Category: Book Review

Book Review: Act of Mercy

Erin Penn

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Act of Mercy: Paranormal Security and Intelligence an Immortal Ops World Novel (PSI-Ops / Immortal Ops Book 1) by Mandy M. Roth

AMAZON BOOK BLURB

Paranormal Security and Intelligence Operative Duke Marlow has a new mission: find, interrogate and possibly eliminate the target—Mercy Deluca. He knows looks can be deceiving, but it’s hard to believe the beautifully quirky woman running around in a superhero t-shirt is a viable threat. The little biomedical engineer quickly proves she is more than he bargained for and Intel has it all wrong—she’s not the enemy. Far from it. Intel also forgot to mention one vital piece of information—she’s Duke’s mate. And this immortal alpha werewolf doesn’t take kindly to her being in danger.



When Mercy accepted a position within Donavon Dynamics Corporation, she thought it was to help cure disease and to make a difference for mankind. She had no idea what her new career path truly entailed—monsters masquerading under the guise of scientific research. Unable to stomach the atrocities she’s uncovered, she reaches out through what she hopes is the proper channels, asking for help. Mercy gets more than she bargained for when a team of paranormal hotties show up on her doorstep ready to take down the Corporation. One, in particular, is able to get under her skin, both aggravating and exciting her in ways she can’t explain.

 

MY REVIEW

A rock-solid paranormal romance expanding the detailed world Ms. Roth has created. Nothing truly stand-out in the paranormal abilities – werewolves are big, elves and fairies cute, and immortals have insta-love. The dark sinister super-secret organization butts heads with the heroic good guys super-secret organization while humans remain oblivious.

One such human is Mercy, who may not be as human as she believes. I usually gag at super-cute, forgetful, super-intelligent scientist females – but Ms. Roth gave believable reasons for a flighty but intelligent small woman, and I ENJOYED reading this pixie-girl character from beginning to end.

Trope after trope of the paranormal romance world, but comfortable and exciting. Nothing new to see here but that isn’t why we read romances. We want boy meets girl – boy and girl have problems – boy and girl get together. If they start their relationship discussing alien abduction and probes during a comedy of errors – when one of them is an actual werewolf, so much the better. And I have never seen an insta-love based off of reading a DNA sequence before – but go for it!

Flighty fun. Made me laugh several times.

Book Review (SERIES): Immortal Ops

Erin Penn

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Immortal Ops (series) by Mandy M. Roth

  1. Immortal Ops
  2. Critical Intelligence
  3. Radar Deception
  4. Strategic Vulnerability
  5. Tactical Magik
  6. Administrative Control
  7. Separation Zone
  8. Area of Influence

I picked up the first four books of the series through a Book Bud special offer.

BOOK BLURB ON AMAZON for IMMORTAL OPS 

Immortal Ops Team Captain Lukian Vlakhusha is having issues with his newest target, Peren Matthews. His higher-ups want her eliminated. He simply wants her. The alpha side of him demands he claim her–that is, if she’ll have him. After all, he’s what she fears most–a wolf shifter. But there is more to Peren than even she’s aware of and the enemy is closer than anyone imagined.

MY REVIEW for IMMORTAL OPS (of the New & Lengthened 2016 Version)
King of the American Lycans, as old as dirt, and sent with his team of shapeshifters to take out a target with extreme prejudice, Lukian has one problem and killing things ain’t it. The target is his soulmate.

Part of Ms. Roth’s complicated Immortal Series World, the book is her normal solid. Humorous interaction between strong alpha military males, and between the strong close-knit friendship group of women who love them. Insta-love of soulmates WITH challenges of figuring out how the relationship between individuals should work, because just because fate demands it, doesn’t mean human free will goes out the window.

A lot is happening in this book as it is the first of a series and needs to introduce a lot of characters.

 

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BOOK BLURB ON AMAZON for CRITICAL INTELLIGENCE

When loyalties are questioned, the Immortal Ops find themselves fighting a war to guard not only their secrets but their lives as well.

