Review: Last Man Standing

Title: Last Man Standing

Author: Keith Taylor

Genre: Horror / Short Story

Publisher: Keith Taylor

Publish Date: May 1, 2012

Available at: Amazon

I received a free copy of this story for an honest review.

Summary:

Paul McQueen is the sole survivor of a zombie outbreak that happened in Bangkok. He is now a global celebrity. Now he’s telling the real story about what happened when the zombies attacked.

Review:

This is a brutally vivid story about how one man survives a zombie outbreak in Bangkok.  It’s a deeply evocative look at survival and  what we’ll do to survive. It’s also about the consequences of those actions.

These zombies are unlike your stereotypical zombies. They can run, they use their fists, and sometimes their hearts beat. Of course they have supernatural strength. Life wouldn’t be fair if they didn’t have supernatural strength.

This story may only be 15 pages but it certainly packs a punch. I wasn’t sure what to expect so I went into it with an open mind. The zombies were scary. Paul McQueen wasn’t pathetic for all his boozing ways. He made my heartache. It wasn’t a cheesy zombie story and it had a rather tragic end.

This story was an unexpected delight, if you could call it that. I enjoyed it a lot for all its brevity.

On My Wishlist (13)

On My Wishlist is a fun weekly event hosted by Book Chick City and runs every Saturday. It’s where we list all the books we desperately want but haven’t actually bought yet. They can be old, new or forthcoming. It’s also an event that you can join in with too – Mr Linky is always at the ready for you to link your own ‘On My Wishlist’ post. If you want to know more click here.

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Title: Retribution Falls

Author: Chris Wooding

Genre: Steampunk

Available at: Amazon – Barnes & Noble

Frey is the captain of the Ketty Jay, leader of a small and highly dysfunctional band of layabouts. An inveterate womaniser and rogue, he and his gang make a living on the wrong side of the law, avoiding the heavily armed flying frigates of the Coalition Navy. With their trio of ragged fighter craft, they run contraband, rob airships and generally make a nuisance of themselves. So a hot tip on a cargo freighter loaded with valuables seems like a great prospect for an easy heist and a fast buck. Until the heist goes wrong, and the freighter explodes. Suddenly Frey isn’t just a nuisance anymore – he’s public enemy number one, with the Coalition Navy on his tail and contractors hired to take him down. But Frey knows something they don’t. That freighter was rigged to blow, and Frey has been framed to take the fall. If he wants to prove it, he’s going to have to catch the real culprit. He must face liars and lovers, dogfights and gunfights, Dukes and daemons. It’s going to take all his criminal talents to prove he’s not the criminal they think he is …

I found this book via the Goodreads recommendations filter. Some hail it as a Firefly simulacrum. While I’m not expecting an exact likeness, I wouldn’t mind some similarities. After all, this is a Steampunk book and Firefly was a Sci-Fi series. Exact is not what I’m going to get.

I haven’t had much of a chance to read my Steampunk books and I miss delving into that genre. It still looks like a fun ride. I look forward to the day when my to-read pile gets a little thinner and I can purchase it.

Review: Bitterblue

Title: Bitterblue

Author: Kristin Cashore

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: DIAL

Published Date: May 1, 2012

Available at: Amazon – Barnes and Noble

Summary:

Bitterblue is now 18 and has advisers recommended to her by her uncle, King Ror. They are forward- thinking men and wish to obliterate all memory of her father, King Leck’s hateful reign.

The young queen starts to sneak out of the castle at night and comes upon two thieves that only steal what has been stolen. They teach her that the kingdom can only heal from the past if it revisits the past.

Review:

This was a charming book. I loved it from beginning to end. Bitterblue was enchanting as she learned what it was exactly to become queen of her people. She was at once, self-assured yet entirely self-conscious. A juxtaposition I found intriguing.

Teddy and Sapphire, the two thieves, were infectious. They were so likable I wished they had their own books with their own starring roles. They complimented each other so well. Teddy with his easy ways. Saf with his moody yet fervently loyal mien.

It was wonderful to see the return of many characters of old. Such as Katsa, Po, Bann, and Raffin. They stayed true to form and it was a joy to have a dose of them once again.

The plot was well crafted and kept me entertained. There was a part where Bitterblue discovers a cipher her mother embroidered in the linens. I think that was one of my absolute favorite parts even though it was not vital to the plot. Cashore kept it realistic enough for me to believe it all the way through by making sure that Ashen abbreviated words. Otherwise it just wouldn’t have been realistic for a woman to have embroidered whole sentences into linens in cipher as a diary of sorts.

There were bittersweet moments and tense moments of action. There were brilliant moments of joy and even moments of laughter. You couldn’t have asked for anything more from a book.

