Book Review: Under His Spell by Marie P. Croall

Title: Under His Spell (My Boyfriend is a Monster #4)
Author: Marie P. Croall
Publisher: Graphic Universe
Release Date: 04/01/2011
ISBN: 0761356029







Bethany Farmer's life is a boring high school routine, and she likes it that way. Soccer, coffee, homework, more coffee, and no goofy romance. That is, until foreign exchange student Allein Atwood shows up in her Midwestern town, and her life turns epically weird. Allein has unearthly good looks, princely politeness, and a bunch of goofy, romantic pick-up lines. But is his country really so foreign that they don't know anything about soccer? Or coffee?

To her horror, Bethany is swept off her feet by Allein's spellbinding ways--and then knocked flat by savage creatures set loose into suburbia to hunt Allein down. Suddenly Bethany's normal town is twisted upside down, and nothing is what it seems. Can Bethany rescue her prince of a boyfriend and keep them both alive long enough to go on a second date?

So far I've found that this series is sort of hit or miss. For every volume that's absolutely great (My Boyfriend Bites), there's a volume that's somewhat mediocre. This volume falls under the mediocre category.

One of the most distracting aspects of this story really had to be the artwork. The quality of it just wasn't very consistent. On one page it would be very well done and on the next you'd see proportions that just weren't very realistic or feasible. There was one panel where our heroine Bethany was giving a solid kick to one of our villains and her leg and foot seemed to be unnaturally twisted. It made it look a little malformed, as if she'd broken it. The only thing about the artwork that seemed to stick to the same level of quality was the backgrounds, which were generally very well illustrated. This was just really disappointing to see since one thing the previous volumes did have in common was some decent artwork. I just couldn't help but think that the artist's work detracted from the story.

I can't blame everything on the artist, however. The basic gist of the storyline is decent. Girl meets fae boy. (I'd consider this a spoiler except the cover pretty much shows that he's a faerie.) Despite this being a pretty common story element, there's a lot you can do with this and I can't help but think that the delivery felt a little flat. I never really felt like the characters came to life for me and to be honest, neither did the chemistry between our lead characters.

There are some nice things about this volume, such as the section of the book that was in full color. It was a smart move and it did pay off well. It was one of the better sections of the book story and art wise. Parts of this book showed me that this really wanted to be a better story than what it was and I wish that it could have been.

If you're looking to read this, I'd recommend getting it from the library. This just wasn't one of the strongest offerings in the MBIAM series. Read it first via the library and then decide if you want to buy it for further re-readings or save up and wait on the next book in the series.

1.5 out of 5 stars

(ARC provided by Netgalley)

Comics Review: Storm Born by Richelle Mead

Title: Storm Born Vol 1 (Dark Swan book 1)
Author: Richelle Mead, Grant Alter
Artist: Dave Hamann
Publisher: SeaLion Books
Buy it from: Amazon.com
Release Date: 10/4/2011
ISBN: 0982818645




(Note: This review is based on issues 1 & 2 of the series, not the whole volume.)

Eugenie Markham never asked for any of this. Until now, she''s been content with her job as a freelance shaman, battling and banishing Otherworldly creatures. When a prophecy suddenly makes her the Otherworld''s most popular bachelorette, Eugenie finds herself fighting off unwanted supernatural suitors, as well as the evils that begin emerging from her past...

Wow. Just wow. Richelle Mead has been on my list of authors to check out so Sea Lion Book's offer to preview one of her comics was pretty exciting. After all, thousands of screaming fans must mean that she's doing something right, right?

Well, those thousands of screaming fans have to check out the graphic novel adaptation of the first book in her Dark Swan series because then they'll have a little something to scream extra loud about. Storm Born is a perfect example of what you should do as far as book to comic goes.

