Waiting on Wednesday 11/01/17

Posted on November 1, 2017 14 Comments

“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme that first originated at Breaking the Spine but has since linked up with “Can’t Wait Wednesday” at Wishful Endings now that the original creator is unable to host it anymore. Either way, this fun feature is a chance to showcase the upcoming releases that we can’t wait to get our hands on!

Mogsy’s Pick

Persepolis Rising by James S.A. Corey (December 5, 2017 by Orbit Books)

Another Expanse novel (book number 7!) is on the horizon and is releasing soon. I can’t wait!

“In the thousand-sun network of humanity’s expansion, new colony worlds are struggling to find their way. Every new planet lives on a knife edge between collapse and wonder, and the crew of the aging gunship Rocinante have their hands more than full keeping the fragile peace.

In the vast space between Earth and Jupiter, the inner planets and belt have formed a tentative and uncertain alliance still haunted by a history of wars and prejudices. On the lost colony world of Laconia, a hidden enemy has a new vision for all of humanity and the power to enforce it.

New technologies clash with old as the history of human conflict returns to its ancient patterns of war and subjugation. But human nature is not the only enemy, and the forces being unleashed have their own price. A price that will change the shape of humanity — and of the Rocinante — unexpectedly and forever…”

Top Ten Tuesday Halloween Freebie: Top Ten Books About Hauntings and Demonic Possessions

Posted on October 31, 2017 16 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish. They created the meme because they love lists. Who doesn’t love lists? They wanted to share these list with fellow book lovers and ask that we share in return to connect with our fellow book lovers. To learn more about participating in the challenge, stop by their page dedicated to it and dive in!

This week’s topic: Top Ten Books About Hauntings and Demonic Possessions

Mogsy’s Picks

The topic for today was actually a Halloween freebie, and since it would take much too long for me to list my favorite horror novels, I decided to narrow it down a little by featuring only those that fit a certain theme. Since I am particularly fond of stories about haunted houses and exorcisms, I decided I would shine a spotlight on these books this week:

The Voices by F.R. Tallis

To some, The Voices is going to be just another haunted house ghost story. To others, it will be one of the most terrifying books you’ll ever read. The year it came out, my oldest was still just a toddler, and I’ll admit I came very close to not reading this, simply because the novel’s description made it sound much too scary. Ever since I became a parent, I’ve become much more reluctant about picking up horror novels that involve young children, fearing that they might cut too close for comfort and give me nightmares. True to form though, in the end I just could not resist a good haunted house story. This book opens in 1976 during the hottest summer in the UK since records began, and protagonist Christopher Norton and his wife and baby girl had just moved into their a grand old Victorian era home in the desirable neighborhood of Hampstead. A composer by trade, Christopher spends much of his time in his attic studio recording music, and before long he starts to hear strange voices on his tapes. Around the same time, his wife also begins to notice knocking sounds from the baby monitor and their infant daughter seemingly to babble at something unseen. If you’re in the mood for a good ghost story or a classic haunting, The Voices is a very good choice, and it genuinely freaked me out more than a few times. (Read the full review…)

Horrorstör by Grady Hendrix

Horrorstör scratched a really great itch. When it comes to horror, I’m an unabashed fan of ghost stories and books about hauntings, but because so many of them follow the same formula and use the same familiar tropes, it’s often quite hard find something that truly stands out. I was therefore quite excited about this novel, because of its memorable and real quirky take on the classic haunted house story. Protagonist Amy is a disgruntled employee of furniture superstore Orsk, which is essentially a clever parody of our real world IKEA. There’s something strange about this particular Orsk store though. Every morning store partners arrive at work to find damaged and vandalized goods, not to mention the creepy “HELP” messages that randomly shows up on everyone’s cellphones. To get to the bottom of this mystery once and for all, store manager Basil recruits Amy and fellow employee Ruth Anne for an overnight shift. Expecting to find some innocuous and mundane reason for all the strange things going on, they are totally unprepared for the horrors awaiting them on showroom floor in the dead of night. I really enjoyed this book, and its story is one that will stay with me for a very long time. After all, how often does one come across a haunted house story that takes place in a big box chain store? After business hours when all the customers have gone home and the lights go off, they can become very scary places, and I certainly wouldn’t want to be locked in one all by myself. (Read the full review…)

The Damned by Andrew Pyper

I ended up devouring the book. Partly, it was because of its quick-pacing and slickly written style, but also, it simply might have been the fact I was really hungering for a good horror novel. It’s been quite a while since I’ve revisited this genre, and by that I mean pure, psychological paranormal Horror with a capital H—the kind designed to chill you to your bones. The Damned fit the bill perfectly, delivering in spades what I needed. It introduces us to our protagonist Danny Orchard, who is no stranger to death. It’s even the topic of his bestselling book, a memoir about his trip to the “other side” after almost dying in a fire that claimed the life of his twin sister Ashleigh when they were both sixteen. His writings have made him a celebrity in certain circles, and Danny often finds himself on the road signing books or giving talks at near-death experience groups all over the country, meeting others who have had their brushes with the afterlife and survived to tell the tale. Often, their accounts are of hope and filled with a sense of peace, with most grateful to be given a second chance at life. Danny’s own experience, however, was a lot different. His sister has been dead for twenty years, but her presence haunts him still. In life, Ash was the picture of perfection—smart, beautiful, popular—eclipsing her twin brother in every way. But behind that façade, she was pure evil, and unfortunately for Danny, death hasn’t changed her one bit. (Read the full review…)

A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay

At its heart, this book is a possession story (well, actually it’s a lot more complicated than that, but let’s just roll with it for the sake of simplicity and keeping things spoiler-free). Enter the Barretts, a seemingly average suburban New England family. Like many others, they were hit by hard times and had to struggle to make ends meet. Dad John Barrett lost his job and mom Sarah became the family’s soul breadwinner. Finances were further strained when their fourteen-year-old daughter Marjorie started getting sick, displaying symptoms of psychosis. Doctors, however, were unable to help. Reluctantly, the family decided to turn to a Catholic priest, who suggested that Marjorie could be under the influence of a demon. A TV production company was contacted, and they in turn offered the Barretts money if they agreed to be filmed for the exorcism. The subsequent events are recounted by little sister Meredith “Merry” Barrett fifteen years later, now twenty-three years old and being interviewed for a book about “The Possession”, a six-episode Discovery Channel reality show that chronicled the events that befell the Barretts as they happened. All I’ll say is, Merry’s narrative broke my heart. Even now, a lot of its ideas weigh heavily on my mind or are sitting like stones in the pit of my stomach. When it comes to a horror novel, I actually think that’s more effective than outright raw terror. After all, the demons we fear aren’t always the supernatural kind. (Read the full review…)

