Title: Fire
on the Island
Series: Vigilate
# 1
Release date: August
2nd, 2012
Publisher: Sapphire
Star Publishing
Genre: Paranormal
Romance
“She who wields the mark is the barrier between man
and monster. She is the daughter of gods, the mother of man,
protector of all. Vigilati Usque Ad Mortem”
All Isla Macallen
wanted was a simple existence on her little Scottish island, free from her mother's insanity
and the prying eyes of neighbors. What she got was embroiled in a war for the souls
of mankind. A war of good versus evil, of witches versus demons, and Isla
learns that she alone can end it.
Dr. Jeremiah
Rousseau was a self-proclaimed nomad, traveling the world researching paranormal
phenomena. He doesn't expect his research to lead him to Scotland, and to the woman who will
turn his world upside down.
Together with a
facetious shapeshifting animal spirit guide, Jeremiah and Isla discover that
she is part of an ancient bloodline bred to protect the gateways between the
human world and the spirit world, to keep evil demons from destroying them.
They must find the key to defeating Alastore, the demon king, and closing the
gate before Samhain, when the veil between the worlds is lifted. Alastore does
everything in his power to eliminate them but, unbeknownst to all of them, Isla
is the only one with the ability to stop him for good.
Fire on the Islands by J.K. Hogan is the first novel
in the Vagilate Series and I liked it. I think I cannot get enough of the
paranormal genre; I just love it too much. This novel isn’t an exception
because it had the entire right basis; witches, demons, magic, danger, action
and let not forget love.
Isla and Jeremiah are the main characters and I just
love them. Jeremiah is a doctor and a writer; ever since he was young he was
intrigued by the paranormal activity in the world. When he stumbles upon this
book explaining about witches and hears the rumors of a witch living on this
small Island in Scotland, he goes out to investigate. When he meets Isla for the
first time he is immediately drawn too her, not only because she might be the
witch he is looking for but also by her beauty on both the in- and outside.
Isla has moved to the island ten years before; trying
to build a new life after her mother tried to kill her, so she starts her own
outdoor business, taking customers on hiking trips, kayaking and other outdoor
adventures. But living on the island isn’t easy, especially when people start
noticing her strange tattoo on the back of her neck and soon the rumors start
about her being a witch. Her only friends are Callum and Jack, along with her
young employees Amy, Brynne and Kieran.
Then Jeremiah steps into her life and things are
getting more complicated and dangerous than before, because not only she
discovers she is a witch, but an evil demon is after her and the people around
her.
I loved Isla and Jeremiah, they are both strong
characters. He is after a great story at first, but when he meets Isla and
finds her in danger, he is determined to help her and keep her save. When she
finds out about his first intentions, she is angry at first but she’ll forgive
him when he puts his life in danger to keep her save.
Secondary characters Callum, Jack, Amy, Brynne and
Kieran are fabulous. When Isla and Jeremiah decided to tell them the truth
about her past and heritage, they just accept it and have her back in the line
of the fire. Isla is a lucky woman to have such a great bunch of friends.
J.K. Hogan has written a great novel with strong and
determined characters, a fabulous world building and the most important a good
storyline. It was good from the first page and I found myself struggling to put
it down, so I cannot wait to see what will happens in the next novel in the
series.
*Disclosure of Material Connection: I
am a member of Reading Addiction Blog Tours and a copy of this book was
provided to me by the author. Although payment may have been received by
Reading Addiction Blog Tours, no payment was received by me in exchange for
this review. There was no obligation to write a positive review. All opinions
expressed are entirely my own and may not necessarily agree with those of the
author, publisher, publicist, or readers of this review. This disclosure is in
accordance with the Federal Trade Commision’s 16 CFR, Part 255, Guides
Concerning Use of Endorcements and Testimonials in Advertising*
Excerpt:
Isla
had stopped at the edge of the porch and stood, frozen, staring out into the
rainy darkness. Beyond her, Jeremiah could see the silhouette of a man. His
face was in shadow, but from the luminescent eyes swirling with shadows, he
knew it was Alastore.
When the man stepped forward into the dim light cast
through the open door of the house, it became clear that he had a victim.
Mhairi Mackay stood in front of the demon, and he had a strong arm locked
around her neck.
Jeremiah
surged forward, determined to protect Isla's only remaining family, but Marduk
stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. With a silent shake of his head,
Marduk encouraged Jeremiah to think first and act with care.
Trust
nothing, question everything, because things will most definitely not be as
they seem. Marduk's earlier words came back to him, and Jeremiah gave the
man a quick nod to let him know he understood.
Isla
lifted a foot to step down off the porch. "Think, Isla. Breathe. That's
not really Mhairi. She's at Sacred Hearts, guarded by doctors and nurses that
didn't even want to let us in at first, remember?" he said in a low
tone.
He saw a
shudder rack her slender body but, much to his relief, she stayed put. Three
pairs of eyes fixed on the pale, glowing arm that had the projection of Mhairi
in a headlock.
Alastore
threw his head back and cackled, before pinning
each of them with a hard glare. "You think you can defeat me? I will lead
you to your graves like lambs to the slaughter." His voice was demonic,
and they could hear the echo of pure evil behind it. It sounded like a dozen
demons living inside one body, speaking in unison.
Without
warning, he wrapped his free hand around Mhairi's head and twisted in opposite
directions. They heard a gruesome snap before the image of Mhairi crumpled to
the ground.
A
strangled cry ripped from Isla's throat as the three of them bounded off the
porch. They ground to a halt as Alastore threw his hands up toward the sky, and
the pelting raindrops burst into incandescent flames.
