geekylorraine

After reading the book that felt like it was never going to end, I'm not in the mood to write a long review!

SPOILERS

I'll say that I almost didn't finish it. I felt like Keira was never going to get with the damn immortal stalker.

The start was a lot like Twilight. A girl moves away from home, to somewhere it's cold and rains a lot. She meets an incredibly rich family. She develops an obsession with one of the family. The family are some sort of supernatural beings. The one she's obsessed with stalks her, watches her while she sleeps, saves her from her own occasional stupidity. Now, am I talking about Afterlife, or Twilight?

I'm getting sick of books where the protagonist is seemingly nothing special, but is obviously the most amazing thing ever at the same time. Get a grip.

Oh, and you know how the damsel in distress is always taken by some bad guy, and the immortal stalker has to save her? That happened in this book. And from the “cliffhanger” at the end of the book. It'll happen in the next, and I certainly don't care for it.

Originally posted on A Reading Brit

4.5/5Upgraded to a 5 after coming back to this after a few days. I want to read the next book, quite a bit, so it's worth the upgrade. Overall, I really enjoyed reading this, and am impressed with this as a debut book. For a debut, it's pretty amazing.

I liked how music was used in this. It set the scene quite well when you knew what songs were playing in the background. And there was some great music, and the ones I haven't heard of, I'll be listening to, if they're anything like the others mentioned.

There was a definite romance in this, but it wasn't one of those where they tortured each other forever, and there was no love triangle. Two positive things to me. The over-protective nature of Zadeon was a little eye-roll worthy, but at the end of the day, he's super-powerful and she was an unknown, so I guess it kind-of makes sense.

The main character was well-developed, she had her own backstory, and it tied in neatly with who she was. Her personality matching her experiences well.

My favourite part of this was the world-building. The nephilim vs demon thing, even though the nephilim were relatives of the highest level demons was a fun take. The abilities and quirks of the demons were fun, their demon marks making for some great description. The setting was fun. I enjoyed reading about what hell looked like, and how it didn't follow 90% of the stereotypes.

I'll admit this isn't a book I'd necessarily recommend as a serious read, but as a light, fun read, I enjoyed it. And if I want a few hours of entertainment, I'll look for the next in the series. I'm hoping one is coming at some point. There's a hint of more stories to be told, so I think there'll be more, and I look forward to it.

Originally posted on Squirtoon's Bookish Blog

I'm afraid I abandoned this about 30% in. I just couldn't take anything seriously.

The characters were ok, nothing stand out, but they weren't terrible. The MC was a gambler and cleaned the local police station. I couldn't quite believe the relationship she had with the police because of it. The whole city is falling apart, but the MC calls for help, and not one, but two, PCs show up? I think they've got better things to be doing. She didn't even really explain in the call why she wanted help and they were rushing to her aid. Sure, maybe send one person, if nothing more urgent comes up, but you don't waste two of your officers on a call like that.

What really tripped me up was the plot. It just got too weird. It was like the plot of a parody or nonsense film. What's the strangest thing that can happen next? Oh, fire raining? What's also weird? Trees! Oh, how about the roommate shifting into a bunyip. Sure. It just seemed like one thing after the next, with no real reason for it happening. I get that magic is leaking all over the city or something, but these random events just felt out of place and unnecessary. I'm assuming it was to show the chaos that was being caused, but it didn't work for me.

Sorry, but this just wasn't for me.

I received this ebook for free as part of an ARC from NetGalley.

I Tried is a delightful children's book, with a clear story and moral. The illustrations are terrific, and the little bird trying to fly is representative of a lot of things children go through as they grow up.

Reading it as an adult, I can imagine children would love to read this, and that it would also be appreciated if read out in a classroom. It's easy to follow, and the pictures will keep everyone engrossed.

Originally posted on A Reading Brit

This is a fun book, with a good plot, but with characters that are a tad forgettable. I enjoyed the magical world that was built here, and the description of the house made it sound like somewhere I'd really like to check out. It sounds like a magical place, in more ways than one. The ways it's described reminds me of the doors in Doctor Strange, which is cool.

The one character that stood out to me, and I still can say that I definitely remember after closing the book about an hour ago, is Serra. Her intuition makes for an interesting plot device, I just really hope it's not used as a way to write the author out of a tough spot in the future. Her intuition could get really convenient in some situations, although I guess that's how it's supposed to work.

I'll admit, I've read a crap-ton of books involving vampires, and seen a number of reviews comparing a novel to Buffy, but it's not a TV show I've ever seen. The author herself brings up Buffy, so I do wonder about the comparison, and this might actually make me finally take a look at it.

From a reader's point of view, I enjoyed this superficially. It was another of those light, fun reads, but not one I could say I'd dedicate time thinking about much.

One thing I will mention, Uncle Ian in chapter 1 changed to Uncle Hugh in chapter 3 and stayed like that. There's also a typo in around the third or fourth sentence. I stopped keeping track after that to enjoy the story, but hopefully another round or two of edits before publication?

Would I read it again? No, I don't feel like it's got re-readability value. Perhaps before book 2, I'd skim through it and read through this review to remind myself of it, but not dedicate another few hours to a reread.

Will I be picking up the next in the series? I guess I answered this above, yes, but only if it's free or reasonably cheap. The plot and world redeemed the slightly less-memorable characters.

Would I recommend it? If you're interested in this sort of novel, then go for it.

