[early review] Pirateship Down : Stories from the World of the Sentinels of New Orleans by Suzanne Johnson+giveaway

Hello to all!

                      i told you you would get double dose of posts from me this week and hopefully next week we can return to normal but we will see what life has in store for us.

First a little explanation, as you know i'm a HUGE fan of Suzanne Johnson 's writing and her series Sentinels of New Orleans is one of my favourite series. Since the next book in the series " Belle Chasse" has been postoned due to publishers decision, she very kindly heard her fans and put together severals of the short stories and novellas she wrote along the years together in a book, yes a print book as well!!!*___* -squeal in delight-  even better she put some new exclusive bonus and story in it too!

She is releasing that now to make the wait seems shorter before Belle Chasse but this book can be read as a standalone if we want or if you are new to the series. Lot of the stories takes place before the actual series so if you haven't read it you shouldn't feel lost and it's a good way to be introduced in the universe. For the readers this give an additionnal flavour to the chracters and a wonderful reading time.

 The book will be up in the first days of november( 2nd) so you still have time to preorder and Suzanne is hosting a giveaway for those of you who preorder... i will even throw another incentive but before we come to that let's get a very little insight into the book's content.


Happy reading!

Publisher: Suzanne Johnson

Publication: 2015

ISBN:  0373277210

Genre: uraban fantasy, novella
Violence: mild
Language: normal
sex: none
Public: 18+

Source: ecopy received in exchange for an honest review

Description from goodreads :

 From award-winning author Suzanne Johnson comes the first story collection set in the Sentinels of New Orleans world, including the all-new novella, Pirateship Down.

French pirate Jean Lafitte is tall, cobalt-eyed, broad-shouldered and immortal. What’s not to love? But New Orleans’ most esteemed member of the historical undead is headed for trouble: He’s determined to reclaim Le Diligent, his gold-laden schooner lost at sea in 1814 and recently found at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico near Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana.
The U.S. Coast Guard might beg to differ.

New Orleans’ wizard sentinel DJ Jaco and her merman friend Rene Delachaise can either lock Lafitte up or save him from himself, joining him on a road trip to Cajun country. Terrebonne Parish—not to mention its jail—might never be the same after the events of the all-new novella Pirateship Down.


Wizards and Cajun mermen, sexy shifters and undead French pirates. Welcome to the world of the Sentinels of New Orleans in this first collection of new and revised stories, along with a little Louisiana lagniappe.

My opinion:

          Fabulous! A  great compilation of novellas and short stories available for new readers as well as for the fans without any difficulty.

Suzanne really did a wonderful job to introduce the world of the Sentinels of new Orleans for those new to it and set a form of timeline for the ones who follow the series from the beginning. She mixed past pieces of work that were available as treat on her blog for a limited time, some updated, modified etc, with new stories very captivating and as a bonus some info about the universes and the characters so that this book  is something new for all of us.

It would be too difficult to tell you my opinion on each novella  without spoiling it so i will just tell you a little about the main ones. Each one can be read as a standalone because Suzanne really saw to that but in some case i will tell you why it’s even better once you have read the main books first.

1° “Talk like a Pirate” by Suzanne Johnson

This story takes place one year before Royal Street and the main character is our dear pirate Jean Lafitte, and we also meet in a lesser measure Gerry St. Simon, the wizard, master of DJ.

This short story could be read alone, before the series but I would recommend you to read the series first to have a better understanding of the universe ( though there are enough info so you don’t feel lost reading it first but you will enjoy it better, to his full potential after having read book 1 and 2)

 In this novella, two young girls summon our dear Jean Lafitte and are a little overwhelmed by the results, one of them, Rhyn, finds herself as his guide to one of the place he stocked in the past while teaching him about the present time a little. Their idea of a fun party doesn’t go as planned but thankfully the Sentinel Gerry is there to arrange the situation.

Funny story, we discover a side of Jean before he meets DJ and we can see how intelligent he was already even if Dj tempered a little his behaviour by catching his interest. We also see Gerry in action which is a plus since in Royal Street  DJ  is stepped up in his shoes. So if you have read “Royal Street” and see Jean in action in “River Road” this novella becomes a fabulous addition to the series

2° “Rivalry” by Suzanne Johnson

 Rivalry is kind of a prequel but not a direct one. We meet Alex Warin and his cousin Jake when they were adolescents (so long, long before Royal Street).

