Title: Thaw
Author: Kelly Allan
Available: Smashwords
Summary: "Isabel “Isi” Simmons died. Only, she’s living to tell the tale. On an Alaskan lake, when she was three-years-old, Isi and her family were ice skating when her world – literally – came crashing down. The ice cracked and they splashed into the frigid waters below, fighting for their lives. The fight was futile, however, and Isi and her parents went under. Now Isi is starting her final year of high school. Her grandmother is sick, her best friend is leaving and her math classes are threatening her graduation. On top of that, she’s the freak at school – with her inhumanly cold skin and dead parents – and struggles to make friends. When newcomers to the area find an interest in her, she is more than on the defense. Memories of the day her parents died come flooding back to her when they’re around and it drives her crazy. Why and how did she make it out of the water but her parents didn’t? It’s a mystery only she must solve. THAW is a mixture of retold Alaskan Indian tales, about a young girl attempting to defeat an elusive monster."
Source: I received this free from the author.
Review: I actually read this as a Beta before it was published, but the author has assured me that there's been no major changes, so I feel safe writing this review without re-reading. (Though I may do that down the line!) I remember liking this book so much that I wanted to tell people about it, but I couldn't because it wasn't published, so I'm very glad that it is now!
This is one of the few YA-ish stories I've read where a female MC did not make me want to reach through the pages and strangle her. I don't know what my issue with YA MC women is, but I have one. I have it with female MCs a lot, though, as it appears for me in some adult fiction, but more strongly in YA. I guess I just have issues. Anyways.
I liked this book a lot. I started reading it chapter by chapter at the crit site that I was at for a while, and when I stopped being active, I wanted to read the rest and Allan was nice enough to send it to me. It had me pretty riveted. I read it in something like two or three days.
I found Alaska as a setting to be new from the books I usually read and I really liked the Alaskan mythos she wove into it. My heart now forever belongs to Dexter. Isi is the "outsider" teen without ever lapsing too far into emo outsider, and she moves things along herself. Although she occasionally needs saving in some ways, she does it herself otherwise.
I remember I had some small issues here and there, but I don't even really remember what they were now, so I guess they weren't that big a deal. I just really enjoyed the story, so I'm giving this 5 Fireballs. I hear rumor that if this book does well, she might write another one. So go out and get this book, 'cause I want another one!
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Review: "Quest" by Michayla Roth
Title: Quest
Author: Michayla Roth
Available: Amazon
Summary: "Two powers, two quests, two fates...two mortals struggling against the very forces with which they might have aligned themselves, had they been given the opportunity to choose. Two mortals, light and dark, locked into one intense battle. A battle of which the end has already been written in blood. A blood not their own, just as the battle is not their own. And yet, they must fight.
The year is 2E739, the second millennium since Euroclydonus, the last epic battle to shake Wundyrr's foundations. Two thousand years of peace--at least between mortal and spiritual elements--and now, the hidden script of a writing called simply "the prophecy" threatens to immerse the world of Wundyrr once more in a hideous battle, the likes of which could very well rival the infamous Euroclydonus.
Tiernan Lebonn is the single last link between Wundyrr and vitality. Should he fail in his impossible quest to seal evil once more within its fiery prison, the shadow will rise up to devour not only him, but also the world he calls home.
His counterpart, Shiloh of Cheokk, has been steeped in darkness since the day she was born and is bent on winning her own glory through the very disaster Tiernan is trying to prevent.
For either one to claim victory, they must completely lose themselves within the essence of their quests and trust that the powers to which they have surrendered will bear them up in triumph.
But as with any battle, only one can claim the victory. Or perhaps neither can."
Source: I received this book free in exchange for an honest review.
Review: Once again, I see the reviews of others and wonder if we were reading the same book.
This book, and thus this review, are a source of great conflict for me. There is firstly the fact that I want to say every indie book I read is spectacular, but I can't. I hate to not be able to only say great things about a book that has been entrusted to me to review, but I won't lie. That's not fair to anyone.
