Blood Rose Books

Riley Sager takes readers to New York City, where if something seems too good to be true it normally is:

June Larsen has a new job opportunity, she is to become the newest apartment sitter at the Bartholomew, one of Manhattans greatest and most mysterious landmarks. But the mysterious, tall tales and legends do not scare June, she is just happy to have a fairly easy job to help get her back on her feet. Sure there are a few odd rules like no guests and you must spend every night in the apartment, but who would want to leave this beautiful building. However, when June starts to get to know one of the other apartment sitters, something seems off and all she wants to talk about is the Bartholomew's dark history. The very next day she goes missing and June knows this is not a coincidence. Now June needs to put together Ingrid's reasons for disappearing and she finds that Ingrid is not the first apartment sitter to go missing.

Sager's books seem to be popping up on all of my social media feeds these days and all of them have had rave reviews so I knew that I was going to give him a try, as his books seemed right up my ally, and lets just say it did not go quite as I expected in both good and bad ways. But I will say my review is probably in the minority of this book.

I'll start with the good, Sager uses one of my favourite formats to have the story unfold, with having two timelines getting closer and closer to each other, as you want to find out why Jules is what seems to be running for her life into the street. I love this type of format as it always piques my curiosity and having just tidbits from the "future" to keep me reading. Plus it was like June was telling her story of how things came to be which I liked as well. I also think that Sager did a great job with the setting of the book, you felt like you are in Manhattan and experiencing everything with Jules. I also likes Jules as a character, she is caring about everyone, whether she knows them or not, smart and is constantly dealing with her problems the best she knows how. You understand why she needed to take the apartment sitting job at the Bartholomew.

I had really high expectations for this book and maybe if I had not read this book after Ruth Ware's The Turn of the Key, I might have felt differently, but I just felt that the creepy atmosphere that Sager was trying to achieve throughout the whole book just didn't occur. Yes, the last quarter of the book is disturbing and suspenseful but that was the first time that I felt that throughout the previous 3/4 of the book. This lack of suspenseful feeling or feeling of urgency really made the book feel rather slow. I mean we know something has to be up with the Bartholomew and really you're not going to predict what is going on there (which I totally appreciate) but it was super slow getting there. I mean the parts that were supposed to be suspense full just lacked luster. Even all the missing people/previous house sitters, I just never really felt the urgency or the overall threat, maybe that was the point? Maybe's it due to the fact that we only had June's point of view and her lack of wanting to share the burden of her thoughts and research with anyone else, I'm not sure, but there was just something missing there to create the creepy or suspenseful atmosphere/moments that I think that Sager was looking to create.

This book just didn't meet my expectations, and I will admit that they were set pretty high. I would try another book by Sager, as I think he has the ability to tell a story and to bring the suspense, chills and thrills that I was expecting from this book but didn't get. So overall, this book is a good read and the last quarter does make it worth the read.

Enjoy!!!!

    

The clock was always ticking and Kelly DeVos takes us to Day Zero, once all the time has run out:

Jinx Marshall did not have a regular childhood. She spent all of her free doomsday prepping a drilling. Her Dad never let her have a days rest or a regular childhood it was all about being prepared. When her parents divorce and her mother remarries, Jinx thinks that she can take a break, have and easy normal life from now on. But all the training comes in handy when a building explodes right next to the one she, her brother and step sister are in, she is able to get them all out alive. However, this was not some random attack the world is about to go through a huge change, one that only a few saw coming, and Jinx just hopes that she has trained enough to help keep her family safe.

Wow, i'm not quite sure where to start with this book, there are quite a few things that I liked about it, the pace (super fast and right from the start), dooms day, some pretty good action scenes that I was not expecting and the overall plot in the story but I struggled with the main character and some of the political avenues. I get that she is a teenager and I tried to forgive that as I read the story but there were a few things about her that just irked me especially as she is really the key to everything.

With that said I am unsure whether I am supposed to like the main character, Jinx, or not. She has some great qualities like taking care of her younger brother, Charles and there are times when she's great to have in a stressful situation, seems to have some fighting abilities but for most of the story I found her to be whiny, selfish (which I guess can be good when the apocalypse is happening) and not smart most of the time aka being distracted by boys. There are multiple times she forgets what her Dad taught her and I feel like if you ran doomsday preps for YEARS of you life you would not forget so many things so easily. I mean when she is taking it easy after her mom and dad split and no longer having to do drill every day she is planning video game campaigns, I feel like that is something that is directly related to her dooms day prepping training. I actually thought that MacKenna was a more likable character (which I did not think would happen at first as she comes off as the spoiled rich girl with entitlement kind of vibe) as at least she stayed true to herself and her ideas and beliefs and wasn't afraid to question everything.

