Thursday, April 30, 2020

ARC Review: Close Up by Amanda Quick

Close Up
Author: Amanda Quick
Series: Burning Cove, California (Book 4)
Publication: Berkley (May 5, 2020)

Description: Welcome to Burning Cove, California where 1930s Hollywood glamour conceals a ruthless killer…

Vivian Brazier never thought life as an art photographer would include nightly wake-up calls to snap photos of grisly crime scenes or headshots for aspiring male actors. Although she is set on a career of transforming photography into a new art form, she knows her current work is what’s paying the bills.

After shooting crime scene photos of a famous actress, the latest victim of the murderer the press has dubbed the “Dagger Killer,” Vivian notices eerie similarities to the crime scenes of previous victims—details that only another photographer would have noticed—details that put Vivian at the top of the killer’s target list.

Nick Sundridge has always been able to “see” things that others don’t, coping with disturbing dreams and visions. His talent, or as he puts it—his curse—along with his dark past makes him a recluse, but a brilliant investigator. As the only one with the ability to help, Nick is sent to protect Vivian. Together, they discover the Dagger Killer has ties to the glitz and glamour of Hollywood royalty and high society. It is a cutthroat world of allure and deception that Vivian and Nick must traverse—all in order to uncover the killer who will stop at nothing to add them to their gallery of murders.

My Thoughts: Vivian Brazier has left her San Francisco home after refusing to marry the man her family picked out for her and is trying to forge a career as an art photographer. To make ends meet, she photographs crime scenes for a newspaper. After taking a photo of the latest victim of the Dagger Killer, she notices that the crime scene looks staged like an art photo. Her lead helps the police locate the killer and places her right in the center of the killer's bullseye.

Nick Sundridge is a private investigator who uses his psychic power to help him solve crimes. Otherwise, that power is known as the family curse and makes him fear for his sanity. He is asked to protect Vivian when information is found that she will be the next victim of an assassin.

Nick and his dog Rex move in to protect Vivian. Shortly thereafter, Vivian's rental house and all her photographic equipment are destroyed when someone throws a fire bomb through the front window. She, Nick and Rex take refuge in a hotel in Burning Cove while Nick tries to flush out the assassin.

This story was filled with great period detail of California in the 1930s. It also had wonderful characters who were distinct and distinctive individuals. I liked the romance between Nick and Vivian since it was an unconventional as the characters themselves.

This is another great entry into the Burning Cove Paranormal thriller series.

Favorite Quote:
The voice, she decided, went with the man - dark and resonant and compelling. It was a midnight-and-moonlight voice, full of shadows and unspoken promises. A voice that could lead a woman into - or out of - hell. She absolutely had to photograph the man.
I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

Wednesday, April 29, 2020

ARC Review: The Secrets of Bones by Kylie Logan

The Secrets of Bones
Author: Kylie Logan
Series: A Jazz Ramsey Mystery (Book 2)
Publication: Minotaur Books (May 5, 2020)

Description: Second in a new series from national bestselling author Kylie Logan, The Secrets of Bones is a riveting mystery following Jazz Ramsey as she trains a cadaver dog.

Assembly Day at St. Catherine’s dawns bright and cloudless as professional woman gather from all around Ohio to talk to the schoolgirls about their careers ranging from medicine, to NASA, to yoga. Jazz Ramsey has also signed up to give the girls a taste of her lifelong passion: cadaver dog training. Her adorable new puppy Wally hasn’t been certified yet, so she borrows the fully-trained Gus from a friend and hides a few bones in the unused fourth floor of the school for him to find.

The girls are impressed when Gus easily finds the first bone, but then Gus heads confidently to a part of the floor where Jazz is sure no bones are hidden―at least not any that she’s put there. But Gus is a professional, and sure enough, behind a door that no one has opened in ages, is a human skeleton. Jazz recognizes the necklace the skeleton is wearing, and that it belonged to Bernadette Quinn, an ex-teacher at the school who’d quit her job abruptly one Christmas break. But now it seems Bernadette never left the school at all, and her hiding place makes it clear: this was murder.

Bernadette in life had been a difficult personality, and so there are a plethora of suspects inside the school and out of it. As Jazz gets closer to the truth she can’t help but wonder if someone might be dogging her footsteps...

