Breathless (Heartless #3) by Kelly Martin Blog Tour (Excerpt + Review)

Title: Breathless (Heartless, Book Three)
Author: Kelly Martin
Genre: YA Paranormal
Hosted by: Lady Amber’s PR

There's good.

There's evil.

Then there's her.

When Gracen Sullivan stabbed Hart Blackwell, she thought it was over. She thought the world was safe-- safe from her. Stuck in the Abyss, watching as the evil inside her body takes over, she has to find some way to stop it.

Hart Blackwell expected to wake up in Hell. Instead, he woke up in his grave. With the world falling apart, he has to put the bad history with his brother in the past or there will be no future.

Armageddon has been set in motion. Enemies will have to work together or everything will end in fire and brimstone.

The Abomination is here. And she must be stopped no matter the consequences.

Buy Links:
#Free with #KindleUnlimited Heartless (Book One): http://amzn.to/1P8YzVI
Soulless (Book Two): http://amzn.to/1Uu1ijs
Breathless (Book Three): http://amzn.to/1Upr3Rd
Hart (Book Four): http://amzn.to/1V5TRvo

Kelly Martin writes paranormal, contemporary, historical, and YA fiction. She has been married for over ten years and has three rowdy, angelic daughters. When she's not writing, she loves taking picture of abandoned houses, watching horror gamers on YouTube-- even though she's a huge wimp-- and drinking decaf white chocolate mochas. She's a total fangirl, loves the 80s and 90s, and has a sad addiction to paranormal TV shows. {Basically, she likes creepy stuff.} Her favorite characters are the very flawed 'good guys'-- and 'bad guys' who don't know they are evil. She loves giving her readers books with unexpected twists and turns, but (here's a hint) most of her books have the ending spelled out in the first chapter. See if you can figure it out. If you ever have a question or comment, feel free to email her at kellymartin215 @ yahoo . com ♥ You can follow her writing adventure at www.kellymartinbooks.com.

Author Links: 

Instagram: https://instagram.com/kellymartin215/
My "nerd" group on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1451773008377850/
Kelly's Heartbreakers (my official street team): https://www.facebook.com/groups/922087044551273/
Newsletter: http://kellymartinbooks.blogspot.com/p/subscribe-to- our-newsletter.html
Blog: www.kellymartinbooks.blogspot.com
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBSQGJ5gViQ- 0ajHRvWUqaA
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1RiFqC4
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KellyMartinAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/martieKay
tumblr: martiekay.tumblr.com
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/KMBooks

Hart:

"Lucien! Slow down! Wait for me!" The sounds all around us drown out my words. I can barely hear them, and I'm right there with me. I'm sure Lucien doesn't hear. I can't even see him anymore.

What I do see, through the wind whipping my hair in my eyes and squinting through the rain, is a dim light in the distance. I don't know if it’s a house or a barn or a serial killer's cabin. I don't know. I don't care. All I know is that I see it, and I want to be there. It has to be warmer and drier than out here in the middle of the woods.
Out here where any bear or wolf or fox could pounce on us and rip us to shreds.
Though I haven't heard any animal since we started into the woods.
I'm sure that's totally a great sign.

Could this get any worse?

A hand grasps my shoulder and pulls me back.

I’m pinned down on the ground before I can fully comprehend what’s going on. I can’t see what’s holding me down, but I know it can’t be my brother. I claw at its face to try to get up, but my hands are pinned down over my head, and I can’t make my legs move.
I’m trapped.

The lightning fills the sky.
For a split second, I can see.
For a split second, I wish I couldn’t.

*****

My Thoughts:

"Hope is a dangerous thing. The most dangerous thing on the planet. Hope kills more dreams than anything. Hope, if we aren't very careful, will kill the world." 

As I type this review, I just set my Nook down after finishing Breathless. My thoughts are wow. A lot to handle right now. I've caught all the feels. All. The. Feels. As you guys will well-remember, I just recently discovered Kelly Martin with this series earlier this year and it absolutely blew my mind. This series and I found one another at the perfect time in my life and for that I have been extremely grateful. For three full novels now, I have had my bookish world turned upside down. I can;t even begin to describe the emotional journey this series has led me on. After so many incredible novels, could Breathless live up to its' predecessors?

Yes. Oh hell yes. 