I found the political setting of the book a little confusing, and I don't think the full history of how the USA got to this state is fully explained. I get everyone is for Everyone’s for Rosenthal, but why? And why is it so bad to have a change in government. I mean Ammon Carver does start to sound like a nut bar  but it sounded like the people in the USA wanted to move back to a capitalistic market and away from a more socialist or communist one? I think? Honestly i'm not 100% sure at this point. I mean I like a political intrigue in a book but it needs to be well laid out and explained for me to get on board with it. I'm hoping maybe a bit more will be explained in book number 2. Maybe have Dr. Doomsday explain a few more things and what Carver was thinking as they used to be friends and why he had helped him before this point.

This was an interesting Doomsday, literally zero day, zero hour, type of book that basically start  you running from the beginning and you are looking to catch up about what is going to happen next. I think this is where deVos lost me a bit as I struggled to understand the political landscape of this book and where the USA was before a new president took over. That said I think that deVos has something here and I would check out the next book in the series.

Enjoy!!!!

    

A small town is about to be rocked by a murder of one of their own, and everyone in town is a suspect:

Burning Lake is an interesting town that has connection a sordid past with hanging witches, and this fact means that witchcraft and forming a coven is something that the locals, mainly teenagers, drift towards. Natalie Lockhart is a rookie detective who handed the Missing Nine, nine people who have disappeared from Burning Lake over several years and with each new detectives who is promoted they give fresh eyes to the decade or older cases. However, Natalie is about to be handed one of the toughest cases that would fall onto any detective's desk, the murder of someone you know and the wife of a cop, Daisy Buckner. As the investigation deepens Natalie gets more suspects the more evidence that is found and the risks get higher and higher.

While I was reading this book, I was totally convinced that it was a debut novel, I was surprised that it was not. While the plot and main character seemed laid out there were some what I think basic details missed that would have changed this book from a good read to an amazing one, aka The Devil is in the Details. This book would have been such a stronger book and story if Blanchard would have done some extra research about police officers, their culture and some general forensic information. Even a google search would have helped her with these details. So I guess i'll deal with the no so good first and then get to the good.

First off, police do not carry pagers any more, everyone has smart phones and that is what they would use if you are on call. Police Department will issue the officers a work phone for this purpose so there would not be a rotating pager for whomever is on call that night. Can you think of how many times a rotating pager would get lost? Second, if you take a bullet in your vest you will have to replace that vest as it has been compromised, you would no longer be safe if you were to take another bullet to the vest. Sure you can keep it but it would have to be replaced as it would be no longer safe to wear it but it would probably have been needed to be taken into evidence first as part of the proof about the shot as well as to obtain the bullet out of it.

Thirdly, there is a lot of emphasis on time of death. Time of death is the least precise forensic out there, there are too many factors that can affect when a person was killed. Simply asking the coroner or pathologist when the person died shows a lack of research, they cannot narrow it down to hours, more like days. Additionally when Natalie enters the house and states that she could smell the dead body, this is not true, decomposition of the body where a smell occurs does not normally happen within the first few hours of death, it begins two to three days after as it takes a bit for the bacteria within your Body to start breaking it down for food which in turn releases gas. I was able to find most of this out with a basic google search so I feel that Blanchard could have done that as well. Blanchard did get more to the right track when she started to try and figure out what Daisy had done that day and who had seen her last but this is later in the book. Lastly, you as a police officer always always secure the suspect(s) and scene first, yes you can save a person if they need saving but once that is done after you secure your suspect(s), if you don’t there is still a risk to you and the victim that could lead to even more dire consequences. You don’t know what other weapons that may arise by you not securing them. I feel like this aspect is common sense.

Alright now to the good part. WOW, what a plot and story, I did not have everything figured out till the very end, there were too many suspects in this small town where everyone and everything and everyone are interconnected. God, I love small town books and Burning Lake is no exception. I appreciate that Blanchard kept this book to one murder, one who done it, with the historical cases also being investigated. i think sometime the plot and book becomes too muddied with so many homicides that all interconnected and even though there was only one recent murder to investigate that didn't mean I was able to figure everything out, it was a great twisty, did not see that coming ending, which is always amazing when that occurs.

