Book Review: The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry

Some of you might remember I received The Lace Reader from my partner in the January Books 'n' Bloggers Swap.

Look into the lace? When the eyes begin to fill with tears and the patience is long exhausted, there will appear a glimpse of something not quite seen... In this moment, an image will begin to form? in the space between what is real and what is only imagined. Can you read your future in a piece of lace? All of the Whitney women can. But the last time Towner read, it killed her sister and nearly robbed Towner of her own sanity. Vowing never to read lace again, her resolve is tested when faced with the mysterious, unsolvable disappearance of her beloved Great Aunt Eva, Salem's original Lace Reader. Told from opposing and often unreliable perspectives, the story engages the reader's own beliefs. Should we listen to Towner, who may be losing her mind for the second time? Or should we believe John Rafferty, a no nonsense New York detective, who ran away from the city to a simpler place only to find himself inextricably involved in a psychic tug of war with all three generations of Whitney women? Does either have the whole story? Or does the truth lie somewhere in the swirling pattern of the lace?

I wanted this to be better than it was.  I mean, don't get me wrong-it was a good little read, it just wasn't as good as I was hoping for by the description.  
The character and the story-line are definitely intriguing.  The main character has a sordid past filled with tragedy and rich paranormal history, and the concept of coming from a long line of "lace readers" (women who can read fortunes in the lace that they create),while living in/near Salem MA which is thick with magical history is definitely what sucked me into the book at first.  There are disappearances, and bad guys, and crazy cults-all with a couple of different romance entanglements that complicate things a bit.
But the book as a whole feels very disjointed.  It starts with the narrative changing based on the character or the memory, and as soon as you get used to that it just starts feeling a bit confusing in other ways.  There's a chance it's meant to seem jumbled, so you can understand where the main character is coming from a little bit better, but you aren't aware that the disjointed feeling has any kind of plot application until the very end-and then it feels like it's just kind of thrown at you and you're sitting there going "what?"
Not "what?" as in "wow that twist was so unexpected!", but "what?" as in "no really, I don't understand... Can you re-explain it?"  I mean, I think I understand what she meant to do there-and I definitely understand the basis for the twist, but still... There's a second book, and part of me wants to follow up on it to see if it clarifies things, but the other part of me doesn't want to bother just because I'm afraid it'll be as disjointed and hard to follow as the first one.
So this book definitely gets an A for originality, but a C for execution.  
Rating: ★★★★★

Review: The Universe Verse by James Lu Dunbar

I received the product in this post for review via Tomoson.com.  All opinions are 100% mine.

I was very excited to get the chance to review The Universe Verse by James Lu Dunbar.  I love a book that can take Science and make it interesting for kids, and this one does just that.  It's a wonderfully illustrated little book that shares all sorts of science and interesting information related to the Universe.  I honestly can't wait to give a copy to my godkids this Summer, what a great gift idea to help them expand their knowledge and keep them entertained at the same time! 

Did I mention that the science is accurate and that the book is told in rhyme?  How much more fun can you get?  James Lu Dunbar is a very creative individual and has been able to share that creativity and his knowledge with us on these wonderfully detailed pages.  There are so many interesting facts in the book that honestly, it's not just for kids.  Any lover of science, rhyme, and art could very easily enjoy everything this quality hard-cover book has to offer-which makes it a perfect gift idea!

If you're looking for something lovely and engaging, either for yourself or your favorite science-lover.  I highly recommend you pick up your copy of The Universe Verse by James Lu Dunbar today!

Book Review: The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

The unicorn wants to find other unicorns. Mage Schmendrick, whose magic seldom works, never as he intendsed, rescues unicorn from Mommy Fortuna's Midnight Carnival. Only some mythical beasts displayed are illusions. Molly Grue believes in legends despite Robin Hood wannabe and his unmerry men. King Haggard and his Bull banish unicorns into sea.

I grew up with the movie The Last Unicorn, and it was one of my absolute favorites as a child.  To be honest, it's a cartoon that I can still watch as an adult and feel that old familiar love burning inside of me.  So I was unsure how I would feel about the book, because sometimes things you love in one form aren't the same in another, but when there was a deal on the audio book I had to snag it-and I'm glad I did.