So. I liked the ideas of this book. I'm a sucker for a Good versus Evil tale. I like epic/high fantasy, as it's long been my first love. I liked the characters as the embodiment of these concepts. I like some of the parallels to Christianity. Big quests are great, too.
I really liked the ideas of this book, but I feel that, for me, the execution of them fell down.
Detail: in EPUB version as read on my dinosaur Sony e-reader, this book was 385 pages.
For the first hundred pages, I found it very over-written and over-drawn. Honestly, if I hadn't felt an obligation to finish this, I probably would have stopped reading it. It struck me as an epic story that was trying too hard to be epic. Every verb, every adjective, every adverb was very active and strong. Taking both "show, don't tell" and "be active, not passive" too far. It's possible, in my opinion, to do.
The characters were overdrawn. Too exaggerated. And repetitive. By page 100, I was thinking: "I got it, I got it. Tiernan is good, faithful, doubts his strength, but has to save the world, he cannot afford to fail. Okay, Shiloh is evil, has been made evil, has her own quest, hates the world, will not fail." I didn't need it repeated every other page.
Now, after that, it started getting a little better. But it wasn't really until after two hundred pages or so that the text finally settled down. Characters and exposition and dialog were still a bit over the top, but it wasn't nearly so bad and I could fall into an easier reading flow.
Unfortunately, it came a little too late. While I started falling into the story more during the final hundred pages, I'd been put off too much and I was just not invested. I didn't really care who won or who lost, or what happened. As such, the ending didn't grab me the way it should have. It didn't surprise me at all.
The pacing felt kind of odd to me, and events that should have been big and dramatic were practically glossed over while scenes that should have been simple were dragged out unreasonably. Scenes, Perspectives, events and characters come in and go out that seem to lack any real build up or point. (Maybe I'm just blind, or just wasn't reading close enough. Maybe they'll come up again in the sequel promised in the Author's Note.)
I would love to be able to say that I fall in with all the other reviews I saw and just rave about it, but it just wasn't the novel for me. Epic stories shouldn't try so obviously hard to be epic. I'm a girl who likes more subtlety in these things. I believe that Roth has talent, but just put too much into this. Had the first couple hundred pages, and some to follow, been streamlined and tightened. With impact used sparingly and a better flow and pace, this would have been just my type of story.
But that's also just my opinion. I am most obviously in the minority on this, so take what I say with a grain of salt. I'm sure there are many people who won't mind the things that bothered me and will love this book, because it does have things going for it. Still, it wasn't for me and I wouldn't feel honest giving it more than 2.5 Fireballs.
Author: Michayla Roth
Available: Amazon
Summary: "Two powers, two quests, two fates...two mortals struggling against the very forces with which they might have aligned themselves, had they been given the opportunity to choose. Two mortals, light and dark, locked into one intense battle. A battle of which the end has already been written in blood. A blood not their own, just as the battle is not their own. And yet, they must fight.
The year is 2E739, the second millennium since Euroclydonus, the last epic battle to shake Wundyrr's foundations. Two thousand years of peace--at least between mortal and spiritual elements--and now, the hidden script of a writing called simply "the prophecy" threatens to immerse the world of Wundyrr once more in a hideous battle, the likes of which could very well rival the infamous Euroclydonus.
Tiernan Lebonn is the single last link between Wundyrr and vitality. Should he fail in his impossible quest to seal evil once more within its fiery prison, the shadow will rise up to devour not only him, but also the world he calls home.
His counterpart, Shiloh of Cheokk, has been steeped in darkness since the day she was born and is bent on winning her own glory through the very disaster Tiernan is trying to prevent.
For either one to claim victory, they must completely lose themselves within the essence of their quests and trust that the powers to which they have surrendered will bear them up in triumph.
But as with any battle, only one can claim the victory. Or perhaps neither can."
Source: I received this book free in exchange for an honest review.
Review: Once again, I see the reviews of others and wonder if we were reading the same book.
This book, and thus this review, are a source of great conflict for me. There is firstly the fact that I want to say every indie book I read is spectacular, but I can't. I hate to not be able to only say great things about a book that has been entrusted to me to review, but I won't lie. That's not fair to anyone.
