Fuzzy Nova

The Last Sacrifice by R. M. Putnam
Review by Jessa Larsen

Rosilda has been banished to the swamps and cut off from all civility for a past crime. She has been left there to live the remainder of her life along with her best friend Saba and her daughter Donait. She had previously been accustomed to the life and privileges of high court and thus spends her time wishing to return to such a life as well as wondering how her daughter will ever learn to be a proper lady. Donait has no such concerns and spends her time in the muddy swamp, catching frogs and treating them like baby dolls. Rosilda and Saba look on warily and begin to plot their revenge on the one who banished them to such a dreadful place.
Donait, much to her dismay as she rather likes her carefree life with her frogs, is given a very important role in Rosilda’s plans. She must be taught the ways of a proper lady and trained the ways of a murderer. Donait is given the most important role and when she succeeds, the three women can not only return to court, but claim the throne for themselves and rule as they please. The plan goes fairly smoothly until disaster befalls the trio. Donait finds herself in a whirlwind of trouble and things continue to spiral out of control. She must use her wits to survive and not allow her naivete and uncontrolled emotions get the best of her. Donait MUST succeed and carry out the plans if any of them are to survive the ordeal.
The Last Sacrifice is the second book in the Destiny’s Warriors series which follows the lives of ancient Irish people and includes sci-fy, mythology, and fantasy which happen to be my favorite genres. There are mortals and immortals, faeries, elves, warriors, bogeymen, and many others.The various characters are very fascinating and have a great complexity and depth to their personalities. You never know what their next decision and/or choice of action will be. I fell in love with each and every character in the book and can’t wait to see what’s going to happen to them next.
If you read The Last Sacrifice, get comfy and cancel all plans you might have as you won’t be able to put this book down. There are so many twists and turns and its is wonderfully written. I am now a big fan of R. M. Putnam and I’ll definitely be picking up her next copy as soon as it’s available. The Destiny’s Warriors series is a must read that everyone will love.

Originally posted on www.luxuryreading.com

Gemma by Meg Tilly
Review by Jessa Larsen

Gemma is the classic misfit. She comes from a broken home and gets by in school due to the fact that she’s known to throw a good punch if pushed too far. For the most part, Gemma finds it easiest to slide through life by being as invisible as possible. You see, Gemma has a dark secret that nobody must ever know about. She has something about her that invites her mother’s boyfriend to her bed every night. She can’t tell anyone or she’ll be in very big trouble. So it’s best if she stays invisible. That way nobody will ever ask any questions and risk hearing her dark secrets.
“Gemma” is the telling of a dark story that seems all too familiar these days. It tells the tale of a twelve year old girl who lives her life being physically and sexually abused. Her mother doesn’t stick around long enough at one time to care and mom’s boyfriend is around all too often for nightly visits to her bed. The tale turns even darker when her abuser takes it one step further and pimps her out. The pimp’n’ho lifestyle doesn’t last too long due to an even more unfortunate kidnapping. Who knows when the pain will end or if it will ever end well at all for poor Gemma.
This book seemed to be written in two parts. The first half of the book switches between the narrative of Gemma and the narrative of her abuser and kidnapper. This chronicles the tale of her abusive family at home as well as her kidnapping and what happens to her until eventually they’re found out and she’s taken into state custody. The second half of the book gives us the story of what happens to her kidnapper after his arrest as well as what happens to the victim. The second half isn’t as well written and rather slow, but I much preferred it to the first half. The first half is have interesting psychological insight and half what I would call erotica for pedophiles. I’ve read various books with this type of situation and they never went into as much detail. I had to skim a lot of the first half as it was disgustingly graphic. I have nothing against a good erotica, but when dealing with abusive pedophiles, I definitely don’t want the gritty details. The second half gets rid of the erotica, but gets a bit too slow and boring for my taste. I did enjoy the continued psychological insight of the abuser’s point of view and what he thought was going to happen to his life.
I would never recommend this book to anyone especially if you have any sore spots regarding traumatic abuse. I continually had to put the book down and walk away for a while due to the nature of its content. Various reviews from other readers and publishers stated that it was a great balance between abuse and a happy ending, but I would very much agree. I would never read this book again nor am I interested in reading anything else by this author.

