Tag Archive: romance


Review: Salt by Liz Shipton


Salt (Thalassic, #1)Salt by Liz Shipton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Well, it is about time for a proper dystopian story. The post-apocalyptic world and characters are all well-developed. Flawed and real. And Raw. I didn’t know there were choices, but if you don’t want a little sexuality thrown in, there is a Young Adult version. But if you don’t enjoy the small bits here and there, you can always fast forward. The story works with or without. Either way, get ready for the troubled teen, Bird.

Pirates? It’s hard to tell, sometimes, who the bad guys or good guys are. It seems realistically portrayed from a personal point of view.

Adventure, disaster, balanced with a moment or two for reflection. I love it when books work that way. If you get the chance, read the blurbs about the book. Or better yet, pick this up, and I think you may find yourself immersed in a great journey.

I couldn’t wait when this one ended, I jumped right into the sequel, Sand. What a fun series!

View all my reviews


All for a Good CauseAll for a Good Cause by Barbara Phinney
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a quick read. If I hadn’t been sleepy, I might have read it in one go.

I’m not a fan of romance books. They get a little silly and are unrealistic from the very beginning. But this was on my ‘currently reading’ list forever, well, since 2012, so I thought I ought to finally read it.

Fun. Yes. It was fun. And at times, I chuckled at the puns that occurred. I try not to laugh out loud as it could wake my husband. But it was a cute book. You might like it. It is free on Kindle Unlimited.

View all my reviews


Revenge of the Mad Scientist (Airship Adventure Chronicles #1)Revenge of the Mad Scientist by Lara Nance
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I found this at the bottom of my ‘currently reading’ list (there were 85 books!), so I finally downloaded it to my Fire.

Done.

Here is the Blurb from GoodReads:
When Lady Arabella Trunkett’s father, the High Lord Minister of Urbannia is kidnapped, all clues point to the mysterious country of Gandiss and the world is thrown into political upheaval.

Arabella is convinced the more sinister nation of Carabarras is to blame, urged on by a mad scientist seeking revenge. So, she sets out on a perilous airship journey across a variety of exotic locales to save him, and halt the potential world war.

But airship pirates, secret assassins and slave traders aren’t her only trials. The fickle hand of fate has made the captain of the only airship available for charter, the man that left her at the altar. For eight years she’s wished him dead. Now he’s her only hope.
~~~
If you like steampunk scenarios, this is for you. It was a fun read, but not my cup of tea. I didn’t hate it. And the story kept my attention until the end. There is a whole series. I didn’t feel the pull. I guess I thought differently in 2013 when I picked it up. Or maybe being snowed in gives my reading mood a sinker feeling. Whatever my experience is, do give it a chance. It is free with Kindle Unlimited.

View all my reviews


Courageous (Afterlife, #4)Courageous by Willow Rose
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a satisfying ending to a semi-completed boxed set. I found the whole story a bit confusing until I let go of my preconceived notions of what the afterlife should be and accepted this as the author’s young adult fantasy.

The whole story is fun and a little different. Give it a try if you need an escape from the confusion of the real world.

View all my reviews

Per Linda: Hello! I’m here with our twenty-eighth prompt for Just Jot it January 2025. Today, our prompt is courtesy of our dearest Dan. Thank you, Dan! Please visit Dan’s blog to read his posts and say hello. And follow him while you’re there if you’re not already.
Your prompt for JusJoJan January 28th, 2025 is “confusion.” Use it any way you’d like. Have fun!


The Afterlife Series Box SetThe Afterlife Series Box Set by Willow Rose
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I have finally finished reading not only this but the fourth book. This book was supposed to be the complete series. And probably when I got it, it was all the author had ready. But the ending was a cliffhanger. Had that been all, I would have been very disappointed.

Still, the three-book set was fun. One has to put aside theology and think of this as fantasy; the characters’ abilities were so fun. I loved the main character, Meghan, and how she cared for others.

On the other hand, the antagonist is too much.

Oh, the people you meet along the way. Einstein, can you believe it? No? Well, it’s fantasy, okay?

This is definitely a young adult series. There is far too much romance. Ugh! But hey, it’s a story, and it was a fun read.

View all my reviews

~~~

 

Our prompt today comes to us from the sensational Sadje. Thank you, Sadje! Please be sure to visit Sadje’s blog to read her posts and say hello. And follow her while you’re there if you’re not already.
Your prompt for JusJoJan January 27th, 2025 is “glamorous.” Use it any way you’d like. Enjoy!

So, to add the Jot to the above review, it was one of the abilities that appear in in fantasies is the gift of glamour. Bingo! It is used in this book set.


My Grape Paris (The Grape Series, #4)My Grape Paris by Laura Bradbury
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I love this series. It is the only one I truly read. (I usually need audiobooks due to tracking and dyslexia issues). I keep it on my phone on my Kindle and just read it when I have a few quiet moments alone. Laura Bradbury writes in such a way that I never feel lost, even when I have to neglect the read for a while.

