Review: False Flag

False Flag by Rachel Grant
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review

Jake stood at the foot of his bed, a bemused look on his face. “Please tell me you aren’t armed this time.”
She hesitated for just a moment, then dropped the towel, raising her hands high. “As you can see, no weapons.”
“That’s debatable.” Jake’s voice came out hoarse.

Rachel Grant is back with book four in the Evidence: Under Fire series and it contained all the action, history, and hotness that I've discovered are hallmarks of her storytelling. If you've been reading the series you'll remember Staci, this starts off with her having a sparking moment with a guy named Jake she meets at a pseudo-archaeology podcaster's dinner that she's semi-undercover at, she shuts down anything before it can really get started. Jake's there to try and repair a very strained relationship with his older brother and not an active listener, so he crashes and burns when he tries to impress, the unbeknownst to him, phd student working to show how and why pseudoscientists spread disinformation. When they meet again five months later, the attraction is still there and they'll get an opportunity to explore it when Staci gets picked to join the podcaster's archaeological expedition team and Jake, a Navy SEAL, gets sent in undercover to discover how a billionaire, podcaster, and the Vice President of the United States are entwined.

While exposing him was a goal and even the main benefit, she was also doing it for science.

You could easily pick this up without reading the series, you'd miss some friendship connections and maybe start off a little confused how Navy SEALS and a group called the Friday Morning Valkyries, archaeologists and intelligence agents working to covertly protect archaeological sites and stop artifact looting and trafficking, are all connected but there's just enough rehashing to get new readers caught up. The secondary characters work great as emotional touchstones and series baiting, I need Vickie and Teague's book now. As with most of Grant's stories, there's intricate and complex suspense story weaving; sometimes I think there are too many moving parts but I'm not sure what I could say to take out, you just need to be ready to lock-in when your're reading.

She could hear him whispering her name now, feel his lips trailing on her skin.

This had open-door hotness and I liked the chemistry between Staci and Jake. I thought it took a little while to get Jake's character going because of the front heavy story setting up but Staci was an interesting enough character to carry the load and then with Jake's familial drama coming in, we get good emotional investment from him. The villains were timely with their evilness, making it easy to root for Staci to give readers a living vicariously through her to enjoy some joy revenge. I just really enjoy this series' world Grant has created, for romantic suspense, it's one of the best going right now. I mean, where else can you get believable danger, Pig War(!!!)mention, citogenesis explaining, and a devious paintball war kiss.

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Review: Unspeakable Things

Unspeakable Things by Elizabeth Hand
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

2.5 stars 

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

I wanted to bite someone, to draw blood. To run and never stop. 

It's after the first World War and Olivia is coming of age in Cornwall with her struggling to still have a career actor and playwright father and his companion, Martin. She loves the moors and dressing as a man and when she meets Tasmin, her “Oliver” finds it's match in “Tommy”. When her cousin gets sent to them to rethink his got caught misbehavior, she suddenly finds herself at a houseparty and getting caught up in Tasmin's dreams, fighting to keep secrets, and the naivety of youth's thinking of invincibility. 

That thread of power that hummed between us had been spun into a web. We were invisible, seen yet not known. We were inviolable. 

The Cornish setting with it's winds and cliffs and the old rambling estate helped to set the Gothic tone all before the mystery and murder came onto the pages. It was all hushed as the genre tends to keep it's cards to the vest with first person point-of-view to keep the reader in the dark about certain characters' motivations. Olivia worked as an eighteen year old coming into her own power as conventionally good looking and being the focus of men's dark desires. Her lack of interest and wanting to be left alone with Tasmin to make a life gave a little different direction and dimension but the same Gothic beats were all there with Tasmin being clouded with murder-y shadows. 

“[...You like to see how close you can get to the edge of things without falling. Not as close as you believed, as it turns out....]” 

The pace picked up when Olivia, Tasmin, and her cousin go to the houseparty and we get outside influences affecting the Oliver and Tommy bubble. The host Rex de Voil with his standoffish but seemingly drawn to Olivia (and drawer full of women's hairbrushes) brings in some more dread but as things picked up to come to a head, the ending felt like a whiff to me. The slow burn that was finally leading somewhere suddenly cuts off with numerous threads left dangling, left to the reader to decide if Olivia's youthful sense of power will be her downfall or if Oliver and Tommy will succeed in all the ways they hope to. It was hard not feeling like when the story finally was starting to go somewhere it abruptly ended, it didn't give the feeling of “left to your imagination” but rather, “leaving it for the sequel”, making me feel like I didn't get much of a story. I was drawn the most to Olivia's father's companion Martin and Rex de Voil's housekeeper, would love to read their novellas. Some Gothic atmosphere, murder and mystery, but ultimately, felt unfinished and unexplained.

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Review: Wolf Hour: A Novel

Wolf Hour: A Novel by Jo Nesbo
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

2.5 stars 

The purpose is to try to get inside the head of a killer. 

If you're from the Twin Cities area in Minnesota, you're going to want to read this because of all the “I recognize that!” going on here, non-residents might not get as much from the setting and get lost in the slower moving mystery-thriller. Wolf Hour had two competing timelines, 2022, where an author from Norway is visiting the Minneapolis area to do research on a book he's writing about, the other timeline, 2016 serial murders. This had multi-povs but the two main ones were the 2022 author and the 2016 detective, Bob. Bob's a hardened detective who's going through a divorce, obviously has anger management problems and an incident from his past constantly hovering on the edges that is clearly leading him into depression. 

“What did he say about being lonely?” 

“Lots. That it was slowly driving him crazy.” 

While this was a murder mystery of following along with Bob as he tries to catch up to the killer with some thriller and splashes of horror, I felt this was more of a humanities study on grief. The story mostly follows Bob and while the explicit reveal of what lead to where he is in life now is left until the end, I think it started to become obvious, which lead to a different reading lens view and will have readers connecting other dots. With each character that gets brought in through Bob, his wife, peer Kay, taxidermist, and bartender Liza, it only strengthened that humanity feeling for me. What I'm saying is maybe read this less for thrills and chills and more for emotional working through. 

“I’m looking Chicago,” sang Bob as he raised his glass in a salute, “and feeling Minnesota.” 