Burning Lake is an interesting town and it has the reputation for burning (though the actually hung them) witches just like Salem did and the town uses this as their “claim to fame”. This also means that people dabbling in witchcraft is a common theme amount the youth and this creates a whole different avenue if investigation for the police department. This book is set in our time in our world so the whole witch thing is more wishful thinking but it does not mean that people, mainly teens, aren’t willing to try a spell or two, however, witchcraft needs to be considered with every crime that is committed. This adds an extremely unique perspective in this book and one that I have not read before outside of the Urban Fantasy/Paranormal genres. It appears that Blanchard did so research on witchcraft as she talks about symbols, knots, spells and what those spells hope to achieve and I found it all very fascinating.

Natalie is an interesting character, she’s smart, know how to play the game and really caring about her family and those who shew grew up with. Even the lady who had a psychotic break and ends up on the street, Natalie is there if she needs help. It never seems like Natalie gets exhausted with trying to juggle all her cases and family life, she just keeps going and going with little sleep, so maybe she is a super human detective. There is a hint of a romance to come, it kind of became redundant throughout the book (oh i've liked him forever, maybe now will be the time he makes a move ect) and I don’t think the book or plot needed it as it doesn't really add anything to the murder investigation or story.

Don't get me wrong, overall I enjoyed this book. I feel like Blanchard likes the idea of writing from the point of view of a rookie detective but lacked the knowledge or research about police, police culture and investigations to really pull some of this book off. Nevertheless, I did enjoy the plot and story that Blanchard laid out in this book and the small town setting. I would read another book from Blanchard and if she were to release another book featuring Burning Lake and Natalie.

Enjoy!!!

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Susan Illene shows the readers who is on top of the food chain when Dragons enter our world:

Bailey had just graduated from college and was looking forward to traveling home, but her life is about to change forever. While leaving town from home a massive earthquake erupts and releases Dragons into the world. Bailey is just trying to survive but when trying to save others she becomes the target and is about to become BBQ. But the unthinkable happens, she does not burn in the flames, she is a Dragon Slayer. With the help of a shape shifting Dragon named Aidan she is starting to learn how to harness her knew skills. But Aidan has his own plans for forming a relationship with a Dragon Slayer, he can only hope that she is ready when he needs her.

I was thinking that this was the first apocalyptic series that featured dragons, but i actually started (and admittedly never finished but I still recommend it, hmmmm I need to get back to that series) J. A. Pitts Black Blade Blue series several years ago and if you like regular women becoming extraordinary and dragons make sure to check out that series as well. Illene starts the book off with a bang with a massive earthquake that seems to occur throughout the whole country and then BAM dragons appear out of nowhere and start eating/capturing people. These are not your friendly dragons, which I appreciative, let them be the fire breathing, human eating monsters they were meant to be. Well not all the Dragons are this way, some of them are shape shifters and have a human and dragon form. This is where we get the two points of view; Bailey the human who becomes a dragon slayer and Aidan the shape shifter who does not eat humans and sees them more as a tool than anything else.

The two points of view are really interesting as we have Bailey showing what has happened to her town and people now and how they are struggling to survive now that Dragons rule the world and how much things have changed and what has been sacrificed. Then Aidan's point of view is one that is more medieval in description with him and his siblings vying for the role to rule their clan once their father dies.

I liked Bailey as a main character, she is strong, willing to help others and surprisingly trusting of those that she should not be. She has some pretty cool powers, and being burned by dragon fire is high among them. I equate her powers similar to that of a Slayer's not just in the extra strength but also that she comes into them under a high amount of stress and danger.

There is an attempt of a romance here but the characters do their best to ignore their possible feelings with each other, but you can tell things are going to flourish later. At least the Dragon Aidan has a human form and I don't have to stop reading this series due to some sort of weird bestiality of a human with an actual dragon; Just not my cup of tea.

This was a good start to a series, and I am fan with the use of dragons which is not something that we see too much of these days in more mainstream books. I look forward to continuing on with this series and seeing where Illene takes it.

Enjoy!!!

