Tag Archive: free-from-author



Taxi - Talk (Book 5)Taxi – Talk by Sophia DeLuna

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Remember when I read the first four episodes of Taxi? Well, I got a welcome surprise after the review of the fourth one. Ms. Sophia DeLuna, the author of these great stories, sent me a sweet email that included coupons for the next three books in the series. Yay! Thank you so much. With my tight budget, it is often hard to decide if the next dollar is for food or reading. I hate to admit that I don’t look like I would if I chose books more often. Or maybe it is the fact that one can do both eating and reading comfortably at the same time?

At any rate, I got to the reading as soon as I could. And I think that Taxi 5, Talk, is one of my favorites. It is so real and honest. It touched deep emotional threads for me. This book deepens the relationship of Carmen and Ulrike. You see Carmen, still dealing with her bit of PTSD, or maybe there is a deeper issue going on, like social anxiety, depression, or other mental problems. I found I related to Carmen very much, phone phobia, isolation, etc. And Ulrike is fleshed out in how she and Carmen’s cat bond over yogurt, sharing a spoon. Carmen cringed and so did I. But as different as Carmen and Ulrike are, you see them working hard to communicate and deepen their love for each other.

By the way, I just did a review of New Hire: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show…, where my complaint was that the characters weren’t deep at all. In comparison, this Taxi series has what I think give fictional characters real life. In this series, I was surprised at how well I had pictured the two characters. It had to be how the author described them. I went to the author’s website: http://www.sophiadeluna.com/ and under the Taxi category I found the author’s rendition of her characters. I would have known who they were had I met them on the street. That is how good Ms. DeLuna is creating her characters. She’s quite the artist, as well! I can’t wait to read #6!

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Ashes and Arsenic (Preternatural Affairs, #6)Ashes and Arsenic by S.M. Reine

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Agent Cèsar Hawke is not my favorite character. I prefer Ms. Reine’s female main characters. But Cèsar is humorous to read about. After all, I don’t know of any witch who has a major allergy to magic. Then, again, I don’t know many witches. So they may well exist out there somewhere.

Cèsar is self-effacing, definitely not a macho man. He does cause me to giggle every now and then. In this book, we get to know more about his brother and father. We’ve already met his sister and she’s off doing her own thing.

This was a one-day read and as usual Ms. Reine kept my interest. The thing about S.M. Reine is how prolific she is. My goodness, I keep thinking I’ve read everything by her and she comes out with more. I love it all! Even though she often writes about demons or other scary subjects, she is able to keep the story light enough to enjoy and yet suspenseful enough that I didn’t want to stop reading. She throws in her great sense of humor causing the aforementioned occasional giggle.

I want to thank Sara for letting me read her books free for review. Sorry it takes me so long sometimes, but I keep it honest.

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First in Series Free: Sky Hunter by Chris Reher – Must Use Bigger Elephants.


Death Scream: A Descent Short (Descent, #0.7)Death Scream: A Descent Short by S.M. Reine

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Well, that was a quick read. I guess this is the only way I like short stories. I already know the main characters and how this world works. Instead, this was a fun extra ride. Elise and James in Ireland.

Still, I think it was too short as I wanted to see what happens next.

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Not the EndNot the End by Kate Vane

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Oh. I am so sorry. I tried. I really did. I read every little bit of this book. And I was given this book by the author for an honest review. But, all I could come up with, is 2 stars, which on GoodReads means ‘it’s okay’. I’ll adjust accordingly on Amazon’s star rating to the ‘okay’ standing.

The writing was not as bad as many I have seen lately, but it left a lot to be desired. I never got to the point that I liked any of the characters enough to feel engaged. Sometimes by turning on the text-to-speech feature (in this case in Moon Reader Pro) and placing it on a high enough speed to still be best understood without sounding like a chipmunk, I can get past boring or confusing parts. Well, not so much this time.

Oh, and speaking of characters… Wow! this had a country full of populous. So many points of view that I couldn’t keep track. Often the fast reading speed gets me to the part of a book where I know who is who. Nope. At the end, I still was confused as to who was in lust with Elizabeth. Who was the twin to Roisin. And the lesser characters were even more confusing.

Maybe it is just me. Probably. But I just didn’t feel anything about the story or people. Look, if it’s any consolation, it took me forever to tell the difference between Rob and Jon in the TV series, Game of Thrones. Now having watched it a million times I have them separated. But, show either of those actors in another context and I get them confused again. AND what makes me frustrated was wondering, if this was my story how would I change it? I couldn’t figure it out. A picture book with names and personal histories on the side?

Oh, and how did the death of the woman at the beach change anyone? They all seemed pretty messed up even in the end. I’m so, so sorry I couldn’t offer more. But thank you for letting me read your book, Kate Vane. I’m sure others out there will love it. Good luck in your future writing. I do think you have the chops.

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The Ugly DaughterThe Ugly Daughter by Julia Legian

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Why do I read? I read to travel to other places. I read to get inside other people’s lives and or minds. This book certainly satisfied all of that.

Reading about Julia Legian’s life made me grateful I didn’t have to live her life. Reading about her part of Vietnam made me grateful to be raised in Southern California and in the USA. Yet, I did feel enriched by reading about her young life.

