Dead on the Delta by Stacey Jay

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Woohoo, I did love this book! I wish I could say that Annabelle and her flaws did not seem a bit reminiscent. But, that is what makes the book so good. Someone who goes through so much tends to find their path steeped with what people tend to call flaws. But, watching her work through them to find truth for herself and for her friends just drives this story. I have been enjoying my Kindle so much and waiting for the release date that I was shocked to see it in Barnes and Noble and remembered my love of physical books as I oooed and ahhhed over the cover and the feel of the actual book in my hands again. So of course I snatched it up and danced to the counter to purchase it.

Talk about a different take on the fey. Wow! Stacey Jay does not make them the sexy, hard to resist faeries we are used to in most of the books. These faeries seem to be the stuff of nightmares. I love the setting in the swamps of Louisiana and the interesting take on how things get the way they are for 3 of the southern states. I really want to see more on the history of that and hope the next book tells more.

I started to worry about the relationships because I honestly just do not want to read anymore love triangles. I'm not a huge romance fan but, I can tolerate it if it is not the center of the story and more backdrop or secondary. The author did a great job dealing with the relationship between Annabelle and Cane as well as her relationships with her friends and others in the town. I can honestly say I like Cane and hope things go well there. Annabelle is a woman in pain trying to get through her life, deal with a past she has basically ignored or anesthetized herself through and those that love her ignore it or push her towards doing better. But, there might be a bit of change in the wind and hopefully some of the newer people in Annabelle's life will help guide her to not only healing herself but also to more great storytelling by Stacey Jay.

Review also posted at http://ladytechiesbookmusings.blogspot.c...



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Fathers and sons by Gordon Andrews

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Though there were a few editing issues I decided who cares. It was .99 or free depending upon how you obtained the book. The most important part was getting my Curran fix before Tuesday, 5/31/2011. I am both excited and apprehensive about Magic Slays but, that will not keep me away from it. I love this series and I love the story. I am NOT a romance fan but, these books have enough intrigue, supernatural jockeying for power and excellent fight scenes that I am a devoted follower of the Andrews' writing!



This story gave a wonderful in-depth look at Curran's view of this world. I loved seeing how he worked things out with not only his people, but, especially his "father", Mahon. Now that Kate's world shifts a bit we get a bigger look at the pack's world and I love seeing the different shifters.





Mini-review also over at

http://ladytechiesbookmusings.blogspot.c...



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Graveminder by Melissa Marr

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This book feels like Melissa Marr has struck onto something a bit original here. But, that might be because I don't tend to read books that I fear are going to be about zombies. I just do not have the stomach for the zombies, even when they are humorous zombie books. But, this book surprised me and had so much more to offer. The history of Claysville is one that leaves you with a bad taste for the founders of the town. But, as the story develops you eventually feel anger and sympathy for the citizens of Claysville. They seem to have no real power over their own lives though they do seem to cope well. I am not sure I understand why yet and hope that in future books (hopefully this is a series) I will have my suspicions confirmed. Throughout the book I kept singing "Welcome to Hotel California". Not sure where that came from but, we'll see if it is apropos.

Rebekkah and Byron are a pair. They have serious hang-ups about themselves and each other. Watching them work their way around all of the baggage makes for a great read. Watching as their histories unfold not only before us, but also before them, starts off feeling like the old saying about watching a train wreck that you try not to watch but you cannot seem to look away. It then turns into something you just have to know. The story draws you in and makes you want to know why things are the way they are, who is responsible, and if anything interesting might change everything. I was a bit confused about Daisha and it looks like we get to see her more. I thought one thing happened to her and that was how she ended up where she did. But, later it seems I was wrong. I'm not sure if I was supposed to make a leap there or if I missed something. Graveminder is a great story and I look forward to seeing more about Rebekkah and Byron and the weird town of Claysville.




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Phoenix Rising by Philippa Ballantine

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I really loved this book! If it seems as if I always give 4's and 5's, I do not. If I truly do not like a book I either forgo it to try again later in case it is just my mood, or I donate it. When I first heard about this book about 2 months before it was released I watched the release date hoping it would release earlier than the date scheduled. I searched in the UK hoping it sold earlier there. But, alas, I had to wait until the scheduled release date and it was well worth the wait. It opened with a bang, pretty much literally! It was full of excitement and exciting characters. Wellington Books and Eliza Braun are an exciting team and it was not only fun to watch them relate but a good time watching their exploits.

Phoenix Rising is a great addition to the Steampunk genre. It was good to see the chemistry between the characters with their diverse backgrounds. I hope to learn more about where they all come from and how they came to be the way they are now. Wellington Books is the best kept secret the Ministry does not even know it has to offer! Sophia is seriously a great nemesis for Eliza, especially given the information that Wellington provides during the apex of the story. These are just a few examples of how the players were well developed. For example, describing the expressions and mannerisms of Wellington when he had Eliza pushed into his world. Priceless!

I'm happy to see that we will have more coming from the dynamic duo and mysteries left in play with Dr. Sound, Campbell and Sussex. Oh, and do not let me forget the awesome cover!



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The Magnolia League by Katie Crouch

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I really enjoyed this book. I'm not much in the mood for writing a review, but, I did want to share that I liked it and look forward to the next book! Alex is different then most of the protagonists we read about in YA paranormal books and that is a winner here.



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Bite Club by Rachel Caine

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Tor.com did a poll on Facebook yesterday asking what authors do you always look forward to and read? Well, Rachel Caine is one of mine. The Morganville Vampires series is one of my guilty pleasures. It is one of the exceptions to my, "I don't read romance" rule. The romance is always front and center and though I love Michael and Eve, they take a bit of a backseat to Claire and Shane. Claire is the heroine of this series because despite her lack of physical power she is strong. She uses the weapons she has to stand up for people and vampires even when she cannot explain why to herself or others. It’s just who she is and that one part of her always makes even the vampires pause.



Bite Club was so good that when I was about 60 pages from the end I became very concerned that this was the end of the series. I had to go to Rachel Caine's website to see if there was a hint of how many books there were in the series. There were some serious roadblocks that popped up that worried me. This one was a take on fight club. The gang gets seriously in over their heads and, of course, has to worry about staying one step ahead of Amelie and Oliver. There are some shocks, return of some old enemies along with the unearthing of some new ones. I have to admit that Myrnin is one of my favorites and he did not disappoint.



One note is that the book is written so that you cannot just jump into it and understand who people are or what is going on. You definitely know that you have missed something if you have not read its predecessors. This far into the series it does get pretty difficult to try and write each book so that it can stand on its own. But, the fortunate thing is that it is a great incentive to reading the entire series. The Morganville Vampire series is just one of those series where at some point you have to start all over and start from book one, Glass Houses. Unfortunately, I loaned mine out and will have to buy it again, but, it’s worth it.





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