Empire's Daughter by Marian L Thorpe

Empire's Daughter

Marian L. Thorpe

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I received a free copy of this book from the author via Rachel's Random Resources in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Lena and Maya make a great pair. They are friends, lovers and have been since their tender teen years. For over 200 years the men and women of The Empire have lived separately. The women hunt, fish and have various other trade skills like making and mending clothing and other needed items; the men are soldiers, from the age of 7 they train to fight in The Emperor's Army keeping the entire Empire safe. One day the threat of war causes the Emperor to make a difficult decision, asking the women to put aside the Partition and learn to fight to defend their land. Their choice is simple, learn to fight or exile. Lena chooses to fight, Maya chooses exile. Now the two must part ways and for the first time they must navigate through their lives without each other.

This book is told in first-person point of view. This story was so good and the writing was absolutely wonderful. Thorpe gives us a wonderfully detailed picture of the places within the story. The characters themselves are also done perfectly. I found Empire's Daughter to be easily enjoyable. The pace is slower but not drawn out; it fits the story well.

I was feeling a lot things in this story. There are so many elements and events that lead you to feel different things from happiness and excitement to frustration and disappointment. Everything is challenged in this book from societal norms, personal beliefs and desires, and even when to abide by the law and when to bend or brake it. It's like watching an entire society unfold and then having them try to figure out how best to put it back together. Things will never be as they once were, roles are being redefined and now everyone must find their place in The Empire all over again.

What I liked most about this book was the strong female characters. The women are given a choice if they want to learn to fight to protect themselves and their land in the pending war. Some women choose not to and instead take their chances with exile, like Maya. The majority of the women chose to fight. This happens early in the book and it totally pumped me up for the book ahead. The women all coming together breaking tradition to defend their families and land hooked me.

"We defended our animals, and ourselves, with weapons." She thumped her staff on the floor. " I have killed a wolf or two in my time, and I would do it again. Why is this any different, except this time the wolves have two legs?"

I thought of Maya, of her passionate conviction that women did not fight, did not kill. I wondered if she would see the necessity of this ruling, or if she would think only that we had betrayed her beliefs.

Overall, I recommend reading this book. It is classified as fantasy but there are no magical elements to it. If you enjoy strong female characters, a dash of love and a sprinkle of hope and betrayal than you will probably enjoy this book. I definitely intend on finishing this trilogy.

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Empire’s Daughter (Empire’s Legacy, Book I)

For twenty generations, the men and women of The Empire have lived separately, the women farming and fishing, the men fighting wars. But in the spring of Lena’s seventeenth year, an officer rides into her village with an unprecedented request. The Empire is threatened by invasion, and to defend it successfully, women will need to fight.

When the village votes in favour, Lena and her partner Maya are torn apart. Maya chooses exile rather than battle, Lena chooses to fight. As Lena learns the skills of warfare and leadership, she discovers that choices have consequences that cannot be foreseen, and that her role in her country’s future is greater than she could have dreamed.

Purchase Link

https://storyoriginapp.com/universalbooklinks/802bbff0-98f7-11e9-b280-93cf0b163b50

Author Bio –

Writer of historical fantasy and urban fantasy for adults. The Empire's Legacy series explores gender expectations, the conflicts between personal belief and societal norms, and how, within a society where sexuality is fluid, personal definitions of love and loyalty change with growth and experience.

The world of Empire's Legacy was inspired by my interest in the history of Britain in the years when it was a province of the Roman Empire called Britannia, and then in the aftermath of the fall of the Roman Empire. In another life, I would have been a landscape archaeologist, and landscape is an important metaphor in the Empire's Legacy trilogy and in all my writing, fiction and non-fiction.

I live in Canada for most of the year, England for the rest, have one cat, a husband, and when I'm not writing or editing, I'm birding.

Social Media Links –
Website is marianlthorpe.com
Twitter @Marian Thorpe
Facebook author page: https://www.facebook.com/marianlthorpe

Giveaway to Win all 3 paperbacks of the Empire’s Legacy trilogy (Open INT)

*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

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Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit by Jaye Robin Brown

Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit

by Jaye Robin Brown

read by Amanda Dolan

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Trigger Warning: Homophobia

Joanna Gordon is the openly gay daughter of a preacher. Her dad has always been cool with her sexuality. However, when he marries his third wife, Elizabeth, he takes Joanna and moves to small-town Rome, Georgia with her. With a new place comes and a new start and now all of a sudden her dad is asking her to hide her sexuality from her new in-laws and the people in her new school. Her dad agrees to give her her own radio show if she does it. At first Joanna goes along with the plan, but when she accidentally falls in love with a high society girl, named Mary Carlson, things get a little more complicated. When faced with the choice of her happiness and her dads, Joanna must make a difficult decision that threatens not only her radio show but other delicate family dynamics. 

