Category: Books

Book Review: Firestorm (The Sword Of Light Book #2) By: Aaron Hodges

Narrator(s):David Stifel
Unabridged Audiobook: 9 hrs and 58 mins Rating: 4 stars
Genre: Magic, Fantasy, Adventure, New Adult Fiction, Mythology
Release Date: August 18, 2016
I Graciously Received A Copy Of This Book In Exchange For An Honest Review
Synopsis:
The Gods have fallen.
The Three Nations are in chaos. 
Archon is coming. 
The company are surrounded, trapped on the blood-soaked sands of Malevolent Cove. With them they carry the only hope of the Three Nations: Enala, wielder of the Sword of Light. But the girl is mad, catatonic, her mind lost in a chasm of grief. She lies helpless before the power of Archon.
Meanwhile, Eric is close to mastering his magic. But Alastair is gone; there is no one left to protect him. The perilous force yearns for its freedom, and Eric alone stands against it. To prevail he must break the shackles of his past. He must face the last ghost of Oaksville.

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The Bitch Is Back: Older, Wiser, And (Getting) Happier by: Cathi Hanauer Book Review

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By: Cathi Hanauer
Genre: Non-Fiction, Feminism, Essays, Memoirs
Rating: 3 stars
Release Date: September 27, 2016
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Synopsis:

More than a decade after the New York Times bestselling anthology The Bitch in the House spoke up loud and clear for a generation of young women, nine of the original contributors are back—along with sixteen captivating new voices—sharing their ruminations from an older, stronger, and wiser perspective about love, sex, work, family, independence, body-image, health, and aging: the critical flash points of women’s lives today.

“Born out of anger,” the essays in The Bitch in the House chronicled the face of womanhood at the beginning of a new millennium. Now those funny, smart, passionate contributors—today less bitter and resentful, and more confident, competent, and content—capture the spirit of postfeminism in this equally provocative, illuminating, and compelling companion anthology.

Having aged into their forties, fifties, and sixties, these “bitches”—bestselling authors, renowned journalists, and critically acclaimed novelists—are back . . . and better than ever. In The Bitch Is Back, Cathi Hanauer, Kate Christensen, Sarah Crichton, Debora Spar, Ann Hood, Veronica Chambers, and nineteen other women offer unique views on womanhood and feminism today. Some of the “original bitches” (OBs) revisit their earlier essays to reflect on their previous selves. All reveal how their lives have changed in the intervening years—whether they stayed coupled, left marriages, or had affairs; developed cancer or other physical challenges; coped with partners who strayed, died, or remained faithful; became full-time wage earners or homemakers; opened up their marriages; remained childless or became parents; or experienced other meaningful life transitions.

As a “new wave” of feminists begins to take center stage, this powerful, timely collection sheds a much-needed light on both past and present, offering understanding, compassion, and wisdom for modern women’s lives, all the while pointing toward the exciting possibilities of tomorrow.

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Book Review: True Colors Of Betrayal (Daughter Of The Dragon Throne #3) by J.C. Kang

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True Colors Of Betrayal (Legends of Tivara, Daughter of The Dragon Throne #3)
Rating: 4.5 stars
Genre: Historical Fiction, Mythology, Fantasy/Adventure Fiction

Release date: August 30, 2016

I graciously received a ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis:

The world knows Kaiya as the Dragon Charmer. After vanquishing the Last Dragon with the power of her voice, all she wants is to return to a quiet life of anonymity. Instead, the Emperor tasks her with an onerous task: negotiating with the aggressive Teleri Empire for the extradition of her cousin, who tried to murder the imperial family and usurp the Dragon Throne.

The mission reunites her with her childhood friend Tian, now an assassin-spy who loathes killing. He is no longer the adorable, gullible boy from her memories, any more than she is the adventurous, sweet girl from his. Instead of rekindling nostalgia for a youthful innocence they both yearn for, their reunion ignites a mutual hatred.

When the Teleri Empire breaks off negotiations, Tian must help Kaiya escape. Orcs, Ogres, and enemy soldiers stand between them and home, and their volatile relationship could get them captured… or killed.

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Not Your Sidekick by:C.B. Lee Book Review (+Giveaway)

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Sept. 16th Blog Tour Date

Not Your Sidekick
By: C.B. Lee
Rating: 4.5 stars
Genre:LGBTQ,YA,Comics, Sci-fi, Super heroes, Romance, F/F
Release Date: September 8, 2016
Publisher: Debut Books/ Interlude Press
Cover Artist: C.B. Messer
Buy it everywhere & anywhere ^_^

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Synopsis:

Welcome to Andover, where superpowers are common—but not for Jessica Tran. Despite her heroic lineage, Jess is resigned to a life without superpowers when an internship for Andover’s resident super villain allows her to work alongside her longtime crush Abby and helps her unravel a plot larger than heroes and villains altogether.