Originally posted on www.luxuryreading.com

Freya’s Child by Alvin Franzmeier
Reviewed by Jessa Larsen

Albert Frietag lives in a quiet little town in Minnesota and as the deputy sheriff, it’s his job to keep it that way. Unfortunately, his past work as an undercover agent for the FBI has kept him a person of interest to both the FBI and the group of local Nazis he’d previously infiltrated. The FBI simply wants to keep an eye on him and recruit him as a field agent once he finishes his schooling, the Nazis have more dangerous work in mind. The local Nazi leader brings Albert back into the fold and gives him the task of working as a double agent for the FBI in order to rid the Nazis of competition as well as regain an artifact of interest. With war on the horizon for the United States, Albert now has to leave very pregnant wife and travel to northern Minnesota with an attractive German woman and try to keep the Nazis happy to keep his family safe as well as do what he should as an officer of the law.
Albert soon finds that things are not quite as clear cut as he had previously been thinking. It turns out that the woman he is to meet is named Hulda and she, as well as some of the German Nazis, believe in the Old Norse Gods. Albert finds himself feeling more and more unclear about the tasks at hand and whether or not it is all real when Hulda spins tale after tale of the Old Gods as well as the agenda of the Aryan nation. The job takes a dangerous turn when Hulda reveals that she believes the goddess Freya will manifest herself in human form and the form she has chosen is none other than Albert’s soon to be born daughter. Albert must makes some quick decisions and try his best to outsmart the witch-like Hulda to keep him and his family safe before it’s too late.
Freya’s Child is the third book in The Spiral Bridge Mystery Series and I would suggest reading the first two before picking up Freya’s Child. You can pick up the story just fine, but I found myself wondering about past events and wishing I’d read them so I would know a little more about how the characters got where they were. The story is fairly interesting, but it doesn’t have as nice of a flow as I would prefer. Hulda goes on a lot of tangents about Norse mythology and the Old Gods as to explain her beliefs and actions to Albert. She believes herself to be a high priestess and believes that the Gods speak with her and have give her tasks to carry oit personally. The background information is helpful, but I felt it just went on and on and disrupted the flow of the main story. The story also ended a bit abruptly for my taste.
I did enjoy Freya’s Child, but as I mentioned before, I would recommend reading the previous books in the series before picking up this one. I am also curious as to whether or not a fourth book will be published. It would be interesting to see how the events in this book play out and what happens to Albert and his family. Is he going to join the FBI full time? Is Hulda going to be captured? Will the Nazis realize Albert’s true goals and be angry about it? What will happen when the United States join the war? I guess I’ll have to hold my breath and wait for the next book.

Jessa lives in Utah with her husband, 2 sons, 2 cats, and 3 dogs. She is a full time mom and likes to blog and write short stories and poem in her spare time. She also likes anime and reading books and playing video games.

*Freya’s Child was a free review copy given to read and review.
Originally posted on www.luxuryreading.com

