Category Archives: book review

Review of A.D. Stewart’s Black Pyramid

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I grabbed A.D. Stewart‘s Black Pyramid (Ancient Breeds, #1) off of the KDP free list. As I write this (Feb. 11), I notice that it is free again. Don’t know how long that will last, though.

Description from Amazon:
In a time, when SandWalkers fight BloodSeekers for supremacy, it’s kill or be killed!

Down through time, we thought the lost civilizations died out.
We were wrong…
Find out the truth…
The secrets of the pyramids are about to be revealed…
In the first story within the Ancient Breeds Series

Ancient Breeds Novel:

Melissa Ambers travels to Egypt with one question on her mind. Why me?

Entering the Black Pyramid with mixed feelings- unsure how or why the giant sandstone pyramid appeared out of thin air, she risks everything, her job, her reputation, and her life to unearth the mysteries within.

Entering the tomb, it becomes increasingly apparent that something or someone dwelling within the dark, confines of the Black Pyramid is trying to keep her from learning the secrets buried within.

Entrusted with the powers to protect the humans from total annihilation, Siaak, the keeper of the pyramid, must do everything within his powers to keep the evil vampire, Osiris, locked inside, and trespasser out!

When two humans force their way into his pyramid, he has no choice but to get rid of them! For if they unleash the leader of the BloodSeekers, there is nothing on this earth that can save them again!

Review:
I generally liked the book. Siaak’s genuine desire to do good in the face of evil was wonderful, while his willingness to also kill mercilessly when needed provided a well-rounded understanding of his motivations. Melissa was a little firecracker. She was smart, witty, and fearless. Much like Siaak, I found her endless chatter annoying at times, not always though. I often thought she had insightful questions and could relate to her constant desire for more information, but there were times when lives were on the line (often her own), and I thought, ‘Jesus woman, shut the hell up.’

I really wanted to see the two of them complete each other. There was very little sex in the book, which is fine. But it seemed like, though Siaak could talk a good game (some of the things he says/describes are toe-curling, in a good way), they never seemed to smolder. They didn’t seem particularly impassioned. While his whole fangy thing was smexy, there wasn’t a lot of information (beyond his adamant denials) about the difference between his Sandwalker breed and the vampiric Bloodseeker breed. I kind of got it, but you just have to pick tidbits up along the way, and I never understood where the second breed came from. Was it a mutation, a divine intervention, always been there?

The side characters were fun too. Siaak’s brothers were each good in their own way. They filled the obligatory laid-back jester with unexpected wisdom and brooding, emotionally damaged, hostile roles. I look forward to each of their books ’cause you know that there’ll eventually be one for each of them. Then there was Mark and Elizabeth and the baddies…all good.

I did have a little trouble anchoring myself in time. The book started in Ancient Egypt, but one of the characters can time-travel, so there were a number of modern references that threw me for a loop. Plus, when two of them reenter the storyline after what I think was thousands of years, they leaped right into life (they knew people, one had a job, they had homes, etc.) I couldn’t figure out how that worked, even if time travel was involved.

There were a lot of brand references (Kindle Fire HD, iPhone, iPod, Tic Tacs, Ray Bans, and that’s before even getting to the clothing & shoes) that felt really forced. Why not just an e-reader (or even just a Kindle) or sunglasses? I did appreciate all of the pop culture references, though. Some of them really made me laugh.

In the end, I’d be happy to read another one should it be published. And for the record, I’ve seen a number of covers for this book, and this one (the one with three stacked guys on the front) is by far my favorite. Honestly, it’s the reason I picked the book up in the first place. Yummy.

The Seraph Contingency

Book Review of Jennifer Fales’ The Seraph Contingency

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Author, Jennifer Fales, sent me a copy of her novel The Seraph Contingency.

Description from Amazon:
The best adventure is the one you never expected: When Anael, a beautiful angel bored out of her gourd, sneaks through the Pearly Gates and lands in the only dive bar in Purgatory looking for excitement, she gets a bit more than she bargained for. Abducted courtesy of a devious demonic Duchess seeking to expand her wardrobe, she finds herself tortured, driven slightly mad and bereft of her wings. Rescue comes in the guise of Gaap, a reluctant guardian and hero who’s been asked to do a favor. He’s a powerful demon with a libido, a nagging conscience and some very interesting tattoos who gets paid to transport artifacts and beings safely in and out of Hell. What was meant to be a short trip to an inter-dimensional Safe House ends up being hi-jacked by a disaffected teenager turned bungling Satanist, stranding them briefly in Southern California. Then things really start to get weird in this twisted action packed fairytale turned inadvertent love story.