Hex by Thomas Olde Heuvelt

Oh, how scary could this book be, I asked myself when I read its description. It can’t be as creepy as everyone says, I foolishly thought. Seriously, a story about a three-hundred-and-fifty-year-old witch who just appears wherever she wants around town, and all everyone does is throw a dish towel over her face or otherwise pretends she’s not there. The whole business sounded more comical than frightening, to be honest. Well, about a quarter way into the book, I was no longer laughing. Things got dark real quick. In this novel, it is an entire town that is haunted. In spite of its seemingly peaceful and picturesque façade, Black Spring has a terrible secret. Back in the seventeenth century, there lived a woman named Katherine van Wyler who was accused of being a witch and was swiftly dealt with in much the way you would expect from your typical puritanical colony. Thing is, though? Katherine might have been the real deal. Now her soiled husk of a body, chained with eyes and mouth sewn shut, still haunts Black Spring to this day. The townsfolk have slapped on their brave faces and come to accept their curse, but deep down, they all know that one day those stitches will come off and then everyone will be at the mercy of Katherine’s deadly whisperings and Evil Eye. If you’re a fan of horror fiction and strong of nerve, I would definitely check this one out. Deliciously creepy and all consuming, Hex was an absolute thrill. (Read the full review…)

The Last Days of Jack Sparks by Jason Arnopp

As the first line in the novel’s blurb states, its protagonist Jack Sparks died while writing this book. What we read is the manuscript of his gonzo style exposé of the supernatural that he was working on right before his mysterious death, which drew plenty of attention due to the eponymous writer’s cult fame and active presence on social media. Jack, however, makes no pretense at objectivity. He doesn’t put much stock in the supernatural, and makes no effort to hide his skepticism or contempt while sitting in on an exorcism in rural Italy on Halloween, laughing and tweeting out snarky remarks the whole time. But everything unravels for him after that trip, starting with a disturbing video appearing on his YouTube channel that he doesn’t remember uploading. Determined to get to the bottom of this mystery, Jack becomes obsessed with the occult and plunges deeper into his investigation, embarking on this harrowing journey that will eventually kill him. At its heart, The Last Days of Jack Sparks is a ghost story, but what amazed me was its refreshingly original premise and structure. What really happened to Jack Sparks? The story will keep you guessing, with plenty of mind-bending twists and shocking revelations along the way. Though we all knew Jack was going to die, the ending still managed to catch me off guard, being horrifying, clever, and just perfect. Seriously, if you’re looking for some spine-tingling entertainment, especially for the Halloween season, check this one out right the hell now. (Read the full review…)

The Apartment by S.L. Grey

Being a huge fan of author Sarah Lotz, naturally I just had to check out The Apartment, since she’s one half of the writing duo of S.L. Grey. The book is told through the eyes of a married couple from Cape Town, South Africa. Mark Sebastian is a middle-aged English professor struggling both personally and financially after a terrible event seven years ago had shattered his first marriage. His second wife Steph is a young woman who had to put her life on hold after she got pregnant and married Mark, deciding to be a stay-at-home parent. Despite the couple’s difficulties though, their marriage was loving and idyllic—that is, until their home was violently invaded by three masked men who robbed them at knife point. While the family came out of that agony physically unharmed, Mark and Steph are unable to return to their normal lives due to psychological trauma. So when a friend refers them to a house-swapping website and suggests that they take a nice relaxing vacation, the two of them are intrigued by this money-saving option. Almost right away, Steph connects with the owners of a charming little apartment in Paris, and they decide to take the leap. After all, who can resist the city of light and love? However, once they arrive in Paris, their dream vacation quickly spirals out of control to become a living nightmare. Instead of rest and romance, they find only darkness and terror in their borrowed apartment, which is nothing like advertised. (Read the full review…)

The Family Plot by Cherie Priest

Like I said, I’ve always been drawn to stories about haunted houses, and the entire premise of The Family Plot is built around the subject. We begin with an introduction to Chuck Dutton, owner of a company that specializes in the stripping of old properties and then reselling the valuable pieces. When the stately Augusta Withrow walks through his office door offering him salvage rights to her sizeable historic family estate, Chuck decides to send a skeleton crew headed by his daughter Dahlia to undertake the project. Dahlia and her team all make the drive out together to the old house nestled in the backwoods of Chattanooga, Tennessee…and arrive to a veritable goldmine. With only a few days to complete the job, the four of them get down to stripping the place right away. Still, while the splendor of the Withrow estate is certainly everything that was promised, the crew soon uncovers a few surprises. For one thing, Augusta had failed to mention the small graveyard on the property, tucked away among the overgrown trees. To save time and money, the team has also decided to forgo hotels and spend the nights at the house, but strange things are happening and they only seem to get worse when darkness falls. Imagine HGTV’s Salvage Dogs meets Paranormal Activity and you have a pretty good idea of what The Family Plot is about. The book managed to hit every one of my buttons and I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. (Read the full review…)