Is it going on my Favourites shelf? No.

I received this ARC for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Review originally posted at A Reading Brit.

I started this book out of boredom, to be honest with you. I'd been scrolling through Twitter all day, watched a couple episodes of Bones and wanted something else to do. Reading seemed like the obvious thing. This was one of the books I picked up from the library, and I'm hoping to return them on Tuesday, so I had to get a move on with reading them.

This book was different. In a good way. As I said, I was watching Bones earlier. I've watched NCIS, CSI, Criminal Minds, Silent Witness and so many more police procedurals you wouldn't believe.

This almost started as a normal police procedural. You've got someone stumbling across a body and calling the police. Standard, right? From there though, it becomes so much more. There's this whole society built on the zodiac. What zodiac sign you're born in decides the sort of life you'll have.

It's weird, because I was jotting down ideas for a story about 2 weeks ago, and one of the ideas was a Hunger Games style system where instead of being separated by where you're born, you're separated by when, almost like this. It's interesting for me to read this author's perspective on it.

The characters were good, not crazy loveable and amazing, but enough to carry the story and not bore me to death. They've got their own personalities, which are heightened in certain ways based on their sign. They're largely superficial, however. The only character I really felt had more than a basic personality was Daniel.

The world-building is where I think this excels. The societies that have formed because of the signs of the zodiac, the personalities and the friction that are caused by it are great. I've always been a little curious of the zodiac, not because I believe any of it has any truth, but because I love the entertainment value it's got. This book helped me find even more entertainment in it.

The police side of things were a little stereotypical, but then, finding anything new with a police investigation after millions of TV shows, films and books would've been one hell of an achievement.

The bad-guy at the end was a little obvious, but I enjoyed how the information was shared, and the motive and emotion behind it. The reasons for the killing, and how it was done, seems to make a lot of sense. As much sense as murder can make, of course!

I'll admit, as a Sagittarius, I was disappointed they weren't more involved just for my own satisfaction. Haha!

Will I be picking up the next in the series? This is a stand-alone. Look at me, finally reading a stand-alone after reading the first book in so many series and never continuing them!

Would I recommend it? It's different. Part sci-fi, part thriller. I enjoyed it.

Is it going on my Favourites shelf? There was nothing about it that stood out enough for it to be a favourite.

Review originally posted on A Reading Brit

ARC provided to me via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

The Plot

This was full of twists, turns and devious machinations, and I thoroughly enjoyed it throughout. I love a book that has twists and conclusions that I don't predict, and this has that in spades. It had a good pace. There was little lull, and when there was, I didn't feel like it was too much. It was a balance that worked for me. The beginning dropped us straight in the middle of the action, showing exactly what sort of character Lionel was, and the ending was terrific. I read it so quickly, it felt like I wasn't blinking, just so I could see what was coming next.

The Characters

The characters in this were well-rounded and had strong personalities that helped them to really come to life. Some based in myth and legend, and some, just normal people caught up in occult madness.

Lionel Page

Lionel is our main character in Ghosts of Gotham. He's a journalist who isn't afraid to speak out about any injustice he sees, and he's also very good at his job. Perhaps too good, as he catches the eye of someone he might've been better off running away from. Lionel is a main character who is more than capable of carrying this story. The whole plot is intricately woven around Lionel's life, from things that happened when he was 5, right up to modern day. I put this book down feeling like I knew him, what he was about, and how he'd react to a situation, purely from the few thousand words I'd read. Schaefer knows how to create characters.

Maddie

Maddie, my favourite character in this book. Probably because she's a strong, badass witch. I feel like anything else I might say about her would be too spoilery, because the things that made her stand out for me are things that are massive spoilers. Just know that Maddie is awesome, and I was cheering her on the whole way. She's not afraid to do what needs to be done, and I love that in a character.

Regina

Now, Regina is one hell of a character. She's a tricky one, with lots of power, money and a master ability to manipulate. At first, I thought she was a little eye-roll worthy. A mysterious rich benefactor sort, that was more there to push the characters in the right direction, than really supply anything meaningful herself, but I was so wrong and ridiculously happy to be wrong. Come the end, I wanted to give Regina a high-five.

The World

The magic and its rules and restrictions were great. The negatives of everything Lionel tried to do, the risks that Maddie took doing things incredibly advanced. The balance between myth and real world is what sold this for me. Mixing Greek goddesses, magical powers and undying creatures with modern-day New York in a way that seemed effortless and just worked. That's not something just anyone can do, and given this is the second book I've read of Craig Schaefer's and thoroughly enjoyed, I'd say I'm definitely a fan!

Would I read it again? It's going to be a long time before there's a sequel, I imagine, so yes, I'll probably read this if there's another one in a few years.

Will I be picking up the next in the series? Yes! Although this one's not even out quite yet, and I'm not sure this is a series, but if it is, yes!

Would I recommend it?

Badass witches ✓

Greek Goddesses ✓

Fight scenes ✓

Steamy scenes ✓

What more do you want?

Is it going on my favourites shelf? Yes!

Originally posted at A Reading Brit

Shana reached out to me a few weeks ago to offer an eARC in exchange for an honest review. She's the first author I've had reach out, and after reading the synopsis, I was totally in! Vampire novels are one of my guilty pleasures.

Immortal Awakening is a debut novel following Ali, an unregistered human in a world where humans actively hunt and kill vampires. Not only is it a debut, the author is younger than I am. I'm always impressed with that. I've been writing since the age of 6 and still never managed to finish anything!