Review:
The Seraph Contingency is absolutely absurd, in the best possible way. The plot, all of the character, the setting, and almost everything that comes out of Anael’s mouth are all designed to send the reader’s mind cartwheeling off the beaten path. Nothing is held sacred in this book. Ms. Fales manages to make a mockery of Christianity’s hierarchy of angels, Satanism, ancient Greek mythology, the honourable tradition of K-pop music (not to mention Styx), public transit, and questionable fashion. But amongst all of the irreverence runs a good natured thread of humour. You can’t help but love Anael (crazy as she is), feel sorry for Gaap’s exasperation, root for the Duchess and bounce on your pins and needles to see what shenanigans the others might throw out next. There are a whole host of interesting side characters to choose from. If you’re looking for a serious read, I wouldn’t recommend this one. But if you have a few hours to spend alone (cause others might think you a little odd for laughing to yourself too often in public) this is one worth picking up.

As an aside I happened to notice on Goodreads that the author is currenlty running a giveaway. It ends Feb. 21st. So, why not go here and try to win a copy for yourself. 

sunset

Book Review of Arshad Ahsanuddin’s Sunset (Pact Arcanum, #1)

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I grabbed Arshad Ahsanuddin’s Sunset (Pact Arcanum, #1) off of the KDP list.

Description from Goodreads:

By Day

Los Angeles, 2040. When the terrorist known as Medusa threatens to kill millions with a stolen nuclear bomb, Nick Jameson makes a fateful decision. He reveals himself on global television as a Daywalker – a vampire with a soul. To save Los Angeles, Nick exposes not only his own gifts but three separate cultures based on millennia-old magic.

By Night

The three metahuman races exist in careful balance, working to maintain a fragile peace. Nick and his fellow Daywalkers successfully master their natural bloodlust. The Sentinels, armed with both magic and steel, repress their warlike instincts. And even some Nightwalkers, normally their natural enemies, have deserted the Court of Shadows to join the triple alliance. Nick Jameson is deeply involved with two such Nightwalkers – handsome Lorcan and powerful Rory. Both men love Nick. But neither can protect the new Ambassador to Humanity from the events he has set in motion.

By the Sword

Jeremy Harkness was lured into Medusa’s service under false pretenses. A loner with no one and nothing to cling to, he was willing to die for his cause. But the night Medusa tried to obliterate Los Angeles, Jeremy met Nick Jameson, triggering the onset of his own psychic gifts. For Jeremy is the third race of metahuman, a Sentinel, born to kill the Nightwalkers with no quarter asked or offered. And neither Medusa nor the Court of Shadows will settle for peace when they can make war

Slightly spoilerish Review:

I don’t know that I’ve ever read anything quite like Ahsanuddin’s Sunset. It presents an extremely structured and well thought out metahuman society that lives alongside a future humanity. Honestly, I thought it was just a little too magically and scientifically advanced, but I was willing to suspend my disbelief for the sake of the fantasy. I’m so glad I did, because it was a lot of fun. I adored the characters. There was a lot of witty repartee that made me laugh, the fight scenes were tight and the adventure kept me on the edge of my seat.

What I find so unusual, however, is that I think it reads a lot like a series of interconnected vignettes. It’s not mind you, but with all of the temporal back and forth it feel that way…like watching the frames of a film go by slow enough to see each one. Snick, a new scene…snick, another one…snick, and another one. They all relate and move the story forward, but not in a smooth continuous flow. There are gaps between each one. This isn’t a criticism, just a comment on the stylised framework of the book. It works well, but is different. Once I was used to it I enjoyed it. I do think some of the characters’ depth is lost though. Important events are referred to, but as the story doesn’t cover a continuous stream from time A to time B they aren’t all relayed to the reader. Like the fact that Nick fought 47 duels to protect Jeremy and his honour, for example. It is discussed after the fact, but not shown. As a result I was really taken by surprise by Nick’s passionate desire to protect Jeremy. He had been off doing things that would have made that apparent, but the reader doesn’t know about it.

Similarly there are a number of details that make up the characters but are not particularly explored. A number of them appeared to have been quite famous in the humane world, but we don’t really know anything about that. Nick’s drug dependency could have been a big deal, but is glossed over. Prior to the events of this story Nick was apparently tortured horridly as well as suffered from a rare and extremely painful disorder that prompts him to seek out others of the same affliction. We know almost nothing of these things other than that they happened. Now, it’s a longish series, maybe some of this will be addressed in future books. I don’t know. But I was left wishing they had been been further explained. Of course, that would have made for a very long book.

All in all I really did enjoy it. It is well crafted (especially the world-building), entertaining, and enjoyable. What more could you ask for?