Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela

Book Review, , ,
Overview
Image result for long walk to freedom book cover

Title: Long Walk to Freedom
Author: Nelson Mandela
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Biographies, Politics, Race
Dates read: 1st – 21st February 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Abacus
Year: 1994
5th sentence, 74th page: Your father’s letter mentions nothing about a brother.

Synopsis

The riveting memoirs of the outstanding moral and political leader of our time, Long Walk to Freedom brilliantly re-creates the drama of the experiences that helped shape Nelson Mandela’s destiny. Emotive, compelling and uplifting, Long Walk to Freedom is the exhilarating story of an epic life; a story of hardship, resilience and ultimate triumph told with the clarity and eloquence of a born leader.

Thoughts

I was actually a little disappointed by this. I’m absolutely fascinated by Nelson Mandela, and I looked forward to finding out a little bit more about the man behind the power and story. I didn’t really get much of that from this story. To me, it was mostly about politics, not actually about the journey and the story of the man. Not exactly my cup of tea.

Don’t get me wrong, this entire thing was very well written. And gave fantastic insight into the challenges faced in South Africa. The political landscape, the segregation, the ways in which Mandela’s Xhosa ancestry and life was structured. Everything was so beautifully detailed and told. But I wanted to know about the people that the man loved. The people that he cared about. The emotions. You just don’t get that in this story.

Alright, I know that Mandela was a politician, so I expected this to be mostly about politics. And law. And human rights. What I didn’t expect was it to just be about this. And that’s where I was a little disappointed. Whenever someone influential is mentioned, their characteristics aren’t discussed. It’s their political acumen and knowledge that is described. I wanted to know much more about the person behind this.

This is an interesting read, and one that I would suggest to others in the future. However, it’s not really my favourite read. I got through it all because the writing was really good, but it took me a lot longer than I had expected because I just couldn’t quite sink my teeth into it…

 <- The Blind SideThis Much Is True ->

Image source: Brotherhood Books

Cosmobotica by Costi Gurgu & Tony Pi

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Image result for the mammoth book of dieselpunk book cover

Title: Cosmobotica
Author: Costi Gurgu & Tony Pi
In: The Mammoth Book of Dieselpunk (Sean Wallace)
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Dieselpunk, Space
Dates read: 21st February 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2015
5th sentence, 74th page: He heard a click, then over a clear frequency, the voice of Razvan Ilie, his machinist.

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Synopsis

The moon landing is in jeopardy and the robots can’t fix it. How will the day be saved?

Thoughts

This short story was kind of reminiscent of Illuminae. Or at least, that’s how I found it. Space ships. Mysterious forces taking over. Robots. It was a fun little adventure. One that was just enough to give me a break in the middle of my studies.

I loved the fact that the lead man was a bit of an older one. One who thought that the battle would be won by the young. I loved that it didn’t end up that way.

This was an easy, short little read. There isn’t a great amount to say about it, because although it was fun, it also wasn’t earthy-shatteringly interesting or engaging. It was just… simple. Exactly the kind of story you need when you’re seriously stressed out.

<- We Never SleepAct of Extermination ->

Image source: Running Press

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Image result for book cover the fault in our stars

Title: The Fault in Our Stars
Author: John Green
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, Contemporary romance, Death, Young adult
Dates read: 12th – 14th February 2020
Pace: Medium
Format: Novel
Publisher: Penguin Books
Year: 2012
5th sentence, 74th page: Um, Support Group Hazel?

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Synopsis

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.

INSIGHTFUL, BOLD, IRREVERENT, AND RAW, The Fault in Our Stars brilliantly explores the funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love.

Thoughts

I knew as soon as I grabbed this book that it was going to be sad. I mean, it was all over the media how tragically beautiful it was a while ago. What I didn’t expect was that I would finish it and feel like my heart could have possibly grown ten sizes. Kind of like the Grinch. It was that moment of painful WOW that I just sat there in shock.

There is a great sense of honesty throughout this story. A lot of stories which talk about illness (let alone cancer), especially in a child talk about how wonderful and accepting the child is. How they’re an inspiration. Ya da ya da ya da. What happens in this story is that there is no sense of god-like hope and wonder to the child. Hazel isn’t always optimistic, but she is brutally honest. And I love this honesty. I’ve been around people with cancer and terminal illness… they’re dying, they don’t have this ray of sunshine all the time and it was so damn nice to read a story that was so freaking honest about that fact.

