Tag Archive: Fiction


Review: Acorna’s Quest by Anne McCaffrey

Filed under: Books, Kindle — Leave a comment
October 30, 2018

Acorna's QuestAcorna’s Quest by Anne McCaffrey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

It has been a couple months since I finished reading this book. I must admit to not remembering much about it at all. I’m currently reading the next book in the series and so I’m confusing the storylines.

As much as I loved Anne McCaffrey’s dragon books, the Unicorn Girl series is less about the Unicorn Girl than it is about people who want to use or abuse said star of the books. As much as I love space travel books, this was more about bad guys and good guys who happen to know the girl while in space or on other planets. So sad.

I was fortunate enough about a decade ago to buy first editions of the hardbacks of a lot of McCaffrey books. But now that I have the time, my eyes have a hard time with printed tomes. I bought this Kindle version to aid in my reading. I wish there had been an Audible version as it might have helped.

Just to encourage those stuck in this book, the next in the series does give you a bit more time with the Unicorn people. I hope I haven’t discouraged readers of this series. Keep on and find the good parts and hang on. We need fantasy/sci-fi to escape the noise of our every day lives stuck on Earth.

View all my reviews

Tags: , , , , ,
Comment

Review: The Moon Sisters by Therese Walsh

Filed under: Books, Kindle — Leave a comment

The Moon SistersThe Moon Sisters by Therese Walsh
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I finished this ages ago. Mid-summer, I think. I still remember liking it. Though I have no sisters, I felt I could relate to both of the sisters’ points of view. As the oldest of three siblings, I had to be the responsible one taking care of the younger brothers, who were often caused their share of problems. On the other hand, I felt like the other sister in that music notes, words on paper, even how I hear words seem to be colored or animated or textured in some way that I know isn’t how normal people see/hear things. I’ve never been diagnosed as it never was a problem. It just added layers to my understanding of the world. So I quickly identified with both sisters.

It was fun that the more disabled of the sisters starts the adventure for both of them. It is unnerving for the reader to think that the one considered blind leads the way to hop the train.

For me, as I ‘read’ using text-to-speech, it was hard to know whose view I was seeing. I soon learned to take the time and read the chapter titles as that helped. After I got to know each of the characters, I didn’t need the reference so much. The characters were well developed.

The way the trip brings to mind the siblings history gave meat to what could have been just a joy-ride.

I don’t want to give any spoilers so I will just say, this is a fun book that I think many should read and enjoy.

View all my reviews

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

Review: Acorna: The Unicorn Girl by Anne McCaffrey

Filed under: Books, Kindle, Reading, Reviews — Leave a comment
August 17, 2018

Acorna: The Unicorn GirlAcorna: The Unicorn Girl by Anne McCaffrey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It is no secret that Anne McCaffrey has been one of my favorite authors of all time. I think it is within this decade that I was in a bookstore in Reno that had some pretty good deals. They told me that they had just received a huge collection of First Edition Anne McCaffrey’s books. I nearly passed it up. I’ve never been rich monetarily. I figured I wouldn’t be able to afford it. But being a store that wanted to keep their merchandise moving, they actually quoted me a price for the whole collection that I could afford.

But I was working and found that reading “real” or “tree” books hard for my eyes. And I was always tired with fibromyalgia. So the books sat on my shelves.

When we moved here the McCaffreys sat in a box until I got a new bookshelf. Now they are out on display so I can’t resist. Except reading the old way is slow. So I try to keep my paper bookmark where I am in the Kindle version and read a bit when I can.

Luckily, I’ve been collecting the Kindle versions of Anne’s treasures. At least this one has text-to-speech. I kind of hoped for Audible but they don’t have this book. It’s okay as I can speed up the listen-rate to 2x and get through a book in no time.

As much as I looked forward to Acorna, who wouldn’t want to read a story about a unicorn girl? I have to admit that as much as I love her writing style, I found this book wasn’t so much about the girl as it was about child slavery and the men who found the girl. You never get to see her point of view, even when she grows up. Still, Ms. McCaffrey and Ms. Ball cover the issues well and made a good story. I am already into the next book and I see the plot continues with other people. Acorna is still not showing up personally. Maybe that will change soon.

I still liked the book and can’t wait to see what happens in the series.

