Angelfall - Kindle Top 10

Book Description

Publication Date: August 28, 2012 | Age Level: 14 and up | Grade Level: 8th and up

It’s been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. Street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back. Anything, including making a deal with Raffe, an injured enemy angel. Traveling through a dark and twisted Northern California, they journey toward the angels’ stronghold in San Francisco, where Penryn will risk everything to rescue her sister and Raffe will put himself at the mercy of his greatest enemies for the chance to be made whole again.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In Ee’s gritty debut, which stars a heroine with backbone, angels of the apocalypse seek revenge against humans for killing the Archangel Gabriel, and street gangs have taken over Silicon Valley. Seventeen-year-old Penryn lives with (and cares for) her wheelchair-bound sister, Paige, and their paranoid schizophrenic mother. While attempting to escape their apartment to find safety, Paige is kidnapped by an angel. At the moment of the abduction, Penryn meets Raffe, an angel whose wings have been cut off by the angels who take Paige. Hoping Raffe might know where Paige is, Penryn reluctantly nurses him back to health, and the two join forces, traveling to the angels’ “aerie” in San Francisco to recover Paige and repair Raffe’s wings; along the way, they are captured by a dangerously anarchic army of the human resistance. Smartly conceived details (for example, there’s a bounty on angel body parts, turning them into a commodity) feel fresh in this apocalyptic romance that’s sustained by well-developed characters, atmosphere, and strong writing. Ee leaves plenty to discover in a planned sequel. Ages 14–up. Publisher's Weekly August 2012

About the Author

San Francisco-based author, SUSAN EE, has degrees in physics, math and law, none of which helped her when she sat in front of a blank screen to write a story. So she proceeded to study creative writing through the Iowa Writers Workshop, Stanford, and Clarion West. Her stories have been in Realms of Fantasy and the anthology The Dragon and the Stars. Angelfall is her debut novel.

In the beginning, it starts with a single feather drifting slowly down from the sky. When 17-year-old Penryn sees this simple sight, she is filled with incredible dread, because this lovely, floating, ephemeral thing is an unlikely sign of terrible things to come.

Six weeks after a devastating attack on earth, the world has been torn apart by a war between angels and humans. Caught up in a battle she doesn't understand, Penryn watches in horror as an angel named Raffe is cornered and brutally stripped of his wings. In trying to help, she antagonizes one of the perpetrators and is forced to watch as her wheelchair-bound little sister is taken away. Penryn angrily demands that Raffe provides information and assistance in finding her sibling, and the two natural enemies must work together to outwit danger at every turn.

If you've been searching high and low for a worthy successor to The Hunger Games, the wait is finally over. Susan Ee's stunning debut novel is the perfect combination of post-apocalyptic YA + cannibals + badass angels + kickass heroine, and it blew me away with its perfectly paced blend of action, story, and emotional tension. Penryn is a fantastic heroine, a whip-smart, funny girl who happens to be awesome in combat. I also found her interactions with her schizophrenic mother to be very touching, and it's impossible not to admire how her desperate resolve to find her sister never falters. As for Raffe...who the hell thinks of writing an agnostic angel? Brilliant! And so intriguing. Raffe is clearly hiding secrets, but it's impossible not to be drawn to him anyway. His relationship with Penryn develops slowly and naturally as they struggle to find shelter and to survive in bleak circumstances (yeah, they eat cat food at one point), all against a bleak backdrop of a war and all kinds of unspeakable horrors.

Readers who are uneasy with more gruesome books should be warned that there are some pretty intense scenarios, although they are tastefully (view spoiler) done and mostly appear in aftermath, rather than in present action. For my somewhat twisted sense of humor and enjoyment of creepy visuals, it was exciting to find an author who writes such dark and vivid imagery, however, and I'd say that if you're someone who's comfortable reading zombie books, you'd probably be okay with what happens here. Not that I didn't want to run around screaming when Penryn and Raffe happen upon the...things hanging in trees, mind you. But that's all part of the fun.

