Tag Archives: self published

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Book Review: A Sense of Danger, by Jennifer Estep

Late last year, Jennifer Estep‘s A Sense of Danger was featured on Sadie’s Spotlight’s Insta page and I ended up with a bonus copy of the book.

A SPY . . .

My name is Charlotte Locke, and I’m an analyst for Section 47, a secret government agency that tracks terrorists, criminals, and other paramortal bad guys who want to unleash their abilities on an unsuspecting mortal world. I have a magical form of synesthesia that senses danger and uncovers lies—making me a stealthy operative.

I’m trudging through another day when one of Section’s cleaners—assassins—takes an interest in me. I don’t need my synesthesia to realize that he is extremely dangerous and that he will do anything to achieve his goals—even if it means putting me in the line of fire.

. . . AND AN ASSASSIN

I’m Desmond Percy, one of Section 47’s most lethal cleaners. I’m also a man on a mission, and I need Charlotte Locke’s skills to help me keep a promise, settle a score, and kill some extremely bad people.

Charlotte might not like me, but we’re stuck together until my mission is over. Still, the more time we spend together, the more I’m drawn to her. But at Section 47, you never know who you can trust—or who might want you dead.my review
There was nothing wrong with this. The writing is perfectly readable. The editing is pretty clean. It’s not full of plot-holes. I liked the characters well enough. But it’s also kinda bland. The heroine is a Mary Sue and the hero is exactly what you expect him to be and nothing more (a bit of a Marty Stew too). Section 47—the para-mortal version a governmental alphabet organization— isn’t anything more interesting than any other paranormal alphabet agency we’ve all read about. The plot is pretty easy to fallow and the villains easy to figure out. All of it was fine to read, enjoyable even. But also utterly forgettable.

I did appreciate that, being assassins, the characters have a little grey to them. But it’s all lip service, the reader doesn’t actually feel any of it. The romance is pretty light, culminating in one mostly fade-to-black sex scene toward the end of the book and a HFN conclusion. All of it is fine. But it’s also all kind of ‘meh’ too.

a sense of danger cover


Other Review:

A SENSE OF DANGER by Jennifer Estep-Dual Review & Giveaway

 

love spells full moons and silver bullets

Book Review: Love Spells, Full Moons, and Silver Bullets – by Cameron Allie

I accepted a review copy of Love Spells, Full Moons, and Silver Bullets from the author, Cameron Allie.
love spells full moons and silver bullets
What do you do when your ex boyfriend’s werewolf boss wants to feast on the mortal you’ve sworn to protect?

Quinn was unaware of the love potion her meddling cat dumped into her tea, so when Ian Hannigan ends up injured on her property, she thinks she’s dealing with another mortal, not the man who can help mend her heart. Her life becomes a balancing act as she attempts to keep him safe, while hiding secrets better left buried.

In a realm filled with things that go bump in the night, Ian didn’t expect to find security and happiness in the arms of a green skinned witch, yet for the first time since his parents tragic car crash, he’s found some measure of peace. The rumours he hears in Clayridge aren’t pleasant, but Ian knows there’s more to Quinn than what people would have him believe. If he’s placed his trust in the wrong hands he’ll be paying with more than just his heart. He’ll pay with his life.

my review

I think one of the hardest things to quantify when reviewing a book is when there is just too much of it. Even if you like the characters, think the plot is interesting, and the writing is good, there sometimes comes a point when you have to admit that there is just too much of it. And that’s the case here, with Love Spells, Full Moons, and Silver Bullets, in my opinion. The book is 462 pages long and feels like it should have been, at most, 300.

Over half the book is just slice-of-life kind of stuff that really drags the plot down. It’s sweet sure, but it’s slow and, as a result, by the time the action finally happens in the last 15-20% of the book the reader (or this reader, at least) is ready to just be finished with it all. Plus, it creates a real sense of slow, slow, slow, rush, rush rush that is a pacing nightmare.

But the story is sweet, the characters likeable, and the writing/editing is quite readable. There are some show vs tell sort of issues, but it’s not unovercomeable. The story just drags on longer than it should and the pacing is off. None of it is enough to wholly ruin the story though.

love spells full moons and silver bullets photo


Other Review:

Review: Love Spells, Full Moons, and Silver Bullets – by Cameron Allie

 

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Book Review: Gift of the Gods, by Eva Ashwood

I received an Audible credit for a copy of Eva Ashwood‘s Gift of the Gods (narrated by Stacey Glemboski). Today was chore day. So, I listened to it.

gift of the gods audio

A motorcycle riding Irishman, a bad boy rock star, and an ex-boyfriend I might still have feelings for…

You wouldn’t think they’d have much in common, but they do.

They’re all students at Magic Blessed Academy, the school I’m forced to attend after I manifest insane magical powers out of nowhere.

Oh, and they all seem to hate me.

If I was smart, I’d keep my head down and ignore all three of these too-sexy-for-their-own-good dicks until I can graduate and get the hell out of here.

But when we’re all chosen to compete in the Gods’ Challenge, a deadly competition for the honor of meeting the gods themselves, teaming up with these tempting, infuriating men may be my only chance at survival.

Now the only question is: will we kill each other or fuck each other first?

my review

I don’t usually use star ratings on this blog. But today I am going to, because it simplifies the point I want to make. This is a true 2.5, in the sense that I would have given the first half a 2-star (and felt generous about it), but the second half improves enough to deserve a 3-star. I wavered about which way to round on this one, but decided to round up because the narrator—Stacey Glemboski—did a good job.

The first half was a struggle for me. I seriously almost DNFed the book. The characters are very shallow and the men, that the reader knows are going to form the reverse harem, are only shown as sexist assholes. We are not given a single redeeming moment with any of them. Honestly, we’re not given much of them at all. The reader knows they are the to-be harem because they are the only named men at all, not because Ashwood spends any time developing them. Despite all that, the reader is also told how Aria finds them hot and I was simply indignant on her behalf, to think she would lower herself to be with men who treat her that way. (And it doesn’t even rise to enough development for me to call it a bully-romance.)

However, in the second half the personalities change drastically. (We’re just going to skip over the ‘why would she trust the men who have spent a month demeaning her to team in the first place.’) We’re given the group working as a team and get to know them A LITTLE better. The shift from platonic to poly is very fast, but it’s still satisfying in it’s own way.

All in all, if I found the sequel as a freebie I’d probably read it (based on the second half of this book). But I wouldn’t pay for it—if that tells you anything.

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Other Reviews:

Chrissy’s Bookshelf – Review: Gift of the Gods