Espresso Yourself AND Brew Diligence

Espresso Yourself & Brew Diligence

Maya's Blogs books 1 & 2

by Lara McKenzie

 

Super fun snarky blog of a human working in a supernatural coffee shop.

Rating: 5/5 

 

A Fate of Wrath and Flame

A Fate of Wrath and Flame

by K.A. Tucker

Winter Lost

Winter Lost

by Patricia Briggs

Amari and the Night Brothers

Amari and the Night Brothers

by B.B. Alston

A few months ago, Amari's brother disappeared and there has been no word what happened to him. After yet another visit from the local police, Amari received an odd briefcase from her brother. In it is a very ugly suit and a pair of goggles. Those goggles show Amari that there is a world all around her that she never knew existed.

Supernatural creatures are real and they live in and amongst regular humans.

With this briefcase also comes the invitation to spend the summer training at the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs. While Amari is interested in the bureau and its history, she's much more interested in finding out what happened to her brother. She wants to pass the training but only to help her get her brother back.

But her particular gift is illegal and there are many who don't want her to succeed.

Final thoughts: Harry Potter knock off with a great lead character and a decent plot structure but with poor world-building and too many things inserted just to be cute.

Rating: 3/5

Not Your Ex's Hexes

Not Your Ex's Hexes

by April Asher

TL;DL - Enemies to lovers trope romance with some good moments but inconsistent writing and characterization.

Rating: 3/5

A Witch's Guide to Fake Dating a Demon

A Witch's Guide to Fake Dating a Demon

by Sarah Hawley

Dirty Lying Faeries

Dirty Lying Faeries

by Sabrina Blackburry

 

After getting into an exclusive party with the help of her best friend, Thea has been exposed to a little too much fae influence, which causes her to start the change into a fae changeling. Her change was a mistake, but she's taking to it pretty well for someone who didn't even know that the fae really existed.

It helps that she's bonded to the Lord of the Winter Court, Devin, and he's going to do everything he can to make sure her accidental change works out well, especially because she is now his Lady.

But someone out there is not fine with Thea's change and has been actively shutting down all similar changes and opportunities for hundreds of years. Thea, Devin, and other friends (and enemies) must work together to stop the "rotting one" from destroying all fae forever.

Final thoughts: There are some great moments here but the whole story is pretty disjointed and incomplete. The world building is nice and fairly well-done, but that building comes at the sacrifice of a fuller story. Additionally, the title just doesn't match the content of the book itself. It just doesn't fit. 

Rating: 3/5

Big Bad

Big Bad

by Lily Anderson

In an alternate dimension Sunnydale, the skies over the town are permanently dark and the vampires and demons rule the newly named "Demondale". As the Trio work together to try and help Warren ascend, a teen girl appears and Warren ends up in pieces around the room.

The teen girl is Buffy and she's determined to destroy all demons in all dimensions.

It's up to Jonathan, Andrew, Anya, Angelus, Spike, and Drusilla to try and save their dimension and all the demons and vamps who live there. 

With all of the various characters from the Buffyverse making appearances, they must work together to stop the slayer.

Final thoughts: This is mediocre fanfic that's jammed up reference after reference, which takes away from actual storytelling. Pretty much every demon and vamp who Buffy fought over seven seasons are at least mentioned in this novel. The ending doesn't feel like it fits in with the character who we've grown to love over seven seasons. Those who don't know the Buffyverse and/or aren't fans won't get into this and those who are fans may just be distracted by the references without being able to enjoy the plot.

Rating: 2/5

Bring Me Their Hearts

Bring Me Their Hearts

by Sara Wolf

Three years before, Zera was killed by bandits who also killed her parents. A witch who was near took Zera's heart from her and then reanimated her as a Heartless. After avenging her parents' deaths, Zera stays as the servant of the witch her "saved" her, unable to go far from her heart in the witch's lair.

For the past three years, Zera and two other Heartless have served the witch and been her thralls.

When all signs point to the king preparing for a new war against the witches, a plan is hatched to give Zera the ability to leave her small home, travel to the city, and try to capture the heart of the young prince, Lucien.

Literally.

If Zera can kill him, take his heart, and help to turn him into a Heartless, her heart and the hearts of the two other current thralls will be returned to her, allowing her to be human once more.

Getting to the city is easy. Convincing everyone that she's not a monster will be much harder. Capturing the heart of the prince, could be the most dangerous thing Zera has ever tried to do.

Final thoughts: This one had a nice concept but was a slow build. I almost gave up a few times at the start because I was struggling to get into it. However, once I was in I was all in. Zera is fascinating and many of the other characters are fleshed out well. Lucien was great and I felt for him by the end. There was an obvious twist early on but it actually was revealed to all of the characters early so it didn't bring down the book much. My biggest complaint was the cliffhanger so I'm off to read the next book.

Rating: 4/5

Soul Taken

Soul Taken

by Patricia Briggs

When people start disappearing, the wolf pack of the Tri-Cities area takes it seriously. When vampires start disappearing, that wolf pack gets very serious about protecting those around them.