     

K.L. Slater takes readers on a journey where You think you know the truth about the people you love, But one discovery can change everything:

Eight-year-old Billy goes missing one day, out flying his kite with his sister Rose. Two days later, he is found dead. Sixteen years on, Rose still blames herself for Billy’s death. How could she have failed to protect her little brother? Rose has never fully recovered from the trauma, and one of the few people she trusts is her neighbour Ronnie, who she has known all her life. But one day Ronnie falls ill, and Rose goes next door to help him… and what she finds in his attic room turns her world upside down. Rose thought she knew the truth about what happened to Billy. She thought she knew her neighbour. Now the only thing she knows is that she is in danger…

This is the second book that I have read by Slater and I am disappointed with it, and maybe I should have given more time but when I'm 35% into the book, according to my kindle, and I was not interested in the story/plot/main character I had to put this book down. I'm sorry to say that this is my fist DNF book of 2020.

I liked that there was back and forth between the past and presence as we know that Rose's brother is going to be kidnapped and murder and I liked that Slater was going to take the time to lays things out on how they got there, but it was just taking too long to get to anything substantial.  And the in the present time it was more about the library closing and how Rose is going to survive that if it happens, Rose is not questioning the murder of her younger brother, though she is still feeling the affects of it. So I question why are we visiting the present and not just telling the story in the past?

I know i'm in the minority with this review, but I'm Sorry Slater that this book was not for me. It was missing the intrigue and thrills that was in the previous book of yours that I read. Although this one was not for me, I will read another book by Slater.

Cheers!!!!

    

In a retelling of the classic Red Riding Hood Story, Christina Henry shows what Red is really like in a world going to hell:

The woods were never safe, but with the end of civilization they are even more dangerous than before; A stranger has a high possibility to kill you intentionally or not. Red is on her way to her grandma's house, a 500 mile journey that she started with her family, but now she is alone. She has lost everyone along the way. Red knows if she can just make it to her grandma's house she will be safe, but there are many wolves standing in her way to get there.

First off, I adore this cover. It was the cover that drew me to this book as I have not read a book by Henry before. You knew that this was going to have a connection to Little Red Riding Hood but this was not your traditional retelling or even modernizing of it. It used some of the aspects within the story, like the main character being called Red and the people trying to prevent her from continuing on in journey as coyotes or wolves but Henry makes the story her own throughout.

When we first meet Red she was on her own and she is constantly telling herself not to think about Adam and this piques your interest as a reader, who is this Adam and what happened to him and further why is Red traveling alone. This was a great way to tell this story as you have the times getting closer and closer to when we first meet Red as well as her surviving on her own. This made Red a more defined character and you can see how she has adapted along the way even though she was fairly well prepared in the beginning.

Alright lets just get it out there, Red only has one Leg. There said it, now we can move on to more important things. Red does not use her Leg to define her so as a reader I didn’t want to as well, two legs or one she is an amazing character. Her survival instinct is one point, she has the ability to adapt, take care of herself, but is caring when she sees children suffering. And she takes no BS not from anyone in the story, Red is strong even when she feels weak.

I Feel like there are still some unanswered questions by the end. Maybe another book featuring the Ltd? Maybe something more with Red, I don't know. The story just felt unfinished in a way. This is not to say I did not enjoy this book, maybe I just want more Red.

Enjoy!!!

    

This is the third book in Kelley Armstrong's Rockton series (City of the Lost and Darkness Absolute) and it is one of my favourite series right now. If you like mystery, thrillers and small town secrets this series is for you.

It starts with hearing a plane overhead, normally this would not be a concern for most small towns, but Rockton is different, plane do not just find their way there. The town has only one plane and it is currently parked in the hanger. Casey and Dalton head for the hanger and see a plane lading on their runway.They get a shock when a new resident, Oliver Brady, for their town embarks, claiming that he innocent and has been sent here falsely. The council has sent them a dangerous criminal to keep imprisoned for at least 6 months. The longer Brady is imprisoned in Rockton the louder he states his innocence of the crimes he has supposedly committed. Rockton is not sent up to a prison and it is only a matter of time before some of the town folks believe him and then begins the biggest and deadliest man hunt in Rockton history..

If you finished Darkness Absolute, you were itching to get your hands on this book because of that cliffhanger ending, I was just happy I was late to the Rockton party and only had to wait for the book to come in the mail. This is one of my favourite thriller/mystery series out there and Armstrong is one of my favourite authors, so you can say that I have high hopes for all of her books. Overall I enjoyed this book. I liked that this book ventured a different path from the first two book in that is a man hunt book with sides of murder. This book does not stop from the very beginning and I really enjoyed the Cat and Mouse game that occurs both within Rockton and in the forest as well as mentally as people try to determine if Brady is innocent or not.

