Gypsy Madden's Blog, page 6
October 25, 2021
Book Review: June's Blood (The Blood Flesh Bone Trilogy - Book 1)
June’s Blood (The Blood Flesh Bone Trilogy – Book 1) by Juliet Vane
4 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: Free on Amazon.
Summary: After the death of her best friend to cancer, Lissa spiraled in drinking and partying to where she crashed and was picked up by the local sheriff, her best friend’s mother. Now, she is trying to turn everything around for the memory of her best friend and has landed a scholarship at prestigious Rosebud musical Academy. On the first night there, the other residents tell a string of ghost stories, legends of Rosebud Academy. After that night, Lissa swears she hears footsteps following her, and a ghostly image in the mirror next to her room, and then things start going missing, replaced by a vial of blood, straight out of one of the stories. But Lissa, doesn’t have time for any of that since she has to prove her worth at the Academy by being the best pianist she can be, even with the odd flirtations by one of her instructors, and the odd ravings of the other instructor, and the distracting relationship she has going with one of the other students, until one of her own items goes missing.
Comments: I love Juliet Vane’s fantasy stories. I love the intricate, detailed, immersive worlds that she creates. I love that her stories are full of myths and legends, building the history of her wonderful worlds and fueling the imagination. Here the scary stories serve to create an eerie atmosphere. But beyond the atmosphere, the footsteps, the creepy mirror that only made maybe 3 appearances, and the couple of items that went missing, that was the extent to the eerie bits in the book. The large majority of the book is spent on her teenage dramas, dating, jealousy of other girls, various people flirting with her, her insecurities of not being worthy of being there (which I don’t really get since that was her on the audition tape and she has been playing piano all her life), and all the hours spent on the piano, practicing, classes, and the lengthy discussions on musicians and playing and styles of playing, etc. Considering I’ve never played the piano, nor have I studied it, all the piano stuff just bored me. Might as well have been speaking Greek (though I really wanted to unravel the mystery of Penny Valentino the piano teacher who seemed like she was totally going bonkers. Never did though. I’m shocked no one recorded any of her classes and played it for the head mistress. I totally would have). And I was bored with the petty relationship dramas. Nothing felt any deeper than teenage dating. So, in all, this book didn’t sell me on continuing with the series.
4 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: Free on Amazon.
Summary: After the death of her best friend to cancer, Lissa spiraled in drinking and partying to where she crashed and was picked up by the local sheriff, her best friend’s mother. Now, she is trying to turn everything around for the memory of her best friend and has landed a scholarship at prestigious Rosebud musical Academy. On the first night there, the other residents tell a string of ghost stories, legends of Rosebud Academy. After that night, Lissa swears she hears footsteps following her, and a ghostly image in the mirror next to her room, and then things start going missing, replaced by a vial of blood, straight out of one of the stories. But Lissa, doesn’t have time for any of that since she has to prove her worth at the Academy by being the best pianist she can be, even with the odd flirtations by one of her instructors, and the odd ravings of the other instructor, and the distracting relationship she has going with one of the other students, until one of her own items goes missing.
Comments: I love Juliet Vane’s fantasy stories. I love the intricate, detailed, immersive worlds that she creates. I love that her stories are full of myths and legends, building the history of her wonderful worlds and fueling the imagination. Here the scary stories serve to create an eerie atmosphere. But beyond the atmosphere, the footsteps, the creepy mirror that only made maybe 3 appearances, and the couple of items that went missing, that was the extent to the eerie bits in the book. The large majority of the book is spent on her teenage dramas, dating, jealousy of other girls, various people flirting with her, her insecurities of not being worthy of being there (which I don’t really get since that was her on the audition tape and she has been playing piano all her life), and all the hours spent on the piano, practicing, classes, and the lengthy discussions on musicians and playing and styles of playing, etc. Considering I’ve never played the piano, nor have I studied it, all the piano stuff just bored me. Might as well have been speaking Greek (though I really wanted to unravel the mystery of Penny Valentino the piano teacher who seemed like she was totally going bonkers. Never did though. I’m shocked no one recorded any of her classes and played it for the head mistress. I totally would have). And I was bored with the petty relationship dramas. Nothing felt any deeper than teenage dating. So, in all, this book didn’t sell me on continuing with the series.
October 24, 2021
Book Review: The Elementalist (Flame and Blade - Book 4)
The Elementalist (Flame and Blade – Book 4) by Meredith Hart
4 stars
Category: Adult
Note: I read an Advance Reader Copy (ARC) of the ebook and is my voluntary and unbiased review of it.
Summary: Lyria and Vethe are now traveling with bastard Prince Kyalam to the Kingdom of Ocrus Sheu for answers, which the prince is convinced can be found in the royal library. While Vethe’s sister, Anette, and Lyria’s brother, Gaul, are on their own mission to find them, taking them to the encampment of rebel mages, also under the command of another prince of Mayhaven, where they get word that Mayhaven has been invaded by demons.
