Monthly Archives: April 2013

Book Review of Harper Alexander’s The Queen, the Jack, and the Master, #1 & 2

I downloaded Harper Alexander’s Ace and Ace of Hearts (The Queen, the Jack, and the Master, #1 & 2) from Amazon’s KDP list.

Description from Goodreads:
“There will be crime on your hands, and treachery on your heels. A cruel, cruel world on your shoulders, and no flowers on your grave. And the joke, well…unfortunately, bless your heart, the joke will be on you. Only you. For there is a presence of hostility whose fangs are sunk deep into your future. There are gnashing teeth on your heels and around every bend. There is a price on your destiny. The bounty hunters among the angels will be after you. There is no stealth, Lady Spade. There is only running. So I suggest you run.”

If she had been so lucky, Ace might have received just such a warning. But the entirety of the point, here, is that she’s not. She has been chronically hapless from the web of the womb. Cursed with relentless, ruthless misfortune. Her very own entourage of bad luck, its signature everywhere, its shadow widespread and swift. The only compensation for this forsaken fate, destiny’s sole remedy: the fact that she is gifted and lucky at cards. Grossly lucky.

But survival is far from sympathetic. And not all games are as easy as cards on a table.

Review:
I couldn’t log into Goodreads last night for some reason, which means I couldn’t see my TBR list [the horror]. I was forced to pick something from my kindle essentially at random. I chose Ace. It starts with an A so it was early in the list. I was too lazy to keep looking. Decision made, end of.

I started it largely without reading the description. I’m sure I did when I downloaded it, but who know when that might have been. I didn’t know what I was getting into and this isn’t one of those books that tells you the plot on page one. Once I figured out what was going on, however, I started to really enjoyed it. The writing is sharp and theres’s a certain snappiness to the narration that I liked a lot. I kept on enjoying it until…

If I used star ratings on this blog I would say that I was set on giving it a full five stars right up until the last page, when it just suddenly and unexpectedly ended. There was no tapering off, no conclusion of the plot, no closure with the characters, just a harsh, ragged ending. It was as if someone had ripped several pages out (except that i was reading the Kindle version). It’s 338 pages long, so it’s a complete book, not one of those teaser novellas that are all the rage right now. But there is NO ending. This is not a stand alone book. I hate that! It’s my current number one literary pet peeve. I would almost drop it all the way down to three stars out of simple irritation, but that really wouldn’t be fair. But really, who wants to finish a book and not know the ending?

Lack of satisfying conclusion aside, I liked almost everything else about this book. (Except for the fangs explicatives. It was a cute idea, but there were just so fanged many of them.) It did take a startling long time to figure out where the plot was going. I don’t just mean that it’s such a intriguing mystery I couldn’t figure it out. It felt a bit like it was drifting. Characters have to find their quest, or obstacle to over-come and it took a long time (most of the book actually) for Ace to find hers. If in fact she did. Given the lack of ending it’s hard to know if the final escapade was THE ONE or just another one. That’s part of what made the abrupt ending so harsh. It felt like she had JUST, finally gotten started. Be that as it may, I enjoyed her crazy, unpredictable, curse-ridden journey, even when I didn’t know what it was supposed to be accomplishing. (OK, I’m letting it go now.)

The whole thing had a strange Douglas Adams feel to it. It’s a completely different genre, of course, dragons instead of space ships, lack-luster primitives instead of depressed robots, but the random nature of events felt similar. So did the humour. Ace’s non-plus acceptance of her curse and the unexpected places it took her is very reminiscent of Arthur Dent’s hapless trek through the galaxy at the behest of good old Ford Prefect. I laughed aloud more than once.

Ace, herself, is a strong female lead. Very little makes her loose her cool…very little but one, Mr. Cheater. Cheater gets on her very last nerve on a regular basis and I loved him. He was calm and collected, mysterious and dangerous, witty and just a little sexy too. I want more of him. There were very few meaningful side characters in the book. Palo is the only one I can even think of. But Ace encountered quite a few that popped in and then out again. They may or may not be of any importance.

All-in-all, I generally enjoyed the book, but there is just so much unfinished business that I feel very unsettled about it. (OK, so I couldn’t quite let it go.) What about the pirates, the crazy gypsy lady, the old woman and her amazing mansion? I want to know. I’ve got the sequel, Ace of Hearts. I’m really hoping it clears things up because I genuinely want to go back to loving this story.