Except the book was open-ended and there were some questions left unanswered. You can only hope there are more books to come at some future date.

Review: Children of the Cross

Title: Children of the Cross

Genre: Paranormal

Author: Lawrence Van Hoof

Published: April 2012

Publisher: Lawrence Van Hoof

Available at: Amazon   – Smashwords

A golden fireball crashes into the Walters’ car during their drive to the cottage for summer vacation. Thirteen-year-old Cora survives without a scratch. Her twin brother, Nathan, spent two weeks in critical care and endures months of rehabilitation.

Nine years later, Cora works as a high-end call girl in Toronto and looks after her brother, who began suffering from schizophrenia during their last year of high school. On the streets, meanwhile, a supernatural mafia hunts for the Light. None of them knows where it will manifest. None of them knows how it will manifest. But their leader, Teresa, believes the Light is her only chance to destroy their progenitor before he wakes from his centuries-long sleep.

When their search finally bears fruit, Cora’s daily struggles explode into one for the twins’ very survival, perhaps requiring the ultimate sacrifice of all.

I received a free copy of this book for an honest review.

The Good:

The character development in this book was well done. You got a definite sense of each person.

I don’t necessarily find fault with the author’s style of writing. It’s very easy and smooth. He transitions from the view point of Cora the call girl to her brother Nathan to Alex, a soldier in the “supernatural mafia” well.

The author is also good at visual descriptions. I could picture the streets they walked very well. I could picture the dresses Cora wore. I could see Nathan’s apartment. It all came vividly to life.

This is a great dark and gritty novel. It gets into the harsh world of what it means to be a call girl. No illusions are left for the reader as to what a hard life Cora leads as she takes care of her schizophrenic brother.

The same can be said for Alex. As he fights off the nightmarish psychic hold of “the Father” with alcohol, his life is nothing but hardship. All his friends and loved ones have died or been taken away from him. This is starkly laid before you.

The Bad:

If anything, this book was too dismal and depressing. there wasn’t a single ray of hope until the very end. Reading it took extreme effort.

Cora’s life was so hard, I didn’t understand why she didn’t throw in the towel and run away. Instead we are given to understand she is some sort of church-going angel that sticks to what she believes is her duty no matter what.

If it weren’t for the blurb, I would have really had to puzzle out that Nathan was her twin. It barely mentions that fact. Yes, he’s her brother but her twin? No, that fact was only glanced at.

As for Alex? What a lost cause! He was running around town on some hell bent mission that I never did end up figuring out. I think it was revenge but he was also looking for “The Light”.  All the while he’s chugging beer after beer after beer in an effort to drown out “the Father”.   I got sick of his throwing beer bottles at the walls and his search for the next beer.

Then there was “the Mistress” and her hopelessly devoted soldiers. She was unstintingly cruel and spoiled. Yet she commanded the devotion of all these men? It just seemed skewed and wrong. She didn’t seem like the head of a “supernatural mafia” so much as a spoiled child given a bevvy of servants.

What about Paul? There are a whole lot of unanswered questions about him. So many I can’t enumerate them here without giving away too much of the story in case you do decide to read it.

And what about those weird sexual dreams Cora kept having? What was the point of those? Were they just meant to unsettle the reader? They seemed wildly divergent and off the mark. Not to mention disturbing.

The climax and resolution were chaotic and confusing. I wasn’t exactly sure what was going on. There was a kidnapping. They confronted “the Father”. People died. There was a big showdown. There was a happy ending? What? What just happened?

This book was like a buffet where you were just given an end table.

My experience with this book was most unfortunate. Your experience might be different. If it is, I’m willing to have a discussion.

Review – Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict

Title: Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict

Author: Laurie Viera Rigler

Genre: Fantasy/Romance

Publisher: Plume

Publication Date: June 25, 2009

Available at: Amazon – Barnes and Noble

In this sequel to “Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict“, Miss Jane Mansfield finds herself in the body of Courtney Stone in the year 2009. This 19th century girl needs all the help she can get from such friends as Wes, the sexy website developer. As she grapples with the transition from 19th century life to 21st century life, she also finds herself wondering if Courtney made the right decision to break the engagement with Frank.

I really enjoyed what was essentially a parallel novel to “Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict“. Jane’s reactions to 21st century life appeared very realistic.  I delighted in Jane’s adventures while at the same time felt quite anxious for her adjustment to all the changes.

What was particularly wrenching was her realization of the sexual revolution. You can imagine her shock and horror over what she imagine was the ruination of her ‘reputation’ after she learned she had slept with her ex-fiancee. All the more chagrined was she when she learned that Wes knew about it, to put it mildly.

