Category: Books



Dragon's Time (Pern, #23)Dragon’s Time by Anne McCaffrey

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Well, this was a slower continuation of the last book I read, Dragongirl. Which wasn’t about a girl but rather a grown lady. Neither story let us in on the time Fiona was a girl. And this story takes place both after and before Dragongirl. Confused yet? Yeah. Get used to it. That is the problem in books of time travel. That is the problem of worlds that don’t have the same rules as our own.

Luckily, I was able to borrow the audio-CD version of the book to complement my hardback version. And I highly recommend others read the series this way. Emily Durante’s narration is superb! I love her acting. Since this book centers more on Larana who is older than Fiona and Emily’s voice sounds more aged and settled than Fiona’s often high-pitched excitable voice. And she is able to portray the male voices with differing styles. She is amazing! I have the Audible version on my wishlist now.

I do have to admit that this one was harder to follow for me and I often had to back up and re-read/re-listen to certain parts of the story to make sure I knew when and where the story was taking place.

But the love continues. The great love Fiona and Larana share with each other and planetwide, is what moves the story. Forgiveness plays a big part. There is much a person can learn from these last two stories about love and communication. Many who have reviewed these two books have been negative about the polyamorous viewpoints brought up here. But to me, this depth of love is needed for the problems that Pern is presented. The newly found abilities of moving back and forth in time solve and create other problems but without love it would have all fallen apart. Pern isn’t another Earth, it needs its own rules and answers. I think the McCaffrey’s came up with some great ideas… maybe we should institute many of these back here before our own world is caput.

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After the Sky Fell DownAfter the Sky Fell Down by Megan Nugen Isbell

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Oh, my! That wasn’t a book I would have seen myself reading. But somehow the author drew me in. And even when I wanted to stop reading during some boring or overly angsty part, I just couldn’t leave this poor widow and her life.

BIG WARNING: Get the Kleenex ready from the very start of the book. What I found interesting was how well Megan Nugen Isbell wrote all the feelings of a grieving person. She was able to capture how just the slightest thing could pull the sadness out, even on the most delightful of occurrences. Over and over I found myself wondering about the depth of the author, what she must have been through herself to find the depth she was able to put into words.

As the main character tries to pull her life back, love seems to propel her into other relationships. A baby, the deceased brother, and soon, a chance at life apart from the past. It was so honest and painful to watch what this poor young woman had to go through. I know it happens every day. We forget that even young people can have deep losses. It is hard enough to deal as an older adult but imagine when you are still young and have all those hormones running through you.

I know, I know, this is the very thing I get mad at in the Young Adult books, but somehow, this is different. This is written with pure heart. Motivations for life seem undiluted by appearances and overt sensuality. If there is romance, it seems to come in more gentle forms, holistic in nature. Geez, I am doing a poor job reviewing this. I would have given it five stars, but I have to admit to being bored with the angst on occasion. Not the grief. It felt natural. Just jealousy. I always find the green monster boring. Not that it doesn’t exist, but that too much is made of it when there are other deeper feelings to understand. Insecurity and fear cause jealousy. Anger because he catches her kissing someone else drives me crazy. But the author doesn’t dive into that too much and when she did she pulled out before I had the chance to throw the book aside and find something else to read.

If you feel the need for a good cry, this is the book for you. If you don’t want to cry, find another book for now. I loved the bittersweetness of the whole thing.

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Dragongirl (Pern, #22)Dragongirl by Todd J. McCaffrey

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I wish I could give this book 20 stars! I think it is my favorite Pern novel ever! I must admit that I borrowed the audio CDs from the library to help with the hardback I own to get through it. It is the first I’ve read that doesn’t have Dick Hill’s deep voice but poor acting. Instead, this starred Emily Durante. Okay, I must admit that at first this high voice nearly drove me as crazy as Dick’s deep voice. And I missed his echoing sound for his dragon voices. But I soon got used to Ms. Durante’s energies and voices and added the Audible version to my wishlist for the future. I am thankful the library had the CDs in the meantime.

This book proposed a different way to look at life and love. I see in the reviews that many found this book disgusting. More’s the pity for them. Sorry. If your humans and dragons are dying and you are given a gift of love and it seems others can find that fluidity of love within themselves, there is an answer to procreating in a new way. Old methods of impressing dragons show that the old ways don’t work in the world anymore. Much time travel is needed to help keep the planet alive. All these new methods combine to promote a healthier Pern. Stuck in Earth’s ways with old mores, Pern would have surely ended with this book.

LOVE is the key of this book. Fiona, gold queen-rider and weyrwoman, has more love than anyone can imagine. She gives it freely and does her best to shine her positive light on everyone. But even greater love has Lorana who has given the ultimate sacrifice, her dragon, to Pern. How could others not see the magic and love of these two womyn?

