Thursday, October 27, 2016

Review - Fifty Feet of Trouble

Fifty Feet of Trouble by Justin Robinson

* Received from the publisher for review

5 out of 5 gnomes

I adore this whole insane noir monster ruled world. Once again it’s great to see the story from the point of view of the only human private investigator left, Nick Moss.

This author is great at naming his characters especially if you like punny or funny names. One of my favorite names has to be the terrifying clown Reverend Bobo Gigglesworth. If you’re not already scared of clowns, you just might be after you read about this clown...

After seeing more of Nick’s secretary Ser, Serendipity Sargasso I want to know all about her. She is one interesting siren and seems to really care for Nick even though he’s a human.

The best new character has to be Gelatin Keyes. This pink all consuming blob is really more funny then he has a right to be. You’ll find yourself laughing just about every time he’s in a scene.

The problems and cases just keep piling up and the whole scope of the story gets even more epic with some truly gigantic monsters this go around. I love how all the pieces of the mystery fit together and just how many different monsters the story shows.

The twists are really well done and just when you think everything is solved and all hunky dory WAM one heck of a very very bad thing happens.

Expect the unexpected and a whole lot more when you read this awesome story.

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

My Favorite Quotes/Lines - Fifty Feet of Trouble

Fifty Feet of Trouble by Justin Robinson

* Received from the publisher for review

“It was made for clowns and gremlins, but human kids loved it too, proving there wasn’t much difference.”

“It it were just something wholesome like half-naked women, I’d have a lot less of a problem.”

“The sign on the door said, “LET CHRIST INTO YOUR HEART, BUT THEN LET HIM OUT OR HE’LL SUFFOCATE.”

“I said ‘instruments.’ Harmonicas give voice to the transient murderer inside us.”

“This had been the second time I’d been to church in as many days, shattering my previous record of once every couple of weeks when I was a kid.”

“The first step in any decent plan is to stop screaming inwardly and making deals with any number of supernatural entities who have never shown the slightest desire to save my ass.”

“It’s not every secretary that would do that for her boss.”

“I was probably a dead man regardless, but Mama Moss raised an optimist.”

“I’ll say this for mad scientists: they were great with the ambience.”

“Godspeed, you mad bastard!”

“I trust that the inevitable specter of your meaningless solitary existence isn’t troubling you this evening!”

“...and the courage failed me. Just ran right out the door. Good-for-nothing bastard.”

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Review - Crosstalk

Crosstalk by Connie Willis  

* Received via NetGalley for review


My Favorite Quotes/Lines:

“No, I’ve got just the thing. An app that translates what you say into what people want to hear. I text you, ‘You’re an idiot to be having brain surgery for any reason, let alone for some infantile notion that it’ll bring you true love,’ and the phone sends it as, ‘Wow! Trent asked you to get an EED! How romantic!’ I call it the Hook, Line, and Sinker app.”

Never underestimate the power of a good book.”



2 gnomes and a gnome hat out of 5 gnomes

I have a love hate relationship with this book. I was actually actively disliking it until about 40 percent through it. It just felt like a lot of set up for not a lot of pay off. The main character Briddey is not very likable at first and well rather annoying. For a lot of the book I would really have wanted the point of view to be anybody but her, anybody. (I think I really would have loved the book if it had been from C.B.'s point of view.)

The twists could have been a lot more twisty. I experienced a lot of no duh moments waiting for the main character to catch up. This was disappointing because It not usually any good at seeing twists coming. These were all very telegraphed except for one towards the end.

The telepathy part is when the interesting finally kicks in. The explanation and what they can do is confusing but still intriguing.

The bad guy is pretty obvious from page one but the slow building of a relationship starts to shine through. By the end I found myself curious about where the characters/what the author would do next.

Monday, October 24, 2016

Sentence Sneak Peek - Crosstalk

Crosstalk by Connie Willis  

* Received via NetGalley for review

* Spoilers are highlighted like so :)

“By the time Briddey pulled into the parking garage at Commspan, there were forty-two text messages on her phone.”

“Wh-what… how?”

“Keeping the surgery date secret for even a few days turned out to be a huge challenge, especially after Dr. Verrick’s office sent a pre-admission form to Briddey’s office email address, and Charla saw it.

Please tell me I’m dreaming, Briddey thought, but she knew she wasn’t.”

Where are you?

“Dr. Verrick!”

What are you doing here, C.B.?

“Can you hear me, Briddey?”

I told you you might need another ride, C.B. said.”

Aunt Oona’s in my office?

“Midnight?”

“Thirteen?”

“Oh, I hoped you’d wear your black dress,” Trent said, frowning at Briddey. “It’s so much more elegant and understated.”

Briddey, C.B. said, his voice cutting through the cacophony of voices like the beam of a flashlight through darkness.”

“What are you doing?”

“You’re Irish?

“Ahem!”

The stacks?

“It was the theater all over again, only much, much worse because she couldn’t see anything.”

