Fearless by Nicole Edwards (Book 2 in the Pier 70 series) - Review.

The tale of lost love, a ten-year hiatus, and a fateful coming together.  It could have been good.  It was, however more reminiscent of a split personality disorder.

The fantastical ideal that one could miss another person so much that they never ventured into another relationship at all in that period is ludicrous – and if it truly happens, then, it’s just sad.  They’re both young.  Dare Davis, even though only nineteen apparently knew what he wanted and when he didn’t get it he decided that commitment was no longer for him.  A little petulant at life’s vagaries don’t you think?  But I guess he was a teenager so that determination might be expected, but I’d hardly credit such attitude lasting ten years!  I understand, what with the added tragedy of Noah Pearson’s father, how he could decide his heart was hurt enough to throw himself into nothing but work, however.  That particular reaction at least rang with a little bit of truth.

One thing I didn’t understand though was that neither of them before their fateful reunion had been particularly active in the gay community.  Casual sex?  Yes a little bit apparently, but not a lot (and certainly not recently – we were all definitely assured of that, as if should they have behaved any other way they were less than worthy).  Really?  Why?  They were both young, impressionable, their whole lives ahead of them to explore their sexuality, their options, other possible relationships.  But did they have meaningful relationship or attachments?  Not at all!  Nada, none, diddly squat.  Um, yeah?  While I’m pretty sure this was a novel aimed at the growing audience of female MM romance readers, and even though I am one of them, I found the pandering to the supposed requirements of my demographic in this context, annoying.  It’s a fantasy perpetrated to ensure that a love lost is never forgotten, never gotten over, kind of like poor Molly in Ghost, doomed to live a life of loneliness because her one and only true love, Patrick Swayze’s Sam bit the big one and she’s now obligated to wait for death for their reunion ‘because love never dies.  You take it with you’.  It has little basis in reality and it shouldn’t.

So for all this pining, angst and self-denial, when the two do finally get together you’d expect with all that’s gone before, it would be romantic.  Not!  It becomes one all out shag-fest.  They can’t get enough of each other sexually, to the point where they forget to communicate with one another at all.

At least three times they split over some misunderstanding, some hurt feelings, and end up apologizing and starting over.  But they don’t talk.  They’re awkward, dishonest with each other and in the end I’m not actually sure they were at all right for one another after all.  They became two different people from the couple they were when young.  In the end their happiness felt contrive for no other reason than that the story had to end and that the two of them as MC’s must get together.  Personally I would have been better pleased if they had both grown up and moved on with a mature relationship with other more appropriate people.

It was however, nice to meet old friends from the previous instalment, and Nicole does write with a certain appealing sense of humour.  I liked the characters, but as with some other pairings this author has penned, just not together.

While I was not that taken with this offering, I have the next in the Pier 70 series and knowing that I do find I like some characters and situations over others in her many novels, I will continue with the next book about Teague Carter and Hudson Ballard in Speechless.  I don’t give up because when I least expect it, Nicole Edwards does present me with gems.

««1/2

Sydney Whyte

Rating Chart

«……………….A no goer

««……………Alright, but not a re-read

«««………..Liked it

««««…….Loved it

«««««…Amaze-balls – ticks all the boxes!!!

Desire & Ice by Christopher Rice (A MacKenzie Family Novella) - Review

The MacKenzie family and Surrender are a world created by Liliana Hart, a New York Times best-selling author.  An author to date that I have read only one of her stories.  I was of the opinion that I could take it or leave it, and mostly that was leave it.  It had wonderful build-up at the beginning then fell into confusion in the middle and flat at the end.  It appeared the author had an inability to write physical conflict so she hinted it could happen and then it just inexplicably didn’t.

However, this is not a story of Surrender written by her.  Now it appears her setting and some of her characters have been handed over to other authors to try their hand at.  I thought I’d give Surrender another shot with Christopher Rice’s novella set in Surrender in the middle of winter.  From my experience of his writing he was not an author so afflicted by Ms Hart’s particular inability.

This is a story of a young deputy smitten with his former high school teacher who chases after her when he realises a storm is heading their way and she may be trapped at her old property, ill-equipped to survive the blast.

It is sort of reminiscent of another story I’ve read by Vivian Arend – the younger man, older woman scenario – forced together by an icy blast.  Apart from the women having an ex, that’s where the comparison ends unfortunately.

