Month: August 2021

Categories
Dystopian Science Fiction

Twenty Five to Life (ARC review) by R.W.W. Greene

Thank you so much to Angry Robot for having me on the book tour for Twenty Five to Life by R.W.W. Greene!

This book is a futuristic “what-if”- what will happen when sea levels rise and pollution is unbreathable? How will the governments manage the end of the world crisis? The book starts at an end of the world party as colony spaceships are deserting the Earth, and everyone left is going to have to fend for themselves.

Bookish Quick Facts:

  • Title: Twenty Five to Life
  • Series: N/A
  • Author: RWW Greene
  • Publisher & Release: Angry Robot, 8/24/21
  • Length: 279 pgs
  • Rate & Recommend: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 yes for Scifi, dystopian fans!

Here is the book blurb:

Life goes on for the billions left behind after the humanity-saving colony mission to Proxima Centauri leaves Earth orbit … but what’s the point?

Julie Riley is two years too young to get out from under her mother’s thumb, and what does it matter? She’s over-educated, under-employed, and kept mostly numb by her pharma emplant. Her best friend, who she’s mostly been interacting with via virtual reality for the past decade, is part of the colony mission to Proxima Centauri. Plus, the world is coming to an end. So, there’s that.

When Julie’s mother decides it’s time to let go of the family home in a failing suburb and move to the city to be closer to work and her new beau, Julie decides to take matters into her own hands. She runs, illegally, hoping to find and hide with the Volksgeist, a loose-knit culture of tramps, hoboes, senior citizens, artists, and never-do-wells who have elected to ride out the end of the world in their campers and converted vans, constantly on the move over the back roads of America

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It’s hard to pinpoint this book, but I think it’s really about living out your days as best as you can, keeping hope in the worst situations, and finding “the point”.

Most of the population has moved into these tiny cube apartments in towers in the big cities, where the government can offer housing, food, and keep everyone happy aka addicted to pharma emplants and living in Virtual Reality.  While this is life for most of the world, a few citizens live out their lives roaming America’s roads and seeing the sights in caravans.   That certainly sounds better than living as an avatar with no purpose, and no sense of how to interact with anyone anymore!

Julie isn’t quite legal age but she decides to risk running away to join these drifters rather than live out the days till the end of the world in a box.  I really liked Julie and the lady that kind of adopts her on the road, called Ranger. The roads are dangerous and filled with caravans, gangs, and tons of other dangers including disease and weather phenomenon. I like that these people would rather be free than submit to VR, and most have become survivalists.

There are themes of looking out for your neighbor, taking care of the Earth before it is too late, addiction, friendship, sickness and loss, hope and generally making the most of one’s life. It’s almost a plausible future too, who’s to say what would happen if the population has to converge mostly on one continent? Yikes!

The book is funny at times with great banter and plenty of girl power, I gave this one a strong four stars!

Please do check out the other tour hosts as well!

Categories
Author Interviews & Guest Posts Fantasy Science Fiction

Sunday Brunch Author Interview Series – featuring Steven J. Morris!

Happy Sunday everyone and thank you so much for tuning in to the fourth installment of the SBAIS!  I originally was introduced to Steve’s books through a tour company, and have had a lot of fun reading his first two books which bring fantasy and sci-fi elements into the modern world.   I was super excited when he reached out to participate here!

The SBAIS is now booking into October! If you are reading this thinking “wow I would really like to do that too,” please do contact me!

1) Welcome to the SBAIS! Tell everyone a little about yourself and your books!

Hi. My name is Steve, and I’ve been writing fantasy for a couple of years now. 

(“Hi, Steve,” says the writers anonymous group in my head. Ha.)

I’m editing the 3rd of a four book series called The Guardian League, about a group of unlikely heroes saving the world from invasion by magic-wielding aliens. I’ve targeted Dec/Jan for the release of Book 3, but it feels ahead of schedule to me. I’m married and have three daughters spanning the Elementary to High School age, and I do engineering work at Intel to pay the bills.

2)What was your publishing journey like? Do you have any advice for hopeful authors trying to write or publish a book? 

There’s a surprising amount of work that happens after writing to get your baby out the door. That said, when I was a kid, there was nothing like the capabilities available now to self-publish. I have suggestions regarding writing: embrace learning, read how to write through books and podcasts, pay for editing and learn from it (find someone good). Regarding publishing, just keep swimming – if you’re not naturally technical (or even if you are), there’s a lot of steps to learn. Once you’ve gone through it, maybe a couple of times, it isn’t so bad. Sadly, you’re not done there – there’s a lot to learn about advertising. I’m still a beginner there, so I won’t offer advice.

3) The Guardian series is full of fantasy, FBI thrills, and a lot of sci-fi elements all brought into the modern, if not slightly futuristic world.  Do you remember what idea came first? As in, what did you build the series around?

Ironically, I built it around the ending, in book 4, which you haven’t seen yet. So I can’t say too much about it. I started at the end, and sketched the story backwards.  Then I began writing book 1. I did have some components I knew I wanted, magic and science together, travel between worlds, but the actual story was built on top of those components.