Seeing her evolve into an independent, modern woman was a joy. While we may romanticize the 19th century, life for them wasn’t exactly a walk in the park. It made me appreciate the freedoms I have. Maybe I won’t take for granted what is so common to women these days.

There were pockets of predictability and repetition that kept me from completely enjoying and immersing myself in Jane’s world. Her reactions became a broken record at times. It wasn’t often and it wasn’t always the same situation, but it was enough to give me pause.

There was also the matter of the mysterious fortune-teller with her sage advice and her magical tricks. I thought the matter of her reappearing in this book was a little too snug for my liking. I think Jane accepted her too much at face value. I’m not too sure a 19th century girl would just accept what is essentially a witch so sagaciously.

The end of this book makes the end of the other book much more clear. All my questions are answered and I’m satisfied in that respect, but the resolution felt rushed and hurried. It was also too neat and pat, but I suppose that could be typical of romances which I’m not all that used to reading.

Despite its speed bumps, I still enjoyed myself!

Review – Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict

Title: Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict

Author: Laurie Viera Rigler

Genre: Fantasy/Romance

Publisher: Plume

Publication Date:  August 2, 2007

Available at: Amazon  - Barnes and Noble

Courtney Stone awakens to find herself not only in Regency-era England but also in the body of Miss Jane Mansfield. This 21st Century Jane Austen addict needs all her wits to try and maneuver herself around the ins and outs of the courtship of Mr. Edgeworth and the machinations of Mrs. Mansfield. Her adventures take her to picturesque Bath and the bustling London where she encounters her heroine Jane Austen herself.

This lighthearted book was exactly that, a lighthearted read. It wasn’t meant to be taken in a serious vein. Courtney’s humorous quips had me smiling as I imagined any 21st century girl in her situation doing the same. Although critics would retort that as a Jane Austen addict she should know have known better.

Case in point, when a woman remarked to her about  place that was Hargrove Court, Courtney replied with “the retirement home?”  I can’t help but think that Courtney was being sarcastic, but maybe I’m giving her the benefit of the doubt.

There were unanswered questions in the book. Such as how the real Jane Mansfield knew about certain events in the 21st century. That was never developed but maybe that will be developed in the subsequent book. Again, maybe I give Rigler the benefit of the doubt.

Another glaring question came at the end when you were left wondering how exactly the situation resolved itself. I was left with more questions then answers and that’s never satisfying.

I do think that although Courtney confessed to reading Austen over twenty times, she wasn’t an avid scholar of her works. She did confess to reading Austen for the familiarity of her words over anything else. I think that explains her gaps in knowledge when it came to certain aspects of Regency life.

I admit to growing tired of Courtney’s reiterations of getting back to her time and her non-acceptance of her situation. She also tended to harp overly much on her choice of men to the point of whining. Other then that I enjoyed her character. She showed spunk in an otherwise impossible situation.

As a fun and humorous read to be taken without a serious light, I did enjoy this book.

It’s Monday! What are you reading? (3)

This Monday meme is held by The Book Journey. Feel free to join in and tell us what you’re reading!

Title: Masque of the Red Death

Author: Bethany Griffin

Genre: Dystopian Fantasy

Available at: Amazon – Barnes and Noble

From Amazon:

Everything is in ruins.A devastating plague has decimated the population, and those who are left live in fear of catching it as the city crumbles around them.So what does Araby Worth have to live for?Nights in the Debauchery Club, beautiful dresses, glittery makeup . . . and tantalizing ways to forget it all.But in the depths of the club—in the depths of her own despair—Araby will find more than oblivion. She will find Will, the terribly handsome proprietor of the club, and Elliott, the wickedly smart aristocrat. Neither is what he seems. Both have secrets. Everyone does.And Araby may find not just something to live for, but something to fight for—no matter what it costs her.

I’m loving this book! I didn’t read the short story by Poe so I didn’t know what to expect. I did end up reading a summary of the story on Wikipedia to give me some background. I also downloaded it so that I might read it after I finish the Griffin novel.

As far as the Griffin novel goes, I really am enjoying it. I heard about it from a Goodreads and book blogger friend, Blook Girl. It has elegance and a touch of Gothic to it that I’m truly loving. I only hope it doesn’t end in a cliffhanger. I’ll finish it in no time at all so I’ll find out soon enough.

What are you reading?

Review – Orphan’s Gold

Title: Orphan’s Gold

Author: David Loeff

Genre: Sci-Fi

Publisher:  David Loeff

Available at:  Amazon

 I received a free copy of this book for an honest review.