We all remember our first love. Whether it was the forever love, or puppy love. That first person is special. I love that this is a story about falling in love, even under the worst of circumstances. And then what happens when you lose the one person you love? That was the part I found hardest – imagining either myself or my partner going through the loss of each other. Imagining a world in which that one person you love above all else is gone… and yet, it didn’t feel completely sad. There is a gratefulness to the fact that they got to love one another. Even if it was just for a short period.

Even days after reading the book (I had to take a breath and a pause because of all the feelings)… I still don’t have words for how majestically powerful this story is. It will hit you in the heart, very potently. But not in the way that necessarily leaves you sobbing in the corner. Don’t get me wrong, you will sob. But you’ll also remember all of the wonderful, happy, joyful and loving things in life. It will remind you to live.

<- An Abundance of KatherinesLooking for Alaska ->

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Wicked Games by Angela Knight

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
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Title: Wicked Games
Author: Angela Knight
In: Wicked Games (Angela Knight)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Bondage, Erotica, Short story collections
Dates read: 3rd – 12th February 2020
Pace: Medium
Format: Novella
Publisher: Berkley
Year: 2014
5th sentence, 74th page: “I dressed you,” Nimue told her with a faint smile.

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Synopsis

The New York Times bestselling author of the Mageverse novels makes her wildest moves yet in Wicked Games…

Anglea Knight’s reimagining of the Arthurian elgend in her Mageverse novels has been praised as “inventive, livey, and sexy as hell”. Now, in Wicked Games, she delivers an all-new novella, and a sensual new kick, to her Mageverse world. In a revealing prequel that draws together Arthur, Lancelot, and Guinevere in an explosive triangle, she sets the stage for the Mageverse magic, for the masterful men, and for the beautiful women who live to serve, outwit, and bewitch them

Plus! Angela Knight at her provocative best in two bonus novellas that have previously appeared in a different form…

In Bondage, Beauty and the Beast, lovely Brianne is sold as a bondslvae to Lord Ardolf Greycastle. Ardolf needs Brianne to break the spell that turned him into a beast, but to do that he must win her love even as he dominates her without mercy.

When female Confederate spy Rose Carson seduces a handsome Union Officer in A Question of Pleasure, it is only to gather secrets. She never expected to fall in love, or to submit to his extreme demands when he discovers her duplicity.

Thoughts

This is definitely not a collection for the faint of heart. It’s pretty graphic and intense. Although, to be fair, Knight does warn the reader of that in her introduction. She admits that some of this is seriously intense and based on the approach to the genre in the past. Which isn’t exactly PG or really all that great to women at times… I love that this book comes with a warning though. Not only did it make me laugh, but it was also great to know exactly what I was getting into before turning the first page… and to know that you probably shouldn’t read this in public.

To be honest, although this is a collection of three stories, it’s almost one novel with two short stories thrown in. The Once and Future Lover is almost one close to full-length novel. It’s filled with chapters, an intense storyline and a great journey that you won’t want to put down. The next two stories are much shorter and a little quicker to get through. Although, I actually found them a lot more intense than the first story… maybe because there was no gradual build up to the BDSM.

Every story in this is erotic and intense. There is BDSM, anal and a lot of other sexual choices that I wasn’t really aware of. Definitely an enjoyable eye-opener, just one that I don’t think I’ll be sharing with my friends and family at any point soon.

 <- A Question of Pleasure ReviewThe Once and Future Lover Review ->

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Stroke of Midnight by Sherrilyn Kenyon, Amanda Ashley, L.A. Banks & Lori Handeland

Book Review, , , , , , , ,
Overview
Image result for book cover stroke of midnight

Title: Stroke of Midnight
Author: Sherrilyn Kenyon, Amanda Ashley, L.A. Banks & Lori Handeland
In: Stroke of Midnight (Sherrilyn Kenyon, Amanda Ashley, L.A. Banks & Lori Handeland)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal romance, Short story collections, Vampires, Werewolves
Dates read: 12th January – 12th February 2020
Pace: Medium
Format: Anthology
Publisher: St. Martin’s Paperback
Year: 2004
5th sentence, 74th page: The fact that she was warm and welcoming.