During a meeting to discuss one issue, the magic around them is broken and a damaged ally appears with an ultimatum for the pack, and especially for Mercy. Find the vampire, Wulfe, or be blamed for his demise.

On the hunt for the missing vampire and trying to make sense of the other disappearances, Mercy and her pack are introduced to the legend of the Soul Taker, a sickle that is possessed and possesses those who hold it. It needs souls to reach its goal of releasing an ancient god and Mercy's soul may just be the last one it needs.

With time running out and the people around them starting to blame the pack for the dangers, Mercy needs to solve yet another magical mystery before it's too late.

Final thoughts: I LOVE Mercy, but this one was a mess. It's choppy. It lacks direction. The characters are all just a little off from their normal state. Was this meant to be messy? Is this just a setup for the final book or two? There are issues with timing and timelines, as well as her just ignoring some issues that keep coming up like the phone calls that can't be tracked. It's possible that my re-read of the series before I read this one tainted my overall view of this story. There are so many better ones before this and this just felt like Patty was distracted as she wrote this.

Rating: 3/5

Grave Things Like Love

Grave Things Like Love

by Sara Bennett Wealer

 

All of her life, Elaine has been the good girl. She has given up many of the things that other juniors in high school get to do because of her parents' business. She is asked to pick up the slack and help out whenever things go wrong, which seems to happen often.

Elaine's parents run the local funeral home and Elaine is being groomed to take over just like her dad did before her and his dad did before him. Their home and their business have been in the family for generations and it's expected that Elaine will continue that tradition.

When new guy, Xander, shows up, it's a breath of fresh air for Elaine and a reminder that she might not want to just always do what's expected of her.

When she and her friends accidentally wake up a ghost in her home, things get even more weird... 

Final thoughts: While billed as a ghost story, this really isn't one. The ghost seems to only be there to help move the motivation of the main character along rather than do anything on her own. Xander's entrance to the group is a little confusing since he's only just arrived but some people act like they've known him for years. The love triangle goes through all of the typical trope points, which isn't necessarily bad but doesn't breathe any new life into it all.

Rating: 3/5

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Not the Witch You Wed

Not the Witch You Wed

by April Asher

 

Violet Maxwell is the "Maxwell Dud". She's the first born of triplets in a magical family but she seems to have no magic. She's grown up to be pretty ok with this but it has affected her prospects within the supernatural community. Though she's supposedly magicless, she is still being told she must marry a supe by a certain point due to an archaic tradition.

Lincoln Thorne is the Alpha of the North American Pack and he has his own bonding deadline coming up. If he doesn't bond by his thirty-third birthday, he will have to withdraw as Alpha and also as being a member of the Council.

Violet and Lincoln have a rocky history, but they have a common goal. They need to get their respective supes off their backs and a fake dating arrangement would be just the thing. 

Unfortunately, Lincoln betrayed Violet years before so faking it may not lead to making it. 

Final thoughts: Completely formulaic and full of all the romance tropes that are out there, but still a fun ride. This is cotton candy from start to finish. The author seems to be having some fun with this and does a pretty good job working with the formula and tropes. Read it with the cotton candy mindset and you should have some fun.

Rating: 4/5

Go Hex Yourself

Go Hex Yourself

by Jessica Clare

When Reggie Johnson responds to an ad to be the assistant to a Spellcaster, she assumes that the person in question is someone who works for the company that creates and publishes her favorite card game. What shes doesn't know is that spellcasters are real and she has managed to find an enchanted ad that lead her to this dotty old woman and her grumpy nephew.

Now Reggie must start believing in witchcraft and curses while learning to be the familiar of one of the most renowned witches to have lived. The grumpy nephew isn't happy with her being there but Reggie will convince him, ignore him, or both.

However, when a mysterious curse hits the family, all thoughts of not working together go out the window because only together can they solve the mystery and get that dotty old woman back on her feet.

Final thoughts: Cute book with a nice progression in the relationship between Reggie and Ben. Some of the other parts of the book have issues that were not resolved well, but I always like a book that shows instead of tells when it comes to romance.

Rating: 3/5

Warning: this is NOT a kids' book

How to Snag a Shifter

How to Snag a Shifter

by Karin De Havin 

Rating: 1/5 (AVOID THIS BOOK)

Wolf Girl Series

 

Wolf Girl

 

Lost Girl

 

Alpha Girl

Mated Girl

all by Leia Stone

Wild Sign

Wild Sign

by Patricia Briggs

When the entire population of a tiny town in California goes missing, it doesn't seem like something Charles and Anna would need to investigate. After all, it's not even in their state.

However, it turns out that the land that those missing people had settled on belongs to the mate of their pack Alpha and that means it is their business to find out what happened those those forty people. 

Taking an SUV and accompanied by the berserker werefolf, Tag, the three head down to forest in the middle of nowhere to solve a mystery.

What they didn't anticipate was coming across more than one type of mythical creature, nor did they think that one of those creatures would find Anna to be just what it needed to reach its goals.

Final thoughts: This is one of the better Anna/Charles books, but I really do prefer the Mercy Thompson series. I found it interesting that this story had a few answers to questions fans have posed for a while. The ending was a little odd, which I will go into in my spoiler-filled podcast.

