chez_jae | Entries tagged with content: logic brain says 'huh?'

Purrfect Revenge (The Mysteries of Max #3)

Purrfect Revenge by Nic Saint

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I finished reading Purrfect Revenge by Nic Saint last night. It's the third in the "Mysteries of Max" series, starring orange tabby Max and his reporter human, Odelia.

When the famous reality show family, the Kenspeckles, come to town to film their show, it becomes a media circus. The situation is made worse when one of the Kenspeckle sisters is murdered in her own bed. Odelia teams up with Detective Chase Kingsley to investigate, taking all four of their cats along. Max and his friend Dooley are determined to crack the case, but Chase's cat Brutus wants to beat them to the punch. With the Kenspeckles wanting the investigation filmed for their show, Odelia and Chase are constrained in their sleuthing. Fortunately the cats can sneak around unnoticed and hopefully uncover some clues. The biggest clues, however, may come from a feral cat and from the victim's French bulldog...if only Max can get the other animals to talk.

A mild improvement over the second book, which was a mild improvement over the first. Brutus is still a jerk, but we learn more about why he is how he is. Chase is still a jerk, and Odelia still can't control her vagina around him. Something about this series that bugs me is how Odelia communicates with her cats. She has the ability to understand them, which is great, but when she speaks to them, she speaks "in cat". However, the cats have no trouble understanding what other characters (who don't share Odelia's gift) are saying. So why then must she meow at them when she's talking to them? It makes no sense. The murder was a tad grisly for a "cozy" mystery, and the dog and pony show that the investigation turned into was appalling. It seemed no one in the family cared that their sister/daughter/friend was dead; they were more excited about how it would ramp up their ratings. Wow.

Favorite lines:
♦ Being a cat isn't just about catching critters and looking cool doing it. It's about taking care of our humans while they're taking care of us.
♦ "The killer was covered in a long black robe." // "Like Severus Snape?" asked Dooley, who was a big Harry Potter fan.
♦ "Maybe this is the universe's way of telling us we need to take a nap."

Average read, average rating.

Current Mood: calm

Nevermore by Rob Thurman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I began reading Nevermore, the 10th and final(?) book in the "Cal Leandros" series by Rob Thurman, last night and I finished it tonight. Story is told wholly in Cal's first-person point of view.

When Cal gates out of the Ninth Circle to get the pizzas he forgot to buy for the celebration within, he gets to see his world end before his very eyes. The Vigil, who've been gunning for Cal since he outed himself as not-human, have made a final attempt on his life by ramming the bar with a truckload of explosives. Cal wasn't inside, but everyone he ever cared for was. Cal is about to eat his gun when he learns that Robin had one last trick up his sleeve. The Vigil have sent an assassin back in time to eliminate a younger, more vulnerable Cal. If Cal can go back and prevent that, he may also be able to prevent the tragedy that happened in his own time. To do so, however, he'll need his big brother's help, never mind that Niko is now six years younger than Cal is. He also must deal with his annoying younger self and a Robin who can't leave well enough alone when trickery may be involved.

It's up to Cal to convince Niko who he is and that he's telling the truth, fend off Robin's brand of help, locate and exterminate a supernatural assassin, deal with the fresh hell of seeing everyone he loves die in a fiery explosion, and oh yeah, refrain from killing himself in the process.

I knew going in that reading this would not be pleasant. Cal just wants to fucking die, but he's holding it together for Niko and Robin. His Niko and Robin, because the eight-years younger versions just aren't quite the same. It really reminded me of what Niko went through when Cal had his bout of amnesia in Blackout: it was Cal, but not quite his Cal. A lot of the book was consumed with flashbacks, not just of the events leading up to the explosion, but also of past lives. There was a lot of introspection and angsting on Cal's part, and the fact that he managed to cling to his sanity was amazing. Cal did manage to give Niko some serious shit about his sex life, which was epically hilarious. However, Cal spent the majority of the book hurting (physically, mentally, emotionally) and exhausted, and my heart ached for him. I knew the story would end on a cliffhanger, and hell yeah, I'm bitter. I'm bitter, because the author wrote the sequel to this, but she never published it. My understanding is, she pulled the ultimate fandom flounce and refused to publish until people bought more of her other series of books. Sooooo, does she know what it means to "cut off your nose to spite your face"? Because that's exactly what she did. Not only did her fans deserve better, but her characters did, too. Perhaps even more so. Robyn Thurman, you officially suck.