Though it was a quick read, after all the author is still alive, the writing was done well. I was sorry to see the book end, but I think there may be more to come. No cliffhanger. Just as the family seems to be in a safe place, the book ended. I do look forward to reading more about the rest of Julia’s life.

Oh, I guess I should tell you that Ms. Julia wrote to me to inform me that she was giving a Christmas gift of the book. Thank you. By presenting it as such, I felt no pressure to read it right away. Nor did I feel there was an expectation of a great review. I try to be honest even when that happens. By the way, it is only $2.99 or free on Kindle Unlimited.

Oh, maybe I should warn you of the abuse that could have triggers for those who have been through similar things. And this is post-war Vietnam so life is far from safe even in the best of circumstances. Still, it was nice to get to know her through her story.

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Nica of Los Angeles (Frames, #1)Nica of Los Angeles by Sue Perry

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Ever give points just for its uniqueness? I knew I would from almost the first page of Nica of Los Angeles. In fact, that uniqueness nearly had me closing the book and moving on. What a loss that would have been! Instead, I substituted Frames with the thought of other dimensions. I could hear one of the scientists on the Science Channel talking about how another dimension would be as close as a breath away from us. Plopping that bit of science into my understanding of the story helped me believe.

Once one can embrace the unbelievability of this story, it becomes quite exciting. The characters are well developed and likable. Even Watts Towers. It is fun to visit familiar parts of LA the one in this reality and what it might be like in other dimensions.

It has been a couple days since I finished the story. I haven’t known exactly what to say about it and I have been trying to figure that out since I started reading it. By the way, I received the free version of the book from the author for an honest review. But I bought the $.99 at Amazon so I could read it from any of my readers. As I have stated above, I loved the story and the characters.

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Deadly Wrong (Preternatural Affairs, #5)Deadly Wrong by S.M. Reine

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I thought I was caught up with Ms. Sara Reine’s series. That’s what I get for thinking! She sent me another couple books to review. Whew! That is one prolific author!!!!!

Okay, my tags may include zombies. Don’t be afraid she’s not the “Brains” kind. She just a little undead. Or should I say, a little or almost dead? I love the main character. I like her a lot more than the usual person who inhabits the Preternatural Affairs series. Even though Cesar Chavez is an interesting person, I think Ms. Isobel Stonecrow is much more interesting. Even if she is nearly dead.

When I get e-books sent to me, I have the choice to use my USB to transfer to my Kindle, or email to my Kindle address. But it is so much easier to download the e-book into my Moon Reader Pro. Then I don’t need to read it on my Kindle and my Tablet or Fire together. Because I need the text-to-speech feature I need two items to read with. On MRP I listen on my tablet and the font is adjustable. So it makes me very happy, everything on one reader.

This was a quick read for me. I found it fun and scary. I mean, it does take us to Dis/Hell for a while with demons and nightmares all around. But Isobel can hold her own and even when she makes mistakes they seem to go in her favor in the end. I can’t wait to read more!

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Sins of Eden (Ascension #7)Sins of Eden by S.M. Reine

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Whew! Okay. Trying not to let spoilers slip. But Whew! If I could only tell you!!!!

I am finally catching up with S.M. Reine’s writing. This was Sara’s last of the Ascension series. Everyone you know and love from her previous series shows up in this book. Everything you know–poof!

If you haven’t started this marvelous universe, start with Six Moon Summer of the Seasons of the Moon series. Until I read the book that started it all, I wouldn’t read anything about werewolves. Or anything scary. But know I think I may have graduated. Ms. Reine has presented beings to me that I wouldn’t have tried to read, had she not so gently pulled me through. All of her characters are believable. Even the ones who seem to be evil have traits that make them likable. Though her worlds are this world and beyond, in spiritual space and time, she has built the stories of her own that transcends all other stories I’ve heard or read about these .

Gosh, this whole review is not living up to the wonder that is Sara Reine’s work. But I don’t want to tell you about this ending of the series book as I don’t want to ruin the process of reading all of it yourself. There is action, adventure, dark and light and love, not the wishy-washy romantic kind, though there is a little of that, too. I couldn’t stop reading. How was the author going to make it all happen? I mean, sometimes I did know bits but the how of it did work out sometimes caught me off guard.

Oh, blah, blah, blah. All I mean to say is this is great! You should read it!

By the way, I was given this book by the author for an honest review.

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Inner Mind/Outer Space: Four Short Stories and a Novelette by the Author of Alien WithinInner Mind/Outer Space: Four Short Stories and a Novelette by the Author of Alien Within by Karen Forrester

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

After finishing Karen Forrester’s book Alien Within, I wanted more. Though I don’t like short stories because they leave me wanting more, I have to admit that I liked these stories. I think I should have read these first for my own chronology of events. So that is my recommendation.

By the way, this one was free on Smashwords but either of these books can be obtained on Amazon for $.99 each. That is quite the bargain for a bit of imaginative adventure. Inner Mind/Outer Space has the beginning of the world of Alien Within and a bonus chapter of that book.

Though I loved the sci-fi parts, I have to admit that my favorite story was one of grief and gratitude. Again, I would have liked more about the characters in that story, still I got enough to make me love them and the situations presented.

I look forward to reading more by Karen Forrester. I love her writing style and imagination.

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