For most of the story, especially since their pov all but disappeared I was feeling like the author from Norway angle wasn't really needed but it will come back at the end to connect; not sure it ended up feeling structurally worth it to me. I think there was also a problem of feeling like the story got a bit rambling and seemed to get sidetracked with dissertations at times but, if you don't show up for a straight-lined murder mystery, you'll probably be more receptive to the musings. A fun story for a Minnesotan to read and emotional meat on grief, gun control, and other societal issues.

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Review: The Star Society

The Star Society by Gabriella Saab
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

That was before she learned what war is. What it does. War takes and takes and so rarely returns. 

The Star Society was the story of two sisters who lost each other in the survival of WW ll only to be put in an impossible situation as they tried to regain their relationship. We're first introduced to Ada in 1943 New York City as she arrives in the United States after escaping from the Netherlands. We get a vague idea of why she left her homeland before the story jumps to 1946 Hollywood and Ada's on the way to becoming a famous actress. If you know your history, this is the time period where the Red Scare, the US government ramping up their searching out and condemning Communists, is happening, which brings in Ingrid, Ada's twin sister that she never knew the fate of. 

“None of this will settle down as easily as I hoped, will it?”

Ingrid left the Netherlands before Ada with her fiance and ended up in Washington D.C., working for the government. When she recognizes Ada from a picture being passed around as the next target to investigate in Hollywood, she jumps at the chance to lead it. When the sisters reunite there's some distrust, Ingrid not knowing if Ada is a Communist, Ada wondering why Ingrid never wrote to her to tell her she was alive but the bond between the two is still there. As the story dances around in Hollywood we get some actors and celebrities mentioned and brought into the picture from the time and as Ingrid's investigation gets deeper and twisted as some players have their own agenda, we get a look at some historical re-imaginings/enactments of what trials and commissions were like for the people being branded Communists at this time. 

“All we can do is defend ourselves, even when it isn't enough.” 

Along with the sisters relationship being entangled with the Red Scare plot, there's some past players hiding in the wings as Ada finds the strength to try and get a case worked up on an SS officer from her past. The time jumps in the beginning felt a little confusing with the not being settled into the who's and what's of the characters and their relationships; keeping the past purposefully clouded for shock impact had me struggling with some aspects. It's a little over halfway into the story when the timeline finally stayed in the present (1946-7) and I felt settled into the story with following along with two characters who have entwined stories. If you're looking for a little historical fiction with WWII that leads into a Red Scare Hollywood, some mystery with past events creeping up, a little bit of romance, and a sister's relationship that goes through it, this had all those elements.

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Review: The Shop on Hidden Lane

The Shop on Hidden Lane by Jayne Ann Krentz
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

Harpers and the Wellses hadn’t been known to socialize for four generations. 

I couldn't find anywhere this was labeled as part of a series (Arcane and Fogg Lake are mentioned) but it definitely reads as an off-shoot of one, I'm saying prepare to feel lost if you don't have any familiarity with the aforementioned. This was a paranormal mystery loaded up with a ton of psychic additives. Sophy and Luke, and Luke's dog Bruce, are from rival families but end up working together as they at first are searching for Sophy's aunt and Luke's uncle but then get swept into a decades old plan to, I guess rule the world?, wasn't quite sure. This was written well, because Krentz, but it also read like a second or third draft, the story, plot, and characters were there but things like transitions and padding out were missing, making it read stark and bumpy instead of flowing. 

He was communicating with her even though she was deep in the trance. For once she wasn’t alone in the ghost zone. But why did Luke Wells have to be the one person who could reach her? 

I had a little bit of a problem getting into the overreaching arc of the plot, The Foundation, Blue Stone, Kaleidoscope weapons, all the psychic abilities, and the family history/drama with Sophy and Luke's family was a lot to get thrown into and try to wade through as a murder mystery was underlining everything. Sophy has the ability to “read” a crime scene, she goes into a trance where she can see ghost like apparitions recreate their murder but it takes a huge toll on her and her dating life. Luke's still trying to get over being burned bad by a woman, so he's doing the stoic thing but his aura and Sophy's get to mixing and wham bam they have the hots for each other. As they search for their aunt and uncle they had good byplay I enjoyed but there was a ton to wade through here. 

“That’s the thing about history, isn’t it?” she said. “No two people tell it quite the same way.” 

As we get more of their family history, a business deal gone wrong between their grandparents that left them mistrustful of each other but locked in a pact to always protect the psychic weapons they had created, it starts to become clear that that history plays a part in the current murders that Sophy and Luke are investigating. There was a little bit of broaching with this commentary: Perhaps it hasn’t occurred to you that most of us in the community lack the muscle and the cash it takes to make sure the Foundation treats us with the same respect that it shows your family. It seems to think it has a right to police those of us who are just trying to make a living with our talents and be productive members of society, some added danger for Sophy, a call-back for Luke, and we get a climatic scene that reveals players and motivations but also leaves some threads dangling. Bruce the dog had a personality all his own and with a cliffhanger that deals with him, it's clear why he got some of the spotlight. If you've read the Fogg Lake series maybe you wouldn't be as confused as I was through this and would enjoy it more, others not initiated like me, there's some fun back and forth between Sophy and Luke and interesting paranormal elements but be prepared to have to work for every ounce of understanding.

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Review: Never Say Die

Never Say Die by Tess Gerritsen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

2.5 stars 

"My mother's never accepted it. She needs a body to bury." 

General Kistner sighed. "Of course. The wives. It's always the wives. There were so many widows, one tends to forget." 

"She hasn't forgotten." 

Set in the shadow of Vietnam, FMC travels to Vietnam to discover what happened to, claimed KIA, father, for her mother who is dying from cancer. She's bitter against her father, feeling he put his love of flying and daredevilry ahead of his family. She meets the MMC, who works as a sort of bounty hunter for the government for remains of soldiers or find out if they decided to change identities and stay in Vietnam. When he hears her last name, he realizes one of his files is about her father, who might have been a traitor to USA and has a big bounty, so he decides to convince her that they should work together. 

They didn't exchange a word; just that look, that sad and knowing smile between women, was enough. 