Once again having to rely on no technology in order to get things done. I like that they are training Storm to be a working dog especially a tracking dog. I also like that it seemed that Mathias is getting a larger role as I find him extremely fascinating in both his motives and all of the reasons that he was put in Rockton. He's such an interesting character and one you would never want to find yourself on the bad side of. I hope that we get to know even more about the other residence that live in Rockton especially with the new additions that occurred in this book. There are also some revelations about some of the people that Casey has relationships with in this book that I don't think most people will see coming.

Alright, I know that Casey and Duncan are making Storm into a working dog, but Storm was such a focal point throughout the story that other aspects suffered at times. I get that Storm is now an important part to Casey's life and job, and while Storm did find some key evidence some of the times that she ran away from Casey, it seemed to happen over and over again, that it became redundant. Maybe this was to showcase that dog never stops working, but there were quite a few times where she was more of a hindrance than an assets which makes me think that Casey should have just left her at home. I feel like in Casey's case most of the problems that she got into this book were caused by Storm. So I guess what I'm trying to say is I appreciate what Casey and Duncan are trying to do with Storm, I just don't want the dog training aspects to take away from the rest of the plot.

Another good addition to this series, I love the settings, characters and the overall lack of technology around. I look forward to seeing what Armstrong can come up with next for the town of Rockton.

Enjoy!!!!

    

The start of a new series for me with this book, and Ilona Andrews show readers just how far someone is willing to go to Save their family:

Nevada Chase is forced to take on the most challenging case ever given to her family's PI firm, find and bring in a rogue rich boy who happens to be a Prime pyro magic user and who has no concerns on who he hurts or what he destroys with his abilities. But Nevada is not the only one who is pursuing him, Connor “Mad” Rogan is on the hunt as well and he too has no qualms with doing whatever it takes to get the job done, even kidnapping and torturing Nevada to get his way. Nevada is on a suicide mission but she would do anything to protect her family.

This book had me hooked from beginning to end and I am so glad that I gave this series a try after finishing Andrews’ Kate Daniels series. This does have some similar elements to it but it is much more magic based. There maybe other supernatural or paranormal creatures in this world but we are not introduced to them in this book. The magic that is showcased in this book is amazing and I love the urban fantasy setting of this book. As I said before it had a similar feel to their Kate Daniels series. I also found the case that Nevada has to undertake interesting with the whole underground cult aspect to it and Nevada is smart enough to figure out how to lure her subject in.

I liked Nevada as a character and what she is willing to do for her family, basically anything to protect them, even take on a job that she knows is probably going to be the death of her (and having a contingency plan if she fails). She is smart resourceful and has one of the coolest powers that I have read about for a main character. Nevada is a walking polygraph machine, she can tell when people or lying and if she really pulls she can force the truth out of them.This really becomes handy for her family private investigators firm. Her family have kept her power a secret as there is only really one job for someone with her ability and she would get swallowed up by the government somewhere.

Alright this is a book that you cannot judge by its cover. To me this book cover screams romance book and while there are aspects of wanting and lust in this book it is very far from the romance book that the cover suggests. There is more of a lust aspect in this book between the characters as Nevada is fairly determined for that to not happen. I do think that the relationship between Nevada and Rogan is a little dominating/domineering not to mention that Rogan is a straight up sociopath. I struggle to see how Nevada could develop feelings for an individual who had first kidnapped and tortured her (Stockholm syndrome I guess that she never got over). I don't know most of the people that meet Rogan cant help but state how good looking he is and that is the reason they should be together? However, I will give Nevada credit for not falling in love with him at first site, she did mention his looks but love was not on the table there.

Great start to a series and I look forward to reading the next book. I hope Andrews can stick to the less is more romance aspect of this book and focus more on the cases and assignments that Nevada gets as that is the interesting part of the story for me.

Enjoy!!!

   

Katherine Center show what it takes to learn what is truly important in one's life:

As one of the only female firefighters in a Texas firehouse she's seen her fair share of emergencies and each time she rises to the occasion. She is amazing at helping people through their own emergencies but her own personal life is a mess. So when her estranged mother calls her and asks her to come live with her for a bit as she is having problems with her vision, it is a request that she never expected. Cassie ends up transferring to an old school Boston firehouse that has never had a female member before and they make it known that they do not think that a "lady" can do the job. Cassie is trying to keep the career under control but nothing in her new firehouse is under her control.

