Book Review: "The Quartz Night: Reign of Justice" by J. I. A. Thompson

Geoff Smith has always dreamed of becoming a knight, being the son of a blacksmith he has grown up with swords and armour but never had the chance to use them. On Princess Ramona’s seventeenth birthday Geoff entangles himself and his family in an assassination plot, in order to protect his family he must leave his home in the city and set out on a quest. Little does he realise his dreams will change the course of his life. - from Booksirens.com

This ARC was given to me by Booksirens.com and I am providing an unbiased review.

The cover art, and a short story description left me curious as I requested this book. However, I was just a bit let-down. This is definitely a young adult read, and I felt the story was just too "get lucky". It seemed every situation the main character found himself, there was always a perfect way out, that landed him into a better situation, or one that provided 'just what he needed'. I know many stories are written this way, but this one just felt it was being hammered into me instead of me finding out on my own.

Overall I found the plot line to be interesting to read, though the style left me wanting more. I would recommend for younger readers, or those that prefer more direct action of characters versus world-building and character background.

Multi-Book Review: The Andrew Rufus series by M. M. Crumley

The world isn’t what it seems...
Ripped through time and thrust into a world of supernatural myths and legends, young Andrew Rufus must do the impossible to survive.
A twisted magic has merged Andrew’s mind with the body of Pecos Bill, the most powerful man alive, leaving Pecos powerless to act as countless lives hang in the balance.
Against all hope, Andrew must find a way to harness Pecos’s unfathomable strength or watch as more innocents die in the onslaught of Septimis, the god-snake.
Fighting as one man, Andrew and Pecos will be pushed to their limits to hold back the tides of death; but even with all the strength in the world, will Andrew be strong enough to Embrace the Power and Become the Legend...

If you’re willing to follow a boy down the bloody road to manhood, fighting shoulder to shoulder with legends, then start reading today. You won’t regret it.

Start reading the complete Legend of Andrew Rufus series today!
(All seven books are available now—so you won’t have to do any of that annoying waiting we all hate...) - from Goodreads.com

This is just the plot and book picture of the first book of seven in this series, to give you an idea of what it is about. Take a modern-day young teen, and throw him back into the body of a tall tale hero around 163 years prior, and you get this book. The author, Crumley, also has out the Immortal Doc Holliday series, of which I believe I have posted reviews on a few of the books. Both I highly recommend.

This is definitely a young adult series, and is written as such. The events that happen, well, that is why it is fiction, and being how it includes a tall-tale hero, that would be about right. I enjoyed the character backgrounds and the world building, especially as the series drew closer to the end. Not trying to ruin any story, but having read this second to most of the Doc Holliday novels, I felt a little let down. I say this in the aspect that the DH novels share a history with Andrew Rufus, and after reading the series, I figured out when they take place (but can say or I ruin the end for you). Still, a good starter series for any young reader!
 

2022 Wrapped Up

 I just finished posting the last book review I have for the 2022 year. The book reviews I have posted have, unfortunately, only been ARCs provided to me, as I just don't feel I have the time to poist a review for EVERY book I have read this last year (266 of them). This next year, 2023, I will be doing my best to try to get more reviews on more of the books I have been able to get read, not just for the publishers/authors, but for anyone that stumbles across this obscure corner of the internet.

My yearly goal for books to read for 2022 was a mere 150 books. I expected to spend more time working the real-life job, but within the first few months, I raised the goal to 200. I hit that mark around the first of August, if I remember correctly. For 2023, I applied the same thought regarding time to read and employment, and again set my goal for a total of 200 books.

If you are new to my site, well, think what you want - after all, that's what you should do anyways. I have some sites tot he right side that I actively use for book requests, movie trailers, etc. Feel free to leave comments or drop me email.

Thanks for stopping by.

PeacE

Book Review: "Angel Assassin" by Paul Sating

 

I just want to die. Too bad I’m immortal.

