Sandra C. Lopez's Blog, page 313

Review: EVERYDAY CRAP by Benjamin Wallace

Meet John, an everyday schmoe with a family. In a story called “Store,” his wife is nagging at him to run errands while his game is on. Oh how she bugged about his clothes. What does it matter what he wears just to pick up some milk? Better than going out naked, right? The food shopping was definitely not an easy feat considering all the “specifics” involved. This one was full of the dry, witty, humor.


This book had stories of everyday crap. Some were amusing while others were not. The long descriptions made the stories lagging, like the vivid pumpkin carvings and the hanging stockings. Could’ve briefed all this a little.


My rating: 3 stars

Review: ENCHANTED DESIRE by Rayka Mennen

Gina Caito, "scion of a powerful magical family, had no magic." According to ancient wisdom, if a witches did not manifest their powers, they would endure torture until the trauma evoked a latent magic. What possible torture could there be?
Of course, she wasn't completely without magic; she did have sporadic premonitions, which could never hold a candle to the ones by her powerful mother. Needless to say: her lack of power was a disappointment to her parents. On top of her "failures," Gina couldn't shake the feeling that something was missing in her life. Then comes Eric, the sinfully sexy guy that fires up her fantasies. Although she couldn't help wanting him, she couldn't refute his endless string of short-term relationships.
Even though the attraction between Gina and Eric was palpable, the build-up was rather slow. Their status or "destiny" would depend on one date. I love a good witch story, however, this one really didn't spend as much time on the magical side as I would've wanted. The pace was dawdling, although the story was well-written for the most part. It's just your typical love story, but I have to say that the chemistry between the characters was not as "enchanted" as I thought it be.  
My rating: 3 stars

Review: SIN CITY SEDUCTION by L.L. Kellogg

Allison has just arrived to Sin City, broke and robbed.  


After skimming through a brochure, Josh is captivated by the sensuous Angel, whom Allison is a dead-ringer for. The physical attraction is instantaneous. Funny how he confuses her for a prostitute and the two have no idea what the other is talking about at first.


But one thing is for certain: she’s tired of being the good girl, and he’s tired of being the nice guy that finishes last.


I loved how Josh protected Allison—her body and her reputation. It was terrible about the “lesson” that the ex’s navy buddies wanted to play on Allison, who was labeled a “wh#re.”


I really enjoyed this story of two characters that were emotionally scarred from past relationships. Their closeness is exactly what they needed.


A sinful match made in heaven!


My rating: 4 stars

Review: THE EX by Freida McFadden

That one night: she thought he was proposing; he thought they were breaking up.


Was there someone else?


Not yet.


“Much more than I ever hated Joel, I came to hate this nameless, faceless woman. I wanted to get back at him for what he did to me. That was my intention from the beginning. When Joel dumped me that night, he took away my  entire  life—my  home,  my  friends,  my  dignity.  I could  never  get  any  of  that  back.  All I wanted was to even the score. I never meant to kill anyone. I swear.” (11)


Present day: Twenty-six year old Cassie is struggling to make her family’s bookstore business thrive again. The last thing she had time for was a relationship. Then in walks HD (Hot Doctor A.K.A. Joel.)


Meanwhile, the Ex quietly stands aside and waits…waits to see what Joel does and where he goes…just waits for him to come back.


“Is  he  embarrassed  that  his  new  girlfriend  is  apparently  a  dead  ringer  for  his  old girlfriend?” (50) That’s kind of a creep factor.


I thought this story was interesting. It had that frightening suspense angle of the psychotic ex, but it also had that touch of human empathy  because you also get the ex’s side of the story, which relayed her loss, loneliness, and financial (and mental) instability.


It’s truly a rarity for me to like all the characters in a book. I liked Cassie’s love for books and her resolve to save the bookstore; I felt bad about the Ex’s money troubles and feared that she may end up in the street. I felt Cassie’s euphoric high at starting a new relationship, hoping the two would last; and I felt the Ex’s growing jealousy and resentment, hoping the two would break up. Since the book is written in the POV’s of the Ex and the New Girl, you feel for and enjoy these characters the most. The diary format can sometimes be too explicit, exacerbating the drama more than it should. Obsession is the key element here and the two girls have a lot of it. In fact, they torture themselves with it, and you hear all about it in their “diary”—it can get a little tiring sometimes.  I mean, it’s clear that they both had crazy issues. The constant shift between the two POV’s did slow down the pace in what follows for a standard psychological thriller. I wish it would’ve had more action and less whining. I wouldn’t necessarily say it was “unputdownable,” as indicated on the retail page, but it’s still pretty good.   


My rating: 3.5 stars

Review: GHOSTLY APPARITIONS by Aubrey Harper

Meredith, Ghost Hunter P.I.


Meredith has always had a gift for seeing ghost. Well, if you could call it a gift, that is.  But “what better way to catch a ghost than with the help of a ghost?” That’s where her “imaginary friend,” Rebecca comes in real handy.


I liked how Meredith conversed casually with the ghosts as she contends with her old town, an ex, and a new murder. Everyone is a suspect.


A fun, quirky murder mystery!

