Gypsy Madden's Blog, page 14
May 16, 2021
Book Review: Dragon's Egg (Dragon Eggs - Book 1)
Dragon’s Egg (Dragon Eggs – Book 1) by Emily Martha Sorensen
4 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: Serial-size. I read this as included in the Otherworlds: The YA Scifi Fantasy Boxset
Summary: Rose, a student at the local girl’s college, love spending time at the Natural History Museum. But when she approaches the new exhibit of ancient non-fossilized dragon eggs, she sees a vision of dragons in the past. And not only her, but another man who happened to pass by the exhibit at the same time as her. One of the eggs is speaking to her telepathically and wants her to be its mother. It wants Henry to be its father, too, meaning they need to figure out something fast, to release the egg from being captive on exhibit which Henry wants to move on immediately. But Rose, has had a hard enough time getting her father to allow her to go to college, she doesn’t want to give up on her studies now.
Comments: This is a serial, and each installment is short and continues to the next book, without giving any real resolution to each section. So, the story in this, just stops abruptly without really coming to an actual end. The egg doesn’t even hatch in this section. And I should point out that the price that it’s at right now should be for a 300-page book (as in, if you jammed together all of the books for this series, that should be priced for what this one installment is priced at. And don’t get me started on ninety-nine cents for a 7-page book.)
The story itself is excellent (though short). I love Rose. She’s stubborn, determined, bull-headed, and logical. She can’t just do things. She’ll pause and weigh her pros and cons and make arguments for and against. She’s very modern for her Victorian (steampunk?) setting. Henry is her opposite and makes an excellent match for her. He’s a guy, so he hadn’t any trouble getting schooling, which was expected of him. He looks forward to adventures and challenges and coming to the rescue, without really putting thought into the future and what would come next. I loved Henry trying to sell her on the idea of raising the dragon together. And I loved the dragon! I loved him acting like a little kid, wanting his own way, and throwing a tantrum whenever anyone denied him anything or didn’t agree with him right then and there. I loved that he loved obnoxious sounds, repeating them over and over again to everyone’s horror. And I loved that he didn’t seem to understand the fact that Rose and Henry were human (I was totally dying to see his reaction upon meeting them in the flesh).
4 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: Serial-size. I read this as included in the Otherworlds: The YA Scifi Fantasy Boxset
Summary: Rose, a student at the local girl’s college, love spending time at the Natural History Museum. But when she approaches the new exhibit of ancient non-fossilized dragon eggs, she sees a vision of dragons in the past. And not only her, but another man who happened to pass by the exhibit at the same time as her. One of the eggs is speaking to her telepathically and wants her to be its mother. It wants Henry to be its father, too, meaning they need to figure out something fast, to release the egg from being captive on exhibit which Henry wants to move on immediately. But Rose, has had a hard enough time getting her father to allow her to go to college, she doesn’t want to give up on her studies now.
Comments: This is a serial, and each installment is short and continues to the next book, without giving any real resolution to each section. So, the story in this, just stops abruptly without really coming to an actual end. The egg doesn’t even hatch in this section. And I should point out that the price that it’s at right now should be for a 300-page book (as in, if you jammed together all of the books for this series, that should be priced for what this one installment is priced at. And don’t get me started on ninety-nine cents for a 7-page book.)
The story itself is excellent (though short). I love Rose. She’s stubborn, determined, bull-headed, and logical. She can’t just do things. She’ll pause and weigh her pros and cons and make arguments for and against. She’s very modern for her Victorian (steampunk?) setting. Henry is her opposite and makes an excellent match for her. He’s a guy, so he hadn’t any trouble getting schooling, which was expected of him. He looks forward to adventures and challenges and coming to the rescue, without really putting thought into the future and what would come next. I loved Henry trying to sell her on the idea of raising the dragon together. And I loved the dragon! I loved him acting like a little kid, wanting his own way, and throwing a tantrum whenever anyone denied him anything or didn’t agree with him right then and there. I loved that he loved obnoxious sounds, repeating them over and over again to everyone’s horror. And I loved that he didn’t seem to understand the fact that Rose and Henry were human (I was totally dying to see his reaction upon meeting them in the flesh).
May 15, 2021
Book Review: Goddess of Time (Avalon Prophecy novella)
Goddess of Time (Avalon Prophecy novella) by Monica Corwin
5 stars
Category: Adult
Note: Novella-size. I read this as included in the Legends and Lore: A Mythology Multi-Genre Anthology.
Summary: Lucan is a knight of the round table and currently trapped on an island ruled by a fairy queen. While he is out trying to trap her, he’s surprised by a young woman wearing a t-shirt and jeans who claims she’s from some place known as Chicago. She takes him through a hole in the rocks, bringing him to a small cottage on the outskirts the city. But she seems to know far more than she’s letting on.
