Monday, September 26

B's Monday Review: Sherlock Holmes - Murder at Sorrow's Crown

It is July 1881, and a frantic mother comes to 221B Baker Street, begging Sherlock Holmes to find her son. A naval officer posted to HMS Dido, he was part of the Naval Brigade that joined the Natal Field Force to fight the Boers. But he did not return with his men, and is being denounced as a deserter.

So begins a twisting tale of assassination, diamond mines and military cover-ups. Can Holmes and Watson uncover the truth, a truth that threatens the very fabric of the British Empire? 



My thoughts:
You know what, I have actually never read a book about Sherlock Holmes. Ok one, but let us not count the monster one. There might have been another mashup too.

I imagine you know about Sherlock Holmes, if not, then you are kind of living under a rock. I am not gonna explain him. He is eccentric, to say the least.

And then there is Watson, and they do compliment each other so well.

This mystery is about a mother wanting answers. And they dig deep and it gets complicated. There is the Boer war, political intrigues and conspiracies. All while trying to find out what happened to a soldier...

I enjoyed the book. It was light, there were a good mystery and Holmes and Watson is quite the pair.
  • Paperback, 320 pages
  • Published September 13th 2016 by Titan Books
  • Historical mystery
  • For review

Saturday, September 24

Book Review: The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory

Author: Philippa Gregory
Title: The Lady of the Rivers (The Plantagenet and Tudor Novels #1)
Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance, and Fantasy
Pages: 502
First Published: September 2011
Where I Got It: Borrow from library

Jacquetta, daughter of the Count of Luxembourg and kinswoman to half the royalty of Europe, was married to the great Englishman John, Duke of Bedford, uncle to Henry VI. Widowed at the age of 19, she took the extraordinary risk of marrying a gentleman of her household for love, and then carved out a new life for herself. 


I truly have a love-hate relationship with this author. I either like her books or I hate them. There are a couple that fall in between. Sometimes the authors bends the historical facts too much and sometimes she does a good job. I think she does have a bias against some characters and she bends them too much for my liking. 

Now, this story follows Jacquetta who is very underrated as a historical figure. She really intrigues me whenever she pops up. I find her story interesting. She is forced to marry an older man who dies. She gets his title and all that. Instead of marrying within in station, she marries a man who use to work for her late hubbie. Which this man is WAYYYYYYYYYYYY below her station. Very interesting for the times. What is even more interesting is that the king at the time quickly forgives her and her husband. Too quickly, but the king was a a decent man in some aspects.

In this version of the story, the author plays on the fact that Jacquetta was accused of being a witch and does make her have some supernatural powers like telling the future. Very interesting take to actually have her have visions and whatnot. I liked it, but I didn't really care for her first hubbie approving of these powers and trying to use them for his gain. At the time, I don't think he would have approved of her powers and would have screamed witch. 

This was a fun book to read, because I liked the characters. However, there were SO MANY LULLS and nothing happening that I legit fell asleep a couple of times. I feel that there should have been some POV changes when Jacquetta was at home giving birth to her millionth child. Yes, the woman was a freakin' rabbit! xI But yes, sooooo many lulls that I did a lot of skimming.  

The ending dragged on and on and on. The ending was cliff-hangerish if you do not know your history. And I get why she did that, because the story is not over yet. 

In the end, I liked this. However, it was slow moving and the ending never ended. I am curious in reading the next book. This wasn't great, but it was okay. Out of five stars, I shall stamp this with 3. 
















Wednesday, September 21

Book/Play Review: Antigone by Sophocles


Author: Sophocles
Title: Antigone (The Theban Plays #3)
Genre: Fantasy, Classic, Drama, & Play
Pages: ebook
First Published: 441 BC
Where I Got It: My Shelf (Bought a copy at B&N)

The daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta, Antigone is an unconventional heroine who pits her beliefs against the King of Thebes in a bloody test of wills that leaves few unharmed. Emotions fly as she challenges the king for the right to bury her own brother. Determined but doomed, Antigone shows her inner strength throughout the play.