Synopsis

In an unseen world that lurks in the sahdows, they roam the night – feral, passioante, and dangerous. And when their world touches ours, a primitive desire takes hold, leaving mere mortals powerless in its wake…

Four of romance’s most intriguing authors have come together to create a mesmerizing anthology – unforgettable tales of vampires, shapeshifters, and werewolves. At the heart of these deeply sensual tales are everyday people facing extraordinary events – men and women thrown together by fate and an irresistible desire. In this world, your eyes can betray you as myth becomes reality, curses are vanquished, and love is the only weapon that can stand in the face of evil. In this world, there is a moment when passion and forbidden desire collide at the… STROKE OF MIDNIGHT

Thoughts

I absolutely adored this sensual, shapeshifting paranormal romance collection. There was just something about it that was completely impossible to put down. That got my heart pumping. That made me want to run to the nearest book shop and buy all the books. And spend days on end just reading. There was just something that made me fall head over heels with this collection.

The stroke of midnight is an eerie point, a tweening time when you’re kind of between times. The four novellas in this collection perfectly reflected that eerie feeling you get when you happen to be conscious at midnight. Not that the things that begin at midnight in this collection are necessarily good… they’re actually kind of concerning and dark. A little worrying. But still… they’re kind of mystical and great.

This entire collection is fantastic. If you like paranormal romance and things that go bump in the night… it’s the collection that you’re going to want to add to your shelves. It’s definitely one that I’m going to want to read again and again.

 <- Red Moon RisingWinter Born ->

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No Human Hands to Touch by Elizabeth E. Wein

Book Review, ,
Overview
Image result for sirens and other daemon lovers book cover

Title: No Human Hands to Touch
Author: Elizabeth E. Wein
In: Sirens and Other Daemon Lovers (Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Twisted romance
Dates read: 13th February 2020
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: EOS
Year: 1998
5th sentence, 74th page: I am the one who is imprisoned in this place.

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Synopsis

The son that she thought she’d lost has returned. And now, in her twisted way, she wants him back. But only to turn him against his father in the worst ways possible…

Thoughts

So this story is disgustingly sick and twisted. And so many levels of not okay. But it’s also kind of impossible to look away from. The way this is written is completely engaging and enthralling. Even when you are kind of totally hating the characters, you still don’t want to look away and forget about what you’re reading.

The main reason that this is impossible to put down is the horror of the storyline. Not only the manipulation that the two lovers keep doing to each other, but also the fact that they’re in an incestual relationship. It is completely disturbing and horrifying. Yet, I really, really liked the story. Very much an Oedipus kind of tale…

This is a wonderfully open-ended story. You’re not really sure whether or not her machinations worked. Whether the son is going to fight against the father. Whether there is going to be a future for the insane woman who drives this story… it is all very… well, open.

<- Midnight ExpressAttachments ->

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Somnus’s Fair Maid by Ann Downer

Book Review, , ,
Overview
Image result for black thorn white rose book cover

Title: Somnus’s Fair Maid
Author: Ann Downer
In: Black Thorn, White Rose (Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Fairy tales, Retellings
Dates read: 13th February 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Prime Books
Year: 1994
5th sentence, 74th page: Offer for her.

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Synopsis

A Victorian retelling of Sleeping Beauty, with a bit of a twist.

Thoughts

The combination of fairy tales and regency romances is absolutely perfect. I love the perfect Victorian setting. I loved the retelling of a great, traditional fairy tale. And I just loved the way that this story unfolded. The combination and the style wasn’t what I expected, but it was definitely one of my favourite short story retellings that I’ve read in a while.

One of the things I loved most about this is that it is ultimately the man who is asleep. In a completely different manner to what I was kind of anticipating… but, it was completely perfect and enjoyable. It was such a cute, sweet and easy read. One that I’m kind of sad wasn’t longer (isn’t that what I normally say about a great story?)

This is a great short story, a great take on Sleeping Beauty and the perfect fairy tale retelling. So much less dark than many of the stories which I read of a similar vein. And most of the stories in the Black Thorn, White Rose collection.

<- Stronger Than TimeThe Frog King, or Iron Henry ->

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Giants in the Earth by Dale Bailey

Book Review
Overview
Image result for the monstrous ellen datlow book cover

Title: Giants in the Earth
Author: Dale Bailey
In: The Monstrous (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Dark fantasy
Dates read: 13th February 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2015
5th sentence, 74th page: “Maybe it’s hibernating,” he said, abruptly reminded of something he had heard at Rona’s church – a story of an epoch impossibly distant, when graves would vomit forth the dead.

