Rebirth of the Gangster #6: Dennis by CJ Standal and Juan Romera (Review)

Genre: Crime, Comic
Publisher: C.J. Standal Productions
Publication Date: June 26, 2017
Format: PDF
Pages: 24
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About the Book

“Meet the Family”, Rebirth of the Gangster’s first story arc, comes to an explosive close!

Sick of being the victim, Marcus finally decides to take matters into his own hands.

Andrea is getting antsy in her role as a trophy wife.

Linda must deal with the fallout of her relapse from the last issue.

Lorena continues her investigation into Hunter, talking to an unexpected informant.

Dennis, an old friend of Hunter’s, gets out on parole and tries to walk the straight and narrow, but faces a fork in the road when he runs into Hunter again.

And Hunter is about to escalate his plans for revenge: there will be no turning back from his actions as someone pays the ultimate price!

My Rating

My Review

I received this comic from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Well damn, this was an entirely different issue than the first five, for sure.

So it is becoming more obvious that Hunter is very dangerous. Whether he is a criminal or not, that boy has vengeance on the mind.

Although this focused on meeting a particular character, Dennis; what stuck out to me the most was how oblivious Marcus is to his new “friend” Hunter. Despite Marcus’ parent’s trying to prevent him from destruction.

Looking forward to more issues!

Where to Buy

Amazon CAN | Amazon US | B&N

About the Author

I love writing in all sorts of playgrounds: Rebirth of the Gangsters  is my first comic book, and I’ve been published by Slant magazine: https://www.slantnews.com/user/cj.standal

You can also find me on Philip Smith’s site promoting indie authors:
http://www.philipsmith.eu/kindle-ebook/rebirth-gangster-meet-family-marcus

I’m also a high school English teacher: next year I’ll be teaching a graphic novel course; in the past, I’ve taught a hip-hop course; and I educate the youth about other valuable things, like Shakespeare.

Thanks,
CJ.

Titanborn by Rhett C. Bruno (Review)

 
Genre: Science Fiction, Thriller
Publisher: Hydra
Publication Date: June 21, 2016
Pages: 201
Format: Mobi
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About the Book

In this gritty and innovative science-fiction thriller in the vein of Philip K. Dick’s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, turmoil on one of Saturn’s moons rattles Earth’s most powerful citizens—and draws one planet-hopping rogue into a fight he never saw coming.

Malcolm Graves lives by two rules: finish the job, and get paid. After thirty years as a collector, chasing bounties and extinguishing rebellions throughout the solar system, Malcolm does what he’s told, takes what he’s earned, and leaves the questions to someone else—especially when it comes to the affairs of offworlders.

But his latest mission doesn’t afford him that luxury. After a high-profile bombing on Earth, the men who sign Malcolm’s paychecks are clamoring for answers. Before he can object, the corporation teams him up with a strange new partner who’s more interested in statistics than instinct and ships them both off to Titan, the disputed moon where humans have been living for centuries. Their assignment is to hunt down a group of extremists: Titanborn dissidents who will go to any length to free their home from the tyranny of Earth.

Heading into hostile territory, Malcolm will have to use everything he’s learned to stay alive. But he soon realizes that the situation on the ground is much more complex than he anticipated . . . and much more personal. (via Goodreads.)

My Rating

4.85 Stars

My Review

I received this eBook from the author in exchange for an honest review.

This, as a total science fiction nerd, was a wonderful mashup Captain Mal and Jayne from Firefly, BladeRunner and a little of Mad Max mushed in to add interest. Especially with Earthian’s surviving after a meteorite strike.

The one thing made very prominent by the storyline is how much the alien species was displaced on Saturn. Ringers, as they were called. Humans had arrived to build colonies and gather gases from the rings of Saturn. In doing so, Humans displaced the alien species already living there and spread their illnesses to the species. The Ringer’s seemed to have a very low immunity to human illness. Which is what happened when settlers encountered the Native American’s.
But also, with the way that the world is going right now, this also struck a cord. The feelings from the immigrants and from the countries accepting immigrants was seen in this novel as well.
I do always enjoy when current events can ring true and loud involving stories.

Malcolm is truly the anti-hero. He is a true bounty hunter and rarely cared about anyone except doing his job and getting paid. Except maybe his daughter, who is considered illegitimate, because she was born outside of a human colony.

