Book Review: Confessions of a Sheba Queen by Autumn Bardot

Author: Autumn Bardot
Title: Confessions of a Sheba Queen
Genre: Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Erotica
Format: Paperback
Pages: 384 
Published: March 10th 2020 
Where I Got It: My shelf (Given to me by the author/publisher for my honest and unbiased opinion)



During a raging sandstorm along a riverbed in the ancient lands of Saba, a powerful jinni born of smokeless fire gives birth to a half-human daughter. Bilqis does not inherit her mother’s magical abilities, but the fire of her jinni blood does imbue her with other powerful gifts.  As she undergoes her rites of womanhood and her insatiable sexual hunger is awakened, it becomes clear—this is the key to her “great destiny” prophesized at her birth. But it could also lead to her total undoing.

Bilqis comes to understand that her supernatural talents have the power to make men, and women, and nations prostrate themselves in utter devotion to her. When tragedy strikes, she leaves her home to seek revenge against the tyrannical god-king whose reign is a plague upon his land and people. Armed with only her body, courage, and wits, she quickly masters the art of seduction, all the while resisting the mind-consuming call to stay locked in an endless cycle of carnal passion.

Destiny soon intervenes, and what began as a quest for vengeance becomes a mission to heal the land of Saba from a twisted, corrupt regime and to see it become the wealthiest kingdom in all the land. Yet, it is only after meeting the already legendary and wildly attractive King Solomon that Bilqis discovers her greatest battle is not with others, but with herself



This cover is simply beautiful. Honestly...a contender for best cover of the year. 

The story follows Bilqis who is the daughter of a powerful jinni and a human. She destined for a great destiny which was prophesized at her birth. When tragedy strikes, she leaves her home to seek revenge and complete her destiny. Armed with only her body, courage and wits she must master the art of seduction and the art of revenge. Eventually, her quest for revenge will turn to a mission to heal the land and lead her people to prosperity. 

I really enjoyed this. Yes, it is erotica so there is a LOT of smexy scenes. And when I say a LOT times that by two. Bilqis is half-jinni and she likes to do the deed...a lot. Which I applaud her. She had no shame! YOU DO YOU GIRL!

Minus the sexy scenes, the story was really good. I did enjoy watching Bilqis grow into a woman and take the reigns of life. She was a strong character and she was not perfect and that made me like her more. She realizes her flaws and tries her best. 

There was SOME romance near the end there, but I'm glad that was not the main focus of the story so that made me happy. It took the majority of the book to get that romance anyways. I was meh about him, so if the romance never blossomed I would not have cared to be honest. Not that he was bad or anything. I didn't fully trust him and...I liked her being a wild spirit and having smexy time with whomever she wanted. haha. She didn't let the romance dominate her life though, so I was content with the romance because she is still an independent woman in the end and the story is about her journey to her destiny not about him. 

I LOVED HER PETS! The camel was cute and that leopard cub! Awww. They were adorable. They were fun!

My only hang-up, I guess, was the use of modern words and terms here and there, especially during the smexy times. I got used to it after a while and it no longer bugged me. I could be wrong and the words/terms were used, but it felt modern. But yea - again, I got used to it and it didn't hurt the story or characters.  

In the end, I really liked this book. Lots of smexy scenes (which I expected) and they were hot but they didn't diminish the story. The story was there and strong and our main heroine was awesome. I'll stamp this with 4 stars.  

Book Review: The Virgin of the Wind Rose by Glen Craney

Author: Glen Craney
Title: The Virgin of the Wind Rose
Genre: Historical Fiction, Drama, Thriller, Mystery, & Action/adventure
Pages: ebook
First Published: 2014
Where I Got It: My shelf (Given to me by the author/publisher for my honest and unbiased opinion)

While investigating the murder of an American missionary in Ethiopia, rookie State Department lawyer Jaqueline Quartermane becomes obsessed with a magical word square found inside an underground church guarding the tomb of the biblical Adam.

Drawn into a web of esoteric intrigue, she and a roguish antiquities thief named Elymas must race an elusive and taunting mastermind to find the one relic needed to resurrect Solomon's Temple. A trail of cabalistic clues leads them to the catacombs of Rome, the crypt below Chartres Cathedral, a Masonic shaft in Nova Scotia, a Portuguese shipwreck off Sumatra, and the caverns under the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

Intertwined with this modern mystery-thriller, a parallel duel is waged:

The year is 1452. One of the most secretive societies in history, Portugal's Order of Christ, is led by a reclusive visionary, Prince Henry the Navigator. He and his medieval version of NASA merged with the CIA scheme to foil their archenemies, the Inquisitor Torquemada and Queen Isabella of Castile, who plan to bring back Christ for the Last Judgment by ridding the world of Jews, heretics, and unbelievers.

Separated by half a millennium, two conspiracies to usher in the Tribulations promised by the Book of Revelation dovetail in this fast-paced thriller to expose the world's most explosive secret: The true identity of Christopher Columbus and the explorer's connection to those now trying to spark the End of Days.

The first four chapters had me really worried. There was so much going on and I was unsure how I felt. The POV jumped around so much and the language was so stiff, that I had a hard time connecting to the story. However, I am one to never give up.

Once things settled down a bit and the language loosened up and I was able to get a grasp of what was going on this was entertaining. I actually really got into the story and was not sure what the outcome was going to be. There were multiple mysteries/conspiracies running around that were all connected somehow. I really wanted to figure out the connection between the past POV in the 1400s/1500s and the present day POV. I had a theory and I was close-ish.

As I mentioned the writing style at first was extremely stiff, but once the action really took off then the writing loosened up. It flowed nicely and it was a quick read. Yes, there is a lot of information pouring out at some points, but due to the language used it was easy to grasp and keep going. I worry about historical mysteries and thriller novels, because it can be overwhelming sometimes and rather boring I'll admit. However, the author kept my attention and kept me hooked to the story. 

UGGGGHHHHHH the ending! Not a fan. Not happy. It's a cliffhanger and I hated the fate of one of the characters. PLEASE FIX IT! I just grew to like that character. :( SO SAD. SO TRAGIC. I cannot say, but UGH the feels.

DO NOT TRUST ANYONE! No one and nothing is as it seems. Messed with my brain! It was good that it kept me on my toes. 

In the end, this had a rough start for me, but it got better. I'm weary of thrillers and mysteries, but the author made it easy to grasp and it flowed nice and quick. I managed to get this done in a matter of a couple days. I HAD TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENED NEXT! The ending made me mad and sad, but I am curious to see what happens next. PLEASE, PLEASE FIX IT!! 

Well, I recommend this to those that like historical mysteries mixed with modern espionage. In the end, I shall stamp this with 3 stars.