K.J. Simmill's Blog, page 52
November 10, 2017
Book review: The Mortal Fires by Anna Durand (@TheAnnaDurand )
The Mortal Fires by Anna Durand is the second book in the Undercover Elementals [image error]series. Lindsey Porter was the Janusite, a mortal born with the powers of a Roman god. But she still had no idea what that actually meant, what was expected from her, or even how to harness this apparently legendary magic. As if that wasn’t complicated enough she discovered her boyfriend Nevan, a sylph and one named king no less, had been keeping something from her, or someone of grave importance. Her name was Ceara, and she had come to claim what was her, him, and the title of queen. She cares not that Lindsey is his soul mate, and she is not the only one to warn her away from the Sylph king, the Oracle himself says he will be her destruction. Something dark has come to the realms, something with its vision trained on Lindsey’s power, and if she won’t give it willingly, then he will take it by force, and his reach far extends what any of them could imagine.
The Mortal Fires by Anna Durand is the second book in the Undercover Elementals series. There was no book one for me, I just dove straight in, intrigued by the plot, and hooked from the first lines. Whilst the second book in the series it holds it own. It is clear I’ve missed some key events but all the information I need to fill in the gaps is supplied with style and ease, never breaking the flow of the story. Packed with suspense, mystery, romance, and that gnawing feeling of dread The Moral Fires will compel you to read page after page, questioning what you think you know of the characters, wondering who can be trusted, and if the seemingly inevitable shall come to pass.
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November 7, 2017
Book review: Dying Thoughts – Fourth Week by Joey Paul (@MsJoeyBug )
Our teenage homicide solving ‘visionary’ is back! But this time she finds herself working [image error]against the clock. Her friend has gone missing. No visions give Tara hope she’s still alive and well, but they also mean she has no leads as to her whereabouts. Determined to find her friend before it’s to late and she find herself bearing witness to her death, Tara will do something she has never done before, investigate. She will pursue her own investigation, hoping, praying, she can find something the police have overlooked before it is too late.
Another brilliant edition to the Dying Thoughts series, I can’t help but feel in this book Tara really comes into her own. With so much on the line we see what she is really capable of. I think in each review I praise the author’s first person narrative style, and this book holds no exception. Masterfully written, brilliantly presented, with a plot that keeps driving you forward. I’ve already picked up book five in the series, and can’t wait to see what adventures are next in store.
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Book review: Courage of Ansgar by Aleksandra Layland (@kbenart1 )
Courage of Ansgar is book 21 in the Windflower Saga by Aleksandra Layland. Edmond of Ingar had been raised in Aspatria, away from his birth place of Kimbria. They had left [image error]when he was a boy, and he had not so much as return for a visit. How he had been elected to be their king was beyond him. His mother made it clear that decline, whilst a possibility since there were other people who could fit the requirements, was not really an option. But perhaps what he finds more daunting is that she is arranging for him to meet a consort from each of the four influential families. She doesn’t want her son to take the throne a bachelor but concedes if none of the four make a suitable partner she will leave him to his own devices. The problem was, he wasn’t convinced that the person he met would be the same person he married. A week of pretended was of little relevance where a crown was concerned, and he could very well find himself bound to someone so opposite to who they had pretended to be. Fortunately his cousin has the perfect plan.
Courage of Ansgar is a great read, the kind you can pick up and lose yourselves in effortlessly. I grew to really enjoy the characters, their interactions and exchanges. It was nicely portrayed and I really admired Kerys’ character, a strong woman, whose skills and thoughts have made her, and her line, be viewed as somewhat anachronistic. The story flows with an ease, at a good pace and is driven by character interactions. Whilst most readers will find some of the plot a little predictable, rest assured there may still be a surprise or two in store. I have read one of the other books by Aleksandra Layland, but I did find that this worked as stand alone, whilst the knowledge of the cultures enhanced the story, the author did a splendid job of ensuring it didn’t require to use the preceding books as a crutch to support it. This is a sweet story of romance, love, support, and war, ingrained with the true virtues of relationships.
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November 5, 2017
Book review: Addiction & Pestilence by Edmund Kelly (@edkell99 )
War is constantly advancing. Biological warfare was just another method. Tired of [image error]sending their young off to die the military have a contract to Concord Labs to design a ‘super battlefield bug’ something they could drop on the enemy, but that wouldn’t spread and die out quickly. Under the guise of a drug treatment centre Concord Labs had access to all the test subjects they could want. Brian had fallen into the same downward spiral that had claimed his wife, except he thought he had found a hand of mercy. Instead he found himself isolated within the testing facility, but for some reason, despite countless exposures, his test never returned positive. Then one day the unthinkable happened, the virus got out. The first of the four horseman rides, his name is pestilence, and death follows on his heels.
