Tag Archive: fantasy



My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's SorryMy Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry by Fredrik Backman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The reviews on this book are all over the place. I think it might read differently if you read with your eyes. I was fortunate enough to pick the audio version up on Libby. Joan Walker (Narrator) made this book so fun and played the grandmother as well as she did the seven-year-old Elsa. She played the fantasy bits with so much energy that even the stories within the story jumped to life in my mind.

A friend recommended it to me when we were talking about the show A Man Called Otto that is on Netflix. I loved that movie so much that I have ordered the Audible version for later. But I love how the author, Fredrik Backman, blends unique characters with the mundane of life.

I have to admit to being taken aback that the author is male, as he brought up many of the issues of the modern woman and her family. I felt he wrote with a neutral point of view while holding onto the grandmother and the little girl and their individual visions of the world.

If I found this when my children were young, I would have read it aloud to them stopping to talk about the issues as they come up. There is a lot of cursing, but if a child of 12 hasn’t bumped into that in real life, you are keeping them under an imaginary rock, and you may not realize what they hear. So reading it as the grandmother and characters speak would give a person an opportunity to explain why or when that talk is appropriate, or not.

But even if you are reading sans children, you can enjoy it from your inner child. I highly recommend this book.

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All Systems Red (The Murderbot Diaries, #1)All Systems Red by Martha Wells
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Well, this was clever and different. And a very short read. But Kevin R. Free (Narrator) keeps the story moving and interesting.

Who knew that Murderbots kept diaries? Well, that represents the humor of this science fiction. My friend, Yvensong, raved about it. She was right. It was a lot of fun.

I was lucky to find this on Libby, but I may buy the whole series soon.

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Witches Get Stuff Done (Starfall, #1)Witches Get Stuff Done by Molly Harper
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Looking for a quick, fun read at a time when it seems everything causes stress? This is it. Amanda Ronconi and Teddy Hamilton (narrators) give the book the voices of the story. I admit, though, I wouldn’t say I like it when a man reads a woman’s part. I know it was the male character’s point of view chapter, but I wish it would all be read in a female voice or divided up accordingly. Okay, maybe it is to help the listener see that male point of view and how he hears her voice, but I always feel males make a female voice in a way that makes fun of the female.

This story starts differently than most and keeps it light even though life and death are imminent. The ghost in the house that Riley inherits have their own agendas and personalities to keep a smile on your face if not an outright laugh out loud.

This was an Audible original. I loved it! Looking forward to the next in the series.

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Third EyeThird Eye by Felicia Day
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Oh, boy! That was fun! It’s probably not the best bedtime book, as it made me laugh and kept me awake. With a whole lineup of actors: Felicia Day, Sean Astin, Neil Gaiman, Lily Pichu, London Hughes, and Wil Wheaton, I felt like I was watching a movie. I do hope it gets to be a show.

Oh, the craziness! The chosen one is the failed one. All magic comes with a price, even if it doesn’t work! I hope they make it so everyone can listen to it. My friends who don’t have Audible still can’t enjoy it. I hope that even folks who have to use Libby will be able to laugh at this soon.

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Second Wave: Acorna's Children (Acorna, #9)Second Wave: Acorna’s Children by Anne McCaffrey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

With reluctance, I am rating this one only three stars. Sadly, it was because it was whispersynched with a child’s voice that didn’t modulate between characters. And here I had been longing to have the Acorna books audio.

This story was fun in this time-traveling, interplanetary plague-ridden space opera. The robots and healing horns of Acorna’s children made this maybe the most flexible story of the series. Yet the voice ruined it for me. I wish I could find out who did it, but it doesn’t appear anywhere.

Anyway, I still am enjoying the series. I seem to always love Anne McCaffrey’s books and I still have quite a few to get through.

I hope you like this more than I did. Maybe I’ll reread the series and try to just use the text-to-speech.

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First Warning: Acorna's Children (Acorna, #8)First Warning: Acorna’s Children by Anne McCaffrey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Suddenly, we aren’t reading about the unicorn girl but rather her daughter. And if we thought a worldwide pandemic was difficult, imagine interplanetary illness killing many.

