DEATH LESSONS

Death Lessons by James Maxstadt
Book 1 in the Lilly The Necromancer series
Narrated by Jane Alvey Harris
Genre: urban fantasy YA
Format: paperback & audiobook

About Death Lessons:

When the dead rise...

...don’t tell anyone it’s your fault.

Lilly is a young child when she helps her first ghost. Turns out, she’s a necromancer. And there’s only one place for a kid like her: The Academy.

From the first carriage ride, Lilly’s life changes. Now, she faces a whole new world of challenges and dangers. And far too often, her greatest enemy is herself.

But if she can stay out of her own way, she just might have a magical seven years.

Lilly’s got a lot of growing up to do...

...as long as she doesn’t end up one of the dead herself.

Source: Info in the "About Death Lessons" was taken from GoodReasds at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51735321-death-lessons on 07/11/2021.

My Thoughts:

I didn't realise at first that this was a YA because the first volley was a scene between a grandmother and her grandson.

In the middle of reading this book I was also listening to Mindset by Dr. Carol Dweck. I realised that Lilly has the kind of mindset that allows for growth and healing. It's the way Lilly views Abigail's responses right at the start. Now, that is something I would like to emulate. Easier said than done. Having said that, it does not mean that it cannot be done! It just means that if one wants a happier life, then one have to work harder for it! Growth mindset...

This is my first James Maxstadt read and I'm glad that I came across this author. I like the way he tells the story! I like Lilly's positivity. And I wonder if we are going to see Kenneth again...

This is my first Jane Alvey Harris listen and I like the way she reads the book. Her voice is also not grating to the ears. Kudos for the narrator!

Empirical Evaluation:
Story telling quality = 4
Character development = 4.5
Story itself = 4
Writing Style = 4
Ending = 3.5
World building = 4
Cover art = 3.5
Pace = (10 hrs and 32 mins)
Plot = 3.5
Narration = 4.5

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 cherries

Books In The Lilly The Necromancer Series:

Amazon

Amazon

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Meet The Author

About James Maxstadt:

Author living in NC with his beautiful wife, writing away and trying to learn all this new-fangled social media stuff...

jamesmaxstadt.com | twitter | facebook | instagram | pinterest | amazon | goodreads

The Narrator

About Jane Alvey Harris:

Ms. Harris has a degree in Humanities from Brigham Young University with emphases in Art History, Italian Language, and Studio Art. She enjoys playing classical piano, painting & sketching, singing & acting, and especially writing poetry & prose.

But her real passion is people. Jane loves to watch and study what makes us tick as human beings. She's definitely a dreamer. Her favorite thing to do is weave together sublime settings and stories for characters to live and learn in...herself included.

Jane currently lives in an enchanted fairy-princess castle in Dallas, Texas, with her three often-adorable children and three seldom-adorable cats. Right now she's working on the last book in the award winning YA psychological fantasy thriller, the My Myth Trilogy.

www.janealveyharris.com | twitter | facebook | instagram | youtube | goodreads

FTC Disclosure:
The ebook and audiobook were bought with private funds.
No money received for this review.

WOLF PACK

Wolf Pack by Craig Zerf
Book 5 in the Project Bloodborn series
Genre: urban fantasy
Format: ebook

Synopses:

The synopsis of the first book, Wolf Man:

Brenner is not a werewolf...

He is the result of a secret US Army experiment. The creation of a government controlled Super Soldier.

And no one asked if he wanted to take part.

So, he escaped. And for the last fifty years has been living in the backroads and the small unknown towns of America. Never aging. Searching for a cure. At the same time avoiding the dark ops experts who are looking for him.

But just because he can become a seven foot, four hundred pound killing machine, it doesn't mean that Brenner is bad. In fact, he sticks to a strict code.

And like the High Plains drifters of old, anyone who crosses the Wolfman's code is sure to suffer.

They took his humanity ... and now it's time for payback.

Synopsis of Wolf Pack:

The adventures of Brenner and Griff continues in this book. A couple of old army buddies. Vietnam veterans. One old and one young. One human, one wolf. Together they fight evil. The bad guys this time is another group of US military group much like the first one. Experimenting. However unlike the first US military group, their experimentation has a new twist. Either way, they are still very bad.

The synopsis of the first book was taken from GoodReads at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36178703-wolf-man on 14/06/2021. The synopsis of the current book, Wolf Pack, is provided by me.

Buy Link(s):

My Thoughts:

What I want to know is, what happened to Bruno Catalano?! The author just left it there hanging for the reader to fill in the blanks. I do not like that kind of writing. It's like, so he's dead. Then later on in the series he rose to life again! That is really annoying! If the bad guys are to rise back to life again, let him die properly first!! Whether he comes back to life or not, at least give the reader the satisfaction of reading him die! Geez! **grumble grumble**

This is also the book which started to use the "chopped-up" kind of writing where a different thread of the story is told after every other chapter. Like for example, chapter 20 is Brenner. 21 is Solomon. Then 22 is Brenner again. And so on and so forth until the end. I so hate this kind of writing. It disrupts the flow of the story! It yanks you out of the story. When that happens I needed a minute to re-align myself again. Annoying!! So what I do is cheat. I read the book every other chapter and when that thread is done, I go back to the last chapter I skipped and follow that thread until the end. Less annoying that way. However, I sincerely hope that Craig Zerf would go back to his old style of writing and abandon this new-found style!