Comments: Honestly, I was going to give this book 4 stars, since it really was just mostly sex with only a little bit of extra stuff. But the ending sold me on wanting to continue their story and see if there’s a future for our heroine and Lucan. And I’m looking forward to seeing more Arthurian woven into this series. I already read the first book in this series King Takes Queen, though I didn’t care much for Maggie (though I loved Arthur and Merlin). She was a bit too average, generic Mary-Sue with the usual dash of the males finding her irresistible. In this story, the heroine’s modern Vivienne persona is too generic and I wouldn’t be that interested in following her, but her other personality sold me on wanting to read more of her, which is one of the reasons why my opinion shifted (and because of a certain detail that Lucan mentioned at the end).
5 stars
Category: Adult
Note: Novella-size. I read this as included in the Legends and Lore: A Mythology Multi-Genre Anthology.
Summary: Lucan is a knight of the round table and currently trapped on an island ruled by a fairy queen. While he is out trying to trap her, he’s surprised by a young woman wearing a t-shirt and jeans who claims she’s from some place known as Chicago. She takes him through a hole in the rocks, bringing him to a small cottage on the outskirts the city. But she seems to know far more than she’s letting on.
Comments: Honestly, I was going to give this book 4 stars, since it really was just mostly sex with only a little bit of extra stuff. But the ending sold me on wanting to continue their story and see if there’s a future for our heroine and Lucan. And I’m looking forward to seeing more Arthurian woven into this series. I already read the first book in this series King Takes Queen, though I didn’t care much for Maggie (though I loved Arthur and Merlin). She was a bit too average, generic Mary-Sue with the usual dash of the males finding her irresistible. In this story, the heroine’s modern Vivienne persona is too generic and I wouldn’t be that interested in following her, but her other personality sold me on wanting to read more of her, which is one of the reasons why my opinion shifted (and because of a certain detail that Lucan mentioned at the end).
May 14, 2021
Book Review: Fae Horse: A Faerie Tale
Fae Horse: A Faerie Tale by Anthea Sharp
4 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: Short story only about 20 pages long.
Summary: Eileen is being pursued by men from her village intent on burning her at the stake as a witch. She is the town healer and midwife, having newly taken over the position after the old village healer died. A preacher, newly moved in to town and determined to grow his congregation fingered her as evil, encouraging men she has turned down in the past to seek their revenge. While in the midst of trying to save her true love Aiden from a deadly fever by sending him into the spirit realm for healing, the preacher and the men advance on her, forcing her to flee, directly into the path of a pure black horse. But she soon realizes that the horse she is now trapped upon isn’t a normal horse, but a fae creature known as the Nightmare.
Comments: This very short story has been included quite a few of the anthologies on my kindle. It is a beautiful read, full of fanciful descriptions and imagination, and drenched in ancient atmosphere. It journeys into the world of the dead, populated by the long dead Irish chieftains. Being that it’s so short, we don’t get much backstory on Eileen, who I really would have liked to have known more of, and her true love Aiden, other than the fact that she loves him. And I really would have liked to know more of the legendary steed, other than just its name. I’m sorry to spoil, but the story was a bit too bleak and tragic (and anti-women in the beginning) for my tastes. I prefer the books I read to be more uplifting.
4 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: Short story only about 20 pages long.
Summary: Eileen is being pursued by men from her village intent on burning her at the stake as a witch. She is the town healer and midwife, having newly taken over the position after the old village healer died. A preacher, newly moved in to town and determined to grow his congregation fingered her as evil, encouraging men she has turned down in the past to seek their revenge. While in the midst of trying to save her true love Aiden from a deadly fever by sending him into the spirit realm for healing, the preacher and the men advance on her, forcing her to flee, directly into the path of a pure black horse. But she soon realizes that the horse she is now trapped upon isn’t a normal horse, but a fae creature known as the Nightmare.
Comments: This very short story has been included quite a few of the anthologies on my kindle. It is a beautiful read, full of fanciful descriptions and imagination, and drenched in ancient atmosphere. It journeys into the world of the dead, populated by the long dead Irish chieftains. Being that it’s so short, we don’t get much backstory on Eileen, who I really would have liked to have known more of, and her true love Aiden, other than the fact that she loves him. And I really would have liked to know more of the legendary steed, other than just its name. I’m sorry to spoil, but the story was a bit too bleak and tragic (and anti-women in the beginning) for my tastes. I prefer the books I read to be more uplifting.
May 12, 2021
Book Review: Windwalker: Temple of the Shifting Sands
Windwalker: Temple of the Shifting Sands by H.G. Chambers
4 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: Novella-length spin-off. I obtained a free copy via the author's newsletter.
Summary: While scouting as a Shadestalker trainee, Mica (Kiva’s brother) sees a vision of shadow demons and sleeping woman. When he tells his old Mystic school teacher, he tells him of a former student that followed a vision of demons and a sleeping woman deep into the desert to a mysterious temple, but he had vanished into the desert when he tried to find the temple a second time. Mica recruits his friend Windwalker Deysa to help him find the temple. Together they embark on an Indiana Jones style adventure into the heart of the desert, encountering monsters along the way.
