another winner!

Dark Side of the Moon by Sherrilyn Kenyon

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Being a Northwest girl, I LOVE that this one was set in Seattle. We still got some crossover with some squires from previous books (relocated to Seattle temporarily from New Orleans by Katrina) so that worked well for me.

I'm also glad we get Nick back in this one. Once again, a fun read, lots going on, good solid characters who actually GET each other rather than just being spurred on by lust, though the lust is good too. :)

I did kind of feel like our pair didn't really get their story wrapped up entirely, but that actually works better for me. I prefer some open ends to a quick and tidy wrap up. It leaves me to imagine where they went from there and feels less contrite.

Thanks for another great one. Can't wait to dive into the next.



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Kiss of the Night

Kiss of the Night by Sherrilyn Kenyon

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I'm loving this series, and this one was one of the best so far.

The plot development and fight scenes are fun. The hero is strong (and Viking), but sad, lonely and wounded. The heroine is real, strong, and not at all whiny. Plenty of witty banter, and we get a reunion of characters from the previous stories. Winner!

I'm forever amused in each book, how the couple always has a happily-ever-after that includes mandatory babies. Can't wait to move on to the next book.



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Lovely

Fantasy Lover by Sherrilyn Kenyon

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


What a sweet, lovely story. Truly, so much more than I expected to find.



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The Plagiarist

The Plagiarist by Hugh Howey

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Loved this take on the ancient question of whether our dreams create worlds, and whether our own reality is just the fleeting dream of another. Like a house of mirrors reflecting reflections, looking for the real one.

I ordinarily only give this high a rating for stories that contain chickens, or sinkholes (five stars if they have both), but this one was close enough to hinting at chicken or the egg that it counts. :)



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THAT'S what I'm talking about!

Here Kitty, Kitty! by Shelly Laurenston

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


It's official. Shelly Laurenston is officially my favorite Shifter author. Her heroines are edgy, imperfect, scarred and insecure... and STRONG as hell. Mean girls on steroids, with knives and guns, they earn those alpha males. Tooth and nail.. and claw. These are so my people! Lunatics. It's the kind of crazy that earns respect in prison.



I especially appreciate the ballsy humor. You know, that and the shifter animal lust that we expect from this genre. But what fills in around the sex, is funny, and darkly sweet, and makes me wish I was a part of that pack.



It's so much more than just another mating frenzy that magically turns in to twoo wuv for no apparent reason than some magical one of a kind smell they put off. It's more about family. And for a bunch of shifters, they sure do seem REAL.



I think my favorite part of all is a bunch of shifters, sitting around watching "The Howling" on cable, bitching about how unrealistic it is, but all too lazy to get up and get the remote to change the channel.



Priceless.





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Unraveled

Unraveled by C.J. Barry

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Another winner.

A fun, delightful steamy romping adventure through space. With a black lab. Named Elvis.



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All Nighter

Unearthed by C.J. Barry

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Super fun read. Hitchhikers Guide meets Indiana Jones, meets... Star Wars? Spaceballs?



Funny, entertaining, kept me up all night reading.



It was like hanging out with a bunch of really awesome people for a weekend. You know you can't make a life out of it, but it sure is fun and leaves you smiling.



I never rolled my eyes once. Lusty Quest-y Adventure.



Pick this one up, relax and enjoy it.



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Molly Molly

Molly Fyde and the Fight for Peace by Hugh Howey

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I've been wandering around in a funk all week. I completely devoured this series of books in the space of about a week, and now that it's over, it's like I fell in love, had a whirlwind romance, and then I woke up and it was all a dream.



I was completely swept away by the story, the characters, I laughed, I cried, I laughed again, and when I reached the last page, I desperately tried to get my Kindle to turn just one more.





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More Molly

Molly Fyde and the Land of Light by Hugh Howey

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I think the most endearing and moving undercurrent in this series is how the characters all endure such trials, challenges, even horrors and torture, and emerge without being irreparably scarred, even still with this cloak of innocence. They are courageous, even when they feel paralyzed with fear, and never quit even when it seems they are trapped and there is no way out.

