Sunday Book Review

This month's book review is a book that I read as an Arc, which means it wasn't even released when I read it! How amazing it is to read a book that hasn't been released to the public yet.
But fear not! Horrid by L.C. Ireland releases on April 10th, just a few days away from when this post goes live.

Despite this being a book I was gifted, as always, all opinions, thoughts and comments are true and were not persuaded in any way by the author.

According to L.C. Ireland's website this book is part of a larger series with the following description: 

Seven Sisters of Silverleaf

Young Adult Fantasy (ages 10+)

The seven Delaroe sisters encounter magical creatures, dastardly villains, and handsome heroes in this fantasy series inspired by classic fairytales. 

While reading I couldn't exactly pin point down which fairy tale this one had in it, but throughout the book you definitely get that feeling. But when you have a witch that curses your family, something has been stolen, and that witch bargains for your soul...well those elements are in most fairy tales I know! 

I honestly didn't know alot about this story, or even L.C. Ireland before reading this, and I have to say, I really enjoyed it! Much like my review last month, I read this book in a day. More precisely in the time between putting Liam down to bed and about 11 pm. So it took me roughly 4.5 hours to finish it. Not too shabby. *rolls shoulders* This ol' girl's still got it! 

Ahh I remember the time I used to read thick books in a day...but I digress. 

Clearly, if I was able to read this in essentially one sitting the writing is well done, any typos were not distractions, and the flow of the story pulled me through. 

I quite enjoyed how Delta was literally they most unexpected heroine. She is the middle of 7 sisters who, along with two brothers, make up what is left of the Delaroe family. Their parents died under seemingly mysterious circumstances on a voyage, leaving the eldest brother Alistair in charge of their lands and with keeping the peace with neighboring nobles. 

The story really kicks off from the beginning with the description of the Witch of Horr, AKA the Horrid Witch. Deltas states that "I was sixteen and scared. I was desperate. And that's when she gets you: when you have everything to lose and nothing to bargain with but your soul." 

Hello! Talk about plunging the reader into the world from the get go. The book is a great roller coaster ride of plot twists, one of which I didn't even guess! The reader really feels for Delta as she is thrust into situations far exceeding her experience and depth. But that is what makes this such a great ride! 

Personally, I can not wait until the next book in the series releases! 

L.C. Ireland's links are below! Be sure to check this book out, I give it a 4.5 out of 5 stars. 

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/BooksByL.C.Ireland/

Website: http://www.ghostlight.ink/

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/L.C.-Ireland/e/B01HX3O42Q/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1518916764&sr=8-2-ent

Sunday Book Review

This month's book review has been a long time coming...A LONG TIME.
H.L. Burke is an author that honestly, I wish I was more like.
It seems that she is a writing MACHINE.
I swear every time I turn around she is releasing a new book. It feels like she does one every few months. Which is fantastic, and honestly, one of the Indie Authors I aspire to be like.

And yet, for all of my fangirling, I had never read one of her books. *gasp*

So for this month I decided to finally read one. Granted, I did win the copy of this book through a contest. I think it was a "caption this" Facebook contest. But it was random, and I went into reading this with quite low expectations as the last two Indie books (by different authors) I had to stop reading and put down.


So without further ado, I bring you Coiled!

Book Blurb from Amazon:

A healing touch. A hideous face. A looming curse.

As the ugly twin to a perfect sister, Princess Laidra lives her life in the shadows—until her parents offer her as bait for a giant serpent.

Her escape attempt leaves her shipwrecked on a secluded island with only one inhabitant: Prince Calen, who lives under a curse. If anyone looks upon him, he turns into a giant serpent. Speaking to him in the darkness, Laidra sees past the monster to Calen’s lonely soul, and she determines to free him from the magic’s hold.

But if Laidra can’t break the curse in time, Calen will become a mindless creature of scales and fangs forever.

A YA mythology/romance that retells the myth of Eros and Psyche with adventure, magic, and true love.

