I received a digital copy of all four parts of this serial via Romance ARCade for the purposes of providing reviews.
Part One
Our story starts with Jennifer and a job interview. She walks out of the building, and strange things start happening, and she wonders if she's losing her mind. When she's attacked in her own apartment, she's fairly certain she's lost it.
There's decent world-building here, even if it's a bit formulaic, and the story as a whole has promise. It's not bad, but could be better.
This is part one of a four-part serial, so it does leave an open ending, but I wouldn't necessarily call this one a cliffhanger. Yes, there's something unresolved, but if this were a short story, I probably wouldn't be sorry I read it.
There were plenty of mistakes, though, with misused words aplenty. At one point, Merlin breathed, and I was stumped. There's no Merlin in this story anywhere. Ooops. Mr. Horton needs an editor, and this entire story needs major comma surgery.
Part Two
In this portion of the serial, danger continues to plague Jennifer, and her first trip as Queen is marred by violence. Jennifer recovers her "past" memories more rapidly here, and they become much more detailed. When the time comes to plays damsel in distress, Jennifer opts to do some of her own saving. Kudos to her.
This segment also ends with a major plot point unresolved, and is closer to my definition of a cliffhanger than Part One.
Part Three
In this portion of the serial, Archer figures out where Logan and Jennifer are and sends in a recon team. Jennifer unlocks a major piece of her personal history, and both Logan and Archer end up bound by the Council.
Jennifer really steps into her role as Queen here, and continues to not be Too Stupid To Live. Go, Jennifer.
This segment also ends with a major plot point unresolved, but doesn't really fit my definition of a cliffhanger.
Part Four
In this portion of the serial, time passes with Jennifer holding down the fort admirably. She makes things happen, and gets her guys back.
All major plot points are resolved in this final segment.
There was a scene near the end, with Athene, which I thought was wasted. It went nowhere, and so could have just been cut from the story. Perhaps Mr. Horton was paving the way for more in this universe.
Overall
Throughout the four-part serial, the pages were plagued by missing commas and misused words. Worse, the sex was boring - too much use of euphemisms instead of just saying stuff right out.
Though the story has promise, I am unlikely to look for more from this author. The poor editing and fairly predictable story are just not enough to get or keep me interested.
Showing posts with label romancearcade. Show all posts
Showing posts with label romancearcade. Show all posts
Saturday, January 9, 2016
Wednesday, July 22, 2015
Book: Taming His Beast
This was a short story with a happily for now ending. It is not a cliffhanger, but I wouldn't call it happily ever after.
I liked that the heroine's hangups were more about her lack of control over her powers, whatever they were, than about her appearance.
The buildup to the first sex scene, the foreplay, was actually hotter than the sex scene, which was a little perfunctory and disappointing. It was more tell than show.
A little bit of work could have expanded the plot, developing both main characters more, and going into greater depth as to the shifter populace's issues with women like Sarah. What little of the plot we got was actually interesting, and I would have enjoyed immersing in this world a little more than such a short story allowed me to do.
It was a fun read, and I'd probably read more by this author.
I received a digital copy of this book from Romance Arcade in exchange for an honest review.
I liked that the heroine's hangups were more about her lack of control over her powers, whatever they were, than about her appearance.
The buildup to the first sex scene, the foreplay, was actually hotter than the sex scene, which was a little perfunctory and disappointing. It was more tell than show.
A little bit of work could have expanded the plot, developing both main characters more, and going into greater depth as to the shifter populace's issues with women like Sarah. What little of the plot we got was actually interesting, and I would have enjoyed immersing in this world a little more than such a short story allowed me to do.
It was a fun read, and I'd probably read more by this author.
I received a digital copy of this book from Romance Arcade in exchange for an honest review.
Book: Awakened - Soul Shifters I
I received a free digital copy of this book via Romance ARCade, for the purposes of providing a review.
I first read the short prequel Unraveled, which I also received through RA.
The premise here is interesting, and I liked both the heroine and hero. Gemma is a laid-off schoolteacher who decides on a whim to move to a new community and try to start over. Carson is a guy trying to escape from his family's reputation for criminal activity. Both are smart and I like the chemistry between them. I like the group of friends Carson has gathered around him. They're a good bunch of guys.
The beginning was a little confusing, with bits and pieces of story laid out, then backtracking to "real time" with our main characters. I was even more confused when one of the characters introduced in "real time" was someone whose fate I already know, thanks to the bits and pieces. I didn't much like being spoiled for her future before I even met her.
Finally, this book could have used a serious edit. Misused words, run-on sentences, underused commas, and overused semi-colons abounded, along with context errors (like military people using 12-hour time. Um, no.). The most egregious error was one of the characters stating most people are vaccinated for rabies these days. There is a treatment for rabies in case a person is bitten, but there is no preventive vaccine of which I am aware. I could suspend my disbelief for other parts of it, because it's clearly a story set in a paranormal version of our world, but the rabies vaccination pulled me out of the story pretty hard. There was also a wee bit of headhopping, but unfortunately, I've gotten so used to that in indie books, I only noticed it once or twice.
