A great read!I loved this book! I was very excited to read it when I first heard about it and I’m so glad that I enjoyed it so much. It did not disappoint! The beginning is full of action and tension that keeps you reading and asking questions. The characters are great and you want to root for them the whole time. I thought the setting was so well done, the descriptions of the landscapes are captivating and add another layer to the book. The mix of fantasy and sci-fi was really cool! Overall, the story was fast-paced with a great cast of characters and wonderful writing! It was a fun read!

Incredible Story!For years, I’ve been hearing about this #secretnovel from Lindsay Cummings. I met her years ago at a signing, and she actually had me sign her copy of The Murder Complex, which was sooo cool, so I’ve been not so patiently waiting for this book to come out.It. Did. NOT. Disappoint!I’m a sucker for thieves in general. Add in an underdog, who’s fighting against being wrongfully accused of murdering her brother? Sold!Sonara is the type of character that anyone can instantly relate to. She’s unapologetically fierce, but at the same time, she’s sensitive to others’ feelings, like her brother, who’s unsure of his future within their Kingdom. She’s got grit and despite the odds being stacked against her, she’s not backing down from any fight, even against her family. I don’t want to spoil anything, so I’ll leave it at that but honestly, this book is one of my top reads so far for 2020, and it will be one of my most “anticipated” of 2021!The story itself is rich with evocative descriptions that make you sigh at their beauty, and then squeeze your heart tight as you experience them with Sonara. Full of action and adventure, a whole lot of kick-ass female power, and a dash of humor, Blood Metal Bone is an original story set in a world I hope to see more of!Thank you so much to HQ stories for allowing me to read an ARC of this book!

3 starsGame of Thrones meets Firefly. The bastard daughter of the Queen and her brother the crown prince are the characters that we meet in the first few chapters. “Medieval” storyline takes an abrupt turn when Karr and his brother are introduced. Synopsis did not allude to this turn in the storyline, Overall, I liked the book, the magic was original and though I can see why the author wrote the prince’s story, I hated the reveal and explanation. Lots of things unfinished if this was a standalone. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book from Netgalley.

New World FantasyWhere to start on this wild ride between the sands of the beaches in Soreia, to the blistering desert ocean sands of the Deadlands or the endless void of space on the Starfall. This story drew me in to the very end. Amazing character written and woven together like pieces to a beating heart. World building was perfect amount, the magic system was unique and well thought out. This was my first Lindsay Cummings book and wont be the last. Definitely recommend to any fantasy reader out there.

Amazing adventureThe story is amazing, fun and interesting! The concept of the world is so good. The characters are super cool and I love the relationships and interactions between them. If you like fantasy, adventures, sci-fi and magic, this is for your.

Major disappointment.I really liked his early Prey novels where Lucas was just a slightly dirty cop who hunted killers. Before he became a political operative. And I love his Virgil Flowers books. This was hot garbage by comparison. Plus it reads like a political essay. Spoiled rich privileged liberal girl is smarter and better than everyone else. Blah blah blah.I thought Ocean Prey was one of his best books but this one was easily the worst.

Not worth the money. Wait and buy it at half price bookstores.Texas does NOT support ILLEGAL immigrants. We do not believe in killing them. The leadership of illegals crossing into Texas place innocent women & children out front deliberately before the cowardly men that follow. You showed support for these actions. Letty has no law enforcement training or experience. Yet, you presented her as all knowing. I’ve always liked Letty in previous Prey books. This one is way too unbelievable. Too much fantasy for me. Very disappointed.

Great First Letty Davenport NovelLots of action with the comradeship between the different law departments in great display. Also great to see American citizens not falling for the militia’s crap. Can’t wait to watch Letty grow into a first rate law enforcement officer like Lucas and Virgil.

Why Ruin LettyI love everything Sandford writes but I have particularly loved his portrayal, IN PRIOR BOOKS, of the Letty character. What I particularly loved about this character is that she struggled to overcome the harsh (to say the least) tendencies caused by her upbringing, and controlled the worst of her tendencies while becoming a brilliant and innovative young woman who had the potential to even eclipse her father as a great law enforcer. However, in this book it seemed like Sandford (or his co ghost writer if there was one) forgot all about the prior Letty development and just made her pretty much a budding psychopath, sort of like Lucas was in the first couple of books. Also I have to say that the climactic scenes seemed a bit far fetched and I hated the game changer at the end (the villain here was sure no Clara). I found it very hard to read this book, particularly as I had looked forward so much to seeing Letty as the star. Hopefully some of what I consider to be her real personality will show through in future books in this series about her (if there are any).

DisappointedI was disappointed thought there were a lot of situations that could have been written about. Then you went and made it political. YouMr. Sanford had been my favorite writer. Rally disappointed.

Just seemed kinda offI’ve read every single thing Sanford has ever written including the Kidd novels which weren’t very compelling. I know he’s developing this character as Lucas Davenport is aging some BUT…Letty is impossibly and unnecessarily rude and crude for much of the first half of the book. A real know-it-all. If I had not recalled her from former novels, I would have completely given up on her. Thank heavens she had a partner who was a good guy. As usual, Sanfords’ action is thrilling and holds the reader’s interest, but the plot line is pretty silly an not particularly compelling. And somewhat political which does not offend me. With the escape of the “villain”, I fear there’s to be a sequel. Waiting for a new Virgil Flowers to come along.

Unputdownable!Exactly what you expect from a John Sanford novel. Great characters, great pacing and a story you haven’t read a million times before! I’m so glad to read more about Letty. Keep ‘em coming John and thanks!!

Fantastic read!I am a big fan of John Sanford and the Lucas and Virgil series. This first installment of Letty was excellent and hard to put down! I’m looking forward to the next one!

Another John Sandford cracking read.Excellent read and Letty Davenport takes over where Lucas left. My only gripe with the book was, due to suffering from Advanced Glaucoma, I really struggled with the smaller print which was also a light grey. I got through it but wish publishers would realise that not everyone has 20/20 vision. I tend to read on Kindie nowadays and for whatever reason this book isn’t available for Kindle unlike all the other John Sandford books……however I totally recommend this book.

EcellentThere is only so much you can do with a character – even if it’s Luvas Davenport. So his daughter Letty takes over. It’s a well constructed and well written crime novel. But it is also a picture of a fractured society in which an increasing number of people feel marginalized.

An auto-buy author who never disappointsI *devoured* this book in less than a day! This is the author’s twelfth book, and each one just gets better and better.I love dual timelines, so reading about Nora 26 years ago and present day Nora made her character very realistic. When Nora was 11, she kept hearing noises coming from her father’s “workshop” in the basement. One chance night, the locked doorknob finally opens, and she sees the woman in the cage.Fast-forward 26 years…Nora has changed her last name to escape her father’s notoriety and is living a quiet, solitary life as a practicing surgeon, until two of her female patients turn up dead with their hands removed, her father’s signature.But her father is in prison. Nora is the one who helped put him there. Who is killing these women, and why are they trying to make Nora seem guilty?Perhaps Nora isn’t as innocent as she claims.From reading the flashbacks, I had my suspicions about Nora. Nature vs. nurture is fascinating to me, and I made some assumptions. I was feeling vindicated for awhile but was later proven wrong…and then I got to the last page, and my mind was BLOWN.This author doesn’t play around with her twists. I’ve read most of her books, and her trademark is that “wtf” ending. You’ll sit blankly on the couch for several minutes just trying to process what in the hell you just read. Why she doesn’t get more recognition is beyond me, but if you are looking for a solid thriller that you will read at breakneck speed while you ignore your family’s pleas for dinner, she’s your girl.

Thrilling!I read this in one sitting and was so engrossed that when we had a power failur, I continued reading using a torch.Freida McFadden knows how to write a gripping thriller and this didn’t disappoint.What would you do if you discovered that your father is a serial killer who uses the basement of your family home to keep his victims captive? He only keeps them here until he has successfully severed one of their hands then disposes of their bodies. At last count he had murdered over 30 women, all with black hair and blue eyes.Is the gene for criminal intent passed down from generation to generation? This is the dilemma that faces Dr Nora, a surgeon who has successfully hidden her true identity until two of her patients die in close succession and each body is found with a hand missing. 5 stars.

Literally couldn’t and wouldn’t put it down!There’s literally only one author left whose work I’ll always automatically preorder, and it’s Freida McFadden. Her books are just so riveting and impossible to put down. You can always count on some interesting revelations and genuinely surprising plot twists throughout, fascinating psychological insights and ethically grey issues to ponder, and witty, razor-sharp dialogue.As others have summarized, The Locked Door focuses on a surgeon who also happens to be the daughter of a serial killer. She confronts the secrets and potential darkness in herself and those in her life as a couple of her patients die mysteriously—in precisely the way her serial killing father would have killed them if he hadn’t been in prison. The writing style immediately draws you in, and there’s more than enough dry humor to counterbalance the inherent darkness of the subject matter. I stayed up half the night to finish it and was particularly delighted by that final twist!

The locked doorWell after reading this I will forever be afraid of basements.All along I was suspecting this or that person . in the end I was surprised. I did not see it coming at all.

Well, well, well. Dysfunctional doesn’t begin to cover it.Nora is a very interesting character. And this book was very well done. I liked the other characters too, but the end twist really, really surprised me! I can honestly say I had no clue until the author revealed the villian.

Surprise Relative Shows Up !Good psychological thriller.Nora is a respected surgeon who moved from Oregon and started a new life after finding out her father was a serial killer,when she had just turned eleven.Both her mother and father were arrested,but before any trial,her mother committed suicide.Her father was convicted and was serving life without parole. But suddenly when her life was going so good,two women,whom she had operated on were both killed in exactly the same manner as her father had killed his victims yrs.before. Who knew who she really was and why were they out to make her seem like the killer? Was it her new boyfriend,whom she had known from Med School. Her partner,Philip also a surgeon,who had practically begged her to go into a partnership with him. Nora,couldn’t get a handle on it and neither will you.It is a thriller that you won’t be able to put down,with an ending that is truly shocking. It definitely deserved my 5 * rating.

Loved it!Freida McFadden is one terrific writer! I don’t know how she keeps turning out book after book & they’re all fresh characters & unique plots, riveting story lines, fast-paced action & totally entertaining! The Locked Door is another nail biter that doesn’t stop from page one to the very last sentence. My only complaint is once I start reading I can’t stop until I reach the twisted end. Keep ’em coming, Freida!

Awesome!Another great page turner! I read the whole thing on the exercise bike and couldn’t put it down. A must-read!

Loved this bookThis author is new to me, but I was looking for a horrorto read, and this seemed to have a good review, so I thought,aww what the hell.This book has twists and turns, and just as you think you’ve got it figured, think again.I would recommend this book to all, thriller / horror fans, but it more thriller than horror.But that being said, I will now read more books by this Author.

Another great read!I really love this authors work. I found this book gripping from the start. It definitely isn’t a slow burner like a lot of thrillers out there. I recommend you buy this book, read it and then read all her others too. Can’t wait for her next offering.

A pretty good thriller, a bit slow paced, solid debutThis debut thriller from Pete Zacharias is divided into three parts, with 48 chapters, and a total of about 324 pages.The story focuses on two main characters: journalist Rooker Lindstrom and Detective Tess Harlow. Rooker is the son of a notorious serial killer, and Tess eventually convinces him to help her find a new copycat killer that seems to be mimicking the murders committed by Rooker’s late father.The book starts out with a pretty gruesome Prologue, as we see one of the brutal murders from the perspective of the killer. This unsettling introduction gives us a brief glimpse into the killer’s mind; and then the story switches back and forth between the perspectives of Rooker and Tess as the chapters go on. After the initial action in the first few pages, the pacing really slows down as more of Rooker’s backstory is revealed. Rooker is a broken man; haunted by not only by the actions of his deranged father, but also by the memory of his own son, who was also killed. Rooker still hears his late son’s voice at times, and throwing himself into helping solve this new case serves as a distraction from his grief and sorrow.Overall I thought that this was a pretty good thriller, especially for a debut. The pacing in the middle was fairly slow, and at times I felt a little bored as I wanted a bit more action. I can understand why the author spent so much time building up Rooker’s history though, as this appears to be the first book in a series, and I suppose it makes sense to spend time on character development if this is going to be the protagonist in several books. The reveal toward the end was pretty good, but not mind-blowing. There were some cleverly placed details that make more sense after you get to the end. There is also an encounter at the very end that leaves room for sequels to build on. So all in all, a pretty decent book, and I would be willing to read the next one in the series. Hopefully the next one will be a bit shorter though, or at least have less filler in the middle now that Rooker’s background has already been explained.

One of the best books I’ve readI would easily say that this is one of the best books I have read. What a phenomenal debut novel, congrats to the author on writing such a complex book. From start to finish this book gripped my attention and left me wanting to know more. The characters were well developed and I felt like I was experiencing the twists and turns with them. I was immediately drawn into the complexity of the novel and did not see the ending coming.I will eagerly be awaiting the authors sequel to the Rooker Lindstrom novel and he has landed on my list of favorite authors.

Great Read!“If the walls could talk, they wouldn’t. They would scream”Amazing debut novel for an up-and-coming author. This book has some awesome twists and turns, great character development, and chilling imagery. Excited to see what’s in store for the sequel.

Excellent!Really enjoyed The Man Burned by Winter. Would never have guessed this is Zacharias’s first novel. The story kept me intrigued. Hoping to see Harlow in the next book.Have been looking for a new author to follow and now have found him. Looking forward to Zacharias’s next novel, The Man Trapped by Shadows.

Terrific BookI was engrossed in this book. I stole every spare minute to read a little more. Rooker is a fascinating character and I am sorry I have to wait for a new book. I am thrilled to have found a new favorite author. He writes like he has been putting out best selling novels for years. Thank you for a great book!

Killer Good!I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I read it in one day because I really got into the story and couldn’t wait to see what happened next. Now that is great writing!

Amazingly good first book by an up and coming authorThis is a dark and gritty thriller about a serial killer haunting a bleak frozen Minnesota town with crimes that echo its own dark past. While some of the descriptions early on were buried in the gratuitous grime it settles into a well paced and intriguing read. Rooker Ludstrom is a man haunted by his own demons as he languishes waiting for death in the frozen north, only to find new life when he is forced to confront a real life evil that is threatening to consume both him and the town. This book excels at having complex characters and plot with dark twists and turns. The only areas I find fault with are 1. there is a scene where one detective is playing an avenging angel but it’s a non sequitur (if that’s the right word) because it is like a blurb that in no way relates to the rest of the book and if anything will only be useful as a foreshadow for later books in the series. And 2. The author clearly did not research guns at all because he repeatedly makes incorrect descriptions of them. In his book a Glock 17 has a manual safety (it doesn’t) and that it only holds 12 rounds (the standard magazine hold 17 rounds plus 1 in the chamber for a total of 18 on a standard police load). That’s a minor issue for an authors first book but he should be more careful as he continues the series because factual errors can break reader immersion. I highly recommend giving this a read if you enjoy dark grimy crime thrillers. I will be reading his next book.

Great readOne of the best psychological thrillers I’ve read. Captivating, suspenseful, unexpected. It’s a book you won’t want to stop reading until the end.

DreadfulOthers will no doubt have a different opinion but I found the writing style ruined any enjoyment the story offered.

Lacking any sort of edge.There was just no excitement to this novel. None of the characters held my attention and the story was nowhere near strong enough.

oh. my. god!I’ve never written a book review. I know there are people who do this professionally. They outline the book and give AMAZING opinions that I wholeheartedly read prior to buying. Mine will be nothing like theirs.But this book. I couldn’t NOT tell anyone and everyone how amazing this book is. I’m still raw. Knox’s love for both Naomi and Waylay. It was so pure and touching. This wasn’t like most romcoms that are so over the top ridiculous. This felt so real. Please please please PLEASE give me more! Sloan and Lucian ASAP!!!

Don’t waste your time…I read the reviews on this book and I was so excited to settle in for a long nights reading…. however….I was mislead big time!I guess those who read and reviewed this book don’t care about the liberal use of the F word. There is very little use for this word unless someone is pouring vegetable oil on your stomach while attempting to rape you and you kick their manhood as hard as you can tells them to get the F off you.It could have been good but it was pure trash and I only read 4 chapters!!

“Every time you smile at me, I feel like I hıt the lottery again.”Oh my heart, Knockemout, Virginia, is my new favorite fıctional town! It’s a small town where gossip spreąds faster than wıldfıre and the technology-era game of telephone distorts reality in the most outrageous, hilarious ways. It’s a place where the people open their arms to a new person who‘s all alone, and a place where the whole town, and I mean the entire town, shows up and has your back.Naomi Witt never intended to stay in Knockemout, but when her evıl twin steąls Naomi’s car and dųmps a niece Naomi never knew she had on her, Naomi’s organized, structured, list-making life get tòssed out the window. She soon finds the charm and kindness of smąll-town folks who accept and support her unconditionally. Surprisingly, much of that comes from the unlikeliest of people, Knox Morgan.Knox Morgan pretty much *is* the town. His lottery wınnings have opened and revitalized a few businesses, including the polıce station (and, oh boy, is there ever a story there!). And he certainly exemplifies the Knockemout approach to problem solving through a good fıst fıght and sharing a few beers afterwards. But Knox doesn’t do relationships. He lets a lady know what’s what up front, and they part as friends. It’s what works for him. Until it doesn’t. Until Naomi and her niece, Waylay.With her trademark humor and incredible dėpth of heart, this crafty wordsmith outdoes herself once again. She reminds us that loss is the dąrker side of life, and that each of us grıeves in our own unique way. That the paın we experience becomes a part of the fabric of our life. And that it’s up to us to make our tapestry something stròng and beautiful to not only be better able to face future challenges, but to treasure the precious gifts each day brings.I laughed. I cried. I laughed while I cried, and I definitely blųshed, and it was the best, most delıcious emotıonal rıde! Knox and Naomi’s story is an epic, spectacular read that will easily maintain its place on my list of tòp five reads for the year.If you’re looking for a book that manıpulates your heartstrings so masterfully you feel even the slightest nuances alongside the bıggest, messıest emotıons, look no further. With a lıttle suspense and angst added in, I guarantee you’ll fall hąrd for this wouņded hero, admire and cheer for this stròng, quirky heroine, and you’ll love every second you spend in this extraordinary, heartfelt, unforgettable read.

EhThis book is not great. The main characters are annoying and have no chemistry. I’m not sure who started the “grumpy” trope, but I just wish it would stop. This character was not grumpy, he was a possessive, abusive, Neanderthal. No woman in her right mind finds that behavior attractive. There were also way too many characters, it was impossible to keep track. This is the fourth book of hers in a row that I disliked, probably my last.

An exceptional and incredibly entertaining readI don’t know what universe I was living in that I still hadn’t experienced Lucy Score’s writing. I am over the moon after finishing this book. This was an exceptional story filled with heart, humour, and heat that had me laughing and smiling my way through. I loved the characters, the animosity and bickering, the tension and angst, the emotion and drama, and the building love between two stubborn and determined characters. This checked every box of things I love about romance.From Naomi and Knox’s first encounter it was hate at first sight. These two didn’t get off on the right foot at all. But boy, did sparks fly! Naomi and Knox had so much sexual tension and the heat between them was scorching. I loved their witty banter and how they got under each other’s skin. There was an excellent build to their developing relationship with off the charts sexual tension happening. I loved Naomi and Knox’s vulnerable moments and when they opened up and shared as well. I loved their struggle and conflict as they got closer and more emotion came into play. I was on the edge of my seat waiting for them to get together.This was an incredibly entertaining read and the writing was exceptional. A laugh out loud story that made my reader heart happy. There were so many wonderful secondary characters in the mix that made it feel rich and full, and it was these characters that helped to create so many fun and meaningful scenes. There was so much great attention to detail throughout and I loved how some things came full circle at the end making it that much more significant.This is one of those books I started reading and everything immediately clicked for me. Humour and heart with a fantastic amount of sexiness mixed in. I just had a blast reading this and losing myself in Naomi and Knox’s story. The slow burn in this book was tantalisingly exceptional and made my heart extremely happy. The Things We Never Got Over is officially a new favourite, and I really hope this is the start of a new series!

Funny, emotional, great characters. I’ll read more Lucy Score!!This is the first Lucy Score book I’ve read.I was attracted to the cover with the daisies. It looked different to other romance books with hot men or couples. And the book is different – it has more emotional depth, more wisdom, more humour, more likeable characters and hot but flawed guys. There is a whole cast of great secondary characters and I hope there are follow up books about mysterious Lucian (Lucy) and whatever is going on with sassy Librarian Sloane and about Knox’s brother Nash.Naomi’s 11 year old niece has had a difficult childhood with her mum, Tina (the evil twin). But she has turned out likeable, smart, mature and funny. The relationship between her and her Aunt Naomi (the good twin) and Knox is at the heart of the book and it is heartwarming story. There are lots of people and dogs in this book who come together to protect and support Naomi and her niece – family by birth and by choice – and it makes the book feel warm, loving and fun, despite the difficult start Naomi’s niece has had.I can’t wait for more Knockemout books and in the meantime I will be reading more Lucy Score books!