This book is another of those where the author seemed to take some time to bed in to the story. The first few chapters were super wordy, and I wondered if it was a mistake saying I'd review this. The vampire action started quickly though, and once I got to that, everything seemed to settle down, and I began to enjoy it.

The Characters

Ali – Ali is our main character. She's living alone in a rundown house as an unregistered human, struggling to get enough food to survive. Ali is a good main character. She's strong and her sarcasm levels are great. She's not afraid to stand up for herself, and that's always a good thing in novels, in my opinion.

Zeke and Zuriel – These two characters are encountered at the same time. I lump them together because to begin with, I had quite the problem telling them apart. The names Zeke and Zuriel were a little too similar for my poor brain to differentiate. It wasn't until later when I figured out who was who. There's nothing overly amazing about either character. Zeke is the more interesting of the 2, but there's little back-story to either of them, and I struggled to bring myself to care for him.

Xavier – Yeah, this guy I did care for a little. He seemed to be the only sane one amidst a bunch of crazies. You find out more about his past and his history that endears you a little more to him.

Those are the characters we hear from the most, but you've also got character names such as Kalabhiti, Cassius and Nardia. The names did annoy me a little. I guess they're supposed to be part of the world-building, but it seemed like the author was picking names that sounded fun and exotic, rather than anything that really seemed to fit in.

The World

The world-building is where this stepped up for me. We find out about how the world ended up in the state it was in, and I liked the depth this went into. I really felt like I knew the world, and the wider state of things, even though most of the book was set within the same couple of miles. The vampires here weren't just mindless blood-suckers, but they weren't necessarily kind either. The vampires have powers, each person has one stand-out power, and this was for me to read about. The way that worked, and the things that can be done with these powers were interested and impressive. I feel like some things weren't necessarily explained as well as they could've been, and some things seemed a little rushed, but overall, I enjoyed the world this was in and the way everything worked.

For a self-published novel, this was pretty well-edited. There was the odd typo, but overall, I was impressed with how this was put together!

Would I read it again? I don't think I'd need to re-read it again. I remember everything quite well, so wouldn't need to read it if there was another book.

Will I be picking up the next in the series? I'm not sure there is going to be one? If there was, sure!

Would I recommend it? If you like vampires and want to support a debut author, give it a go. It was a different take on the normal vampires, so that's always good.

Is it going on my favourites shelf? Afraid not. It was good, but not worthy of favourites shelf greatness.

Originally posted on Squirtoon's Bookish Blog

How to Save an Undead Life is the first book in the Beginner's Guide to Necromancy series. It drops us in to a world where magic, as well as vampires and necromancers, definitely exist. It was a good read, and one I didn't regret picking up at all. Especially since it was on Kindle Unlimited.

The first thing I'm going to mention is the characters. Grier, Boaz and Amelie were well-written to portray their personalities, as well as hints of their past.

Grier held her own as a main character. She had a good balance of damsel in distress and go away, I can help myself, which I was thankful for. A character that's just a damsel in distress all the time is annoying, but so is a character that's so badass she never needs help.

Boaz took a little time to grow on me as a character. At first, he struck me as possessive and somewhat over the top in his pursuit of Grier, but he grew on me. Especially when you meet a truly possessive character a little later on. His relationship with Grier is fleshed out more as the book continues, and it really redeemed him as a character for me.

The best part for me was the world being built here. We get a lot of information, about High Society, Low Society, Necromancers, Vampires and all sorts in between. The information was interesting, and there wasn't too much of it that I was overloaded. I've retained most of the information too, which is something I don't normally do with the books that dump too much on you at once. Thankfully, this wasn't that.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. The ending let me down a little. It left it flat, and didn't necessarily encourage me to read on. In fact, the ending kind-of just appeared out of no where. One minute, she's helping fix a broken nose, the next minute, The End. It kind-of sprung up on me out of nowhere. I'm still planning to though, because I enjoyed the characters, and the world the author has presented.

Review originally posted at Squirtoon's Bookish Blog

I read this as an Advanced Review Copy from NetGalley. The premise suggests an interesting story, with the characters being the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse. The book follows Valentine as he learns what he is.

Unfortunately, I struggled to get into this. The first few pages were sending me to sleep, as I don't actively seek out romance, so it wasn't for me. I persevered through the start, knowing it couldn't be the soppy romantic stuff for long. I was right, the romantic stuff passed, but the writing still wasn't working for me. This bit from only a few pages in expresses some of my issues:

“Valentine looked around and noticed the wind was no longer blowing and the trees were no longer dancing.” Why did we have to know that Valentine looked and then noticed? Why couldn't the sentence just be, “the breeze no longer rustled through the trees.” Or something along those lines. I'm sure something better could be thought of if someone put more than 30 seconds thought into it. Also, super repetitive, and not in a way that works and emphasises the point.

The flow was off for me because every sentence was too wordy. I feel like this book needed to go through a few beta readers and a solid editor before publication.

Continuing on the wordy theme, dialogue was the next issue I found. See this:

“What was that?” Sabrina exclaimed.
Lots of words here.
“Call the police when you get close enough to town.” He whispered. More words here. “Go. Go now!” He suddenly exclaimed.

