Book Reviews

Special Saturday Post: The Falcon and the Stag by C.J.R. Isley

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The Falcon and The Stag: A Tale of Alamore by [C. J. R. Isely]

The Falcon and the Stag by C.J.R. Isley is a short story that introduces her “William of Alamore” series. It is a story of kingdoms and knights, and two brothers, the oldest who had been prepared to take the throne, and the youngest who wanted it.

This short story is filled with tension, suspense, conspiracy, and sibling rivalry. C.J.R. Isley does a fine job introducing the characters and showing their personalities and character, drawing the reader into the story and encouraging them to choose sides.

C.J.R. Isley captures and holds the reader’s attention from the first to last page, writing strong dialogue and tense scenes of confrontation and sword-fighting. C.J.R. even manages to throw in an unexpected twist or two.

This story is acceptable for young adults and adults. It may also be acceptable for middle grade readers, though there is some violence — nothing too graphic.

This short story is well worth the read, but be warned — after reading it, you’ll want to pick up the first book in the series, Ranger of Kings, which is exactly what I plan to do.

I give The Falcon and the Stag by C.J.R. Isley 5 stars.

Wrong Place, Right Time by E. B. Roshan

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About the Book:
Anna Belko is a young woman living in the city of Dor. There is unrest in the city. Anna meets Boris Merkovich at a cafe called Oksana’s, when she stops for a cup of tea. A relative of Boris’s was killed but he doesn’t have time to grieve because he has to run the cafe. He nearly spills a pot of tea in Anna’s lap, and she prays for him.

Boris is deeply touched by Anna’s prayer for him and so begins a love neither of them expected.

However, stuck in a city filled with hatred, it soon becomes clear that the hatred isn’t just “outside” and Boris and Anna’s relationship is threatened.

The story, though centered around Anna and Boris, includes several other characters, including Anna’s parents and one of her brothers, whom she is close to. The story is filled with danger and troubles between the Sevian people and the Tur people.

As the violence escalates near their home, Anna’s parents decide to move to Dovni where things are not so volatile. Anna remains behind with her brother.

My Review:
The plot kept me turning pages. The characters captured and held my attention. The characters were realistic, and I cared about them and what happened to them. My heart ached for Anna and Boris as they struggled with their environment and their feelings for one another.

E.B. Roshan did an excellent job showing the difficulties of living in an area where danger and hatred are a part of everyday life. Not only did E.B. Roshan clearly show the dangers, Roshan did an excellent job expressing the thoughts and feelings of the people stuck amidst the struggles.

The story was very well written. Though it was a story about hatred and violence, the violence was not overly descriptive or gory.  It did not need to be to touch the reader’s heart and help the reader understand the setting and what was happening. I also liked how Roshan showed that hatred is a choice and no one has to allow it to consume them.

E.B. Roshan wrapped up the ending quite nicely, but even so, I was sad to finish the last page and say goodbye to these characters.

I really enjoyed this story and highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a well written story filled with struggles and different types of loving relationships.

I give this story 5 stars.

 

The Chosen Ones by Lisa Luciano

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Have you ever watched the Figure Skating competitions of the Olympics? Years ago, I remember watching the likes of Scott Hamilton, Dorothy Hamill, Brian Boitano, Katarina Witt, Elvis Stojko, Viktor Petrenko, Oksana Baiul, and Kristi Yamaguchi. And who can forget all the drama between Nancy Kerrigan and Tonya Harding? These skaters and the Kerrigan — Harding drama had me riveted to the screen.

Now, let me ask you another question: how many times did you think the judges didn’t give the skater, you thought gave the top performance, high enough scores? I know I often disagreed with scores. However, I never suspected that there was a story behind the scores.

That’s what The Chosen Ones by Lisa Luciano is about. Lisa was a sports reporter who covered Figure Skating for “The New York Times” and “International Figure Skating Magazine”. She includes four of the Figure Skating Articles she wrote for the New York Times near the end of this book.

