Ilona Andrews: Burn for Me

The start of a new series for me with this book, and Ilona Andrews show readers just how far someone is willing to go to Save their family:

Nevada Chase is forced to take on the most challenging case ever given to her family's PI firm, find and bring in a rogue rich boy who happens to be a Prime pyro magic user and who has no concerns on who he hurts or what he destroys with his abilities. But Nevada is not the only one who is pursuing him, Connor “Mad” Rogan is on the hunt as well and he too has no qualms with doing whatever it takes to get the job done, even kidnapping and torturing Nevada to get his way. Nevada is on a suicide mission but she would do anything to protect her family.

This book had me hooked from beginning to end and I am so glad that I gave this series a try after finishing Andrews’ Kate Daniels series. This does have some similar elements to it but it is much more magic based. There maybe other supernatural or paranormal creatures in this world but we are not introduced to them in this book. The magic that is showcased in this book is amazing and I love the urban fantasy setting of this book. As I said before it had a similar feel to their Kate Daniels series. I also found the case that Nevada has to undertake interesting with the whole underground cult aspect to it and Nevada is smart enough to figure out how to lure her subject in.

I liked Nevada as a character and what she is willing to do for her family, basically anything to protect them, even take on a job that she knows is probably going to be the death of her (and having a contingency plan if she fails). She is smart resourceful and has one of the coolest powers that I have read about for a main character. Nevada is a walking polygraph machine, she can tell when people or lying and if she really pulls she can force the truth out of them.This really becomes handy for her family private investigators firm. Her family have kept her power a secret as there is only really one job for someone with her ability and she would get swallowed up by the government somewhere.

Alright this is a book that you cannot judge by its cover. To me this book cover screams romance book and while there are aspects of wanting and lust in this book it is very far from the romance book that the cover suggests. There is more of a lust aspect in this book between the characters as Nevada is fairly determined for that to not happen. I do think that the relationship between Nevada and Rogan is a little dominating/domineering not to mention that Rogan is a straight up sociopath. I struggle to see how Nevada could develop feelings for an individual who had first kidnapped and tortured her (Stockholm syndrome I guess that she never got over). I don't know most of the people that meet Rogan cant help but state how good looking he is and that is the reason they should be together? However, I will give Nevada credit for not falling in love with him at first site, she did mention his looks but love was not on the table there.

Great start to a series and I look forward to reading the next book. I hope Andrews can stick to the less is more romance aspect of this book and focus more on the cases and assignments that Nevada gets as that is the interesting part of the story for me.

Enjoy!!!

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Katherine Center: Things You Save in a Fire

Katherine Center show what it takes to learn what is truly important in one's life:

As one of the only female firefighters in a Texas firehouse she's seen her fair share of emergencies and each time she rises to the occasion. She is amazing at helping people through their own emergencies but her own personal life is a mess. So when her estranged mother calls her and asks her to come live with her for a bit as she is having problems with her vision, it is a request that she never expected. Cassie ends up transferring to an old school Boston firehouse that has never had a female member before and they make it known that they do not think that a "lady" can do the job. Cassie is trying to keep the career under control but nothing in her new firehouse is under her control.

This is pretty far from what I normally read, but I made the resolution this year to try and read some books our of my usual genres, so I decided to try this contemporary romance novel that I kept seeing so many posts about.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it was an interesting look into a fire hall dynamics and the differences between a large city and small town as well as being a women in these environments. I will admit there cliches here about how Cassie is treated, but I feel like these events are occurring in these situations even if we want to believe things have changed. Center knows what she is writing about in this book as she had her husband to consult who is a fir fighter, and would know the dynamics that do occur within a fire house. This also being a fire house (I actually think this is my first firehouse based book...) you get to follow them on some of the calls that they make from the ridiculous (Honestly the reason some people call 911 is quite funny) to the extreme fires that change people forever.

The farther I read into the book the more I became attached to Cassie as a character and everything that she had gone and was going through. Cassie is such a strong character that has relied on herself for such a long time that she does not know how to rely on others. This makes her an amazing firefighter as she puts others' needs above her own all the time but this means that she does struggle to make friends and have relationships. It was interesting to watch her change and grow throughout the book.

Now the relationship aspect in this book is funny. Most of the book is spent with Cassie trying to hide and make sure that she does not have feelings for the Rookie as this is an extreme No Go in firefighter culture. But the more that she tried to avoid him the more she falls for him. It was an extremely cute relationship to see develop but you knew how things were basically going to go.