My rating: 4 stars

Review: SHE’S NOT THERE by Marla Madison

Lisa, a clinical psychologist, was always an advocate for battered women leaving their abusive relationships, which was why she often gave workshops when not seeing clients. Then she receives the startling news of the number of abused women that have gone missing recently, one of which was Lisa’s clients. Remembering her own troubled marriage, Lisa decides to investigate.


Meanwhile, a killer relives his torment and glory over the brutal killings of these missing women.


Book was, overall, well-written and enticing. Story brings an integral cast of characters that cleverly weave this mysterious tale together. I felt this story was pretty good for about the first 50 chapters or so. About half-way through, I was getting restless and was hoping things would move along quicker.  I was expecting more of a breakthrough at this point, and I only had about 60 more chapters in the book. Oh brother.


Generally, this was an okay mystery, but it wasn’t that thrilling.


My rating: 3 stars

Review: DESTINED FOR DARKNESS by Lucian Barnes

Frank has had a hard life, especially at the hands of his abusive mother. Unable to take any more, he suddenly takes action, crushing his mom’s skull. Afterwards, Frank had to flee—he was a murderer, after all. Killing his mother had opened up a gate of pent-up violence he couldn’t control.


The book had a strong start, obviously. It was gruesome and eerily captivating, but that was just the first part. I thought it could only get better from there. I was wrong. Part 2 lagged significantly with Frank meeting and falling for a girl. Part 3 was no better. I just couldn’t get past Part 2.


My rating: 2 stars

Review: HOLLYWOOD OUTLAW by MZ Kelly

“It was said that the fortunes of Hollywood depended on talent, hard work, and timing. Nowadays…those same fortunes depend on a good publicist, several hundred thousand Twitter followers, and a sex tape.”


Kate Sexton is an LAPD detective working the specialized unit for Hollywood cases. Suddenly, a dead body is discovered on the set of a racy reality TV show. The star was one that everybody loved to hate, so every cast and crew member was a suspect. Readers get a glimpse of what it was like on the set; the show was right up there with Keeping up with the Kardashians with all the drama, greed, and, of course, sex. There were two trails to this case: money and sex.


The writing was strangely scintillating. In the midst of this bizarre and complex case, Kate was in search of her biological dad and the killer of her adopted dad. So, yeah, her life was a regular Hollywood story, too.


Although intriguing, the investigation was still lagging, and I wished it would’ve moved faster. I also thought there were too many characters.


Overall, this started off strong, but petered out for me.


My rating: 3 stars

Review: STUDENT BODY by Charlene Tess and Judi Thompson

Imagine waking up in a car with cuts all over your face and no memory of the night. That' what happened to Jake, a former football star and now a high school coach. Could he have been drugged? Was he attacked? And what did the hot blonde have anything to do with it? Meanwhile, at the high school, a student body is discovered―a dead girl in the student parking lot.                                                           Chance and Macy O'Brien were top-notch in the homicide division and handled their work along with their new bundle of joy as best they could. Amidst their new challenges and sleepless nights, Chance dives into the investigation.
Told from the POV's of multiple characters―characters that are hard-working, endearing, and relatable― story digs deep into the puzzling mystery surrounding a girl's murder. It was thorough, intelligent, and well-written, and it entices the reader to learn more. Could the coach have possibly killed her and have no memory of it? Jake swore that he didn't know the girl, that he didn't do it. Still, it would seem all the evidence is pointing to him. Perhaps it would take the help of a long-lost love working as a defense attorney to prove his innocence.
Romantic troubles, a strained marriage, a psychic's premonition, a clandestine prostitution ring, and an unknown killer―all wonderfully wrapped up in this great read. "It just gets curiouser and curiouser." (72) 
My rating: 5 stars

Review: THE NEW YEAR BOYFRIEND by Zoey Gong

Winnie is a goal-driven student with no respect from her peers, colleagues, and especially her family. Coming from a traditional Asian upbringing, Winnie’s task was rooted in her from the start: get a job and find a husband. But she didn’t want to get married. Her only focus was on her medical career.


For Winnie, having a Chinese mother was grueling and overbearing. The mantra that “boys were preferable to girls” was an established fact in Chinese families, making it harder for Winnie to be independent. Girls from most cultures would be able to relate and attest to this. Winnie’s mom is so bossy with ordering her to come home for Chinese New Year and telling her that she will marry this Chang fella. Kinda scary.  What was Winnie supposed to do? She couldn’t ignore her family duty, but she also refused to get married. Maybe if she were to show up with a boyfriend, she might get her mother off her back.


Kai is an IT guy moonlighting as a taxi driver just to earn money to pay for his mother’s hospital bills. Then he hears about an article about posing as a New Year boyfriend for Chinese girls that just need a front for the family. Hey, if it pays, right?


Right away, you feel for each character’s predicaments.


Story was a little lagging and the writing was fairly simple. It actually takes a while for this deal to be made. A lot of family drama made the whole thing draining.  A few of the tid bits on Chinese culture was interesting, but I wish the story would’ve been more amusing. The obligation of family was an overbearing weight on independence. I could totally relate to Winnie wanting to be her own woman and liver her own life.


I’m all for multicultural fiction, and this one was a decent read on love and Chinese culture.


My rating: 3 stars