My Thoughts: Jazz Ramsey is a school secretary at an exclusive Catholic girls's school in Cleveland. Her hobby is training cadaver dogs. Since she is currently training a new puppy named Wally, she borrows a retired cadaver dog from a friend when she is suddenly brought in as a substitute for a no-show at the school's career day. They go up to the unused fourth floor of the school for their demonstration when the dog finds something Jazz had not previously hidden.

Gus finds bones in a closet that housed the old heating system. Clothing on the body seems to indicate that the victim was a former teacher who had problems with students and other faculty and who was in danger of being fired. Most of the staff was relieved when a resignation letter arrived at the end of Christmas Break three years earlier.

Now Jazz is determined to find out who killed Bernadette Quinn. She doesn't want to suspect her boss Sister Eileen but Eileen did argue with Bernadette before Christmas Break and who was worried about Quinn suing the school. Of course, the killers could have been three students who delighted in tormenting the very religious teacher. Or maybe the parent of the girl Quinn discovered plagiarizing her college admittance letter. Or maybe the mysterious man the cleaning lady saw around the school. Or maybe the cousin who seems to have taken over her life and home.

I liked that Jazz was persistent and curious. I liked that she was working on her relationship with police officer Nick after a break up because they were moving too fast and were having trouble working around their demanding jobs and hobbies. I liked her relationship with her new puppy Wally and the information about search and rescue dogs and cadaver dogs.

The story was fast-paced and exciting.

Favorite Quote:
It wasn't until they were gone that Jazz wiped her suddenly sweating palms against the legs of hr pants and crossed the room to where Gus waited.

Not a squirrel.

Not a raccoon.

Not a dead rat.

Gus knew better than to signal on an animal.

Gus had been trained to detect only one scent.

Human death.
I received this one in exchange for an honest review from Edelweiss. You can buy your copy here.

Tuesday, April 28, 2020

Audiobook: Vision in Silver by Anne Bishop

Vision in Silver
Author: Anne Bishop
Narrator: Alexandra Harris
Publication: Penguin Audio (March 3, 2015)
Length: 16 hours and 4 minutes

Description: The New York Times best-selling author of The Black Jewels Trilogy transports readers to a world of magic and political unrest - where the only chance at peace requires a deadly price....

The Others freed the cassandra sangue to protect the blood prophets from exploitation, not realizing their actions would have dire consequences. Now the fragile seers are in greater danger than ever before - both from their own weaknesses and from those who seek to control their divinations for wicked purposes. In desperate need of answers, Simon Wolfgard, a shape-shifter leader among the Others, has no choice but to enlist blood prophet Meg Corbyn's help, regardless of the risks she faces by aiding him.

Meg is still deep in the throes of her addiction to the euphoria she feels when she cuts and speaks prophecy. She knows each slice of her blade tempts death. But Others and humans alike need answers, and her visions may be Simon's only hope of ending the conflict.

For the shadows of war are deepening across the Atlantik, and the prejudice of a fanatic faction is threatening to bring the battle right to Meg and Simon's doorstep....

My Thoughts: In this episode of The Others series, most of the blood prophets have been removed from the compounds where they were cut to reveal prophecies for anyone who would pay and have been moved to Intuit and Terra Indigene villages. But all is not going well. Taking care of these girls who are addicted to the euphoria they get from cutting and who are quickly overwhelmed by all the stimuli that bombards them is not something the Intuits and Terra Indigene know how to do.

Meg is trying to control her own addiction to the euphoria of cutting by arranging a schedule of controlled cuts. She knows that her addiction can kill her if she can't get it under control. In her first controlled cut which she has with Merri Lee as her recorder, she sees a number of things that will concern the Courtyard in the next couple of weeks. One of the things she sees are blood prophets who are left on the side of the road to survive or die on their own. All of them are pregnant and have been thrown out of the breeding farms that were run very secretly to keep up the supply of blood prophets. Her vision begins a search by the Others and some humans to locate the girls and the farms and to get the girls to safety. One terrible discovery is made when Others discover what happened to the boy babies born in these breeding farms which causes Simon to go out of control and threaten to kill all the humans in the Courtyard.

Another part of Meg's vision shows growing ties with some humans who are able to work honestly and honorably with the Terra Indigene. Her vision shows gardens and For Sale signs which lead to the Others in the Courtyard purchasing some apartment buildings to provide homes for those "wolf lovers" who are being persecuted by humans of the First and Last Movement. Humans are also concerned about future food shortages which surprise the Others who see no reason why there should be such shortages.