Readers of Heartless and Soulless will be extremely happy to know that Breathless is very much in the same vein. In fact, all of these stories could just be called episodes to one huge story as they are all very much dependent upon one another. Picking up shortly after Soulless left off, Breathless may be Martin's most spellbinding adventure to date!

When it comes to the plot of Breathless, be ready for an adventure. Literally. Through time and realms, Gracen is on a mission to stop the Abomination and save the world from its' bitter end. With the pieces of the machine already in motion, it's going to take the combined efforts of human, angel, and demon to save the world, but even that may not be enough.

This is a relatively short read so I really have to be careful of what I say to avoid any plot spoilers, but I can definitely tell you without hesitation that if you were a fan of books one and two, you will love book three. It's incredible to say the least. I will warn you though, it ends on Martin's most emotional cliffhanger yet. Bring the tissues folks. You've been warned.

Thankfully, Martin has already established all the groundwork in this world so there were no new characters to meet in Breathless. As a result, we really get some incredible insight to our existing characters and their stories. The character building was absolutely incredible and one of the most unique I have seen. Breathless is told from FOUR different character's POV. Yes, four. Don't worry, each narrative is necessary and doesn't repeat from the plot at all. In fact, I could have used a fifth at times!

One thing I really didn't expect out of this novel was the deep religious roots it shared at times. I've read several novels as of late with religious undertones, but this one is probably the one who has done it the best. Martin has delivered an incredible tale full of spirit without drowning her readers in scripture or history. She took her own unique twist on the scriptural tale and crafted a story that readers of all faiths and walks of life can enjoy.

Martin really hits home with some incredibly hard hitting themes in Brethless.  It's an extremely deep read that really resonated with me for many reasons. If you can read this series without catching all the feels, you've done something wrong. With reflections on topics such as: faith, family, love, forgiveness, acceptance, fate, destiny, and so many more, Martin opened the floodgates of emotion and really let them roar. It was a beautiful adventure in reading. 

As you guys can clearly see, I was a huge fan of Breathless. As far as the series goes, I'm going to be keeping a very close eye on Martin in the future and cannot wait until Reckless (book four) is released this fall. In the meantime, Martin has already released Hart, a novella chronicling the human life of Jessup Hart Blackwell, the male MC in the series. I'll be devouring it soon!

All-in-all, it should come as absolutely no surprise that I am granting Breathess by Kelly Martin a near-perfect 5-star review. I seriously couldn't rave any more if I tried. I can absolutely tell you that I'll be closely following this series until the very end.  A truly unique read, Martin ignites a flame with her elegant words, captivating settings, and enough psychological insight to keep even the most hesitant of readers satisfied. Don't miss your chance to add this one to your TBR today.

*****

There you have it, my stop on the blog tour for Breathless by the incredible Kelly Martin! You guys know how much I love this series so I can't tell you to go one-click fast enough! Go, go now! Thanks so much for stopping by and a huge thanks to the author and Lady Amber's PR for allowing me to participate. Until next time, Happy Reading!

-Ethan

Soulless (Heartless #2) by Kelly Martin Review

Hey readers! Late Night-Ethan here again with another awesome book review for you folks. Back in January, I had the great honor of reviewing book one in this incredible series. It touched me in ways I hadn't been touched in a long time. It really changed my outlook on life and was a genuine pleasure to read. Could book two live up to those huge expectations? This time on the chopping block? Soulless by Kelly Martin. Before we get to my thoughts, here's a bit about the novel and our author:

Sometimes all the wishing in the world doesn't change the fact that in order to save everyone, you have to destroy yourself.
Sometimes good doesn't always win.
Sometimes choices suck.
Sometimes people don't break their promises
Sometimes the thing we hate the most is the one thing that can save us.
Sometimes...
Sometimes love ruins everything.

     

Kelly Martin

Kelly Martin is the bestselling author of contemporary, historical, and YA romance. She has been married for over ten years and has three rowdy, angelic daughters. When Kelly isn't writing, she loves watching horror gamers on YouTube, even though she is a huge wimp, and drinking white chocolate mochas.

Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Website

*****

My Thoughts:

"I sound tired. I am tired. It's like I want it to be over, but I know it won't be. My life, as I knew it before, is gone. I thought I has it bad then? I had no idea. If I could go back, even to last week, I'd be happy. I'm not sure how to even go on from here..."

