Villains Rule | M. K. Gibson

Summary:

Jackson Blackwell has worked long and hard to become famed Shadow Master, villain of villains. He is the most villainous of all not because he is cruel and crushes peasants under his boot. Rather he travels through dimensions, profiting off of other villains. He's made quite the name and career for himself. So when he is betrayed and left with minimal power in a fantasy realm, it catches him a bit off guard. Now he must (shudder) gather the heroes of the realm and get his power back.

Review:

I had so much fun reading this book. I cannot tell you the number of times I almost laughed out loud. More than that, though, because Jackson is a top tier villain, he is incredibly intelligent and intriguing to read of. We are fortunate to get to read the book from his perspective and, I have to say, he makes for a great narrator. Especially in his more human moments. That being said, he is still a villain who knows the angles to play for the most profit for himself. Several of his actions I wouldn't have agreed with, but he has no scruples about using them himself. After all, a true great villain knows how to abuse the rules to their fullest extent.

Another benefit of reading all of this from Jackson's perspective is, when he never sees something coming, neither do we. This book genuinely kept me surprised and intrigued. Because Jackson is such an intelligent character he picked up on a lot of stuff other characters wouldn't. This led me to not question his assumptions the more I read. So when he was caught off guard it was genuine and exciting. 

The rest of the cast of characters is delightfully well rounded. Jackson finds heroes who have their own "sins" from their pasts. Except for Carina. Her only "crime" was being a female half-breed in a group of elite, and elitist, male warriors. Everyone else Jackson is able to discern some sin or bad deed. He actually spoke out against the entire Elven race as the xenophobic, technophobic, stifling creatures they are. Then again, there are characters like Lydia that don't bother to hide who they are. I never would've thought she'd be into using knives for bondage play.

Also, fair warning for any fantasy fans who read this, be prepared to have the genre made fun of. A lot. Several of Jackson's comments revolve around the wish for air condition or even basic indoor plumbing. 

Really my only complaint about this book is the number of grammatical errors. I counted seven, though I know that doesn't cover all of them. And this may not seem like a lot, but when you read something like "I felt bone piece my heart" it's gonna throw you out of the book a bit.

That being said, I still loved this book. I'm actually planning on listening to the audio sample and, if I like it, buying that to listen to at work. I rarely buy audio-books, so that should tell you something about how much I enjoyed this story. I happily give 4.5 hoots and encourage you to pick up a copy!

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Apocalypse Nyx | Kameron Hurley

*Image and book provided via NetGalley for an honest review.

Summary:

Nyx, the main character, is a former belle-dame, elite of the elites in war. After she got kicked out she turned to mercenary work, alcohol and sex. Her team learns quickly that she will sacrifice any and all of them to get the job done. Naturally, this doesn't lead to a happy life. Then again, in a world ravaged by war where all men and women are required at the front, only the super rich First Families can expect a happy life.

Review:

I had no idea, going into this book, that I was going to be reading a collection of short stories from an already established series. That being said, you don't need to have read the other books to enjoy this one.  

This is an incredibly interesting world. Because all native men are required to be on the front for several years while the women are only required there for two years, it makes sense that the majority of the characters are strong women. When there are men, more often than not they're foreigners not required to sign up for the draft. There is bug-based magic and technology which, honestly, makes sense given how many bugs there seem to be. And the logic of the world feels very consistent. 

Nyx is an incredibly kick-ass character, better at shooting than talking her way out, which is one of my favorite kind of protagonists. It's not that she has a heart of ice, rather she has a very calloused heart after all that she's had to see and endure. Her sniper, Anneke, is more of a wild kind of crazy, complete with a drug problem. Her magician, Rhys, is a Chenjan man who only puts up with Nyx because Chenjans don't have many options, but he maintains his religious devotions. Her tech, Taite, is a scrawny Ras Tiegan teenager. Her shifter, Khos, is a rather large Mhorian who is just about desperate for work. Together, they make for an entertaining team to read about.

