Reading Fanatic Reviews
Romantic FantasyStone and Blood by Marie Robinson
Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo, Scribd, 24 Symbols, Thalia, Mondadori, Angus & Robertson, and Bol.de
Stone and Blood*
Book Two with New Twists, and a Spotlight on Caliban
The first book of the series was actually one of the first books that I read as a new Booksprout member earlier this year. So I was glad when the author put all of the books back on the service, as I hadn’t yet read the other three in the series. To warm up before this second book, I reread the first, and I was reminded how much I enjoyed this complex world that the author has created. I love Maeve as a character. In the first book, I loved how she was dogged in her pursuit of knowledge, trying to unlock her magic. In a lot of the books I read (regency romance), women with intellectual pursuits are often looked down upon by other characters. But the dragons in that first book did not look down upon her for this. Of course, I loved the dragons in the previous book, both their dragon forms and their only under-a-full-moon human form.
But enough about book one. Book two picks up where book one leaves off. With Maeve having access now to her magical power, she is able to unwind, but not wholly remove, the curse from the dragon men. They have been cursed to be dragons for so long that the curse is bound up with their life force, and to wholly remove it could be deadly. But Maeve is able to make it so they can choose when to be dragons. It is actually quite fascinating to watch her work with her magic because, unlike other books, it is not inherent within her. Rather, she sees it as something separate with which she works to attain a goal. The only one for whom the curse separation didn’t work well was Caliban. He struggles mightily with who he is and makes it difficult for himself.
After the ceremony, the team splits up. Caliban and Maeve go to the fae realm, Septimus stays at the tower, and Trystan and Gwayne go to Caledonia to try to figure out if the new queen, Fergus’s wife, is the same queen who cursed them centuries ago. Enough of this summary. If you want to find out more, you will have to read the book. It does have some surprising twists and turns and ends on a bit of a cliffhanger. This book is definitely steamier than book one. Caliban is an interesting character to follow because he truly is at war with himself, and like Maeve, you will want to help him heal and appreciate himself.
If you enjoyed book one, book two ramps up the action on several fronts. If you haven’t yet read book one, definitely read it first so you can understand the full context of this book. The author does provide a little prologue that sums up book one, but book one is so well done, that you won’t want to miss it. Looking forward to books three and four!
Equity Crowdfunding by Nathan Rose
Available at Amazon only
Free with Kindle Unlimited
Equity Crowdfunding*
Learn More About This Novel Way to Raise Capital
Have you heard of the concept of equity crowdfunding? It’s a relatively new way of raising capital for a small business. Think of it as the grown-up version of Kickstarter; instead of getting a company or person’s product, you get shares in the company. It is definitely a novel way for startups and entrepreneurs to not only fund their business but to market it. This book goes over the concept in great detail. It is very well organized, starting with defining what equity crowdfunding is and goes on to explore whether or not it is right for your business. Then he looks at the different equity crowdfunding platforms and options that you’ll have to choose from. Once you’ve decided that this is for you, the book gives you further insight into how to craft your offer and run it and even what to do after your campaign is over. If this is something you’ve thought about or sounds intriguing to you, this would be the perfect book to pick up to see if it would be right for you.
Third Husband’s the Charm by Nancy Yeager
Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo, Mondadori, Angus & Robertson, and Indigo (Chapters)
Third Husband's the Charm*
Oh, What a Tangled Web We Weave
What a very different historical romance! It’s quite a complicated tale, so I can’t really do it justice in the short space of a review. Suffice to say that the heroine is very strong-willed and has devised a rather creative plan to help get her due in a system that is definitely set up against women. She needs a man to make it work, and the man she chooses, poor Percy, believes that he is losing his mind like his father before him. In fact, he believes her when she tells him that they married, even though he has no memory of it. These are both fascinating and complex characters, and what begins as a sham marriage instigated by the heroine to help her dire circumstances becomes a true one of good-hearted, deserving people. I quite enjoyed the interactions between the family members and the couple as well. The heroine didn’t know what she was getting involved in when she set up her plan! A very good historical romance read.