Still, Tate offers a new twist on the fated mates trope, and I'd like to read more. I can't quite give it four stars. 3.5.
I first read the short prequel Unraveled, which I also received through RA.
The premise here is interesting, and I liked both the heroine and hero. Gemma is a laid-off schoolteacher who decides on a whim to move to a new community and try to start over. Carson is a guy trying to escape from his family's reputation for criminal activity. Both are smart and I like the chemistry between them. I like the group of friends Carson has gathered around him. They're a good bunch of guys.
The beginning was a little confusing, with bits and pieces of story laid out, then backtracking to "real time" with our main characters. I was even more confused when one of the characters introduced in "real time" was someone whose fate I already know, thanks to the bits and pieces. I didn't much like being spoiled for her future before I even met her.
Finally, this book could have used a serious edit. Misused words, run-on sentences, underused commas, and overused semi-colons abounded, along with context errors (like military people using 12-hour time. Um, no.). The most egregious error was one of the characters stating most people are vaccinated for rabies these days. There is a treatment for rabies in case a person is bitten, but there is no preventive vaccine of which I am aware. I could suspend my disbelief for other parts of it, because it's clearly a story set in a paranormal version of our world, but the rabies vaccination pulled me out of the story pretty hard. There was also a wee bit of headhopping, but unfortunately, I've gotten so used to that in indie books, I only noticed it once or twice.
Still, Tate offers a new twist on the fated mates trope, and I'd like to read more. I can't quite give it four stars. 3.5.
Book: Shattered by Sennah Tate - part of the Soul Shifters serial
I received a digital copy of Shattered via Romance ARCade for the purposes of providing a review.
Shattered is Ty’s story. Through a set of circumstances only possible because of past events, Ty meets Sadie, a woman with a young son. Ty and Noah share an immediate connection through comics, and they get along beautifully. Ty and Sadie share an unusual connection, too, and it confuses them both.
Sadie is accepting of the things Ty shares with her at first, but then the reality of everything becomes overwhelming and she backs away.
The shadows are persistent, though, and Sadie has to go to Ty for help.
This particular segment is a little light on action, more about building the emotional stakes. The segment is complete in itself, but does clearly connect to the full arc of the story. Someone who read only this, though, would likely be dissatisfied with the lack of context for both the antagonist and the relationships among the friends.
There were a few mistakes with words, but this segment was mostly harder to read because of comma splices making run-on sentences almost everywhere.
This is still an unusual take on the Fated Mates trope, and I’m invested enough in the story to read the final segment, Redeemed.
All by itself, this segment of the serial is a three-star read.
Saturday, July 18, 2015
Book: Unleashed by Sennah Tate
I received a digital copy of Unleashed via Romance ARCade in exchange for an honest review.
Unleashed is Dez and Alina’s story. Their romance is sweet and slow, their connection quiet and warm, and I enjoyed it quite a bit more.
Isabel and Aaron are heavy in the background of this one, and Izzy continues to be childish and petty with Aaron, who isn’t adjusting well to being in a relationship.
The group has gained more powers as a result of the cemented connection between Izzy and Aaron, though, and Alina remembers and shares more of what she remembers of the Travelers and the fight against the darkness.
When Alina uses her power to locate more Evokers, she ends up connecting at a women’s shelter, and though the counseling temporarily derails her with Dez, she figures her feelings out soon enough.
The writing in this segment was much more even, and I found fewer mistakes.
I do want to continue reading, to learn what new abilities will surface and who will find the next love connection.
Book: Revealed by Sennah Tate
I received a free digital copy of Revealed from Romance ARCade in exchange for an honest review.
Revealed is Isabel and Aaron’s story. The segment opens with Izzy and Aaron at odds with each other over a kiss. Izzy remembers it vividly, and Aaron says it never happened. The argument gets acrimonious and begins to splinter the group’s cohesion.
This book was uneven: the bones of the story continue to be good, but there were more mistakes in this part of the story.
The big problem between Isabel and Aaron is based on one of my least favorite tropes - a complete lack of open communication. Their behavior toward each other is childish and petty, and made them seem more like hormone-driven teenagers than adults. Aaron was especially obnoxious, and the ongoing hostilities left me much more interested in the overarcing antagonist than in whether or not Izzy and Aaron would get their crap together.
Once the group was no longer distracted by their animosity, they began to see patterns and learn more about Preston Waters and how it might be possible to stop him.
Despite the lack of polish, I am interested in the overall story arc, and I will read the next segment.