Description from Goodreads:

Following her die-hard pattern of survival, Ace has taken to running again, leaving abandoned companions to tie up the loose ends of failed commitments. She has at last become a victim of involvement, however, and it is not so easy, this time, to up and leave everything behind. Scarcely free of it all, she is pulled right back into its complicated midst – and this time, people of authority are making demands.

As if it’s not enough knowing her frightful sense of bad luck is catching up to her – and therefore those around her – Ace’s involvement begins to weigh on her in ways not anticipated. Learning of the dark secrets of others actually leaves her with a conscience pertaining to sides she has chosen in this detour of engagement, and an evolving tactic of her gift with cards is drawing those she plays games with closer to her.

So close, she just might be developing the treacherous likeness of feelings for them. And this time, running is not an option. From the dawning humanity inside her, or the misfortune that now has the grounds to be more cruel than ever, threatening to descend on those that have come to mean something to her.

Review:

Ace of Hearts is every bit as good as (and as frustrating as) its predecessor Ace. It is just as well written. The narrative is just as sarcastic and indicative of Ace’s personality. Its plot is just as twisted and original and the characters are just as wonderful. But it is also just as incomplete. All of the threads are just as loose and all of the questions I had at the end of book one, plus some are still left unanswered. Thus, I am just as peeved now as I was then. (Then being the end of book one.)

Like the first book I probably would have given this one five stars if it actually ended. The ending isn’t quite as abrupt as in Ace, but there still isn’t any conclusion. The whole book, the whole freakin’ book builds up to one moment…and then it ends just before it happens. Honestly, what the bloody fangs is that? This means that I have now invested the time to read roughly 650 pages about characters I generally like and a plot I’m invested in seeing the end of without ANY payoff. This is exacerbated by the fact that there isn’t a third book yet and even if there was I don’t know how long the series is going to be. This means that I am left waiting for the continuation of the story and worried that even once it (Queen of Hearts I think it’s called) is out I’ll be left in the same boat again. This does not make me a happy camper, or reader. I know this issue may not bother others as much as it does me, but as much as I’m liking the story I don’t know if I’ll be continuing it. It’s starting to feel just a little masochistic to do so.

It’s such a shame too. The author is a truly talented writer. There is a lot of wit in this book, a lot of heart-felt emotion, and a couple really interesting characters. If, by chance, you are the sort who doesn’t mind the possibility of a never-ending story-line I highly recommend this series. I think I might be dropping it however.

Review of Lori Villarreal’s Twelfth Moon

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I chose Lori Villarrael‘s shape-shifter PNR, Twelfth Moon, from the Amazon KDP list.

Description from Amazon:
Cadence LaPorte is about to be hanged.

For weeks, U.S. Marshal, Jonah Kincaid, has been hot on her trail for the murder of his brother. His pursuit ends in a dusty Texas town at the scene of a lynching – namely, Cadence’s. Since revenge is at the top of his list, he saves her from death-by-hanging – for now.

Except Jonah thinks he’s been tracking a young boy.

And Cadence has this itsy-bitsy little problem: The women in her family are shape-shifting panthers, and once a year they’re compelled to mate with any male who happens to be in the vicinity – and become bound to him for life.

Jonah Kincaid is the last man on earth Cadence would wish to bind herself to. If she doesn’t find a way to escape him soon, she’ll be mauling the infuriating (handsome) U.S. Marshal – but as a woman, not as the panther.

Despite the obstacles thrown in their path, can two imperfect people find perfect true love?

Review:
Twelfth Moon was alright. I passed a couple pleasant hours reading it. It had its fun moments. I really liked Jonah. He was a good, kind soul, and I liked that. Candice…well, not as much. I didn’t dislike her, but when she fainted 13% into the book, I knew that she wasn’t going to make my favorite character list. The Apaches were marvelous.

It was a nice twist that the female was the shifter. I can’t remember reading a book in which this is the case. The rest of the story was fairly par for the course, though. There wasn’t much that stood out as new and exciting. Plus, I never could quite buy the whole I’ll be bound for life to any man I have sex with during this full moon, and I have no control over who that might be. I could roll with that punch as far as Candice having to mate with any male available during the particular full moon. Heck, it even makes sense evolutionarily by guaranteeing variety in the gene pool (though it obviously wasn’t associated with fertility in any way), but being bound to them for life just took it one step too far for me. I had hoped it would make sense after reading the book, but no, I still don’t get it.