Countess of Scandal by Laurel McKee
Review by Jessa Larsen

In the beginning, Eliza Blacknell and William Denton enjoy the luxuries of youth and indulge in frivolous puppy love. The two constantly steal time together as well as innocent kisses. The two children don’t look further than the present and swear the loyalty of friendship that young children do. Soon they find that as they age and mature, they must fulfill duties to their family and their countries which lead Eliza and William into completely separate directions. Eliza is married off to become a proper Irish countess and William leaves for England to join the military.
Years later, Eliza is a widowed Countess and William has become a major in the military. William has returned to Ireland to quell the uprising natives and Eliza has joined the rebel cause to bring back the truth and simplicity which is Ireland. The two meet up and wishfully dream of their innocent childhood where things were simple and carefree, but of course they cannot realistically return to that time in life. Eliza finds that she still loves William, but she is torn between what she believes to be right and what William stands for as well as the reason he is back in Ireland to begin with. Both William and Eliza are confused as well as full of lust for each other, but can their lustful reunion ever blossom into something more meaningful, or will the war in Ireland be the death of them all?
Countess of Scandal is primarily a typical romance novel. There is the action and suspense of an uprising and beginnings of a war, but we are constantly brought back to the struggle of our main characters and their inability to deny the lust as well as love they have for each other. They are stubbornly firm about the stance they have taken during these times in their country, but are constantly confused and rethinking their beliefs. (I will warn you; if you’re squeamish about sex scenes, this book is not for you. This is a romance novel after all and there’s plenty of “romance”. )
Laurel McKee is an excellent author and blended her romance and action well. You really get to know each of the characters and can really feel for them. This is a book you won’t want to put down and you’ll find yourself wishing the best for Eliza and William. The characters are so lovable, you can’t help crossing your fingers for the two in hopes that things will work out and they will at last be able to stay together forever and fulfill their childhood dreams.

Jessa lives in Utah with her husband, 2 sons, 2 cats, and 2 dogs. She goes to school full time as an English major with a focus in creative writing. She likes anime and reads books and plays video games in her moments of spare time.

Originally posted on www.luxuryreading.com

Strange Neighbors by Ashlyn Chase

Merry MacKenzie is a 25 year old nurse who has just moved out of her family home in Rhode Island to live the single life in the big city of Boston. She moves into what seems to be the picture perfect apartment and things only appear sweeter when she meets hunky landlord Jason Falco. The scene immediately gets more complicated when she turns down what she thought was going to be a carefree single life to immediately start dating said gorgeous landlord who happens to also be a star baseball player.
Merry’s new life gets even more interesting when she runs into the rest of the tenants. There’s Jason’s nosy aunt, his laidback uncle who does maintenance, the broody mortician, a mysterious Nordic looking man, two sexy ladies who seem to have a very enthusiastic relationship with each other, and the strange man who doesn’t seem to live there, but hangs out on the property at most times. Is Merry’s seemingly picture perfect life too good to be true, or is there more than meets the eye?
Strange Neighbors is the first book I’ve heard from Ashlyn Chase, but when I did a little more research, it turns out she’s fairly well known for her more erotic writing. Strange Neighbors definitely has some juicy love scenes, but I assume it’s tamer than her usual style of writing. I really enjoyed all the paranormal activity she included in the characters and story line as well as her twist to a well known government conspiracy. I didn’t particularly like the fact that she made the two main characters, Merry and Jason, so very love-y dove-y and perfect. Whenever a chance came to get a really good climatic moment, it fixed the situation much too quickly.
I also wish she’d kept the story focused on Jason’s unique situation and kept the conspiracy story for a sequel. That way we could’ve gone into more detail in either story and gone into more detail. The book is a uncorrected release as well and I noticed that on the back as well as on Ashlyn’s personal website, there are a few teasing tidbits that turn out not to match the other story.
I did enjoy the book over all and greatly hope that more books are added to make this a series. There are definitely great possibilities for intriguing storylines with the other characters. I would love to know more about various characters, what their stories are, and where they end up. I would also like to know how Merry & Jason’s relationship turns out. I will be keeping my eye on further titles from Ashlyn Chase with the possibility of grabbing a few other books from her existing sets.

Jessa lives in Utah with her husband, 2 sons, 2 cats, and 3 dogs. She is a full time mom and likes to blog and write short stories and poem in her spare time. She also likes anime and reading books and playing video games.

Originally posted on www.luxuryreading.com

Five Finger Fiction by Brooks Sigler

Lila O’Farrell is merely one small voice in the collective choir that makes up her large Irish Catholic family. Her mother is the tyrannical monarch, her father the quiet peeping tom, her sister the mute sheep merely following the herd. And that’s only her immediate family. Lila’s extended family makes up the half the town she lives in and nothing she does can escape the all-seeing eye that is her mother. Well, almost nothing. Rather than turning to things like sex, drugs, and rock’n’roll, Lila has become a full fledged kleptomaniac. The objects don’t need to be of particular value, just easily slipped into a purse, bag, or pocket.