So. I liked the ideas of this book. I'm a sucker for a Good versus Evil tale. I like epic/high fantasy, as it's long been my first love. I liked the characters as the embodiment of these concepts. I like some of the parallels to Christianity. Big quests are great, too.
I really liked the ideas of this book, but I feel that, for me, the execution of them fell down.
Detail: in EPUB version as read on my dinosaur Sony e-reader, this book was 385 pages.
For the first hundred pages, I found it very over-written and over-drawn. Honestly, if I hadn't felt an obligation to finish this, I probably would have stopped reading it. It struck me as an epic story that was trying too hard to be epic. Every verb, every adjective, every adverb was very active and strong. Taking both "show, don't tell" and "be active, not passive" too far. It's possible, in my opinion, to do.
The characters were overdrawn. Too exaggerated. And repetitive. By page 100, I was thinking: "I got it, I got it. Tiernan is good, faithful, doubts his strength, but has to save the world, he cannot afford to fail. Okay, Shiloh is evil, has been made evil, has her own quest, hates the world, will not fail." I didn't need it repeated every other page.
Now, after that, it started getting a little better. But it wasn't really until after two hundred pages or so that the text finally settled down. Characters and exposition and dialog were still a bit over the top, but it wasn't nearly so bad and I could fall into an easier reading flow.
Unfortunately, it came a little too late. While I started falling into the story more during the final hundred pages, I'd been put off too much and I was just not invested. I didn't really care who won or who lost, or what happened. As such, the ending didn't grab me the way it should have. It didn't surprise me at all.
The pacing felt kind of odd to me, and events that should have been big and dramatic were practically glossed over while scenes that should have been simple were dragged out unreasonably. Scenes, Perspectives, events and characters come in and go out that seem to lack any real build up or point. (Maybe I'm just blind, or just wasn't reading close enough. Maybe they'll come up again in the sequel promised in the Author's Note.)
I would love to be able to say that I fall in with all the other reviews I saw and just rave about it, but it just wasn't the novel for me. Epic stories shouldn't try so obviously hard to be epic. I'm a girl who likes more subtlety in these things. I believe that Roth has talent, but just put too much into this. Had the first couple hundred pages, and some to follow, been streamlined and tightened. With impact used sparingly and a better flow and pace, this would have been just my type of story.
But that's also just my opinion. I am most obviously in the minority on this, so take what I say with a grain of salt. I'm sure there are many people who won't mind the things that bothered me and will love this book, because it does have things going for it. Still, it wasn't for me and I wouldn't feel honest giving it more than 2.5 Fireballs.
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Review: "Night of Wolves (The Paladins #1)" by David Dalglish
Title: Night of Wolves (The Paladins #1)
Author: David Dalglish
Available: Smashwords
Summary: "Wolf-men, savage creatures given humanoid form in an ancient war, mass along the Gihon River. Led by their packleader Redclaw, they seek to cross the river and claim a land of their own, slaughtering those that would stand in their way. Two paladins must lead the desperate defense to stop the invasion."
Source: I purchased this on my own.
Review: This one is a little tough for me. I liked the concept. I haven't seen enough paladins in my epic fantasy reading. I liked the "competing" faiths ideas, and the beacon of faith details. The wolf-men were interesting. I would have liked more on the history of it all, about how they ended up in the Wedge and so on. I got the idea, but would have liked more. And more on the gods.
Generally speaking, I was enjoying the story pretty well. The writing is smooth and flowed well. I was into the concepts, and I liked Jerico and Darius. The build up was good.
Then something went awry. I felt like he was setting up a scene, that a critical event at the end of the story would go a certain way, and I liked where I thought it was going. I liked the idea. It didn't happen that way and I didn't really like how it did happen. (I can't say too much without giving it away.)
I realize it's the author's choice to do as he likes, and he was clearly setting up the second book... but that didn't make me like it any better.
So, I'm actually rather disappointed, because I wanted to end up liking it better but the ending has just left me with a bit of a bitter taste that makes it hard to say I really liked the story over all. I don't know if I'll read the second book or not. I'd like to see what happens, but I was so disappointed in this one, I fear getting disappointed again.
