Book Review - Wild Man's Curse (repost)

Wild Man's Curse (Wilds of the Bayou #1)
by Susannah Sandlin

What is it about:
The bones said death was comin’, and the bones never lied.

While on an early morning patrol in the swamps of Whiskey Bayou, Louisiana wildlife agent Gentry Broussard spots a man leaving the home of voodoo priestess Eva Savoie—a man who bears a startling resemblance to his brother, whom Gentry thought he had killed during a drug raid three years earlier. Shaken, the agent enters Eva’s cabin and makes a bloody discovery: the old woman has been brutally murdered.

With no jurisdiction over the case, he’s forced to leave the investigation to the local sheriff, until Eva’s beautiful heir, Celestine, receives a series of gruesome threats. As Gentry’s involvement deepens and more victims turn up, can he untangle the secrets behind Eva’s murder and protect Celestine from the same fate? Or will an old family curse finally have its way?

What did I think of it:
I love the Penton books by Sandlin and all her other books as well, so I had to get my trotters on this book.

And it is so good!

Sandlin has a very engaging writing style that draws you in from the start. I love how she sets the mood for this story in her descriptions, and I could almost feel the swampy heat. Whiskey Bayou sounds like a beautiful, but harsh place to live.

Both Gentry and Ceelie are easy to like and root for. I also fell in love with Jena and Paul, two of the other characters. I'm really hoping both will get their own book in this series.

The story is very suspenseful and full of mystery. What's the curse resting on Ceelie's family? Why was Eva killed? It didn't take me long to be totally engrossed in the story and to root for Gentry and Ceelie to figure out what was going on and why.

All in all this is a gripping read both because of the story and the setting. I will most certainly get my trotters on any other books in this series.

Why should you read it:
It's a beautiful and atmospheric Romantic Suspense read.

On McPig's Wishlist - Z

Z
by Michael Thomas Ford

The First Rule of Torching: Cleanse with fire.

Josh is by far the best zombie Torcher around—at least, he is in his virtual-reality zombie-hunting game. Josh has quickly risen through the player ranks, relying on the skill, cunning, and agility of a real Torcher.

The Second Rule of Torching: Save all humans.

But luckily for Josh, zombies exist only in the virtual world. The real zombie war is now more than fifteen years in the past, and the battle to defeat the deadly epidemic that devastated his family—and millions of others—is the stuff of history lessons.

The Third Rule of Torching: You can't bring them back.

Charlie is the top-ranked player in the game. Since all the players are shrouded in anonymity, Josh never expects Charlie to be a girl—and he never expects the offer she makes him: to join the underground gaming league that takes the virtual-reality game off the screen and into the streets. Josh is thrilled. But the more involved he gets, the more he realizes that not everything is what it seems. Real blood is spilling, members of the team are disappearing, and the zombies in the game are acting strange. And then there's the matter of a mysterious drug called Z...

Kill or Cure - Book Review

Kill or Cure (The Afterblight Chronicles #2)
by Rebecca Levene

What is it about:
We all go a little crazy sometimes...

Jasmine has spent five years underground, locked in a secret government bunker. Outside, the world has gone to hell, a mysterious virus killing all but 1 in 20 of the world's population. It's enough to drive anyone mad - but Jasmine's crazier than most. The cure she was working on had an unexpected side effect, psychotic symptoms which only powerful drugs can suppress.

Jasmine's rescuers, the pirate rulers of the New Caribbean, don't care. They need Jasmine's help to discover what it is that has turned the inhabitants of Cuba into rabid killers. Jasmine's quest to find a cure for this new plague, as well as for her own madness, draws her across the fractured continent of America and into the darkest recesses of her own past.

What did I think of it:
Recently I asked people what I should read next. That turned into a tie, so I picked up this book first, because the mention of rabid killers and plague just might mean zombies!

Even though it turned out there were no zombies (although the rabid killers certainly had things in common with them) this was a cool read.

Post-apocalyptic pirates, a mad lead character, rabid killers, and more: this book is filled with action and suspense. Because Jasmine is such an unhinged character it is pretty difficult to root for her, but there were some other characters I liked and who I rooted for instead.

Still if there's one thing I can say against this book, it's that I lacked a connection to the lead character. I had a hard time understanding why some of the others went along with her plans.

All in all this is a fast and entertaining read. I liked Levene's Anno Mortis better, but just looking at this book I would still pick up more books by Levene if they sound interesting.

Why should you read it:
It's a very entertaining post-apocalyptic read.

