Cyn Newman
What a fun read! I came to this one fresh off having read three other books by [a:Faith Hunter 234115 Faith Hunter https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1301338242p2/234115.jpg]. With a less-capable author, that would have been way too much, but with Hunter? It was lovely.It's been quite a while since I read [b:Junkyard Cats 54549609 Junkyard Cats (Junkyard Cats #1) Faith Hunter https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1595316185l/54549609.SY75.jpg 75023277], but it was all good. Shining and her world felt absolutely real. I wouldn't want to live there, but visiting via Hunter's prose is enjoyable. I occasionally wished for a little more depth or a few more details, but there was plenty of meat to sink my teeth into. The book ended at a reasonable spot, but left me hungry for the next chapter in the story.
Oh, so good! I read [b:Circle of the Moon 40265759 Circle of the Moon (Soulwood, #4) Faith Hunter https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1528200292l/40265759.SY75.jpg 62548980] right after finishing [b:Final Heir 59781260 Final Heir (Jane Yellowrock, #15) Faith Hunter https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1652603387l/59781260.SY75.jpg 94159788], then realized that [b:Spells for the Dead 48705774 Spells for the Dead (Soulwood #5) Faith Hunter https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1585310506l/48705774.SY75.jpg 74056641] was out, too. So lots of [a:Faith Hunter 234115 Faith Hunter https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1301338242p2/234115.jpg], all in a row, and I loved it all. I was mourning the end of the Jane Yellowrock series, and I really thought I preferred it over the Soulwood series. Then I got immersed in Nell's world for a couple of books. As much as I love Jane, I find Nell more relatable for some reason. I enjoy getting to see more of Rick, Occam, Firewind, and the others, too.[b:Circle of the Moon 40265759 Circle of the Moon (Soulwood, #4) Faith Hunter https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1528200292l/40265759.SY75.jpg 62548980] gives us more of Rick's past, as it endangers him and all who care about him in the present. [b:Spells for the Dead 48705774 Spells for the Dead (Soulwood #5) Faith Hunter https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1585310506l/48705774.SY75.jpg 74056641] takes us along as Nell learns more about her own abilities and discovers a new type of practitioner.I do wonder about how the Nell and Jane timelines fit together. I wish there were a chart or something we could refer to somewhere.
Ok, it started a little slowly, and I had some trouble getting into the swing of the book. I stuck with it because [a:Faith Hunter 234115 Faith Hunter https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1301338242p2/234115.jpg]'s always been good for a solid tale, and I wasn't disappointed. This is a worthy ending to a wonderful series. I'll miss Jane, Bruiser, Eli, Alex, Angie Baby, and all the other incredible characters Hunter has created. I can only hope that the Soulwood series isn't done yet.
A Fun Read, But It Needs Proofreading!
This was a good yarn, and I would probably like it even more if I played World of Warcraft or any similar games. The constant errors were distracting, though. Using Grammarly or something similar would have given the author another star. There's a good reason publishers use editors!
This book is an impressive tome, but it's also clearly biased in favor of a particular political view. I suppose it isn't possible for a human to write wholly without bias, but I found it distracting. The narrator sounded disgusted and dismayed while reading the bits that blame a reliance on government for the decay of the extended family and local communities.
This is a wonderful book, and it will take an honored place on my small shelf of books recommended for anyone interested in an ethically non-monogamous lifestyle. That said, I'm glad I purchased the ebook as well as the Audible version, as I feel a need to go back and read it again with special attention to sources, tables, etc. I do hope that [a:Jessica Fern 20144014 Jessica Fern https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] writes more, as she brings a lovely enthusiasm to her craft.
The book is good except for the endless sports analogies. I should have known this would happen since the book opens with the tale of a major injury the author suffered while playing baseball, but most of the examples in the book are about sports. That gets tiresome for those of us who aren't sports fans or athletes.