The movie must have been made pretty close to identical of the book, as so many thing lines in the book came back to me word-for-word as I remember them from my childhood and provided the most enjoyable reminiscing that I have ever experienced while reading/listening to a book.  The tale was brilliantly portrayed and beautifully stated, and there was nothing (absolutely nothing), I disliked about this book.  I loved every minute of listening to Peter S. Beagle tell the tale (yes he did the audio book of his own book-and he sang!) and found myself listening to it every second I could as it flooded me with memories of my youth and a very vivid image of what was occurring.

This is a new favorite book of mine.

Book Review: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke

You stop fearing the devil when you’re holding his hand…

Nothing much exciting rolls through Violet White’s sleepy, seaside town… until River West comes along. River rents the guest house behind Violet’s crumbling estate, and as eerie, grim things start to happen, Violet begins to wonder about the boy living in her backyard.

Is River just a crooked-smiling liar with pretty eyes and a mysterious past? Or could he be something more?

Violet’s grandmother always warned her about the Devil, but she never said he could be a dark-haired boy who takes naps in the sun, who likes coffee, who kisses you in a cemetery... who makes you want to kiss back.

Violet’s already so knee-deep in love, she can’t see straight. And that’s just how River likes it.

Blending faded decadence and the thrilling dread of gothic horror, April Genevieve Tucholke weaves a dreamy, twisting contemporary romance, as gorgeously told as it is terrifying—a debut to watch.

This was a book I'd been wanting to read for a very long time.  I saw a review of it a while back on Beth's blog, and then came across a few other reviews, and have been wanting to read the book ever since.  So when I went on my Oregon trip it was the only physical book I packed, which was great on the plane ride back when my iPad died and I couldn't work on my current eBook.  I think I read over a third of the book on the plane, and then finished the rest of the book in the evenings over the next week or so.

I felt like this book was good, but maybe not as a good as I'd been hoping it would be.  This may be because I'd seen so many great reviews that I thought it was going to be amazing, and it got hyped up in my head before I even picked it up.  Don't let that fool you, it was still a good book-and it was a great paranormal YA read that was easy to get through while still being fully entertained.

I enjoyed the Violet, the main character, and her love for being on the outside and holing up with a good book and an espresso rather than interacting with people.  I found her brother and her "best friend" insufferable.  I mean who gets off being that big of a dick all the time?  And why on earth was this girl her friend when she was constantly bringing her down and saying mean things?  Have some self-respect and stop hanging out with the chick Vi! That all starts changing though when River shows up, and boy you can't believe a word he says.

I really enjoyed how the author spins a great tale with so many different intertwining story lines that somehow all tie back to one person who's not even alive anymore, but is very present in the book.  It's fascinating to see the past work it's way together and come alive in a new way as Violet deals with lies, inaccuracies, and family she didn't even know existed-all while missing so many family members that aren't around.

I do think that some of the explanations that she found came together a bit rushed.  It was like the start of the book moved too slowly and then the end was thrown together quicker, but it wasn't something that was so noticeable that it actually bothered me-just something I noted towards the end. Maybe this is because the author wanted to give you some good build up that leads you into the second book (which I will be reading) or maybe it wasn't planned... Who knows.

In any case, I did actually enjoy this book and would recommend you read it if you like Paranormal YA.

Rating: ★★★★★

Book Review: Left Drowning by Jessica Park

Weighted down by the loss of her parents, Blythe McGuire struggles to keep her head above water as she trudges through her last year at Matthews College. Then a chance meeting sends Blythe crashing into something she doesn’t expect—an undeniable attraction to a dark-haired senior named Chris Shepherd, whose past may be even more complicated than her own. As their relationship deepens, Chris pulls Blythe out of the stupor she’s been in since the night a fire took half her family. She begins to heal, and even, haltingly, to love this guy who helps her find new paths to pleasure and self-discovery. But as Blythe moves into calmer waters, she realizes Chris is the one still strangled by his family’s traumatic history. As dark currents threaten to pull him under, Blythe may be the only person who can keep him from drowning.