Teaser Tuesdays - Cell 7

There are two sounds in my head.
The bang of the gun through silence.
And my own voice shouting, 'Go!'

(page 1, Cell 7 by Kerry Drewery)



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Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following: - Grab your current read - Open to a random page - Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) - Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Blair Witch - Movie Review

Blair Witch
Director: Adam Wingard, Writer: Simon Barrett

What is it about:
After discovering a video showing what he believes to be his vanished sister Heather, James and a group of friends head to the forest believed to be inhabited by the Blair Witch.

What did I think of it:
I remember how people raved about The Blair Witch Project back in 1999. It was so scary and so intense, I was told. Just one person who saw the movie told me he thought it sucked. I should have listened to that one person, because when I saw the movie I was bored and slightly queasy from the shaky camera work.

Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 (2000) wasn't pretending to be anything more than a bad horror movie, and I actually enjoyed that one.

So when a friend invited me to go to Blair Witch (2016) I came along, expecting something bad, but thinking it couldn't possibly be worse than the original The Blair Witch Project.

Well.....

Think again!

Blair Witch is trying hard to be like its predecessor The Blair Witch Project, including shaky camera work. Now I can understand a camera is shaking when you're running for your life, but it's practically shaking all the time! As my friend said: no one is that unsteady with a camera these days!

Then there's the sound. For a movie that's trying to pretend it's an actual documentary it's surprising how at "scary" moments the sound suddenly is louder to make sure to add to the scare effect.

As for scary: again I was pretty bored by what was supposed to be scary. There was one scene where someone is trapped in a dank tunnel and that's where my sympathetic claustrophobia kicked in, but otherwise this movie would have been a snooze-fest if it wasn't for the erratic noisy sound effects.

All in all it's practically a tie which is the worst movie: The Blair Witch Project or Blair Witch. As another friend said: at least The Blair Witch Project was trying something new back in the day, so it's with this in mind that I have to say that Blair Witch is even worse than The Blair Witch Project.

So if you're looking for a scary movie and just have to have the Blair Witch involved: track down Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2, that movie at least won't make you queasy with its camera work.

The Fire Lord's Lover - Book Review by Voodoo Bride

The Fire Lord's Lover (The Elven Lords #1)
by Kathryne Kennedy

What is it about:
In a magical land ruled by ruthless Elven lords, the Fire Lord's son, Dominic Raikes, plays a deadly game to conceal his growing might from his malevolent father—until his arranged bride awakens in him passions he thought he had buried forever.

Lady Cassandra has been raised in outward purity and innocence, while secretly being trained as an assassin. Her mission is to bring down the Elven Lord and his champion son. But when she gets to court, she discovers that nothing is what it seems, least of all the man she married.

But beneath the gilded castles lies an unspeakable evil, greater than either Dominic or Cassandra had ever fathomed, and without each other they may not survive.

What did Voodoo Bride think of it:
A really nice read.

I will confess I thought the obstacles in the romantic story line were overcome a bit too easily. Dominic started out as a very closed off individual, not talking with his wife, but just a few nights of physical passion were enough to make him open up apparently.

Don't get me wrong. I enjoyed the romance, but wouldn't have minded to see both of them connect a bit more on an emotional level.

I loved the world building and the overall story. Next to Dominic and Cassandra there were some interesting characters, and I hoped that maybe one of the other books might feature some of them, but it seems I'm out of luck. That being said, the other books in this series do sound intriguing.

All in all this is an enjoyable Historical Fantasy Romance, and I'll most certainly give the next book in this series a try.

Why should you read it:
It's an enjoyable romance set in an intriguing world.


Buy from Amazon

On Voodoo Bride's Wishlist - Implosion

Implosion (Colliding Worlds Trilogy #2)
by Berinn Rae

Humans and the Sephians have reached a tentative truce and combine forces to pursue the Draeken threat. The war is on…

Sephian warrior Nalea exists only to kill Draeken, and she’s good at her job. That is, until a particularly bloody battle, she finds herself captured by Roden Zyll, a Draeken commander known for his good looks and heartless brutality. Her tormentor ignites a passion she believed impossible, and she despises him for it. Worse, she fears he has no intention of letting her go.

Desperate times call for desperate schemes…
Meanwhile, a tyrant has devised a plan that threatens to obliterate life on earth. Roden has spilled plenty of blood in his time, and he cares little for humans. But when he realizes his leader’s plan could lead to his people’s extinction, he plans a war of his own, a war that needs Nalea to succeed. But does earth stand a chance if its survival depends on Nalea opening her heart to the man who’d enslaved her people?