Snow Day by Dan Maurer

Snow day is a novella that is told like a spooky campfire story told to children. It also reads like it could be a child’s nightmare.

I really enjoyed the writing of this novella. Mr. Maurer did a wonderful job of setting the tone of the story. It was spooky throughout the whole story and had a hint of doom around each corner.

It tells the story of one snow day. Usually snow days are days that children love more than none other. What could beat getting out of school for the day and being able to play in the snow? Not much!

But when things go in a horribly wrong direction that leaves the main character haunted for life, snow days aren’t something to be excited over anymore.

Some parts are a little silly, and some parts are very gorey (the ending for sure!). But, there is just something about this story that keeps you holding on until the very end. It captivates your mind by drawing very explicit mental images, and I think that is where the skill of the writer comes in.

If you are into spooky and somewhat unsettling novellas, this one is for you!

5/5 stars. Kept me hanging on until the end, and Dan Maurer did a wonderful job with descriptive writing. 

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12th of Never by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro

It is that time of year again --

My person is back! Lindsay Boxer and the rest of the Women’s Murder Club is back for the 12^th installment!

And as always, Mr. Patterson does not disappoint!

Lindsay has just become a mother, but she doesn’t get any time off. After having baby Julie, she is thrown right back into the hectic mess that is investigating homicides in San Francisco.

Claire’s job is on the line when a high-profile murder victim’s body disappears.

Cindy and Rich’s relationship hits a bump in the road.

And Yuki has the court case from hell!

One of the many things I loved about this novel was how many story lines were all intertwined with each other. Yet, in classic Patterson form, it doesn’t get confusing and all flows together.

Once a book series starts getting up in the double digits, you may expect the books to start getting worse, but it hasn’t happened yet here. This novel was just as exciting as 1-11 and it was hard to put down.

This is my favorite book series, and I was really excited when my pre-order copy came in the mail. The fact that the quality of the book still matches the earlier installments just reinforces why Patterson is my favorite author.

5/5 Stars. It lived up to all expectations, and of course…. Leaves you begging for the next book. 

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Women's Murder Club Series

Read ahead for spoilers!

F in Exams by Richard Benson

Now that my finals week is over, and others are going through the stress as I am writing this. I thought I would bring this little book of comedic relief.

F in Exams brings laughs from reading what students write when they are clueless on exams.

It is something to keep your mind at ease if only for the little time that it takes to read it.

It is a short book, so don’t worry about it cutting into study time. Everyone needs a break every now and then, right?

Take a break from the stress in life and pick this up. It’s sure to make you laugh!

5/5 stars

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Black Book Part 1: The Devil's Blood by Dylan Jones

Warning: If you don’t like gore, this may not be for you.

This short story is just part one of a larger series involving the protagonist, Sheriff Jack.

It introduces Jack coming face-to-face with evil, even the Devil himself.

It lays down a good beginning character arc for the Sheriff to introduce you to this character and understand the tone of the series.

Sheriff Jack is the bad-ass protagonist that you want in any action series, and when you finish part one, you will not be disappointes.

I enjoyed the feel and tone of this story. It is dark and mysterious. It is also full of action and gore.

5/5 – This series has a lot of potential, stay tuned for more!

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The Last Judges by Jedi Gong

This book has elements of survival, war, and is semi-apocalyptic. And even more than than that, it is spiritual and paranormal. It offers a little bit of everything, and there is even some romance near the end.

This is a book that starts out by telling the stories of strangers that are all experiencing the weird natural disasters that are popping up all over the country.

Then, it turns into a book about destiny.

These individuals come together and learn how to survive these crazy events with limited resources, ...and a psychic.

It will take you on a crazy ride, and an emotional one at that. You will hate some characters and you will love others, but you will end up rooting for this group of strangers in the end.

It takes the story of the anti-christ and the mark of the beast to a whole new level.  With witches and warlocks, mysterious twins, and a gun-happy girl with two pups, there is never a dull moment in this book. It will keep you hanging on until the very last page.

I enjoyed how every character had their own distinct personality. It made reading this fun because you got to know the characters along the way.

There are also two badass female characters, so that was fun as well!

I would give this a 4.5 just because of one highly uncomfortable moment which I will place in he spoiler section.

Other than that, it was well written. I felt a connection to the characters and was rooting for this group the whole way through.

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Read ahead for spoilers

Last Regress by Rachael Thorne

This book is a wonderful combination of paranormal, Sci-fi, and romance. These are three different genres (though paranormal and sci-fi can sometimes go hand in hand), but the way they are woven together makes this story captivating.

The main character, Alyssa, works for a company that investigates the paranormal. She is interested in cases that are unusual and go unsolved.