Alex is just fifteen and has experienced his first shift, the poor boy doesn’t know what is happening and after a growth spurt he is afraid to pass for a freak if they also discover how quickly he is healing.  Afraid and confused, Alex decides to leave his family until, another shifter comes to his help to explain and teach him.

In this short story, we see the rivalry (thus the title) between Alex and Jake and we learn it comes from even longer before, but we also get a better understanding of Alex by seeing how his family is working. It’s a great help to understand the adult he is in the series

You can read this story even if you haven’t started the Sentinels of New Orleans series without any trouble.

3° “Intervention” by Suzanne Johnson.

 This short story takes place approximately two years before Royal Street (book 1 of the series) and it concerns Alex Warin, already an enforcer, and his cousin Jake, after his return from Afghanistan. You also meet Ken Hachette, the homicide detective, which will appears in the series, starting to have a bigger role in Elysian Fields and discover how he became friend with Alex.

Alex is called by his family to help getting Jake out of jail; Jake has started the gator with is friend Ken Hachette for the funds but he is running it alone. After his return from Afghanistan and his injury that put him out of military he was starting to get back on his feet until he meets his new girlfriend whom didn’t get his mother’s approval.  Mother’s intuition could be right and Alex got into trouble not calling the Sentinels Gerald ( aka Gerry) St. Simon and Drusilla Jaco.

 Action, magic and still the rivalry between Alex and Jake (they never learn, don’t they?), and we discover a talented enforced but who still need to improve.

 The story can be read before the series but honestly you enjoy it a lot more after having read the series or at least Royal Street, you can  then really appreciate Alex’s mistakes after all he put DJ through it’s good to see him not at his best^^;;

4° “Pirateship Down”

 This novella is the pure treasure of this kind of anthology,  Pirateship Down is a real pearl when you have read the series but you should really be able to enjoy it without difficulty after haing read the “lagniappe” becaus ethat give you  a big inside in the universe.

For those who have read the series, you can see how this fit wonderfully and at the same time stays a pure treat as it doesn’t impact the next book  ( in the sense that you won’t feel like you have missed something if you read the book and not the novella but  really that would be too sad to miss this!)

Jean Lafitte has decided to reclaim one of his ship which has been found in the waters of the sea... to do so he drag along his friend Rene and Dj which is still suffering from her last experience. Both friends know they can’t go against Jean but that they must keep him out of the troubles....with a proud determined pirate you can imagine how it won’t be easy . Full of humour this novella won’t leave you indifferent, this was a pure joy and full of laughing time for me so i can’t recommend it to you enough.

If you love Jean or simply want to have a fun reading moment, read this novella!

Suzanne really did us a big favor by creating this book we awaited so long as a treat to be patient until the release of the next book so don’t hesitate to grab this one and spread the word. Authors who are so dedicated to their readers should be rewarded!

Score:  5/5

Disclaimer:Source: a copy in exchange for an honest review, no other compensation was received.

GIVEAWAY(s)

Now i told you about a giveaway, Suzanne is hosting a giveaway for a 50dollars amazon gift card, open to anyone who preorder the book ( digital or print) as long as obviously you order it before the release ( it's pre oredr giveaway after all) and as long as you keep a copy of teh receipt to show her if you are the lucky winner. You just have to enter the following rafflecopter form which is available on her blog as well.

a Rafflecopter giveaway



But i've decided to spread the joy as well.
She is hoping to reach 400 preorders ( all kinds combined) so if she does reach that number and i will add the condition that it must have 100 preorder for the print book minimum ( so 400 in total but at least 100 print ones) one of those who preordered and kept a copy of the receipt will win a little surprise from me. Open to international!

What kind of surprise? it will depend on where you live and what you like, could be some swag, could be handmade bracelet, handmade bookmark, handmade scarf, or even Belgian chocolate . Once the winner and selected and responding to my email i will see with him ( or her) what would have her preference ( the colors etc) and start to work so it could be hopefully received around Christmas. But only if she reaches 400 preorders and within that number 100 prints ones!
You can simply enter her rafflecopter (it will enter you for her own giveaway as well) or you can leave me a message with you email ( or come checking my blog after the release date if you don't leave your email) to tell me which version you preordered and what kind of gift would made you happy.

Suzanne is currently battling pneumonia so let's show her our love by pre ordering her book and sending good vibes.

Thanks and good luck!


Pre order links:

Digital: Amazon US

print: the book is already available but as long as you buy it before november 2nd it counts as " pre order" for this giveaway so jump on it you won't regret it
Amazon US  Pirateship Down Print edition

more info on Suzanne's Blog