I think this didn't age the best, there's a bunch of trying to work through and weigh the cost of the Vietnam War and CIA workings in Laos but there were sure were some cringe ways of speaking about the people of Vietnam and Laos here too. This leaned a little more towards the thriller mystery with the romance having that push/pull of I hate you/I want you. Grappling with the cost of war and how it's viewed/spoke of is always the most interesting part of the books for me.

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Review: Odyssey

Odyssey by M.L. Fergus
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

2.5 stars 

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

She'd gone from a freedom-hungry nobody playing dress-up to save an orphan she'd never met to a princess who now held the life of her kind, sweet, long-lost brother in her hands. 

Second in the Fractured Kingdom series, you'd definitely want to read Prophecy before jumping into this one as it picks up right where that one left off. Our main protagonists, Persephone and Azriel had been cornered by the evil Regent Mordesius in the castle. This was all after learning that Persephone was actually the long lost twin sister princess to the King Finnius. Trying to save their lives, Azriel comes up with a lie about knowing where the healing Pool of Genezig is and if Mordesius lets them go, he'll bring back some healing waters to prove it. Mordesius takes the bait, as he's obsessed with “curing” his deformed body and gives them one hundred days to find the Pool and come back, or he'll kill the king. Thus, sets off our Odyssey as Persephone, Azriel, and a revolving door of tag-along secondary characters travel the fantasy land of Glyndoria. 

“Marry the girl...find the pool...save the king...fulfill the prophecy. It all fits,” breathed Cairn, her eyes aglow with excitement. 

If you read my review of the first, you'll know I enjoyed the character dynamics and developing fantasy and politics worldbuilding, the four hundred pages here, ran too long for me. There was a healthy focus on delivering Mordesius' pov chapters and his reveling in his evilness became a lot to keep reading; numerous times torturing and calling a prisoner of his “cow”. I feel like so much of his story could have been cut, we know he's evil, we know what his goal is. The politics side was him trying to outplay a higher up Lord and maneuvering him and his daughter, that included the king, in a way that would ultimately lead him into power. He juggled some things in a believable way and others it was like, yeah, no surprise that turned out the way it did. 

She tried to believe that she would never again lay her cheek against his warm chest, would never again feel his strong arms around her, would never again feel him lying so close to her in the darkness. 

The romance between Persephone and Azriel did have some momentum, Azriel did some maneuvering of his own and we get a bit of forced proximity. Persephone kept true to character with, overly, fighting feelings and circumstances but as each new little adventure on their odyssey brought them closer together you could see their connect strengthening. This was still kept more in the YA category than adult with a firmly shut-door scene. I enjoyed the secondary characters, Rachel and the mysterious “dressed in homespun” man but others veered into over-the-top goofy annoying like the troll-ish leader. The ending gave us Persephone having to face one of her biggest fears, learning about her mother, a surprise move by a character, some sadness, and a kidnapping that will lead into more trials for our group in the third book. This read somewhat slower and dragged out for me but if you're more into longer adventure fantasy with YA vibe, you might enjoy more.

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TBRChallenge Review: Summer Games

Summer Games by Elizabeth Lowell
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

2.5 stars 

This month's TBRChallenge theme was Celebrations!, fighting a cold, I reached into my garage sale book boxes and pulled out Summer Games. The 1984 LA Olympics count for celebrations I say! This book had a couple of reoccurring themes that just about drove me batty because of how hammered on they were. Our main male character Cord grew-up around horses and was a rodeo bronco buster before Vietnam called and he constantly is given a “shaman's” voice as he works to get our female main character's horse, Devlin's Waterloo, to trust him. If I had read this on an electronic device, I'd have done a count on how many times it was used, since I only had a paperback, you'll have to take my conservative estimate of one million times. There was also the discussion of coming in from the cold, the whole underlining women warm the hearth and home for the men coming in from cold of protecting and providing, the “queen” and “solider” analogy became a lot in it's repetitiveness. 

She was a fool to be interested in a man who was like her father, so involved in his work that he lived his life at the end of an electronic leash. She had left that world behind once. She would never enter it again, no matter the lure. 

At it's essence, Summer Games was a romantic suspense where retirement landing you in the soft thighs of a younger woman who also comes with a hot stallion sounds like a good idea and we're all destined to marry our fathers. Raine grew-up with a father that did super secret American government work and she hated how his family always came a distant second, he's never even seen her ride in her equestrian competitions. This has soured her on men of a certain cut of cloth, so when she's, literally, knocked out of her shoes by Cord, he has his work cut out for him. Cord came off a bit...intense. But I've never ran point on security for the Olympics, so who am I too judge? When Raine's looking over the course she'll run during the competition, he thinks she's a “Cuban or Lebanese commando” terrorist setting bombs. Their “meet-cute” has sparks flying and Cord instantly knowing he wants her while Raine only sees her father and tries to put up her walls. I say try because, lol, she be rubbing all up and down this man. 

But she was so warm in his arms, and he was so cold inside. 

The first half really focused on their romance and the pushing and pulling of their attraction with not wanting to get emotionally involved, Raine not wanting to get involved with a man she'll come second to and Cord knowing he lives too secretive and dangerous of a life. I went back and forth if I thought this was overwritten with remnants of purple prose or if we're losing the recipes. Example: He wanted to take Raine down to the golden grass and make love to her until nothing else was real, no past or future, no rights or wrongs, nothing but sunset sliding into night, a man and woman alone, two lovers turning and twining and blending intimately, two flames burning as one in a world of crimson silence. 

Purple prose-y, can see the cringe but “nothing but sunset sliding into night” and “burning as one in a world of crimson silence.”. We're using our words!! But maybe we already had made rent and needed to settle down. 

He wanted to seduce her in more than a merely physical way. He wanted her to trust him. 

The later second half finally gives us a focus on Raine's equestrian trials and you'll learn about dressage, cross country racing, and jumping, which was interesting and I didn't think textbook-ed it to eye-glazing. The suspense part about the notorious “Barracuda” assassin that was hovering on the edges also comes to the forefront, sort of, when Cord's constantly called away to “monitor” and do super secret DIA anti-terrorism stuff. I wish we had gotten more with Raine and her family, we get a few scenes with her father (guy plays the lips zipped spy well, give her more info!) so that more resolution could have been had there.