That's all from a single page. I left in the fact the H in he was capitalised when it shouldn't have been. and there's a period instead of a comma... All the dialogue I've read had a dialogue tag. And the dialogue tag was frequently paired with an adverb. Lord, help me.

I think this book didn't see an editor, and I'm afraid it shows. There's grammar issues, there's lots of words, and there's plenty adverbs. I just suffered through the first couple of chapters.
The characters didn't help either. Besides the main character, everyone else is forgettable. These are supposed to be relatives of the horsemen of the apocalypse, wouldn't you expect some strong personalities to go along with their crazy powers? I'd have thought so, but I didn't see a hint at that anywhere.

I stuck with it long enough to realise the plot could have some potential. It seems like a great idea for a novel, and with a rewrite and a real publisher, could be popular.

I couldn't get this finished though, I couldn't drag myself through it any longer.

So, it's a 1 star from me, and I hate giving out low ratings on ARCs.

I wanted a guilty pleasure vampire read with a hint of romance to settle into and just enjoy. Instead what I got was a novel littered with info-dumps, possessive characters and creepiness, and not the good sort of creepy. I don't know how to write about the issues without spoilers so this review will have them!

Continue reading the review at A Reading Brit

It started really well. There was excitement, the sci-fi elements were introduced well and intrigued me. It tapered off after around 40% though and I struggled to keep going. I eventually gave up 50% in.

Lots of political commentary. I enjoy politics, but this went above and beyond, for me. You can tell it was written around Brexit and the issues the EU is facing and I just have no interest in reading about it more than I already have to suffer through it on the news daily. I took a peak at the author's twitter, and the political commentary in the book suddenly made a lot more sense, which was a shame, as this definitely had potential.

Amanda, as a main character, had very little personality. She was flat and boring, repeatedly saying that she was “half-caste”, the authors words, not mine, as if that made up for everything else.

The sci-fi elements had potential. The social credit score was interesting, and the AIs drew my attention, but I don't think either things were used to full advantage.

Overall, not something I enjoyed, so I'm afraid I won't be sharing this one.

I received this for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Review originally posted at Squirtoon's Bookish Blog

At first, I couldn't get into this at all. The prologue really bogged me down, and I found the first few chapters too wordy, and not interesting enough. This was the first book I'd picked up as part of NetGalley though, so I wanted to stick with it. Abandoning the first book I picked up wouldn't be great, would it? 

If you've noticed the rating, you're probably wondering what the hell I'm thinking. The thing is, this book gets better if you get through the first couple of chapters. It didn't redeem itself back to 5/5 levels for me, but still, it clawed it's way from a 1 to a 3, and then I got to the climatic ending, and we're up at a 4, pushing towards 4.5 if I was feeling generous. Which, after reading the first chapter of the next book that was supplied at the end, I decided I was. 

The Good: 

The plot is probably my favourite thing about this. Angels protecting people are stories as old as time, but this is a whole other level for so many reasons that's difficult to go into without spoilers. Let's just say, there's more to both Alex and Aramael than meets the eye. 

Alex is a strong main character. She's got her issues, for sure. More issues than most. She's got her flaws, and they're handled quite well. I enjoyed following the story from her perspective, and enjoyed reading her interactions with the other characters. 

Even better than Alex, though, is Aramael, the angel of the story. His story of who is, what he is, and how he has to deal with the dramas of Heaven were my favourite parts of this. You only see snippets of the drama going on up in Heaven, but there's enough drama for a whole seperate novel, probably multiple. I'm looking forward to seeing more of it. 

The ending was the best part. If you've read my previous reviews, you'll know I hate it when I can figure out the climax, or the big reveal, before it happens. I like to be surprised. With this, I didn't expect it, and I genuinely want to pick up the next book.

The Bad (but not too bad): 

The writer's style at the start did bog me down a little, as I said above. I'm glad I stuck with it, though. 

There was the odd cliché in this. Very minor, but probably predictable spoiler here, we've got the start of a forbidden romance. The whole, we can't do this, it's forbidden sort of thing was going on. What, thankfully, redeemed it for me, is the characters' response to it. Particularly, the female in the situation. She didn't halt her whole life because she couldn't have the angel. She got on with it. Hallelujah. The whole forbidden romance thing, whilst hinted at, isn't a main theme at all. In fact, it would be quite easy to ignore it if you really want to, which is pretty much what I chose to do. 

I'm curious as to why this book seems to be being republished under a different author's name, I'll admit. It seems the series is complete, or, there's at least 4 books, so why change things now? Just a curiosity I've got regarding this. 

So, in summary, yes, I would buy this book. Especially if you enjoy urban fantasy stories, with a hint of romance. And who doesn't like a good series to sink their teeth into?

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and of course, the author for the opportunity to read this book! 

Review originally posted on Geeky Galaxy

The World
Aurora Burning is book 2 in the Aurora Cycle series, so the world is established by now, and Amie and Jay are well aware of this, and don't spare much time for setting the scene, as we don't overly need it. The setting as a whole is largely familiar from the first book. There are new, smaller scale settings, of course, that are thought out and well put together. Again, I'm still really interested in the world at large, fascinated by the politics of things. Honestly, I just need a politics in space book. This world would totally work for that, but I don't think it's quite Jay and Amie's speed!

The Plot
There's a “Stuff You Should Know” section at the very start of Aurora Burning that summarises characters and events of Aurora Rising – I petition for every book that's a sequel to have this because it was so helpful! Also, it's told from the point of view of Magellan, which is pretty awesome.