Assassin. Demon hunter. Grim Reaper. That’s me. Revelation Carver is my name, being Heaven’s Mr. Fix-It is my game.

Overworked and underpaid, I was busy staking out a demon slated to become the next Lucifer, Ruler of Hell, when yet another job came down from on high.

My challenge to take down the next great Satan is put on hold. The new task? Eliminate a runaway demon stalking Seattle. A minimum-wage task, yet my bosses think it's one for the Grim Reaper. God knows—literally—I don’t have enough on my plate.

What should have been a simple snag-and-kill operation turns my investigation upside-down. Nephilim are involved in the theft of a Bowl of Wrath. Seven wraths to spread suffering and pain across the world. Under impenetrable protection, they should have been sealed away for all eternity.

Now, Earth’s population will pay the price while angels stink of subversion. It all comes down to me. My mystery to solve.

With the impossible now a frightening reality, I’ve got the biggest job of my long life. All I have to do? Stop Armageddon.

Heaven has yet another job for its Grim Reaper. A job I must finish for the sake of all humanity. Failure is not an option, even if it kills me. - from Booksirens.com

This book was provided at no cost from Booksirens.com and I am providing an unbiased review.

This is titled as a 'book one' so the obvious conclusion is there will be more books in this series, that makes me glad. Rev Carter is one tired angel, having spent thousands of years being a Reaper and escorting the dead, he also has become not only the most senior of Reapers, but also the 'special projects' guy, meaning, when a bad guy needs taken out, he is ordered for the job. With one of the seven bowls of the Armeggadon being stolen from the Safe in the Upperworld, Rev's biggest task is to find the Nephilim and stop them at ... at any cost, before the world is lost.

After thousands of years of doing the same type of job, one would think a person would be immune, and jaded, to be able to have any care for humanity, yet this character seems to still have it. Rev is sarcastic and witty, yet at times his anger at injustices, and yes, even at his job, comes through quite a bit. The story is fairly fast paced, and action is spaced evenly with background information - shared by explaining to his 300th (or so) assistant - of how things came to be for this story. 

Fans of the Nate Temple series will surely enjoy this read. I find I like dthe snark and sarcasm quite a bit. Story flowed well, with enough world-building I could easily picture the settings. The story itself was planned well, and progressed at a good steady pace. Defintely would recommend to a friend.

Book Review: "Springs Arcana" by Lilith Saintcrow

 

American Gods vs. Baba Yaga in this Russian-inspired contemporary fantasy Spring's Arcana, by New York Times bestseller Lilith Saintcrow.

Nat Drozdova is desperate to save a life. Doctors can do little for her cancer-ridden mother, who insists there is only one cure—and that Nat must visit a skyscraper in Manhattan to get it.

Amid a snow-locked city, inside a sleek glass-walled office, Nat makes her plea and is whisked into a terrifying new world. For the skyscraper holds a hungry winter goddess who has the power to cure her mother…if Nat finds a stolen object of great power.

Now Nat must travel with a razor-wielding assassin across an American continent brimming with terror, wonder, and hungry divinities with every reason to consume a young woman. For her ailing mother is indeed suffering no ordinary illness, and Nat Drozdova is no ordinary girl. Blood calls to blood, magic to magic, and a daughter may indeed save what she loves...

…if it doesn’t consume her first.

This is the way to the Dead God’s Heart. - from Netgalley.com

This ARC was given at no cost from Netgalley.com and I am providing an unbiased opinion.

I have read Saintcrow's work before (Dante Valentine series) and have enjoyed her writing style. I was happy to see her coming out with a new series. As it states above, this does feel like American Gods vs Baba Yaga, who is in fact a major character in the story. But it mostly centers around Nat, who appears to be the offspring of the 'Spring' persona of the Baba Yaga myth/lore. Of course, she has no ideas of what power she has, or will have, or how things go in the "magic realm" that she has never been exposed to until now. Add in the death-sick mother (whom the MC loves) that sends her on a mission to recover something stolen.... Yeah. Gets pretty interesting.