“And you're an expert on love?” she said, her voice hard and dry. 

“No,” he said softly. “I'm an expert on dying. On not loving. On being lonely. On looking at castles from the outside. On finding a woman worth having and then watching her bar the gate against me because I'm just a soldier, not a king.” 

After all are protected (any violence of this kind is completely off page) and Raine wins her Olympic medal but Cord disappears, she ends up on a ranch in Arizona until her HEA choppers in. The repeated term use of shaman, queen, and soldier was super tiring but the backstory of how Cord grew-up around horses (family of Mesteñeros ) was brilliant because of how it then linked and gave a thread to him helping and connecting with her through her stallion, which was her family for all intents and purposes. The women providing warmth and succor for warrior men theme was meh, Cord wasn't the cardboard cut-out alpha man, he had layers and it didn't feel like a treatise on the ideal, but meh. 

“I don't believe it anymore. Tomorrow will come for us. When it does, I want it to be right. I want to know that I didn't take you off-balance and more than a little afraid. I'm good at taking people that way. Too good. It's part of my job. But not you,” said Cord, his voice deep, a river running through moonlight and darkness down to a warm sea. “I want you in a very special way, Raine. I can wait one more day for that. I've already waited a lifetime.” 

What stood out the most for me, was the touching and caressing between these two (let me Bat signal – washes her hair scene), they weren't just slot A slot B fucking, which, please, bring back caressing. There were more than one purple prose remnant scenes like this: Shirtless, barefoot, Cord rode the screaming blood-bay whirlwind. The man's muscles bunched and gleamed in the bright moonlight even as the stallion's did, two powerful, supremely conditioned males fighting for dominance. 

Obviously can read a little goofball out of context but in this story and the contextual moment, it's also put a capital on that W-riting. So while I had fun with some of the scenery chewing going on here, I'm not sure I'd recommend for this to be one to go back and visit, but I'll give it up to the “I can wait one more day, I've already waited a lifetime” to it all.

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Review: Reborn

Reborn by Meredith Wild
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Look, when the MMC was standing outside the FMC's bedroom door with a silencer on a gun because he was sent to assassinate her but pauses when, as she's pleasuring herself, calls out his name, I Was Sat. 

Blew through this first part but about halfway through it did start to feel like treading water and I was getting bored as much as I was locked in for the beginning. Will read the next parts but seeing there's 8 more parts to go, I'm a little worried this really gets dragged out.

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Review: The Library of Fates

The Library of Fates by Margot Harrison
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5 stars

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

The Book of Dark Nights was gone. 

I devoured The Library of Fates in the beginning as I found the magical realism world where an 18th century book created by a witch for Voltaire acts as a sort of Ouija board and powers a library. The lore created about and around this book was fascinating, you're supposed to write in the book a true confession, shut the book, and then open it to read what the book has written in answer to you. Only the writer can read their confession and the tell you something about your future answer. Told in dual time-line and povs from our two leads, more story about the book's origins and purpose gets revealed as you read on. 

To him the touch meant nothing, while for her it roused far too many memories. 

As the story goes back and forth between Now (2019) and Then (1995) we get the story, mostly, from Eleanor, a college student and then eventual librarian of The Library of Fates, and Daniel, the professor's son, who introduces them to The Book of Dark Nights, and eventual former flame of Eleanor's. We start off with Daniel's mother having died and Eleanor discovering that The Book of Dark Nights is missing from the library. As the book gives the library it's power and makes Eleanor feel special because she's one of the few who the book “talks” to by directing her to select the exact book a person needs at that time and place in their life, she's devastated and worried. Daniel comes into the picture as he's showing up for the first time back at Harvard, where the library is, in twenty-four years, and realizes his mother's will states that he doesn't get his inheritance if the Book is not in the library by the time of his mother's wake. When it becomes obvious that Eleanor's mentor and Daniel's mother hid the book and left them clues, we have them going on a scavenger hunt for the Book in the current time-line as the Then time-line goes back and shows us how Eleanor and Daniel met in his mother's special Book class and the events that lead up to their separation. 

“You protected the Book, Eleanor. You've been protecting it all this time, haven't you? What if I said I think we should destroy it?” 

From Eleanor's pov, it's clear there was a lot to her and Daniel's relationship, readers get to see it in the Then sections, but Daniel doesn't seem to remember Eleanor at all in the Now. There's a slow build to that reveal as they search for the Book and secondary characters come into the picture, others from the special Book class and Daniel's father. As I mentioned, the plot about the Book immediately drew me in but when we got towards the ending with reveals and tying the characters and plot together, I couldn't help feel some disappointment, it all felt messy and somewhat underdeveloped. There was a henchman that came out of nowhere, and some secondary character usage that had them staying off-screen too much to suddenly come in and make the impact they were supposed to. 

What if, when you confessed, a sliver of your soul stayed in the Book? 

The second chance romance stays a thread throughout the story but it didn't encompass enough to be a strong genre element. I thought the dual timelines of furthering the plot while going back and showing how the foundation of it was built worked but I can't help feeling the climax felt like a whiff. I'd definitely recommend for some cool magical realism as The Book of Dark Nights plot will definitely fascinate (witches! Voltaire! confessions!) and textual potential shenanigans that give fun shout-outs to literature of yore, but just be prepared for a little bit of a messy letdown on the wrap-up.

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Review: Break Wide the Sea

Break Wide the Sea by Sara Holland
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

Don’t move too fast. Don’t touch anyone. Ignore the smell of blood. 

