Monthly Archives: July 2015

Book Review: Bound by Duty (Bound Series Book 1) by Stormy Smith

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Bound by Duty (Bound Series Book 1) by Stormy Smith

A Contemporary YA Fantasy/Romance Novel published by Perfect Storm Publishing, LLC  (07/23/2014)

 

Summary:

Since she was born, Amelia has been promised to the Prince, the son of evil Queen Julia. Amelia herself is no Princess, but she is an Elder, one with magical abilities. Her father never wanted her to practice her magic or to leave the safety of their home, to wait out the years until she turned twenty one and had to fulfill her promise to wed the prince. All Amelia thinks she wants is a few years of normalcy, so she leaves home and safety to go to college. At first she only has one human friend, Bethany, but then she meets Aidan. He is gorgeous, but she holds back, knowing she is not free to choose for love. Still, Aidan relentlessly pursues her until she can no longer say no. Amelia’s life has changed so much since she left home, but there are quite a few more surprises ahead for her.

Keywords:

 Magic, Mage, Family, Secrets, Loyalty, Prince, Queen, Evil, Promises, Mate, Best Friend, Brother, MMA, Power, Animages

My Review:

 

Amelia, Micah and Cole keep important and relevant information from each other for apparently no other reason than a “feeling.” This does create plot items, but ultimately doesn’t feel real.

I want to love the main character but at best she was likeable. She was easily overpowered by her own anger and inner magic. She was often selfish to the point of putting others at risk. She didn’t have much of a chance in this book to show if she was romantic or nice (except when she was guilted into remembering she had a best friend etc. and to be nice). She wasn’t mean or cruel, per se, but she wasn’t overwhelmingly friendly. This ties into the boy girl romance aspect I roll my eyes at in most books with a romance. Why does Aidan like her, why does he persist in trying to win her over? Subsequently why does Amelia like Aidan, only because he chose her? There isn’t anything special about him, other than the fact that he likes her, or is there? The author hints and drops clues as to the effect under the skin that Aidan has on Ame, his effect on her magic, the intense way she feels. Still, it was too much love at first sight for me.

My favorite character was Bethany. She was the most interesting of the bunch, and human at that. Bethany was a southern belle, a pageant queen, a beauty prone to mild forms of drama. I can just imagine her being so lively and animated and stealing the spotlight for this book.

Amelia’s story about how she wants to be normal is the main story, but she is also part of a greater and more intriguing story that she is a large part of.

This novel was published by Perfect Storm Publishing, LLC  07/23/2014 and is available on Amazon here.

 

TLDR Star Rating: 4.0

 

Links for more information:

Goodreads

Stormy Smith’s Website

Twitter

Book Review: The Badlings by Ksenia Anske

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The Badlings by Ksenia Anske

A YA Fantasy Novel published by Ksenia Anske(07/07/15)

 

Summary:

Bells, Grand, Peacock and Rusty fall into a book, but not just any book, the Book of Dead Pages AKA Mad Tome. Within Mad Tome reside all the pages that people didn’t finish reading and all the characters who are tired of continuously playing out those pages over and over again. Bells and her friends discover a world of books that have ulterior motives. Are these Badling children here by accident or were they lured into this imaginative world for another purpose? But hey, since books aren’t ‘real’ and Mad Tome is just a collection of pages torn out of other books they should be able to escape easily, right? After hopping through quite a number of stories and meeting quite a number of characters Bells and her buddies will discover that it’s not as easy to escape after all.

 

Keywords:

Books, Rude Children, Badlings, Goodlings, Morbid Thoughts, Imagination, Doughnuts, Alice in Wonderland, Snow Queen, A Little Prince, Bluebeard, Masque of the Red Death, Sinbad, flying mattresses, Jungle Book, Don Quixote, Dracula, The Little Black Hen.

 

My Review:

Rusty and I both like doughnuts. Bells and I both don’t how to pick our fights as we choose to battle every time. Grand and I both ramble on when people don’t necessarily want to listen anymore. Sometimes I just want to be noticed, like Peacock. Ksenia Anske builds characters that may be completely different from her readers, but they always have something you can hold onto as a characteristic you can relate to. Which is good, because sometimes her storylines become entirely peculiar.

