Book 87, 2022

Autumn's Blood by Marissa Farrar

My rating: 2 of 5 stars



Last night I finally finished reading Autumn's Blood by Marissa Farrar. It's the first book in the "Spirit Shifters" series. Main characters are Doctor Autumn Anderson and spirit shifter Blake Wolfcollar.

When Autumn is recruited to work for the government conducting genetic experiments, she jumps at the chance. Although annoyed that she's kept in the dark about most of the details of the project, Autumn is aware this will be a good move for her career. Blake is working at the same facility, ostensibly as security, but he's actually there to monitor just how close the government is getting in the effort to learn the shifters' secrets. He doesn't dare let on that he's a shifter, even though it means he must bide his time while the cruel head of the project, Maxim Dumas, mistreats the shifters he's managed to take captive. While Autumn is conducting an experiment, her blood accidentally mixes with her genetic samples, creating the mutation the government has been hoping to replicate. She may be confused by the implications, but Blake knows that Autumn is now in danger. He grabs her and they go on the run. Will they be able to rescue the captive shifters and keep Autumn out of Dumas' greedy hands?

In a word, blah. It took me forever to read this because it simply didn't hold my attention. World building was spotty at best, characters were not fleshed out, precious little background was provided, nor were explanations made to any level of satisfaction. Within mere days Autumn fancies herself in love with Blake. That's not love, sweetie; that's Stockholm Syndrome. And it was boring. The entire story was boring. It was a grueling slog just to get through it.

Favorite line: "I didn't turn my back on my people at the slightest hint of trouble." // "That's because you are the trouble."

I wish I'd turned my back on the book and not bothered to read it. Two stars.

Book 88, 2022

Pane of Death by Sarah Atwell

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



At work today I finished reading Pane of Death, which is the second book in author Sarah Atwell's "Glassblowing" mystery series. The narrative is in first-person pov of the main character, Emmeline "Em" Dowell.

Em is intrigued and excited when she's asked to help wealthy Peter Ferguson create the displays in his new home in Tucson where he wants to exhibit his prized collection of valuable stained glass panels. Em's delight turns to horror when she arrives at Peter's house one day to find him dead and the panels missing. Things go from bad to worse when a rival accuses her of murdering Peter. Now Em's boyfriend, Chief of Police Matt Lundgren, must take a step back from their relationship while he investigates the murder. Despite being warned to stay out of it, Em knows her expertise with glass will be invaluable to the investigation. When she begins asking the wrong questions, however, Em learns just how far a killer will go to cover his tracks.

I enjoyed this story. The pacing was good, and I never felt like I was missing out for not having read the first book in the series. Em is shown at work and socializing, rather than the entire narrative being of the investigation. I must say, however, that I wasn't all that enamored of Em as a character. She really did need to keep her nose out of it, and she got all sulky and childish when she felt that Matt was "keeping her in the dark". The villain was rather easy to guess, but it was interesting to see how it all played out.

Favorite lines:
♦ She stared into space, as if thinking. It must have been painful, based on her expression.
♦ I got the impression she wished I was about fifty miles off the New Jersey coast, and a hundred feet down.
♦ Let me make it perfectly clear: I am not a cook. I can keep myself alive, and I send up thankful prayers almost every day for the marvels of modern frozen food.

Fun story, I only wish the heroine had been more likable. Four stars.

My first read in this series means it gets put to my ( Trope Test )