A Bookworm's Book Reviews

Spellbreaker Series – Charlie N. Holmberg

Titles: Book 1 – Spellbreaker, Book 2 – Spellmaker

Author: Charlie N. Holmberg

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult

Plot: Book 1 – Elsie Camden is a young woman working for stonemason, Cuthburt Ogden. Elsie is also secretly working for an organization called Cowl as an illegal spellbreaker. In Elsie’s world, if you have magic you’re either a spellmaker, someone who casts spells, or a spellbreaker, someone who undos spells. The magicians are registered with the government to ensure nothing gets out of hand. If a magician isn’t registered, they’ll be punished severely. Cowl sends Elsie to Kent to erase a spell that’s keeping servants locked up. Elsie gets caught by Bacchus Kelsey, a Master Magician and friend of owner of the house she was sneaking around. Mr. Kelsey says he won’t turn Elsie in for being an illegal spellbreaker if she works for him. Elsie agrees. When magicians start dying and their spell books, called opuses, disappearing, Mr. Kelsey and Elsie start investigating. But the world becomes more dangerous the closer they get. Can they find out who’s behind the murders? Or will they end up in the same situation?

Book 2 – Bacchus and Elsie have found out who’s behind the murders, but they’ve disappeared. Now everyone’s searching for the murderer. But she’s disappeared and left no trace. To make matter’s worse, Elsie’s illegal magical activities have been reported to the police. Bacchus tries everything to get her out of jail, even if it means rushing his plans to court and marry her. The chief officer agrees to release her, though he’s suspicious of Bacchus’ evidence. Not long after, they get word that the magician murderer is dead. But is that true? Is she really dead? Or did she fake her death? Can Bacchus and Elsie figure out the truth and stop it all before it’s too late?

Rating: 4.0 – a great fantasy with a well built magic system

Opinion: This was a great book. I really enjoyed the magic system. It was really well built. There was no information overload about the magic system, either. This book was a good balance between sappy romance, fantasy, and action. This was a good kind of sappy romance that doesn’t seem forced. It was a slow build that I prefer in books with romance. The series had a steady amount of action. There was also good planning on the character’s part. No one goes off the hinges with their emotions. While I don’t mind that once in a while, I’m glad none of these characters do. These characters do show their emotions, but they don’t let their emotions get the better of them. I’m glad I got to read both books straight through, too. The ending of the first book ended on a cliffhanger. It would have been agony for me to wait. The author ended the first book very well. This series is a great one for those who love fantasy and sappy romance.

Guest Post – Where Fire Falls

Thank you Jessica of Cedarbirch Musings for this book review.

Title: Where the Fire Falls – Vintage National Park Series

Author: Karen Barnett

Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Romance

Summary / Plot: Cascading spectacular firefall in a breathtaking nightview. Did you know that they used to have a traditional fire fall in Yosemite National Park? In Where the Fire Falls, Olivia is a hard working artist in the 1920’s responsible for her two younger sisters. Having cultivated a false persona of privilege and ease, her life was filled with art exhibits and shows for her agent. A firefall was not in her mind’s eye in a million years.

Until one day she is sent to paint travel art for a magazine spread of the very place she has avoided her entire life. Yosemite National Park, the scene of her dad’s escape from charges of murder and ultimate demise, is the last place she wants to be connected to. Will her carefully planned life crash down if she is discovered to be related to the infamous man? Is the debonnaire jet setter and his beautiful trophy wife who accompany her really friends or do they have ulterior motives? Who is the mysterious and handsome backcountry guide named Clark assigned to lead her through the park and why is she so drawn to him?

As she forces herself to see past her hidden secrets and capture the stunning beauty of Yosemite, she learns the hard way that not everyone is what they seem. Being swindled and maneuvered like a chess piece, she is confronted with the ultimate enemy blinded by greed. Finding herself deep in the forest as the hostage of a traitor, she must use her wits and hope that the quiet and strong backcountry guide can use ranger tracking skills and get to her in time before it’s too late.