4) I loved that there was a bit of a D&D / Warcraft feel to the series, are you a gamer? If you want to nerd out about a game, I’m here for it

For about 10 years, my two brothers and I would meet online once a week and play Everquest. I played an enchanter (go team Galad). The Lost Dungeons of Norrath were some of the most fun adventures I remember in any game ever – one hour cooperative dungeons that you’d finish within seconds of the timer running out… nothing beats that feeling of pulling victory from the jaws of defeat. Yeah, D&D as a kid, played some Worlds of Warcraft, and a few others as well. Believe it or not, I created a shareware game back in 1998 or so – “Homeland: The Stone of Night.”  https://www.mobygames.com/game/homeland-the-stone-of-night It was okay for its time (total junk now). Regardless, yeah, definitely have a big gaming past. 

5) What brunch item do you think would go with your books?

Chilli-cheese fries, and I’d have a beer with it too. IPA, like Red would drink.

{{There you have it – based on these interviews, I am forced to assume that brunch is a NorthEastern thing))

6) I can imagine being self published that it’s hard to get the word out about your book, has that been a challenge? Was using a book tour company a positive experience?

Oh, I should have read ahead, since I mentioned advertising already. So I exited “writing/publishing” having done NOTHING in regards to exposing my book or writing. I’m naturally a pretty socially timid guy (introverts unite! But, um, keep your distance). I don’t know if a book tour would be the right move for everyone, but it helped me build a community and get connected, so for me, it was a positive experience (and I *have* recommended it to people). But set your expectations – you’re competing with a lot of other authors for attention, and the quick bursts from a tour can’t replace doing continuous advertising work. I am far far far from figuring out the right way to do advertising. So much to learn!

{{That said, thank you to By The Book Tours for originally introducing me to Steve’s books!}}

7)Here is the easy round of rapid fire bookish questions – do you have a favorite book or series you always recommend? Favorite literary character? Any wonderful or strange bookish habits?

Favorite book(s) – The Mirror of Her Dreams and A Man Rides Through

I guess it is cheating, but also natural, to say that the characters in my favorite books are my favorite characters: Terisa Morgan and Geraden. 

Strange habits: I have multiple copies of my favorite books. I’ve never written in books, including textbooks. I’d see other people with their highlighters and cringe like someone was spray-painting the Washington Monument. (And now I have to sign them… )

8) Thank you so much for taking the time to interview! If there’s anything else you’d like to say about anything at all, please do so here!

Just a shout-out to all the folks who promote writing, of their own time and energy, for indie authors. It’s really heart-warming. Thanks!

I hope you guys will check out the author’s website and bookish links too!

Website: https://sjmorriswrites.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/steven.j.morris.writer/

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08TV879J6/ref=x_gr_mw_bb_sin?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_mw_bb_sin-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B08TV879J6&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2

GoodReads:  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56811451-the-guardian-of-the-palace?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_23

Categories
Adventure audiobooks Fiction Thrillers

The Heist (Book Review) by Janet Evanovich & Lee Goldberg

This is another one of those backlist books that I don’t always blog about, but I have decided that it’s important to share joy and I really freaking enjoyed listening to this book on Audio!

This is an adult series where the FBI ropes an agent and a conman into performing heists and cons together in order to nail bad guys that the FBI probably couldn’t get to by conventional means.  I knew that I liked heist books in fantasy, so I figured why not try it in a contemporary setting!

Bookish Quick Facts:

  • Title: The Heist
  • Series: Fox and O’Hare, #1
  • Author: Janet Evanovich & Lee Goldberg
  • Publisher & Release: Bantam, June 2013
  • Length: 320 pgs
  • Rate & Recommend:  Yes for some summer fun

((The audiobook is from 2013, Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group, about 8 hours long and narrated by Scott Brick))

Here is the bookblurb from Amazon:

From Janet Evanovich, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Stephanie Plum novels, and Lee Goldberg, bestselling author and television writer for Monk, comes the first adventure in an electrifying new series featuring an FBI agent who always gets her man, and a fearless con artist who lives for the chase.

FBI Special Agent Kate O’Hare is known for her fierce dedication and discipline on the job, chasing down the world’s most wanted criminals and putting them behind bars. Her boss thinks she is tenacious and ambitious; her friends think she is tough, stubborn, and maybe even a bit obsessed. And while Kate has made quite a name for herself for the past five years, the only name she’s cared about is Nicolas Fox—an international crook she wants in more ways than one.

Audacious, handsome, and dangerously charming, Nicolas Fox is a natural con man, notorious for running elaborate scams on very high-profile people. At first he did it for the money. Now he does it for the thrill. He knows that the FBI has been hot on his trail—particularly Kate O’Hare, who has been watching his every move. For Nick, there’s no greater rush than being pursued by a beautiful woman . . . even one who aims to lock him up. But just when it seems that Nicolas Fox has been captured for good, he pulls off his greatest con of all: he convinces the FBI to offer him a job, working side by side with Special Agent Kate O’Hare.

Problem is, teaming up to stop a corrupt investment banker who’s hiding on a private island in Indonesia is going to test O’Hare’s patience and Fox’s skill. Not to mention the skills of their ragtag team made up of flamboyant actors, wanted wheelmen, and Kate’s dad. High-speed chases, pirates, and Toblerone bars are all in a day’s work . . . if O’Hare and Fox don’t kill each other first.

This was my first Evanovich book, and I was kind of expecting to see a little bit of Monk in it too since Lee Goldberg is the co-author.  I didn’t get that vibe except for the ridiculous plot in general, and I think that he might have contributed some of the funnier bits?

