Review - Death Times Two

Death Times Two by C.J. Ellison and Boone Brux

- Provided by the author for review.
- A Tiny Reverse Vampire Review

5 out of 5 tiara wearing bats

I am an avid fan of C.J. Ellisson and the VV Inn series so I was thrilled to get this new novella.  
        
Asa is back and finally its his turn for a little love. It is a different side of the ex-military vamp and it lets his character be seen a lot more.

        
I had never read Boone Brux before but after being introduced to Lisa I'm looking for more to read. Lisa is great. The spunky attitude mixed with the neat little abilities she gets to show are fun. And yeah she may have some baggage (widow with kids) but that doesn't mean she is not a hot mom looking for some fun.

         
Put Lisa and Asa together at the VV Inn with a gaggle of ghost how may or may not want to be reaped and it is a story that will have you both laughing and intrigued. 
         
Good reading to you and beware ghosts who try alternative positions. ; )

Fairy Tales...The Prequel

The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani

5 out of 5 tiara wearing bats

I love this book.  The characters really come to life.  It makes you think of all the different fairy tales.   Have you ever noticed that in those all the characters seem to have certain survival skills.  Well now we know why that is.  It’s not just some coinsidence, they went through training. :)

Love the set up of the town beyond the woods and really hope to see a sequeal or at least short stories explaining the towns connection to the fairy tales more.  I have to admit if I was a member of this town and sure I was going to the good school, I would happily open all my windows and doors the night of the school master’s visit.

The differences and dynamics of the schools are awesome.  The good school’s candy classrooms really would be so tempting, I’m amazed that more of the classrooms don’t get eaten.  The descriptions the book paints for the different rooms in the dungeons of the evil school and the halls of the good school really make you feel like you’re there.

Hester is one of my favorite characters.  She is the Sheriff of Nottingham’s daughter.  She tends to be the leader of their little group and has a really competitive spirit.  I like her talent too.  One of the best parts where you get to see her personality is when she is talking about her father and how he promised her the first swing of the axe.  

The main characters play wonderfully off of each other.  Their friendship survives despite some twisted fairy tales coming true.  Although a couple of things about them are easy to see there are tons of unexpected twists to their stories. Their talents are so fitting but not what you would think.

I can’t say much more without giving things away so I’ll just say this, this is one of the top five books of the year for me.  This is a good read, don’t let the book’s size scare you, it draws you in and goes really fast.  Hoping to see more of this world.

Rooting for Redemption

Rewrite Redemption by J.H. Walker

* Spoilers are highlighted like so :)
* Book received from the author for review

5 out of 5 tiara wearing bats

This is one of my favorite books that I have read in a while.  I loved the characters, at first sight both of the main characters catch your interest.  A.J.’s back story is so sad and yet awe inspiring. To have to live with losing her mother at such a young age and feeling responsible.  And god having to live with never knowing what will happen next.  At any moment to having to be ready to pretty much disappear, not knowing completely when or where she is going to end up.

Constantine’s story pulls you in right away to the world of the editors. Letting you see even before you know the extent of their abilities that even the littlest mistakes can have the gravest effects.

The science of how everything works with the time travel is amazing.  I love that it is all interlinked with the trees and the different rings.  The guild is set up nicely, I enjoyed the forethought that went into how the editor genes are spread.  Hard for the government to takeover when the traits literally are just who wins the genetic lottery.

Ever the non main characters are alive enough that they jump off the page.  Lex is fantastic.  One of my favorite scenes is when Lex takes on her mom.

This is one of my top five recommended to be read books. Short chapters and a good paced plot keep you reading as the story layers and loops upon itself with twists and turns that you may or may not see coming. Even if time travel normally isn't the type of thing that would get your attention I say give this book a try.  It might surprise you.

I look forward to seeing what is next in the world of these books.  And J.H. Walker I do hope you are serious about the next being on the way cause I am waiting.

Courtly Cougars

Surrounded by Woods by Mandy Harbin

* Spoilers are highlighted like so :)

 

5 out of 5 tiara wearing bats

I love this book, it is a fun read that starts interesting and just gets better. The whole shifter thing is neat. I have read other books about shifters but I like the story and bit of background that is given.

Being a shifter ain't all good and this book decently does let you see the good with the bad as there are four brothers looking for mates still after the fifth one died in a failed attempt.

Great strong charectors along with a fun plot told from multiple points of view come together to make a book that you just can’t put down. I finished it in a night and am looking forward to the rest of the series.

Angstful Adventures

* Book received from the author for review

Five out of five tiara wearing bats

This was one of those books that I knew by the synopsis that it was going to be a great read.  I had no clue though that it would have me completely hooked by the end of chapter one.  Chapter one is only five pages long. The story hooked my interest fast and kept me along for the ride.  The author was good at keeping you guessing.  Surprises were layered throughout about all characters.

I am an avid fan of the underdog hero and this book may have taken that even farther.  Humor abounds mixed with a good amount of action and fun to make up this story.  I like the setting, it seems like high fantasy but uses common language.  The twists and turns will take you on a wild ride in this world where Magic literally is running rampant.

I think the thing I like most about this book is the difference in the main form of magics that it shows.  Instead of spell casters it is different imbued abilities that some people have.  All with positives and negatives. My favorite character is Rose.  Although I was able to tell what her magic ability was early on I never saw the downside to it coming.  I love that if she had listened to Angst and not come along, they would have all perished at least once.  Score one for Victoria’s judgment in sending her.

