nikolaus. we celebrate the birthday of a saint called Nikolaus von Myra. He was a very rich bishop and it is said that he cared especially for poor people and for children, giving them money and gifts. And in celebration of him and in momory of his deeds, the Nikolaus comes very year on December 6th to bring small presents to children, like fruits, nuts or chocolate. He only comes when in´s already dark and only brings presents to the good children. 

Sometimes he leaves the presents in shoes you place for that occasion for you to find, sometimes he will come to your house and read to you from his golden book, where all your good and bad deeds are written down. And yes, he really knows everything you´ve done, believe me!

On the left you can see a picture of him. You might think that he resembles to Santa Clause, but there is quite a difference! :)

The NIkolaus also has a companion who is called Knecht Ruprecht.You can see him in the other picture. That´s a rather dark and scary figure (at least for children), motsly dressed in brown or black, he helps the Nikolaus with his duties. It is his special task however to “scare” all the bad kids. He always brings a birch which he will leave if a child was especially naughty. Sometimes, he would also put small pieces of coal inside the shoes instead of presents!

But mostly it´s an awesome tradition! In the small town where I come from, some of the older men would have organized pairs who played Nikolais and Knecht Ruorecht and would actually visit our house. Until I was 5 or so I would still believe he was real and boy was I nervous every year! :) But fortunatly I would always get a present rather than coal!

You possibly ask yourself why I´m telling you this now, I be assured, it has a reason! It´s already getting dar here in Germany and all of my readers have been very good this year, so I come bearing gifts! I might ni have a beard and a red costume, but I believe you will like them!

Three of you of will receive a book today! YAY!

The winner of my “I got money who wants books” giveaway is…

 

Robin K (Intense Whisper)

 

Then, we have one lucky reader who will win a copy of Christina Henry´s “Black Wings”. The prize goes to…

 

 

Brooke!!!

 

 

 

 

 

And last but definetly not least, the winner of a copy of Gini Koch´s long expected “Alien Tango” is…….

 

 

Kelly!!!

 

 

 

 

 

Congrats to the lucky three and thank you so much to everyone for entering!

All winners were drawn with help of random.org. I´ve sent mails out to notify them as usual and they have 2 days to contact me. If I don´t hear back from them, I´ll choose another winner.

As soon as I receive the mailing address via email, I´ll place the order for the respective book!

Sad that you didn´t win? Maybe you should try and come back tomorrow, there´s another surprise giveaway then! :)

Early Review: “Black Wings” by Christina Henry

Author: Christina Henry

Title: Black Wings (Madeline Black #1)

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Published: November 30th by Ace

Pages: 304

Blurb:

Meet Maddy Black.
She’s an Agent of Death who really needs to get a life.
Escorting souls into the afterlife leaves Maddy little time for socializing—until devilishly handsome Gabriel Angeloscuro agrees to rent the empty apartment in her building. But when demons start appearing on Maddy’s front lawn, she realizes there’s more to her new tenant than meets the eye.

*I received my copy from the author for review*

Review:

It is no secret that above all, I´m a hardcore Urban Fantasy fan and Christina Henry´s book gave me everything I crave in a good UF book.

Madeline or Maddy for short works in the business of death: she´s an agent that escorts souls to the door, a 24/7 job that leaves hardly any time for a social life, let alone for something like a boyfriend. So Maddy lives together with her gargoyle Beezle who is grumpy, snarky but very protective and loves buttered popcorn in a house she inherited from her deceased mother. She also inherited her powers as an agent, along with her black wings from her mom.

But then, a new tenant moves in and things start to change for Maddy: her best friend is killed and demons, yes, real ugly, pissed-off and scary as hell demons turn up and they are out for Maddy´s blood. Good thing that she has Beezle and her new mysterious and deliciously hot tenant Gabriel Angeloscuro on her side.

My favorite character in this book was without any question Beezle. His snarky comments made me smile and I was touched by how much he loves Maddy. Besides, from his description I think he is simply cute! J

Maddy is a typical UF heroine: independent, single and able to stand her ground. She´s a bit of loner and tends to be a bit too reckless for her own good.

And Gabriel… tall dark and handsome all the way! It was a bit obvious from the beginning that there is more to him than Maddy suspects, but his character and his part in the story more than made up for that. Together with Maddy or Beezle, he makes quite a pair. Another thing I noticed was his way of speaking. Ti me it seem a bit old-fashioned, but very in character, considering what he really is.

The relationship between Maddy and Gabriel was very sweet but far from innocent. I really felt for them for all the obstacles they had to face and was very sad for them in the end. I really have high expectations for the next book, as their relationship definitely has potential. But to be perfectly honest, I like it better that way in UF, when there´s no HEA in the first book (If I want that kind of story, I read PNR).

As for the bad guys in this book: there´s only one word to describe them: bad-ass. Prepare to come across people and soul munching demons that prefer to kick when Maddy´s already down. Throw in a power struggle of epic proportions and you get an idea of the plot.

The worldbuilding was very multi-layered, intrinsic and well planned. Christina Henry added a great mythology to her alternate Chicago. The world Maddy (unwillingly) gets tossed into with its strict rules and harsh punishments leaves not much room for feelings and emotions. It requires obedience and control, two things Maddy totally lacks.

There are few gory scenes in the book (like people getting munched by a demon while they are still alive), but even my sometimes weak stomach could handle them.

My verdict:

Black Wings is a great read for all Urban Fantasy fans and highly recommended. The only criticism I had about this book was that it was over far too soon! I read it in one day and one very short night!

I´m really looking forward to Christina Henry´s next Madeline Black book “Black Night”!

4 out of 5 stars for “Black Wings”

For further stalking of Christina Henry Information about the author check out her blog.