Lieutenant Montgomery's seven-year-old daughter Lizzy also comes to Lakeside when her mother puts her on a train to escape enemies in Toland. Her mother had taken up with inspirational speaker Nicholas Scratch who is trying to convince people to join in the Humans First and Last Movement and who is a visitor from Cel Romano which is preparing for a war with the Terra Indigene to gain more territory. Lizzy brings her toy bear Boo Bear who just happens to be stuffed with stolen jewels that were meant to help finance Cel Romano's war which leads to lots of danger for Lizzy from those who need to get the jewels back. 

This book is filled with growing tensions as the Humans First and Last Movement maneuvers for more power in Thasia. This maneuvering is counterbalanced by more humans working with the Others in the Courtyard and showing them that some humans can be trusted.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

Monday, April 27, 2020

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (April 27, 2020)

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? is now hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date.

It’s Monday!  What Are You Reading is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.  It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.

I will be combining my YA and adult reading and purchases on this one weekly roundup.

Other Than Reading...

I left the house this week! I had an appointment for blood work which I need to do every 3 months. Since I was out, I also went to Walmart to replenish some essentials like toothpaste, deodorant, Tylenol, and vitamins. I couldn't leave without picking up some candy and ice cream which I have been craving. I let myself have two pieces of chocolate most nights and saw that I could get ice cream in dixie cups which will help with portion control. I'm still trying to lose a few more pounds to add to the 38 I've lost since my brother's heart attack last September.

I've been outside for a couple of walks this week since the temperatures are getting better. I plan to take another walk after I finish writing this. I'm still bundling up in my winter jacket when I go but I saw lots of people - in the distance - wearing shorts and t-shirts. (The temperature was only in the high 50s as I was walking.) I throw my Kindle in a purse and wear my large earmuff size headphones so that I can keep my ears warm and listen to audiobooks as I walk.

We are still waiting for this month's power bill but we know we produced more electricity than last month. Since we had a $15 credit last month, we are expecting a larger credit this month. The sun is shining right now but rain is expected for a couple of days next week. We need the rain! The fire danger is pretty high where I live. Spring is grass fire season around here as the snow melts and exposes all the dead grass and branches. Dry weather and breezes don't help the situation. I'm hoping fewer people out camping and driving around will lower the risk of fire.

Our Stay At Home order is expected to be lifted or moderated on May 4. Already some businesses that are not customer-facing are scheduled to reopen next week as long as they have a plan in place for social distancing and protecting their workers' health. Schools are going to remain closed for the rest of this school year here in Minnesota and the government is working on trying to make distance learning more equitable since the process so far has exposed some problems and underserved areas and populations. Minnesota is still thinking that our peak won't hit until June or July but cases are increasing now. One nursing home here in Duluth has experienced a recent spike in cases. The governor and a coalition of health care providers including the Mayo Clinic, the University of Minnesota, and the largest health care systems in the State are working together to smooth out the process and make tests more available. They are hoping to be able to quickly do and process 20,000 tests a week. Anyone with Covid symptoms should be able to get a test now regardless of age, underlying conditions, or location in the State.

I'm still content to stay at home most of the time but my brother has his schedule for going back to work at Target. He'll be starting again on May 7.

Read Last Week

If you can't wait until the review shows up on my blog, reviews are posted to LibraryThing and Goodreads as soon as I write them (usually right after I finish reading a book.)

  • The Secrets of Bones by Kylie Logan (Review; May 5) - This was an engaging contemporary cozy mystery. My review will be posted on April 29.
  • Close Up by Amanda Quick (Review; May 5) - This is the latest in her Burning Cove historical mystery series. It features two quirky people who each have paranormal powers. I enjoyed the interactions between the main characters. My review will be posted on April 30.


  • Burn for Me by Ilona Andrews (Mine; audiobook) - This was a great story. It introduces a new setting for the authors - Houston, Texas, which is filled with magical families who are scheming for power. The main characters are Nevada Baylor who runs an investigative agency with her family all of whom have magical talents but who prefer to keep under the radar and "Mad" Rogan who is a noted and frightening Prime magician and the head of his House. My review will be posted on May 9.
  • White Hot by Ilona Andrews (Mine; audiobook) - This is the second book starring Nevada and "Mad" Rogan. It ramps up both the suspense and the romance. My review will be posted on May 14.
  • Wildfire by Ilona Andrews (Mine; audiobook) - This is the third book in the trilogy and brings Nevada and Rogan's romance to a conclusion. It has a lot of action and solves most of the other plot threads. But the identity of the main villain is left unresolved. My review will be posted on May 21. 


