Source: The Scriptorium Daily
Archive for September 2, 2015
Source: Dar49 Daily
Pas by S.M. Reine
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Disclaimer: I was given this 4-in-1 series book free for honest review.
So here goes! This is the only one in this series I haven’t read before, yet it seamlessly followed the others. At least I knew when this one began as suddenly new stuff was happening that I didn’t recognize.
Diedre Tombs is a mixed up, abused person with addictions and is trying to get it together now that she is attempting growing up and gaining responsibilities. She is hard to love as a character, but when has Sara Reine written characters that are Suzy Sunshines? Yet the abuse she endures and the addictions she continues are hard to read about. And her misguided thoughts about our old friend Rylie hurt.
Then Rylie shows the stuff she’d made of and all is well.
This is a great finisher book. All the threads are nicely tied up and you feel their universe will go on without you.
One of the problems I have with this book, and it may be that it was explained and I missed it with my text-to-speech reading, why is this called PAS? It makes no sense.
I’m glad to see that Ms. Reine has more for us from this LONG bunch of series. Another point of view will be written about soon. Yay!
By the way, because of the adult content this is better to be read by new adults and older. Maybe mature teens will get some of the issues involved here but even this old lady finds it hard to look at some of these issues. Still, it is well worth the read.
Alpha: An Urban Fantasy Novel by S.M. Reine
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Disclaimer: I was given this 4 in 1 book containing this series for free for review. I have to admit that is has been the best way to read it. One right after the other. In this case, listening to British female text-to-speech just kept the story going. But I couldn’t tell when I was in the “Alpha” book. I did feel Deidre becoming stronger though this book shows her struggles with authority and addictions more than the others, I feel. Even so, it is fun to watch her grow as a character and as a leader. Mostly I stick to the first review below.
Disclaimer: I was gifted this book for an honest review.
Maybe it was because my life has been so busy with fun road trips and not so fun hospital time for my husband, but, I had a hard time getting through this story. Usually, I can’t stop reading a Sara Reine book. There were just so many places where my mind wandered away from the story.
I think it is hard to make the main character a favorite for me. Deidre has no respect for Rylie our favorite Alpha werewolf. She doesn’t even have respect for her own alpha. But then he isn’t worth the respect. Meanwhile, Deidre Tombs goes all gooey about a dragon shifter and/or her alpha. It’s hard to know where she stands. She hasn’t much to stand on as she searches for her own animal to shift to. Once she finds it, she has a hard time making it happen.
Okay, all that aside, I am still looking forward to the next book to see what happens next. No, we weren’t left on a cliffhanger. We were left with many threads left undone, possibly fraying at the ends. How can our prolific author tie this all up? Wow!
Beta by S.M. Reine
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Disclosure: I was given this 4 in 1 book of this series free for review. What I have to add to what is written below is that reading it this way I can hardly tell where one book ends and the next begins. That may be because I am ‘reading’ rather listening by text-to-speech. I use the British female–sounds like Julie Andrews reading to me! The books are seamlessly woven together. I do not like the main character as much as I do Rylie, the first one we meet in Ms. Reine’s worlds and the Alpha that remains Alpha through everything. Deidre is full of flaws and teen mistaken ideas and addictions. Yet, she grows on you and you find yourself rooting for her.
Disclosure: I was gifted this ebook in exchange for an honest review.
Wow! What a sequel! I must admit that I am confused as to what our Omega/Beta, Deidre Tombs actually is as a shifter, still we were given a few clues in this book. I really love her character. Shoot, by saying that I show how Sara Reine writes her characters; so realistic that I forgot there is a writer! Yet how realistic is a shapeshifter? Yet, I believe it while reading it. As always, I am left gasping and wanting to become the main character in Stephen King’s Misery. I want the next book NOW!!!! I want to see if I am correct in my guesses. Don’t worry, Ms. Reine. I’m generally a passive person and have plenty to keep me reading until you can crank out the next.
I was glad to see old friends from Seasons of the Moon and on through other series our prolific author has scribed. By the way, I do highly recommend reading all her books start with Season of the Moon. Her books are full of chills and thrills and characters, places and scenes that are at once unbelievable yet the reader sees everything that is taking place. All senses are engaged and you are there! Beta felt as good as any of her books. And the ending, though not quite a cliffhanger, leaves you wanting to know more. What will happen next? What is she? Great job, Sara!
Chicken Poop for the Soul: Backyard Adventures by Teri Metcalf
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
What a sweet story about a woman, her family/friends, and some chickens! I feel jealous that she chose this title. I wish I would have thought of that! How adorable! I loved all the stories about the chickens that roamed over from the neighbors’ yard and became a part of their daily lives.
But then somewhere around 79% the story became about the author and her diet. I think that this should have been titled ‘about the author’, but I got over the change in flow and topic. In fact, I got a bit of ‘it’s a small world’ feeling as she tells of her life in 1968. She was in the same city as I was at the time. She and her husband must be very close to my age, a bit older but at our ages the few years don’t matter anymore. Not only were they in the same city but the author seemed to have the same diet of books that created her diet. Her research for pregnancy and raising children were the same as mine. Even her call of being flexitarian which I have been and was more back then than now. Now I am more vegetarian-leaning, always, toward vegan. Just can’t give up the cheese for long.
But back to the bucolic chickens and their lives. When my children were young I had an acre with roaming chickens and had a couple goats, too. Ms. Teri Metcalf brought that back to me and makes me impatient to get that life back. Only 19 days until that happens!
Darswords 