Cover design: Don T. Interior design: Hank Smith Photo credits: Moon: Kenny Goh / Satin: Zudifeng / Desert: Bowie15 / Man: Dimitriy Cherevko
Jim Melvin’s introduction of Torg’s First Death is worded thus:
The Death Wizard Chronicles is a six-book epic fantasy that debuted August 2012 (Bell Bridge Books). The main character, Torg, is a Death-Knower wizard who has died and then returned to life more than a thousand times. The story below describes Torg’s first death.
I include the below quote to illustrate the mood of the story:
As he walked across the still-warm sand, Torg felt the pull of a seductive will far stronger than his own. He had no power to resist it – and would not have, even if able. He wanted to make this journey into death. And, if he was worthy, return.
Death is something I find incredibly fascinating, something I do not fear much. Much of my fascination comes from that part of me that fears my disintegration and disappearance into stardust.
What if I could actually return from death, not as a vampire or anything else weird, but as a regular/irregular person? Would I want to? What if I was a Tugar who consider it the ultimate privilege? Would I strive for a return?
Torg’s First Death is a short-story that raised many questions inside my head. Melvin drew me slowly into Torg’s self-control. I found myself envying Torg his ability to still his mind. When it is time for me to die I wish I could control it as well as Torg does. I wish we all could. Melvin’s description is beautiful and peaceful. His cover fits the mood of Torg’s story well.
Huge brag before we get down to business. It has been a while since I read Shadowslave and I needed to take a quick look before getting back the feeling I had with this world. Don’t you know, I had to sit down and read the whole thing over again. A wild guess might tell you that I really enjoyed McMillin’s writing.
The Shadewright Cycle (at least the first two installments) has some interesting characters and important themes along with tons and tons of action, humour and romance (yeah, I guess I could call it that). I think Shadowslave is fairly dark, but not too dark for young adults. Nor is there very explicit violence or explicit sex in it. There is some gore though in connection with homununculi and a strange baby.
Back to my favorite part – the characters. Arick the Arcwright, Lord of Lightning T’Gantas is my favorite character. He seems kind of “simple” to the people around him. Shadowslave shows us that Arick definitely is not. He does, however, lean toward the clumsy and spectacular and explosive. That man is a wandering accident waiting to happen. Arick has to be the luckiest unlucky guy I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. McMillin made me fall in love. Praise, praise, praise for Arick’s character.
Racism. Hmmm. Plenty of racism in Shadowslave (and Shadewright). The Phantist, Serjeant Despanya Euran and Duskron are all three greyskins. That means that they have grey skin and are somehow tied to the Shadows, with the potential of being shadewrights. The degree of talent varies and Despanya has chosen to deny that side of her completely. Like our own world skin colour matters a great deal in the Shadowworld. Despanya has double-trouble in that she is a woman as well. Because gender does matter in Arlandia and Rall.
The Phantist is our main character. He worked hard in Shadewright to develop his abilities as a shadewright and became quite proficient and popular because of it. He also got into trouble with a voice he hears emanating from the earth. That threat in his life follows him into Shadowslave along with his meeting another dangerous entity in Shadows. I kind of think of the Phantist as the awkward hero. Maybe it is his character more than any of the others that leads me to think of the Shadewright Cycle as young adult. His tale is a coming of age story in the fantasy way.
Emm-Ma, the Quicklime Girl, is a very strange babysitter with an even stranger child to take care of. The two of them are fascinating characters. I can’t say more. I want to, but I can’t. I liked her though and strangely enough I liked the baby.
Healer Malleck and Colonel Brendan are into genetic tampering. Healer Malleck more than the Colonel. Both are willing to employ pretty bizarre and dangerous tools to get ahead of “the other side”. Sound familiar to any government at all? Is there any government that does not do this??? Two men who are extremely dedicated to their beliefs.
Finally we have Lesander. Or maybe Lesander’s property would be more correct. Something really strange is going on on Arliss Island. The Phantast is essential in figuring out the mystery and Duskron desperately wishes it was not so.