A young adult mash of historical fantasy, romance, and magic, with a cover that will surely grab those among us that haven't gotten past our ship phases and still have sea shanty songs on our feeds. Break Wide the Sea takes place in a fantasy world where finfolk (mermaid and fae mix) exist and are close to going to war with the humans who hunt Livyati (magical whales). It's a historical fantasy 1800s whaling world where told all from her point-of-view, eighteen year old Annie is now the head of her family's whaling company. Her parent's died when she was younger, finfolk attacked them when they were out whaling and only she, and two other boys August, and Silas, survived. This was nine years ago and bonds the three together, oh yes, we have a love triangle, but it's a weak one. Annie's family was cursed eons ago, she's turning into a Siren, her turning brought on by Heartbreak but holds it off by getting comfort from her fiancé August. When they were attacked by the finfolk it was revealed that Silas was half-human, half-finfolk, but Annie can't reveal him as he also knows she's cursed. Six years ago, Silas sent Annie a shell that holds a memory showing her August plans on killing her eventually and taking over the company. Annie's trying to fend off a curse, take care of her two younger siblings, and figure out who she can trust. 

“Dissolve the company,” he whispers. “End whaling forever.” 

I think this will be more for historical fantasy readers, the whaling world and finfolk elements captured my attention the most, but maybe that's the sea shanties ringing in my ears. The romance felt fairly weak to me, it's YA so there was kissing and groping, with a completely off-screen bedroom scene later on but more importantly, there wasn't much emotion to feel between Annie and August. For plot purposes, it's clear it wants to remain a mystery to put tension between Annie, August, and Silas, if Annie can trust August or Silas, but, it's all pretty obvious. Annie's pov felt wishy-washy a lot of the time and that made for drawn out melodrama because as it's all from her, the reader can't escape. 

Something malevolent is happening on the Heralder. My family’s ship, I think with a surge of possessive anger. 

A lot of the story takes place on the sea, which I enjoyed and the messaging is pretty clear on this, humans have to respect and work with nature or feel it's wrath. I almost felt like Annie's younger sister Lydia stole the show from her, she was a stronger character and I wish we could have felt that decisiveness from Annie. Silas intrigued, as he's mostly a mystery to Annie, he remained for most of the story the same to me as the reader. I'm not usually a fan of love triangles but as the relationship didn't feel strong to me between Annie and August (you'll swim with the whales to deeper depths), well, I was just waiting for her to open her eyes more to Silas. 

A monstrous queen wants me for unknown purposes. 

As Annie fights to figure out who to trust, August claiming to help her build up her whaling business or Silas who claims August wants to kill her and tells her he can bring her to the finfolk to cure her curse, it all builds to a now you're going learn ending when the finfolk and their Queen show up. This does end on a cliffhanger, we see what happens to the characters but they are set on new journeys as the building war between the finfolk and whalers isn't over, and a new one has begun between Annie, August, and Silas.

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Review: Son of the Morning

Son of the Morning by Akwaeke Emezi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5 stars

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

The Kincaids had their own world, a world of sideways realities where they hunted down dangers in the thick of the trees. 

Son of the Morning was a sex-on-a-stick insta-lust paranormal romance. The main star of the show was Galilee Kincaid, trying to establish some independence from the fierce Kincaid women, she moves of their land and tries to live a “normal” life. However, there's something even the favored Kincaids sense is wrong/different about Galilee, but their matriarch Darling Kincaid isn't talking and Galilee does her best to stifle any powers she may feel trying to bubble up. It's when she meets Lucifer Helel, there's no mistaking here, she knows he's the literal Devil, that Galilee gets put on a crash course of fate, truth, and embracing your power. 

She wanted to be seized, and he had so many teeth. 

This started off with some enticing magic and fantasy elements. The beginning gave us time to learn the characters, the Kincaid women, led by Darling Kincaid and Galilee's cousin Celestial, along with Galilee's friends, Bonbon and Oriaku, were deeply fascinating secondary characters in their own right and I missed them when they disappeared for a bit in the middle. There were also Lucifer's princes that gave enough that I wanted to spend more time with them all, we get the most out of Leviathan and while he has his own mini-arc in this, I still think the cover layout promise of more the merrier should have been delivered earlier in the book so we could have gotten more of it. Basically, extremely strong secondary characters that are going to have you begging this to be a series. 

“It might be an end, but a whisper in me wonders if it could also be a beginning.” 

Our main stars, Galilee and Lucifer had that insta-lust that never quite delivers on the depth of relationship I'm looking for but it was hot. Galilee was at turns strong, vulnerable, lost, and fierce, basically what you'd look for from a character trying to learn her origins, finding out she's mixed up in millennia old beef between Heaven and Hell, and having the Devil get off from her burning touch. For being the literal Devil, Lucifer didn't pop off the pages as much as I would have liked, but in service to Galilee his character worked. 

The Devil had betrayed her, and an angel was whispering in her ear. 

The mystery of who Galilee really is, who's the villain pov, why is the Hellgate suddenly letting demons out, and the lurking around the edges war between Heaven and Hell will intrigue but it did wrap up a bit abruptly for me. I missed how some of the strong secondary characters disappeared for long stretches, but if you're looking for some angels and devils warring, this would be a sexy little number to pick up.

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Review: All of Us Murderers

All of Us Murderers by K.J. Charles
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5 stars 

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

“I hope and pray none of you see it, but if you do, don’t look at its face. Turn away and you may, perhaps, be spared." 

All of Us Murderers was a fun romp of a Gothic mystery and romance. As any Gothic worth it's salt, this starts with our lead Zeb arriving to Dartmoor at the looming, dark, and cold stone, Gothic mansion Lackaday House. His cousin has written and begged Zeb to visit for them to get to know each other. When Zeb arrives he's greeted by a night-gowned young woman dramatically running out of the house and his former lover Gideon. Zeb clearly has ADHD (he uses the original fidget spinner, a rosary) and with that not being understood or respected in Edwardian times, he struggles with keeping jobs. When he worked with Gideon, it had Gideon covering for him at times and trying to keep their romance a secret, it was the first time for Gideon being in a relationship with a man. They ended up getting seen and they both got fired, with Gideon blaming it on Zeb. 

Wynn looked around the table. “It is very simple. One of you shall marry Jessamine, and have my fortune with her.” 

Along with Gideon, Zeb's brother, his wife, and two other cousins are houseguests. Wynn tells them all that he's changed his inheritor from Zeb's brother to whomever will marry Jessamine, a distant cousin and the previously night-gowned fleeing woman. It's a plot set-up that has family members turning on each other for money and a setting that brings in the spooky, hauntings, legends, myths, and similarities to moments from their grandfather's published Gothic books. The first half focused more on the Gothic mystery, it's a little foggy mystery with introducing all the characters and working out, remembering who's who and the relationship dynamics between them all. 