Fair warning, this ain't a book for the faint of heart. It's a world where there is constant war, frequent sirens warning of bombardments, and bodies regrowing limbs just to be sent back to the front. And the way those limbs are regrown are somewhat stomach upsetting. This book has plenty of fun moments, but it is has a lot of darker ones. That last chapter ended on a heart-wrenching note. 

That being said, I'm still gonna look into the other books of the series. 4 hoots!

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Old Man's War | Jon Scalzi

Summary:

John Perry is 75 years old, a widower with only an okay relationship with his only son, when he decides to join the Colonial Defense Force and fight to protect Earth's colonies from alien races. CDF is only interested in people his age, people with decades of experience in life. By the time he gets to boot camp, his entire world view has changed. Now he fights every day to save his life and the lives of his squad mates.

Review:

This book definitely wasn't what I expected. I was told I'd have a lot of laughs, and I did, but I didn't think I'd have so many other powerful emotions. This book didn't just make me laugh, it scared me, it mad me sad, it made me think, it made me wonder. This book was an experience that I was glad to have.

Because our main character is 75 when the book starts, we don't have to put up with a painfully naive, idiotic character. Don't get me wrong, he is naive when it comes to the alien menace he's going to go up against, but he's not naive enough to think of himself as invulnerable, unlike some of the other new soldiers. I did love the fact that all the new soldiers went completely nuts when they got their new bodies, but only one person was dumb enough to think they could fly. That's the kind of common sense that I like in my characters.

As well as Perry's sense of common decency. There were some diplomatic missions where he could've gone against orders and made a scene, but he knew it wouldn't be in everyone's best interests to do so. As much fun as it is to read characters who speak their minds, it's so much better when they have the wisdom to know when to keep their mouths shut. He didn't do so well with his first conscious encounter with the Ghost Brigades, but that was actually story essential.

And Perry isn't the only good character to read, either. Every member of Perry's initial group were so ingratiating that, at the reports of some of their deaths, I was genuinely saddened. It makes sense that not everyone would make it through, this is an interstellar war. But they were written so well and with so much gravitas that each loss was really felt. I was invested in the well-being of almost every character (the former politician, not so much).

Some of the scenes were kinda gruesome, but this is war. Fortunately there were only one or two scenes that went into full, gross detail. Those were usually scenes meant to instill fear in the new cadets or to let the reader know the extent of Perry's injuries. But it's these scenes that make the lighter moments all the lighter, more jovial moments more important and impactful. 

I can definitely see why this book has gotten so many accolades. They are truly well deserved and I will be picking up the next book. 4.5 hoots!

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An Ill-Fated Sky | Darrell Drake

*Image and book provided by the author for an honest review.

Summary:

In this sequel to A Star-Reckoner's Lot, we follow the story of Tirdad, picking up almost exactly where the first book left off. Tirdad becomes possessed by Ashtadukht's memories and he begins a quest to discover the conspiracy started against her that turned her into the monster she became. Along the way, he develops a deep relationship with the half-div Shkarag, formerly Waray. Along the way, Tirdad must fight his own ever present depression and regret, coupled with his cousin's memories of her depression and pain.

Review:

There's a lot of reasons I'm giving this book a 5 out of 5. The characters were wonderful to read about. The dialogue had an enjoyable blend of exposition, character development and humor. The world was even more intriguing as I got to learn more about it. 

It feels like there were a lot of improvements between this book and the one before it. In the previous book, the time skips would throw me off for several pages. In this book, everything flows. There was one point where Tirdad was re-living one of Ashtadukht's memories that threw me off for a bit, but to be fair, it threw him off as well. Also, the use of memories as an exposition tool really seemed to fit and, aside from that one moment, was executed really well. 