Comments: This is a fun adventure story, filled with battling monsters, and a friendship, as they uncover a mystery buried in the desert. Plenty of imagination went into this story, creating the various monsters that attacked them, and creating the dream world. Mica and Deysa have an interesting relationship, with their banter, with Deysa being the more logical one, not quite getting things (a little like Mr. Spock). Sadly, there wasn’t too much to the temple itself. I really wanted to know how Mica and Deysa first met and became friends since they are from two different schools, and seem vastly different in personalities, and they don’t know each other all, but that never got touched on (maybe its in the main series). One thing that did bother me was that I don’t really understand what the Shadestalkers do. From what I could gather from the story, they’re assassins. But, as a training school, who are they being trained to fight against? (I’m just not seeing the point of having a school of assassins in the middle of a desert). I can’t really see it being something that would get used day to day in a desert society, unlike the Mystics and Windwalkers (then again, maybe the different factions are just supposed to put us in mind of dystopias like Divergent). Then again, maybe that’s also something that gets explained in the main series (this is what happens when I pick the shorter novellas up first to give me a taste before starting a larger series). I’m not really a fan of stories that focus on dreams, because technically they’re not really happening and they’re too surreal for me to get a decent picture of what’s going on in my head. I do love the exotic desert setting, and the adventure chasing the demons into the unknown. I did love the drama and emotion in this as Mica dealt with his past, and revealed what made him switch from being a Mystic trainee to a Shadestalker trainee.
4 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: Novella-length spin-off. I obtained a free copy via the author's newsletter.
Summary: While scouting as a Shadestalker trainee, Mica (Kiva’s brother) sees a vision of shadow demons and sleeping woman. When he tells his old Mystic school teacher, he tells him of a former student that followed a vision of demons and a sleeping woman deep into the desert to a mysterious temple, but he had vanished into the desert when he tried to find the temple a second time. Mica recruits his friend Windwalker Deysa to help him find the temple. Together they embark on an Indiana Jones style adventure into the heart of the desert, encountering monsters along the way.
Comments: This is a fun adventure story, filled with battling monsters, and a friendship, as they uncover a mystery buried in the desert. Plenty of imagination went into this story, creating the various monsters that attacked them, and creating the dream world. Mica and Deysa have an interesting relationship, with their banter, with Deysa being the more logical one, not quite getting things (a little like Mr. Spock). Sadly, there wasn’t too much to the temple itself. I really wanted to know how Mica and Deysa first met and became friends since they are from two different schools, and seem vastly different in personalities, and they don’t know each other all, but that never got touched on (maybe its in the main series). One thing that did bother me was that I don’t really understand what the Shadestalkers do. From what I could gather from the story, they’re assassins. But, as a training school, who are they being trained to fight against? (I’m just not seeing the point of having a school of assassins in the middle of a desert). I can’t really see it being something that would get used day to day in a desert society, unlike the Mystics and Windwalkers (then again, maybe the different factions are just supposed to put us in mind of dystopias like Divergent). Then again, maybe that’s also something that gets explained in the main series (this is what happens when I pick the shorter novellas up first to give me a taste before starting a larger series). I’m not really a fan of stories that focus on dreams, because technically they’re not really happening and they’re too surreal for me to get a decent picture of what’s going on in my head. I do love the exotic desert setting, and the adventure chasing the demons into the unknown. I did love the drama and emotion in this as Mica dealt with his past, and revealed what made him switch from being a Mystic trainee to a Shadestalker trainee.
May 11, 2021
Book Review: My Little Kelpie (Fractured Fairy Tales - Book 6)
My Little Kelpie (Fractured Fairy Tales Series - Book 6) by Sarina Dorie
4 stars
Category: Middle-Grade
Note: Short story. $0.99 cents on Amazon.
Summary: While walking home from school, Bridget’s little sister insists they visit the pony in the ravine. But Bridget knows better than to talk to strange horses in impossible places, especially when they talk to you and try to lure kids away to a fantasy world lined with candy. She hunts for the odd pony with a fishtail in a book of fairies that her mother has hidden away, determining that the pony is actually a kelpie and definitely not something to trust. But she can’t help but listen when it suggests that there might be something different about her, that her mother might be keeping secrets from her.
Comments: Admittedly, based on the pic of the woman on the cover, I was expecting this to be pitched at an older audience. But Bridget is more of a young teen, and the book is very Middle-Grade. I was expecting it to be darker and more serious, rather than verging on Cozy. So, for a young audience this is a fun adventure, with a young tween girl just discovering who she really is and with a don’t talk to strangers theme to it as well. I liked the Kelpie. He was imaginatively written as the stranger trying to lure kids off the path with promises of roads made of candy. I loved his persistence and how outrageous his promises were. I also loved his randomly chain-smoking behind the school. I also loved Bridget’s sister, how in character she was wanting to play with the pony, and was surprised that she didn’t play a part later into the book. The end of the story is rather abrupt and left quite a few questions unanswered, but as far as I can tell, this is a standalone story and that was really the end.
4 stars
Category: Middle-Grade
Note: Short story. $0.99 cents on Amazon.