One warning? Have the Kleenex ready near the end.

Okay, to those following my reviews: I know my goal is to mainly read books written by women that contain strong fem leads. This one more than qualifies as Todd McCaffrey merely channeled his mother’s world and populated it with the strongest womyn I have met yet. Thank you, Todd! I can’t wait to read more!

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Dragon's FireDragon’s Fire by Anne McCaffrey

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Would this book get a higher rating from me had I not solely listened to Dick Hill read it? Could it have been better with text-to-speech? I think so. I just don’t like how this narrator interprets females or the young males. They all sound weak and whiny. I don’t mind his deep sonorous voice for the Masterharper, or even for just descriptive parts of the book. But mostly I don’t like his acting.

This is the first book in a long time that I didn’t have the hardback book to help me along. I had to just listen. That was sheer torture to this ADD mind. To be stuck under the headset for so long nearly drove me mad… there are those that think I already arrived, but that’s another story!

As for THIS story, I do think it is the weakest so far. I’m a little afraid to state that per above remarks, but there was quite a lot of time that there was just NOTHING going on. I read these books to be flying with dragons or their kin, but there seemed to be very little of that and a whole lot of bad guys and bad decisions that had nothing to do with impressing or flying.

Luckily, this was a library CD and I don’t have to worry about whether I should buy the book. Nope. I have a lot of the books in this collection, but I see no reason to get this one.

Still, good try, Todd. I still miss your mom. RIP, Anne.

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CruxCrux by Julie Reece

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wow! What a wonderful, unexpected find! I think I mentioned that my husband recommended a book titled Crux to me a while back. Well, I found two titles of Crux and both were free. So I picked them both up not knowing which one he was alluding to. That cleared up, I read the other one, by Moira Rogers, first. Yep, it was grand. But then I didn’t feel it fair not to read this one by Julie Reece, just to make sure it got a chance. IT WAS TERRIFIC!!!!!

Okay, it wasn’t the erotic volcano that Moira Rogers’ book was. In fact, this one is tame enough that anyone could read it and not be embarrassed by sexual, much less sensual acts of the main characters. Okay, maybe there was a kiss or two, but that was expected. On the other hand, just in warning, it does have some very violent scenes. And I almost think that they were necessary for the whole picture. But otherwise, this was a fantastic read.

This was a longer than usual book. But it managed to tell the whole story without the need for a book two. Yet, I wish I could visit the characters again. I always feel like that. Birdie, the main character is a lovable young lady, homeless after years of foster care. The story is contemporary with throwbacks to early Viking/English wars. Since my studies don’t cover the Vikings (except for the glorious TV show, Vikings) I must admit to being a little out of my element at times, but it all starts to make sense after a while and it is always a fun read. And often it is on the edge of your seat exciting.

I highly recommend this wonder of a story to everyone, violence be damned, it’s worth it!

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Innocence Lost (For Queen and Country, #1)Innocence Lost by Patty Jansen

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Having finished Crux, then the prequel to this book, Whispering Willows, I was still not ready to go to sleep. So I thought I’d get started on this one. Yet, it was too short to do the job. I mean it did a good job getting me involved in the story and wanting to know more…then it ended. And the worst kind of ending! Yes, a cliffhanger! Argh! I hate those! Just as I finally am invested in the characters and outcome, it ends. The sad part of that trick is that if the next were free or even $.99 I would have grabbed it up and started reading. But this is just beyond my reach right now. By the time I remember that I need to read book two, I won’t care. Especially if it is long enough away to require a reread of book one. Note to self: Don’t do this when publishing my own books!

Now the story itself isn’t about the girl in the prequel, Loesie, though she plays a very pitiful part. I mean, you will pity that poor girl. Rather, it stars Johanna, a girl lucky enough to be a merchant’s daughter and high enough on the status scale to be invited to the ball. But Johanna wants nothing to do with frills and fashion of the day. She wants fun and adventure. Be careful what you wish for? She asks the question, if the aim for a young woman is to be married, why are so few of the married ladies happy. That attitude makes it well worth the read! Johanna is strong and cares about others. Cliffhanger be damned, she is worth learning more about. AND Johanna can ‘hear’ the willows just like Loesie. And she has more opportunities to do something about the warnings.

This is a bit of a cautionary tale about organized religion and reflects our own history of the witch trials. I found Ms. Jansen’s take on the subject refreshing. Again, that makes it worth the read. All in all, I think, if you can afford it, that this is a fun adventure and worth pursuing through the series.