Opinion: Throughout this series, Karen Barnett is a master at capturing the beauty and landscape of our national parks. As a former ranger, she describes the trails, lodges, and people of that world to draw you into the natural wonders that are right in our backyards. I had no idea that Yosemite had a beautiful firefall in the past history of the park. The skillful weaving of people and landscape is very well done and I appreciate the character, bravery, and honor of her protagonists. Mixing the park history with great plot lines of mystery and just the right amount of romance, I am a big fan of her Vintage National Parks series and highly recommend this series.

Eden Series – Skillet

Titles: 1-Eden 2-Eden: The Aftermath

Author: John Cooper (1 & 2), Random Shock (1), Ryan O’Sullivan (2)

Illustrator: Chris Hunt 1 & 2

Genre: Graphic Novel, Dystopian Future

Plot: 1 – John and Korey Cooper help protect the town of Cottonville from outsiders and Rowdies (mutant creatures). Some think them strange for their glowing purple eyes. A new band of people arrive at the town’s borders. Some have glowing purple eyes as well. They want John and Korey to join their band. But something is off and the couple are suspicious. Then their battery that powers the machine that keeps them safe has been stolen. John and Korey follow the new band of people to return it. But the new band offers them a deal. Will John and Korey take the deal? Or will they find another way to save their town and family?

2 – John and Korey have saved Cottonville. But now a new threat has arrived. John is kidnapped and forced to fight in gladiator fights under a strict master. John and Korey’s kids have also been kidnapped. New friends Seth and Jen now must find the kids while Korey searches for John. Can John escape the gladiatorial fights and escape? Can Korey find him and bring him home? Can Seth and Jen find John and Korey’s kids? Can they all band the town together to save it?

Rating: 3.6 – a different kind of dystopian future

Opinion: I wasn’t sure what I was expecting with this series, but I ended up loving it. It was very different from most of the other dystopian future books I’ve read. I think mostly because this wasn’t a young adult series. This series actually focuses on trying to help others improve their lives in a healthy way. There is a focus more on family, too. The town protects each other, too. I loved that the series focused on love and belief, instead of what is wrong with the world. I do wish that I’d learned more about what life was like before the story took place. I do feel like the story was a bit disconnected and rushed, too. But overall, I loved this series so far. I’m curious to see how the Cooper’s and others power grows throughout the series. I’d recommend this series for those who enjoy graphic novels and dystopian futures.

The Four Winds – Kristin Hannah

Title: The Four Winds

Author: Kristin Hannah

Genre: Historical Fiction

Plot: Elsa Wolcott is a shelter young woman in Texas, in 1921. She’s kept in her house because a childhood illness. One evening, Elsa goes into town and meets Rafe Martinelli. After a night of fun, Elsa learns she’s pregnant. Reluctantly, they’re married to save their reputations. Rafe is a farmer’s son and life is hard on the farm. Elsa learns to love life on the farm. But then the Depression hits and times get even harder. Rafe loses hope and leaves everyone high and dry. When Elsa’s youngest, Ant, gets sick, them and her daughter, Loreda, have no choice but to go to California. They meet just as much suffering and hardship in California as in Texas. How can the three of them survive the Depression and migrant life? Can the three of them ever catch a break? Or will they have to give up and return to Texas?

Rating: 4.0 – a sad telling about a family’s struggle to survive during the Great Depression

Opinion: This book was kind of depressing. There was no hope in this story. Every time the character’s caught a break, something worse happened not long after. I kept hoping something truly happy would happen, but it never did. It left me kind of deflated at the end. Though there was a glimmer of hope, but for the most part I was left feeling sad. For the historical part, it’s very accurate. I really enjoyed learning about a different side of the Great Depression. It was nice to hear about an ordinary family struggling to survive. I enjoyed learning of how unions started. I hadn’t known how early Communism arrived in the states. This book is great book for anyone who loves historical fiction and doesn’t mind the sadness.

