Doe Eyes by Staci Hart Release Day Blitz

 Doe Eyes by Staci Hart

Aphrodite knows better than anyone how the heart works. Just don’t ask her to figure out her own.

She’s been away from Olympus for weeks, which wasn’t near long enough for her move on from everything that happened, to get past the betrayal and loss. She has no idea what she’s walking into when she gets back other than a new competition, this time against Artemis. The goddesses have never been friends, but now they have more in common than ever, though they’d rather face eat ambrosia straight than admit it.

Artemis can’t help but be smug. Her player, Josie, is a private investigator who’s lost more than she’s won. Every waking moment is consumed by her fire to catch the man who killed her partner, and when Jon comes back into town after leaving her without a word, it’s more than she can handle. She’ll never let him in. Not again.

But Jon only did what he thought was right, and he’ll do anything he can, give her everything he has to give to prove that he can be trusted with her heart again.

With Adonis gone and the threat of Ares around every corner, Aphrodite’s past presses on her, leaving her more alone than she’s ever been. She can’t help wondering if she’ll ever escape, and how much pain she’ll endure before the whole ordeal is behind her.

   

THE BEST BOOK IN THE SERIES SO FAR!

Artemis is the newest competitor in the games, and she is determined to win against Dita. This time her player can't go wrong. Josie is a private investigator who has lost everything in the past three years. The love of her life left her for his ex girlfriend and their baby. And recently her best friend was murdered by the guy they were trying pin down for the murder of a sixteen year old girl. Artemis soon comes to realize just how closely related she is with her player and how she's still bitter about her own past with love.

Aphrodite woke up in the last book - falling hard and losing her way. Now, picking up the pieces she is distracted from the current game against a spiteful and bitter Artemis. Trying to find herself again and struggling, Dita's game is a little off this time round. Dita's player is Jon, Josie's ex boyfriend, the one who left her for his ex girlfriend, the mother of his child. Jon knows he handled Josie wrong all those years ago, but he really does still love Josie - and he's going to prove it. No matter what it takes.

This is my favorite book so far. Josie is pig-headed like you wouldn't believe. But she is independent, and she's hanging in there even with the murder of her best friend. Gosh, you really feel for Josie though. All the crap that life's thrown at her and she's still standing.

Jon messed up. He left Josie to help support his ex girlfriend and their baby. He never stopped loving Josie though. His heart was in the right place when he left the Dear John letter that never reached Josie. He messed up, but he knows that and he spends the entire book trying to fix it. I like Jon, and I'm his side throughput the book. But Josie can't deal with him and trying to find Anne's murderer. So it's definitely a conflicting situation.

Artemis is bitter. She doesn't see the use of love and she blames Dita for her own lost love eons ago. She is determined to beat Dita this time, and the fact that Dita chose Josie's ex boyfriend, well, Artemis knows she has this win. But the longer the games go on the more she doubts herself. And Artemis is just soreckless, it's incredibly frustrating. She underestimates humans and their emotions.

Dita, gods you really feel for her. After what happened in Snake in the Grass Dita's life is all topsy-turvy. She has a lot to figure out in this book, and its a real strain playing the game as well. Artemis's plays at her and hiding from Ares puts a real dent into Dita. Her life is just a whirlwind in this book.

I love, like LOVE, this book. It's my favorite of the series so far. Each of the books has its own feel to it, and this one is the darkest. I love how each plot in all of the books are so different, telling their own story. So often you find books in a series being the same or similar.

Doe Eyes is without a doubt the darkest of the books so far. It's completely different from the other ones. This book has more mystery to it than the others. One of the things I loved was the anticipation. I was kept on the edge of my seat the entire time. It was awesome.

There is a crime-story feel to this book, which I'll admit I'm not normally into, but it works with the way the series has been going and the way the game is with the characters. It's different, but a good different. And of course it fits Josie and Jon since they're both private investigators.

I love the characters in this one. You can really connect with them, even if like me you don't have all that much in common with them. Some of the things are tragic and horrifying, and you feel sympathy for the characters. But you also really hope that they end up together, and there are several close calls in the book where I had to put the book down and pace the room to get my emotions down. Gods, the feels in this book. They're something else.

There was nothing I disliked about Doe Eyes. It was the most amazing book so far, and I am already excited to read the next book. The wait will be horrible, but I will endure it happily.

Doe Eyes captivated me from the very first page and the anticipation to find out what would happen very nearly killed me. I would highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone who enjoys a good book with some romance and mystery. It is a spectacular read and you will be dying for the next one.

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SERIES SALE - JULY 24-27
To celebrate the release of book three, get all three novels for 99c each, and the short story for FREE!