Antigone raises issues of law and morality that are just as relevant today as they were more than two thousand years ago. 

This is the third part of the Oedipus trilogy. However, Oedipus is dead and now leaves his curse upon all his children. His sons' are fighting each other over the throne which causes both of them to die. Antigone and her sister are left to carry the curse now and deal with. The new King refuses to let them bury the dead. So in perfect tragedy fashion, Antigone says FU and does it anyways, which signs her own death warrant. 

This, honestly, was the best of the three plays. I liked Antigone and her loyalty to her cursed family is beautiful. She loves her dad and mom even though they cursed them. 

I felt bad for Antigone's fiance, because he is in a difficult position. He loves his father (which is the new King) and Antigone defied his father. Poor guy. 

The new King is an idiot. SMH! FOOL! He deserves the curse that was given to him in the end. 

I feel this story was a huge influence over Shakespeare and his works. This felt very Shakespearean even though it come out centuries before Shakespeare was even alive. I'm not sure if good ol' Billy was influence by Sophocles works, but after reading this, I felt like maybe he was. 

This play brings up lots of moral and ethical questions. Which I love when stories make me think!

My only complaint is the chorus parts. Like...I still don't understand who/what they are suppose to represent? Are they ghosts? Or just spectators who happen to be in the room? They don't really do anything to help move the story along in my opinion. 

In the end, this was the best of the three plays, in my opinion. It had a lot going on, but it was done in a way where its easy to know who's who and whats going on. I loved the brief romance and I loved the aspect that this really makes you think. In the end, I will stamp it with 4 stars. 











Monday, September 19

Blodeuedd's Monday Review: Merry Cowboy Christmas by Carolyn Brown

'Tis the night before Christmas and all through the house is the presence of one wickedly hot cowboy who's come to stay for the holiday. Fiona Logan is downright shocked to return to her childhood home and find that the tall blond stranger who came to her rescue on an icy road will be sleeping just across the hall from her bedroom. Talk about temptation . . .

Jud Dawson never believed the Lucky Penny Ranch would live up to its name until now. Fiona is gorgeous, smart, funny, and everything he thought he'd never find. Now all he has to do is convince her to stick around town instead of hightailing it back to Houston. But with wild weather, nosy neighbors, and a new baby in the family, getting her to admit that she's falling in love might just take a Christmas miracle. 

My thoughts:
You can not go wrong with Carolyn Brown's cowboy books. Sassy heroines, good food, great small town, and cowboys looking for love. All wrapped up in a sweet package.

It works perfectly as a stand alone, even if it is book 3, and yes the couples from before are in it, and friends and family. But this is Judd and Fiona's romance after all.

Fiona is the last Logan sister and she comes home after her failed marriage. She is the one who does not want to stay in this small town.

Jud is the last Lucky Penny owner to arrive, the lucky one. But oh oh, they must share the house together!

Aww sweet romance. They do like each other from the start, as friends that is. And it grows into more. The real question is can he make her stay?

And during the sweetness of it all, we have some passion too, friends and family coming by, and a certain couple from the last book that made me soo mad! But it is time for redemption. Everyone can change, and it felt believable.

Conclusion:
Sweet and now I want it to be Christmas and I would love to spend it with these folks.

Cover
nice

Paperback, 336 pages
Expected publication: September 27th 2016 by Forever
Lucky Penny Ranch #3
Contemporary romance
NG

Sunday, September 18

Joint Review: The Spellman Files by Lisa Lutz






Happy September everyone! This week Blodeuedd and I are discussing, "The Spellman Files" by Lisa Lutz.