Same old, same old, MO. Our heroes fight bad guys. Blood and gore! Same tune, different song. And still same enjoyable read.

Another short-ish read (at 237 pages) from this author. Still a violent book, not recommended for young readers.

Empirical Evaluation:
Story telling quality = 4.5
Character development = 5
Story itself = 4
Writing Style = 2.5
Ending = 3.5
World building = 5
Cover art = 4.5
Pace = 4
Plot = 4

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 cherries

Books In Project Bloodborn Series:

Meet The Author

About Craig Zerf:

Craig Zerf is a full-time writer who has been awarded the Golganooza Gold medal for Fantasy as well as being voted 'Best Read' by radio BBC United Kingdom.

His novels have been translated into French, Portuguese, Italian, Spanish and German.

Craig has lived in America, Africa and Europe and now resides in England with his wife and two imaginary cats.

His books have reached the number one Best Seller spot in both the United Kingdom and Germany and he reckons that writing is about the most fun that you can have without actually blowing things up!

czerf.wordpress.com | twitter | facebook | instagram | pinterest | amazon | goodreads

FTC Disclosure:
The ebook and audiobook were bought with private funds.
No money received for this review.

THE GHOSTS OF WONKY INN

The Ghosts Of Wonky Inn by Jeannie Wycherley
Book 2 in the Wonky Inn series
Narrated by Kim Bretton
Genre: urban fantasy
Format: ebook & audiobook

About The Ghosts Of Wonky Inn:

Alf has tried to banish her demons.

And her ghosts.

But memories of her recent past linger and keep her awake.

Every night it’s the same. Insomnia.

When she does eventually drift off, she’s woken almost immediately by a sobbing spirit.

He says he's lost.

And worse than that, someone is trying to kill him.

Who is this sad specimen of a spirit? And where does he belong?

And how do you kill someone … who is already dead?

Find out what Alf gets up to next as the Wonky Inn adventures continue.

Read The Ghosts of Wonky Inn today.

Source: Info in the "About The Ghosts Of Wonky Inn" was taken from GoodReads at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42189205-the-ghosts-of-wonky-inn on 29/04/2022.

Buy Link(s):
 

My Thoughts:

Short and sweet!

Just like the first book, a fun witchy romp in a quaint English village. However, instead of my interest peaking, it seems to be waning... So I am not so sure about the staying power of this series. But should I get into the mood for short witchy fun reads, I probably be picking up this series again...

If I break this book down to it's parts, this book ought to score a 4. However, it just don't feel like a four. So three and a half it is then!

Empirical Evaluation:
Story telling quality = 3.5
Character development = 4
Story itself = 3
Writing Style = 4
Ending = 4
World building = 4.5
Cover art = 4
Pace = (4 hrs and 51 mins listening time)
Plot = 3
Narration = 5

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 cherries


Books In The Wonky Inn Series:

 

Meet The Author

About Jeannie Wycherley:

I’m a genre-hopping introvert and word witch living somewhere between the forest and the sea in East Devon, UK.

An ex-lecturer with a PhD in History, I now run a seaside gift shop with my husband and split my time between selling teddy bears (I’m fanatical about teddy bears) and writing stories about magic and witchcraft.

People ask where my ideas come from. The truth is, I find inspiration absolutely everywhere: in myths, stories and songs; a bit of people watching; a word here, a look there. But it is the beautiful landscape of Devon that holds me most in its thrall: the tangled forests, the rolling hills, the troubled skies, the everchanging seascape. Devon has it all – rocky coastline, cliffs, pebble and sandy beaches, winding lanes and picture-perfect villages.

A good day for me means a blustery wind, racing waves and salty rain. I live with my husband and two dogs whom I adore; I make a lot of soup, play too many computer games and love watching movies, but most of all I love losing myself in the worlds I create.

I hope you enjoy reading my stories as much as I enjoy writing them.

jeanniewycherley.co.uk | twitter | facebook | instagram | pinterest | amazon | goodreads

The Narrator

About Kim Bretton:

Prior to moving from London to NYC in 2005 Kim worked predominantly on the London stage both originating roles in West End productions and playing in long running shows both in London and on National and International tours. She has played in numerous Shakespeare and classical works as well as musical theatre and modern plays. Her TV and film credits include Call Red for ITV, Don’t Look Back for New Forest Films, the lead role in the TV series Mentors and an obscene amount of radio, video games, commercials and voice overs.

She moved to Nashville, TN 10 years ago and continues to do theatre roles in between writing, directing and voice over work. Kim is an Audie Award nominee, a Broadway World Award winner and was Voted Best Actress in Nashville by The Nashville Scene.

kimbretton.com | facebook | instagram | goodreads

FTC Disclosure:
The ebook and audiobook were bought with private funds.
No money received for this review.