Summary: While walking home from school, Bridget’s little sister insists they visit the pony in the ravine. But Bridget knows better than to talk to strange horses in impossible places, especially when they talk to you and try to lure kids away to a fantasy world lined with candy. She hunts for the odd pony with a fishtail in a book of fairies that her mother has hidden away, determining that the pony is actually a kelpie and definitely not something to trust. But she can’t help but listen when it suggests that there might be something different about her, that her mother might be keeping secrets from her.
Comments: Admittedly, based on the pic of the woman on the cover, I was expecting this to be pitched at an older audience. But Bridget is more of a young teen, and the book is very Middle-Grade. I was expecting it to be darker and more serious, rather than verging on Cozy. So, for a young audience this is a fun adventure, with a young tween girl just discovering who she really is and with a don’t talk to strangers theme to it as well. I liked the Kelpie. He was imaginatively written as the stranger trying to lure kids off the path with promises of roads made of candy. I loved his persistence and how outrageous his promises were. I also loved his randomly chain-smoking behind the school. I also loved Bridget’s sister, how in character she was wanting to play with the pony, and was surprised that she didn’t play a part later into the book. The end of the story is rather abrupt and left quite a few questions unanswered, but as far as I can tell, this is a standalone story and that was really the end.
May 10, 2021
Book Review: Captured (Brindle Dragon - Book 8)
Captured (Brindle Dragon – Book 8) by Jada Fisher
5 stars
Category: YA
Note: Serial length. I read this as included in the Brindle Dragon Boxed Set: Complete Series: Books 1-9.
Summary: Eist has been captured by the Blight now possessing her friend Yachrist. He’s convinced they are meant to be together since he, the Blight, has been following her ever since she was young. From the deaths of her parents, to giving her the fever that stole away her hearing, to giving her the witch eye. He’s also sure that he just needs to show her that he is a force for good, that she will side with him and rule by his side. But the Blight’s plans are to devour the three main gods of her world, which he tries to tell her are evil from another world. All Eist knows is that if he was good, he wouldn’t be chaining her up and holding her prisoner.
Comments: Just one more section to go after this! I know my reviews on the last couple of sections have been rather lackluster. Kind of like the Harry Potter books, I thought the quality dropped rather significantly after the reveal of Voldemort being back, akin to the Blight being back in this series. Mainly, I don’t care for battles and book-long battles means the entire book drags, so I was dragging my way through the last couple of books. But this one took a departure from the battlefield, and focused on Eist being in the clutches of the Blight. Refreshing change, and I loved every moment of it! I loved how this book played with Eist’s psychology, and forced her to re-evaluate things, specifically what she thought the Blight’s motives were, and the beliefs of her culture. I loved that the Blight tried to win her over. Though I am surprised that even though he claims to be in love with her, he never tried to romance her (yeah, yeah, I know she said she wasn’t ready for sex, but there is more to romance than that). But even with the winning her over and trying to show her he is good, he still couldn’t hide his temper or his desire to show he’s better than others. I’m still not a fan of Athar trying to jump in front of Eist and protect her and keep her from doing anything, which still feels far more controlling and possessive than Yachrist ever was (when he was Yachrist at least). I’m not sure if Eist has given up hope, but I’m still hoping she gets to save Yachrist in the end.
5 stars
Category: YA
Note: Serial length. I read this as included in the Brindle Dragon Boxed Set: Complete Series: Books 1-9.
Summary: Eist has been captured by the Blight now possessing her friend Yachrist. He’s convinced they are meant to be together since he, the Blight, has been following her ever since she was young. From the deaths of her parents, to giving her the fever that stole away her hearing, to giving her the witch eye. He’s also sure that he just needs to show her that he is a force for good, that she will side with him and rule by his side. But the Blight’s plans are to devour the three main gods of her world, which he tries to tell her are evil from another world. All Eist knows is that if he was good, he wouldn’t be chaining her up and holding her prisoner.
Comments: Just one more section to go after this! I know my reviews on the last couple of sections have been rather lackluster. Kind of like the Harry Potter books, I thought the quality dropped rather significantly after the reveal of Voldemort being back, akin to the Blight being back in this series. Mainly, I don’t care for battles and book-long battles means the entire book drags, so I was dragging my way through the last couple of books. But this one took a departure from the battlefield, and focused on Eist being in the clutches of the Blight. Refreshing change, and I loved every moment of it! I loved how this book played with Eist’s psychology, and forced her to re-evaluate things, specifically what she thought the Blight’s motives were, and the beliefs of her culture. I loved that the Blight tried to win her over. Though I am surprised that even though he claims to be in love with her, he never tried to romance her (yeah, yeah, I know she said she wasn’t ready for sex, but there is more to romance than that). But even with the winning her over and trying to show her he is good, he still couldn’t hide his temper or his desire to show he’s better than others. I’m still not a fan of Athar trying to jump in front of Eist and protect her and keep her from doing anything, which still feels far more controlling and possessive than Yachrist ever was (when he was Yachrist at least). I’m not sure if Eist has given up hope, but I’m still hoping she gets to save Yachrist in the end.
May 9, 2021
Robin's Hood: A Tale of Sherwood Forest (HighTower Fairytales: Robin Hood - Book 1)
Robin’s Hood: A Tale of Sherwood Forest (HighTower Fairytales: Robin Hood - Book 1) by Jacque Stevens
5 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: I read this as included in the Enchanted Kingdoms anthology.