“When Briddey woke again, the lamps were back on, and the chair— and the room— were empty.”

Oh, no, Briddey thought. It can’t be!

“Briddey raced through the front door and up to her apartment, fumbling for her keys as she ran.”

Saved in the nick of time, Briddey thought, looking gratefully at Maeve standing there in the doorway with her pink umbrella and heart-covered rain boots.”

If I find out, I won’t what?

That’s the great thing about telepathy, Maeve said.”

“Fire!”

D-Dr. Verrick’s back?”

Zener cards?

But C.B. said psychics weren’t telepathic, Briddey thought.”

“For an endless moment nothing happened, and Briddey thought, It’s not going to get here in time. They’ll hear Maeve’s name before it— And then the voices hit her head on, not like water at all but like a battering ram, so fierce it had to be every single person, every single thought in the hospital: It hurts, oh, it hurts!

“C.B. had been worried that they might be looking for them, but they were all in the other testing room, along with a nurse, who knelt next to Lyzandra as she sat huddled on a chair with a blanket around her shoulders, breathing raggedly into an oxygen mask.”

Shh, Maeve, Briddey said automatically, looking at Lyzandra and Trent and Dr. Verrick.”

“Dr. Verrick immediately phoned his two other telepathic patients, the Dowds, and asked them if they’d noticed any difference in their ability to communicate.”

The good thing about hitting bottom is that things can’t get any worse, Briddey thought, lying there in the dark listening to the silence, but she was wrong.”

“They stood there for a long minute, facing each other across the heater, and then C.B.”

“There should have been a wooden back to the cupboard and, behind it, the adobe wall of the courtyard, but there wasn’t.

Friday, October 21, 2016

Weekend Read - The Twelve Days of Dash and Lily

I really loved the first book about these two and can’t wait to read more. Here’s hoping it lives up to the awesomeness of the first book.

Thursday, October 20, 2016

Review - If the Magic Fits

If the Magic Fits by Susan Maupin Schmid, Illustrations by Lissy Marlin  

* Received via NetGalley for review


3 gnomes and a gnome hat out of 5 gnomes

* My Favorite Quote: “My dear, one must look for something good in others or one will never see it.”

This book is just bursting with magical fun. The castle and the characters just really bring a great spark to the story.

Darling is a great character to follow, she really has a lot of attitude and curiosity. Following her curiosity leads to all the intrigue and mystery of the story.

The whole magical dresses angle is entertaining. I really wanted to know all about the magic. There are hints but you never get the whole story. I do love that each dress seems to have a unique personality too.

The big bad of the story is easy to figure out but there were some good twists to everything too. Even though the mystery this time is easy to figure out there are plenty more to discover like all the magic and the dresses.

Overall an excellent adventure with just enough surprises to keep you guessing.

Tuesday, October 18, 2016

My Favorite Quotes/Lines - Holding Up the Universe

Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven

“Every book I read and movie I watch seems to give out the same message: high school is the worst experience you can ever have.”

“The great thing about my size is that I can clear a path.”

“So I ask you, What can high school do to me that hasn’t already been done?”

“We can’t fight another person’s battles, no matter how much we want to.”

“Sometimes they’re shitty because they’re afraid. Sometimes they choose to be shitty to others before others can be shitty to them. So it’s like self-defensive shittiness.” Which I know plenty about. “Who’s being shitty to you?”

“You don’t get to be the villain and the hero.”

“It’s exhausting, constantly having to search for the people you love.”

“Are you sure?” I try to sound like I don’t really give a shit, but here’s the thing— I do give a shit. I give five million shits, which is why I feel like I’m going to be sick all over these Legos.”

“Real okay or fake okay?” “Somewhere in between.”

“I think what an amazing world this would be if we all danced everywhere we went.”

“I am universal.”

“But why should what I weigh affect other people? I mean, unless I’m sitting on them, who cares?”

“Different life. Different world. Different rules. We don’t ever leave that old world behind. We just create a new one.”

Monday, October 17, 2016

Review - Holding Up the Universe

Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven

4 gnomes out of 5 gnomes

This book was full of drama but with some great humor too.

Jack and Libby have plenty of problems sure and there are a lot of interesting choices made by both of them. My brain pretty much consisted of a running commentary telling them to just talk to each other. Plus tell someone about your problems....

The dual point of view really helped the book and made it so I didn't want to stop reading. Their groups of friends and the background characters helped the story shine too.

I really liked that the parents were in the picture because most of the time you got to see all the support from them.

The ending was great and gives you hope for the future of these characters.

Thursday, October 13, 2016

Mini Review - The Gossip

The Gossip by Jenny Holiday

* Read via NetGalley for review


3 out of 5 gnomes

This was interesting, especially having it take place over years. That helped show very well how people change.

I liked this book better than the previous one. Dawn and Arturo make for a really unexpected couple.

It was awkward at first but they really do have some great chemistry.

So if you can get over some of the over the top at times eighties references then this book is a quick read.