A book I’ll never get over!Well how can I ignore this book when it has so many of my favourite tropes. Runaway bride, enemy to lovers, mistaken identity.This book left me at 1:30am in the morning full of human feelings as I couldn’t help but melt with the outcomes.Naomi was not only a runaway bride but constantly running to the aid of everyone else, including to the small town of Knockemount to help out her black sheep identical twin Tina out of trouble.However, this not only led her to be mistakenly constantly as Tina, feeling the anger of a whole town but to be stood toe to toe with an grumpy, tattooed, Viking looking man who got under her skin from the moment they met in a yelling match in the local cafe. One thing this book taught me is not to get in the way of Naomi or her caffeine.Naomi finds herself in a strange town, nowhere to go and an 11 year old niece to look after she never knew existed. Well this was a bumpy ride but my god my heart could not take the energy between alpha male Knox and Naomi.There was much baggage between the pair, but ultimately they needed something from each other.The side characters were freaking amazing. Waylay being a standout. From badass female pals to brooding best friends, Charming police chiefs and the grandparents of a lifetime. Plus doggos !With danger on top of figuring out a new life there was a lot to unpack but this town really rallied around Naomi and Waylay. I think the dynamics, the constant need to continue reading was so fun to read as I just didn’t want to out the books down.Some bucket holes, broken noses, a wedding dress and a love heart charm later and it was everything I didn’t know I needed. Some parts a little far fetched which is why it wasn’t quite 5 stars but woah! That will live rent free in my brain for a long time.

Books we never get over!I am a long-standing Lucy Score fan but this book really stands out even among my faves by her so far.It’s a mix of the things I love most about her books: crazy small town with fabulous characters, a dash of danger and mystery à la Riley Thorne, smart relatable main and supporting characters (like in all her books), and steam, wit and heart throughout.I am so happy there will be more books set in Knockemout! Bring it on!!

I laughed, I cried and I’m sad it’s over!Grumpy/sunshine is one of my favourite tropes and this is now one of my favourites! Naomi stumbles in to town looking for her wayward sister only run into the town grump Knox. They clash immediately, he thinks she is her troublemaker sister and tries to throw her out, she’s just had the worst couple of days or her life and isn’t in the mood to take his crap. They are at odds from the start but Knox can’t help himself and tries to help Naomi sort out her sisters mess. Naomi is suddenly the guardian of her sisters 11 year old daughter and really needs all the help she can get. Knox keeps giving her mixed signals, he’s rude and doesn’t want her around but he helps her in every way possible. Naomi tries to stay out of his way, but they are constantly drawn together. They might not like each (or maybe they really do) but they can’t fight the spark between them. When Naomi’s parents turn up they pretend to be in a relationship but things become all too real and Knox can’t handle it. Tina, Naomi’s sister, brings drama and danger in to their lives. This book made me laugh, it made me cry and I didn’t want it to end. Naomi is sweet, sexy, smart and too loving for her own good. Knox is a millionaire, hot, loyal and scared of losing anyone else. They do not make sense but they do make each other whole. I can’t wait to read more of this series!

all the small town feels4.5 delicious stars!Lucy Score has absolutely excelled herself with this book, I loved every single main character and side character, I’m honestly so glad it said at the end there’s more to come from Knockemout because I’m not ready to leave this small town at all.I was gripped from the get go of being introduced to Naomi who really enters with all the drama and sass, I loved her immediately. Knox follows quickly and I absolutely loved him and their first encounter, you could feel their chemistry straight away but definitely not insta-lovey, the tension was fantastic.Waylay oh how you made me feel so much, I loved the growth she took and the huge family unit she ended up gathering along the way.Now Knox made me mad when he called things off and I gasped, voice noted my friend in outrage and had to take 5. For me there wasn’t enough grovelling on his behalf but I did like how he knew immediately he made a mistake.I want to live in Knockemout and I can’t wait for the next book whoever it may be.. I’m secretly hoping it’s Lucy and Sloane and I hope Nash gets a happily ever after too! Loved the sibling rivalry and relationship.

A powerful reading on the Jewish issue which is, alas, not available in the Hebrew edition.After finishing reading this book I was in the state of shock, as like after reading a good and powerful book. I consider it to be one of my favorite books I have read in the last ten years. One thing surprises me though: it has been translated in many languages, but not in Hebrew, even though it deals with the Jewish subject. On several occasions, while traveling to Israel, I was asking at their central book stores if they have a Hebrew edition of it, to buy it to my friends who do not read English. And each time, after giving me a negative answer, the clerks often would wonder why I’m so anxious to get it. After explaining what it was about, they then asked me for the correct English name and the name of its author while telling that they would definitely order it from Amazon.

Bittersweet and haunting story about the intersection of truth, forgiveness and redemptionWow, I couldn’t stop reading this engrossing story about a man examining his own life, and his father’s life, as his father lies dying in a nursing home. The beginning is light, even funny at times, but as the story unfolds it becomes darker and bleaker, and yet Lavigne wisely inserts little pockets of humor because, face it, we always seek humor in our lives, and the more heavily we fall, the more we need it.The story revolves around a son’s quest to discover his who his father really is. Is he the outstanding Jewish man he always assumed his father to be? Or is he a German war criminal who worked in various concentration camps as an accountant, carefully tracking each shoe, each gold filling, each watch taken from Jewish victims?Here’s the plot in a nutshell: Michael Rosenheim is a comic who admits that he’s only funny because he’s sad. He’s divorced and has one son, who lives back in San Francisco with his ex-wife. Rosenheim is in Florida, caring for his dying father, whom he knows as Heshel Rosenheim, though he’s most likely his father is really Heinrich Mueller.Michael Rosenheim learns this through reading old notebooks given to him by his father (who also has dementia, by the way). The notebook entries are fascinating from a historical perspective, though they begin to drag by the middle, when readers could easily become overly-eager for the story to unfold, to move faster. We want to know who the father really is and if forgiveness or redemption is ever possible.And this is the question of the book: Can we forgive the ones we love for being who they are? Can we forgive them for their pasts? Their mistakes? Their blind and ugly truths?It’s a bittersweet story, and it leaves a lot of questions unanswered in the end, yet this somehow seems right. It seems perfect, actually.I highly recommend “Not Me.”

ID MeltdownThis is a thoughtfully conceived novel about identity, guilt and recreating oneself to ultimate redemption. Towards the end of WW11, an SS administrator changes his identity to save himself and he remains in that identity for the rest of his life to keep hidden. His new persona opposes all his original beliefs. The novel alternates between this man’s journal story and his son’s reaction to reading his father’s story. In turn, the son experiences his own identity crisis, particularly since he is already going through turmoil due to a family split-up. This book is a complex achievement which challenges the reader on a philosophical level to think about humanity’s worst flaws, the capacity for forgiveness, plus the helplessness we have in controlling where ours lives go and in deciding whether we should love the unlovable or not.

A little too clutteredAn interesting and promising premise: discovering oneself, reluctantly, through one’s own father’s diary. The narrator/protagonist threads his way through his father’s devious past from the Holocaust to Israel to America, surviving as a Nazi collaborator, German Jewish refugee, opportunistic Arab impersonator on the way to becoming a secular Jew. What is real and what is true in the diary, and what is the son’s own identity in relation to his own son, his ex-wife, his dead sister, his mother, and the Jewish community he lives in. The story does not entirely escape improbability, nor does it quite reach the level of allegory. Underdeveloped or irrelevant characters clutter the progress toward the protagonist’s enlightenment. I found it difficult to develop any empathy with any of the characters, except the son of the narrator whose part is very small. I think the author is aiming to pose compassion as a human dilemma; but, for me, the story is a little too cluttered to put the reader square in that place.

Not as good as I had hopedI read a lot of WWII books and the description of this book really caught my attention. The Father in this book is an accountant and works in a concentration camp. Fearing the end is near, he shaves his head, tattoos himself and pretends he is one of the Jews needing saving from this camp. What an interesting story line…..I just wish the rest of the book could have been as interesting. The book had no likeable characters in it and ended with too many unresolved issues for my liking. All in all it was “OK” book at best. I was very intrigued by this story line, but felt it fell short in many ways. I will likely not seek out more books by this author.

Amazing.I expected I would not like this book as I usually avoid something like this subject.It is a book a member of my book club picked. And I am glad she did pick it. The writing is excellent and the author mange’s to go from current time to the past again in a very clear way. This book will stay with me for a long time.

Good ReadGood story with a predictable, but unusual plot. An unusual story, but once plot is revealed, the end is predictable. The mystery of who was providing the diary was not well developed. They story provides hope that an individual who was part of terrible events can turn their life into something good.

Excellent readThis is the best book I have read this year. I would highly recommend this to anyone interested in the holocaust, and will be reading more from this author.

Great readReally enjoyed reading this book, well written. Insightful. Challenging in a good way. I recommend it and felt a deepening understanding of the main characters as the book progressed

Five StarsA good copy and arrived on the advertised date.

Another winner from Carol WyerJust finished the new book An Eye for an Eye, the first in the Detective Kate Young series. I found the beginning somewhat tedious but since I love this author I kept reading. Oh boy, am I glad I did. This is an amazing book with a wonderful new character. Kate Young, a once and promising police officer, is confronted with a horrible tragedy. Her time off is mixed with nightmares and the drugs she takes to get her through the day. When she is asked to return to work by the Superintendent to investigate a very sensitive case, she agrees. Her and her team are investigating the murder of a prominent man and it has to be kept under wraps. The book has so many twists and turns and keeps you on the edge of your seat. Kate is a fine detective and knows that she must see this case through and get justice for the victims. When she realizes her efforts are being scrutinized and even thwarted, she soon uncovers a truly devious and evil plot. The excitement builds and then, towards the end, the revelation of what is actually happening made my jaw drop. then comes the shocking cliff hanger! Thankfully, the next one in the series, A Cut for a Cut, is coming in June! Thank you Carol Wyer for a fantastic book and the time spent enjoying it!

A very cleverly constructed taleI almost threw this one in early as I tired of the repeat messages about the ‘train incident’ and how emotionally burdened our protagonist was. I was just waiting for a plot to emerge. The drawn-out introduction probably explains why the novel is longer than it should have been.That said, I’m very glad I persevered as there is a well-constructed story within and one which is cleverly populated with a number of lies, all delivered plausibly. There is an early, small clue as to the identity of the type of killer, but you need to be watchful, rather than lucky as I was, to pick it up.On the flip side, there is quite a bit of licence used, there are occasional issues with tense (but no typos) and some smaller story inconsistencies. I wasn’t thrilled about some elements of the close either, but there was definitely enough there for me to proceed with the sequel, which I have pre-ordered. 4+ stars

New Series Alert!Nothing compares to reading the first book in a new series by a favorite author. Well, maybe realizing just how much you loved it! I can’t wait to read more about Kate and her colleagues. I love how well Carol Wyer weaves her story. Her major twists at the end totally blindsided me. Excellent writing! If you love Thrillers and Crime novels, you have to read this one.!Highly recommend! 5 Stars!

Slow.going,.until the end!I really like the concept of this book and the plotline. It was original to say the least. I enjoyed the characters at the end. But, from the beginning until about halfway through it was fairly slow. I think the whole hallucinations and pills were drug put a wee bit too long. I had also figured out the truth about her husband Chris at right about that same point. But not the who, where and why. But after the slow beginning, it took off and it was great. I stuck with it due to.all.of the great reviews of this series, and her previous series. I also believe the first book of every series is the worst of the lot because of all the background put into it. So I will be reading the next one.

RevengeThis is quite an interesting book. Kate is a police detective who is suffering from trauma do you through the killing she’s saw it on the train. The plan is very good and revolves around, keep trying to get back to her normal self and how she was assigned to another murder needs to figure out who did it and why. The book has been a twist interns in it and makes for a very suspenseful story. I am assuming there’s a sequel to this book because somethings left unfinished. I recommend this book from readers oh thrillers.

Starting DI Kate Young Book 2 immediatelyI’ve always been a fan of mysteries, detective/police crime solvers, and books with a great story. This book was every one of those things, I couldn’t put it down. Carol Wyer’s plot is deliciously complex, with multiple groups of characters, each set with serious problems to solve, different locations and time frames, a little bit of corruption, some politics, and a murder to solve. DI Kate Young is easy enough to like because she struggles just like the rest of us.Thank you!!Times up; I’ve got to start reading her next one!

Mystery and intrigue from start to finish!I will definitely add this author to my must-read more list. Ms. Wyer has put together all the elements necessary to keep the reader totally engrossed. The characters are well developed and their personalities lend credence to the storyline. Chris is a stroke of genius with his weaving in and out of Kate’s world. I think most mystery readers would find this author quite interesting. Pick up this book and prepare to get wrapped up in it. Once it grabs you, you’re hooked to the last page!

One of the Best!Wow! I couldn’t put this down yet I didn’t want it to end either. Carol Wyer has outdone herself with her latest, An Eye for an Eye. There’s a new detective on the scene and she is as interesting and tenacious as any we’ve met before. Bring on another DI Kate Young!

Promising series opener – with some shortcomings.Rating: 2.8/5The market for police procedurals is a crowded one, so to have any chance of standing out from the crowd and being successful, the author needs to establish a lead protagonist with a backstory and character traits that are sufficiently different and engaging.In “An Eye for an Eye” author, Carol Wyer, goes a long way towards achieving that. However, there are other aspects of this book that I found quite grating and they prevent me from being able to class this as more than a 3-star read overall.DI Kate Young is on leave after having been exposed to a very traumatic situation while on duty some months earlier. Following a recent murder on her patch in Staffordshire, Kate is persuaded to come back to work and lead a team investigating the crime. Will her troubled mental state allow her to perform the task to the best of her ability and what disturbing truths might she uncover along the way?I liked the premise of this story, which at times put me in mind of Abi Morgan’s “River”, which was screened on the BBC a few years ago. I also enjoyed the Staffordshire setting, as it is a part of the country that I am very familiar with.The big downside for me was the dialogue, which frequently grated. Carol Wyer is clearly an intelligent lady and an accomplished wordsmith, but there were numerous occasions when the characters were inappropriately speaking words that were clearly the author’s, rather than the content being consistent with the character in question. Consequently, this undermined the credibility of the scenario.Overall, it was still an enjoyable novel and serves its purpose of setting up a new series.p.s.Note to publisher: A reference is made in the book to “Wednesday 2nd January 2021” , but 2nd January 2021 actually fell on a Saturday. Hopefully, this will be corrected in future editions.

Brilliant start to the seriesWell, flipping heck. For book one in a series this is certainly one that gets the adrenaline flowing, the mind whirring and the heart thumping. We may have only just met Kate Young but I can already tell that she is going to be one heck of a character to get to know. This tale will leave you reeling and thinking long and hard about just who you can trust.Now as this is a Carol Wyer novel, I already knew coming into it that I was going to be faced with a complex and multi-faceted storyline and I wasn’t disappointed. When we meet Kate, you can tell that she is going through some kind of breakdown, the reasons for which are not immediately clear but are drip fed to readers throughout the course of the novel. This means that when she is called back from sick-leave to investigate a complicated and high profile murder, we know that we are faced with a tortured soul. Just how tortured remains to be seen, but she is forced to face her demons, both real and of the emotional kind. As she is almost always on edge, it put me, as a reader, on edge to, wondering whether her position would be compromised by her mental state and whether she could overcome her troubles long enough to see the case more clearly.And what a case this is. A high profile businessman murdered in his own home, his eye removed and taken from the scene. The murder weapon is somewhat innocuous in reality, the method of deployment less so, and all of it left me completely intrigued as to why the killer might go to such lengths when there had to be far easier ways in which to despatch their victims. And I say victims as it becomes clear quite early on that they have more than one target in mind. Whilst the murders are a bit grizzly, it is not played out on the page the focus more on the who whilst at the scene, the puzzling nature of the mess left behind taking a little longer to uncover.I really did grow to like Kate and her small team. And for a murder squad it really is a small team – just two Detective Sergeants, Morgan Meredith and Emma Donaldson – the powers that be intent on keeping the investigation low key and out of the spotlight of the media. The two Sergeants back Kate up to the nth degree, even when it is clear that they have some concerns over how the case is progressing. They are all determined and focused and I feel like we have much more to come from all of them over the course of the series so I’m intrigued to see where the author takes us.The pacing in the book is just right, the narrative moving back and forth between the current investigation and the inciting incident which led to Kate’s sick leave. The past is slowly revealed, as are the dark motives of the present. The author keeps the killer well and truly hidden until the end, the reveal coming as both a surprise and, with the benefit of hindsight, completely fitting. There is an underlying tension throughout that peaks and troughs as the story dictates, the edginess and threat building at just the right moment, and the author uses that slow build to good effect, contrasting the patience of the killer with the urgency of the investigation.As you can probably deduce from the title, this is a tale of vengeance, but the biggest surprise is revealed about two thirds of the way through the book giving readers a promise of what is yet to come, not just for this story, but for the series as a whole. With a myriad of suspects, but no. clear motives, the book kept me hooked and I am looking forward to the follow up this summer.

Hard to put down….held my interest all the way to the endFor me….the “test” of a good book is if I will remember the story. I will remember this story…and also the characters. I think this was especially well written….the story flowed smoothly. The characters were expertly developed….. I felt like I really “got to know them” better as the story unfolded. The story was told by 2 of the characters….Ralf and Helen. The chapters were very short (which I liked) and alternated between those two characters. Each chapter seemed to end with a “cliff hanger” . So, it was very hard to stop reading! A very interesting plot too. An all around very good read. I will definitely be looking for more by this author…..however, what I found was most of the books she has written are in German. 🙁 This one was translated into English…. I hope her other books will be too!

Disappointed . . .I had to stop reading this book. The plot line was just too gruesome for me. Chopping a body up is not a new plot but there was a disconnect in the development of the characters and story line that did not work for me in this novel. I did not really connect with any of the characters.

Preposterously unrealistic story line.Without spoiling the story by revealing what happens throughout,I can only say that there is no way real people of any temperament or persuasion would react to the main events as the characters in this story did. That said, I kept reading until the end, so it still interested me enough to finish the story, and snatches of it were good, but it was mostly so implausible that I could not rate it highly. The translation into English seemed exquisite though… not a hint there that it was not originally written in English.

How far will a mother go to protect her family?Things go sideways when Brian gets high & decides to rob the home of hard working restaurateur Werner & his recovery nurse wife, Helen. Brian slips into their posh home but never returns to the getaway car where his friend, Ralf waits. While we, the reader, learn quickly what has happened to Brian, Ralf doesn’t. The chapters go back & forth between the points of view of Helen as she deals with the aftermath of the burglary & Ralf as he seeks to solve the mystery of his missing friend. Yes, there are spots where the pacing is a little slow, but perhaps that is due to my reading a translated version. As imperfect as Helen is, as awful as Ralf was at the beginning, I still longed to know what happened to them.Also, if you read this as an American bear in mind that the gun laws we have here & how those impact our culture could have some bearing in how the novel os seen. The characters were making decisions based in a different country & in light of those laws & that culture.

The end truly made it all worth it*Possible spoiler*OMG! The book started out really good but then, there was this loooooooooooooooong portion of the book where I grew bored and began to lose interest. It took me way longer to finish this book than it normally would. I stuck it out though and I’m glad I did. Honestly, my interest started waning when Helen let Werner convince her not to call the police. I thought that was the absolute dumbest idea ever. Then, he continued to blame her for what happened when she in fact saved their lives. In the end, I was all smiles because well, read to see for yourself. The end really is the best part of the whole book. Not because it is over but because of how everything comes together. You can’t just skip to it, you have to read the whole book. Enjoy.

SpellbindingI didn’t think that this book would be any better than mediocre. Was I wrong! What a great read! Layout of pages similar to James Patterson; not too many words per page & some pages with just a few words to emphasize a point. So much action & dark relationships. Hard to put this book down.Excellent character development. Hard to determine good people from the bad. Ill have to read her Maker’s other books.

Great ReadLoved this book once I got all! the characters straight. Helen and Ralf are my heros. Ralf being a push around friend really earned my respect when he stopped letting low life individuals push him around. Helen the wife, all women know sooner or later about their men, cheating. Took her just a tad longer than myself to figure out what her no good lying husband was up to.Loved this story. No disappointment.

How to get rid of a dead body and not get caught.I didn’t find this month’s Amazon Prime First Reads book choices very exciting and picked ‘Mother Dear : A thriller’ as a bit of a ‘least worst’ option. I knew it was written by a Dutch author and I was probably hoping for something in the style of Herman Koch, a writer I really like. The theme also hinted at something similar to Koch’s ‘The Dinner’ since the blurb promised a tale of how far parents would go to cover up the crime and protect their families. Sad to say, ‘Mother Dear’ is not in the same league at all.The premise is simple. A young man, Brian, goes to rob a well-to-do couple in order to pay off his debts to his drug dealer. Things don’t go as planned and the wife ‘sort of accidentally’ kills the robber, leaving her and her husband to work out what to do with the dead body. The young man’s friend and accomplice, Ralf, was nearby during the robbery and hears three gunshots.The plot plods along rather slowly as the killers have to find ways to dispose of the body. That part seemed pretty ludicrous to me. Ralf tries to uncover what happened and how, getting involved with Brian’s girlfriend and getting to know the daughter of the family, Sara. If there’s a hero – and that’s a big if, then Ralf’s the best you’re going to find in the book. Step by step he starts to uncover some surprising coincidences until he eventually works out that things are not at all what they seem.There’s an underdeveloped use of letters to a dead mother which could have been removed completely without diluting the book. There weren’t enough of them and they weren’t sufficiently revealing to be required. We do get them thrown back at us later in the book as a sort of justification for a character’s reactions, but that same person would have been wanting to do what they did even without the letters. If I were an editor, I’d have said dump that device and move on.The final ‘crime waiting to happen’ is absolutely ridiculous. Any Brit who knows the words ‘Beachy Head’ will instantly know what’s planned. Silly stuff. And the eventual outcome is even more silly than that.3 stars seem to be a bit on the generous side. I did consider just giving it a 2-star rating. I also would suggest that calling it ‘Mother Dear: A thriller’ is indicative of a problem. If you have to tell people it’s a thriller, it probably isn’t. I wouldn’t classify this book in that genre.It’s a good, quick read with a plot that more or less comes together but some parts are just too silly for words. There are also some distracting translation issues that I found rather irritating. We’re introduced to the translator at the end of the book and told it’s his first book. Not bad for a first effort but there were things that just didn’t ring true. Strange English usage, very odd phrases when the author is trying to indicate ‘Posh’ English, and repeated use of the phrase ‘get ahold’ just didn’t work for me. Also, Dutch characters would never talk about how many calories there are in cakes. Tiny things, and not contributing to the rating, but maybe they could be addressed for later editions.