The pellets
of flame singed their skin, forcing them back to the shelter of the porch. Isla
wailed as the spectre of Mhairi seemed to dissolve under the onslaught of fire
and rain combined. Alastore’s head swiveled back to face them, his eyes
gleaming with madness and hatred, pierced through to Isla’s soul.
“The
little witch thinks she can defeat me! I, who can make the sky rain fire?” He
took a step forward and Isla stood her ground. He glared at her with his mouth
turned up in a gruesome sneer. “I will burn your life!” he spat
at her.
“You’ll
watch everything you care for turn to ash if you fight me!” He turned
his cutting glare to the two men standing shoulder to shoulder on her right and
absently gestured toward them. “These will die. Everyone will die.”
Facing
Isla again, he gave her a sickeningly sweet smile. “And you, my dear…You will
watch things fall apart. And then, you shall be mine.” She shuddered when he
licked his lips and leered at her.
Isla
would never be able to explain what came over her in that moment. As she
focused on the images the demon pushed into her head—the pain and suffering,
the dead and dying—it was the thought of Alastore turning his wrath upon
Jeremiah that sparked the bone-deep anger inside her.
Storming
off the porch into the maelstrom of fire and rain, she felt the breeze on the
nape of her neck, when Jeremiah reached for her and missed. Storming toward
Alastore, she stopped a few feet in front of him.
The
balls of fire raining from the sky seemed to roll off an invisible shield
around her and fury radiated from her body. "The hell I will!" she
growled at him, gathering her energy low in her chest, preparing for a strike.
Marduk's deceptively calm whisper drifted over to
Jeremiah. "He's goading her for a reason. Pushing her buttons. He may be
trying to funnel her energy into himself, leaving her vulnerable for him to
take her. Alastore does nothing without reason. Stop her."
Jeremiah
palmed the shotgun and whispered back to Marduk. "If I shoot him, it's not
going to stop him, right?" He waited for the other man to nod before
continuing. "But it'll hurt."
Giving
him a devious grin, Marduk nodded again. "It sure will. When he's in
corporeal form, he'll feel the same pain a human would, he just won't die. It
will send him back to the locus to recharge."
"Good
enough for me." Jeremiah pumped the forestock of the shotgun, drawing
Alastore's attention. The demon snarled at him but didn't seem overly worried.
That didn't bode well.
Bracing
the buttstock of the twelve gauge on his shoulder, he took aim and pulled the
trigger. Nothing happened. Cursing, he expelled the dead round and pumped
again. Trigger pull, nothing.
Howling
with laughter, Alastore returned his attention to the 110 pounds of livid woman
that stood in front of him. He cocked his head, like an animal hearing a
strange sound. "So pretty, and yet so easy," he began, "just
like your mother."
"Christ,"
Jeremiah hissed as he saw flames spike out from Isla's fingertips. She was
playing right into Alastore's hands, but she just couldn't see it. Shoving the
shotgun into Marduk's hands, he turned toward the house.
"I
think he's somehow jamming the gun. Maybe if I find something with no
mechanics, he won't be able to stop it."
"Hurry."
Well,
duh. Jeremiah bounded into the house and began tearing through cupboards and
rifling through drawers. He thought about grabbing a knife, but he didn't think
any of them should get that close to the demon.
Inspiration
struck when he found an unopened bottle of vodka, dusty and forgotten in a
cabinet. Grabbing a kitchen rag, he ripped it in half. Emptying a third of the
bottle down the sink, he stuffed the rag down into the neck, making sure that
it was in far enough to soak up the alcohol.
He
snagged a lighter from a drawer and rushed back outside. "Get her out of
the way," he ordered Marduk as he passed, not even stopping to make sure
the other man heard him. He didn't need to stop, because Marduk ran to catch up
with him as he was lighting the rag on fire.
Marduk
grasped Isla by the shoulders and yanked her back into his arms as Jeremiah
tossed the burning bottle at Alastore's feet.
The
projectile immediately exploded, engulfing the demon in a huge wall of fire.
The surge of heat was so intense, Jeremiah backed up several steps. He stood,
watching as the skin melted off of Alastore's corporeal form to reveal a
blackened skeleton.
An
inhuman screech rent the air as Alastore pointed a bony finger at them.
"You're mine," he croaked as what was left of him dissolved into ash
and flame.
"Yeah,
yeah, and our little dog, too. Got it," Jere grumbled.
"Hey!"
Marduk's indignant tone said he didn't appreciate the dog reference, but
Jeremiah didn't much care. Pulling Isla away from wolf-boy, he enveloped her in
a tight hug. Resting his chin on the top of her head, he allowed the shudders
he had been suppressing to roll over his body. Giving her one last squeeze, he
set her away from him and brushed past her, stalking into the house, slamming
the door behind him.
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Author Bio
J.K. Hogan has been telling
stories for as long as she can remember, beginning with writing cast lists and
storylines for her toys growing up. When she finally decided to put pen to
paper, magic happened. She is greatly inspired by all kinds of music and often
creates a “soundtrack” for her stories as she writes them.
J.K. resides in North
Carolina, where she was born and raised. A true southern girl at heart, she
lives on a farm with her husband and their three horses, one miniature donkey,
one cat, and two champion agility dogs.
In addition to writing, she
enjoys training and competing in dog sports, spending time with her large
southern family, camping, boating and, of course, reading! Please feel free to
visit J.K.’s contact page—she’d love to hear from you!
