Getting Familiar With Murder with Classmate Murders by Bob Moats

When I decided to read this book, I wasn't too sure about it.  Still, I tend to finish what I begin and so, I began the book with a bit of skeptic caution and I am happy to say that I did finish it and it was different than what I thought it would be.

First, the setting of the book is nice and it definitely shows you both the classier world and the underground of a city.  This is what I expect from a good mystery.  You want to see both worlds and Bob Moats does do that.

The characters have a sense of humor and that balances well with the darkness of the book.  In other words, you aren't kept in a perpetual state of gloom even though there are murders galore in the book.  I would also like to state that all of the characters are wonderful.  Yes, that includes the always grouchy Trapper.  I even have a favorite.  I also must thank Mr. Moats for including a positive spin on bikers.  I'm married to one so you won't be surprised to learn that Buck is my favorite character. Also, I am so happy to find older main characters.  Sometimes, people forget how refreshing that is.  

The story is great.  I loved the premise of it and it kept me engaged with each new development.  I found that the story never really dragged and I was always interested.  

Now, for the only unpleasant part of this review.  This is the only reason that this story did not get a five star review.  The story really does need editing.  If Mr. Moats reads this I would be happy to point him to the right direction because I do believe the talent is there.    Usually, I do not say anything about editing but this story needed it so much that it was distracting.  However, I still loved the story and Mr. Moats talent of storytelling is there.  

I would recommend this book for lovers of a good murder mystery.  I would not recommend this for people who are easily distracted by grammar.  

My Rating: 3.8

My Book Cover Rating: 4

Getting Spooked by Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving

Every now and then, I love reading the classics.  I will confess that I have read this book before.  I was twelve then.  Since it's been over twenty years, I decided to read it again and review it for you while my mind is fresh with the story.
First, I would like to say if you are expecting the written retold story of the movie starring Johnny Depp or the television show, you will be disappointed.  This is far from those tales.  I would never want you to expect something else because I believe it makes you bias against the original story.  So, please keep that in mind as you read my review.
The story itself is beautifully written.  The words are very visual and make it easy to imagine what Mr. Irving describes.  The setting is interesting in that it is as much a character in the story as the people.  The trees and the building within the town are described in wonderful detail and you begin to understand the town's characters from its buildings and landmarks.  The setting does exactly what it is supposed to...Enchant you.
The characters are diverse and beautiful in their own way.  From Brom Bones to Ichabod Crane to the lovely Katrina, the characters are displayed with such interesting characteristics that they become very real in your mind.  They aren't perfect.  They all have flaws and it's endearing.
The story itself is wonderful.  I loved the spooky mischief of it.  It's well-told and very engaging.  The only thing that bothered me is that it is very short.  I do believe that it could have been longer but I still adore the story.  I do not recommend this book for someone looking for a long read but if you are looking for a short read, this book will be perfect.  I also recommend this to anyone who wants to read a good ghost story.  You won't be disappointed.


My Rating: 4
There is no cover for this book on my Kindle so I am not able to rate that.  :)

My Halloween review of Maggie Shayne's Twilight Guardian

I was happy and anxious to read Maggie Shayne's Twilight Guardians which is her first book in her series Wings in the Night Reborn.  I was happy because I was so eager to revisit the beautiful world that Maggie Shayne created in her Wings in the Night series but I was anxious because I have hoped since Wings in the Night ended that she would revisit this world and I was afraid of getting my hopes up.  Well, it turned out that I had nothing to worry about.  She delved back into the world and I was excited to see some of the other characters return because that meant they survived the vicious slaughter of their kind.

The first thing that I noticed was that the book begins a few years after the vampires were nearly wiped out in the last book of Wings in the Night.  Though I still worry for the main characters of the Wings in the Night series, I was happy to see that some of them still survived though in a much darker world than what the original series was set in.  Though I hope to see the other vampires I grew to love in books to come, there is a bigger threat than ever before and of course, that threat comes from the DPI which is a government agency dedicated to wiping out vampires.  So, the world is even more frightening and more interesting before.  