As I mentioned in my feels-filled review for Heartless, it isn't often that I read a novel that completely changes the way I view the industry. A novel the that fills my being and takes over in a way that I become so immersed into the story that I truly leave reality behind in the midst of its' pages. Kelly Martin absolutely astounded me. I had no idea if she could bring me back into the full swing of emotion again. I should've known better.

Soulless is a literary gem. Never before has a sequel caught my attention in such a way as this one. It's almost as though there are no breaks within the story and rather than a new installment, we're merely receiving a continuation of the first novel. That being said, I'm absolutely going to have to say that this novel is a NO READ unless you read book one. I don't usually say that, but I am beyond passionate that no reader will understand the depth of this series without following Gracen's trials from the beginning.

Let's get started.

Soulless picks up near immediately after the closing of Heartless. For obvious reasons, I can't elaborate too much on the plot of this one, but I can tell you that Martin shines. It takes an author of true talent to continue such a heartwrenching stories with such grace and ferocity as Martin did with Soulless. The plot is fast-paced which makes for a quick read. Much like Heartless, this series is about so much more than what we read on the surface. It's not a flashy, action-filled series, but one that will take you on a psychological road trip from which you won't return the same person as when you started. Much like it's predecessor, there are moment of absolute horror in Soulless so again this one is not recommended for the faint of heart.

There were so many moments when reading Soulless that I had to take a moment to compose myself and my thoughts, It's an extremely hard-hitting novel for so many reasons, but such a worthwhile literary adventure. I have highlighted over twenty extremely hard-hitting passages from this read that have hit me in the feels on so many occasions.

Soulless did an incredible job in continuing with Martin's character development and arcs. As the second novel in the trilogy, she didn't have to introduce many new characters which really gave her time to focus on our main duo or Gracen and Hart. I have to say I've never quite seen character development in such as way as I've seen in this series. Redemption is a huge theme in this series and Martin writes it with an elegance we don't see often enough in contemporary literature. Again, for reasons of spoilers I cannot elaborate too much, but I can assure you that I was not disappointed in any capacity.

In terms of setting, Martin again, hit the nail right on the head. In true New Adult fashion, we're situated at college, complete with the allure, excitement, stress, and ambiance of campus life and living. The first apartment, the libraries, Martin really did an incredible job with keeping her story tied to the new adult setting that one comes to look for in a novel of this genre. 

I'd like to recycle these thoughts from my review of Heartless as they absolutely pertain to my thoughts on the second installment as well:

I'm going to make this a little personal for a moment. I often try to detach myself from the emotions of a novel. Only because I feel that if you relate too closely with the source material when reviewing, it's tends to cause some bias results. I'll be honest, I couldn't help but relate with everything Martin wrote in this incredible story. It's dark, far darker than I ever anticipated from an author with such a bubbly-upbeat personality. It's reflective on so many aspects of my life and I loved every second. It was such a cathartic read for me that I desperately needed. Words are so useful in dispelling the darkness and Martin and this series do an incredible job. I can't say many stories have touched me the way [Soulless] has.
As a member of this book community, I read a whole lot. It's not often I come across a series as special and with as much potential as I have found in Martin's Heartless series. I cannot sing its' praises higher if I tried. It's such a testament to the talent and writing style of Martin to have crafted a such a beautiful work of literary art. I have nothing but praise for Soulless and absolutely cannot imagine what I will discover when the final novel of the series is released this fall.

It should come as absolutely no surprise to anyone that I am granting Soulless by Kelly Martin a near-perfect 5-star review. As I said with Heartless, Soulless is "a truly unique read, Martin ignites a flame with her elegant words, captivating settings, and enough psychological insight to keep even the most hesitant of readers satisfied." Don't miss your chance to add this one to your TBR today. You absolutely will not regret this addition to your shelves!

*****

Check out my 5-star review of book one in the series, Heartless, by clicking the cover below.

Alright readers, that's all I have for you on the topic of Soulless by Kelly Martin. As you guys can clearly see, this book spoke to me in ways I haven't been spoken to in a very long time. I couldn't recommend this series any more highly if I tried. Do yourself a huge favor and grab your copy today! Huge shout out to Kelly for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review. Until next time, Happy Reading!

-Ethan