Tag Archives: why choose

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Super Short Novella Clear-Out

I’m making a real effort this year to clear out any book clutter. I’m focusing on quantity, which means knocking out some of the shorter books on my shelves in order to reduce the actual number of books I scroll through, etc. So, here I’m focusing on short novellas, books that are over 100 pages, but not by much. Technically, by my own blog rules, I could give them their own post. (100 pages is my unofficial minimum page count for a blog post.) However, for the sake of expediency, I’m combining several into one post, and I may return later to add to the list.

So, here we go. I read:


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Reviews:

Black Briar, by Sophie Avett

Honestly, just florid and confusing. Half the time, I didn’t know if whatever was happening (if I could figure out what was happening at all) was happening in real life or some dream realm. I’m generally pretty tolerant of purple prose, so long as it doesn’t get in the way of the story. But the prose here isn’t just purple, it’s luridly so. To say I was confused is an understatement.

There is no character development or worldbuilding to speak of. Plus, there isn’t much of a plot, which would be fine if this were erotica, where the sex was the point. But despite starting the story with a sex swing, there is one singular sex scene in the book. And it’s overly long and full of purple descriptions of a whole lot of not-sex. Somewhere in the middle of it, the FMC had a personality shift that made all of the resistance and fight of the previous pages pointless.

Essentially, the reader is dropped into the middle of a scene with no context. The story continues from there, before the FMC undergoes a personality transformation, and we’re told they lived happily ever after. (I still know nothing about the MMC, least of all why he was so interested in the FMC.)I may be being too generous in giving this two stars.

Leather and Lace, by Rebel Carter

Very sweet. It’s clearly part of a series, all but instalove, the town is so accepting as to be fantastical, and the narcissistically cruel mother is pretty cliched. But Minnie and Alex are sweet characters who make an endearing pair. If you’re looking for a light and fluffy quick read, you could do a lot worse than this one.

To Run with the Wild Hunt, by Mallory Dunlin

Meh. I’ve read several of the Monsters of Faery books, and I can confidently say that this was my least favorite. Which is a shame because I liked Lexi, and Key is just adorable. Their fem-dommy relationship was wonderful and sweet. I wish we had gotten an equivalent for Hunt. Obviously, there’d be little sweetness there, but there could have been a little something of relationship growth before the sex. And don’t get me wrong. I picked up a spicy book for the sex. But by the time we got to it here, I just didn’t particularly care. I’ll continue the series. I liked the other books a lot more. I suppose this was just a dud for me.

Shared Veins, by Emily Elder

Not horrible, but pretty mediocre. The FMC is a doormat, though she does have a pretty drastic attitude shift at some point and grows the beginning of a spine. The men are not given equal attention, and I don’t feel I really know them as anything more than caricatures (the sunny one, the brooding one, the brainy one, the leader, etc). Also, it is heavily in need of further editing. There are several super obvious errors that a basic spellcheck should have caught.

The Good Body, by Eve Ensler (V)

This was an interesting read. I think a lot of women will find something to relate to in it. However, I also think that others will find it fails to say anything new or noteworthy on an old and well-trodden path. I suppose both can be true.

Entangled with an Elf Prince, by Amanda Ferreira

This was really sweet. Honestly, I often didn’t know exactly what was happening outside of the very tight focus on the two characters (and there are only the two characters). But watching them discover one another was lovely.

Treasure, by Marleigh Kassidy

Meh, I mean, it is what it is, right? It’s an erotic short; sex pretty much is the point. The sex is fine; a little rushed in the v to dp journey, but ok, whatever. I mean, it’s not great, but again, it is what it is. My only real complaint is that it’s lopsided. Too much time passes as she tries to escape, and what remains after she is finished being scared isn’t enough to balance it out. Oh, and it ends on a cliffhanger, FYI.

A Monster In The Dark, by R.K. Pierce

Erotic horror(ish) that isn’t particularly spicy. There’s a whole lot more talk of what he wants to do to her than them actually doing anything. He is appropriately obsessive for a demon (though he has a relatively sudden personality shift toward the end). She is understandably panicked and scared, although she got over it remarkably quickly. All in all, it’s an amusing enough read for what it is.

Finding Her Minotaur, by Evangeline Priest

Meh. This was an entertaining enough read for the evening. But I read it last night before bed, and this morning, writing a review, it’s already fading from memory. Nothing of note stood out as worth remembering. Despite its cover and Minotaur MMC, it’s not particularly spicy. And while I realize, of course, that it is a novella, it’s exceptionally shallow. (Plus, it could use an editing pass to shore up the past/present tenses.)

It feels very, very much like it is part of something bigger. People are given titles, honorifics, or social standing, while world and galactic politics are referenced, and a mystery surrounding the FMC’s origins is hinted at; however, none of these elements are explained or contextualized.

The MMC seems sweet, noble, and loyal, but you don’t get to know him at all. You get even less of a read on the FFC. Priest gives you her circumstances, but basically nothing of her as a person.

All in all, I don’t regret reading it. But I honestly won’t remember I did by tomorrow. So, it’s not a winner either.

Thrum, by Meg Smitherman

Perhaps I misunderstood the brief, or the marketing of this book is off the mark. But I expected a monstery romance involving a deep space edlrich horror. This has a light sex scene or two, but sex scenes do not a romance make. This is horror, maybe gothic horror if you’re willing to stretch it far enough to encompass space. That’s not to say I didn’t like it. It’s atmospheric, and the reader truly feels the main character’s crumbling reality and fear. But it’s not what I was led to believe it would be. I was left with questions, and the sudden reveal and wrap-up at the end felt rushed. But generally, I enjoyed this.