The Last Harvest by Kim Liggett

This book might be published under a YA imprint, but when it comes to delivering horror, it’s the real deal—no kid gloves here. To give fair warning, I would probably place this on the “older teen” spectrum, and if you don’t like unsettling themes and gut-wrenching endings, then you may want to stay away. Personally though, I knew as soon as I heard about The Last Harvest that it would be right up my alley. Pitched to me as Rosemary’s Baby meets Friday Night Lights, the story is set in rural Oklahoma, starring eighteen-year-old Clay Tate. A year ago, Clay had it all—he was the star quarterback, and also a well-respected member of the Preservation Society. But all that changed the night Clay’s dad lost his mind and made a sudden visit to his neighbor’s cattle ranch. Now on the first anniversary of that night, people still talk in hushed whispers about how the elder Tate’s body was found among the blood and viscera on the floor of the breeding barn, after committing an unspeakable act. Clay himself has become a social pariah, deciding to focus on working the family farm. But lately he’s been having trouble sleeping, and he begins to see and hear things that aren’t really there. Clay starts to wonder if he is now suffering from the same mental illness that affected his dad in his final days. Was this what made his old man go crazy and accuse the Preservation Society of devil worship? Clay knows there’s definitely something wrong, but there are few he can trust to reveal his suspicions. Evil has come to his town, and now Clay fears for his family and for the soul of the girl he loves. (Read the full review…)

Kill Creek by Scott Thomas

What good timing, as I had just reviewed this novel. It’s the prime example of a good haunted house story, the kind that sends chills down your spine, making you wonder if anything is even safe anymore as you steal nervous glances over your shoulder to make sure you really are alone. At the center of this story is the house at Kill Creek, an old abandoned three-story that was built in the mid-1800s on a lonely road in the middle of the Kansas prairie. Lovingly constructed by its first owner, the house saw a few good years before tragedy struck, and people say it has been haunted ever since. For a long time, the house sat empty, its notoriety growing until it catches the attention of the founder of WrightWire, a horror genre website. One day, four well known horror writers receive invitations from WrightWire to spend Halloween night at the house, with the promise of a large paycheck in exchange for an interview which will be livestreamed to millions. The authors all end up accepting the proposal because they are either in need of the money or of the publicity, but none of them are prepared for the horrors that await them inside the old abandoned house at Kill Creek, the evil within its walls stirring once more with the arrival of new visitors. All told, this would be a splendid book to get you in the mood for the Halloween season, its blend of literary horror and psychological thriller made it one of the better haunted house stories I have read in a while. (Read the full review…)

Book Review: Kill Creek by Scott Thomas

Posted on October 30, 2017 15 Comments

I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.

Kill Creek by Scott Thomas

Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Genre: Horror

Series: Stand Alone

Publisher: Inkshares (October 31, 2017)

Length: 350 pages

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Some of my favorite horror stories involve haunted houses, because after all, a home is supposed to be a place of warmth and shelter. The idea of what was once a safe haven being invaded by malevolent spirits creates such a sense of wrongness that the terror is elevated to a whole other level. In Kill Creek, a character even ventures to explain why such stories fill us with dread, positing it’s because we never expect such awfulness to lurk so close beneath the surface of what is considered normal.

This novel is a good example of such horror, the kind that sends chills down your spine, making you wonder if anything is even safe anymore as you steal nervous glances over your shoulder to make sure you really are alone. At the center of this story is the house at Kill Creek, an old abandoned three-story that was built in the mid-1800s on a lonely road in the middle of the Kansas prairie. Lovingly constructed by its first owner, the house saw a few good years before tragedy struck, and people say it has been haunted ever since. Nobody could stand to live in it for more than a year, and gradually the house fell into disrepair until in 1975, a pair of twin sisters named Rachel and Rebecca Finch decided to buy up the property and upgrade it with some modern renovations.

Unfortunately, the new owners did nothing to improve the house’s reputation. Rachel and Rebecca were recluses and were almost never seen outside, and the whispers about Kill Creek being haunted continued. After the Finch sisters died, the house sat empty once again, its notoriety growing until it catches the attention of Justin Wainwright, founder of the horror website WrightWire which is famous for its viral videos and publicity stunts. One day, four well known horror writers receive invitations from Wainwright to spend Halloween night at the house on Kill Creek, with the promise of a large paycheck in exchange for an interview which will be livestreamed to millions. The authors are Sam McGarver, T.C. Moore, Daniel Slaughter, and Sebastian Cole, all of whom end up accepting Wainwright’s proposal because they are either in need of the money or of the publicity. However, none of them are prepared for the horrors that await them inside the old abandoned house at Kill Creek, the evil within its walls stirring once more with the arrival of new visitors.

The novel itself features a bone-chilling story, starring an interesting cast of characters representing four very different subgenres of horror fiction. Sam, the closest to being our main protagonist, is what you would call a “mainstream” author whose work appeals to the masses, his books the kind to be found everywhere from supermarket shelves to airports. After writing several bestsellers though, he has hit a writer’s block, and he agrees to the WrightWire interview in the hopes that it will buy him more time. Then there’s T.C. Moore, a self-published author who became a phenomenon after her shockingly explicit style of horror-meets-erotica quickly amassed a sizable loyal following. Furious that she has been shut out of the creative process on the movie adaptation of her novel, Moore decides to spend the night at Kill Creek in order to regain some semblance of control over her career. Daniel Slaughter on the other hand is a Young Adult author and a devout Christian, whose books often serve as an extension of his faith depicting goodness and morality triumphing over evil. However, worried that his work might be getting too dark for his audience and that he might soon be dropped by his publisher, Daniel hopes that the publicity from the WrightWire interview will help salvage his image. And finally, Sebastian Cole is our old school “classic” horror writer, whose name is practically a household word. But having been around so long, Sebastian also knows better than most that few authors can remain relevant forever, which is why he accepts Wainwright’s invitation in order to get his name out to a new generation of readers.

With that, the ingredients are all in place for an exquisite horror tale. We have an eclectic crew, whose disparate writing styles and personalities make for plenty of epic clashes and amazing dialogue, especially between Moore and Daniel. As well, it becomes apparent after a while that there’s more to Wainwright’s interview, and Sam is unwilling to believe that this whole sleepover party at Kill Creek is nothing more than a publicity stunt. All this tension is magnified in a house that feels alive, its oppressive atmosphere putting everyone on edge. When strange things start happening and our characters being seeing things that can’t be explained, we’re left with a disturbing sense of uncertainty. Are there actually supernatural shenanigans afoot? Maybe the stress of being confined in a spooky place with all these random strangers is simply getting to our authors. Or maybe it’s just Wainwright messing with their heads.