Lila’s story takes her from 6th grade where she attends a private catholic school, to a public high school with cousins around every corner and an aunt as the principal, to college where the only connection to home is an old classmate from catholic school. We watch as Lila discovers herself and slowly learns to extract herself from her mother’s controlling claws. When times get tough though, Lila’s tendency to knick small items resurfaces. Her roommates in college don’t help either; rather instead encourage her by giving her a list of items graded by difficultly. The only one who seems to be able to help in anyway may turn out to be the most unlikely person of them all.

Brooks Sigler writes the book as a combination of flashbacks and regular narrative. We are told the story from 6th grade on up to adulthood where Lila is engaged and ready to get married. Every couple of chapters is brings us back to the present where Lila is engaged to be married and trying to deal with her mother while fighting the old urge to steal insignificant items just for the sake of stealing them. It’s very interesting to continue following the narration of her life and slowly coming to the realization of exactly who the fiancé is and why he is significant to Lila’s life story.

My main complaint with Five Finger Fiction is the lack of depth given to the sub-characters. It would have been nice to get a little more insight on various members of the immediate family. I would’ve enjoyed seeing a little more climactic action as well. I didn’t feel like enough action or depth was given to the few climaxes. I still enjoyed Five Finger Fiction and seeing how Lila dealt with the hardships that came her way. It is a short book, but a good read despite its few shortcomings.

Originally posted on LuxuryReading.com

Angel and Apostle by Deborah Noyes

“Angel and Apostle” continues the story of Hester Prynne from “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathanial Hawthorne. Because it is written so much later and by a different author, it is considered a companion book rather than a true sequel.

We follow the story of Hester’s daughter named Pearl. Born out of wedlock to the sinful adultress mother, she is not accepted by the Puritan community. Rumors have it that she is truly the spawn of satan as her father’s name was never made public. Hester can’t seem to rise above the depression her life has sunk into and thus Pearl is allowed to run wild without any proper training. Eventually she meets a blind boy named Simon. Simon has led a sheltered life due to his handicapped and is rather dark and gloomy sometimes. Pearl has met the first person that hasn’t shunned and bullied her and is determined to explain the beauty of the world she can see around here to her new dear friend Simon. Eventually, Simon’s family learns of Pearl and they are perfectly aware of who she is. Simon and his family are going to return to London and have nothing more to do with Pearl and her tainted aura. To Pearl’s delight, her mother wishes to leave Puritan Boston as well and soon everyone is on the same ship and heading back to London.

To understand this story, it helps to know history of “The Scarlet Letter” as well as know the mindset of the religious settlers who first came to the Americas. It was expected of the public to behave a certain way and to disobey was tragic. Hester was known as an adultress who seduced a poor man and had a baby out of wedlock. She must wear a sign to let everyone know who she is and what she did. By extension, her child is no better, but perhaps even worse. We watch the community shun Pearl and her mother and watch how both people choose to deal with their situation.

This book was much easier to read than the first by Nathanial Hawthorne. Deborah Noyes keeps with the era and writes with a style that suits it well, but is easy to understand and follow. I loved each character and felt for each of them. I read with much anticipation to see if Pearl would eventually escape the life her mother birthed her into or if she would give up and accept it as life with a mute depression as her mother did.

I think we were all required to read “The Scarlet Letter” in school and probably hated it, but I would very much recommend picking up a copy of “Angel and Apostle”. I think you will be surprised at how much you enjoy reading it. In fact, you might even like it enough to be tempted to go back and re-read “The Scarlet Letter”. Okay, maybe not, but this book was well written and a great read.