When she opens the case file of the deceased Cain Andrews, her life is changed forever. Whether that is for better or worse is up to the reader to decide after finishing the book!

The story of Alyssa and Cain is wonderful, tragic, heart-breaking, and scary all wrapped up in one. You get a dose of everything.

There is also Alyssa’s best friend, Greg, He doesn’t believe anything Alyssa is going through, and after a while, as the reader, he begins to put doubt in your mind as well.

This book is written beautifully; the characters all have a wonderful story arc, and are completely developed. You have a sense of each of their personalities and feel as if you know them personally.

5/5 stars. Beautiful story, Wonderfully written.

It also leaves open the possibility for a sequel!

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Supernatural Freak by Louisa Klein

The title of this book is very fitting. That is exactly what it is about, a supernatural freak. The main character is Robyn. She has abilities that no human has, and abilities that many people that do have supernatural abilities don’t have, and that makes her a target.

Many strange things happen around her that she has no explanation for, so she enlists the help of her wizard and witch friends, and also the ghost that conveniently lives in her attic.

This book is packed with action, but is also packed with tons of humor and wit, with a dash of romance... just a dash!

I find books a lot more enjoyable to read when there are good characters. That was the case with this one. I enjoyed all of the characters. They all had their own unique personalities, and they meshed well together to make this book exciting to read. You never knew what was going to come out of their mouths next.

Also, I wish I had an awesome ghost that lived in my attic.

5/5 This was thoroughly enjoyable. It was hilarious, it was suspenseful, and it was full of action! AND the characters were awesome!

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Capella Bright by Tara McCausland

The end of this book is TERRIBL…….Y SUSPENSEFUL!

My jaw dropped as I read the last line.

If you like cliff hangers, don’t even read the rest of this review, just go directly to the link and purchase this book! I promise, you won’t regret it!

But I shall continue this… even though the top part should convince you right away to get it.

Moving on…

This book is geared toward young adults and features romance, family drama (that can be very relatable to some), and….. aliens again? Common theme here in February I see!

Actually, this book was fun to read after the last one I had read because they were both so DIFFERENT! It was kinda cool to compare the way the “others” were portrayed.

Anyways, the main character is Capella Maggie Hart. She meets the new kid in town, Alex, and there is a bond between them right away. One that neither of them could have possibly predicted the outcome of.

Maggie’s best friend has instant interest and is lusting over Alex. But he wants nothing from her. He is more interested in Maggie, quite to her surprise.

As they grow closer, the truth about who Alex really is comes out, and the rest of the book is a wild adventure involving Hunters, Pods, and strange guns.

Will Maggie and Alex be able to grow their budding relationship? Youll just have to read it to find out J

5/5 stars The character development was great. I grew super attached to them, and the story was just as good!

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Alien Tears by Darren Rogers

This novel by Darren Rogers has a little bit of everything. Romance, violence, drama, and …… aliens?

When I began this novel the first thing I noticed was how long it was! But, once I began reading on, that was the furthest thing from my mind.

Alien Tears is centered (for the most part) around an individual named Mark. Mark seems like a typical teenage boy and starts falling heavily for a young lady named Tonya.

There is more to Mark than what you may think.

 -    -      -

The aliens begin taking over Earth after one of their own is killed off by the government.

No one knows how to react, the president resigns, and people are dying by the bunches. The whole world is in chaos.

Would you know how to survive an alien invasion?

All they wanted was to make society better, but society rebelled and brought destruction upon themselves.

This novel reminded me almost of a modern day War of the Worlds.

It was an intense journey. One of happiness, sadness, and some… intimate moments as well.

4/5 stars There were a few grammatical errors that were distracting at times, but if you look past that (there may be a revised version out now), the story is great and will keep you hanging on until the end!

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Read ahead for spoilers

Chief Complaint: Brain Tumor by John Kerastas

Fun and enlightening with a side of emotion

I just want to start by saying this is one of the most humorous books that I have read in a while.

(this could be due to the fact that I usually read  crime novels/thrillers… but moving on..)

John has a unique way of dealing with his diagnosis of a brain tumor. He uses humor.

He takes you through his diagnosis and procedures dealing with his tumor and makes it an interesting experience.

This book is great for anyone looking for a memoir of someone going through a similar experience or for family members as well. Whats great about it is that is also great for the average reader.

John has a great writing style that keeps you hanging on throughout the whole book. It is short as well, it only took me a few hours to read.

Clear an afternoon and pick up a copy. You will not regret it.

5/5 stars. I loved John’s sense of humor and his ability to tell his story through this.

Also, it takes place in Chicago, so I liked it even more… haha. 

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Read ahead for spoilers