Author: Lisa Lutz
Title: The Spellman Files (The Spellmans #1)
Genre: Mystery and Comedy
Pages: 370 pages
First Published: January 1st 2007
Where I Got It: Borrowed from library

Isabel Spellman, the uncompromising—okay, obstinate—twenty-eight year-old San Francisco private eye in Lisa Lutz's riotous debut novel, THE SPELLMAN FILES has her share of problems. And those problems all happen to be named Spellman. Her parents, Albert and Olivia, co-owners of Spellman Investigations, think nothing of placing their daughter under 24-hour surveillance simply to find out if she has a new boyfriend. David, her perfect older brother, who escaped the family business by becoming a lawyer, is hypercritical of just about everything Isabel says, wears, or does. Fourteen-year-old sister Rae lives on sugared snacks, considers recreation surveillance her favorite hobby, and believes that life is one endless opportunity for intra-familial blackmail. And good-natured Uncle Ray, a former cop and health food nut, now embraces gambling and drinking; and when he's not in battle with his niece Rae over the whereabouts of his favorite shirt, must be rescued from "lost weekends."


Welcome to Izzy Spellman's off-kilter world. Equal parts Sam Spade and Bridget Jones, she's a damn good investigator—if only her dysfunctional family would back off and let her do her thing. Izzy's cynical—okay, wise—enough to realize that a primrose-covered cottage with a white picket fence is not in her future. That's okay with her. Ever the jaded P.I., she catalogs her ex-boyfriends with calculated brevity, reducing her romantic misjudgments to curt summaries of name, age, occupation, hobbies, duration, and last words. No sooner has she met a new man that she begins composing his exit profile.


Hired to trail a husband whose wife suspects he's gay, Isabel easily determines that nothing could be further from the truth. 



B: Truth be told we were supposed to read something else and went for this one instead, i n my opinion that never works out. Or what do you think?
C: Nope - I don’t think it ever has so far. Le sigh. B: Lesson learned then, never ever change book. C: We are truly in the minority with this one. I was going through Goodreads and EVERYONE gave this a 3+ only 2% of the reviews had 1 star. But I tried...I tried REALLY hard to like this. Normally books like these are fun, but it was a failure in my eyes. How about you?? B: I saw that, everyone was all, it’s funny, cute whatever. While I was all, what is this weird crap? It felt like it jumped from one thing to another, flashbacks here and there, which timeline are we on? Messy. And well, so not funny. Everyone were also idiots and I did not like anyone. C: I felt the same. The beginning….OH MY GOODNESS. I had such a hard time getting through it. Yes, I love backstories as much as the next person. However, we went through her entire childhood. It took over 100 pages to get through to get to the actual story. By then I was not caring at all. The only character that was bearable was her brother, but he was the perfect character and I can’t handle perfect characters. Bllleeeehhhh B: I was all, why is she talking to that person….why is these whatever things still here...omg still on this. And when we finally learned what was going on I had stopped caring. It took WAY too long to get there. I was done with these people. They are creepy stalkers all of them. C: It was especially creepy how they made their kids work for them! They had them track, stalk, and monitor people. Like...is that safe???????? What type of parents do that? B: How are these kids alive? Bad parenting all around. The dad had the cops in his pocket. C: Yes he did. Just strange….IDK why you want to have your PI office where your kids are. Do they not realize that if baddies find out where you live you are putting your lives and your kids’ lives on the line! Just...I couldn’t care about the family because they are messed up. Sure some parts were funny like the dad and mom interrogating her when she was a child. She was witty and I found that funny. But the rest? No. B: I could not even find her witty. The book was just sad and skimworthy, nothing else. A huge huge disappointment. I promised you a fun ride with this book and it failed. Noooooooooo! I am the worst picker of books. C: Oh hush. You are not ;) You picked a few good ones! Getting bad ones makes us extra love the good ones we find! Trust me. ;) Like I have been itching to re-read “The Snow Child” and “Me Before You”. Two awesome picks that I just randomly remembered. Hehehe

B: But yes - this was a super bummer. It truly had SUCH promise.That reminds we, we were supposed to read book 2 one day, me after you or whatever. But yes I do not really have much to say about this book. Just do not bother reading it. I skimmed a lot. It was not funny, people were idiots and I was disappointed. It did hold promise as you say, but for me it totally failed to deliver on that promise.