Originally posted on LuxuryReading.com

Crank by Ellen Hopkins

Kristina is the perfect daughter and perfect student. She has the perfect life. She’s a good church going 4.0 student. Then she decides to meet withe her dead-beat dad who ran off years ago. Little does she know, this visit will change her life forever. While visiting her father, she is introduced to the monster. The monster who despite Kristina’s supposed strength, sinks his claws into her skin and follows her back home where it can infiltrate her perfect life. The monster doesn’t care who or what he destroys as long as Kristrina doesn’t ignore him for too long. Kristina begins to devote her life to the monster whether she wants to or not at the moment. She needs him by her side to function. She ditches her friends, her family, her grades, her everything. The only thing that matters is getting to spend some time with her new BFF. Unfortunately for Kristina, the monster has other BFFs and they aren’t too kind. Kristina experiences some rough encounters and ends up pregnant. Who will come first? The baby? The monster? I think we know despite the best intentions who will win the tug of war for her affections and attentions. We can only hope that he will be okay despite his mother’s negligence and hope that someone in her life will have faith and never give up on what looks like a hopeless case.

IMO (In My Opinion): EXCELLENT book. I suggest buying this and anything else written by Ellen Hopkins.

Director: Scott Stewart

Famous Faces: Paul Bettany, Lucas Black, Tyrese Gibson, Dennis Quaid

Plot Summary: God has lost all hope in humankind and thus the apocalypse has begun. Will we survive or is the Earth to be cleansed of God’s previously most cherished creation?

My Personal Opinion: This wasn’t QUITE what I was expecting from what I’d seen in the trailers, but I actually quite enjoyed it. I was a bit disappointed in the very end, but at least I enjoyed the journey there. The archangel Michael has disobeyed God’s direct orders and thus fallen from grace and is now holed up in the middle of nowhere with a group of strangers where they must try to survive the coming apocalypse. This isn’t completely full of weird possessed demons as I originally thought it would be, but I did rather enjoy what they did with the demons that did show up. The visuals and imagery were amazing and actually gave me chills. A tidbit I found interesting: the angels still in God’s good graces…. wear collars. My favorite quote of the movie was when the daughter asked her mother what had happened to her merciful God that had caused him to become so angry with his children, the mother replies “I don’t know, maybe he just got tired of all the bullshit.”

Final Grade: A-

Theater/Rent/Own: I’d have a very tough time deciding if I want to rent or own this one. (I don’t own very many to tell you the truth.) I definitely really liked it though.

I didn’t want to write up an entire official review for each book as I thought I’d keep it short and sweet and didn’t feel like dedicated an individual post for each. Here are some books I’ve read recently and a quick review of each.

The Black Tattoo
By: Sam Enthoven
Summary: A demon from hell wants to awaken the creator of everything which will result in complete and utter destruction. Sam, Esme, and Charlie are pulled into the action and must choose sides to either aid or defeat the demon and decide the fate of the human race.
Review: It’s a well written and interesting read. What I found the most interesting was their take on hell and the creation and the fact that some of the names given to demons are actual names of gods from various cultures. I’d recommend it.
Buy or Borrow: Buy

Cravings
4 Stories By: Laurell K Hamilton, MaryJanice Davidson, Eileen Wilks, and Rebecca York
Review: I enjoyed the book, but was disappointed by Hamilton’s contribution. I’m not sure if the other three stories can be bought in other books, but Hamilton’s contribution can be found in one of her actual novels. The story she put in here takes up 1-3 chapters of one of her Anita Blake books. I liked the book, but if I could buy the 4 books separately and get fuller stories from each author then I’d do that instead.
Buy or Borrow: Buy

Never After
4 Stories By: Laurell K Hamilton, Yasmine Galenhorn, Marjorie M Liu, and Sharon Shinn
Review: Thsi is actually sent out with a label “Great Read Guarenteed or full Refund” which I found rather interesting. I liked it well enough that I wouldn’t bother sending it back, but I liked Cravings better.
Buy or Borrow: Borrow

Death of a Darklord
By: Laurell K Hamilton
Summary: In a land that seems to be cursed by evil, a group of well-doers set out to fight and destroy it. Each member learns more about themselves as the journey tests their strength and character.
Review: This is actually part of series called “Ravenloft of the Covenant” of which each book is written by a different author. Unfortunately I’ve never been able to find the other books. I love this one though and would love to see what the other books have in store for me. I would particurlarly love to see what becomes of a character named Ellaine.
Buy or Borrow: Buy!