The Visitation – Frank Peretti

Title: The Visitation

Author: Frank Peretti

Genre: Thriller

Plot: Travis Jordan is a burnt out pastor in the small town of Antioch, Washington. But his town is about to have some strange things happen. The cross with Jesus hanging from it at the Catholic church begins to weep. One of the caretakers goes to clean up the tears and is cured of his arthritis. People start seeing Jesus in the clouds. Brandon Nichols shows up in town performing miracles. The townspeople start calling him Jesus. Soon the newspapers catch wind of these stories. People start pouring into Antioch, curious to see if the stories are true. When, they see the stories are true, they stay. Brandon Nichols gains followers. People see Jesus in every day objects. More people are healed. But Travis Jordan and a few other pastors don’t buy into Brandon’s miracles and story. Travis starts doing some digging. But Brandon and his followers aren’t too happy about that. They try to distract him and win him to their side. When that doesn’t work, the treats start. Who really is Brandon? What will Travis find? Can he help free this town? Or will Brandon take over the town completely?

Rating: 3.6 – a good, slow build thriller

Opinion: This book was super slow at the beginning. I wanted to bang my head against something because this book was so slow at first. Part of the reason is that there’s a lot of backstory in this book. This story also changes perspective a lot. Travis’ story is always in first person and the rest of the perspectives are in third person. So it makes it a little easier to follow, though it took me a minute to understand who was who because of the frequent perspective changes in the first part of the book. Once the story started to get going, it really started going. After the back story and changes in perspectives stopped was when it really started going. After then it focuses more on the plot and moving the story forward. After reading the story, I realized why they did that. It made the characters more understandable so I realized why Travis was the way he was and why he was so different than Brandon. It made me realize how much more real mob mentality is and how easily they can be swayed and persuaded to do or not do certain things. I’d recommend this book for people who like slow building thrillers.

The Judas Chronicles – Aiden James

Titles: Book 1 – Immortal Plague

Author: Aiden James

Genre: Fantasy

Plot: 1 – Judas Iscariot, the man who betrayed Jesus from the bible, is alive and well after hanging himself. He’s been cursed to live forever until he retrieves all 30 pieces of silver he received in payment for his betrayal. There’s rumors of one of the pieces of silver in a small city near Tehran, Iran. Using his connections from his long years of life, he finds a way to sneak in. His current name, William, he is asked by the US government to spy on a Russian operative. The Russian operative is up to something. They have a technology that will allow them to move the rocks in the Alborz Mountains with ease. Judas has to find out what the Russians are up to. Judas uses the help of his son, Alister, and his connections to help. Together they search for what the Russians are up to. Once they get there, Judas realizes that he knows who the Russians are, and what they are up to. But will he be able to stop the Russian’s plans? What are the Russians looking for? Can Judas find what he originally came for?

Rating: 3.2 – an interesting take on a biblical idea

Opinion: I got this book a while ago and finally gave it a try. While the idea is good, I don’t think it was executed very well. Everything seemed rushed. I didn’t feel like I could connect to the characters very well. Nothing seemed very fleshed out. The author seemed to skim over details about the characters, plot, and descriptions. Some of the character’s names are similar, too, which made it confusing for me to keep track of who was who at first. This was the first book in the series, but I felt like there was something I was missing. Like there was a prequel or another book I was supposed to read first. This was still an interesting book, it just wasn’t the most well executed book I’ve ever read.

Half Sick of Shadows – Laura Sebastian

Found this book as an early release on Book of the Month. This book will be available on July 6.

Title: Half Sick of Shadows

Author: Laura Sebastian

Genre: Fantasy

Plot: Elaine is a young woman in the court of Camelot. She’s always been thought of as odd because of what she can do. Then she meets Morgana. She tells Elaine that she’s an oracle, she can see the future. Morgana begs hers to come to Avalon with her so she can learn more about her magic. Elaine accepts. There, she meets Gwen, Lancelot, and Arthur. They form a strong bond over the years on Avalon. When they return to Camelot so Arthur can claim his throne, their friendship is tested. They find another about to be crowned. But Merlin says if Arthur passes three tests, Arthur will be crowned king. As they start their tests, Elaine’s visions of the future become clearer. Can Elaine stop what we know as the classic Arthur’s tale? Or will what she see be prevented?