The first half of the book reads very much like your classic “haunted house” scenario: A ringmaster gathers together a dissimilar group of people for some seemingly innocent reason, bringing them into a house that is rumored to be haunted. At first, no one believes that it’s anything more than a creaky old house, but then a slow fear starts to build as the characters realize that is not the case. Later parts of the book take a drastically different turn, however, moving away from the subtle, creeping dread to an all-out violent and in-your-face kind of terror. Sam, a literature professor, outlines the four main traits common to the gothic horror tradition in the beginning of this novel, and the plot of Kill Creek almost follows this roadmap. It also feels as though each of the author characters wind up injecting a piece of themselves into this story, leaving behind the influence of their individual styles, which I thought was a clever touch.

All in all, this would be a splendid book to get you in the mood for the Halloween season. The story’s unique blend of literary horror and psychological thriller made it an addictive read, keeping me reading into the night, its creep factor levels notwithstanding. Kill Creek is for sure one of the better haunted house stories I have read in a while.

Audiobook Review: The Beautiful Ones by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Posted on October 29, 2017 20 Comments

I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.

The Beautiful Ones by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 4 of 5 stars

Genre: Fantasy

Series: Stand Alone

Publisher: Macmillan Audio (October 24, 2017)

Length: 12 hrs and 48 mins

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Narrator: P. J. Ochlan

I’ve often been asked for advice from friends who are interested in giving audiobooks a try, but are worried that they might have trouble getting into them. In response, I always say that starting with a good book and a good narrator is key, but also important is finding a story well-suited to the format. While it’s true some books simply work best in prose form, there are also plenty of times where I’ve come across audiobooks that made me think, “Wow, I definitely wouldn’t have enjoyed this as much if I had read the print version.”

The Beautiful Ones is the perfect example of such a book. As soon as comparisons to an Austenesque romance and descriptions of a Belle Époque-inspired fantasy-of-manners started floating about, I made the decision to listen to this one in audio, and I don’t regret that one bit. Featuring a slow-building love story and only a light touch of the fantastical, I might have become dreadfully bored by the long drawn-out expository sections on propriety and high society had I chosen to read this in print (not to mention all the endless romantic drama based on manipulation and miscommunication would have worn me down). However, a good narrator along with some excellent characterization ensured that I was never bored while listening to this audiobook, and the entire experience was pleasant, even relaxing.

Set in a world reminiscent of late 19^th century Europe with inspiration from the pre-WWI “Golden Age” era of France, The Beautiful Ones introduces us to a tri of central characters. First is Hector Auvray, a telekinetic entertainer who has arrived back in the city of Loisail after spending nearly ten years traveling and performing abroad. Now rich and famous, he has returned to his home country hoping to meet up with his old flame Valérie Beaulieu, to whom he had been engaged when they were both young and penniless, but pressured by her family, she had ended up breaking his heart to marry someone else with wealth and status.

To Hector’s disappointment though, the emotional reunion he had planned for was spoiled when Valérie fails to show up to the high society ball he attends. Instead, he makes the acquaintance of another young woman at the gathering, the interesting but socially awkward Antonina who is in the city for her first Grand Season. It’s not until after the party that Hector learns, to his surprise, that Nina is the beloved cousin of Gaetan Beaulieu, the man Valérie ended up marrying. In fact, Nina is staying with the Beaulieus right now, tasked to learn the ropes of etiquette from Valérie, who is supposed to be helping the young girl find a suitable husband. But unfortunately for Nina, she also has telekinetic talents similar to Hector’s, which is considered inappropriate for a young lady of her stature. Along with her eccentric personality, they have a pesky way driving off potential suitors.

Yet Hector sees Nina’s powers as a gift—as well as an opportunity. Under the guise of courting her, Hector offers to teach Nina how to control her powers, when in reality he is hoping their relationship will help him get close to Valérie, convinced that she still loves him the way he still loves her.

I won’t lie, I wanted to throttle nearly everyone in this book, but in this they have something in common with characters in a soap opera—you just love to hate them. Likewise, I found it impossible to tear myself away from the drama, and I would even hazard to say I enjoyed The Beautiful Ones more than the author’s previous novel Certain Dark Things, despite this one being much slower paced and having none of the action. This is because Silvia Moreno-Garcia knows how to spin a good yarn, and more importantly, she knows what it takes to capture the reader’s attention. Rather than shy away from the usual conventions of the fantasy of manners genre, she instead revels in them, offering up a lavish feast of romantic melodrama, high societal punctilio, and weaponized etiquette. Within this context, the fantasy element almost feels like an afterthought, having little to no impact on the overall story.

Still, the novel came together very well. By taking such a huge departure from her previous work, Moreno-Garcia might have been risking a lot in writing something like The Beautiful Ones, but ultimately I thought it was a move that paid off. I practically hung onto every word, even though the plot played out exactly as I thought it would, with the requisite frustrations and misunderstandings between the characters. I’ve lost count of how many times I wanted to slap Hector silly or to shake some sense into Nina, and don’t even get me started on how much I absolutely loathed Valérie, but at no point was I not completely 100% invested in the outcome of their story.

Like I said, the fact that I had the audiobook version may have helped with my enjoyment, and the time simply flew by as I was listening to this. The only thing that might have made the experience better was if they had multiple narrators, one for each of the three POV characters, but then P.J. Ochlan also managed to do a fine job by himself so in the end I really have no complaints. If you’re looking for a fun fantasy of manners novel, The Beautiful Ones definitely fits the bill, and it’s probably one of the best ones I’ve read in a while.

YA Weekend: The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli

Posted on October 28, 2017 22 Comments

I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.

The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli

Mogsy’s Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Series: Book 1 of Iskari

Publisher: HarperTeen (October 3, 2017)

Length: 432 pages

Author Information: Website | Twitter

A good YA high fantasy is hard to find these days, which was why I became drawn to The Last Namsara as soon as I read its description. Featuring a world of magic, dragons, and rich mythology, the story follows Asha the Iskari, a princess of the realm and also its most fierce and deadly dragon slayer. But Asha also has a dark secret, her past shrouded in pain and misery. Even as a child, she’d loved the ancient stories of the Old Ones, but naïve to the danger behind their power, she inadvertently brought fire down upon her city, killing thousands. Believing it to be the only way she can atone for her sins, Asha has vowed to help her father kill Kozu, the oldest dragon. With the creature’s death, the Old Ways will be destroyed once and for all, and Asha will also be free of her arranged marriage to Jarek, the leader of the king’s armies.