 

 

To be honest, I knew at one point that this was a type of retelling, but it didn't dawn on me until a little ways into the book. I am a huge mythology fan, pretty much any mythology but far east (no idea why) intrigues me. I have done plenty of self imposed research into the topics, and completely loved how Burke took the Greek pantheon and made it her own.

From the get go, I liked the characters of Laidra and Calen. Each were likeable, dare I say loveable, in their views and attitudes. Burke used excellent descriptions of them, you really felt with Laidra her curse. How it impacted—and didn't—her worldview. The same goes for Calen.

At one point in the book I thought, here it is "the end"! They've figured this out, they're going to solve the problem and live happily ever after. With these two, you definitely crave that ending! Then I looked down at the percentage left on my iPad...I had 30 percent left in the book! What was going to happen? Then it did, and while I knew roughly how it was going to work out, I was still pleasantly surprised how Burke wrapped everything up.

Because this is a retelling I felt there was a certain predictability to it, but despite that everything was fresh and new. Definitely a perfect example of the old adage that every tale has already been told, but not by you.

Bottom Line?
Highly Recommend! 5 stars!

Coiled on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Coiled-H-L-Burke-ebook/dp/B0713VTDB3/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1518313469&sr=8-1&keywords=coiled

H.L Burke Author page on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/H.-L.-Burke/e/B00EYQ1HLW/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

H.L Burke. Website: http://www.hlburkeauthor.com/

Sunday Book Review

It's the second Sunday of the month, and that means it's Book Review Sunday!
For February I was feeling a bit romantic and so selected a romance book. Wine and Children completely exceeded my expectations, but before I get too far ahead of myself, some details about the book and its author Sara Dahmen.

Wine and Children comes from award-winning novelist Sara Dahmen and was the 2017 First Place Winner of Wisconsin's Romance Writers of America Write Touch Award. The synopsis from Amazon is as follows:

Single and still smarting from her divorce, Charlotte Paggo takes a sabbatical to meander through California's wine country in an attempt to rebuild herself. Her travels lead her to meet Sam, a budding garagiste wine maker and a divorcee himself. Neither of them have any illusions about what it takes to make a relationship work, and romance is complicated by Sam's pre-teen sons.

Issues surface, from ex-spouses, children and medical emergencies. Underlying everything is the battle of Charlie's insecurities that stem from her irrevocable infertility. Like so many real life couples who hope for second chances, Charlie and Sam need to work together to discover what it might take to find comfort and happiness once more.

This novel more than delivers when it comes to details about wine making, the emotional turmoil that people have to deal with after divorce, the stigma around infertility, and the process of mature love.

I never knew as many details about wine making, and I absolutely loved when Sam would explain things to Charlie. I feel like, just by reading this book I gained insight about a hobby and passion that I didn't know about before. Dahmen definitely did her homework and included the details in such a way as to not overload and bore, but rather educated and entertain the reader.

As someone who has not been divorced, but did have an engagement end rather badly. I may not have had to deal with infertility, but starting a new relationship after mourning a previous one, is a daunting task. Despite not dealing with the exact issues Charlie has, Dahmen wrote the story in such a way that I completely sympathized, and was able to place myself in her shoes. I was almost brought to tears several times. Which is saying something as I never cry when reading!

I absolutely fell in love with Sam. I thought his character was fantastic. He was not idealized like some romantic love interests. Instead he was human, he had his own flaws as well as positives. He is the perfectly flawed match to Charlie and I found their interactions realistic. I never wanted the story to end, and found myself staying up late to read when I really should have been in bed. (Whoops!)

Wine and Children is a must read for anyone that enjoys romantic stories. Period. A truly refreshing take on the romantic story line that bucks traditional tropes in favor of realistic love that pulls on the heart stings. So grab your copy today, the eBook is on sale for $2.99, and the print book is discounted as well!

