kari_marie's reviews
483 reviews

When She Dreams by Amanda Quick

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

 Maggie works for the famous advice columnist Aunt Cornelia. While her employer is out of contact on a trip Maggie finds out someone is trying to blackmail her. Maggie decides to stop this by hiring PI Sam Sage. These two are complete opposites, one reckless and the other cautious. Can these two solve the mystery with bodies dropping around them or will they be next? 

 

Fun Quick read. Pun intended. If you have read a Quick, Krentz, Castle you can predict a lot that is going to happen in this book. There is a reason for this. Its enjoyable. I know if I pick this up I am going to enjoy it. Do you read the others in the series? Nope, I think this works as a standalone. 

 

Four stars. I enjoyed the story, the plot moved and the couple was fun. Thank you to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group and Amanda Quick for the free copy this was an honest review. 

Seasonal Fears by Seanan McGuire

2.5

 

Seasonal Fears by Seanan McGuire is the second book in the Alchemical Journey series. 

 

I want to say I love this book but I actually cannot remember this book. It is seriously just lost. I loved Middlegame so to have now memory of the second book is depressing. I have vague recollection of enjoying it, but overall the plot is gone. This puts the book at 2.5 stars because even looking at other reviews does not jog enough of a memory to recall anything.

 

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan-Tor/Forge and Seanan McGuire for the free copy this was an honest review. 

Lover Arisen by J.R. Ward

medium-paced

3.0

 

Lover Arisen by J.R. Ward is the 20th book in the Black Dagger Brotherhood. To save everyone Balthazar tries to stay away from everyone. Nobody believes him but demon Devina is still around and inside of him. Too bad he keeps getting distracted by detective Erika. Erika knows something is going on Caldwell and she plans to get to the bottom of it. 

 

Ok I forgot how this book ends.  Actually I forgot most of this book. I have happy warm feelings but no distinct details. So this book was a fast pace fantasy with romance that you knew how it was going to end. 

 

Three stars for enjoyable book but forgettable. This series has good reads this one was a weaker one but still adds to the franchise. 

 

Thank you to NetGalley, Gallery Books and J.R. Ward for the free copy. This was an honest review. 

Fevered Star by Rebecca Roanhorse

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

 Fevered Star by Rebecca Roanhorse is the second book in the Between Earth and Sky series. The Crow God has risen, he is vengeful and only some have survived. We go along in the aftermath as many lives have been changed. Some are stumbling along, some are struggling and some have been lost. 

 

Well this is a lot. There are a lot of characters and they are grey. None are "good" or "bad". They are all on survival mode and do have face that they are somebody's bad guy. I feel like Xiala was a little weak but for some reason I see her getting a great story line for book three and I am here for it. Our two avatars had an interesting struggle and I look forward to their future decisions. 

 

Overall I do not think this had a strong of a pull as Black Sun but was still a good book. I give it 4 stars for interesting world, characters and not a set up book for book but still setting you up. 

 

Thank you to NetGalley, Gallery Books and Rebecca Roanhorse for the free copy. This was an honest review. 

Crowbones by Anne Bishop

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

 Crowbones by Anne Bishop is the 8th book of The Others. Welcome to the Jumble, an Inn run by Vicki DeVine. Here Others and humans can mix. Too bad the crowguard boogeyman showed up to ruin Trickster Night. 

 

Disclaimer I read this almost a year ago. Plenty of details remain in my brain but it can be a little fuzzy. I love this series so already this book would have a hard time disappointing me. I like that Vicki seems to know that she can still be eaten. I feel as the series has progressed there is safety to some characters but here Vicki definitely felt protected but also under threat. While not the fastest pace around it was not a drag to read. Bishop had another more meek female who had some gusto but who still needed to be protected as a main character. This did not make her unlikable but it did make it predictable. Of the series I have to say this was not the strongest showing but still enjoyable. 

 

Three stars because while still enjoyable just was missing something that I cannot define. I still recommend it and will absolutely praise and recommend the series still. Thank you to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group and Anne Bishop for a free copy. This was an honest review. 