I’m trying to figure out if the James May of Heartbeatsis the same James May as the one of BBC’s Top Gear. Any takers? I’m not finding any information on him out there.
It was not the cover that made me buy this short story but rather the blurb. It contains the words evil, sword and stop nightmare. Yup, that will often be all it takes to get me to read.
Heartbeats is part one of what thus far is four parts. I have only read the first and am therefore not certain if that is the end. Each story is about the same length as this one (between 15-20 pages).
Heartbeats is a dark story, one of death and destruction and grief. We meet Stalus at the celebration of the wedding of Duon and Shelly. Except what was to be a happy event has turned into a nightmare, a nightmare that has been part of Stalus’ life for the past thirty years. It is the story of a man growing from utter helplessness to the realisation that he, too, can make a difference. Hopefully Stalus will be able to hold on to his humanity through all he has to do.
I would have to say that this is one of the darker stories I have read. Not so much because of the violence, although the violence is explicit and plenty. But more because of the utter hopelessness that is conveyed through the writing. James May writes well within the flow and writes a story that makes me think about what it must be like to fight against the odds without believing that you will make it.
(Exmortus) is NOT intended for children, unless you like your kids reading about grisly murders, sex magic and genocidal demons, in which case, it IS intended for your kids.
Exmortus is in part a coming of age novel. As such I guess you could call it a young adult novel (keeping in mind the above warning). But it is also about the arrogance that comes with believing that you have the correct truth.
The Knights of Exmortus Abbey believe that their path is the correct one. They get to see a whole lot more of the more challenging sides of life than the people living inside the great wall. Ash Xavier is one of the apprentices hoping that he will make the rank of Knight. Ash is incredibly smart and knows it but he has no idea how to apply his knowledge to real life. That is what Speed and Ziggy (the duo) show him while his fellow apprentice, Simon, shows Ash that there are alternative ways of thinking.
Getting his dreams smashed within a few hours is certainly a factor in helping Ash grow. The demons that destroyed the Abbey are on Ash & company’s tails through much of the novel. People they thought they could trust (at least Ash did) show themselves as traitors while people Ash had thought of as evil end up getting Ash & company out of trouble.
We get plenty of action, some philosophising and some enthusiastic sex. The action is graphic at times while the sex is semi-explicit (probably not new to most teenagers).
There are tons of reviews of Seraphinaout there. Seriously, tons. Most of them praise Rachel Hartman’s writing to heaven and with good reason. Believe it or not, this is actually Hartman’s first novel. Her grasp of the flow is amazing. This is definitely an author to follow.
What genre is this? Well, that is a toughie. Like The Intergalactic Academy blog points out in their review, there are reasons one might suspect the world of Seraphina lies not only in a fantasy universe but also in a science fiction one. You would be surprised at the number of stories out there that seem to be fantasy (and are) but end up having a basis in humans having come to another world.
One of the traditional conflicts between humans and dragons in Seraphina has to do with humans invading the continent of the dragons. This might be one hint as to the otherworldliness of humans. The other is as TIA points out some of the vocabulary.
How the wars began in the first place is not commonly known, but as Seraphina is lucky enough to have a dragon music teacher (Omra) she learns of these matters. That her father happens to be the local expert on the treaty between humans and dragons has given Seraphina more knowledge than the usual citizen. There is a reason for her father’s expertise. He is the father of a girl who is half-dragon/half-human. Seraphina’s mixed race must be hidden from the knowledge of both dragons and humans as such a relationship is thought of as disgusting. But it is interesting that such a relationship is even possible. Perhaps that means that a dragon’s transformation into human is on a genetic level.
When peace was forged, one of the consequences was that dragons could no longer be among humans in dragon form. Dragons society seems to be ruled by logic rather than emotion. To them becoming human is a shock to the system as they are drenched in feelings they do not understand. Emotions are forbidden and all memories pertaining to such emotions are excised upon returning to dragon form. Such excision could mean that the dragons have some form of advanced technology unless the excision happens through some kind of paranormal ability.