Book Review: For Today I Am A Boy by Kim Fu

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For Today I Am A Boy
By: Kim Fu
Genre: GLBTQ+, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, YA Fiction
Rating: 3.5 stars
Release Date: March 10, 2015
Publisher: Mariner Books
Synopsis:
At birth, Peter Huang is given the Chinese name Juan Chaun, “powerful king.” To his parents, newly settled in small-town Ontario, he is the exalted only son in a sea of daughters, the one who will finally fulfill his immigrant father’s dreams of Western masculinity. Peter and his sisters grow up in an airless house of order and obligation, though secrets and half-truths simmer beneath the surface. At the first opportunity, each of the girls lights out on her own. But for Peter, escape is not as simple as fleeing his parents’ home. Though his father crowned him “powerful king,” Peter knows otherwise. He knows he is really a girl. With the help of his far-flung sisters and the sympathetic souls he finds along the way, Peter inches ever closer to his own life, his own skin, in this darkly funny, emotionally acute, stunningly powerful debut.

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Book Review: The Unforgettables by: GL Tomas

The Unforgettables
Genre: YA Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Interracial Romance, Learning Disability
Rating: 4.5 stars
Release Date: September 12 2016
Publisher: Rebellious Valkyrie Press

Received An Advanced Reader Copy in Exchange for An Honest Review.

Synopsis:

Neighbors and best friends Paul and Felicia hoped they’d be friends forever. But as they change, so does their friendship. She shouldn’t have kissed her…He shouldn’t have liked it. Starting school changed everything.

Book Review:

I am always excited for the new mix of characters and stories GL Tomas graciously share with us with their books because I genuinely feel like I’m glancing in at the lives of real people who you can connect with each and every time. Paul and Felicia from The Unforgettables were no exception to the rule.

Whatsmore, reading anything by them always sparks inspiration in me to dive into another new world. Particularly when I’m in a reading slump. So, when I heard about their newest book about two superhero/comic booking loving friends who decided to give themselves alter egos and pair up as a formidable duo, naturally I jumped and squealed at the chance like any normal person would. What I loved so much about this book was the fact that the main characters Felicia and Paul were nearly polar opposites. Aside from their mutual love for comics and superheroes’, they weren’t that similar, but I feel like that is what made them work.

Paul—the social butterfly, who thrived on crowds and at social events, and Felicia—the quiet, smart and observant killer soccer player, who was completely content to forever walk the line of solidarity for the rest of her life (or at least until she finished high school). The two came together in such a beautiful, awkward teenage shuffle.

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Book Review: The Salarian Desert Game by: J.A. McLachlan

The Salarian Desert Games
By: J. A. McLachlan
Genre: YA Fiction, Sci-fi, Adventure
Rating: 4 stars
Release Date: April 12, 2016
Publisher: EDGE Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing

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Synopsis:

What if someone you love gambled on her life?

Games are serious business on Salaria, and the stakes are high. When Kia’s older sister, in a desperate bid to erase their family debt, loses the game and forfeits her freedom, Kia is determined to rescue her. Disguised as a Salarian, Kia becomes Idaro in order to move freely in this dangerous new culture. When she arrives on Salaria, she learns it’s a world where a few key players control the board, and the pawns are ready to revolt. Kia joins the conflict, risking everything to save her sister. As if she doesn’t already have enough to handle, Agatha, the maddeningly calm and unpredictable Select who lives life both by-the-book and off-the-cuff shows up to help, along with handsome Norio, a strong-willed desert girl with her own agenda, and a group of Salarian teens earning their rite of passage in the treacherous desert game.

What can an interpreter and former thief possibly do in the midst of all this to keep the people she loves alive?

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Book Review: Hostile Takeover (John Lago Thriller #2) by: Shane Kuhn

Hostile Takeover (John Lago Thriller #2)
By: Shane Kuhn
Genre: Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Humor
Rating: 2 stars
Release Date: July 14, 2015
Publisher: Simon & Schuster

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Synopsis:

Professional assassin John Lago faces off against his deadliest adversary yet—his wife—in Hostile Takeover, the exciting sequel to Shane Kuhn’s bestselling debut The Intern’s Handbook, which the New York Post called “a sexy, darkly comic thriller.”

At the end of The Intern’s Handbook, John tracks down his nemesis Alice but instead of putting a bullet in her head, he puts a ring on her finger and marries her. Together, they execute a hostile takeover of Human Resources, Inc., the “placement agency” that trains young assassins to infiltrate corporations disguised as interns and knock off high profile targets. As HR’s former top operatives, they are successful until conflicting management styles cause an ugly breakup that locks John out of the bedroom and the boardroom.

But when Alice takes on a new HR target, John is forced to return to the office battlefield in a role he swore he would never play again: the intern. What starts out as a deadly showdown turns into the two of them fighting side by side to save HR, Inc.—and their marriage.

“Those who like Dexter will love John Lago” (Booklist), and in Shane Kuhn’s sequel to The Intern’s Handbook, readers will be rooting for this smart, witty antihero to come out on top.

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