  • Mousse and Murder by Elizabeth Logan (Review; May 5) - A run-of-the-mill culinary cozy mystery about an Alaskan diner owner investigating the murder of the cook she recently argued with. Descriptions of Alaska were great but the characters were flat. My review will be posted on May 2.
  • Sapphire Flames by Ilona Andrews (Mine; audiobook) - This reread was great. I loved the characters and the action. I also enjoyed the romance. My review will be posted on May 27.

Currently

  • A Study in Murder by Callie Hutton (May 5 when I got it but Amazon now says June 9)

Next Week


Reviews Posted




Want to See What I Added to My Stack Last Week?

Bought:






Review:




What was your week like?

Saturday, April 25, 2020

Audiobook: One Fell Sweep by Ilona Andrews

One Fell Sweep
Author: Ilona Andrews
Narrator: Renee Raudman
Publication: NYLA (Feb. 13, 2017)
Length: 10 hours and 41 minutes

Description: From the New York Times best-selling author, Ilona Andrews, comes a new tale from the Innkeeper Chronicles.

Dina DeMille may run the nicest Bed and Breakfast in Red Deer, Texas, but she caters to a very particular kind of guest...the kind that no one on Earth is supposed to know about. Guests like a former intergalactic tyrant with an impressive bounty on her head, the Lord Marshal of a powerful vampire clan, and a displaced-and-superhot werewolf; so don't stand too close, or you may be collateral damage.

But what passes for Dina's normal life is about to be thrown into chaos. First, she must rescue her long-distant older sister, Maud, who's been exiled with her family to a planet that functions as the most lawless penal colony since Botany Bay. Then she agrees to help a guest whose last chance at saving his civilization could bring death and disaster to all Dina holds dear. Now Gertrude Hunt is under siege by a clan of assassins. To keep her guests safe and to find her missing parents, Dina will risk everything, even if she has to pay the ultimate price. Though Sean may have something to say about that!

My Thoughts: In this episode, Dina rescues her sister Maud and Maud's five-year-old daughter Helen from exile on a very dangerous planet. Dina also accepts a Hiru as a guest. The Hiru are a race that has almost completely been massacred by the Draziri who look at exterminating Hiru as a religious requirement.

Dina calls on Arland to help rescue her sister and Sean goes along too. Both Sean and Arland remain at the inn to help Dina defend it from the Draziri. Sean and Dina are falling in love but Dina is worried that Sean won't want to stay with her. She is tied to her inn and will be for life. Sean has only recently come back from difficult galactic adventures and she fears he will want more adventures in the future. There is also a growing relationship between Maud and Arland complicated by the fact the he is a vampire and Maud's former husband the the reason for her exile was also a vampire.

The story had lots of action on a variety of different worlds. There was plenty of action on Earth too. Dina is having difficulty keeping the actions of the Draziri secret from the human police since the Draziri don't care if they expose the inn and its secrets.

I like the characters in this series. Maud and Helen are new to the series but are both interesting and entertaining. We find out more about the relationship between inns and innkeepers in this story and also about the governing authority that manages them.

This was a great story that kept me reading late into the night. I had to know how things were going to work out for Sean and Dina and what was going to happen to the Hiru.

I thought the narration was well done and really ramped up the action and deftly portrayed the emotions.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

Friday, April 24, 2020

Friday Memes: One Fell Sweep by Ilona Andrews

Happy Friday everybody!
Book Beginnings on Friday is now hosted by Rose City ReaderThe Friday 56 is hosted at Freda's Voice. Check out the links above for the rules and for the posts of the participants each week. Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Beginning:
A faint chime tugged me out of sleep. I opened my eyes and blinked. I'd dreamt of a desert, a vast endless sea of shifting yellow sand under a white sun.
Friday 56:
"Your face is different," Helen said, looking up at me.

"It's because she's an innkeeper," Maud said. "This house is magic and she rules it. She's very powerful within the inn."
This week I am listening to the Innkeeper Chronicles by Ilona Andrews and have reached book 3: One Fell Sweep. Here is the description from Amazon:
From the New York Times best-selling author, Ilona Andrews, comes a new tale from the Innkeeper Chronicles.