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Whispering WillowsWhispering Willows by Patty Jansen

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I wanted to read Patty Jansen’s books in order and found this one to be a prequel to the For Queen and Country series. At least that was my hope. I thought it would be enough to see me from the ending of one book and to the point of well-involved-yet-ready-to-sleep time.

Too short! I don’t like short stories. Mostly because you can’t get involved with the characters. You don’t get enough of what makes them tick. But I did pick up enough to know a little about Loesie. She can hear magick in the willows. She has a gift. That makes her a dangerous person. People have been hung for less. Yet, how can she not pay attention to what the willows say to her. They’ve always been right. It’s the rest of the world that doesn’t get it.

And so this story tells her back story. What is sad is that in the next story she is pitiful and I miss her gumption. I don’t know if this adds enough to the series to make it necessary to read before starting the series. Maybe beyond book one I will see why we needed to get to know her better.

Sadly it wasn’t enough to get me to the sleep realm and I needed to start the book one. This book was free so you can’t say it isn’t worth the price. 🙂 Maybe it is more for you?

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Crux (Southern Arcana, #1)Crux by Moira Rogers

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When my husband recommends a book, I grab it up. It will be good. And Crux is proof. Just a side note. When he first mentioned Crux to me, there was another book called Crux by Julie Reece that was also free. I will read that one very soon. I doubt it will be as steamy as this one. How could it be?

This Crux, by the writers who combine their talents and become Moira Rogers, author, has everything! BUT if you don’t like shapeshifters, great romance, complex characters with relationships to a seedier, yet more honest side, or hot steamy (wait, I used that word already), volatile (yeah, that’ll do it!) erotic lovemaking, don’t bother. I can’t remember gratuitous cussing. Maybe I was already enthralled and didn’t notice. Let that be a warning: THIS IS FOR ADULTS! even I might be too young! (LOL. 65!)

The thing is, the young woman is running for her life. No place is safe for her or those she may give her heart to. Someone is out to get her. When she learns why, it still doesn’t explain WHY. So what if she has an inner cougar begging her to shapeshift. That’s not a good reason to kill those who get too close.

By the way, Fifty Shades and the pain be damned. This is what turns me on. It is just as hungry, sexually, but more in the moment and involved.

AND there are witches and seers trying to help the young woman become all she can be while fighting the bad guy.

This book is free. The rest of the series is out of my reach for now, but not impossibly high. Go check it out…if you dare!

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Through the Ever Night (Under the Never Sky, #2)Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Look, if the publishers and the author didn’t think of their pocketbooks over their readers, I would have been able to give this book five stars. As it is, the book, Kindle version (the cheapest) is $9.99. This isn’t loanable. It doesn’t have text-to-speech. For those of us who have poor eyes or other reading disabilities, there is no hope but to buy the Audible version to Whispersynch. That’s another $12.99. Twenty-three dollars for this piece of crap? No, the story is okay. It is as good as other YA dystopias out there. Maybe fewer mistakes, but not topping any of the indies. Are ALL young adults made of money? Do they care about reading books this much? And now I have to put out $23 more to read book three? Are you kidding me? I am putting no more money out for this. I don’t care what happens to the characters. If I can find the Kindle and Overdrive or CD versions I might check them out. Otherwise. I am done with this author and publisher. I don’t care if they are geniuses, storywise! There is plenty more out there that is equal if not surpassing these stories.

Now the story itself was good. I did like the characters. I thought the world interesting. I did pull for the good ending. And while I was reading/listening to the story, I forgot about the price. Michael Goldstrom is okay as a narrator but not the best. Since half the book is from a female point of view, hearing the male voice made the female seem less than a person.

I hope when I get ready to publish my own books I remember how I felt about this series and do what I think is the right thing for all.

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Dragon's Kin (Pern)Dragon’s Kin by Anne McCaffrey

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Sometimes a person has to do with what they can afford and/or find at the time. Found, at the library the hardback and the audio CDs of this book available at the same time! Score! And I own the next four hardbacks waiting for me on my own bookshelves. Problem with those is I don’t have the audio/Audible versions to help me out. So it may take a while until I can read them.

Meanwhile, I had a lot of fun reading/listening to this. Dick Hill did the narration. And I think he did a better job acting out this one than others in the Pern series before. Maybe it was the writing combo of Anne and Todd McCaffrey. Maybe I was just more receptive of the story. At any rate, I just found this more fun. And I am glad that those left-over beasts of the original research that resulted in dragons, the watch-whers, can have their day in the Pernese sun. And I loved the kids that were the main characters.

I can never get enough of Anne McCaffrey’s work. Glad her son joined in the fun. I look forward to reading more by both. R.I.P. Anne.

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