The information presented is useful, though not necessarily new or groundbreaking. It's very well-organized and the additional resources offered via Clear's website are very helpful.
This is the first time I tried using the Kindle/Audible Whispersync feature. It works like a charm!
Wonderful book from a wonderful friend
I am honored to have been friends with James for many years and absolutely tickled to read this book from him. It's so good, and so very James. I loved every word!
If you like cozy mysteries, especially those with some magical realism, this is the book for you.
The only problem is that now I'm tempted to hassle him about when we can expect the next book.
I've loved all of [a:Gail Carriger 2891665 Gail Carriger https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1476925456p2/2891665.jpg]'s books. This one, though, broke my heart. I just couldn't help feeling so sad for Agatha and Pillover. Their dreams and desires are just too different, but apparently, there's never been anyone else for each of them. I'm glad to know their story, though.
There I was, merrily reading along in this science fiction book. Then WHAM, [a:S. Ghali 17898688 S. Ghali https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/f_50x66-6a03a5c12233c941481992b82eea8d23.png] ruined it completely. How? They depicted the main female character as having an irresistible attraction to the alien who was her enemy minutes before, a member of a race she's been raised to consider lower than animals. Of course, she doesn't understand what she's feeling, and I imagine she'll fight it to some extent, but that was it for me.
Boring! If I hadn't been having trouble finding enough to read, I wouldn't have finished it. I thought there was too much talking in [b:Serpentine 36971855 Serpentine (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #26) Laurell K. Hamilton https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1525814983l/36971855.SY75.jpg 51163351], but this volume takes the cake. While Anita is ostensibly in a small Michigan town because a therianthrope has been accused of a murder, the book mainly serves as a vehicle for interactions between her and Olaf. The ending is anti-climactic and the vast amounts of dialogue don't move the plot along in the least.Happily, there isn't even one sex scene in this one. I figure Hamilton must be responding to the hordes of people who stopped reading because there was so much explicit sex in the earlier books.
I had to think about this one a bit. It left me uneasy for some reason, and I still haven't put my finger on exactly why. I had heard so many people recommend this series that I gave it a chance even when I wasn't wild about it from the beginning.
In any case, I found Nate Temple to be asinine, so I didn't really enjoy reading about him. What's the male equivalent of a Mary Sue? That's Nate. He has money, power, and looks. I cannot imagine any reason a decent person would want to be around him, much less be involved with him, unless they're golddiggers - but Silvers shows women falling at the man's feet. Every time the character's full name came up, the stupid spelling (“Nathin”) annoyed me.
Life is too short to spend it reading things that don't thrill me, so I'm giving up on the series and don't intend to read more of Mr. Silvers' work.
Of course I (along with all [a:Jim Butcher 10746 Jim Butcher https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1400640324p2/10746.jpg]'s other fans) have been absolutely dying to read this book ever since finishing [b:Changes 6585201 Changes (The Dresden Files, #12) Jim Butcher https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1304027244l/6585201.SY75.jpg 6778696]. [a:Sam Chupp 11847 Sam Chupp https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1219698183p2/11847.jpg] and I have been talking about how there could possibly be another book that occurs after Dresden's death. Of course, the novella included in [b:Side Jobs: Stories From the Dresden Files 7779059 Side Jobs (The Dresden Files, #12.5) Jim Butcher https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1269115846l/7779059.SY75.jpg 10351697] was very good and got along quite well without Dresden, but that probably wasn't going to work for an entire novel.Sam hasn't even started Ghost Story yet, so I can't gloat at home. I was actually right in some of my speculation! I'm being non-specific so as to not give too much away, even though I am hiding this review behind spoiler warnings on GoodReads in case he does read it and remember what I had said (which is highly doubtful). But I feel like bragging somewhere, so you, dear readers, have to put up with it.Jim Butcher deserves major praise. Ghost Story is amazing. Dresden has become such a powerful wizard that few enemies are truly a challenge, and wiping out the entire Red Court with one spell was an amazing feat. What do you do for an encore to that? Having Dresden immaterial and operating without magic does seriously push him, and that makes for a fascinating tale. Being able to keep a series fresh in its thirteenth volume says a lot for Butcher's talent. I think Ghost Story is the best Dresden Files book yet, and I'm looking forward to book fourteen even more!