Roi Majors, wolf-shifter and second in command of the I-Ops, is having a hard time believing that Intel can only get half the information needed to bring down an underground ring of vampires with big-spending backers who are hell-bent on creating a race of supernaturals with multiple strands of DNA in them. When he finds himself paired with the one woman in the world who seems immune to his self-proclaimed charms, he can’t wait to see her to safety and then bid her good riddance. He never counted on falling in love with her. And he sure in the hell never counted on her claiming to be an agent with a branch of the government no human should know about.

MY REVIEW for CRITICAL INTELLIGENCE (of the New & Lengthened 2016 Version)

Roi is your typical maxed out Lycan Alpha, second to the king of the American Lycans on an elite military force. And I mean Alpha Male to nearly testosterone toxicity – he pushes every limit he can, bucking authority. He is the type to flip a tank while driving just to see if he could – and everyone around him would be laughing and placing bets, while he walks off with a girl on each arm afterwards.

Then he meets his match in a little 5 foot three-ish system analyst. The woman who constantly berates him. Asks if he thinks before acting. And calls him all kinds of unflattering things, with a half-smile and a wink.

The answer is he does think, but not with the big head. But right now the big head and the little head were in agreement that this woman is one of the most frustrating in the world.

A fun romp with all the troupes of the genre brought out and played with in the loving hands of Ms. Roth. A great read.

 

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BOOK BLURB ON AMAZON for RADAR DECEPTION

Dr. Thaddeus Green survived a werepanther attack long ago, leaving him immortal and a member of the I-Ops team. He’s dedicated his life to genetics and to serving his country. After his mutated DNA led to the death of his loved one, he vowed to never let anyone close to his heart again. Try as he might, Green is unable to stop the mystical pull to the tall, leggy blonde with a sharp tongue and an even worse bite. Thinking Melanie is suffering from mating withdrawal, Green is prepared to do what he must to assure her survival, even if it means claiming her for himself, regardless of his need to protect his heart. Little does Green know that fate has been preparing him for Melanie Daly all his unnaturally long life.

When ghosts from the past resurface, in ways he never dreamt possible, the normally mild-mannered scientist finds himself drawing on his inner beast and rage to assure his mate and their future are protected. But even Green can’t fight all of Melanie’s battles for her. Some she has no choice but to face on her own. Can their bond stand the test of time?

MY REVIEW for RADAR DECEPTION (of the New & Lengthened 2016 Version)

I’ve been hoping for Green to get his day and damsel. What can I say? I love strong and brainy with a touch of tragic. I wasn’t sure about him hooking up with the bubbly playgirl Melanie, but the book delivers on all fronts for brainy, strong, and a touch of tragic.

 

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BOOK BLURB ON AMAZON for STRATEGIC VULNERABILITY

Held in a remote testing facility in the middle of the Brazilian rain forest, shape-shifter and alpha male Wilson Rousseau has long since given up hope of being rescued. Days blend together until he can’t help but long for death. Saved from his isolated hell by a female’s distress call, he feels an instant connection to her.

Kimberly thought she was taking a trip to South America to study indigenous plant life. She had no idea she was playing into the hands of a madman whose goal is to create a genetically altered army of super-soldiers. When she finds her path connecting with Wilson, a man who would give his life to save hers, there is an instant attraction. But dark secrets may change their lives forever. Can they find a way to beat the odds and be together, or will the madman win?

MY REVIEW for STRATEGIC VULNERABILITY (of the New & Lengthened 2016 Version)

Wil keeps getting the short-end of the stick, all the while riding the sharp end of the spear. First he volunteers for his military duty, signing up to become super solider shifter. Lab mixup means he becomes a wererat. Everyone else on his team is cool things like werewolves and weretigers.

Now he has been captured. His captors hate him and shoot him daily, forcing him to use his low reserves to regenerated again and again. And that doesn’t count the drugging and torture.

Upside he found his soulmate. Who is also captured. And pregnant.

The book is at its best when the two of them are together against all odds.

Book Review: On Basilisk Station

Erin Penn 1 Comment

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On Basilisk Station: Honor Harrington Book 1 by David Weber

BOOK BLURB ON AMAZON

Having made him look a fool, she’s been exiled to Basilisk Station in disgrace and set up for ruin by a superior who hates her.