Anske is a bit like Louis Sachar in that her characters are young and whiny and whimsical. Anske is a bit like Neil Gaiman in that she crafts a story that has creative rhyme and reason to the imaginative twists. Anske is a bit like Lewis Carroll in that the reader can’t quite tell what is real and what is false. In The Badlings, Ksenia Anske gives me some of what I longed for in the Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde. The Badlings is young adult and references books I’ve actually read, unlike Eyre Affair with its snooty books for adults.
The Badlings began with a neat little twist, like a less sinister (or so I thought) Jumanji that was all about books! Four kids find an object (a book) and it does something completely out of the ordinary (pulls them in). From there Anske does things a little bit differently. I appreciated the fact that there is a subtle theme for holding books sacred and that you shouldn’t just throw them here or there and that you MUST FINISH THEM or be regarded as a Badling. Everybody should strive to be a Goodling.

I recommend this book for anyone who enjoys the whimsical imagination of Neil Gaiman or appreciates books.

This novel was published by Ksenia Anske July 7th, 2015 and is available on Ksenia Anske’s Website here.

 

TL;DR Star Rating: 4.75

 

Links for more information:

Ksenia Anske’s Website

Goodreads

Book Review: My Bittersweet Summer by Starla Huchton

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My Bittersweet Summer by Starla Huchton

A New Adult/Contemporary Novel published by Amazon Digital Services, Inc. (05/07/15)

Summary:

Margie was bullied relentlessly as a child. It was only when her family moved that she was able to slowly recover and become a stronger and more put together person. It took her six years to gain back her confidence and decrease her panic attacks, but it takes all of one look at the boys who were her biggest tormentors to tear down all the defenses she’d built up. She needs a letter of recommendation from the new chef at the restaurant her parents work at, so she can’t just leave. One boy in particular, Zack, keeps bothering her. He isn’t the bully she used to know, but can she get over the fear she still has of him and the others and of getting hurt again?

Keywords:

Bullying, Strength, Panic Attacks, Restaurants, Chef, Cooking, Summer, Summer Job, Promise of Paris, New England, Romance, Perseverance, Victim, Second Chances, Becoming a Better Person

My Review:

Starla Huchton has done it again. I couldn’t put down My Bittersweet Summer. The book flowed from beginning to end and held its tension and my attention throughout the entirety of the story.

I always love Huchton’s characters. Margie has so much personality and her past, though only told in bits and pieces throughout her present day life, is so alive for the reader. The events in Margie’s past made her who she is and shaped who she has become. Present Margie is a product of Past Margie, but she has worked hard to become a new Margie. Going back to the place where her bullies tormented her would break anyone. Margie is not a super human, she is susceptible to bouts of panic and emotion when she has to confront the same bullies all grown up. She reacts with words and even her fist at one point, but there are other factors that keep her from losing all control. She can’t beat up the restaurant owner’s son. She can’t kill her chance to get that recommendation. She can’t let her parents down. She’s forced to confront her fears and her tormenters and to rise to the challenge Zack presents.

Zack. I love a person who is trying to be a better person. He has a lot of past to overcome as one of those that stood by and let Margie get bullied. The ones who do nothing are just as guilty as those who are at the front of the assault. Zack has a lot to make up for and the way he tries is super sweet. I loved all his gestures and how hard he tried.

I absolutely love Starla’s style and the story of My Bittersweet Summer.

This novel was published by Amazon Digital Services, Inc. on May 7th, 2015 and is available on Amazon here.

TL;DR Star Rating: 5.00

Links for more information:

Starla Huchton’s Website

Goodreads

Book Review: Progeny (The Endure Series Book 3) by S.A. Huchton

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Progeny (The Endure Series Book 3) by S.A. Huchton

A Sci-Fi/New Adult/Romance Novel published by Amazon Digital Services, Inc. (12/07/13)

 

Summary:

“’We always have a choice, Dr. Ashley. It’s what we do with the options we’re given that’s important.’” (Kindle Location 423).
“’You can’t blame yourself for putting people into a dangerous situation you didn’t create.’” (Kindle Locations 3297-3298).