Now, let's examine the illogical premise behind the story:( Meandering Middlings on Time Travel + Spoilers for the Series )

The only author I ever saw handle time-travel well was Dean Koontz in Lightning, in which it was only possible to travel into the future as it was not yet set. That makes far more sense than traveling back in time.

This story was an emotional minefield. Am I sorry I read it? Yes and no. I'm going to soothe my pique and my psyche by clinging to my belief that the events in Thurman's short story, "Impossible Monsters", took place after Everwar, the unpublished 11th book in the series. That being the case, I can then presume Cal saved the day. Hell, he told Ishiah in that story, "I saved the world, saved your life, saved everyone you ever knew or will know." Bet you didn't think of that either, when you wrote/published "Impossible Monsters", did you, Rob Thurman? Hah! That sucking sound coming from Indiana is still you, though.

( Favorite lines )

This one had my feelings all over the place: angst, genuine laughter, despair, hope, and yeah, some teeth-grinding anger at the author for the shabby way she left her characters hanging while she held them hostage (and continues to do so, it seems) in an effort to force readers to buy her other books. That's okay. Have your titty tantrum, bitch. We have fanfic. Hah!

I'll be generous and give this a four.

cal

Banner found on Pinterest; will credit artist if I find out who it is

Current Mood: cynical

Some Bunny to Love (River’s Edge Shifters, #1)

Some Bunny to Love by Lorelei M. Hart

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I began reading the ebook Some Bunny to Love last night, and I finished it early this afternoon. The story is by authors Lorelei M Hart and Aria Grace, and it's the first installment in their "River's Edge Shifters" series. Narrative is in first-person point of view, alternating between the main characters: Alpha rabbit shifter Jase and human omega August.

After August's grandmother passes, he relocates temporarily to her farm to tie up loose ends and settle the estate. His grams ran an animal rescue, and August is re-learning how to care for them. When a young neighbor boy brings him an injured rabbit, August is sure the bunny won't make it, but he tries his best to nurse it back to health, for Xander's sake.

Jase was traveling across country to a new job when he stops in a rural area to shift and stretch his legs. He didn't count on being attacked by a fox, nor did he imagine he'd encounter his mate when a boy took him to get help.

Once August restores Jase's health, he's astonished to find a naked man in place of the bunny he was growing attached to. He likes having Jase around, however, and the extra help on the farm is welcome. When outside forces conspire to separate them, it's going to take some helpful interference from another shifter to set things right.

On the surface, this was an adorable fluff fest, complete with some smokin' sexy times. It did contain some darker undercurrents, however, from Xander's abusive, drunken father to the puffed up town sheriff. I would have liked to see some more backstory for the characters, especially Jase, but characterizations were done well, including some of the animals on August's farm.

I would have enjoyed the story more, were it not for certain aspects that made me go, "Huh?"
( Spoilers )

Favorite lines:
♦ I realized fly-button jeans were invented by someone who never planned on getting laid.
♦ "You're in a pickle."
♦ "I'm so hungry I could eat the asshole out of a skunk."
That quote nearly killed me! I've had a cough for a few days, and I laughed so hard I was reduced to wheezing and hacking as I tried to recover.

Overall, the story was likable enough. I would have given it a solid four stars, but I'm knocking one off for ( Spoiler ) Three stars, it is.