Addiction and Pestilence is filled with a cast of vivid characters who are three-dimensional, well-developed, and drive the plot onwards. Edmund Kelly has an intuitive style for dystopian fiction and appears to effortlessly set scenes and build tension. Filled with tension, drama, and intrigue you’ll find it hard not to be drawn through each dark and harrowing scene.
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Book review: Time Will Tale by S.C Barrett (@StevenCraigBar1 )
The idea of time being sentient had never occurred to Nathan. All he had wanted to do [image error]was conquer it and bend it to his whim. He had been an expert in this field, highly qualified, respected, he had even been on the cover of Time, twice. Then came a fateful day where it all went wrong, a little too much to drink and his actions saw him blacklisted from all jobs in the field, a permanent blemish upon his career, he would be lucky to get a job cleaning a college’s toilets, let alone be allowed to lecture in one. But he did manage to get one teaching in a high school and he kept it, for a while. Then, one day, a mysterious benefactor arrived, promising Nathan his dream, funding, resources, all with no strings attached. All he had to do was work towards his dream. This mysterious figure claimed to want nothing in return but for this success, but his success alone is reason enough. Follow a gripping journey through time in S.C Barrett’s Time Will Tale.
I really enjoyed the theory on ghosts, one of the principal guiding points on Nathan’s journey, the theory is not only intelligent but sounds credible. As a protagonist I thought Nathan was an interesting character, it was certainly fun to follow him, flaws and all. The book is a plethora of action, romance, adventure, intrigue, and discovery all combined with a healthy serving of humour. When I first started reading Time Will Tale, I was put in mind of Quantum Leap, the thought of his actions seeing the Lincoln assassination becoming impossible, and the need to repair the future put me in mind of the Kennedy episode, as did the thought of him leaping through time trying to fix his mistakes. S.C Barrett’s ‘s Time will Tale is engrossing, with a plot that is easy to become invested in.
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November 4, 2017
Book review: The Ka by Mary Deal (@Mary_Deal )
It had all started with a dream, mournful sounds carried through the realm of slumber [image error]to Chione, in her dream these sounds were connected to a tomb in Egypt, something that wanted to be found. Her dream was relayed to Clifford around the time reports of a new noise, possibly caused by the shifting in earth, had reached his ears from Egypt. With nothing to lose he reported the possibility of a new dig site. A second dream spoke of its discovery, like the dream before it too it came to pass, and thus they found themselves there. Despite her lack of Ph.D Chione had been selected to join what could be the most significant archaeological exploration for a long time. But before the tomb was even opened the group were experiencing unusual phenomenon. This find will affect each of them in ways they can’t even begin to imagine. Buried beneath the sand, for time untold, it had been waiting for them, each has something to offer, something expected from them, but will they be willing to pay the price?
I’ve been to Egypt, I’ve seen, heard, and read some of the lore within this book. With great skill Mary Deal had me feeling like I was right back there, in the thick of it. The pace is slow and steady, but will easily keep you turn the pages. The Ka is heavily character driven with a plot that keeps you guessing, it has everything from tomb robbing to paranormal events. If you’re a fan of Egyptian themed reads, or anything with a paranormal edge, then this is a read for you. The level of detail speaks volumes to the time and effort that went into researching this book to give the plot a genuine story, from the difficulties of financing a dig, to superstition, complications, unlikely friendships, and of course what Egyptian tale is complete without mysteries, missing people, and death?
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November 2, 2017
Book review: Extolled by Karen Glista (@ElizabethGlist1 )
The Brotherhood are assimilating everyone, and Nicole’s number is nearly up. She’s [image error]biding her time when a knock at the door opens an opportunity she could never have imagined. She had never expected the appearance of her half-sister, Jenna, daughter of a billionaire and, more surprising, she has a plan for escape. What choice was there to make? Nicole follows her sister only to find herself transported to a whole new world. It had taken 16 years, but Clay Kurth finally succeeded in finding a means to send flesh and blood to Orian, where his son and daughter both live following a bizarre series of events that saw them pulled into what had once been a world they thought only to be part of a game. But their arrival heralds possibly the greatest threat Orian has ever faced.