An intriguing build up through several plot linesI struggled a little with this novel at first; I think because it has been translated from the original Dutch and I found some of the cultural/location references difficult to relate to and I found it had a slow start. However that soon settled down, and it is an excellent translation. I found the intrigue building through the novel; the characters are well-rounded and develop through the story. Several plot lines run side by side until they come together towards the end – I didn’t start to pull them together until late in the story, which made it a very enjoyable read.

Saturday morning readThis was a great Saturday morning read. Ms. Atwood is an absolute genius with words and so amazing to read. This story reminds me of her writing prior to the sci-fi things she has written lately, also as good. But this tale allowed for a lot of connection and knowing chuckles as a daughter and mother can have. Thank you, Ms. Atwood for continuing to share your talent.

Short and FunA short little tale about mother/daughter relationships through the generations, all wrapped up in an engrossing witchy tale. A quick, fun read.

Yikes!What was that? Good thing this was a free offering from Amazon, this book was just bizarre. I have no words!

Terrible unless art bad language!What a waste of good literary talent. I thought at first it was a funny read but the language went from bad to worse by the teen to her mom. I will not read this author again. It was disgusting.

LovelyA short witchy story that is lovable and relatable. Being a mother to “talk-back” teenagers, I definitely related to the mother in the story. However; being a witchy mother was even more relatable for me. I felt like I was reading a summary of my life with my oldest daughter. I really enjoyed reading Atwood at her best, as always!

ahhhhh, really?I cannot believe this story got such acclaim. Amazon choice? This was so sophomoric,like a child wrote it. I don’t know what I was expecting but this was a waste of time. I would have been really bummed if I had to pay for this, this wasn’t a short story,it wasn’t,t even a story. After you read the first two pages you know exactly what is going to happen. This was compared to Handmaids Tale, not even close. Don’t bother.

Wonderful Book!Margaret Atwood does it again! Getting the mind and mysteries, like that of a young teenager and young woman who is just dipping her toes into the world of life. Sending us down the paths of, “what if,” with every sentence, that leads you to the most unexpected result in the end. I highly recommend this intriguing book as another one of Margaret’s intriguing short stories and writings!

Must Read Short Story by Margaret AtwoodMY EVIL MOTHER is the first short story I’ve read by Margaret Atwood. The story opens in the 1950’s when the main character is fifteen, in the “talk-back age”, and incredibly frustrated by her mother who may or may not be a witch. Sadly, she grows up without knowing anything about the father who left when she was a young child, but finally meets him after he contacts her when she is no longer living at home with her mother. We see her happily married and maintaining an on and off relationship with her quirky mother. At the end of the story, she is a mother with a fifteen years-old daughter in the “talk-back age” and says some of the same things to her child that her mother said to her at that age. Read this thought provoking short story and decide for yourself if her mother was a witch, a mother doing her best to protect and raise her child, or maybe both.

great readIt reminded me of my mother whom at 15yrs l thought was a witch as always was one foot in front of shenanigans. Later found out she had her reading my diary.

Wrong titleI love a short story. It’s such a lovely brain refresh after reading mammoth books (pachinko I loved you but …) and I must admit although a charming story I do have issues with this little one.Firstly let’s start with a plus, the writing style is great. It’s fluid , easy to read and you can read completely relaxed .But my big issue, the title. From the title I expected something dark, tense and gripping but I found myself just reading a charming book which isn’t what I hoped for.My expectations from the title were set completely wrong and had me set up for some thing completely different.I wish this had been titled different, even just a title like ‘the mother’ would have been so much more improved.I would happily recomend but it comes with a warning not to expect a tense exciting rollercoaster but instead a mild cup of tea ☕️Firstly let’s start with a plus, the writing style is great. It’s fluid , easy to read and you can read completely relaxed .But my big issue, the title. From the title I expected something dark, tense and gripping but I found myself just reading a charming book which isn’t what I hoped for.My expectations from the title were set completely wrong and had me set up for some thing completely different.I wish this had been titled different, even just a title like ‘the mother’ would have been so much more improved.I would happily recomend but it comes with a warning not to expect a tense exciting rollercoaster but instead a mild cup of tea ☕️

Do not readI am 3/4ths the way through this book. And its horrible!!!I absolutely loved the first book. But now the author is trying to hard. She did a 180 from the first book. I just almost threw the book across the room (not really because I’m an adult).Its obvious from the first 100 pages what she is doing.Spoilers ahead!*********Anytime Jaxson doesn’t anything nice for her, she has this “feminist” need attitude and gets pissed.The first book, the spark between her and jaxson was so strong, now she barely cares about him at all because he does nice things for herShe has hudson in her head and they basically make fun of jaxson the whole book.Now has flint waiting for jaxson to realize they are mated. Give me a f***ing break.Over it.

Crush really did crushed me…First of all I think that Tracy Wolff did a very good job with Book #1 Crave. I really love it completely. But I have a very different opinion about second book Crush. I was hoping so much more of it, craving for so much more…and I was hugely disappointed. In the process to make twists to the story, I think the author completely destroy and turn to dust the main characters that were so beautifully developed in the first book. I mean what happened to Jaxon??!! He was so intriguing, so damn interesting, mysterious and powerful in Crave and what we’ve got here?!! A total different spoiled character!! Always weak, so drained, so not himself at all that he is barely recognizable!! Jaxon! The badass vampire who inspired so much fear in everyone!! I know about character development and all that but you’ve got to be kidding me!! It doesn’t make him justice and to me it was so painful to lose him. Not to mention that Grace character in this book was really frustrating and annoying. I mean she was always meant to be strong and independent and that was really cool but here she seems so disconnected from her mate even before the mating bond was broken. As a girlfriend and mate, her lack of interest in their relationship, the way she doesn’t even listen to Jaxon anymore but seems so eager to listen to whatever Hudson has to say, giving him all the attention and caring that she no longer give to Jaxon. Seems like she was never genuinely in love with him at all and was only with him because he was super attractive and powerful as no one else, but just until another more powerful vampire came across her way! His own brother Hudson and suddenly Jaxon is not good enough anymore!! Ugh!! I hated that!! Hate the way the relationship between Grace and Jaxon was suddenly diminished in order to force a love relationship with Hudson, sorry but it doesn’t work fine for me. And what about that now also so suddenly Flint is gay, so we must just forget about all the times that he was obviously hitting on Grace and accept that he was always only interested in Jaxon and maybe even get used to the idea that the reason Jaxon was checking on Flint in the field previous to the tournament is because they could be destined to be together as mates after all, seriously?!! No, I just don’t get it. What a disappointment indeed. I really hope that this is not the path this story will follow. I hope that book #3 give some justice to the characters and finally provides satisfying answers to questions that at this point in the story since book #1 still unanswered.

GroundbreakingThis book may be one of the best damn books I’ve ever read, and I’ve read 40 books just since January. You can also tell that i practically inhaled this book by the fact that I’m posting this review barely 48 hours after it was released.I absolutely loved book 1 and told everyone i knew about it but this one just blew it out of the water!I refuse to put any spoilers here because I would never deny you the pleasure of reading it yourself but I say what I can without spoilers.I laughed on nearly every page. I cried heaving sobs more than once and there was a twist so momentous that I’m pretty sure my brain fried and we had to turn it off and turn it on again just so I could function. The great thing was that even though I could see the twist coming due to the carefully laid out clues, but it didn’t detract from the story, it only heightened the suspense and anticipation.I seriously can’t wait to start from book 1 and read the whole series all over again with new eyes!Love this book! I’m dying in wait for the next one!!!!

Not as good as the first but a good continuationI really enjoyed the first book in this series, even though it was predictable and the characters were stereotypical, it still had something. I said that I wouldn’t be rushing out to buy the second in the series and I didn’t, I got this one when it was on sale for 99p on my Kindle. As I enjoyed the first one, I had high hopes for the continuation of the story.The start of the first chapter was a bit confusing to me at first, given where we left things in the previous book, but when I read on it soon started to make sense. The characters are the same but their relationships have changed a bit and the book seems to carry more tension. We learn a lot more about Jaxon’s brother Hudson and more about the different magical beings, the history behind them and the politics of their world.I did find this book a bit slow in places and I was a bit disappointed with the fact that Grace just seemed to possess every skill that was required at the time, this felt a bit too fabricated to me. The pace of the book was slower than the first and there are some odd power plays between the kids and the adults that confused me, the kids have so much power and not just the magical type.I finished this book not enjoying it as much as the first but I will finish the series and I’ll do the same as I did before and wait until the next one is at a reduced price as it didn’t hook me enough to grab the next one as soon as it’s released.

Holy shit this was good!!I loved the first book but this was even better. In book two we meet Hudson and I realised fairly early on that Hudson would never hurt her because firstly he isn’t the bad guy he’s been made out to be and secondly because it was obvious what he felt for Grace. I loved their banter and bickering but I found myself torn between how good Jason was for her and how good Hudson was for her but in a different way. But holy gargoyles babies I did not expect that final as l sentence from Hudson, book three is going to be hella interesting and I don’t envy Grace. Okay who am I kidding? Grace is only lucky gargoyle, but who should she choose??

Very badly written, book is failed by the author’s poor storytelling skills & ramblingNo spoiler section:I love cheesy, YA, Fanfic-style supernatural novels, so I should have loved this book. The first one was tolerable, but this one is so bad I begrudge having spent time and money on it when there are many novels and fanfictions out there that are so much better.As it is a YA twilight-esque novel I wasn’t expecting the best written novel, but what we get is so rubbish I wonder how it even got published. The plot is nonsensical with half of it being irrelevant, character development is inconsistent at best and non-existent at worst (sometimes even regressive); many of the decisions made by characters are illogical, even for teenagers!The dialogue/monologue was so repetitive I was bored. By the time i got to about 40% of the book I was so fed up with it I ended up skimming through the pages, not willing to read all the repetitive commentary.Skipping through chunks in order to get to the next scene, hoping for some development in the story.Regarding Grace’s “I am an in-de-pen-dent wo-man” attitude it is tiresome and forced. If you’re going to make a big deal about female strength (which I fully approve) then at least give the conversations & character the necessary depth to make them meaningful. Most of the time she’s just acting like a spoiled brat, whingeing about everything, snapping because Jaxon or Finn, or anyone else for that matter is giving her a helping hand. She proceeds to throw what can only be described as hissy-fits or tantrums for being offered help, has another tiresome monologue which stupidly ends with a “we have to help each other” when that is exactly what the other character(s) had been doing.This forced token of female strength is so cringe-y it detracts from the female empowerment movement.Spoilers:Examples of why this book is so bad:1. Why is it that Uncle Finn is so panicked about Grace’s condition with Hudson in her head, worried enough to ‘let’ Jaxon take her to the Bloodletter to find a solution and yet they come back and we don’t hear from the responsible adult again?That is the last dialogue we get from Uncle Finn. Where did he go? Was Hudson not that big a deal?2. Regarding the mating bond- it was poorly handled. Do NOT make it to be such a huge massive deal in book 1 with how ‘rare’ it is for someone to find it so young, that some supernaturals go all their lives without ever finding their mate, to then in book 2 destroy the characters & relationships created and reduce the “mate” link to something that is fickle and can be destroyed/forgotten and even held with multiple mates.Jaxon’s entire character is reversed at the author’s whim but no decent storyline is put in place to enable the reader to understand the changes. By the end of the book he had less relevance than a secondary character.3. Finn, I’m lost for words on this one. Another cool interesting character that got destroyed. If you want to make him gay that’s fine, but at least make it make sense, give him a story, development, not just a random “good morning, I’m Gay today and I pine over Jaxon my ex-best friend” conversation which then never gets mentioned again. Such an awkward conversation, out of the blue, simply to fit into the whole love-triangle rubbish being built for Hudson/Grace/Jaxon. Also Jaxon checking Finn out during one of their practice sessions.4.Grace’s inconsistent character. For example, she wakes up being a Gargoyle, gets freaked out and then wastes pages and hours of rambling before we get any details. She then finally dedicates an evening to “research” and Hudson possesses her body (and takes notes) , but she never goes back to read his notes?! And he never shared the info?She SAYS she wants to know what it means to be a gargoyle, she goes on and on and on about it, but then she doesn’t DO anything.She just talks about wanting to do stuff, hundreds of pages dedicated to her boring repetitive complaints.5. Why is Grace going to classes & doing assignments instead of getting the items for the spell? why are they doing this as after-school activities AND also have time to fit in a tournament? Is it not life & death? The sense of urgency shown at the start just disappears so she can paint, take some photos and do sweet nothing.Closing argument:This could have been a fun read, it was a great idea creating a gargoyle, absorbing Hudson’s spirit, creating that Laudares game was cool, I could have even gotten on board with the alternative love-interest, plus we had what could have been a strong female protagonist.In the end the book is failed by the author’s poor storytelling skills, lack of planing & never ending rambling.

Slow burn turned into a swirl of fireI’ve read Crave and it was alright, then found Crush with which I was struggling to remember where Crave finished, but I kept going…and I got trapped in the new developments. It may be silly…but I’ve felt the thrills…made my own theories and hoped that each further page I read will get me there. Now I have to wait until March…grrr but still excited

Exciting, Lovely snd Jaw Dropping !This book has been my nighttime and morning time reading.i can say that i struggled to let it go.The twist of the story is almost jaw – dropping, however i could feel that this will be the final end.Now, im just sad that i need to wait until April for next volume !

so flawed in so many ways…This book (series) was highly recommended to me as an exciting page-turning read while I was recovering from surgery. The only reason I finished the book was so that I could provide my viewpoint to my friend based on the full plot, which was predictable and laughable. Seriously? A deadly assassin prepping for a life or death battle and all she could do is whine over not being invited to castle feastivals or fret over whether the prince — son of the tyrant who murdered her family — likes her! The plot twists were so obvious I couldn’t wait to get to the big reveal at the end just so the book would be over. Don’t waste your time. There are so many better female fantasy writers out there. Try Anne Bishop’s “The Pillars of the World”; Sharon Shinn’s “Twelve Houses” series or Robin Hobb’s “Asssassin’s Apprentice” or “Mad Ship” trilogies instead.

A series for all ages!!!Okay, truth…my daughter is 10 and in the 5th grade. Grandpa, an avid reader like myself, went out on a limb and bought the book for her last Easter. We struggle to find books that are in her 8.4-9.5 reading level, have age appropriate content with a plot she has the life experiences to connect to and comprehend, that are also challenging AND interest her…tall order. We have read all the popular series – adore Harry Potter, of course; tore through the “Greggor the Overlander” series, etc. – so even though in previewing the series I noticed it contains some very minor-vanilla…no F-bombs or S$$T level, mature-type language, and there are a couple scenes that hint at an intimate relationship in book 2 (trying not to spoil books), I gave the book a green light. We started reading it together, taking turns reading aloud, and were BOTH immediately, read 30-40 pages at a time, wake up needing to see what happens to Celena, come home from school hoping to fit in a read and “see what Celena has gotten up to now” before dance, hooked like I have never seen her before!!! And while she is an awesome reader, she is not, by any means a sit & read person, preferring to dance, sing, socialize, game, etc…yet another challenge to add to the list. The challenged are important to note because the way Maas has crafted the characters has achieved what NO OTHER series has for my daughter, and that is to draw her in to the point she NEEDS to keep reading, every single day. The characters are beautifully developed to the point where my daughter was crying when she thought her favorite character died, and was angry at who did die. Maas has painstaking developed 3-dimensional characters that are ever evolving, and that are relatable to all ages. She has also created an entirely new setting that is similar enough to other books of the same genre, like Hunger Games (she has read/watched all), yet it is entirely new & fresh. The writing is clear & thought-provoking, and she weaves in asides & flashbacks that challenge and engage readers. We have had the most incredible conversations and my daughter has made multiple connections to other texts, movies, life, and especially music/song lyrics while reading. These connections are the reason I personally & professionally recommend the series to children beginning at age 10 who are reading at a 6.5-7+ grade level, primarily due to the challenging vocabulary. The twists and turns, the co afflicts & themes, character interactions, vivid & selected detailing, and obviously careful/thoughtful word choices make this series, in my opinion, an award winning, best selling series. As a reading specialist and 18 year veteran teacher of struggling readers, I fully give not just this book, but the entire series 5 stars! I could rave on and on…but I don’t want to give away a single detail and only, sincerely hope what I have shared has piqued your curiosity enough to give the series a try yourself, along with a loved one, and that through sharing our personal experiences with the books I have helped answer the question of reader age appropriateness & interest level. Buckle up…it’s a wild, wonderful ride through Adarlan!

let me tell you that I LOVED Sarah J Maas’ A Court of Thorn and Roses …First, before I’m hung by all the fans, let me tell you that I LOVED Sarah J Maas’ A Court of Thorn and Roses series. That is why when I came into this one it felt like such a huge let down. In essence, I could care about these characters more, but I just don’t. I feel like I’m not given enough to care about them at all. Caelena could be very interesting, I mean, she’s a freaking assassin, and yet, she’s not given enough emotions, background, character, for me to give a damn. The story in this book is also very lacking. There are so many other ways that this could have been so much more interesting. It feels like such high stakes for her, but I don’t feel it. It feels like she’s just going to win, from the beginning. In ACOTAR I knew Feyre was going to triumph, it was that kind of story, but the journey was so much more interesting. It may also be that this book is written for a much younger audience, but I don’t think so. I read YA all the time, and this felt flat compared to her other work. I feel like the depth into the characters and story is just not there, which left me regretting I even started it. I’m glad that I bought the single book and not the series, because I would have wasted my money. Someone said on YT that it picks up around book 3, but who wants to stick around for 3 books before getting the kind of satisfaction that you want from the beginning. I feel that Sarah J Maas must have grown as a writer, because she did with ACOTAR what she couldn’t do with this one, learning from its mistakes. As a writer, thank you, so I can learn from yours.

Prefer a bit more depth and maturityThis book was really in between three and four stars for me. Three stars means I finished the book but won’t read any more in the series while four stars means I like the book and will read the next in the series. I just finished Throne of Glass and will have to wait a while before I know if I want to continue the series or not. It seems to be a young adult book, which is fine, but that shaves a bit of realism off usually, especially about sex or violence. The main character is this series, Celaena, is just a bit too amazing for my tastes. She’s a great character, trained as an assassin and very self-confident about her skills, but she’s also got a soft heart for those treated badly by society. She has romantic feelings for two of the main male characters, which leads to conflicts and shows that she’s not very mature when it comes to relationships. She can play piano very well, speaks another language well and has no doubt that she can defeat a brute of a man in a contest to see who is the most powerful. I think I got just a little tired of Celaena’s boasting and also being so nice considering she’s actually an assassin. The plot is fairly good and there are the usual bad guys to go along with the good ones. There is action which is fairly well drawn, but my overall impression of the book is that it’s a little too sweet and simple. Unless I find myself thinking about the characters more and more over the next few days and wondering what will happen to them, I think I’ll give the rest of the series a miss.

Very mediocre offeringThis is an awful book, don’t buy it thinking its a fantasy nivel because its actually a historical romance thinly masquerading as something more complex . The author has piggybacked on the current wave of fantasy novels with strong female protagonists, with her central character described as ‘the worlds best assassin’ with ongoing hints about a dark back story throughout the book. But sadly it fails to live up to any expecations. All the characters are two dimensional and trite, and the story is extremely weak. I just didn’t care about any of them at all by the end. The most descriptive parts of the book focus on what Celeana looks like or is wearing or the increasingly boring love triangle between her, the dashing captain of the guard or the handsome prince. I’m annoyed I spent nearly £5 on it!

Bad Reviews are missing the pointI have read the entire series and absolutely loved it. Yes the first chapter was a little slow but that is because SJM is introducing a new world. She has to help everyone understand it. Secondly everyone saying Celaena is the best then how comes she got caught – that’s the whole point and if you read it properly you will see that she has a very good reason for getting caught. The so called “plot holes” are not plot holes, they simply prepare questions to be answered in the next book. Get a couple chapters in to where they prep for the competition and you’ll be wanting to know more. The series as a whole is fantastic (It gets better and better with every book) I promise that. SJM always blows your mind. Accept that she has done a more sassy character than most YA books (where would the fun be in repeating characters all the time?). Accept that this is the new world. And if you read Assassin’s Blade (mini short stories) then you will see exactly why she is the best if you cannot get past the whole she got caught but had a very good reason thing.Strong characters. Strong plot (leaves some of it open for book 2). Good pace. Good attention to detail. Just keep reading, I promise you will fall in love with the series.

Five stars is simply not enough.I’m genuinely struggling to put into words how gripping and compelling this story truly is.When it comes to novels based in new worlds I normally struggle to get gripped on the story, but from page one I could easily see the world Sarah masterfully created. And from page one I was hooked.It’s the kind of novel I couldn’t wait to finish, but at the same time I didn’t want to read it as it came to an end.Sarah created a new world, one full of mystery and wonder. The story had me hooked so much that I went through the motions with the characters, I laughed, flushed, cringed, and cried throughout.The third person, head-hopping writing perspective is becoming a new favourite reading style for me, it gave a broader outlook on the story as a whole, and gave a closer look at the characters.Celaena, she wasn’t what I expected, in a pleasantly surprising way. It became quite clear early on that those in her close company could only grow to love her as I did. She was written so well she didn’t feel like a character in a story.I feel like she is a good judge of character, so when she liked someone I was immediately drawn to them, and when she hated someone I felt that too.“When she missed – well, even the fires of Hell couldn’t compare to the rage that burst from her mouth.”This has to be my favourite description of Celaena written from Dorian’s point of view. I laughed, probably harder than I should have, but that moment was completely priceless.I love Dorian, Chaol, Nehemia and Elena in equal measure. I hope to see Nox again too.I truly cannot wait to get lost in Sarah’s world once more in Crown of Midnight, also, how amazing is the cover artwork on these novels?!

