April was for audiobooks....

I have fallen in love with audiobooks. They're just so perfect for times that I can't physically read a book: when housecleaning or working out at the gym, while knitting or driving (or working)...any time my hands are busy with other tasks. If I don't have one going and at least two lined up I start to get twitchy, which is why I now use two library mp3 download services and have subscribed to Audible. Yep, I'm addicted. 

My listening/reading was all over the place in April - juvenile, paranormal romance, contemporary romance, urban fantasy, and plain old fantasy (well...fantasy satire, if that's even a category). 

April reads
Dark Descendent by Jenna Black (audiobook)
Entity Mine (Chimera Chronicles #2) by Karin Shah
Ennara and the Book of Shadows by Angela Myron
Full Moon Rising (Riley Jensen Guardian #1) by Keri Arthur (audiobook)
No Refuge by Annie Nicholas (novella)
The Sweet Spot by Stephanie Evanovich (audiobook)
The Truth by Terry Pratchett (audiobook)

Mythology is twisted in Jenna Black's Dark Descendant

Nikki Glass, private investigator, is on a date. A really bad date. So when her client calls and asks her to meet him at a cult leader’s house to pick up his brainwashed girlfriend, Nikki ignores her gut instinct and leaps at the excuse to ditch her date. Nikki should have listened to her gut.

When Nikki arrives at the house she puts herself in the hands of men who believe themselves to be immortal, powerful progeny of gods. These psychopaths tell Nikki she’s the descendant of Artemis, and by mowing down one of their merry band of maniacs with her car she’s taken his immortality for herself. Trapped at their mercy in a tiny basement cell Nikki is sure they’re all insane…except that the mortal wounds she incurred in the car accident have healed. Now Nikki has to make a choice, stay with these guys (none of whom she trusts and one of which is actively trying to kill her) or join the Olympians, a group of descendants who want to use her supernaturally powerful manhunting skills (thanks, Artemis) to track down people they want to kill.

This urban fantasy novel starts off with a bang and the action doesn’t stop. It’s an original premise skillfully written, with intriguing characters that engender emotion. For those who have triggers, I should point out that the plot is gritty and violent and occasionally disturbing, but all of these elements are pivotal to the story. If you’re a fan of Jeanine Frost or Patricia Briggs, or badass females, you’ll definitely enjoy Dark Descendant. 

Note: I read the audiobook version of this novel and highly recommend it. 

Black, Jenna. Dark Descendant (Nikki Glass #1). New York: Pocket Books, 2011. Five stars

Review of Maplecroft by Cherie Priest, or, Lizzie Borden took an axe, gave Cthulu 40 whacks...

Infamous Lizzie Borden and her sister, Emma, live an odd life in Fall River, Massachusetts. Though Lizzie was acquitted of the murder of their father and stepmother the verdict was not the end of the sisters’ troubles. Mrs. Borden’s sea glass necklace still whispers from the depths of the pit under the cellar, and strange predatory creatures, perhaps drawn by the sea glass’ hypnotic call, come to Maplecroft in the night. As they are the only ones aware of the deadly creatures invading the town of Fall River Lizzie cannot, in good conscience, leave the area unprotected. She spends most of her time researching ways to destroy the things. Her experiments, trials, and tests have all failed. So far, the only success she’s had is hacking them to pieces with her axe. And still more come tapping, slapping, at the walls of Maplecroft, looking for a way in.

Meanwhile Emma, a frail woman stricken with consumption, does her own research on marine biology. She picks up samples from the beach and studies them, writing articles for prominent journals and corresponding with biologists and professors under the pseudonym E.A. Jackson. She sends a particularly interesting, and odiferous, sample to biology professor Phillip Zollicoffer at Miskatonic University, a frequent correspondent.

Professor Zollicoffer, despite Emma’s warning about the sticky smell that accompanies her find, examines the sample without gloves or protective clothing. He is immediately fascinated by what it could be. He feels compelled to “take care” of it, entranced by it’s tentacular, slimy beauty and immune to it’s horrid stench. He names the creature Physalis Zollicoffris and quickly succumbs to her allure, following her instructions and catering to her desires. 

And as Zollicoffer begins his descent into madness Fall River experiences a wave of violence and illness, and the creatures multiply. 

This novel was incredibly creepy and very well written. The basic facets of Lizzie Borden’s historical record are expanded with fiction and interlaced with Lovecraft’s peculiar mythos and creatures. This weirdly wonderful blending of history and horror is told gradually in journal entries and letters by several characters, each delivering their perspective on the story, enriching the narrative and creating a sense of intimacy for the reader. The deliberate pacing and gothic tone of the novel create a feeling of unease in the back of the mind that grows as the novel progresses. I highly recommend this shiver-inducing novel.