This is a romp of the dastardly kind.  Ex is a self-absorb crim who has dumped his ex-wife in the way of trouble and Danny is left to get her out of it and in the process making her fall in love with him.

As always the people Christopher has created are real and passionate, his writing eloquent and his word pictures imaginative.

It is, however, not one of my favourites.  Perhaps because it was too short of a tale and I didn’t feel the immediate spark between the two main characters; or perhaps it was the gravity of the situation that kind of touched on the unbelievable.

I was however glad for Eliza’s rescue.  Can’t have the criminal element winning the day.

««1/2 (because I might be tempted to read it again in a quiet moment)

Sydney Whyte

Rating Chart

«……………….A no goer

««……………Alright, but not a re-read

«««………..Liked it

««««…….Loved it

«««««…Amaze-balls – ticks all the boxes!!!

I want this man to do my washing! Don't you?

Ravel by R Pheonix - Review

In the desperate and bleak world R Pheonix has created, Ravel stands out as a beacon of light and mercy.  Here is guilt.  Here is forgiveness.  Here is redemption.

This is a story of attaining what we do not deserve.  Ashton is a flawed human, moulded by his circumstance and the bitter plight of humanity in a world where Supes rule with the harsh hand of lethal justice.  Do not upset the ‘Status Quo!’  NOT EVEN IF YOU ARE A SUPE!

Breaking into a supe’s house no matter how desperate an act was a risk Ashton took because his humanity, no matter his belief it was dead, was alive and insistent.  He had to help his life-long friend.  The futility of such heroics seemed doomed almost from the beginning when the resident supe, a reclusive werewolf, comes upon him almost immediately.  What has he got to fight the dangerous and threatening beast that stands before him.  Nothing but wit, and the mind numbing idiocy of attraction.  He’s human.  And this is a wolf!

Those very things are his salvation.

Reese, a man, a wolf filled with guilt and loneliness is taken by the mouthly thief.  Though his chance to change what he sees happening in his world now that the status quo has been set by those who hold ferociously to the power they have gained, here is the opportunity to regain his ‘humanity’, to help those who suffer the most brutality under the regime he feels he allowed - he helped - to take control of the world.

It is a small thing.  Two humans.  And one that proves himself, in a moment of weakness, unworthy of everything that Reese has afforded the little thief.  Can Reese overcome such betrayal?  Can he offer life and forgiveness to the one man he has come to feel so deeply about?  And in doing so will he find damnation or redemption?

This was a masterful piece of writing, the desperation, the depth of feeling gripped you tight and held you to the last word.  The only gripe I have to offer on this second book in this Status Quo series is that, for my liking it was too short!

«««««

Sydney Whyte

Rating Chart

«……………….A no goer

««……………Alright, but not a re-read

«««………..Liked it

««««…….Loved it

«««««…Amaze-balls – ticks all the boxes!!!

Reader Abduction by Eve Langlais - Review

Ah, Eve Langlais, another jaunt through the alien impossible.  What can I say.  Have a drink.  Have another.  You need to be a little silly to digest this silly tale.

Purple alien, Phyr and a couple of sidekicks have conspired with this author to make away with a number of her single fans that come to a ‘Romancing the Capital’ convention.  Mistaking the purple pirate for the entertainment, Brigitte, the co-ordinator for this little event is swept away with a number of other women to be sold on the market at Aressotle because they don’t have enough women to marry and procreate with.

The purple pirates while being misogynistic arseholes manage to be somewhat likeable, naïve - stupid when it comes to women; violent and possessive but they do manage to avoid raping their victims which is handy if you want to get women on your side.  All the women are of age which is apparently important – at least to purple aliens of Aressotle - and all is done with consent even if induced by coercion – in Brigitte’s case that is – clothes and freedom of the ship for a blowjob *shakes head* Really!  Not sure about the other women completely, but at least a couple seemed to be more than happy to oblige just for the hell of it.  Apparently present single women with a purple alien of masculine proportions and they all turn into alien fan-sluts.

I loved the beginning of the story, the refreshing take on the alien invasion of the convention for alien lovers of Eve Langlais books.  “We all love purple!”  they cry.  It was fun.  And then of course it turned into a space romp complete with laser fights, further abductions, unexpected attachments, bad boy behaviour, a feisty heroine who tells him where to get off -until she doesn’t - and mind blowing… well you can guess the rest.