There's not a moment where this book lets you catch your breath. Not. A. Moment. I'm undecided at this point whether that's a good thing. It's... certainly something. It's got breakneck pace throughout, from the very moment the book begins, there is shooting and excitement. The “downtime” isn't downtime. It's just five minutes of scheming before everything hits the fan. Again.

The ending! The ending! The ending! This book just tore my heart out without a single moment of hesitation. I'd seen other reviews that had mentioned the ending but didn't think too much of it. Heed those of us that say the ending will torture you, and quite possibly anger you, that Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman dared to end a book like that. I've never known a book to end quite like that. TV shows, perhaps. I've never read a book that did it. And I never want to again, not without having the next book lined up and waiting for me. I don't know how to wait for book 3 as I write this. I'm kind-of just sat like ??? looking around the room for the answers. Hint: the room didn't have the answers.

The Characters
Aurora
Aurora is still our main character, surprise surprise! She's affectionately known as Auri throughout most of the book, seeing as the characters are much more familiar with each other than they were when Aurora Rising began. The found family element is much more pronounced due to the fact they've already been through so much together before Aurora Burning even began. Aurora herself goes through a lot in this book, from trying to come to grasps with her recently discovered powers and dealing with the less world-saving things, like relationships with those around her. Reading about her was sweet, and empowering, as she went from an innocent girl, unable to use her power without fear of hurting others, to having confidence in who she was and what she could do.

Kal
Kal was, and remains to be, my favourite character. And let me tell you, he definitely goes through it in this book. He plays a much bigger role in Aurora Burning than he did in Rising. (I mean, his face is on the cover, after all. And isn't it a pretty face and a pretty cover?) My heart wasn't ready for quite the amount Kal goes through in this, and honestly? I love him even more after everything.

Fin
Fin has risen up the ranks to be my second-favourite character. Honestly, I just have a thing for the snark and the occasional heroics, overcoming anything that's put before him. The jokes definitely help though. Speaking of jokes, the comedic aspect is rife throughout this whole book. It's a key element for more than one character, and they all handle it in different ways. Fin goes for the nicknames and the jokes. And it's fun, and brought a smile to my face each time.

Scarlett
Again, Scarlett provides some more comedic relief in the forms of heavy sarcasm and the sporadic innuendo. In fact, her sarcasm is also as perfect as her Syldrathi. I feel like Scarlett was in Aurora Burning a lot, but her part wasn't as meaningful as I expected. Her made side-comments about exes that may have aided her in some way, translates for the others when they didn't bother to learn the languages they probably should've learned, but none of it felt terribly important. I hope there's more for Scarlett because who and what she is can provide more to the world of the Aurora Cycle.

Tyler
Tyler is the Alpha, the squad leader, who honestly had a bit of a stick up his ass in the first book. He's a lot better in this book, more laid back with a better personality than “I'm the leader, listen to how amazing I am and my ideas are fantastic and never wrong.” Ok, so he still thinks his ideas are amazing, but otherwise, he's mellowed a lot in Aurora Burning, and the book is better off for it.

Zila
Zila was the quiet, probably somewhat strange science officer in Aurora Rising. She's still very much that, but she comes out of her shell more, and we learn more about her past. And it's not a happy one, but it also explains why she is who she is. I'm glad we got to see more of her. I just hope that continues into the next book. That particular story isn't over, I'm sure of it.

I 100% recommend pre-ordering Aurora Burning if you haven't already! A) Have you seen the cover? Kal, the orange colours, I love it. At this point, I'm not sure where I've pre-ordered it from or what edition is actually going to arrive for me. I just know when it does, I'm going to ogle the cover for a while because look at it.

Actual rating 3.5.

Heir of Arcadia was a super fun sci-fi with drama, angst and plenty of romance.

To begin with, I wasn't sure if the characters were going to be cliché and have me rolling my eyes at their predictability, and whilst there was a few occurrences of almost-eyerolls, I enjoyed following their story overall. The two main characters were Julian and Quinn. Julian could've been your average rich-boy who inherited his Father's company, but had a little more depth than that, shown through his love for friends, family and even the way he treated his assistant. Quinn is titled “Special Agent”, but not necessarily in the field-work type way of looking at things. She's skilled with tech, but I felt like her personality wasn't as well built around herself. A lot of what she did was framed around Julian, either thinking about him or what his reaction might've been. I'd liked to have read more about her thoughts and feelings outside of that. Don't get me wrong, the relationship was entertaining and I had fun reading the interactions between the two of the, but I just felt like there wasn't enough space for Quinn to grow as a character outside of Julian's influence. Maybe that'll come with a future book?

And based on the way this book ended with not one but two cliffhangers, there's definitely a book two coming, and I'll admit to being intrigued. The plot kept me reading, though a few things were glaringly obvious and other things were a little bit difficult to believe were happening, even with the standard suspension of belief you need to be able to have fun reading sci-fi.

The connection between this novel and gaming is probably what I enjoyed most. I knew there was a link, I just didn't expect it to be what it was, and it was completely different to anything else I'd read. I don't want to go into too much detail for the sake of not spoiling anything major, but if you're a gamer, you'll recognise lots of elements of the book, especially in later action scenes that I particularly enjoyed.

Overall, this kept me entertained for a few hours, and I enjoyed following the characters' stories, I just wish there were a little but more depth to most of them.