C: Yes, not funny, characters were annoyingly idiotic, and the beginning was the most long-drawn out thing EVER. It made Nathanial Hawthorne look speedy. Simply a bummer. B: Lol, I think this is one of our shortest discussions ever. It was just so bad that we can't even rant. C: There is not much to say. I couldn’t even enjoy the main part of the story, because I was so done after 100+ of backstory on this crappy family. LOL! B: Ha. yes for me it would have been a dnf but I wanted to read so we could talk about it...well skim ahead ;) C: Skim away m’am!!!!! My turn to pick the next book I suppose ;) B: By all that is holy, make a better pick than I did. C: *kneels* I shall try milady! Hehe B: The end? C: Then end of a bad tale.


**CAROLE'S CONCLUSION**
I wanted to like this...I really did. However, the beginning was a total drag. Sure there were a couple of funny moments, but the backstory of her and her wholllleeeee family was a bit too much for my liking. I lost interest after all of it. I skimmed the rest of the book. Super bummer. I shall stamp this with 1 star. 







Monday, September 12

B's Monday Review: The Prince and I by Karen Hawkins

Gregori Romanovin, Oxenburg's warrior prince, is escorting his grandmother to a ball deep in the Scottish Highlands when he and his entourage are robbed at sword point by a group of ruffians. Led by a man dubbed the Scottish Robin Hood, battle-savvy Gregori senses that something's amiss - that 'he' is really a 'she'.

Lady Murian is a young, beautiful widow seeking revenge against the powerful earl who murdered her husband and stole his birthright. Living in the woods, she and her banished band of men rob wealthy nobles visiting the evil earl.

But when Murian ambushes the Prince's golden coach, she gets far more than she bargained for. And she's left fearing that he is the real thief...of her heart. 

My thoughts:
I have never read one of XoXos free reads, and now I did, and was all omg why did I not do this before! Arghhh, the books I have missed that have been free!

I have read, like 2 novellas in this series, but I do think this is the first full-length book. And yes it's part of a series, and no I did not read in order. But this is historical romance, a man meets a woman, they fall in love, in lust and live happily ever after. I do not need to see his brother fall in love to follow along with that. Which means, yes it works as a stand-alone, never read a HR that did not.

Murian is a widow after an ass of a Lord killed her husband and stole her castle. Now she robs people.

Max is a general and prince of his country, and he is bringing his grandma to the ass of a lord for some reason he does not understand.

They fall in love, they do it, there is drama with the ass of a lord, and they live happily ever after.

Conclusion:
The next book sounds fun too.

Cover
Good.

Mass Market Paperback, 400 pages
Published August 25th 2015 by Pocket Books
The Oxenburg Princes #2
Historical romance
XOXO free read

Sunday, September 11

Book Review: Radiance by Grace Draven


Author: Grace Draven
Title: Radiance (Wraith Kings #1)
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Pages: ebook
First Published: February 2014
Where I Got It: My Shelf (Amazon)

THE PRINCE OF NO VALUE

Brishen Khaskem, prince of the Kai, has lived content as the nonessential spare heir to a throne secured many times over. A trade and political alliance between the human kingdom of Gaur and the Kai kingdom of Bast-Haradis requires that he marry a Gauri woman to seal the treaty. Always a dutiful son, Brishen agrees to the marriage and discovers his bride is as ugly as he expected and more beautiful than he could have imagined. 

THE NOBLEWOMAN OF NO IMPORTANCE 

Ildiko, niece of the Gauri king, has always known her only worth to the royal family lay in a strategic marriage. Resigned to her fate, she is horrified to learn that her intended groom isn’t just a foreign aristocrat but the younger prince of a people neither familiar nor human. Bound to her new husband, Ildiko will leave behind all she’s known to embrace a man shrouded in darkness but with a soul forged by light. 

Two people brought together by the trappings of duty and politics will discover they are destined for each other, even as the powers of a hostile kingdom scheme to tear them apart.

A couple of people I know have read this and highly recommended this book and the series. I was a little reluctant at first, but then  I found it on Amazon and decided to give a go.

What type of fool am I to deny this book for so long?

Comedy, romance, fantasy, drama, action, and so much more.