Spelunking Through Hell by Seanan McGuire

adventurous challenging dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

 Spelunking Through Hell by Seanan McGuire is the 11th book in following the Price family. While not quite a standalone it was still an easy book to read without having read all the other books in the series. I have read maybe 3 other books in the series and was able to follow along but knowing the other family members did help. Alice is a one person kind of person. Even at the expense of her children. Alice's person is her husband, Thomas and he was taken away from her. She spent years, even abandoning her children, trying to locate her husband. Thanks to her family's actions Alice is now able to find her husband. Will she be able to truly save him? 

 

As usual I read this months ago. I mostly wrote the synopsis from memory (after checking to make sure I was talking about the right book). It was a memorable book with interesting characters and plot. Do I particularly like Alice or find her relatable? No but I still enjoyed this book. It was fast paced, fun, a little dark but still has a predictable ending that I want. I would recommend this series and this author but would not recommend this as the first one to read in the series. I do not find it that strong of a book in the series. 

 

I liked the book but found Alice a less than pleasant protagonist so I would put this at 3.5 stars. Thank you to NetGalley, DAW and Seanan McGuire for a free copy this was an honest review.  

The Deepest of Secrets by Kelley Armstrong

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

 The Deepest of Secrets by Kelley Armstrong is the 7th book in the Rockton series. The town of Rockton's secrets are being revealed. The town is unravelling with everybody afraid their crime will be revealed and the council shutting the town down. 

 

This was the weakest of the books in my opinion. It had no pull to make me want to read it. I still enjoyed this world and will still pick up the next book but this one was lacking that spark. I found the killer to be obvious. The tension that’s normally with the council was just lacking and I was wanting more planning for their contingency plan. 

 

3.25 stars for being fine but just lackluster. I finished it and it did not make me hate the series or lose complete interest. Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Kelley Armstrong for the free copy. This was an honest review. 

Lightning in a Mirror by Jayne Ann Krentz

adventurous funny mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

 Lightning in a Mirror by Jayne Ann Krentz is third book in the Fogg Lake trilogy. Our newest heroine is Olivia LeClair. She is giving speed dating a try, but its not going well. One date tried to kill her and the next was believed to be dead. Harlan Rancourt is not dead but he does need help to find an old lab and Olivia is the only one who can help him. 

 

I enjoyed this book. To be fair I enjoy most of Krentz's books. It was a fun fast read. While this could be read as a standalone know the world the author built along with her other pennames makes this book way more enjoyable. 

 

4 stars for being an enjoyable read even if it was not a stand out. Thank you to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group, and Jayne Ann Krentz for the free copy. This was an honest review. 

The Hawthorne School by Sylvie Perry

dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

 The Hawthorne School by Sylvie Perry is about a single mother, Claudia, who has a young son who is less than easy to manage. Suddenly, Claudia's worries are taken away when she finds a new specialty school. The only caveat is she has to work and follow the rules for the scholarship. 

 

I listened to this book in November of 2021 and am reviewing this in May 2022. The narrator Nan McNamara did a good job. The book itself was a dark story about when trying to do the best for your child can actually do more harm. I found Claudia to be highly naïve, but I can see how many do fall into cults. This whole story is basically about falling into a cult and then trying to fight a way out while protecting a child. The premise was good but I really did struggle because there was never a good pull to want to continue the story. I found it to be predictable. 

 

3 Stars because I did finish it and I did like the premise. I remember details which when I review books even days later is not always the case. I also remember not liking the book. Thank you to NetGalley, Dreamscape Media, Sylvie Perry and Nan McNamara for the free copy. This was an honest review. 

Game On: Tempting Twenty-Eight by Janet Evanovich

funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

 Game on by Janet Evanovich is the 28th book in the Stephanie Plum series. Diesel is back and they are hunting the same fugitive. Are they working together or is this a competition, Plum does not know yet but it will be a ride to find out. 

 

I have not read a Stephanie Plum book in years (I think I read into the teens). I forgot how funny this world was. This was pure enjoyment and I felt like I was fine having a vague background to read and understand everything going on. 

 

Four stars for being a pure joy to read. 

 

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Janet Evanovich for the free copy. This was an honest review.