Priest, Cherie. Maplecroft (The Borden Dispatches Series, Book 1). New York: ROC, 2015. 5 stars. 

A new look at espionage in The Loving Daylights AND a Giveaway!

Today I'm hosting a Tasty Book Tours blog stop for a novel that I truly enjoyed: Lynsay Sands' The Loving Daylights. This reprint, first published as a standalone title in 2003, has been brought back with an updated cover. 

I grew up on James Bond movies and books and loved the adventures of the amorous, alcoholic spy with his over-the-top gadgets and witty repartee in tight situations. As I got older I began to read strong female characters as well, though mostly in fantasy stories. A few years ago I discovered J.D. Robb's Lt. Dallas, and then Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. came out, and pulled all of the things I loved into one package. I was primed and ready for a book like The Loving Daylights.

The Loving Daylights is the comedy version of James Bond. Shy Jane Spyrus is Q, working for B.L.I.S.S. as an inventor of gadgets for agents to use in the field. She can build anything B.L.I.S.S. needs in the international organization’s fight against crime. Some of her gadgets, however, are a little too . . . well, innovative. Like her shrink-wrap prophylactic constraints, or the mini-rocket launcher disguised as a...well, you can use your imagination. 

When Jane's neighbor is kidnapped she has to team up with Able Andretti and her grandmother (a former B.L.I.S.S. agent) and go undercover to rescue her and stop an evil plot. Abel didn't count on this whole spy operation when he stopped by his sister's apartment and discovered that she was missing, but he'll do anything it takes to save her. If that includes showing Jane how to love the daylights out of something without batteries, all the better.

The Loving Daylights is a character based novel, with a plot that gives these characters a lot of comedic opportunities. Jane is adorkable; a nerd who likes her comfort zone and adapts to her new assignment with quite a few hiccups. Her wheelchair-bound grandmother adds even more humor with her matchmaking and spy advice - which are often the same. Abel is sexy as hell...and just as confused. The villains add a purpose and motivation for the characters (and their evil scheme is truly horrendous). The focus of this novel is on the comedy, and is a light and easy read. Perfect for times when you need brain candy, but not something that will stay with you. I'm giving this one a medium-high score, because I did enjoy it, just not as much as other novels I've read lately.

As part of the Tasty Book Tours blog tour, the publisher is giving away three copies of The Loving Daylights. Enter to win your copy of here:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

or, if you can't wait, you can buy a copy on Amazon | Barnes | iTunes | Kobo 

Lynsay Sands is an incredibly prolific author. Her bestselling Argeneau series of vampire novels are next on my list (I love a good vampire romance!). Check out all of her novels, and her bio, at www.lynsaysands.net. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads. 

Sands, Lynsay. The Loving Daylights. New York: HarperCollins, 2012. 3.5 stars

Disclaimer: I read an audiobook version of this novel downloaded from my local public library. It is NSFW, and not just because you'll be laughing out loud. The thoughts and opinions expressed in the review are mine alone. 

Sneaking in educational content isn't only for kids!

I would like to apologize right now for the vagueness of this review. It's not vague because I didn't really read the book, or because I feel the information imparted is unimportant in any way, it's because I listened to this novel on audiobook, so I have no idea how to spell many of the names of the people, places, or works of art that are so integral to this story. Normally I'd just check out a copy of the print book and double check myself, but the movie of this book (starring George Clooney) is being released in October, so there's a long waiting list for The Monuments Men at the local library. Rather than totally mangle spellings, or wait forever to do this review, I am deliberately leaving out details.

During World War II the U.S. government charged a relatively small group of especially selected, uniquely qualified, enlisted men with protecting the cultural heritage of the countries at war and under attack. These MFAA (Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives) men worked with Army units on the front lines. As the units moved into new territory, the MFAA would evaluate the area’s historical buildings with an eye to preservation and restoration. Additionally, the men would interview local officials in an effort locate known missing artwork. It wasn't only artillery that was endangering the cultural heritage of Europe.

Throughout World War II the Nazi agenda included the confiscation of famous art collections from private collections and, later, museums and galleries. Many of the statues, alter pieces, and paintings are works that are in museums and on display today are only here because of the work of the MFAA.

I sucked at history in school. All through school, in fact, this was my least favorite subject. I’m finding out now that history is way more fascinating than I realized. I was also pleased to find out that one of the Monuments Men, Robert Posey, was from Alabama. Another, Walter Hancock, was an artist whose work I’d studied in art history classes. The Monuments Men pulled me in by following careers of these and other key men in MFAA, and sneakily taught me more about World War II than my history teachers ever managed.

The Monuments Men: Allied Heres, Nazi Thieves and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History by Robert M. Edsel

Publication Date: September 2009

Audiobook Reader: Jeremy Davidson

Length: 14 hours, 15 minutes

Rating (out of five stars): Five stars