On Death: A Review of Lethal Rider by Larissa Ione

First, there were the Underworld General books, in which we learned about demon hospitals and sex demons. From those, grew this series--The Lords of Deliverance, featuring the four horseman of the apocalypse as the romantic leads.

This, book 3, puts the spotlight on Thanatos (who would be Death), and his relationship with Regan, a demon huntress of special talents. And guess what, guys? This is a secret baby book! No joke! In the last book, Regan forced Than to sleep with her, believing that their baby could stop the apocalypse. Because Than has been in a coma-like state for the past 8+ months, he doesn't know about the baby. When he finds out, he's launched into a world of uncertainty regarding how to raise his baby, protect Regan, and take down his now evil brother, Pestilence.

Positive Comments:

I really liked Than. He makes an interesting death figure. I found his struggles, his pain, and his way of dealing with everything to be highly sympathetic.

I like the mythology. After having so many books to build this world, Ione has found a balance between too much and too little world building that really works for me. The angels, the demons, the what, where, and how of the apocalypse, are explained just enough so that you don't feel lost--but not at just length that you get bored.

There's, umm, pregnancy sex. Which is interesting. Than and Regan have great chemistry, and the sex is hot...But I'll admit, I was surprised to see them getting it on while she was 8 1/2 months pregnant and knowing that the baby has this huge part in the apocalypse and they need to time the birth just right...whatever. It didn't bother me, but use your judgement.

Critical Comments:

Regan is given these sort of off-hand flaws and issues. She has OCD, but it's not really a problem. She was bulimic once upon a time, but she's over it now. She has abandonment issues that kind of get solved with no fuss or bother. I just felt like the author half-assed her character development. She's got issues...poof, they're gone. Happy ending! I felt blind sided by it.

Recommendation:

I continue to recommend Larissa Ione to anyone who likes their paranormal romance a little on the dark side. If you like demons, sex, and a touch of horror, you'll like these books. If you've kept up with the series so far, I can assure you that Lethal Rider does not disappoint. 4 stars.

Buy the Book: Lethal Rider (Lords of Deliverance)

Blod Tour! A Review of Knee Deep by Jolene Perry

This is my third Jolene Perry book, and I can now say with absolute certainty that I am a fan of hers. Her writing has that special, undefinable quality that makes contemporary YA work for me--a quality so rare that I usually only come across it once or twice a year.

Knee Deep focuses on Ronnie, a girl in her senior year of high school, who is in a very unhealthy relationship. Ronnie is just starting to find herself, by trying out for the school play and finding a special love of acting. But her self discovery is hindered by Shawn, her long-term boyfriend, who's behavior is becoming increasingly selfish and destructive. Even as she tries to make excuses for Shawn, and tries to make their relationship work, she finds herself falling for her costar in the play--Luke. Luke is one of her best friends, and very sweet. But Ronnie believes that Shawn, with all of his flaws, is her soulmate.

Positive Comments:

Perry makes this simple, predictable plot emotionally gripping. She takes the time to build Ronnie and Shawn's relationship so that the reader really understands what Ronnie is clinging to. I understood, for example, that Ronnie had created  an ideal version of Shawn in her mind, and convinced herself that he would be that Shawn if only she could be patient enough to wait for him.

I loved Luke, and I felt very empathetic toward him. Having been a friend to an abuse victim, I could clearly understand the position he was in. This position is made all the worse by the fact that he's in love with Ronnie. He wants to protect her, and he can't. Luke is Ronnie's night in shining armor, but she'd rather be with the monster.

Perry writes parent/teen relationships very well. Ronnie's parents are also in the position of wanting to help her, but are mostly unable to. Ronnie's father, in particular, is brilliant in his quest to get Ronnie to open up, and later to help her heal after things get really bad. Every girl should be so fortunate as to have a dad like that.

Overall, I just really loved Ronnie's emotional journey--from stubbornly in love, to torn between Luke and Shawn, to all on her own. And of course, I can't give away how it all ends, but I'll just say that the end was so appropriate and so emotionally fulfilling that I sighed contentedly.

Critical Comments:

Unfortunately, I think I'm the only person in the whole world who DOESN'T find Romeo and Juliet romantic. Ronnie's performance as Juliet was part of what opened her heart to feelings toward Luke, and that's great for her. But I just don't get it. I wasn't able to connect with Ronnie during those times--but that is, of course, a matter of my own taste.