It may all sound relatively straightforward and uncomplicated, but the lore and history woven into this narrative is anything but. The world of The Last Namsara is steeped in the ancient tradition of storytelling, and alongside Asha’s perspective, readers are treated to snippets of richly imagined legends and myths. Without a doubt, this was the element of the novel I loved most; from the stories that tell of the creation of the universe to the scandalous tales of corruption or forbidden love in the halls of the palace, I always looked forward to these interludes, which surprised me. Usually I am highly critical of these types of flashbacks (or any kind of break that would distract from the main plot in general), but I have to say the transitions here were done so beautifully and seamlessly that I hardly minded at all.

Of course, there’s also an interesting twist. Society was vastly different just a few generations ago, before Asha’s grandmother outlawed the old stories during her reign, declaring foreigners to be the enemies of her kingdom and dragons to be traitors to the crown. A kind of magic fell upon the land, so that even telling the old tales would make one waste away and die. For some reason though, Asha is unaffected, and thank goodness for that, because without her as our guide, taking us through her stories and teaching us more about her world, I don’t think this book would have been half so enjoyable.

Then there are the dragons, which certainly aren’t just there for show. Dragons are important in The Last Namsara, and they are also intimately and inextricably linked to the world-building. We see plenty of them in this book as the story delves into their complex history and relationship with our characters. They are powerful and ferocious, but they are also intelligent and have their own individual personalities. They even speak and enjoy listening to the stories of humans, making the dragon characters a joy to read about.

In terms of the writing, I only found out this was Kristen Ciccarelli’s debut after I finished reading. For a first novel, it’s actually very solid, if just a tad uneven in its pacing. This being such a common issue among new authors though, I no longer really find this to be a major fault. In Ciccarelli’s case, her strength is her imagination and this is apparent in the myths she creates, which is why I felt the first half of the novel was stronger than the second half, with most of the background-establishing stories clustered near the beginning. As the plot progressed, the need for these stories dropped off and we didn’t get as many of them later on in the story, which in turn took away some of the magic that initially drew me in. As alluded to before, it’s the world-building that makes this book stand out, so the story admittedly feels rather average whenever the author’s focus shifts to something else.

Still, overall I thought The Last Namsara was a good read, and it might even have been great with just a little extra polish and attention paid to the plot and characters to make them feel less generic compared to the excellent world-building. I think the potential is there for the series to grow into something more though, and I definitely want to be there when it happens, so I’ll be watching for the sequel.

Friday Face-Off: Couples

Posted on October 27, 2017 14 Comments

Welcome to The Friday Face-Off, a weekly meme created by Books by Proxy! Each Friday, we will pit cover against cover while also taking the opportunity to showcase gorgeous artwork and feature some of our favorite book covers. If you want to join the fun, simply choose a book each Friday that fits that week’s predetermined theme, post and compare two or more different covers available for that book, then name your favorite. A list of future weeks’ themes are available at Lynn’s Book Blog.

This week’s theme is:

“Thus with a kiss I die”
~ a cover featuring a COUPLE

Mogsy’s Pick:
Defy the Stars by Claudia Gray

Naturally, for this week’s theme I turned to YA, since there’s never a shortage of covers featuring lovers in this genre. Defy the Stars was also narrowly going to be my Friday Face-Off choice a few weeks ago when we did the topic “Purple” before I decided to go with another title, so I’m glad this book got a second chance to be in the spotlight. The story follows Noemi Vidal, a seventeen year old soldier for her planet, Genesis. Ever since her people split from Earth many generations ago, the two sides have been fighting. However, Earth has a powerful weapon on their side: Burton Mansfield, a scientist and cybernetics genius who designs androids, or mechs, for the purposes of war. In the face of this tireless army, it’s only a matter of time before Genesis is overwhelmed and destroyed.

Meanwhile though, on a battled-damaged and abandoned ship called the Daedalus, a mech named Abel has been living alone for the last thirty years, yearning to be reunited with his creator. As the most advanced mech the galaxy has ever seen, he is Burton Mansfield’s greatest and most perfect creation, though in the eyes of Genesis, he is an abomination. For the past three decades, Abel’s programming has been learning and evolving, becoming more human. Then one day, Earth launches a surprise attack on Genesis’ ships, leading a Noemi to chance upon the Daedalus and Abel in her desperate attempt to escape, and thus begins a tale of forbidden love and fast-paced adventure among the stars.

Let’s take a look at the covers:

First row, left to right: Little Brown Books for Young Readers (2017) – Hot Key Books (2017)
Second row, left to right: Spanish (2017) – French (2017) – German (2017)

Winner:

I’m going to have to go with the Hot Key Books edition, since I love the interesting negative space and the lovely shades of purple used in this design. There’s also a fierce kind of intimacy captured between the two models gazing at each other in this image, which really caught my attention and made this cover stand apart from the others.

But what do you think? Which one is your favorite?

Audiobook Review: Star Wars: Phasma by Delilah S. Dawson

Posted on October 26, 2017 9 Comments

I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.

Star Wars: Phasma by Delilah S. Dawson

Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 3 of 5 stars

Genre: Science Fiction, Media Tie-In

Series: Star Wars Canon

Publisher: Random House Audio (September 1, 2017)

Length: 12 hrs and 14 mins

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Narrator: January LaVoy

Billed as the secret history behind the First Order’s most notorious and ruthless Stormtrooper, Star Wars: Phasma was released to great anticipation from fans who wanted to learn more about the eponymous character whose chrome-plated presence was woefully underutilized in The Force Awakens. This being a Star Wars novel though, and knowing how they always tend to oversell the reality in their blurbs, I’d already braced myself not to expect too much, which turned out to be a wise decision. Basically, what we have here is an origin backstory for Phasma—or at least as close to one as we’re going to get anyway, coming from a third-hand retelling. However, if you’re coming to this novel hoping to find out more about her personality or discover what makes her tick, then be prepared for disappointment because this book is completely devoid of any kind of real characterization.