Seraphina’s mother took human form and fell in love with Seraphina’s father. Seraphina was the result of that match. Sadly, Seraphina’s mother died at child-birth. Child-birth is the time her father discovered that Seraphina’s mother was a dragon. This has to do with the color of dragon’s blood. Seraphina herself showed no sign of the match until puberty. At that time she gained scales on parts of her body and a gigantic degree of self-disgust. In fact, her disgust ended up being so strong it led to self-harm. I have absolutely no trouble understanding why the self-harming happened. When one’s difference is so readily identifiable, the temptation to remove it must be staggering.
There are some positive factors in Seraphina’s life. Her music teacher Omra has stuck with her since her dragonhood was revealed. With him she does not have to fear revealing her forbidden race. As I said earlier, Omra is Seraphina’s music teacher. When Seraphina showed the same kind of talent her mother had had, Seraphina was permitted lessons if they were held out of sight of her father. Music has led her to the position she now holds – as the assistant to the court composer.
Seraphina is our protagonist. An excellent protagonist. She has depth and character in a way that only the British can manage to convey. Understatement seems to be something the Brits get through their mother’s milk. Hartman attacks a great deal of society’s crueller sides gently and with enough of a sting that the reader feels it. (I feel it) Such writers are a miracle to me, something I can admire yet never aspire to be.
Gaspar and the Demoiselle Clara was a free download from various sites when I got it. It is no longer available by itself. But it is part of a novel called Gaspar The Thief. I have not read this novel yet.
David A. Lindsay is from Scotland. That gives us an insight into Scottish humour. I am a huge fan of English humour, although I do tend to call that British humour. Shame on me.
Gaspar is two-thirds bravado and usually one-third inebriation. He tends to like having money but is also relieved when he has managed to spend it all. That way he can leave off his life of indulgence and get back to work. As you have surmised, Gaspar’s job is being a thief. This time his mark is to be the Demoiselle Clara.
I guess you could say that Gaspar is a happy-go-lucky kind of guy, a rapscallion. A guy like that makes a great character in a story but they aren’t very reliable in real life. Gaspar’s favorite jobs are the ones where he can scam another person. For that he needs to put on masks (not literal ones, no). Putting on a mask to get our way is probably something we are all guilty of. At least I am.
Demoiselle Clara is a fun one. She has learned the art of masking quite well. If Gaspar is lucky, he will learn a lesson from her depth of deviousness.
The Corpse King is our introduction to the trilogy Elegy. We are in a land of sorcery, swords and adventure with arbiters running around trying to keep some kind of order and clean manna (magic) whenever it sends out bad vibes. In The Corpse King we have a dark fantasy in the way of zombies, death-manna and insanity.
Apprentice D’Arden Tal and Master Havox Khaine are two of these manna-cleaners. If you take a look at Kellen’s website you will see that for some reason the world Eisengoth is the one sending off bad manna vibes. How do you fight a world? With a world gone insane you are bound to live in a dark place. In fact, I find that the cover reflects the mood of this world gone mad.
It might be a good thing if you like zombie books. This description illustrates why:
D’Arden caught a glimpse of the old man, wizened head perched atop a naked, colorless, emaciated form that was slowly shambling toward him. The belly was swollen to the bursting point, dragging entrails across the wooden floor. Maggots writhed everywhere, covering the body nearly from neck to foot as they feasted.
As you see, not something for the faint-hearted. Well written though. Nice and gory.
Angela of Troyis the story of an Amazon, necromancer and daughter of Cassandra of Troy and the god Apollo. Her job is to police the supernatural community and make sure that no unnecessary murders are committed.
A rogue werewolf has been on a killing spree and Angela is sent to stop him. To find out who the next victim is supposed to be she turns to a demon. Demons aren’t really Angela’s idea of fun – more like a necessary evil.
What she discovers is that the man she has been sent to hunt, Benjamin McConnell, is out to kill all who were associated with the man who cursed him. I can understand wanting to do that. McConnell has his own protection. If another tries to harm him that damage will be inflicted on the one trying to hurt him. Angela’s superiors must have known of this ability, yet they still sent her off to destroy McConnell.
All in all an interesting short story with a strange set of characters.
