Category Archives: Book Review

Book Review: Broken Prince (The Broken Ones Book 2) by Jen Wylie

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Broken Prince (The Broken Ones Book 2) by Jen Wylie

A Low Fantasy/Fiction Novel published by Untold Press (01/16/14)

Summary:

“Whatever would happen, would happen. She couldn’t change anything.” (Kindle Location 5765).
“I… Sometimes I can do things I shouldn’t be able to.” (Kindle Locations 5570-5571).

After deciding to take Prince back to his home and holing up in a small town over the winter, Aro, Bo, Cain, Prince, and Kei are back on the road. Stopping in a town to re-supply they are under siege again. Getting separated in the escape from the city, Aro finds a new friend to add to her family, but time is running out for Prince and Aro will stop at nothing to save him. She will go so far as to anger the King of the Were and upset the Elves. Aro’s one goal is to get Prince back to Rivenward and the healing safety of his own realm. Or will she be blinded by her own feelings for Prince?

Keywords:

Fighting, War, Tension, Female Protagonist, Tragedy, Romance, Love, Friendship, Loyalty, Family, Travel, Escape, Protection, Lies, Danger, Death, Grief, Training, Travel

My Review:

The opening of this second book in the series parallels that of book one, but the stakes are much higher. There are more characters in Aro’s family and though her brothers were family to her in book one, the reader understands how important all the characters are in the start of Broken Prince. There is more for Aro to lose, more to break her down.

The pacing of book two was not as enticing as the pacing in book one. Book two was more focused on Aro’s pack traveling toward the Elven realm and the confusion that Aro, Prince, and Kei’s emotions caused during that journey. The pacing became somewhat stagnant and not as varied as the first book though the story and the ticking time bomb with Prince held my attention. The question of Aro’s happiness and Prince making up his mind kept the reader focused and kept up the tension throughout this second book.

The overall plot grew within this book, building up the tension with the “prophecy” and Damon had more of a role (interfering Dragos!). The author played with prophecy, fate and free will as well as control versus helplessness. Aro was much more in control and much more helpless to things outside her control than ever before! Aro has grown as a character even more in this book, rising to ever increasing challenges. She was also fighting more against her own anger than despair at helplessness. But the recurrence of the environment and outside forces against Aro became rather repetitive.

This novel was published by Untold Press January 16th, 2014 and is available on Amazon here.

TLDR Star Rating: 4.00

Links for more information:

Goodreads

Jen Wylie’s Website

Twitter

Book Review: Broken Aro (The Broken Ones Book 1) by Jen Wylie

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Broken Aro (The Broken Ones Book 1) by Jen Wylie

A Low Fantasy/Fiction Novel published by Untold Press (09/14/12)

Summary:

“Aro, you must understand things always have a price.” (Page 106).

Aro grew up with many brothers in a town where even she was trained to fight. She will have to grow up fast when their city is attacked and fighting won’t be enough. After getting taken by slavers, survival takes on an entirely different meaning. The only way out is to escape and the only way to escape is to make friends with the strangers chained in the ship with her.

 

Keywords:

Fighting, War, Tension, Female Protagonist, Tragedy, Romance, Love, Friendship, Loyalty, Family, Travel, Escape, Ship, Slavers, Protection, Lies, Danger, Sickness, Death, Grief

My Review:

After the immediate tension and action of the beginning of the book, the pacing settled into a natural rhythm. There was intrigue. There was heartbreak. There was a girl who wanted to prove herself but when push came to shove it wasn’t enough. She couldn’t keep those she loved from disaster.

I wanted to dislike this book. Aro was so capable (in her own head) but so helpless when it mattered in the first few pages. She was a damsel in distress. She became instantly devoted to her love triangle. She cried. A lot.

It was the story and the tension that pulled me along. Aro had so much room to grow in this book. And she does. She grows throughout this book, in good ways and sad ways. Tragedy has a way of doing that to people. Aro was brave. Aro was amazing. Aro was not the damsel in distress she seemed at first.

The love triangle was not what it seemed at first either. The only part that still has me baffled is how much Aro gravitated toward Kei and how fast this devotion took hold of her. I was glad that the romance/love triangle did not dominate this book. There was a good balance of romance, personal reflection and growth, action, and story/plot.

This is a great book for people who want to dip their toes into fantasy, who want a well told story, or who want a female heroine who they can relate to (even in a fantastical setting, and who want the essence of a love triangle without being overwhelmed with a teen romance.