I haven't read the books (although that's going to change very, very quickly) so I'm not sure if there's any big alterations from the novel, but this was easy to get into and follow along with. I absolutely love-love-LOVE the artwork. It's so beautifully done. It doesn't hurt that I love artwork of redheads. Hamann does a very good job of bringing the characters here to life. Some of the artwork reminds me of the comic series Fables, which is a good thing considering the quality of work you see in it.

Sea Lion Books was gracious enough to allow me to post some of the covers as well as a few pages from the comics. Eugenie (aka Odile) has such wonderful expressions that it's easy to get wrapped up in the story. I do have to warn that there are some adult situations in this volume, although they are very tactfully done. You won't see any full nudity in these comics and any "extracurricular activities" aren't overly graphic. Parents might want to preview this before handing it over to their teens, but this is rather tame in comparison to some of the things seen in other graphic novels out in the market. (Although there is a risk to teens of getting their libraries raided so the parent in question can read the novel format of Storm Born and find out what happens next.)

Story-wise, my curiosity is piqued. There's been a lot of different things in the urban fantasy world, but shamans are rather under-represented. Necromancers or witches? Plenty. Shamans? Not so much. There's a lot of room for Mead to expand in & showcase Eugenie's talents in this series.

So far I've got my theories as to what's going on with certain characters, but I'll have to wait until I finish the graphic novel or book to find out. I'm also sort of predicting some future romantic entanglements, or perhaps it's just wishful thinking on my part. (Eugenie's roommate is pretty intriguing.)

My two issues ended on a very big cliffhanger so I'm really looking forward to reading the full volume when it comes out in October. I've been informed that volume 1 will cover the first half of Storm Born, with volume 2 completing the novel.

Fans of Mead will also be happy to know that her much loved Vampire Academy series has also gotten the graphic novel treatment, with the first book coming out this August.


5 out of 5 stars

(Reader copies provided by Sea Lion Books)

Book Trailer Time! (The Other Side of the Window by Chloe Bierge)

Hi everyone! I've showcased author Chloe Bierge before (you can check it out here) & recently I got an email from her telling me that she's got a brand spanking new trailer for her book The Other Side of the Window for you to view!

You can purchase a copy of Chloe's book at Amazon, Smashwords, & Barnes & Nobles!

Author Showcase: Angela Panayotopulos

Hi everyone! I'm pleased to introduce you to another author to check out, Angela Panayotopulos! She was nice enough to do a guest blog for me!

You Are Here

This is a story about Mythakians— Greek-speaking human villagers living on a fictional representation of the real Ithaki and all the metaphorical ones; creatures created through inspiration, written words, and long coffee-flavored nights. It is a story about Greeks—the Greeks who once lived with hearts pulsing with the deepest emotions (such joys, sorrows, rages, passions), with bodies toughened to shoot and run and love and conceive, with minds sharpened and haunted by life’s most tragic scenes, with spines steeled by centuries of warfare, repression, and revolution. It is a story about Germans, about Italians, about Australians, about Brits. It is a story about farmers, fisherfolk, shepherds, monks, leaders, soldiers, children, killers, lovers. It is about neglectful gods and timeless myths, about a God of miracles and mercy, about a civilization of poverty and pride.

Most of all, The Art of War: a Novel is about my friends, my dreams, my nightmares, my family, my soulmate, and myself. It is an exploration of who I am—and, through me as a sample, an exploration of humanness. It can also work the other way around (usually, of course, it’s both); after researching and writing about other human beings, I discover more about myself. It’s a two-way street that your pen walks you down, whether you plan it or not.
But it’s not that at all—or rather, it’s not all that, only. It’s far more… It begins like that, you see, and then it evolves, like a tree whose soul you’ve planted in the ground in springtime and which by summer begins unfurling branches and dropping fruit from angles you never even knew existed.