I really enjoyed this book and and Center had me hooked the further I read. I really enjoyed the firehouse aspect and how things would become a bit more fast pace when a call was involved. This is a great contemporary read with a side of romance and I highly recommend it for those who like these genres.

Enjoy!!!!

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Nicholas Sansbury Smith: Captives

This is the fifth book in the Hell Divers series (Hell Divers, Ghosts, Deliverance and Wolves) and I cannot recommend it enough especially if you like sci-fi and post apocalyptic genres. As with any series it is best to start at the beginning and you better start now as you will not be disappointed.

Those in the HIVE in the sky finally have new hope for returning to Earth. X and Magnolia found the Metal Islands but were captured in the process. Magnolia and X are forced into servitude by the cannibal king El Pulpo, X in his army and Magnolia is to be one of his Wives. Back on the Hive they are preparing for war and hopefully the rescue of their friends. But what will be the cost of attempting to claim the metal islands back on Earth? Blood, lots and lots of Blood.

I love this series and while this is not my favourite book in the series, it still does an amazing job in keeping the reader engaged and on the edge of their seat with nonstop action. I actually think that this is the most intense book of the series with War on the horizon and even the interaction between El Pulpo, X and Magnolia are dripping in tension as you do not know how any of these character are going to react. 

I feel in a way that this book was slightly predictable as you knew what the outcome was going to be, I mean Sansbury Smith is not that heartless. However,, I will admit that not everyone is going to be there in the end and one death was truly shocking but you knew what the ending was going to shape up to be.

I will always love X as a character and how so much more at home he is on the surface of the earth than above it in the sky. X is pure grit, roughness with an overwhelming need to survive, with just a tough of a softer side for his dog Miles. Even after everything he had gone through and goes through in this book, X never seem to give up even when he should at his end.

Once again Sansbury Smith wows me with his imagination of what Earth could look like in this state. From the robots, to how humans act to the creatures that have mutated in this world, he has great imagination for all those things. We do actually find out about what caused WWIII and how Earth to ended up this way, but for me this story was always secondary (and less interesting) to what was occurring now and I was not as interested in that side story after the novel Deliverance.

This is my favourite post apocalyptic series and I thought this was going to be the last book but Sansbury Smith surprised me with having another book in this series, which I will immediately pick it up. Anytime i can read about the Hell Divers I'm in.

Enjoy!!!

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Gemma Rogers: Stalker

In her debut novel Gemma Rogers plays a cat and mouse game of who is stalking who:

Eve Harding is walking to meet a friend when her world is completely destroyed when she is grabbed and violently sexually assaulted. Her world completely changes, how she sees herself, her body, everyone around her as well as the places she is familiar going. She wants her assaulter found and punished, but he has eluded the police. Then Eve comes up with a plan, she will not stand by and let this man destroy another woman's life. Eve now has a new mission in life, try to find the main who assaulted her and make him pay.

This was really impressive for a debut novel, I felt that Rogers laid out the story she wanted to tell really well minus at the beginning when I found the time jumps a little bit confusing as they are fairly close together. I wish she would have used titles like before and after or 6 months before or 6 month after. However, I do like books that tell the story where the time frames get closer and closer together, which Rogers does here. This also heightened the suspense throughout the book as you begin to wonder how did Eve after everything end up in the jail cell?

I think that Rogers did a great job in not romanticizing rape in any way, from the rape itself to showcasing the fact that there is not only an physical toll that the victim can experience but the emotional one as well. Rogers does not sugar coat a thing. Do I think that Eve was maybe outside the norm of "recovering" so fast, sure, but I think that all the other aspects that Rogers presented around sexual assault in this book were glamorized at all that this can be overlooked.

Speaking of Eve her growth within this book is amazing, from devastating and destroying her life to trying to take aspects of it back to hunting down her assaulter, you cannot help but cheer for her all along the way. Eve just seems like such a real person throughout and you really get to know her as majority of the chapters feature her. There are a few chapters from the detective, which were good, rounded out part that side of the story but there were also chapters featuring her assaulter. Normally, I like when an author put the bad guy front and center as you as the reader gets to know them better their motives, but in this case I wish Rogers would have held them back. They heighten some of the suspense as you wait for Eve to find out the information that you as the reader know, but I personally think they gave away too much and would have preferred to be left in the dark.

