**I received a free copy of this book from Goodreads First Reads for the purpose of writing an honest review**
DETAILS: Emancipation: A Civil War Vampire Novel, Book One of The Thirsty Ones, by Pauline Ray. Copyright 2012. Historical fantasy.
SUMMARY: When plantation owner's daughter Ella Lantry's child with her slave boyfriend is taken away from her, she is determined to get him back; even if it means teaming up with the vampires that roam the land.
PROS: This book was fast-paced and engaging. It was a combination vampire-alternate history book which I found unique in many ways. I liked the character of Ella who is a little innocent, but vengeful to a max. The story makes sense, the character's motivations are well thought out.
CONS: Some of the black slaves talk in such thick dialect that it can be hard to read. I could have done without some of that. Also some of the violence and cruelty perpetrated by the white plantation owners, while possibly realistic, was hard to stomach. This book is the first in a trilogy and the end left quite a bit hanging, which I didn't like.
BOTTOM LINE: A good, unique historical vampire book. Three stars out of five.
Showing posts with label book giveaways. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book giveaways. Show all posts
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Book Review: Endangered
**I received a free copy of this book from Goodreads First Reads for the purpose of reviewing it**
DETAILS: Endangered: A Zoo Mystery by Ann Littlewood. Copyright 2012. Mystery.
SUMMARY: When zookeeper Iris Oakley is called in to deal with illegal exotic animals found during a drug bust, she doesn't know that she is about to get caught up in a dangerous mystery.
PROS: A case could be made that this book started off a bit slow, but the setting and information about the zoo are so interesting and unusual that you don't even notice. The writing is tight and polished and the characters are refreshingly new. I thought I had figured out whodoneit, but it turns out I was wrong. By the two-third mark in this book, I couldn't put it down and ended up staying awake far past my bedtime to read the ending. A very enjoyable and unique mystery.
CONS: There were two or three "continuity" errors (it's a film term, but I'm not sure what the writing equivalent is) and a couple of typos which were a little distracting. It seemed the book could have moved from four to five stars with maybe a couple fresh eyes reading through it.
BOTTOM LINE: Very good, gripping and original. Four stars out of five.
DETAILS: Endangered: A Zoo Mystery by Ann Littlewood. Copyright 2012. Mystery.
SUMMARY: When zookeeper Iris Oakley is called in to deal with illegal exotic animals found during a drug bust, she doesn't know that she is about to get caught up in a dangerous mystery.
PROS: A case could be made that this book started off a bit slow, but the setting and information about the zoo are so interesting and unusual that you don't even notice. The writing is tight and polished and the characters are refreshingly new. I thought I had figured out whodoneit, but it turns out I was wrong. By the two-third mark in this book, I couldn't put it down and ended up staying awake far past my bedtime to read the ending. A very enjoyable and unique mystery.
CONS: There were two or three "continuity" errors (it's a film term, but I'm not sure what the writing equivalent is) and a couple of typos which were a little distracting. It seemed the book could have moved from four to five stars with maybe a couple fresh eyes reading through it.
BOTTOM LINE: Very good, gripping and original. Four stars out of five.
Monday, August 6, 2012
Book Review: Live by Night
**I received a free advance copy of this book from Goodreads First Reads for the purpose of reviewing it.**
DETAILS: Live by Night by Dennis Lehane. EXPECTED PUBLICATION: October 2, 2012. Historical crime fiction.
SUMMARY: In this sequel to The Given Day, Thomas Coughlin's youngest son Joe strays from the family path of law enforcement and becomes an outlaw and gangster in Prohibition-era Boston and Tampa.
PROS: This is a very good gangster book that could rival any others. Mr. Lehane once again proves to be a master storyteller. I enjoyed this one more than it's prequel, The Given Day, both because I liked the character of Joe better than the characters in the other book, and because I felt the book had a bit more polish. In The Given Day, I felt like it could have used a bit of trimming but this book was better paced. The setting and characters satisfied any craving I would have for a good 1920's gangster book without resorting to the millions of cliches that setting has created over the years.
CONS: Without giving anything away, let me just say I didn't particularly like the ending, but it wasn't bad enough to detract from the rest of the book and also could probably be justified. Also, and this is only sort of a con, Mr. Lehane once again demonstrates his almost-endearing habit of finding ever-more-creative ways to describe colors. Although, to be honest, I rather like this vice of his.
BOTTOM LINE: Top-notch gangster book with almost a literary bent to it. Five stars out of five.