I really liked Joanna as a main character. I enjoyed her personality and watching her grow and change throughout the course of the story. For me, seeing her struggle with certain choices really made her dimensional. She has her selfish side where she wants what she wants, but also her caring side where she hesitates because she doesn't want to hurt the people she cares about. 

**Spoiler Alert!!**

I loved this story. There is a fair bit of homophobia in this book, but there is also love and acceptance. When Mary Carlson comes out to everyone she loses friends and she isn't accepted by the church. She is however, supported by her family and some of her friends that truly love her. I really liked how once Mary Carlson came out things weren't portrayed as all sunshine and roses. She had to face not being accepted by people who have been a big part of her life for years. 

**End of Spoiler**

Okay, I admit this wasn't a perfect story. There were a couple things that were slight far-fetched and wouldn't really happen. I won't get into what these were as I would end up giving out more detail than I'd like to. Just know, they are there but for me the good qualities outweighed the bad by a lot. 

I thought this story was so cute and fun. It was exactly what I needed to cure my reading slump. It was the kind of read where you just relax and enjoy. To be fair, I did listen to the audiobook version read by Amanda Dolan. She did an amazing job and really brought the story to life for me. If you're looking for just a cute mindless f/f romance then you'd probably enjoy this. 

Into Captivity They Will Go by Noah Milligan Review

Into Captivity They Will Go

by Noah Milligan

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I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review via Netgalley. Any thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Into Captivity They Will Go is the story of Caleb Gunter and his mother Evelyn. 13-year-old Caleb's life was pretty normal. He was raised in a Christian home in Oklahoma, he went to school, went to church, had friends, he played with his brother, it was all pretty normal. One day his mother's stepfather dies and this causes something inside of Evelyn to snap. She basically stops living and only exists for awhile. When she finally comes out of this state she has changed, gone slightly crazy. All of  a sudden she is telling Caleb he is the second coming of Jesus Christ and is preaching Revelations and of the The Seven Seals on the street corner. The church finds this behavior alarming and kicks the family out, parents are concerned and will not let their children hang out with Caleb or his brother anymore. Evelyn's crazy behavior is also causing problems in her marriage and one night after a fight with her husband she sneaks away with Caleb in the middle of the night and takes him away where she believes they will be safe. They end up living in a trailer park where everyone accepts Evelyn's preachings and they believe Caleb will lead them into Heaven. Things start to go wrong at the trailer park and eventually everything falls apart. Now Caleb is left to figure out how to live a normal life without any support system and must figure out how he can move on and how to cope with what him and his mother have done.

The writing was really good. The characters were really well done. I thought the characters were dimensional and showed emotion. Milligan done an amazing job of portraying the mothers desperation in her beliefs. I found myself feeling bad for Caleb, his brother and his father. The way the author describes the mentality and the beliefs of Evelyn is truly great. We see her first as a normal Christian and then after losing someone dear to her she dances right over the line of a normal Christian and right into a crazed fanatic. Caleb's mother clearly needs help, however she truly believes what she is saying.

I wasn't brainwashed - it wasn't like that because in order to be brainwashed, the person convincing you must realize they're telling you lies. In my case, it couldn't be any different - my mother truly believed I was Jesus Christ reborn, and so why wouldn't I believe her? She was, after all, my mother. She birthed me and raised me and fed me and taught me, and so why wouldn’t I trust her? My very life depended on her.

What, in my opinion, makes this book so raw and emotional is the realness of it. One of my first thoughts is 'and not one person thought maybe this chick is just crazy?' However, this is how cults work. If you look into real life cults (such as Jim Jones & Jonestown) you'll find similarities between this work of fiction and those real life accounts. Mainly, I'm talking about the charismatic leader and the first couple of ready and willing followers. In that aspect, this book was a little scary for me as I don't think it's too far fetched.