I laughed, I cried. I was addicted from page one. The story of Ildiko and Brishen was certainly unique. One is human and one is a Kai (I'm not sure how or what they really are - they are an older race who are considered "beastly" to the humans) and they are forced to marry to keep the two kingdoms at peace and united. They become friends through honesty and jokes. What else can you do when you are revolting to each other and have to spend the rest of your lives together?

Friendship slowly turns to love, but it takes a while and I'm glad it did. Seeing each other's souls is the only way to look past the ugliness and the cultural differences. I do feel worse for IIdiko since she had to move to his kingdom and change her diet and sleep schedule since the Kai hate the sunlight. She also has to deal with the malicious and deadly Queen who is Brishen's madre. Talk about the worse mother-in-law EVER! The bitch tried killing her after a few days there. SMH. 

All the characters were intriguing and I am looking forward to learning about them. I believe the third book in the series is about someone else. 

I think my only complaint was how evil the Queen is. I get it....but why? What is her motivation? Maybe it will be explained in the next book, but it seemed SO over-the-top on how evil she was. I didn't get anything about her. Like why make the alliance with the Gauri (humans) and her kingdom and then decide, "Eh - fuck it...let's kill my son and his bride and potentially spark a war that we agreed to avoid by this marriage. Yesssss!" Like what? This seems like too much work. I kinda get why the neighboring countries don't approve of the marriage, but why piss off two nations? Maybe I don't understand the politics of this world yet. It sure is a different world and maybe the next book will assist in my knowledge of the world and its politics. 

Besides my not understanding the whys and motivations, this was an excellent read. I do highly encourage lovers of fantasy to give this a chance. Yes, there is romance, but there is so much more going on. I shall stamp this with 4 stars. Nearly a five. ;)









Saturday, September 10

Saturday Movie Night: Hardcore Henry (2015)






Come one, come all to the first Saturday Movie Night! Blodeuedd and Carole will be leading the charge! Today's movie is "Hardcore Henry" which was a Carole's choice. Sit down, eat some popcorn, and enjoy the discussion. 



Title: Hardcore Henry
Genre: SCI-FI, Action and Adventure
Running Time: 1 hour and 36 minutes
Rating: R
Released: April 2015

Henry is resurrected from death with no memory, and he must save his wife from a telekinetic warlord with a plan to bio-engineer soldiers.














TRAILER: 


DISCUSSION:

C: Welcome to the danger zone! AKA Our first discussion on a movie!! HUZZAH!

B: Yay. Let us begin, and it was Carole that chose the first movie...just sayin’ ;)

C: And you agreed willing. Hehehehe. SO! This was originally a BF movie that he was DYING to see and I agreed to watch it with him. Since then he has watched it TWO more times. Weirdo! LOL But I liked it. Not loved it. I liked it though. You?

B: I thought it was dreadful, and BF thought it was so boring. Not a good start for me.

C: WHAT!? LOL Boring? These words confuse me m’am! xD

B: Lots of people running around, blah blah, some killings, blah blah. A budget of 10 dollars. A really bad movie ;)

C: Yes, lots of running and lots of killing. But the subtle plot is what intrigued me. It didn’t come together until near the end, for me at least. Plus I do adore mindless action films. Haha ;)

B: I love mindless action movies, but here, no, just no. It was too dull, too little, and in the end I was all what? What the f did I just watch? Not the movie for me I  guess. I did not have a problem with the fact that we never saw the main character cos it was through his eyes, but….it could have been better made. Better actors, better everything, maybe then it would have been better? Oh how terrible I am, even low budget movies can be good.

C: Honestly, the whole first person view was my favorite part of the movie. I thought it was clever. There was a point near the end when you got to see the main characters face. Fun fact, the “actor” who played the main character was just a stunt man (thus why they probably never let him talk lmao) and all those stunts he did. I thought Henry was a total Badass! Loved it. True and I agree many of the cast of MEH. But I did like Henry and the one guy and his clones. He was good and funny.