I have a few minor quibbles, mostly about Penryn's failure to ask and demand enough answers, as this seemed completely out of character for someone who grits her teeth and cool-headedly calculates whether she can keep someone alive long enough to be of use to her. It was frustrating and implausible that in such forced intimacy, a girl like this wouldn't have mercilessly hounded the information out of her traveling partner. I also wish we'd learned a bit more about the war and about the ghoulish experimentations that were going on, although you can certainly put some of that down to my general impatience to read the rest of this 5-part series. My quibbles are far outweighed by my rampant enthusiasm over this book, however, as the action-packed story, sharp and funny dialogue, macabre touches, unforgettable characters, and well-researched angelology all make for an incredible read. The twists and turns in this story are superbly done, and even if you happen to guess one of the major plot points that will have a major effect on the future books, it's not going to matter. And that's the mark of a book that can and will be read again and again.

I'd strongly recommend this book for: readers who were mesmerized by the grim beauty of The Reapers Are the Angels, zombie enthusiasts who enjoyed the spectacular first half of Ashes, people who loved the creepiness of Anna Dressed in Blood, anyone who was drawn to the idea of evil angels in Angel Burn, skeptics who thought that chick in Aftertime should have spent more time thinking about her daughter, action junkies who enjoyed the fight scenes in Divergent and Blood Red Road and Legend but wanted a little more substance, anyone who liked Daughter of Smoke and Bone, anyone who expected more from Smoke & Bone. And finally, anyone who appreciates a truly original and exciting story. Period.

This review also appears in The Midnight Garden.

About the Book

Buy this book NOW! It's only 99 cents as an ebook at the moment for Kindle andNook, and may also be read on your computer or Smartphone. If you're undecided even after seeing all the phenomenal reviews of this book, you should read the first 5 chapters on the author's website. Update: the book is also available for purchase as a paperback from Amazon.

And believe it or not, this book also happens to be self-published. I'm not sure why Susan Ee decided to go the indie route with this book, but I'm quite sure it was by her choice and her design. Regardless of whether you read it now or whether you read it later when it's available as a print book, I can't imagine that most readers won't have a tremendous time with it. This is an author worth supporting, and how exciting it is to find her so early in her writing career. 

Divergent - Veronica Roth

Divergent Review

Divergent
-       Veronica Roth

Publisher: HarperCollins

Beatrice "Tris" Prior has reached the fateful age of sixteen, the stage at which teenagers in Veronica Roth's dystopian Chicago must select which of five factions to join for life. Each faction represents a virtue: Candor, Abnegation, Dauntless, Amity, and Erudite. To the surprise of herself and her selfless Abnegation family, she chooses Dauntless, the path of courage. Her choice exposes her to the demanding, violent initiation rites of this group, but it also threatens to expose a personal secret that could place in mortal danger.

This book has had a lot of hype in the blogosphere – first when it was originally released last year and more recently with the release of the second book in the series, Insurgent. And...I think I got pulled into the hype. While I liked it, I didn’t love it.

Tris has to make the choice of which of the five factions she wants to live in. After growing up in Abnegation, the selfless one, she finally chooses Dauntless the brave and starts her initiation training. The training was interesting and liked the hints at the differences between learning to face fear and bullying – it’s a subtle but important difference. The emotional journey as Tris comes to terms with who she is and what she wants from life was intriguing and I loved the way she bonded and competed with her fellow initiates. There is a romance which I confess I didn’t really buy into as it happened a little too quickly – the initiation was only a month long!

Then about 70 pages from the end the tale of self-discovery suddenly changes entirely into a full revolution action adventure. I don’t want to give too much away but the final part of the book is a full on adrenaline rush which rushes about at break-neck speed. While I liked the pace and could tell that something big was building, it still felt like a very sudden change from the book style up to then – I nearly got whiplash!