This novel was published by Untold Press September 14th, 2012 and is available on Amazon here.

TLDR Star Rating: 4.25

Links for more information:

Goodreads

Jen Wylie’s Website

Twitter

Book Review: Emerge: the Awakening by Melissa A. Craven

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Emerge: the Awakening by Melissa A. Craven

A Paranormal Novel published by Midnight Hour Studio (03/31/2015)

 

Summary:

“Immortality doesn’t come cheap.” (Page 149).

Allie is different. Her family is different. She won’t know how unique she really is until she finds that even amongst the other immortals she is in a class all her own. After moving again and again as a child with her adopted family, they finally move back to their home town and Allie, who had never fit in before, immediately is welcomed by a group of teenagers who are not as normal as they let on.

 

Keywords:

Paranormal, Power, Immortals, Mortals, Connection, Loyalty, Friendship, Ignorance, Pain, Fighting, Violence, Torture, Coalition, Control, Love

 

My Review:

It wasn’t the paranormal part of this book that bothered me so much. It was the inability of the writing to let me know who was talking and the jumpiness of all the scenes. This book made me work to figure out who was talking and what was going on when what was really happening wasn’t complicated at all!

There was something missing from the sentences, from the characters, and from the story. The end felt rushed and forced to come to a climax while grinding to a halt to keep the storyline open to a sequel.

The addition of myth/backstory/memory was unnecessary and I skipped over it. Either the book is historical fiction or it’s not and this book was not, so no need for this type of in-depth addition.

I didn’t feel like I knew any of the characters other than Allie, Aiden and towards the end, Liam. There were too many people to keep track of and I started to get a serious Twilight vibe with the way the family kept together and was set against a Coalition.

What was the point of Vince? He added absolutely nothing to the story and he had basically no personality and the reader knew nothing about him. He was basically soothing arm-candy for Allie and annoyingly bereft of usefulness. I wish Aiden was the main character and not Allie. She was annoying and flawed. She didn’t step up her game when it mattered the most, which would have been great for her backstory but not for her (lack of) moment of triumph during the climax.

This novel was published by Midnight Hour Studio 03/31/2015 and is available on Amazon here.

TLDR Star Rating: 2.50

Links for more information:

Goodreads

Melissa A. Craven’s Website

Twitter

Book Review: A Clueless Woman (A Woman Lost Book 0) by T.B. Markinson

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A Clueless Woman (A Woman Lost Book 0) by T.B. Markinson

A Romantic Fiction Novel published by T. B. Markinson (11/24/15)

Summary:

“No wonder I was single. I lacked charm, conversational skills, and panache.” (Kindle Locations 917-918).

Lizzie hasn’t had any for over a year, when she broke up with her crazy ex. Nowadays she knows books are a safer bet, especially since she still hasn’t gotten over the ex and the ex still comes around for handouts, or to blackmail Lizzie into handing out her inheritance hundred by hundred. Lizzie has been too embarrassed to tell anyone, even her closest friends. At least now she knows what to look for in a bad relationship, right? When her graduate professor introduces her to Sarah, Lizzie’s normally tongue-tied left-feet become even more hopelessly entangled as she falls head over heels for the gutsy heart-on-her-sleeve high school English teacher. Can Lizzie keep the bad news ex away from her budding new relationship or will the ex ruin another relationship and Lizzie’s next chance for love?

 

Keywords:

 Romance, Relationships, Friendships, Lesbians, Tension, Holding in Feelings, Coffee, Chai, Teacher, English Teacher, Professor, Student, Ex-relationships, Books, Research

 

My Review:

I wish I had the opportunity to read this book closer to the time I’d read the first book in the series, as I’d forgotten most everything about Lizzie and her world, but I found that I didn’t need to read A Woman Lost Book 1 first to completely enjoy A Clueless Woman.

As with her other books, T.B. Markinson builds her characters with an expertise and ease that is fun to read. Lizzie is completely developed. Sarah has her own quirks and personality. Even the ex has been thoroughly described.

There were more romantic/sexy scenes in A Clueless Woman than I remembered being in a Woman Lost. I thought there was a good balance between the romance, the build up and the rest of Lizzie’s story.

This novel was published by T. B. Markinson November 24th, 2015 and is available on Amazon here.