Comments: The final book in this series and it does wrap up all the loose ends nicely with a grand showdown between the rebel mages and the Citadel. Though I think I was a bit let down when it mainly just amounted to taking out one single master of the Citadel. I loved the danger of entering Ocrus Sheu, which reminded me more than a little of Slavers’ Bay in Game of Thrones (where white-haired Daenerys gained the title of “Breaker of Chains”), though I didn’t really see why they went there other than Kyalam wanting to go there and they felt they owed him. Which led to one of the more boring sections of the book, just hunting for days through the books in the library, with Lyria hunting through the shipping manifests for no reason that I saw (except to uncover certain information for us the readers). As usual though, I do love seeing Lyria and Vethe together, and this section had the added benefit of them not denying their feelings for each other. Though Vethe did become rather over-powered, which made problems ultimately easy to just power their way through situations. The book alternated chapters between focusing on Lyria and Vethe, to focusing on Gaul and Anette with the journeys of both of the duos feeling very separate and not really connected. And I loved the sections of Gaul and Anette. Anette is a relatable character who didn’t feel like a highborn lady at all with being raised in near poverty. I loved whenever she got frustrated with Gaul who was still on the idea of denying himself for whatever reason, because she was a lady, because he thought he’d eventually have to kill her brother for being a wild mage, etc. I loved that she was perfectly willing to suffer in silence so long as it meant not talking to him when she was mad at him. But Anette was problematic in that she could wield several elements and seemed powerful in certain scenes, but for the most part (especially in the second half of the book once she returned to Mayhaven), she didn’t wield her magic at all except to light a flame, like when they were near the citadel, but she really didn’t defend herself or Gaul at all. I kept wondering why she didn’t do this or that or she could so easily have flipped the tables on the citadel master. There were some interesting revelations about the demons, though it made the end confrontation with them on the tedious side, though it at least tied things up. The story of Vethe and Lyria and the story of Anette and Gaul were mostly separate until the very end. And because it felt mostly like I was flipping between two separate books, it made the overall book feel twice as long with the pacing feeling like it dragged in quite a few places. Overall, I’m glad to see this series come to a conclusion and not hang out there forever not concluded. I’m glad to see a happy ending for everyone.
4 stars
Category: Adult
Note: I read an Advance Reader Copy (ARC) of the ebook and is my voluntary and unbiased review of it.
Summary: Lyria and Vethe are now traveling with bastard Prince Kyalam to the Kingdom of Ocrus Sheu for answers, which the prince is convinced can be found in the royal library. While Vethe’s sister, Anette, and Lyria’s brother, Gaul, are on their own mission to find them, taking them to the encampment of rebel mages, also under the command of another prince of Mayhaven, where they get word that Mayhaven has been invaded by demons.
Comments: The final book in this series and it does wrap up all the loose ends nicely with a grand showdown between the rebel mages and the Citadel. Though I think I was a bit let down when it mainly just amounted to taking out one single master of the Citadel. I loved the danger of entering Ocrus Sheu, which reminded me more than a little of Slavers’ Bay in Game of Thrones (where white-haired Daenerys gained the title of “Breaker of Chains”), though I didn’t really see why they went there other than Kyalam wanting to go there and they felt they owed him. Which led to one of the more boring sections of the book, just hunting for days through the books in the library, with Lyria hunting through the shipping manifests for no reason that I saw (except to uncover certain information for us the readers). As usual though, I do love seeing Lyria and Vethe together, and this section had the added benefit of them not denying their feelings for each other. Though Vethe did become rather over-powered, which made problems ultimately easy to just power their way through situations. The book alternated chapters between focusing on Lyria and Vethe, to focusing on Gaul and Anette with the journeys of both of the duos feeling very separate and not really connected. And I loved the sections of Gaul and Anette. Anette is a relatable character who didn’t feel like a highborn lady at all with being raised in near poverty. I loved whenever she got frustrated with Gaul who was still on the idea of denying himself for whatever reason, because she was a lady, because he thought he’d eventually have to kill her brother for being a wild mage, etc. I loved that she was perfectly willing to suffer in silence so long as it meant not talking to him when she was mad at him. But Anette was problematic in that she could wield several elements and seemed powerful in certain scenes, but for the most part (especially in the second half of the book once she returned to Mayhaven), she didn’t wield her magic at all except to light a flame, like when they were near the citadel, but she really didn’t defend herself or Gaul at all. I kept wondering why she didn’t do this or that or she could so easily have flipped the tables on the citadel master. There were some interesting revelations about the demons, though it made the end confrontation with them on the tedious side, though it at least tied things up. The story of Vethe and Lyria and the story of Anette and Gaul were mostly separate until the very end. And because it felt mostly like I was flipping between two separate books, it made the overall book feel twice as long with the pacing feeling like it dragged in quite a few places. Overall, I’m glad to see this series come to a conclusion and not hang out there forever not concluded. I’m glad to see a happy ending for everyone.
October 22, 2021
Hard Times in Drowntown (Beyond the Dome - Prequel)
Hard Times in Dronetown (Beyond the Dome – Prequel) by Jackson Dean Chase
3 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: Short Story length
Summary: Vikka and Rylee are both Drones, low-class citizens destined to enter the low-level workforce when they hit 16 to continue earning credits to pay for the oxygen for their masks if they want to continue breathing while living in their domed city. Vikka’s father is disabled and can’t work, so she is afforded a couple more years before she will be forced into a factory job, but Rylee’s birthday is that week and she has decided that she will run away and try to find a way out of the dome.
Comments: Where Amazon says this is 57 pages, it isn’t. My copy ended at the 30% mark (making this story about 17 pages long) with the rest of the book filled with sample chapters of other books by the author (just like Come to the Cemetery did). I adored Drone (Beyond the Dome – Book 1) (loved the futuristic action with a strong low-class heroine who partners with a high-born guy in their struggle against the corrupt corporation that harvests body parts and people), and have been eagerly awaiting a second book in the series (I’m really looking forward to seeing what’s out there outside of the Dome). So, I picked this up to tide me over. It however didn’t really add anything to the story other than to explain why Vikka didn’t try to escape her fate as a factory worker. It also felt a bit preachy on teen runaways. And why she didn’t ever bother to hunt for a way out of the dome on her own. Nothing really happens to Vikka herself in this (she’s pretty much just a by-stander in this), and it doesn’t really have any twists or turns or anything all that unexpected, other than a rather sad fate for Rylee. The main draw of this particular short really is the detail of the futuristic world with the dome, and the breathers, and the paying for oxygen, the selling of body parts, that their life will be terminated at a certain age, and the upper-class vs the lower class. It feels a bit like the world of Blade Runner, Logan’s Run, or In Time.
3 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: Short Story length
Summary: Vikka and Rylee are both Drones, low-class citizens destined to enter the low-level workforce when they hit 16 to continue earning credits to pay for the oxygen for their masks if they want to continue breathing while living in their domed city. Vikka’s father is disabled and can’t work, so she is afforded a couple more years before she will be forced into a factory job, but Rylee’s birthday is that week and she has decided that she will run away and try to find a way out of the dome.
Comments: Where Amazon says this is 57 pages, it isn’t. My copy ended at the 30% mark (making this story about 17 pages long) with the rest of the book filled with sample chapters of other books by the author (just like Come to the Cemetery did). I adored Drone (Beyond the Dome – Book 1) (loved the futuristic action with a strong low-class heroine who partners with a high-born guy in their struggle against the corrupt corporation that harvests body parts and people), and have been eagerly awaiting a second book in the series (I’m really looking forward to seeing what’s out there outside of the Dome). So, I picked this up to tide me over. It however didn’t really add anything to the story other than to explain why Vikka didn’t try to escape her fate as a factory worker. It also felt a bit preachy on teen runaways. And why she didn’t ever bother to hunt for a way out of the dome on her own. Nothing really happens to Vikka herself in this (she’s pretty much just a by-stander in this), and it doesn’t really have any twists or turns or anything all that unexpected, other than a rather sad fate for Rylee. The main draw of this particular short really is the detail of the futuristic world with the dome, and the breathers, and the paying for oxygen, the selling of body parts, that their life will be terminated at a certain age, and the upper-class vs the lower class. It feels a bit like the world of Blade Runner, Logan’s Run, or In Time.
Book Review: Emma (The Lore Chronicles)
Emma (The Lore Chronicles): A Gothic Regency Short Story by Kathryn Le Veque
4 stars
Category: Adult
Note: Short Story length. I read this as included in The Midnight Hour: All Hallows Brides anthology.
Summary: After a carriage accident leaves her orphaned and scarred, Emma Fairweather finds she needs to earn her way through life as a maid. She hears about a placement for a maid at Blackmoor manor and finds herself trudging through the wasteland moors to a run-down manor where she finds the young lord of the manor on his deathbed, having wasted away in depression after his own tragedy.
Comments: Hunting through her other books to see if there was a continuation on this lovely short deliciously dark regency romance, I see the author is mostly interested in writing about medieval knights with muscled chests on the front covers, and sadly this book is actually a departure from her norm. I’m not sure if I’d really call it gothic since it didn’t have anything actually ghostly or chilling in it. I did love the atmospheric setting in both the prologue and the main body of the story. The prologue was fun with a tourist woman named Lee who visits Blackmoor manor in modern time as a tourist attraction to see a famous painting. She gets into a conversation about it with a man who introduces himself as Asher Russe. Then the story jumps back into regency where tragedy befalls the young lord Asher. And then it jumps several years later to follow Emma as she travels the moor to find a maid position at Blackmoor manor where Lord Asher has fallen into severe depression, all the servants have left, and the mansion has been left to rot. It’s up to Emma to breathe life back into him, and find that they aren’t alone in their tragedies. I loved the friendship that blossomed in their conversation and would have loved seeing where their story might go to. The largest problem with this story is that it feels more like just the sample to a larger book. It felt like we had just passed the introductions and were about to really start the story when I hit the list of other books the author had written and the author bio. So, I came here to see if that might have actually been the case since I had just read it in The Midnight Hour: All Hallows Brides anthology. But other reviews say the same thing. I did like the touch that the de Russe family in this story are descendants of the family in her medieval knights books. There is also a mention of the Fang manor which presumably is the family home of the clan from her Scottish werewolf warrior series. Another thing that bugged me that I was hoping would eventually get touched upon was how did the modern set prologue fit with the regency set body of the story? I was expecting for the tourist woman to be a reincarnation and for the Ash who met her to be the same one from the Regency part though cursed to live until he could set things right with her. But apparently my imagination is a bit too fanciful for this non-fantasy story since they never came back into it.
4 stars
Category: Adult
Note: Short Story length. I read this as included in The Midnight Hour: All Hallows Brides anthology.
Summary: After a carriage accident leaves her orphaned and scarred, Emma Fairweather finds she needs to earn her way through life as a maid. She hears about a placement for a maid at Blackmoor manor and finds herself trudging through the wasteland moors to a run-down manor where she finds the young lord of the manor on his deathbed, having wasted away in depression after his own tragedy.