Overall, this was a nice, diverting read but I didn’t really fall for Tris, Four and the others as much some people have. I will read Insurgent but I think I will try to borrow it off Sarah rather owning a copy! I might have liked it more if I didn’t know much about it before hand though...

Recommended for fans of Veronica Rossi and Suzanne Collins. 7 out of 10.

Review courtesy of Mel

No Easy Day - Mark Owen

Pentagon may sue author of Bin Laden book No Easy Day

A surge in orders for the book has sent it to the top of the bestseller lists

Continue reading the main story

Related Stories

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The Pentagon says it may sue a former US special forces member who has written a first-hand account of the May 2011 raid that killed Osama Bin Laden.

The Department of Defense's top lawyer has informed the former Navy Seal that he has violated agreements not to divulge military secrets.

He signed two non-disclosure forms with the Navy in 2007, the Pentagon said.

The book, No Easy Day, which was written under the pseudonym Mark Owen, is due to be released next week.

It was not reviewed ahead of publication by the Pentagon, CIA or the White House - and officials had warned that criminal charges could result from the improper disclosure of secret information.

'Material breach'

The Pentagon's general counsel, Jeh Johnson, wrote to the author on Thursday that his non-disclosure forms had obliged him to "never divulge" classified information.

The letter said: "In the judgment of the Department of Defense, you are in material breach and violation of the non-disclosure agreements you signed."

The Pentagon is considering "all remedies legally available to us", the letter added.

It was reported this week that No Easy Day contradicts the official story of the raid.

The book says Bin Laden was shot dead as soon as he looked out of his bedroom as Seals rushed up the stairs, according to the Associated Press news agency, which has seen an advance copy.

But US officials have stated he was shot only after he had ducked back into the bedroom, prompting fears he might be grabbing a weapon.

The book also reveals that the commandos were not big fans of US President Barack Obama, even though they applauded his decision to launch the operation.

Archangels and Demons Reviews

ARCHANGELS AND DEMONS REVIEWS

Andrew Collins - Wales

What can I possibly say about your book, except great work. The story is original; the time old subject of good versus evil, love it. The characters are well rounded and believable. The structure of the plot is very enticing for the reader, desperate to read more. Your cover of the book is fantastic, I have always believed that if your book was on a shelf in a bookshop, surrounded by other books within your genre; the cover needs to entice a reader as much as the teaser synopsis, and yours certainly does this. Well done and thanks for the download.

G. Rosalyn West - Administrator, Marie Curie Org, France

Although I don't usually read fantasy books, I couldn't put this one down. It is a very exciting read. Your pace and structure are excellent. The dialogue is so 'normal' that is gives an extra excitement to the outcome. There is a urgency in the text that keeps you reading it, only the urgency is not apparent. It underlines the text very subtly. Your descriptions of demons are really blood curdling and I could picture the monster that her boyfriend turned into. I really enjoyed reading your book and look forward to the rest of the series. Well done.

Violet Star - Publishing House Translator, Japan

This was a really exciting story, I look forward to reading more in the series.
It is original and unique in the way it looks at angels and music and their opposites, the demons. I think there is a lot of potential in the story as I haven't read anything else like this. The virtual world could easily be a reality in the future. I hope it gets made into a movie. More please!!!

Ron Pendle - Senior Lecturer, Westminster College, London

Can I first say what a stunning cover you have given your book, it fits the subject matter so perfectly. This is not the reading matter of my choice and I think it is a tribute to how well you write that I found myself reading on.
I think you establish your characters quickly and their relationship to each other is well set. Equally you were very effective, in my view, in establishing a strong sense of place and atmosphere. I shared Maia's strong sense of impending doom and the arrival of Altair -for all his smiles and good looks helped reinforce this. Very confidently written, with a strong sense of authority it reads like you really know what you’re doing with the series. Good luck with the book.
Ron

1. L. Cid - Writer and Artist, Italy

I absolutely loved this. It is so well written. The plot is amazing with so many twists and turns.
You have built up a wonderful sense of mystery and suspense that keeps the reader turning pages to find out what will happen next, this is definitely a book which will be hard to put down.
Secondly, I like your use and choice of words, I like the modern day scene setting intertwined with ancient mythology and magic. Your style is bubbly and well paced.
Your dialogues are witty and amusing and I believe this novel will be a success.