View all my reviews

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

Review: Any Man: A Novel by Amber Tamblyn

Filed under: Audible, Books, Feminism, Reading, Reviews — Leave a comment
July 1, 2018

Any Man: A NovelAny Man: A Novel by Amber Tamblyn
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I am still torn as to what to say about this book. I finished listening a couple of days ago. Yes, this was an Audible version. It was narrated by Glenn Davis, Robin Miles, Therese Plummer, Dan Bittner, James Fouhey, Michael Crouch, Ben Foster, Marc Maron. Very well acted out. Kept me awake even after I closed the Kindle and crawled under the covers. For that reason, I give the trigger warnings. Rape is the topic. The only difference is it is a man that is raped. Somehow it reads the same regardless of who is the victim. So pain and torture are somewhat spelled out. It doesn’t matter the perp’s gender either.

This could easily help those in the right frame of mind. It seems a therapy of sorts for the author. I do suggest if you get the chance and feel up to it to listen to the Audible version. Meanwhile, it is read at your own discretion. I love Amber Tamblyn. I saw her on a talk show and loved what she has to say about the #MeToo movement and feminism. I’m glad that men showed their support by acting out this story.

I hope this book gets a lot of readers. I think it can help many people. Just be warned.

View all my reviews

Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Comment

Review: Fruit of the Drunken Tree by Ingrid Rojas Contreras

Filed under: Books, Kindle, Reading, Reviews — Leave a comment
June 30, 2018

Fruit of the Drunken TreeFruit of the Drunken Tree by Ingrid Rojas Contreras
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Though this story takes place in the 1990’s in the times of drug lord Pablo Escobar in Bogotá, Columbia, it’s lessons are current for us here in the USA. It centers on two young girls and how they affect each other and each others’ families.

I actually finished the book a couple days ago. I needed time to think about how to review this. Besides what I said above I just couldn’t decide. If you want to know more about the book go read the reviews on GoodReads. Many just write out the story themselves. Why bother with reading it with all that information? I don’t like to include blurbs about the books I read. I figure there are plenty of those out there. My review is to tell future me what I thought and possible current events or life events and how they might have influenced my feelings. If that helps others, I am glad. So for my future self: remember when they separated babies from parents because of a need to get rid of illegal immigrants? How many of them were seeking asylum from life similar to what the characters in this book were living with? I have friends who lived through being held up by guerrillas. I don’t believe that these people are taking away our jobs. Watch how the costs of foods go up as citizens take back the farming jobs. Just saying.

Anyway, this book was well written, at times even poetic. It kept me up as I couldn’t leave the characters when it was well past time to sleep. I think everyone should read this book. Even if it doesn’t change your point of view, it could help educate on the history and peoples of South America. And if it feels factual, like a true story, know that the author did live through a lot of what the book tells about. The girls playing with injured Barbies. The dreams of the girl’s leg with sock and shoe that the main character saw on TV news minus a child’s body. These are just a couple incidences that felt too real to be fiction.

When I rate a book with five stars I know that I will remember it. It affected me deeply.

I’m so happy that NetGalley had it for me to read for review.

View all my reviews

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

Review: Bold: Stories of Strong Women by Sandy Ward Bell

Filed under: Books, Feminism, Kindle, Reading, Reviews — Leave a comment
June 24, 2018

Bold: Stories of Strong WomenBold: Stories of Strong Women by Sandy Ward Bell
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I won this book from GoodReads Giveaway. Though I knew it was an anthology of short stories I thought reading about strong women would make it worth my while. So thank you for letting me read your book.

BUT, I just don’t like short stories. Yes, the women seemed to have opinions but I didn’t see them as any stronger than others. Maybe with more story, I would have been impressed with them but, not so much. And it is worse is you read with text-to-speech as it is hard to know when the last story ended and the next story starts. I can’t tell you how many times I had to go back and figure out why it wasn’t making sense suddenly. OH! It’s a new story. I guess that is something to keep in mind when writing for the Kindle market, make sure to put a something there at the end and start the new one with a hashtag or something.

I finished this book a week or so ago but life got busy and I had to wait to write the review. I honestly can’t remember any of the stories to say more about them. Obviously, there are folks that loved these stories so go read their reviews. You may be one who loves them, too. But give me a series and depth of characters. The stories are well written, I do remember that. I like the cover!

View all my reviews

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

Review: The Litter of the Law by Rita Mae Brown

Filed under: Books, Reading, Reviews — Leave a comment
June 23, 2018

The Litter of the Law (Mrs. Murphy, #22)The Litter of the Law by Rita Mae Brown
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was given this book by a friend who read it on her vacation and left it with me when she visited. It took me so long as the font is rather small so I could only take it in bits and pieces. There was enough dialogue to break up the page so I could read it in tiny doses.