The plot is absolutely ridiculous but it made for a fun read, or listen.  The action is extremely fast paced and Scott Brick is an entertaining narrator.  I don’t think you need 100% brainpower to listen to these books either which is a huge plus since I usually listen while driving!

The characters are amazing;  Kate OHare is an ex-navy seal (I don’t think that is realistic but it makes for a good story) and Nick Fox is a brilliant con artist that Kate has been chasing for years.  Pairing them up creates all the tension and humor you would expect from that situation.

The other members of the heist team are funny too.  There’s a hilarious lady who likes to drive just about anything with a motor.  Fox creates hilarious fake names for them while traveling too.  My favorite character though was Kate’s dad, he was (I think) a Marine? and they keep joking that he can kill someone 16 ways with a pair of tweezers and it’s probably accurate.  Him and another senior citizen ex-military swooped in and saved the day in the best fashion ever, but I also just liked his relationship with Kate.

All in all: recommending if you are looking for a fast paced, light read, and can laugh about the ridiculous plot and take it for entertainment value and a few laughs.  I wouldn’t call it in any way shape or form a literary masterpiece but it made me happy!

Have you guys read anything by Evanovich? I think it worked in my favor that I haven’t read any Plum books and can’t compare them!

Categories
Fantasy Young Adult

Heartrender (Book Review) by V. Romas Burton

Thank you so much to Monster Ivy Publishing for the ARC of Heartrender! This was one of my most anticipated reads of the year and I was so beyond thrilled to receive an ARC box in exchange for a feature and honest review!

Due to the nature of this being a review for the conclusion of a trilogy, I am going to try really hard to avoid spoilers but a series spoiler may be inevitable. What I would say is that if you read the first two books definitely read the third.  If you are seeking YA appropriate epic fantasy or allegorical fiction , clean content, this is definitely a good series for you ❤

Review of book 1: https://onereadingnurse.com/2020/12/14/book-review-heartmender-by-v-romas-burton/

Review of book 2: https://onereadingnurse.com/2021/06/30/heartbreaker-by-v-romas-burton-book-review/

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Bookish Quick Facts:

  • Title: Heartrender
  • Series: Heartmender #3
  • Author: V. Romas Burton
  • Publisher & Release: Monster Ivy Publishing, 09/07/21
  • Length: 388
  • Rate & Recommend : 🌟🌟🌟 yes because at this point you probably read the first two books! This is a lovely series

Here is the synopsis:

Eman is gone. Silas is gone. Claire is gone.

When Addie returns to Ramni after her devastating encounter with Ophidian, she finds her heart broken from her recent losses. Yet, even though she is grieving, Addie continues her journey through the Twelve Lands of Decim to unite the Twelve Magisters. With the aid of Romen and Lyle, she travels to each Northern Land to find that Ophidian is no longer harvesting Decim’s hearts, but their souls. With this new power, Ophidian will be almost impossible to defeat.

Will Addie be able to complete her promise to Eman before darkness rules?

I think this was a satisfying conclusion to the trilogy, although unfortunately by far the weakest of the three books in my mind.

One of my favorite parts was the character arcs, especially Addie finally trusting in Eman and the others enough to ask for help. The boys completely stole the show in this one though. Seeing Silas’ history put a lot of the rest of the series into context and it was the most interesting to me. His trials provided a lot of necessary background to understand various character’s actions and also explained the whole Rexus thing.

Lyle just took control of everything with his newfound powers and I think he’s going to make a great Elder.  It was also great to see Claire get some validation.  Addie’s ending bugged me a little bit, I kind of feel like she should be a magister or something too but it looks like she’s going to be relegated to… Well… Yeah no spoilers 😂

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A lot of the imagery, especially in Silas’  chapters, was excellent again in this book. The castle in the tree and the imagery of the Elders was very well done.

Something about the allegory has been bugging me though. The resurrection is a tricky thing to represent and I feel like where the allegory was broader before, the author just tried to get too specific here and missed.  Then again it is entirely possible that I could just be missing something. Not to say it’s not still a good read though. Jeff Wheeler did something similar at the end of a few of his trilogies where he just seems to get lost in his Theology.

I know that I’ve talked about the pacing of certain events in the prior two books, and the absolute frantic pace of the ending confused me here as well. I would have read a longer book to find out more about the missing magisters and Romen’s role, the time travelling, and a few other things.  Characters were popping in and out all over the place in the second half of this book in order to get everything ready for the conclusion, and it was just happening so quickly that I got confused.

This is a lovely series though and I would totally recommend this to anyone seeking light fantasy, clean content, allegorical fiction / fantasy!
❤❤❤

Categories
Author Interviews & Guest Posts Science Fiction

Sunday Brunch Author Interview Series: featuring T.A. Bruno!!

Thank you so much everyone for supporting the Sunday Brunch Author Interview Series!!  In this third installment I am lucky enough to feature DreamWorks artist + Sci-fi author T.A. Bruno!

I read his first novel In the Orbit of Sirens and was impressed by both the scope of the plot and the intricate, detailed world building.  The sequel comes out next month and I can’t wait for that one either.

Alright without further ado, here he is!

1) Welcome to the SBAIS! Tell everyone a little about yourself and your writing!