1-800-CHRISTMAS by Josie Riviera
Available at Amazon only
NOT with Kindle Unlimited
1-800-CHRISTMAS*
Mostly Sweet, Sometimes Serious Holiday Romance
What a charming Christmas romance! The heroine has bought a fixer-upper house and really wants to get it in shape by Christmas so that she and her sister can have a proper Christmas. They are products of the foster care system, so creating moments like this are a treasure. Her brother-in-law has set her up with a carpenter to help with the house. He happens to be a man she knew in high school and had a secret crush on. He was the all-star football player, and his family owned a pub in town while she considered herself essentially a nobody because of her circumstances. They get to know each other over the course of the project, and romantic sparks begin to fly. But because of her background, she has a hard time trusting. How will it go when his ex comes to town? A perfect holiday romance with just the right amount of serious undertones. Both the hero and heroine are likable characters who have lived through some adversity, each changed by it in a different way.
Keto Diet for Beginners by Jesse Ryan
Available at Amazon only
Free with Kindle Unlimited
Keto Diet for Beginners*
Excellent Keto Guide for Beginners
I have read a lot of cookbooks and diet books throughout my life. Lately, because of the ease of publishing such books on Amazon and other online publishers, it seems like people rush out super simple books that are cobbled together from a variety of sources and call it their own. That’s part of why I found this book refreshing. It is clear that the author has walked the talk. The author is undoubtedly well experienced with the keto diet and offers a lot of personal tips and suggestions.
The book starts by defining what the keto diet actually is. For once in keto books, it very clearly defined in terms of percentages of macronutrients. The author even has an entire section of the book to help you figure out what that should look like in your own diet. The author also touches upon various topics that are important in keto, like the keto flu, exercise, and fasting. The author even broaches topics like when to stop certain practices like fasting and how to ease into the keto diet. The concept of meal planning is addressed, and the author does give a meal plan with lots of recipes to get you started. Most of these appear relatively simple, and I would imagine they come from the author’s own repertoire. There is a section at the end, following the recipes, about tracking your progress. Personally, I think that all the non-recipe and meal planning stuff should have been together at the beginning so that the book just could have ended with the meal planning and recipes, but this is a minor quibble. Compared to most of the keto books that I have read, this is the most detailed and will genuinely help out a beginner.
No More Terrible Dates by Kate O’Keeffe
Available at Amazon only
Free with Kindle Unlimited
No More Terrible Dates*
A Fun, Delicious Read
I was a big fan of the initial for Cozy Cottage Cafe series of romance books by this author. I just thought there was a lot of fun with quirky characters and sometimes zany circumstances. I wasn’t delighted as much by the first book of the spinoff High Tea series, but I have enjoyed the author’s works enough that I wanted to give this spinoff series a second chance. I am so glad I did, as I so enjoyed this installment of this relatively new series.
There was so much that I liked about this book. First, Darcy’s head is a great place to be because she can be insightful, silly, intense, and all manner of things depending on the circumstances. Where men are concerned, she can certainly leap FAST to enamored and thinking he’s “the one.” I absolutely adored the bad dates that she went on for this story. The reveal of the first one had me laughing out loud, and as it went on and on, it got even more amusing. Darcy works for a celebrity, an actress-turned-wellness guru in the style of Gwyneth Paltrow; that woman provides many humorous moments. She takes herself far too seriously, which is funny to both us and Darcy. I love the relationship between Darcy and the other women in the book. I think we all wish we had gal pals like that. Oh, and can I come eat at the Cozy Cottage Cafe? It just sounds so wonderful. Darcy’s relationship with Alex, the ultimate hero, has been fractious for years because of an incident in their past, one that left a mark on her but one that he doesn’t even remember. That seems so true to real life. Can she get past this issue to truly appreciate the man he is now?
Highly recommended!
