Book Review: "Ink & Sigil" by Kevin Hearne

 

Al MacBharrais is both blessed and cursed. He is blessed with an extraordinary white moustache, an appreciation for craft cocktails – and a most unique magical talent. He can cast spells with magically enchanted ink and he uses his gifts to protect our world from rogue minions of various pantheons, especially the Fae.

But he is also cursed. Anyone who hears his voice will begin to feel an inexplicable hatred for Al, so he can only communicate through the written word or speech apps. And his apprentices keep dying in peculiar freak accidents. As his personal life crumbles around him, he devotes his life to his work, all the while trying to crack the secret of his curse.

But when his latest apprentice, Gordie, turns up dead in his Glasgow flat, Al discovers evidence that Gordie was living a secret life of crime. Now Al is forced to play detective – while avoiding actual detectives who are wondering why death seems to always follow Al. Investigating his apprentice’s death will take him through Scotland’s magical underworld, and he’ll need the help of a mischievous hobgoblin if he’s to survive. - from Goodreads.com

I am at a loss as to where to start with this book, so bear with me through this....

This is a novel from the 'Iron Druid' world that author Hearne created ( and that I just LOVED). I have read that series and part of his other works, so of course grabbed this one up when it became available.

I honestly do not want to say much about this book, except that I really enjoyed visiting the Iron Druid world again, and loved the small reference to the main character of that series. Hearne use of characters from the Iron Druid world, in what ever capacity, makes this story link into those very well. Definitely would recommend to any that enjoy urban fantasy.

Book Review: "The Bar at the End of the World" by Tom Abrahams

 

A starving city. A renegade bootlegger. A battle for the future of mankind.

Zeke is a bad guy. He didn’t choose to be. It’s just who he is. It’s who has to be to survive in a post-apocalyptic world where trust is as scarce as water.

He's got nobody. No family. No friends. And a woman he left behind for her own good.

But it's time to change. After a brush with death far out in the wasteland, he decides he's done risking his life to help his greedy bosses control who gets to drink water and when.

Now, he's stranded in a bar in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by the perfect kind of ruffians who can help him go back and make things right. Armed with renewed purpose and a one-of-a-kind muscle car, Zeke hunts for redemption, seeks retribution and, maybe, just maybe, he can get his girl back while he’s at it.

Take a ride across the wasteland in Tom Abrahams' newest post-apocalyptic, dystopian series, but with a fantasy twist. It will leave you wondering just what it means to be human. 0 from Goodreads.com

I have read books by this author previously, and enjoyed them. So seeing a new series out kind of made me grab this one, though the story description was pretty "eh" in my opinion. The cover art did catch my eye though!

In a nutshell, the story isn't a bad one. Like the description, it is post-apocalyptic setting, where water is a scarcity. There are "districts", like cities, across the wastelands, and the particular setting for this story is just one of those. There are two factions fighting for control of the water, and the city. Zeke finds himself on the run, being chased across the desert. He happens across a single building in the middle of nowhere, just as his captors sort of catch up to him. He is wounded, and feels like he is dying as he falls on the doorstep of this building.

Waking up, Zeke finds himself in a bar full of odd-looking ruffians, and a barkeep that is elusive in his answers to questions. To not give out many spoilers, Zeke heads back to the city, with a handful of said ruffians, to save the girl he has fallen in love with from the clutches of either bad party of people. Along the way, he discovers more about those that are with him, and about himself.

Overall the action rode well, like most of Abrahams' books, and the character building was fine. The slight twist in the story I had guessed at pretty early on (won't say how) and kind of ruined the part were the character(s) discovered this fact. I did love the idea of the bar in the middle of nowhere, though some of the "magical" properties of things didn't quite match the background of the story (worldbuilding history) in my opinion. 

Overall the book was written well, and as expected from this author. I would recommend for any fantasy reader if they like post-apocalyptic stories. There are two more books in this series, but I'm not real big on the type of characters, and some of the other attributes of the world, so will not be reading them.

Book Review: "Gunmetal Gods" by Zamil Akhtar

 

They took his daughter, so Micah comes to take their kingdom. Fifty thousand gun-toting paladins march behind him, all baptized in angel blood, thirsty to burn unbelievers.

Only the janissaries can stand against them. Their living legend, Kevah, once beheaded a magus amid a hail of ice daggers. But ever since his wife disappeared, he spends his days in a haze of hashish and poetry. 

To save the kingdom, Kevah must conquer his grief and become the legend he once was. But Micah writes his own legend in blood, and his righteous conquest will stop at nothing. 

When the gods choose sides, a legend will be etched upon the stars. - from Netgalley.com

I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review through Netgalley.com.

The story description drew me in for this one, even though I had mixed feelings about the length of the book. The story started off being told from the POV of two characters, and slowly their backgrounds and the worldbuilding picked up. About a third of the way through the story, I started to lose some interest. I stumbled through a section that seemed very slow, and I didn't see much in the way of why it was needed. At this point I admit I started skimming more that reading. Then I started skipping whole pages. Finally I did read the last 20 pages or so, and of course, by that time I had lost much of the details of who was where, and what was going on. I tried to go back a bit to recapture some of it, but I just couldn't.