The characters are excellent as always.  I can understand Charlie or Killian and I can admire them.  These characters are real in a way that you can see why they would react the way they do even if you don't necessarily agree with their actions.  Maggie Shayne makes you fall in love with her vampires and she makes you really dislike the DPI.

So, I love the characters and the setting but Maggie's writing style is absolute magic.  She can enthrall you with words and make you see these plots unraveling or a character's looks and attitude.  She has a love of words and it shows with each word that she writes.  This beautiful and engaging story captured me and I was washed in each emotion as I walked with Charlie as she moved from being a fragile and naive girl to a very strong woman.  

So, I'll end this by saying that I truly do not find one thing that bothered me about this book besides the fact that I want to read another one and I have to wait for Maggie to work her magic once again.  So until then, I will recommend Twilight Guardians for adults who love magical writing, vampires and romance.   

My Rating: 5+

Book Cover Rating: 5+  (This is a seriously beautiful cover)

Taking A Walk With Fledglings...My Review of Betrayed by P.C. and Kristen Cast

I know it has been a while but I would like to give you my review for Betrayed (Book 2) of The House of Night Series by P.C. and Kristen Cast.  First, I would like to say that I enjoyed reading this book.  There is plenty of suspense and now there are murders of humans added to the mix and of course the threat of death lingers over each fledgling who may or may not make it through the change to vampyre.  Worse, there is a horrible betrayal that will profoundly affect Zoey and her friends.  Honestly, it made me cry.  As always, I am trying to do this without giving too much away.  

So, let's start with the plot.  I loved it.  It was fast-paced.  I wasn't ever bored with what was happening. It is a true page turner.  I like the way it shows good and bad.  It is very real and the experiences that Zoey and you are able to relate to what Zoey and her friends go through.  Somehow, the writers of this book display that while surrounded by such darkness.  

The characters are beautifully done.  I love how P.C. and Kristen Cast were able to show that people who you think are evil to begin with, may not be as bad as you think and people who you think are wonderful could be hiding darkness.  The reactions of Zoey and her friends are believable because they are extremely real.

Now, I want to talk about setting.  Since I've read two books in this series, I feel like I know the setting pretty well.  It's magical and beautiful but also filled with both darkness and light.  I really did fall in love with the setting this time because I understood it a bit more.  

The one thing that still bothers me is that the characters are a bit judgmental.  However, I'm beginning to see that it may be a major part of the story and there is a reason behind it that will come to light later.  I hope I'm right.  

I definitely recommend this book for anyone who likes paranormal books especially those that involve vampires.  This series has an original and interesting take on them.  

Join me in a few days for my review on Twilight Guardians by Maggie Shayne.

Book rating: 4.7

Cover rating: 5

My Throwback Review of Twilight Phantasies by Maggie Shayne

Book Description from Twilight Phantasies by Maggie Shayne:

In two centuries of living death, Eric Marquand had never once cried out against the cruel fate that had condemned him to walk forever in shadow. But then, he found the woman he knew was his chosen one--and understood that to possess her was to destroy her...

Tamara Dey trembled at the aura of dread and despair that enshrouded this creature of the night. And yet, against all reason, she saw clearly that her destiny was eternally entwined with his, and that she must know--even welcome--the terror and the splendor of the vampire's kiss...

For centuries, loneliness has haunted them from dusk till dawn. Yet now, from out of the darkness, shines the light of eternal life...eternal love.

First, I call this a throwback book review because I have read this book a few times.  However, I have just finished it again for a very good reason.  Maggie Shayne has returned to writing about her vampires in a new sequel series called Twilight Reborn.  I will actually put a link to Maggie Shayne's website on the bottom of this page so you can see the new one for yourself.  However, when I re-read something I haven't reviewed on this blog, I will make sure to write one.  So, later you will see the rest of the reviews on her other books.  Though I will be doing a special review soon on Twilight Guardians.

First, I will admit that Maggie Shayne is one of my favorite authors.  She is someone I do look up to as an author myself.  So, I can't say that I am surprised by my findings of this book because the truth is that I knew I would love it.  However, I can describe why I love Twilight Phantasies so much.  Before I go into the review, I will state the only worry I had was that as time passed, it might have lost some of its original beauty.  That is not the case.  It is still a gorgeous collection of words.  Maggie Shayne does really well at descriptions.  She can make you see what you are reading and the way she describes scenes is almost poetic.  Twilight Phantasies shows her early career and she only gets better.  The romance between Tamara and Eric has everything it should.  There are plenty of chivalrous actions, warm embraces and hot kisses.  However, there is also action and danger because there is a force called DPI that is out to eradicate all vampires and they are ruthless.  