This was a pretty good read for me. I found it interesting enough to get through but not enough to just devour it, although if I had read at another time maybe I could of enjoyed it more. Overall, I do recommend this book as it is well written and interesting.

House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig

House of Salt and Sorrows

by Erin A. Craig

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Our main character Annaleigh is one of 12 sisters who live at Highmoor, a manor by the sea. Things are relatively normal for the girls, except that they seem to always be in mourning. In this story, 4 of the sisters are deceased, now there are whispers around the town that their deaths aren't accidents but actually a curse set out to kill the 12 sisters. Upon seeing one of her younger sisters sketchbooks filled with haunting images of their dead sisters, Annaleigh finds out the sister has been seeing ghosts. When she hears testimony from a witness about a dark figure looming over the cliff from which her sister fell, Annaleigh knows something more sinister is at work. With the help of a new mysterious stranger, Annaleigh now races to figure out what is going on, who can she trust and what can she do to stop it before she loses anymore of her sisters or her own life. 

Annaleigh is the main character. I thought she was likable and I enjoyed her kind-hearted innocent nature. I liked how different she was from each of her sisters. They all had separate personalities, but Annaleigh was quite different. The other characters were not as fleshed out as she was, for example we know her favorite animal and hear some of her memories from her youth. With the remaining sisters we are given a face-value version of who they are. We don't get to know them, or any other characters, as intimately as Annaleigh. I can understand how this could be an issue for some readers, but for me personally I don't feel like we needed to know them on the same level because of the story being told through Annaleigh's perspective. To me, it was like being in her head and seeing and knowing what she saw and knew. I just found it worked really well for me. 

It didn't take long to be gripped into this dark fantastical tale. I loved the twists, turns and the uncertainty of what was real and what wasn't. I found the dark aspects of the story were written wonderfully. It was simply enchanting. I really enjoyed the way the story unfolded. I had a feeling about a certain aspect of the book, and I was right, but I wasn't able to figure out everything beforehand. The way the author finished off the book really worked for me. There was so much hidden beneath the surface and it was all unraveled wonderfully. 

I can't actually think of anything I didn't like about the story. There was a thing or two that I found a little weird or off but the whole story was messed up enough that I found it worked well. 

The House Of Salt and Sorrows has been described as a gothic retelling of the 12 Dancing Princesses, I've never read that story so I can't comment on that aspect. However, now I really want to read it and see the similarities and how one was played off the other. 

Overall, I fell like it was a wonderful debut. I recommend this book for anyone into dark fairy-tale retellings. I can't wait to read more from this author. 

Three Canadian True Crime Novels

Three Canadian True Crime Novels

Hello everyone and welcome back! Yesterday I finished the novel Life With Billy by Brian Vallée and I started thinking about other Canadian True Crime novels I've read. I feel that while these are extremely hard to read, I think they are important learning material for the future in the sense of working to make things better. With that in mind I decided to recommend three Canadian True Crime novels. The books that I'm about to recommend are difficult to read, they explain their respective cases in detail and they are graphic. I will give a brief warning with each book so you can get a sense of what to expect from each one and can decide for yourself if it's something you think you'd be able to handle or have interest in reading.

Without further delay, let's get started.

1. Life With Billy by Brian Vallée

Life With Billy tells us about the life of Jane Stafford from childhood up until about 2 years after she shoots her husband Billy Stafford. We hear the painful details of her marriage to Billy and find out what drove her to the point where his death seemed to be her only option.
This book contains child abuse, spousal abuse, mental abuse, drug and alcohol abuse, rape, bestiality and murder.
Published 1989. Approx. 211 pages.

2. Under The Bridge by Rebecca Godrey

Under The Bridge is the story of Reena Virk from childhood until her death. Reena Virk was a regular teenage girl who just wanted to fit in with everyone else. One night she believes she is meeting up to hang out with friends but she actually ends up going to her death.
This book contains bullying, brutal gang beating and murder.
Published 2006. Approx. 351 pages.

3. Runaway Devil: How Forbidden Love Drove a 12-Year-Old To Murder Her Family by Robert Remington, Sherri Zickefoose

Runaway Devil is the story about how 12-year-old Jasmine Richardson and her 23-year-old boyfriend murdered her parents and little brother. In this book, we learn how Jasmine convinced her boyfriend to kill both her parents while she kills her little brother so they can be together without her parents trying to keep them apart.
This book contains pedophilia, drug and alcohol abuse, and murder.
Published 2009. Approx. 288 pages.