Deer in Headlights| Snake in the Grass| What the Heart Wants| Doe Eyes

Learn more about the series at www.stacihartnovels.com

AUTHOR BIO

Staci has been a lot of things up to this point in her life -- a graphic designer, an entrepreneur, a seamstress, a clothing and handbag designer, a waitress. Can't forget that. She's also been a mom; she has three little girls who are sure to grow up to break a number of hearts. She's been a wife; even though she's certainly not the cleanest, or the best cook. She's also super, duper fun at a party, especially if she's been drinking whiskey. Her favorite word starts with f, ends with k, and there a uc in there. Just saying. From roots in Houston, to a seven year stint in Southern California, Staci and her family ended up settling somewhere in between and equally north, in Denver. They are new enough that snow is still magical. When she's not writing, she's sleeping, cleaning, or designing graphics. But let's be honest, she's mostly writing.

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What the Heart Wants by Staci Heart

Publisher: Promise Socks Publishing
Date Published: September 15th 2013
Genre: New Adult Fantasy Romance
Series: Good Gods #2.5
Rating: Kooky Overload 5 out of 5 stars

Love wasn't an option, until he met her.

It's 1984, and Tanaka Katsu is paving his way in the Yakuza. His marriage to Yuki was a business deal, and one that he has paid for with his happiness.

Aphrodite can't stand that he's so miserable, and Hera, the goddess of marriage and monogamy, has a strong hold on Yuki, who will do whatever it takes to get what she believes is hers. Aphrodite won't sit by and watch Katsu's life slip away with no chance at love, so when he takes a trip to Vegas, she'll introduce him to his match.

Kim never thought she'd be in the situation like the one that's coming her way, but what the heart wants is a powerful thing, and one that's impossible to walk away from.

What the Heart Wants is a short story about Kat and Kiki's (both from book two, Snake in the Grass) mother and father, Katsu and Kim. It's a wonderfully sweet and heart-wrenching back story of their love story.

Katsu is from Japan, but came over to America to marry Yuki in a business arrangement. Yuki's father is the head of the Yakuza (Japanese mafia) in the American branch in New York. Katsu is making his way up the ranks but at the price of his happiness. Yuki is an awful, uncontrollable spoiled-rotten brat. There is no love between the two.

Kim is working in Vegas as a showgirl and a waitress. She always ends her day on tired feet, but one day she'll own her own dance studio and all of her hard work will be worth it. So when Kim meets Katsu she has to wonder if taking a chance on him is worth it. Danger follows Katsu and Kim is now in danger. Is their love really worth the risk?

Aphrodite feels bad for Katsu. Being stuck in a loveless marriage is horrible and Dita knows she can get him his match. But Hera will throw a fit if Dita has Katsu cheat on his wife. The feud between Hera and Dita could just get someone killed. But isn't the love worth the risk of Hera's wrath?

My favorite characters in this were Katsu and Dita. I think Dita will always be a favorite for me. But we only got a glimpse of Katsu in Snake in the Grass and you didn't get much of an opinion of him. What the Heart Wants offers a chance to get to know Katsu and Kim.

Katsu is in this honor-bound marriage to Yuki. And I truly feel bad for him. I usually hate cheating with a passion, but in this case I think I'd let it slide. After all, marriage and love should go hand-in-hand, but when they don't it's a bit of a disappointment. Katsu is destined for unhappiness in his love life. Yuki will never love him. And when he's offered this chance at love... can you really blame him for taking it?

Kim is an uncertain character. She doesn't feel, to me at least, like she's a very strong or profound character. I mean, she's nice, she has dreams and goals and she falls in love with Katsu. But she does seem a bit your run-of-the-mill female lover. With Katsu there was character growth and you could connect with him. Kim felt a bit static to me.

Yuki. O.M.G. She is just awful. Completely and utterly awful. She wants to control Katsu. The sad thing is, Katsu wanted to love her. And he gave her a chance to love him. But she's this spoiled rotten prima donna. She was a bit stereotypical, but really I just hated her infantile personality. It was tiring and draining, and I could understand why her father wanted to get rid of her and Katsu couldn't love her.

Dita we all know from the earlier books. She's a bit lusty and sometimes gives people awful curses and has a tendency to over-react, but really she just wants to play match-maker and help people find love. She fought Hera for control on this one, and she won.

Hera. Normally, I'm all about commitment and no cheating. I really am. I can't even read most books with cheaters in them because I want to reach into the books and throttle the characters. But this time I think Dita is right. It's not Katsu's fault he had to be married to Yuki, and there's no way for him to get out of it. He shouldn't be punished to not having any love. I think it's a bit harsh.

I have to say, Katsu and Kim's relationship is probably my favorite out of all the ones in the books so far. Dean and Lex's relationship is probably second. I don't know, there's just something about Katsu and Kim that just... it works, y'know? It fits. I really like it.

I can't really think of anything I don't like. Yuki is awful, and Katsu's situation sucks, but those things kind of make up the story. Without them you wouldn't have a story.