B: I also had issues with it being the future? I mean they had clones and shot floating in the sky, BUT everything else sucked. Freaking lada cars, and oh yes so Russia. It was like oh we are in the future, but everything stayed the same. Srsly was it the future?

C: Mmmmmm I don’t think horribly in the future. I think maybe like 10 years in the future or something. I think it was a play on all the robotic arms and stuff we are giving people now. And in 10 years they think you can do what they did to Henry...like make him 90% robotic after a horrible accident.

B: So let’s say that the rich got rich and have tech, but the poor people of Russia was still stuck in the 90s ;)

C: Pretty much! XD Which seem accurate to me. ;D

B: Maybe it was too Russian for me...like I did not understand it or something. Who knows. Maybe I am too old ;)

C: Psha. You are not too old. LOL! I didn’t understand anything until BF explained it  to me. Which is my big issue...not a lot of explaining of the world and what the hell is going on. I think it would have made it WAY better honestly.

B: It did have lots of promise, and yes it could have been done So much better. I think it’s one of those movies you love or hate…

C: I think so too. From other reviews people either LOVE IT or HATE IT. I personally liked it a lot. I wouldn’t say “love”, but almost love. Haha. BUT I do want to talk about that ending. CLASSIC! LOVED IT! That baddie had it coming. Good for you Henry.


B: And I….ok I did not hate it. But it was boring. Yup. And BF agrees ha.

C: WHA? The last fight!? It was awesome. The baddie and his...associate(?)....got what they had coming and it was great. I laughed out loud with the last scene on the helicopter with the associate. BRUTAL!

B: I mostly meant the whole movie. The end was somewhat amusing, eh.

C: I see I see. I’m just brutal I guess ;) I wish that they had had a bigger budget and explained to world more. So. Anything else to add?

B: Hmmm, a boring movie. You might like it, you might not.

C: I thought it was fun and interesting. But like you said, you might like it or you might not. :D So! My dear, tis your turn to pick the next film. MWUAHAHAHA

B: I wonder what I should pick, something new? Or something I loved before?

C: *waggles brows* All you girl! LOL The end?

B: The end


Friday, September 9

Book Review: Escape to Redemption by Peter M Parr


Author: Peter M Parr
Title: Escape to Redemption
Genre: Fiction
Pages: ebook
First Published: June 24th 2016
Where I Got It: My Shelf (Given to me by the author/publisher for my honest and unbiased opinion)

Josie only had the gun to frighten Curtis Rook, but his son disturbed her. One startled reflex and now he's dead. Josie flees to Poland leaving her boyfriend Snaz to take the rap. A reformed criminal offers her refuge from the police and the chance to begin a new life, but she cannot hide from her guilt. As the stakes rise, Josie begins to realise that only her own forgiveness can set her free.




Can't help but love people stories especially when it comes to finding oneself after horrible events. This story not only follows Josie, but Snaz her "boyfriend". I put that in quotations, because he calls himself her boyfriend, she called him her friend and used him. Not really a shining relationship here. Josie finds out a haunting secret about Rook and his connection to her mom's death, so she decides to force Snaz to help her scare Rook. Sadly, it ends in blood and running from the law. 

Now...Josie...GAH I hated her face. She was such a horrible person especially before that night. She used boys to her advantage, she was nasty to her family, and she was selfish. Yes, I understand that she blames her dad for her mom's death, her stepmother was never really nice to her, and her brother turned on her. I get it, but she certainly didn't help. At the end she really did turn around and I respect her, but the beginning and middle I wanted to kick her.  

Poor Snaz and poor Pete....they were so used by Josie for her own selfish needs and desires. Especially Snaz. She used his feelings for her to force him into going with her and getting a gun. Yes, he should have been the bigger person and not let love/lust cloud his moral judgement, but you can't help who you love. 

I really liked this story. It felt like a soap opera at parts, but it felt SO realistic in others. I can't help wondering what I would do in certain situations. If I accidentally killed someone what would I think and feel? It's easy to reprimand Josie for running from the law, but we haven't been in that situation. Panic sets in and you bolt. It falls into the fight vs flight mentality. I'm sure I might run. IDK I would like to say I would own up to my crimes and take the punishments, but I really don't know. I think that is what I really liked about this book...it truly makes you think and connect with the characters even the nasty, selfish ones like Josie. 