Book three picks up after a bit of time from the end of Nemesis. Lydia has been gone long enough for them to send Dr. Nick back after lack of funding for both off-Endure researchers and she is now by herself in what may became potential enemy territory. With what she has learned and how she thinks Daniel feels, Lydia feels more alone than she’s ever felt before. She continues working on the cure to the bacteria she was studying on the Endure, but is plagued by doubt about everything and everyone. Has she left Daniel for good, or will this genius power couple get back together, even after knowing what they know about each other?

 

Keywords:

Genetics, genius, underwater, tough, instability, romance, love, hormones, leader, kick-butt female, sex, fighting, training, good guys, testing, banter, skills, technology, hackers, subaquatic living, scientists, the hard way, Marine Biochemistry, Nobel Laureate, ship-shape, selective breeding

My Review:

The reveals are grandiose in this book and the lengths both Daniel and Lydia will go for love are insane. The tension has been building from book one and we get the exciting third book of all hell breaks loose! Some conflicts are resolved, but the grand plotline, the good versus evil theme is still ongoing and yet to be concluded in this third novel. THIS IS NOT A TRILOGY. Progeny is not the final book. Huchton leaves the book with her greatest cliffhanger of the Endure series.

The greater plotline that’s fully revealed in this third book of the series is quite a doozy, meandering in and out of the gray area of genetic manipulation and selective breeding. But Huchton makes it personal. She brings a hypothetical (I hope) scientific concept to life right in front of your eyes with one of her characters and you are in the midst of the emotional ride as this gray area plays out. Who will win in the end? Will there be any winners? This third book is the most apocalyptic of the series, as it delves into possibilities that Huchton might explore in book four concerning a major decrease in population! She pulls out all the stops for this book, but looking back you know she had some of these greater designs in mind from the beginning. There were hints. There were clues. Hopefully in book four we get the conclusion we’ve been looking for.

This novel was published by Amazon Digital Services, Inc. on December 25th, 2013 and is available on Amazon here.

 

TL;DR Star Rating: 4.50

 

Links for more information:

Starla Huchton’s Website

Goodreads

Book Review: Nemesis (The Endure Series, book 2) by S.A. Huchton

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Nemesis (The Endure Series, book 2) by S.A. Huchton

A Sci-Fi/New Adult/Romance Novel published by Amazon Digital Services, Inc. (08/25/13)

 

Summary:

“The last thing she needed or wanted was more complications in her life. And Nicholas Miller was one big ball of drama waiting to happen.” (Kindle Locations 1214-1216).

Nemesis picks up right where Maven left off, in the middle of a great conflict between the Maven Initiative (the bad guys) and those on the Endure wishing to combat the great evil that wants to unleash a deadly disease on humanity. Only, the Maven Initiative hasn’t set off the deadly bacteria, that even though they hold a kill switch, they have to develop a cure for the disease. They enlist Lydia for her Marine Biochemistry abilities and she works as a double agent, trying to both cure the disease and take down the Initiative. It isn’t until she stumbles on a large hole to the puzzle, that Lydia finds out she has been targeted by the Initiative longer than she expected.

 

Keywords:

Genetics, genius, underwater, tough, instability, romance, love, hormones, leader, kick-butt female, sex, fighting, training, good guys, testing, banter, skills, technology, hackers, subaquatic living, scientists, the hard way, Marine Biochemistry, Nobel Laureate, ship-shape

 

My Review:

Many new complications arise in this second book in the Endure series. We see a new love interest (old flame) and competition arrives for both Lydia and Daniel. The face of evil that is known as Dr. Burkovitz and the Maven Initiative reveals some surprising developments. The places they are willing to go in their evil plan knows no bounds and Lydia is caught up in the middle of it all.

Huchton really throws on the tension in this book. There are so many new complications and plot twists, but they all fit seamlessly together. Hints from book one and the beginning of book two come alive as their own sub-plots and intricacies.