Review originally posted on Geeky Galaxy.

Actual rating, 3.5.

Overall, I really enjoyed the Egyptian Mythology in this. With Anubis, Set and Nefertiti being three I already knew enough about. The author also references dark creatures trying to take down the Medjai, or something along those lines. All I recall is Kriosphyinxes, which were great, but that's not plural creatures. I was expecting something more than there being a kriosphyinx around every corner.

Death means little in Wardens of Eternity. One character fell limply to the floor like a rag doll after what would amount to a mortally wounding attack. It didn't stick. Unless the wound is instantly killing you, the Medjai's magic can fix it. And that's another problem I have with the plot. The magic is poorly explained and used as an “oh crap, think of a way to fix this.” I know, I'll make up another word for another spell that was very obviously placed in earlier, in order to save the day.

I feel like there were opportunities to turn this group of characters and this world into something really good, but the author just missed the mark a little. I'll admit though, my analytical side is arguing with just overall enjoyment. And despite my criticisms, I genuinely enjoyed this book! It scratched the Egyptian mythology book itch in a satisfying way and I enjoyed the fighting and the magic, despite seeing things I thought could be better. In fact, I enjoyed the idea of the story so much, I 100% wish it was better!

A slightly different style of review from me today! I was having trouble separating the different elements like I normally do because my comments kind-of involved everything, and it was all inter-linked! Either way, hope you enjoyed the review!

Unfortunately, this title really wasn't for me. I don't know if my expectations were all wrong, but this just didn't have much going on. I've DNF'd after 100 pages of reading about the average everyday goings on of a few girls. The closest we came to excitement was one of them dropping a light onto someone's head.

There's clearly a hint of something happening soon, but after thinking that for 100 pages, I can't keep waiting forever for it to happen.

A sad DNF from me.

Review originally posted at A Reading Brit.

The Plot
The plot is what makes this book so damn good. It's a slow-burner at the start. You read a lot about them planning whatever they are going to do, and you read about it for a while before you even realise they're really planning to do anything. It's not ‘til a good few chapters in that the plan is even mentioned. And what a plan it is. It's scarily believable. More terrifying than any horror I've ever read. It's so easy to see this happening in real life that it's disturbing. The build-up and planning we see is where this really excels. The author thought of every little thing, right down to getting people to open and close curtains in hospital wards. As the attack began to approach, the tension ramped up, until it hit boiling point. Once we reached that stage, I couldn't put it down, and read it straight through until I'd finished it.

The World
This is set in the modern-day real world. Within the first two chapters, you're dropped into a graphic description of children's charred bodies, still swinging on their swings when the nuclear bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. This was eye-opening. I, of course, knew of Hiroshima, and what happened, but never considered it right down to your average family, on a human level. It was disturbing, as it should be, and I admit, it hooked me. After reading about those children, and imagining what must've been happening throughout the rest of the city, the need for revenge for the antagonist becomes a lot clearer. The novel is split between multiple different locations, but most of the time is spent in New York, where the whole plan for revenge is happening.

The Characters
John Wyse

The main protagonist in this. An NYPD detective, with an alcoholic partner, and a new girlfriend. He's not got the best, most amazing well-built personality out there, but I don't think this book is so much about the characters. It's more about the story and the warning. Despite that, John is interesting to read about as he begins to piece together what is happening in New York. I also enjoyed the fact he didn't really get his happily ever after. So often, these books can end with the main character walking away happy, partner on their arm, with no residual effects from whatever trauma they've been through. John doesn't get away that easy.

Tsan Yohoto
The antagonist. The big bad guy that came up with this whole plot to kill thousands of Americans using their own consumerism and obsession to both health-fads and fast food against them. His motives are clear, and his cold, calculating personality comes across well, and very creepily. He talks about annihilating Americans without the blink of an eye, and he does it well. I don't want to say much more, at the risk of spoilers, but this guy is a great antagonist, and probably the most well-developed and thought-out character in this book.

Would I read it again? If I want to be creeped out by antibiotic resistance, sure. I mean, it's re-readworthy, but I'm not sure the subject matter is something I want to think about too much!

Would I recommend it? Yes, for sure. I think it's a book that a lot of people could read, just as a lesson on finishing their course of antibiotics, and not insisting the doctor give them antibiotics to solve something that doesn't need it.

Is it going on my favourites shelf? Not quite. And it's not out of the fact the book isn't good, the book is amazing. I just prefer books with more focus on people, and characters, and this wasn't that.

ARC gifted to me by the publisher, Black & White Publishing.

Recon started with, well, one hell of a drama and didn't really slow down from there. We're introduced to a cast of characters in the beginning. The one we follow throughout the majority of Recon is Brandt, a woman with a determination to rise up the chain of command and prove herself. For the first 10 chapters or so, I wasn't a fan of Brandt. When I'm not a fan of the point of view character, it can lead to a DNF, but I was enjoying the story and stuck with it and I'm glad I did. Brandt improved dramatically as the story continued and the author seemed to really pull the character together. As a character, I still think there could've been improvements to Brandt, but she's a decent lead for a thrilling story.

The story and plot itself are where Recon truly thrives. From the dramatic blowing up of one of the team at the beginning to an epilogue of monumental proportions, this book has something for every sort of sci-fi fan. Battle armour? Check. Cyborgs? Check. Space battles. Check. Untested tech? Check Redacted? Check. Sorry, had to redact that last one as a major spoiler alert but damn do I want the next book based from it.