Link to book on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Wine-Children-Sara-Dahmen-ebook/dp/B01N2UBGCO/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

Sara Dahmen's website: http://www.saradahmen.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/saradahmenbooks
Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/sara_dahmen/

Sunday Book Review

Time to kick the year off with my first Small Press/ Self Published book, and it's a real nail biter!
*All opinions are my own, and are no way influenced by writers or publishers of the books reviewed here* 

The book I picked for January's review was "The Name of Death" by Joshua Robertson. Without realizing it, I selected the perfect book to kick off the new year, and my revived blog!

Description from Amazon:

Drada Koehn is a fearless, formidable fighter ensnared in a presaged war against the northern humans. When the Speaker foretells their victory upon discovery of the name of death, she sets out to unravel the mysterious prophecy. Now, bound by duty and honor, Drada faces untold horrors with her companions, searching for what may never be found. In a story of unexpected twists, she soon finds that her resolve to see the quest done will be the fortune or doom of her people.

The story takes place in the same universe as his fantasy trilogy, "The Kaelandur Series". From my reading I would say that it takes place after the events in the trilogy. I downloaded this onto my iPad when it was first released, and after reading the first two in The Kaelandur Series, wanted to give it a go.

While it does take place after the events in that trilogy, it did not spoil the ending. Which was a very good thing since I have yet to finish the last one. Whoops! Sadly my iPad is filled with books I need to get to, as well as all of the physical books on my shelf that need reading. But alas, life with an 8 month old doesn't leave as much reading time as I would prefer to have.

It was a very quick read, which I rather appreciated! Robertson jam packed the story with information and plot, but kept the story moving forward and didn't get bogged down in details. Right off the bat you are transported to a fantasy world where Drada is waiting for her war brother to die after being mortally wounded by a *gasp* human who used poison. A very cowardly thing to do according to Drada. Humans are weak, and Drada's people (the Uvil) have been at war with them for years.

Drada and her war brother were on a quest to find the name of death, and with him gone it is up to Drada and her unlikely Kras companion to continue the journey. They are joined by a human and his companion. Which creates a bit of tension and depth to the story that in something this short, was necessary.  

A creature makes its way back into the pages that I was happy to see again, the Svet. AKA a centaur. I loved the Svet in his other books, and was excited to see another one in this story. For being such a short read, the characters are well rounded and easily distinguishable from one another.

I don't want to ruin the end, but it definitely left me looking for more. Would reccomend to any fantasy readers out there. I give it a solid 4 out of 5 stars!

Links to Robertson's Website, Twitter, Instagram, and Amazon are below. He is one interesting writer, and posts freqeuntly about the writers life and publishing journey. One of the people on my "Must follow" list for writers! 

https://www.robertsonwrites.com/
https://twitter.com/RobertsonWrites
https://www.instagram.com/robertsonwrites/ 
https://www.amazon.com/Name-Death-Joshua-Robertson-ebook/dp/B01N2XQYPY/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

May Review- Self-Published Book

This month was another self published book! The book I read was "The Thirteeth Hour" by Joshua Blum. (All of the links to buy and Joshua's pages will be down below) I first came into contact with Joshua when I was paired with him for a book blog tour. He posted about me and my books, and while perusing his site I decided to order a copy of his book!

The description from Amazon: 

When a boy falls asleep while reciting number facts in math class, he is teleported into a magical medieval world reminiscent of a 1980s fantasy movie, where flying dragons searching for gold raze cities to the ground with crimson fire, vengeful wizards weave terrifying spells, and even brave warriors wearing leopard-skinned underwear are given a run for their money.
In the 1st volume of this epic fantasy series, Logan has grown into a young man and must leave his sleepy village to become a soldier in the Imperial Army. It does not take long for the King’s wizards to see Logan’s potential, and he is selected to be specially trained as an Imperial Ranger for a mysterious quest to find the secret to eternal life. When he is surprisingly reunited with his childhood friend, Aurora, they set off on an adventure of a lifetime.
And so begins The Thirteenth Hour, an illustrated fantasy novel about dreams and wishes, wild hearts, and the quest to find the unsung hero that lies in all young men and women. 