No, this story isn’t about any of the ice skaters you may have followed on their Olympic journey. The characters and their stories in The Chosen Ones are fictional, but some of the scandalous, sometimes desperate, behaviors and corruption among judges’ scores are based on facts discovered by Lisa while she covered Figure Skating in her journalism days.

The story has a lot of characters, which, in the beginning, was a bit difficult to follow, especially as Ms. Luciano does a lot of head-hopping without page breaks, frequently jumping from one character’s head to another’s from one paragraph to the next. Therefore, it was sometimes difficult to determine whose head I was in sometimes as I was reading, and I had to back track to figure it out. However, in order to really give the reader accuracy and the actual feel of figure skating competition, I honestly don’t know how Ms. Luciano could have written a story as accurate and compelling as The Chosen Ones, with fewer characters.

Also, as I continued reading, I became accustomed to her head-hopping writing style and became very involved in the lives of the characters.

The story was full of drama and conflict. I loved some characters and disliked others, but every one of them kept me turning the pages to see where this was all going and who was going to be a winner, who would be a loser, and who would lose his life before the end of the Olympics.

The only warning I have to issue, because those of you who follow my book reviews know that I do not read books with sexually explicit scenes, is that this book has a few of such scenes, which I was not aware of when I agreed to review this book.

However, if you can skip or overlook such scenes, and have a love or fascination with Figure Skating, you will not be disappointed with this book.

Because of the trouble I had following the characters in the beginning chapters of the book and because I was disappointed to find the unexpected sexual scenes in this story, I give this story four stars.

Reviewer’s Note: I was given a free copy of this book for my honest review.

Additional Book Review Posts

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Hi Everyone. I want to make you all aware of my new addition to this blog. I have been posting Book Reviews here on my blog on Mondays. However, as I have become a much more sought after Book Reviewer, reviews won’t be posted soon enough if I don’t add another day for Book Reviews.

Therefore, from now on, Book Reviews will be posted on Sundays AND Mondays, beginning this coming Sunday — tomorrow, when my review of The Chosen Ones by Lisa Luciano will be posted. Then, for those of you who enjoy reading my Book Reviews, be sure to stop by and check out my Sunday and Monday Book Review posts every week.

Keeping Creed: A Samuel Creed Novel by Shaun Holt

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Keeping Creed (Samuel Creed series Book 1) by [Shaun Holt]

I won a signed copy of this book via a Twitter contest. It is not Shaun Holt’s first novel. However it is the first novel by Shaun Holt that I have read.

About the Book
In the first part of the book, Samuel Creed informs his oldest brother that he wants to enlist in the military. His oldest brother tells him he’s too smart and should do something else with his life. However, Sam’s oldest brother, Sawyer, is killed in the September 11th attacks, leaving behind a wife and a daughter. This event solidifies Sam’s determination to join the military, now with a strong desire for revenge.

The story follows Sam to Afghanistan, where he fights several combat tours, before he returns and reunites with his family. Still feeling a need to finish what he started in Afghanistan, he obtains a job with a counter-terrorism agency in Washington, D.C.

In addition, his niece introduces him to Tessa, a librarian with a love of literature.

My Review
After the initial introduction to the main characters, I felt the pace drag a little after the death of Sam’s brother. For several chapters the focus remains on September 11th and Sam’s brother’s death a little longer than I thought was necessary. However, it did not lag enough for me to put the book down.

The story’s pace picks up again when Sam gets to Afghanistan, and the pace doesn’t drag again. I found it very interesting reading about Sam’s military experience, but my favorite parts of this book are when Sam is home and spends time with Rose, his niece. Sam and Rose have a relationship that is so much fun to read. He challenges her and has deep conversations with her, and has fun with her. Their interactions are completely delightful.

When Sam meets Tessa and they begin a relationship, I find myself skipping quite a few scenes due to the fact that they are sexually explicit, and I prefer not to read sexually explicit materials. I found that skipping these scenes did not take away from the story, as there was nothing of importance to the actual plot in those scenes. (I did not know until I had won the book that there were such scenes in it. However, the author does state that fact quite clearly in the early pages, before the story begins.)

