Tuesday book reviews

 

Four-star review of Beast by Anna Willett

Two well-written horror short stories make up this book. The first, Last Call, is a good reason to never visit a haunted house, even with a friend. In the second, The Widow, Dan’s experiences may have scared him straight. Both stories are filled with vivid descriptions. Since I’m not a fan of horror stories, if I hadn’t been given an ARC of these to read, I wouldn’t have picked this up. Perfect for this time of year, though.

Five-star review of New Worlds: Rogue Star #2 by Jasper T. Scott

Like the first one in the series, this is a fast-moving story, this time focusing on Logan’s attempts to find his son and on the amazing technology of the robotic Screechers who have invaded Earth. Logan, his wife and daughter are living in a hidden underwater city, but his son was left behind. Logan especially is a very believable character with many choices to make. Some of those get him into desperate situations. The wrap-up is far-fetched, but after all the twists and turns, why not?

Tuesday Book Review

 

Three-star review of Key Lime Die by Summer Prescott

Like the first book in the series, the first half of this one was build-up. The murder didn’t occur until the halfway point. As expected from that build-up, Marilyn was suspected of killing her rival pie maker. She did solve the crime, I’ll give her that. I like Marilyn and love key lime pie, but I don’t think I’ll read more stories about her misadventures.

Tuesday Book Review on Wednesday

 

Five-star review of Rogue Star: Frozen Earth by Jasper T. Scott

I always enjoy this kind of science fiction story, especially if it’s as well-done as this one. A rogue asteroid is hurtling toward Earth. It will cause another ice age, affecting the northern half of the U.S.

Named for Richard Greenhouse who discovered it, the rogue hides an invasion by alien robots. Richard’s sister Kate, brother-in-law Logan, and their family don’t take his warnings that it’s coming until it’s almost too late for them to fly from New Jersy to San Antonio and join him in the compound he created. But the story really picks up after they do. The characters are real, and their reactions to the invasion by the aliens before the rogue arrives are also real. I’ve already purchased the second book in the series and will read it very soon.

Tuesday review on Wednesday

 

Four-star review of Blowout by Catherine Coulter

Savich and Sherlock are on the case again, this time after one of the Supreme Court Justices is murdered in the Supreme Court Library. This time, they are aided by police detective Ben Raven and reporter Callie Markham, who’s also the step-daughter of the murdered man. The suspense is riveting as one after another, the Justice’s law clerks are killed too. The side story involving Savich seeing the ghost of a woman dead for decades detracted from the main story. And I still want to know which of the women was the lover of the mass murderer who killed the Justice. This was much better than the historical romance written by the same author.

 Tuesday Book Reviews

New Mexico Remembers 9/11 anthology

This anthology includes poetry and prose from current New Mexico residents recalling where they were on 9/11 and what the events that day mean to them. Whether they were in New York, Washington D.C. or somewhere else, they each have a story to tell. Whether moving or funny, the reminiscences are all well-written. I didn't rate this since I have a story in it.

Four-star review of Waking (Clockwork Twist #1) by Emily Thompson

Twist is a small Londoner who has a gift that allows him to repair anything mechanical. He's hopeless around real people. When he's whisked away in an airship, powered by steam and hot air balloons, his focus is on finding a clockwork princess and bringing her back to life. Along the way, he has adventures and meets a strange collection of people. He finds the only one who can touch him without disasterous consequences is Jonah, a young man whose gift is the ability to see the future of anyone he looks at. The two form a connection. This steampunk novel, the first of a long series, was a quick read. The writing is good, the characters and situations interesting. I'll read more about Twist.

 

Four-star review of A Lime to Kill by Summer Prescott

The murder didn’t happen until 45% into the story, but I enjoyed reading about Tiara’s decision to help her mother Marilyn run her key lime pie store in Key West. The characters were fun. Marilyn, the narrator of the story, was especially well-rounded. There were enough hints about her and her daughter for me to know this series has a lot to explore. I’m not a particular fan of cozies or romances, but I’ll be happy to read more about them and their delicious shop. And the recipes included at the end were an added bonus.

Tuesday Book Review

 

Five-star review of A Girl Called Ari by P. J. Sky

This dystopian YA story grabbed me from the start and carried me onward. A true page-turner. The mayor’s daughter is kidnapped from a walled city of spires and towers. She finds herself in the wastelands near the salt mines where another teenaged girl, the one named Ari, toils and lives. The two set off together to get back to the city, encountering numerous perils, both natural and man-made. The author avoided going for the expected happily ever after ending for both girls. I’ll never doubt an author’s tweet about her book again. I’ll look for more by this author in the future.