New Books, Old Books, Read Books!
Spider’s Bite is what you’d expect from an Urban Fantasy assassin’s tale. Crazy characters, powers, and a whole lot of gore. This book would have been five stars for me, except for the cringe-worthy, predatory attitude Gin has towards Donovan.
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The running theme of the Mercy Thompson books is that there are consequences for everything. While recovering from the end of Iron Kissed, the events of Blood Bound come back to bite Mercy. Quite literally, given that the vampires are gunning for her this time. She’s not quite back to the sass level from the first two books, but she’s getting there, and I hope her mom (and her pretty pink gun) get more screen time in future books.
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Most of the suspense novels that I read fall closer to the thriller genre. So, it was a nice change of pace to read a more psychological book than action-oriented. The theme that all actions (good and bad) have consequences that still affect us decades later is brought to life by the juxtapositions of the lives of Christina, Zari, and the other women that fill the pages. If I had to use one word to describe this book, it would be ‘haunting.’
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I was hoping that the long build-up in King of Ashes would pay off. Did it ever! This book is aptly named because a storm hits the main characters, and none of them are left untouched by the fallout. It was a curveball I didn’t see coming, and it has been an incredibly long time since that has happened.
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The Black Beast of Belleterre does not hide that it is a Beauty and the Beast retelling and is all the better for it. Instead, it embraces reimagining the fairytale in Victorian England.
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Pulling Strings is a unique experience that has a lot going for it. The protagonist is an older female, and the idea of a puppeteer psychic is a fascinating premise. Unfortunately, this book is closer to horror than I enjoy, and grammar errors and awkward adjectives kept pulling me out of the story.
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It’s fun to go back and read earlier books from a favorite author. Sometimes it’s a reason to be grateful that the writer has changed their style, but not in this case. Stephanie Laurens’ debut novel is a light-hearted romp through Regency England.
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King of Ashes has a severe case of ‘First Book Syndrome.’ Introducing and maneuvering the main cast into position for Queen of Storms takes up the majority of the book. Thankfully, with the revelation of some of the political plotting at the end, Queen of Storms looks like it will be off to a good start.
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Poor Aria cannot get a break. I think after the events of this book, she will refuse to ever go on vacation again. Last time, she fell off a mountain, and now she is stuck in the Keys during a hurricane. Fortunately, she has Jake to come to her rescue while causing some chaos of his own. This is an action-packed thrill ride that I would have given five stars to except for the yo-yo effect of the push away – pull together aspects of the romance.
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The Way of the Brave puts the suspense into the Romantic Suspense genre. Unlike most of the books in the genre, this one does not have a human antagonist. Instead, the characters face off against the unforgiving Mt. Denali. Orion and Jenny are forced to face their past together in Afghanistan while weather traps them on the mountain. While the book got very technical on the ice climbing information, it was an enjoyable read and sets the stage nicely for Jake and Ham’s books.
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