The other fun thing about the books is the use of French words or phrases, just occasionally, nothing overwhelming. But it is a great chance to practice my elementary concepts of that language. And don’t worry; it is all contextual and she adds the translation if needed.

The best part is how well you get to know Laura and her boyfriend, Franck, their friends and family. As life continues, you see them grow and learn.

In this episode, Laura needs to take a year of college in Paris to study her educational major. So you learn about her love of ancient French writings. Meanwhile, she and Franck get to visit all the wonders of Paris. I feel I am traveling with them. And Laura learns to stand up for herself and figure out how to do that while in a relationship.

I highly recommend this series. It isn’t too horribly mushy. In fact, I found a few things at 75 that Laura learned when she was still in her 20s.

If you wish you could travel to France, this series, this book is for you.

View all my reviews


Full Speed to a Crash Landing (Chaotic Orbits #1)Full Speed to a Crash Landing by Beth Revis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Where did I hear about this book? I have no idea. But it was a welcome change. I only found the Kindle version at first. And reading this with Text-to-Speech on my older Fire worked out quite well until my Fire died. Then, I was in a tailspin to figure out how to read it. I learned that you can set up TTS on your cell phone. I set it up, but the British TTS’s voice on the phone was horrid. I didn’t know how close to the end, but I wanted to read this while I still remembered what happened. I picked up the Audible version. I did enjoy the voices of the main characters. But sadly, I finished the book within half an hour.

However I read it, I did love this story. It’s a little different than other space travel science fiction books. I don’t like a cliff-hanger. This wasn’t quite that. But I felt the book ended too early. Now, I have to wait for the second and third parts to be published. Maybe I’ll wait for the third one and reread them all.

Maybe, like me, you need the diversion. Try this sci-fi. You might like it, too.

View all my reviews


What the River Knows (Secrets of the Nile #1)What the River Knows by Isabel Ibañez
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

First of all, I never learned what the river knows. Second, I didn’t like any of the characters. It’s supposed to be a Young Adult, and I am three or four times the age of the prescribed reader. Still, I usually like YA books, so…

It is supposed to be about magick and fantasy, but it is not consistent or completely helpful. The history is enough that it might bring a young person to Google Cleopatra, Egypt, or Argentina. There is a smattering of very elementary Spanish, making a language student feel smart. But honestly, I felt I wasted time getting to an unsatisfying cliff. It didn’t make me want to continue.

Okay, it could be me. OR it could be that I listened to Text-to-Speech, and I could have used a live narrator who could read all the languages presented.

I hope others will read it and like it. It seems promising, but I don’t plan to read the next part of the series. Still, I’m grateful to Libby for the borrow of the Kindle version.

View all my reviews


The Giver of StarsThe Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I thought I was rereading a book about the Horseback Librarians, but this one was new to me. Julia Whelan narrated it in such a way that I was swept up into the story right away. She was excellent at accents to make sure each character felt different.

This was a quick read between holds I’d requested. I suddenly had nothing and didn’t want to start something from my own Kindle or Audible library. Libby had this one ready to read, so I grabbed it.

If you are looking for a quick, engaging read, try this one.

View all my reviews


This Is How You Lose The Time WarThis Is How You Lose The Time War by Amal El-Mohtar
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time travel is interesting. Yeah, but here we have one more reason for war. The espionage is too much. I can’t handle more reasons to feel paranoid. I read to escape the heavy stuff or to study writing. But this didn’t do either job for me.

Cynthia Farrell’s (the Narrator) voice was good for the story, but sadly, I didn’t feel she saved it.

A friend recommended this to me. Time travel piqued my interest. Here, take a look at the blurb:

Goodreads Choice AwardNominee for Best Science Fiction (2019)
Two time-traveling agents from warring futures, working their way through the past, begin to exchange letters—and fall in love in this thrilling and romantic book from award-winning authors Amal-El Mohtar and Max Gladstone.

Among the ashes of a dying world, an agent of the Commandant finds a letter. It reads: Burn before reading.

Thus begins an unlikely correspondence between two rival agents hellbent on securing the best possible future for their warring factions. Now, what began as a taunt, a battlefield boast, grows into something more. Something epic. Something romantic. Something that could change the past and the future.

Except the discovery of their bond would mean death for each of them. There’s still a war going on, after all. And someone has to win that war. That’s how war works. Right?

Cowritten by two beloved and award-winning sci-fi writers, This Is How You Lose the Time War is an epic love story spanning time and space.

Maybe it was the COVID brain. Maybe I’ll try it again someday. Maybe you will love it. It just didn’t do it for me.

View all my reviews

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.

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

DISCOVER A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE

intricate cantrips

twisted yarns, unraveled

Introverted Growth

The Introvert's Roadmap to Self Discovery and Growth

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

A.M. Barnich

My Author Page

TheEnlightenedMind622

Open Your Mind