These books all talk about the murder of an individual(s) in three very different circumstances. Each one with a different story to tell. Each one as painful to read as the last. If you know of any other Canadian True Crime novels, or even any that do not take place in Canada, which you believe should be read more comment them below. 

**If you or anyone you know have problems relating with the issues mentioned above, remember there is help.**

National Crisis Hotlines:
Kids Help Phone - 1-800-668-6868
Crisis Services Canada - 1-833-456-4566 or text 45645
First Nations and Inuit Hope For Wellness Help Line - 1-855-242-3310
Center For Suicide Prevention 1-833-456-4566
Canada Drug Rehab Addiction Services Directory - 1-877-746-1963

You can find helpline numbers relating directly to your province by clicking HERE.

Thanks for reading. See you on the moon! xo

Rapid Fire Book Tag

Rapid Fire Book Tag!

Hello everyone and welcome back to my blog! Today I am going to be doing another fun little tag for you. I'm currently experiencing a major mental block and am having such trouble getting through a book. So today I'm just gonna relax and enjoy doing a fun post. I found this tag on The Bibliophile Girl's blog so if you want to go read her answers to these questions just click HERE. It was 2017 back when she did it but I thought it was super fun so I'm going to do it now. I hope you all enjoy it!

E-book or Physical Book?

I prefer physical books. I love the way they feel in my hands and just being able to hold them. 

Paperback or Hardback

Paperback. Always!

Online or In-Store Shopping?

In-Store shopping because I usually buy most of my books at thrift stores.

Trilogies or Series?

Trilogies because it's less commitment.

Heroes or Villains?

Villains because I love evil characters.

A Book You Want Everyone to Read?

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Recommend an Underrated Author?

Hmmm.. I am going to say Julie Anne Peters. I never hear her being talked about and I think her books are still relevant to the times.

The Last Book You Finished?

Burn It Down: Women Writing About Anger - Edited by Lilly Dancyger

Weirdest Thing You've Used As A Bookmark?

I would say a baby's sock.

Used Books: Yes or No?

Yes.

Top Three Favorite Genres?

Dystopian, Thriller, Contemporary

Borrow or Buy?

Buy.

Character Or Plot?

Characters. Flat characters can ruin even the best of plots for me.

Long Or Short Books?

Short

Name The First 3 Books You Think Of:

Nadine, With The Fire On High, Pet Semetary

Books That Make You Laugh Or Cry?

Cry, although I also love to laugh.

Our World Or Fictional?

Our World. I like that living in this world means I can travel to any fictional world of my choice at any given time.

Audiobooks: Yes or No?

Yes, but it has to be the right narrator.

Do You Ever Judge A Book By Its Cover?

All the time. It's how I pick out a lot of my books.

Book to Movie or Book to TV?

Book to TV. I feel like book adaptions to tv are have way more detail than adaptions to movies.

A Movie or TV Show That You Preferred to Over The Book?

The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks

Series Or Standalones?

Standalones.

Well that's it for this post! Thank you all so much for visiting my blog and remember to go visit The Bibliophile Girl at her blog to see all her answers for this tag! Remember TAG YOU'RE IT!

See you on the Moon! xo

The Chronicles Of Pale Book 3 Guest Post

The Chronicles Of Pale 3

The Ruined Land

by Clare Rhoden

Guest Post

Thank you so much for hosting me on your blog! I’m so excited about the release of the third book in my dystopian sci-fi series The Chronicles of the Pale.

[What are you talking about today?]

My name is Clare Rhoden and I live in Melbourne Australia with my devoted (and beloved) husband and my super-smart, too-cute poodle cross Aeryn Spoodle. She is seven years old. I am just a smidge older than that.

I would love to tell you a bit about The Ruined Land (Chronicles of the Pale 3), which has been a few years in the making. No spoilers of course! In this final book, all the characters complete some sort of a journey, though not everyone survives. (Did I just say that? Ooops.)

We find out what happens to the wonderful canini – the intelligent, mindspeaking wolf-dogs who rescued the human twins in Book 2 (Broad Plain Darkening).

And what about the tribesfolk, who aim to live lightly on the damaged land, and the settlers who created a rustic community? Yes, we find out what happens to them too.