TLDR Star Rating: 4.25

Links for more information:

Goodreads

T.B. Markinson’s website

Book Review: Fantasy of Fire (The Tainted Accords Book 3) by Kelly St. Clare

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Fantasy of Fire (The Tainted Accords Book 3) by Kelly St. Clare

A Fantasy Novel published by Kelly St Clare (01/14/16)

Summary:

“One of the best qualities you possess is a desire to be your strongest self.” (Kindle location 1855).

“Bad times sometimes call for dramatic change.” (Kindle location 2544).

Olina is still in the thick of it, with her Frost personality, her Olina self, and the person she presented to the Ire. She’s pulled in multiple directions, but remains true in wanting to help those around her. Can she be a ruler with mixed blood and will the people accept her are questions she must answer. Her mother has sent an army to Glacium and to prevent a slaughter Olina must help the Bruma, Solati enemy. But this isn’t the only issue, there is unrest between the outer and inner rings on Glacium and Olina must get to the bottom of it before civil war threatens to tear Glacium from the inside out before the Solati army even cross the Great Staircase.

 

Keywords:

Fighting, adventure, action, fantasy, sexual themes, friendship, fantasy, love, loyalty, brother, fear, rulers, power, intimidation, female main character, kick butt female, strategy, traitor, war, advisor

 

My Review:

I would never recommend reading books out of order in a series but St. Clare does a phenomenal job of expertly summarizing everything important that happened in the first two books so that we could get right into the thick of Olina’s/Frost’s story in this third book. She doesn’t leave me confused and forgetful of all the political and romantic actions that happened in previous books in this series.

I continue to fall in love with Olina and her strength. She really shows her mettle in this third book and everything she does is well thought out in regards to those around her. Olina continues to be kick butt and tough. She can hold her own, even with problems that are global and messy. She is presented with complex and politically difficult problems where the best solutions won’t please all. She is presented with her past and the possibility of a future. She really becomes a true leader in this book. She has some great lines and a wonderful speech in the middle during the big reveal scene that was so engaging. She also helpfully summarizes the previous action from books one and two during this speech, cementing in the reader’s mind what was going on from her perspective and how it affects those close to her. Olina really becomes a truly great character in this book.

The pacing and action of this book was excellent. There was much more balance between action and contemplation and between dialogue and narration that book two did not have. Book three really shows the finesse that St. Clare has developed through the Tainted Accords series and I can’t wait for book four.

This novel was published by Kelly St Clare on January 14th, 2016 and is available on Amazon here.

TL;DR Star Rating: 4.75

Links for more information:

Kelly St. Clare’s Website

Facebook

Goodreads

Book Review: Scripting the Truth by T.A. Henry

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Scripting the Truth by T.A. Henry

An Historical Fiction Novel published through Amazon Digital Services (10/09/2015)

Summary:

“Sometimes I wonder why you put yourself through all this when clearly you knew nothing about the business.” (p. 152).

Lady Margaret Leighton aka Molly doesn’t want to marry whomever her mother approves because she already had her heart broken when the soldier she nursed during World War II vanished. Then she spots his face on a movie poster and she decides right then and there that she’ll do whatever it takes to find him and reconnect. But he’s a famous actor and she can’t even get into the studio without a reason. After failing at pretending to be an actress she finds out that the director’s looking for scripts. Margaret spends a feverish few days learning how to write a script and writing up the proceedings of her time as a QA in World War II. When this gets her in the door, no problems will stop her from finding the missed soldier and her happily ever after, or so she thinks.

Keywords:

World War II, London, QAs, Nursing, Soldiers, Love, Romance, Pursuing Romance, Movie, Actors, Script Writing, High Born, Suitors, Overbearing Mother, Brothers, Hunting Party, Career Woman

My Review:

How far would you go to see your crush again? She wrote a script about qa’s in the war that went unrewarded and then wrote a new script all about a love story without the war. After rewrites and negotiations she gets herself on set and her crush as leading man. What could go wrong?

Molly is determined, witty, clever, knows when to forge ahead and when you admit defeat. She’s amazingly stubborn when an idea grabs hold of her. She’s set herself up for a rude awakening of a failure.

Great balance between the actual script and the real story so I felt I knew what the script was about and how it paralleled Molly’s real experience without getting too much into the story-within-the-story. It was fun getting some real world and excellent script writing pointers for people who’ve never done it before, like Molly.

The dialogue was amazing, clever, and funny.

Overall this was a delightful novel and I can’t wait to read what T. A. Henry comes up with next

This novel was published through Amazon Digital Services 10/09/2015 and is available on Amazon here.