It was fun and silly, but I had to be drunk to avoid what in reality it was making light of.

Abduction and coercion into marriage.  If I think about it too much, the premise is actually really shameful.  However in the light in which it was written – it’s not a piece of literary writing advocating the right of men to abduct women for their own purpose – it’s just a silly romantic fantasy and given that, I can only rate it on my enjoyment factor at the time that I read it.

«««« (hey, it was Friday night and I was tipsy – don’t hate me)

Sydney Whyte

Rating Chart

«……………….A no goer

««……………Alright, but not a re-read

«««………..Liked it

««««…….Loved it

«««««…Amaze-balls – ticks all the boxes!!!

Wicked Burn by Rebecca Zanetti - Review

This series started with a really sexy bang.  Rebecca writes gruff, macho, dominant Immortal beings and saucy heroines.  Witch Enforcers are pretty hot stuff even if they do go a little caveman all over their mates.  I loved Kellach and Lex who got the ball rolling with a high-speed romp through Seattle chasing a new designer drug that killed humans and had the potential to kill witches should they be shot-up with enough of the devastating poison.  Then came Wicked Edge with Daire and Felicity who took my breath away, man they were an explosive couple – a witch and a demon and here in Wicked Burn was another such pairing only this time the witch was a canny, successful, feisty Irish female called Simone and the Demon was bad-arse Nicholai Veis.

Although I didn’t write a review for Wicked Edge, it was my favourite, and unfortunately it still is.  This one went, I feel, on a little tangent losing sight of the understory.  The fight against the production and dissemination of a drug that poses a threat to all witches.  We are no closer to finding out who is manufacturing it, and no closer to knowing why.  Don’t get me wrong, I loved the chemistry between Simone and Nicholai, some of the sex was hot, hot, hot especially the mind manipulating ice and fire play.  But I did quickly grow tired of all the running and rescuing that was necessitated by the fact that Simone had multiple enemies, even those who were apparently trying to help her.  I was bemused by how they always seemed to find her even when she and Nick were ensconced in ‘safe’ houses.  How?  How did they know where she was?  That, my friends is a question that annoyingly is not fully answered.  A secret perhaps to be revealed in the next instalment.

The introduction of a new shifter species I also found a little eye-roll worthy, as they have never even been hinted at before.  It felt a little like Ms Zanetti was just jumping on the DS bandwagon.  Perhaps they will be a vital link in the future fight against Apollo, but if not then they weren’t really necessary.  The world is already so full of Supernaturals without them, I’m a little surprised there is actually any room for humans.

Now, however, this book did come with one delicious perk.  It has a novella attached, a short story about our favourite vamp and his mate – Talen and Cara.  Yes, my friends, it was back to the original.  It was sexy and adult.  It was raw, fast-paced - as is usual for a Zanetti paranormal - but this was about a couple’s transitioning relationship.  Certainly an interesting topic.  How can a relationship forged in adversity, survive the boredom of peace?  Where now do both Talen and Cara fit within each other’s lives?  It was a study in stamina and staying power; about first loves and purpose and renewal and vowing again.  It was finding one’s place in life – it was great and I loved it – it was the icing on the cake.

«««  («««« for the novella)

Sydney Whyte

Rating Chart

«……………….A no goer

««……………Alright, but not a re-read

«««………..Liked it

««««…….Loved it

«««««…Amaze-balls – ticks all the boxes!!!

Dead Camp 1 by Sean Kerr - Review

For me this was one of the harder book reviews to write.  I actually tossed up whether to do it or not.  I had it recommended on a fan site and heard the chatter about it from others in the group and was expecting something a little different.  My feelings for this book are slightly ambiguous.  I love it and I equally hate it too.

This is the first book in a series and is little more than foundation laying.  It covers only a day or two in the life of Eli but the back-story covers so much more.  What happened in London?  Why does Eli wallow in so much self-pity that even my empathy is exhausted?

I have little affinity with the main character.  I was left to meander bemused through the first half of the book, my attention caught first by one event and then another, to be offered full insight into their story but in reality was gifted nothing more than a mystery.  And then to be tossed from that character to another and then another and then another, to warm to them and then to be abandoned to another tale of woe from the past.  The author created intensity, I felt it deeply.  But my curiosity was never really alleviated.