Plenty of Drama But...
The question is, do I really? The main issue for me as someone who loves character-driven books is that the characters are flat, particularly the main character, Brandt, being a woman. You wouldn't know it if it wasn't the use of “she” and “her” in sentences. There's little background to any of them and Brandt's the stereotypical strong, sarcastic women authors think readers want. If she had a little more dimension, then maybe. But no, if we could barely judge the fact Brandt's a woman then how much of a strong women is she?

Also, I get this is soft sci-fi, but some of the science exists now and is... wrong. Radio waves, for example, seem to take a lot longer in the book's world than the real world. And let's think about how long we've known about radio waves.

This book does have a story that's bumping it up the rating, but with a lack of detailed characters and some very interesting science, I can't say for sure the series is for me. But, if you're here for very plot-driven military sci-fi with lots of military ranks, politics, battles in huge armoured suits (I'm imagining when Iron Man fights the Hulk) and quite the dramatic cliffhanger, Recon may be for you.

If you're the sort who likes to feel connected to the characters and enjoys reading a little bit of real science interspersed with the fiction, this may not be the book for you. I'll leave it up to you to decide.

The Unadjusteds is an exciting, dystopian YA focused around the rewards and risks of genetic modification. How it can be used for good, for bad and just... nothing. This book has a nanite pill for tanned skin and whitened teeth, and whilst I'd like to say it's not realistic, it's exactly realistic. I can totally see something that basic happening.

The Stereotypical Main Character

This is another book where the main character, Silver, didn't really endear herself. It's the third in a row. I'm beginning to think it's a me problem! First of all, she's got main character syndrome with the name, the best friend who just happened to be planning a rebellion and parents that just happen to be the most intelligent people ever who invented the nanite pills that bring about these genetic changes. But, her parents are out of the picture, of course. Oh, and she's not like anyone else. Classic main character.

Insert YA Dystopia Trope Here

The plot itself was great, although it felt a little rushed to me. Running for their lives, training to be awesome, and super awesome, with very little in between apart from Silver saying she didn't want to be awesome, repeatedly. It's not overly... new, but then it's said that every story is the same as one that came before it. In this instance, you can feel it. The rebel group of a ton of teenagers who managed to bring about a rebellion out of nowhere, the special abilities, the main character with unique unknown abilities, dystopia setting, love triangle. The love triangle is a YA Dystopia staple! I could keep listing

Family and Friendship Above All

The concept and themes are my favourite part of this. The concept of taking a pill to become something else, something more, but the massive risk of your body rejecting it that comes with it and the theme of loss due to this throughout.

This book is all about family. Each time the characters are spurred into action, it's for family. From fighting for family, to betrayal to save family, this book has it all. All in the name of family.

To Summarise

Overall, this book had some unique and fun ideas that I loved reading about and would love to see explored further, but there was just one too many trope for me. I love some of these tropes when done well, but the love triangle was not and rebellions which spring up with little form of planning are just not for me.

Review originally posted on Geeky Galaxy.

I finished The Twisted Tree in 2 hours. 9:30pm to 11:30pm and still got to sleep at a regular hour! The Twisted Tree is short, or at least shorter than the normal book I read, at 180 pages. It's 180 pages of exploring Racehl Burge's weaving of Norse Mythology with a sprinkling of horror, and it's a marvelous read. There were moments where the tension was palpable; the terror felt by the characters leaked off the page and infiltrated the dark room around me. I looked up and imagined a ghostly, dead face staring back at me. One thing is for sure, Rachel knew how to draw the reader in and make them experience the things that may be lurking in the dark.

The Inspiration from Norse Myth

Everything about this book is very Nordic. From the setting, to the character's names and the use of Norse Mythology throughout. Your familiarity with Norse Myth would lead you to either figuring things out reasonably quickly, from the one-eyed main character to the tree, or if you're not familiar at all, Rachel will slowly teach you some basics as you're drawn into the mystery surrounding the tree and the darkness that seems to follow Martha around.

Without spoiling it, I did enjoy this take on some classic Norse myth such as Odin hanging from Yggdrasil and the Norns and how they influence the lives of everyone, but specifically the characters in the story.

This is the first fantasy book I've read inspired by Norse myth. Before now, I've been familiar with it, just out of an interest in general for various mythologies and I've played games that are loosely based around the myths, from Skyrim to Assassin's Creed: Valhalla. The Twisted Tree has made me want to seek out more, and I know the sequel, The Crooked Mask, was out last week and I've also got The Witch's Heart on my radar for release later in the year.

Martha, Stig and Mormor

Martha, Stig and Mormor are the characters most heavily featuring in the book and they all had their own unique character and voices. Stig and Mormor especially stood out as characters; with Stig having a lot of hidden history and Mormor being dead but still being very key to everything. Martha is the one character, unfortunately, that felt just a little flatter than the rest. I feel like there was greater opportunity for growth with Martha; more opportunity to explore her beyond being blind in one eye and the ability that seemed to have been granted from it. I hope there's more to come from her as a character in the next book.

The Crooked Mask

The Crooked Mask is book 2! If you're interested in joining me for a readalong with The Tandem Collective on Instagram, check out my IG page @geekylorraine and keep an eye on my feed and stories as I share my thoughts and feelings reading the next book featuring Martha and her fascinating abilities!