The writing was nice, it flowed well, no mistakes that I could find. I think the writing was pretty well done for this one. The only thing would be the epilogue, which is modern-day compared to the rest of the story that was in the past. I do wish that it was pronounced. A title or something saying there was a switch of the times. I didn't see anything telling me that the story had gone back to present times.

All together, a wonderful background story for the series. It is not essential for readers to know when reading the books, but it was a great story that I highly recommend reading. It's short and fun, and you get to learn a bit more about Kat and Kiki's heritage.

  

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Snake in the Grass by Staci Hart

Publisher: Promise Socks Publishing

Date Published: June 8th 2013

Genre: New Adult Fantasy Romance

Series: Good Gods #2
Source: Author

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

 

The truth changes everything.

It’s round two of high stakes Love Connection on Olympus, and this time, everything has changed. 

Ares is on deck, and Aphrodite is nervous, because as much as she loves to hook up with him, she doesn’t trust him as far as she could throw him, which isn’t very far. She never could resist him, not even when every part of her screamed that he was a liar, but after the last game, she’s seeing things in a new light, light that has cast shadows across her entire life.

Ares has a plan to keep Aphrodite, for good this time. He wants to win the game, but he’ll hold back, if that’s what it takes. He’s sitting on a chance that was thousands of years in the making, and he’ll do what he has to do to convince her to stay forever. The only thing that could stop him is the secret that he’s been keeping for eons. If she finds out, it will destroy everything.

Aphrodite picks Kat, a gun toting drag racer, and Ares decides on Dillon, a badass boxer who never loses. Both of their lives revolve around keeping their siblings safe, and they’ve sacrificed everything to make sure things stay that way. They are tough and loyal, fierce and determined, but they become each other’s weakness, even though they fight it, and even though it means danger for Kat and her sister.

What an amazing sequel!

This round of the game Aphrodite is up against Ares, after defeating Apollo in the first game. Dita is struggling to keep Ares at arms length though, no longer having Adonis as a buffer. Since Adonis decided to throw a tantrum Dita gives up to her attraction to Ares. Meanwhile, Ares is being sneaky, trying to keep Dita forever now that Adonis is gone. His chance to have Dita after losing her so long ago makes him giddy with how close he is to getting what he wants. But if Dita finds out the secret he hid and lied about for thousands of years... he could lose more than the game. He could lose Aphrodite indefinitely.

Dita's player in this round is Kat, a kick-ass drag racing daughter of the leader of the Japanese mafia. She has a fiery attitude and doesn't take crap from anyone. But Kat will always protect her sister. And even though Kiki doesn't think her abusing ex will come after them, Kat isn't so sure, so the last thing she wants is to let someone in and keep her distracted. Ares chooses Dillion, a cage fighter with a dark childhood. Dillion is broken inside, having to protect his younger brother Owen from their father and his powerful fists. With meddling siblings trying to play matchmaker and the similarities between the two, Kat and Dillion are obviously made for each other. But will they look past their issues and see each other?

LOVED this book. The players were so different in this one. I think I liked the first one better, but that's probably because I can relate more to the characters in that one. I still think that the characters in this one are super cool, of course.

Kat's fiery attitude is awesome. I love how she can point a gun at someone and stand up for herself. Her 'I don't give a shit' attitude is great. She isn't a doormat and she stands her ground. It's a wonderful example that I think some girls should definitely take to heart. She has such a strong personality.

Kiki, Kat's little sister, is the sweet one. She doesn't worry enough, whereas Kat worries too much. They're almost like light and day in their personalities, but they balance each other out.

Dillon is a bit of a tricky character. I mean, he's a cage fighter, and his dad beat him as a child. So from the outside you may just want to say hell to the no for him, because there's no way you'd want to put yourself at risk. But the more we learn about Dillion in the story, the more we see he does care and is trying to control his anger so he doesn't turn out like his dad.

Owen is soft. There's no better way to put it. He's not soft like a wimp, I wouldn't say that, but I think from what he's dealt with and what he's seen he is gentle with the world. The opposite reaction from Dillion

And that's something I really loved. How each set of siblings was just perfect for each other. They fit so well. It was like in the last book, where you got the feels real bad at the end. Yeah, well, you'll get them when encountering these two couples in the book.

And the Olympus side of things. I still think that Adonis is a spoiled child. He throws a tantrum because he disagrees with Dita. It's just so... infantile. Highly dislike him. And Ares. I can't believe him. You would think he'd know that karma would come back to bite him in the butt. He deserves what he gets.

Dita, gosh, it's a sad day when the goddess of love is struggling with her own love life. I am hoping, crossing my finger as tight as they will go, that Heff ends up with Dita. I know she said she would never be with him because she was forced into marriage with Heff, but from what we've seen in the books so far he seems kind and gentle, like he'd treat Dita the way she deserves. It seems like there is a slim to no chance of that happening, but a girl can hope.