Her demoralized crew blames her for their ship’s humiliating posting to an out-of-the-way picket station.

The aborigines of the system’s only habitable planet are smoking homicide-inducing hallucinogens.

Parliament isn’t sure it wants to keep the place; the major local industry is smuggling; the merchant cartels want her head; the star-conquering, so-called “Republic” of Haven is Up To Something; and Honor Harrington has a single, over-age light cruiser with an armament that doesn’t work to police the entire star system.

But the people out to get her have made one mistake. They’ve made her mad.

 

MY REVIEW

This book is my favorite David Weber. As indicated in other reviews, I love good sociology as part of my science fiction.

Don’t look at me like that, sociology is a science!

And David Weber is not only the master of military sci-fi, but also political sci-fi with a good bit of sociology thrown in.

Love this book. One of the few David Weber has written with a truly alien species – and what would happen to younger culture meeting a space faring one.

I have snapped it up for free on the Amazon kindle so I can continue to read it without destroying my (1) hard copy and (2) soft copy of the book. I have also given this as a gift to three people – two of which have cursed my name because they have needed to buy the rest of the series and that is no small investment.

(10/30/2015 – Reread book yet again on the Kindle. Noticed the kindle version I picked up has some formatting issues – doesn’t have clear POV breaks in many places which created some confusion until I realized the scene had changed. Never had that issue with the printed copies)

Book Review (SERIES): Shadows Through Time

Erin Penn

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Shadows Through Time by James Palmer

BOOK BLURB ON AMAZON for SHADOWS THROUGH TIME

Famous explorer Captain Richard Francis Burton has been on some amazing adventures. But he is about to embark on his most incredible journey yet as he…Travels back in Time aboard Captain Nemo’s wondrous Nautilus to discover the frightening origins of a spreading worldwide madness…Struggles to stop Edward Bulwer-Lytton from founding a dangerous alien cult that will threaten all of London…Faces a terrifying invasion by alien beings from the prehistory…Takes a dangerous trip through Time to stop a madman from rewriting all of human history…While on these journeys, Burton will match wits with the likes of Mycroft Holmes, encounter the infamous Professor Moriarty, Ian Fleming, and Aleister Crowley. And don’t forget the shoggoths and Morlocks!

Shadows Through Time collects these four novellas into one exciting volume: The Depths of Time; Shadows Over London; The Dream Key; The Map of Time

MY REVIEW for SHADOWS THROUGH TIME

The collected novella edition containing:
The Depths of Time
Shadows over London
The Dream Key
The Map of Time

I’ve reviewed the novellas individually below. Overall a fever-dream ride through an homage to Victorian-era genre fiction. Touching on everything from Jules Verne’s Captain Nemo (Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Seas – 1875), to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Mycroft Holmes (The Greek Interpreter – 1893), from H.P. Lovecraft’s town of Innsmouth (The Shadow over Innsmouth – 1936) to H.G. Wells; H.G. Wells’ unnamed Time Traveler (The Time Machine – 1895). So many different people, places, and objects are mentioned, the Easter Egg hunt never ends. After each story, a reader wants to delve into the roots of genre fiction.

At times, the Great White Explorer motif set my teeth on edge. The classism, misogamy, and exploitation of cultures are all perfect pitch for the time being recreated, instead of being reimaged into our modern sensitivities. Exceedingly well-done on Mr. Palmer’s part; he clearly understands what he is paying homage to.

I highly recommend the read.

 

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BOOK BLURB ON AMAZON for THE DEPTHS OF TIME

From the far reaches of the Shadow Council Archives comes the thrilling adventure The Depths of Time!

They have worked behind the scenes of society for centuries, protecting humans from threats beyond their understanding. They are The Shadow Council, and these Archives are the stories of their members and adventures throughout recorded history. From folk heroes to monsters out of darkest nightmare, the Shadow Council Archives explore the world beyond mundane understanding.