Thanks for having me! I’m happy to be featured. For those who don’t know me, I grew up in Chicago and moved to LA to work in the film industry. I’ve worked on a lot of fun projects, including some Marvel films. I currently work for DreamWorks Animation as a Layout Artist. My career has been all about telling stories through film, and it gave me the confidence to put a story down on paper. In the Orbit of Sirens was my debut novel, and I have written two sequels during quarantine. It’s been a blast, and it allowed me to meet some great people!  

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2) I think based on that, you’re going to have to tell us what a layout artist does! It’s super cool that you work for DreamWorks!!

Thanks! I love telling people about my day job. Layout—or Previz as it’s also known—is one of the best-kept secrets in Hollywood if you ask me. We wear many hats. In live-action (So Marvel movies and other big-budget VFX films), we create a computer-animated sequence for the film that will be visual effects heavy. By making these sequences, we get accurate camera data. We can explore the best ways to film the upcoming sequence before the entire production gets to it. It saves production a lot of time to plan ahead like this, and often we have the Director over our shoulder directing us. After we finish our job, production takes our Previz and films it, mimicking the cameras we made and sticking close to the action we planned out with the Director. The actors even get to look at it for reference. For Dreamworks, it’s the same idea, but we do the entire film. We are cinematographers, and our cameras get finalized. The animators use our work as a foundation to build upon and draw out more personality. It’s a super fun job, and not many people know about it. I’m happy I stumbled into it after College.

3) Feeding off of that, does that experience help you envision the scenery and world building for The Song of Kamaria so far? I definitely thought the visual imagery was one of the first book’s strong points

I’m glad you liked the imagery! Yes, by nature, I tried to escort the reader through the world of Kamaria with a cinematic eye. I treated each sentence as a shot and drew out the details as I would in a camera composition. My career has taught me how to express lots of detail without taking up too much time. I do my best to show and not tell. 

4) I was impressed because I had some obscure world building questions about In The Orbit of Sirens, and you were READY with a response! You had said that it was originally in the book but got edited out and I felt like I could see the holes where the information was before – how do you (or the editor) decide what makes the final cut in the book?  How much did the finished product change would you say from the original?

I have all the answers! I had planned to begin In the Orbit of Sirens very differently. Originally, Eliana and John Veston were on the Telemachus at the same time as Denton. I cut it and started it with Eliana on Kamaria with the forward scout team because it was honestly very dull the other way. Lots of explaining how they made it there and what they needed to accomplish. One of my beta readers actually suggested Eliana should just be on Kamaria in the beginning because Kamaria is where the meat of the story takes place. So before the change, I had written out the first scouting mission and how it all worked {{the techie info}}.  There is a whole chapter I wrote about that. It might make it into a prequel novella, but I will revisit that idea after publishing book 3. 

5) How do you feel about brunch? I think I have to start asking authors their favorite brunch item!

Second breakfast?! I’ll admit, mainly thanks to work from home, my eating schedule is all over the place. I don’t formally recognize any meal anymore, haha. But if I had to sit and consider brunch, I’d probably enjoy a sandwich wrap or some sort. Loves my wraps.

{{Here I will tell readers that in the Northeast, brunch is considered a combo of breakfast and lunch, usually with alcohol, or in some cases refers to breakfast for lunch.  Now I know what L.A. does 😂}}

6) What was your publishing journey like? Do you have any advice for hopeful authors trying to write or publish a book?

I think publishing in 2021 is an interesting field. Initially, I attempted to get traditionally published, but after many rejections, I reevaluated my priorities. What did I want? What did I want my future to look like? And most importantly, how much longer did I want to sit on In the Orbit of Sirens? For the record, the final version of In the Orbit of Sirens is very different from the one I queried. I don’t blame those agents for rejecting me.  When I realized that I enjoy my day job, and that the only story I really wanted to tell was the Song of Kamaria, and that the validation of a committee of publishers didn’t mean anything to me, I realized I’d be better suited to self-publish. I’m very glad I did too! I have total control over the story I’m putting out. I got to pool together all my resources and friendships and pump my entire body and soul into these books. I got to meet so many great people, including you! I also got to bring in my friend Jason Hall to do the illustrations in my book. I always loved his art style!

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At the end of the day, I can say The Song of Kamaria is ME. The cover, the illustrations, and the words all spawned from my resources, connections, and skillset. I’m so happy with how it’s being received as well. It just makes me more proud of being self-published and taking the risk of being my own boss.

7) Kamaria runs the entire spectrum of scifi, from interstellar war to space ships, futuristic technology, first contact… which idea came first? Do you remember what idea or theme you built the book around?

I knew I wanted to do something I hadn’t seen before, and most of my decisions sprang from “what haven’t I seen yet?” I wanted to write a story about starting over and making new choices. So a desperate escape to a new planet with limited resources felt like the best way to do that. I wanted to make Kamaria something unique. The native Kamarians are nothing like anything from Earth, so they are not based on Earth life. They are technologically advanced, but in a way that nurtures a peaceful life that utilizes the land around them. I also wanted to explore the parts of human nature that involve lying and truths. Readers might have noticed that you can’t lie to the auk’nai (mainly because it’s said between characters often) but that the Undriel are huge liars. Humans are in the middle, sometimes deceiving each other and sometimes being painfully truthful. I had not seen that before, and I felt it was worth writing about. I know this answer is a little scatterbrained, but I’ll conclude it by saying I had MANY brainstorms about what this trilogy should be before starting. 