Summary: Marion’s brother and her husband Rob have been away fighting in The Crusades for years, leaving her at home under the care of Rob’s father the Lord of Locksley. But when his father dies, leaving Marion on her own, the Sheriff of Nottingham and Sir Gisborne move in to claim Locksley as theirs. They insist that Marion admit that Rob was never her husband in truth, and they will claim him as dead and annul their marriage, paving the way for Gisborne to marry her and take control of Locksley. But Marion has never been very feminine. She used to do all the same things that her brother and young husband used to do, including shoot arrows with incredible accurateness. So, rather than let the sheriff take her lands, eat all of her food in large daily feasts, take advantage of women, and render unjust punishments on minor offenses, she takes to the forests and seeks out the outlaws, winning the friendship of Jon Little, who certainly isn’t little. But to inspire the men, she dons her husband’s green cape, and pretends to be his spirit fighting for justice and the people.
Comments: I wouldn’t really call this a fairy tale, since there wasn’t any magic in it, nor any actual fantasy elements. This is really more of a historical romance. I thought it did justice to the original Robin Hood legend, with plenty of action, precision shooting, friendly outlaws, and stealing from the rich and giving to the poor, pulling one over on the villainous Sheriff, and yes, the romance and trying to rescue Marion from her situation. I loved everything about this story, bringing to life all of the characters. You feel for Marion, trapped in her situation and time period where women aren’t allowed to hold power and has to be practically owned by someone else. So, when her husband isn’t present and her caretaker has died, others are able to move in and claim her property. But she is a tomboy at nature, having been raised around her brother and his best friend (her husband) and no other girls, and indulged by everyone around her, and has no idea how to act like a proper lady or wife. And she’s stuck on the idea of Rob eventually returning, in love with the memory of him as her best friend and confidant. I loved all of the flashbacks of them together as friends, confiding in each other, having adventures as children, and him protecting her as kids. It’s so romantic and heart warming and innocent, and I couldn’t help but fall in love with her idea of him. And as a tomboy she knew every inch of the keep, and could sneak around, and put the idea in people’s heads of her husband still being around as she masqueraded as him. And asking herself what would Rob do? She could see the social injustice and the freeloading sheriff, and wanted to help the people. I loved that she went and faced Jon. And I loved her relationship with Gisborne. She couldn’t give him the time of day because she didn’t have any room for him in her life with the memory of Rob taking up every inch of her being, but then she had to second-guess herself because she really wasn’t giving him even a chance to get to know him. I liked that he wasn’t thoroughly a villain (as we usually see Gisborne). He seemed to be playing all angles, and I’m not sure we ever got to see the real him except in his actions at the very end. I loved that even though Rob was mainly just her memory, he was still a developed character. The only character that truly felt undeveloped was the Sheriff who was thoroughly evil and corrupt and we didn’t get too many face to face scenes with him other than him demanding. I loved the end climactic scene (especially the moment with Gisborne). Though this story does come to a satisfactory end, I can’t wait for Book 2!
5 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: I read this as included in the Enchanted Kingdoms anthology.
Summary: Marion’s brother and her husband Rob have been away fighting in The Crusades for years, leaving her at home under the care of Rob’s father the Lord of Locksley. But when his father dies, leaving Marion on her own, the Sheriff of Nottingham and Sir Gisborne move in to claim Locksley as theirs. They insist that Marion admit that Rob was never her husband in truth, and they will claim him as dead and annul their marriage, paving the way for Gisborne to marry her and take control of Locksley. But Marion has never been very feminine. She used to do all the same things that her brother and young husband used to do, including shoot arrows with incredible accurateness. So, rather than let the sheriff take her lands, eat all of her food in large daily feasts, take advantage of women, and render unjust punishments on minor offenses, she takes to the forests and seeks out the outlaws, winning the friendship of Jon Little, who certainly isn’t little. But to inspire the men, she dons her husband’s green cape, and pretends to be his spirit fighting for justice and the people.