Richard Francis Burton thought his life of adventure was slowing down until an odd woman named Elizabeth Marsh invited him on one final adventure—one he couldn’t resist.
This adventure takes Burton and companion George Edward Challenger below the depths of the sea, through the spinning sands of time, and introduces him to the mysterious Captain Nemo.

Will Burton’s thirst for adventure finally be sated? Will this voyage be his last? What will become of the mysterious Nemo and his companions? Find out as you travel through The Depths of Time.

Blending classic Allan Quartermaine-style adventure with Verne-esque science fiction, James Palmer builds a rollicking ride of mystery, suspense, and intrigue as these historical and literary figures band together to battle an ancient evil rising up from the depths.

Who will emerge from The Depths of Time?

This Shadow Council urban fantasy novella comes from the world of Quincy Harker, Demon Hunter. Similar in length to Bookshots, these novellas provide a glimpse behind the curtain at an urban fantasy world where demons walk the earth, and the monster may well be the hero.

MY REVIEW for THE DEPTHS OF TIME

First off – LOVE THE TITLE. So much meaning and play with the meaning. When the title is that good a match to the story on so many levels, you know the writer is going bring some amazing stuff to the table.

Mash together all the Victorian strange with the Shadow Council from the Quincy Harker universe. From Cthulhu-fever dreams to time-travel-insanity, all with a proper stiff-upper lip from the great white male explorers/exploiters of the Victorian era.

Only complaint is I missed a character I could attach myself to in the book. On the other hand, not being able to insert myself deeply into this story so that I live within its action isn’t necessarily a bad thing when things like the names of elder gods make their appearance.

(This novella I received for an honest review; the rest of the reviews for this series I did I liked this novella.)

 

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BOOK BLURB ON AMAZON for SHADOWS OVER LONDON

Time Travel and Submarines and Moriarty, oh my!

The exciting sequel to The Depths of Time!

Captain Richard Francis Burton has just returned from his adventure through Time with his sanity barely intact. Now, confronted with memories that are not his own and the sudden disappearance of his fiancée, he must unravel a puzzling new mystery. Summoned by the enigmatic Mycroft Holmes, Burton is tasked with stopping an eldritch cult before it takes hold of all of London. It will take all of the legendary explorer’s vaunted skills to survive shoggoths and the machinations of the villainous Professor Moriarty as he races to stop the mysterious King in Yellow from unleashing a chaos older than time.

MY REVIEW for SHADOWS OVER LONDON

The second novella of the Sir Richard Francis Burton series doesn’t have quite the punch of The Depths of Time. Even so, the book is still a wonderful homage to the stories of the Victorian era. Indeed, where Sir Burton got the assist last book from Captain Nemo and his Nautilus, this time our explorer ends up in the competent and manipulative hands of Mycroft Holmes.

Sir Burton hasn’t recovered from his last adventure to the depths of the ocean when he is called by Crown and Country to investigate a possible human sacrifice cult in London. Still questioning his sanity, Sir Burton calls again on his allies, the larger-than-life Challenger and the time-traveling Herbert, neither one left untouched by their previous activities, to help him save the citizens of London from themselves. But can they trust Mycroft to have their back?

 

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BOOK BLURB ON AMAZON for THE DREAM KEY

Captain Burton faces his most bizarre adventure yet!

He has traveled through Time and fought eldritch horrors, but nothing can prepare the famous explorer for what he is about to face.

His friend, the young poet Algernon Charles Swinburne, has collapsed, along with several other of London’s most prominent citizens. When they recover it is clear they are no longer the men they were. Sensing a threat to the British Empire, Mycroft Holmes taps Burton to investigate. But the explorer has his own troubles, plagued by visions of nightmare vistas beyond imagining. To save his friend and stop an invasion from beyond Time and Space, Burton must rely on the help of Inspector Abberline, Professor Challenger, and the Time Traveler as well as other versions of himself if he is to unlock the secret of the mysterious Dream Key.

MY REVIEW for THE DREAM KEY

The Great Race, Old Ones, and Things Living Outside Time are not yet done with Captain Richard Burton and Victorian London. The Awakened first fall asleep, including the poet Algernon Swinburne, to wake anew – but are they truly who they were when they went asleep?