I did enjoy the early part of the story, the character and world building. Definitely was the stereo-typical characters, each with their flaws and strengths. I would recommended this to anyone that does enjoy a longer, slow to build story line.

Book Review: "A Gilded Cage" by Auburn Tempest and Michael Anderle

 

This is the first book in 'An Urban Druid' story series.

I wasn't able to find a book description for this one... so will try to summarize. Fionna is girl around 18-25 that lives in Toronto, Canada with her father and several siblings, whom all of are officers. One night she is in an altercation and a tattoo starts appearing on her back. Wanting to know more about it, she ends up running to Ireland (their home country) to seek family to help explain what is going on. While there she learns she is a druid, and of an important line. She does some training, then runs home to Canada, to try to prove she can be an urban druid.

That pretty much sums it up. The book reads about that fast as well. Like many other books I have read from Anderle, there is no thick and heavy plot to tediously read through and decipher to figure out what is happening, or going to happen. There is not much of anything "deep" at all. Characters have very little of background, except when something has to be explained that was 'thought', or 'acted on' by a character. No descriptions really of characters or the world around them, unless it is a pertinent detail tot he story.

I picked this one up as I do like druid stories, urban or otherwise, and thought maybe it would have a little twist in the story. As stated before, I wasn't expecting a heavy story, and it does read nice and fast. I did like the basic storyline, of how she finds out about being a druid, and some of the other stuff. But at other times, I felt the story was being rushed, and they were trying to cram too many events into one book. I don't know if it was for word count purposes, or actual detail that is going to be important later. Some of the events were just..."What? Why'd that happen? Oh, for that...". Like many of Anderle's books, everything happens to the main character...good or bad... and they always win their way through it with minimal injury, or it miraculously (or magically) is healed.

I will admit that regardless how I feel about the writing technique, I did enjoy the story and will be watching for the next book in the series.

Book Review: "Nightshifted" by Cassie Alexander

 

Nursing school prepared Edie Spence for a lot of things. Burn victims? No problem. Severed limbs? Piece of cake. Vampires? No way in hell. But as the newest nurse on Y4, the secret ward hidden in the bowels of County Hospital, Edie has her hands full with every paranormal patient you can imagine—from vamps and were-things to zombies and beyond...

Edie’s just trying to learn the ropes so she can get through her latest shift unscathed.  But when a vampire servant turns to dust under her watch, all hell breaks loose. Now she’s haunted by the man’s dying words—Save Anna—and before she knows it, she’s on a mission to rescue some poor girl from the undead. Which involves crashing a vampire den, falling for a zombie, and fighting for her soul. Grey’s Anatomy was never like this ... - from Goodreads.com

This is the first book in the Edie Spence series.

This looks to be a decent series that I could get into reading. The MC is just been introduced to the "other" world out there, working the night shift at the county hospital. She hasn't been there long when a patient dies under her watch, and leads here to "Save Anna" but she has to figure out who that is and where she is. Once she does, there is a short fight where she kills a vampire. Now the 'council' is taking her to trial for that death, which will mean her death unless she can find Anna and save them both. Add in the beings called the Shadows that govern the hospital and other things that go wrong, and a mission they force on the MC as well.

Definitely had some nice twist and turns I wasn't expecting. World build was nice, and the introduction of those that we don't want to know about, and those that we just don't want to meet. Throw in some romance scenes - because we all need that - though not long and steamy, somewhat straight to the descriptive sex (in my opinion). The book could be read as a stand-alone, and I feel like each book in this series may be the same. Definitely will be reading the next one.

Book Review: "Next to Last Stand" by Craig Johnson

 

The new novel in the beloved New York Times bestselling Longmire series.

One of the most viewed paintings in American history, Custer's Last Fight, copied and distributed by Anheuser-Busch at a rate of over two million copies a year, was destroyed in a fire at the 7th Cavalry Headquarters in Fort Bliss, Texas, in 1946. Or was it? When Charley Lee Stillwater dies of an apparent heart attack at the Wyoming Home for Soldiers & Sailors, Walt Longmire is called in to try and make sense of a piece of a painting and a Florsheim shoebox containing a million dollars, sending the good sheriff on the trail of a dangerous art heist.  - from Goodreads.com

This is book #16 in the Walt Longmire series.

A famous painting was destroyed and now resurfaces in a very unlikely place. Walt doing the due diligence he feels the office of Sheriff is required, as well as his sense of moral obligation, goes in search of answers - is it truly the real deal? As answers are found out, he goes against not only some seedy characters, but even the Russians.

I started this series many moons ago, prior to the television show being released, and have truly enjoyed it. Though being set in a fictional place, Johnson brings out a very realistic feel about the beauty of Wyoming, and the 'cowboy-type' attitude of the main character. When I read of this story being released, I was a bit hesitant. Due to the ongoing story line, each of the last books have made me wonder how much further will this series continue, at least with the main character. His age, and thoughts of retirement, bring these to mind, as well.