Yes, I hated her. She made up for it, but still. 

This was a good book and I highly recommend it if you do like stories about people, forgiveness, growth, guilt, and redemption. The story had moments of soap operaness, but the rest was super realistic. It made me feel feelings and it made me think. I call that a win. ;D I shall stamp this with 5 stars. 







Tuesday, September 6

Book Review: The Bottle Imp by Robert Louis Stevenson


Author: Robert Louis Stevenson
Title: The Bottle Imp
Genre: Classics, Short Story, Fiction and Horror
Pages: 56
First Published: 1891
Where I Got It: My Shelf (Been on my shelf so long - its collected dust...I can't remember)

Offering an engrossing spin on a time-honored theme--the risky business of making a pact with the devil--this short story is a radiant jewel. It recounts the mercurial lot of Keawe, a Hawaiian who purchases a bottle inhabited by an imp capable of granting any wish. Yet this enticing object holds a dark curse: anyone who dies with it in his possession will burn forever in hell. And here's the rub: one can sell the bottle only for less than its purchase price. Keawe rids himself of the bottle after acquiring a palatial home. But when he needs it again to ensure his happiness with a newfound love, its cost is, chillingly, one cent, and the responsibility of ownership becomes a good deal more complex.




Is it too early to start reading horror-type books? I mean...it is technically September now, so we should be good right? Haha. 

Anyways, I have a few stories from this author that I have been meaning to read for eons. I have a collection of a few of his short stories and a novel. All my life I heard he was good, so I was meaning to start reading his stuff. 

Okay. This wasn't too scary as we know it today. No blood, no guts, or anything like that. This was more of a psychological horror, because we all know we would justify purchasing that damn bottle. This bottle can grant wishes, but at a deadly cost. If you do not sell the bottle for cheaper than what you paid for before you die, your soul goes STRAIGHT to Hell for all eternity. So buying this bottle is pretty much a gamble with the devil. Which is an amazing concept of the age-old "selling your soul to the devil" theme.

I would like to sit on a high horse and say I wouldn't....but I have never faced the situation, so I honestly don't know. Humans are weak and we are greedy, greedy little brats. We have a tendency to not care of others...only our own selfish needs. 

Now, Keawe embodies this. He had needs and wants and when presented with this powerful bottle, he took it TWICE. Yes! The fool couldn't help himself TWICE! >_> Idiot. But greed is a powerful thing. 

The story and journey was entertaining for sure! I was creeped out and the thing inside the bottle horrified me a touch. 

This was almost, ALMOST a five star story, but the ending was a TOTAL FAILURE! So freakin' lame. The author totally blew it and took the cheaters way out. I totally called it, but I was hoping it wouldn't happen. Honestly? It ruined the whole short story. It took away all the horror aspect of it. Sure, the bottle lives on and whatnot, but still.....lame. 

90% of it was awesome, but the last bit was totally a failure. I'm rather upset with the author on this. SO LAME! However, I do find myself interested to read the others. Hopefully, they are better. Out of five stars, I stamp this with...mmmmmm....3 stars. 

Monday, September 5

Blodeuedd's Monday Review: The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

Nemesis (n.) 1) An opponent or rival whom a person cannot best or overcome.
2) A person’s undoing
3) Joshua Templeman

Lucy Hutton has always been certain that the nice girl can get the corner office. She’s charming and accommodating and prides herself on being loved by everyone at Bexley & Gamin. Everyone except for coldly efficient, impeccably attired, physically intimidating Joshua Templeman. And the feeling is mutual.

Trapped in a shared office together 40 (OK, 50 or 60) hours a week, they’ve become entrenched in an addictive, ridiculous never-ending game of one-upmanship. There’s the Staring Game. The Mirror Game. The HR Game. Lucy can’t let Joshua beat her at anything—especially when a huge new promotion goes up for the taking.