Then add in the almost cyborg Zhaff (who is actually human) to the mix and you have an interesting team. Especially with Zhaff’s very to the letter way of doing things and annoying everyone in the vincinity. I was pretty sure Malcolm’s eyeballs were going to roll out of his head. It was truly comedic at times.

But that ending! Come on! Now I need to see where the story goes! Sigh.

Where to Buy

Amazon CAN | Amazon US | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

About the Author

Rhett is a Sci-fi/Fantasy author currently living in Stamford, Connecticut. He is represented by Dystel & Goderich out of NYC and his published works include books in the Amazon Bestselling CIRCUIT SERIES (Published by Diversion Books) and TITANBORN SERIES (Random House Hydra). He is also one of the founders of the popular science fiction platform, Sci-Fi Bridge.

Rhett has been writing since he can remember, scribbling down what he thought were epic short stories when he was young to show to his friends and family. When he reached high school he decided to take that a step further and write his first novel. After the encouragement of his favorite English teacher, he decided to self-publish the “Isinda Trilogy” so that the people closest to him could enjoy his early work.

While studying architecture at Syracuse University, he continued to write as much as he could, but finding the time during the brutal curriculum proved difficult. It wasn’t until he was a senior that he decided to finally pursue his passion for Science Fiction. After rededicating himself to reading works of the Science Fiction authors he always loved, (Frank Herbert, Timothy Zahn, Heinlein, etc.) he began writing “The Circuit: Executor Rising”, the first part of a space opera series.

Since then he’s been hired by an Architecture firm in South Norwalk, CT. But that hasn’t stopped him from continuing to work on all of the countless stories bouncing around in his head. He’s also recently earned  a Certificate in Screenwriting from the New School in NYC, in the hopes of one day writing for TV or Video Games.

Connect with Rhett

Website | Goodreads | Twitter

 

Static Mayhem by Edward Aubry (Review)

Genre: Dystopian, Sci-Fi, Fantasy
Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press
Publication Date: July 25, 2017
Format: ePub
Pages: 303
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About the Book

A year after the world was thrown into magical chaos, Harrison Cody takes part in an expedition to learn the cause. What his team finds is an unfathomable enemy, who intends to finish what was started and wipe out every remaining survivor. Harrison is the key to stopping it, but doing so will come with an unbelievable sacrifice, one he might not be willing to make.

My Rating

4.50

My Interview

I received this eBook from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review.

After reading “Prelude to Mayhem”, I couldn’t wait to delve back into New Chicago, to see where Dorothy, Mitchell, Harrison and especially Glimmer are in their adventure of finding each other, and settling into their new roles.

However, this story had less of Dorothy’s point of view and it focused more on Harrison and Glimmer, and this new adventure that they take with the New Chicago team.

Harrison, while kind-hearted and well-meaning, he is a little bit clueless. Although he tends to be really aware of how people perceive him and Glimmer, which is adorable watching them defend their relationship.
I did notice that Harrison had some oblivious insensitivities going on. But many of the characters, especially Apryl, had no problem pointing out he was being a giant jerk to people.

I love Glimmer. Seriously. Because she is so full of snark, insane intelligence and she gives her whole heart to everything and everyone.

But ugh, this book gave me so many feels! Bring some tissues, you might need them.

Where to Buy

Amazon CAN | Amazon US | B&N

About the Author

Edward Aubry is a graduate of Wesleyan University, with a degree in music composition. Improbably, this preceded a career as a teacher of high school mathematics and creative writing.

Over the last few years, he has gradually transitioned from being a teacher who writes novels on the side to a novelist who teaches to support his family. He is also a poet, his sole published work in that form being the sixteen stanza “The History of Mathematics.”

He now lives in rural Pennsylvania with his wife and three spectacular daughters, where he fills his non-teaching hours spinning tales of time-travel, wise-cracking pixies, and an assortment of other impossible things.

Connect with Edward

Curiosity Quills Press | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter

 

The Smallest Thing Blog Tour

Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult
Publisher: Steel Rose Press
Publication date: July 18th 2017
Pages: 272
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About the Book

The very last thing 17-year-old Emmott Syddall wants is to turn out like her dad. She’s descended from ten generations who never left their dull English village, and there’s no way she’s going to waste a perfectly good life that way. She’s moving to London and she swears she is never coming back.