Dina DeMille may run the nicest Bed and Breakfast in Red Deer, Texas, but she caters to a very particular kind of guest...the kind that no one on Earth is supposed to know about. Guests like a former intergalactic tyrant with an impressive bounty on her head, the Lord Marshal of a powerful vampire clan, and a displaced-and-superhot werewolf; so don't stand too close, or you may be collateral damage.

But what passes for Dina's normal life is about to be thrown into chaos. First, she must rescue her long-distant older sister, Maud, who's been exiled with her family to a planet that functions as the most lawless penal colony since Botany Bay. Then she agrees to help a guest whose last chance at saving his civilization could bring death and disaster to all Dina holds dear. Now Gertrude Hunt is under siege by a clan of assassins. To keep her guests safe and to find her missing parents, Dina will risk everything, even if she has to pay the ultimate price. Though Sean may have something to say about that!

Thursday, April 23, 2020

Audiobook: Sweep in Peace by Ilona Andrews

Sweep in Peace
Author: Ilona Andrews
Narrator: Renee Raudman
Publication: NYLA (Dec. 15, 2015)
Length: 10 hours and 50 minutes

Description: Dina DeMille isn't your typical bed and breakfast owner. Her inn defies laws of physics, her dog is secretly a monster, and the only permanent guest of the inn is a former galactic tyrant with a price on her head. The inn needs guests to thrive and guests have been scarce, so when an arbitrator shows up at Dina's door and asks her to host a peace summit between three warring species, she jumps on the chance. Unfortunately, for Dina, bridging the gap between space vampires, the Hope-Crushing Horde, and the merchants of Baha-char is much easier said than done. To make the summit a success, she must find a chef, remodel the inn, keep her guests from murdering each other, and risk everything, even her life, to save the man she might fall in love with. But then it's all in the day's work for an innkeeper....

My Thoughts: Dina DeMille is the innkeeper for an inn off the beaten path. She has only one permanent guest and is pondering the inn's future when George Camarine, an Arbitrator, comes to her with a proposal: play host to a peace conference that no other innkeeper will host. In order to preserve her inn, and despite her grave reservations, Dina agrees,

Then things get interesting. Dina has to use almost all of her resources, including her emergency fund, to remodel the inn for her various guests. She also has to hire a chef but the only one available is in disgrace because one of his diners died of poison when he was in charge.

Dina has to provide accommodations for space vampires, the hope-crushing horde, and the Merchants. All of them have a claim in Nexus and each of them want the others dead. Well, the vampires and the horde want each other dead. The Merchants just want to war to stop so that they can get on with business. The war has gone on for twenty years Nexus time and all sides have suffered major losses.

The head Arbitrator George has woven a complex plot to bring the sides to some kind of resolution. The plot involves Dina and puts the reputation of the inn in jeopardy. While Dina tries to be a good innkeeper and remain neutral while meeting her guests' needs, being used by George makes her very, very angry and makes her decide to find a way to end the conflict.

Dina is also still hung up on Sean Evans Evans, a werewolf who wandered into her life in the first book of the innkeeper chronicles. He manages to wander back into this story too playing a pivotal role in Dina's determination to solve this problem.

I liked the way that each of the alien groups was portrayed. They were clearly not human but all had understandable motivations for the war on Nexus. I liked the way Dina could relate to each different group. I thought the world building was fascinating. I loved the whole concept of an inn that was magical.

This was a very entertaining story. I look forward to reading more about Dina and the inn. I am also curious to see how her relationship with Seth might progress. And there is also the vampire Arland who would love to court her too.

I thought the narration was very well done and expertly conveyed the emotions of the story.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Audiobook: Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews

Clean Sweep
Author: Ilona Andrews
Narrator: Renee Raudman
Publication: NYLA (March 19, 2014)
Length: 7 hours and 55 minutes

Description: On the outside, Dina Demille is the epitome of normal. She runs a quaint Victorian Bed and Breakfast in a small Texas town, owns a Shih Tzu named Beast, and is a perfect neighbor, whose biggest problem should be what to serve her guests for breakfast. But Dina is...different: Her broom is a deadly weapon; her Inn is magic and thinks for itself. Meant to be a lodging for otherworldly visitors, the only permanent guest is a retired Galactic aristocrat who can’t leave the grounds because she’s responsible for the deaths of millions and someone might shoot her on sight. Under the circumstances, "normal" is a bit of a stretch for Dina.