I am going to say it again. Grimhilda is the most adorable wicked witch I have ever come across. She is wicked, but she is wicked in a proprietary and warm manner.
Paul Kater’s writing conveys humour in spades. Some of it is innocently raunchy and some of it simply funny while the violence is quite innocent. My advice about age appropriateness is the usual one – check the story out yourself first and then decide.
Dandh (review below) said:
If you have any imagination, you can easily forgive the ‘unprofessional’ writing and enjoy the story. Many people expect too much from Kindle free books. This is a venue for amature writers to get their stories published. They don’t have editors and teams of people working behind them. The stories are pure and unedited, that’s what makes them great.
My favorite part of this story is the part where Hilda gets visited by door-to-door salespeople trying to sell her a broom. I wish I could do what she did to some of the salespeople that turn up on our doorstep.
Snow White is your classic airhead that somehow seems to survive unscathed all the horrors that are thrown her way. With Hilda as her own “semi-godmother” she has a bit of supernatural protection. But all is not horror in the life of Snow White. No, indeed it is not. I liked this version of the seven dwarves.
We also get to meet Baba Yaga. For some strange reason there are people out there who seem to think that Baba Yaga originated with Terry Pratchett. Just to clear the record, she does not. Baba Yaga and Grimhilda are great friends who love to prank the other witches.
Some on the witches that are pranked by Hilda and Baba Yaga are the three witches of MacBeth (the Weird Sisters). I guess you could say that Kater’s similarity with Pratchett lies in using some of the same sources as Pratchett does. Paul also employs humour to get whatever message he wants across to the reader.
Paul’s obvious love for his craft is what allows me to look beyond editorial problems. Sometimes a writer’s talent shines through whatever limitations are placed on him.
Cover artist Julie Bell My favorite Firekeeper cover
When Jane Lindskold got Julie Bell to do the covers for the Firekeeper saga she made the best choice possible. Julie Bell’s wolves and people are incredible (see link above). If you have the chance, you should check out her artwork.
Once again my son and I read about Firekeeper together and once again we were richer for it. I believe this is the only advantage to having a child with a serious case of dyslexia. In spite of his age we get to sit side by side enjoying a story that takes us a to place out of time and away from our world. Both of us have Firekeeper and Blind Seer as our favorite characters. Part of that is due to the kind of fatalism on their part that comes from having to fight for survival since childhood. I believe it also comes from the love that Firekeeper and Blind Seer have for each other.
Another thing that makes the pair my favorite is that they follow their hearts no matter where that might take them. If they feel something is the right thing to do, then they will do it. As they become acquainted with the Meddler they find themselves struggling to discern between what is the influence of the Meddler and what they truly feel is right.
I guess I kind of understand the Meddler’s motives. He is a self-righteous git who takes no responsibility for the consequences of his actions but is convinced that his intentions were all that mattered. The Meddler himself considers Firekeeper a natural born meddler, but the main difference between him and Firekeeper is Firekeeper’s willingness to bear the responsibility for the consequences of whatever actions she might have taken (without putting on a self-righteous mien).
Poor Derian. He is back in Liglim as an ambassador’s assistant and still heart-sore from his short but intense relationship with Rahniseeta in Wolf Captured. My heart warms at the strength of his character. He has had Firekeeper’s back many times during the past five years and will need to rise to the occasion once again. Derian, Firekeeper and Blind Seer are naturals for the quest that is inspired by the Meddler. Along come Truth, the jaguar, and Harjeedian.
Harjeedian is the guy that kidnapped Derian, Firekeeper and Blind Seer in Wolf Captured. He is the human diplomat for the Liglim on the journey. Truth is a divining jaguar who has gone in an out of insanity. In spite of having a shaky hold on reality Truth needs to come along. So does Plik, Bitter, Lovable and Eshinarvash (the wise horse). A strange troupe for sure, but one that represents most of the groups that the gang know of.