But when the unexplained deaths of her neighbors force the government to quarantine the village, Em learns what it truly means to be trapped. Now, she must choose. Will she pursue her desire for freedom, at all costs, or do what’s best for the people she loves: her dad, her best friend Deb, and, to her surprise, the mysterious man in the HAZMAT suit?

Inspired by the historical story of the plague village of Eyam, this contemporary tale of friendship, community, and impossible love weaves the horrors of recent news headlines with the intimate details of how it feels to become an adult—and fall in love—in the midst of tragedy.

My Review

I received this eBook from the Tour Organizer and Author in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this. I’m from a small town, so I know that urge to escape and become more than a repeat of history.

Emmott, what a really unique name too! Like all teenagers, she has this grand dream of wanting to break free and spread her wings, much to the disappointment of her father. But as she builds on this plan of going to London and renting her first flat with her boyfriend, an unexpected quarantine locks her in the very village she is trying to escape and destroys all of that. Although she does try to break the quarantine.

In this, she learns about family secrets, how much she loves and respects her father, betrayal, significant loss but despite all that, she also learns about hope and love where she least expected it.

I prolonged this book because I honestly did not want to end. It was a great story and in it, you see Emmott grow and become wiser than her years. I definitely hope to read more by this author.

Where to Buy

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Kobo / iBooks

 

About the Author

Lisa Manterfield is the award-winning author of I’m Taking My Eggs and Going Home: How One Woman Dared to Say No to Motherhood. Her work has appeared in The Saturday Evening Post, Los Angeles Times, and Psychology Today. Originally from northern England, she now lives in Southern California with her husband and over-indulged cat. A Strange Companion is her first novel. Learn more at LisaManterfield.com.

Connect with Lisa

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

 

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Coyote by David L. Foster (Review)

Genre: Science Fiction, Horror, Post-Apocalyptic
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: March 6, 2016
Pages: 249
Format: ePub
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About the Book

In the territory formerly known as America, a young woman is one of the few to survive the destruction of twenty-first-century civilization. Now she must live through the aftermath of the tragedy known only as the Fall. In a world where technology no longer functions, where most people have disappeared, and where creatures of nightmare roam free, can her strength and determination keep her alive? And could the characteristics that kept her so isolated in the past now become advantages?

This is the situation in which Coyote finds herself, and these volumes chronicle her transition from a teen unable to fit in with society to the hero responsible for saving what remained of humanity.

Many may have heard, in full or in part, the story of Coyote and her companions as they struggled to bring human civilization back from the ashes of destruction so many years ago. But here we have the story told in the words of the original sources—the heroine and her companions themselves. This first volume of the Tales of Coyote recounts the early stages of Coyote’s journey across a newly devastated land as well as the early stages of her journey from isolated teen to leader of the survivors whose names are legend to us now.

The accounts presented here, written independently by Coyote and her companions and posthumously published, have now been brought together for the first time—woven to give the reader a new depth and insight into the story of Coyote. It is the story of all humanity’s struggle for survival and freedom after the Fall.

My Rating

4.75

Review

I received this eBook from the author in exchange for an honest review.

At first, I wasn’t really sure what to make of this novel. The main character, who is clearly in her mid-teens, often refers to herself in the third person. Which can be a little off putting at first.

However, do not let that deter you from you reading this novel because it was one of the best post-apocalyptic stories I have read in a really long time. Mainly because it didn’t deal with the typical apocalypse. I’m not sure where these mutated bug things came from but that spider isn’t for the faint of heart!

She, or Coyote as she is nicknamed because she’s borderline feral, is someone who isn’t really a people person, by any means. She spends her early life trying to avoid emotional connections to people, and with the Fall, she ends up being a leader of a rag-tag group, including a dog aptly named Dog.

I definitely enjoyed the connection Coyote had with the dog. They understood each other, defended one another and it was clear she and Dog had a deep connection.

“Suddenly that joy needed to come forth. She yelled, she cried, she howled. It was a combination of exhaustion and exultation, mixing together in a roar that burst from her lungs, giving voice to the storm within. The dog joined her, raising its own voice in the same song of its distant ancestors had sung over their own kills. The others looked on, all slumped against the walls, not understanding. But it did not matter. She understood. She and the dog.”