Comments: I wouldn’t really call this a fairy tale, since there wasn’t any magic in it, nor any actual fantasy elements. This is really more of a historical romance. I thought it did justice to the original Robin Hood legend, with plenty of action, precision shooting, friendly outlaws, and stealing from the rich and giving to the poor, pulling one over on the villainous Sheriff, and yes, the romance and trying to rescue Marion from her situation. I loved everything about this story, bringing to life all of the characters. You feel for Marion, trapped in her situation and time period where women aren’t allowed to hold power and has to be practically owned by someone else. So, when her husband isn’t present and her caretaker has died, others are able to move in and claim her property. But she is a tomboy at nature, having been raised around her brother and his best friend (her husband) and no other girls, and indulged by everyone around her, and has no idea how to act like a proper lady or wife. And she’s stuck on the idea of Rob eventually returning, in love with the memory of him as her best friend and confidant. I loved all of the flashbacks of them together as friends, confiding in each other, having adventures as children, and him protecting her as kids. It’s so romantic and heart warming and innocent, and I couldn’t help but fall in love with her idea of him. And as a tomboy she knew every inch of the keep, and could sneak around, and put the idea in people’s heads of her husband still being around as she masqueraded as him. And asking herself what would Rob do? She could see the social injustice and the freeloading sheriff, and wanted to help the people. I loved that she went and faced Jon. And I loved her relationship with Gisborne. She couldn’t give him the time of day because she didn’t have any room for him in her life with the memory of Rob taking up every inch of her being, but then she had to second-guess herself because she really wasn’t giving him even a chance to get to know him. I liked that he wasn’t thoroughly a villain (as we usually see Gisborne). He seemed to be playing all angles, and I’m not sure we ever got to see the real him except in his actions at the very end. I loved that even though Rob was mainly just her memory, he was still a developed character. The only character that truly felt undeveloped was the Sheriff who was thoroughly evil and corrupt and we didn’t get too many face to face scenes with him other than him demanding. I loved the end climactic scene (especially the moment with Gisborne). Though this story does come to a satisfactory end, I can’t wait for Book 2!
May 8, 2021
Book Review: Granting Wishes (Once Upon a Curse - Prequel)
Granting Wishes (Once Upon a Curse - Prequel) by Kaitlyn Davis
5 stars
Category: YA
Note: Only $0.99 cents on Amazon! I obtained a free copy via Bookfunnel.
Summary: Alanna was rock-climbing with a summer camp group in Yosemite when the earthquake happened. She slid into a crevasse and found herself face to face with a handsome man, Erick, in billowy pants in an underground cavern filled with flowers. He tells her that the earthquake was the result of his world merging with hers. He uses the lake in the cavern to show her the destruction of her world, her home and parents no longer there, and her brother who was at basketball practice now facing down a group of sword-bearing warriors. She asks Erick’s help to rescue her brother. He gives her a ring that she can contact him through, changes her clothes into something more appropriate for the new world that is taking over, and pushes her into the lake portal. But before she can save her brother, she finds the enemy forces have magic, and a handsome stranger pulls her away. Cyrus, crown prince of Baghar, sees a kindred spirit in her, willing to stand up to his father, and fight for the freedom of the people.
Comments: I’ve been meaning to read the Once Upon a Curse series for quite a while now, but the page length of the other books has looked daunting, so I started with this one. This is such a magical tale, with an Aladdin spin to it. It was definitely a story of its own, with only a couple of Aladdin elements to it, allowing for unexpected twists and turns. I loved that it was a gender reverse, with a girl in place of Aladdin. I really would have liked to know more about Erick, our stand-in for the genie. (Looks like he comes back into the story in Book 4 Parting Worlds). He really won me over when he referred to himself as devilishly handsome. Got to love an ego like that. It’s a fascinating world that’s been created here. A mish-mash of fantasy world and modern world collided together and struggling for dominance, with modern people having to deal with a fantasy world, and fantasy world people struggling to understand the technology of the modern. I loved Alanna’s relationship with her brother. I loved how she kept thinking about moments in the past, how they teased each other and relied on each other. And I loved Cyrus. Granted, when she first met him, I expected her to have a romance with Erick (which would have been an interesting change to the Aladdin tale). But I did like Cyrus. He’s wonderfully described and has a fascinating, developed personality with wanting to be free, yet he can’t escape his responsibilities or his impending future, and I loved that he had a fear of the future. (The one thing that I thought could have been improved was the pivotal scene. I mean, suddenly things happened and I was like, wait what? I had to re-read to try to figure out what brought the chandelier down, which even re-reading I didn’t manage to figure out, it was just down suddenly). In all, I am looking forward to seeing more of this fascinating blending of worlds.
5 stars
Category: YA
Note: Only $0.99 cents on Amazon! I obtained a free copy via Bookfunnel.
Summary: Alanna was rock-climbing with a summer camp group in Yosemite when the earthquake happened. She slid into a crevasse and found herself face to face with a handsome man, Erick, in billowy pants in an underground cavern filled with flowers. He tells her that the earthquake was the result of his world merging with hers. He uses the lake in the cavern to show her the destruction of her world, her home and parents no longer there, and her brother who was at basketball practice now facing down a group of sword-bearing warriors. She asks Erick’s help to rescue her brother. He gives her a ring that she can contact him through, changes her clothes into something more appropriate for the new world that is taking over, and pushes her into the lake portal. But before she can save her brother, she finds the enemy forces have magic, and a handsome stranger pulls her away. Cyrus, crown prince of Baghar, sees a kindred spirit in her, willing to stand up to his father, and fight for the freedom of the people.