*This book is intended for mature audiences due to strong language and sexual content. Note: due to mature content recommended for Ages 17+

First of all, this book is a lot of smut-which I didn't really expect by the description.  Not that I necessarily have a problem with smut, but honestly the main driving factor of this book seemed to be the erotic descriptions both in interactions alone with herself and with the main male lead.  It didn't really seem to be that the book was one about their emotional baggage and healing with some sex thrown in, but more about all the sex and then the past wounds and interactions that seemed to be side-thoughts to the driving factor-which was sex.  So if you go in with that understanding, maybe it won't be so shocking for you.

Also, sometimes the sex scenes would be kind of enthralling and then they'd say something totally bizarre that pulled me entire out of it, so I wasn't very keen on this author's writing style as she just lost me about half way through some of them.  I listened to the audio book, but I'm thinking this one would have been better to read rather than listen to, as then I could have put it in my own voice and maybe not been so... Weirded out?  Yeah, I was weirded out a couple of times.

Also, it was pretty predictable.  I guessed every single plot twist before it happened, this is normal for me, but this time it just seemed too easy to guess where they the connections and turns would happen.  So this book gets three stars, the third one just because there were some great quotes that I related to or loved.  There was also some good to it, so it did have some redeemable qualities.

Rating: ★★★★★ 

Book Review: Wicked by Gregory McGuire

When Dorothy triumphed over the Wicked Witch of the West in L. Frank Baum's classic tale, we heard only her side of the story. But what about her arch-nemesis, the mysterious witch? Where did she come from? How did she become so wicked? And what is the true nature of evil?

Gregory Maguire creates a fantasy world so rich and vivid that we will never look at Oz the same way again. Wicked is about a land where animals talk and strive to be treated like first-class citizens, Munchkinlanders seek the comfort of middle-class stability and the Tin Man becomes a victim of domestic violence. And then there is the little green-skinned girl named Elphaba, who will grow up to be the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, a smart, prickly and misunderstood creature who challenges all our preconceived notions about the nature of good and evil.

Wicked has been on my to-read list for many years. I've never seen the musical, but I am very familiar with it's story and with the soundtrack, and I read Son of a Witch (the second book in this series) a very long time ago. I'm pretty sure I'll read it again now that I've read Wicked, and since it's been so long since I last did.

I have heard many mixed reviews about this book. It seems that people I know either love it, or they hate it, there isn't a lot of middle ground. Most love it, but there are a few here and there that it was unsettling for, and I can understand why after reading it. However, I quite enjoyed it.

Gregory McGuire spins a very in-depth tale filled with so many creative story lines and characters that you can't help but become enthralled from the beginning of the book. How can you not when he's built on a classic such as the Wizard of Oz and is giving you a great look at so many characters the beloved movie missed or just passed over? Don't you want to know why the Wicked Witch of the West is wicked? Or why Glinda is just so dang good? Or is she even? What about the Wicked Witch of the East? You hardly know anything about her in the Wizard of Oz because she dies right away, but how about learning about her and her real name and story? Don't you want to learn about Nessa Rose? Do you want to learn how the flying monkeys came to be? Or whether the witch ever knew love in her lifetime? Spoiler-you do.

There were so many different political things that he brings out in this story that mirror our own.  So many things related to race-instead of skin color it's type of being, though even there you find issues with skin color just as Glinda states she'd never be with Fiero because his skin is black.  Gregory McGuire must have pulled much of his inspiration from our own troubled past.

If any of these things make you curious, or if you just love the story and want to expand on it-read this book. However, I will warn you of a few things.

First, Elpheba isn't an all together lovable character. I mean you start out feeling pretty sorry for her and her circumstances, and you can understand why she'd become bitter with the way she was treated. Then you kind of fall in love with her crazy charisma and the good she tries to do for a while... Then, she kind of loses it. Eventually by the end of the book you don't really feel sorry for the fate she encounters at Dorothea's hands. Though, even that interaction isn't quite as you remember it from the original tale...