Wednesday, October 12, 2016

My Favorite Quotes/Lines - The Leopard King

The Leopard King by Ann Aguirre

“Still alive.” She emerged in a cloud of steam to tease him.”
“Like he’d forced warmth back into her chilled body, she was reviving him, one provocation at a time.”

“World of hurt, I know. I’m familiar with your rhetoric.” “My what?” “Bombast. Grandiloquence. Orotundity.”

“Things are replaceable. You are not.”

I don’t care, it doesn’t matter. I’ll bite with my stupid human teeth—

“Have you always been this hilarious?”

“And love doesn’t survive untended.”

“Just accept that I’m always working for your welfare, and there will be no need for troublesome independent thought.”

“Told you. I know people and I pay attention.”

“I miss war,” Beren said with a sad droop to his weathered features. “Sure, a bunch of us died, but at least there was an end to it, unlike all this talking.”

“Sometimes the world made no damn sense at all.”

“When someone is determined to do an awful thing, the timing doesn’t matter, only their intent to do wrong.”

“Seeing that first thing would’ve been creamy shit frosting on a turd cake of a day.”

“That shouldn’t feel like an epiphany, yet somehow it did. Pru had a way of cutting through the bullshit, a unique ability to drag him back from the brink and shove his ass down the road he needed to travel.”

“Please don’t tell me you run on hugs,” she said, stifling a laugh.”

“It was so easy to get lost in grand gestures and the big picture, but nothing would ever be more important than the pride’s smallest members.”

“Love can’t be put in a pail and measured by volume.”

Tuesday, October 11, 2016

Review - The Leopard King

The Leopard King by Ann Aguirre

5 out of 5 gnomes

Awesome world and characters. Great start to the series. It feels like there’s an epic scope to this fantasy world. It’s the kind of story that makes you want to know everything about the world that it’s set in.

There’s kind of a complicated love square in this story instead of a triangle. It’s all extremely complicated but makes for an intense read.

I like how complex Pru and Dom’s relationship is. Their chemistry is great even when you’re not sure they even like each other. When things get steamy though, they get very steamy. They both have a lot to work through and get over but when they do, wow.

All the different Animari are exciting to read about. From bears, felines, wolves, and more there are a lot of interesting combos going around. I for one can't wait to learn more about the bear religious order.

There are plenty of surprises in this story and a myriad of intriguing characters to fall in love with. Overall, a story well worth reading with characters and a setting that really pops.

This story left me eagerly looking forward to whatever this series brings next.

Monday, October 10, 2016

Sentence Sneak Peek - The Leopard King

The Leopard King by Ann Aguirre

The first sentence from each chapter of The Leopard King, it's a mini summary of what you can expect to read.

* Spoilers are highlighted like so :)


THIS LONELY MOUNTAIN was where the leopard king had come to die.”

PRU NEVER WOULD’VE IMAGINED that Dom would use her greatest weakness against her, but at the moment, he was an injured beast, so she breathed through the pain of that challenge.”

COLD GNAWED THROUGH Pru’s flesh and down to her bones.”

PRU STUDIED THE length of twine that bound them, wrist to wrist, then shook her head with a faint sigh.”

SHOCK AND DISMAY warred for dominance in Dom’s expression.”

THE TIMING COULDN’T  be worse.”

WHEN PRU TRACKED Dom down between the admin center and the residential annex, he had a split lip that was already swelling.”

YEARS AGO, DALENA had whispered, “Mating frenzy,” and Pru gave her a look.”

PRU WISHED SHE could retire, but after her big talk about halving Dom’s burdens, it seemed wrong to tap out so soon.”

MUCH LATER, ONCE the welcome party ended and after the guests were settled, Pru finally got a moment alone with Dom.”

“WAKE UP.”

EARLY THE NEXT morning, Pru asked Magda to bring scanners over.”

THE GOLGOTH PRINCE had arrived at last.”

AT FIRST Pru feared she’d gone too far.”

THERE’S NO REASON I should feel like this.

GAVRIEL WAS THE last person Pru expected to find at her door so late at night.”

IN THE WAKE of an intense orgasm, Pru jerked with the aftershocks.”

WHEN PRU’S COUSIN Naveen opened the door, Pru was startled to see Dom.”

“WHERE ARE YOU?”

At 5: 37 A.M., a series of explosions rocked the hold.”

THE RESCUE EFFORT went on for hours.”

PRU WISHED IT were that simple.”

AS PROMISED, Pru only dozed while listening for potential interruptions.”

THIS WAS THE biggest operation Pru had ever participated in.”

STUNNED, PRU HELD still for a few seconds.”

PRU MADE HERSELF presentable as soon as possible and accompanied her mate to greet Princess Thalia.”

FEAR HAD A hold of Pru’s throat, but she couldn’t sink down and cry.”

PRU SMELLED DOM before she saw him, all cordite, winter wind, and… fear.”

“LIKE WHAT?”

A FEW HOURS before dawn, Pru woke alone in a tangle of blankets to the lingering scent of recently snuffed candles.”