Coyote and the group (Bait, Mule, Medic, Professor and Beast) fumble around this new world trying to find a purpose other than just basic survival. In it, they found friendship and family. I definitely cannot wait to read more about Coyote!

Where to Buy

Amazon CAN | Amazon US

About the Author

David L. Foster is the author of over thirty New York Times bestsellers, including…

Wait, no. That’s somebody else. My ego is smaller than that opening statement, and so are my accomplishments. I’m a pretty average person with a day job and a family, a house and a dog, living in the suburbs of Portland, Oregon.

Everyone has something that makes them a little bit unique, though, right? For me, it’s my obsession with books. I read one or two books each week, reading while drifting off to sleep, while eating lunch, while waiting in the parking lot for the kids to come out of school… you know—a lot.

Not only does this make for a pricey habit, buying all these books, but it leaves me thinking about characters and stories all the time. Some of these characters and stories even get written down.

So that’s me: a guy with a bit of a book obsession who likes to write stories. Just by the fact that you’re here, reading this, I’m guessing that you like to read stories. Maybe we can help each other out.

Connect with David

Website | Goodreads | Amazon

 

 

Incantations by Erik Straker

 
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Publisher: Dark Wonderland Publishing
Publication Date: February 29, 2016
Pages: 186 pages
Format: ePub
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About the Book

She called for her sister…
Someone else answered.
Sisters Angela and Lillian Tremblay return to Summerhaven, New Hampshire, after sixteen years away, ready to face the secrets and half-forgotten memories from their childhood.

One winter’s day, Angela finds Lillian dead in the basement of their family home. The police are convinced it’s a suicide, but the town’s residents know better. The house once belonged to an ancient woman who killed children and bathed in their blood. A woman known as the Summerhaven Witch.

When a local woman with psychic abilities connects Angela’s past to her present, the truth threatens to push Angela over the edge.

Memories can scar. Secrets can kill.

The only thing left is for Angela to speak the words that will allow her to talk with the dead.

She must speak the incantations.

My Rating

My Review

I received this eBook from the author in exchange for an honest review.

All I can say is wow. Wow, this was totally worth the sleepless night. It wasn’t really a book that I could put down if I wanted to. It begged me to finish it.

Every character, even minor characters, were incredibly well developed and complex. Each character had its own story and reason for being in the main story itself. But for me, it was the psychic Viviana, Angela and the Summerhaven Witch that stood out the most.

You know those stories and movies where the house is the culprit, this was very similar although it was the ghost of the witch who was causing it. The house just seemed to suck up the bad energy and hold it within its walls.

When I think of the witch, I think of “The Conjuring” and the witch in that. Both were equally terrifying and their living energy and dead energy they left in the two houses.
But the Summerhaven Witch was terrifying in her ability to make people do things they normally wouldn’t like Lillian committing suicide.

“The sound of footsteps came to her, sharp and clear, from upstairs. She moved to the left enough to see up the stairs and through the rungs of the banister. It was dark, but not too dark to see dirty jeans and work boots walk out of the shadows and come into view.

Angela’s heart jumped to her throat and lodged there, choking off any chance of a scream or a cry of surprise. Those jeans. Those work boots. They didn’t belong to just any guy. They belonged to a man who had been dead for sixteen years.

Father? Angela thought incoherently. Oh no, is it Father?” (page 77)

Angela was definitely the star of the show. She was tough and she didn’t let the witch or house win. She called for her sister and faced down what answered instead. Also, creepy basements. *Shudder*.

My only problem was the ending was strange. It didn’t really fit with the rest of the story itself. It did conclude that the story was written in a blog post format and a tale being told, but it just didn’t fit in with the energy of the story.

But either way, I am looking forward to reading more by Erik Straker in the future!

Where to Buy

Amazon CAN | Amazon US | Alibris | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble

About the Author

Erik Straker was born in South Carolina in 1977. A rich Southern history full of ghosts and haunts has served as inspiration ever since.

He is the author of the dark poetry collection Fairy Tale Destruction as well as the novelette, Incantations. He writes mostly in the horror and dark fantasy genres.

Erik went to film school for a number of years and applies what he learned about film to his writing, using a predominantly visual style. Coming from a background of film and art, Erik has other projects in the works besides just his future novels. Graphic novels, short films, music albums and other artistic endeavors are completely up for grabs.