8)  Here is the easy round of rapid fire bookish questions – do you have a favorite book or series you always recommend? Favorite literary character? Any wonderful or strange bookish habit?

I am loving Vernor Vinge’s A Fire Upon the Deep trilogy (I’ll admit I haven’t finished it yet, but the first two books are some of my favorite Sci-fi). But I always recommend Dan Simmon’s Hyperion Cantos to everyone. Vinge’s series can be a little bit of a slow burn that I specifically loved, but Hyperion is just excellent sci-fi that anyone could love. Favorite literary character Piranesi from the book of the same name. He was just fantastic, and I did the audiobook, voiced by Chiwetel Ejiofor, who made him even more charming. And my weird bookish quirk is often buying multiple versions of the same book. It’s not unusual for me to have an e-book, physical copy, and an audiobook of the same book sometimes. Typically if I do audiobook and enjoy it enough, I will buy a physical copy for my shelf. And if I’m leaving a review on Amazon, I’ll buy an e-book with my author account instead of my personal one so that my review shows up as a “verified purchase.” Plus, it helps support my self-published friends.

9) Thank you so much for taking the time to interview! If there’s anything else you’d like to say about anything, please do so here!

Thank you for the interview! I really enjoyed these questions. For those looking to jump into the world of Kamaria, now is a great time! The second book, On the Winds of Quasars, releases September 20th, 2021. Currently, the e-book is available to preorder, but softcovers and hardcovers will also be available on the 20th. I hope you enjoy your time on Kamaria!

Meet the author!

T. A. BRUNO grew up in Chicago and moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in the film industry. Since then, he has brought stories to life for over a decade as a previsualization artist. At home, he is a proud father of two boys and a husband to a wonderful wife. IN THE ORBIT OF SIRENS is his debut science fiction novel.

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Links:

Twitter:

https://mobile.twitter.com/TABrunoAuthor

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/tabrunoauthor/

The Song of Kamaria series Amazon page: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09B4YVKGT?binding=kindle_edition&ref=dbs_dp_rwt_sb_tukn

Author website: TABruno.com

In the Orbit of Sirens audiobook link: https://www.audible.com/pd/In-the-Orbit-of-Sirens-Audiobook/B08X5XVW8Q?qid=1614184804&sr=1-1&ref=a_search_c3_lProduct_1_1&pf_rd_p=83218cca-c308-412f-bfcf-90198b687a2f&pf_rd_r=BFGSJEZSWAPDEDGY62HQ

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20726865.T_A_Bruno

Categories
Crime Mysteries Suspense

Unholy Murder (Book Review) by Lynda LaPlante

Thank you so much to Bookish First and the publisher for my finished paperback review copy of Unholy Murder!  Thankfully I remember most of the British slang I had to look up whilw reading Judas Horse, so this was a fairly smooth reading experience!

This is my first read in the Tennison series, though I have liked her DS Jack Warr books quite a bit.

Bookish Quick Facts:

  • Title: Unholy Murder
  • Series: Tennison, #7
  • Author: Lynda LaPlants
  • Publisher & Release: Zaffre, 08/19/21
  • Length: 416 Pages
  • Rate & Recommend: Yes for fans of crime drama

Here is the Book Blurb:

A coffin is dug up by builders in the grounds of an historic convent – inside is the body of a young nun.

In a city as old as London, the discovery is hardly surprising. But w hen scratch marks are found on the inside of the coffin lid, Detective Jane Tennison believes she has unearthed a mystery far darker than any she’s investigated before. However, not everyone agrees. Tennison’s superiors dismiss it as an historic cold case, and the Church seems desperate to conceal the facts from the investigation. It’s clear that someone is hiding the truth, and perhaps even the killer. Tennison must pray she can find both – before they are buried forever…

In Unholy Murder, Tennison must lift the lid on the most chilling murder case of her career to date . . .

A coffin is unearthed at a dig site attached to an old convent, and the police are called in case there is a body inside! Has the ground been de consecrated? Who would kill a nun and why? Tennison and DS Boon end up having to solve a murder that must have happened at least 25+ years ago.  I didn’t realize that these books take place in the 80s, once Jane took her typewriter out of a cupboard I kind of went “ohhh so that’s why these guys don’t have cell phones!”

There was a lot of interesting information about the church, sisters vs nuns, convents and burial rites in the book.  Lots of different theories tying into the murder(s), one of which was that the builders were involved. Or was it other nuns? A local priest? The Bishop had done some serious, serious cover ups in the past so the plethora of potential suspects and theories kept it interesting for me.  The church looks real great in this one but it was interesting to see internal politics in play.

Most of the theories had some grain of truth in them too, and LaPlante keeps me turning the pages for sure. It was a good mystery but not so much of a thriller, I think the “crime drama” or mysery genre fits it well. I would have never guessed who either murderer was.

My main issue with the book was that I just really didn’t like Tennison very much. I do wonder if reading the prior books would help connect to her more though.  None of her personal relationships seemed realistic. The book happened over a fairly short period of time and Jane was practically in love with a guy she had just met and shagged one or two times. She is a good investigator but needs to learn to work with the team – it was a little bit satisfying that she had gotten reprimanded for keeping things to herself, and then someone died as a result – like maybe she will learn to trust in the future finally?

