The nitty-gritty: A solid series opener, Hunt the Stars focuses on character development rather than world building and pacing, but I still had a good time. I was a big fan of Jessie Mihalik’s Consortium Rebellion series, and I’ve been excited for this new series for months. I enjoyed this first installment, but I have […]
The nitty-gritty: An ancient evil terrorizes a small town in this ambitious new novel from Bram Stoker finalist JG Faherty. If you’re a fan of The Exorcist, you might want to check out The Wakening, which takes inspiration from the classic horror story but adds unique elements to the mix as well. This is a […]
The nitty-gritty: While I loved Cosby’s gritty and violent revenge scenario, I had some issues with the overall plot and dialog, ultimately making this a mixed bag for me. That was the thing about violence. When you went looking for it you definitely were going to find it. It just wouldn’t be at a time […]
The nitty-gritty: Dan Hanks blends 80s nostalgia, portal fantasy and parenthood in this fun romp/quest to save the world. Swashbucklers was a lot of crazy fun, and I do mean crazy—think Ghostbusters meets Stranger Things. Dan Hanks does a good job of combining humor, action and nostalgia, and he even tugged on my heartstrings a […]
The nitty-gritty: The Offset presents a grim future, but gives readers plenty of food for thought. I’m not sure what I was expecting when I picked up this book, but it ended up surprising me in many ways. This is a dark, gritty look at a future where things are so bad that extreme measures […]
The nitty-gritty: A lively adventure with plenty of romance, The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels lost me when it came to the unexpected fantastical elements. “You are a scoundrel,” she whispered furiously. “Yes,” he agreed. “I’m thinking of starting a Society of Gentlemen Scoundrels.” “You’re millennia too late. It already exists and is called the […]
The nitty-gritty: I enjoyed the mystery and Scalzi’s cool concept of “dispatching,” but overall I wanted more from the story. After my debacle of unintentionally rereading The Dispatcher, I finally downloaded the correct document and was able to knock out Murder By Other Means pretty quickly. This is the second novella in John Scalzi’s The […]
The nitty-gritty: Sylvain Neuvel’s latest is an ambitious look at the history of the space race with an intriguing, speculative twist. This is an odd book that I think is going to have a tough time finding an audience, but I absolutely loved the concept, and I think Neuvel probably achieved what he set out […]
The nitty-gritty: Small town secrets and teenagers coming of age meet head-on in Christina Henry’s latest horror story, a book that worked for me on some levels but not on others. To be honest, until about the halfway point, I wasn’t sure if I was going to like this book much. It’s quite different from […]
The nitty-gritty: A lighthearted, humorous “found family” story with plenty of laughs and even a few sweet moments. I enjoyed this unexpectedly humorous and touching novella, even though it didn’t really rock my world. The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water is Zen Cho’s ode to the Chinese wuxia genre of martial arts […]