Comments: I’ve been meaning to read the Once Upon a Curse series for quite a while now, but the page length of the other books has looked daunting, so I started with this one. This is such a magical tale, with an Aladdin spin to it. It was definitely a story of its own, with only a couple of Aladdin elements to it, allowing for unexpected twists and turns. I loved that it was a gender reverse, with a girl in place of Aladdin. I really would have liked to know more about Erick, our stand-in for the genie. (Looks like he comes back into the story in Book 4 Parting Worlds). He really won me over when he referred to himself as devilishly handsome. Got to love an ego like that. It’s a fascinating world that’s been created here. A mish-mash of fantasy world and modern world collided together and struggling for dominance, with modern people having to deal with a fantasy world, and fantasy world people struggling to understand the technology of the modern. I loved Alanna’s relationship with her brother. I loved how she kept thinking about moments in the past, how they teased each other and relied on each other. And I loved Cyrus. Granted, when she first met him, I expected her to have a romance with Erick (which would have been an interesting change to the Aladdin tale). But I did like Cyrus. He’s wonderfully described and has a fascinating, developed personality with wanting to be free, yet he can’t escape his responsibilities or his impending future, and I loved that he had a fear of the future. (The one thing that I thought could have been improved was the pivotal scene. I mean, suddenly things happened and I was like, wait what? I had to re-read to try to figure out what brought the chandelier down, which even re-reading I didn’t manage to figure out, it was just down suddenly). In all, I am looking forward to seeing more of this fascinating blending of worlds.
May 7, 2021
Book Review: Thief of Sparks (Starside Saga - Book 1)
Thief of Sparks (Starside Saga – Book 1) by Eric Edstrom
4 stars
Category: YA
Note: Only $0.99 cents on Amazon.
Summary: Kila is a thief in Starside, living solely with her older brother Wen who is sick with a bloody cough. She steals mainly to pay their rent and for Wen’s medicine. After trying to steal from a sailor, she winds up with a cat. But that is okay, since cat tails are worth gold to temple masters who have spread the word that cats are in league with deymanes (demons?). But before she can collect the gold, Wen gets attached to the cat, and insists that they rescue the rest of the cats that traveled there to Starside.
Comments: Starside is a highly detailed city, complete with slums, harbor, rich areas, and various temples. I did want to know more about the various gods and religions there, since the god names kept getting mentioned, but never really explained. There were plenty of things that got mentioned without really telling us about them, like I’m still not entirely sure what a Donse master does (but it seems like it’s important to the book). It kind of felt like random words were thrown in for local color, but then never defined to the reader, leaving the reader scratching their head at what things are. Speaking of local color, the main heroine Kila’s name is far too close to the Starside swear word Kil commonly used during the course of this book. I kept having to stop and re-read sentences trying to figure out if they were using the swear word or merely shortening her name or referring to her in some way. In general, their thieving life didn’t really excite me. It was fun at the start as Kila used capoeira like Prince of Persia or Aladdin to jump from rooftop to rooftop as she chased marks or evaded people hunting her. But as the book went on, their thieving felt too business driven. By the end, everything was really looked at in a transactional or business standpoint. I didn’t get Kila’s choice of staying in the great house (which in the end didn’t really amount to anything). It was a stupid decision from the start and then she kept making bad decision after bad decision. Like wearing the dead girl’s clothes, sleeping in her bed, stealing from the kitchen, etc. Was she waiting around to get caught? It felt like she was mainly in the house just to give the audience a perspective from inside the house, and no real other reason. I did love Kila’s relationship with her brother (though he’s not the main focus, I did grow to worry about her quiet brother and his bloody cough) and the cats were fantastic, especially relaying messages in their varying personalities and being focused on food. I also loved her relationship with Finta, the woman with the potion. And I loved Kila’s antagonistic rivalry with Oly. The story reminded me of Night’s Gift (Of Cats and Dragons), which I finished reading recently. Granted the teenagers in the two medieval fantasy world books come from two entirely different walks of life, with entirely different magical skills, but they both acquire intelligent cats tagging along with them on their adventures. In the end, I was bored by the business-driven aspect this story seemed to take, and really, not too much happened beyond running, hiding, befriending the cats, and setting up for the next story.
4 stars
Category: YA
Note: Only $0.99 cents on Amazon.
Summary: Kila is a thief in Starside, living solely with her older brother Wen who is sick with a bloody cough. She steals mainly to pay their rent and for Wen’s medicine. After trying to steal from a sailor, she winds up with a cat. But that is okay, since cat tails are worth gold to temple masters who have spread the word that cats are in league with deymanes (demons?). But before she can collect the gold, Wen gets attached to the cat, and insists that they rescue the rest of the cats that traveled there to Starside.
