Sandra C. Lopez's Blog, page 243

Review: DEVOUR by David Temple

 

Michael is a family man raising his daughter.

There were some issues with the Kindle formatting because some sentences would often be repeated into the next page and some sections were skipped over entirely, making it hard to follow the story and read.

From what I could gather, the writing was pretty good overall. In a way, there were 2 stories in 1—one concerning Michael and his family, and the other concerning the prisons. The sequence was a bit odd as you don’t really see the connection right away. Very descriptive on scenery and landmarks. The plot is ambiguous, often leaving the reader wondering without any concrete answers. Story had a lot of lengthy preludes with no definitive direction. I kept on reading in the hopes that it would eventually become clear.

The story had potential to be something thrilling and exciting, but it just landed on sheer mediocrity and vagueness. Rather than wanting to devour, this book just left me hungry still.

 

My rating: 3 stars

Blog Tour: WHERE THERE'S SMOKE by Kirsten Fullmer

 

Where There's SmokeSugar Mountain Book 2by Kirsten FullmerGenre: Cozy Mystery, Sweet Romance

A picturesque mountain town, sparks of romance, a threatening mystery, and a secret society of devious women…“Wonderful characters, a real mix of women with varied strength and foibles” -Goodreads review 5 stars
“I loved the first book in the Sugar Mountain series so I was excited to read the second installment and get back to investigating with the Sugar Mountain Ladies Historical Society” – Goodreads review 5 starsThe cozy community of Sugar Mountain, NC harbors a secret society of women. The society itself is not secret—it’s the actual mission of the group that is devious.Sugar Mountain is a sleepy town bursting with tourists. If you like quirky shops and original artwork, you’ll want to visit. But the local kindergarten teacher, Sarah, has a mystery on her hands. All she did was try to help the fire department and now she’s receiving threatening notes. Of course, she takes the frightening messages to her friends in the Sugar Mountain Ladies Historical Society, but even their investigative skills fall short. How will they be able to find the person intent on holding back the fire department and frightening Sarah?Hugh Brockman, the second in command at the firehouse, is taking extra shifts to cope with the shortage of firefighters. When he visits Sarah’s classroom to talk to her students about fire safety, he gets caught up with the lovely teacher and her cryptic mystery. He’s not happy that someone in town is threatening her with bodily harm, and he intends to find out who it is.With every lead shot down and tensions running high, it’s up to the ladies of the society to go undercover in their own town to flush out the culprit. If they’re not successful, the fire department will continue to be undermanned, leaving Sugar Mountain is in danger and Sarah in peril.Join in the continuing antics of the Sugar Mountain Ladies Historical Society and fall in love along with Hugh and Sarah in this heartfelt and comical romantic mystery.

**Only .99 cents!!** Goodreads* Amazon



Trouble on Main StreetSugar Mountain Book 1
A cozy mountain town, a sweet romance, and a secret society of sneaky women…The sleepy hamlet of Sugar Mountain harbors a secret society of women. Don’t misunderstand—the society itself is not secret—it’s the true nature of the group that is hush-hush.Sugar Mountain is the kind of charming village that tourists adore. If you like small-town charm, quirky shops, and local art, this is the place for you. But when a blood smeared package shows up at the post office and it appears to be linked to a scheme that threatens Heidi Collinsworth’s historic home, the town takes on a sinister vibe. Heidi would lay odds that slimy Mayor Winslow is involved, but even with the enquiring skills of The Sugar Mountain Ladies Historical Society at work, proof is scarce.The new guy in town, Adam Williams, is determined not to get involved in Sugar Mountain’s business. His last job in a big city planning office ruined his life, but Heidi needs his help. No matter how hard he tries to stay detached, Adam finds himself eyeball deep in Heidi’s problems, as well as the needs of her teenage son and a homeless dog.With conflicting theories abound and tensions running high, it’s up to the ladies of the society to don disguises and go undercover. If they’re not careful, the town may fall to a wrecking ball, Heidi may fall for Adam, and the secret society will be exposed.Meet the cast of colorful characters in this charming and zany introduction to a whole new series of romantic, cozy mysteries!
**Only .99 cents!!** Goodreads* Amazon

My review: When Kindergarten teacher, Sarah, receives a threatening note, the Sugar Mountain Ladies Historical Society are on the case. Could it have anything to do with the shortage of fire fighters in town?