Definitely a good start for a new series, with a different accounting of the Baba Yaga legend in a modern day setting. I don't foresee any romance happening in the series, but who really knows aside from the author. I have a few ideas of what may happen in the next book, and will anxiously await the next in this series.

Book Review: "Red Cloaked Huntress" by Erika Harken

 

A wolf, a destiny, and no turning back…

A mysterious black wolf haunts the forest of Crimlas, stripping the woodland of its beauty and preventing the people of Rothum from harvesting the Mirimae flower—a rare and powerful medicinal plant they have relied on for centuries.

Despite all efforts to kill or rid of the Black Wolf, its decade-long reign persists, as those who set out to hunt it never return home…

Eighteen-year-old Loraline has lived in the devastation of the wolf’s presence since childhood, watching the sick and wounded die needlessly without the Mirimae flower. A month before her wedding, her own grandmother falls gravely ill, and Loraline knows she cannot withstand the plague of the Black Wolf any longer.

Donning her blood-red cloak, the brave young woman sets out in the heart of winter to discover the Black Wolf’s origin, as well as the weakness that will bring its destruction once and for all. - from Booksirens.com

This ARC was provided through Booksirens.com at no cost and I am providing an unbiased review.

This is a novella from this author, that caught my eye due to the cover art. Add to it the plot description and that it is a fairytale re-telling piqued my interest. It is rather shorter than I would have liked, but is well-written. Obvuiously, there is a 'red riding hood' and a big, black wolf, but from there, this re-telling just has the right kind of twists in the story that surprised me. I was a bit disappointed that there was not more "filling" of the story, but it is a novella. I would very much like to see similar retellings of other tales by this author.

Book Review: "Pearl Sky" by Elizabeth Hunter

 

It was a friendly visit until a priceless artifact was stolen. Now Ben and Tenzin are up to their necks in secrets that can kill.

It’s not just any holiday season in the immortal world. Elder Zhang’s oldest servant is reaching the century mark and Ben and Tenzin are ready to celebrate, but no sooner do they land on Penglai Island than a mystery falls in their path. A valuable seal has gone missing, and the artifact was a gift from an ancient vampire who just happens to be heading to Penglai for a long-overdue formal visit.

The Elders of Penglai may have asked Ben and Tenzin’s assistance to find the lost treasure, but that doesn’t mean that eight ancient vampires, their immortal children, and all the humans who serve them will suddenly become open books. Penglai Island is secret for a reason, and the heart of that reason may just reveal the motive behind the theft.

PEARL SKY is a brand new Elemental Legacy story by Elizabeth Hunter, ten-time USA Today bestselling author of the Elemental Mysteries, the Irin Chronicles, and other works of fiction. - from Netgalley.com 

This ARC was provided to me by Netgalley.com and I am providing an unbiased review.

This is the eighth book in the Elemental Legacy series by this author, who also has other series that are related to the same world as set in this novel. In this particular part of the series, it find Ben and Tenzin returning to their 'creator' 's island for a celebration, only to be asked to help solve the theft of a valuable (and possibly political) seal. As recoverers of lost/stolen artifacts, this is, of course, right in the skill set of these two characters.

Seeing the relationship between Ben and Tenzin grow in the stories has been satisfying. It isn't like instant and true love at first sight. With Ben being a new creature of the night, and matched to Tenzin's hundreds (thousands?) of years as one, makes this relationship very interesting. Add in the mental quirks and old habits, it helps provide a good side distraction to the actual story line - though I guess this would be part of that as well. I have enjoyed this series from book one, and have been trying to get up to date on the side stories of the other series, many of which have interesting information on the side characters of this series line.

Hunter is a wonderful writer, and the ease of reading her novels are one of the many things I enjoy. The 'sexual' sections of stories are not written in the style of a letter to a porn magazine, and I feel the story is realistic (as far as vampires anyways). I would recommend to any adult reader.