What was also very endearing for me was the fact that both main characters were dealing with some pretty severe depression and in their own ways. Shkarag's philactory kept putting her back together, so suicide, self-harm and other reckless behaviors were her ways. Tirdad tries to hold onto the concept of honor to justify his actions, but ends up resorting to a lot of the same reckless behaviors as Shkarag. Then there's Ashtadukht's memories of depression that show that she resorted to lashing out at others, especially when she had no one supporting her.

The fight scenes were amazingly written and I could practically see the "dance" Tirdad and Shkarag did, working together to defeat bandits and armies. We get to see all of the Eshm sisters, each "worth 30 men", fighting alongside each other to powerful effect. And that final battle! I was fully entranced. Fair warning to anyone who is squeamish, there is a fair amount of blood and bloodlust in this book. It's not gratuitous gore, but if you're sensitive to it, it might not be your thing.

Overall, I'm very happy to read this book. This is a wonderful sequel that I actually don't think you need to have read the first one for. It might help with a few gaps, but I really feel this is a standalone sequel. 5 hoots!

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25 Ways to Kill a Werewolf | Jo Thomas

Summary:

Elkie Bernstein and her childhood best friend Dave Williams are play fighting in the woods when they suddenly get attacked by a giant mongrel. When the mongrel accidentally gets impaled on one of their spears, they see the mongrel form turn human. After that, more and more show up ready, willing and able to kill her.

Review:

I really enjoyed this book. It's kinda simple in nature, there's no global conspiracy or league of werewolf hunters or anything like that. It's just Elkie, trying to live her life while under constant threat of werewolf attack. No one besides her and two friends seem to know that werewolves exist and since the bodies revert back to human at death, who'd believe her? 

Each chapter is titled after a different method of death and it became interesting to try to figure out how some of them would work. Don't get me wrong, Method 3: Train was pretty obvious. But Method 8: Chocolate Spread had me wondering. I found the story and methods of death to be very creative. While it got old for Elkie pretty quick, it didn't get old for me!

And I am so glad we get to read the story from Elkie's perspective. She is such a good character. She has times where she gets frustrated because she has no idea why she's the one being targeted, but she always moves forward. It takes her a while to move sometimes, but she's able to prioritize. She didn't get the chance to leave the tiny village out in Wales, but she's still able to grow and find happiness in her life. She didn't get to be an academic like Dave, but maybe that's for the best. 

I did worry that there was gonna be a love triangle, but it ended up being more of a "she's mine" kind of scenario with the guys while Elkie stopped wanting to have anything to do with them ages ago. I really do feel bad about what Dave does, and I was seriously hoping he would die from being maimed by a werewolf. Seriously. I told friends and family I'd be upset if he didn't die by the end of the book. While I didn't get what I wanted, I did end up getting a much better, and more fitting, ending. 

There is no question that this was a good book for me to pick up. It's a bit of a new adult book (a lot of talk of sex, but it's only in passing) and there is a lot of death (but nothing's ever graphically depicted). So if you're sensitive to those things maybe not the best book for you. 

However, if you're interested in a strong female lead who is able to survive 25+ encounters with werewolves while still making her life what she wants it to be, pick this up. I think you'll like it. 4.5 hoots!

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Nanoshock | K. C. Alexander

*Image and book provided via NetGalley for an honest review.

Summary:

Riko's cred is still draining. She's losing more allies than she even knew she'd had. She's gaining more enemies than she thought possible. With the price on her head going up, she's having trouble focusing on her mission of getting proof that MetaCorp set her up and is trying to weaponize Necros. 

Review:

I have been waiting for this sequel for a while. I never forgot my joy at reading the first book. When I saw this one available on NetGalley, I jumped on it. I was not disappointed! Riko is back, doing and saying things that would make a sailor blush and living up to the title "Splatter Specialist" the whole way. And I loved every minute of it.

This isn't a book for everyone. It is incredibly NSFW and has a lot of fight scenes that made me cringe. That said, if you're okay with some gruesomeness and a lot of foul language, you'll probably appreciate the humor that permeates throughout the book. You will probably want to read the first one before you read this. There's a lot of important backstory there.