Current Mood: blah

Occult and Battery (Bay Island Psychic Mysteries #2)

Occult and Battery by Lena Gregory

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wednesday night I finished reading Occult and Battery by Lena Gregory. It's the second book in the "Bay Island Psychic" mystery series. Story is told in third person pov from the perspective of the main character, Cass Donovan. Cass is a former psychiatrist who uses her training to "read" people as a psychic.

Cass has barely gotten her psychic shop, Mystic Musings, off the ground when winter hits Bay Island. With tourists in short supply, she's hoping to draw in more customers and business by hosting a seance and group reading at an allegedly haunted local mansion. The new owners plan to turn the mansion into a bed and breakfast, and they are eager for the publicity the weekend will bring. Cass' excitement about the weekend fades when her ex-husband, Donald, shows up along with his new fiancee...who also happens to be Cass' former best friend. Nevertheless, her staunch friends, Stephanie and Bee, are there to keep her spirits up.

The seance is going well until a winter storm knocks the electricity out, and one of the owners of the mansion is found hanging in the cupola. While his death appears to be suicide, Cass believes he was murdered. When someone comes to Cass and asks her to contact the victim and later ends up dead as well, it seems that the killer thinks Cass may know more than she does. Now she needs to avoid a killer and solve the murders before anyone else ends up dead.

The story was interesting. I liked it better than the first one in the series. I especially like that Cass appears to possess some actual psychic abilities, although she is in denial. Bee is an absolute hoot, and I admire how Stephanie always has Cass' back. I would have enjoyed the story more, however, if my logic-brain hadn't kicked in.

( Spoilers )

Favorite line: "Nice to know you guys were going to leave me here alone."
Lame, but nothing else really jumped out at me.

Characters were well-developed, including Cass' odious exes, and the plot moved along at a good tempo. In spite of my grievances with the less-than-logical aspects, I'm giving this one a four.

Current Mood: okay

Alpha Instinct by Katie Reus

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

On Wednesday evening, I finished reading Alpha Instinct by Katie Reus. It's the first book in the "Moon Shifter" series.

When someone poisons the Cordona pack, killing all of the males and the pregnant females, Ana Cordona must step up and take control of her now all-female pack. She knows that the pack will need an Alpha male to come in and assume leadership, but Ana never expected her first love, Connor Armstrong, to return and offer to take over the pack as long as Ana agrees to mate with him. For his part, Connor didn't want to leave Ana all those years ago, but her father threatened to disown her if she mated with him. Not wanting to put her in a position of having to choose him or her family, Connor left without a word. Now that he's back, he'll do whatever it takes to win her over.

It won't be easy. Not only must the pack protect itself against the mysterious person or persons who already poisoned half of their members, but there is a rival pack on the land adjacent. Their cruel Alpha, Sean Taggert, has his sights set on Ana and her land. In addition, someone has been targeting local humans who are known to associate with the wolves. With so much on the line, Ana and Connor must put aside their past hurts and learn to work together, or the pack will not survive.

The story was interesting, although not wholly entertaining. It was darker than most of the urban fantasies I read now, with no humor to lighten things up. In addition, the author used far too many points of view. For the most part, the narrative was in either Ana or Connor's pov, but some of it was written from the pov of Connor's brother Liam, Taggert, the killer, and one of the Anti-Paranormal League members. It got to be too much. Aside from that, the fact that there were essentially three factions that had it in for the Cordona pack (Taggert's pack, the killer, and the APL) was a bit too much. I think the author would have done better to focus on one threat at a time, and save the others for future books in the series.

Now we get to the rest of what stuck in my craw:
( Spoilers Ahoy )

Favorite line: "Do you think we could order dinner before delving into the secret shifter handshake?"
Okay, I guess that was mildly funny.

To sum it up, the story was interesting, characterizations were good (including the "bad" guys), and there was plenty of action, although it was to the point of overload. Hmm...I'd like to give it a 3 /12. However, I am invested enough that I would like to read more, so I'll go with a score of 4 stars:

****

Current Mood: indescribable
Current Music: "Every Breath You Take" ~ The Police