Rating: 3/5

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Podcast review/discussion MAJOR SPOILERS!!!!

Kind of a Big Deal

Kind of a Big Deal

by Shannon Hale

 

Josie Pie peaked in high school but she just can't admit that. In high school, she was kind of a big deal, being popular, dating the popular guy, and getting all the juiciest roles in the drama productions. People recognized her and called her name in the hallways and around her tiny town. She was going to be BIG!

 

When her drama mentor convinces her to try out for a Broadway production in New York, she eagerly drops out of high school and heads to NY to make it big.

 

And she flops. 

 

Big time.

 

She barely gets by with a cruddy apartment, acting workshops, and a credit card that her mom got her, which she maxes out fast.

 

Josie Pie desperately takes a job to be a nanny and moves out to Montana with the single mom and daughter to try and get her life together and find a way to be the big deal she was always meant to be.

 

After visiting a strangely vibing bookstore, Josie sits down at the park to read and take her mind off her failures when she's suddenly IN the book with bandits, treetop hideouts, corsets, and more.

 

Once out, Josie wants back in. In the book, she was kind of a big deal again. That feeling is too good and Josie needs to feel it as much as possible.

 

So while her real world, friendships, and love life crumble around her, Josie dives into book after book, hoping to be the big deal she was always supposed to be.

 

Final thoughts: Um.No. I pushed my way through this book, mostly because I spent real money on it. Reading the book jacket, I thought this would be a Jasper Fforde Thursday Next type of book and it just turned out to be bad. Shannon Hale is kind of a big deal in YA lit so I don't really know what happened here, but everything was stilted and confused. The ending was completely strange and didn't fit with the reality of the book beyond that. I have no idea what happened here, but it wasn't good.

 

Rating: 2/5

Smoke Bitten

Smoke Bitten

by Patricia Briggs

Mercy has survived miniature zombie goats, vampire attacks, the fae, angry werewolves, a rapist, and her own bad luck. Now she needs to survive an unknown fae who has escaped Underhill, a rogue group of werewolves, the tension in her own marriage, and killer bunnies. (Monty Python would be so proud.)

For some reason, Adam, her husband and werewolf mate, has shut down their mating bond, while also spending late nights at work and sleeping in the guest room, effectively cutting Mercy out of his life. Mercy is trying to be patient and wait him out, but some people need a little offense instead of waiting in defense.

Tilly, the physical manifestation of Underhill, has dropped a door to her land in the Hauptman backyard in order to be closer to their semi-adopted son and former Underhill resident. Upon entering this world, she lets out an unknown fae who can take over the minds of its victims and make them do evil things to the people around them. 

There is a group of werewolves who have decided that now is the perfect time to try and take over their pack.

There's Wulfe, who has become radically changed after the events of the last book and who is now even more scary and unstable than ever before.

And there are killer bunnies...

With all the juggling that Mercy must do now, she should probably join a circus. 

Final thoughts: I love new Mercy books and this is no exception. She is such a strong character who knows her own mind and heart. She also seems to be the focus of a lot of bad juju, compliments of her father, Coyote. I hope that she gets a few days off of the crazy someday, although that will probably mean that I won't have anything to read and that would be sad. As with all of her books, Briggs has a complicated and convoluted story that makes sense at the end and makes better sense after a reread or two. I LOVE the return of some characters that we haven't seen for a while. I can't wait for the next book.

Rating: 4.5/5

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Elsker

Elsker

S.T. Bende

When Kristia decides to take a leap of change and take a year of university courses in Cardiff, Wales, she never thought she'd end up on a course to save all life everywhere.

It helps that there's a literal Norse God there to help her out.

Final thoughts: Ugh! This is almost a literal plot point by plot point retelling of Twilight with Norse gods instead of vampires. Why?? It's dull, repetitive, plodding, and the "insta-love" has no chemistry whatsoever. 

Rating: 2/5

Join or Die

Join or Die

by J. Adrian Ruth

Alex Ayers is a regular kid with a bit of a temper, a best friend, a single mom, and a pretty good life in Las Vegas. That all changes when his absent father's best friend shows up and tells him he has to leave to attend an exclusive magic school before he Changes into some sort of mythological/magical creature.

At 14, he doesn't have any choice, so he's sent off to Fios Academy to learn about his past, his present, and his possible future as the next Scion who, with his ciorcal of friends, keeps the Creature community in line.

He's got competition for the Scion job, though, and also a few Creatures who aren't happy with any Scion being in charge. 

Alex has to learn about his own half-Creature self and history before things get out of control.

Final thoughts: I enjoyed the book while reading it, but I can't help comparing it to Harry Potter. He's about the same age. He si half-human (Muggle) and half-Creature (Wizard). He's a Chosen One. There are forces against him from the start from competition in the school to dangers from without. There's a barrier to protect the school from outside harm. There's a mysterious headmaster. He's forming a circle of friends who all specialize in different things that he'll need as time passes. The list goes on and on. But, again, I enjoyed the read. If I see the sequel pop up, I'll probably read it, too. And it does look to be at least a few books if it goes year-by-year at the school.

Rating: 4/5

Thanks to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for the ARC.