DETAILS: Live by Night by Dennis Lehane. EXPECTED PUBLICATION: October 2, 2012. Historical crime fiction.
SUMMARY: In this sequel to The Given Day, Thomas Coughlin's youngest son Joe strays from the family path of law enforcement and becomes an outlaw and gangster in Prohibition-era Boston and Tampa.
PROS: This is a very good gangster book that could rival any others. Mr. Lehane once again proves to be a master storyteller. I enjoyed this one more than it's prequel, The Given Day, both because I liked the character of Joe better than the characters in the other book, and because I felt the book had a bit more polish. In The Given Day, I felt like it could have used a bit of trimming but this book was better paced. The setting and characters satisfied any craving I would have for a good 1920's gangster book without resorting to the millions of cliches that setting has created over the years.
CONS: Without giving anything away, let me just say I didn't particularly like the ending, but it wasn't bad enough to detract from the rest of the book and also could probably be justified. Also, and this is only sort of a con, Mr. Lehane once again demonstrates his almost-endearing habit of finding ever-more-creative ways to describe colors. Although, to be honest, I rather like this vice of his.
BOTTOM LINE: Top-notch gangster book with almost a literary bent to it. Five stars out of five.
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Book Review: Rogue
**I won a free advance copy of this book from Goodreads First Reads in order to review it.**
DETAILS: Rogue by Mark Sullivan. SCHEDULED RELEASE: October 2, 2012. Crime thriller.
SUMMARY: When Robin Monarch gets fed up with the CIA he works for after a job that isn't what he was told it was, he walks away and becomes a mercenary. But now he has the biggest job of his life and the stakes are higher than they've ever been.
PROS: This books is well-written and doesn't lag, which is important, I think, in this genre. Mr. Sullivan's plot is unique as far as I know, which is hard to do in an international crime novel, because so many of the same plots have been done over and over. I especially enjoyed the way the plot played out in the end of the book. His main character of Robin Monarch had an interesting back story, which, again, is nice in a genre filled with formula characters.
CONS: Some of the action and some of the plot points at the beginning were a little cliche, but not over the top.
BOTTOM LINE: This book is certainly enjoyable and while not what I would call outstanding, it is fun to read. Four stars out of five.
DETAILS: Rogue by Mark Sullivan. SCHEDULED RELEASE: October 2, 2012. Crime thriller.
SUMMARY: When Robin Monarch gets fed up with the CIA he works for after a job that isn't what he was told it was, he walks away and becomes a mercenary. But now he has the biggest job of his life and the stakes are higher than they've ever been.
PROS: This books is well-written and doesn't lag, which is important, I think, in this genre. Mr. Sullivan's plot is unique as far as I know, which is hard to do in an international crime novel, because so many of the same plots have been done over and over. I especially enjoyed the way the plot played out in the end of the book. His main character of Robin Monarch had an interesting back story, which, again, is nice in a genre filled with formula characters.
CONS: Some of the action and some of the plot points at the beginning were a little cliche, but not over the top.
BOTTOM LINE: This book is certainly enjoyable and while not what I would call outstanding, it is fun to read. Four stars out of five.
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Looking ahead!
TODAY BY NUMBERS:
Percent progress made on The Language of the Unheard: 0%
Rejections of Finding Innisburg: 0
Days until I go down to see my parents: 2
Awesome new book ideas: 1
Entries I have finished for a Kindle from the library: 4
So I won another book from GoodReads.com! I am super stoked about this one; it's Dennis LeHane's new book (he wrote Shutter Island, one of my all-time favorites, and Mystic River) called Live by Night and it is scheduled to be released October 2nd.
So inspired by this winnage (no, that's not a word), I decided to fill you guys in on the books I'm looking forward to reading; specifically, books that have yet to be released.
1. The Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman. Scheduled release date: July 31, 2012. (historical fiction, something about a lighthouse)
2. The Impossible Rescue: The True Story of an Amazing Arctic Adventure by Martin W. Sandler Scheduled release date: September 11, 2012. (Historical fiction about a lost whaling expedition in the Arctic and the attempt to rescue them)
3. The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin. Scheduled release date: August 21, 2012 (Historical fiction set in the Cascade foothills here in Washington about an orchardist who finds a couple of feral children)
4. The Double Game by Dan Festerman. Scheduled release date: August 21, 2012 (Story of espionage during the Cold War)
5. Miss me When I'm Gone by Emily Arsenault. Scheduled release date: July 31, 2012 (looks like a women's lit murder mystery.)
So what books are you looking forward to reading?