Matched to the Mafia, by Jenika Snow

I’ve tried several of Snow’s books now. (I bought several all at one time, at some point.) And I think she just isn’t for me. I thought this was pretty trash. We get ‘he’s a bad guy and wants her’ in 15 variations, and that’s honestly about it. I know it’s a novella. But it’s not a very good one, IMO.

Starbinder, by Mark Timmony

Very clearly just a small taste of something larger, Starbinder is an intriguing teaser to the series as a whole. The writing is clear, and the world seems interesting. But I do think it was a bit too big to squeeze into a novella.

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Book Review: Kiss of Smoke, by Amy Pennza

I purchased a copy of Amy Pennza‘s Kiss of Smoke from the TikTok shop.

Kiss of Smoke Cover

What was supposed to be a dream vacation just turned into a nightmare. It’s not every day you board a private jet for an all-expenses-paid trip to Scotland with your two gorgeous bosses. And it’s not every day you spot your fiancé kissing another woman across the terminal.

The man I was ready to marry has been cheating on me for a year. Dumped and humiliated, the best I can do is get on the plane and lick my wounds. Fortunately, my bosses are more than willing to help…and in more ways than I ever imagined.

But Lachlan and Alec can’t possibly be interested in me. They’re in love with each other…right? Scotland is cold this time of year, but these Scots are bringing the heat in ways I’m not sure I can handle.

And as they continue fanning the flames, it’s clear they’ve been hiding more than their attraction to me. Where there’s smoke there’s fire. Now I have to hope I don’t get burned.

my review

Oh, what a disappointment. I really wanted to love this, but I just didn’t. Some of the issues are first-book-in-a-series syndrome, setting the world, introducing the magic system, etc. However, it’s mainly that the book felt poorly balanced in two ways.

First, it’s about 85% sex, which is fine. Except that the author didn’t seem to recognize that it’s an erotic novel and kept trying to insert plot points. Unfortunately, they felt random and ill-supported, since it’s otherwise an erotic fantasy novel. The end result is that the book neither excelled in plot nor erotica, as it could have if it had chosen one or the other.

Second, this is a polyamorous relationship in which the two men are an established couple trying to find a female mate to bring into their bed. You feel this a lot. From start to finish, this was Lachlan and Alec, plus Chloe. At no point did I feel like she was equally as important in the relationship as the two of them. This comes out in the sex scenes, especially. There are a lot more of just the two of them than the three of them, and none with just her and one of them. They are a couple outside of her; she is not a couple with either of them outside of the other, and they never form a balanced trio, in my opinion.

Lastly, though not a matter of balance (and this is a spoiler), I really disliked the solution to the sticking point over her humanity. One of the men does not think a human is good enough to be a dragon mate. Meanwhile, she is experiencing significant issues with self-worth. Instead of writing a solution in which her self-confidence is improved and he comes to appreciate humans, kiss of smoke photothe author instead threw in a sudden and random “Oh, she’s not human after all,” which did nothing to solve the underlying problems.

All in all, this was a flop for me. I appreciate that some of the author’s random attempts as plot made obvious attempts to normalize some contentious real-world issues of contemporary America. But that wasn’t enough to save this for me. I was hoping for a new series to dive into. But I will be stopping here instead.


Other Reviews:

Review: Kiss of Smoke by Amy Pennza

 

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Book Review: Freak Show, by Crystal Ash

I purchased a copy of Crystal Ash‘s Freak Show. I think it was during an online author-signing event.
freak show cover

Who knew cages and freaks would set me free?

Growing up in trailer trash hell, the carnival was my only happy memory as a child. I held onto the magic of that memory until I could finally escape. And like Alice down the rabbit hole, I entered a world beyond my wildest dreams. A world with a shiny, colorful exterior, but filled with rot and corruption underneath.

But no matter what these people put me through, I can’t go back to my life before.

The man with the biggest secret is the only one I can trust. He’s dangerous, but he’s safety to me. He’s broken, but he put me back together. I’ll keep his secret. My heart hopes he’ll keep me. But in a hall of mirrors, how do you know what’s real or an illusion?

Every grueling night onstage is building up to a final show: The Wolf Man. Is he real or a hoax? Why do I feel such a pull to find out his truth?

Care to join me on this ride? Step right up.

my review

Meh, this was OK, I guess; not horrid, but it does not stand out either. Mel is sweet but basically a Mary Sue. Conner is noble and kind, but also kinda a cliched grump. The villains are hamfisted, as are the side characters, almost all of which are stereotypical bitchy women resource-guarding men in stereotyped ways. Plus, the book wouldn’t pass the Bechdel test. (I’m so tired of female authors who villainize other women and write books that can’t pass the low bar of the Bechdel test.)

Here’s the main problem for me, though: I picked up a paranormal why choose and then was given a single romantic partner and almost no paranormal. There is a werewolf in the first chapter who does not reappear (and only briefly and passively, almost in passing) in the last chapters. Yes, I realize more mates will show up in future books, but I’m not talking about future books. I’m talking about this one. I probably wouldn’t mentioned it if it wasn’t that BOTH elements I picked the book up expecting were absent. This is basically an Insta-love, Wounded Soldier romance, not a why choose paranormal romance.

I didn’t love it, but I’d likely continue the series if I had it on hand. But I don’t, and I’m not invested enough to bother buying the rest of the series, which seems to be broken into 7 200 (or less) page books. I feel like that is more books than need be, judging by this one.
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Other Reviews: