Death’s Excellent Vacation edited by Charlaine Harris & Toni L.P. Kelner

December 29, 2020Book ReviewA. Lee Martinez, Charlaine Harris, Chris Grabenstein, Christopher Golden, Daniel Stashower, Death's Excellent Vacation, Jeaniene Frost, Jeff Abott, Katie MacAlister, Kim Newman, L.A. Banks, Lilith Saintcrow, Paranormal Fantasy, Sarah Smith, Short Story Collections, Toni L.P. Kelner, Urban Fantasyskyebjenner

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Title: Death’s Excellent Vacation
Author: Charlaine Harris, Sarah Smith, Jeaniene Frost, Daniel Stashower, A. Lee Martinez, Jeff Abott, L.A. Banks, Katie MacAlister, Christopher Golden, Lilith Saintcrow, Chris Grabenstein, Sharan Newman & Toni L.P. Kelner
In: Death’s Excellent Vacation (Charlaine Harris & Toni L.P. Kelner)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal fantasy, Short story collections, Urban fantasy
Dates read: 4th June – 26th November 2020
Pace: Medium
Format: Anthology
Publisher: Gollancz
Year: 2010
5th sentence, 74th page: Still, appearances were deceiving.

An all-new anthology of vampire stories edited and with an introduction by Charlaine Harris and Toni L.P. Kelner.

I absolutely loved this collection. I normally love anything to do with paranormal fantasy anyway. But this is a particularly good one. After all, it’s all paranormal fantasy and urban fantasy stories that feature vacations.

It’s coming to that kind of year that I wish I got vacation time in y job. That I wish I could just take some time off and do whatever it is that people do on vacation. Which meant that it was really lovely to read a collection of short stories that feature vacations. All of which made me a little more thankful that I haven’t been going on vacation.

This is a collection that has a little bit of romance, a lot of humour, and generally anything that could possibly go wrong when you have vacation time does. It had me smiling and laughing throughout. I will most definitely be reading this one again.

<- Pirate Dave’s Haunted Amusement Park

Two Blondes ->

Image source: Amazon

Dead Man’s Hand by Christie Yant

December 29, 2020Book ReviewChristie Yant, Dead Man's Hand, Paranormal Fantasy, Urban Fantasyskyebjenner

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Title: Dead Man’s Hand
Author: Christie Yant
In: Dead Man’s Hand (John Joseph Adams)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal fantasy, Urban fantasy
Dates read: 26th November 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Titan Books
Year: 2014
5th sentence, 74th page: Mr. Sutherland immediately turned his weapon over to Ed Durham, proprietor, and waited peacefully while a miners’ jury was assembled.

Going through the different hands that were once called “Dead Man’s Hand” and regaling the dead men that held them…

I loved how each little tale of death in this story started off with a hand of cards. And they were the cards that each of the characters were holding. Not that I’ve ever gambled much or played many card games, but it was interesting to see what a Dead Man’s Hand actually was.

It’s also nice how a collection called Dead Man’s Hand ends with a story of that same name. Featuring the cards that originally coined that term. It was well done and rounded out this Weird western collection brilliantly.

All in all, this was a fun and engaging short story. It was well written and left me with a huge smile stretched across my face. As all final short stories in an anthology should be.

<- Neversleeps

Dead Man’s Hand Collection ->

Image source: Amazon

A Silver Music by Gaie Sebold

December 28, 2020Book ReviewGaie Sebold, Ghosts, Paranormal Fantasy, The Mammoth Book of Ghost Stories by Womenskyebjenner

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Title: A Silver Music
Author: Gaie Sebold
In: The Mammoth Book of Ghost Stories by Women (Marie O’Regan)
Rating Out of 5: 2 (Managed to read it… just)
My Bookshelves: Ghosts, Paranormal fantasy
Dates read: 26th November 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2012
5th sentence, 74th page: The lettering of a human hand, be it hasty scrawl or copperplate or the awkward, childlike printing of the barely literature, connected one to the writer.

A ghost story that will draw you in and entrance you.

It took me a little while to get into this story and really figure out what was even going on. And even then, it was most certainly not my favourite short story in the whole collection.

I struggled with this. Actually, I thought it might be because I wasn’t really paying attention, but I tried rereading this about three times before I just pushed my way through.

Definitely not my favourite short story, but maybe I’ll have to give it another shot in the future.