The Mountain’s Shadow by Cecilia Dominic
Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo, Google Play, Scribd, 24 Symbols, Mondadori, and Angus & Robertson
The Mountain's Shadow*
Pacing Off But Better Toward End
This is a quirky combination of paranormal urban fantasy and medical thriller. I felt like the pacing was a bit off. It started too slowly, spending much time on revealing background and slice-of-life moments rather than some good, gripping action. There is a lot going on in this book, so much so at times that it was difficult to keep everything and everybody straight. I particularly liked the science aspects of the story. While taking place in a fantastical setting, it still seems realistic. I thought that perhaps there was a little too much exposition, even though it was well done. I kept wanting more to happen in the first half, which is never good in a thriller. Still, I stuck with it, and I am glad I did as the pacing and action did pick up in the second half of the story.
Empire of Dragons box set by K. N. Lee
Available at Amazon only
NOT with Kindle Unlimited
Empire of Dragons*
Nice Fantasy Box Set
I so enjoy when authors put books of a series together in one volume so you can go from one to the next without having to purchase a separate book or wait. I don’t want to give away too much in talking about this since there are three books in this set. The first book did draw me in right away, both with what happened with Father Marduk and Amalia. Soon, her whole world shifted, and she was thrust into a world she wasn’t truly prepared for. The author set the stage for an epic fantasy series with all the required characters and then some: mages, dragons, wolves, and even gods who walk the Earth. I enjoyed the Norse mythology aspects of the story. For big-stage fantasy, these books are surprisingly short, but much happens in them to keep you turning the pages. It is such a fascinating world, though, that I found myself wishing for longer individual books. The pacing is good for the most part in all the books, although I did find the abrupt time shifts at times to be a bit jarring. All in all, though, I found this an engaging fantasy read.
Bring Me Back by Karen Booth
Available at Amazon only
Free with Kindle Unlimited
Bring Me Back*
Light Read, Little Substance
I’m not quite sure what to make of this book. On the one hand, I could identify with having that teenage crush on someone from a British band in the 80s. I am of a similar age of the heroine. But given the intervening life she led, as we all do, her reactions to meeting and interviewing that crush seemed immature. Seriously, a 40-year-old woman who has been a professional interviewer for a long time suddenly losing her ability to think or speak? Some situations were a little outlandish. I would call this fluffy, aging rockstar romance. I had hoped for a little more depth because both the hero and heroine were older and theoretically wiser. But that’s not what came across. If you don’t mind if your romances are a little on the shallow side, and perhaps a little unbelievable in both character and plot, you might enjoy this as simply a light read.
Nixie and the Healer by Ellen M. Bard
Available at Amazon, iBooks, Kobo, Scribd, 24 Symbols, Thalia, Mondadori, Angus & Robertson, Indigo (Chapters), and Bol.de
Nixie and the Healer*
Good Installment of Excellent Series
There are so many things to like about this series. I’ve read and enjoyed every book so far. Because the author has woven such a complex world with its own codes and laws, the books are really best read in order so that you can fully understand what is going on.
As a longtime student of the chakras, I absolutely adore how the author has incorporated the concept into this series. She’s made the bedrock for much in this world. But it makes so much sense in the way that she has ordered it, and it gives structure to both the characters and the plot. I love how this series, unlike others, really weaves in the characters from the previous books even though each book focuses on a new couple. The overarching ongoing plot regarding the prophecy, which is slowly being revealed, and all that must be done truly lays at the heart of each book. I love seeing more about how the lives of those characters already known are progressing and how they impact the next part of the story.
In terms of the two main characters in this installment, they are just about as opposite as they can be. However, that makes them complimentary. It was fascinating to watch Jeb grapple with his energies, especially the one that he did not identify with. Nixie was a hard character to like at first as she comes across as a bit shallow and only interested in superficial pursuits. But the author has done a fantastic job of creating a growth arc for her. She grows and changes so much in this book that in the end you cannot help but appreciate her growing strengths and core goodness, even if she is still somewhat immature. I look forward to finding out about the next couple and the next steps in this amazing journey.
Used To Build My Websites
NetGalley Badges