The equii are the horse-like creatures who still mourn for their losses during the Great Cataclysm. In Book 2 they made a run from the Settlement. In The Ruined Land we discover how they get on in the Outside.

And last but definitely not least there are the mighty humachines of the Pale, the bionically augmented descendants of the civilization which destroyed itself in a massive war two centuries earlier. Does their might and power keep them safe when the world begins to collapse? The Ruined Land will tell you!

Oh, and did I mention the ferals? Half-machine, half-live creations designed specifically to kill. They’re left over from the war and they prowl the Outside. Be careful!

[What does your ideal writing space look like?]

My ideal place for writing is a comfortable spot on the verandah – not too hot, not too cold, maybe sitting in the shade on a warm day. Aeryn Spoodle will be on her mat beside me, and every now and then she’ll patrol the boundary or go and greet a passing neighbour. It’s much easier to write outside than to try locking myself in the office. I mean, have you heard the pathetic noises a spoodle makes when she wants to be outside. Plus she’s just too good at clambering onto the desk and stepping on the keyboard. The verandah every time!

[Do you have a theme for your book covers? Who designs them?]

Covers are so important, because they set the tone for the reader’s expectations. My publisher, Michelle Lovi from Odyssey Books, works absolute magic with book covers, IMHO. She is a genius at matching texts with suitable cover artists. I write across genres, and I am as completely thrilled with my Chronicles of the Pale covers by the talented Elijah Toten as I am with the beautiful cover created by Simon Critchell for The Stars in the Night.

[Do you miss your childhood? What did you do as a child?]

As a child I was a great reader, taught early by my mum and with three older sisters who all loved books. That said, I had the quintessential Australian childhood with so many adventures outdoors. We had a huge old weatherboard house which had once been the farmhouse for the district, but was now just a rambling old place on an enormous block of land. Blackberry hedges, fruit trees, tiger lilies, potato patch, cubby house, chook pen, room to ride bikes and kick the footy. Everything. Of course, it was ALWAYS summer in my childhood. That’s what I miss!

[What started you writing?]

I think I’ve always had an active imagination. As well as my three older sisters, I have three younger brothers and the youngest ones especially liked bedtime stories, or stories that you make up while walking to school – you know, what might happen if you step on a crack in the pavement, or where that ant might be going, or why that kid is crying … I think I’ve never lost the ‘what if?’ wondering and that keeps me writing. For example, what if typing on a keyboard provided energy for the dust bunnies under the desk? Might they gather together in a big ball and bite my ankle? The more I type, the more dust bunnies, the more danger … You see what I mean!

Thank you for hosting me today and I hope you enjoy the Chronicles of the Pale.

Clare’s bio:

Clare Rhoden completed her PhD in Australian WWI literature at the University of Melbourne in 2011, and a Masters of Creative Writing in 2008, in which she investigated the history of her grandparents who emigrated from Europe to Port Adelaide in January 1914. The Stars in the Night is the result of her research.

Clare also writes sci-fi and fantasy (check her titles at Odyssey Books ​http://odysseybooks.com.au/​).

Clare lives in Melbourne Australia with her husband Bill, their super-intelligent poodle-cross Aeryn, a huge and charming parliament of visiting magpies, and a very demanding/addictive garden space.

Clare’s Links:

Website: www.clarerhoden.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/clareelizabethrhoden/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ClareER

Instagram: @clarerhodenauthor

Blurb for Clare’s latest book, The Ruined Land (Chronicles of the Pale #3):

Where do you run when your world collapses?

Exiled from the Pale, humachine Hector has found a home with the tribes Outside.

Or has he?

While the canini struggle to care for the human twins, Feather travels Broad Plain to reunite them with their father. But his own family is scattered as the Pale sends out its terrifying army and the land itself buckles beneath them.

Can anyone survive the ruination of the land?

In this gripping conclusion to the Chronicles of the Pale, the citizens of the mighty Pale have as much to lose as the communities of the Outside.