TLDR Star Rating: 5.0

Links for more information:

Goodreads

T.A. Henry’s Blog

Book Review: Cutter’s Hope: The Virtues Book I by A.J. Downey

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Damaged & Dangerous: The Sacred Hearts MC Book VI by A.J. Downey

A Romance Novel published by Second Circle Press (01/05/16)

Summary:

“My specialty? Non-lethal tactics designed to disarm an armed assailant.” (Kindle Locations 60-61).

Hope is on the search for her sister, Faith, who vanished almost without a trace two years ago. With her military training and her current job occupation as a person who trains others to disarm an armed assailant in a non-lethal manner, along with her take no BS attitude, Hope has the best chance out of anyone of finding her sister. The trail leads Hope to Cutter’s MC’s den, a bar on the coast, but Cutter and his crew won’t crack. Cutter can’t just tell Hope what she wants because he has his MC to look after the information she needs could land them in a world of trouble. Cutter, however, can’t just drop Hope because she’s the only woman in a long time, ever since Lil’ Bit, who can keep up with him and give him a run for his money.

 

Keywords:

Romance, motorcycle, club, friendship, loyalty, family, POV change, sexual content, violence, past life, moving on, strength, brave

My Review:

Downey knows how to write romance. She knows how to build up the tension until the breaking point and then giving us the goods. There seemed to be a lot more romantic scenes, i.e. sex scenes than in the SHMC romance, but I could be mistaken.

The story Downey builds in Cutter’s Hope is similar to and very different from her Sacred Hearts MC series. There are bikers and tough guys in both. There’s a bad situation in both. There’s someone who needs help in both. Cutter’s Hope, however, contains the toughest female in the SHMC and the Kracken MC club and she is amazing to watch. She is tough and violent like the MC men and can hold her own (and does) while still displaying a wide range of emotions and admitting to needing help when she’s at the end of her tether. Cutter is a character who also comes into his own in this series. We were only given a glimpse of him in the SHMC books and now he gets his own book to make us swoon.

I wish there was more finesse in the grammar, the writing style and sentence flow is not as sophisticated as the plot and characters and story. I absolutely love the way AJ can pull me in and make me love the story and the characters, but I had to re-read multiple sentences to understand what she was trying to say at times.

This novel was published by Second Circle Press on January 5th, 2016 and is available on Amazon here.

TL;DR Star Rating: 4.50

Links for more information:

A.J. Downey’s Blog

Goodreads

Facebook

Book Review: Mind: The Beginning (The Mind Series Book 1) by Jenn Nixon

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Mind: The Beginning (The Mind Series Book 1) by Jenn Nixon

A Science Fiction Novel published by Vamptasy Publishing (11/04/15)

Summary:

Dina Ranger is special, and just like her twin brother Duncan, she has telepathic abilities. Unlike her brother, she is more a loose cannon, moving away any time things get too heavy. Telepathy is kept under wraps, but sometimes Dina has to use her abilities. Eventually she comes back to her brother and his company of telepathic people because she is needed to help them solve an alien mystery. It isn’t just chance that has Dina involved in this case, and Dina will end up learning more about herself than she ever wanted. She will also meet Liam and their romance takes over.

 

Keywords:

Mind Powers, Psychic, Bad Guys, Aliens, Heritage, Ship, Romance, Sex, Twins, Multiple POV, Fighting, Chasing, Discovery, Government, Powers, Strong

 

My Review:

For a book marketed as a science fiction novel involving aliens and self-discovery, the book took a hot and heavy romantic turn about halfway through. The author left off her science fiction plot and relied heavily on the romance to intrigue the reader. I was not intrigued. I wanted the science fiction plot more than the romance between Liam and Dina and thought this romance took away from any science fiction elements in the book.

When the action started to pick up, it became too much. There wasn’t enough balance between action and romance and plot. It was all romance and all action after action after action sequence.

The concept of aliens and telepathy and truth about learning about Dina’s abilities were what grabbed me about this book, but the overwhelming head hopping, typos, and confusing mind talk and POV changes were hard to read. But if you like romance to be the main part of your sci-fi book, then you might like Mind: The Beginning. I, for one, will not read further in this series and was disappointed that it was classified as science fiction when it should have been marketed as a romance with sci-fi elements.

This novel was published by Vamptasy Publishing on November 4th, 2015 and is available on Amazon here.