Second, if you are a person who needs to have things nice and wrapped up in tidy little bows-this book might drive you mad. Honestly, this is where the author loses a star on this book from me-so many things feel unfinished. There's no real sense of finality on so many characters and story lines. Sometimes, they just end abruptly and you don't really find out what happened. Most of the time you get a glimpse into it, but you don't get the whole story and you're left as maddeningly unknowing as Elphie is. But maybe that's the point?

Anyway, long story short, read it. I highly recommend it and I enjoyed almost every second of it.

Also I listened to the audio book on this one, and the narrator-John McDonough-was fantastic.

My rating: ★★★★★

Book Review: The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker

Chava is a golem, a creature made of clay, brought to life by a disgraced rabbi who dabbles in dark Kabbalistic magic. When her master, the husband who commissioned her, dies at sea on the voyage from Poland, she is unmoored and adrift as the ship arrives in New York in 1899.

Ahmad is a jinni, a being of fire, born in the ancient Syrian desert. Trapped in an old copper flask by a Bedouin wizard centuries ago, he is released accidentally by a tinsmith in a Lower Manhattan shop. Though he is no longer imprisoned, Ahmad is not entirely free – an unbreakable band of iron binds him to the physical world.

The Golem and the Jinni is their magical, unforgettable story; unlikely friends whose tenuous attachment challenges their opposing natures – until the night a terrifying incident drives them back into their separate worlds. But a powerful threat will soon bring Chava and Ahmad together again, challenging their existence and forcing them to make a fateful choice.

I really liked this book.  Not only is the story so fascinating that you really don't want the book to end, but each character is so richly created with their own fascinating back story that you never get tired of them.  This writer really does her job well and helps you get hooked, and the characters are believable for their time period, and the lore and history is deeply saturated and fascinating as it interchanges and intertwines between the different cultures and religions in the early 1900s.

I listened to the audio book, which was narrated by George Guidal who did a fabulous job with the accents and the pronunciation.  I felt like this book may have even been one that was better as an audio book due to his skill and way of making each character come even more alive.  He also did a wonderful job of letting you know simply by accent and inflection which character it was focusing on, as it changes throughout the book and you hear different points of view.

Rating: ★★★★★

Book Review: Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer

With only a yellowing photograph in hand, a young man - also named Jonathan Safran Foer - sets out to find the woman who may or may not have saved his grandfather from the Nazis. Accompanied by an old man haunted by memories of the war; an amorous dog named Sammy Davis, Junior, Junior; and the unforgettable Alex, a young Ukrainian translator who speaks in a sublimely butchered English, Jonathan is led on a quixotic journey over a devastated landscape and into an unexpected past.

This book walks a very strange line in it's storytelling. I listened to the audio book and one moment found myself weeping in the car as a character recounts how the Nazi's marched into her village and dragged all of the Jews out into the town square, and how horrifying it was to watch her whole family murdered... Then the next moment I'm yanked from my sadness by a very bizarre (and adult) tale about how the author's grandfather used his dead and limp arm with the ladies... You can go from totally sad and horrified to being totally confused and mortified in an entirely different matter-in seconds!

Still, it was a very colorful and interesting tale, and I especially enjoyed the parts (in butchered English) told by Alex, the young Ukrainian translator. He was my favorite character, and it was hilarious to hear how he explained things differently than the main character.

Rating: ★★★★★

Book Review: Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Lou Clark knows lots of things. She knows how many footsteps there are between the bus stop and home. She knows she likes working in The Buttered Bun tea shop and she knows she might not love her boyfriend Patrick.

What Lou doesn't know is she's about to lose her job or that knowing what's coming is what keeps her sane.

Will Traynor knows his motorcycle accident took away his desire to live. He knows everything feels very small and rather joyless now and he knows exactly how he's going to put a stop to that.

What Will doesn't know is that Lou is about to burst into his world in a riot of colour. And neither of them knows they're going to change the other for all time.

