Wednesday, April 14, 2010

“Flirt”, “Hell” and “Boneshaker”

Ahh, I did it again! I had promised myself (and you guys) that I’m not going to read any more of L.K. Hamilton. But there was almost nothing else in the Library New Books and I was desperate! Anyhow I took “Flirt” home and went through it in a couple of hours and I am not happy. Despite not having much going on for it, it was a good little book. Anita had sex with just one stranger and ended up taking him home. It is a record really!
But it could have been a much shorter story. The mystery wasn’t big or thought provoking. Mostly the book was about Flirting!
Do you know how to flirt without being sexual?

Hell” by Robert Olen Butler was truly an award winning piece of literature and therefore a little boring and long. But it had a neat and unique plot. Also the narrative was ingenious; you would feel all the torture and frustration of Hell. A news anchor is dead and hell and trying to find a way out. I loved the cast of characters, Beatrice, Virgil, Bogart, Ann Boleyn, … and a few of US presidents! Just lovely!

Boneshaker” by Cherie Priest was a steam-punk post-apocalyptic epic. In mid 1880’s a new invention goes wary and causes poison gas to start covering Seattle. A wall is build around the polluted areas and the rest of people are living outside. A teenage boy is looking for answers to his family mystery and his mom has to go after him and save his neck. I loved it! The timeline was different, imagining clockworks and machines in 1880’s was a little hard for me but the great plot more than made up for it.

And I will be taking a little trip and not posting for a month or so.
These are a few books that I look forward to coming back to:
“Silver Borne” (Mercy Thompson) by Patricia Briggs
“Succubus Shadows” (Georgina Kincaid, Book 5) by Richelle Mead
“Changes” (Dresden Files, Book 12) by Jim Butcher
"The Desert Spear" by Peter V. Brett
"A Murderous Procession" (Mistress of the Art of Death) by Ariana Franklin
"Dead in the Family" A Sookie Stackhouse Novel by Charlaine Harris
"Spirit Bound" (Vampire Academy, Book 5) by Richelle Mead

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Back on the bookshelf

Another week already? Sheesh, time flies when you are not writing!
I had waited so long for the newest Molly Murphy Mysteries. “The Last Illusion” by Rhys Bowen was a little too familiar. It didn’t have the energy and high pace of previous books. The mystery was a little tame and the ending easy to guess.
Molly is hired to play bodyguard to the famous illusionist Harry Houdini. There are dangers, lots of suspects and international spies. This last part was where I had the most problem with. Also Daniel is becoming overprotective and keeps belittling Molly’s career and asking her to give up everything and marry him. I find that pretty offensive actually. That Daniel doesn’t respect Molly’s independent and personal goals. Maybe that was the culture back in 1903 but…
Anyhow these didn’t add up to an enjoyable read.


Dark Slayer” by Christine Feehan is book nth of the Carpathian series which once again I started mid-series! There was this difference between Carpathians and vampires, shifters and Mages, some strangeness about the culture and a total lack of timeline which had me confused almost to the end of the book. Some might find this book well written. I certainly liked the plot but the characters were ultra sentimental and overly romantic in my opinion. No warrior stops planning battles to compliment and flirt with his pregnant wife. No warrior stops and tells his sweetheart right before entering a villain’s lair that he appreciates her! Come on! We (women the romantic creature that we are) might wish for sentimental and romantic lovers but it is not real and making up a guy’s character as overly romantic will come out as false and artificial. So all in all, I didn’t like the book. I say it had potential, the definition of characters were great and the plot was entertaining but the writing was lengthy and the scenes overly emotional. I was feeling suffocated with all the sugary language.

Love ya Bunches” by Lauren Myracle was an elementary school story written for elementary schoolers but very sweet and cute. It was so relaxing! Four little girls looking for friendship find good friends and a cute personalized chat-room.

My Husband's Sweethearts” by Bridget Asher was a different type of story. Lucy has left her husband after finding out he has been cheating on her with three women. Than she get a call that Artie is dieing and she better come back to say goodbye. She decides not to go through all the grief and heartbreak alone and calls up her husband's numerous girlfriend and affairs to come and take their shift at his bedside. Then she starts liking some of them and learning things. This is a story about grief, forgiveness, dealing with heartbreak and growing up and finally moving on.
I am not usually for deep emotional stories but this one has a black sense of humor allthrough the sadness and heartbreak that you keep reading to the end.

Sunday, April 4, 2010

A Procrastinator’s Review

It is easy to write a couple of paragraphs when you finish each book. But if you let the books build up and still not in the mood to write, you are in trouble. That’s why this nice Easter Sunday, I am forcing myself to write. Here it goes:
Obsidian Prey” (Ghost Hunters, Book 6) by Jayne Castle was one of my recent favorites. Lyra an amber tuner and Cruz an amber miner had their problems in the past including a failed law suit. But when Cruz comes asking for help, Lyra has to help him, if only to save innocent lives.
I love Ms. Castle’s writing style. Her plots are uncomplicated but smooth and absorbing. It also helps that all her books have happy-endings. So good for the soul!
Covet” (Fallen Angels, Book 1) by J. R. Ward was another of her artificially slanged stories. Although the plot and story was solid and attractive, the foul artificial language may bore a person out of her frigging mind!
Jim Heron has a near-death experience and becomes a fallen angel, a soldier in battle of Good and Evil. His first assignment is to help Vin a money-hungry realstate mogul make the right choice. The other characters are a gold-hearted hooker, four angels in the sky playing golf in crisp white linen pants, two tough pierced field agents and a beautiful seductive woman. If Ms. Ward had stopped her crazy lingo, this book was one to recommend!
Truly, Madly” by Heather Webber was a cute mystery romance with a hint of paranormal. Lucy’s family are matchmakers who use auras to match people. The only exception is Lucy who has developed other talents. When a client reveals his past, Lucy decides to make things better for him with the help of her family and a cute private investigator.
A trilogy by Mindy Klasky, “Girl's Guide To Witchcraft”, “Sorcery And The Single Girl” and “Magic And The Modern Girl” are about Jane a librarian who rent a cottage and finds a stack of magic books, a Familiar and a cute Warder. The first book is about Jane learning self respect and worth. The second one is about how she looks for acceptance and approval and the third is about her relationship with others and lessons in being responsible. Aside from these life lessons, the books are nice, simple and well written if a little lacking in entertainment value.
And finally, the best for the last: “Imager's Challenge” The Second Book of the Imager Portfolio by L. E. Modesitt Jr.
I loved it, adored it, and savored it! OK, too much gushing! But it was goooood!
Rhenn is starting to patrol the city and his enemies are trying to trap and destroy him. The Imager’s Collegium can not publicly help him. His Family is in danger. His only allies are the family of his girlfriend and his powers and what new friends he can make.
It is a complicated, sometimes detailed; story but you get to enjoy every word.