TL;DR Star Rating: 2.50

Links for more information:

Jenn Nixon’s Website

Goodreads

Book Review: Bread for Pharaoh by Jason Black

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 Bread for Pharaoh by Jason Black

A Middle Grade Historical Fiction Novel published by Elder Road LLC (12/02/13)

Summary:

“Have I started to forget that she is a noble? Or was I forgetting that I am just a peasant?” (Page 45).

San is the baker’s son and in Egyptian times that means he is the boy who delivers the bread and is destined to become the baker when his father retires. You would think delivering bread would be boring, but for San, he steps into the middle of a plot to kill high members of the nobility. San is intrigued by more than just plots, he discovers Aja, a girl who wants a friend as much as he does. Together they will have to uncover evil plots and figure out if they can remain friends from different classes of Egyptian society.

 

Keywords:

Egypt, Ruler, Pharaoh, Pyramids, Bread Maker, Messenger, Running, Evil Plots, Power Hungry, Sphinx, Stone Work, Cruel, Priest, High Priest, Family, Friendship, Playing, Children

My Review:

Bread for Pharaoh was a fun and imaginative book that I enjoyed reading. San was a fun character with personality. He was a protagonist that grabbed life and made it what he wanted. Though he came from the peasant class, he didn’t let that stop him from making a friend in the nobility, going out of his way to help those around him and in different classes, taking risks, pretending to be above his station to accomplish his goals, and being an all-around active protagonist. I was pleased to read about him as a character and was extra pleased that though he was a boy, his character and Aja’s could have been gender reversed in the same story. Neither character was ultimately defined by their class or their gender and this makes for a worthwhile read, especially for young impressionable readers.

This book excelled in its simplicity. The setting was simple and geographically enclosed, though the reader got an understanding of Egypt in that time period. The cast of characters wasn’t too large. The events weren’t too out of the ordinary, though exciting enough to keep the reader’s interest. Overall it was a well-done story.

This novel was published by Elder Road LLC on December 2nd, 2013 and is available on Amazon here.

TL;DR Star Rating: 4.00

Links for more information:

Goodreads

Book Review: All Is Silence: Desert Lands Book I (Deserted Lands 1) by Robert L. Slater

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All Is Silence: Desert Lands Book I (Deserted Lands 1) by Robert L. Slater

A New Adult Dystopian Novel published by Rocket Tears Press (01/05/14)

Summary:

“Back then she had been afraid of the future. Now she feared the present.” (Page. 254).

Almost everyone dies from a disease, but Lizzy, who is suicidal and is now more lonely than ever, has ironically, survived. After puttering around her neighborhood for days, she puts a message out for people to come find her and lo and behold they do. She even finds the number to her long lost father and gives him a ring. Is the world as empty as she thought or will the remaining survivors surprise her?

Keywords:

Apocalypse, Dog-Man, Death, Friends, Future, Survival, Father, Disease, Technology Still Works, Travel, Fighting, Guns, Weather, Empty Houses, Empty Neighborhood, Loneliness, Repopulation

My Review:

I love end of the world survival stories and this one was an easy read that showed another possibility to the dystopian literature. Like a combination of the Road by Cormac McCarthy and The Blackout by Stephanie Erickson, All is Silence follows a troubled girl who has been left behind by most of the world and clings to the few people left that she knows. When she finds that her estranged father is alive, she drops everything she has left to meet up with him, along with her old friends and a few new ones she finds during her journey.

This novel should have started at part two. Part one was all about Lizzie and her suicidal past. I think being a survivor during the apocalypse is enough to make any normal teen angsty and to give her a troubled past was not necessary. She was not very likable in part one. I was also confused as to how old she was. She didn’t graduate high school but her actions in her back story made me think she was an adult (sex and bad decisions), but her actions in the present day were not always smart and made me think she was a young teenager who is not worldly wise.

Some of the characters were one dimensional. Unlike Lizzie who has a long way to rise to meet the occasion, which she does now and then when she has to, her father and her friends are simple characters. Her father, especially, was disappointing as an adult. He acted like a child, with simple emotions.

Finally, stop using elevators! Every time (and there were quite a few) that characters got into elevators I would get so stressed out. At some point technology would start to break down entirely and elevators would stop working. Who in their right mind would get into one after 99% of the population has died and it’s been weeks since normal economy and production etc??

I thought the addition of the dog man to the traveling group was really cool and I really liked the aspect he brought to the end of the world.

This novel was published by Rocket Tears Press on January 5th, 2014 and is available on Amazon here.

TL;DR Star Rating: 3.50

Links for more information:

Robert L. Slater’s Website

Goodreads

Twitter