First thing is first, have some tissues handy.  This is a tear-jerker and not necessarily the heart-warming kind.  I wouldn't say it's specifically not heart-warming, but it's not exactly a feel good story.  It hurts-but it's worth it to feel the tragedy which is very adequately portrayed through the story.  I read this book in about three hours time, which means I sat down and did nothing else way past my bedtime and did not get distracted-it was that good.  And yes, I cried-a lot.  I think my book pages are pretty tear-stained in parts now, and that's okay.

So, five stars and a huge recommendation from me.  If you haven't yet, add it to your to-read list!  This is set to be made into a movie this year, so it's a good idea to get it read with plenty of time to see the film when it comes out.

Note: I received this book as a gift from the lovely Lisa of Books in the Burbs as part of my Books 'n' Bloggers Swap package!

Rating: ★★★★★

Book Review: Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt

Synopsis According to Goodreads:

1987. There’s only one person who has ever truly understood fourteen-year-old June Elbus, and that’s her uncle, the renowned painter Finn Weiss. Shy at school and distant from her older sister, June can only be herself in Finn’s company; he is her godfather, confidant, and best friend. So when he dies, far too young, of a mysterious illness her mother can barely speak about, June’s world is turned upside down. But Finn’s death brings a surprise acquaintance into June’s life—someone who will help her to heal, and to question what she thinks she knows about Finn, her family, and even her own heart.

At Finn’s funeral, June notices a strange man lingering just beyond the crowd. A few days later, she receives a package in the mail. Inside is a beautiful teapot she recognizes from Finn’s apartment, and a note from Toby, the stranger, asking for an opportunity to meet. As the two begin to spend time together, June realizes she’s not the only one who misses Finn, and if she can bring herself to trust this unexpected friend, he just might be the one she needs the most.

★★★★★ What I Thought/My Review: 

This is a coming of age story with an interesting twist-it's set in a time when the aids epidemic is new and scary, and it's based around a young girl who's whole world is entirely altered by it.

 Having lived in a time when this sad disease has been around for a long time, it was interesting to hear how it would have been for someone back then when it was new and had yet to have any kind of treatment for, and it was very sad to hear about how it altered her relationships and shook up her entire family. The heartbreak from the death and secrecy really makes this a not-so-typical coming of age story, however there are quite a few things thrown in that brings it back down to that category. Things such as learning to deal with their parents and being a "latchkey kid", fighting and growing distance between siblings, and learning more about boys and growing up than you expect to at fourteen.

Don't let that fool you, the main character has anything but normal relationships and feelings-some of which are a little worrisome and some of which account for those awkward teenage years.

Don't expect a very happy ending...

Still, it's a good read and I would recommend it. 

Book Review: The Beggar King by Oliver Pötzsch

Synopsis According to Goodreads:

The year is 1662. Alpine village hangman Jakob Kuisl receives a letter from his sister calling him to the imperial city of Regensburg, where a gruesome sight awaits him: her throat has been slit. Arrested and framed for the murder, Kuisl faces first-hand the torture he’s administered himself for years.

Jakob’s daughter, Magdalena, and a young medicus named Simon hasten to his aid. With the help of an underground network of beggars, a beer-brewing monk, and an Italian playboy, they discover that behind the false accusation is a plan that will endanger the entire German Empire.

Chock-full of fhistorical detail, The Beggar King brings to vibrant life another tale of an unlikely hangman and his tough-as-nails daughter, confirming Pötzsch’s mettle as a writer to watch.

★★★★★ What I Thought: 

The Beggar King was a fantastic book included into The Hangman's Daughter series.  I feel like these stories are just getting richer and more complex as they go along, all the while still sticking with the same kind of language, theme, and well-loved characters.  I enjoyed the change of location and all of the back story this one gave to the previous ones as well, and it seemed to wrap up an on-going story you were only barely aware of in the other books-and it makes you feel like you were dying to find out all along! I highly recommend it.

Also, after the epilogue, the author walks you through a tour of the locations as they stand now and compares them to the places and locations in the book.  It's a great little tour, and really makes you want to visit!