He was a serious man, but Zeb knew, none better, how much his eyes could warm and crinkle at the edges, how his face could light up with amusement or desire or love— 

The second half brought in the romance more and we got Zeb and Gideon working out their past relationship issues with a clearer understanding of who they are individually and how that means they will work together. I enjoyed how neither character was perfect, in how they previously reacted but visibly grew into their selves more and worked and learned how their chemistry puzzle pieces fit together; they developed their relationship. There were bedroom scenes to bring in the heat before the latter second half brought the mystery back in and delivered reveals and answers. 

“It was razed to the ground because of the corruption of the monks.” 

“Well, that was the point of the Reformation.” 

“I mean, it was a place of great cruelty,” Jessamine said. “Cruelty and secrets, presided over by evil men, until the people of Dartmoor tore it down because no such acts of darkness should be concealed in a house of God.” 

“Gosh,” Zeb said, nonplussed by the sharp left turn into melodrama. “Odd site to pick for a house, then.” 

There were numerous nods to other Gothic works (The Yellow Wallpaper, etc.) and the foggy atmosphere you want from the genre was there. I did think some of the twists and turns got a little convoluted towards the end but even if the vengeance, justice, and retribution ride got a bit bumpy, it was still fun. Gothics are always great at getting Satan to take a back seat to the true horror, family dynamics, and this story definitely delivered on that vibe.

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Review: Episode Thirteen

Episode Thirteen by Craig DiLouie
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Definitely reads like a found footage movie, epistolary story with video scenes, diary entries, interviews, and text messages. 

A husband who claims to have had a ghostly encounter when he was a kid grows up forever searching for proof of ghosts and ends up dragging along the college scientific PhD woman he fell in love with when they get an opportunity to do a reality tv show hunting for ghosts. The wife plays the skeptic and works to debunk what the husband and his crew find, an actress added to the show to liven things up, a tech guy who was a former police officer who claims to have meet a demon, and the camera guy just taking a job. 

They're coming to the end of the season and looking for a way to end on a high note and ensure they get a second season, with the wife wanting to bounce because she's sick of dealing with pseudoscience. Their last job is the Foundation House, a place where in the sixties two professors conducted experiments on a group of people trying to further the Human Potential Movement but as the wife reads through the papers left by the profs, realizes they were doing unethical experimentation. 

The first half starts off a little slow with getting to know the characters and their intra/interpersonal drama and then the house starts to wake up and eventually reveals a well with a door at the bottom that has the group doing an Alice in Wonderland and traveling, what the wife comes to realize is a Mandala loop. 

It all starts to get a bit out there, a little bit of a The Cabin in the Woods down the rabbit hole, and I ended up feeling like this was more SciFi (think movie The Abyss like) and less horror. I also struggled a bit with the flow of the story that was probably a personal issue with the epistolary style and not novel form. 

You'll get a fantastical major ending that also stutters epilogue final endings, the last epilogue I felt delivered the best chill, and a story that will work to expand your mind while delivering some creeps.

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Review: The First Liar

The First Liar by M.C. Rising
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.7 stars 

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

“I don't care if you tag along, but I'm warning you. You might not be able to tag back out.” 

Tori buckled her seat belt. 

From the moment Tori sees her boss killed in a hit and run and she tries to chase after the driver, she finds herself thrown into a world of monsters and the hunters that chase them. With some tv show Supernatural, a lot of mythology (mostly Greek), and real historical events and figures, The First Liar takes you on a ride full of mystery, emotions, and battles. Told mostly from our twenty-something software engineer bored with her day job in Atlanta, Tori mourns the loss of her brother while feeling she's meant for something greater. When she meets up with a younger guy, Vincent, who gets his own povs more in the second half, she gets brought into a world that only a few knew about. 

There was so much more to Greek mythology than its heroes and villains. 

The story works to keep the players true identities hidden as long as possible, Vincent's “parents” Roy and Brooks, who rescued Vincent when he was a boy and taught him how to fight, are two men who always seem to know more than they're telling. Tori learns from them that around fifty years ago, someone or something seems to have awoken mythological beings and they're now running amok. Roy, Brooks, and Vincent have been fighting them and trying to piece together a puzzle of what their main plan seems to be. Orion, Narcissus, Asterius, are seen the most but there are numerous other mythological characters you'll recognize throughout. 

“After all this is over.” 

The first half's pace is slower as, along with Tori, the reader gets some introduction to a world that exists in the shadows. This is also set in the future (I think I worked out the year to be 2046) and climate change with political upheaval has taken it's toll on the United States. Tori's feeling like she's stuck in life, grief over brother, societal issues, along with Vincent's unresolved trauma from his childhood, will have you feeling for the characters. There's a little romance with Tori getting drawn to Roy and a character that comes in later, Grace, slowly penetrates Vincent's wall around himself. You'll get to feel like you'll know Tori, Vincent, and Grace but Roy and Brooks remained a little too distance for me; it serves the plot but I just personally wanted to know them more. 

So she couldn't let this be a happy ending. Or a sad one. 

It had to be a new beginning. 

The second half really brings in answers and action, almost too fast and furious the last fifteen percent as battle after battle is raged. I really enjoyed the melding of real historical events (Atlanta building fires), mythology themes and characters, and supernatural elements; made for an interesting and fun story. There's an ending but it felt more like a closing chapter with room for our group to definitely go and fight more battles, it is alluded to there are more on the horizon. Interesting, chaotic at times, characters that will intrigue you, and a story that was emotional and fun. If looking for something different, definitely give this one a go, especially during the spooky fall season.

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Review: In the Veins of the Drowning

In the Veins of the Drowning by Kalie Cassidy
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5 stars 

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

For nearly three decades now, he had refused to worship the Great Goddess Ligea— the Queen of Sirens. He claimed Sirens were vicious and pitiless as the sea, that they took joy in destruction, and over time he’d stopped honoring the Great Gods all together. He made blood offerings to his water deity, Eusia, instead. 

