Tag Archives: witches

Mere Mortal

Book Review of Mere Mortal, by Katie Roman

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Mere MortalI grabbed a copy of Katie Roman‘s Mere Mortal from the Amazon free list.

Description from Goodreads:
Samantha Dunmore would be thrilled to live quietly with her dog. However, working as a social worker for vampires makes life anything but. When an ancient vampire brings trouble right to Samantha’s doorstep she must step out of her quiet life and into a world of villainous vampires, werewolves with hero complexes, and witches out to make mischief. Armed with attitude and a blessed baseball bat Samantha decides to get her life back to normal, or as normal as she can.

Review:
I’d call this an all right read, not horrible but not spectacular either. It’s a shame, too. Because, I think it really could have been, had the author not tried so hard to add so many literary ‘must haves,’ that the book just didn’t need and done a little more editing.

What I did like: I liked Samantha. She was smart and relatively savvy in the end. (I spent a while thinking she must be a bit dim to go along with everything and not report anything, but as she figures it out so did I and she wasn’t stupid.) It was a pleasant surprise. I liked some of the cheeky dialogue and that the closest thing the book had to a hero wasn’t allowed to sweep in and solve all her problems. I also liked the basic premise of the world everything occurs in.

What I didn’t like: To put it bluntly, it felt like the book didn’t actually have a point. Samantha runs around randomly getting attacked, then the book ends. The issue with the item causing all the ruckus is never solved. In fact, its never even addressed, which left me wondering why everything suddenly settled down. Or looking at it from the other end, if it was so easily settled why make such a big deal of it to begin with? Plus, if the baddie could so easily get someone into her office, as he did, why not just do that instead of harassing Samantha at all?

There was also a weak attempt at a romance that I could have done without, as it contributed nothing to the story. Even worse, it was essentially unsupported. I suppose the reader is supposed to assume it’s been simmering for a while, but that information isn’t actually there. The uncomfortable assumption is just the only way to make it work when it suddenly shows up.

This is one of those ‘must haves’ I referred to. The romance was not necessary for the progression of the plot; it distracted from the main mystery, wasn’t really fleshed out enough to be satisfying and, in the end, just became a little annoying in its half-assedness. It felt very much like the author added it in to make the book appeal to a broader or certain audience, not because it was a legitimate part of her story. 

Having said all that, it was still a relatively amusing read and I did enjoy the experience.

Book Review of Pretty Witches All in a Row, by Lisa Olsen

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All the Pretty Witches all in a RowI snagged a copy of Lisa Olsen‘s Pretty Witches All in a Row from the Amazon free list.

Description from Goodreads:
Someone is picking off a coven of witches one by one. Can Sgt. Nick Gibson and his team of detectives catch the killer before he loses the pretty witch who’s got him under her spell?

Nick must cast aside his disbelief and delve into the world of the supernatural to solve the case. On hand to help is Annaliese, a member of the coven who claims to have had a prophetic dream at the exact time of each victim’s death, offering clues to the identity of the killer. Can he accept the ‘proof’ offered by unconventional means or is she deliberately leading him astray to hide her own secrets? To cloud the issue, a local evangelist is telling anyone who asks that the victims had it coming. Is religious mania the motive for murder, or is it something more personal?

Review:
This was a pleasant little read. It kept me occupied for an evening, which was all I was asking of it. I liked the main characters (though I did find Nick’s endless banter juvenile). They weren’t all that well defined. Everyone’s past stays murky. For example, something apparently happened in LA that undermined Nick’s trust in his daughter and prompted them to move to Portland, but the reader never learns what it is. Nor do you learn how Annaliese came to practice Wicca or much of anything about the coven members, etc. Everything is kept fairly shallow. Similarly, all of the side characters are mere cut outs, with no depth.

The police procedure part of the book was a mess. It was fun to read, but I had to suspend A LOT of disbelief to roll with it. Nick broke just about every rule in the book (contaminating evidence, removing evidence without permission, releasing confidential information, taking a civilian into a crime scene, fabricating statements, etc), which didn’t really match his otherwise good cop persona. Again, it was amusing but by no means believable.

Honestly, the mystery wasn’t that hard to figure out. Let’s face it; the vilification of the aged is so common that as soon as I see one old woman amidst a cast of younger ones I can pinpoint the villain instantly. The book did provide a red herring or two, to make the reader doubt the obvious, but they were weak to say the least. It’s pretty obvious who is behind everything and even why.

So, final thoughts…a fun read, but not topping any Best Of lists for me

Craved

Book Review of Stephanie Nelson’s Craved (Gwen Sparks #1)

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CravedI downloaded a copy of Craved, by Stephanie Nelson, from the Amazon KDP list.

Description from Goodreads:
Gwen Sparks just wants to live a peaceful life in the supernatural town of Flora, but from the moment she read about the first murdered witch, all hope of peace was abandoned. Possessing the rare ability to read the memories of dead, she volunteers to help catch the culprit behind the string of drained witches. Gwen has to team up with the one man who broke her heart, deal with a ghost who pulls her into the deathly realm at will, and a fight off the advances of sexy but frustrating vampire who not only craves what runs through her veins—he wants her heart.

Review:
I think the most I can say for this one is ‘Meh.’ I didn’t hate it, but I wasn’t really all that impressed either. I was expecting to like it too, since it has so many great reviews. But I found myself irritated and confused more often than not.

To begin with, Gwen got on my nerves from the very first page. Her whole ‘he broke my heart’ spiel was like a broken record. Then when it came out that this relationship that ended, broke her heart and left her so bereft she was unable/unwilling to open herself and love again had only lasted 8 months, I just pretty much said a mental ‘pishaw.’ Overreaction anyone?

Then there was the fact that Nelson set up magical rules, but didn’t seem to follow them. Why don’t Gwen and Aiden have a blood bond if Gwen’s same interactions with Ian resulted in one? How did removing Gwen’s magic from Aiden break his addiction if he was addicted before he encountered her magic to begin with? If Gwen had certain magical abilities, how come she occasionally managed to do things she shouldn’t have been able to do? I realise some of this was the development of a new talent, but why was it suddenly popping up?

Then there was the whole premise of witches’ blood being addictive. I have a really, really hard time figuring out how this small fact has remained unknown for all eternity. Seems to me that at some point some vampire would have gotten his/her hand on a witch and gone ‘oh yeah, that’s some good stuff right there.’ So the whole plot of this ‘new drug’ seemed implausible at best.

Then there were the pitiful sex scenes. They were all really, really rushed–some no more than two or three paragraphs and there was very little detail…or for-play. Which was apparently OK because Gwen can, enviably, orgasm at the drop of a hat. (Not to mention the characters odd tendency to hop to it while in otherwise dangerous situations.)

I noticed a few editorial errors and the book was in first person, which I generally dislike. But I admit that the writing was pretty good. And though Aiden often appeared weak, I did really like how much he loved Gwen. Many of the issues I’ve highlighted as annoyances for me might not irk other readers. So, this might just be a case of the right reader for the book.