Comments: Hunting through her other books to see if there was a continuation on this lovely short deliciously dark regency romance, I see the author is mostly interested in writing about medieval knights with muscled chests on the front covers, and sadly this book is actually a departure from her norm. I’m not sure if I’d really call it gothic since it didn’t have anything actually ghostly or chilling in it. I did love the atmospheric setting in both the prologue and the main body of the story. The prologue was fun with a tourist woman named Lee who visits Blackmoor manor in modern time as a tourist attraction to see a famous painting. She gets into a conversation about it with a man who introduces himself as Asher Russe. Then the story jumps back into regency where tragedy befalls the young lord Asher. And then it jumps several years later to follow Emma as she travels the moor to find a maid position at Blackmoor manor where Lord Asher has fallen into severe depression, all the servants have left, and the mansion has been left to rot. It’s up to Emma to breathe life back into him, and find that they aren’t alone in their tragedies. I loved the friendship that blossomed in their conversation and would have loved seeing where their story might go to. The largest problem with this story is that it feels more like just the sample to a larger book. It felt like we had just passed the introductions and were about to really start the story when I hit the list of other books the author had written and the author bio. So, I came here to see if that might have actually been the case since I had just read it in The Midnight Hour: All Hallows Brides anthology. But other reviews say the same thing. I did like the touch that the de Russe family in this story are descendants of the family in her medieval knights books. There is also a mention of the Fang manor which presumably is the family home of the clan from her Scottish werewolf warrior series. Another thing that bugged me that I was hoping would eventually get touched upon was how did the modern set prologue fit with the regency set body of the story? I was expecting for the tourist woman to be a reincarnation and for the Ash who met her to be the same one from the Regency part though cursed to live until he could set things right with her. But apparently my imagination is a bit too fanciful for this non-fantasy story since they never came back into it.
October 20, 2021
Book Review: How to Live Happily Ever After (Happy Ever Regency - Book 7)
How to Live Happily Ever After (Happy Ever Regency - Book 7) by Bree Wolf
4 stars
Category: Adult
Note: This ought to be read before the other books in this series.
Summary: Lord Grant Wentford falls in love with Agnes Bottombrook at first sight across a crowded ballroom and knows he has to have her and proposes instantly. But Agnes knows she’s spinster, older than Grant, and definitely not in the same class as him, so she repeatedly rejects his proposals. But he refuses to take no for an answer when he knows she feels for him to, and continues to call upon her and keeps proposing.
Comments: This is a cute romance between one very ardent would-be-lover and one very stubborn, anti-social wallflower. I was drawn in by the idea of a spinster wallflower finding love since most of the books on the market are about the debutantes. It was heartwarming to see Grant have to convince Agnes at every step along the way to marry him and to keep up his determination when she was so impossible. I did get irritated with Agnes for constantly putting herself down, convinced he really ought to want a young debutante, and I really got annoyed with how little faith she had in him. She so much as saw him utter another word to a pretty woman and immediately she jumped to him being interested in the other woman and not her. She really was rather over-the-top melodramatic. On the other hand, I agreed with Agnes too in that they really needed more than just a day or two before accepting a marriage proposal. It felt rushed and pushy and there is such a thing as courting (or dating as we call it now) which would have answered the question of if his insta-lust really would last longer than a handful of days and they could have actually gotten to know each other beyond just superficially attracted to outer appearance. The story itself felt long and like not much happened outside of his constantly visiting her and asking her to marry him, though I did love that scene in the kitchen. The story did have some problems with it, period detail-wise. Specifically, their first meeting at a ball. I know it sounds like a natural thing to meet at a ball in a Regency set book. Grant was there to socialize with his cousin and friends. But the question is why was Agnes there? She obviously wasn’t there to find a husband, she wasn’t there as a chaperone, she doesn’t seem to have any friends (except for a married cousin), she didn’t seem to be a friend of the party host, and she wasn’t ton. And going to balls is expensive, it means new dresses for each party usually, which is why families are usually limited on how many Seasons they can afford for a daughter. It was like there were details missing that should have been fleshed out, like what did she do in her spare time? Because it didn’t seem like she did anything besides go to balls. And servants seemed largely absent from the story. There was mention of a butler in one scene and a cook in another, but why didn’t Agnes have a chaperone at the balls, or at the very least a ladies’ maid, and why didn’t Grant have a footman accompanying him?
4 stars
Category: Adult
Note: This ought to be read before the other books in this series.
Summary: Lord Grant Wentford falls in love with Agnes Bottombrook at first sight across a crowded ballroom and knows he has to have her and proposes instantly. But Agnes knows she’s spinster, older than Grant, and definitely not in the same class as him, so she repeatedly rejects his proposals. But he refuses to take no for an answer when he knows she feels for him to, and continues to call upon her and keeps proposing.
Comments: This is a cute romance between one very ardent would-be-lover and one very stubborn, anti-social wallflower. I was drawn in by the idea of a spinster wallflower finding love since most of the books on the market are about the debutantes. It was heartwarming to see Grant have to convince Agnes at every step along the way to marry him and to keep up his determination when she was so impossible. I did get irritated with Agnes for constantly putting herself down, convinced he really ought to want a young debutante, and I really got annoyed with how little faith she had in him. She so much as saw him utter another word to a pretty woman and immediately she jumped to him being interested in the other woman and not her. She really was rather over-the-top melodramatic. On the other hand, I agreed with Agnes too in that they really needed more than just a day or two before accepting a marriage proposal. It felt rushed and pushy and there is such a thing as courting (or dating as we call it now) which would have answered the question of if his insta-lust really would last longer than a handful of days and they could have actually gotten to know each other beyond just superficially attracted to outer appearance. The story itself felt long and like not much happened outside of his constantly visiting her and asking her to marry him, though I did love that scene in the kitchen. The story did have some problems with it, period detail-wise. Specifically, their first meeting at a ball. I know it sounds like a natural thing to meet at a ball in a Regency set book. Grant was there to socialize with his cousin and friends. But the question is why was Agnes there? She obviously wasn’t there to find a husband, she wasn’t there as a chaperone, she doesn’t seem to have any friends (except for a married cousin), she didn’t seem to be a friend of the party host, and she wasn’t ton. And going to balls is expensive, it means new dresses for each party usually, which is why families are usually limited on how many Seasons they can afford for a daughter. It was like there were details missing that should have been fleshed out, like what did she do in her spare time? Because it didn’t seem like she did anything besides go to balls. And servants seemed largely absent from the story. There was mention of a butler in one scene and a cook in another, but why didn’t Agnes have a chaperone at the balls, or at the very least a ladies’ maid, and why didn’t Grant have a footman accompanying him?