This book was written in 2005, only six years from the author’s passing and 17 years from our own pandemic. I have to wonder how we would have reacted if we needed the healing horn of a unicorn to cure rather than a vaccine to prevent illness. Anne did show the reluctance of those infected to need the healing. Everyone had their own idea of what was causing and how to deal with the ill.

All this, space travel, and a teen needing her parents to help as she develops new abilities.

Though I have enjoyed the series, this might be my second favorite just because of how much the author could predict human behavior.

I was lucky to find this on Libby. I do wish it were audio, but the Kindle text-to-speech seems to do a good job reading this story.

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Spelling the Tea (Vampire Tea Room Magical Mystery, #1)Spelling the Tea by Erin Johnson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The narration of Hannah Somerville made this less fun than my previous reads of Erin Johnson’s vampire reads. Maybe it is because Hannah is missing the British accent? I don’t know. But I kept at it and made myself understand that this was a different character than the Knitting Store star. And I think that trick worked. By the end, I was enjoying this personality, her baggage, and desires almost as much as the previous series.

I have to admit that I am hooked on Ms. Johnson’s books. I just ordered the Pet Psychic series on Audible. I had a credit, after all.

This little mystery, though light, was intriguing. If you are looking for a fun read, I suggest any of Erin’s books

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Acorna's TriumphAcorna’s Triumph by Anne McCaffrey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a continuation of the last book, including lots of time travel to make and solve problems. I admit to being quite distracted as traveling to my daughter and son-in-love’s wedding took a lot of my time and energy. Still, it was fun, what I remember, and kept me in the story despite myself and packing suitcases.

This series was interesting. I have more Anne McCaffrey books to read and can’t wait to get started on my next one.

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Acorna's SearchAcorna’s Search by Anne McCaffrey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I found many of Anne McCaffrey’s books in the first edition a while back. And at a reasonable price. I bought them up. Now, I am on a mission to read them all. Unfortunately, my reading skills have worsened as my tracking on paper books keeps me slow. And in the case of this book, I didn’t have the hardback. Libby had the Kindle version, so I grabbed it up. With Kindle, I can employ the Text-to-Speech. So I was able to read it quickly. The last book, a hardback, took me a year or so. This took me four days!

It was fun to ‘read’ this, the best of the Unicorn Girl books so far. Not only did we not have the Khleevi, but we had a lot more of RK (Road Kill), the cat. He is so much fun! There is more of Acorna, the original unicorn girl, and more of some side characters I wanted to learn more about.

The best part of this book is how the characters get into a situation that involves time travel on their planet. What a great way to get to know the history of the unicorn people.

I found myself holding my breath in moments of tension and fear for the characters. As much as I was a fan of the Dragon books, I am now becoming a fan of the Unicorn Girl series. I’ve already grabbed up and started reading the next Kindle version from Libby.

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Acorna's World (Acorna, #4)Acorna’s World by Anne McCaffrey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I can’t believe it! I finally finished reading an actual hardback book. Of course, it’s Anne McCaffrey. I started it on February 13, 2020, and finished two days ago. I have tracking issues and find paper books hard to follow. I have always had this problem, but since my 60s, it has been far harder. I’m thankful to be alive when we have Kindle Text-to-Speech or Audible. And anyone who knows me, I am addicted to reading. I was the girl who had to check out 10 (the limit) books every time I went to the library. And the library and bookstores are still my favorite places. But if I take it slow, I can get through a book.

This is book 4 of the Acorna series. I love most of the characters. RK the cat is the best. I am most disappointed that the series dedicated to the Unicorn Girl seems to be far less of her than everyone else. I would love more about Granddam. But maybe as the series continues, I will find more of what I want from the Unicorn people.

I have been fortunate to have most of Anne McCaffrey’s books in the first edition. This one was not, and neither are the next couple. But I will buy the hardbacks to keep reading “real” books. Meanwhile, I did pick up the Kindle version from Libby. With a trip coming up, I have to save my pennies. But next month, I will buy hardback #5.

By the way, I think Anne McCaffrey’s writing doesn’t age. It is so current, no matter what is going on here. Try them!

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