Tag Archives: novella

Book Review: Second Chances, by Kiska Gray

I picked up a freebie copy of Kiska Gray‘s Second Chances in November of 2018. I imagine I intended to read it for Christmas that year, but apparently didn’t get around to it. That means I had it available to read for my Christmas reading challenge this year.

Fear took him away, but longing brought him back…

Six years ago, Nikolas Steele’s heart was broken when his best friend—the man who he thought was his forever—walked out on him without an explanation. Now, Ky Kendall is back in town, just in time for the holidays. When he shows up at Nikolas’s Santa Shop with a little girl who looks like him, Nik has questions.

In a time of need, Ky steps up to play the part of Santa’s Helper to keep the spirit of Christmas alive, but neither of them expect those old sparks to fly. Despite their renewed passion, Ky’s still running scared and Nikolas knows that at any moment, their fragile relationship could be shattered once more.

And this time, he isn’t sure if he’s strong enough to survive it.

I suppose there was nothing wrong with this other than personal preferences. I’m just not into the whole God thing, be it the glories of God’s grace or the vagaries and damages godly people do in God’s name. So, the whole plot of this novella—at least the frictious aspect of it—did nothing for me. And outside of that, the rest of the plot is in the blurb. So, there wasn’t a lot left.

Well, I do actually think I need to complain about the, frankly, miraculous change of heart Ky’s fire-and-brimstone parents had and how rushed the happily ever after was, at the end. But It’s a Christmas novella, I don’t really expect much else.

Having said all of that, Nikolas was a paragon of forgiveness and I appreciated that about him. And Ky’s internal struggles were well represented. I liked both characters. So, I won’t say this wasn’t a good read. Just not for me, I think.

Come back tomorrow. I’ll be reviewing Sleigh Spells, by Bella Falls.

Book Review: Stone and Steel, by Eboni Dunbar

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I bought a the Pride 2021 Story Bundle, earlier this year, and Eboni Dunbar’s Stone and Steel was included in it.

When General Aaliyah returns triumphant to the city of Titus, she expects to find the people prospering under the rule of her Queen, the stone mage Odessa. Instead, she finds a troubling imbalance in both the citizens’ well-being and Odessa’s rule. Aaliyah must rely on all of her allies, old and new, to do right by the city that made her.

I liked this a lot. It’s not perfect. For a person who grew up without legitimate connections, Aaliyah turns out to gather some surprisingly powerful allies (largely without trying), which felt too coincidental. The version I read didn’t make it clear enough when speakers were changing. So, dialogue was sometimes hard to follow. (I don’t know if this was just formatting or what.) And as a not huge fan of novellas, I, of course, wish it was longer and more developed. But, for such a short piece, it does what it sets out to do. It evokes a real sense of place and time, gives you characters you care about, is chocked full of diversity, and wraps up with a satisfying conclusion. I’ll happily read more of Dunbar’s writing.

Other Reviews:

Review: “Stone and Steel” by Eboni Dunbar

Regular Sip – Stone and Steel by Eboni Dunbar (Neon Hemlock)

Stone and Steel by Eboni Dunbar #BookReview

Book Review: The Unremarkable Man, by Lauren Coffin

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Lauren Coffin‘s The Unremarkable Man has been hanging out in my Kindle cloud since July of 2013. I recently had reason to explore TBR and decided to give an oldie a chance. I’m pretty sure I picked it up as a random freebie.

Wendell Coombs is not invisible. He is, and always has been, supernaturally ignorable. After thirty-seven years of coping with the difficulties of his condition- the struggle, for instance, to simply attain a cup of coffee, let alone a place to live- Wendell does not mind. In fact, he is quite comfortable in his anonymity. Or rather, as he discovers when someone notices him for the first time in decades, he is quite afraid of people. Esme Middaugh knows none of this when she offers Wendell what she thinks to be an innocuous “Hi.” Having spent the past year in the company of books rather than people, having, indeed, cut out people from her life altogether, Esme only knows that she has little business interfering in the affairs of this man and the ailing houseplant he carries with him. But she may be the only one who can save the plant- a ficus benjamina that has been the one constant in Wendell’s life. Wendell is willing to go to extremes to keep it alive, including asking Esme to help him. The Unremarkable Man is the story of two deeply isolated, slightly absurd people struggling to connect. And to save a ficus.

Despite being several years old, this novella doesn’t have many reviews. I saw one on Goodreads, however, that referred to it as “endearingly awkward” and I just don’t think I can improve on that description. Wendell and Esme are both too dear for words. But also blithely bumbling through life, with no real clue about how to people; how to exist in a world that requires them to interact as a person. I think it would be hard to read the 106 pages of this story and not fall a little bit in love with them.