Oh wow, this is such an epic sequel to Embellished. I am scolding myself for not reading it sooner. Sixteen years have passed since we last saw Bekka Kurth, and what a sixteen years they have been. A time of peace and change, and yet on a distant horizon of an undiscovered shore a new threat has been born, and it is ravenous. There is so much to lose yourself in, there’s the lives of the characters, their families, fortune and loses, joy and tragedies. This really is one heck of a journey written with the same unrelenting pull of the first book in the series. This tale will sink its claws deep and you’ll not want to part with it until those final words and, even then, it’ll leave you wanting more. Karen Glista has a stunning talent for fantasy, I can’t wait to see where she takes me in the third and final book of the Chronicles of Orian. This is easily one of the best fantasy books I’ve read this year, Extolled not only gets my heart-felt recommendation, but my highest compliments as well.
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Book review: A Thread in the Tangle by Sabrina Flynn
It had been an accident, how could a youngster of four be expected to control her [image error]powers? But her father had not seen it that way. In his eyes, like any parent of a nymph, she was but a product to be sold when she came of age, but this object had almost killed his heirs. He wanted her to waste away in a dungeon until such a time that bidding could begin. But Oenghus intervened, taking the child to a place where he could watch over her. But it was not the end of the matter. The Emperor wanted this money, he would reclaim her when she came of age. But he is not the only one with his eyes set on the nymph. Wars have been fought over their kind since the Shattering, when hunting parties first pursued the druids to claim their nymphs. Women had been in short supply, humanity nearly driven to extinction, and a nymph became a prize of unthinkable value, and yet those who should have protected them condemned them instead. Isiilde is worth a king’s ransom for more reasons than one, in all his time the Archlord had never seen one as unique as her, then again given the hidden truth of her conception perhaps she received more from her father than he knew. Can her protectors really hope to build a life for her when the law already dictates what her life will become. Isiilde is not as submissive as the rest of her race, but can she find the courage to reveal the truth and carve out a new future for herself? Following the gripping struggle in Sabrina Flynn’s A Thread in the Tangle (Legends of Fyrsta Book 1)
A Thread in the Tangle (Legends of Fyrsta Book 1) truly is like reading magic, it is rare I get so excited about a book. Sabrina Flynn truly has made this a tale where every word can be savoured. She brings to life settings, feelings, and even relationships. There is something effortless and captivating to the writing style that speaks clearly of the writer’s talent. I will, without a doubt, be seeking out more work by this author. Much like the power the nymphs hold over men, her style has seduced me. I’ve always loved a good fantasy, and Sabrina Flynn has delivered on all her promises to a reader in this magnificent story. I adored Isiilde’s character and the wonderful and unique relationships she cherishes with Marsais and Oen. I loved her quirks, her mannerism, and her, sometimes accidental, mischief. Being a nymph sees her undervalued and scorned as she tried to lead the life of a human, but she is a wonder, an amazing character who thrives and grows with each turn of the page. A must read fantasy from the realm of imagination itself.
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November 1, 2017
Book review: Monsterland by Michael Okon (@IAmMichaelOkon )
Monsterland by Michael Okon is a gripping urban supernatural/ horror. Vincent Konrad swept [image error]into the dying town of Copper Valley like a knight in shining armour. He brought the rights to the pipeline, ensuring people could have water, built a new medical centre, and breathed life and renovation into a dying town. There was of course a catch. He had selected this area for his new themepark, and the government had no objections to the rather unusual idea. Vincent proposed the display of victims of a plague to bring in the tourists. But this was not your normal plague, and no decision had been reached if these ‘people’ should have rights. Following a devastating event things Vincent referred to as Zombies began to appear, but that is not all Monsterland has to offer, oh no, vampires, and werewolves are also offered sanctuary, a place to be safe and thrive. Monsterland is about to execute a simultaneous opening all over the world, monsters and humans come face to face in real life for the first time, what could possibly go wrong? It is time to settle the debate once and for all, who is the better monster, vampire, werewolf, zombie, or human.
This book has a charm often lost in supernatural stories. Michael Okon sets a brilliant scene where you can hear and see the world coming to life before your eyes, you don’t read this book, you live it. Filled with atmosphere, horror, heart warming character interactions, and an excellent level of tension building and attention to detail. The book dynamics, down to the strife in Wyatt’s home, are perfect. Monsterland makes for a fun yet harrowing horror read, with injections of comedy, and masterful execution.
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