I don't want to spoil anything so I’ll just leave it at this, if you’re looking for a great read pick up Angst (yes that really the main character’s name) and see exactly how much a stout, middle aged, stonemancer, office worker, with a  wannabe knight complex, and a
giant sword can do.  


Favorite Quote: “When opportunity knocks, it's typically hard and in the back of the head.” (pg. 61)


* You can find out more about Angst by checking out:

David J. Pedersen's Blog: http://gotangst.blogspot.com
Amazon : http://www.amazon.com/Angst-ebook/dp/B004D4ZZ54/
B&N: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Angst/David-Pedersen/e/2940011870057/

A Tiny Reverse Vampire Review

Bodacious Beat

* Book provided by the author for review

* Tiny Reverse Vampires comments are written in red

5 out of 5 gnomes and 5 out of 5 tiara wearing bats

This book is filled to the brim with paranormal goodness.  There is so much happening at once that you get pulled in right away and get taken on quite a wild ride.  I love the world building and the myriad of undeads that there are.  If you're a fan of just about any kind of paranormal creature there's a good chance that you will see them in this book.  

Victoria Wolfe is a werewolf who works as both a human policeman and an enforcement officer for Necropolis the city that runs parallel/dimensionally with the human one.  She has a great snarky attitude and a heck of a tragic background.

One of my favorite things about this story is how the werewolves are described/how they live.  First of all the special suit so they don't have to worry about clothes is genius (although itchy :) )(because waking up naked or turning back to human in a group while naked could be rather awkward.)  I like that there are different forms too, that of human, werewolf, and wolf.  It's also fun that they tend to exhibit canine-like traits while in human form like butt wagging when really happy. It is also cool that they can  talk in all the forms. They just sound a bit different.

Another interesting part is that these two cities are literally side-by-side and you kind of have to shift your way of seeing to be able to take in both places or just one place.  It is really neat how the landscapes overlap and kind of run together.  I love that it shows that although they are seperate worlds almost they are joined.   Seeing both worlds isn't easy for most humans and tends to drive them crazy.  Even for a seasoned undead like Victoria it can be weird switching back and forth between the two.  

The romantic relationships and friendships are all handled very well. Victoria has had her share of exes but thinks her new love interest may be the one.  Her exes are an intriguing bunch and they all seem to still care very much for her.  

The mystery of who's trying to kill a lot of people/end the world is suitably mysterious and just about everyone is suspected at one point or another.  There are definitely some surprises along the way that I didn't expect.

The end of the book was really cool.  Almost all the big/major bad guys that you can think of show up and Victoria's plan is crazy/potentially deadly.  I also love her new group that has formed by the end of the book. I can't wait to see what happens next in the world of Necropolis.


New characters to adore -

* Sexy Cindy - more than she appears to be and also very good at saving the day (I would totally choose to be a succubus too if it meant I could fly :) ) What more can you ask for than teacher turned street walker turned succubus. (and I would be one too, succubus sisters save the day :) )
* Freddy the Zombie - (surprisingly smart and saves the day in a very interesting way.) love the zombies they are neat and have useful little tricks)
* Rover the white worm -  (would love to have one of these as a pet, I would call him Wilbur.) I would raise and train these for a living if I could.
* Ralph - (a werewolf with a cause, who has a very funny scene involving clothes.) I did lol at this one.

RTS IRL (Real Time Strategy In Real Life)

Echo's Revenge by Sean Austin

* ARC provided by the author for review

5 out of 5 tiara wearing bats

Echo's Revenge is a great read, it keeps you guessing.  You never are a hundred percent sure what's going on. 

The game descriptions in the book had me picturing online Echo's Revenge the game as a mix of Team Fortress Two and Half-Life.  Being an MMO player myself, I like that they show the interactions between the people playing and actually have personalities come through.  It just gets better when they meet in real life. 

It's every gamers nightmare/dream to see things like this happen.  I spent most of the book questioning if it was all a game and even at the end I'm not sure.  The setting feels realistic and really none of it is completely unfeasable. Lets just say, crazy hackers and an android slowly behaving like it wants to take over the world = a bad situation.

Everything will keep you guessing.  It's well worth the time spent reading and is an easy fun read.  My favorite character is a draw between Scratch/Claw and Snake.  Scratch because you have to love the girl gamer among the guys who can hold her own and Snake because his personality is just easy to connect to.  I want the next book NOW!!!


* Check out http://www.echohunt.com/ for more information and cool features.

Shadow Embrace

Embraced by the Shadows by Mayra Calvani

* Received for review

First of all a definite 5 out of 5 tiara wearing bats for this little story.

Do you ever feel a presence watching you from behind, following you and protecting you.  Could it be that you have a Guardian Angel?  No that’s just your vampire stalker.  This book draws you in and then keeps giving you reasons to read more and more.

I like that the mortal who bonds with a vampire starts to gain little traits that allude to it (i.e. eating nearly raw steaks, unstoppable urge to watch the bloodiest movies and shows to see the gore, and licking raw liver leavings.)

It is interesting how things lead into each other in this book.   It ties everything together really nicely even with a couple of sub plots all going on at the same time.  Oh and the mystery with her mom’s death is done very well, I didn’t even have a clue until the reveal.

I want the clubs and restaurants from that world to exist. If Fangs was located around here I would definitely be a regular.  And that serpent necklace would so have to be mine it sounds so pretty.

This is a wonderful read that will keep you wondering and really draw you into the story.  I liked the unique view of vampire society.