I know I have put quite a few things in this review that wish were different in the book (and I guess I will add that I was kind of hoping for a more realistic ending) but all that said this was an awesome debut novel I did not want to put the book down, and I highly recommend this book who like psychological suspense reads as well as cat and mouse thriller books. I look forward to reading Rogers next book.

Enjoy!!!

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Brian McClellan: War Cry

Brian McClellan drops the reader in the middle of a war zone where the platoon is playing a cat and mouse game with the enemy:

Teado has been part of the war since he was a child working in the aircraft and ammunition factories to begin with and then when he got older and his shifter powers presented themselves he was moved to the front lines of the war. Now with his platoon behind enemy lines with little support, they attack the enemy when they can in a cat and mouse game. Though it looks like the end may be near, the enemy has pushed their forces back leaving one of their bases vulnerable and loaded with supplies and the platoon is determined to take advantage but this supposed to be last raid is about to change the course of the War forever.

This book had some really interesting aspects going for it especially around the main character Teado and his abilities but this were overshadowed by the lack of world building, backstory and lack of overall premise as well. Yes, Teado and his platoon are playing a deadly cat and mouse game with the enemy but who is the enemy and why? Why is the platoon who are serving an important job have little support or resources? What planet or world or wherever is this story set? It has an early WWI feel to it but there is also magic and shifters abilities. I think my main problem with this book is I had more questions than answers. I know this was a novella but I have read other novellas that are better laid out and give some sort of backstory and world building so the reading gets the idea of what is going on and why. The story did get more interesting the further you read with Teado going on a mission, but it just wasn't enough for me.

The one aspect I liked in this novella was the main character.  His abilities are really interesting and different from other shifters more like a lizard alien thingy, with armor that bullets are unable to pierce. I liked that he was extremely brave and was willing to push himself to his limit and beyond as well as sacrifice himself in order to save his team. However, other than those qualities we do not really know much about him and why he joined the war, once again missing some form of a back story.

So this novella left a lot to be desired for me as I just have too many questions left off after reading this book. If this does lead into a series or a second book i'm not sure I would continue on even though it got a little more interesting near the end.

Cheers!!!

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Agatha Christie: And Then There Was None

Agatha Christie’s takes 10 complete strangers from very different backgrounds to a remote Island where murder is a foot:

"Ten little boys went out to dine; One choked his little self and then there were nine. Nine little boys sat up very late; One overslept himself and then there were eight. Eight little boys traveling in Devon; One said he'd stay there then there were seven. Seven little boys chopping up sticks; One chopped himself in half and then there were six. Six little boys playing with a hive; A bumblebee stung one and then there were five. Five little boys going in for law; One got in Chancery and then there were four. Four little boys going out to sea; A red herring swallowed one and then there were three. Three little boys walking in the zoo; A big bear hugged one and then there were two. Two little boys sitting in the sun; One got frizzled up and then there was one. One little boy left all alone; He went out and hanged himself and then there were none."

The above poem really does a good job of setting the whole premise of the book, and while there are 10 characters for you to get to know I will let the book tell you about them. I wonder if Christie read this poem and designed her whole plot around it. It is such an interesting, morbid and different poem that I could see why it inspired her. I have not read many Christie books but those that I have I have enjoyed and this book was not exception. I like that this book takes place in the past where there is not sudden discovery of DNA or some computer software that can find the perfect evidence or clue at the perfect time. It makes so much more interesting and challenging to just go on the bare facts.

I think that this book has aged well, for the most part. I mean stick some strangers on a remote island with not cell service or internet access and you could have this book in modern time. Other than some verbiage (Queer is the word of this book, I mean it is said every few pages), this book does hole up really well. Though I believe the previous versions the verbiage were much more of the time.

It is hard to really get to know any of the characters as there are 10 in total and really with them dying all the time it is hard to really get to know them. It was interesting to see who they would point their fingers at and their reasons for it. Stereotyping was quite common in their reasoning as well as you guessed it the word Queer. 

I really enjoyed this book and trying to figure out who the killer was, was it one of the 10 or someone hiding in the house or on the Island. It was great fun to try and figure out what was going to happen next and how Christie would interpret the poem to her advantage. 

Agatha Christie really is the Queen of mystery and I look forward to finding another book by her. What are you favourite Christie reads?

Enjoy!!!

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