The description really caught my attention. When I ordered this from Joshua, he even sent a magnet as well as a book mark. Both include the art depicting scenes from the book that he drew himself! I was really impressed with the artwork throughout the story. Throughout the entire book I was so impressed by the time and dedication that was clearly put into this book. A lot of effort was put into this to make it one cohesive unit, and to have such unique features such as artwork, and poems was a treat for me. Just on that alone, this book deserves a 5 out of 5 stars.

The story line was very interesting. The reluctant hero is forced to join in a quest to find the secret to eternal life. (Though sometimes I felt that he just went with "the flow" and didn't really care what happened) I liked that he wasn't perfect. In fact he was far from it. He wasn't particularly skilled at anything. One could almost describe him at under average for much of the army training. But what he lacks in skills, he makes up for in determination. This kid has heart!

It actually took me almost halfway through to "get into" the book. It was definitely a slow start for me. A few things that did not help with the readability were the longer flashbacks that Logan has throughout the book. Also to denote different POV's and character voices, the words of the text shift color. This I found distracting, and instead of continuing to read to see who was speaking I was constantly flipping to the beginning of the book for the legend. Also, sometimes the language of the book jarred me out of the story. The swearing almost always seemed not only out of place, but unnecessary.

This book is set in what seems to be a medieval world complete with castles, kings, and horses as the main mode of transportation. But when Logan gets to training, he is essentially trained in Eastern Martial arts. Partway into the story Logan even obtains a hover board. They also talk about and use bottled water, know about martinis and mixed drinks, use note cards for a speech, used the phrase "the bee's knees", had winter jackets, don't know what coffee is but understands what a rocket is, had caricature paintings, used bubble gum, and had a box of salted crackers.

The writing was well done, with minimal errors, and all of the paintings were formatted and well placed. If you're looking for a story to whisk you away, look no further!

I give this story a solid 3 out of 5 stars.

http://www.amazon.com/Thirteenth-Hour-Illustrated-Fairytale-Fantasy-ebook/dp/B00RFHG6WW/ref=sr_1_sc_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1459731113&sr=8-3-spell&keywords=the+thirthteenth++hour 

http://www.amazon.com/Joshua-Blum/e/B00RFTLU5S/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1459734685&sr=8-1 

https://13thhr.wordpress.com/

April Review- Self-Published Book

Once again, this is a book that I learned about at the Madison Writer's Conference this past year (2015). The author just needed a table to sit at, and he happened to choose the one that Rebekah Bryan and I were at. Of course conversation was struck up, and cards were exchanged.


When I first heard about The Heir of Olympus and the Forest Realm by Zachary Howe, I was a bit skeptical to be honest. I have read the Percy Jackson series (The Lightning Thief) and really enjoyed it. I did not want to read a knockoff, and went in to this book full of doubt.


Within the first few chapters I knew that this book was different. Zach really knows his mythology. As someone who loves mythology, and took several courses on it in college, I can attest that he knows his stuff. Using that rich history, and of course the personality of the gods themselves, Zach has created a wonderful world of adventure and intrigue that is unique.


Yes the big players are there: Zeus, Hera, Apollo, Artemis, Chiron, Hercules, Hades, (etc) all of the characters one thinks of when the Greek Pantheon is mentioned. However, he has molded them into a new rendition without losing the characteristics we know and love. The action came and went in waves, and boy was that ending a doozy!


There were a few things that didn't thrill me. Zach clearly has a large vocabulary, and he likes to use it. Often it felt that the words were not that of a 16 year old boy, and it pulled me away from the story. At times the conversations between the characters came off as "cutesy" or contrived, but I also haven't been a teenage boy so I can't say for sure if this isn't just how they think and talk. I also spotted a few typos, and sometimes the sentence structure was rough. But that comes with the territory of self publishing. Most of them were easily glossed over and did not interfere with the flow of the story. The action built slowly, I really didn't get super hooked until the a little over halfway through, but near the end I couldn't stop!


I was pleasantly surprised at one of the creatures Gordie (Gordon Leonhart) has to face, I hadn't really seen one in Greek mythology much. He did not take after the Percy Jackson books in the main character's relation to the gods, but rather something unique. Gordie has all the hallmarks of an early hero, (including being impatient-which is an awesome trouble making characteristic) and I can't wait to read more of his adventures.