Again, the audio book on this one is amazing.  Grover Gardner has a fantastic way with his voices and I like hearing the names and places as they should be said rather than guessing.

Book Review: Paper Towns by John Green

Synopsis According to Goodreads:

Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs into his life—dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge—he follows. After their all-nighter ends, and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues—and they're for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer he gets, the less Q sees the girl he thought he knew...

★★★★★ What I Thought:

I first became aware of John Green due to The Fault in Our Stars as so many have recently, and after reading The Fault in Our Stars in less than a day I decided that I had better pick up some of his other novels. Paper Towns is the second book of his that I took the time for, and like it's predecessor, I finished the book in about a day. This time, I listened to the audio book-and was so enthralled in the story of Margot and what I thought was going to happen (I was wrong, slightly) that I continued to listen to the book for the rest of the day and found myself just sitting there listening instead of doing other things.

This story was touching, and I feel like John Green has a way of reaching deep and saying very profound things in the most simple way possible. It feels like YA writing... But then it doesn't. What a unique talent!

I'd recommend the read-it's definitely interesting to hear the different views on paper towns and paper girls, and the strings that hold us together.

Book Review: The Goddess Test Series by Aimée Carter

I don't usually review a whole series in one post, but I went through all five of these books in just about a week, so I'm going to review them all together.  I hope it's a good review for you. 

Synopses According to Goodreads:

★★★★★ The Goddess Test:

Every girl who had taken the test has died.

Now it's Kate's turn.

It's always been just Kate and her mom - and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate's going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear that her mother won't live past the fall.

Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld - and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests.

Kate is sure he's crazy - until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she'll become Henry's future bride and a goddess.

If she fails...

Book Review: The Dark Monk by Oliver Pötzsch

Synopsis According to Goodreads:

THE ANTICIPATED FOLLOWUP TO THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER, THE HANGMAN’S DAUGHTER

1660: Winter has settled thick over a sleepy village in the Bavarian Alps, ensuring every farmer and servant is indoors the night a parish priest discovers he's been poisoned. As numbness creeps up his body, he summons the last of his strength to scratch a cryptic sign in the frost.

Following a trail of riddles, hangman Jakob Kuisl; his headstrong daughter Magdalena; and the town physician’s son team up with the priest’s aristocratic sister to investigate. What they uncover will lead them back to the Crusades, unlocking a troubled history of internal church politics and sending them on a chase for a treasure of the Knights Templar.

Book Review: The Hangman's Daughter by Oliver Pötzsch

Synopsis According to Goodreads:

Germany, 1660: When a dying boy is pulled from the river with a mark crudely tattooed on his shoulder, hangman Jakob Kuisl is called upon to investigate whether witchcraft is at play. So begins The Hangman's Daughter--the chillingly detailed, fast-paced historical thriller from German television screenwriter, Oliver Pötzsch--a descendent of the Kuisls, a famous Bavarian executioner clan.

★★★★★ What I Thought:

I really enjoyed this twisted tale set in a time I'm not very familiar with. It was so interesting listening to the author write about the way people thought, and how their medicine and punishments were handled, as well as the very real threat of witchcraft accusations when something was not understood.

The author provided a very diverse set of characters and told the story from all of their different angles, and it was full of detail and background information that lead to a very intriguing tale and colorful world to both get lost in and be horrified by. I really enjoyed it, and in fact purchased a copy of the book for my father as a Christmas gift this year because I thought he'd like it.

I listened to the audio book on this one and was glad I did, the narrator has a great way of speaking and it was nice to hear how the names were supposed to be said instead of the way they read in my language. Such as the character "Simon" which sounds more like "Zeeman". I highly recommend it.  