It is this lingering innocence that seemed to lend them their strength and moved them forward with hope, even as they faced the impossible. *I* about gave in to my despair more than once, while these brave ones soldiered on.

Awesome.



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MOLLY

Molly Fyde and the Parsona Rescue by Hugh Howey

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


If Hugh Howey's Wool are like crack, then surely Molly Fyde is the gateway drug. Fortunately, I didn't need a Medical Molly card to get me some.

I haven't been really swept off the planet by a story like this since I was 12 and read A Wrinkle in Time



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WOOL 4

Wool 4 - The Unraveling by Hugh Howey

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


With the unraveling, you would think it meant things were coming apart, but it's really just starting to come together.



LOVE. THIS. SERIES.



Can't hardly wait for Wool 5. But, you know, I will.



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WOOL 2

Wool 2: Proper Gauge by Hugh Howey

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I can't wait to get into Wool 3!

Hugh Howey is my favorite discovery of 2012! More! More!

(Did find it funny that the one instance of actual knitting and she's using cotton.)



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WOOL 3

Wool 3: Casting Off by Hugh Howey

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Love the knitting metaphors in the titles, by the way. In knitting, you really don't know how a project has turned out until you cast off and can hold it up free of the needles.



With each installment of Wool, a character (or two) are cast off, and a character or two are picked up and carried along. It's taking shape, the patterns are flowing. Even though it seems a short distance between a character's introduction and their eventual demise, I feel a pang of grief at their passing. And move on to begin a relationship with the next.



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WOOL

Wool by Hugh Howey

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I stumbled and tripped over this story while looking for knitting/spinning books for my new Kindle. Finished reading it in about an hour, and eagerly purchased the next of 4 pieces (of the eventual 5). This story literally takes you down rabbit hole and even when you reach the end of this one, you still don't know what happened. The last few pages, let you think you have it figured out at least four times and then leave you dizzy with your brain spinning about what the heck just happened. And knowing that you have only just scratched the surface.

The series is like those potato chips, no way you can read just one...




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More Reading

My Lord Viking by Jo Ann Ferguson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I liked this one. It wasn't as saucy as I usually expect and enjoy in a romance novel, but what it lacked in explicit sex, it more than made up for with the appearance of several well described and researched Norse gods throughout the story. I was especially surprised and pleased to see Frigg make an appearance. We all expect to see Loki and Odin around every corner (though I was surprised by the glaring absence of Thor), but having Frigg be the couple's cheerleader and champion felt very true to her strong, wise character. And Loki's character as the half-mad trixter was equally masterfully crafted.

The only thing that felt awkward and halting to the flow and really unnecessary was the whole bit of our hero being blinded, and then a rushed scene where this mysterious "blood enemy" happens to come into the room and is slain by our heroine. All described by a blind man who can't see what's going on. Seems to me, this blood enemy didn't even need to follow him to this time, it wasn't critical to the story at all and just seemed like it was pasted in there to fill space or something.

Otherwise, fun story, strong and honorable hero. Though I couldn't help but imagine him as a Disney cartoon guy, like in Beauty and the Beast, about 7 feet tall, crazy huge shoulders and chest, hands that could wrap a fist around your head, and tiny feet.



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Fires of Winter

Fires of Winter by Johanna Lindsey

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Delicious and tawdry. I still read romance novels for the same reason I still watch Days of Our Lives and The Young and the Restless. Impossibly pretty people, manipulating and scheming their way through the predictable and repetitive storylines. It's comforting in its familiarity, if not it's depth of plot or character development. But I don't care. I'm here to get swept away by something sexy and that's what I get.

A "respectable" romance novel generally earns 3 stars for delivering what I expect, but I always appreciate the hearty and lusty Viking elements, so that in itself elevates this one to 4 stars.




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