If Lucy wins this game, she’ll be Joshua’s boss. If she loses, she’ll resign. So why is she suddenly having steamy dreams about Joshua, and dressing for work like she’s got a hot date? After a perfectly innocent elevator ride ends with an earth shattering kiss, Lucy starts to wonder whether she’s got Joshua Templeman all wrong.

Maybe Lucy Hutton doesn’t hate Joshua Templeman. And maybe, he doesn’t hate her either. Or maybe this is just another game. 

My thoughts:
Yes it was a good contemporary romance, just like any good contemporary romance. And no I did not feel it was as amazing. I guess I am in the minority there. But good is still good, and I really enjoyed it.

Lucy and Joshua work at a publishing house, they sit at opposite sides of a room, they stare at each other all day long and play the hating game. Awww the good old enemies to lovers premise.

Lucy is short, hates Joshua, and wants more than being just a PA.
Joshua has family issues, quit school and yes what does he want?

I did feel like Lucy hated him more, because Joshua was in it for the fun of it. Antagonizing her was his hobby. Everyone needs a hobby.

So the first half is about them hating each other. Then they grow to see the real people behind the hate and it turns into lust and love.

Conclusion:
It was cute and funny.

Cover
Eh

ebook, 384 pages
Published August 9th 2016 by William Morrow
Contemporary romance
Own

Sunday, September 4

Book Review: Paradox Forged in Blood by Mary Frances Fisher


Author: Mary Frances Fisher
Title: Paradox Forged in Blood
Genre: Historical Fiction and Mystery
Pages: ebook
First Published: August 24th 2016
Where I Got It: My Shelf (Given to me by the author/publisher for my honest and unbiased opinion.)

A murder on Millionaire’s Row. 
A killer's chilling words, "Shh. I know where you live.” 
A woman tormented by her guilt-ridden past. 

A historical murder mystery, Paradox Forged in Blood is set in Cleveland, Ohio, during the late 1930s. Four decades after the murder of socialite Louis Sheridan, the cold case is resurrected with receipt of new evidence that transports detectives back to Nazi Germany. The only living witness, Ellen O’Malley, must confront a haunting secret and her complicit actions.




I legitimately finished this in two sittings. It was addicting. Not only was there the main murder mystery, but there were so many other mysteries at play. 

There were lots of stories and lots of characters at play. Sometimes it was confusing to remember who was who and who's story we were on. Lots of jumping around, but the author did a decent job keeping the reader on track. Everyone was connected in some way and seemed realistic. It was pretty cool how the author intertwined everyone. 

A part of me wished that the story stayed focused on Ellen's and maybe Frank's POV, but the story wouldn't have had all all the extra mysteries and story-lines involved. I did really like Sadie. However, there were some slow parts that could have been cut in order to keep the plot moving along. It sucks having to cut things, but sometimes its needed. It didn't hurt the story for me, because I LOVE people stories, but from a writing stand-point the plot was staled at some points. 

Now...the main mystery was the murder mystery. This was a headache to solve, but I pretty much guessed who it was, but I didn't realize WHO the murderer was....hard to explain, but the twist about the murderer was a shock. I didn't see it coming!! I had a different theory, but I knew it was a stretch. 

The mystery of baby Patrick frustrated me too and I had no idea. 

The mystery of Sadie's twin seemed an easy one, but the author got me there. 

The robbery mystery tied in nicely and it was who I thought it was going to be.

Was that all of them?  I can't remember now, but there was a lot going on at times, but the ending tied up everything nicely and I feel all the loose ends were knotted well. I'm glad the author revisited everything to make sure everything was nicely tied up. I hate loose ends!

In the end, this was a fun book. Lots of stories and lots of mysteries. Time does have a weird way of bringing out the truth and revealing mysteries. It may take decades or longer, but someday the truth will be dug up. There will some hiccups in the pace of the story, but overall I really did like this. I highly recommend it for people looking for a good people story and mystery novel. Out of five stars, I will stamp it with three.