<- Afterward

The Mammoth Book of Golden Age Detective Stories ->

Image source: Goodreads

Competition Entry #349 by Jaclyn Moriarty

December 28, 2020Book ReviewAustralian Authors, Begin End Begin, Contemporary, Jaclyn Moriarty, Young Adultskyebjenner

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Title: Competition Entry #349
Author: Jaclyn Moriarty
In: Begin, End, Begin (Danielle Binks)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Australian authors, Contemporary, Young adult
Dates read: 26th November 2020
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: Well done, she said to me.

It’s a competition to win five time travel trips of ten minutes each. Explain why you should win in 25 words or less…

This is an incredibly meandering and very funny short story. It honestly sounds exactly like a teenager refusing to get to the point and basically telling their life story. Actually, it reminded me a lot of my sister when she was a preteen… she’d start the story at a. Then take about a thousand detours and end up at 10. I was never entirely sure where we were going with a story, or what the point was, but it was always fun.

The format for Competition Entry #349 was completely unique. I have never read a story that is supposed to be a competition entry. It was kind of amazing how Moriarty managed to tell a whole story in a piece that was a competition entry. She got so much history and detail into just a few short pages. You also got to know the character very well in an incredibly short space of time.

Just thinking about this story, the day after I read it to write this review has left a huge smile on my face. It was so light, funny and just downright cute. I am completely intrigued to see if I can find anymore books / stories by Jaclyn Moriarty now…

<- Last Night at the Mount Solemn Observatory

Begin, End, Begin ->

Image source: Harper Collins Australia

Pirate Dave’s Haunted Amusement Park by Toni L.P. Kelner

December 27, 2020Book ReviewDeath's Excellent Vacation, Paranormal Fantasy, Toni L.P. Kelner, Vampires, Werewolvesskyebjenner

Title: Pirate Dave’s Haunted Amusement Park
Author: Toni L.P. Kelner
In: Death’s Excellent Vacation (Charlaine Harris & Toni L.P. Kelner)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal fantasy, Vampires, Werewolves
Dates read: 26th November 2020
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Gollancz
Year: 2010
5th sentence, 74th page: ‘Isn’t there anything else I can do to help?’

Joyce is a recently turned werewolf who just wants a nice quiet vacation. To the amusement park that she remembers from her childhood. But things have changed a little…

This was such a fun and cute short story. I can’t say that I have an amusement park that I’m nostalgic for, or even a pirate that I had a teenage crush on. But this certainly made me wish that I did. After all, Joyce manages to not only save the park of her childhood, but also hook up with her crush. I mean, what more could you want?

Alright, you could also want to add into that mix vampires and werewolves. Then it is really a great short story. After all, a bit of supernatural banter and lust to round out a fun story… I finished this tale with a huge grin across my face.

Pirate Dave’s Haunted Amusement Park was a fantastic way to finish off the Death’s Excellent Vacation. For starters, Joyce repeatedly states that she’s actually on vacation. But it’s also just really pleasant and fun. What a light, humorous and wonderful way to round out a seriously fun collection.

<- Home from America

Death’s Excellent Vacation ->

Image source: Amazon

Prom Nights from Hell by Meg Cabot, Stephenie Meyer, Kim Harrison, Michele Jaffe & Lauren Myracle

December 27, 2020Book ReviewKim Harrison, Lauren Myracle, Meg Cabot, Michele Jaffe, Paranormal Fantasy, Prom Nights from Hell, Short Story Collections, Stephenie Meyer, Young Adultskyebjenner

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Title: Prom Nights from Hell
Author: Meg Cabot, Stephenie Meyer, Kim Harrison, Michele Jaffe & Lauren Myracle
In: Prom Nights from Hell (Meg Cabot, Stephenie Meyer, Kim Harrison, Michele Jaffe & Lauren Myracle)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal fantasy, Short story collections, Young adult
Dates read: 4th – 24th November 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Anthology
Publisher: Harper Collins
Year: 2007
5th sentence, 74th page: We could have; my house was miles from town on an unmaintained dirt road, with no nearby neighbours to complain.

Worried that prom is gonna bite?