This may be my favorite volume of the Mercy Thompson series. Mercy and the pack faced credible threats and legitimate, relatable worries that couldn't be easily vanquished.
It opens with our favorite coyote shifter in her garage, nattering with Tad and Zee. We quickly learn that all is not well in paradise, but Mercy is holding her concerns annoyingly close to her chest. When she returns home, she enters in the midst of a dust-up between her mate and his daughter, precipitated by one of the pack members. We quickly learn that there's some sort of problem between Mercy and Adam, which is somewhat shocking after their closeness throughout most of the series. She's blamed for the trouble despite not having been there, so she leaves to go to her new/old house next door.
While in her place, she encounters the ghost of her neighbor on the other side of her property, which is a shock since that neighbor isn't known to be dead. She heads for the home that neighbor shared with her husband at a run when she hears a gunshot. Only heroes run toward gunfire!
At the neighbors' home, she finds the husband dead from a self-inflicted gunshot. He also has what looks like a rabbit bite with smoke rising from it (hence the title) and the feel of strange magic on his skin.
There are more threats and villains that come in quickly after that, but I won't spoil it for you. Many of Mercy's powerful allies are sidelined quickly, leaving her and the pack to face the multiple menaces alone. The conflict between Mercy and Adam helps to flesh out their relationship. The plot moves along very quickly, which is wonderful except for the fact that it led me to gulp the book down and now it's over. I'm considering re-reading the entire series now, which is highly unusual for me.
I do not give out many 5-star ratings, but for this book I couldn't do anything else. That is despite the fact that [a:Jim Butcher 10746 Jim Butcher https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1400640324p2/10746.jpg] did something I honestly didn't think he would do to his legions of loyal readers, something that I absolutely detest. Something that I will not tell you about, because I loathe spoilers. If you know anything about me, though, it means a great deal to say that even though I would drop most authors who use that particular technique like not just hot, but rotten hot potatoes, I cannot even consider not getting the next Dresden Files book and devouring it the very first millisecond I am able to do so.My family can attest to the fact that I didn't just laugh out loud while reading Changes. (Anybody who doesn't laugh out loud at least once while reading the Dresden Files should be checked for rigor mortis.) This time I laughed so loud and so long at one point that Sam got up and came into the room where I was to make sure that I was okay and getting enough air. There was absolutely no way for me to explain what was so funny, of course, without spoilers.While there is a great deal of humor, there is also darkness. A lot of darkness. The blurb for the book makes that clear. Susan, the love of Harry's life, kidnapped years ago by a Red Court vampire and half-turned in a plot to get at Dresden, is back with big, bad news: she had a daughter by him, and the child has been kidnapped by someone. As usual, things go downhill from there.Many series start out with a bang, have maybe two or three strong volumes, then devolve into more and more and more contract fulfillment books that I occasionally think might be written by clever shell scripts. The Dresden Files is one of the few, beautiful exceptions, as volume twelve proves. I honestly thought that Butcher was winding things up to move on to other projects, due to some of the events in the book, but I will say that he surprised the bejesus out of me. This is definitely not a series-ending book! I anxiously await number thirteen. I might even do something I've never done before, and pre-order it. Yes, Jim, you've got me hooked, and how.
I greatly enjoy this particular novella. In fact, I enjoyed it even more on my second read-through than my first. It gives the reader insight into Thomas' state of mind and broadens the universe beyond what we've seen before in the novels. There's some foreshadowing for [b:Turn Coat 3475161 Turn Coat (The Dresden Files, #11) Jim Butcher https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1304027128l/3475161.SY75.jpg 3516480], as well.