That is why sometimes I am hesitant to say: My dear, this character was based after you… but he sort of took a life of his own along the way. He says what he wants, he packs off and goes to war without asking me, he almost gets himself shot in the head like a fool. This being a war novel, you must know, chances of him getting shot are huge. So it isn’t you, you see! Except he is your namesake—or you are his, I always get that mixed up—and his compassion, wit, and rugged good looks are all you. I like to include you in my writing, because you’ve either make a big impression on me as a person, or I simply loved your name and had to use it, or I wanted to feel close to you (on a more intimate note, I like to sketch the faces of the people I love most when I miss them). So as that Elton John song goes, “I don’t have much / but it’s the best I can do / my gift is my song, yea / and this one’s for you…”

This kind of all ties in to the reason I actually began writing. I read a lovely quote once that I really disliked but couldn’t help agreeing with. It went something along the lines of—and I’m paraphrasing here, so forgive—writers are people who shun society in order to speak with and connect to society. It’s a pretty little paradox, but to an extent somehow I think it works. There’s the self-imposed aloneness, of course; but there’s also an imposed loneliness, of a sorts. The latter is mine. It’s as they say; sometimes your choices form your circumstances, and sometimes your circumstances form your choices. When I was still a kid, I moved half-way around the world and was homeschooled in a very rural region of Europe. I had a lot of precious time to spend in the company of my family’s big wheezing computer and my rampant imagination.

I wrote a lot of fantasy when I was little—mostly because I could have things my way. My world, my friends. I could bring all the people I loved and missed so much, talk with them, remember them, imagine their reactions, and invite them in a world that I’d created. No surprise then, how this pattern of attachment and connection continued, even when I was back in a busy-as-a-beehive university surrounded by amazing people I’d also come to love. I decided these people deserve to be written about, too.

A lot of people, when they write fiction, like to disclaim that any and all persons within their books are fictional and any resemblance to any real persons living or dead is purely coincidental. Sometimes, okay, I’ll let it slide. Other times, sorry, but it’s obvious bullshit. That’s a red flag trying to camouflage itself in a jungle. This book is probably inspired by all the people I know but legalities are freaking me out so let’s not say it.

Okay, not everyone in my novel is based on someone. Some characters were just dreamed up along the way, simply because they were needed there. But many were inspired by real people, people like me and you. If you recognize yourself in this book—and you might just catch one name, or one character trait, or one all-too-familiar phrase—just know that you’re in there for a reason. At some point in my life, you’ve touched my heart, and I sought to keep and thank you just so.

The Art of War: a Novel. From me, to you, with love.

--Angela.



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You can purchase The Art of War: a Novel via Smashworlds. You can also view trailers for Angela's book, which I'll be linking to below:

Book Review: Zombies of the World

Title: Zombies of the World
Author: Ross Payton
Publisher: Slang Design
Release Date: 06/15/2011
ISBN: 0982726503







If you're like me, you probably never knew that there were different types of zombies other than "dead" & "really dead". Ignorance of the different species can not only be deadly but it can also lead to the extinction of several rare & intriguing zombie kinds. By shooting first & asking questions later, you might be missing out on the chance to watch the the well choreographed Dancing Zombie. Or you could anger a Revenant, which is insanely hard to kill & will most likely end with you being a greasy smear on the pavement.

Fortunately for you & I, this book covers at least 20 species of the undead. We're given not only a brief synopsis of the specific species's history but also images telling us where they can be located & how plentiful they are. (Joining a zombie sight seeing tour is discouraged without properly checking their credentials, year the company was formed, & their CorpseFax, which details all of the skirmishes, fatalities, & infections they've had. More than one person has lost their lives by signing up with a fly-by-night zombie tour!) The book also lists which humans (living ones, not dead ones) you should try to avoid if you're trapped in a zombie attack. If you're reading this book (or this review) then your chances of survival are already far better than that of the uninformed citizen.

We're also treated to a brief but highly informative history of the zombie race in general, starting from its ancient beginnings to the present day. Author Payton also treats us to a bright, hopeful vision of the future where zombie science will eradicate death, illness, & enable us to lead better and happier lives.