The book kept my interest. I did want to find out more about the farming and life of these farm people. I loved reading about the characters. I found the Native American research interesting though it added to the shame of how our founders dealt with the original inhabitants of our country.

I absolutely loved the drawings. Yay for adult books that have pictures!

What I found annoying and distracting from the story: talking animals. But I suppose that is where the ‘cozy’ comes in for this mystery.

I love Halloween but I never go to ‘haunted house’ features because I worry that real blood could be involved with no one knowing. And I hate things jumping out at me to make me scream or be startled. This book just reinforced those fears. It is what made this a gruesome mystery rather than cozy. But others of you may love it and can read it with the grain of salt that is implied. I’m glad to finally be finished and to pass it to the friends of the library.

View all my reviews

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

Review: Shift by M.A. George

Filed under: Books, Reading, Reviews — Leave a comment
June 2, 2018

ShiftShift by M.A. George
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book. How could I resist? I love Ms. George’s writing. The minute I open one of her books I know I am in for a fun ride. Shift is no exception. I added to my sleep deficit by spending too many hours after bedtime looking for a good place to stop reading for the night. But I wanted to know what was going to happen to the characters in this story.

I finished Aqua, which I also loved, a bit ago and couldn’t wait for more. My biggest disappointment was that this book is a stand-alone. I love a long and deep series. But for those that don’t like that this will be more up your alley. Still, I won’t rate this lower than five stars as it kept me going.

I can’t wait for more!

View all my reviews

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

Review: Aqua by M.A. George

Filed under: Books, Kindle, Reading, Reviews — Leave a comment
May 27, 2018

AquaAqua by M.A. George
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was a surprise. And a few nights of nearly four o’clock in the morning reading. Forcing myself to pull away from the story and into sleep. That was hard to do!

The first impression that I got from the title was that this would be another mermaid book for young adults. Nope. But I won’t tell you more about it. Spoilers!

The story kept moving. It seemed not to give me a chance to push pause, even to get up and get something to eat or to go on a potty break. That’s how good Ms. George’s writing is. The book is a decent length but not so short or immature as you might think. Though there was a bit of a romance it wasn’t the angsty stuff of most young adult books. It was respectful of each other and seemed healthy.

I think others will love this book, too. It is cleverly written and far from the norm for this genre.

View all my reviews

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

Review: The Host by Stephenie Meyer

Filed under: Audible, Books, Reading, Reviews — Leave a comment

The Host (The Host, #1)The Host by Stephenie Meyer
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

It has been weeks since I finished ‘reading’ this book. I couldn’t decide how I felt about it. I think it is somewhere between hating it and being okay with it.

Kate Reading was the narrator. I nearly returned the Audible version. The voice seemed all wrong for the alien. And all wrong for the strong host.

The story did start to get interesting about halfway in. We finally meet the human tribe hiding from the aliens. I liked some of them. But the narrator’s voice seemed wrong for these characters, too. It amazes me that I stuck with this book in spite of how I felt listening to it every night.

The ending was a surprise for me and satisfying. I know a lot of people loved this story. The writing was good. But it didn’t do much for me.

View all my reviews

Tags: , , , , , , ,
Comment
Pieces Of My Heart

"Words & Wonders - Where thoughts meet art

💫The Afterlove Voice💫 Justice For Liam ⚖

Justice, Channeling,Spiritual,Astrology,Truth- Seeker.

Amin Academy

Education, Information, Motivation

WhatIf.in.net - Alternate Realities

Where Curiosity Meets Creativity

Luso Loonie — Devin Meireles

Portuguese-Canadian Writing About This Portuguese Thing of Ours

UNDER THE WILL... OVER THE DRAMA...

Inheritance. Narcissism. Turf. Welcome to the family.

Adym Digital

Selma

Finding the extra in the ordinary

Sip, Snack, See

A Blog About Food and Travels

Golu lodhi

I upload photos & videos Golu lodhi village pairakhedi

Hunza

Travel,Tourism, precious story "Now in hundreds of languages for you."

IsabellaJoshua.com

"VERO'S VERBIAGE & VISUALS"

intricate cantrips

twisted yarns, unraveled

Introverted Growth

The Introvert's Roadmap to Self Discovery and Growth

Blissfulbritt

Histopedia

story telling from history

KaustubhaReflections

Where ancient wisdom meets modern technology. Stories that illuminate the wonders of science, culture, and life — crafted with human creativity and a touch of AI magic.

Roads Lesser Traveled

Life is just down the road lesser traveled....

Enlarge my heart

In the Quiet Space of a Benedictine Heart: Seeking God in Every Moment