October 19, 2021
Book Review: With Hair of Teeth and Claw
With Hair of Teeth and Claw by Charity Tahmaseb
5 stars
Category: Adult
Note: Novella-length. I obtained this via the author’s newsletter.
Summary & Comments: This is a re-telling of Rapunzel. But in this story, the witch is good and caring, and Rapunzel worries that she’s the actual monster. Such a fascinating spin on the classic. Like in the original classic, the witch catches her neighbor in her garden, stealing plants for his wife to eat during her pregnancy. She notices that he’s about to steal a plant called the Lion’s Tail from her garden and warns him against it, but considering this isn’t his first foray into her yard, this isn’t the first time he has tried to take Lion’s Tail. After the baby is born, the neighbor’s wife demands that the witch take the child from her when the child’s hair came to life, growing long, with the ends forming teeth and claws. So, the witch raises the baby on her own, and when the child grows up incredibly beautiful and men start to make advances on the girl, still practically a child, the witch moves them to a remote tower in the middle of nowhere, and seals up all of the entrances, even though Rapunzel’s hair can defend her from unwanted advances. This is a very dark retelling, turning Rapunzel into something to be feared, with more than a little bloodshed. There is no romance in this and nearly a rape. But I did love the mother-daughter relationship between the witch and Rapunzel and the witch’s protectiveness who was not only protecting her daughter, but the rest of the world from her daughter. I really did love the role-reversal for the witch.
5 stars
Category: Adult
Note: Novella-length. I obtained this via the author’s newsletter.
Summary & Comments: This is a re-telling of Rapunzel. But in this story, the witch is good and caring, and Rapunzel worries that she’s the actual monster. Such a fascinating spin on the classic. Like in the original classic, the witch catches her neighbor in her garden, stealing plants for his wife to eat during her pregnancy. She notices that he’s about to steal a plant called the Lion’s Tail from her garden and warns him against it, but considering this isn’t his first foray into her yard, this isn’t the first time he has tried to take Lion’s Tail. After the baby is born, the neighbor’s wife demands that the witch take the child from her when the child’s hair came to life, growing long, with the ends forming teeth and claws. So, the witch raises the baby on her own, and when the child grows up incredibly beautiful and men start to make advances on the girl, still practically a child, the witch moves them to a remote tower in the middle of nowhere, and seals up all of the entrances, even though Rapunzel’s hair can defend her from unwanted advances. This is a very dark retelling, turning Rapunzel into something to be feared, with more than a little bloodshed. There is no romance in this and nearly a rape. But I did love the mother-daughter relationship between the witch and Rapunzel and the witch’s protectiveness who was not only protecting her daughter, but the rest of the world from her daughter. I really did love the role-reversal for the witch.
Book Review: The Scourge (The Brilliant Darkness - Book 1)
The Scourge (The Brilliant Darkness – Book 1) by A.G. Henley
5 stars
Category: Young Adult
Note: Only $0.99 cents on Amazon. I obtained a free copy via Prolific Works.
Summary: After her mentor retires to become one of their tribe’s high council, blind Fennel takes over as water bearer. When the zombie-like Scourge invade the forest, her tribe retreats to the safety of the caves, leaving her to retrieve the water for the tribe since the Scourge don’t attack the blind. She also has her Keeper, Peree, for company and protection. Peree is the best archer of the Loftie tribe that lives solely in the trees, compared to Fennel’s Groundling tribe that stays entirely on the ground. The two tribes have a feud growing between them with each resenting the other, and it grows worse with the Groundlings trapped in the caves and resentful of the Lofties’ freedom. Fennel decides to go in search of a rumored water source deep within the caves, but rather than let her venture into the darkness alone, her Keeper, Peree joins her.
Comments: Yes, I love the Romeo and Juliet story going on between Fennel and Peree and bridging the gap between the two tribes. I love Fennel’s determination and Peree’s humor, caring, and friendliness. And I loved the teenage drama between them, their forming friendship to help her cope with her job with him having to still keep a distance, uncertain of their feelings, knowing they were from opposite sides, trying to feel each other out if they were interested in others in their own tribes, while having to rely on one another. Yes, there were things I didn’t get through the story. Like I didn’t understand why it was such a hardship for Fennel to retrieve the water. I mean, the Scourge never touched her, so all she really had to endure was their smell and listening to them. I guess I never really understood the scope of how big the water bag was. It sounded like it was something that could be lifted, since the Lofties could haul it up into the trees. For that matter, why couldn’t the Lofties get their own water? It sounded like the trees extended for relatively close to the water edge, and the Scourge didn’t go into the water itself. As someone else pointed out it also didn’t make much sense for the water bearer to have only one keeper to shoot at the army of zombies. Another thing I didn’t really get was the male Groundlings’ names. There was a point where Fennel asks Peree what a tiger is because their world doesn’t have any large animals in it any more because of the Scourge. So how would they have names like Bear or Moray? A moray eel certainly wouldn’t be found or known about in the forest. The two separate tribes reminded me of the tribes of The 100 TV show set post-apocalypse in a dense forest. I love the post-apocalyptic genre, though it sounded like the modern world was only 2 or 3 generations removed, which made me wonder why they were in a forest living in huts with no modern buildings around (except for a library in one scene). As one of the other reviews pointed out, there is an agenda to this book of being anti-prejudice and anti-racist and practically a commentary on taking care of nature and our resources. The twists were all fascinating and though it ends on a to-be-continued note, it felt like a good stopping place for this book.