Bitter and Lovable by Fortunes Favor
In the above portrait by FortunesFavor Bitter and Lovable are heartwarmingly portrayed. Lovable is as her name states Lovable and in love with shiny things. At first she might come across as your regular ditzy “blonde”, and she is that too. But she is most of all bright and loving. We get to see just how close she and Bitter are in Wolf Hunting when the couple meets up with an incredibly dangerous hunter. Firekeeper and Blindseer love the couple’s wit and courage and deviousness. The two end up being essential to saving Truth and also essential to the well-being of the group that ends up chasing after one of Meddler’s meddlings.
Plik as drawn by Secnd Logic (JRY)
This portrayal of Plik, the maimalodalum that ends up going with the gang to find the twins, shows a version that I agree with. He looks so innocent, but like all innocent-looking raccoons, Plik has another more violent side. As he is maimalodalum that means that there is quite a bit of human in him and we get to see this fairly well. Derian’s first reaction upon seeing Plik is – well I’m sure you can guess. But as time passes Derian sees Plik more and more as the individual that he is rather than the oddity that maimalodali are.
Eshinarvash, the wise horse, first appeared in Wolf Captured. He has chosen to come along as a horse herder and also as a companion to the others. Derian and he develop a close relationship that will come in handy as the story follows the path of Lindskold’s imagination.
These are the main characters of Wolf Hunting. As you see some of them are more unusual than others. But that is the nature of Wise Beasts/Royal Beasts and nutty spirits. I hope you find as much enjoyment with this tale as my son and I did.
My 18-year-old son and I are still enjoying reading about Firekeeper together. There is something magic in being able to share in the joy of a well-written novel that cannot be had in reading by myself.
Jane Lindskold was at it again with the difficult-to-pronounce words. The worst one was the name of the temple at u-Seeheera: Heeranenahalm and the other two were Fayonejunjal (name of vessel) and jujundisdu (type of leader). We (or rather I) had to pause before pronouncing the words one syllable at a time.
This time my favorites have, if not all the parts, most of the attention of the author. Wolf Captured is for the main part about Firekeeper, Blind Seer and Derian and their adventures in Liglim.
That sounds so benign, doesn’t it? But getting to Liglim meant the capture of the three and their unwilling transport across the ocean. And why were they taken? Well that was thanks to their “beloved” Waln Endbrook – you know the guy that cut off Citrine’s finger. Yes, that guy. There is something fascinating about the mentality of the bully. I’m trying to figure out if Waln is actually a sociopath. According to this page on bullying he probably isn’t but he definitely shares some of the traits.
Harjedian mis-calculates in kidnapping our trio. I doubt he realised just how skewed Waln’s description of them was until he actually had them in his irons. Trying to hold captive something as wild as Firekeeper and Blind Seer takes a crazier person than I am, and Harjedian quickly realises his mistake. Which is part of the reason why Rhaniseeta is sent to care for the captives.
Rhaniseeta is Harjedian’s younger sister – the one he has taken care of ever since their mother died. When Harjedian showed himself to be a potentially talented diviner his status rose and the two of them were able to share an apartment in the snake temple. The Liglimosh tradition of animal-reverence (Wise beasts – yarimaimalom) makes him realise that his steps when capturing Derian were about as detrimental to getting Derian’s cooperation as anything could have been.
The reason Derian was captured was the thought that he was somehow Firekeeper’s keeper or possibly ambassador with the human world. Derian and Firekeeper do nothing to dissuade the Liglimosh from this thinking, but the Liglimosh soon discover that their relationship is way more than that. In Wolf Captured Derian ends up playing a much more visible role than we have seen thus far and I like the way Lindskold portrays him. He is well worth a main part.
Firekeeper and Blind Seer are wolves (although Firekeeper’s form continues to be human). She wishes desperately that things were not so, and is willing to explore any avenue that might make her truly wolf. Her ability to speak with the yarimaimalom have the Liglimosh suspecting that she is either a maimalodalum (would be serious spoiler to tell) or a yarimaimalom. The Liglimosh captured her for this ability in the hopes that she might teach them, but factions within their culture wonder how wise this would be.
In Wolf Captured we get to learn about the politics in a new system and their beliefs. We once again see how insane human cultures really are and the steps some of us are willing to take. Intrigue and secrets are a part of the story along with adventure, action and (this time) a touch of romance. Like I said, my son and I had a great time with Wolf Captured, fantasy creatures that we are.