And now, something with wicked claws and deepwater teeth has begun to hunt at night....Feeling responsible for her neighbors, Dina decides to get involved. Before long, she has to juggle dealing with the annoyingly attractive, ex-military, new neighbor, Sean Evans - an alpha-strain werewolf - and the equally arresting cosmic vampire soldier, Arland, while trying to keep her inn and its guests safe. But the enemy she’s facing is unlike anything she’s ever encountered before. It’s smart, vicious, and lethal, and putting herself between this creature and her neighbors might just cost her everything.

My Thoughts: Dina Demille is an Innkeeper. She and her magic inn play host to a variety of intergalactic visitors. Since her inn was dormant when she was assigned to it, it is a little off the beaten track and just rebuilding its reputation.

The Inn's only client is an aristocrat who has taken refuge there after killing millions and is the target for a numer of assassins. Caldenia ia a big fan of funyams and Mello Yellow and mayhem.

Things should be going well at the inn if it weren't for a werewolf who seems determined to pee on all her trees to mark his territory and some sort of creature killing the neighborhood dogs.

Dina confronts Sean - the werewolf - who tries to deny he is a werewolf. Dina wants him to take care of the creature who is killing dogs and in danger of exposing the inn's secrets. When he doesn't seem interested, Dina decides to risk the inn's neutrality and take care of the monster herself.

The next thing she knows, she is hosting vampires who also have a reason to want to eliminate the monster and his crew of Ma'avi stalkers. When Lord Soren, the first vampire to show up, is badly injured, his nephew Lord Arland shows up which creates an instant rivalry between he and Sean for Dina's affections.

Dina isn't sure she wants either of them. She's competent and strong and doesn't need any more trouble in the form of a dangerous man in her life.

The story was fast-paced and filled with action. The world building was intriguing and the characters deftly drawn. I was immediately impressed with Dina and also interested in her potential love interests.

I enjoyed the narration of the story and liked the Texas accent. I thought the men's voices were also done well by this female narrator.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

Tuesday, April 21, 2020

Audiobook: Murder of Crows by Anne Bishop

Murder of Crows
Author: Anne Bishop
Narrator: Alexandra Harris
Publication: Penguin Audio (March 4, 2014)
Length: 14 hours and 13 minutes

Description: New York Times best-selling author Anne Bishop's "phenomenal" (Urban Fantasy Investigations) world of the Others - where supernatural entities and humans struggle to co-exist, and one woman has begun to change all the rules....

After winning the trust of the terra indigene residing in the Lakeside Courtyard, Meg Corbyn has had trouble figuring out what it means to live among them. As a human, Meg should be barely tolerated prey, but her abilities as a cassandra sangue make her something more.

The appearance of two addictive drugs has sparked violence between the humans and the Others, resulting in the murder of both species in nearby cities. So when Meg has a dream about blood and black feathers in the snow, Simon Wolfgard - Lakeside's shape-shifting leader - wonders if their blood prophet dreamed of a past attack or a future threat.

As the urge to speak prophecies strikes Meg more frequently, trouble finds its way inside the Courtyard. Now, the Others and the handful of humans residing there must work together to stop the man bent on reclaiming their blood prophet - and stop the danger that threatens to destroy them all.

My Thoughts: This is the second book in the Others series of urban fantasy novels. It tells the story of Meg Corbyn and Simon Wolfgard and the Lakeside Courtyard.

Meg is getting used to her new job as the liaison for the Courtyard and is busy making friends and making a place for herself. However, the Controller who owned her and used her to have the prophecies he sold for lots of money hasn't given up on recapturing her. Nor has he given up on plans to make more money helping the Humans First and Last movement eliminate the Terra Indigene from Thasia.

The story concerns itself with two new drugs that are making inroads on the humans in Thasia. Gone Over Wolf builds aggression to the point of not caring for their own survival in humans who use it. The second drug makes the user so passive that they don't care about their own survival either.

The Controller has also developed a new use for the girls who don't have enough valuable skin left. He is having them put through meat grinders while they are alive to mix their flesh in with other ground meat which has the same effect as Gone Over Wolf but is much easier to spread to more and more people.