Be warned that Ronnie makes some frustrating decisions. She acts exactly, and I mean exactly, like every abused girl I've ever known does. She stays when things are clearly bad and headed towards horrible. She keeps it all a secret, and she makes excuses.  And that can be as tough to read about as it is to watch.

Recommendation:

Young adult fans, romance fans--you really need to give this book a try. It's sweet, sad, and uplifting, all at the same time. The characters are well developed, the tone is relaxed and somber, and the story is thought provoking. 4 stars.

By from Amazon:  Knee Deep

Miscellaneous Monday: If I Had a Secret Baby

Of all of the popular tropes in romance novels, I think The Secret Baby baffles and fascinates me the most. First, I'm always amazed by the leaps in logic and emotion that heroines take when they decide to keep the baby a secret. Second, I wonder why these accidental pregnancy/secret baby plots have such a firm niche--why are these things popular, guys? But third, and most importantly, what if we tried to pull this in real life? Seriously, these stories are not even slightly grounded in reality. Here's why:

1. It is literally impossible to keep your pregnancy a secret. I have lived through high school and college, which means I've seen my share of accidental pregnancies. It takes about two weeks for even your vaguest of acquaintances to learn whats up with you. Your only hope would be to quit your job and move a couple of states away, and even then people's first thought will be "Gee, I wonder if she got knocked up?" And some nosy bitch is probably going to call that guy you were banging, ask him if he knows where you are, and he'll put two and two together, and there you go.
2. No sane person wants to support their baby solo. At the very least, your going to ask for child support. Yet I can't tell you how many category romance heroines I've seen run away from that really rich and handsome guy who fathered her baby. Yeah. Sure. Okay.
3. In the real world, where children are not plot contrivances, there are serious concerns that make keeping your baby a secret...how can I put this? Freaking stupid. First, there are the medical concerns dealing with what your baby might be inheriting from Clueless Dad. Second, when Secret Baby grows into Secret Teen, they are going to start asking questions, and demanding answers. You better have a damn good cover story planned.

Personally I'd go with something like this: "A long time ago Mommy was a vampire hunting werewolf/fairy, on patrol in Madeup City, New York. In a quest to achieve a greater end, I formed an alliance with the most notorious antihero werehamster in the city. A torrid love affair ensued. I fell in love with him unintentionally, and wanted to stay with him forever, but was uncertain of his feelings. Then I learned that I was pregnant, and since hamsters are notoriously cannibalistic toward their young, I knew that I had to leave. I didn't tell him because I didn't want him to eat you, honey. It was for you!"

 ...sorry kid, that was my best attempt at making this cliche make sense. This is why I can't be a category author.

Stacking the Shelves (4)

 Stacking the Shelves is a meme brought to us by Tynga at Tynga's Reviews!

 

Wrecked by Anna Davies (Library)
The Selection (Selection - Trilogy) by Kiera Cass (Library)
First Grave on the Right by Darynda Jones (Library)

And for ebooks, (all given to me to review) we have:

I'd also like to introduce you to my new buddy, Castiel. Cas is a parrotlet that my mom rescued today. He is a bit shy, and was already rejected by one owner after only a day. I'm going to be helping to socialize and hand tame him.

Reading Penguin Goes to the Movies: Men In Black 3

The following is an approximation of an actual conversation that took place between the Reading Penguin and her fiance, after seeing the Men In Black 3 Trailer:

Josh: We have to see that.

Penguin: But it's going to be freaking stupid! It has TIME TRAVEL. Remember how you bitched about the time travel in Harry Potter 3? This will be like that, but with aliens! Which is so much worse!

Josh: We're going to see that.

Penguin: *Loud sigh* Fine. Okay. Whatever.

Josh: We have to watch the first two before we go.

Penguin: WHAT? Bull shit. No. I'm not doing it. I won't. Too much stupid. I can't-

Josh: We are watching them. I'm buying them, and we're watching them.

*Penguin looks for a weapon, finds only popcorn, and must therefor surrender. Reluctantly.*

And that is how I wound up going to see Men In Black 3 in theaters opening weekend. After watching the first two. Which means now my head is all full of aliens and secret government agencies that police aliens and freaking Will Smith, who is sort of sexy, and Tommy Lee Jones, who is so old it's kind of scary.