Faeries of Saizia by Tonya L. Chaves Review

Faeries of Saizia

by Tonya L. Chaves

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I received a free copy of this book from the author via Rachel's Random Resources in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Avery Lightfoot and Zäria are best friends. They hang out and go on adventures together all the time. One day while they are on one of their adventures they stumble into Eerie Hollow and find elves making tons and tons of chocolate. Unsure what to make of this, the two faeries consider if they should go tell Queen Yamani what they have found. Instead of telling the queen they decide to go in for a closer look. It doesn't take long for things to go sour when they get caught by the evil Thordon. As punishment for their trespassing Thordon plans to make them his eternal slaves, unless they can complete a dangerous task for him. Meeting new friends and enemies along the way the two faeries have to either survive their task or become slaves.

This story was so cute! I thought it was simply adorable. At the beginning of the story we find out Avery has just turned 100 years old on the day our tale begins, Zäria turned 100 years old a couple months prior. In human hears that would put them somewhere in their teens according to the text.

Avery and Zäria were such cute character's. Avery made me laugh as he just such a relaxed and enjoyable character. Zäria was a regular "teenage" girl to me, I didn't find anything about her to extraordinary other than that one thing (spoiler! hehe), but it wasn't about who she was as a faerie so it didn't impact my opinion of her. Queen Yamani was alright. She was important to the story but she wasn't a favorite of mine. I felt bad for Thordon. I know he had his issues and yes he did technically throw a fit and do that really bad thing that I can't say cause it's a spoiler BUT he did go through a lot.

The only thing I didn't like about this book is I felt it was a little rushed. Everything happened rather quickly and I feel like there could have been a lot more done with the story. However, it is a fairly short book at only 159 pages for the actual story so you should expect quick resolves. For a short book, a lot of stuff happens and I think that is why it comes off as rushed. It could of easily been spread out at least another 50 pages.

This cute little story has everything fantastical you could ask for. Faeries, elves, magic, a dragon, epic battles, first love, first kiss, betrayal, evil witches and so much more! I really liked it. I enjoyed reading it and found it a fun little read. I recommend this book for all the fantasy lovers of any age.

Purchase Links

Lulu Press: http://www.lulu.com/shop/tonya-l-chaves/faeries-of-saizia/paperback/product-23974071.html

UK - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Faeries-Saizia-Tonya-L-Chaves-ebook/dp/B07JQ2D7JP/

US - https://www.amazon.com/Faeries-Saizia-Tonya-L-Chaves-ebook/dp/B07JQ2D7JP/

CAN - https://www.amazon.ca/Faeries-Saizia-Tonya-L-Chaves/dp/148349070X/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?keywords=faeries+of+saizia&qid=1568111927&s=

Author Bio

Tonya is from a small town in the Central Valley of California. She studied early
childhood education and worked in daycare and preschool for a few years until having children of her own. During a brief time of being a stay at home mom, she picked up the hobby of quilting which she still enjoys today. For the past fourteen years, Tonya has been working in the insurance industry
as a licensed agent. While juggling a full-time job, being a wife and mother of three, quilting, and crafting, she somehow managed to write a book; adding author to her collection of titles. Faeries of Saizia is her first published work.

Social Media Links

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TonyaLChaves/?modal=admin_todo_tour
Website: www.tonyachaves.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/cricketsnow

Broad Plain Darkening by Clare Rhoden

Board Plain Darkening
The Chronicles of Pale Book 2

by Clare Rhoden

Thank you to the author and Rachel's Random Resources for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own and are not influenced in any way. 

Goodreads Blurb:

The safe world of the Pale is under threat.

Inside the policosmos, the new Regent Adaeze strives for dominance over the all-powerful Senior Forecaster, but the Pale’s humachine citizens are unaware that their city is close to collapse.

Outside on Broad Plain, the exiled human Hector undertakes a dangerous trek to find a safe haven for the orphaned twins.

How can anyone survive as their world shifts underneath them?

Broad Plain Darkening continues where The Pale ended. We get to catch up with all (or most) of the characters from the first book and even meet some new ones. We get to learn more about all our favorite characters from the first book and gain a deeper understanding of why things are the way they are. 

Rhoden continues to pain detailed pictures of life after the conflagration. There are certain things that happen within this book that are so interesting to think about. It is interesting to see the world painted before us with such changes from life as we know now. The most enjoyable parts of this book for me are the parts of the canine and the tribes people. The interaction between the two is quite a clever thing. 

While this book picked up the pace a little more than the last one it is still a considerably slow burner. Despite the slow pace, this one has enough happening to keep interest throughout the story. The ending also makes me anticipate the third book as I feel invested now and need to know what happens. 

