Monthly Archives: December 2016

Off Base

Book Review of Off Base (Out of Uniform #1), by Annabeth Albert

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Off BaseI received a copy of Annabeth Albert‘s Off Base from Netgalley.

Description from Goodreads:
After trading the barracks for a fixer-upper rental, navy SEAL Zack Nelson wants peace, not a roommate—especially not Pike, who sees things about Zack he most wants to hide. Pike’s flirting puts virgin Zack on edge. And the questions Pike’s arrival would spark from Zack’s teammates about his own sexuality? Nope. Not going there. But Zack can’t refuse.

Pike Reynolds knows there won’t be a warm welcome in his new home. What can he say? He’s an acquired taste. But he needs this chance to get his life together. Also, teasing the uptight SEAL will be hella fun. Still, Pike has to tread carefully; he’s had his fill of tourists in the past, and he can’t risk his heart on another, not even one as hot, as built—and, okay, yeah, as adorable—as Zack.

Living with Pike crumbles Zack’s restraint and fuels his curiosity. He discovers how well they fit together in bed…in the shower…in the hallway… He needs Pike more than he could have imagined, yet he doesn’t know how to be the man Pike deserves.

Review:
This was a pretty sweet little romance. I liked the way Albert played with the roles a bit and made the big bad Navy SEAL the vulnerable, confused character. Pike was almost a saint for putting up with Zack as long as he did.

I was a little squinked out with Pike’s insistence that Zack come out of the closet. In a lot of ways that’s the primary plot of the book, Zack coming out, be it for Pike or himself. But he was very clearly in a situation that wasn’t safe to come out in, so the whole inferred, ‘prove your love by coming out’ was uncomfortable for me.

The writing is smooth and easy to read, though the book did feel a little on the overly long side. Lastly, I did not realize until I was done with the book that it is a spin-off of another series (Gaymers). So, for those like myself, who are wary of spin-offs, this one stands on its own just fine. All in all, worth reading.

Book Review of Ready Set Rogue (A Studies in Scandal #1), by Manda Collins

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I won an ARC of Ready Set Rogue, by Manda Collins, through Goodreads:

Description:
When scholarly Miss Ivy Wareham receives word that she’s one of four young ladies who have inherited Lady Celeste Beauchamp’s estate with a magnificent private library, she packs her trunks straightaway. Unfortunately, Lady Celeste’s nephew, the rakish Quill Beauchamp, Marquess of Kerr, is determined to interrupt her studies one way or another…

Bequeathing Beauchamp House to four bluestockings—no matter how lovely they are to look at—is a travesty, and Quill simply won’t have it. But Lady Celeste’s death is not quite as straightforward as it first seemed…and if Quill hopes to solve the mystery behind her demise, he’ll need Ivy’s help. Along the way, he is surprised to learn that bookish Ivy stirs a passion and longing that he has never known. This rogue believes he’s finally met his match—but can Quill convince clever, skeptical Ivy that his love is no fiction?

Review:
I’d give this a 2.5-3 stars if I was using stars, here on the blog. I very much appreciated that Ivy was self sufficient and frequently acted with a lot of agency. I liked that there was a character likely meant to be on the autism spectrum, a severe introvert and a single mother who had overcome her own past trauma.

However, I felt the plot was a weak one. It’s basically insta-lust that bloomed into love out of nowhere and the mystery was just an excuse to throw the characters together. This impression solidified when the villain announced themself before the characters identified them and told their whole plan, start to finish, with no prompting. Such that the characters didn’t really have to solve the mystery in the end. I also felt cheated that after all the build up, we never saw the end result of the romance. That was all off page.

My main complaint however was that Quill, the hero, notably WAS NOT A ROGUE. If I pick up a book called Ready Set Rogue, I expect a rogue. Quill is a single man in a historical romance novel, and I suppose the term rogue is morphing to mean just that, but I still consider a rogue a ‘dishonest or unprincipled man,’ a ‘knavish person’ a ‘scoundrel.’ Quill is polite, principled, loyal and not even a player. He’s a gentleman in every way—politically, socially and behaviorally—NOT A ROGUE. This annoyed me to no end.

I was reading an ARC and there were some pretty significant discrepancies in the time line and contradictions in event, but I have every faith that these will be cleaned up before the book’s final print run. That the repetitive phrasing, over-use of ‘bluestocking,’ and anachronistic language will be isn’t as guaranteed, but it was readable even as an ARC.

As an aside, I don’t think the cover fits the tone of the book or the description of Ivy (who was curvy with glasses), but that’s just my opinion. I’m not a huge lover of historical romances, so there’s a chance someone who is will overlook those things that so annoyed me. All in all, I found it to be an OK read, not bad but not very good either.

What I’m drinking: organic Irish Breakfast tea form the Traveling Tea Shop.

Book Review of The Masked City (The Invisible Library #2), by Genevieve Cogman

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The Masked CityI borrowed a copy of Genevieve Cogman’s The Masked City from my local library.

Description from Goodreads:
Working in an alternate version of Victorian London, Librarian-spy Irene has settled into a routine, collecting important fiction for the mysterious Library and blending in nicely with the local culture. But when her apprentice, Kai—a dragon of royal descent—is kidnapped by the Fae, her carefully crafted undercover operation begins to crumble.
 
Kai’s abduction could incite a conflict between the forces of chaos and order that would devastate all worlds and all dimensions. To keep humanity from getting caught in the crossfire, Irene will have to team up with a local Fae leader to travel deep into a version of Venice filled with dark magic, strange coincidences, and a perpetual celebration of Carnival—and save her friend before he becomes the first casualty of a catastrophic war.
 
But navigating the tumultuous landscape of Fae politics will take more than Irene’s book-smarts and fast-talking—to ward off Armageddon, she might have to sacrifice everything she holds dear….

Review:
Darn it, this is the second book in a row that turned out to be a second in a series. Unfortunately, with this one I didn’t realize that it is a sequel until at least halfway through. It’s definitely followable without reading the first, I just had to overlook the references to action from book one. Doable, but annoying.

I generally really enjoyed this. I liked Irene as a heroine. I liked how it turned the damsel in distress trope on its head by having her save her male apprentice. Some of this was compromised by the fact that she had to beg a king and a male fae for assistance and a male side character came to her rescue, but in the end she rescued him too and carried the day (with the assistance of two men, but who’s counting). She was definitely the initiator of most of the action. Yay. I thought the dialogue was brisk and there was a lot of humor. But I thought the writing was repetitive and occasionally overblown.

I was consistently irritated to have the otherwise adult narrative interrupted by Harry Potter-esque magic, such as magical, inter-dimensional traveling wardrobes characters climb in and out of. And I flat out hated the Language (which is a magical ability). Every single one of her blunt magical directives read as cheesy and unbelievable, not to mention too convenient for comfort.

Perks for having women in positions of power, even if predominantly in the background, giving most the active authoritative positions to men. And extra perks for allowing for more than het seductions and the presence of at least one gender queer character.

Lastly, I would have liked one more chapter at the end, showing what happened to Irene once she returned to the library and faced her superiors, but I did enjoy the bonus content the reader is given instead. (Just not as much as I’d have enjoyed a little more wrap-up to the plot.)

What I’m drinking: Generic, loose-leaf green tea. As in, I put it in a pretty little tea tin and no longer remember where it came from or what brand it might be. As far as I’m concerned, it’s just green tea. It’s a nice brew though.