Humans First and Last are also looking for opportunities to kill Crows in order to keep their curiosity from noticing things they don't want the Others to find out about. One of Meg's first prophecies in this story has to do with saving Crows. She also has prophecies about the man the Controller has sent to find her and return her to him.

Simon calls a meeting with lots of Terra Indigene from around Thasia to discuss what to do about the drugs and the poisoned meat. Their first idea is to kill all the humans or, at least, to kill all the prophets. Simon introduces them to Meg which changes their minds about total destruction and together with Meg's human pack they try to find the Controller.

The story includes a big battle once the Controller's compound is found and the rescue of Meg's friend Jean and five other young prophets. The rest of the girls are going to be spread among the Terra Indigene settlements and the Intuit settlements to keep them safe from being used. But it will be up to Meg to help all those new places learn what to do to keep the girls alive. She is the Pathfinder who will find the way for them to live.

I noticed that some of the pronunciations have changed in this book both of character names and the Cassandra Sangue. Simon's voice hasn't changed and makes me think that the reader must have gone home with a sore throat after each recording session since it sounds like Simon has a sore throat and scratchy voice throughout the book.

I like that Simon and Meg are getting closer even though neither of them realize that they are falling in love while the humans who know them best do realize it. There are lots of cautions to Simon to watch out that he doesn't become too human by Others characters who are seeing him change.

The story was exciting and entertaining. Meg's problem with the Controller and the threat of being recaptured is resolved in this story. However, plenty of problems remain both for Simon and Meg and for all the cassandra sangue who have lost the structure that helped to keep them sane. And the Humans First and Last movement isn't going to go away any time soon despite losing the valuable assistance of the Controller.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

Monday, April 20, 2020

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (April 20, 2020)

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? is now hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date.

It’s Monday!  What Are You Reading is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.  It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.

I will be combining my YA and adult reading and purchases on this one weekly roundup.

Other Than Reading...

This was another quiet week. I didn't leave the house. The weather has been about 10 degrees cooler than normal and normal isn't warm enough for me to go out walking. I am so eager for Spring temperatures.

I am between audiobook series right now and don't know what I'll be listening to next. I'm debating between finishing the Liaden Universe series, continuing with the Mercedes Thompson series, or listening to a favorite series by Ilona Andrews. I do have one Audible credit to use but them I'll be buying more.

I have a total of six review books to read before I need to make a decision about my next audiobook. My May calendar is almost empty which is unusual for me but I have been becoming more spontaneous in my reading choices lately and don't know what I'll feel like reading.

With Minnesota's Stay At Home order still in effect until May 4, I don't have any plans to go anywhere. Luckily, I have a brother who is home from work right now and gets easily bored. He leaps at a chance to get out of the house to go to the grocery store.

Read Last Week

If you can't wait until the review shows up on my blog, reviews are posted to LibraryThing and Goodreads as soon as I write them (usually right after I finish reading a book.)

  • Moon Called by Patricia Briggs (Mine; Audiobook) - This is the first book in the Mercedes Thompson urban fantasy series and introduces a lot of characters. I enjoyed hearing this one which I read a number of years ago. My review is linked below.
  • Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews (Mine; Audiobook) - This is the first book in the Innkeeper Chronicles and introduces Dina and her semi-sentient inn and the guests she decides to host. My review will be posted on April 22.  


  • Sweep in Peace by Ilona Andrews (Mine; Audiobook) - Dina hosts a peace conference at her inn and has to keep the parties from killing each other. My review will be posted on April 23.
  • One Fell Sweep by Ilona Andrews (Mine; Audiobook) - Dina rescues her sister Maud and niece Helen from exile and also decides to host a member of a dying species and then has to hold off the aliens who want her guest dead and don't care about exposing the inns secrets on Earth. My review will be posted on April 25.
  • Sweep of the Blade by Ilona Andrews (Mine; Audiobook) - This story continues the Innkeeper Chronicles but focuses on Maud and her romance with Arland which gets interrupted by all kinds of political maneuvering on his home world. My review will be posted on May 13. 


  • Race the Sands by Sarah Beth Durst (Review; April 21) - Very entertaining fantasy with strong female characters. My review is linked below.
  • Sweep with Me by Ilona Andrews (Mine) - A novella set in the world of the Innkeeper Chronicles. I won't be blogging a review for this one but did post my thoughts at LibraryThing and Goodreads.