To clarify, as a kid, I really enjoyed the first Men In Black movie. I'm a geek. I like science fiction. What else can I say? The second one, however, was pretty bad, and I must have realized that even back then, because it left so little impression on me that watching it again was like watching it for the first time, and not in a good way. This reinforced forever the idea that sequels are usually BAD. But I digress....

Men In Black 3 was not a great movie, but it wasn't necessarily as awful as I expected. The basic plot, as shown in the trailer, is that a bad guy somehow goes back in time and kills Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones) before he was ever Agent J's partner. Agent J (Will Smith) inexplicably remembers Agent K and their entire partnership, but everyone around him does not. Still with me? Okay. So Agent J has to go back in time, to 1969, to keep Agent K from getting killed and to make sure the world is saved and has this special world protecting shield...thingy.

Here are some things that worked about it:

• Younger Agent K is played by a guy who does a remarkably good Tommy Lee Jones impression. There's a great dynamic between the characters of Agent J and Agent K that is maintained well in this movie--with fun, snappy dialogue and lots of humor.
• There's an alien named Griffin, who can predict an infinite number of possible futures. I really enjoyed that concept and the breadth that it added to the story. 

And here are the Bullshit Moments:

• Time travel is not easy to write, Slick. You pretty much need a brain that works in perfect flowchart fashion and keeps track of an infinite number of small details in order to not create inexplicable plot holes. AND you have to add limits and rules to the time travel so your characters won't be able to use it for every stupid problem, which will ruin the tension of your book/movie. AND you open up a can of worms in terms of philosophical questions. This movie? Yep, there's plot holes. There was a time when there should have been two Will Smiths but there was only one Will Smith, which by their own world building was WRONG. There are huge, unexplained questions about who remembers what and why they remember it and how that effects the time stream. It's just not good.
• A character warns Agent J that 1969 is not going to be a friendly place for a black man. Predictably, it isn't, and he has some run ins with a few cops early on. Later in the movie, we see another black character in a position of great power, on the launch site of the rocket bound for the moon, telling a bunch of people what to do. No explanation as to how he got into that seat of power. No comment on whether it's unusual. Nothing. It's just there. If the movie had not played up the racism angle earlier, I wouldn't have noticed it--but because they did, it becomes one more unexplained detail that bothers me. 
• This movie made the 1960s look about as stereotypically 1960s as it possibly could. Everyone had Jackie O hair and go-go boots. Josh commented later that it would be like showing the 1990s with every single person wearing wind pants and bowl cuts. It looks like a costume party, not the real deal.

And that, in a nut shell, is my impression of Men in Black 3. While I can easily see this being my least favorite summer movie, it wasn't necessarily painful to watch. If you do happen to be a huge fan of the Men in Black franchise, knock yourself out. Otherwise...go see Avengers. Seriously. 

Follow Friday 5/24/12

Q: Activity! Dream cast your current read.

Oh boy, I am BAD at theoretical casting...

I'm going to go with  Married By Morning by Lisa Kleypas, only because I've actually thought about actors that would work in those roles:

For the hero, Leo, I would cast Joe Anderson:

  

 

...because I saw him in Becoming Jane and realized that he looks great in period costume. And he could pull of Leo's personality quite well.

And for Cat, I'd go with Kate Winslet:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...because she fits the part looks wise and because I just like her.

A Review of On the Edge by Ilona Andrews

Ilona Andrew's Kate Daniel's series is perhaps my favorite ongoing series right now--it's at least in the top five. That sort of standard was a lot for this book to live up to and...well...

On the Edge is set in a very different universe. In this world, there is a dimension known as "The Broken", which is essentially our world--no magic, just ordinary people. Then there's "The Weird", where everything runs on magic. Between the two, there's the Edge, land of outcast who don't quite fit anywhere. Here, we meet Rose, an Edger with unusually strong magic. She's been pursued all of her adult life, by men who would sell her or use her to breed magic babies. Rose has two younger brothers to protect, in addition to keeping herself safe. So when Declan shows up on her doorstep, claiming he wants to protect her, Rose is naturally suspicious and hostile...despite her attraction to him.