Fun protagonist and gripping magic systemThrone of Glass has been on my list for a long time and I FINALLY got around to reading it. I really enjoyed it, and binged the last half of the book because it was so gripping.Celaena, a captured assassin, is blackmailed into participating in a competition to become the King’s Champion. If she wins, she’ll serve as Champion for four years and then be granted her freedom. But the road to winning the competition is filled with obstacles, not least because someone is murdering all the other contestants. As Celaena digs into the Kingdom’s history, she uncovers dark magic that shouldn’t exist anymore. Can she figure out how to stop it before the murderer comes for her? Oh, and the Prince is handsome, too. But she can’t fall for him. Not after what his family did to her lands. Can she?I thought Celaena was an intriguing protagonist. She has a lot of interests and she’s amusing to read. She does come across as three-dimensional, but a lot of what’s made her who she is seems to have happened off-page so I get the feeling I’ll have to read the next three books to fully figure her out. I agree with other comments that she bounces around from being deadly and wielding swords to being girly, wearing dresses and swooning over princes. But she’s also a teenager, so I think you have to take that into consideration.The ending was satisfactory and whilst there isn’t a great deal of pressure to continue reading the series, it’s definitely not a stand alone. I felt like there was a good round up of the competition and the dark magic Celaena found, but yes, if you start this one, you’re probably in it for the long haul.That said, the world is well constructed and I would be happy to read on. Give it a go if you’re looking to dip your toe into a strong fantasy world. (Then maybe your ankle, knee… and well, you get the picture…)

A book about a VERY beautiful assassinCelaena Sardothein is an 18 year old assassin who finds herself 12 months into hard labour at a salt mine, knowing that she has no way out. She watches those around her die, wondering if she will face the same fate.Out of the blue, she is summoned by the Prince of Adarlan who offers her freedom provided she wins a competition to become the King’s champion. If she beats the other contestants across the gruelling tests, she will become the King’s assassin for a number of years before she finds herself free. Faced with sure death or a chance a freedom, Celaena knows this is her only choice.Training and enduring the tests at the castle don’t seem to be going too badly for Celaena, however one day one of the competitors is found dead with no explanation.Celaena now not only needs to win the competition, but also avoid facing the same death as her fellow competitor faced and see if she can uncover what is going on.OK – so I didn’t love this book and I’m really sad about it. Having loved Sarah J. Maas’ ACOTAR series, I had seriously high hopes and I think that perhaps nothing will ever compare for me!Celaena is supposed to be a well known assassin, the best of the best who has trained from a very young age. However, I really didn’t see that in her character, she soon became consumed with the fancy gowns and life she was living with two handsome men and very quickly seemed to forget her assassin type nature. Early on in the book, it was made very clear how beautiful Celaena was… this was repeatedly made clear throughout! It seemed she was so beautiful that people (including herself!) forgot how dangerous she was and Celaena even got to the stage she was smug with it that when someone didn’t make it clear that they found her beautiful, she didn’t know what to make of it! I was not a fan of this side of her character.The book felt a little slow for me to begin with, a lot of character and scene development which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but I needed more to happen. Things did happen, but nothing grabbed me until about 60% of the way through which, in my opinion, is a little TOO slow.I enjoyed the last 40% or so of the book and know I will read the next one as I’m keen to find out where the story goes next! Not my favourite but I hope I will like it more as I read the series further.

Too much convenienceI would consider this the weakest Sanderson book I’ve read. It’s unfortunately slow, meandering, and filled with convenient plot events that baffled me. The tone changed multiple times throughout and rarely matched the political military themes of the first two books. I heard that this was Brandon’s most revised novel and it definitely shows. I know this is YA but the series had such strong writing that I don’t believe that can be used to justify it.If book two had ended on less of a cliffhanger I would have made this series a duology for me. I’ll probably read book 4 because I support Brandon but I don’t have high expectations.*SPOILERS AHEAD*The book opens with Spensa arriving in a jungle with pink sky. She is captured by pirates but then saved by a swashbuckling Indiana Jones-like riding an alien dinosaur. This opening scene sets much of the tone for the rest of the book. An adventure story across floating islands, fleeing monsters and pirates that are more reminiscent of Pirates of the Caribbean than space opera.The mysterious and genuinely scary delvers, Lovecraftian horrors that couldn’t (and I believe shouldn’t) be understood, devolved into angry ascended AIs that don’t know how to deal with emotion. Emotions granted to them somehow by the Nowhere. M-Bot getting emotion as well was not like in the previous book. He became annoying and his emotions were often played for gags. I enjoyed Chet at times but he also was very comedic in an annoying way.So in the end we spend almost no time with any established characters from either prior novel, have two comedic side-kicks, have a romp through pirate land with a showdown over who gets to be the “Pirate Champion”, and end with Spensa gaining over-the-top super powers to defeat the baddies.I feel like this book is the sequel to a completely different series.

Disappointing after two great booksFor the first time in this series, I got impatient reading this. The plot seemed to move at a snails’ pace. For most of the book, the plot seemed aimless and repetitive. All of the elements that had made the previous books so exciting were missing. What was left was an endless slog through a repetitive landscape with uninteresting characters.I kept waiting for the payoff at the end of the book, which I expected to be the conclusion of the series. Instead, it was “there’s another book”. At least Spensa is back in her own universe again, where interesting things happen to interesting characters. May they happen that way again!

Pretty good1st half seemed like filler. Second half was really good. I remember the book really picking up around 45% progress. Overall, not one of my favorite installments of this series but at this point, I’m committed and will read anything having to do with the series, including the novellas. I really enjoy the storyline as a whole.This book was more of a side plot that deviates away from the main story line of fighting the Superiority.**light spoilers below**Spensa’s storyline is focused on the delvers, which to me, didn’t turn out to be as interesting as the main plot line. The reasoning behind the delvers hatred just seemed so silly to me and not fully fleshed out. An advanced AI based on logic but with recent sentient emotions just couldn’t handle the loss of a loved one, and completely shut down and wanted to destroy anything that bothered them…? Really…?** end light spoilers **I actually preferred the Redawn novella to this book since it had more to do with the war.I loved the introduction of Peg and Shiver as characters. I hope they are woven into the upcoming books.

Where are the characters from the first book?The first book was great! We loved the characters — then they all got sidelined. Why? Book 2 and book 3 introduced weak characters that we care nothing about. I had never read a Sanderson book I didn’t like then Oathbringer, then these two books and I’m still waiting for Wax and Wayne and the Evil Librarians, I didn’t bother with Rhythm of War. — it’s like a Sanderson pandemic! Sanderson needs a new editor to tell him the truth about how boring his books have gotten! Bless his heart ❤️

Adventure!None of the books in this series quite match, and while that is fine, I’m not a huge fan of adventure! novels. So, if you are looking for some exploration and pirates, enjoy, otherwise be prepared for a lot of time spent on random encounters before getting to some exciting plot at the very end.

I did not love it.This is the first Sanderson book I have scored a 3. It was boring to read, so much so I constantly fell asleep while reading, during the day! The adventures were too sparse and the whole book felt like an exploration of feelings for children. I read it all the way through, but I did not enjoy it. Even the ending which is normally full of excitement was.. yee…

Too much filler, a soft entry to the series.EDIT: I have thought about this constantly and have decided on a 3.5/5* for this novel. My review stands, but as it’s all connected within the Cytoverse, I still found enjoyment.Original thoughts from December, 2021. Cytonic by Brandon Sanderson. I think I’ll leave this one unrated for a while, I’m just not sure exactly how I feel about it. In a way, it bothered me that it was said that the novellas were not necessary to the story, but then this one went on to be almost entirely unrelated to the prior story. It didn’t progress the DDF at all, meanwhile the novellas did. This entire novel has the feeling of a fantasy/scifi dream sequence—which is something I actually loathe in those kinds of stories. Then to make it worse, the story itself also kind of had those sequences for real too? But at the same time this story still has all the heart and fun that is Spensa and M Bot, which is why I’m not sure what to rate it. I both enjoyed this one, and also realize that it is kind of a 400+ page filler novel. Also, if you haven’t done these audio yet, stop doing yourself a disservice, Suzy Jackson should narrate everything.Have you read this yet? How did you feel about it?

Spensa’s questWhat an awesome book. I really enjoyed the first book, the story took a different turn to what I was expecting in the next book, now I think I have a new favourite book in the series.Spensa has been given a choice, go home and fight along either her friends and be another pilot (a great pilot), or become something much more.Spensa will have a chance to face threats all the heroes and heroines in the old stories faced. Heart breaking choices. New enemies, and allies. Most of all new understanding and skills.I love everything about thus book. The quest the characters, and the leveling up. The combat is intense. The courage displayed bybthe characters is truly heroic. I also like that they expanded on crossovers in the novella book 2.1 and 2.2. I can’t wait to see what happens next.

Not the best of the series.Iv’e read most of the authors work and found that whilst I will continue to read the adventures of our heroine, this third book seemed to go a little off course.Maybe that’s just me, but I almost felt like the storeyline changed to something totally different mid way through this book.Can’t knock the author really though, even if some of his efforts do seem a bit rushed.

Typical Brandon! Wow!The Skyward series is the first Science Fiction work of his I have read and they are as good as his fantasy novels which I have read and reread.Cannot wait for the next in the series.

Give yourself until halfway through. THEN it gets interesting.There’s a couple things you should realize about this book before deciding to read it. 1) The reviews are a little over-hyped. I was looking for something to help me with my book withdrawal after finishing SJ Maas’s trilogy. This book kept showing up as a recommendation and I finally bit the bullet and downloaded a sample. It didn’t grasp my attention at the time and I didn’t bother buying it, instead I read some other books in lieu of this one.Now, it’s been a while since I downloaded the sample but my thoughts did go back to this book from time to time. Something about it DID intrigue me.Now this brings me to point #2. The first half of the book isn’t the greatest. You will probably dislike all of the characters which is a major frustration. You can definitely get into the feel of the world and stay there, a testament to the author’s ability to good writing but the 3 sisters, Jude, Taryn, and Vivi feel like they have no personalities at all. The author tries to convince us in a particular chapter that Jude has been through a lot and gives you a glimpse into the twisted way of faeries. This is supposed to reinforce our thoughts that Jude is only a lowly pawn with a predestined life filled with misery and misfortune. This is why she is dull and non-responsive to her own feelings and thoughts.That wasn’t completely supportive enough to justify how bland Jude was. Her inner monologues were thoroughly lacking in regards to bringing the story to life.Once you hit the second part of the novel, that’s when things begin to pick up the pace and the book becomes a true page turner. It’s as if someone else penned the second half of the novel. Someone who breathes in life and vigor to the plot. Jude becomes sharper, smarter, wittier. I have some issues with that as she was not exactly like that during the first half of the novel. And how she concocts a masterful plan and predicts the outcomes is a little above what I thought she was capable of within such a limited time of playing the Fae game.Certain elements and plots come to light. It makes you abhor certain characters even more and makes you want to find out what some characters are ultimately up to. And some even manage to redeem themselves, although not entirely just yet. There is a lot of potential here for the next novel and I am really looking forward to seeing what Cardan will do to Jude after what goes down at the end of the novel. I also want to know what Locke’s endgame is. True to what he says earlier, he is indeed a trickster; a very dirty one at that. Will Jude also be punished for her crime of murder? How will that (literally) be uncovered?I primarily read adult novels and I do appreciate a good dollop of romance. If this was an adult novel, I would be expecting quite a few feisty and interesting scenes between Cardan and his new ‘master’, Jude. *Sigh*. One can only wish.If you are on the fence about this novel but do enjoy YA novels with plot twists, conspiracy, and revenge then I would recommend this book to you. Just do yourself a favor and give yourself time to get to the turning point in the novel. I promise, it gets much more intriguing.

Yet Another YA That Promotes Abusive RelationshipsAm I the only one who saw all of the abuse in this and had to put it down?SPOILERY REVIEW FOR THE FIRST 120 PAGESRight off the bat, you have the main character’s parents killed right in front of her because her mom’s Fae ex was jealous. Surprisingly, Madoc was OK. I actually didn’t mind him, but the idea of him being a Redcap kinda threw me because I’d always pictured Redcaps as some of the biggest, ugliest, and baddest faeries, not a slim, handsome Fae dude. Also Jude was…OK with him having killed her parents? . . . If Madoc hadn’t killed her parents I’d probably like him, but the whole situation feels like Stockholm’s or something.Jude grows up in Faerie, from the age of seven to when this book picks up. She’s trying her hardest to earn her place since her eldest sister is Fae and doesn’t need to, and her twin is content being someone’s wife. Jude wants a purpose. All of this, I like. The plot itself was actually kind of interesting due to the political tangle, Jude’s strong will, and the Fae land as is.Despite that, I could not, in good conscience, continue to read this after page 120. That sick, queasy feeling that almost makes you puke because of guilt or shame or something? Yeah, I had that. I felt like by reading this book, I was condoning the behavior of Cardan and the writing of Holly Black. No. Freaking. Thank you.Cardan physically, emotionally, and mentally abuses her himself while also letting his little gang of brats do the same as well as sexually assault her and not stop her. The only one who even does ANYTHING is Locke, and yeah, I have issues with him too.Page 95 starts the sexual assault. Faerie fruit makes humans listen to Fae suggestions as well as euphoric. What entails is Cardan’s gang force feeds Jude fruit (because she is human and weak, and a woman, I might add), and Jude is suddenly tripping out. One of the guys literally forces Jude to eat this fruit. Oh, and did I mention that this is entirely during their class and NO one tries to stop them? Fake world or not, Holly Black is condoning people standing back and watching since NO ONE steps in.Even though Cardan “acts” disturbed by the events, almost like the author is building it up for him to be a love interest, he still takes away the one thing that will knock Jude back to reality, and laughs. The other students laugh at this whole event. The gang begins to ask her who she wants to kiss, tells her to take off her clothes. Once Jude is in nothing but her underclothes, they want her to lick the fruit off their hands, Cardan wants her to grovel and kiss his feet, but Locke steps in and says he will take her home before her humiliation gets to be worse.Page 22, Valerian publicly yanks on Jude’s hair and makes fun of her lack of Fae-ness. shortly after, on the next two or three pages, simply because a boy would not move out of the way of Cardan and his entourage, Cardan rips off the boy’s wings and the faeries laugh and go about their business. The boy sobs.If this doesn’t flat out show that bullying is OK if you’re “important,” then please feel free to tell me what it says. I know it’s a fantasy world, but people sometimes read this stuff and don’t see fantasy because of a million reasons, or they read this and it subliminally affects them.Page 28, Cardan and gang walk past Jude and sister while at school, and kicks dirt into their food as he does. “I look up to see him watching me with cruel delight” (Cruel Prince, 22).”Dirt. It’s what you came from, mortal. It’s what you’ll return to soon enough. Take a bite.” Nicasia, page 22.Cardan threatens to force Jude to eat the dirty fruit after she snaps back at them. Nicasia pulls pins from Jude’s hair and makes fun of her, claiming she stole it to true and look pretty and that she will never be beautiful.Locke once again steps in to distract the group, but it doesn’t help as Cardan tells Jude she must withdraw from the Summer Tournament that she wants to enter. Entering means she could earn her place in the Fae lands as a knight.”Withdraw now, or wish that you had.” Page 30.Chapter 6 details the times other Faeries have assaulted Jude before Cardan and Co. started to. One bites off the tip of her finger, and one forced her to drink Faerie water and dance until she was freaking out (Faeries can make you dance until you die).Chapter 7, in brief detail, Cardan and Co. throw Jude and her sister into a river where Nixies live. Nixies will eat humans. Both girls struggle with the currents, as they are wearing dresses, and Jude catches her sister.”This is just a game, but sometimes we play too hard with our toys. And then they break.””It’s not like we drowned you ourselves.”Jude fights against the currents after the above two mentioned quotes were said, and manages to get back to Taryn on the rock.Cardan’s deal is thus to Taryn: he will let her out of the rive if she A) climbs up by herself out of the water, B) kiss Cardan on both cheeks, and C) never defend Jude. Jude tells Taryn to go, and Taryn flees and does all of that.”Your sister abandoned you,” says Cardan on page 51. he goes on to make threats about how he can do anything he likes to Jude and humans, but that he won’t if she’ll just give up.When she says no, they leave Taryn and Jude, and Jude has to climb out of the water by herself.Cardan continues to make threats such as “You’re going to regret that” on page 66, upsetting Taryn before that, and says that he could get Taryn to have sex with him if he wanted to on page 74. He tells Jude to get down on her knees and beg for forgiveness from him.Why do I bring all of this up, you may ask? Because of the subtle hints along the way that Cardan in a potential love interest for Jude. not only that, to make him more relatable, Jude is hiding in Cardan’s eldest brother’s house, and on pages 117 to 119, Jude watches Balekin brutally beat Cardan, as well as try to force Cardan to kill a human servant. Cardan refuses and leaves.And suddenly Cardan becomes poor little Cardan who has been abused all his life, and the subtle shift that Jude, and we the readers, need to forgive him his actions. I’m not saying Jude is forced to or does forgive him, but what is with this trend in YA literature, especially stuff with faeries, that a love interest is always abusive? Horrifically so???This. Needs. To. Stop. NOW!I give this book 0 stars because I’m freaking fed up with this crap. We already live in a world where teenagers think that Joker and Harley Quinn are a dream relationship, can we PLEASE not continue feeding that mindset? Who cares if the person is hot if they will beat the living crap out of you or screw with your head and emotions so much that you feel like you are nothing in life. This is exactly why ACOTAR was such an awful series, and now we have the “new” ACOTAR series WITH THE EXACT SAME PROBLEMS. Just like how people idolize Rhys and Tamlin, people are going to like Cardan and say “he’s not that bad.”Please stop.

Surprisingly badWith so many positive reviews, I naturally had high opinions of this book and I was very let down. I don;t mind the setting or the flawed characters or the dark happenings.What I did mind was the extremely superficial writing that did not make me connect with or feel for ANY character. Lots of descriptions of things like dresses and some about types of fairie folk but I literally couldn’t visualize this book like I can usually do others because it really felt like it was written for 12 year olds. It was dry, overly simplistic and almost with no consequences for anything (SPOILER: yes, you protagonist can get away with murder! and talk about it after with no consequences). The court settings are all about parties and NO adult details such as how a court might work. Spies can get in and out so easily it is a COURT FOR KIDS!And fair warning, the female abuse/disrespect by guys of the same age here is real. While it wasn’t triggering, it may be harder on YAs.

Dark and DepressingI’m always tentative about book about the fae. With the exception of books by Sarah J Maas, they tend to all be dark, twisty, and absolutely no fun. Sadly, this one ended up being just that. I’m sure some people will love all of the dark, cruel machinations in this book, but it just left me disappointed. None of the characters were sympathetic, except maybe Vivi. Not an enjoyable read at all for me.

Great fantasy plot, setting and heroine, slightly weaker on the romanceBased on the description and title, I was expecting this to predominantly be a fantasy romance, with a “bad boy” or perhaps even villainous fairy love interest. I really enjoy that sort of thing, but was worried it might feel a bit generic and overdone.I was therefore pleasantly surprised to discover that this is basically full-blown fantasy, with the focus very much on politics, plotting and life and death scenarios. It’s also very strong on showing the emotional conflicts and inner turmoil faced by the characters, particularly the lead, Jude.Speaking of Jude, I was expecting either a kick-ass fantasy heroine or a softer romantic lead. Again, my assumptions were dashed. She turned out to be a very dark heroine, bordering on antiheroine. She kills, she plots, she does ruthless things. And her backstory and her ongoing fears and ambitions are so well set out that you completely understand the things she does and keep rooting for her.The supporting characters were also mostly compelling and nuanced. I particularly liked Madoc, Jude’s adoptive father, a bloodthirsty fairy general who killed her biological parents but genuinely loves and cares for her. The unusual backstory and set-up really add a lot compared to the standard set up of a human girl either wandering into faerie by mistake or discovering she is half fairy herself. Jude has grown up as an aristocrat of the fairy world, but facing huge prejudice for being biologically human. And her feelings towards her adoptive father and adopted land are wonderfully conflicted.The world is set out beautifully and strikes a nice balance between solidly well-developed and appropriately dreamlike. I didn’t realise until close to the end, when a cameo made it clear, but this is set in the same world as the author’s old Tithe novels. I didn’t enjoy them as much as this, but I think the existence of all that existing world-building really helped here.As I’ve mentioned, romance was much less front and centre than I was expecting, though it bubbles under the surface, There was a side romance that felt rather throw away and did nothing for me. It’s quite clear from both the title and the entire set up that Cardan, the titular Cruel Prince, is meant to be the main love interest, though, without getting too spoilery, there’s surprisingly little development on that front in this volume. If I had one quibble with the book, it’s that I was a little disappointed in Cardan. I was expecting him to be a bit like the Darkling or similar – cruel in a scheming, sinister way, with lots of ambition but also lots of charm. In this instalment at least, he was more like a petty, spoiled school bully, albeit one who happened to be a fairy prince, and wasn’t particularly competent. And the way he treated the heroine was unpleasant and not linked to any wider plan.Overall though, this was a really well-written and well-plotted fantasy with a great heroine and I’m really looking forward to the next instalment.