The characters get more development and depth and we are introduced to the newest complications: Dr. Gorgeous (Nick Miller) and the Mistress of Sarcasm (Anna Corvis). These two characters inflict quite a bit of damage to Lydia and Daniel’s relationship, especially as the two don’t seem to be able to communicate all their feelings to each other. The Maven Initiative’s surprise throws another wrench into Lydia and Daniel’s relationship. Really, almost everything in this book tears at their relationship, threatening to come between the greatest love ever seen on the Endure.

It is in this book in particular that any normal human being will feel lazy and stupid in comparison to the genius workaholics presented in the characters of Daniel and Lydia as well as almost every character on the Endure and beyond.

Huchton also shows us that even a genius can be normal when it comes to human emotions and trying to communicate and endure under great hardships and terrible surprises.

The end of this book is heart wrenching and gut rending and you must immediately continue on with book three of this series (Progeny).

This novel was published by Amazon Digital Services, Inc. on August 25th, 2013 and is available on Amazon here.

 

TL;DR Star Rating: 4.75

 

Links for more information:

Starla Huchton’s Website

Goodreads

Book Review: Maven (The Endure Series Book 1) by S.A. Huchton

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Maven (The Endure Series Book 1) by S.A. Huchton

A Sci-Fi/New Adult/Romance Novel published by Amazon Digital Services, Inc. (06/02/13)

 

Summary:

 

“How was she supposed to juggle saving the world and a social life?” (Page 112).

Lydia has been waiting six years to board the Deep Water Research Command Endure and to meet the famed Daniel Brewer, a fellow young genius like herself. Lydia is a Doctor of Marine Biochemistry and a Nobel Laureate in her twenties and she has longed to find someone similar to herself, another prodigy of sorts, but Daniel doesn’t even hit the radar of her expectations when they first meet. He was too busy with his newest female conquest to do his job of meeting her and this poor first impression does not immediately endear him to the Lydia the workaholic. This isn’t the only complication Lydia encounters aboard the Endure, there are greater things afoot that she concentrates on while Daniel attempts his greatest challenge yet: Lydia.

 

Keywords:

Genetics, genius, underwater, tough, instability, romance, love, hormones, leader, kick-butt female, sex, fighting, training, good guys, testing, banter, skills, technology, hackers, subaquatic living, scientists, the hard way, Marine Biochemistry, Nobel Laureate, ship-shape

 

My Review:

With her Endure Series, Huchton has written a great science fiction romance series for adults. Unlike her Evolution Series, which was more geared toward a younger adult audience, the Endure Series follows an older protagonist (albeit a twenty-something emergent adult) who just happens to be a child prodigy and genius with elevated maturity.

The Endure Series is also hyper focused on the science fiction aspect of marine biochemistry and the strict environment on board the Endure (Research Command in military style). There were quite a few unknown terms to the layman involving the environment of the Endure and the science fiction aspect of the story, but this specificity did not take away from the story Huchton writes.

The romance Huchton builds is powerful and intertwines between and amongst the science fiction aspects of the book as well as the overarching plotline and menace to the world of the protagonists. The way this romance is built and sustained is breathtaking and phenomenal. If you are a fan of romance, this book will give you that and so much more besides. Side note: There was a lot of nefarious adult activity going on in this book with medium depth level of description during these adult scenes, but it was told in a very masterful manner with a level of love involved that you can only swoon and hope for in real life.

I thought the POV switching between Lydia and Daniel was seamless and definitely added to the character and complexity of the novel. For someone who always wants to know what the other guy is thinking, this technique Huchton employs fills this need perfectly.

As this is the first in a series, the book ends on a high-tension cliff hanger on many of the plot points and I would highly suggest reading this book and immediately reading the second book (Nemesis) in the series.

This novel was published by Amazon Digital Services, Inc. on June 2nd, 2013 and is available on Amazon here.

 

TL;DR Star Rating: 4.50

 

Links for more information:

Starla Huchton’s Website

Goodreads

Flora’s Last Chance for Magic – WIP progress update

by in Flora's Last Chance for Magic, Miscellaneous Mondays, Rachel Barnard

Flora’s Last Chance for Magic: (working summary)

Flora wanted to be an artist, but artists without strong magic are not taken seriously. Flora has to find her magic, but every time she tries something new it backfires. Her best friend Sebastian is not concerned with magic, only finding his real parents and Flora has a hard time taking him seriously. Magic is everything. Magic is important. Magic is how you are adopted. Sebastian was adopted before he got his magic because he had potential. Flora has no potential, only a love of art, and no prospective parents will want to adopt her. Stuck in a group home, Flora’s only chance for a future is to discover what’s been inside herself all along, and it’s not just magic.