The mind-bending saga continues with this tale of Dreaming and Waking. Of Many and Singular. Of Universe and Beyond.

Easter egg homage – I’m thinking Doctor John Hurt might be a 9.5-hour homage, outside of the normal time and space twists of this series. But it is all good. There are so many Easter Eggs in this series, a second read-through is needed just dedicated to a google-fu search. Fun (and I am VERY glad I didn’t have to edit this book).

I was completely absorbed by this particular story of the series.

 

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BOOK BLURB ON AMAZON for THE MAP OF TIME

Captain Sir Richard Francis Burton has come unstuck in Time!

While chasing Morlocks in the sewers beneath London, Burton learns of a terrifying new threat to all of Time in the exciting conclusion to this chapter of the Shadow Council Archives.

Someone has given Mycroft Holmes a timeline of future world events, a Map of Time that holds the key to world domination.

Now Burton, along with Frederick Abberline and a beautiful Time Traveler from an alternate future, must learn the identity of Mycroft’s sinister benefactor before he unravels the timestream and destroys the world as Burton knows it! Doing so will take every ounce of the famous explorer’s determination as he faces off with the gruesome, subterranean Morlocks and encounters the likes of Ian Fleming and Aleister Crowley in a race to stop the end of existence.

MY REVIEW for THE MAP OF TIME

The conclusion of the Captain Burton series by James Palmer (The Map of Time) concentrates its homage on H.G. Wells’ The Time Machine at a level similar to the first novella (The Depths of Time) was an homage to Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea.

And it is still rip-roaring tale.

Unlike the rest of the series, this doesn’t contain the sanity questioning impact seen previously – but it makes it up by cranking the crazy quilt of time travel.

How long can Mycroft Holmes continue to protect the interests of the British Empire … and at what costs? Can Captain Burton prevent the Murlocks from taking over London’s sewers? Just how much does Abberline need to drink to make sense of Penelope Hemlock’s existence?

Book Review: To Beat the Devil

Erin Penn

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To Beat the Devil: A Techomancer Novel by M.K. Gibson

BOOK BLURB ON AMAZON

175 years have passed since God quit on mankind. Without his blessing, Hell itself, along with the ancient power of The Deep, were unleashed upon the world. Two world wars and oceans of blood later, a balance was reached. Demonkind took its place as the ruling aristocracy. Mankind, thanks to its ability to create, fell to the position of working proletariat. Alive, but not living.

Lucky Us.

Welcome to New Golgotha, the East Coast supercity. In it, you will find sins and cyborgs, magic and mystery, vices without virtue and hell without the hope of heaven. In the middle of it all is Salem, smuggler extraordinaire and recluse immortal, who has lived and fought through the last two centuries, but his biggest battle is just beginning.

To Beat The Devil: A Technomancer Novel is an incredible adventure full of cyborgs and demons, gods, magic, guns, puns and whiskey, humor and heart. Follow Salem as he embarks to discover the meaning of the very nature of what mankind is: our souls. And, who is trying to steal them.

 

MY REVIEW

Short Version: An action-packed urban fantasy with some crazy fight scenes varying from single mano-on-demon to full scale wars with thousands and back again. Also emotional character development (but not at the expense of the action), a fantastically dark world built to many layers, and a couple of flaws often found in first novels which fade into the background the longer the story goes on because it is a rocking, heart-pounding story full of twists, red herrings, and cool cyber-technology.

Long Version: 
“The protagonist isn’t out to save the world –that ship has long since sailed…” (a line from the Foreword). In a world abandoned by the capital G, humans and demons have come to an uneasy truce with demons being overlords and humans being serfs running all the technology. Salem is a lightrunner, basically a quiet smuggler capable of a great deal of violence when necessary. He has developed a nice (as in survivable) little life with associates and no friends, when one of the associates sends a piece of business his way that changes things. Life may no longer be survivable, but it certainly becomes interesting.

As mentioned in the Short Version, the book is both very good and has a few flaws so let’s get into that.