Percent progress made on The Language of the Unheard: 0%
Rejections of Finding Innisburg: 0
Days until I go down to see my parents: 2
Awesome new book ideas: 1
Entries I have finished for a Kindle from the library: 4
So I won another book from GoodReads.com! I am super stoked about this one; it's Dennis LeHane's new book (he wrote Shutter Island, one of my all-time favorites, and Mystic River) called Live by Night and it is scheduled to be released October 2nd.
So inspired by this winnage (no, that's not a word), I decided to fill you guys in on the books I'm looking forward to reading; specifically, books that have yet to be released.
1. The Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman. Scheduled release date: July 31, 2012. (historical fiction, something about a lighthouse)
2. The Impossible Rescue: The True Story of an Amazing Arctic Adventure by Martin W. Sandler Scheduled release date: September 11, 2012. (Historical fiction about a lost whaling expedition in the Arctic and the attempt to rescue them)
3. The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin. Scheduled release date: August 21, 2012 (Historical fiction set in the Cascade foothills here in Washington about an orchardist who finds a couple of feral children)
4. The Double Game by Dan Festerman. Scheduled release date: August 21, 2012 (Story of espionage during the Cold War)
5. Miss me When I'm Gone by Emily Arsenault. Scheduled release date: July 31, 2012 (looks like a women's lit murder mystery.)
So what books are you looking forward to reading?
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Winning!
TODAY BY NUMBERS:
Total word count of The Language of the Unheard: 52,251
Number of form rejections for Finding Innisburg: 0
Number of requests for partials for Finding Innisburg: 1 (yay!)
Number of books read in the last three days: 4 (I'm a fast reader)
Days until my Certified Nursing Assistant exam: 2
So I have gotten hooked on GoodReads.com the last few days. I have found so many new books I want to read and from there I have sorted them, placed a few holds at the library and discussed book favorites with other members. And best of all, they give away free books!!! I know! FREE BOOKS!!! Authors and publishers give them away before they are actually released in hopes of getting favorable reviews and a fan base. There are no strings attached; if you win, you are encouraged to write a review, but it is not required. So I've been entering for everything that I feel like I might be interested in, and today I found out I won a book!
The book I won is Rogue, a thriller by Mark Sullivan. It should come in 4-6 weeks and I'm pretty excited. When it comes, I'll post a review here for you all. It is being released October 2nd by St. Martin's Press.
So I would encourage all my reader readers (lol) to get on GoodReads and start entering drawings. It's fun, and even if you don't win, it's a great way to find out about books you might be interested in reading before they even come out!
So I'm eagerly looking for new reading material, preferably books released in the last 2-3 years. I like mysteries, thrillers, action-adventure, memoirs, literary fiction (if it's not too slow), chick-lit (no, it's not dead) and commercial fiction. I don't like romance, stories with sad endings (with a couple of exceptions), erotica, stories about drug abuse, sex abuse, or prostitution. So what would you recommend to me? I want to know, please comment below!
Total word count of The Language of the Unheard: 52,251
Number of form rejections for Finding Innisburg: 0
Number of requests for partials for Finding Innisburg: 1 (yay!)
Number of books read in the last three days: 4 (I'm a fast reader)
Days until my Certified Nursing Assistant exam: 2
So I have gotten hooked on GoodReads.com the last few days. I have found so many new books I want to read and from there I have sorted them, placed a few holds at the library and discussed book favorites with other members. And best of all, they give away free books!!! I know! FREE BOOKS!!! Authors and publishers give them away before they are actually released in hopes of getting favorable reviews and a fan base. There are no strings attached; if you win, you are encouraged to write a review, but it is not required. So I've been entering for everything that I feel like I might be interested in, and today I found out I won a book!
The book I won is Rogue, a thriller by Mark Sullivan. It should come in 4-6 weeks and I'm pretty excited. When it comes, I'll post a review here for you all. It is being released October 2nd by St. Martin's Press.
So I would encourage all my reader readers (lol) to get on GoodReads and start entering drawings. It's fun, and even if you don't win, it's a great way to find out about books you might be interested in reading before they even come out!
So I'm eagerly looking for new reading material, preferably books released in the last 2-3 years. I like mysteries, thrillers, action-adventure, memoirs, literary fiction (if it's not too slow), chick-lit (no, it's not dead) and commercial fiction. I don't like romance, stories with sad endings (with a couple of exceptions), erotica, stories about drug abuse, sex abuse, or prostitution. So what would you recommend to me? I want to know, please comment below!
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