In the Veins of Drowning was an impressive debut that I hope doesn't get lost in the sea of endless romantasy being published right now. I really enjoyed the world building where kings rule but serve gods and magic plays a role in good and evil. This is adult and for the most part I felt it read that way, you'll get gory and open door scenes for some horror and romance. This was mostly told from our main character Imogen, who in her later twenties is engaged to be married to a captain of King Nemea's guard, who she has been a ward of since she was a baby. The atmosphere clues readers into the fact that not everything is right in this fantasy medieval feeling world, along with the tension bleeding through Imogen's thoughts and feelings. It's when she accidentally exposes herself to her fiance that she's a Siren, beings hunted in this kingdom, that the story kicks off with romance and thriller aspects. 

“No.” I looked him squarely in the eye— I had nothing left to lose. “I came to bind myself to you.” 

Even though Imogen is King Nemea's ward, she has reason to fear him, so with a first meeting that struck something between them, Imogen decides that the King of Varya, Theo, is her way out. They end up doing a blood binding, Theo becomes immune to Imogen's siren calls and they feel a sense of protection towards each other and make a deal that Theo will get Imogen safely to his kingdom, also asking three things of her. They plan on breaking the binding once in his kingdom because Theo is engaged to a powerful empress' daughter. So you can kind of see where this is going, some road adventure with Imogen and Theo starting off a little at odds with one another but trying to fight that physical and binding attraction. I liked the byplay between them but overall I still wanted a feeling of more depth between their emotional connection. 

“Your purpose— the reason I agreed to bind myself to you— is to ensure that you will help me track down and kill King Nemea’s water deity, Eusia. And it’s your power that makes me believe you can. That silent lure you possess is Gods’ power. It’s beyond what a normal Siren can wield.”

While the romance builds between the two with obstacles stacked between them, the worldbuilding takes shape and I was pretty fascinated by it all. Imogen doesn't have all the facts or the truth about her origins and as she learns more, it builds the plot. I don't want to give too much away but her siren abilities point to a greater role she's destined for and the years she spent forced to worship the god King Nemea made her, Eusia, has empowered Eusia in such ways, she may be impossible to defeat. The imagery of sirens and how the wings tear out of Imogen's back, getting a prophecy from the mage seerer, and the nekgya, dead bodies powered by Eusia that hunt sirens in the water, was really cool and had me sinking into this world. 

“There’s too much against us,” I whispered. 

Even though this was mostly from Imogen's pov, I did think we got enough of Theo's backstory to get a good feel for him as a character. There was also a slight secondary romance between Agatha and a commander of Theo's that helped add to the world and made me wish we had a novella of their first time around romance. The romance could have had deeper depth but the fantasy lore building was more than worth the price of admission. This is the first in a duology, though, so prepare for that cliffhanger until next summer.

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Review: Smile for the Cameras

Smile for the Cameras by Miranda Smith
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

And at least one death happened here that wasn’t caught on camera. 

Twenty years ago, Ella starred in the horror movie Grad Night. A small budget film that became an instant hit and has developed a cult following with the progressive sequels. While the film jump started her career, it emotionally destroyed Ella and after a few years on a popular sitcom, she left Hollywood to take care of her sick mother. Now that her mother has died, Ella's ready to try and revive her career. A middle aged woman has a harder time landing roles, so Ella's agent pressures her to do a Grad Night reunion documentary that fans have been clamoring for, in hopes it will open doors for her. Ella lost touch with her cast mates and has tried to steer clear of anything Grad Night, as one murder happened on set that wasn't filmed. Back at the cabin in the woods that started it all, it seems that the secret Ella and her cast mates worked so hard to keep quiet is known by someone and they're willing to murder over it. 

A tall figure stands at the railing, also dressed in a graduation gown and with a blood-spattered lion mask covering the person’s face, an axe with a bloody blade in their hands. 

As a big movie slasher fan, I was excited when I read the synopsis of this. It's told in alternating timelines, Then – 20yrs ago with the movie being filmed and Now – present time with Ella back to the film's location and everyone filming the reunion doc. The alternating timelines are to keep moving the story along in the present time but with the mystery kept quiet until the end of what really happened twenty years ago. There's also add-ins of the movie script, which I really enjoyed as a movie fan. I liked how the story was structured and set-up but I'm not a big fan of unreliable narrator and that tactic was deployed to keep the killer a secret; it feels too cop-out manipulating for me. I enjoyed the first half but then the middle and beginning ending started to sag as Ella and her cast mates kind of just moped around. There were some interesting aspects to the secondary characters but as this was told from Ella's point-of-view, everything is from her perspective, so readers never really get to know the cast until the very end. The story started to ramp up around 60% when the present time murders began to happen and we finally got some slashing. 

You don’t think about what you’re doing, you just do it. 

The vibe of the story felt like a vehicle to go over the #METOO movement and sexism and predators in Hollywood, which, ok, but a lot of the time this was focused on, it felt like the story stopped and we got some awkward fitting pulpit preaching. There were some surprise reveals and just a little head scratching at the who and motives, but still entertaining. Structured interestingly, dragged out in middle because I'm not sure Ella was a strong enough character to carry the story, unreliable narrator, kind of awkwardly fit in preaching, surprising reveals, and some chills and thrills. There were a few call-outs for lovers of the horror movie genre to appreciate but I thought the nine month's into the future epilogue could have used someone popping out of a lake to liven things up.

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Review: Sour Cherry

Sour Cherry by Natalia Theodoridou
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A critic said, “Gothic tales rely on distant pasts and faraway lands full of people unlike us,” except he was wrong, because the land of this story is everywhere. The people are us, the time is always. 

I buddy read this over on a horror Discord. 

Quick thoughts and comments: 

I'm a big fan of folklore, Gothic, horror, and Bluebeard reimaginings/retellings, so I was pretty much the ideal audience for this. I don't know how, but this felt like a fast read and one that dragged all at the same time. The synopsis/marketing copy talked about it being a feminist take but it takes until the second half for the focus to really be on the wives of the tale. That and the different pov and tense changes feeling needlessly challenging and confusing to try and create a mysterious creepy vibe, was mostly why I had a problem with this. Also, some aspects of the story were focused on (Tristan) that felt  counterintuitive and interruptive  to the story's messaging of how abusive men get societal protection and how women get placed in and manipulated into caretaker and shield roles in abusive relationships. 