5 stars
Category: Young Adult
Note: Only $0.99 cents on Amazon. I obtained a free copy via Prolific Works.
Summary: After her mentor retires to become one of their tribe’s high council, blind Fennel takes over as water bearer. When the zombie-like Scourge invade the forest, her tribe retreats to the safety of the caves, leaving her to retrieve the water for the tribe since the Scourge don’t attack the blind. She also has her Keeper, Peree, for company and protection. Peree is the best archer of the Loftie tribe that lives solely in the trees, compared to Fennel’s Groundling tribe that stays entirely on the ground. The two tribes have a feud growing between them with each resenting the other, and it grows worse with the Groundlings trapped in the caves and resentful of the Lofties’ freedom. Fennel decides to go in search of a rumored water source deep within the caves, but rather than let her venture into the darkness alone, her Keeper, Peree joins her.
Comments: Yes, I love the Romeo and Juliet story going on between Fennel and Peree and bridging the gap between the two tribes. I love Fennel’s determination and Peree’s humor, caring, and friendliness. And I loved the teenage drama between them, their forming friendship to help her cope with her job with him having to still keep a distance, uncertain of their feelings, knowing they were from opposite sides, trying to feel each other out if they were interested in others in their own tribes, while having to rely on one another. Yes, there were things I didn’t get through the story. Like I didn’t understand why it was such a hardship for Fennel to retrieve the water. I mean, the Scourge never touched her, so all she really had to endure was their smell and listening to them. I guess I never really understood the scope of how big the water bag was. It sounded like it was something that could be lifted, since the Lofties could haul it up into the trees. For that matter, why couldn’t the Lofties get their own water? It sounded like the trees extended for relatively close to the water edge, and the Scourge didn’t go into the water itself. As someone else pointed out it also didn’t make much sense for the water bearer to have only one keeper to shoot at the army of zombies. Another thing I didn’t really get was the male Groundlings’ names. There was a point where Fennel asks Peree what a tiger is because their world doesn’t have any large animals in it any more because of the Scourge. So how would they have names like Bear or Moray? A moray eel certainly wouldn’t be found or known about in the forest. The two separate tribes reminded me of the tribes of The 100 TV show set post-apocalypse in a dense forest. I love the post-apocalyptic genre, though it sounded like the modern world was only 2 or 3 generations removed, which made me wonder why they were in a forest living in huts with no modern buildings around (except for a library in one scene). As one of the other reviews pointed out, there is an agenda to this book of being anti-prejudice and anti-racist and practically a commentary on taking care of nature and our resources. The twists were all fascinating and though it ends on a to-be-continued note, it felt like a good stopping place for this book.
October 18, 2021
Book Review: Tangled Wires
Tangled Wires by Lillian Lark
5 stars
Category: Adult
Summary: Charlotte, the daughter of a famous inventor who recently passed, has just returned to work at her father’s company after her stint in the hospital and rehab after a suicide attempt after spiraling into depression after her father’s death. Her mother was a famous concert pianist who committed suicide when she was a young teenager, and since her teen years her emotions have been a rollercoaster with spirals into depression. After her mother’s death, her father built an android, Matthew, and though she was intrigued at first and even harbored a crush on him, Charlotte realized Matthew was built to replace her. He was perfect and strong and reliable in every way that she wasn’t and her father set up Matthew to run the company after his death. Upon her return, Matthew reminds her that they have both lost her father and that they have a lot in common, and that he realizes that they’ve grown apart and he’d like to be friends again and hints at even more than friends. But with being an android, she’s convinced that he can’t feel the same way a human can, so he couldn’t be actually in love with her, and he has been raised to be her brother.
Comments: There’s just something sexy about a machine finding that he is more than just the sum of his mechanical cogs and discovering just what humanity is and full range of emotion. While Charlotte’s dwelling on her spiraling depressions were tedious and repetitive, it was fascinating her denying herself just because she figured she’d eventually follow her mother’s fate. It was also interesting her working through her feelings, and trying to reconcile her feelings for Matthew and trying to figure him out, and argue with herself that it just wasn't healthy to be in love with a robot. And I couldn't help but feel for her every time she lashed out. I loved the two of them together, especially when he was trying to cheer her up with his cooking. I also loved the bonding they did over her father’s dismissive attitude. I loved how Matthew realized just how her father treated Charlotte. I loved the two characters in general. Though she’s a powerful business woman and so famous that tabloids follow her around, her character still grew on me with all of her worries, and insecurities. And Matthew seemed to have two distinct sides to him. He was the suave business CEO who could charm the entire office building and refuse to back Charlotte’s projects, while he also deeply cared about Charlotte and worried about her and protected her, and was willing to show off things he wasn’t good at like his cooking, and wanted her to get to know him. The only thing I really had a problem with was the couple of sex scenes in the book. Matthew’s dirty talk just sounded awkward and stilted, each time he said anything, and felt really out of place. Each time they were mainly having sex in anger, with him “punishing” her or taking revenge which she insisted turned her on, but it made me wonder just how healthy a relationship like that could be if they couldn’t just plain be happy or loving when together. It really made me want to see a scene of them in love. For the most part, this really isn’t a technical scifi. Yes, Matthew may have been an android, but aside from a scene or two, he mostly operates as being human, with just Charlotte doubting his humanity because of her past knowledge. Admittedly, I figured the twist at the end from nearly the beginning, so I was waiting for that shoe to drop. But it was still a fun scene when it did happen. In all, I loved this story, their trying to re-find their friendship, and get to know each other, and discover all of Matthew’s humanity, and him trying to protect her and be there for her in case of a relapse.