Star Wars: Phasma begins with an introduction to Resistance spy Vi Moradi, who will be the one actually telling this story. While running a mission for General Leia Organa, Vi is captured by the First Order and is immediately held for questioning at the hands of the red-armored trooper known as Captain Cardinal, who already seems to know a lot about his prisoner. But the Resistance knows about Cardinal too, especially of the bitter antagonism between him and his colleague Captain Phasma, so it’s no surprise to Vi when the first thing her captor asks her is for more information about his greatest rival. After all, Vi’s ship’s log show that she has just come from the desolate planet of Parnassos, Phasma’s home world, and Cardinal is hoping the Resistance smuggler’s eidetic memory will hold some incriminating evidence about his enemy so he can use it to take her down.

So Vi indulges Cardinal by telling him a story, heard second hand from a friend named Siv who grew up in the same clan with Phasma herself. In the beginning, Phasma and her brother Keldo were co-leaders of the Scyre, deciding that adopting an isolationist strategy will be their clan’s best chance at survival in the harsh conditions of Parnassos. However, that was before General Brendol Hux’s ship fell from the sky. Along with Siv and a few other of her warriors, Phasma rescues the stranded Hux and his escort of Stormtroopers, and after interacting with them she discovers that there’s a whole galaxy beyond the confines of her dying world. Understanding that the First Order General can help her learn more—and to become more—the ambitious Phasma agrees to guide him across the merciless desert, in exchange for passage off-planet once they reach the pickup point. But plenty of dangers lurk beneath the Parnassian sands, and before long the expedition is beset with all kinds of problems.

The result is a Mad Max-like adventure that takes up the majority of the pages in this novel, and it’s a perfectly decent, action-oriented story if that was all you were expecting. For those expecting a more in-depth character study, however, you’re going to be out of luck. As I mentioned before, this is Phasma’s history told through not just one but two intermediaries—good for preserving the mystique behind this enigmatic character, I suppose, but not so good when it comes to letting readers understand her. This was essentially a play-by-play of how Phasma went from being the best warrior of a small clan on some insignificant backwater planet to become head trainer and leader of all the First Order’s military troopers, making her one of the most powerful and infamous figures in the galaxy. On the other hand, almost nothing can be gleaned about her character on a deeper level, or how she became the cold-hearted and ruthless soldier that she is. We’re simply to accept that she’s always been an evil badass, even when she was just a young girl.

Furthermore, I feel that the characterization might have suffered a little from the writing. While I find Delilah S. Dawson’s prose well-suited to urban fantasy and YA, for a Star Wars novel such as this, her style might just be a tad overwrought and excessive. Her depictions of the characters are also rather two-dimensional and uninspired; from Vi and Cardinal to Brendol Hux to Phasma, everyone’s motivations are predictable and can be summed up in a handful of words.

That said, overall I wouldn’t say this book was too bad, considering it’s the author’s first full-length Star Wars novel. Phasma is still far from being in the same league as, say, Claudia Gray’s brilliant Lost Stars or Bloodline, but it’s a start, and if nothing else, I’m glad that the shiny Stormtrooper captain is finally getting some much needed attention in the lead up to the release of Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

Audiobook Comments: I love January LaVoy and it’s always a pleasure to listen to her narrate a Star Wars novel. As usual, she delivered a great performance, and even sounded a lot like Gwendoline Christie whenever she had to say Phasma’s lines, which impressed me a lot. I would never not recommend a Star Wars audiobook!

Waiting on Wednesday 10/25/17

Posted on October 25, 2017 13 Comments

Mogsy’s Pick

Season of Storms by Andrzej Sapkowski (April 17, 2018 by Orbit Books)

Geralt of Rivia AKA The Witcher is one of my favorite fantasy characters ever, so it’s good to know we’ll be joining him once again next spring in a new novel finally being translated into English by David French. Originally published in Polish in 2013, Season of Storms is not a sequel continuing the main saga, but rather a standalone prequelin which readers will learn the origin story of our iconic protagonist.

“The New York Times bestselling series that inspired the Witcher video games.

Geralt of Riveria. A witcher whose mission is to protect ordinary people from the monsters created with magic. A mutant who has the task of killing unnatural beings. He uses a magical sign, potions and the pride of every witcher — two swords, steel and silver. But what would happen if Geralt lost his weapons?

In this standalone novel, Geralt fights, travels and loves again, Dandelion sings and flies from trouble to trouble, sorcerers are scheming … and across the whole world clouds are gathering – the season of storms is coming…”

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Titles That Made Me Want to Read the Book

Posted on October 24, 2017 20 Comments

This week’s topic: Top Ten Titles That Made Me Want to Read the Book

Mogsy’s Picks

Today’s theme is all about unique book titles, and I can think of no better way to shine a light on the topic than to feature some books whose titles made me want to read them.

You Die When You Die by Angus Watson

This was a crazy wild ride I never wanted to end. After having a blast with Angus Watson’s Iron Age trilogy I had a good feeling that his new book would be another glorious full-hearted adventure through new frontiers of dark fantasy, and I was not disappointed. Though this novel is more heavily steeped in magic and fantasy, the author has once again drawn much of his inspiration from history. Inspired by the cultures of Native Americans as well as the Vikings, he has created a small population of villagers known to the surrounding local tribes as the “Mushroom Men”, who are simply content to live their modest, bucolic lives. So when the attack came, none of them could quite believe it. Thanks to a prophecy that says the Mushroom Men will destroy the world, they are all now marked for death. It’s a story that commands your full attention from the very first page, whisking readers away on a journey set in an imaginative world full of riveting characters and gritty adventure. After all, I would expect nothing less from a book called You Die When You Die. (Read the full review…)