I'd heard great things about this author and this series, so maybe I expected too much.

For me, the book focused too much on the courtesan, or rather, the unusual elements of the world that made it what it was. 25% in and I was sick of reading about how much the main character's virginity was worth vs. others and the bids that had been made for her. “Deflowering” being the name of the ceremony where they lose their virginity.

As part-assassin/spy, part-courtesans, I envisioned the characters would be willing to play both parts. Not that, when requested, they couldn't then leave the courtesan life. This isn't shining a light on sex work. If they're not willing, it's trafficking. And the unwillingness on top of the selling virginity thing pushed me over the edge with this book.

And the “fantasy”, at least in this book, is sorely lacking. Besides the main character being half-elven, not a lot of fantasy happens here. It's more like historical fiction. I'm not sure if more happens in later books, but for now, nothing is really screaming fantasy for me.

It's a shame, because there are positives. The Asian-inspired world-building was a delight to read about, tea shops and mahjong halls being some of the highlights for me that you wouldn't normally see in a western-based fantasy story.

The action scenes were also a delight to read, well-paced and reminiscent of the impressive scenes in Martial Arts films.

And there's, of course, plenty of rep, which is always refreshing. Two of the main characters are LGBTQIA+ and the whole book and characters are inspired by Asian worlds.

Review originally posted on Geeky Galaxy.

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I'll start by saying, if you're looking for a serious read, this is not it. From the very first line, the humour in this is clear, and it doesn't let up throughout. In my opinion, that's marvellous. I read a lot of dark fantasy, a lot of gruesome deaths, gore and destruction. This isn't that. I mean, it is, there's actually plenty of death and destruction, but it's not got that heavy, sincere tone. It's a pretty hilarious read from the start through to the end. It made such a change to read something lighter, something that had me smiling. For that alone, it's worth it. It's also worth mentioning, this book is still definitely adult, or at least, it's not a kid's book. There's swearing, violence, death, chaos and... a gnome that loves erotica?

Game of Gnomes: The Necrognomicon (Once you figure out how to say it, it's actually pretty easy) is a short and quick read too. I devoured it in less than 2 hours, so it's also a book that's easy to pick up, read and enjoy without too much thought about the time spent because you're spending that time smirking and enjoying yourself. So why not?

One aspect that caught my attention, and particularly made me smile, is the “easter eggs” of sort. The fantasy or gnome versions of other popular items from the real world. One of the first being “The Rolling Gnomes” magazine. And shortly after that, there's discussion of a certain bear that would break in and steal the main character's honey.

Oh, and the character I'm referring to? His name is Gassy Bedchambers, and then we're quickly introduced to Borty Beetle-Bowel. Which brings me back to my original point. None of this book is serious. Please don't take it that way. If you do, you won't enjoy it. Take it for the humourous, parody it is, because it's not just in the naming. Nothing about this book takes itself too seriously. Even the style it's written in, with a narrator that is a character within itself; a character that isn't afraid to make a joke and self-deprecate.

Like I say at the start, it's not my usual sort of book. And sometimes the humour felt a little too much. The section on why all the gnomes are named like they are for instance, was more eye-rolling than anything else. There were a few other points that felt a little OTT to me, but I still enjoyed the book as a whole and didn't let the few odd moments interrupt an otherwise fun read.

I fear repeating myself, but it is again, so hilariously ridiculous I don't even know where to begin. The story itself is almost like a chaotic D&D game where the DM is doing their best to keep the party on track, but the party is determined to blow something up or start a fight. It was also like the sort of D&D game where the DM is pretty chill, so they make sure everything works out for the party, no matter what completely insane thing might have to happen to make it work. It's not necessarily a bad thing, if you remember the golden rule for this book: don't take anything too seriously.

And finally, we wend with a prologue, which lines thing up nicely for the reader to wonder what's happening next in this strange and wonderful world.

When diving into the world of self/indie published books on Kindle Unlimited, you never quite know what you're going to get.

In my opinion, I landed on something pretty awesome with this one.

One of my favourite series is the early Anita Blake books, when it was more about the supernatural crimes than... well, if you know you know. This book reminds me of that. You've got a badass female character with a magical sword who's also not afraid to use a gun as well as her own magic. An old, French, vampire who is powerful, rich and takes a little bit of a liking to the aforementioned badass woman and a fun and thrilling story of mages, demons and the warnings of power.

Oh, and two 60-something married mages who are absolutely hysterical every time they appear on the page? I had to mention them because they were one of of the main reasons I was laughing out loud.

I'll admit, though, this book won't be for everyone. I don't think Reagan, the main female character, is capable of saying anything serious. Every word out of her mouth was either sarcasm or a joke. And it works for me. It's like reading my own stream of thoughts. The only difference being she's actually saying it out loud whilst I try and be polite, but anyway... that'll annoy people. Her maturity isn't necessarily up there.

And our male lead is... the somewhat stereotypical, predictable vampire. But to be honest, this somewhat cookie cutter urban fantasy novel is exactly the sort I love. So what if it has similarities to other stories out there? News flash: there's no new ideas. And if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Read this if you're in for a humour-filled, sarcasm-laden urban fantasy with plenty of magic, vampires and demons. Don't read this if you're very protective of the genre's “greats” and believe that only one author can write a story such as this. You won't like it, and you'll go on to say that it's not as good as insert one of dozens of authors.