Now, I am waiting for something spectacular to come from his little girlfriend...like she's related to the gods as well. But I think I'll just keep hoping!


Overall I would give this book a strong 4/5 stars.


The links to Zach's webpage, and Good Reads page is below. I can't wait for the next installment, and hope maybe I can be a beta reader! ;)


http://heirofolympus.com/


https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/12175485.Zachary_Howe


He is also very active on Twitter, and replies regularly to tweets! Please add him and keep up with all the hilarity that ensues!
https://twitter.com/ZackEHowe

March (BONUS) Review- Self-Published Book

SURPRISE!! There's a bonus book review up this month! :)
There were just so many good self published books on my TBR shelf I couldn't help myself! Flames of Auriel is a new romance-fantasy book that was just released January 26 of this year. It was Erin Bedford's debut novel. The links to purchase, Good Reads, and Erin's social media will be below after the review. There's even a chance to win a FREE SIGNED copy!


The book blurb:
When living in a world where the prince isn’t always charming, the princess has a mean right hook, and angels are worshiped like gods, love isn’t always easy to find.

Zoe has never been the lady-like princess she's read about in fairy-tales, even with her very own handsome prince to sweep her off her feet. She doesn't know what she dislikes more, his arrogant smirk or the way his grey eyes darken when they fight. Angels help him if he thinks he could tame her.

Asher won't admit it, but he admires the fighting style of his warrior princess. She reminds him of an avenging angel the way her fiery hair whips around her as she takes out her challengers. Dark One help him, but she is as tough an opponent on the battlefield as she is off.

With unknown and unwanted feelings starting to emerge between the two royals, a single goodbye turns into a frantic search for a missing princess. Asher has to find the one woman he never thought he’d miss and keep his kingdom safe from an old enemy. If he fails, the angels may not forgive him this time.  


Sounds exciting, right? I was so pumped to read this book I even had the shipping expedited from Amazon! (So this review is completely honest and not influenced from receiving a free copy as I paid for it myself.)


*WARNING*WARNING* WARNING*WARNING*WARNING*WARNING*WARNING*


There is literally no way for me to talk about this book without talking about topics and plot points that are spoiler-y in nature. So if the above looks interesting, please go read the book first. I MEAN IT!


I'll just wait right here...
...
...
...
...


OK? Ready to start?


Sweet!


The story opens with the arranged marriage between Princess Zoella, and Prince Asher. Many years ago there was a war (the Celestial War) that forced Zoella's father -King Brom- to assist Asher's. Sadly Asher lost his father, and their kingdom lost a great king. After this war, the Angels became upset and took away their blessings of special powers to their people. In order to strengthen the alliances and borders against another invasion, the widowed Queen Marie, and King Brom arrange to have their children married when they come of age.


Talk about setting up the story with punch and tension! Sadly, I am a huge fan of the movie The Swan Princess and it felt like the beginning was an "adult" version. The plot even had the princess missing for a chunk of the book as in the movie. I had the songs from that movie playing in my head...ugh. Oh well. Having an arranged marriage where the people involved hate the idea is a great way to increase tension, especially when the safety of large amounts of people are at risk.


So lets dive in to characterization. While I enjoyed the story, and couldn't wait to see what happened next, I am not in love with any of the main characters. Zoella is the brash, headstrong, tomboy princess, and Asher is the strong-willed, snotty, conniving prince. They argue a lot. No, that's not going to work...ALOT. Even after they admit they have feelings for each other, they constantly poke and prod and make the other upset. This bothered me quite a bit. I get it, they bump heads. That doesn't mean that they are allowed to argue over everything and purposely upset the other.