However if you're one of the skeptics who insist that zombies aren't real & that this book is nothing but a novelty item, you might still find this guide useful for role-playing games. It's a valuable resource that you can use to heighten your game playing experience. It might also save your life when the "fictional" zombies break in during your Friday gaming night.

5 out of 5 stars

(Reader Copy provided by the author.)

As a bonus I do want to say that more & more home owners are seeing the appeal of having Dancing Zombies congregate on their lawn to perform surprisingly well choreographed dances. While the North American Necrological Research Institute (NANRI) does not recommend encouraging these displays (mostly due to horrific public overreaction), it does recognize that certain displays are far more likely to appeal to the Dancing Zombie.

RIP, LA Banks: Beloved author dead at age 51

Everyone, it's my sad duty to inform you that beloved author LA Banks passed away yesterday morning on August the 2nd, 2011. The website doesn't say, but I believe that it was due to her battle with cancer.

She will be much missed in the literary community. That much is painfully obvious.

What we can do to ensure that her memory is never forgotten is to take a moment sometime to recommend her books to someone and/or to do a good deed for those who are suffering from any sort of cancer.

I just want to say that I'm grateful for having been able to read LA's books. They brought me countless hours of joy & I know that they've done the same for others. Rest in peace, Ms Banks.

Book Review: The Evil Inside by Heather Graham

Title: The Evil Inside (Krewe of Hunters #4)

Author: Heather Graham

Publisher: Harlequin

Release Date: 08/30/2011

ISBN: 0778312534

I was initially apprehensive about reading this book. After all, some of the previous books in this series weren't really as good as some of Graham's previous works. I decided to give this a read & ultimately I'm rather glad I did.

For as long as it has stood overlooking New England’s jagged coastline, Lexington House has been the witness to madness…and murder. But in recent years the inexplicable malice that once tormented so many has lain as silent as its victims. Until now…

A member of the nation’s foremost paranormal forensic team, Jenna Duffy has made a career out of investigating the inexplicable. Yet nothing could prepare her for the string of slayings once again plaguing Lexington House – or for the chief suspect, a boy barely old enough to drive, much less kill.

With the young man’s life on the line, Jenna must team up with attorney Samuel Hill to pinpoint who – or what – is taking the lives of those who get too close to the past. But everything they learn brings them closer to the forces of evil stalking this tortured ground.

I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I really enjoyed reading this book. From the very first page I was hooked. The suspense in this was well done for the most part & unlike some of the previous books, I couldn't instantly discover who the true killer was. The romance in this was also pleasant, albeit a little too overly similarly plotted to the romances in the previous books. I'd like to see a romance in this series (there's still one more character to match up) where the love interest didn't instantly go the skeptical route or have that be a big focus of the match up. It just gets a little overly tread after a while. Even with this handicap our main characters are still well matched. Their romance isn't "set the pages on fire" hot, but it is sweet.

One of the strongest points in the book was the book's atmosphere, which was helped along by Graham setting the story in Salem, Massachusetts. The name alone gives the reader a certain mental image, which helps out greatly in this book. It also doesn't hurt that Graham decided to bring in the idea of witch hunting, comparing the hunts of the past to those of the present. It was a bold but smart move by Graham.

It's not a completely flawless book, however. At times I really couldn't help but wish that Graham had fleshed out some of the characters more, especially our whodunit. The whodunit wasn't an outrageous surprise but a little more development would have made the finish really stand out. I sort of blame this on the fact that this book was part of a series. It was only when the KoH had to be involved that the book started somewhat unraveling & I feel like if our two heroes had to do more of the footwork themselves (rather than relying on people who could quickly do it offscreen) the book would have been a little more tightly woven. This would have been an excellent standalone novel.

I'd still highly recommend this as a last minute vacation or "yay, the kids are back in school" read. Despite a few stumbles, this was a lot of fun to read & I would recommend it even if you haven't read or been all that entranced by the previous books. I'd go as far as to say that this is easily the best book of the series so far.

3.4/5

(ARC provided by Netgalley)