5 stars
Category: Adult
Summary: Charlotte, the daughter of a famous inventor who recently passed, has just returned to work at her father’s company after her stint in the hospital and rehab after a suicide attempt after spiraling into depression after her father’s death. Her mother was a famous concert pianist who committed suicide when she was a young teenager, and since her teen years her emotions have been a rollercoaster with spirals into depression. After her mother’s death, her father built an android, Matthew, and though she was intrigued at first and even harbored a crush on him, Charlotte realized Matthew was built to replace her. He was perfect and strong and reliable in every way that she wasn’t and her father set up Matthew to run the company after his death. Upon her return, Matthew reminds her that they have both lost her father and that they have a lot in common, and that he realizes that they’ve grown apart and he’d like to be friends again and hints at even more than friends. But with being an android, she’s convinced that he can’t feel the same way a human can, so he couldn’t be actually in love with her, and he has been raised to be her brother.
Comments: There’s just something sexy about a machine finding that he is more than just the sum of his mechanical cogs and discovering just what humanity is and full range of emotion. While Charlotte’s dwelling on her spiraling depressions were tedious and repetitive, it was fascinating her denying herself just because she figured she’d eventually follow her mother’s fate. It was also interesting her working through her feelings, and trying to reconcile her feelings for Matthew and trying to figure him out, and argue with herself that it just wasn't healthy to be in love with a robot. And I couldn't help but feel for her every time she lashed out. I loved the two of them together, especially when he was trying to cheer her up with his cooking. I also loved the bonding they did over her father’s dismissive attitude. I loved how Matthew realized just how her father treated Charlotte. I loved the two characters in general. Though she’s a powerful business woman and so famous that tabloids follow her around, her character still grew on me with all of her worries, and insecurities. And Matthew seemed to have two distinct sides to him. He was the suave business CEO who could charm the entire office building and refuse to back Charlotte’s projects, while he also deeply cared about Charlotte and worried about her and protected her, and was willing to show off things he wasn’t good at like his cooking, and wanted her to get to know him. The only thing I really had a problem with was the couple of sex scenes in the book. Matthew’s dirty talk just sounded awkward and stilted, each time he said anything, and felt really out of place. Each time they were mainly having sex in anger, with him “punishing” her or taking revenge which she insisted turned her on, but it made me wonder just how healthy a relationship like that could be if they couldn’t just plain be happy or loving when together. It really made me want to see a scene of them in love. For the most part, this really isn’t a technical scifi. Yes, Matthew may have been an android, but aside from a scene or two, he mostly operates as being human, with just Charlotte doubting his humanity because of her past knowledge. Admittedly, I figured the twist at the end from nearly the beginning, so I was waiting for that shoe to drop. But it was still a fun scene when it did happen. In all, I loved this story, their trying to re-find their friendship, and get to know each other, and discover all of Matthew’s humanity, and him trying to protect her and be there for her in case of a relapse.
October 16, 2021
Book Review: Persephone Remembers the Pomegranates
Persephone Remembers the Pomegranates by Samantha MacLeod
4 stars
Category: Adult
Note: Novella length.
Summary: Told as a flashback, Persephone reminisces over how she started her relationship with Hades. She describes herself as a young new goddess, rebelling from being under her mother’s thumb, wanting to find her own position in the hierarchy of gods, and just awakening her sexuality. She describes fooling around with nature spirits, touching herself, and the fate of betrothal to stiff and formal Apollo. She welcomes the attentions of the dark god Hades, who she had only heard of in rumor with the promise of the powerful position of ruling over the expansive land of the dead with him as his queen. With the pomegranate seeds and the 6 months decided on by Zeus to appease her mother.
Comments: Where it is a sexualized and feminist spin with Persephone trying to claim her own adulthood and break free of her mother, and definitely different from the original mythology that spins the story as an abduction and captivity. However, plenty of other modern retellings of this myth have had this spin to it and there really wasn’t any new ground or new ideas covered in comparison to other modern retellings. I will say the masturbation scene in the beginning was a bit eye opening and gratuitous (especially since it was out in the open, which seemed really odd) since it was really just there to show that she wasn’t the innocent child that her mother thought she was, and that she was looking for sexual attention. I personally would have liked to have seen Hades expanded upon. There’s an off-handed mention that he had dressed his best and took pains on his appearance for when he first came upon her, hinting that he hadn’t come upon her masturbating by accident, that he had been watching and stalking her for a bit before and even prepared a room for her before actually even talking to her (which on reflection disturbed me a bit and was a change from the usual lust at first sight and spur of the moment kidnapping). I did like how the author tries to show Hades as being caring and worried about Persephone, and awkward, and uncertain of himself. Personally, I would have liked it even further expanded, while we know the marriage of Persephone and Hades, what happened between her and her mother afterward? Did her mother ever accept Hades being Persephone’s husband? Did her mother ever accept her as being an adult? Nowadays, though, this has become a popular tale to re-tell since indie books love the idea of a dark, broody, mis-understood bad boy and coming-of-age stories.