4.5 ⭐4.5 ⭐My first time in Elfhame left a bad impression. I felt so out of step because everyone was gushing about The Cruel Prince and I was on the outside thinking ‘I just don’t get it.’ That’s partly why I do not like reading books mid hype.But anyway..A friend talked me into reading The Wicked King, a little longer in the world of Elfhame and I finally felt like I was starting to get it.With Queen of Nothing on the horizon I decided to participate in a readalong with two people who haven’t yet stepped into the world Holly created.Despite having read it… Despite knowing every twist and turn… I loved it.I think people should be warned that this isn’t your typical YA story, you’ll step into Elfhame, you’ll be surrounded by cruel, beautiful, wicked creatures and you’ll probably question your own morals when you fall in love with them. There’s still plenty of characters I hate, don’t get me wrong but there’s a lot I can’t help loving.It’s full of danger, betrayal, bloodshed, manipulation and cunning. Cunning above all else because the Folk cannot lie so they have to be especially clever with everything they say and do.During my first read it was hard to grasp that along with the new world setting and everything else but this time I paid attention to every word.If you’re like me, if you love everything fae and you’re unsure about this, my advice is to read it twice. Give yourself a wee break between reads and see where it takes you the second time around. I’m so glad I gave it another go. I am now really and truly obsessed.Here’s one of my favourite moments;“Take care,” he says, and then smiles. “It would be very dull to have to sit here for an entire day just because you went and got yourself killed.”“My last thoughts would be of your boredom,” I tell him.

A novel of political machinations, of lies and brutality, of cruelty and beauty and brillianceThis book starts with a murder. Two, actually. The grisly murder of a woman and her husband by her ex-husband, who just so happens to be Madoc, a vicious faerie warmonger. But rather than return to Elfhame empty handed, he takes with him his daughter Vivi, but also her seven-year-old half-sisters Taryn and Jude, who he chooses to raise in his estate, in the world of the fae.Raised as mortals in the world of the faeries is a precarious, often dangerous and always brutal existence. The Cruel Prince follows Jude, now a teenager, as she aims to prove herself as more than just human, as a powerful warrior set to be chosen as a knight in a faerie court. However, Jude’s hopes and aims do not go to plan, and soon she finds herself hired as a spy for one of the princes in line for the throne of Elfhame.This is a novel of political machinations, of lies and brutality, of cruelty and beauty and brilliance.Someone on GoodReads described it as the literary equivalent of being hit by a truck, and I think that sums it up pretty well.There is so much to discuss in this novel that it is hard to know where to begin — Jude’s ambition, her sisters’ secrets, Madoc’s secret allegiances, cruel Cardan, beautiful Locke and the fruit! But I genuinely think it’s best if you go into this book knowing as little as I did.Jude is a brilliant, furious creature — the product of murder, danger and brutality, strength built upon her fragility and weaknesses as a mere mortal, easily swayed and damaged by the world around her.I know it is February (though I read this at the start of January) and so this is quite a ridiculous thing to say, but The Cruel Prince is one of my favourite books so far this year. The thing is I think its going to stay as one of my favourite books. I think I’ve found a new favourite author, and I honestly can’t believe I’ve not read any Holly Black until this. I’ve already gifted a copy of this to a friend who loves her writing, knowing that they would absolutely need to read this — and it also meant I have someone to talk to about my emotions.I’m going to be counting the days until I can get back to Jude and her story; roll on the rest of The Folk of the Air series.What to read next:Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn HamiltonSix of Crows by Leigh BardugoThe Call by Peadar O’Guillin

Idee mit Potential, überzeugt aber nichtIch bin durch Zufall auf das Buch gestoßen und durch die positiven Rezensionen dazu animiert worden, es zu kaufen. Ich habe mir etwas in Richtung “Red Queen” oder “Shadow & Bone” vorgestellt, also zwar Jugendliteratur, aber halt richtig gute.Der Anfang hat mir auch richtig gut gefallen, er hat mich geradezu angefixt. Die Welt fand ich interessant, man muss nicht lange warten, bis Action aufkommt, supi. Danach allerdings hat sich meine Begeisterung gelegt, wovon ich vieles darauf zurückführe, dass ich altersmäßig (26) langsam aus dem Genre Jugendliteratur wachse.[Im Folgenden kommen kleine Spoiler]Das größte Problem hatte ich mit den Charakteren. Jude ist als Hauptfigur gewiss keine Sympathieträgerin. Ich hatte schon in einer anderen Rezension gelesen, dass man mit ihr vielleicht nicht warm werde, und das ist auch wahr. Sie ist eigentlich ziemlich kacke und egoistisch, ohne dabei interessant zu sein. Darüber ist sie ein Übercharakter, der irgendwie alles kann, kämpfen, Intrigen spinnen, stehlen, etc etc. Der Autorin gelingt es in meinen Augen nicht, ihr einen richtigen Charakter zu geben, da ihre Entscheidungen häufig keinen Sinn ergeben und eher zum Weiterführen der Handlung getätigt werden. Dasselbe gilt auch für jeden anderen der vielen blassen Charaktere. Das hat mich richtig aufgeregt. Kaum einer der Personen hat mehr als zwei Charaktereigenschaften: Madoc/Bain/Cardan/jeder Fey ist grausam und hinterhältig, Vivi ist rebellisch, Jude ist nervtötend und undurchsichtig, Taryn ist nur nervig. Die Charaktere sind austauschbar, blass und langweilig. Das macht auch die kurze Liebesgeschichte überaus langweilig, kein Funke springt über, nichts. Irgendwann verfliegt auch die Dramatik, wenn jeder ständig, STÄNDIG, als grausam bezeichnet wird, weil z.B. Madoc kaum grausame Sachen macht und ebenso ständig gesagt wird, dass er Jude und ihre Schwestern liebt, und man das auch ebenso wenig sieht. Der Court of Shadows, dem Jude irgendwann angehört, ist so blass und so ohne Charakter, dass es wehtut. Ich war und bin sehr sehr enttäuscht. Dadurch, dass die Charaktere so blass sind, ist man dann auch mit wenig Sympathie dabei und wenn halt welche von ihnen sterben, dann juckt mich das kaum.Ohne groß auf den Inhalt einzugehen, hatte ich auch mit der Handlung ein paar Probleme. Das Grundgerüst ist überschaubar, die “Überraschung” beim Ende sehr vorhersehbar. Sehr lange Zeit passiert kaum etwas, es geht nur um das Mobbing und Judes nervtötende Schwester und eine kleine Liebesgeschichte. Viele Dinge ergeben keinen Sinn und sind überdramatisiert dargestellt. Bis zum eigentlichen Finale passiert eigentlich nüscht. Obwohl man weiß, dass irgendeine Falle kommt, wird nichts getan. Das hat mich aufgeregt. Einen roten Faden habe ich auch nicht wirklich entdecken können, mir war sehr lange Zeit nicht klar, in welche Richtung das Buch denn nun eigentlich gehen würde, und auch die Auflösung war dann nicht wirklich überzeugend. Mit der schwachen Handlung kamen dann auch Logikfehler oder einfach Dinge, die nicht so gut passten. Es hat sich mir nicht erschlossen, warum Jude nicht einfach in die menschliche Welt abhaut. Es wird nie richtig erklärt, wie die Welten miteinander verbunden sind, dabei wäre das wirklich interessant gewesen. Die vielen Courts wurden einfach nur hingeklatscht, die Personen blieben vage im Gedächtnis. Die ganze Geschichte mit Taryn war so unnötig und nervtötend, dass ich das Ebook gerne in die Ecke gepfeffert hätte. Und dass man einfach zu verfeindeten Lagern hingeht und sagt: Hey, machste bei unserem Coup mit, und alle es abnicken, macht einfach keinen Sinn. Wie so vieles einfach zu blass.Mein größtes Problem war, dass viele Dinge so oft erwähnt wurden, dass sie irgendwann ihr Drama verloren. Feys sind grausam – das wird durchgekaut, aber richtige Gefahr kam irgendwie nie so richtig auf, auch, wenn es für Jude mal eng wurde (dafür ist aber auch der Schreibstil mitverantwortlich). Jude hat Angst, ständig, immer, aber ihre Handlungen zeigen das wirklich NIE. Jemand, der Angst hat, handelt eher so wie Taryn. Die Autorin wird nicht müde zu erwähnen, wie viel Angst Jude je hatte und wie sie damit zurechtkommt, aber immer mehr Angst hat – es geht so viel um Angst, dass man bei dem Wort irgendwann nur noch die Augen verdreht.Der Schreibstil war in Ordnung. Den ganzen Aufwand, den man auf das Beschreiben der Kleider verwendet hat, hätte man besser in gute Charakterbeschreibungen investieren können. Oft kam mir der Stil gelangweilt vor, so als wüsste die Autorin genau, wo sie denn hin will, und schreibt es deswegen so langweilig wie möglich herunter. Ganz oft haben mir Detailbeschreibungen gefehlt, von Reaktionen, Gesichtern, ich hätte gerne mehr richtige Dialoge gehabt, die mehr als nur Drohungen gewesen wären.Ich komme langsam besser zum Fazit: Der Anfang war gut und die ganze Welt hat mir gut gefallen, da ist definitiv viel Potential drin. Ich hatte öfter das Gefühl, dass mit den ganzen royalen Intrigen auf Game of Thrones angespielt wird, ohne dabei auch nur annähernd das Niveau zu erreichen. Mit besser ausgearbeiteten Charakteren hätte man schon viel erreichen können. Vielleicht ist für die Zielgruppe 16+ ansprechend, mich hat es nicht überzeugt, und ich werde auch die Fortsetzung nicht kaufen.

APAIXONADA!!Todo mundo que me conhece sabe o quanto eu amo esse livro, pois eu não paro de falar nele um minuto. De longe, uma das melhores trilogias que eu já li na vida, eu tenho um apego tão grande nesses personagens que não sei nem dizer!!A edição em capa dura é uma das coisas mais lindas que eu já vi, as fotos não fazem justiça!! De perto ele é todo dourado e brilhante, sou completamente apaixonada. Porém, a versão em paperback (capa mole) veio com um conto extra no final, que não tem na versão em capa dura. Não é nada essencial a história, mas é um conto interessante, ainda mais para quem também leu The Modern Faerie Tales, pois é sobre a Kaye.

Okay, hard to put down, but too short for the priceNot bad but not great either and definitely not your typical EMP survival kind of book either which can be both good and bad. There were a few minor grammatical errors (incomplete sentences, etc) but nothing at all extreme. I have certainly seen far, far worse by other authors in the same genre. My biggest warning would be that if you are someone easily triggered by abuse towards both humans and/or animals you would be wise to skip over this book and pick another book instead. This book however is tough to put down and will keep you engaged and wanting to know what happens next, especially during some of the action scenes so for that I think it was at least a decent read all things considered. Overall my biggest complaint would be that this is another one of those books that is way too short for the price so I’m not sure if I’ll buy the next part or not.

really good story – terrible endingHannah has been given a gift as a result of a national disaster. Freedom from the dastardly and cruel Pike, a walking talking Snidely Whiplash, only meaner, more dangerous. She meets Liam, a troubled former elite Delta fighter making his way across the frozen northern Michigan forests.This is a good book. Not really literature, but Stone does succeed in nicely relating the frustration Hannah faces, as well as the indecision Liam is saddled with. I like the short chapters, the quick, thrusting sentence structure. The alternating POV is easy to follow, since there is no time for figuring out who is talking. The rollercoaster starts on the first sentence, and although it slows occasionally to describe the intense cold/anticipation/determination to survive, the ride is riveting and fast-moving. Repetition, predictability and a few small story errors are easy to overlook.My problem is the ending, or lack of an ending, and it is a big problem. Stone is talented enough to have securely hooked the reader, a non-conclusion isn’t necessary to sell another book. Now, after that, I am not sure if I will take the bait again, since I feel certain that 2 of 5, 3 of 5 or even 4 of 5 will be equally well written but also similarly disappointing. Sorry to see a 5-star book drop to 3-stars. The story is better than that.

People saying this is a page turner must have been talking about how much they were skimming pagesMade it to chapter 5, couldn’t force my self to read any further.Overly descriptive. There is pretty much an entire chapter describing the process of a character walking out of a door.

Not worth the read or money4 chapters and nothing but adjectives about Hannah ….no plot, no action, no thrill…just flat. Author needs to read good apocalyptic stories to see how they can be written…not this mindless babble she does. I could not give it a half star.

I couldn’t stop!Ummm what just happened? I started reading an EMP Apoc book and came out with so much more than I ever could have imagined! I’m pretty sure I read the majority of this book with my mouth hanging open in shock.Hannah… oh Hannah, you are such an empowering character! Liam, you are fantastic and I love you LOLHonestly, I didn’t even read the book description before I read this book LOL there was a Great Pyrenees on the cover and it was EMP Apoc by Kyla Stone, what else do I need? Well, you can imagine my mind was blown right off my head from the first word!I am “patiently” pacing a path in my floor waiting for the next book. I’ve gobbled up Liam’s story in Chaos Rising, and now I’m just here hoping everyone reads this amazing book so we can all talk about the craziness!

A survival thriller it is!A thriller is something that makes us uncomfortable, nervous in fact, but for some deep seated reason we can’t stop thinking about it. The thrill comes when we can’t put it down and our favorite characters survive against all odds, rewarding our subconscious for sticking with the story despite our nerves. And man, do these characters survive – against so many different threats. In a story that will have your nerves pushing you to the edge of your seat Hannah and Liam survive again and again, starting with an EMP and a harsh Michigan winter and ending with . . . well, you’ll just have to read it. Kyla Stone has a knack for showing how disasters can be a plus for both bad and good people, and “Edge of Collapse” is no exception. I’m pre-ordering the sequel right now!

WOW..!! Apocalypse Thriller to say the least…Of all the Apocalypse books I have read and they are many, this is by far the best. I love the way this author sticks to the storyline. it’s not one of those books that have a great couple of chapters and then jumps to a boring couple of chapters the characters in her book are few and so thrilling that one doesn’t mind the jump. I had such a hard time putting this book down. I’m waiting now for my second book,” Edge of Madness”, it is supposed to be delivered to my Kindle today, 17th..!! Please hurry I’m on the edge of madness myself waiting for that book…!!!

Tense, thrilling start!I love post apocalyptic fiction, and Kyla Stone is one of the best in this genre. This is the start of a new EMP series, and wow, does it start with a bang! We’re at the mercy of a madman, locked in a cold and claustrophobic basement, when the apocalypse turns into an opportunity for one strong woman.This one kept me on the edge of my seat, up past my bedtime with nonstop tension. I can’t wait to see what happens to the fascinating characters in this series next!

Exciting and fast paced book.I absolutely loved this book and read it in a day. The tensions between the two main characters, Liam and Hannah, are well drawn and the dog, Ghost, I really fell in love with. The story moves along at a fair clip and readers are not left hanging about waiting for the next event. I loved the descriptions of the snowy landscape and the little survival hacks, such as the cotton wool balls soaked in Vaseline. The writing is clear and the author really knows how to tell a story. At times I actually felt as though I was there in the snow and freezing cold. This book is well worth 5 stars. However I have only given it 4 stars because to my utter disappointment, when I tried to buy the next book in the series this morning after I finished this one (that is how much I enjoyed it), I found it is only available in Kindle format. I do not have a Kindle. Neither do I want one. Reading from one hurts my eyes. I am sure I am not the only person to prefer the smell and feel of a paperback book to a Kindle so why can’t this series continue in paperback format? As it is I am just left hanging because it is clear from the ending of the first two books that there are a great many questions left that need an answer, including the fate of the two babies and the murderous Gavin Pike. If the author reads these reviews it would be appreciated if she could explain why the series cannot continue in book form because if she had I would have purchased all the books in this series and this review would have been a 5 star and would not have ended with a complaining question.After I submitted this review, complete with its whinging, I was suddenly able to buy a paperback copy of the next book in the series. I don’t know if the whinging caused it but since I have been able to read the next book, which is just as good. I can now edit my review and award this book the 5 stars it deserves! Many thanks Ms Stone. Keep going!

WOW what a storyThis is so exciting, it covers two genres, both of which I love, a thriller about someone abducted by a psycho and kept against her will for years who escapes, and a nail biting apocalyptic end of the world scenario. The writing is good, as is the spelling and grammar, so no distractions, and the characters are wonderful, people you want to like. There is even a dog! read it you will thank me for it.

yes it meanders but……A long and winding road. It’s 1954 and newly released from a work camp, Emmet wants nothing more than to pack up his little brother Billy and head to Texas where he plans to use his carpentry skills to renovate houses. Billy, however, wants to go to California where he believes their mother, who left the family, is living. Both of their plans are knocked sideways by the surprise appearance of Willy and Duchess, who escaped the camp in the trunk of the car that brought Emmet home. Duchess has hatched a plan to go to New York and take $150k from the safe in Wooly’s family home= and he’s steals Emmet’s car, forcing Emmet and Billy onto a freight train where they meet Ulysses, who has been riding the rails since his own family disappeared during WWII. Duchess also wants to wreak revenge on or atone to several people and to find the father who abandoned and betrayed him. This is a story of seekers, of fathers and sons, of heroic tales, of the hidden places, of mental illness, and of hope. These are vivid characters, even if they might seem archetypes- it works. While the novel is set over a ten day period (it counts down from the day Emmet gets home and then documents each day in the journey to and around New York), each character’s back story is parceled out along the way. I found myself wrapped up in this well told story thanks to Towles’ storytelling and, frankly, a desire to know what would happen. And I was surprised. Thanks to Edelweiss for the ARC. Excellent read.

Polished prose provokes lethargyTry as I might, I failed to generate a spark of interest in any of the characters or their aimless wanderings. A Gentleman in Moscow, though set almost entirely in one building, had a great deal more action and interest.

After GENTLEMAN FROM MOSCOW, what a disappointment…The principles are teenage boys in the early 1950s–except for an eight-year-old little brother. The narrator ricochets from one of the characters to another, their thoughts (except, maybe, for Emmett’s) far too mature and introspective considering the ages involved. Moreover, the little brother is beyond precocious. The plot meanders, soon becomes tedious, then devolves into the absurd. I gave up…

This is a huge let down after author’s first two booksI thought his two first books were brilliant. This one is horrible. Uninteresting characters, no action, strange punctuation. Really hard to read.

Wish i’d liked it moreI know there were a lot of people who loved this, but after such anticipation, I was disappointed. To me it lacked the magic of Towles’s earlier two books, in particular, A Gentleman In Moscow, but then that book set such a high bar. Here, instead of having his central character virtually under house arrest and retaining the narrative to a single setting in “Moscow,” Towles hits the open road in 1954 with four characters that made me think of Of Mice & Men by way of Huck Finn. I did like some of the atmospheric choices, such as the Highline decades before it became known as such and was still part of the railway spur that serviced the meatpacking district. But there were too many instances of deus ex machina, too many inconceivable occurrences, I could not suspend belief. I did finish since I was intrigued enough to learn what happens to these people, but was ultimately unsatisfied.

This book is a winner!Once again, Amor Towles has managed to populate his novel with a cast of endearing and quirky characters that tug at your heart strings. “The Lincoln Highway”, is a marvelous story that is at once an adventure novel while being a tale of hopes and dreams fulfilled or dashed.At the heart of the story are 2 young brothers, one a teenager and one a child of 8, who are about to set out to find their mother after the death of their father. The people they encounter, the ones who join their travels, are such interesting and unique characters, with big hearts and dreams all their own, that we become privy to.Amor Towles’ writing is pure poetry. It lets you ride along with him on the wildest of adventures that leaves you breathless and satisfied. This book is a winner.!.

It’s difficult to say why I disliked this book so much, as I greatly enjoyed A Gentleman of Moscow and The Rukes of CivilityMr. Towles is a brilliant writer and certainly proves it, again, with The Lincoln Highway. However, I found it to be more an exercise in literary extravagance and elaborate story telling, but far less in meaning and message.Characters appeared and disappeared rather randomly, as did the story-lines, with ambiguous conclusions ( or none at all).I know this book has been extremely well received and critically acclaimed, but my advice is to not waste your time on it!

Boring with a capital Bso many wasted extraneous words, on and on with repetitive stories, endlessly boring book

A multi faceted road journey.I am a fan of this author. I freely admit that some readers found his earlier books to be trivial and frivolous. I found them to be a delight. Towles is like no other author I know. It takes some time to become hooked by his stories, but the reward is refreshing writing that is unique. The present novel is the story of two brothers who plan to set off from their failed family farm in Nebraska and start a new life in California. Their Plans are thwarted by the appearance of two friends who cause a major disruption which leads to multiple detours on the journey. The story is far fetched and almost ludicrous, but the characters who are portrayed come alive and I did not wish the book to end. In no sense is this book a thriller and yet tension does exist as the end approaches. Th final element of the conclusion has an element of theft from the ending of “The Italian Job” but I think that can be forgiven. Despite an almost total lack of sex, violence and foul language the book moves along at a compelling pace. There is a smattering of philosophy, a touch of Greek mythology and Shakespeare is not forgotten. Much to admire and enjoy.

Wanders off the highwayInteresting at first then the characters and story start to wander all over the place – and I don’t just mean as they develop their journey. Emmett and Billy come alive in the first chapters but then seem to fall away and become far less believable. VERY disappointing.

Do not waste your moneyDo NOT buy! This is Propaganda at Best! The media spews propaganda in the daily. I don’t care for my leisure time of reading to have assaults on the “white male”, and the Lord’s name in vain as Printed. If I could put no stars, I would. What a shame and a disgrace. When you are reading a story, you wish to escape. There is no escape from liberal propaganda by the likes of Taylor Jenkins Reed. Do not waste your money.

So-soFor a book with over 56,000 ratings and 9000+ reviews, I’d say my opinion counts for squat. However, my average rating reflects how this book made me feel.Parts were great, parts were boring, overall it was meh. After the forth or fifth? marriage, it was like Groundhog Day.For me to be invested in a story, I need to care about at least one of the main characters. That didn’t happen in this instance.