Now, I will go into the characters.  The first is Eric Marquand.  He's sweet and kind but has a bit of a temper.  He's also lonely and willing to sacrifice himself for those he loves and of  course, he's tall, dark and handsome.  Then, there is Tamara.  She is sweet but tough.  She is naive but in a way you can understand.  She will fight to the death for those she loves which is a good thing.  I am always happy to see a woman who is not always the damsel in distress.  I think she saves Eric as much as he saves her.  There is also Eric's sire, Roland.  I have a confession...I love Roland.  He's yummy.  I hope I'm allowed to say that.  He's tough and protective.   He knows how to melt your heart with his words and he's just...YUMMY.   There is also Jamey.  He's just a boy but brave and stubborn.  I love brave and stubborn people but Jamey is also smart.  I loved his character right away. He was a welcome edition to the story.  In other words, he wasn't just thrown in there to fill pages.  He was an active part of the story.   Now, I'm to the great evil...DPI.  There are two main characters in this book from the DPI but I'm afraid I'll ruin the story if I step too much into their personalities and I don't want to give away too much but I will say the DPI evil in this book is shiver worthy.  Anyways, everyone should read this book...Except for children.  There is definitely some naughtiness that is not for their eyes or minds.

My Rating: 5 (Of course) 

Book Cover Rating: 3 (It's pretty but it doesn't match the characters.)

As promised, here is the link to Maggie Shayne's website:   http://maggieshayne.com/

I do hope you will visit her page.  I think you will love her too!!

Here is the list of the next ten books.  :)  I hope you are looking forward to the reviews as much as I am looking forward to reading them.

1.) Twilight Phantasies (Book 1) Wings in the Night Series by Maggie Shayne

2.)  Betrayed (Book 2) The House of Night Series by P.C. and Kristen Cast

3.)  Twilight Guardians (Book 1) Wings in the Night Reborn by Maggie Shayne

4.) The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving

5.) The Classmate Murders (Book 1) A Jim Richards Murder Mystery by Bob Moats

6.) Call Me (Book 1) A Dani Ripper Novel by John Locke

7.) Blue Moon (Book 1) Night Creature Series by Lori Handeland 

8.) Liberty for Paul (Book 2) Scandalous Sisters Series by Rose Gordon

9.) Of Mice and Men by John Steinback

10.) Dead Girls Don't Blog (Book 1) Murder Blog Mysteries by Pamela Frost Dennis

Thank you and I hope you look forward to the reviews.

Fighting for Survival with The Hunger Games

I actually did give this time to think it over before I gave a review.  This was one of those books that I was afraid to read.  Everyone seemed to love it and in my experience when it has that much hype, I usually get let down.  This is one of those books that provesthat theory wrong. I really do love the book. Suzanne Collins did something that I enjoy to read. That is she didn't shy away from the dark thing.  Instead, she dove directly into them.  I was able to engage with the story straight on.  I will also say that her choice to make the book in first person was a good one.  Otherwise, Katniss may have seemed a bit cold as a leading character. Because of first person, you can know what she's thinking.  There is plenty of action and there was some romance too.  Also, there was struggle and sacrifice.  So, there are plenty of things that help you dive into this book.  

The characters are vibrant and drastically different from each other.  They have their own motivations and character traits.  You realize that even with their faults, you love them.  For example: Yes, Haymitch was a drunk.  You understand why and you also realize he does want to help Katniss and Peeta.  He is likable even though he's flawed.  

Anyways, this book is going on my top shelf where my other favorites are.  The only people I do not recommend this book to is children.  There is too much violence.  Everyone else should definitely read it. 

I also recommend the movie.  Yes, the book is better but not by too much.  You can see that they tried to keep the book and movie close.  

My rating: 5

Book Cover rating: 5

Movie Rating: 4.5