I only became invested upon hearing the thoughts of an angel, the struggle he had to do what was right when religion/god forbade him to interfere.  His hands tied and unable to help.  I felt for him, for his silence and the accusations of others which I know must have been painful.  He would tell the truth if he could but he is stymied at every turn.

  

The book left me anxious, not alone for Eli, but for Malachi; for the danger he was putting himself in and that for a creature he loves unconditionally, but who in all likelihood was his murderer.  I fear for Ethan, so human and fragile.  I care about who he is and that he will survive.

Mysteries are thrown at me from every angle and nothing is resolved.  Who is Ethan, what has happened to his father?  Who made Eli a vampire in the first place, why does the devil want him so badly?  Why the demonization of a man who was real, and evil in his own right?  Was that truly necessary?  Interesting though.

I love the diary section of the book, the revelations of Isaiah, the innocence, the determination to offer himself as salvation for his future wife.  I loved their story, and their tragedy.  That’s not saying Ethan’s mother Eva deserved to die, certainly not in the manner that it happened.

I don’t fear for Eli, although I suppose I should, after all everything revolves around him, he is the centre.

The style of the book is slow, full of wonderful descriptive phrases - luscious word pictures of misery - that tell you everything and yet still keep their secrets.  What happened in London?  What happened to Gideon?

I found some phrases jarring, mostly that used by Eli.  This story is set in Germany during the war and the incarceration of the Jews and yet Eli comes up with gems such as "fuck", and "bum" for bottom, and "nada, diddly squat".  These terms sound so modern, so familiar, and while they indeed might have been language used in the speech of the day, they didn’t feel quite right.  The London event happened in Victorian England in the age of Jack the Ripper, days when one had their mouth washed out with the mere uttering of the word ‘damn!’  And in Hitler’s Germany I’m sure language would have hardly progressed, especially for one who had hidden away for the last sixty years.

I give it a three because I will definitely re-read some time in the future, possibly because all the information cannot possibly be absorbed in the one sitting.

«««

Sydney Whyte

Rating Chart

«……………….A no goer

««……………Alright, but not a re-read

«««………..Liked it

««««…….Loved it

«««««…Amaze-balls – ticks all the boxes!!!

Opportunity: Kingdom of Ara: Episode Three by Nicholas Bella - Review

The name says it all.  Opportunities lost; opportunities gained.

Nicholas Bella has once again woven a nail biting tale.  Scheming wolves, an epic battle sequence; lofty and dangerous dragons, violence and subjugation, the testing of loyalties and super ‘supe’ sexiness.

Though this episode offered sadness and loss, it also offered hope and even a hint of mercy.  The way some of the characters endured their punishment earned them my greatest respect.  It also offered an insight into the very genetics of the supe world that the author has created for us, answering many questions that fans were no doubt wondering about… the strengths of the beings that populate New Haven; and their weaknesses.  It gave insights into the loyalties and the closeness and love between old friends, into the power of Theoden and the blood connection he has with his children.

While some curiosity was assuaged, more was engendered.  It tickled us with hints of future possibilities.  Will those now in despair turn it into success… the germ is there; all they need do is reach out and take it?  If they have the courage they can turn submission into a reward.  It may take an adjustment in mind-set but that is the opportunity that they are now afforded.

While I apologise for being purposefully vague – I don’t want to spoil this highly anticipated episode for anyone – all I can say is that it played my emotions beautifully, fear, anxiety, sadness, empathy, relief, pride and satisfaction.  A must read for all the fans of this author and anyone who loves all things dark paranormal, violent and super sexy.

On a more personal level, I confess to just having one quibble.  While I know this tale could not be written adequately from his perspective, I wanted more of Noel.  He was the beginning of this story for me and I now feel a disconnect.  Don’t get me wrong, I love all the characters Nicholas has woven through this series but I find myself missing him in particular in this episode.  But still a stellar five star read, none-the-less.

«««««

Sydney Whyte

Rating Chart

«……………….A no goer

««……………Alright, but not a re-read

«««………..Liked it

««««…….Loved it

«««««…Amaze-balls – ticks all the boxes!!!