I think Barnes, Boon, and Stanley were my favorites, they all had a turnaround related to their jobs and came up big at the end.

Definitely recommend this author for fans of crime dramas, she is a great writer as far as keeping things flowing and interesting

Who is your favorite crime drama author? I think I like British crime dramas more than American ones

Categories
Fantasy Young Adult

Three Dark Crowns (Book Club Review) by Kendare Blake

I finally participated in another Openly Booked Book Club read this summer! Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake was the pick for July, and I had off-handedly said that it would make a good book club series. So I’m not sure but I might have sparked this suggestion, and I was super thrilled when it won the vote😂

Bookish Quick Facts: 

  • Title: Three Dark Crowns
  • Series: Three Dark Crowns, #1
  • Author: Kendare Blake
  • Publisher & Release: Quill Tree Books, September 2016
  • Length: 416 pages
  • Rate & Recommend: 🌟🌟🌟⚡ yes for YA fantasy fans

Here is the Book Blurb:

In every generation on the island of Fennbirn, a set of triplets is born: three queens, all equal heirs to the crown and each possessor of a coveted magic. Mirabella is a fierce elemental, able to spark hungry flames or vicious storms at the snap of her fingers. Katharine is a poisoner, one who can ingest the deadliest poisons without so much as a stomachache. Arsinoe, a naturalist, is said to have the ability to bloom the reddest rose and control the fiercest of lions.

But becoming the Queen Crowned isn’t solely a matter of royal birth. Each sister has to fight for it. And it’s not just a game of win or lose…it’s life or death. The night the sisters turn sixteen, the battle begins. The last queen standing gets the crown.

My thoughts

This is definitely a YA fantasy. I know it’s only book one but no one has fought to the death yet!  With my biggest disappointment out of the way first, let’s chat about the rest of the book.

Strengths: 

1) History and lore as part of the world building.  Fennbirn is steeped in Queenly traditions and lore, some bloody and some … Well, bloodier.  I liked learning about all the cultural facets such as the Gave Noir (poisoner’s feast), traditional hunts, and clashing belief systems. Each of the three regions has their own foods, styles of living, ways of life, and magic, so there were a lot of pages spent building the island. I’m on board.

The lore also ties into the magic system, and if you know me you know that I LOVE land and Kingdom based magic.  When magic is part of the world itself and rulers can draw on it, that’s a good magic system.  The magic is all over the place here but it’s kind of cool

2) Political plotting.  I also like a good political plot. The ruling group, the poisoners, plot just as much as the priestesses who are trying to put the Elemental Queen in power.  If you love assassinations, power plays, and duplicity, this is a great book for you.

3) The plot itself: This is a real sibling rivalry trope with the highest stakes.  Each sister’s strengths and weaknesses were tied into the storyline, and I think a queendom steeped in bloody history is a great idea at heart.

Weaknesses:

1) too many characters and places at first.  Trying to establish three sisters, in three different households, with all different characters surrounding them, including place names was way too much for me to remember.  Eventually it worked out in my mind but I found this name overload distracting at first

2) Death – I know it’s only book one, but no major characters have died yet.  I would expect one major death to set the tone for the series, but alas, this *is* YA.  I had a similar complaint about The Night Circus

Important themes: battling misconceptions seems to be a huge theme here. So does the valuing of family, both blood and found, and the power of friendships.  Additionally that all actions have consequences.  I do like the themes presented and find them suitable for a YA audience

Random notes, thoughts, and points:

  • The women had cool names like Arsinoe, Mirabella, Julienne, while the men’s names were Matt, Joseph, etc
  • I now know how to pronounce Kendare
  • The animal familiars were really cool, i love animal familiars
  • The book presents a ton of potential routes forward and theories, which makes it a great book club read
  • The audiobook failed for me because the narrator can absolutely not do male voices
  • I docked a star for presenting two characters hooking up randomly, and it was out of character for both of them.  I get it as a plot point going forward but this doesn’t need to be presented to a YA audience
Have you read this one? What did you think?
Categories
General Posts, Non Reviews Thrillers

Kiss the Girls, Read the Books (Review and Other Thoughts)

In between ARCs and requests, I have fallen back on some older,”fluff” reads this month.  I don’t always blog about them but I have a few things to say about the community right now and this review is a good gateway to that.

Not that James Patterson’s early books are fluff – ten years ago they were way way WAY too graphic for me, but now I just freaking love the danger, edgy violence, crazy serial killers, and all the psychology that Patterson crammed into those early Cross books.

Before the review I just want to say that there are plenty of things that bar access to literature – money, poverty, education, geographical location, random sociopolitical issues, transportation, books that are banned and unavailable in some regions, out of print/rare books ….etc etc etc.

The one thing I firmly believe is that PEOPLE are not an acceptable barrier.  Guilt should not be a barrier.  Read what you want, whether it’s romance, liberal, lgbtq, conservative, religious, fantasy, wizards, or even James Patterson (who gets so much hate! Like why!).  Don’t let hate stop you! I had someone tell me I must be stupid for reading him and – I just laughed, scrolled on, and said “well they’re missing out but that’s their choice”.  This is what bookstagram has devolved into! Literary snobs and the woke mob mentality are both wildly unacceptable to me but I’ve long since learned to just. keep. scrolling.