The Dragon of Despair is about messed up families, people who get a kick out of manipulating others, the struggle of a people to be recognized as a nation, divided loyalties and about Firekeeper trying to learn patience.
In terms of messed up families we are talking about poor little Citrine and her mother Melina. When Citrine got her finger cut off it did something to her head. It wasn’t the fact of her finger alone but the finger added to her mother’s seeming abandonment. Melina must be a prime example of a psychopath/sociopath.
Melina has established her position as the wife to the ruler of New Kelvin, Toriovico. She managed to marry him through her usual machinations and has him and most of his Primes completely in her power. Her reasons for this marriage does, of course, have to do with magic although it would probably be more correct to say that she wants all the power she can get and will use any means to get it.
What does this have to do with Citrine? For her own good King Tedric sends her along with the gang on their jaunt to New Kelvin. This time they are allegedly looking into setting up a silk-line from New Kelvin to Hawk Haven through the Kestrel and Archer families. This is the excuse for the presence of Edlin, Firekeeper, Blind Seer, Derian, Elise, Doc, Wendy, Grateful Peace (in disguise) and Citrine (also in disguise). Their real mission is to see if they can stop whatever it is Melina is up to.
To get Firekeeper and Blind Seer to go to New Kelvin, King Tedric has promised her that he will take care of the problem that has risen west of the Iron Mountains. Otherwise Firekeeper and Blind Seer would probably have gone to aid their family back there. But King Tedric feels this would only damage Firekeeper’s case with the nobles and even more importantly to him, he needs Firekeeper and Blind Seers abilities in New Kelvin.
West of the Iron Mountains a group of settlers has tried to get Bardenville up and running again. The Royal Beasts do not like this and are discussing what to do with the settlers. Only Firekeeper’s reassurance that King Tedric means to keep his promises keeps them from taking terminal action.
Firekeeper’s introduction to the human world and her struggles to understand the distinctions we make between different qualities gives us a better look at how weird human societies truly are. She still remains my favorite character (along with her companion Blind Seer). Derian follows with poor little Citrine in third place. Citrine is a person I have no trouble at all identifying with.
I am still reading to my son and he is still enjoying the tales in the Firekeeper saga. In fact, he grows impatient if I have to wait for the next book to arrive. I rather enjoy having been able to pass on the joy of reading to my sons. Stories have always been such an important teaching tool in society and the Firekeeper saga does a great job in that respect. Not only is Firekeeper an interesting and fun example to follow but Lindskold also manages to convey her respect for nature to me as a reader.
Cover art Stock photos: Earth from Space: Dean Neitman Fashion woman: Romangorielov Realistic planet: Merydolla Alien Desert Canyon in the Clouds: Algol Sunset in alien planet: Frenta Licensed from Dreamtime
We now come to the final installation of the A Plain Jane trilogy.
At the end of A Plain Jane II Jane had been called before the Senate to defend herself against the allegations made by Senator Cooper. He had charged her with treason and wanted her stripped of all rights given to her by the Galactic Senate. Things took a bizarre twist and the Senate realised what was really going on with Senator Cooper. This is where II left off – With the Senate in complete disarray and Jane falling.
What a thriller, what a thriller ;). All joking aside, what follows in A Plain Jane III is in fact an example of how excellent writing can draw the reader in. Odette C. Bell does action well. She(?) has all the way through the trilogy.
We get any and all questions we might have answered. What the Darq are is one example. The Paran technological superiority also gets explained. And, finally, we find out whether or not Jane manages to keep the Darq from destroying the Galaxy as she knows it.
Some of the story is downright silly, but you know, that is just part of the fun of reading. In some ways A Plain Jane is a soap opera, but in others it is a fantastic action story taking a person (Jane) through one identity crisis after the other. Not only Jane has to come to terms with who and what she is. Lucas is also having to admit a few unpleasant truths about himself and is going to have to figure out exactly what he is made of.