David Lubkin - UK

'Archangels and Demons' by Stephen Skelton is a well-written piece of futuristic fiction that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. The plot appears to have been well thought out and thus the narrative works. The story held my interest from beginning to end, which after all is the purpose of any story, is it not? Obviously the author has a clear understanding of the narrative feeding the plot, yet does not get bogged down in the quagmire of self-indulgence. The main characters too were well thought out and well fleshed out, and therefore interesting. Reading 'Archangels and Demons' I wished to know more of the series. The dialogue was succinct, and succinct is always good, on the basis that less is more. If this is not a finished series then the author owes it to himself to finish it. Well done, and good luck! Oh, the story really was scary!

Phillip J Cook - Security Guard, Aberdare

Well, it's certainly different. I've never read anything in this style before. The characters seem real Maia, of course, is certainly a one off.
The plot, I did enjoy. The story can now go in so many different ways it's intriguing to think on to the next book in the series.
I know I want to read more, with your distinctive style.
Well done, best of luck.

Joanne Rudling - Lecturer in English, Bournemouth

Loved the premise and characters.
The opening prologue is good - full of tension and story.
The exposition is very interesting and original.
Great piece. Good luck with it.

Peaches - UK

This is a very interesting idea for a story and it's clearly a highly ambitious project. I do think this story series has a great deal of potential.

T M Thomson - English Language Teacher, London

Hi there, for me this was a generic good v evil tale, your tale reminded me of Charmed, an entertaining non literary fiction achievement that can yield episode after episode. You write very well. Good luck.

O.H. Fowler - UK

Interesting premise, well-written, generally fast-paced. A unique idea, and well executed. The story overall was very enjoyable and readable.

Jessica Jade Burton - UK

I really enjoyed your book. The introduction is beautifully written and the writing generally flows very well. Your description is lovely and I think that your work shows great potential. Overall, well written and enjoyable and I wish you every success.

Word Reiver - Northumberland

You start this story well giving us a good hook to make us want to read on to find out what happens to little Maia. Your writing style is smooth and flowing making this an easy an pleasant read and allowing the reader to lose themselves in the narrative. Mrs Gripe - what a great name!
An interesting bunch of characters from all over the world and the different than usual setting of France. I like the way they think their band "sucks." I hate characters who come over as perfect. I like the evil in Altair. Great cliff-hangers at the end of the chapters. I would definitely read on in this series.
Good luck with this.

John Gamlin - UK

I thought that it was rather clever of you to call the band Archangels; I like the double meaning. The pace flows well, and I would like to read more of the book series, it wasn't boring or stilted. Good luck with your writing.

Triona Waters - London

Hi Stephen, nice play on words with the name. I did like the ideas in your story. The idea of a future world where music is used as energy is interesting. Maia is a well crafted character. You've created a nice air of mystery about her origins and her secrets. Altair is a contradictory character. I can't quite make up my mind is he good or bad. In saying that, I would keep reading the series to find out. The scroll is an interesting object of power and, again, I'd read on to learn more about it. There were some nice questions raised for the reader that have had me turning the next page to get the answers. You have something great here, it could go far. Best of luck with it.
Triona

J.R. Minett - UK

You have a lot of material in this which will keep the attention of the teenager. The relationship between Maia and Altair is all very pure, which is refreshing, and I think the contrast between his real self and the demon within makes for a good fantasy for teens and I'm sure the series will end well.

