Book Review: Iron Duke

The Iron Duke by Meljean Brook

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


The world building and history is amazing! The author leaves you with no doubt this is a steampunk book. The people are interesting and the modifications are astounding. The female lead, Mina, is great! Dealing with horrors, racism and coming out the other end victorious. The male lead, Rhys, however leaves a LOT to be desired. He is a product of his horrific childhood, however he doesn't grow or learn anything though towards the end when he makes a hard decision he had me fooled into thinking he wasn't such a bad guy. If I had not read the last chapter I would have rated the book 4 stars but to my horror I did read the last chapter and it left a bitter taste in my mouth, forcing me to reduce my rating to 2 stars.




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Book Clud Review: Book 2 September

Eternal Pleasure by Nina Bangs

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is a book that is so bad it is good. I was laughing the whole way through, ever though I suppose some of it wasn't really meant to be laughed at.
This is a feel good book despite the bad stuff that is going on and the reactions of the Dinosaur souls is refreshing.
While this book does contain Vampires and Werewolves they are not the main creatures of the night and mearly add to the storyline without dominating so if you are looking for something different or are just feeling saturated with vampire stories this is a must to read.



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Book Club Review: Book 1 September

Cthulhurotica by Carrie Cuinn

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Gave up on this one.
The stories are really well written but end to abruptly for my liking. While I thought this book may repulse me it did infact make me feel nothing. Nothing at all.
So while the stories themselves are beautifully written they are however boring.
I think though if you are into the whole Cthulhu thing, you shouldn't miss this book.



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Book Review: Phantom

Phantom by Lindsay Randall

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I loved this book! From the moment it started to the very end there were almost no pauses that I could get a good night sleep the story was just go go go.
Phantom has adventure, romance, monsters, magic and battles. There is nothing more I could have wanted from this story.
LOVED IT!



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Book Review

Zombie Rain by Zach Sweets

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


You had me right up until the King arrived and blasted them with the light.
Beforehand though the book was great, the attacks were believable as were the heros reactions to them. I thought it weird towards the end when there was a bit of a role switch and perhaps they were a little too complacent in their situation.
Even with the beams of light and the rainbow rain all seemingly controlled by the King this was a fun quick read, and it was very quick read.



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Book Club Review #2 August

Oracle's Moon by Thea Harrison

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Its really more of a 3.5 stars as I really did enjoy this book. The last chapter though kinda ruined it a bit.
There is something bigger going on in the background the entire book from before it even began and as a reader you really get a sense for it. People are acting weird and the main characters don't seem to be able to grasp at what is going on, just that its different somehow. In the last couple of chapters we get to find out what is going on then there is a big confrontation on a completely different matter, that I guess was set up earlier but this leads to no time to really resolve the bigger issue that was present throughout the book and there for it is just commented on, which I found a little dissapointing.
The children in this book are actually quite adorable. The leading lady Grace felt real to me, though a bit young she does mature in her situation. Her struggle is heart breaking and yet rings true.
The leading man, Khalil is rather robotic as he is a Djinn and has not cared to bother himself with mortal customs and behaviours. He comes off as arrogant and bossy due to his nature but you really get a sense that he cares for first only the children then eventually Grace.
I actually really like this urban fantasy setting where there are several species and the whole world is aware of them. The magic and the strange coupled with the everyday just makes it seem plausable and helps to identify with the characters



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Book Club Review #1 August

Ill Wind by Rachel Caine

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I like that the book starts very fast-paced. The information about how a weather warden manipulates the weather is great. I thought it gave the magic depth as its not as easy as just stopping a storm you actually have to think about where the energy is going. Though I think a lot of people would find this annoying.
Johanne was a bit too full of herself though not unlikable perhaps just very immature still. The story itself occurs over a fairly short period of time so the character doesn't grow up and has no time to really to develope much more than she already is.
I found Jos' interest in cars unique for a female character and felt the author almost gave the cars their own unique personality (who doesn't talk to their car, specially when you are trying to get it to start).
There are hints at Davids secret, though he hides it really well, breifly throughout the book.
There is a lot of flashbacks which I can only assume was to pad the book out a bit more, but they are relevant to the characters we meet along the way and perhaps set up for the later books in the series.
All in all I did enjoy this book.



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Book Review : Master of Crows

Master of Crows by Grace Draven

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Neither are all that young (at least compared to other romances) or all that attractive. There is no 'love at first sight' and absolutely NO rapey bits. In fact he asks her straight out to sleep with him and makes it VERY clear she can leave at any time, even in the middle of it.
The characters are flawed and are thrown together as enemies eventually seeing the good in each other and falling slowly but deeply in love protecting each other till the end.
I found the priest taking a bit of her soul as a child and placing it in the sapphire to flaunt in front of her extremely violating and it made it VERY easy to hate him.
Now I will add this to my favorites shelf and go eat an orange :-)



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Book Review: The Night Circus

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Wow! I actually really loved this.
It was a bit confusing at the start, as each chapter has its own date and the time doesn't flow from one chapter to another but rather jolts you all over the place bringing you the understanding you need as you need to know it.
I love the parts that read as if you yourself are in the circus. I found this really brought me into the story.
The midnight dinners are a wonderous idea, and I would dearly have loved to attend one.
First course served on the stroke of midnight.
The circus itself sounded brilliant, a real specticle of wonder.
The idea that magic could be all around us still and yet kept subtle due to our disbelief of magic appeals to me.



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Book Club Book #2 for July

9 Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake by Sarah MacLean

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I loved this book, so much so that I found it very hard to put down and subsiquentially finished in two days.
Callie has low self esteem but doesn't always show it, after all she is a lady and ladies do not show self pity. She is burning with a desire to break free from the shackles of what society expects of her and at the "on the shelf" age of 28 she finds herself drawn to experiencing things in life that men have taken for granted. Starting with her first kiss. Callie does not do things by halves and when she could simply try a scotch in the comfort of her own home, safe from ruin, she instead decides she will take her first glass of scotch in a public house (something a lady never does).
I think though set in a different time period this underlining storyline (besides the romance of course) is very relevant to today, no matter how far woman have come we still have a perceived place in society that not all of us fit into and there are still some freedoms we much take with judgement of our character.




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Book Club Book Review

Desperate Duchesses by Eloisa James

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


The book is well written and the character building is great.

I struggle with the virgin woman and the "extremely experienced" man always being coupled and its still insulting that the woman never knows what she really wants and even when she is saying no its assumed she really means yes she just doesn't know it yet. The virgin, while loosing her virginity before marriage, of course is never touched by another man making her solely "his", while the man of course has a list of ex-lovers too long for him to remember all their names.

The main character, Lady Roberta St. Giles, starts off likable as I felt sorry for her situation but it soon becomes apparent she is a simpering idiot who doesn't think about her actions and is on the whole very imature.

There seems to be a lot about Jemma in the start then she all but dissapears towards the end. The big chess game she is in with the Duke of Villiers is a focus towards the start,even listing moves played, but the end of the game is mearly announced after the fact. The friend who requested her to humiliate Villiers isn't even mentioned again.

We don't really find out much about Damon, the Earl of Gryffyn as all he seems to do is seduce Roberta, Though it is hinted that he plays the stock markets. His devotion to his illegitimate six year old son is touching and is the only thing that gives him depth as a character.

I did enjoy the banter and the colourful characters at the start of the book.



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