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Synopsis

Down a deep mine in a nowhere town, a man finds an creature that is the most beautiful thing he’s ever laid eyes on. But what people do to the beauty that they don’t understand is truly monstrous…

Thoughts

The mine setting of this story is kind of brilliant. It is a little creepy, kind of intense and definitely eerie. Something that I think works perfectly in a story which features monsters. It also adds to this feeling of tragedy throughout the story. Something about being deep underground and working in the worst of conditions for the love of his family…

This felt like a very tragic, bittersweet story. Tragic not because of what happens to the being they find in the mines… but because of what people’s reactions to something they don’t understand is. What do we do when we are confronted with things that we don’t understand? Why do we fear that unknown? Particularly if that unknown is so tragically, amazingly beautiful as in this story.

This story also highlights that sometimes we’ll do what we know is wrong when pushed to it. That feelings of powerlessness against another, lesser person is an entirely different experience. I would like to say that I wouldn’t succumb, but I would seriously wonder about my own actions…

<- AshputtleThe Beginning of the Year Without a Summer ->

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A Question of Pleasure by Angela Knight

Book Review, , ,
Overview
Image result for wicked games angela knight book cover

Title: A Question of Pleasure
Author: Angela Knight
In: Wicked Games (Angela Knight)
Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one)
My Bookshelves: Bondage, Erotica
Dates read: 13th February 2020
Pace: Fast
Format: Novella
Publisher: Berkley
Year: 2014
5th sentence, 74th page: The army doesn’t.

Synopsis

When female Confederate spy Rose Carson seduces a handsome Union Officer in A Question of Pleasure, it is only to gather secrets. She never expected to fall in love, or to submit to his extreme demands when he discovers her duplicity.

Thoughts

Of all the stories in Wicked Games, this is the one that I liked the least. They all made me get a little uncomfortable and pushed my boundaries a little… but this one didn’t just push my boundaries, it took me over the edge. Solely because in this the man who supposedly loves his sub woman forces her to be with another man… honestly, BDSM is fine, experiences like what were described in this are fairly acceptable. Being forced into it with a third party. I just don’t see how that is done by someone you love.

Having said all of that, I did like that this was about spies and the Yankees versus Rebels. It was kind of nice to have a little spy versus spy story set in a time when people were on the verge of change. And, since I know literally nothing about this period of American history, it was kind of interesting to get what little insight this story did give me.

Honestly, I would have probably thoroughly enjoyed this tale if it wasn’t for the fact that there was another man involved. I’m just having some serious troubles moving past that one…

<- Bondage, Beauty and the BeastWicked Games ->

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Red Moon Rising by Lori Handeland

Book Review, , , , ,
Overview
Image result for book cover stroke of midnight

Title: Red Moon Rising
Author: Lori Handeland
Series: Nightcreature #1.5
In: Stroke of Midnight (Sherrilyn Kenyon, Amanda Ashley, L.A. Banks & Lori Handeland)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal romance, Urban fantasy, Werewolves
Dates read: 13th February 2020
Pace: Fast
Format: Novella
Publisher: St. Martin’s Paperback
Year: 2004
5th sentence, 74th page: “What’s my next assignment, sir?”

Synopsis

Novelist Maya Alexander’s peace is shattered when she is stalked by a Navaho skinwalker who has taken on the guise of a wolf. Her only hope is the mysterious Clay Philips. In his arms, she seeks protection-but as the red moon rises, no one is safe from the danger that lurks nearby…

Thoughts

I’m definitely hooked on this series. There is just something about actually having werewolves as the bad guys that is such a great departure from what I typically read. Adding in a skinwalker in this novella just made me fall even harder for this series. Now I just have to find the next book in the series… it’s buried in one of my many piles of books at the moment I believe.

I love that Maya isn’t really considered a typical beauty. There is something I found a bit “eh” about the continuous repetition of a seriously beautiful woman with an average looking man. But, like in Blue Moon, there’s a bit of a reversal here. The woman isn’t someone who thinks that they’re gorgeous. They’re just not quite that supermodel look… which is what most of us are like. So someone with hips slightly too big and a body that isn’t toned because she sits down all the time? Yeah, I can get behind that!

Although this is a great romance in and of itself, it also starts to seriously set up the rest of the series. Now there is a spy within the hunters, and the lead in this gives up his hunting duties to be a cyber hunter… I’m seriously hoping that he is as helpful and awesome as I’m expecting as this amazing series unfolds!

 <- Blue MoonHunter’s Moon ->

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