Jan Satterlee - Psychologist, UK

Hi Stephen, I think you've got a very good and interesting novel here. Your writing has good flow. The parts that involve Maia and her family and the creatures are very good. All in all, you have a very good, interesting book. Keep at it! Best of luck
Jan

Simon Gamblin - Buckinghamshire

Hi Stephen, I liked what I read. In the most it was concise and clear and well written. You have a strong piece of writing, you obviously have a passion for writing. All the best and good luck.
Simon 

Margaret Joyce - UK

Hi and thanks for the interesting read. This story is quite intricate and thought provoking. I think this shows good promise and would be happy to read more of the series. Best of luck with this.

Susan Helen - UK

This is very well written. Not the usual genre that I read so you have done exceptionally well in maintaining my interest through the story. I found this to be very well written and highly enjoyable.

Simon O’Callaghan - UK

I found ‘Archangels and Demons’ to contain quite a number of interesting ideas, all of which I would be prepared to read about in a longer story series. I especially find the concept of using sound as a form of power to be the most interesting. There are so many directions to go with this idea, and I would especially like to see where the author takes it in the next books.
I also found the idea of integrating the mythological characters into the reality of the story to also be well worth following. This has happened in so many other places, but there’s seemingly no end to the ways in which they can be integrated. As a protagonist, I found Maia to be very well realized. It’s quite easy for me to empathize with her, which is an incredible boon to the story. Her reactions to the unfolding events around her, are the exact same reactions that the reader would have. Because of this, it’s quite easy to get into the story. In summary, this is a good story, and if the series evolves, then we will indeed have an incredible story in our hands.

Derek Barton, Peoria, Arizona, USA

This story series has a lot of potential. The "HALO idea" was very original and I liked that a lot! I think for the most part you did a good job describing the scenes and characters. Great effort and good idea.

D.M. Eldret - UK

The Title Archangels and Demons is what drew me in, as I also write fantasy and paranormal fiction. This is definitely something that would have caught my eye in a book store. Well done for the cover also!
It has an intriguing plot and interesting characters, and with this certain type of story I guess a lot of the answers come later on in the series. Your use of description is well put. I will say that the plot keeps you wanting to read on with extra little bits like the scroll and the signs, you actually want to know what this means which is great for any story. Well done and keep up the good work.

Emily Crystl - UK

An easy to read piece, with original ideas. I like the relationship between the main character and her boyfriend. I wished there were more scenes of them together and fighting the evil forces.
The reader never finds out why the main character has this 'power', if you call it that, in the first place, but I presume this will prevail further down into the story series. I thought it was nicely written with good, strong characters and original scenarios, it flowed smoothly. Good luck with it.

http://www.amazon.com/Archangels-and-Demons-ebook/dp/B006WM8CEG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346283540&sr=8-1&keywords=archangels+and+demons

My Book and My Coffee : Book Review : Archangels and Demons by Stephen Skelton

Friday, August 24, 2012

Book Review: Archangels and Demons by Stephen Skelton

Posted by My Book and My Coffee at 3:15 AM

Book Review + Giveaway! 

Title: Archangels and Demons
Author: Stephen Skelton
Genre: Romantic Thriller
Form: Kindle edition
Publisher: E-Books Publisher

Book Description ~ Archangels and Demons

Life in France isn’t easy for the orphaned Maia Fielding. She’s struggling at her new music school, she has nightmares about her murdered grandfather… and when she thinks her romance with her boyfriend Altair is about to get serious he turns into a demon! Maia and her friends find themselves face to face with the horrors of the Underworld, where everyone she loves may be lost to her, forever.

Amazon: Kindle edition

Archangels and Demons Book Review

Brilliant plot. The ending was different than expected but all in all, a superb read. – Ara of My Book andMy Coffee

Archangels and Demons is a story of true love, an unconditional love, that will really teach you something about accepting (and fighting for) the person you love even though he or she is really different. For Maia, the protagonist in this book, it was learning that her one true love, Altair, is a demon and not minding at all. Not just any demon though. Altair’s father is the evil of them all. That being said, you may form a conclusion already on how the story will go and end. But I suggest you hold your horses there. This book offers a lot more than what you can ever imagine. At least for me, I was astounded with the author’s creativity and really vivid imagination. Be ready for surprises and twists and turns that will get your mind looking for answers and wondering what Maia, Altair and their friends would do next. Or how they will surpass the tricky situations that will come their way.