Some of their interactions bordered on abusive. Including a scene where Asher nearly forces himself upon her. It was a very hard scene to read as it was almost a rape scene. I understand what Bedford was going for. She wanted high tension, and to show that these two characters were essentially the same, but I felt at times it was over the top. One such example that sticks out:


Asher wants Zoe to confirm her feelings for him. So he arranges for one of his little whores to get caught providing a service for him in the training supply room where he knows Zoe is bound to find them. This I felt was a classless move, and if it hadn't happened I might have grown to like him. But as it stands I really don't feel bad for him when things go south in the book.


The only character that I really loved was Rebekah. She is the gypsy that helps Zoe hide in plain sight as a knife throwing act under the name "Josephine" or "Joe". She is spunky, has attitude in buckets, and in my opinion is a complete scene stealer! I can't wait to read more about her.


The world building is done very well. Angels that are "assigned" a kingdom to protect is an amazing concept! I wanted to know more. Especially about the Fire Starters and how they functioned before Auriel took away their power! I imagine them being something like a Fire Bender from Avatar the Last Air Bender. How many other regions and kingdoms have special abilities?!?! I must know!


The political intrigue was strong, but not overwhelming like in The Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin. I actually liked it. When a story gets too in depth with political movements I get bored and skim. I not once skimmed this book. I rapidly absorbed everything, and eagerly await to see how the entire story plays out!


The voice of this novel was strong throughout. Though at times it was hard to follow the story when Bedford shifted out of characters heads at will. While Asher and Zoe are the main characters, in the span of two pages the reader shifts between four characters POV without any kind of warning. It was a bit disruptive and made me read a few pages twice as I got confused as to whose mind I was in and who was speaking.


Overall I really enjoyed this book! I think it is a great debut novel, and I can't wait to preorder the others!!


I am giving this story a 3.5 out of 5 stars, as well as a PG-13 rating due to the fighting and sexual content.


Erin is doing a giveaway now through the 23rd for a FREE signed copy! Please follow the link below and enter to win!!
http://erinbedford.com/giveaway
You can reach out to Erin Bedford, and order this book through the links below!
Goodreads- https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27227149-flames-of-auriel
Amazon- http://www.amazon.com/Flames-Auriel-Caeles-Adventure-1/dp/1517089220/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=
Website- http://www.erinbedford.com/
Twitter- https://twitter.com/erin_bedford

March Review - Self Published Book

Cat, Charmed  is the second in the Whitfield Witch series by sisters Christine Cacciatore and Jennifer Starkman. After finishing Baylyn, Bewtiched I could not wait to start the second book. It did not disappoint!


The synopsis from Amazon:
Cat is a woman who loves control. Her world is turned upside down when she is suddenly gifted with magical powers she did not ask for. Her control shattered, she turns to the one thing she insists she doesn't need in her life--hot, handsome Devin Hughes. Despite his playboy ways, he's working his way into her heart...a heart she didn't know could love, or trust, again. Is he attracted to her because of her wayward spell? Or could it be, just maybe, she's ready for the love she deserves?




This book centers around Baylyn's best friend Cat, who thanks to events in the first book, is now a witch. Becoming a witch sounds like a good thing, until it goes haywire. Cat has an affinity for making a chair into a praying mantis, and when she spells for cheese a little Frenchman shows up as well.


Unfortunately thanks to how she got the powers, and her backstory, everything is not what it seems and she struggles. I really resonated with Cat as I have control issues, and was once in an abusive relationship. Granted, I was never physically hurt, nor was I married to the guy, but I saw some of myself in Cat. Because of this connection I felt more for Cat than I did for Baylyn. I really liked that it was more than "fun and games" in this book. While this book was once again a light hearted, easy read, it touched on some larger, darker issues.


I loved that they brought Reynard back, what an ass! I was wondering where he slunk off to. And having Bud in it? That was fantastic and leant an edge of danger to the books.  I like that everything is not fluff, there are some aspects to this book that make it much more than just a silly romance.


What I didn't love was how short the book was! The book covers an entire year, yet is small enough to read in one sitting. (Probably like 4-6 hours depending on how fast you read) The chapters are short, and they keep you moving. I would have much preferred to see more of the characters than what we are allowed to see. I also wanted to see more of Baylyn and Declan. I know this isn't their book, but I would have loved to see more of how they worked things out.