I'll admit, there were a few times when Riko's attitude and act-first-think-later personality began to get annoying, but the author wonderfully seems to know when this is happening and has another character call her out on it. This really helps with balancing Riko's obtuse nature keeping the reader from burnout. There were times it was difficult to figure out what was going on, then again, since we're reading from Riko's perspective, and she's not the brains of any operation, it kinda makes sense. 

Then, there was the ending. I'm going to avoid spoilers by not telling you a thing about the last chapter. All I will say, when I finished this book, I had a big smile on my face that only got bigger as I thought more and more about how well the ending fit. This book was an exceptional follow up to the first one and I couldn't be more pleased with it.

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The New Voices of Fantasy | Peter S. Beagle and Jacob Weisman

*Image and book provided by NetGalley for an honest review.

Summary:

A collection of short stories written by some of the best new talent in the genre. Edited together with forewords written by Peter S. Beagle and Jacob Weisman. Topics and stories range from a humorous story of a vampire trying to blend in to a dark story of a woman who lives off of other people's negative thoughts. 

Review:

Probably the biggest compliment I can give this anthology is that I can no longer say there's always one story in every anthology that I don't like. I greatly enjoyed every story in this collection. Every. Single. One. That has never happened before! 

This is an eclectic collection of fantasy, though I will say that, with one or two exceptions, these are all more Urban Fantasy than anything. The tones and moods of the stories, though, are delightfully all over the map. You have silly stories. You have scary stories. You have serious but heartwarming stories. I really feel there's a story for any fan of Urban Fantasy, maybe even all Fantasy fans.

I have added so many new authors to my Goodreads list. Admittedly, these are all short-story authors so I may have to consider joining up with Tor.com to get more regular access to them. If you know anything about Tor.com, please let me know in the comments below.

This anthology was a delight to read and I highly recommend it for fans of the Urban Fantasy genre. More general Fantasy fans may enjoy it as well. There are a couple of stories more up your alley. Fans of the Supernatural genre will also find plenty to enjoy in this collection. For me, I happily give it four hoots!

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Cherry Lips | Lacey Dearie

Summary:

Cerise is the peasant daughter of an herbalist and has no magic other than a cherry tree given to her by her fairy godmother. She learns to turn the cherries into a magic lip balm that makes her irresistible to any man she kisses. This magic ends up being sought by almost every member of the royal family, with whom her family already has a negative relationship with.

Review:

This is yet another magic love story that I have thoroughly enjoyed. Seriously, I may have to reconsider my "no love stories" policy after this. What I specifically enjoyed about Cherry Lips is how much fun it was to read. The dialogue and character interactions were engaging and, at times, had me laughing out loud. There were a couple places where I felt like something bad could have been prevented, but it was not enough to take me out of the book.

The adventure is fast paced, after the prologue, and I was never bored while reading. The side-effects of magic are not only considered, but are essential to the story and growth of the Cerise's character. The book does leave me with a number of questions and even more suspicions, but, fortunately Dearie has written the sequel (which is currently on my wishlist) so I will be able to get my questions answered.

Cherry Lips is a good read for anyone who wants a funny story, a magic story, a love story, and/or a fairy tale. All of these elements are combined in a fun way to engage the reader. 4.5 hoots!

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Rarity from the Hollow | Robert Eggleton

*This book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review

Summary:

This book is told mainly from the perspective of Lacey Dawn, an 11-year-old girl who lives in The Hollow, a hamlet hit hard, economically and socially, by the closing of the coal mine. Physical abuse is the norm in just about every household. Fortunately for Lacey Dawn, she has a friend, DotCom who tells her that she is destined to save the universe and he has been helping her become intelligent enough to help her family and do the job she's been born to do. 

Review:

I have to admit, the first few chapters of this book were tough to read. Eggleton served as a Child Advocate for many years so he knows, almost too well, the realities of domestic abuse. If you can make it past those chapters, however, the rest of the story is an interesting adventure where the adults are childish and the child has to be the responsible one. 