In this collection, bestselling authors including Stephenie Meyer (Twilight) and Meg Cabot (How to be Popular and The Princess Diaries) take bad Prom nights to a whole new level – a paranormally bad level…

Wardrobe catastrophes and two left feet are nothing compared with discovering you’re dancing with the Grim Reaper – and he isn’t here to tell you how hot you look…

From vampire exterminations to angels fighting demons, these five stories will be more fun than any DJ in a bad dinner jacket. No corsage or limo rental necessary – just great, sexy, scary fun!

This wasn’t too bad a collection. It was a bit soured for me towards the end since I don’t really like Stephenie Meyer. And she was the author who rounded out the collection. But, the other four novellas were still great, so, ultimately I really enjoyed this collection.

I’ve always thought that prom was incredibly stupid. I wouldn’t have gone to my own formal, if it wasn’t for the fact that the school told us we wouldn’t graduate if we didn’t go. Luckily for me, this collection proved that prom is stupid. And at least these stories featured some really entertaining and interesting proms. Ones that I might have even been excited to go to.

I liked all of the stories in this collection. I didn’t necessarily jump head over heels for each of them (with Cabot and Harrison’s being exceptions to this). But I did enjoy the majority of the stories. They were fun and quirky and took me on an adventure that I really wasn’t expecting.

Even though this isn’t my favourite anthology on my shelves. I would most certainly read it again.

<- Hell on Earth

The Exterminator’s Daughter ->

Image source: Harper Collins

Afterward by Edith Wharton

December 26, 2020Book ReviewEdith Wharton, Ghosts, Paranormal Fantasy, The Mammoth Book of Ghost Stories by Womenskyebjenner

Title: Afterward
Author: Edith Wharton
In: The Mammoth Book of Ghost Stories by Women (Marie O’Regan)
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Ghosts, Paranormal fantasy
Dates read: 24th November 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 1910
5th sentence, 74th page: What was it?

They wanted to move into a haunted house. But what they didn’t realise is that they wouldn’t realise that they had been haunted until Afterward. Long, long Afterward.

Afterward is all about the power of hindsight. Or at least, that’s what I noticed about this. Every moment is hindsight on the one before and focuses on the ways in which knowing something afterward can be wonderful. But in the moment, in kind of sucks.

This couple face a whole number of issues in their endeavor to live in a haunted house. And honestly… anyone who wants to live in a haunted house is, well, kind of an idiot. Why would you want to live in a haunted house? It seems horrifying and… just not a great idea…

This was a fun and intriguing story. I didn’t get entirely swept away by it, which is why it has a slightly lower rating than other stories, but I definitely had a good time reading it. And as the second to last story in the The Mammoth Book of Ghost Stories by Women collection, it has a great sense of winding down from all the horror of the other stories.

<- Among the Shoals Forever

A Silver Music ->

Image source: Goodreads

Home from America by Sharan Newman

December 26, 2020Book ReviewDeath's Excellent Vacation, Family, Paranormal Fantasy, Sharan Newman, Urban Fantasyskyebjenner

Title: Home from America
Author: Sharan Newman
In: Death’s Excellent Vacation (Charlaine Harris & Toni L.P. Kelner)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Family, Paranormal fantasy, Urban fantasy
Dates read: 24th November 2020
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Gollancz
Year: 2010
5th sentence, 74th page: In the gray light of morning the plane slid down through the cloud cover and the O’Reillys got their first glimpse of what for them was the Promised Land.

Patrick has always dreamed about he home land. And been incredibly self-conscious about his height. Now he finally gets to go “home”. What he finds is nothing like what he expected.

I have always wanted to find out more about my ancestors. But I can’t say that I’ve ever had wonderful, powerful imaginations about them. After all, I’m probably from farm folk or some such. Even though I would love to go and see England and Scotland, I don’t think it would be like coming home. Which made it interesting to read a short story that featured a young man who was so desperate to live in and move to a country that he had never laid eyes on because he thought he was from hero stock.

Pride is never really a good thing. If we’re being honest here. And Patricks’ pride in this short story leaves his vacation at a pretty grisly ending. He is too proud to love his family for who they are. And he is certainly too proud to stay and listen and learn. Rather, he wants to be a hero and from more “impressive” ancestors. I really don’t understand that, and I’m kind of glad that he got his comeuppance. He was a bit of a weeny in this tale.

I love that this story dealt with family and pride. Leprechauns and the Luck of the Irish. The whole story was fun and had me smiling as I turned the pages. It wasn’t quite what I expected from the title. But it was most definitely a tale that I thoroughly enjoyed.