Point is – read books and enjoy your short time on Earth because hate, guilt, ostracism in any form is not an acceptable barrier to literature. 

Crap now that I typed all that I don’t care about the review anymore, but here it is:

Bookish Quick Facts:

  • Title: Kiss The Girls
  • Series: Alex Cross #2
  • Publisher: originally Little, Brown and Company, 1995
  • Length: 462
  • Rating:  🌟🌟🌟🌟 not for the squeamish

Remember two years ago I was going to read the Cross books in order like I started to with the Prey books?  Yeah me neither, but I keep trying to make time for it anyway

I am an utterly shameless JP freak and I love these early books. This is easily one of the ones that would have made me cringe as a teenage or new adult reader but now … sign me up.  Casanova is a serial kidnapper/murderer/rapist hunting the Chapel Hill, NC area. The Gentleman Caller is another serial killer on the west coast and appears to be getting sloppy. Alex Cross’ niece goes missing and all of a sudden he is thrown into this insane jurisdictional kerfuffle to catch one or both of these men that appear to be either cooperating, competing, or worse

Action packed, graphic, truly scary, and you know that (once again) I totally picked the wrong bad guy, although I was closer than I usually am.  I love the constant feeling of danger, fast pace of the book, and how much Cross loves his family.  The psychology is interesting too, and there is plenty of it.  Cross got a little more vulnerable in this one too which was nice to see, a character progression from Along Came a Spider.

Docked one star for the creepy description of Casanova, Patterson got a little weird there describing the 🍆 and even for the 1990s, it seemed like poor taste to put that descriptive sequence into Cate’s point of view.  I damn know that poor women wasn’t thinking “oh my, what a large and bright 🍆 he has” …. … Bright? What, like a lightbulb? Flashlight? Rudolph the red nosed penis? 😳 l*rd almighty.

Cate was such a bad ass though, so tough, she got away and saved the others.  She’s one of my favorite Cross side characters out there.

It was even weirder listening to Michael Kramer say it because he narrates the Wheel of Time books and I just couldn’t stop laughing every time he said “tick cock”.  I think I was in actual tears when the “Hickory, dickory, cock” line happened.  Is that the most quoteable thing from this book? I really gave it a very strong four stars!

I do recommend both the Cross series for thriller, detective, psychological thriller fans, and Michael Kramer as a narrator if anyone is into audiobooks.  He can be a little hard to understand but I just keep him at 1.25 speed and

Heck I’m sorry this was the longest post ever, stay tuned for more ARC reviews and current reads this week!

From the book blurb:

From the Back Cover

This time it’s personal for Cross. The most elusive of killers has abducted Cross’s niece, Naomi, a talented law student. Only such a devastating blow could bring the detective back – this time to the Deep South, where old slave prisons are buried in the forests, and houses of horror can disappear as in your worst nightmare. Naomi’s kidnapping rips Alex Cross away from his kids and his jazz piano and sends him south with several questions burning in his mind. Why did the police wait seventy-two hours before beginning their search? And what is the head of the FBI doing at the scene of a small-town crime? Meanwhile, somewhere out there Casanova is living a secret fantasy. In his private hideaway, the world’s greatest lover has assembled seven of the South’s most extraordinary young women for his personal use. It’s an accomplishment he can share with only one other soulmate – and that’s definitely not his wife back in suburbia. But Casanova doesn’t count on the exceptional abilities of one of his harem – or having Alex Cross as a nemesis.

Amazon
Categories
Author Interviews & Guest Posts Fantasy

Sunday Brunch Author Interview Series: with Clemy Warner-Thompson

Welcome to the second installment of the Sunday Brunch Author Interview series! It is a working goal to (maybe find a better title and) bring an Author Interview to you lovely people every Sunday morning!

Today I have author Clemy Walker-Thompson joining all the way from the UK! Without further ado, here she is!

 

Thank you for taking the time to chat! Tell everyone a little about yourself and your writing!

Hi everybody, my name is Clemy. I have been writing since I was thirteen, and I turn thirty at the end of this year. How time has flown! I love anything fantasy, reading books like Hush Hush, Fallen and Eragon. The books I write are also fantasy, with most of them being Young Adult (YA).. Only my newest two are reaching into the New Adult (NA) category. I have two gorgeous cats who are only just two, and I live with my boyfriend in the UK.

 

What was the Indie publishing journey like for you? Do you have any tips for fellow indie authors trying to publish a book?

After my first book was completed and I’d started working on the next two in the series, I went straight to self-publishing. As every author does, I have the dream of one day seeing my book in a well-known book shop, but for my writing journey so far self-publishing has been the right direction for me. I am a little shy and the idea of being in the public eye is very daunting, so I like the freedom and control you have from self-publishing. It can be very hard at times, with all the marketing and promoting you have to do, but it gives you a taste of what being published is like. 

Make sure you have faith in your own work, before you search for readers

 

I found your book on Smashwords but had not heard of that site before, what led you to it? What do you like about it instead of say, Amazon?

I was only fifteen when I first started looking into self-publishing. I didn’t have a job and I needed something that would be free. My brother, who had published his first book at 16 with Amazon had always said after it was made available, that once something was on Amazon it could never be removed, and the idea of that just put me off a little.

