Review: Three Wishes by Jenny Schwartz

Book Description:

She is the Bringer of Death

Cali, a djinni, has sworn to twist the wishes of humans so they die by their own greed and evil. Her latest master is arms dealer David Saqr, a man Cali believes deserves the fate she has in store for him. But this time she finds herself up against Andrew, David’s guardian angel.

He is a Protector of Life

Andrew believes David can yet find redemption. He fights Cali for the man’s life, even as he tries to persuade her to give in to the sizzling attraction between them. He shows Cali another side of David, and invites her to trust again, to hope. But centuries of being enslaved have hardened Cali’s heart—it’s going to take all of Andrew’s love to convince her to open it and let him in.

Review:

I read and reviewed the first book awhile back, and was super bummed to note that I had somehow missed the second. How does that happen anyways? Well, when I saw Three Wishes was available I jumped at the chance to add it to my Kindle library, and then devoured the book in one sitting.

Three Wishes makes you look at guardian angels in a slightly different way. I've read about warriors that are tough enough to tackle the most evil villains, and I've read about the angst and guilt ridden ones as well, but I have never really stopped to think about how lonely their lives might be. How difficult it would be to constantly watch over others and never really live for yourself. How empty your soul would be never feeling love, passion, joy, and even anger and hate. We (humans) take our emotions and freedoms for granted, something Cali and Andrew don't, because both are limited by curses and duty. This is partly what makes them so uniquely suited for each other...they are from extreme opposite ends of the scale. He protects free will and she is cursed to never have her own. She feels so much and he is gradually losing that ability. When they meet the attraction is instantaneous and they know it is so much more than lust.

This is a quick and compelling read and I enjoyed the ending quite a bit. I can't spoil anything but I will hint that the romance isn't limited to the main characters alone. I just love happy endings!

For more information about Jenny Schwartz and the Out of the Bottle series, visit the author's website and blog.


*Reviewed by Anna Dougherty
*I got this book from NetGalley for review purposes.

Review: Angel Thief by Jenny Schwartz

Description:

She's breaking the rules. Again.
An archivist in the heavenly library, Sara must follow protocol when it comes to curating the knowledge of the universe. But "liberating" an ancient text from the collection of a human—an Australian drug lord—could save a boy's life. Sara has no way of knowing that one of the man's other treasures is a sexy-as-sin djinni, bound by a wish to guard the estate.
He's only following orders.
Filip is compelled to turn over intruders, even celestial ones, to his master. When he catches Sara in the library, he isn't above indulging in some sensual kisses with her, or using her to trick the mobster into wasting a wish. It's what he must do to preserve his facade of freedom and protect his heart.
But the kidnapping of the drug lord's daughter forces Sara and Filip to work together—bringing out the hero that lurks within the soul of the djinni, and the passion within the angel.

Review:

One of the best aspects of Angel Thief is that it jumps right into the action, no elaborate schemes to draw out the introduction of characters- what you see is what you get. And who wouldn't want this image seared into memory?

     He wore jeans, zipped but unbuttoned, and nothing else. The bones of his face were dominant angles, the nose aquiline, the wide mouth made for sin. Blue eyes were astonishingly bright against the darkness of his gleaming wet hair and skin.

Yum-my! Makes a girl want a djinni all for herself.

Angel Thief isn't all sex and sin, although Filip and Sara are white hot, the lore for this world was well explained and easy to understand. Lilith, Adam's first wife, mated with demons and produced 77 offspring that are the djinn and it would seem that only one has succeeded in breaking the curse. Since the djinn did not have freedom all that often they tried to make up for lost time whenever the opportunity presented itself by causing mischief and chaos. We only get the chance to meet one of the 76 and it would be interesting to meet up with some more. Maybe other books?

Aside from a few minor word usage issues this was a brisk, fun and adventurous read. The novella length was perfect and the romance was sweet with just the right touch of naughty.

You can find more information about this book and others in the Carina Press line-up by clicking here.

*This book was reviewed by Anna Dougherty for Bite Club.
*This book was obtained via NetGalley for review purposes.