This is pretty far from what I normally read, but I made the resolution this year to try and read some books our of my usual genres, so I decided to try this contemporary romance novel that I kept seeing so many posts about.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it was an interesting look into a fire hall dynamics and the differences between a large city and small town as well as being a women in these environments. I will admit there cliches here about how Cassie is treated, but I feel like these events are occurring in these situations even if we want to believe things have changed. Center knows what she is writing about in this book as she had her husband to consult who is a fir fighter, and would know the dynamics that do occur within a fire house. This also being a fire house (I actually think this is my first firehouse based book...) you get to follow them on some of the calls that they make from the ridiculous (Honestly the reason some people call 911 is quite funny) to the extreme fires that change people forever.

The farther I read into the book the more I became attached to Cassie as a character and everything that she had gone and was going through. Cassie is such a strong character that has relied on herself for such a long time that she does not know how to rely on others. This makes her an amazing firefighter as she puts others' needs above her own all the time but this means that she does struggle to make friends and have relationships. It was interesting to watch her change and grow throughout the book.

Now the relationship aspect in this book is funny. Most of the book is spent with Cassie trying to hide and make sure that she does not have feelings for the Rookie as this is an extreme No Go in firefighter culture. But the more that she tried to avoid him the more she falls for him. It was an extremely cute relationship to see develop but you knew how things were basically going to go.

I really enjoyed this book and and Center had me hooked the further I read. I really enjoyed the firehouse aspect and how things would become a bit more fast pace when a call was involved. This is a great contemporary read with a side of romance and I highly recommend it for those who like these genres.

Enjoy!!!!

    

This is the fifth book in the Hell Divers series (Hell Divers, Ghosts, Deliverance and Wolves) and I cannot recommend it enough especially if you like sci-fi and post apocalyptic genres. As with any series it is best to start at the beginning and you better start now as you will not be disappointed.

    

In her debut novel Gemma Rogers plays a cat and mouse game of who is stalking who:

Eve Harding is walking to meet a friend when her world is completely destroyed when she is grabbed and violently sexually assaulted. Her world completely changes, how she sees herself, her body, everyone around her as well as the places she is familiar going. She wants her assaulter found and punished, but he has eluded the police. Then Eve comes up with a plan, she will not stand by and let this man destroy another woman's life. Eve now has a new mission in life, try to find the main who assaulted her and make him pay.

This was really impressive for a debut novel, I felt that Rogers laid out the story she wanted to tell really well minus at the beginning when I found the time jumps a little bit confusing as they are fairly close together. I wish she would have used titles like before and after or 6 months before or 6 month after. However, I do like books that tell the story where the time frames get closer and closer together, which Rogers does here. This also heightened the suspense throughout the book as you begin to wonder how did Eve after everything end up in the jail cell?

I think that Rogers did a great job in not romanticizing rape in any way, from the rape itself to showcasing the fact that there is not only an physical toll that the victim can experience but the emotional one as well. Rogers does not sugar coat a thing. Do I think that Eve was maybe outside the norm of "recovering" so fast, sure, but I think that all the other aspects that Rogers presented around sexual assault in this book were glamorized at all that this can be overlooked.

Speaking of Eve her growth within this book is amazing, from devastating and destroying her life to trying to take aspects of it back to hunting down her assaulter, you cannot help but cheer for her all along the way. Eve just seems like such a real person throughout and you really get to know her as majority of the chapters feature her. There are a few chapters from the detective, which were good, rounded out part that side of the story but there were also chapters featuring her assaulter. Normally, I like when an author put the bad guy front and center as you as the reader gets to know them better their motives, but in this case I wish Rogers would have held them back. They heighten some of the suspense as you wait for Eve to find out the information that you as the reader know, but I personally think they gave away too much and would have preferred to be left in the dark.

I know I have put quite a few things in this review that wish were different in the book (and I guess I will add that I was kind of hoping for a more realistic ending) but all that said this was an awesome debut novel I did not want to put the book down, and I highly recommend this book who like psychological suspense reads as well as cat and mouse thriller books. I look forward to reading Rogers next book.