We Are Legion (We Are Bob) by Dennis E. Taylor

Every time I go to Audible my account page is always bombarding my recommended list with this one, and well, it’s hard not to be curious with that title. This is sci-fi done in a way I’ve never really seen before. While the tone of the narrative is familiar, with its snarky humor and heavy infusion of geek pop culture jokes, the story and the characters and the worlds feel different and fresh. Mostly, this was because of how fun it was to follow all the “Bobs” – our protagonist who has been turned into a self-replicating interstellar von Neumann probe with the goal of exploring the galaxy. What could have been a lonely tale about a solo space explorer into an uproariously entertaining experience filled with many vibrant and unique personalities. The characters in this book are all one person—but they are also not. The story actually makes it a point to emphasize that the Bobs are distinct individuals, each possessing different aspects of the original. Having finished this book and seen for myself what it’s all about, I can understand now why the popularity of this book blew up in such a short time. I highly recommend taking a look for yourself, especially if you enjoy space opera or sci-fi comedy that manages to be both smart and funny. (Read the full review…)

The Refrigerator Monologues by Catherynne M. Valente

Ever wonder what it’s like to be a girlfriend or wife of a superhero? The answer is not so glamorous in this collection, whose title is inspired by the term “Women in Refrigerators”, coined to describe a trope used in many comic book plots involving the deaths, disablement, and disenfranchising of female characters to forward a male superhero protagonist’s storyline. The six tales in here focus on the women of the Hell Hath Club, all based well-known characters in the DC or Marvel universes so that even passing fans of comics should recognize some of their origins. Every one of them has been killed, depowered, or generally dismissed in favor of the male superheroes (and in one case, a supervillain) in their lives. Now the six of them meet regularly in the afterlife, hanging out at a quaint little joint called the Lethe Café where they share their stories, support each other, and listen to the gargoyles bands play punk rock. (Read the full review…)

Slaves of the Switchboard of Doom by Bradley W. Schenck

If you’re feeling nostalgic for the Golden Age pulps and the thrilling sci-fi classics of the past, then I think you’ll be quite happy with this rollicking mashup of the old and the new. Set in a future as imagined by “the world of tomorrow” in the 1939 World’s Fair, the story opens in the megacity of Retropolis, its art deco inspired skyline bestrewed with hover cars and monorail tracks. The hero of our tale is a freelance adventurer named Kelvin Kent, who is sometimes better known by his professional name of “Dash”. Soon, he finds himself hired by Lola Gardner, a woman representing a group of switchboard operators who have all just been fired from their jobs for reasons they don’t understand. Surely a large city like Retropolis with millions of people needing to communicate and access data on their InfoSlates would need the services of switchboard workers to keep on running, which means that another system must have sprung up to take their place, and Lola would like Dash to figure out who is behind this mysterious plan and why. Like most homages to the classic science fiction adventures of the 1920s to 1950s, Slaves of the Switchboard of Doom was clearly written for fans by a fan, wearing its pulp era-inspired roots on its sleeves proudly while riffing on genre tropes with an eye towards faithfulness and good-natured humor. (Read the full review…)

The Language of Dying by Sarah Pinborough

What is the language of dying? That was the question in my mind when I saw this book’s title. A beautiful soul-rending song straight from the heart, this novella packs an emotional punch by shifting gears instead to look at the turbulent nature of grief and the profound effects it has on one troubled family. The story starts with a woman sitting by her dying father’s bedside waiting for the other members of her family to arrive in order to say goodbye. But deep in her heart, our narrator is secretly hoping for one other visitor. Only twice in her life has she seen him, both after a painful loss in her life. She can tell no one what she saw, because she’s not even sure what she saw was real. But still, she believes, and now, she waits. This is a hard book to categorize into any one particular genre, though it’s the themes of pain, grief, death, and loss that really come through. I’ve never seen a more transparent, open and honest portrayal about the agony of confronting the inevitable, of letting go of a dearly beloved, and ultimately it’s not an easy book to read, but you will be glad you did. (Read the full review…)

Dinocalypse Now by Chuck Wendig

This book went straight onto my to-read pile the moment I learned about it, for two main reasons: first, because I love Chuck Wendig, and second because…well, I figured I couldn’t go wrong with any book with a title like Dinocalypse Now! But it wasn’t until I was halfway through reading this book that I started to do some research and found out a little more about its background. Crowd-funded through Kickstarter in 2012, it is based on Evil Hat Productions’ Spirit of the Century role-playing game which is set in a 1920s/30s-era pulp adventure world, so think jetpacks, talking gorillas, psychic dinosaurs, ancient Atlanteans and more! It all begins when a group of heroes calling themselves the Century Club are brought in to prevent the assassination of FDR, only to find that the president isn’t the target — they are! Though, what comes next is actually a threat to the entire planet as King Khan the ape conqueror storms this world through a dimensional portal, leading his vast army of primates and dinosaurs. Now it’s up to the Centurions to stop him and save the world! (Read the full review…)

Love Minus Eighty by Will McIntosh

I read somewhere once that the working title of this book had been “Love in the Minus Eighty” before it was shortened to the way it is now. It refers to the temperature at which dead women in cryogenic dating farms are kept, waiting for a rich lonely suitor to come along one day to resurrect them and take them home. For this futuristic dystopian novel, Will McIntosh expanded upon the ideas from his award-winning short story “Bridesicle”, writing about a group of characters whose lives are all interconnected because of these dating farms. What a disturbing and yet fascinating basis for a story, and it’s all set before a backdrop which seems at once so outlandish but also familiar enough to be uncomfortable at the same time. Some things will always stay the same, apparently. People will still look for love – that timeless, formless, unshakeable deep connection to another soul. This makes Love Minus Eighty a sci-fi novel that’s definitely more about the human story and less about the science and technology. Questions like how the dead can be brought back to life, or how these dating farms even manage to revive dead women for short periods of time aren’t the point. Instead, what’s important is the emotional impact of the story, and I found this one to be a very thoughtful commentary on the ways of the heart and just twisted enough for me to eat it up. (Read the full review…)

Level Grind by Annie Bellet

In gaming lingo, the term “level grind” often has negative connotations, typically used to describe having to engage in mind-numbingly tedious or repetitive tasks to gain experience or complete an achievement. Hence you can understand my curiosity when I saw this book. Happily though, the aforementioned description is not at all how I would describe my experience with it. Collecting the first four novellas in the Twenty-Sided Sorceress series, this omnibus is in fact a very witty, vibrant, and entertaining urban fantasy following our protagonist Jade Crow. After twenty-five years of hiding from her ex-lover and fellow sorcerer who wants to eat her heart (gross, yes, but that happens to be the only way to kill a sorcerer and steal their powers) she has ended up settling in small town in Idaho which is also home to a thriving paranormal community that includes shapeshifters, witches, and leprechauns. A lifelong gamer and nerd, Jade is content enough to lie low and live a quiet life among friends, running her comic book and game store. (Read the full review…)

