"Ravenous’ is a read that packs a lot into 200 pages – light horror, suspense, traumatic loss, emotional awakening, and a happy ever after. The premis"Ravenous’ is a read that packs a lot into 200 pages – light horror, suspense, traumatic loss, emotional awakening, and a happy ever after. The premise is interesting enough, a plague of flying creatures is decimating the small town of Spangle where a scratch or a mosquito bite, is enough to bring the creatures and ultimately, death. Terry and his little pug Bruce are hiding in his mountain cabin until he can figure out a way to return to his house. Terry stumbles upon Jonas camping and a relationship grows as the two men try and figure out how to kill the creatures.
I have a handful of items to touch on. As someone who reads a lot of science fiction and fantasy, the horror aspect left me with too many questions and ultimately an inability to suspend my disbelief. I questioned why wasn’t the town evacuated immediately and the military sent in to eradicate the problem; how long it took to identify where the creatures were living; and if the creatures are attracted to blood, and there is blood splattering everywhere, why anyone nearby wouldn’t be attacked too?
I quite enjoyed the relationship between Terry and Jonas and for myself, this was the book’s major strength. A hurt/comfort/healing that brought both men together. I thought the pacing of the relationship felt right (all things considered), there was just the right amount of emotional angst, and a perfect dollop of new relationship irritation to keep things realistic.
And my favorite part of the book was Bruce the pug. Loved that little dog!
Ultimately, this was an agreeable read for a hot summer day. I think it would also be a good selection for travel or commuting as it’s easy to pick up and put down. In summary, I found the characters engaging, the plot so-so, and Bruce the Pug awesome.
NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews. ...more
I thought this was a delightful read. Set in Atlanta – and I do love my southern boys – Felix Cotter is an investigator for the Engleman Insurance ComI thought this was a delightful read. Set in Atlanta – and I do love my southern boys – Felix Cotter is an investigator for the Engleman Insurance Company. Thanks to his inner cat, he has the advantage of being able to smell lies and with his sharp sense of deduction can get to the bottom of the problem pretty darn quickly.
He is very devoted to his guardian, Ben Cotter, who still lives on his farm in Georgia. Felix makes a point to visit as often as possible; not only because it provides him an opportunity to let his cat out, but because he truly enjoys Ben’s company. However, the current visits have a third purpose…Ben’s health is deteriorating beyond the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis and the old man won’t tell Felix what’s going on. I thought the relationship between Ben and Felix was an endearing counterpoint to the growing relationship between Felix and Tyler.
Tyler literally enters the scene from the balcony of a 15 story condo complex. While we soon find out Tyler’s tragic past has led him to his current predicament, I never really got a feel for his personality. We know he’s sweet, has the hots for Felix, doesn’t trust what his nose and instincts are telling him, and is man enough to stand up and say “I was part of the problem” then pay his dues. Since the book is written from Felix’s POV, perhaps this is enough?
I will note that the very light BSDM aspect between Felix and Tyler felt off to me. I thought Felix calling Tyler “boy” came from left field and it never felt like it fit either character. Perhaps if a sentence or two had been added early on when establishing Felix’s life in Atlanta that he like a bit of domination, then it might have settled better.
Overall, this is a short, sweet read about love, loss and redemption
Review is cross posted at http;// gaybook.reviews Book was provided by author for fair and honest review. Thank you! ...more
Demon of Mine was a fun, light read with several delightful twists and turns that departed from the usual tropes of the heaven/hell paranormal genre, Demon of Mine was a fun, light read with several delightful twists and turns that departed from the usual tropes of the heaven/hell paranormal genre, which gave the story a much welcome freshness.
This is also a sweet, “feel good” type of story: lost love, reincarnation, revenge, selflessness, demons, angels, and corporate suckiness taken to a whole new level. I absolutely LOVED how Corporate South and Corporate North used cell phones!
The strength of the book was the relationship between Ryan, desperate to save his sister from pancreatic cancer; and Zavier, determined to save Ryan from the fate he’s had to live the last 50 years. As Ryan begins to learn of their past connection, he has to force Zavier to see him for the person he IS, not the person Zavier KNEW, and that Ryan’s going to save his sister first and foremost.
Both men grow through the book – Ryan learns to believe in someone, that it might be possible to have a person by his side during his sister’s illness. Zavier has to learn to step back from the protector role and to see the Ryan of today, not yesterday. This is his biggest obstacle in winning over Ryan. I greatly appreciated how the author built the relationship emotionally well before she added the physical.
Neither Ryan or Zavier make the completely right decisions, but with a little bit of help from a guardian angel, they make steps toward having a future together.
This is book one in what looks like will be a series (yay!) and Demon of Mine is definitely an enjoyable stand alone book.
This one had difficulty in keeping my attention. In fact, I set it aside for nearly a month before picking it back up aBook number two in the series.
This one had difficulty in keeping my attention. In fact, I set it aside for nearly a month before picking it back up again. My main contention was how fragmented the story was - it was like reading a series of tweets. Just about the time I could settle into the current POV, the plot was on to something else. Add in the "history" blurbs at the beginning of each chapter tweet and I became annoyed enough to lose interest.
It wasn't until nearly halfway through the book when everything started to coalesce enough to engage my interest to finish the book. A 2 hour plane flight also played a role. Our vampire Cade is still nasty, his "girlfriend" Tania is an interesting counterpoint, and Jake grows some balls. The political setting is as ugly - if not worse - as the monsters Cade and Jake are fighting. There are layers to the political bureaucracy and secrecy enough to make the CIA's head spin.
Ultimately, I think this book could have been as strong as the first one if the tweet-like chapters had been condensed into something longer than a paragraph and the "historical" blurbs at the chapter heads shorter or fewer of them. Recommended with reservations. ...more
I picked this up one evening and before I knew it I was a third of the way through the book. A quick read that just pulled me along with an engaging aI picked this up one evening and before I knew it I was a third of the way through the book. A quick read that just pulled me along with an engaging and interesting set of characters. It is set in Washington DC, so everyone is an asshole, but to different degrees. I liked that roughness. I liked that our vampire didn't sparkle, made people pee their pants, and wasn't perfect.
My main criticism was with the cliche's - the inside political traitors were a bit over the top, the new kid on the job who has to be a hero and screws up, and of course we had to bring in the Islamic extremists. Three plot elements that tend to be over done.
We also have so many loose ends waving around in the wind at the conclusion, that the ending wasn't really the ending, but a convenient way to set up our cast of characters for coming books. And I do mean plural "books". In this regards it kinda felt like a James Bond episode where we know Dr. Evil will be back, and this time the Bond Girl herself has a bone to pick with our hero, perhaps with a wooden stake to the heart. And the Love Interest has run off into the night to resurface a different episode and kick the Bond Girls butt. And our trusty sidekick will get into trouble again, it's just a matter of time...
But most importantly, I liked it. It was a decent first book and I look forward to seeing how the characters and writing develops in further books. ...more
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