<- The Demon in the Dunes

Pirate Dave’s Haunted Amusement Park ->

Image source: Amazon

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

December 26, 2020Book ReviewAgatha Christie, Crime, Hercule Poirot, Mysteryskyebjenner

Poirot - Murder On The Orient Express [Illustrated Deluxe Edition] :HarperCollins Australia

Title: Murder on the Orient Express
Author: Agatha Christie
Series: Hercule Poirot #10
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Crime, Mystery
Dates read: 10th – 24th November 2020
Pace: Medium
Format: Novel
Publisher: Harper Collins
Year: 1934
5th sentence, 74th page: This is where I’m supposed to go all goosefleshy down the back.

‘The murderer is with us – on the train now…’

Just after midnight, a snowstorm stops the famous Orient Express in its tracks. A passenger is brutally murdered, and the luxurious train is no longer a place of safety. Everyone is a suspect.

This illustrated edition contains the complete text of Agatha Christie’s II Murder on the Orient Express, II together with 200 glorious production paintings and sumptuous photos from the new film, directed by Kenneth Branagh.

Wow. This was a pretty, seriously intense novel. I knew that it probably would be, considering it’s so damn well-known and popular. But I really didn’t expect… this level of awesomeness. Now I just desperately want more of these books on my shelves!

Recently, I’ve been watching some Agatha Christie movies with one of my clients. I can never guess who the culprit is in these (all except one thus far have come as a complete shock). This is such a wonderfully new experience for my crazy brain that I was looking forward to trying to match my wits to this storyline. And I couldn’t predict this either, every time I thought that I might be beginning to put all of the puzzle pieces together… Christie threw another curveball my way. It was brilliant and wonderful.

One of the things about this story that I did struggle with was the amount of characters. I actually struggled to keep all of the pieces in my brain and keep track of who was who. What the motives were. What the evidence was… I’ve been assured that that’s unique to this Hercule Poirot story, but it was certainly a little bit difficult. I’m just grateful that I had the movie edition of this book, so there were many pictures to help me sort out what exactly was happening…

The thing that I loved the most about this was that I just couldn’t predict what was going to happen. This surprise, partnered with the humour and Christie’s ability to completely change register and language style completely hooked me. I am most certainly in love with this and can’t wait to get my hands on some more Agatha Christie novels…

<- Lord Edgware Dies

Three Act Tragedy ->

Image source: HarperCollins Australia

Hell on Earth by Stephenie Meyer

December 25, 2020Book ReviewParanormal Fantasy, Prom Nights from Hell, Stephenie Meyer, Young Adultskyebjenner

Title: Hell on Earth
Author: Stephenie Meyer
In: Prom Nights from Hell (Meg Cabot, Stephenie Meyer, Kim Harrison, Michele Jaffe & Lauren Myracle)
Rating Out of 5: 2.5 (Readable, but not worth reading again)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal fantasy, Young adult
Dates read: 24th November 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Novella
Publisher:Harper Collins
Year: 2007
5th sentence, 74th page: He could see Melissa, her head on that stupid jock’s shoulder, her eyes closed.

Gabe just wants prom night to be good, fun and filled with love. But, there’s a hitch in his plans and he might just be able to save her.

I was so hoping that this novella would begin to redeem Meyer to me. But it really didn’t. partially this is probably because I went into it with a negative expectation. But also the fact that it is, in general just not that well written. Her writing still feels clunky to me. Clunky, not well edited and just not enough to be interesting.

The idea of this novella was kind of brilliant. And I think that most other authors, I would have happily read the novella and actually enjoyed it. But, that is just not destined to be the case for this story.

I won’t write much about this as I don’t have much to say that is positive.

<- Kiss and Tell

Prom Nights from Hell ->

Image source: Harper Collins

Earth and Skye

The ramblings of a bibliophile.

Death’s Excellent Vacation edited by Charlaine Harris & Toni L.P. Kelner

Dead Man’s Hand by Christie Yant

A Silver Music by Gaie Sebold

Competition Entry #349 by Jaclyn Moriarty

Pirate Dave’s Haunted Amusement Park by Toni L.P. Kelner

Prom Nights from Hell by Meg Cabot, Stephenie Meyer, Kim Harrison, Michele Jaffe & Lauren Myracle

Afterward by Edith Wharton

Home from America by Sharan Newman

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

Hell on Earth by Stephenie Meyer