Naturally, a book like this isn't for everyone. There's a lot of inappropriate humor, but it really works for this book. No other type of humor could come from this situation. I found it interesting that the humor even spread to some of the alien races encountered. I also appreciated how easily humans from a poor town were able to negotiate the best in the universe using techniques unknown to advanced alien races. 

So, while I wouldn't normally read this kind of book, I do appreciate Eggleton's style and how organically the story moves along. Again, yes, a lot of the humor is sex based, but it works for the characters involved. If you can get through the first few chapters, you'll likely enjoy this book. Also, all author proceeds are donated to child abuse prevention. 4 hoots!

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Alice | Christina Henry

Summary:

Alice once went for an adventure in the Old City only to return to the New City covered in blood with no memory of what happened, blabbering about a man with rabbit ears. She was placed in an asylum and started talking with man named Hatcher through a mouse hole between their rooms. Hatcher also has vague memories of the Rabbit and when they escape the asylum, they had back to the Old City in search of answers. Most importantly the answer of how to stop the Jabberwock. 

Review:

This book is not for everyone. It is a very gripping book, I would put it down only with much reluctance, but it's not for everyone. There is a lot of blood, right from the start, with some very graphic depictions of violence. The majority of the violence is bloody, gruesome, and nausea inducing. Definitely not for the faint of heart.

That being said, I thought this was a really well written version of the Alice in Wonderland story. The plot was well thought out. The characters were fully developed and easily related to. The dialogue was entirely natural and I felt that there was nothing left unanswered by the end of the story. I was even quite happy with the ending. I give Henry full credit for building an interesting world. I had no idea where I was or what time period I was in the entire time.

So, if you're interested in a violent retelling of a classic story, or at least have a strong stomach and are a fan of dramas, mysteries, thrillers, and the like, I recommend this book. This isn't my particular genre, I probably won't read it again, but it's good for those with a strong constitution who are fans.

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*This book was provided via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

ASAP Science by Mitchell Moffit & Greg Brown

This was such a fun an education read! I have never been more happy to pre-order a book! Like many early readers of this book, I first learned about it through the authors' YouTube Channel, ASAP Science.* I pre-ordered the book, hoping it would be as much fun to read as their videos were to watch. I was not disappointed!

While a lot of the topics in this book are also covered in their videos, they are still important to read about. I feel like this book plays an important role in bridging a gap for people between science and practically.** ASAP Science uses illustrations and conversational tone to keep everything interesting, light-hearted and informative. And if there was no clear answer*** they said so and easily explained why there was no answer.

The book does have a lot of illustrations so the reading is very quick. Also, while they do deal with topics related to sex and bodily functions, it is kept at about a PG rating.**** And while everything is in a friendly tone, there is still a lot of good information.

I gladly give ASAP Science 5 hoots and encourage everyone to pick up their own copy!

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*Which I also highly recommend.
**Or everyday life.
***Labor Pains v Kick to the Balls
****Parents dependent.

The Girl in the Road by Monica Byrne

I'm not entirely sure what to make of this book. It's so very different from my usual reads, but it was certainly difficult to put down. I almost missed a bus stop because I was so focused on the story.

The story is certainly the reason I picked up this book. It is, technically, two stories, both about a young woman on a journey. It was interesting to see the parallels, find the connections and experience their convergence. The final chapters, the meeting of the two stories, did not contain many surprises. Rather, when they were revealed, they made me feel "that makes sense."

This book is certainly not for everyone. There is violence, sex, rape, suicidal thoughts, etc. Though the characters seemed to treat these things casually, I feel Byrne wrote them well and gave them the proper context to keep them from feeling flippant. Nothing that is written in this book is done so without purpose. There is no meaningless exposition.

So, while this book is not for the faint of heart, I still appreciate it's ability to keep my interest by making me think. 4.5 hoots!

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*I received a free copy of this book from Blogging For Books in exchange for an honest review.