Comprised of women around town that work various jobs, the ladies society acts as an underground espionage group—very top secret and very interesting! Occasionally, you get some babbling at the meetings and sometimes there were a few too many ladies to keep track of.

The narrative is pretty nice and easy-going, but it can be kind of slow at times. All the ladies do is try to gather information from the gossipers in town. Too much time was spent on that rather than trying to figure out who sent the threatening note.

A decent read, but it takes a while for the smoke to clear up.

 

My rating: 3 stars

Kirsten is a writer with a love of art and design. She worked in the engineering field, taught college, and consulted free lance. Due to health problems, she retired in 2012 to travel with her husband. They live and work full time in a 40' travel trailer with their little dog Bingo. Besides writing romance novels, she enjoys selling art on Etsy and spoiling their three grandchildren.As a writer, Kirsten's goal is to create strong female characters who face challenging, painful, and sometimes comical situations. She believes that the best way to deal with struggle, is through friendship and women helping women. She knows good stories are based on interesting and relatable characters.

Website * Facebook * Twitter * Instagram * Bookbub* Amazon * Goodreads


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Excerpt: CRY OF THE SHIFTERS by Tayla Jean Grossberg

 

There is Magic in the kingdom. And it is forbidden. There are shifters in the kingdom. And they too are forbidden. They are hunted, and dying.

In a sleepy village, a girl awakens on her sixteenth birthday without any knowledge of who she is, where she is, or why she is. She knows only that she is stronger and faster than most. She is fierce and she is fearless. She is unlike anyone else in the kingdom.

 

Who is Caitlin Wilde?

She is determined to know. She goes on a quest for answers, joined by a young man-wolf hiding a shadowed past and a fabled hunter-destroyer of Magic who has a gentle heart.

What they seek will change their lives and the lives of the people in the Silver Kingdom forever.

Review: TAKEN AWAY by Patricia Yager Delagrange

 

Jesse Bradford fell in love with Serena Middleton at first sight in college. Then Serena got pregnant and they soon married. One day, Jesse comes home to find his wife and daughter gone without a trace.

Six months into the search, it was looking likely that Jesse would never find his wife and child, so he decides to move back to Iowa to take over his grandfather’s veterinary practice. Soon, he meets a woman, whose dog belonged to her deceased husband. While courting the lovely lady, Jesse lives each day working and wondering if his wife and child will ever be found—dead or alive. The two become souls that learn to re-live life.

Well-written, heartfelt, and captivating. At times, it was slow with lengthy prose that could’ve been omitted. Finding and helping the lost teen, at first, seemed out of place to me, but the author, overall, does a good job at keeping the reader on track. The whole thing concludes with a bang and a startling revelation.

 

My rating: 4 stars

Review: THE SINISTER URGE by Frances Newton

 

A brother and sister as part of a musical group and on tour, promoting their newest album called The Sinister Urge.

The narrative goes into such excruciating and minute detail that’s quite often superfluous, like the shower scene. Did we really need to know every single part that she was washing? We honestly could’ve skipped that. The whole thing had a rather slow pace with a few too many characters. Overall, the story dictates the life of the bands, which was not as interested as I expected. Too boring.

 

My rating: 2 stars

Review: SAVING TIN MAN by Crisandra Alane Sealey

 

This is the story of a Free Spirit A.K.A. Homeless Girl.

Written in a brazen diary format, it’s the story of a nameless girl that gets paid for dares—doing anything for cash. Each text from “Ivan” was a new dare. Okay, sounds interesting.