The romance and relationship between Cat and Devin is awesome, and so realistic. People really do mess up, misinterpret, and overreact in the moment. Again, I wanted to see more at the end of who things are going to go.


These books would make an awesome hallmark movie! I would totally watch it over and over again. I can't wait to read the next in the series, Elise, Evermore when it comes out. I highly recommend these books if someone wants a good read that will suck you in, and leave you feeling light at the end.


5/5 stars from me!


The link to the book on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JD03I8Y/ref=x_gr_w_visstd_sin_t1_control_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_visstd_sin_t1_control_bb-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00JD03I8Y&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2

February Review- Self Published Book

Just in time for Valentines day, my first self published book review happens to be a romance!


At the Madison Writer's Conference last year, I attended a lecture featuring self-published authors, and sisters, Christine Cacciatore & Jennifer Starkman. At the time I was just getting my feet wet in the self-publishing world, and these ladies were wonderful. Their talk was fun and chock full of information. I made a note to purchase both of their books as they sounded like great reads. So, almost a year later...I finally did! Their first novel is Baylyn, Bewitched and is it bewitching!


The synopsis from Amazon:


Baylyn Travers is a witch, wand and all, but no one knows. Magic has interfered with her dating in the past, and trust issues have kept her from true love. The quirky librarian falls hard for sexy Declan Hughes and the feeling is mutual. Will Declan still feel the same when he finds out Bay's biggest secret? After all, it's not every day you find out your girlfriend is a witch.


This book,  though deceptively small, is really something. And before I get too much farther, there will be a few spoilers, though I will try to keep them to a minimum as I don't want to completely ruin the story!


The story started out well enough, like all romance seem to. Baylyn even has all the hallmarks of a woman who really has no interest in men based on her life experiences. (Aside: men can be pigs, but ladies can be pigs too!) Though having magic in the mix certainly does set this book apart! The opening scene when Baylyn meets Declan is really something. Throughout the entire book I felt like Baylyn was my friend. Just like any "normal" Midwestern girl would be. Her exclamations and observations of the world around her was so spot on, it was great.


I would have liked a bit more description of the town around her, maybe even a brief layout of the library she works at. I've seen a lot of different libraries with vastly different architecture, and it would have been fun to "see" where she works. Even her home seems glossed over in favor of the interactions between the characters.


Which is great. I not once felt that the dialogue was forced, or that the people acted out of character. If they did happen to act out of character there is always a reason. *coughs* Magic *coughs*
The magic system in this book is fantastic. Even though the magic seems almost an afterthought, I got the distinct impression that there was a rich backstory and world building done. It seeps through the pages in casual remarks or thoughts that some of the characters have.


This read extremely quickly, drawing you in from the start. I would have liked to see the book be a bit longer. Several months take place during the short book, and some events are glossed over. There were also a few typos present, but as a fellow Indie Author, it's hard to find all the little buggers! Nothing detracted from the story though, so they were easily glossed over.


Baylyn, Bewitched isn't your typical romance, and they have easily set up the next few books in the series. This book has tons of cute, hair pulling, cringe-worthy, "Ah-ha!", and loving moments. And boy, did those sisters get the feelings of love down pat! I think they both must have met their soul mates to be able to understand the feelings. Even to describe them.


I would recommend this book to any and everyone! 5/5 stars from me.


Link to the book on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Baylyn-Bewitched-Whitfield-Witch-1/dp/1496143930/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=












*psssst* my second book is now available on Amazon. Be sure to get in on the epic-ness of the Incalescent Trilogy from the beginning!
 http://www.amazon.com/Through-Mountains-Chronicles-Incalescent-Trilogy/dp/1512254967/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452630467&sr=8-1&keywords=Through+the+Mountains

January Book Review!

Welcome to the first of hopefully many reviews! These will focus on self published or small press published books. I may throw in a traditionally published book every now and again, but I want to focus on the more "Indie" types of publishing. I know that promotion for "Indie" books can be hard to come by, so I want to help others as much as I can!


