Have you ever wandered through your local library, or scrolled through its websites pages aimlessly hoping to find a book that catches your eye? Maybe some random treasure you never would have picked up if you were in a bookstore and certainly nothing you would have ordered online? Well, I did just that and it surprised me to find Disney’s Beauty and the Beast Lost in a Book.
Now I know what you are thinking. Is this some kind of sequel attempt in literary form? We all know about the many dreadful direct to home video sequels Disney has provided us. However, no, this is not a sequel, it is an additional story happening in the middle of the original tale.
After being introduced to the Beast’s extensive library, Bell stumbles in to an enchanted book. This book soon has the young woman tied up in an endless battle between Love and Death, finding her trapped. An exciting tale that we certainly know has a happy ending, as we know how Disney’s original story ends. However, despite this absolute fact, that does not keep this novel from being an interesting read.
I picked up the audiobook version from the local library’s website and it was spectacular. I really suggest you give it a listen.
I would suggest this novel to Disney fans, as well as fans of YA novels. This read is a bit advanced for younger children and some of the concepts are a bit dark, but it is certainly an enjoyable tale.
Yours and Mine by A.E. Bennett is a novella that ties in to the author’s Serrulata Saga series, which I have not yet read, my introduction to being one of the blog tours I take part in. This steamy novella followed Octavia Dorchester and Gerald Verte as they stumble in to a young romance and attempt to reconcile their feelings even though their families want them to have nothing to do with one another. While you walk with the characters through their complicated relationship and enjoy their young love, you are also given bits and pieces of the authors over all world which leaves you wanting to explore further in to the Serrulata Saga as a whole. I know I am looking forward to picking up more by A.E. Bennett.
Now, as discussed above, this is a steamy romance. There is sex in this novella and some very blunt wording for male anatomy. So if you are uncomfortable with reading sex scenes or the used of rougher language, even though it only happens once, I suggest you avoid this romantic tale. However, for anyone else, I strongly suggest you pick this up, particularly if you are a fan of fantasy romances, there is both and delightful hints to what we may discover in the series.
I have another surprise for you. The lovely people at Traveling Pages Tours were able to get a few questions answer for me by the author! It was great to have this opportunity, the Q&A follows.
How do you come up with your stories?
I came up with the initial idea for The Serrulata Saga way back in 1997. I was a teen devoted to sci-fi and the Hale-Bopp comet appeared in the sky. I soaked up as much knowledge as I could about it. It comes around once every 2,000 years or so and when it was here, there were a lot of articles printed about what life had been like the last time it arrived. The gears in my head started turning and I began thinking about when the comet arrives again—in the year 4385.
In terms of Yours and Mine, I have to credit an editor who took a look at an early version of Gathering of the Four, the first book in the series. She gave me a great deal of feedback and constructive criticism, but she also made a comment about how she loved reading about Octavia and Gerald and was curious about how they got together. After that, I couldn’t not write their tale!
What genre do you like to read yourself?
I pretty much read what I write: sci-fi, fantasy, and romance. I also enjoy horror and am going to attempt to write a Serrulata Saga horror story when I’m finished with my current work in progress.
Do you ever get writer’s block and how do you cope with it?
You know, I actually don’t. I’ve had a few times where I’ve sat down to write and known that what I was writing was garbage that would eventually get discarded, but thankfully I’ve never had the crippling sensation of sitting down to write and being unable to. I worry I’ve doomed myself by admitting this out loud, but it’s the truth!
Temple of Valor is the third book in Joe Lyon’s Astar’s Blade series. In this third installment, we finally get to see the titular character of the series wield the blade in question as the story that had started two books ago finally comes to a dramatic and in some ways surprising climax. With all the loose ends tied up, Lyon wraps up his gift to the fantasy world with a pretty little ribbon on top, another cliffhanger! One I can genuinely say I did not know was coming. I will not go into the fine details and risk ruining this fantastic turn of events, but I know it will leave you wanting to read more of what Joe Lyon has planned for this amazing world he has created.
In Temple of Valor, we start with a young adult Astar, a boy of eighteen as he is referred to in the book, as inexperienced but once he comes into his own, we see him grow into the character that he has been destined to become from the start of the series when aspects that we had no idea would come to play worked into the complicated web that finally resulted in this tale. We go deeper than just Astar finally having his blade, however, nor the people who work with him. We are also given a down and dirty view of the Zorn and his demon followers and their connections to one another and those who have been their sworn enemies for hundreds of years. The children of the gods have failed the people of this world. Now it is time for mortals to try their hand at it. A bit of a Tolkien-esque concept but a satisfying note to end a story on. As with the previous books in this series, it is a must-read for every fan of fantasy.
I received this arc copy on Reedsy Discovery, you can find the book here.
Yours and Mine by A.E. Bennett is a novella that ties into the author’s Serrulata Saga series, which I have not yet read, my introduction to being one of the blog tours I take part in. This steamy novella followed Octavia Dorchester and Gerald Verte as they stumble into a young romance and attempt to reconcile their feelings even though their families want them to have nothing to do with one another. While you walk with the characters through their complicated relationship and enjoy their young love, you are also given bits and pieces of the author’s overall world which leaves you wanting to explore further into the Serrulata Saga as a whole. I know I am looking forward to picking up more by A.E. Bennett.
Now, as discussed above, this is a steamy romance. There is sex in this novella and some very blunt wording when it comes to the male anatomy. So if you are uncomfortable with reading sex scenes or the use of rougher language, even though it only happens once, I suggest you avoid this romantic tale. However, for anyone else, I strongly suggest you pick this up, particularly if you are a fan of fantasy.