4 stars
Category: Adult
Note: Novella length.
Summary: Told as a flashback, Persephone reminisces over how she started her relationship with Hades. She describes herself as a young new goddess, rebelling from being under her mother’s thumb, wanting to find her own position in the hierarchy of gods, and just awakening her sexuality. She describes fooling around with nature spirits, touching herself, and the fate of betrothal to stiff and formal Apollo. She welcomes the attentions of the dark god Hades, who she had only heard of in rumor with the promise of the powerful position of ruling over the expansive land of the dead with him as his queen. With the pomegranate seeds and the 6 months decided on by Zeus to appease her mother.
Comments: Where it is a sexualized and feminist spin with Persephone trying to claim her own adulthood and break free of her mother, and definitely different from the original mythology that spins the story as an abduction and captivity. However, plenty of other modern retellings of this myth have had this spin to it and there really wasn’t any new ground or new ideas covered in comparison to other modern retellings. I will say the masturbation scene in the beginning was a bit eye opening and gratuitous (especially since it was out in the open, which seemed really odd) since it was really just there to show that she wasn’t the innocent child that her mother thought she was, and that she was looking for sexual attention. I personally would have liked to have seen Hades expanded upon. There’s an off-handed mention that he had dressed his best and took pains on his appearance for when he first came upon her, hinting that he hadn’t come upon her masturbating by accident, that he had been watching and stalking her for a bit before and even prepared a room for her before actually even talking to her (which on reflection disturbed me a bit and was a change from the usual lust at first sight and spur of the moment kidnapping). I did like how the author tries to show Hades as being caring and worried about Persephone, and awkward, and uncertain of himself. Personally, I would have liked it even further expanded, while we know the marriage of Persephone and Hades, what happened between her and her mother afterward? Did her mother ever accept Hades being Persephone’s husband? Did her mother ever accept her as being an adult? Nowadays, though, this has become a popular tale to re-tell since indie books love the idea of a dark, broody, mis-understood bad boy and coming-of-age stories.
October 14, 2021
Book Review: The Quantum Mechanic
The Quantum Mechanic by Sarina Dorie
4 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: Short story. I received a free copy via the author’s newsletter.
Summary: Marian works as an assistant to a scientist working on a cold fusion reactor. During a mishap where her sister who is married to the scientist, spills lunch on the reactor and inadvertently sets it in motion while Marian is inside, Marian suddenly finds herself in a steampunk world, wearing petticoats, a corset, and goggles, and her sister doesn’t seem to be in that timestream. She comes face to face with a vaguely familiar quantum mechanic who kisses her and tells her that he’s from her future.
Comments: I liked this cute twisty romance for the most part. I love seeing an introvert girl get the guy, I love seeing girls work mechanic jobs, and I can’t help but love the steampunk additions. I also loved seeing the introvert girl try to save the day. But there were things I disagreed with as well. I think the storyline just got hopelessly confused when it slipped dimensions and then threw in time travel since he was telling her he was from the future, but her future from the modern world or the future from the steampunk world, which sounded like two separate worlds that had gotten switched. The way Marian appeared in her steampunk petticoats while working on a steam-powered reactor seemed improbable. Yes, I know petticoats and corsets are stylish in steampunk worlds, but it seemed cartoonish and unwieldy for her to be crawling around in the machinery (which she was) in a fluffy dress (like the steampunk world was stereotyped as well). The people were all clichedly stereotyped: the brainy brunette, the buxom blonde who seduced all the guys just by entering a room, the scientist and the reactor. Not one of them felt fleshed out. It’s a stand-alone short.
4 stars
Category: New Adult
Note: Short story. I received a free copy via the author’s newsletter.
Summary: Marian works as an assistant to a scientist working on a cold fusion reactor. During a mishap where her sister who is married to the scientist, spills lunch on the reactor and inadvertently sets it in motion while Marian is inside, Marian suddenly finds herself in a steampunk world, wearing petticoats, a corset, and goggles, and her sister doesn’t seem to be in that timestream. She comes face to face with a vaguely familiar quantum mechanic who kisses her and tells her that he’s from her future.
Comments: I liked this cute twisty romance for the most part. I love seeing an introvert girl get the guy, I love seeing girls work mechanic jobs, and I can’t help but love the steampunk additions. I also loved seeing the introvert girl try to save the day. But there were things I disagreed with as well. I think the storyline just got hopelessly confused when it slipped dimensions and then threw in time travel since he was telling her he was from the future, but her future from the modern world or the future from the steampunk world, which sounded like two separate worlds that had gotten switched. The way Marian appeared in her steampunk petticoats while working on a steam-powered reactor seemed improbable. Yes, I know petticoats and corsets are stylish in steampunk worlds, but it seemed cartoonish and unwieldy for her to be crawling around in the machinery (which she was) in a fluffy dress (like the steampunk world was stereotyped as well). The people were all clichedly stereotyped: the brainy brunette, the buxom blonde who seduced all the guys just by entering a room, the scientist and the reactor. Not one of them felt fleshed out. It’s a stand-alone short.