Enjoy!!!

    

Brian McClellan drops the reader in the middle of a war zone where the platoon is playing a cat and mouse game with the enemy:

Teado has been part of the war since he was a child working in the aircraft and ammunition factories to begin with and then when he got older and his shifter powers presented themselves he was moved to the front lines of the war. Now with his platoon behind enemy lines with little support, they attack the enemy when they can in a cat and mouse game. Though it looks like the end may be near, the enemy has pushed their forces back leaving one of their bases vulnerable and loaded with supplies and the platoon is determined to take advantage but this supposed to be last raid is about to change the course of the War forever.

This book had some really interesting aspects going for it especially around the main character Teado and his abilities but this were overshadowed by the lack of world building, backstory and lack of overall premise as well. Yes, Teado and his platoon are playing a deadly cat and mouse game with the enemy but who is the enemy and why? Why is the platoon who are serving an important job have little support or resources? What planet or world or wherever is this story set? It has an early WWI feel to it but there is also magic and shifters abilities. I think my main problem with this book is I had more questions than answers. I know this was a novella but I have read other novellas that are better laid out and give some sort of backstory and world building so the reading gets the idea of what is going on and why. The story did get more interesting the further you read with Teado going on a mission, but it just wasn't enough for me.

The one aspect I liked in this novella was the main character.  His abilities are really interesting and different from other shifters more like a lizard alien thingy, with armor that bullets are unable to pierce. I liked that he was extremely brave and was willing to push himself to his limit and beyond as well as sacrifice himself in order to save his team. However, other than those qualities we do not really know much about him and why he joined the war, once again missing some form of a back story.

So this novella left a lot to be desired for me as I just have too many questions left off after reading this book. If this does lead into a series or a second book i'm not sure I would continue on even though it got a little more interesting near the end.

   

In The first in a new series BR Kingsolver shows what happens when a trained assassin leaves the Illuminati:

Erin was sold to the Illuminati by her parents when her magic developed and how strong it was. So began her life of learning to be a Spy, Assassin and Thief. She is told that she is helping people and that the Illuminati are guiding the world for the better place. What she learns when she is tasked with eliminating a rival secret group and stealing an artifact is the opposite; The Illuminati are only about their own power and gain. She had been lied to for most of her life. She has been working for the dark not the light. This causes her to take drastic measure and somehow she ends up miles away on the run working as a bartender at Rosie O'Grady's Bar and Grill. Erin just wants the quiet life but trouble seems to follow wherever she goes.

This was the first book that I have heard of by Kingsolver and I wonder why I have not heard of her before, as this book was really fun to read, had interesting characters and I was wanting more of Erin and Rosie's Bar at the end of the book. I actually found it a nice replacement for Kate Daniel's Ilona Andrew series (So far, but we are only one book in) as there are some definite similarities between the two main characters (I still love Kate more though, lol). I really felt like the beginning was a bit rushed with Erin's training and being part of the Illuminati. As this is what has defined her for so many years it would have been nice to have a  bit more background than just the beginning few pages and snippets throughout the book. It also seems odd at times that with all her training that they did not do more cultural integration into a new environment as there are times in the book where she feels lost/naive in what should be familiar situations/events but she can mix any drink Sam asks her about, seem a bit of a clash in her characterization. 

What is really interesting in how Kingsolver decided to do with Erin (aside from her school powers) is as much as she tries to hide, she does not do it very well, where did all the spy training go? There are times when she almost flaunts her powers and abilities, so of course people are going to be suspicious of her and her possible connection to not only the Vampire deaths but also possibly being a hunter as well. However, by not really hiding her powers Erin shows who she really is and her need to help and protect those around her even if she has only known them for a short amount of time.

There is a nice sense of magical community and all your favourites are there, witches, werewolves, mages, Fae etc but there are some that I was not familiar with as well. It seems like Kingsolver has done some research on different entities from different cultures. But the world building is nothing special but I do not mind that as I was able to immerse myself into the story right away.

This is great start to a new series (though there are some flaws in Erin's characterization i think and the world building is lacking) and I look forward to learning more about Erin, this world and her history with the Illuminati. I am also going to check out some of the other series that she has written as well. Really happy I discovered her book. 

Enjoy!!!