I must say that Shaun Holt is a very good storyteller. He engages the reader and his characters are well-written. Some are endearing and very likeable. Some are very interesting, and maybe a little irritating until you get to know them, just like some people in real life.

Near the end of the book, Mr. Holt included a twist that completely surprised and shocked me. I never saw it coming, and it was extremely well written.

All-in-all, I enjoyed this story and its characters and I give it 4 stars.

I have to say that I am inclined to read the next Samuel Creed Novel, when Mr. Holt releases it because I love the characters, and for me, characters are what make a story. Of course, there has to be a plot to keep things interesting, create tension, and move the story forward, but, in my opinion, without great characters, even a great plot loses something.

Mr. Holt included a bit of the upcoming Samuel Creed novel at the end of this one, and I am already intrigued.

Perpetual Check by F. Nelson Smith

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Perpetual Check by [F. Nelson Smith]

I received a free ebook copy of Perpetual Check and was asked to read and review it. I was not obligated to write a review. However, this review is my honest opinion of this book.

Perpetual Check by F. Nelson Smith is a mystery that takes place between the decline of the Soviet Union and the dawn of the computer age.

Dani Morden is a young woman who loves and teaches history. To escape her controlling mother, she agrees to take a trip to England with her Aunt Lucy. Dani fully expected to be bored.

However, it isn’t long before a murder victim falls at their hotel room door and they become the prey of unknown hunters who believe Dani has something they want. Dani and Lucy don’t know who to trust and who not to trust.

Dani and Lucy also decide to try to solve the murder mystery on their own.

In addition, Dani is filled with bitterness she needs to deal with, as well as a problem she is not even yet aware that she needs to resolve.

F. Nelson Smith created a cast of unusual characters and a story plot that has more twists, turns, ups and downs than a roller coaster ride.

I must admit the story kept me turning pages until the last third of the book. In the last third of the book I felt the pace slowed a little too much and I believed the mystery could have been solved sooner.

However, near the end, there were more twists and surprises that kept me turning pages, yet again, until the end. I enjoyed how F. Nelson Smith wrapped up the mystery, as well as decisions Dani needed to make at the end of the story.

I give this story a 4-star rating.

 

Lander’s Legacy by C.S. Wachter

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Lander's Legacy by C.S. Wachter

When Pop-pop Ian dies, Lander is left alone, not fully understanding the unusual powers he has. He quickly realizes that he is being pursued and he needs to find Castor Elm, the only person Pop-pop said he could trust. To find Castor, Lander has to outsmart his pursuers to travel to Castor’s home.

On his way to Castor’s home, Lander finds friends in a city who help out at a mission. As any normal teen, Lander feels out of place in his unusual clothes and he wants to impress Becky. Becky and one of the other teen boys take Lander shopping. He feels comfortable with these teens and enjoys helping at the mission. He wishes he could stay here indefinitely. However, an unexpected and unfortunate event makes it clear that Lander needs to continue on the quest for which Pop-pop Ian has instructed him.

Upon arriving at Castor’s home, Lander is not welcomed with the open arms he expected. Frustration fills Lander because he has no where else to turn. When he accidentally reveals his ability to cause certain stones to glow, Castor suddenly becomes interested in Lander. When Lander explains what Pop-pop Ian has told him and that Pop-pop is dead, Castor informs his family that Lander will be staying.

“Lander’s Legacy” by C.S. Wachter is the first book in a new series from a writer who has already proven she can deliver good fantasy stories with her 4-book series and sequel, “The Seven Words” series.

Once again, she holds her readers’ attention as she spins a tale of suspense and adventure as Lander must learn more about his special powers. “Lander’s Legacy” is an enjoyable, easy read. Lander and the other teen characters are well written and it’s obvious C.S. Wachter knows some teenagers, as her characters are very much like the teenagers I know.

“Lander’s Legacy” is a coming-of-age fantasy novel that follows Lander on his journey to find his place in this world or maybe in another. It is a story that is fitting for middle grade readers as well as Young Adults and Adults.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a fantasy story of suspense and adventure. I look forward to the next book in this series.