1. PRO – None of the action is boring. Every fight scene is different, from the opening fight with a Demon Bishop, to the land war, to the final fight with the big bad. Mr. Gibson changes fight strategy from single person to large group, from intent to kill to just maim a little, from physical fists to cyber tech. I’ve rarely run into such a wide range of fighting.

2. FACT – Has a great deal of “language”. Fits the character and situation (after all, hell come to earth), but pushes this book firmly in R for language alone. (For me this is a CON, but I know not all readers have the same issue.)

3. TRIGGER – One rape scene. Done quickly.

4. FACT – Male version of Urban Fantasy. Okay, what I mean by that – the female version has a paranormal female, usually with two love interests who support her but never overshadow her and all characters exist in relation to her. The male version of UF has gun porn instead of soft porn and again everyone exist in relation to him, usually with the male secondary characters having agency and the female characters, if any, existing to jiggle.

4a. PRO – Gun Porn – The guns are sexy. The cybertech more so. Oooh, the McGyvering and Blade Runner vibe is hot. Really, To Beat the Devil has some of the most interesting information dumps about guns and cyber, I actually read through all of them and enjoyed it while I did so. They were short and sweet.

4b. CON – Women – The handful of named women in the book all look in their twenties, wear g-strings and bikini tops if not just naked all-together, and either lust after the main character, have slept with the main character, or has the main character lust after them. Except for the one which is the lover of a secondary character. Typical male urban fantasy, inherited from the spy-thriller tradition. And a total turnoff for a female reader. Every single effective fighter in this book is male, even when the female characters are described as scary fighters (after their boobs are detailed); if the scary female cybers do do any fighting, it is off screen. Somehow I noticed this more than normal within the manuscript and the rating lost a star on the non-agency of the females in the story. 

5. PRO/CON Worldbuilding – Very detailed bleak world. Great backstory; maybe – no (sigh) definitely – a little too much exposition describing the backstory. Several NOTICEABLE introspections put into the book just to provide the cool backstory describing the world as well as aside breaks into the past for a short couple paragraphs here and there. In fact part way through the book the method changed from introspection exposition to the flashback breaks; a content editor should have asked the writer to go back and even out these two methods of backstory reveal. As this is the first in the series and the first book by the author, I expect the exposition issues will not happen in future books. Usually backstory is a little heavy in the first book of a series. And as I mentioned, the writer did find a better device while writing. I did enjoy each jump further down the rabbit hole when the worldbuilding reveal happened in dialogue between characters. Some of the flashback scenes were stories and some were just exposition – as Mr. Gibson continues to grow as an author, I expect the flashbacks will become more integral to the story and less worldbuilding expositions.

5. CON – Poor transitions. The first three chapters glaringly have jumps in transitions. This issue goes away later in the book. In fact the whole book gets better and better as the story goes on – usually in small press and first-time author works, the story gets less tight and technical writing skills get less polished as the story goes on because the writer rewrote the first three chapters a dozen times and ignored the rest of the book. During the first couple of pages of the second chapter I wasn’t certain we didn’t change Point-of-View characters – so much of the beginning of the second chapter felt like a repeat of the first chapter, but the voice felt different and the jump between the two chapter nearly a complete break. If I hadn’t received the book in exchange for honest review from publisher I might not have pushed past chapter three – which would have been a pity because after that weak beginning everything keeps getting better and better.

6. PRO – The most amazing part of the book, especially for an Urban Fantasy, is the personal growth of the main character. The guy starts as a self-centered smuck. The journey this book is about isn’t just the plot of solving the mystery(ies), but also about the character growth. Mr. Gibson does a very good job of establishing the personality of the main character and making the growth believable. I’ll be interested to see if Mr. Gibson can keep that portion of the story plot up for future books.

In conclusion, To Beat the Devil is an action-packed urban fantasy with great fight scenes, emotional character development (enhancing the action, not slowing it down), a Blade Runner apocalyptic world built complete with demons (and worse than demons), and a couple of flaws with technical writing (transitions and expositions) which fade into the background the longer the story goes on because it is a rocking, heart-pounding story.