100 Book Challenge - Book 13 - L.A. Rain

Book 13 / 100

Book: L.A. Rain: Three Novels

Author: J.R. Rain

ASIN: B004O0U2D2

Pages: 371 (Kindle Locations: 7819)

Yes indeedy, a book with three novels in one! The first digital only book in my list, and it’s one I got for free (you gotta love free) Anyway, the book has three stories in it, so this review will have three parts…

Novel 1: Elvis Has Not Left The Building

In 1977 the world believed that Elvis Aaron Presley died suddenly, when what actually happened was he faked his own death and underwent extensive plastic surgery. Now at the age of 75 Aaron King lives in L.A. and works part time as a P.I. Now a new case falls in his lap, and with it he finds new hope, and even a new spur towards his old life. A young starlet, at the beginning of a promising movie career, has vanished, and the police have almost no leads. As Aaron pieces things together he uncovers dark secrets and his own desires and fears.

Overall this was a good story, took a little bit to get into but ended up being very interesting. Keep an eye out for a special cameo at the end as well as some awesome music :)

Novel 2: The Body Departed

James Blakely is dead. But what lays beyond dead is the question, for James, he’s certain he’s headed for Hell, only he’s not sure why. When one dies the memory starts to go, and James has been dead for two years. With the help of a medium, Pauline, he begins to put together the details of his life, his death, the death a young boy, the death of a piano teacher and the thin string of fate that binds them all together.

Another good story in the end, it was a bit tough to get into, but once you start putting things together you have to know how it ends. I tell ya, I had goosebumps when a character made a cameo appearance.

Novel 3: The Vampire with the Dragon Tattoo

Okay, this is a bit more my thing, vampires :)

PI Spinoza is hired by a worried woman to find her adoptive granddaughter, a granddaughter who believes herself to be a vampire slayer, not a hunter mind, but a slayer. The granddaughter, Veronica, had witnessed her parents brutal murder several years earlier at the hands of a so-called vampire with a dragon tattoo. Fortunately for Veronica, Spinoza is very good at his job, and his job is finding missing kids and teens. Spinoza isn’t really prepared for the word of darkness and blood drinking that this particular case will take him to, but since when has that stopped a dogged investigator?

I enjoyed this story, it was a fun romp as we learn about Spinoza and his past, the tragic death of his son and wife, his alcoholism and his determination to help those with lost children.

Overall this book was very fun, three novellas that take us into worlds of mysteries and fantasy, yet all set in the real world of L.A. I’d give this book 4 out of 5 magnifying glasses and I’d recommend it to anyone looking for an easy read of some interesting detective style stories.

100 Book Challenge - Book 12 - The Reckoning

Book 12 / 100

Book: The Reckoning (Darkest Powers Trilogy #3)

Author: Kelley Armstrong

ISBN: 978-0-06-145056-3

Pages: 391

Picking up where The Awakening left off, Chloe and her friends have found a safe refuge with Andrew, a friend of the boy’s father. With the help of other supernaturals they start to understand a little more about their powers, and realize just how unpredictable they are, at least in Tori and Chloe’s cases, Simon and Derek however are shown to be successes, Simon cannot see other sorcerers and witches, and Derek is peaceful and calm and in control in wolf form.

While Chloe is being trained to control her powers, things go out of control and she begins to raise a cemetery, demonstrating in no uncertain terms that this group of supernaturals were something to be feared.

That act sends them down a path that leads straight back to the Edison Group, with several dead bodies littered along the way. Once there though, plans are made, old friends and new allies work together, but is it enough?

Rating… 4 out of 5 ghosts. This was a good story, but it didn’t really finish, it just kinda stopped. I have to wonder if there’s some bigger arc, maybe the author is planning a trilogy of trilogies that will complete the story… I will confess though, there were several points in the story where I began to wonder if any of them would make it out alive.

100 Book Challenge - Book 11 - Bitter Blood

Book 11 / 100
Book: Bitter Blood (The Morganville Vampires #13)
Author: Rachel Caine
ISBN: 978-1-921880-18-6

Right, standard Morganville disclaimer, read the other books first :)

So, after the events of book 12 the vicious Draug have been defeated for good, sadly for the town of Morganville that means the vampires have nothing left to really fear. Sadly for the residents of said town, that means that things are about to get bad.

The founder, Amelie, swayed by Oliver, enacts harsher laws, reinstates hunting and requires all residents to carry identification cards that, for humans, include their blood type! It falls to Claire and her friends to discover the truth behind what’s going on before their town explodes.

Add to the mix a TV crew hunting ghosts and a friendly ghost, Myrnin threatening to leave town and then disappearing leaving Bob the Spider behind, things could get tricky, and not a little dangerous.

Rating, I’d give it a solid 4 out of 5 fangs. Would I recommend it? Most definitely. Like the last book there was some switching of POV, but unlike the last book, in this one it added to the story and helped it come together.

100 Book Challenge - Book 10 - Black Dawn

Book 10 / 100

Book: Black Dawn (The Morganville Vampires #12)

Author: Rachel Caine

ISBN: 978-1-921880-14-8

This book picks up where the previous one, Last Breath, left off, with the vampires and humans of Morganville at the merciless hands of the Draug.

With most of the town evacuated or killed, it comes down to a brave few to fight to discover a way to kill the vampires natural enemies once and for all. In the process Shane is captured by the Draug and held prisoner while they feed off him. With a daring rescue plan and the help of the police chief, the mayor and his sister, Eve, Michael and Claire set about saving him, but does he have enough sanity left to survive?