Thus, even though it all went well up until then, I'm forced to give this a 3 Fireballs since I just can't get past my disappointment.
Author: David Dalglish
Available: Smashwords
Summary: "Wolf-men, savage creatures given humanoid form in an ancient war, mass along the Gihon River. Led by their packleader Redclaw, they seek to cross the river and claim a land of their own, slaughtering those that would stand in their way. Two paladins must lead the desperate defense to stop the invasion."
Source: I purchased this on my own.
Review: This one is a little tough for me. I liked the concept. I haven't seen enough paladins in my epic fantasy reading. I liked the "competing" faiths ideas, and the beacon of faith details. The wolf-men were interesting. I would have liked more on the history of it all, about how they ended up in the Wedge and so on. I got the idea, but would have liked more. And more on the gods.
Generally speaking, I was enjoying the story pretty well. The writing is smooth and flowed well. I was into the concepts, and I liked Jerico and Darius. The build up was good.
Then something went awry. I felt like he was setting up a scene, that a critical event at the end of the story would go a certain way, and I liked where I thought it was going. I liked the idea. It didn't happen that way and I didn't really like how it did happen. (I can't say too much without giving it away.)
I realize it's the author's choice to do as he likes, and he was clearly setting up the second book... but that didn't make me like it any better.
So, I'm actually rather disappointed, because I wanted to end up liking it better but the ending has just left me with a bit of a bitter taste that makes it hard to say I really liked the story over all. I don't know if I'll read the second book or not. I'd like to see what happens, but I was so disappointed in this one, I fear getting disappointed again.
Thus, even though it all went well up until then, I'm forced to give this a 3 Fireballs since I just can't get past my disappointment.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Review: "Bakkian Chronicles, Book II - Insurrection" by Jeffrey Poole
Title: Bakkian Chronicles, Book II - Insurrection
Author: Jeffrey Poole
Available: Smashwords
Summary: "Bakkian Chronicles, Book II! Add one magic-stealing goblet, half a dozen dimwitted trolls, and one conceited wizard. Next add one kidnapped member of the royal family, one concerned son, two bodyguards, a soldier, and an adolescent griffin. Throw in a pinch of green dragon. Mix well and you will have yourself one fantastic action-packed fantasy adventure set in the magical kingdom of Lentari."
Source: I purchased this on my own.
Review: See, this time I was smart. I went into it knowing what sort of book I was going to get, after that little expectation mishap in my review of the first book.
Although the book still straddles an odd line for me between being Young Adult or Breezy Grown-up, it's still a lot of fun. Reading too much dark fantasy makes me expect every "good guy" of being a turncoat, and it's a happy relief at the end of the book when they're actually genuinely good guys. Don't get me wrong, I love a twisty-turning book, but I also like reading stories where I know what I'm getting.
Admittedly, I apologize to Mr. Poole. I'm sure my review would be more enthusiastic if I wasn't in a bit of a reading slump. I was just determined to finish this once I'd started it, so I dragged a little but I know it wasn't the book. The book kicks off the action very fast, which draws you right in, and doesn't require any "info dumps" to tell us what happened in the last book. (A tribute to the author's skill.)
Rhenyon still rocks. Steve, Sarah and Annie all reading more like teenagers than adults is still a bit strange, but far from intolerable. I'll admit I'm a little uncertain about the necessity of the Ylani (that didn't involve Main Characters) scenes, but they weren't so bad either. Otherwise, I got no complaints. I liked the sorceress sister concept, dwarf versus wizard was fun, and I like the set-up for the next book.
So, a solid 4 Fireballs for this fun, exciting romp through Lentari!
Though, reading about Steve makes me really want to up my Crit on my WoW fire mage. That's a dangerous thing! ;-)
Author: Jeffrey Poole
Available: Smashwords
Summary: "Bakkian Chronicles, Book II! Add one magic-stealing goblet, half a dozen dimwitted trolls, and one conceited wizard. Next add one kidnapped member of the royal family, one concerned son, two bodyguards, a soldier, and an adolescent griffin. Throw in a pinch of green dragon. Mix well and you will have yourself one fantastic action-packed fantasy adventure set in the magical kingdom of Lentari."