Progress Update: Flora is at about 25k words! Projected word count is between 40-60k, so I’d say I’m about halfway done writing Flora’s Last Chance for Magic. Yay! I’m fairly certain I’ve nailed down the title, what do you think? I kept forgetting if it was Flora Finds her Magic or Flora’s Last Chance for Magic, but I like the latter better. What do you think?

Writing: As I stated, Flora is at approximately 25k words. I’ve been editing heavily the beginning with my critique group and editing as I go by myself. I also wrote a fairly concise outline that’s helping me stay on track and helping Flora’s first draft to be as excellent as it can.

Cover: I flirted with a website called selfpubbookcovers.com, do you guys like this one linked here for the cover?

Beta Readers: I have enough beta readers for my projected two rounds of beta reading, but would always love a few more. If you’re interested in reading this lovely middle grade sci fi/fantasy book, let me know.

Marketing: I have some great back end things for this book, such as book questions, a fun magic/career aptitude test that anyone can take, and a genetic abilities scale research paper report. I have not yet started marketing for this book, however, my plan is to submit it to a few publishers that accept unsolicited manuscripts and perhaps the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award Contest. Know any great publishers for this type of book? I’d love to know!

Flora’s Last Chance for Magic Snippet from Chapter five:

Flora left Seb’s house well before her curfew so she would have enough time to walk across town back to Last Chance. She didn’t want to take the public bus, because people stared at her. Walking had become habit for Flora and she relished being outdoors. The greens were so green and the browns were quite brown. Sebastian was really cool and Flora was glad he had decided to welcome her into his house and to be her work partner for the genealogy project.

Sebastian only knew a few things about his real parents and Flora didn’t think he had enough information to go on to find them. He had explained the genetic magical matching principle to her and she kind of understood it now. It would be super easy to match Seb up to his parents once he got his magic. She was amazed he wasn’t as anxious as she was to get her magic, since it could help him find his parents and he really wanted to find them.

His adoptive parents were like the Pr’aps that came around every once in a while looking to adopt a kid with good magical potential. Flora could see that they weren’t good parents for Seb, but they were probably just disappointed in their investment. Seb was good at nothing. He had tried almost everything and shown no propensities for any particular specialty. If he got his magic, it would be a tossup what he did in life. If you got magic late in life you didn’t get the choice of a career, though, society chose for you.

Flora would not let that happen. She needed her magic. Without it, she couldn’t be an artist.

 

Disneyland and Business

by in Seattle Specific Saturdays and tagged , , , , , , , , ,

Disney1

I went to Disneyland last weekend! Jealous?

Day one at Disneyland:  unnamed (11) unnamed (10) unnamed (6) unnamed (9) unnamed (8) unnamed (7)

 

Day two at Paradise Pier for QA training: unnamed unnamed (1) unnamed (2)

 

Day three at Paradise Pier for QA training: unnamed (3) unnamed (4)

 

Day four, traveling home: unnamed (5)

 

Disney2

As soon as I got into the park on Sunday (around 9:30 AM) I snagged a fast pass for Space Mountain (11:55-12:55 return time). Then headed over to Splash Mountain, waited two minutes in the Single Rider line and hopped in. Not like I remembered, the ride was stopped multiple times in the middle due to “log jams up ahead” which really killed the mood. The same ‘log jam’ happened during the Haunted Mansion, which I hit up next due to short estimated wait time. Pirates of the Caribbean was next and it was ho hum. It was about time to use my fast pass! Zoom near the front of the line with only a twenty versus seventy minute wait time (thanks fast pass!). Space Mountain is THE BEST ride at Disneyland and I highly recommend doing it more than once. I finished my day by Single Riding the Matterhorn Bobsleds (not worth a wait over 10 minutes), Star Tours (the only ride that made me feel nauseous) and Indian Jones.