If you would like to read my review on The Chronicles of Pale Book 1: The Pale you can click HERE.

The Perfect Son by Lauren North Review

The Perfect Son

by Lauren North

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I received a free copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Months before their son's eighth birthday Tess' husband Mark dies in a sudden accident that has left her world turned upside down. Tess tries to keep everything together for Jamie and herself. She tries to be a good mom to Jamie, but some days are harder than others. Tess is grieving the loss of her husband Mark. All she has left is Jamie, but continuing to parent after such a tragedy gets hard sometimes. Thankfully, a grief councilor named Shelly shows up at her door after Tess' mom calls and asks for her assistance. Shelly seems to know exactly what Tess is going through and it doesn't take long before the two of develop a strong friendship. However, when Tess overhears a conversation between Shelly and a man with ulterior motives, she begins to suspect that maybe Shelly isn't everything she claims to be and maybe a friendship with Tess is not what she really wants. Things escalate when Jamie's eighth birthday finally arrives. The day after Jamie's eighth birthday, Tess wakes up in the hospital with a stab wound. Her son is missing and she believes she knows exactly who has taken him. Now, in the hospital and with nobody who will listen it's up to Tess to discover the truth about what happened to Jamie, and what she has to do to get him back.

The first thing I have to say is wow! What a debut! This was such a fantastic read. I gobbled this book up in less than 24 hours. My only regret about reading it was starting it at 11 PM. Oh well.

The writing of this book is amazing! It grabbed me on the first page and didn't let go until the book was finished. The way that Tess' grief was portrayed was mind blowing. North forces us to see Tess completely destroyed and desperate to hold on to what is left of her family. She focuses on Tess' deep grief in a way that really makes you feel for all the characters involved in this painful journey. Everything becomes tied together in a crazy literary knot that just leaves you thinking.. wow.. just wow. 

I know there isn't much critique on anything in here, but it was all good. Characters, settings, story line, writing, ending; it was all done so well. This is one of the best thrillers I've ever read.

I strongly recommend reading this book. It was an entertaining psychological thriller that will keep you pinned with interest until it's over. Seriously, it's definitely worth the read.

The Pale by Clare Rhoden Review

The Pale

by Clare Rhoden

Thank you to the author and Rachel's Random Resources for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own and are not influenced in any way. 

Goodreads Blurb:

The Outside can be a dangerous place.
But so can the inside.

It’s been years since the original cataclysm, but life has been structured, peaceful, and most of all uneventful in the Pale. The humachine citizens welcome the order provided by their ruler, the baleful Regent.

However, when one of their own rescues a human boy, Hector, from ravenous ferals on the Outside, their careful systems are turned upside down.

As Hector grows more and more human-strange, the citizens of the Pale grow uneasy.

What will happen when the Outside tries to get in?

The Pale takes us to a time when the world has been destroyed and humans have attempted to rebuild what is left. We have the humachines, mechanically altered humans, canini, genetically altered canine and a whole cast of characters created with some outside-the-box thinking. 

What I Didn't Like:

It was hard to keep focused on this book. There's a lot going on so you need to be paying attention to keep it all straight. I found myself getting bored which led to getting lost and had to reread certain things to keep track of what was going on. To me, I found a lot of filler in the book that took away from the actual story. This is a slow-paced novel, which is something I dislike in general. 

What I Did Like:

The canini. I absolutely loved them. The canini are altered canines with thumbs and the ability to mindspeak. Who wouldn't love for their dog to mindspeak to them? There was just something about them that really grabbed my attention. Their parts were done very well and was definitely my favorite parts of the book. The Temple Lady. This lady is a character you hate to like. She isn't the nicest person in the book, far from it actually, but she is enjoyable in a god-I-wanna-slap-her way. You know, the type of character that you don't like as a person but you enjoy reading about them anyway. There are a whole cast of characters in this book that are enjoyable. 

The ending picked up a bit for me. There are a few events that happen near the end that set up for book 2 Broad Plain Darkening in the sense that you want to find out what happens next. I feel like it seemed the story begun but never really went anywhere, just minor events to start a snowball later on. 

Rating this book is difficult because while I didn't particularly enjoy this book it does have a lot of good qualities that I think others would enjoy. Overall I feel neutral about the book. I didn't hate it, I didn't love it.