I was also left a little baffled when, about 45% of the way through the book, the plot seemed to take a drastic and unexpected turn. I suddenly felt like I was reading a different book. It wasn’t that I disliked where the storyline went; it was just a little disconcerting to have it shift so unexpectedly. New people were introduced. Characters who had previously only been filler in the background were suddenly pulled in as active participants in the plot, etc. Then it did it again at the end when the book went all domestic on the reader, giving us the familial details. The fact that Jonah’s wealth was irrelevant to the plot but needed to be mentioned made me keenly aware that the men in PNR always seem to be obscenely rich. Anyone know why that is?

I don’t mean to infer that I didn’t like the book. It was a fun little read, if a little repetitive at times. I liked that in the beginning a bad thing didn’t almost happen, it actually happened. Villarreal didn’t allow Candice’s rescue until after the fecal matter had hit the rotating blades. It created realism. I think there is plenty more to come in this series too. Enough threads were left open for at least a few more books. I’d be interested in knowing if my guess for Candice’s sisters is right and where the story goes.

Book Review of R.S. Carter’s Days of Love and Blood

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Author, R.S. Carter, sent me a copy of her novel Days of Love and Blood. I also know that I’ve seen if on the free KDP list and until April 20th you can enter to win a paperback copy here.

Description from Goodreads:
A post-apocalyptic zombie book for women.

Without the zombies.

Worse than zombies.

The Demon Virus spreads worldwide in a matter of days leaving nothing but a few uninfected people in its path along with disease-riddled survivors who possess homicidal tendencies.

Carson drives across the country, back to her parents’ farm, with her son Ronan to begin a new life in a post-apocalyptic world. There she discovers more uninfected people like herself and attempts to build new relationships after the devastating loss of her husband.

Two men distract Carson from her grief, each possessing different characteristics that she found, loved and needed in her husband. Cooper has a bad attitude but gives Carson the space she needs with his self-sufficient, independent ways. Ben panders after her but exhibits a kindness she appreciates. Neither of them embody all of which she lost in her husband’s death.

The need for human interaction intertwines with the daily struggle of tribulation, remorse and adjustment, revolving around the constant battles between the uninfected and the last remaining homicidal maniacs. Days of Love and Blood is a story which examines the bonds created between people in times of change with an unexpected shocking end that will have you questioning your own threshold for pain.

Review:
I didn’t expect to like this book anywhere near as much as I did. You wouldn’t expect ‘sweet’ to be the word to come to mind when talking about post-apocolyptic zombies, but I really did think a lot of this book was. Not all of it of course. There was a lot of violence, some truly evil men, and heart break. I teared up at least once. But I also laughed a lot and most importantly Carson was a character I understood. She was… was… was… hmm, think Sarah Connor meets Beatrix Kiddo, who then takes on The Walking Dead. She’s one scary mama.

Really, the herding homicidal zombies are just the backdrop that gives this story a setting. Carson’s love for her son, grief, struggle to let herself accept love and go on with her life are the true story here. And it’s a good one. I liked it a lot. I also absolutely adored Cooper. He was flawed, really flawed, but his emotional honesty was heart wrenching. It and his good-‘ol-boy drawl were the star of the show as far as I was concerned. Ben, Ivy, Ronan and all of the others had their place too, but Cooper was my uncontested favourite.

Lastly, I appreciated that bad things happened. I don’t mean that in any sort of sadistic way. I just mean it’s realistic that there isn’t always a hero to show up at the last second to save the day. A lot of authors wimp out before allowing their characters to really suffer. That doesn’t happen here. Some of the latter scenes were hard to read and, honestly, I don’t know if I found it necessary for the plot to go there in the way it did. If for no other reason than it’s such an over-used plot device for creating outrage. I had come to expect more from the book. I know I thought the whole ‘this has happened before’ Schtick was a bit much for me. But I still appreciated the realism of allowing the story such dark elements.

My only real complaints are that the whole ‘warrior mother’ was a little heavy handed at times and I found some things a bit repetitive. But these are small qualms in a sea of rose coloured love. This book is definitely worth picking up.