The first half felt super wonky with how it was structured but the second half read better to me, even though I was annoyed at how it sped through the wives, except for Eunice where I thought the story really settled into what it wanted to be. The focus on the last “special” wife Cherry was back to annoying to me because I think the story lost it's focus again and seemed to want to end the story with stating that Cherry was just as bad as the abusive man, which ok, but then what is this story really about, not what I showed up for based on the synopsis. 

I liked this and was annoyed with it, the atmospheric wonky structured folklore parts mostly didn't work for me but since I'm a fan of that type of storytelling, I still found parts I liked, I think a good chunk of readers will struggle with it, though. The first half felt like it focused on everything and nothing and when I finally found the story working for me in the second half, it sped through it to get to the final wife, a character that did nothing for me. I liked how it showed the systems that protect abusers but not sure this retelling did anything new or attention catching.

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Review: Lady or the Tiger

Lady or the Tiger by Heather M. Herrman
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

1.5 stars 

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

You aren’t going to like me. 

Lady or the Tiger was about a young girl surviving in the American wild west and trying to come into her own. Told, mostly, all from her point-of-view with numerous back and forth time jumps, readers travel with her from the beginning at fifteen years old forced to kill a man to nineteen years old and about to be hung as the Seamstress, a serial killer. This was tagged as young adult but I'd go more new adult, there's nothing completely explicit with the sex and violence but with a first husband who is a sadist in the bedroom, I often felt the messaging of don't give up being yourself for men was stylistically written more for adult thinking; I'm a big Judy Blume fan and I couldn't help comparing the two. The “supporting women's wrongs” with claiming fierce feminism when our lead Alice/Belle lures men with her physical wiles to murder them, just wasn't groundbreaking or entertaining for me, your mileage may vary. 

For a ghost, he looks very much alive. 

Alice gets sent to an asylum after she murders a man and her mother is killed. From there she is forced to marry Reginald, a cop, as a means of escape. She becomes useful to him by helping him cheat while gambling and they travel the west and Europe but he's the sadist in the bedroom and when Alice locks eyes with a boy in Texas, they spend a night together and escape Reginald. Alice then becomes Belle and travels the west and Europe with the carnival of The Damned, falling in love with Cal, the Texas boy, and taming a tiger to dance with. One night things unravel and Belle runs while Cal saves her from a dire situation, but eventually at nineteen Belle turns herself in for the Seamstress murders and wants to be hung because she thinks/knows she's done wrong. Her plan gets ruined when Reginald shows up and says she's crazy, citing the asylum stay, and tries to save her. 

And though I have shot two men, kissing a boy here in the fading light, without last night’s irresistible spell to carry me away or my shadow to guide me, feels like the bravest thing I have ever done. 

Like I said, the timeline is cut and spliced wildly, Alice/Belle starts off ready to be hung, then you'll go from how she escaped Reginald, her murderous time as the Seamstress, time with Cal, how she married Reginald, and the time at the asylum. There's some unreliable narration going on and an ending that takes a page from the short story it's title is inspired by (The Lady or the Tiger). If you can handle non-linear stories, telling you feminism is simply doing what you want, cool real women historical figures shout-outs, a good message (lost in the story for me most the time) of don't change yourself for love or chance at it, and an open-ended ambiguous ending, then this was something different along those lines.

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Review: The Compound

The Compound by Aisling Rawle
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars 

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

I’ve always been a passive kind of person; it is both my worst quality and the thing that people like most about me. 

If you've ever watched the tv show Big Brother and wished it had a darker vibe, then you're going to want to read The Compound. Told from contestant Lily's point-of-view readers wake up with her in a house in the desert. As she finds nine other younger women scattered throughout the house we learn that the ten men who will join them will come from the surrounding desert. They will be filmed constantly, Lily's watched and been a fan of the show, and have to complete tasks as a group for rewards and be able to complete personal tasks for goodies. The goal is to be the last one house-guest, when you'll be able to ask for anything you want and get it, provided you still remain in the house. It all sounds like a fun break to win prizes but as the story went on, competitiveness and darker personalities began to seep in through the cracks. 

I was there because I thought that this was what I was supposed to want: the house and the rewards and all the nice things. 

As the narrator, you'd think your sympathies will be solidly with Lily, and they are at times, but she works as a mirror to hold up to yourself, consumerism, and influencer culture. Lily's honest with us readers and as someone who works a retail job, lives at home at twenty-five, and has a father she hasn't seen in years because he's off fighting a war, she's on the reality tv show to “take a break” and win prizes she would otherwise never be able to afford. Part of the show's concept is that each night the men have to pick a woman to sleep with in bed, if someone doesn't have a partner the next morning they are banished. This creates competition between the women and sets up a heteronormative dynamic. There is a lot being said in this story and while I think the author started some conversations that need to be had, I'm not sure they all stuck the landing, especially towards the end. There wasn't much outerworld building, it's vague future dystopian with climate change and wars, but if you're here for discussions on some of the topics I mentioned, the microcosm world in the house provides enough different personalities and situations.

He looked around him, his face pinched in sadness. “Do you really want to live here, in this…wasteland?” 

“It’s no worse than what’s out there! Is that what you want to go back to? Constantly living on the periphery of disaster, just waiting and waiting and waiting for it to finally reach us, doing stupid, dull work to pass the days until then? We’re safe here— we’re removed from all of it.” 

“It’s still there, Lily. It’s still happening. You think that because we can’t see it, it’s not going on?” 

With so many characters the beginning was a little tougher to get a handle on but it becomes clear fairly early who are the contestants to keep an eye on. I liked how Lily had some personality components that we all probably have and don't necessarily like about ourselves and following along with the choices she made works to confront some of those indoctrinated lines of thought. This had some thriller vibes that I enjoyed, the threat of violence was always prevalent. This often felt poised to say something, it got there at times and never quite reached it at others for me. Coated in the bleakness of late stage capitalism, this dark vibed Big Brother starts a lot of conversations on the ever fascinating topics of societal structures and human nature.

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