Rating: 4.0 – a new take on the tales of Arthur and Camelot

Opinion: I’ve always been curious about the tales of Arthur and his knights. I also love books from a different point of view. This book was a great book that combined both. Though this book focuses more on what the actions that led to the classic tales of Arthur and Camelot instead of those classic stories. This book does a great job with different types of magic. Though it focuses more on Elaine’s visions, it still describes Morgana and Gwen’s types of magic well, too. I also loved that Elaine took charge of her own future and was willing to make changes that could help her friends. She saw through the lies of those around her and did something about it. Though it took her a while to realize that she could make her own future. Once Elaine realized that, she helped her friends realize that, too. This is a great book for those who love retelling of classic stories from a different point of view. I recommend this book for those who love tales of Arthur and Camelot.

The Day the Crayons Quit – Drew Daywalt

Title: The Day the Crayons Quit

Author: Drew Daywalt

Illustrator: Oliver Jeffers

Genre: Children’s Book, Picture Book

Plot: Drew has just received a packet of letters from his crayons. All of the letters are complaints from the different color crayons. Each crayon wants to be used for a different kind of drawing. Both yellow and orange want to be the color of the sun. Pink is not just a girl’s color. Gray doesn’t like being used for big animals, like elephants and whales. The list goes on and on. Can Drew make his crayons happy? How can Drew use his crayons in different ways?

Rating: 3.8 – a cute series of letters

Opinion: This is a very cute book. It’s not a story, per se, but a series of letters. It’s a good way for kids to learn about different ways to color with their favorite colors. It’s a book that teaches kids it’s okay to mix things up. Not everything needs to be the same. It’s okay to make purple dragons, pink elephants, and black rainbows. The kids got a kick of beige’s letter. It was the easiest for them to understand and the silliest. It might be easier for older kids to fully understand the book because I had to explain a few things while I was reading the book. Overall, they enjoyed the book. It’s a great lesson in creativity. It’s a good classroom book because it’s silly, fun, and a creativity lesson book.

The Last Thing He Told Me – Laura Dave

Title: The Last Thing He Told Me

Author: Laura Dave

Genre: Mystery

Plot: Hannah has just received a note from a friend of her step-daughter. All it says is ‘Protect Her.’ She knows it means Bailey, her step-daughter, and that it’s from her husband, Owen. But why? Bailey comes home, clearly upset. Hannah tries to ask why, but Bailey’s not one for answers, never has been. Hannah turns on the news and is shocked. Owen’s company, The Shop, is under fire for fraud. The CEO has been arrested. Now they’re looking for Owen, as he’s the chief coder for the company. But Owen’s vanished. No one has heard from him, neither Hannah or Bailey. Then a US Marshall shows up, and the next day, the FBI. Hannah’s not sure who to trust. Everyone asks her to lie low. Instead, Hannah decides to do her own investigating. Everything starts pointing to Austin, Texas. Hannah starts asking Bailey if she remembers anything about the city. Bailey has a few faint memories. It’s not much it’s a start. They take a plane there and do some more digging. Once in Austin, Hannah starts learning about Owen’s past. What secrets was he hiding? Is Owen alright? Can Hannah find him? Or will someone else find him first?

Rating: 4.3 – a different kind of mystery

Opinion: This was a different style of mystery. Instead of following around a detective, it follows around an average person, and a woman to boot. There are more and more woman detectives now, but it’s still not the norm. It was nice to see an average person doing the digging, too. Hannah also puts her foot down and stands her ground against others. She stands by her decisions and her step-daughter’s, even though they don’t always get along. She stands by her decision to protect Bailey, even if it means going against an order from a US Marshall. It’s a nice change to see. The ending wasn’t your typical happy ending, either. I was kind of sad about that, but I understood why the ending had to be like that. Overall, this was a great book. I enjoyed it from beginning to end. It was a good mystery and it kept me guessing. I highly recommend this book for those who love mysteries and love a different style of mystery.