Books

Book 899: Year One (Chronicles of the One #1) – Nora Roberts

Book cover of "Year One" with Amazon Affiliate linkWHOA. So, I’m really glad I didn’t read this book two years ago this time or I would’ve been freakin’ the f*** out as coronavirus took over the planet! Thankfully, I didn’t discover the fibercast Needles at the Ready (Instagram link) until late 2021 where one of the hosts, Ray, recommended this series.

It was bad enough when I read The Names We Take in May 2020 (or even Severance back in late 2019) where a virus wiped out huge swaths of the world’s population, but Roberts takes it to an entirely different level! The opening chapter is gut-wrenchingly dark and I actually stopped reading it in bed the first night I started because it was seriously creeping me out.

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Books

Book 846: The Lavender Menace – Tom Cardamone (Ed.)

Book cover of UGH. I wanted to like this so much more than I did. I remember the excitement when I stumbled across it seven years ago at PAX East in the LGBT lounge. I guess I either forgot the premise or didn’t really read the full premise of the book so ended up slightly disappointed.

Don’t get me wrong there were definitely a few stories I very much enjoyed (more the redemptive ones) and there was some great writing throughout the novel, but there were some larger issues with the collection that may reflect when it was originally published (2013) and how far we’ve come as a society, and also the background of the editor (cis white gay man).

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Book 800: Body of Stars – Laura Maylene Walter

Book cover of "Body of Stars" with Amazon Affiliate linkAaannnnndddddd we have a new entry into the creepy AF, almost could be true speculative fiction world that has a lot of potential to really explode. When the publisher reached out I was vaguely interested until I read it was about freckles/moles determining the future of girls and women I HAD to read it.*

I have a ton of freckles—including what I call my angel wings that spread across my back down my arms—and found the idea terrifying that the future could be told in markings on your body. And I’m not talking palm reading, which the book discusses, but like actual fated fact. Shudder . . .

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Book 696: The Last Day – Andrew Hunter Murray

Book cover for "The Last Day" with Amazon Affiliate linkI’m not sure I generally would’ve opted to read a post-apocalyptic fiction novel right now (thank you global pandemic). However, I thought my dedicated readers (oh hey all 10-or-so of you :-D) might like a change up from all the MM romance novels I’ve been blasting through. That, and this was sent by the publisher back in mid-February . . . so yeah, here it is!*

The world has come to a standstill. As in it has stopped rotating on its access and is stationary as it revolves around the sun leaving half the world in darkness and the other half in sunlight with the population surviving most in the twilight areas. The world is now an eat or be eaten world, but not quite as bad as Mad-Max (there is a throw away reference to the desert people being a bit similar), but everything rests on the UK and the government that took over after the Stop.

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Books

Book 680: The Dark Tower (The Dark Tower #7) – Stephen King

Cover art for "The Dark Tower" and Amazon AffiliateTalk about a gut punch of an ending.

The Dark Tower picks up immediately where Song of Susannah ends and not only does it punch you in the gut in chapter one, but it continues to pummel you for the next 700+ pages! And honestly, I wouldn’t have expected less from something of such epic proportions. I can’t talk about this without spoiling it so don’t read any more if you haven’t read it and have any intention of reading it. (You can read the recommendation if you want though.)

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