Let’s talk about the story. The story is really wonderful. It’s brilliant, as I’ve mentioned above. The story is set in the future world where Microsoft and Apple are things of the past. I mean, until now, I can’t believe what I’ve read. I can’t divulge a lot here but I have to tell you to be ready for the unexpected. This is what I like about reading. It brings me to worlds that are unknown and unbelievable but are really interesting. The ones that you will want to know more about.  This book brought me to an innovative world where people like Maia and her friends still care about each other, where true love still exists, and where the impossible became possible.

The characters. I have to be honest. I really liked the characters but I wasn’t able to connect that much with Maia and Altair. I mean, I understand the love that they have, the true love that they are imposing but I just didn’t feel it. I am not sure why I wasn’t able to connect, but I tried though. Do you know what I mean? I think this is because I felt that I needed to know more about the characters and I felt that this book didn’t really give that much introduction or description for the characters. Some books don’t need that as they may have been written a certain way where knowing more about the characters are not necessary. But this one, it needed more. As a reader, I needed more. Anyway, that’s just me. That’s how I felt.

I think my favorite character is Alice, Maia's best friend. She's not the main character, I know. But her character is really likable. She's feisty and very supportive of Maia. 

All in all, I would still recommend this impressive creation. I still loved it and would recommend to all romantic thriller readers out there. To all my friends, viewers and readers, if you want to read a book that will bring you to a place where ‘heaven meets earth’, and a book that will, once again, let us know the true meaning of unconditional love, then go ahead, read this book. You'll enjoy it.   

This Kindle eBook was gifted to me by the author himself, Stephen Skelton. And you know, he’s really generous as he is willing to give away 5 free eBook copies of Archangels and Demons (Kindle edition only). The first five readers who will email him will get a copy of this eBook. It's important that you let him know that you’ve read my review and are interested in reading the book yourself. So email him now at skeltand@gmail.com. Remember, first five only ;) Go, go, go! 

Rating:


About the Author:

Photo Credit: Archangelsanddemons.blogspot.jp

Stephen Skelton is best selling author of Your New Future and has lived and travelled all over the world. Currently based in Japan he teaches at an International School. Stephen likes star watching, trekking, playing music, yoga and eating any kind of berry ever grown.

http://www.mybookandmycoffee.com/2012/08/book-review-archangels-and-demons-by.html

Japan : The 47 Ronin (Bella and Burton's Misadventures)

JAPAN: THE 47 RONIN (Bella and Burton’s MisAdventures Series) by Stephen Skelton

27AUG

JAPAN: THE 47 RONIN (Bella and Burton’s MisAdventures Series)

By Stephen Skelton

Edited by Jane Tara

Illustrated by Phillip Einfeld

105 pages – ages 6+ (Kindle edition reviewed)

Published by Itchee Feet on July 1, 2012

Bella and Burton Feet are on another adventure! The Feet family travels to Japan and the kids hear a story being told about the Ronin Samurai of Japan. Bella gets so involved in listening to the story that she literally gets brought into the story. Burton, who wasn’t listening as closely gets kidnapped into the story by an evil ninja that works for an evil samurai named Kira. While in the story Bella gets trained in the ways of the samurai, learns about ancient Japan, and gets determined to save Burton from the evil Kira. Can Bella save Burton and manage to get them back home?