His dismal world views are ever-present throughout his art and writing. Despite this, he is a fairly normal guy who loves comedy as much as horror and is not at all “Goth” or “Emo.”

Writing is his full-time love, and he works to perfect his craft every day. When not writing, he enjoys comic books, movies, music, and family time.

Erik lives in the Western Maryland area.

Connect with Erik

Website | Amazon | Goodreads | Twitter

Organic by Jadah McCoy

 
Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopian
Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press
Publication Date: June 13, 2017
Pages: 157
Format: ePub
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About the Book

Jadah McCoy’s ORGANIC pitched as Bladerunner meets Pitch Black, in which 18-year-old Syl has barely survived the genetic splicing that plagued her human body. After discovering the androids’ plot to wipe out human and Cull alike, Syl must return to Elite to warn the other survivors. However, with the realization that her group of survivors isn’t the only one, also comes the realization that some humans are just as bad as androids. Bastion and Syl grow closer, however, their relationship suffers under the weight of her past ghosts and a growing threat that endangers human and android alike.

My Rating

4.75 Stars

My Review

I received this eBook from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

There is no doubt that I have added Jadah McCoy to my list of favourite authors. I am so excited to see where she takes Syl and Bastion from here.

Second books get such a bad rap, especially as they are the middle filler. So there can be this awkward lull between the three books.
While Organic was a little more subdued than Artificial was, it didn’t take away from the story itself.

Syl is a lot more emotional in this. Artificial, she was duty bound to her people and stayed pretty level headed but in Organic she was a lot more all over the place. But then again, who wouldn’t after dying and having your living mind uploaded into an artificial mind. She retains so much of her humanity and seems to forget she isn’t human anymore. Which was plainly obvious when she and Bastion found Blalock’s gang.
Also, as androids do not dream, the fact that she dreams when she is to shut down shows how much of her humanity remains.

I enjoyed watching Bastion open up and gain his Glitch stripes. Before he was cautious and didn’t really reveal much about himself, but with Syl, he bloomed and even tried cracking a few jokes. It’s clear how important Syl is to him.

It was great to see more of the world that Ms. McCoy has built. Kepler seems to resemble Earth in many ways but way, way more endless desert. Much of the book is Syl and Bastion travelling through these different biomes, so it was interesting to see the planet and the world around them.

Holy cliffhanger batman! Seriously. It was getting good and then BAM! Ended. I was never so disappointed in a cliffhanger in my life. Then the book hangover. Oh, the woes!

Either way, it entices me to keep reading and I can’t wait to see what happens next!

Where to Buy

Amazon CAN | Amazon US | Chapters | Barnes & Noble

About the Author

Jadah currently lives in Nashville, TN and works as a legal coordinator. When not babysitting attorneys, she can be found juicing her brain for creative ideas or fantasizing about her next trip out of the country (or about Tom Hiddleston as Loki – it’s always a toss up when she fantasizes.)

She grew up in rural Arkansas, yet can still write good and sometimes even wears shoes! She did date her first cousin for a while but they decided against marriage for the sake of the gene pool.

Her true loves are elephants, cursing, and sangria – in that order. If you find an elephant that curses like a sailor whilst drinking sangria, you’re dangerously close to becoming her next romantic victim – er, partner.

She cut her writing teeth on badly written, hormone-driven fanfiction (be glad that’s out of her system), and her one true dream is to have wildly erotic fanfiction with dubious grammar written about her own novels. Please make her dreams come true.

Connect with Jadah

Curiosity Quills Press | Facebook | Website | Twitter | GoodReads

 

Blood Rush by Laura Diamond

Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopia
Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press
Publication Date: May 9, 2017
Pages: 255
Format: ePub
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About the Book

After escaping the long reach of the immortal Vie, seventeen-year-old Justin and human ex-slave Cara must face new challenges in the wilds outside the city wall. Dotted with pockets of hostile Anemie communities, the wilds are just as dangerous as the city. So when Cara is injured, Justin must seek help from the very group he wants to avoid.