WasteI read a review of this book that said it was an excellent summer read. I am half way thru and thinking about dumping it. Not very interesting. I guess the fact that the central characters are lesbians and the fictional writer is biracial it’s enough to make it edgy and interesting for the author. Pure device. Better to read a bio of Elizabeth Taylor if you want to read about an interesting actress with a multitude of husbands. This book is plain dull.

Let downThis was not what I was expecting. The writing and storytelling was good and kept me reading to the end but turned out to be a preachy propaganda piece for a certain agenda. If I had known that I would not have purchased the book. If you are a conservative reader, pass this one up.

For Gently Left of Center KarensSo I don’t understand all the rave reviews – it’s not even a fun beach read, just another gently left of center story with the correct Ivy League opinions where the lesbians are as attractive as in a Penthouse forum letter, the characters are white inside with beautiful Carmel colored coatings, and you can see the twist coming from M. Knight Shyamalan’s porch.

HeartbreakingI read this at the recommendation of someone and I think that someone owes me a box of tissue.What to even say about this? I was at a loss for words when I finished reading this last night, and I’m still struggling.I don’t want to recap the book because that has been done before already and I feel that it would be full of spoilers if I attempted to.The way the book was organized to take us on this journey was clever. It is alternately narrated by Monique, the reporter who has been appointed to write the biography of Evelyn (Herrera) Hugo, and Evelyn herself. Going back and forth between past and present while we move forward through time in the different era’s of each of Evelyn’s seven husbands. Tricky but creative. And it worked.This entire book had me feeling so angry and heartbroken. I kept thinking about how terrible it was that people had to do so much to maintain secrecy out of fear of ridicule (or worse). Then I had to remind myself that it is still that way today at times and in some places. I have been so fortunate that I have been able to live my truth with very little conflict or turmoil.I read a 1 star review for this saying race and whatever was added to be titillating. I wish I could say that was funny considering the themes of this book. Clearly that person didn’t understand the message. But it just isn’t funny, it is sad. I appreciated the diversity. Half back/white narrator. Black boss. Cuban American title character. That isn’t titillating, it is representative of the REAL WORLD.Ultimately this story is about the love of Evelyn Hugo’s life and her desire to tell her truth once and for all. She experience so much pain and hardship through all phases of her life. It was difficult reading everything she goes through. But I felt that one thing lead to another authentically. I think her actions were based on her experiences. I didn’t agree with some of them, but I could understand them.The ending was a surprise, for sure. The author did a great job of planting seeds throughout the book that kept you hooked to want to know what this was all about.Evelyn was full of sexuality and sex was a constant theme. I’m so impressed how the author wrote about it without ever being explicit.In the end, I was moved by the story. I shed many tears. I may not have liked Evelyn Hugo. I don’t think we are really supposed to. But I definitely felt empathy and sadness. As well as a sense that I had read something wonderful.

Addicting, brilliantly written story!You know the saying about potato chips “bet you can’t eat just one!”? Well, don’t eat potato chips while reading this book. For starters potato chip grease gets on the pages, which is a pet peeve of mine. But, more importantly you will not be able to stop reading chapter after chapter and your stomach can’t handle all those chips. This can definitely be a one sitting book read.If you are looking for a book to start your summer off right: this here is your jam!As a teenager, Evelyn Hugo knew she wanted bigger and better things than Hell’s Kitchen. Her mom dreamed of Hollywood, and after her death Evelyn would do everything in her power to make her mom’s dream her own. She married her first husband to get her to Hollywood and the next six to keep her there.You only knew what she set up to tell you; only a few knew the real Evelyn. At the age of 79 she is ready to tell all and hires an unknown journalist, Monique Grant, to do the telling. Why now? Why Monique? And, what the public wants to know is out of the seven, who was the love of her life? Well that I will not tell you: you need to read the book!It was an addicting, brilliantly written story. Author Taylor Jenkins Reid reeled me in: hook, line and sinker. This is the first and certainly not the last book I will read by her.

A Must ReadMy God, this woman can write!It’s all here: scandal, honesty, brutal words, delicate words. Sentences that take your breath away. Definitely not a beach read, but a book with great depth.

YawnNot for me this one, I was looking for something a little lighter to read, lighter is what I got! Just a very vapid tale about a shallow bunch of people. I didn’t like either of the central characters, they had nothing interesting to say. Life, loss, regret – maybe so but these characters are so one dimensional nothing has any deep meaning or emotional content that truly hits. At times I found the narrative to be somewhat juvenile, ultimately just horribly superficial trying to be meaningful. No plot surprises at all just cliches.

Addictive and SpecialWow! Where do I start with this book! I enjoyed EVERY. SINGLE. WORD! It was hard to put down and when I did I couldn’t wait to pick it back up again!An historical love story with a bisexual narrator, a famous old Hollywood actress, and all of her seven marriages. It tells the story of Evelyn, who wants to be famous, who learns early on in life that to get what she wants she has to play the part in every sense of the word. Now in her seventies Evelyn wants to share her life story with journalist Monique who has been personally picked by Evelyn. A tell all memoir about her life and her rise to fame. The glitz and glam of old Hollywood, the manipulation, the scandal, Hollywood cover ups, having to conform to society norms of the time and what it meant to be gay/bisexual during that time period.It felt like non fiction. Like I was reading about Monroe or Elizabeth Taylor. Everything was so detailed. All the characters felt so real. Evelyn is flawed, ambitious and strong. A completely unapologetic character, manipulative and selfish who I loved! There are times she will frustrate you as a reader, but she is compelling and unforgettable! And with each husband she captivated me more with her spell.The real reason for Evelyn picking Monique is intriguing and kept me hooked in the present day story telling. Evelyn’s rollercoaster life flows chronologically over the years and covers topics such as LGBTQ+ rights, diversity, female empowerment, sexuality, found family, motherhood and love. It is as much a story about Evelyn as it is about Harry and Celia’s life too. These two characters completely had my heart. I went on as much of an emotional journey with them as I did with Evelyn.Taylor Jenkins Reid is without a doubt, a fantastic story teller. The way she writes her characters and their lives is addictive and very special.Enough of my gushing. Remember. Life is short. Life is precious. Live life without regret. Hold loved ones tightly. Love who you love. Make memories to last a life time. Laugh. But most of all be unapologetically you! Always! ❤️

No one’s talking about the elephant in the roomI’m half way through the book and I’m super annoyed with two aspects of the author’s approach. First, he gets preachy about global warming, which is not a thing one does when one wants to engage an audience…”And just like that another climate denier is born.” Can he be more condescending and dismissive?To be frank, I believe in climate change. I believe the climate changes every three months (roughly); they’re called seasons. What I don’t believe in is soft science and doomsday predictions based on data that’s easily manipulated by activists to say anything they want.The second problem I have with the book so far is that it reads too much like the The Martian, but without the emotion. There’s no reason to like or dislike the characters beyond the superficial aspects of their personalities. Everyone is two-dimensional. The main protagonist spends his days dodging his emotions, and every supporting character on Earth is a stereotype–without enough personality for me to care about any of them.Maybe things will get better as I continue to read, but only if the author puts away his soapbox and get’s back to story-telling.

Amazing. Wonderful. Excellent.I don’t even remember pre-ordering this book. It just showed up in my Kindle app this morning. So I decided to read the first chapter before starting work. Four hours later, I can finally put the book down since I’m done.”The Martian” was a great story. “Artemis” was a great story. This one is better than either of those. If you like science fiction with actual science, this is for you. If you like stories with interesting, well developed characters, this also has that. If you want excitement and a thrilling plot, here you go. If you want romance and sex, well, there you’re completely out of luck. But if that was the kind of book you wanted I doubt you’d be reading this review anyway. Speaking of, why *are* you still reading this review? Go read the book!! It’s way better than this.

Three and a half starsBased on all the rave reviews, I had high hopes for this book. It’s certainly a couple of notches above other science fiction novels I’ve read lately (all of them with rave reviews). If Mr. Weir’s editors had leaned on him to cut 150 pages out of the text, this would have been a stronger novel.PROS:1. The characters are individualized and (mostly) likeable. It’s really nice to have a male protagonist in a sci fi book who’s compassionate, caring, and human.2. Plot twists and turns kept me reading in spite of some long tedious sections.3. Alien life forms are creatively and imaginatively rendered.4. A bit of humor here and there helped enliven the story.CONS:1. The author is mainly concerned with engineering solutions to survival problems–one after the other after the other. Some of these are exciting, but there were just too many.2. The plot drags on and on as one technical problem after another takes center stage. If you’ve been dealing with computer, electrical or mechanical problems in your own life, you might find the endless series of equipment disasters a bit frustrating to read about.

I’ll keep it simple.This book is simply outstanding. There you go. A 5 word review…but I’m not wrong.

Andy does it again!A spiritual sequel to The Martian that had me grinning throughout the entire book.Made my inner nerd squeal with delight on many occasions.Has everything I ever wanted in a sci-fi book, just didn’t realize it until now.Read it. That is all.

Stop reading this review. Read “Project Hail Mary”.A previous reviewer said: ‘”The Martian” was a great story. “Artemis” was a great story. This one is better than either of those ‘. WRONG! This one is MUCH better than either of those! Instant classic.If you mixed Asimov’s “The Gods Themselves” and Heinlein’s “Citizen Of The Galaxy” and added in a few gallons of Clarke and Niven it would be like this. I’d write more, but I’m off to re-read the novel.

Well, there’s some good and some not so good hereThere is some pretty clever science here, and a lot of sophomoric fantasy about saving the world with sacrifice and universal cooperation that must have been absorbed from some over-zealous Sunday School teacher.We have this interstellar infection that eats the energy of the sun and causes it to get dimmer. We have to save the world from an imminent ice age so we scoop up some of this amazing stuff and figure out that it absorbs, and can be made to emit, incredible amounts of energy. Hey, I have an idea! Let’s use it to power a star ship to near light speed! We’ll build the ship by utilizing universal love, cooperation and sheer human ingenuity and send some suicidal humans to Tau Ceti to figure why that star isn’t getting sick, although also infected. (Well, one of them isn’t suicidal but we bully him into going anyway.)Wait!! We have a source of amazing amounts of energy and we use it to send our two-and-a-half heroes off to save the world? What about using all that incredible love, cooperation, ingenuity and boundless energy to keep the earth warm while we figure out how to kill the bug? Well, that won’t fit our little trolley-car moral dilemma plot, will it? Can’t use that.

JuvenileI am surprised by all the rave reviews. While I really enjoyed Andy Weir’s “The Martian”, I thought the writing in this book was very juvenile. Fun/interesting storyline, but the quality of the writing is so weak that I won’t be recommending this to any of my friends.

Andy Weir does it again!I received the new book today with the intention of rationing the pages so I didn’t binge it in one session. So I binged it in one session. Andy has a knack for totally engrossing hard science based stories that make you keep on turning pages to find out how the protagonists get out of the last big mess he got them into. And Mr Weir doesn’t disappoint! There’s at least one plot point that he admits is a stretch… but going through the story is educational as much as it is exciting. If I ever get called upon to heroically save the world from an invasive interstellar infection I’m sure I could deliver… Now I need the film to get made so I can enjoy the whole thing afresh.

Science geek heaven!If you liked the Martian, you’ll love this. Ryland Grace wakes up on a spacecraft with no idea how or why he is there-or even who he is.He has to work out why he’s there, and what he has to do, from scratch. And then work miracles. Or in the words of Mark Witney in the Martian, ‘science the s*** out of it’.Written in a similar style to the Martian, with sections alternating between Ryland-on-Earth and Ryland -in-Space, it’s hard not to picture Matt Damon as Ryland, but though they share the same love of science trivia, and self-deprecating humour, they are very different.There’s loads of geeky science as he McGyvers his way from one situation to another. Maybe a little too much if you’re not a science nerd or sci-fi fanatic but I loved it.I loved the quirky characters of all the ‘supporting actors’ (This is so definitely going to be a film!), especially Rocky. Oh, Rocky! Just… read it, ok?

UnderwhelmingJust could not get into it, and I read a lot of noir and like Baldacci.

Dream Town by David BaldacciAs with all of David’s books this is an enthralling story. You have excitement, intrigue and a labyrinth of clues and hints trying to connect the dots. Things are not always what they seem and you are kept guessing right up till the end. It is an excellent read that you will not want to put down until you have all the answers. Everyone enjoy a great ride.

Just not my cup of teaI like Baldacci. I really do. But I did not care for this book. Too many characters in it for me. I like one protagonist and then one or two antagonists in a read. Aloysius Archer is the protagonist private eye, hired to solve a case. But there are a myriad other characters as antagonists such that I did not recall each ones part in the narrative.It seemed to me that the story line was more a picture puzzle that needed to be constructed in order for the plot to make sense. Each antagonist was a piece of the puzzle, i.e., information for Archer to add together to solve a murder and locate a missing person. But along the way, I lost which character’s piece of information added to the “puzzle” story line as a whole. The book was a period piece about the movie business, and the celebrities working in that business in Hollywood California circa 1953. That, of itself, made the read somewhat interesting in that I used to live in LA, albeit not in that era. But saying that, I did not get much else out of the read. I do not retell story lines in my reviews.Although I have read other of Baldacci’s books about this character, in summary, I find I am not much of a fan of the “Archer” character, or the story lines of the books he is in.

Lots of detailsI don’t remember banks having drive thrus back in those days. I doubt those would admit and tell in details their involvement as they did at the lake

Shades of Dashiell Hammett!This book takes me back to the old black & white gumshoe movies of the 40s. Lotsa smoking, drinking and shady ladies. It is written in that gritty detail (oh, lotsa detail) that the narrator in these movies used to describe. Maltese Falcon and the Big Sleep come to mind. I really liked the first two Archer books in this series, but this one was somewhat of a let down. But it looks like there are more coming along from Baldacci. He didn’t close the door on this PI. Too bad.

a real charmer, an atmospheric “gumshoe” tale.In this third addition to the Archer series, Archer continues to find work in LA while dating a minor actress named Liberty, with whom he is obviously in love. It is set in post-WWII Hollywood, and often his attitude and descriptions are poetic enough remind one of a Bogart movie. Indeed, it is amusingly self-referential when the actress friend advises him to try out for acting parts as a detective! A hilarious, if understated, scene. He becomes mired in a complicated case, where numerous major characters have unseen ties. A fun unraveling of a knotted-up, complex tale. I definitely recommend it.

Reads like a TCM movie.If you like old 40’s movies, this is the book for you. Tons of characters. Lots of descriptive material. Dialogue short and choppy like a Cagney film. Not Baldacci’s usual, and I have anxiously read them all. Got through half of this one and quit. Don’t know if Archer (main character) ever found who he was looking for in the story, but I sure got tired of the hunt.

No author holds my attention like David BaldacciI absolutely loved this book! Nobody compares with David Baldacci. His writing style wraps around me like a long lost friend and holds my attention as the story unfolds! I have to force myself to stop reading in order to make the experience last! I really miss his writing as I wait for his next book. The only thing I didn’t like was the ending with his girlfriend Liberty Callahan. I hope in the next episode that she realizes how much she loves him and the excitement he brings to her life! Archer needs some love and tenderness so he can endure the danger and harshness of a PIs lifestyle!

Another page turner.This is another of David Baldacci’s “must just read another chapter” books and before you know it you have finished another book. You think you know what the ending will be but there is always a surprise!!

Total page turnerDavid Baldacci never lets me down but does cause me to have a lot of very few hours sleep, his twists and turns in his style of writing is second to none can’t wait to November for his next chapter of the Memory man

First book bigger in width and height than the other two books?Great book so far, what can I say? It’s a touchstone of science fiction. Ordered the first three books separately (because it was actually slightly cheaper to do that than get the box set) and kind of surprised the first book is larger in width and height than the other two. It’s not a big deal I guess but kind of defeats the purpose of getting three books from a series that match each other. I just thought this was odd enough to mention in a review.UPDATE: Figured it out, the first book is actually in Trade Paperback format; the other two are the NEW Mass Market Paperbacks. Unfortunately on Amazon, the latter is being sold without delineation as the “Paperback” option, often with the “Mass Market” option seeming to be OLDER editions of the MMP size. This is also true for the 6 book (unboxed) set that I later purchased twice, trying to get the rest of the books in the bigger size.Note: I prefer the bigger size because it stays open when laid on a flat surface or in your lap. That sold it for me. On top of that, the font looks better somehow, and the narrow size just looked and felt kind of weird because the font size was the same but the pages are so narrow (I had an older edition of the first book that was MMP size but smaller font so it didn’t look and read weird).In all my frustrated searches on Amazon, it seemed really unusually difficult to find the rest of the books in the larger Trade Paperback size, so for your sake, here’s what I figured out after way too much time: A) The official BOXED set is the Trade Paperback size of the first book. B) Or, if you are like me and only wanted to get the first few books in Trade Paperback size, go to the Penguin Random House website, find the individual Dune books, select “Paperback”, and click on their Amazon link to buy it here (they also link to other major book dealers, if you prefer). I managed to find books two, three, and four this way., which were the only ones I really wanted anyway.Note that as of writing this, the second and third books in Trade Paperback size on Amazon are both $9.99 each (same price as the NEW MMP books) but God Emperor is almost full price at $16.99 for some reason.

The Most Beautiful Hardcover I OwnI just got the Dune Hardcover Deluxe edition in the mail today, and this may be the most beautiful hardcover I own. The dust jacket has a soft matte feel to it. The inside front and back covers both have unique and amazing paintings. The pages are blue tipped. I had originally purchased this book to read, but I’m having second thoughts and may just re-read my dog-eared paperback that I bought 20 years ago. I paid $28 for this deluxe hardcover edition and I believe it is well worth it.Of course, the story itself is 5 stars all the way.

Good book, some distracting voice elementsDune is a great book, and Simon Vance, the primary narrator of the audible version I’m listening to, has probably one of my favorite voices of all time. The voice acting overall is good in this version, but I’m confused as to why some chapters feature several voice actors doing various characters while other chapters – featuring the same characters – have everything voiced by Vance. As I said, I love his voice, but the switching back and forth is odd and distracting to me.

It’s everything you’ve heard it is and more.The hype is justified for this book. If you have not read it yet, please do yourself a favor and change that asap. I’m sure there are a landslide of other reviewers that can tell you all about the story itself, so I will skip that. This book was an epic pleasure to read. I had some apprehension going in as I repeatedly heard that it’s overly jarring from the beginning. I did not find this to be the case, and I’m no prodigy. It does have some of it’s own words that are explained in the back of the book if needed, but said words are also presented with enough context to give you a good idea of what they’re talking about. You have to push through a little at the beginning, but everything falls into place quickly enough.From cover to cover it is interesting and exciting. There is a reason it is hailed as such a timeless story, and I implore that you find the time to experience it for yourself.

I love the permanently bound price tag on the book.At first you think it’s going to be a really great binding and copy the book when you open the box. But then you actually open the box and you notice that it’s been rattling around the box for 3 days while they shipped it. Then you take it out and go okay you know I can live with the dented and dim corners. And then you notice that the sticker on the back is permanently bonded to the book. So if you try to remove it it actually removes part of the cover with it. if they only would have put a little thin layer of plastic all the way around the book and then maybe adhered the sticker to it… would have been so much better.

Not Just a Classic Science Fiction Book, A Classic PeriodFar-reaching and mind-expanding, when I first read Dune in the ’60s I had my mouth open most of the time, and could only read half a page or so at a time before looking off into space for a few moments in awe, thinking about what I had just read. Thousands of years in the future, where mankind is able to control every single muscle in his body, where computers (which, when I read the book, were relatively new at the time) had been surpassed hundreds of years earlier, where mankind has spread an empire across the universe, and was beginning, through evolution and technology, to advance beyond humankind…a towering classic, anyone with any interest in science fiction at all must read this book. (and btw, I like David Lynch’s 1984 feature film, you had to have read the book to follow the movie.)

That’s not a kriss, this is a kriss…Many mediocre sequels followed, but this first is a great piece of political sci-fi. Imagine the oil-producers were extraterrestrial cultures, producing not lubricants and fuels but a natural psychotropic which facilitated hyperspace navigation. Now imagine an Asimovian empire trying to rest control of the source. Imagine that there is a fanatic desert uprising seeking to regain that control, resisted not by the Husseini nor the Ibn Saud but by a royal gang which looks for all the world like the Hapsburgs. Throw in a heroic noble family, political intrigue, brilliant, West-Wing level smartwriting, and just for, the helluvit, a tribe of real witches and some giant snakes which patrol the =deserts by tunneling under the sands. Completely addictive read. A modern classic..