This book is one book in a series of books that follow the Feet family and their travels around the world. I thought this was a great adventure book. I liked the samurai and ninjas in it and learning about them. The story is based on the real-life Ronin samurai (and there were 47 of them) that lived in the 1700s in Japan and I thought that was cool. Bella and Burton were like an ordinary brother and sister, they bickered teased but also cared a lot about each other. They were very believable. The simple illustrations in the book were a nice addition. The book was written for younger kids, but I think older kids will also like it. It was a quick read for me and I would have liked a little more details in the story, but overall it was very enjoyable. I like the travel part of the series. I like it when book teach about different lands and cultures.

I give this book four out of five bookworms.

To learn more about the Bella and Burton’s MisAdventures Series please visit the Itchee Feet website HERE.

KISS - Slam Modern Rock Bands

Tommy Thayer, Paul Stanley, Eric Singer and Gene Simmons from Kiss attend the Kiss Monster Book launch at the Viper Room in West Hollywood. Photo / AP

Musicians in today's rock bands look like "garbage collectors" and the only true new star is Lady Gaga, members of the legendary heavy metal group KISS say.

"There are a lot of bands that have something. What's missing is stardom. The ability to get up on stage and rule, bigger than life," said KISS bassist and singer-songwriter Gene Simmons.

In a conversation during a promotional appearance Tuesday for the KISS Monster Book, the band explained their decision to record their next disc, Monster, with analog equipment.

They also defended the Russian punk band Pussy Riot, whose members were sentenced to prison last week in Moscow.

"There are no stars. There's no Elvis, there's no ... even Prince,'' said Simmons. "Stage presence - none of the bands have it, they look like garbage collectors. They look worse than the audience that comes to see them.''

"There's no pride,'' said the 62-year-old, who is known for his own on-stage persona as "The Demon" in a band that flaunts over-the-top costumes and black-and-white makeup.

KISS's four band members spoke to reporters in The Viper Room, a renowned Hollywood bar where the actor River Phoenix died of a drug overdose in 1993.

Dressed in black, without makeup, in silver neck chains and long hair, the creators of rock hymns like I Wanna Rock N Roll All Night and I Was Made for Lovin' You agreed the extravagant Lady Gaga stands alone among new performers.

"The only new rock star is Lady Gaga. That's it. She's a star," said Simmons, in white crocodile skin cowboy boots and a silk scarf. "There are some very, very good bands, I'm a big fan of Foo Fighters, but give me the stars."

It's not just about the show, he said. "Elvis could walk up on stage with nothing. But charisma. Image. Mystique."

Paul Stanley, the group's star and lead vocalist, went further.

"Musicians who look like the delivery boy ... don't realize that there's more. When big bands go on stage, they deliver their goods," he said.

"That's why we've been around 40 years, because people know when they come to see us, they're going to get their money's worth and they're going to be entertained. We are proud to be entertainers and a hell of a rock band."

Stanley, who was wearing a black jacket and checker-board shoes with silver studs, and Simmons are the last members of the original KISS, which they formed in the early 1970s.

Lead guitarist Tommy Taylor and drummer Eric Singer were brought in later as replacements after a break up in the original line-up.

Asked about the Pussy Riot furor in Russia, Simmons said they're "not a good band, but they have the right to do whatever they want to do. And it's too bad that politics gets in the way of rock bands."

Stanley said: "A strong country should never be afraid of freedom. And with freedom comes independence, a sense of independence, and many countries still want to squash that."

The band is promoting its megabook as a collector's item. A limited edition of 1000 copies, it is individually signed by the band's members and spans KISS's 40 year history. It includes 127 photographs, some never published before.

The affable rockers, who showed little trace of the fearsome personas they project on stage, told AFP they are recording their next album using analog equipment, seeking beauty in imperfection.

Monster, their 20th studio album, is scheduled to be released in October.

"All the greatest music that was ever made, was made on tape, was analog. The problem with computers and technology is, when it's not used for enhancement, it becomes a noose around your neck," Stanley said.

"You wind up looking for perfection instead of passion. And all the music that we grew up loving - Led Zeppelin, Beatles, Stones, James Brown, Motown, you name it - none of them were perfect, and that's