On top of that, Alex—who promised to let Justin back in the city when the time was right to rescue his sister, Sammie—gets killed in the final Anemie raid, all televised and hosted by TV personality Vincent Marks. Footage from the explosion plays in Justin’s mind while he tries to balance keeping Cara safe, befriending sharpshooter Sparrow, and winning over the witch healer, Nauro, all while trying to figure out the Anemie leader, Lawton’s, secrets.

Turns out, there’s much more to the Anemies than Justin ever knew. They’ve found a way to trade their drug-like blood to addicted Vie in return for supplies. But the tenuous relationship shatters when Justin’s secret gets out—his blood can age the immortal Vie. It’s the weapon the Anemies’ leader, Lawton, has been waiting for, and he intends to use every last drop.

Lawton forces Justin to join him—or Cara will pay the price. Justin accepts Lawton’s terms, but the move brings Anemies and Vie closer to war.

My Rating

3.85

The Review

I received this eBook from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review.

In Blood Rush, Justin and Cara escape the city with the help of Alex before a mass raid and extermination of Anemie in the city.
Alex encourages them to seek out the freed slave settlement called Prospect, but Justin being Justin, he veers away and refuses to accept his role in the slow downfall of the Vie. This causes him, then, to be captured by Sparrow and her Anemie camp when Cara falls through a trap the camp had set.
This camp is run by an Anemie named Lawton who has grandiose ideas of taking down the Vie. Especially when Lawton finally see’s the video of what Justin’s blood does to the Vie, he is all for taking them down whether Justin wants to or not.

I do feel that the first book was a bit better, however Justin still gets on my nerves. I’m also remarkably surprised, still, that he is only 15! He seems so much more mature than 15. His suspiciousness of Alex certainly ages him.
Although after learning of why Alex is so interested in Sammie and especially in Justin, Justin still managed to get on my nerves. No matter what, trust (even minuscule) goes a long way over consistent paranoia.

Although it was sad, you do find out what happens to Sammie finally. It was one of the best things for the first and second books, to have Sammie being Justin’s main reason for continuing with Alex. There was such an emphasis on the importance of his sister, for both Justin and Alex.

I just hope that Justin, now, begins to trust Alex a bit more in the next book. Although the ending was abrupt and you’re unsure what is going to happen to them all, I do look forward to seeing where Ms. Diamond takes the group.

Where to Buy

Amazon CAN | Amazon US

About the Author

Laura Diamond is a board certified psychiatrist currently specializing in emergency psychiatry. She is also an author of all things young adult—both contemporary and paranormal. An avid fan of sci-fi, fantasy, and anything magical, she thrives on quirk, her lucid dreams, and coffee. When she’s not working or writing, she can be found sniffing books and drinking a latte at the bookstore or at home pondering renovations on her 225 year old fixer upper, all while obeying her feline overlords, of course.

Connect with Laura

Website | Twitter | GoodReads | Facebook

Artificial by Jadah McCoy

 
Genre: Dystopia, Science Fiction, New Adult
Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press
Publication Date: April 4, 2016
Pages: 226
Format: ePub
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She struggles to feel human.

In 2256, the only remnants of civilization on Earth’s first colonized planet, Kepler, are the plant-covered buildings and the nocturnal, genetically spliced bug-people nesting within them: the Cull. During the day, Syl leaves her home in the sewers beneath Elite City to scavenge for food, but at night the Cull come looking for a meal of their own. Syl thought gene splicing died with the Android War a century ago. She thought the bugs could be exterminated, Elite city rebuilt, and the population replenished. She’s wrong.

Whoever engineered the Cull isn’t done playing God. Syl is abducted and tortured in horrific experiments which result in her own DNA being spliced, slowly turning her into one of the bugs. Now she must find a cure and stop the person responsible before every remaining man, woman, and child on Kepler is transformed into the abomination they fear.

He struggles not to.

For Bastion, being an android in the sex industry isn’t so bad. Clubbing beneath the streets of New Elite by day and seducing the rich by night isn’t an altogether undesirable occupation. But every day a new android cadaver appears in the slum gutters, and each caved in metal skull and heap of mangled wires whittles away at him.

Glitches—androids with empathy—are being murdered, their models discontinued and strung up as a warning. Show emotion, you die. Good thing Bastion can keep a secret, or he would be the next body lining the street.