Primeval Origins: Paths of Anguish by V.A. Vonsik is the first book in the Primeval Origins series. Nikki young woman working towards her degree in college assists on an archeology site in South America when she and her peers stumble across evidence of a primeval civilization that is far more advanced than anyone thought possible for that point in time. This modern day prologue then leads in to the Primeval story itself. Where we leave the story of Nikki and focus on the adventures of Rogaan as he survives the trial and conflicts of a complicated society plagued by deceit and intrigue in a time before recorded history.
So admittedly when you read the concept of this young adult novel series it’s a bit jarring. A political intrigue adventure story back in the time of dinosaurs? It is certainly an original concept, and one that is well pulled together and in a fantastic story. V.A. Vonsik does a wonderful job of building us a world that takes place before the time of man. The world and the various creatures in it are exciting to read about, and how the characters interact and have named the creatures of the world are primitive but make fantastic sense for the setting. If you are fond of creative adventure stories I strongly suggest you pick up this book.
It’s that time of the week again! I am happy to tell you all you can now read up to episode 32 of The Tower of Nimrah on http://Myrthrill Fiction! Check it out on IOS and Android!
The Last Keeper by J.V. Hilliard is the first book in The Warminster Series. The tale followers multiple characters as fate twists them in to an adventures that had been decades in the making. A prophetic child, elves, rangers, and royalty. Everything you could ask from a fantasy series with the authors own touch in world building, making that adventure of each character feel original as they battle through their individual journey to an exciting culmination, and a painful cliffhanger.
The Last Keeper is a well-written fantasy novel, it takes place in an original world with many familiar types of people, as well as creatures and people original to the Hilliard’s work. I am always a sticker for world building, being a lover of it in my own work, and admittedly tend to be really picky about it when I read fantasy novels, as many a world seems like a copy and paste without an original touch. Thankfully, The Last Keeper avoids this, the colorful races of the world all feel similar to the classic fantasy races we all know, but are just varied enough to keep them interesting. It is exciting to learn about their various customs as you read.
Beyond excellent world building, the characters are varied, each with their own personality and behaviors making them as exciting to learn about as the world and the people they belong to. Even the way that the characters interact with one another feels natural making conversations as interesting to read as the action that fills much of this novel.
Bloodstone is the first novel in The Curse of Time series. It follows the life of Amelina as she tries to adjust to the tough life of a teenager, while also dealing with the fact that her family and the house they live in seem to be cursed. Amelina takes it upon herself, and her gift for using crystal magic, to purge this curse from her loved ones.
Bloodstone is an entertaining novel, well written with interesting characters. Its chapters are short and quick reads, making this a perfect ‘one more chapter before bed’ book. A quality that kept me up late the two days I was reading through this book.
The author does a wonderful job of capturing the drama of the teenage life, keeping up the tension between friends over topics that are relatable to anyone who remembers their teenage years.
Naturally, as this is the first book of a series there are several questions left unanswered, though the author did a wonderful job of wrapping up the main story of this book, I have high hopes that future additions to the series will answer questions that are left hanging like the proverbial loose strings.
So is Bloodstone worth reading? Yes, a fantastic option for fans of contemporary fantasy. Pick it up and enjoy the haunting life of Amelina. I know I am craving more.
Blood Queen is the last book in the Divine Series written by S.M. McCoy. For three books, we have grown and suffered with Chrystal while she desperately attempts to navigate the world of the supernatural, and the usual sufferings of a teenage girl. Though perhaps a bit more extreme when you’re a demon, and a vampire… and a diviner. The girl has a lot on her plate!
In Blood Queen we are reunited with a collection of well-written characters from the previous books and a few new experiences. Chrystal is reunited with loves, enemies and frenimies that end up meaning more to her than she ever would have thought. The story itself gives us a much more in-depth look at the world of the supernatural of the Divine Series, given this book takes place entirely in the deepest and darkest corners of their world. This gives us more of an idea of the world as a whole, which, while covered in the first two books, had a lot of questions left to answer about it.
Blood Queen does a fair job of completing the Divine Series, allowing Chrystal to find her destiny, even if it was not what she planned when she first went in to this dark adventure, honestly how it ended was a bit of a surprise to me as well. As with the first two books, Chrystal has a bit of sexual tension with her male associates, making the book perhaps not the best choice for a younger audience, though certainly much cleaner than many books in the same genre.
My only real complaint was while Chrystal’s story was wrapped up nicely in this book, I wondered what happened to some of the side characters after all was said and done. As with the other books, S.M. McCoy did a fine job with following the story. This book was a bit different from the previous two as while most of the story takes place in the first person, as told by Chrystal, there are also a few chapters told in the third person that cover Lathar’s actions. And boy, does that man get in to some pickles.
So is Blood Queen worth the read? If you enjoy paranormal fantasy of any type, and a bit of romance, never mind a hunky vampire, this is a must read! Oh, make sure you read the first two before you pick this up or you will have absolutely no idea what is going on! But the series is a great read so you should have a blast!
The Four Suitors by Sophie Jupillat Posey is a wonderful fantasy romance novel following the life of a spoiled princess who, after having her well for many years, is suddenly put in to the care of four suitors who are tasked with the duty to educate her. The one who does the best to be her husband. A strange demand, even in this fantastical world.
The Four Suitors is a solid fantasy novel, the world is well designed with some clear and solid world building elements. The universe is touched on briefly, showing that the author has put some serious thought in to even the various planets of this novel’s universe, not just the various countries needed for the novel. As world building can be a daunting task, it is always good to see it done well.
The characters in the story are also interesting. The main character in particular is shows some intense development, which everyone wants to see in a major character, though admittedly at the start of the book I found her to be such a repulsive child I also put the book down for a few hours, however, she does grow on the reader as you progress through the story.
In short, The Four Suitors is a wonderful fantasy novel with enough romance to get you that romance kick you are searching for. Pick it up, the read is very worth it!
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