Revealed is Isabel and Aaron’s story. The segment opens with Izzy and Aaron at odds with each other over a kiss. Izzy remembers it vividly, and Aaron says it never happened. The argument gets acrimonious and begins to splinter the group’s cohesion.
This book was uneven: the bones of the story continue to be good, but there were more mistakes in this part of the story.
The big problem between Isabel and Aaron is based on one of my least favorite tropes - a complete lack of open communication. Their behavior toward each other is childish and petty, and made them seem more like hormone-driven teenagers than adults. Aaron was especially obnoxious, and the ongoing hostilities left me much more interested in the overarcing antagonist than in whether or not Izzy and Aaron would get their crap together.
Once the group was no longer distracted by their animosity, they began to see patterns and learn more about Preston Waters and how it might be possible to stop him.
Despite the lack of polish, I am interested in the overall story arc, and I will read the next segment.
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
Books: Surrendered to the Pack/Claimed by the Pack by Anna Craig
I received Surrendered to the Pack and its sequel, Claimed by the Pack, via RomanceArcade, in exchange for an honest review.
I'm not a big fan of serials, especially the ones which leave off right in the middle of an important scene, so I was prepared not to like this one much.
I found it a pleasant surprise to be mistaken. There were a few errors, which I've come to expect in indie pubs, but the cliche concept wasn't quite cliche.
Cassandra is this year's Surrender to the local Wolf Pack. She's twenty-two and still a virgin, but she's not completely without sexual experience. That seems to make her a bit less trepidatious than she might have been otherwise.
She's accompanied to the Pack's house, and the claiming proceeds as expected, until Trevor, the Alpha, does something no one sees coming.
The sex scenes are fairly well-written, focusing more on the sensations and emotions than the Tab A, Slot B mechanical side of things, and thought it's a "lust at first sight" trope, the author makes no effort to turn this into a "love at first sight" thing, which I greatly appreciated.
The book is the first part of a serial, and the book does end without resolving the whole story, but it does not end in the middle of a scene. Though I wanted to continue reading, and thankfully can, since I have the second one as well, I did not want to throw my Kindle at the wall for the abrupt, mid-scene endings I've seen in other serials.
As with almost all indies, Craig could use a good editor to clean up misspellings and some awkward sentence structure, but the story itself kept my attention throughout.
~*~*~*~*~*~
This is the second in the Wicked Mountain Wolf Pack serial, which I received via RomanceArcade in exchange for an honest review.
The story is still compelling, and the titular claiming was not what I expected. Yay!
There were a few more errors in the beginning of this part than in the first part, but I noticed far fewer as the story progressed. Still, there were some awkwardly phrased sentences which an editor could have smoothed out.
This part of the serial DID end right in the middle of a scene, and though that's sort of irritating, I think I know enough from these first two parts that I can make some educated guesses about how Cassandra's going to extricate herself from the unfortunate circumstances.
I did still enjoy the story, and if you are a fan of serials, I recommend this one.
I'm not a big fan of serials, especially the ones which leave off right in the middle of an important scene, so I was prepared not to like this one much.
I found it a pleasant surprise to be mistaken. There were a few errors, which I've come to expect in indie pubs, but the cliche concept wasn't quite cliche.
Cassandra is this year's Surrender to the local Wolf Pack. She's twenty-two and still a virgin, but she's not completely without sexual experience. That seems to make her a bit less trepidatious than she might have been otherwise.
She's accompanied to the Pack's house, and the claiming proceeds as expected, until Trevor, the Alpha, does something no one sees coming.
The sex scenes are fairly well-written, focusing more on the sensations and emotions than the Tab A, Slot B mechanical side of things, and thought it's a "lust at first sight" trope, the author makes no effort to turn this into a "love at first sight" thing, which I greatly appreciated.
The book is the first part of a serial, and the book does end without resolving the whole story, but it does not end in the middle of a scene. Though I wanted to continue reading, and thankfully can, since I have the second one as well, I did not want to throw my Kindle at the wall for the abrupt, mid-scene endings I've seen in other serials.
As with almost all indies, Craig could use a good editor to clean up misspellings and some awkward sentence structure, but the story itself kept my attention throughout.
~*~*~*~*~*~
This is the second in the Wicked Mountain Wolf Pack serial, which I received via RomanceArcade in exchange for an honest review.
The story is still compelling, and the titular claiming was not what I expected. Yay!
There were a few more errors in the beginning of this part than in the first part, but I noticed far fewer as the story progressed. Still, there were some awkwardly phrased sentences which an editor could have smoothed out.
This part of the serial DID end right in the middle of a scene, and though that's sort of irritating, I think I know enough from these first two parts that I can make some educated guesses about how Cassandra's going to extricate herself from the unfortunate circumstances.
I did still enjoy the story, and if you are a fan of serials, I recommend this one.
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