    

Ruth Ware takes the readers to a isolated manor where nothing is what it seems:

All she was looking for a change when she stumbles across a nannying add that seems too good to be true; the money, the location though a bit isolated is beautiful and the house has been completely renovated and has become a “smart” home. She believes that she has hit the jackpot of jobs, even though there seems to have been a high turn over nannies before her. What she doesn’t realize as why all those other nannies left and the nightmare that is about to begin and will endothelial the death of  a child. She is doing everything she can to explain what happened, what it was truly like living there and to prove her innocence before it is too late.

This is the first book that I have read by Ware and going into this book I had very high expectations, just based upon the reviews I had seen and it seemed to me that Ware and her books were turning up on all of my social media feeds. This book mainly met my expectations, there were a few times when I didn’t understand some of the main characters decisions while watching the children, seemed a little dumb especially for someone who had worked with children before  and I was able to figure out one of the three main twists in the book.

Ware has a way of writing that even though I did not think this was going to be a suspenseful book it was full of it especially when Rowan starts her Nanny job. Ware knows how to create a creepy atmosphere and ambiance through her writing skills. I felt like I could feel the draft coming from the closet or hear the creaks coming from the ceiling. Chills I tell you, Chills. You keeping reading wanting to know what is causing all the strange happenings occurring through out the  house and ground. Is it ghosts, the smart house, the children or her employer; I’m not going to tell.

I feel like the case against her would not have gone to court. The evidence was too circumstantial and no Crown would want to go to court with all the holes and lack of evidence, even with a confessions. A good lawyer totally would have been able to get that thrown out and it seemed to me like she was writing to a good one. While she is telling her story you cannot help but feel sorry for her and the for facts she tells this feeling just deepens, you want the purpose for her letter to succeed. 

I really enjoyed this book and I know that I will read another book by Ware again. Ware really seems to have the gift for writing and engrossing you in the story so I look forward to discovering her other works.

Enjoy!!!!

   

Alright, this is the 10th and final book in this series, so do not read any further if you are considering starting this series as so many things will be spoiled for you that you will not enjoy the books as much as you could. If you are thinking of starting this series the 1st book is Magic Burns. I highly recommend this series. It was one of my favourite Urban Fantasy reads and one that I have continued to read even when I have stopped others.

Ilona Andrews is back with her Kate Daniels series, and everything is on the line but this time Kate has something even more important to fight for than just herself and Atlanta:

Kate has come a long way from as a solo mercenary taking on all the paranormal problems for the city of Atlanta. She has found not only a home but a family as well but her magic is too strong to not attract those who not only have power but crave it as well. She currently has an uneasy truce with her father Roland (who Kate knows is just looking for the right opportunity), mysterious visions from the Witch Oracle and a strange goo that has been found in a town outside of Atlanta's boarders. Kate knows that it is going to take every magical and paranormal person of Atlanta to fight this new threat and they may not win but she has to try, for everything she hold dear is on the line.

Well it is the end, and as much as I am sad to have it occur (and I would be lying if I didn't say that I wanted it to continue on) I respect the Andrews' decision to end this amazing series. And Wow did it end on a high note but still there were many losses as well. Andrews has always strived for balance between life and death in this series and while you know the main characters are mainly safe there are secondary ones you come to love that may not be.

Kate has changed as her life and situation has changed. She has shed many of the teachings from her previous masters' and teachers and really has evolved into a formidable warrior with a softer side. I loved how this book showed the growth of Kate and Curran's relationship and then add in their child and now we're in a whole new type of story and phase of their life. Life as a parent is never easy and always complicates simple tasks, add in that the child is part shifter, well that just is a whole new can of worms. We do not get to see a lot of the settling in as a family process in this book as there are threats right from the beginning but it is there in the undertones. It was also interesting to see the length that Curran was willing to take to protect Kate and be a part of her life for as long as he could. I don't want to spoil things but it is a pretty drastic measure.

I was not expecting a connection to the off shoot book in this series, Iron and Magic, and since I had not read that book yet (I was going to pick it up after this book to start something new), I feel like that book has been ruined a bit for me as well this book kind of tells you what is going to happen. I'll still read it but I think some of the spark from starting a whole new series there is gone.

We have all followed Kate through many dangers and personal growth throughout this series, that I am really satisfied with this ending of this book and series. I will be sad when I look next year for the next book in this series and there not be one, but what do they say "All good things must come to an end". Also if you can recommend a series that you loved as much as this one, let me know. I need to find a new series to love :)

Enjoy!!!