Source: I purchased this on my own.
Review: See, this time I was smart. I went into it knowing what sort of book I was going to get, after that little expectation mishap in my review of the first book.
Although the book still straddles an odd line for me between being Young Adult or Breezy Grown-up, it's still a lot of fun. Reading too much dark fantasy makes me expect every "good guy" of being a turncoat, and it's a happy relief at the end of the book when they're actually genuinely good guys. Don't get me wrong, I love a twisty-turning book, but I also like reading stories where I know what I'm getting.
Admittedly, I apologize to Mr. Poole. I'm sure my review would be more enthusiastic if I wasn't in a bit of a reading slump. I was just determined to finish this once I'd started it, so I dragged a little but I know it wasn't the book. The book kicks off the action very fast, which draws you right in, and doesn't require any "info dumps" to tell us what happened in the last book. (A tribute to the author's skill.)
Rhenyon still rocks. Steve, Sarah and Annie all reading more like teenagers than adults is still a bit strange, but far from intolerable. I'll admit I'm a little uncertain about the necessity of the Ylani (that didn't involve Main Characters) scenes, but they weren't so bad either. Otherwise, I got no complaints. I liked the sorceress sister concept, dwarf versus wizard was fun, and I like the set-up for the next book.
So, a solid 4 Fireballs for this fun, exciting romp through Lentari!
Though, reading about Steve makes me really want to up my Crit on my WoW fire mage. That's a dangerous thing! ;-)
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Review: "Die Laughing" by J. H. Sked
Title: Die Laughing
Author: J. H. Sked
Available: Kindle
Summary: "The gods are back in town. Well, one of them is - and he doesn't play nice.
Jane Rossa is trying to find out who - or what - killed her brother. Enter Billy, a nice guy with a few unusual talents, and very unusual friends.
Can a vampire, a ghost, and a shape-shifting house-cat stop a deranged god who thinks killing people and wearing their bodies is laugh-out-loud fun?
Maybe - with a little help from their friends. And a hell of a lot of luck."
Source: I purchased this on my own.
Review: I've read both "Basement Blues" and now "Die Laughing" and they are, no doubt, very funny. I really did enjoy them. They're fairly short, but entertaining. I like all the main characters.
My only real problems is that it's written in a very... sparse style. Now, I'm one for subtlety. I don't believe authors need to treat readers like idiots and spell things out in crayon, but Sked's style (at least with these books) is a little too sparse for me to be fully satisfied. I feel like I'm left a little confused about what certain things are meant to be or meant to mean.
I also felt the story was kind of short for what should have been a bigger "scope" for the plot introduced.
And yet, all that being said, I did really like it. It was a fast, fun, funny read and I will definitely be back for more from the Blue Moon Detectives. So, a solid 4 Fireballs for this one.
Author: J. H. Sked
Available: Kindle
Summary: "The gods are back in town. Well, one of them is - and he doesn't play nice.
Jane Rossa is trying to find out who - or what - killed her brother. Enter Billy, a nice guy with a few unusual talents, and very unusual friends.
Can a vampire, a ghost, and a shape-shifting house-cat stop a deranged god who thinks killing people and wearing their bodies is laugh-out-loud fun?
Maybe - with a little help from their friends. And a hell of a lot of luck."
Source: I purchased this on my own.
Review: I've read both "Basement Blues" and now "Die Laughing" and they are, no doubt, very funny. I really did enjoy them. They're fairly short, but entertaining. I like all the main characters.
My only real problems is that it's written in a very... sparse style. Now, I'm one for subtlety. I don't believe authors need to treat readers like idiots and spell things out in crayon, but Sked's style (at least with these books) is a little too sparse for me to be fully satisfied. I feel like I'm left a little confused about what certain things are meant to be or meant to mean.
I also felt the story was kind of short for what should have been a bigger "scope" for the plot introduced.
And yet, all that being said, I did really like it. It was a fast, fun, funny read and I will definitely be back for more from the Blue Moon Detectives. So, a solid 4 Fireballs for this one.
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