Book & Audio Book Review: These Things Hidden by Heather Gudenkauf

Synopsis According to Goodreads

When teenager Allison Glenn is sent to prison for a heinous crime, she leaves behind her reputation as Linden Falls' golden girl forever. Her parents deny the existence of their once-perfect child. Her former friends exult her downfall. Her sister, Brynn, faces whispered rumors every day in the hallways of their small Iowa high school. It's Brynn--shy, quiet Brynn--who carries the burden of what really happened that night. All she wants is to forget Allison and the past that haunts her. But then Allison is released to a halfway house, and is more determined than ever to speak with her estranged sister. Now their legacy of secrets is focused on one little boy. And if the truth is revealed, the consequences will be unimaginable for the adoptive mother who loves him, the girl who tried to protect him and the two sisters who hold the key to all that is hidden.

Book Review: Thirty Scary Tales by Rayne Hall

Synopsis According to Goodreads:

Thirty creepy, atmospheric horror stories by Rayne Hall.

These stories are 'quiet' horror, not overly violent and gory, although there are some graphic moments.

Please note: these stories have been previously published in magazines, e-zines and anthologies as well as in the Six Scary Tales collections.

British English.

★★★★★ What I Think:

Awwww... There is nothing I love more than Halloween... Unless, maybe, it's a bunch of creeptastic stories to read in the weeks leading up to Halloween.  Yes, that might be better.  Psyching myself up, working up the creep factor in my life before it's time to actually go out and get scared.

I received Thirty Scary Tales by Rayne Hall via my Kindle App free via Tomoson, but I'm going to give you my 100% honest opinion.  I really enjoyed it.  The horror is subtle, but just enough that after each tale ends you're left with a little bit of shock and a whole lot of wondering... Wondering what happened next... Wondering where the character goes from there... But, not enough wondering that it's not an enjoyable and wonderfully creepy ending.

I especially loved this author's twist on zombies. It wasn't your same mindless brain-eating machine every other zombie seems to be, but it's a gray walker... A sort of mythical zombie who is aware of what he might do, and what he eventually ends up doing-and he's fueled by emotion and thoughts and witches magic.  It was fantastic!

I highly recommend you read these scary stories.  Currently you can get it free on Kindle or you can purchase it for only 99 cents!  It's worth it!

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Book & TV Show Review: Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

 

Synopsis According to GoodReads:

The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon--when she walks through a standing stone in one of the ancient stone circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach--an "outlander"--in a Scotland torn by war and raiding Highland clans in the year of Our Lord...1743.

Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire is catapulted into intrigues and dangers that may threaten her life...and shatter her heart. For here she meets James Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, and becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire...and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.

Book Review: Town Haunts by Cathy Spencer

Goodreads Synopsis:

Cemetery caretaker Sherman Mason is horrified to hear his dead wife calling to him from her grave. He asks newcomer Tiernay Rae, a gorgeous witch and proprietor of the Healing Hands store, to hold a séance to find out what’s troubling his wife’s ghost. Tiernay needs a coven to focus her powers, however, so her roguish brother, Greg, suggests that Anna Nolan and her two friends help ‒ “the maiden, the mother, and the crone” as he calls them. But with Halloween fast approaching and the séance unleashing a malicious evil in the small town of Crane, can Tiernay stop it before someone gets hurt, or even killed?

Town Haunts, the second novel in the Anna Nolan series, is a cozy mystery with romantic suspense.

★★★★★ What I Thought:

I wont lie... When I received this book for review I was worried about how it would be, but I was pleasantly surprised at how much fun I had reading it!  It was a nice easy read, and a fun little mystery that involved interesting characters and good character history.  This is the second novel in the Anna Nolan mysteries, and even though I had not read the first one I feel like it stands alone and can be enjoyed separately.  My only issue with this was how the "witch/Wiccan" character cast her circle... Having spent quite a bit of time with Wiccan's and watching them cast their circles it was written a little off from how that would actually be done-but it was just a small little thing that caught my attention as I read it.

I really enjoyed the setup for the novel and the eerie Halloween vibe the whole thing had about it.  This was the perfect read for the weather changing and the amp up to Halloween next month, and I'd recommend it to anyone who want's a great book to help them dive into the season of spooks and chilly weather.  You'll get wrapped up in the mystery and intrigue, and it's a great book to curl up with as the weather and leaves change outside your window.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.