Comments: Starside is a highly detailed city, complete with slums, harbor, rich areas, and various temples. I did want to know more about the various gods and religions there, since the god names kept getting mentioned, but never really explained. There were plenty of things that got mentioned without really telling us about them, like I’m still not entirely sure what a Donse master does (but it seems like it’s important to the book). It kind of felt like random words were thrown in for local color, but then never defined to the reader, leaving the reader scratching their head at what things are. Speaking of local color, the main heroine Kila’s name is far too close to the Starside swear word Kil commonly used during the course of this book. I kept having to stop and re-read sentences trying to figure out if they were using the swear word or merely shortening her name or referring to her in some way. In general, their thieving life didn’t really excite me. It was fun at the start as Kila used capoeira like Prince of Persia or Aladdin to jump from rooftop to rooftop as she chased marks or evaded people hunting her. But as the book went on, their thieving felt too business driven. By the end, everything was really looked at in a transactional or business standpoint. I didn’t get Kila’s choice of staying in the great house (which in the end didn’t really amount to anything). It was a stupid decision from the start and then she kept making bad decision after bad decision. Like wearing the dead girl’s clothes, sleeping in her bed, stealing from the kitchen, etc. Was she waiting around to get caught? It felt like she was mainly in the house just to give the audience a perspective from inside the house, and no real other reason. I did love Kila’s relationship with her brother (though he’s not the main focus, I did grow to worry about her quiet brother and his bloody cough) and the cats were fantastic, especially relaying messages in their varying personalities and being focused on food. I also loved her relationship with Finta, the woman with the potion. And I loved Kila’s antagonistic rivalry with Oly. The story reminded me of Night’s Gift (Of Cats and Dragons), which I finished reading recently. Granted the teenagers in the two medieval fantasy world books come from two entirely different walks of life, with entirely different magical skills, but they both acquire intelligent cats tagging along with them on their adventures. In the end, I was bored by the business-driven aspect this story seemed to take, and really, not too much happened beyond running, hiding, befriending the cats, and setting up for the next story.
May 2, 2021
Book Review: Tales of Music and Magic (Sharp Tales - Book 2)
Tales of Music and Magic (Sharp Tales – Book 2) by Anthea Sharp
4 stars
Category: Adult
Note: This is a collection of short stories all by Anthea Sharp.
Summary & Comments:
This collection includes:
Into the Fairy Hill (A challenge to a drunken harp player to sleep under the fairy hill. Predictable.)
The Harper’s Escape (A girl harp player on the run from Cromwell’s men. I was bored by it. It was a lot of politics, and not much actually happened)
The Quiet Gift (Set at the bard school in Mercedes Lackey’s world of Valdemar. Shandara is a trainee dying to get her scarlet uniform and graduate as a full bard, but she hasn’t fully unlocked her Bardic gift which she needs to do to graduate. She trips, breaking her arm and catches a cold, ruining her voice right before the final recital. Excellent story!)
The Clockwork Harp (Victorian steampunk. A young woman finds her mother recently purchased a haunted harp. It’s haunted by the dead drowned sister of a woman about to wed. Excellent story and effectively eerie!)
Music’s Price (Depressing story about a musically gifted kid who could see fairies when he played his cello. When things got scary, his grandmother gave him a totem to ward away the fairies. When she dies, the magic of the totem wears off and the fairies come for him again.)
Guinevere’s Guest (Gwen is a human with bardic powers, able to influence emotions with her music. Elf lord Vel hires her for his sister’s wedding. The wedding results in chaos. I would love more of Gen and Vel, what sort of future adventures they might have and where might their relationship go to. There were plenty of things that could be expanded on. Though I did think it odd that he didn’t really react to his sister’s death.)
Ice in D Minor (The world is in apocalypse from climate change, and a girl is trying to conjure snow via playing music to the engine hovering above the North Pole. The story didn’t make much sense to me, specifically how an engine could bring snow to the world and needed specific music to activate it properly and the girl was rather obnoxious and full of herself.)
So, in other words, some stories I loved and would give them 5 stars on their own.
4 stars
Category: Adult
Note: This is a collection of short stories all by Anthea Sharp.
Summary & Comments:
This collection includes:
Into the Fairy Hill (A challenge to a drunken harp player to sleep under the fairy hill. Predictable.)
The Harper’s Escape (A girl harp player on the run from Cromwell’s men. I was bored by it. It was a lot of politics, and not much actually happened)
The Quiet Gift (Set at the bard school in Mercedes Lackey’s world of Valdemar. Shandara is a trainee dying to get her scarlet uniform and graduate as a full bard, but she hasn’t fully unlocked her Bardic gift which she needs to do to graduate. She trips, breaking her arm and catches a cold, ruining her voice right before the final recital. Excellent story!)
The Clockwork Harp (Victorian steampunk. A young woman finds her mother recently purchased a haunted harp. It’s haunted by the dead drowned sister of a woman about to wed. Excellent story and effectively eerie!)
Music’s Price (Depressing story about a musically gifted kid who could see fairies when he played his cello. When things got scary, his grandmother gave him a totem to ward away the fairies. When she dies, the magic of the totem wears off and the fairies come for him again.)
Guinevere’s Guest (Gwen is a human with bardic powers, able to influence emotions with her music. Elf lord Vel hires her for his sister’s wedding. The wedding results in chaos. I would love more of Gen and Vel, what sort of future adventures they might have and where might their relationship go to. There were plenty of things that could be expanded on. Though I did think it odd that he didn’t really react to his sister’s death.)
Ice in D Minor (The world is in apocalypse from climate change, and a girl is trying to conjure snow via playing music to the engine hovering above the North Pole. The story didn’t make much sense to me, specifically how an engine could bring snow to the world and needed specific music to activate it properly and the girl was rather obnoxious and full of herself.)
So, in other words, some stories I loved and would give them 5 stars on their own.