Overall, another spectacular read by Staci Hart. I really cannot wait for Doe Eyes to come out! This was a must-read for me, just like the first. I imagine the next one will be even better :)

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What are you reading? Sick of mythology yet? I thought I was. But so far I have LOVED this series.

Deer in Headlights by Staci Hart

Deer in Headlights by Staci Hart
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Publisher: Promise Socks Publishing
Date Published: February 14th 2013
Genre: New Adult Fantasy Romance
Source: Author

In this book their are two worlds that live side-by-side; Olympus and the mortal realm. The story starts in Olympus, where Aphrodite is up to bat for the games the Olympians play. The games, where the god for that turn has to go up against all of the other gods in the selected gods' craft. This time it's Dita's turn, and of course her specialty is love. Her first opponent? Apollo, who has a long-standing rivalry with Dita for killing Adonis and Dita turning Daphne into a tree.

Dita chose Lex, an artist and poet with abandonment issues as her player in the love game, and Apollo chose Dean, a screwed up guitarist and singer/songwriter. Dean sleeps with everything that moves, not knowing how to say no, and Lex already has a boyfriend. An impossible match, right?

Each god has a month to make or break the mortal couple. And the winner gets a favor from the other. Apollo is desperate to get a favor from Dita so he can get Daphne back, but Aphrodite never loses. Will Lex and Dean beat the odds and make it? Or will Apollo do the impossible and get his love back?
This book was not what I was expecting.

Just wanted that out there. When I first heard about it, I was like eh, another Greek God book? I have read a lot of them, and I did believe I had seen it all.

I was so wrong.

This book is so many things. Light, fun, fluffy, and at times, heart wrenching. Yes, it is another Greek God/mythology book, but it's different than any others I have read. It was the best kind of surprise.

During a good portion of the book I was torn between rooting for Lex and Dean and between rooting for Apollo. It's a hard choice, and I kept crossing my fingers that Aphrodite would be kind and lose on purpose so Apollo could get Daphne back and hoping that Lex and Dean made it. It was such a struggle.

Despite making me chose sides and bite my nails in uncertainty, it was still a fun, light read. Yes, you got attached to the characters, but you weren't about to tear around the room wrecking things because one of your favorite characters died (I hate that about Mockingjay. That book did a number on me, seriously). It's the perfect book for summer.

Things I loved:
1) The gods - they were fun and silly and serious all at the same time
2) Lex and Dean - they were perfect for each other
3) Aphrodite's forgiveness - in a lot of Greek myths the gods don't forgive easily, so it was nice knowing she had a heart
4) Perry - she is like THE best friend. I'll never look at her the same in mythology. And I love ice cream too ;)
5) The feels - oh my goddess, the feels. Whoa, just wow
6) The cover - it screams Dita to me
7) Heff - he wasn't in the big picture of the book, but I liked what little of him I did see and I hope he becomes a bigger character in books to come

Characters I didn't like:
1) Adonis - he reminds me of those guys who think of their girlfriends as accessories rather than living beings
2) Ares - I guess what he did is expected from him, but still

I honestly can't think of anything I didn't like about this book. It was great. I'm going to have to get started on the next one real soon :)

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Synopsis:

Aphrodite never loses, not when it comes to love.

Immortality has its perks and its downsides. Boredom, for one, is unavoidable, but instead of playing Backgammon, the Greek gods devised a game using humans as pawns. Remember Shakespeare? That was Apollo. Bonnie and Clyde? Aphrodite versus Ares.

Aphrodite is on deck, and she’ll defend her domain of love by using her magic to get the two human players together. Time is not on her side, and she’ll have her work cut out for her as her opponent does everything in his power to keep the players apart.

Game one is against Apollo, who chooses the loner Dean, a rock star who takes dark and brooding to the next level. His band has finally gotten a break, and he can’t screw it up, not for another one night stand, and especially not with his new drummer’s girlfriend. He swore to the band that he’d keep it together, but from the minute he first sees Lex, it takes every bit of willpower he has to stay away. But Dean’s will is nothing for the Goddess of Love, who’s certain she has a fighting chance to win with Lex as her player. The artist and poet is perfect for Dean, if only she can open her heart and find a way to love for the first time.

There’s always more at stake than winning the game when you’ve lived for thousands of years. The Olympians are the original dysfunctional family, surviving eons of love and lust, betrayal and lies, as friends and enemies, through feuds and wars. From the douchebag Ares, who’s forever trying get Aphrodite into bed, to her best friend Persephone, who she can always count on for a hearty helping of bacon on a bad day, the gods will take you on a lighthearted trip as they toy with humans, laugh and fight, lose love and gain power.