Brew and Boil Release by David Estes + Giveaway!

Salem’s Revenge strikes without warning or mercy, ravaging the powerless human race under the forces of united gangs of witches, wizards, and warlocks. During the slaughter, Rhett Carter's foster parents and sister are killed, and his best friend and girlfriend are abducted by a gang of witches calling themselves the Necromancers, who deal in the dark magic of raising the dead. Rhett’s sword-wielding neighbor with a mysterious past saves Rhett from becoming another casualty of the massacre and teaches him the skills he needs to survive in this new world. Rhett is broken, his normal high school life of book blogging and football playing shoved in a witch-apocalyptic blender. The only thing he has left is his burning desire for revenge. Armed with his new witch hunting skills and a loyal, magic powered dog named Hex, he sets out into the unknown with one mission: hunt and destroy those who took away everyone he ever loved.

But Rhett isn’t just a witch hunter; He has secrets of his own that he has yet to discover, secrets that his enemies will stop at nothing to keep him from. And discovering the truth about himself is the human race’s only hope.

My Rating: 5 stars
My Review:

 "I wonder what I'm really doing out here with a magic dog, a trigger-happy girl and her mute sister, and a trail of dead witches in my wake." 

Those are the words of Rhett Carter, the MC of this fantastically dark and creepy tale of a witch apocalypse. Rhett is a normalish teen at the start of the book--although a self proclaimed dork--but he is soon thrown into a world that is unimaginable!

Witches have taken over the world. And not the nice kind, either. All different sorts of clans banned together to kill humans and create chaos. In the aftermath, they are all fighting amongst themselves for territory. Having lost his family, and fearing his girlfriend and best friend are dead, Rhett sets out to find the Necros, the gang that attacked his friends. And he has one thing on his mind--REVENGE.

I. Loved. This. Book. There is no other way to say it! The entire story is thrilling, action-packed, and so inventive and fresh! This book brought out every emotion in me-- moments of serious rip-roaring laughter, real tears, and goosebumps and chills. I flew through the read, and I could not put it down!

What really stands out to me in this one is the characters. Its a crazy cast, from Rhett, the Book Blogger turned Witch Hunter, to Laney, the fiery kick ass girl that I loved to cheer on, to Trish, the creepy mute sister whose weirdness seems to have a purpose, to THE COOLEST DOG EVER, Hex. Did I mention he is magical? He has all kinds of talents, like shooting flashlight beams out of his mouth when they are stuck in the dark. The cast of evil witches is even more insane, from Pyros, to Sirens, to Shifters. And let's not forget the other Witch Hunters they run into! All of these characters, even minor ones are fully fleshed out, and felt so real! 

My favorite character was definitely Laney. She and Rhett have an interesting camaraderie going on throughout the book--they bicker constantly, but there is a respect and understanding going on underneath it all. They really need each other to survive. One interesting thing to note here, is there isn't romance between them in the story (yet). I predict that may come later, but for now, the only romance is the flashbacks and dreams Rhett has of his girlfriend, Beth. 

One thing that I loved that really got us into Rhett's head even more were the small snippets we got from Rhett's journal. This one was my favorite:

"Words have power, for better or worse.
Like the smell of fresh rain on cut grass,
Or the stench of a decaying corpse,
Like the soft comfort of a warm blanket on your shoulders,
Or the agony of a dagger splitting your chest in two.
Use them wisely."

These are sprinkled in throughout the story, along with some of Rhett's "Blog Posts"--turning a situation into his head into a story, and therefore, writing his review on the situation--which were so funny! I loved the creativity with these!

Besides the characters, the other thing that really stood out to me was the world building. It felt so real, with all the little details putting a picture in my head. I had no trouble imagining any of it, which is amazing, considering the premise. We get details on all the witches, what the world has been turned into, even parts of the government and society itself. It made for a very deep read, which I really enjoyed!

The best part of the story was the surprise ending! I love it when a writer can pull things out of hat, and I don't see it coming! A few twists I had kind of guessed, but I wasn't exactly right. Others I had NO IDEA they were coming! Well done, Mr. Estes!

This mishmash of fantasy, post-apocalyptic, and action is truly a gem. I loved everything about it, and I can't wait to read the sequel, Boil! 

And now I'll leave you with a final favorite quote:

"Ignorance is the worst plague of all, a form of blindness that destroys the hearts of the people who hide behind it."

Revenge. That’s all that’s left for witch hunter Rhett Carter. The magic-born have stripped everything from him - killed his friends, cursed his warlock father, shattered his future - leaving him bare and broken, but not dead. Their mistake. When Rhett and Laney are suddenly thrust in different directions, Rhett must decide who to trust and who to kill. Backed by his trusty canine sidekick Hex, Rhett will embark on his deadliest mission yet, one that will lead him directly toward those who want him dead, pushing his unique resistance to magic to the edge and back again as he tries to remove his father’s curse. Separated from Rhett, Laney seeks to understand the strange changes to her sister, Trish, who’s believed to be the last living Clairvoyant, and what role she’s destined to play in the future of humankind. Wrapped around everything are four major groups: the Necromancers, the Changelings, the witch hunters, and New America, the remnants of humanity. When the major forces are brought together for an epic battle, the fate of the world hangs in the balance.

My Rating: 5 stars

Get both Brew and its sequel, Boil, the first two books in the Salem's Revenge series, for a special price of $0.99 each for a limited time only (Amazon Kindle exclusive: Brew until October 17th; Boil until October 7th) Click on the above buttons to take advantage of this limited time deal!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Goodreads  ●  David's Blog  ●  Twitter  ●  Facebook  ●  Tumblr  and his  Goodreads Fan Group      

David Estes was born in El Paso, Texas but moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania when he was very young. David grew up in Pittsburgh and then went to Penn State for college. Eventually he moved to Sydney, Australia where he met his wife. They now live together in their dream location, Hawaii. A reader all his life, he began writing novels for the children's and YA markets in 2010, and started writing full time in June 2012. Now he travels the world writing with his wife, Adele. David's a writer with OCD, a love of dancing and singing (but only when no one is looking or listening), a mad-skilled ping-pong player, and prefers writing at the swimming pool to writing at a table.

To celebrate the launch of Brew and Boil, David Estes is also giving away FREE Kindle copies of his popular YA dystopian AND adventure book, Fire Country. Just click the above link to nab your free copy.





Also don't miss the awesome Twitter Party taking place Oct 1st at #Brewrelease! There will be prizes and maybe a few special guest appearances!