The narrative reads too fast—like she was talking a mile a minute about menial tasks. Seriously, 600 pages of this stuff? We don’t even know the character’s name.

Her latest dare was a parachuting in Paris? Nothing really too exciting happens. Just imagine reading a ditzy girl’s diary. I’m sure there was something to this—something the author wanted us to get from it—but I just couldn’t see it.

 

My rating: 2 stars

Review: SPENCER’S BLUES by Andy Greenhalgh

 

From London, Spencer Leyton arrives to teach in Georgia.

 

Story was pretty slow on the taking with constant observations and comparisons with London. Yes, you’re not in London anymore.

 

This was considered a “dark comedy,” but I failed to see the humor in it. Maybe it was so dark I couldn’t see it. I just found it rather dull overall.

 

My rating: 2 stars

Review: DOWN AMONG THE MUDDY HEARTS AND SWAMP ROSES by Hugh Aubyn

 

Ms. Felicity Graves was an elderly Englishwoman living in a quaint American town, often enjoying leisurely walks and smelling the roses. Surrounding her are various characters: Doreen, a 19-year old waitress, and Chery-Lynne, a 9th grade teacher. Each have their own stories to tell. At first, you don’t really see the correlation between the characters or how they all fit in the story. You have to filter through aimless monologues only to get more characters thrown into the mix. It felt cluttered and chaotic. And the fact that it constantly switches from one character to the next did little to alleviate the confusion. I know that there was a mystery in here somewhere, but I just couldn’t really see it in all the commotion.

Although the writing was proper and decent, the story did not capture me as well as I’d hoped.

 

My rating: 2 stars

Review: CONEY ISLAND SIREN by Theresa Varela

 

How Maggie Fuentes wished she could be a siren, to live out on the sea and sing for the ships. She believed in magical things like that. Unfortunately, her beau, Frank, didn’t. He was like the ocean tide—she never knew which way he’d turn. But on the afternoon walk through Coney Island, Frank became aggressive and violent with her. Why does she put up with him? There should be a law against cops dating nurses.

“It’s so easy to set limits with a stranger, but I can’t do it with my own boyfriend.” (20)

“In high school I had learned about sirens, and believed deep inside that I could turn into one. I identified with those myths, as my teacher called them. Sometimes I felt that the wails that unfurled from my chest, like those of the sea nymphs, would curl into the wind and ocean foam, and bring me the peace that could come with death.” (31)

While contending with Frank’s erratic mood swings, Maggie finds a connection with a coma patient at the hospital. Then significant aspects from an old journal seem to mirror her own life.

The writing was good, bursting with powerful and expressive language. You feel for Maggie and what she’s going through.  There was some lag and complexity, especially where the mystery was concerned. It would seem there was a psychological inference to this whole thing, which leads to a mystical allure and open interpretation.

 

I’d say this was more of a lyrical read than anything else.

 

My rating: 3 stars

Review: LITTLE RED RIDING HOODIE by John Python Jr.

 

Sally is a 6th grader that has not yet matured. She always wore a red hoodie, making the other kids call her Little Red Riding Hoodie. She’s never had a high self-esteem, always believing she was ugly. There was no way she’d get cast as Juliet in the school play. Her home life wasn’t much better with having to deal with a drunk father, an absentee mother, and a little brother. Someone had to take care of everyone.

When she surprisingly gets the role of Juliet, she thinks everything will be fine—the kids would respect her, her mom would come home, her dad would stop drinking, and her life will just be perfect. It’s strange how she was having nightmares of dogs chasing her.

I thought her story was interesting, but sometimes it deviates into dry banalities. And what’s up with the dreams? Was she going to turn warrior and fight some evil? With the direction that this was going, it just didn’t seem likely. Sometime the plain narrative is just too freaking long. You reach half way through the book and it’s nothing but the same old preliminaries.

This started off good, but it totally fell flat.

 

My rating: 2 stars