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Thursday, January 18, 2018

Review: Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Saw the trailer for the "Love, Simon" movie, and noticed I already own the ebook, so I started it in between with 3 other books.
Nice fluffy gay coming-out romance with a few good twists, no violence (although I was expecting some, a few actions from someone warrant a good beating), sex only talked about.
A little on the short side, but that suited me well.
Highly recommended, will certainly watch the movie, which will hopefully be good (will leave a comment here when I watched it).

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Tuesday, January 16, 2018

Review: Assassins Vengeance

Assassins Vengeance Assassins Vengeance by Rachel Amphlett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Longer review with the third book, for the series.
Ok, twisted, but that is expected.
Recommended, even more so, than the third book is published (pre-ordered, should be published January 21th, 2018 was wrong date, corrected).


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Saturday, January 13, 2018

Review: Hush, Hush

Hush, Hush Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Received an EMail from BookBub that this was available for a rather low price, checking the different retailers, I saw an Omnibus Edition of all 4 books, but that when checking that price against all 4 books, these where even way cheaper (saved more than 7 Eur).
The Omnibus has 46 pages more, but there is no mention of additional material, so that may also be excerpts / teasers for other books.

While the beginning is interesting, it takes rather long with the bad-boy drama to get on, reads so far more like a murder-mystery with a suicide-or-possible-murder thrown in, but even with an attack, an accident and a break-in, not enough suspense for me, drags currently.

Not sure wether I will recommend this one, currently, as it picks up the pace a little at 50-60%, 3.5 stars, for the first one in the series rounded up to 4 stars. Will look in the next book when I feel like it. As I have just read the first part of The Fallen and Leviathan and it is not so long ago I finished with a DNF/FastForward Fallen I can say this has not enough suspense and the mixed feelings of the MC are not too believable. Also I guessed the little twists of the persons who turned out to be bad early on (nearly when they where introduced, they where way too obvious). Can accept that, but the story would have played out differently if the MC had not kept a few things to herself but talked with her BFF or her Mother about them.
Some review said that the second book was a little boring, and one should keep on, that alone makes want to abandon the series, as this book barely held my interest. With some authors the series get better with every book, so I will peek into the next book and then decide, but not soon, I need something different with more meat in between.


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Friday, January 5, 2018

Review: Once Taken

Once Taken Once Taken by Blake Pierce
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Snatched this ebook up for free after seeing that on Amazon.
Already got the first book for free and both sounded very interesting from the blurb, so without thinking, I got this also.
As with my two-star review from the first book, the MC Riley should be fired from her job, this time it is not as bad, so I rounded up from 2.5 stars to 3. The cliffhanger from the first book is what took me in. Also talking to a jailed killer-inmate for insights very well done.

The solving of the second case is at least a normal group effort, but Riley should (again) not be on the job.

With short chapters and a little more suspense and a little more real police work and not going too much on her own, it is ok-ish, even though Riley is obviously unfit for the job.
Not really recommended, but not really bad either. A fast read for a rainy weekend. No real romance, some complications, no sex. Not enough twists for me.
Very graphic at times, and brutal insights in the killers mind. But imho that is as expected for a serial killer.

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Thursday, January 4, 2018

Review: Rattle

Rattle Rattle by Fiona Cummins
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Bought this for a normal price, as the second book was available cheap and both sounded good from the blurb.
And I wasted my money. This is most possibly a DNF with me not bothering to start the second book. Writing is too complicated and too fractured to be suspenseful, for a serial-killer I would have suspected more. Currently I give 1 star, page 140 from 800 (?) as per my current ebook-reader (Tolino epos), I will skim / FF through the rest of the book.

Interestingly this should have been my cup-a-tea (only, I do not drink tea, but rather Nesquik or some Coffee-Espresso-Capuccino mashup).
One of the children in the book has a bone disease which is a little comparable to mine (Albright-Sternberg-Syndrome), only his bones are not only brittle, but also growing too much.
But still it does not grip me, maybe it rather hit too close to home.

The different parts of the story are too complicated and too many, with all people rather too detailed and none (for me) I can relate to or even hate at least. So far this looks like the beginning of a puzzle, but without the suspense. Or maybe 2-3 different puzzles with the pieces mixed.

So far, not recommended and I fear I fell for the blurb and the low price of the next book.
Do not waste your money, not even worth to be free (if you get it free or lend it).

Somewhere at 1/3 to 1/2 it comes a little together, and a few more things become clear. But that does little for me, just that I want to finish it, suspense is still missing, and there is rather too much unneeded information and too little real investigation. And too much inner musings of the many people. A good editor might have helped, or maybe there are enough people who will read something like this, only, it is not a thriller for me, with the missing thrill. Trying to end this tomorrow, only, that is now next year...

This book is filled with too much information which is not relevant to further the story, EVERY characters has his POV, thoughts, background. Way boring.

As noted in the Review of Once Gone, I hate it, than police officers are supposed to be good police, but go places alone, without partners, without informing others why and where they are going, even if they suspect, it might lead to the suspect.
The mc, Fitzroy, should have been suspended since the events which have taken place before this book, and which are told in flashbacks. She should surely have been fired, this book.
Also, due to lots of information, this book could easily have been condensed to 50% or less, without loosing story. This is what I think a good editor should do. As it is, this was with a normal price paid for, too expensive in hindsight.

No suspense, no thrill.

So why upped to 2 stars? The ending was a nice twist, and a good surprise, saved it a little. Will skim the next book, which I got cheap for promotion-price (99 Euro-ct.).
Not recommended and I cannot understand the endorsement by Val McDermid, wether she really thinks this is a good thriller?!

(Edited sloppy writing 04-Jan-2018 (grammar)).

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