Positive Comments:

I wasn't that engaged by the large, overarching plot of this novel. Instead, I became fascinated with the minutia of the story. I was interested in the magic Rose possesses and how it works. I wanted to visit more of the Edge and the Weird. I was engaged with what was going on with the kids. Jack and Georgie, Rose's brothers, are a far cry from the useless plot moppets I expected. I was especially impressed with the subplot involving Georgie's ability to bring things back to life, at the expense of his own health.

Declan and Rose...Rose and Declan....They had their moments. The dialogue was great. These two had enough chemistry to justify calling this book a novel with strong romantic elements--though not necessarily a romance novel.

Critical Comment:

So here's the thing...remember that overarching plot I mentioned? My attempt to explain to you, and to myself, why I didn't like it are probably going to be laughable, but here goes:

--Declan shows up on Rose's doorstep and seems to want to marry her or make her his mistress for a thousand wrong reasons. At this point, I'm mad at the book and worried that the two might form a marriage of convenience or some ridiculous thing.
--Rose agrees to  give Declan three challenges, and if he succeeds at them, she'll cooperate with him. At this point, I'm intrigued. I figure, okay, he can do these challenges, they can fall in love for real over the course of them, and I'll be happy.
--But guess what? There's a much bigger problem going on, and that problem is monster dogs eating people, and that kind of takes over the book.

I don't think the big monster plot was necessary. I just...I didn't care. I wanted more relationship building, and more character development, and more of the boys and their antics, and more of just about everything else. Especially relationship development. I wanted to see more of Rose and Declan together, working out their differences, figuring out where they fit in each others' lives.

Recommendation:

If you like urban fantasy, especially if you enjoy a good monster hunt, you'll enjoy this book. I would recommend it, to a lesser extent, to casual fans of paranormal romance. This book was good, but it didn't have the magic of the Kate Daniels books. 3.5 stars.
Buy from Amazon: On the Edge

On Nott: A Review of Dark Frost by Jennifer Estep

I received an ARC of Dark Frost from the author in exchange for an honest review.

This is the third book in the Mythos Academy series, featuring a gypsy named Gwen. Gwen is a champion of the goddess Nike, and she's charged with finding and hiding a special dagger. This dagger has the ability to free the evil god, Loki, who would unleash chaos on the world.

Positive Comments:

I find Gwen extremely charming. I like that she's a comic book geek. She's blossomed a great deal since book one, going from loner to a confident young woman who supports her friends and flirts with Logan.

Logan is sexy as hell. He's a tormented bad boy, which is an extremely popular archetype, and I can't get enough of him. I'm anxious to see Logan and Gwen finally start to connect on a deeper level.

The secondary characters are fantastic. In this on, I give special mention to Grandma Frost, who kicks ass and bakes cookies. I love that. I also loved Nott, Gwen's mythical wolf companion.

This story was action packed from start to finish. It opens with a battle, has a mystery in the middle and finishes off with some big, game changing events.

Critical Comments:

Some of Gwen's actions--or lack of action--maddened me. She makes questionable (arguably stupid) decisions, and then when things go bad as a result, she survives only by luck and because her friends rescue her. I want to believe that she will improve in this--that soon Gwen will be standing on her own feet. But three books in, I expected more.

Recommendation:

I'm very fond of this series. I'd recommend it to fantasy fans, young adults, and those who love mythology. 4 stars.

Buy from Amazon: Dark Frost: A Mythos Academy Novel

Misc. Monday: TV Finales

Today, I thought I'd return to my Misc. Mondays roots a bit and share my final thoughts on my favorite TV shows for the season.

Supernatural: This is still probably my favorite show on television. I think it's past it's true golden era (seasons 4 &5), but I still enjoy the hell out of it.

Things I Loved In Season 7:

• The dynamic between the boys remains strong. Even when Sam was off his rocker, dealing with Satan induced insanity, there was still a lot of great dialogue to be had.
• A few really great individual episodes. My favorite of the season was Death's Door, when Bobby wonders around in his own head after being shot, trying to climb back to consciousness long enough to deliver a message to the boys. Seriously, Bobby, I love you. You're like the alcoholic uncle I never had. And you will be missed.
• Castiel. Simply love his character in general. I loved his appearances in the final two episodes, in which he became a peace loving tree-huger. Cas, if you're out there and you're reading this: I will help you save the monkeys. 