The first book up is actually an anthology from a small press. The anthology is titled: Psychopomps: Shepherds of the Dead. The publisher is Misch Masch Books, if you would like to check them out: http://mischmaschbooks.com/
The Anthology is made up of 4 original short stories, and 4 stories (or selections of stories) from writers past. Honestly I only read the original (new) stories, as several of the selected pieces I have read before, so that is what I am basing my review on. Further, each story will be broken down with each individual rating and comments.
As long as I'm being honest I would like to add that while I did receive this book free, it was through a blind giveaway, and was not given out for the purpose of a review. The lovely Raychel Rose, check her out here: https://raychelrose.wordpress.com/ , ran the giveaway, and I actually won! (If you don't know me, I never win anything, so I was shocked)


The first story that I read was Little Bundle of Death by Ben Lane Hodson.
Here is the blurb from Goodreads: "A teenage girl's fight to save her newborn brother from the phantom of death who seeks to steal his soul."
Sounds pretty interesting, right? The description really grabbed me. The story was extremely well paced and kept the reader engaged. The girls in the story "won" the day with only their mettle, and did not have any special abilities. A gripe that I had was I never really got a good understanding of what the girls looked like, nor how old they were. There were also a few instances of grammar mistakes, and wrong word typos. The description of the "bad" guys though...that was fantastic! As was the mythology that was throughout the story. I would have liked a bit more information about why the girls weren't put to sleep in the first place, and unable to wake like everyone else. And the ending was fantastic and there was some mystery left.
Overall this story was a 3/5 stars for me.


The second story was The Sea of Ghosts by Rachel Rose.
The blurb from Goodreads:  "A pirate's redemption from infernum to aeternus with the guidance of a sea reaper mermaid."
This story drew me in from the get go. The only thing that gave me pause was that it is written in first person- of which I am not usually a fan. However, with that said, the descriptions of surroundings and of the other characters were amazing. Using a historically  accurate event as the basis of the story was fantastic. Everything had a jumping off point, and I felt that it really grounded the story. There were a few typos, and the word "skit" was used a few times. I actually had to look it up. Compared with the other words used in the story it seemed oddly out of place and stuck out to me. The ending, while awesome, did tend to tie things up simply. Which can be great, but after everything in the story I didn't think that would happen. Plus, the idea that mermaids are sea reapers? I had never heard that before. I love, love, loved the mythology that was used in this story.
Bottom line? This story was a 4/5 stars for me.


The third story was Mobile Dusters by E.W. Fainsworth.
The blurb from Goodreads: "A Corpse Duster's initiative to out-program death."
Honestly, this was the most disappointing story out of all of them. I felt absolutely no attachment to the main character. Not joy, happiness, or sympathy. Simply nothing. The story felt very post-apocalyptic which seems to have saturated the market. Most, if not all, of the important events happen "off screen", and we are told about it later. Very bland voice, almost monotone. The one uptick for this story was that I found no typos!
Overall, it was a 1.5/5 stars for me.


The fourth, and final new story is The Resurrectionist's Kiss by Cindy Grigg
The blurb from Goodreads: "A British soldier's escape from limbo after his Valkyrie goes rogue."
This was the story when I read the blurb that I immediately got excited about. I LOVE mythology, especially Norse mythology. And this story did not disappoint. The legends were very well done, and included in the story line. As this was set in a historic period the use of "shishkebabed", while appropriate for the situation, felt out of place. I think this story was the shortest of them, but it packed the most into its length. I was left wondering a few things though: such as would a catholic priest have a son? And how someone can "frown in approval"? There were a few typos scattered about, but nothing too terrible. I absolutely loved the use of the Valkyrie and the cameo of Hel. Their descriptions were well done, and I was left with wanting to know what happened next.
I would give this story a 3.5/5 stars.


So, this review may be a little more awkward and longer, than a normal book review since it was an anthology. I hope to start a general format with the next month's post, and get you readers acquainted with how I review books.


Until next month, keep reading! :)