You don’t realise just how much is owed to thisWhat is there to be said that already hasn’t been said better by someone else? What a thouroughly enjoyable and interesting book this really is.If I hadn’t already been aware of the film and the documentary into the failure of the 70’s film, I would of struggled to comprehend that this book is over half a century old.But from that, if you are a fan of any epics, from sci-fi to fantasy, books and film, you’ll never know just how many authors have been influenced by Frank Herbert.On the surface it may seem a basic structured story, but keeping attention to what each character values and understands, you realise that as the book goes on, that every idea and thought carried are in fact wrong, that these characters all come to the realisation that their closely held truths are in fact falsehoods, as well as many characters having plans within plans, and plots within plots withing plots!The pages just fly by once you get started and I was saddened when I realised the story was drawing to its conclusion.A 5 star review from me, and I hope that this inspires someone else to dabble in the story of the people of Arrakis

Eviten las malas traducciones en español y lean en su idioma original tal cuál lo escribió su autor.En México no sólo tenemos un problema de falta de lectura, también hacen falta buenas editoriales. Anduve buscando este libro en español pero sólo encontré el que editó editorial debolsillo en España. Aunque sus libros a pesar de ser de bolsillo, valga la redundancia, son de buena calidad y son fáciles de leer pues se traducen a un español neutro pero no en todos los casos ya que los españoles se caracterizan por ser pésimos traductores, prácticamente traducen lo que ellos entienden y no lo que el autor quiso decir, esto hace que se pierda toda la esencia de un libro al grado de que puede fastidiarte y no entiendas nada. En México podemos encontrar libros traducidos al español pero la mayoría son de editoriales españolas, siendo debolsillo la más predominante pues aparentemente son los mas económicos y los encuentras en cualquier lado. Sin embargo también hay muy buenas editoriales españolas como Valdemar y Zorro Rojo, de las cuales no duraría en comprar uno de sus libros sin importar el precio. Ojalá un día Zorro Rojo se anime a sacar su versión de Dune.Muchas veces cuando tienes altas expectativas de un libro y al leerlo terminas decepcionado, ponte a pensar que quizá se deba a una mala traducción. Así que antes de comprar esa edición en español me detuve a pensar. La verdad no quería que una mala traducción me echara a perder una obra como Dune; además esa edición es muy cara pues se envía desde España. Finalmente me decidí a comprarlo en su idioma original.Este libro es parte de una serie de seis clásicos de la ciencia ficción editados por la reconocida Penguin Random House con sede en Nueva York. Los títulos (aparte de Dune) que componen esta serie llamada Penguin Galaxy son: Stranger in a Strange Land, The Left Hand of Darkness, The Once and Future King, Neuromancer y 2001: A Space Odyssey. Cuentan con una introducción del reconocido escritor Neil Gaiman y el diseño de los libros corrió a cargo de Alex Trochut.Sabemos que los libros en inglés son más baratos que las ediciones (mal)traducidas al español, sin embargo estos no son tan baratos pero creo que al ser parte de una serie con un excelente diseño es un buen precio. La decepción vino al tener el libro físico. La verdad me esperaba algo de mejor calidad, algo mucho más resistente. Yo nunca he leído Dune y para eso compré este pero me da miedo agarrarlo pues siento que mis dedos se van a quedar marcados en la tapa ya que es de un papel mate muy absorbente. El papel de las páginas también es muy delgado. Me da la impresión de que estos libros son para tenerlos en tu repisa pero no para ser leídos.Junto con este libro compré otros artículos, entonces me mandaron todo junto en la misma caja y este libro se maltrató un poco. No traía ni celofán ni trataron de protegerlo. Tomen en cuenta que es lo que van a pedir y si sus productos pueden maltratar otros durante el envío. Por cierto, el envío fue rapidísimo, sin duda Amazon es mi plataforma favorita para hacer mis compras.

I was so excitedI own and have read every single Women’s Murder Club books. I was disappointed in the last one because the writing was and characters were flat and formulaic. One more, this just might be my last one, if I could return it I would, that is how disappointed I am.Patterson has been churning out books and in this series at least, it shows. There is a lack of character development, flat dialogue, the storyline bounces around haphazardly.He needs to slow down and pay attention to the people he has created in these stories instead of treating them like two dimensional paper dolls he takes out to play with.I WANT to like this book. But its just not good enough. The vocabulary choices he makes aren’t always character appropriate or situational appropriate. Where did the police procedure researcher go?I’m not even going to address the miraculous completion of Cindy’s book, that was just ridiculous. I mean why spend pages and pages of whining about having to write Burke’s book and writers block, to practically overnight finishing it a best seller.I feel like I got cheated.

Part One: Same Old — Part Two: GreatI love these Women’s Murder Club Mysteries. The characters are dear to me. That said, the 1st part of the novel recycled too many familiar plot themes — dirty cops, cartels, and nothing seemed fresh. And that portion continued too long. When Part Two began, wow! What a difference! I couldn’t stop reading until the end. Unfortunately, the wow factor of the story was way shorter than the boring part. That’s why the 3 stars. Hope the “23” entry will be more consistent.

Another goody by James Patterson!I love all the Women’s Murder club books. It’s hard to wait for the next one.Reading stories where you feel you know all the characters makes the stories more interesting. Plot was good and nothing was given away! I would recommend this series to anyone!

Another WinnerI love the Women’s Murder Club. This book is exceptionally good. I’m amazed at how a writer comes up with a storyline including plot, defining characters etc. That’s why writers write and I read. This is a book you Patterson and Paetro fans need to get…you will love it

Loved this book!I can’t believe the complexity of the story and how it worked out. Fabulous!! I saw a different side of Boxer and Joe, and how difficult marriage is for 2 law enforcement officers with a family. Highly recommend this book!

One of the best ……in this series. Kept you involved and guessing. All the characters involved. More than just the girls getting together to swap stories. Surprise ending!!! Good read!

DisappointedI usually look forward to The Women Murder Claub books and enjoy reading them. This one was confusing in spots and somewhat disjointed. I have read all of them and 22 Seconds is at the bottom of the list. Diappointed.

22 Seconds by James PattersonI like it that when a business tells you what day the item is going to be received and it is received on time as promised . Thank you for always being on time and in new/perfect condition. I am such a fan of James Patterson. I have read 1-21 of the Women’s Murder Club series. I just received #22 and i can’t wait for number 23 to be published!! Thanks, Karen

22 SECONDS HARDBACKIt is very simple really. If you have read and enjoyed any/all “Women’s Murder Club” books you don’t need me to say this is another very good read. A page turner written to his usual formula (which seems to annoy some?) Short chapters that keep you in suspense and needing to read on. The usual characters. Good plot developments and twists. I read it in 3 days. 22 books! If the formula works, please don’t change it. Recomnded.

22 Seconds – Woman’s Murder Club, James PattersonWell worth the wait for the twenty second book in the series although this story was more about just Lyndsey Boxer than all four members of the murder club. It was also about the Boxer family bringing Joe in working on the case and Julie Bug a four year old tantrum throwing child. Still worth reading.

Loved itWatching an ice queen’s heart melt for the right man is as satisfying as it is unexpected. A love note to book lovers, this literary romance stars the villain of everyone else’s story. She’s the stereotypical “unfeeling” workaholic; a woman who is successful, beautiful, and comes across as ice cold. She’s the woman that the hunky hero leaves behind in every small town romance, and she knows it. This is truly her story, with a great mix of women’s fiction and romance told exclusively from the heroine’s perspective. The heart of the story is Nora’s personal journey towards love and self-acceptance, but the romance is also an integral part of the tale. This romance lover was greedy for the swoony scenes – I loved both characters, and they were electric together. While the love story is not always the focus, it definitely had me caught up, and I also appreciated the smart, impactful moments that make this a well-rounded read.The story follows Nora, a woman who knows she’s not heroine material. As a book agent, she can see the parallels between her own life and the plot of a small town romance novel. Basically, she’s the workaholic ice queen that the hero always leaves behind once he finds the love of his life… and that’s actually happened to her several times. Nora has always been an unapologetic city girl who is married to her job, so when she suddenly finds herself spending a month in a charming small town, Nora is a fish out of water. She’s out of her element, and the only person who seems to understand the feeling is the grumpy editor who is also in town. Nora wrote Charlie off as a jerk when she first met him, but getting to know him better has shown her that there might be more to the story. They might not be anyone else’s definition of “perfect,” but they shine when they’re together.I was grinning within minutes of reading this, loving the many nods to tropes, rom coms, and classic love stories. It’s such an intelligent romance, starring a woman who most would consider unlikable or unrelatable. I loved getting to know Nora better and understanding what makes her tick. This is 100% her story, and that really worked here. Sure, I was impatient to get back to the romance sometimes, but I also enjoyed how unique the storyline feels. It’s truly a blend of women’s fiction and romance, about finding your own happy place and being loved for who you are. Nora softens so much throughout the story, but I adored that Charlie never asks her to. They make such an interesting combination, with plenty of sexual tension, chemistry, and banter. There’s a great mix of small town charm, swoons, humor, emotional moments, and angst – it puts you through your paces, emotionally, and leaves a lasting impression.

Emily Henry writes the perfect romance!I’ve come to the conclusion that Emily Henry writes the perfect romances for me. With each book she writes I fall more and more in love with her writing and characters. When I started this book, I had no idea how I would feel about it by the end. The heroine isn’t your typical romance heroine and I loved that about her. Nora and Charlie were both fantastic and they just worked together.Nora Stephens is a ruthless literary agent and she’s the best at her job. Work is her life, and aside from her sister Libby and her nieces, it’s all she focuses on. Libby is the one person she can’t say no to and when she asks her to take a trip with her before her due date (Libby is pregnant with niece number 3) she goes. To a small town named ‘Sunshine Falls’.Libby has all kinds of things planned for Nora. She wants her to have the small town experience but the most surprising thing about Sunshine Falls is who she runs into there. Charlie Lastra. An editor from NYC who she’s worked with in the past. I wouldn’t quite call Nora and Charlie enemies or nemeses, but they’re closer to that than to being friends. Nevertheless, they get each other.”I think you’re one of the least disappointing people I’ve ever met.”I don’t know what I loved more about this book… Nora and Charlie, Nora and Libby, or just watching Nora grow and seeing who she really is. Getting to truly know her was the best part of this book. I love getting to see the why’s. Why someone is the way they are. Being inside Nora’s head was fascinating and I could relate to her as an older sister.Charlie was such a fantastic hero. He worked so well with Nora and he understood her in a way very few do. I loved that he appreciated her for who she was and loved her enough to want what was best for her. He had his broody and standoffish moments, but when he opened up he was beautiful. I also loved the banter and spark between them.Emily Henry not only gives us an incredible romance with Book Lovers, she gives us a story of siblings, the love of books, and a small town romance with a twist. I recommend this to all my romance lovers and book lovers in general!

Insert several sobbing emojis hereIt’s 3:30 in the morning and I just finished this. I have a meeting (or meating, as I spelled it first, please see opening sentence about what time it is) in three hours. Point being, there’s no way I can write anything articulate or profound about this book right now. All I can say is that I loved it. I loved the characters. I loved the humor and the angst. I loved the ending. I don’t love that it’ll probably be at least a year until I get to read another Emily Henry book, but I know it’ll be worth it.

Just buy this already!Another massive win from Emily/for us!As expected, a beautifully written story with crystal clear descriptions that arent ridiculously flowery (thankfully) nor are they overused (she let out the breath she didn’t know she was holding… Am I right?). As you can imagine, I’m not a big fan of long descriptions. I like action and lively diologue. But here Emily gives us LOL and heart breaking actions, superb diologue and descriptions that you’ve never read before and you wonder “how have these words never been used to describe this situation/characters/story before by another author?!”. Emily was good before. But here she’s a genius! A master of her craft! Someone to aspire to be like (or just become friends with). She doesn’t need to get any better than this, but if she does, that would be a lottery winning ticket to us readers/her bank account and all the people behind the scenes that make this happen and get paid to do so. Apologies for all the rambling. I’m just so in love with this book/these characters/the tears she made me cry/the HEA!You probably read the blurb already, so now just jump right in. THIS is what 80% of the books should be like but aren’t. Emily is magic!Having said all this, I have a small warning for you (regarding the content): one of the characters suffers from Parentification (if you are a new mom you may have come across this on IG or else you may identify with this character and understand why you behave the way that you do). I’m not going to explain this here as I’m not a therapist and it’s not my place (but I would suggest a quick search to understand it). Some people may find it slightly (psychologically) triggering. It is beautifully done and not just a gimmick.Now buy it, stay up late reading it, cry over it and thank Emily later 🙂

My favourite Emily HenryI wasn’t sure what to expect from this book. I’ve read Beach Read and You and Me on Vacation and enjoyed them but they didn’t stick with me. I loved Book Lovers for so many reasons. I love Charlie and Nora, I loved that it’s not just a romance book but also a book about being a big sister. I laughed and I cried and I was so scared of the ending but I’m so glad i read this book.

Pure joy!Oh this book! It was everything I hoped it would be. Small town romance BUT nobody has to abandon their dreams because they eg had hot sex with a Christmas tree farmer, check. Enemies to lovers but just enough for a spark not so much you legit hate one of them, check. Adult people with adult problems who discuss things like adults, check. Joyful/tongue in cheek romp through all your favourite romance novel/Hallmark movie tropes, check. I just love Emily Henry so much! I’m here for all of her books, and very grateful to Penguin for the arc obviously, but if they could just inject the next one directly in my veins I’d be even happier thank you so much in advance!

Run, don’t walkFabulously written. Another absolute stunner of a book by Emily Henry. This might be my favorite so far. I could NOT put it down. I won’t recap the premise as I assume everyone can read the synopsis that someone else took their time and energy to put together. But if you love fully-developed characters, fantastic writing, and a deliciously fun plot, stop what you’re doing and read this book.

DreadfulThis book is so boring, couldn’t finish it.

Holly Black’s “debut” Adult NovelI have the term debut set aside by quotation marks in the title of my review because, at fifty-seven years of age, I have voraciously read as many of Holly Black’s YA offerings as I could get my greedy hands on. (Or ought I to write, on which I could get my greedy hands? Proper grammar and usage is surely more adult, right?)Book of Night fits neatly into the author’s canon: her world-building, her inclusion of magic, her thoroughly-realized characters, and her astute almost preternatural grasp of exactly how much information and detail to feed her readers —and what to withhold— will all feel familiar in the best ways to her fans.Charlie, the novel’s heroine, has the grit, determination, and drive to pursue her goals. Charlie’s activities involve theft, larceny, and the art of the grift, and she tiptoes across dangerous tightrope strung above highly toxic, unprincipled foes. Charlie also works to protect her younger sister (sometimes from herself), and tries to figure out her complicated relationship with her secretive but gentle and kind lover, Vince, work.These traits make her intriguing, but it is the author’s deft handling of Charlie’s unorthodox past, her traumas, wounds (literal and figurative), insecurities, and disappointments that make the reader root for Charlie despite her faults and rash decisions.I am eager to read more of Holly Black’s adult fiction, and I’ll still gobble up her YA novels as well. This author truly delights readers of many ages. If you have not read her books, hie thee to a bookstore. You won’t be sorry.

Heists, secret societies, and shadow magic, oh my!Heists, secret societies, and shadow magic, oh my! I loved this book! I wasn’t so sure at first, the beginning is definitely slow and I’m not still 100% on the rules of the magic system (but either is the protagonist.) But the magic system was really unique and interesting and left you wanting to know more about it, something that is hopefully explored in future books.I liked that even though the protagonist made bad decisions – she wasn’t dumb, she was impulsive and reckless in a calculated way more than anything – more of a “I know this is a bad idea but I’m going to do it anyway” and that is something I can def get behind in a fantasy mc. I also liked how she was morally grey but still loyal to those close to her etc. (def some parallels between Jude and Charlie, but I think Charlie is a bit softer than Jude)I really hope there is a second book coming: I did not feel ready for the story to end. Also, I think there’s some re-read value after knowing one of the twists.Finally, as a fan of the Folk of the Air Series I think you may be disappointed by the amount of romance/tension in it. But what was there, I really enjoyed.

The Shadow KnowsHolly Black’s characters invariably bring me back to the terrifying time in my life when my grown up self was still emerging and I was uncertain of how I was ever going to make my way in this world. Her books make me feel like I am hanging out with my new best friend in middle school, scheming, teasing, testing, and generally not making one bad decision when we might just as easily make two. So it is with Book of Night. Black gives us a completely original take on a world in which magic is suddenly real, where the shadows of a few quicken, becoming powerful extensions of a lucky few who undergo what it takes to bring shadows to life, or who are able to acquire the stolen shadows of others. We start in the middle of a (fleetingly) quiet period in which Charlie Hall’s “gunshot is healing nicely”. What other reviewers experienced as a slow start was to me a tantalizing unfolding origami of a narrative. I gobbled it up. I expected a cliffhanger twist of an ending, and voilá there it was! I look forward to the sequel in which things will be set right and new facets of this world will be uncovered.

Black’s Adult Urban Fantasy is FANTASTICI’ll be more than honest, in that I haven’t read Black’s young adult books yet. I am aware of her writing as she co-wrote Spiderwick, which my son as a kid loved. I picked this book up because urban fantasy is one of my favorite genres, and was blown away by Black’s world building. The book being urban fantasy has the frame work of a world the reader can relate to but it just happens to have magic. I loved how Black used a little know fairytale as the spark for this imaginative adventure centering around speciality thief Charlie Hall. Hall being a thief could have been an unsympathetic character, but Charlie is wrote with both heart and grit. It’s the grit that made me adore this female protagonist. For those who love a relationship with their urban fantasy Charlie has a intriguing boyfriend named Vince. The characters be they good, evil or in between are all well written and make the book a full immersive experience. If you love Briggs, Bishop, or Butcher then this book is for you.

Predictable but EntertainingThere were no ‘wow’ or ‘didn’t see that coming’ moments for me in this story, which is fine since I did enjoy the world and characters a lot. I like that the characters are not exactly ‘likeable’ because it makes them seem like real people. It’s a bit of a bummer that it ends with a cliff hanger, but I am looking forward to the next book in the series. Nothing that explicit considering it was written as an adult novel (which I’m not complaining about). 4.5 out of 5!

Slow but well written and interesting endingI am not YA, but I loved the cruel prince series, so was very excited about this new adult release by Holly Black. She is brilliant and this piece is no exception. Very unique premise, which took me a bit to get into. Also not tons of action, so I found the book drug along quite a bit. Lots and lots of backstory and facts about the shadow world, which at times was hard to follow. But, the book ended in a REALLY interesting spot and left me wanting more. I love the strong, flawed, and clever heroine. Can’t wait for the next release!

Phenomenal!!This is an amazing story. Absolutely amazing!I am in awe of Holly Black’s magical powers. Her magic is strong to be able to conceive of these amazing characters and this incredible book. I couldn’t put it down.Hoping there’s another book after this one!!!

uhhh yo?Boy, lady, I sure hope there are plans for a sequel. Because my full opinion is wholly dependent on if the story will go on.

Excellent first installment into a new urban fantasy worldWhen I heard Holly Black was writing an adult urban fantasy novel I was excited.I was not disappointed! What an exciting new world and characters to get to know. This book reminded me about why I love urban fantasy. This was classic UF and I loved it.

worth it for Briggs and BishopI love The Others world and Bishop did not disappoint with this short story. The tone felt very much like Written in Red. Briggs continues her story stories of Asia’s dates. I small word of caution – these are not stand alone. You need to be familiar with the worlds to fully appreciate them.

Great stories about heroes who are not the usual run-of-the-millA lot of great stories in this anthology. But hands-down my favorite was Patricia Briggs’s “Dating Terrors.” If you’re at all a fan of her Mercyverse books, you won’t want to miss this story! It’s lovely, charming, heartwarming, unexpected, and presents truly an unusual pair of heroes as Asil (The Moor), the mostly crazy out-of-control werewolf, goes on his fourth blind date with a woman who isn’t exactly what she appears to be. They’re both heroes in their own ways, with Asil guiding his lady to become the hero she always was meant to be. And they heal each other in rather unusual ways.Other favorite stories in this collection included Anne Bishop’s “The Dark Ship”, which reveals what life in Celto-Romano is like after the great purge from the Elders in The Others series, the “Train to Last Hope” by Annie Bellet, a heart-wrenching story in a good way, and Jennifer Brozek’s “The Necessity of Practical Magic” about heroes who use their magic to clean up messes other people make.A great collection of stories from today’s master storytellers. This is a don’t miss anthology!

Great storiesI like anthologies that let me catch up with favorite characters and this one had three opportunities to do so. Jim Butcher wrote a touching tale of Toot Toot, Patricia Briggs had a very romantic visit with Asil, and Kevin Hearne had the Iron Druid fighting fires in Australia. This anthology also introduced me to a number of new authors I will want to follow up on. In particular, a story about a troll who speaks to trains and another story about two unexpected heroes guarding a museum sent me searching for more. Really appreciated the theme of heroism. Its nice to read about good guys winning.

Asil Asil Asil!!!These are all great, but if you read Patricia Briggs and have been following Asil’s story, with his damaged spirit and tragic backstory, this short story…THIS ONE… is the payoff we have been desperately needing. I’m so freaking satisfied right now, I don’t even have the words.

Must read for fans of Patricia Briggs’ AsilI bought this mainly for the Patricia Briggs story, and so far that’s the only one I’ve read. Lovely and perfect, I was moved to tears and even if if I don’t like a single other story in this anthology (unlikely), the story of Asil’s fourth date would make it worth the price. I feel anything I could say about the story would be spoilery, so I’ll just say, if you have any fondness for the character of Asil, this story is a must read.Note: I’ll come back and revise this review once I’ve finished the rest of the book

Very entertainingAudiobook review: I really like this book! New stories related to ongoing series with interesting sidelines and glimpses into the characters lives! Quite fun! I bought this book for Patricia Briggs’s Asil dating story and was pleasantly surprised by many of the other authors that I also follow being included. The narrators (yes, plural) all did a fantastic job with providing unique voices for each character and appropriate tone inflections for each scene.

Bought for one author; enjoyed them all!Several authors in this anthology were new to me, but I enjoyed adding them to my reading list. As always, Jim Butcher, Charlaine Harris and Patricia Briggs delivered stories well worth waiting for and I bought the book mainly for them. However, the other authors delivered tales of love that riveted my attention.

Only read the Jim Butcher and Patricia Briggs’ stories till now. Worth the read just for them.A wonderful collection of “heroic” stories, including from some of my favorite authors. Entirely worth your time and attention

a good readI bought this for the Patty Briggs and Jim Butcher stories, and it was worth it for them alone, but it also introduced me to some new authors who I will be looking for again.