While still recovering Shane comes up with a master plan, a chemical that absorbs liquid and turns it to a powder. With that as a weapon there remains only one thing they need to figure out. How to kill the master Draug, and how to do it before Amelie succumbs to the virus ravaging her and turning her into a master Draug.

Rating, I’d give it a solid 4 out of 5 fangs. Would I recommend it? Most definitely, but like I said, read the rest first. I did find however, that the switching between POVs was a little distracting, I mean sure you have to do that for some bits to work, but I felt there were a few too many switches in this particular book.

100 Book Challenge - Book 9 - Last Breath

Book 9 / 100

Book: Last Breath (The Morganville Vampires #11)

Author: Rachel Caine

ISBN: 978-1-921880-10-0

Seriously, if you ain’t read the series yet, go read it, you’ll need to before picking up this book, and pick it up you should.

In a town full of vampires and humans one wouldn’t think there would be anything higher on the food chain than the vampires. But as the saying goes, there’s always a bigger fish, and that fish has arrived in Morganville. When vampires start to go missing, and the Founder gets a message containing one word “Run” the delicate balance in the town is upset. As Eve and Michael try to get married and Amelie falls back on her old habits when dealing with her ancient foe, Claire tracks the mysterious man she sees around town. A man no one else can see. A man who doesn’t want to be seen and will take deadly action to ensure that happens.

But when Michael is taken, Eve, Shane and Claire speed into action and convince Amelie to stand and fight. But it’s not a fight they can win, and no matter what, some won’t make it.

Rating, I’d give it a solid 4 out of 5 fangs. Would I recommend it? Most definitely, but like I said, read the rest first.

100 Book Challenge - Book 8 - Good Christian Bitches

Book 8 / 100
Book: Good Christian Bitches
Author: Kim Gatlin
ISBN: 978-1-4013-1070-7

Okay, two points, one, this is quite a departure from my normal fare, and two, I love the TV show GCB and got the book just because the show was inspired by it. With that said, the book is quite different to the TV show.

The story follows Amanda Vaughn as, after tiring of her husband’s cheating ways, she divorces him and moves her two children back to Hillside Park, the place she grew up in. However there are those that are threatened by a wealthy, pretty, single woman, and they conspire to throw Amanda in the deep end by getting her to chair the Longhorn Ball, a charity event that was run into the ground by the previous chair. Run down so much there’s no money, bills to pay, no members willing to help and all the sponsors ostracized.

Coping with a surly son who would rather be back in California, a daughter who can’t see how to cope without organic foods and soy products in cattle country and a mystery suitor who sends fast cars, fancy outfits and charity cheques, Amanda must pull together an event that can get the Longhorn Ball back on track and take care of the Good Christian Bitches who conspire to take her down.

Rating… 3 out of 5 stars. The story, as I had said was a departure from my normal tastes, yet I enjoyed the story, I found I couldn’t wait to see how Amanda dealt with her rivals. I know there will be some that see the title and imagine that it’s disparaging of women and of Christian women in particular, but once you read it you begin to see that’s now what the story is about, the Good Christian Bitches in question are, in point of fact, not good at all, they’re gossips and in many ways vindictive, there are good reasons behind them of course, but one who believes in Him should be able to rise above and be kind and generous in the face of that.

100 Book Challenge - Book 7 - The Awakening

Book 7 / 100

Book: The Awakening (Darkest Powers Trilogy #2)

Author: Kelley Armstrong

ISBN: 978-0-06-145055-6

Chloe and her friends are on the run, with the diabolical Edison Group hot on their heels, their only hope is a friend of Simon and Derek’s father.

The story picks up exactly where The Summoning left off with Chloe a “guest” of The Edison Group. With the help of a dead housemate she and her nemesis / rival Tori escape and meet up with Simon and Derek. The four of them agree to go to New York to find an old friend of Simon and Derek’s father who is their emergency contact. With Chloe’s father offering a half million dollar reward for her return, and street gangs and wolf packs standing in their way, they use disguise and public transport to reach their destination, only to find it empty.

Rating… 5 out of 5 ghosts. Much as with The Summoning, I loved the story and the very premise, unlike The Summoning though this story has more action and adventure. We get to learn more about the gang and what happened to them, and why Chloe has the power to raise a zombie army!

100 Book Challenge - Book 6 - The Summoning

Book 6 / 100

Book: The Summoning (Darkest Powers Trilogy #1)

Author: Kelley Armstrong

ISBN: 978-0-06-145054-9

Necromancers, witches, sorcerers, werewolves and ghosts, oh my!

I went into this book not having read anything about the series, literally, all I knew was that a couple of friends had given it 4 or 5 stars, and that was good enough for me.

The story follows Chloe Saunders, a petite fifteen year old girl who discovers she can see ghosts, the down side? They can see her too, and they know it. When she’s freaked out by a ghost in her school, the school demands she be sent for treatment, so her aunt and father check her into Lyle House. When there and the meds don’t stop the ghosts, Chloe begins to accept that she’s different.

With the help of the other patients at the house she begins to learn about her powers and how to use them. Her housemates are special too! But where there are special people there are those that wish to exploit them and use them, people like those that run Lyle House, when things come to a head what’s a girl to do?

Use everything she has at her disposal of course.

Rating… 5 out of 5 ghosts. I found this book to be a well written peek into the world of necromancers and other supernatural beings, and it raises some interesting ideas, like just how many of the people in mental institutions or on drugs are really hearing voices, what if they’re really hearing ghosts talking to them?