He can almost live with hiding his emotions. That is until a girl shows up in the slums—a human girl, who claims she was an experiment. And in New Elite, being a human is even worse than being a Glitch. Now Bastion must help the girl escape before he becomes victim to his too-human emotions, one way or another.

I received this eBook from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Sometimes, I read books. Sometimes I absolutely absorb books. This was one of those “absorb books” times. I couldn’t have stopped reading it even if I wanted to. The sleeplessness was worth it totally!

The one thing I enjoyed was the Glitches. Glitches are androids who develop human feelings. I was struck by the likeness of the “Glitches” from many pop culture human-like androids or robots. But the most human of all was how the Glitches were treated by their own kind. Human emotion comes with human-like decisions. By choosing to kill the Glitches and string their metal corpses up in a display of the defiance of the murdered androids, the emotionless androids were showing how human they really were.

I absolutely enjoyed the world building. It showed how the androids and the mutant bug-people called The Cull rule Kepler and that humans are the lowest of the low. Kepler is Earth’s first colonized planet. The androids seem to collect humans for enslavement and as pets. While the Cull are far more nefarious. If humans are caught outside after dark, then you’re at risk of running into these mutated humans and being dinner instead or liquid. Think Alien with the acid spit.

The connection between Syl and Bastion added the right amount of tension. Especially as Bastion began to realize how important the human Syl was becoming to him.

The villain reminded me of the flamboyant Caesar Flickerman from The Hunger Games, only robotic and far more evil.

I definitely recommend this to any other dystopian, science fiction nerds like myself! You’ll enjoy the ride.

Amazon CAN | Amazon US

 Jadah currently lives in Nashville, TN and works as a legal coordinator. When not babysitting attorneys, she can be found juicing her brain for creative ideas or fantasizing about her next trip out of the country (or about Tom Hiddleston as Loki – it’s always a toss up when she fantasizes.)

She grew up in rural Arkansas, yet can still write good and sometimes even wears shoes! She did date her first cousin for a while but they decided against marriage for the sake of the gene pool.

Her true loves are elephants, cursing, and sangria – in that order. If you find an elephant that curses like a sailor whilst drinking sangria, you’re dangerously close to becoming her next romantic victim – er, partner.

She cut her writing teeth on badly written, hormone-driven fanfiction (be glad that’s out of her system), and her one true dream is to have wildly erotic fanfiction with dubious grammar written about her own novels. Please make her dreams come true.

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Milk Teeth: Stories with Bite by Lizella Prescott

 
Genre: Fantasy, Fairy Tales
Publisher: Hungry Lizard Press
Publication Date: June 7, 2017
Pages: 58
Format: ePub
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A sorceress gets married and forgets her powers. A prince fears true love’s kiss. A little mermaid is hungry for something a little strange. A swamp witch takes a messy stand. All of these stories are new takes on classic tales, meandering down unlit paths only fit for monsters, fools, and the brave.

At 58 pages, this collection of 12 bite-sized tales can be consumed in a single sitting. Or read one story each night at bedtime, while you sip a cup of herbal tea.

 

I received this eBook from Book Review 22 in exchange for an honest review. 

I don’t know about you, dear reader, but I absolutely love retellings of fairy tales. Whether they’re full-length retellings or short and … sweet retellings.

The tales in this short book were all familiar tales that we grew up on. Some that have become simple with Disney but others remain in the pages of the more complex Brother’s Grimm Fairy Tales. Either way, they’re familiar. However, they’re not the tales you grew up with. Ms. Prescott gives the Brother’s Grimm a run for their money with her tales of witches planting milk teeth for the future to the Frog Prince who may actually fear True Loves Kiss and a Little Mermaid with interesting tastes. Familiar tales with new twists and incredible imagery!

What I really enjoyed was some of the tales had a more modern spin on them and faced some of the concepts that modern society faces. But at the same time, some stayed within the realms of fantasy.

Definitely try out this book if you are seeking a short read or like the synopsis said, spread it out each night and enjoy the tales.

Where to Buy

Amazon CAN | Amazon US

Lizella writes a dark and tasty blend of fantasy, suspense, and experimental short fiction. She’s also partial to epic poetry, Greek mythology, and anything Dystopian. You can read her work here.

When she’s not dreaming up new ways to torture fairy princesses, Lizella writes business journalism under a different pseudonym and tries to keep up with one husband, two kids, and four large dogs.

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