So, Yeah! I think I can wholeheartedly say that I have found Odette C. Bell’s entry into my life entirely charming in the good-old fashioned US way.
Cover art stock photos: Future city NYC: Nmedia Earth from Space: Dean Neitman Fashion woman: Romangorielov Licensed from Dreamstime.com
Odette C. Bell used to publish her work under the pseudonyms “Muscularkevin” and “Scrabblecat” on Fiction Press. There aren’t really any updated blogs or websites that belong to this author. Fiction Press is the closest I can get.
A Plain Jane continues to be a delightfully light read about the search for identity.
Jane has worked her whole life at being as plain as possible. Now it turns out this has been because she has an “Assister” lodged in her head, meant to keep her safe and invisible. It turns out she is anything but plain.
A Plain Jane II begins where no I left off: Jane on the run with Racarl toward somewhere supposedly safe. But Jane doubts his intentions yet still finds herself unable to assert herself and be the Pala (ruler of her people – the mysterious Para) that she is supposed to be.
As I read A Plain Jane (all three of them) I thought about the brainwashing we are all exposed to from the moment we are born (or socialization as it is more popularly called). What if I grew up trying my hardest to think of myself as plain and boring? What would that do to me? Granted, most of us are plain and boring but do not necessarily think of ourselves that way.
I’ve met quite a few people like Jane on my journey through life. They have been told that they are stupid, worthless, boring, ugly and all sorts of other unkind names by the people they trust. Like Jane they come to believe what they have been told and find it almost impossible to break away from that belief.
In A Plain Jane II this is the phenomenon I found the most interesting. Jane struggles against the ingrained belief she has grown up with and works incredibly hard to overcome herself.
But A Plain Jane II is not a serious reality type of novel. It is in fact an extremely entertaining science fiction story with plenty of action and fighting to go around.
Lucas Stone turns out to be not quite as dead as it seemed he might be by the end of A Plain JaneI.
When Lucas was stopped by Element 52 from killing Jane at the end of A Plain Jane I, he fell an entire kilometer before smashing into the ocean. While his armor had been hijacked and caused him to attack Jane, it was also his new and improved armor that has saved him (barely). Luckily for him his true and tested friends Alex and Miranda managed to come after him with the Paran artifact that had helped Jane. Now they are on the trail hoping to get to her before the Darq does.
I chose Shadow of the Sun from the Kindle free reads list exclusively because of its cover. My reasoning was that someone who would go to the trouble of getting such an awesome cover would make certain their writing was good as well. Yes, I have been burned at times by this less than stellar logic.
Most of the reviews of Shadow of the Sun have been favorable. I have included a couple that are not. For once I had an incredible amount of reviews to choose between and that makes me think that there is probably a larger market for paranormal romance than there is for the stuff I usually read.
From the beginning of this story the main character, Gabriella, reminds me of Sheldon in “The Big Bang Theory“. She is extremely intelligent about theory but not always as intelligent in social relations. I like it when the main character isn’t all Mary Poppins because we are all rude idiots about some things in our lives.
Gabriella is considered an expert on all things super-natural. For the most part the super-natural part of it is faked. Not this time though. Consider yourselves introduced to the three angels in her laboratory. Of course, the angels are beautiful. And, of course, Gabriella is beautiful as well. That kind of goes with the territory of paranormal romances although it is unnecessary in my mind. And, since this is a paranormal romance there is bound to be a love triangle of some sort. What do you know, there is. I guess the reason I choose to be critical of the triangle version presented in Shadow of the Sun is because it seems formulaic.
On to the rest of the story. Shadow of the Sun is much more than romance. We get plenty of action and that is what kept me reading. I liked the whole idea of all of the angels who were conscious beyond a certain point in time having no memory of what Halos of the Sun were. That is what the trio dug up in Italy are. Collective memory loss or memory tampering is not something I think I have come across before. This collective memory loss places the three angels, Gabriella, Joseph and Karen (another angel/FBI agent/?) against the rest of the angels.
The ending turns Timeless into a serial – we are left with a cliff-hanger. Shadow of the Sun was good for a first novel.
humanitysdarkerside 