A MUST READI thought to pace myself and read one story per night but I couldn’t put the book down. Brilliant read

Peter growsRivers of London novels alternate between world-building and plain detective stories. Thus, of the most recent ones, #5 Foxglove Summer was a story about children being abducted by fairies and also introduced a more classic version of faerie, #6 The Hanging Tree was a pretty straightforward Faceless Man fight, #7 Lies Sleeping disposed of the Faceless Man and repositioned Leslie May, #8 False Value was a tech company mystery with few implications for the structure of Peter Grant’s London.Thus, we were due for a world-building novel, and in Amongst Our Weapons we got it. The world-building in Amongst Our Weapons mostly takes the form of Peter Grant growing personally and professionally. There have been hints for some time that Peter was becoming something greater than the clumsy apprentice he began as. In Foxglove Summer we learned that he was becoming known throughout the demimonde as the Starling. In Lies Sleeping Father Thames addresses him as “praeco lucis”, the herald of light. And of course somewhere in there he and Beverly Brook became husband and wife in every practical sense, even if they’re not legally married. And we learned that Peter was about to become the father of twin demigods.One of Peter’s most attractive characteristics is kindness. Of course, since he is English, Peter never tells us he is kind — we are left to observe it in his actions. The first time this became really obvious was in the final chapter of Moon Over Soho, when he first saw Leslie’s destroyed face. And it continues to come up. Kindness works for Peter — it makes him a more effective policeman. For instance, in Lies Sleeping his kindness to Foxglove got him out of the trap that Leslie and Martin Chorley had caught him in. Peter would probably pretend that that is why he behaved as he did. But it is clearly not true, because he continued his kindness to Foxglove after escaping. Peter is not faking kindness because it works for him — rather, it works for him because he is not faking it.While Amongst Our Weapons continues the Rivers of London tradition of being about practical policework, the plot also feels more like classic urban fantasy than most of the Rivers of London books. That is, magic and its exploration are more central to the story than we have been used to. Also, once again, Peter’s kindness works for him.

they are getting worseI am a HUGE Ben aaronovitch fan; it gives me no pleasure to give him a bad review.I stumbled upon his rivers of london series by accident and fell in love. I believe it was the best new series, of its kind, in years. i think it far better than Jim Butcher’s work, though i have to give credit and thanks to Butcher for opening up urban fantasy as a genre. Aaronovitch’s early books were filled with a great deal of what might be called childlike excitement, the love of a good story cleverly and warmly told. Unfortunately, something has changed. I have seen this before in other writers (all of us who write for a living have to keep a keen eye on this problem).There can come a point where the excitement is gone, from boredom or life problems or simply aging. But the money is so good that we keep on. The work suffers and so do we.When i realized that i was only reading this new book simply to find out what happened but with no real enjoyment i had to accept that something really was terribly wrong. I could go into depth on this and parse out just what has changed but i won’t. The fact is, i have read his series from first to last four or five times now simply because i love the world he made and his incredibly clever mind and style of writing. Nevertheless, something began to happen around the time of The October Man, it goes worse with What Abigal Did Last Summer and has worsened again with this new one.The joy of the books has been the way Peter Grant is, his slight naivete, his sweetness, and the relation between him, Nightengale, Leslie (i am angry at her), and the other constables he works with. His time in the Folly and his interactions with Molly and her sister and the dog . . . so essential to his character and the joy of the stories. But there is no real presence of that particular Peter in this new one and as the book informs us, Nightengale is leaving, and Peter no longer lives in the Folly, there is no Molly, no Toby, just a rather mundane married guy with a new family.I don’t see how he can save the series but i am sure he will continue on with it. I will try one more, then i am done. If you want to get a real sense of the problem, read the first book in the series, then read this one. you won’t enjoy it.

Cross Monty Python with an Afro-Caribbean Merlin to enjoy a rollicking bit of fun!London Detective Constable/apprentice wizard Peter Grant has been made responsible for the curriculum to prepare London’s finest to deal with the plethora of renegade wizards & monsters appearing across Britain of late. He needs to cement an alliance between the government wizards, their weapons manufacturers, the hedge-witches, & Britain’s River deities, lay a group of ghosts of WWII pilots, & capture an angel of death with a flaming spear, furious because she’s been imprisoned in a lamp for 500 years by the Spanish Inquisition. And Peter must solve this case soon, because back home his partner Beverley Brook (daughter of the River Thames) is expecting twins any minute now.

Just as good as the first one wasBen Aaronovitch doesn’t disappoint. Often, the more books an author writes in a series, the worse they get. But this was just as interesting as the first novel in the series, and I hope it isn’t the last one. The plot moves along quickly, The characters seem real (which is pretty good for a fantasy novel) and you care about them. About the only one who is one-dimensional is Peter’s new sidekick, Danni. I read this in one sitting, trying to take it slowly to make it last, but it was interesting and so I kept speeding along. Too bad. How long will it be before there is another novel with Peter Grant and all the supporting cast?

Wish I could do a 4.5I love the series; plot and characters good. Unfortunately, my teeth were on edge all the way through because of the repeated use of the “Me and X” formulation as the subject of sentences. I simply couldn’t sink into the narrative because I knew there would be another one coming, like fingernails scratching on a slate board. The “reader’s trance” failed me because of that.

A worthy continuation of the storyPeople who are familiar with Peter’s unique approach to magical police work, and talent for trouble, will enjoy teachers next steps in the story. Those who aren’t don’t know what they’re missing… But probably shouldn’t start here! The story is contained and satisfying, but definitely a continuation and not a stand alone tale.

Cheap, cheaper DAW BooksBy mistake I chose the american edition published by Daw Books. It looks cheap, as printed at home at not of a high quality regarding the print, paper or the cover.The english edition has 409 pages – this edition obviously to reduce the costs only 294 pages. Very disappointing…

A bit rushedI think he was trying out a more fluid story composition, but it ended up feeling a bit rushed and under-developed. It’s interesting to see where he’s aiming with the story, though. I look forward to the next book.

once again, be spelledEach book in the series is like a brief visit home, with family charging round, food, and the odd moments of fun. It’s all over far to soon, and you’re on your way back to your place, remembering the highlights, and wondering when you’ll be invited for another visit.

another excellent entryin the Rivers of London annals. I can’t wait to see what Peter and Lesley, et al. get up to next.

As Always, UnputdownableI stumbled across Ursula Vernon/T. Kingfisher – not literally, that would be awkward, but metaphorically, as all the best meetings really are – about six months ago. In that time frame, I have read almost everything she has ever published under either name, in most cases twice, and never been disappointed by any of it. She is quite probably my favorite living author, and the only other people I can think to put up to the same level would be the greatly missed Diana Wynne Jones and Terry Pratchett. She writes cleverly involved plots and creates memorable, distinct characters all of whom are immensely enjoyable (I do so especially love her gnolls). But I think in many ways, the moments that really capture my heart are spent on those quiet, little absurdities that typically go neglected in every other book I read. Maybe it’s just that I can deeply relate to a woman, on a life-or-death mission to save her sister, spending dear cognitive power on the complexities of sharing a bed and the associated physical functions such entails – Can I move my arm? Are they asleep enough for me to move my arm? Surely they cannot be comfortable with my arm there, but then, if I do move my arm and wake them up, I will feel guilty. You agonize over this, and whether or not you are breathing too loudly, wondering if the other person is anywhere near as concerned about you as you are about them, for many needless minutes and then the offending appendage falls asleep and it all just gets so much worse…This book is in line with her previous works in that there are touches of the absurd and biting wit and, of course, nuns (she has a bit of an obsession with them by and large). For close readers, you will see echoes of her other novels sprinkled throughout the pages – white rats, clockwork creations, mobile skeletons, antelope women, and Pygmalion revisited – which made my lips quirk at the edges every time one cropped up.There are also the other moments that I don’t know if other people catch out quite as readily as I do. The new archimandrite being referred to with the pronoun “they” – they aren’t even in the book; it’s just a reference made in passing by one of the sisters, but I think I will examine it more closely in the reread nonetheless. This nonchalant inclusivity that has absolutely nothing to do with the plot is significantly more meaningful than many books I have read that have such things the poorly focused centers to their stories. In this vein, Steven Erikson comes to mind – his books are almost breathtakingly cosmopolitan if long-winded and a bit overly pedantic – but hers are always significantly more true-to-life (despite the werebears and talking swords).TLDR: She’s fantastic. If you’ve read her before, you won’t be disappointed. If you haven’t, this is a hell of an introduction.Looking forward to her next novel! I already have it pre-ordered (she’s the only person I do that for).  

More classic Kingfisher charactersT. Kingfisher has a knack for creating unique, relatable characters who do extraordinary things matter of factly, then sprinkling in a few unexpected, delightful ones among them. I didn’t think anything could top the gnoles, but Bonedog is the best dog ever.This isn’t an easily categorizable book. It has princesses and a goblin market and a hero’s journey, but it also has domestic violence and real horror, along with a crash course in difficult political calculations. It also meanders a bit and Marra takes her time to develop as a protagonist, but you’re in good hands with Kingfisher, who is an intentional and careful writer.I wasn’t blown away by this novel. It’s not flashy or filled with elevated language. But it’s an intensely satisfying read, with characters I learned to care about, doing things that mattered because they were the right things to do, and at the end I was left with a book I cared deeply about.

Enchanting and OriginalI loved Nettle and Bone. I love the afterword, in which author T. Kingfisher reveals that the bone dog —a creature that the heroine forms from bones and wire and then brings back from death— popped into her head at the grocery store. The best ideas for the best stories must begin in the most prosaic places!I found the novel refreshingly original and odd, perfectly quirky and delightful in every way. The characters were both ordinary and magical, destined to make bold moves and yet reluctant to act (and a bit frumpy), running headlong away from and directly into danger. The band of personalities that accrue throughout the novel and surround the not-very-princessy princess (our heroine) are as remarkable as she is—but all of them are happy to subside into quiet domestic life once the heroics are at an end. It just makes sense: not everyone is destined to occupy center stage. I hope you will give this novel a try. You’ll be glad you did!

Here’s a Ghost Story About a Short, Sturdy WomanI hope this is on everyone’s award list next year because it sure deserves it.Nettle & Bone is a traditional fairy tale story: a princess, the youngest daughter of three, is assigned three impossible tasks to get her heart’s desire. The first two are the title: she sews a cloak of owl cloth and nettles, doing great damage to her hands, and she strings together cursed bones to make a “living” dog (doing further damage to her hands). The third task, catching moonlight in a bowl, is just sort of given to her because her task mistress never expected her to complete the first two impossible tasks.Princess Marra has been sent to a convent as a condition of her brother-in-law, Prince Vorling. He married first her eldest sister, who died in his care before having a child, and then her second sister. Prince Vorling’s kingdom is much more powerful and can destroy Marra’s kingdom so her family complies with everything he says. The deal is Vorling’s first child will inherit his kingdom and the second inherit the one Marra’s family has. Vorling doesn’t want any competition from a child of Marra’s, so to the convent she goes.Those familiar with Kingfisher’s (aka Ursula Vernon’s) works will recognize and appreciate her distinctive authorial voice. Here are a few examples.”There were very few ghost stories about short, sturdy women.” (p. 23)”She had been born a princess, which should have been lucky, but the price for never going hungry was to be caught in a struggle between people too powerful to call to justice.” (p. 62)”It was hard to be frightened of the unknown when the unknown kept chickens.” (p. 66)The story gets very dark but Marra is a character who always knows who she is and manages to draw others to herself. I think this is a fabulous book.

Just wonderfulI was hesitant about buying this as it was billed as having ‘horror’ elements – not my preference. Certainly there are dark themes, and the opening chapter, which for me rather stood apart thematically, seemed to be heading in that direction. But then the story got going, with many of the elements I love about T Kingfisher’s writing – strong characters, bizarre encounters, Pratchett-style humour. I was reminded of Swordheart at times, though the overall tone is of a very dark (but also funny) fairytale. I just wished it was longer, so the characters could have been more developed.

Cute and funny and of course horrifyingI love T Kingfisher’s books, they always make me smile, even when they tackle really dark themes. She has a way with words and language that is wonderful to read and sparks joy.Nettle and Bone is part of her horror-esque “series”, and tells the story of a woman trying to save her sister, and collecting a rag tag gang along the way (tall handsome stranger included). I enjoyed it very much.

Wonderful story tellingReally well-written with a story that moves along at good pace. Decent world-building with lots of room for the characters to shine and some really excellent female lead characters and decent friendships.

S.BrownAnother wonderful story from a wonderful storyteller, great plot, fantastic characters . Can’t wait for the next book, well worth your time and money, totally recommend it.

satisfying fantasyPrincesses must marry to save the kingdom. The youngest sister is the safest – can she save her older sister.Complex magic and family feeling.

Accountability QueenStassi has had a lot of growing these past few years. She walks us through her rock bottom of having her tour canceled due to the pandemic, and then getting canceled a few months later. She takes us through her journey on discovering her own biases and privileges that were contributing to systemic racism in this country and how she is now holding herself accountable in order to be the best mom for her daughter. She is honest and relatable, this read truly exceeded my expectations.

She is back!The tone is completely different from her previous book and it is so refreshing to read about her rock bottom and how she has navigated it in such a positive way. Stassi graduates from VPR reality star to a role model for those that make mistakes and can still come out successful and empathetic on the other side. Congratulations!

really wanted to like itI really wanted to like this book because I think the VPR cast members were wronged by being fired, but this book is a lot of random dribble that 98% of women have experienced without having Stassi’s privilege

Fun read!I got this today and dove right in! I love bravo, love Stassi, so this was right up my alley. The book cover/color combo is dreamy af

Takes no responsibility for her actionsI bought the book in hopes of Stassi’s discussing how hitting rock bottom made her realize the error and of her deeds. Unfortunately, she spent only five pages talking about what she learned about race and her privilege. The rest is a book that reads as Basic Bitch Two.

Entertaining ReadLove it! Well written and very good read

I enjoyed itFun, interesting read for Pump Rules fans. I read it in bed one morning and found it fascinating to hear her thoughts, for the first time, on being “cancelled” as well as the perspective she has gained from that experience. It’s also quite well-written — has the tone of a good chick-lit book.

Great, fun read!I’ve always been a Stassi fan. No one is perfect, but I really think she has done so much growing in the past few years. Especially after becoming a mother. I wish her nothing but success and can’t wait to finish this book!

GreatGreat

Awesome read!

The Crowning Jewel on a Body of WorkI’m not saying Joshua Becker is done teaching, but this book reads like a culminating work because it’s so substantial, and builds on Becker’s previous books and work in the world of minimalism.We’re well trained to know our why, and maybe we discovered our why to help us “become minimalist” alongside Joshua. But now he’s cleared the way to evolve the why. And no one does a better job in getting us to consider our lives and whether they’re aligned with our purpose. I haven’t been pushed to consider what’s meaningful in a way like this book has done, across all sorts of realms. Our possessions are an important consideration, but this book doesn’t stop there – it gently and respectfully urges us to consider other distractions in our lives that we might not even consider problematic.Regardless of the heft of the subject matter, Becker lightens the tone with numerous, memorable stories and insights he and others have had. It’s remarkably readable, despite the number of times you might be tempted to put it down, mid-paragraph, to contemplate what he’s served up.I’m glad I’m no older than I am, because I still have time to implement many of the revelations I’ve had, thanks to Joshua Becker. I’m more committed than ever to making sure my life is as meaningful as I imagined it would be. If you have any such aspirations, I’d invite you to read this book.

Practical and inspiringAs the title suggests this book offers opinions by the author through easy to read chapters based on real life examples of his own and other people’s about things that matter in life. I really enjoyed the stories he included to make the concepts he introduces so relatable to me as a reader.If you’re familiar with the author’s other works, you know he’s a fan of minimalism and seeks to inspire others “to pursue their passions while owning fewer possessions.” That sentiment influences this book greatly, particularly in how you live your life, spend your time, contribute to your community, and influence those around you.If you are new to practicing minimalism, some statements might come across as blunt – “If you want to live a more meaningful life focused on the things that matter, own less stuff.” I’d encourage you to not get discouraged by that and to keep reading because he also writes, “it’s important to note that owning less is not about owning nothing. It’s about owning the right things and the right number of them.” And what he shares about his Grandpa’s life and sense of purpose is so powerful and inspiring. He lived a life that mattered and I want to live my life like that too. This book provides you with plenty to think about to help do just that.

What’s my motivation?From the dust jacket“Do you want to live a meaningful life—with very few regrets—and make a positive difference in the world? But is culture distracting you from doing so? Perhaps moments, days, and years go by without you stopping to ask yourself, Am I living out my true purpose? Even if that question whispers to you, are you brushing it aside because you don’t know what to change in life’s busyness?In Things That Matter, Joshua Becker helps you identify the obstacles—such as fear, technology, money, possessions, and the opinions of others—that keep you from living with intention, and then he provides practical ideas for letting go of those distractions today so you can focus on what matters most. He uses practical exercises and questions, insights from a nationwide survey, and success stories to give you the motivation you need to • identify the pursuits that matter most to you • align your dreams with your daily priorities • recognize how money and possessions keep you from happiness • become aware of how others’ opinions of you influence your choices • embrace what you’re truly passionate about instead of planning that next escape • figure out what to do with all those emails, notifications, and pings • let go of past mistakes and debilitating habitsThings That Matter is a book about living well. It’s about overcoming the chatter of a world focused on all the wrong things. It’s about rethinking the common assumptions of today to find satisfaction and fulfillment tomorrow.How do we get to the end of our lives with minimal regrets? We set aside lesser pursuits to seek lasting meaning. And we discover the joy of doing it every day.”I will be sending this book to my young adult children, nieces & nephews this year.

Enlightening!I really enjoyed this book. It covers topics that are so relevant for today and the days ahead. Each chapter covers a distraction that we all probably experience and challenges us to make some changes in our mindsets and habits. I started the read knowing that technology is a huge distraction for me, and it was a great chapter to read. A couple of the chapters, like the ones on leisure and money, really got me thinking. I finished this book, enlightened and encouraged to become a better me. I want to make space for the things that matter most. Well done!

Really Helpful!I have thoroughly enjoyed and benefited from all of Joshua Becker’s work. His emails and blog articles are a consistent reminder as to the value of a moment in time (and a square foot of space.) This book encapsulates the best of what Becker stands for and what we should all consider in order to live lives of significance. I highly recommend it!

Excellent book presenting lots of food for thoughtDiscussion on life. Distractions in life. Asks questions on evaluating your life so you are making meaningful fulfilling choices. Good read for anyone seeking deeper life

Bring it!Joshua writes in a style that keeps you engaged. I’m going to read this book again right away to keep me considering the things that matter in my life. Got so much out of the course & book club.

Great, great book.Gets to the heart of an important topic, with practical insights and a clear, enjoyable style. Highly, highly recommended.

A good book to stop and think about what matters most in lifrEasy read but the exercises in the end made me think for about a week. He makes great points about how our distractions come to define us, not our goals. Joshua talks about finding purpose by getting out of our collecting/hoarding more possessions simply because everyone else is doing it, but instead seek what truly may give us a life of no (or few regrets).

2022 MUST READ!!!! À LIRE….Je recommande ce livre.

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Sorry, but what is wrong with the beautiful pictures? o.o
All pictures are gone and in place of it, it’s a white space now. o.o
I’m confused.
Could you help?
I loved your pictures so much!

Hi, what happened to your blog? It says “photo no longer available”. I have put some of your banners on my tumblr and it says that thing. Is there a way to fix it?

Hey

I put some of the banners on my blog and up to now they worked, but now they just show me a white space. Though I replaced every single banner, they don’t work. Do you have an idea, what I could do?
Here’s a link to my blog if you need to see it yourself https://buecherportalezwischendenwelten.wordpress.com/ . They should be on the down on the right side. First I thought that it could be, because I’m in Germany, but before it worked, too.

Now it works again. Thank you so much!

I’m very sorry. A few seconds, it worked. But now, it doesn’t work again. I don’t know why. I take the code from this site here and paste it to mine.
The code:

I see no blank space now, but links, which don’t work.
Could you help?

Kind regards
Yurelia

Sorry, for the disturbing again. ^^°
I found the failure. It’s everything alright with your codes. I had to change the ”-signs into “-signs.
I’m happy now. 😀
Thank you and sorry!

Have a nice day. :3

The reason I begun reading this book was because, I am a huge booknerd and sometimes I like to look up beautiful book quotes and read books based on wether I like the quotes or not. I found a quote when Travis tells Abby he loves her, for the first time and immeditately became obsessed with it and immediately wanted to read ‘Beautiful Disaster’.

From the first page, I got sucked in and couldn’t put It down. I immeditately became obsessed with Pidge and Travis. I loved him the became friends and could in ways relate to one another and soon became best friends. There was one scene which disturbed me but despite that I still couldn’t put the book down, I just HAD to know what was going to happen. The title perfectly descruves Abby and Travis’ relationship, they really are a disaster; they scream and fight a lot but, in the end they really do love each other and it’s so beautiful.

I finished this book in 3 days and haven’t been this obsessed with a book in a while, it felt so good to get back to my booknerd roots 🙂 my favourite characters are Sheply,Mare and Travis and Trenton.

I LOVE this book. I read it for the first time a couple years ago and fell in love, with the series and with Armentrout. I hunted down her books and I can say that she has been my favorite author sense. This is my favorite series by her, but White Hot Kiss and Stone Cold Touch are a close second.

This is exactly what i was looking for, thank you so much for these tutorials

What a nice article. It keeps me reading more and more!

This is exactly what i was looking for, thank you so much for these tutorials

What a nice article. It keeps me reading more and more!

This is exactly what i was looking for, thank you so much for these tutorials

What a nice article. It keeps me reading more and more!

This is exactly what i was looking for, thank you so much for these tutorials

What a nice article. It keeps me reading more and more!

This is exactly what i was looking for, thank you so much for these tutorials

What a nice article. It keeps me reading more and more!

This is exactly what i was looking for, thank you so much for these tutorials

What a nice article. It keeps me reading more and more!