When You Were Mine by Alessa Martel

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I received a free copy of When You Were Mine by Alessa Martel for my honest review. I was not obligated to write a positive review, and this review is my honest personal opinion of this book.

When You Were Mine is the story of Jenny, who chose to go to a college far from home after her relationship with her boyfriend comes to an abrupt end. She thought if she stayed away, she’d be able to get past it and move on. However, when summer break arrives and she has no choice but to return home to a small town where everyone knows everyone and their business.

Her life becomes very uncomfortable when people make their opinions of the breakup known and try to advise here as to what she needs to do. Things get even more awkward when she continues to run into Michael.

I found the first couple chapters of this book very slow paced and a bit redundant. However, when Emily returns home and has to face quite a few surprises and unexpected problems, the pace of the story picked up enough to hold my attention and keep me turning pages.

This book is written for YA girls and it has a couple good lessons in regard to relationships. It is a clean, sweet romance story about second chances. It is an enjoyable read and fairly well written. I highly recommend it for YA girls, but think Adult women would find it a bit slow, and would have some difficulty relating to the main characters.

A Step Through the Empty by H.E. Salian

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A Step Through The Empty (The Vis Remaining Trilogy Book 1) by [H. E. Salian]

A Step Through the Empty by H. E. Salian is a debut novel. It is a fantasy story.

King Brynte has not been king very long and he faces many challenges, one of which is gaining the trust of his people. He is also faced with an arranged marriage he is unsure of.

Princess Istoria leaves her home to marry a king she is certain will make her life miserable, and soon finds herself thrust into a position where she must determine whom she can trust and whom she cannot trust.

In another world, an assassin has no loyalty to his master, which puts his life in danger, and could jeopardize other secrets he keeps.

Also, on earth, someone has sent information to a man who works in cyber security, information that is important for those in another world.

I found A Step Through the Empty a very unique story, in that it is a fantasy story that includes a king and princess in a castle that, at first, seems to be set in medieval times, but quickly proves otherwise as computer type technological devices are used. This led my mind to consider the possibility of “steampunk”. However, that idea was also put to rest as one very interesting character was introduced — a fantastical character. Then there are the different worlds, not to mention the Empty.

The most unique thing I found was how the author incorporated earth and some humans, like me, into the story, and how most of the characters from the other worlds were also normal humans.

Most of the characters in this story are endearing and I found myself rooting for quite a few of them and hoping they would survive until the end of the book. Many of the characters have become favorites, and their relationships with one another varied from delightful, witty, fun, and endearing.

Then there were the few characters I disliked and couldn’t wait to see them get what I thought they deserved.

A Step Through the Empty kept me turning pages from start to finish, and now I cannot wait for the next book in the series. I cannot wait to reconnect with these characters and see what happens to those I have come to dearly love.

This is definitely a book deserving of 5 stars and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys fantasy or any great story.

I received an ARC of this story. I was not obligated to write a review, and this review is my honest personal opinion of this book.

The Opening Night Murders by James Scott Byrnside

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The Opening Night Murders: An Impossible Crime Murder Mystery by [James Scott Byrnside]

The Opening Night Murders by James Scott Byrnside is set in Chicago in 1935 and is written like the old classic murder mysteries. It is James Scott Byrnside’s second book.

Detective Rowan Manory and his sidekick, Walter Williams, work to solve the murder that took place at The Red Rising Theater on opening night of a new play. While they try to find and follow clues for this murder, more murders follow.

Detective Manory and Walter are reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes and Watson. Walter is quite witty and brings humor to the tragic situations. He is a delightful character.

The cast of characters make for suspicious and possible suspects.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. James Scott Byrnside did a great job creating interesting characters, twists and turns and complications that led from one murder to another. This book kept me turning pages and had me guessing until the very end as to “whodunnit”.

The ending was well done. The murders were solved and there was a surprise and unexpected twist in the explanation.

The Opening Night Murders by James Scott Byrnside was very well written and I highly recommend it to those who love a good murder mystery. However, I will add a caveat in regard to language — there is quite a bit of profanity in this book.

I did receive a free copy of this ebook for my honest review. This review is my honest opinion about this book.