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Bellwether Book Reviews
"People say that life is the thing, but I prefer reading." - Logan Pearsall Smith.
Bloodmagic
Possibly one of the worst follow up novels I've read in a while. The logic behind Mac's decisions made no sense and a deus ex machina suddenly popped up every time she got herself into a tough situation. I only made it through a little more than half the book, so I cannot say if this sort of plot device reemerges at the end of the novel but I wouldn't be surprised. I was really excited about this series after the first book. SO DISAPPOINTING.
"Books Feed and Cure and Chortle and Collide
In all this willful world
of thud and thump and thunder
man's relevance to books
continues to declare.
Books are meat and medicine
and flame and flight and flower,
steel, stitch, and cloud and clout,
and drumbeats on the air.
― Gwendolyn Brooks"
In all this willful world
of thud and thump and thunder
man's relevance to books
continues to declare.
Books are meat and medicine
and flame and flight and flower,
steel, stitch, and cloud and clout,
and drumbeats on the air.
― Gwendolyn Brooks"
Dead Silence
The romance between Grace and Kennedy was sweet. However, I was not a fan of Novak's convoluted delivery of information behind Barker's death. A lot of it seemed pointless and/or ridiculous like the whole deal with the bible (especially Madeline's reaction to the notes her father made in it about Grace). I just cannot imagine this plot line carrying an entire trilogy, and I definitely don't plan on torturing myself by reading a book with Madeline as the heroine.
Prince of Thorns
I found this book to be both disturbing and enthralling, and even more disturbing because it's so enthralling. If I'd had a clue what Prince of Thorns was really about, then probably I wouldn't have started reading it. My brother had given me his copy and told me I had to read it. So I did. It is a very fast-paced and gruesome tale of a fourteen-year-old boy's epic journey of vengeance. I found his age to be a bit improbable given the things he says and does, but I took it in stride, just as I did with the kids in the A Song of Fire and Ice Series, because I've never had member of my family murdered in front of me. Maybe Jorg's brand of hatred at such a young age is possible. What I can say is that it's very well-written, and I'm eager to start the next book so I can find out what the hell Jorg gets up to next.
The Haunting of Maddy Clare
A terribly satisfying ghost story with a quiet, believable romantic subplot. As much as I wanted to give this book five stars, but the mystery turns out not to be much of a mystery at all. All of the people who appear to be villains are villains.
Silk Is For Seduction
Normally I can get past old romance tropes and clichés enough to enough a well written historical romance novel. With a very weak plot and characters that are difficult to like (a complete lack of morals is not something to brag about, Noirot.), this one was big let down.So many people had recommended this novel to me, and after falling in love with Lord of Scoundrels, I didn't hesitate to try this audiobook.Unfortunately, Ms. Chase's talent with storytelling couldn't save this one for me.
Three Weeks With Lady X
Relieved to find this book was on par with my favorite Eloisa James novels. Hopefully, Once upon a Tower was just a fluke.
There's Still Hope for the Urban Fantasy Genre
A truly kick-ass heroine.
A smorgasbord of supernatural creatures including many I've never read about before.
A slow-building and entirely believable attraction between the heroine and the Brethren's Alpha. [spoiler]Don't expect much romance in this book. You'll be disappointed if you do, but Harper is clearly setting the foundation for an abiding relationship between Corrigan and Mack later in the series.[/spoiler]
An ending that satisfied but also left me eager for the next book.
Harper has managed to revive a genre I thought had long gone stale.
The King
A bit sporadic and there were several plot lines that I wasn't interested in following, but I've always liked the way Ward writes. Even with the Brotherhood's ridiculous slang she can keep me fairly entertained.
The Silent Woman: Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes
Loved the direction Malcolm took with this, and genre in general. It's impressive stuff.
Bloodfire
A truly kick-ass heroine.A smorgasbord of supernatural creatures including many I've never read about before.
A slow-building and entirely believable attraction between the heroine and the Brethren's Alpha. Don't expect much romance in this book. You'll be disappointed if you do, but Harper is clearly setting the foundation for an abiding relationship between Corrigan and Mack later in the series.
An ending that satisfied but also left me eager for the next book.
Harper has managed to revive a genre I felt had long gone stale.
***I might have been a bit over-generous with my rating, because there was one, tiny part of the story that annoyed me. However, it's tied to a spoiler that's too big to mention, and I was so entertained with the story that I'm going to give Harper a pass on it.***
Just One Kiss
The romance between Justice and Patience was sweet. Though, I did have a hard time imagining an 18 year old Justice being attracted to a 14 year old Patience. I'm sure it's not unheard of in real life, and I know Justice was a very lonely teenager, so I did my best to ignore that part. I love how Mallery incorporates the characters from her previous books and sets up her upcoming novels by introducing new characters too. It's nice catch up on what's happening with the old characters and to get a glimpse at watch Mallery is cooking up the next book.
There was one scene in chapter 16 that was really random and entirely unrealistic. Felicia and Patience intervene on behalf of a woman being verbally and physically abused by her husband. Felicia attacked the husband while Patience asked the woman if she wants help. The woman tells Patience that she tried to leave several times, and even told her doctor about it. Apparently the doctor told her to just return home and be a good wife, because her husband is apparently that convincing... (WTF?) Charlie, the female firefighter, the mayor, and the police all come to the coffee shop. They Decide they're going to cover up Felicia's attack, find a place for the wife and haul the husband off to jail. Bam! It's over... in like six or seven pages. The whole thing was just so unnecessary, I thought it might tie into something at the end of the novel. But, nope. Maybe Mallery is going to feature the wife in an upcoming book... That's the only reason I can come up with to make sense of it.
Seduction and Snacks
Some of the scenes were funny. But, for the most part, the humor was ridiculously juvenile. If you can suffer through Claire and Carters immaturity, then it's a decent book.