Bullshit Moments:

•  As an overarching villain, the Leviathans just didn't interest me. There was just so much heavy handed "Americans are fat, and it's killing them!" subtext in this story. Instead of dying from heart disease, we're all going to be eaten. Fine. Whatever.
• They freaking perma-killed one of my favorite characters! Sad panda!

• After seven seasons, I think they're starting to severely stretch their limits when it comes to dramatic season end cliffhangers. I could almost hear the writers' thoughts: "Well, we've already sent them both to hell, put them in comas, stolen their souls, unleashed Satan and other untold evils...but we haven't sent either of them to purgatory yet! Score!" I should probably withhold judgement on this until I've seen what they do with it next season, but all I can say is--really guys? 

Once Upon a Time: This is the finale that surprised me the most, and I'm wondering if it won't spell creative death for the show. I hope not, because I really enjoyed this first season.

Things I Loved:

• Emma is a kick-ass heroine. She's likable, but not perfect. You can sympathize with her, although she's led an unusual life. Her growing relationship with Henry was the most engaging aspect of the non-fairytale half of the show.
•  The fairytale portions of the story were pretty much always entertaining. I enjoyed seeing familiar stories with unfamiliar twists. 
• So many individually wonderful episodes. It's honestly difficult to pick a favorite. I'd have to say Skin Deep is the one that pops to mind first. In this episode, we learn some of Rumpelstiltskin's backstory, including an occasion when he fell in love. Beauty and the beast, and a sympathetic villain? Yes, please!
• Engaging characters. I loved Red Riding Hood, I loved August, I loved the nun/fairies, all of it. I love that even the freaking mirror is a character.

Bullshit Moments:

• I don't think I'm ever going to think of Regina as sympathetic. Giving her a cheesie and predictable young adult love story didn't help. Sorry.
• Mary Margaret and David. Interesting how I enjoyed, even adored, the Snow white/Prince Charming part of the story, yet heavily despised them in their real world versions. I especially disliked the soap opera-esc cheating/revenge/miss person plot. Ugh...really?
• Didn't really care for the ending. If this had been the series finale, and it was all over, sure. But I feel like they've written themselves into a place were the story is going to have to increase in ridiculousness or be retconned in order to stay interesting. I hope I'm wrong.

Grimm: The show I care the lease about while still caring. I think it's because I love fantasy but don't really love cop shows, so I don't know how to feel about something that merges the two. 

Things I Loved:

• I find Nick to be at least marginally likeable. He's kind of an average Joe, other than the fact that he's a Grimm, so it's hard to get really attached. But it's hard to hate him, too.
• Loved Monroe and everything about him. Such a quirky, fun character.
• Favorite episode was Last Grimm Standing, because it involved cage fighting among supernaturals. Don't ask me why I find that exciting. 

 Bullshit Moments:

• Hello, overarching plot? Remember me, the viewer? You want to explain what you're doing? Seriously, they've been working so hard to make the mythology dense and interesting--good for them. But sometimes, you are going to need to stop and explain what the pieces are, if not how they fit together. Plus, sometimes, less is more
• Dear Nick: Keeping supernatural secrets from your loved ones never works out well in the end. Call Mary Winchester from Supernatural, ask her about it...oh wait, you can't. BECAUSE SHE DIED. I was continuously baffled as to why Nick would stay with Juliette, let shit happen to and around her, and not tell her anything until the last possible second. Bad boyfriend. Bad!

 Honorable Mentions: I tried to watch The Secret Circle, but gave up maybe five episodes in. I'm a little surprised that they cancelled it, but not sad. Terra Nova train wrecked, which I thought was a little disappointing. There aren't enough good science fiction shows for me. I also briefly watched Awake, which was a show that wanted to be so much more than a show ever can be. I felt that story would have been better as a movie, and wasn't surprised that it got cancelled.

So that's that, folks. What about you? Did you watch any of these shows, and if so, did you like them? Agree with me? Disagree with me? Through carrots at me? Share your comments. Happy Monday!

Stacking The Shelves (3)

Welcome again to Stacking the Shelves, hosted by Tynga's Reviews!

Bayou Moon (The Edge, Book 2)(Bought New)

And for Zippy the Kindle, I got:



Stravaganza - City of Masks

 Still trying to moderate my book acquisitions while I work on this monstrous TBR pile!

What did you add to your stacks this week?