Currently


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What was your week like?

Saturday, April 18, 2020

Audiobook: Moon Called by Patricia Briggs

Moon Called
Author: Patricia Briggs
Narrator: Lorelei King
Publication: Penguin Audio (Sept. 1, 2009)
Length: 9 hours and 14 minutes

Description: I didn't realize he was a werewolf at first. My nose isn't at its best when surrounded by axle grease and burnt oil . . .'

Mercedes Thompson runs a garage in the Tri-Cities. She's a mechanic, and a damn good one, who spends her spare time karate training and tinkering with a VW bus that happens to belong to a vampire. Her next-door neighbor is an alpha werewolf - literally, the leader of the pack. And Mercy herself is a shapeshifter, sister to coyotes. As such, she's tolerated by the 'wolves but definitely down the pecking order. As long as she keeps her eyes down and remembers her place, the pack will leave her in peace.

My Thoughts: This is the first in what is currently a twelve book series and introduces Mercedes Thompson, Volkswagon mechanic and a skinwalker who can turn into a coyote. Mercy was raised by werewolves in the pack of the Marrok when her young human mother didn't know what to do with a child who shifted.

She left the pack at sixteen to go back to live with her mother when she fell in love with the Marrok's son Samuel who had ulterior motives for courting her. After college, where she switched her major from mechanical engineering to history, she moved to the tri-cities area and bought a garage from a gremlin and began fixing cars. One of her clients is a vampire who also loves Volkswagons. She lives in a double-wide trailer within eyesight of Adam, the alpha werewolf of the Columbia River pack, and delights in tweaking him when he seems to get too pushy.

When Adam's 15-year-old daughter is kidnapped and Adam severely injured, Mercy believes that her only option is to take him to the Marrok's pack for help. This lets her resolve some of the issues that caused her to leave and reunites her with Samuel who is sent by the Marrok to try to find the missing child and figure out what is going on.

I really liked Mercy who is bright, competent, and independent. I liked that she was willing to stand up for herself with both the Marrok and the alpha werewolf. The story was exciting and the characters well drawn. A lot of characters were introduced which gave a good picture of the world as it exists in this alternate paranormal world.

I liked the narration which did a good job making each characters distinct and building the tension in the story.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

Friday, April 17, 2020

Friday Memes: Moon Called by Patricia Briggs

Happy Friday everybody!
Book Beginnings on Friday is now hosted by Rose City ReaderThe Friday 56 is hosted at Freda's Voice. Check out the links above for the rules and for the posts of the participants each week. Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Beginning:
I didn't realize he was a werewolf at first. My nose isn't at its best when surrounded by axle grease and burnt oil -- and it's not like there are a lot of stray werewolves running around So when someone made a polite noise near my feet to get my attention. I thought he was a customer.
Friday 56:
" 'Stay here a moment, Ben,' " Ben said, with an exaggeration of the drawl that Adam;s voice still held from a childhood spent in the deep South. " 'Wait until my daughter has a chance to get to her room Wouldn't want to expose her to the likes of you.' " The last sentence lost Adam's tone and fell back into his own crisp British accent. He didn't sound quite like Prince Charles, but closer to that than to Fagan in Oliver.
I thought it was time to go back to the beginning and read Moon Called by Patricia Briggs which is the first in her Mercy Thompson urban fantasy series. This book was published in 2006 and I know I had a copy when I began LibraryThing in 2008.

Here is the description from Amazon:
Moon Called is the novel that introduced Patricia Briggs’s Mercy Thompson to the world and launched a #1 bestselling phenomenon... 

Mercy Thompson is a shapeshifter, and while she was raised by werewolves, she can never be one of them, especially after the pack ran her off for having a forbidden love affair. So she’s turned her talent for fixing cars into a business and now runs a one-woman mechanic shop in the Tri-Cities area of Washington State.

But Mercy’s two worlds are colliding. A half-starved teenage boy arrives at her shop looking for work, only to reveal that he’s a newly changed werewolf—on the run and desperately trying to control his animal instincts. Mercy asks her neighbor Adam Hauptman, the Alpha of the local werewolf pack, for assistance.

But Mercy’s act of kindness has unexpected consequences that leave her no choice but to seek help from those she once considered family—the werewolves who abandoned her...
I recently bought a copy of the audiobook of this title. That's the one I'm reading now.