Smashwords has served me well, so too has Lulu where my paperbacks are available, but I will be looking into Amazon a little more now that I have polished off some of my earlier books.

 

What’s your relationship like with social media?  Have you found good support in the writing community?

From the start, I have always had a presence on Facebook. My page has 2000+ likers and followers, and at the beginning it gave me a great push. I met some other authors and arranged some book signings all through Facebook, but as I have matured as a writer I feel that Facebook has very little positive engagement now. Recently I moved over to Instagram and the writing community there is amazing.

Instagram definitely has the engagement with readers and other authors that I was missing from Facebook. Sometimes I spend a little too much time on social media, but when you self-publish that is something you have to do a lot of in order to get your books out there. You should take breaks from social media though!

 

There are a literal endless supply of indie writers out there, has it been a challenge to have your work seen?

Definitely. I still struggle to this day. If you don’t have the confidence or the courage to get yourself out there, it can be a very difficult task. I have had some amazing readers, and in turn some fantastic reviews left for my books, but I still feel as if I haven’t pushed my books out into the world enough yet.

I checked last week and I have sold to four continents so far, which is such a proud announcement for to me make, but there are places I still haven’t got to yet!

Four continents is amazing though, congrats on that!

 

YA books are changing now with popular themes, what themes do you like to write about? 

I love encouraging strong relationships between family and friends. There are often sibling characters in most of my books which are always very close. I love writing about redemption and proving oneself. Destiny and fate are also themes I like to work with, but I make my characters always follow their heart, even if that means going against the fate that is planned for them. 

 

You started writing at age ..13? What inspired you then and now?

My brother who is four years older than me, self-published his first book at 16. I’d grown up with 4 brothers, with films and games and many books shared throughout the years, and I just wanted to follow in his footsteps. The funny thing is that I continued on with the writing journey and he didn’t. It was only the one book he self-published in the end, and I am currently working on my 8th. 

 

Alright let’s end this with the easy rapid fire general bookish questions:  Do you have a favorite book that you always recommend? Favorite character? What genre do you usually read? Do you have any strange and wonderful bookish habits?

I love Roald Dahl: Matilda, The Twits, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

For my favourite character I would choose Saphira out of Eragon. She is the dragon that hatches for him.

Fantasy. Anything and all that is fantasy.

Hmmm, that’s a hard one. I think I’d have to say I always buy a book because of the cover.  Even if the story sounds amazing, if I don’t like the cover I won’t buy it. 

 

Thank you so much again for offering to interview! If there is anything else you want to say about yourself, your novels, your life, or anything at all, please do so here!

I am very proud of where I have reached so far in my writing journey, but there are bigger and brighter points I have yet to get to. I appreciate every one of my readers and the reviews they leave. I wouldn’t still be writing now, if it wasn’t because of you all.

Find Clemy and her books!

On Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/ClemyWarnerThompson

On Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/cwarnerthompson/

On GoodReads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5328411.Clemy_Warner_Thompson

To purchase E-Books

https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/CWarnerThompson

To purchase paperbacks:

https://www.lulu.com/en/gb/shop/clemy-warner-thompson

Categories
Fantasy Thrillers

Comfort Me With Apples (ARC Review) by Catherynne M. Valente

Thank you so much to Tordotcom for the ARC of Comfort Me With Apples!  I received the book for free in exchange for an honest review, all opinions are my own! 

The editorial letter states that the book is extremely hard to describe because of spoilers, and that we just have to read it. I completely agree with this! I definitely really enjoyed it and recommend for a short, fast paced fall read with tons of atmosphere

Bookish Quick Facts:

  • Title: Comfort Me With Apples
  • Series: N/A
  • Author: Catherynne M. Valente
  • Publisher & Release: TorDotCom – 10/26/21
  • Length: 112 pages
  • Rate & Recommend: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 for pretty much anyone, it crosses genres!

Here is the book blurb:

A terrifying new thriller from bestseller Catherynne M. Valente …

Sophia was made for him. Her perfect husband. She can feel it in her bones. He is perfect. Their home together in Arcadia Gardens is perfect. Everything is perfect.

It’s just that he’s away so much. So often. He works so hard. She misses him. And he misses her. He says he does, so it must be true. He is the perfect husband and everything is perfect.

But sometimes Sophia wonders about things. Strange things. Dark things. The look on her husband’s face when he comes back from a long business trip. The questions he will not answer. The locked basement she is never allowed to enter. And whenever she asks the neighbors, they can’t quite meet her gaze…

But everything is perfect. Isn’t it?

Other than the book blurb, I don’t want to say too much about the plot itself because the whole thing leads up to the twist! The book lives for the twist.

Sophia is happy, living a perfect life in a perfect community called Arcadia Gardens. The book almost immediately starts introducing some fairy tale elements, but the reader has no idea what direction the story is going in. Is it a fairytale retelling? A fantasy? A new legend? Something out of folklore or mythology? A combination? Why is Sophia finding bones in the house and cracks in the facade of her existence?

With beautiful imagery, a mystery to solve, a general sense of unease, and a deeply atmospheric fairytale tone of voice, definitely you just have to read this one to find out exactly what is going on in Arcadia Gardens.  

It lists as a domestic thriller, fantasy, mythology.  I think there’s something in it for most readers, and it’s so short that it can be read in one sitting on a breezy October afternoon.

Thanks for reading!