Dracula vs. Hitler by Patrick Sheane Duncan

Anyone picking up this book would be rightly forgiven for mistaking this book for a campy, humorous mashup. After all, that was my initial thought as well, after seeing the title. But as it turns out, my first impression couldn’t be further from the truth. Dracula vs. Hitler is actually a quite serious endeavor, reinforced with what appears to be plenty of research and painstaking attention to detail. For one thing, it is written in an epistolary style like the original Dracula by Bram Stoker, a nod to the classic work. The story officially begins with the Editor’s Note, as the author recounts a recent trip deep down into the bowels of a cavernous Washington DC document warehouse (think the final scene of Raiders of the Lost Ark), where he ends up finding a thick packet of papers labeled “TOP SECRET”. Inside this classified folder are the documents making up most of this book, mainly a series of entries from the journal of one Jonathan Murray Harker dated between the months of April to June 1941, as well as a number of excerpts from a novel believed to be authored by Lucille Van Helsing writing under a pen name. These two characters are of course the descendants of the original characters from the novel Dracula, the ending of which apparently didn’t play out the way Stoker had written them. (Read the full review…)

Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor

“History is just one damn thing after another” is a quote most commonly attributed to famous historian Arnold Toynbee. It has also been partially adopted for the title of this novel, which has got to be about time travel, of course! The story stars our plucky narrator Madeleine “Max” Maxwell, a historian who gets recruited by a group of time travelers working undercover behind the façade of St. Mary’s Institute of Historical Research. After the most hilariously bizarre interview process, Max join up with them and the adventures—and the disasters—immediately begin. There’s a rigorous training program required for all newbies where they learn all the dos and don’ts of time travel, and they also have to pass a series of tests, including a physical component because you never know what can happen during a trip back in time. After a while, it’s clear that Murphy’s Law generally applies to all missions at St. Mary’s. The plot is very entertaining and filled with boisterous, comedic hijinks (and perfect if you enjoy British humor). (Read the full review…)

Book Review: The Naturalist by Andrew Mayne

Posted on October 23, 2017 20 Comments

I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.

The Naturalist by Andrew Mayne

Mogsy’s Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Genre: Mystery, Thriller

Series: Book 1 of The Naturalist

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer (October 1, 2017)

Length: 382 pages

Author Information: Website | Twitter

I spent a day last week stumbling around in a sleep-deprived stupor because I had been up late the night before, and it was all this book’s fault since I’d refused to put it down until I was finished. Totally worth it, though. Talk about a page-turner! The Naturalist was exactly what I wanted out of a mystery-thriller—fascinating, addictive, and dramatic in all the best ways. It also captivated the science geek in me by featuring a protagonist who uses the study of plant and animal behavior and physiology to solve crimes, his specialized knowledge allowing him to spot patterns where others cannot. Think The Da Vinci Code, but with biology.

Our story begins as computational biologist Theo Cray gets a call from the police while on a field research trip in Montana. The body of Juniper Parsons, one of his ex-students, has been found in the woods near a small town, and the cause of death appears to have been a rogue grizzly attack. However, Theo is not convinced, recognizing unnatural signs in the evidence. Despite the terrible claw marks and the traces of fur on the victim, he’s not sure that whatever killed her was even an animal. More likely it was a man, he insists. Killing like an animal.

Unfortunately, the police are no help, especially once Fish and Wildlife Service puts down the bear believed to be responsible for the savage attack. Knowing that his former student’s true killer is still out there though, Theo is unwilling to give up and decides to conduct his own investigation, uncovering a disturbing pattern of missing persons reports and mysterious deaths that go back for more than thirty years. All the incidents happened in or around the state of Montana, many of them involving young women. In the cases where remains were recovered, the mutilated bodies all displayed the same kind of claw marks found on Juniper Parsons. Following a trail of clues, Theo begins finding more victims and knows he’s getting closer to the truth, though inevitably his efforts draw unwanted attention as the police start suspecting Theo himself.

The Naturalist is the perfect thriller novel for the science lover. Yes, it can get a little farfetched at times, requiring the reader to simply roll with it, but with a story this enthralling and irresistible, you’d be surprised at how much I’m willing to let slide. A couple of minor plot holes and a few dubious moments were not enough to detract from the enjoyment.

Another amazing thing about this book is its protagonist. Theo is a professor in an extremely esoteric field, so he’s always having a hard time getting others to understand his evidence or how he’s getting his data. It also doesn’t help that he’s a bit socially awkward, and his brain is wired to think in a very different way than most people. In spite of this though, I found him remarkably easy to relate to—and not just because of the shared interest in biological sciences. Above all, Theo is driven by a sense of duty towards his murdered student, and while his guilt and emotional self-punishment may have been a tad unfounded, it’s hard not to feel sympathetic towards someone whose heart is so genuine and in the right place. He attacks his mission with indefatigable zeal that almost borders on obsession, but you’ve also got to admire his persistence, especially when he finds ways to get creative. While Theo is highly intelligent, his doggedness and complete lack of street smarts often leads to solutions with successful results but appalling side effects.

Then there’s the plot, which sank its hooks into me and dug in deep. The story’s tone and style are arguably similar to that of most thrillers, but like I said, this novel had a scientific angle to it that made it special. A good balance of action and suspense kept the pace swift and strong, and some of the more mysterious and atmospheric scenes were even touched with a hint of horror. The final chapters of the book, AKA the section that had me devouring the pages at the expense of a good night’s sleep, were so intense and insane that I doubt I could have stopped reading even if the house was burning down around me.

Man, I really hope I won’t have long to wait for the sequel, because it does appear The Naturalist is the first book of a new series. Cleverly addictive and hugely entertaining, this book had me hanging on every word from start to finish. If I’m reading a lot more mystery-thriller these days, well, it’s because of books like this, and I can’t wait to read more from Andrew Mayne.