Orphan’s Gold is about young Virgil who sets out to the Colorado gold mines in search of his father. Once there he finds out that his father has died when the mine collapsed. Virgil is determined to find out for himself whether or not his father is really dead. He  breaks through the tunnel only to find a strange room. Once he emerges the world is a different place. His adventures take him to such places where wooly mammoths exist and ambulances scream through the night. He finds out he has the power to save humanity.

While I did enjoy this novella, I thought it lacked depth. Virgil never fully developed into a 3D character for me. He never became anyone other then a “kid with a good-nature”. Sure, he had adventures and he had relationships but his emotions never fully came to play. However I did admire him for his strength and resilience when they came to play in the situations he faced.

Argoura, the love interest of Virgil, was the most interesting character for me. She had the most depth out of everyone involved including Virgil. She had a range of emotions I couldn’t quite decipher in any of the other characters.

As far as the time traveling machine goes, I had a hard time believing it went undiscovered so long. However once I let my issues go, I managed to enjoy the story.

On My Wishlist (12)

On My Wishlist is a fun weekly event hosted by Book Chick City and runs every Saturday. It’s where we list all the books we desperately want but haven’t actually bought yet. They can be old, new or forthcoming. It’s also an event that you can join in with too – Mr Linky is always at the ready for you to link your own ‘On My Wishlist’ post. If you want to know more click here.

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Title: The Gray Wolf Throne

Author: Cinda Williams Chima

Genre: Fantasy

Available at: Amazon – Barnes and Noble

Han Alister thought he had already lost everyone he loved. But when he finds his friend Rebecca Morley near death in the Spirit Mountains, Han knows that nothing matters more than saving her. The costs of his efforts are steep, but nothing can prepare him for what he soon discovers: the beautiful, mysterious girl he knew as Rebecca is none other than Raisa ana”Marianna, heir to the Queendom of the Fells. Han is hurt and betrayed. He knows he has no future with a blueblood. And, as far as he”s concerned, the princess”s family killed his own mother and sister. But if Han is to fulfill his end of an old bargain, he must do everything in his power to see Raisa crowned queen. Meanwhile, some people will stop at nothing to prevent Raisa from ascending. With each attempt on her life, she wonders how long it will be before her enemies succeed. Her heart tells her that the thief-turned-wizard Han Alister can be trusted. She wants to believe it—he”s saved her life more than once. But with danger coming at her from every direction, Raisa can only rely on her wits and her iron-hard will to survive—and even that might not be enough. The Gray Wolf Throne is an epic tale of fierce loyalty, unbearable sacrifice, and the heartless hand of fate.

The Gray Wolf  Throne is the third book in the Seven Realms Series. I have the first two books in my library but I never did buy this one. I’m not sure why not. I really want to read this series and I keep meaning to set aside the time to do so but other things keep getting in the way.

Maybe one day soon.

Review – The 19 Dragons

Title: The 19 Dragons

Author: S.M. Reine

Genre: Steampunk

Publisher: S.M. Reine

Publish Date: July, 7 2011

Available at: Amazon

From Amazon:

DEAD GODS. WAR. AND THE END OF THE WORLD.

There are nineteen provinces in the Land held aloft by nineteen pillars. Above the earth there is sky, and nobody knows what goes below except the Nineteen Dragons.

That is all you need to know, but that is not all there is to be known.

The Device has been stolen and the godlike Dragons have been rendered mortal. Someone is murdering them one by one, and each death brings the world closer to its end. Unless the the Device is somehow restored to its deceased owner, the Dragons are doomed to destruction– and the human world will go with them.

Review:  (There are spoilers in this review.)

This is a strangely compelling story with its unusual formatting and odd cast of characters. There isn’t any one protagonist that truly seems to have stuck out until the end when Number Two saves the day along with her cousin dragon Number Five who is also  Number 19. Yes, that point is rather confusing.

Yet somehow it all works in favor of the novella. There are odd twists and turns at every corner of this story. It keeps the pace up and kept me engaged. There were dirigibles or air balloons and air gun ships. There were other automaton that weren’t well-described and I felt like they could have been to give the story more of a Steampunk flavor.

Otherwise I was very pleased with the way the story went. It flowed around the 19 dragons and their colorful tales. Each of them were unique and flavorful with their own unique characteristics. I don’t consider that an easy task when you consider there were 19 of them. Some of them passed more quickly then others. Some were given more attention then others. All were interesting in their own way.

I enjoyed the fantastical elements Reine included with her dragons. She kept them majestic and noble. Only deigning to don human vessels out of absolute necessity.

For such a short story I thought it was well done. The romance was more then a little rushed, but it was in keeping with the odd tenor of the whole tempo of the book. I have no real complaints about that.

All in all an enjoyable read.