Denise 's bookshelf: all en-US Mon, 05 May 2025 05:20:16 -0700 60 Denise 's bookshelf: all 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg <![CDATA[500 More Ways To Be A Better Writer]]> 13499190
* * *

500 MORE WAYS TO BE A BETTER WRITER is the sequel to 500 WAYS TO BE A BETTER WRITER (which is itself a sequel to 250 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT WRITING).

Nab this book and you’ll find within a series of lists geared toward enlightening you with the short sharp satori smack of dubious writing wisdom. The book contains a veritable avalanche of writing advice meant to help novelists, screenwriters and other storytellers better understand topics near and dear to the penmonkey existence. The book answers questions such as, “How do I find my voice? What should I know about procuring an agent? How do I find the proper story structure for my story? Where are my pants?�

500 MORE WAYS contains the following:

25 Financial F**k-Ups Writers Make 25 Mistakes To Look For In Your Writing 25 Reasons Readers Will Keep Reading Your Story 25 Reasons Readers Will Quit Reading Your Story 25 Reasons Writers Are Bug-F**k Nuts 25 Things I Want To Say To So-Called “Aspiring� Writers 25 Things Writers Should Know About Blogging 25 Things Writers Should Know About Agents 25 Things Writers Should Start Doing (As Soon As Possible) 25 Things Writers Should Stop Doing (Starting Right Now) 25 Things You Should Know About Narrative Structure 25 Things You Should Know About Protagonists 25 Things You Should Know About Rejection 25 Things You Should Know About Setting 25 Things You Should Know About Suspense And Tension In Storytelling 25 Things You Should Know About Your Authorial Voice 25 Things You Should Know About Your “Finished� Novel 25 Ways For Writers To Help Other Writers Appendix I: 25 More Writing Challenges Appendix II: 25 Things You Should Know About Me]]> 163 Chuck Wendig Denise 5 4.34 500 More Ways To Be A Better Writer
author: Chuck Wendig
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]]> <![CDATA[Dagon et autres nouvelles de terreur]]> 1289626 FRENCH COLLECTION

Indicible et innommable, l'horreur est partout. Une menace universelle, aux dimensions démesurées du cosmos : dans la brume entourant les falaises de Kingsport, dans une vieille maison solitaire qui entre en résonance avec l'au-delà, dans le cadre rassurant de l'université Miskatonic d'Arkham, où le docteur Herbert West réanime les morts... Mais aussi en d'autres temps, d'autres lieux : au plus profond des abysses marines, antre du terrible dieu Dagon ; à Ulthar, où règnent en maîtres les chats ; au grand temple d'Ilarnek, dans lequel les hideux servants de Bokrug, destructeurs de la ville de Sarnath, adorent encore aujourd'hui leur idole impie...Trente nouvelles d'effroi et de poésie ténébreuse, trente terribles révélations sur les secrets que dissimule la réalité.]]> 431 H.P. Lovecraft Denise 5 3.73 Dagon et autres nouvelles de terreur
author: H.P. Lovecraft
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average rating: 3.73
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]]> <![CDATA[The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories]]> 721012 Sketch Book first appeared in 1819, readers in America and abroad greeted it with enthusiasm, and Irving emerged as America's first successful professional author. The pieces about life in England are gently ironic, reflecting the author's interest in the traditions of the Old World and his longings for his home in the New. But it is in "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" that Irving exhibits his true strength—the ability to depict American landscapes and culture so vividly that readers feel themselves a part of them. And it is on the basis of these two classic tales that Irving is generally credited with inventing the short story as a distinct literary genre.

Originally published as The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.]]> 368 Washington Irving 014043769X Denise 4 3.96 1820 The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories
author: Washington Irving
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average rating: 3.96
book published: 1820
rating: 4
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]]> Inferno (Robert Langdon, #4) 30269119 ‘Seek and ye shall find.�

With these words echoing in his head, eminent Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon awakes in a hospital bed with no recollection of where he is or how he got there. Nor can he explain the origin of the macabre object that is found hidden in his belongings.

A threat to his life will propel him and a young doctor, Sienna Brooks, into a breakneck chase across the city of Florence. Only Langdon’s knowledge of hidden passageways and ancient secrets that lie behind its historic facade can save them from the clutches of their unknown pursuers.

With only a few lines from Dante’s dark and epic masterpiece, The Inferno, to guide them, they must decipher a sequence of codes buried deep within some of the most celebrated artefacts of the Renaissance � sculptures, paintings, buildings � to find the answers to a puzzle which may, or may not, help them save the world from a terrifying threat�

Set against an extraordinary landscape inspired by one of history’s most ominous literary classics, Inferno is Dan Brown’s most compelling and thought-provoking novel yet, a breathless race-against-time thriller that will grab you from page one and not let you go until you close the book.]]> 576 Dan Brown 1101974117 Denise 3 3.84 2013 Inferno (Robert Langdon, #4)
author: Dan Brown
name: Denise
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2013
rating: 3
read at: 2017/02/06
date added: 2024/07/04
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]]> <![CDATA[Solving Single : How To Get The Ring, Not The Run Around]]> 19035450
Yet you settle for being just another girl men string along.

Regardless of what commitment level you find yourself in, if you have yet to receive the ultimate commitment from the man you want, you are still SINGLE.

Stop waiting for a man to ask you out. Stop waiting for a man to make your relationship exclusive. Stop waiting for a man to reward your loyalty with an engagement ring. Stop waiting, period! Learn to free yourself from relationship purgatory and get the lasting commitment you deserve.

Solving Single is a system that will eliminate your relationship problems by breaking years of habits, erasing preconceived notions, and unlocking the power every woman has over every man.

Solving Single is the key that will unlock the male mind, allowing you to instantly get noticed by any man, sidestep manipulation from those who just want sex, and attain a legitimate romance.

There is no need to think like a man, lower your standards, or play his game. Solving Single will show you how to win on your own terms no matter what faults you think you possess.

Stop waiting for your love life to fix itself and learn the definite steps to solving single.]]> 239 G.L. Lambert Denise 0 currently-reading 4.24 2013 Solving Single : How To Get The Ring, Not The Run Around
author: G.L. Lambert
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average rating: 4.24
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]]> Lyth: Hymn of the Flesh 13561115 359 Harrison Roberts Denise 0 currently-reading 4.50 2012 Lyth: Hymn of the Flesh
author: Harrison Roberts
name: Denise
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2012
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]]> Wicked: The Grimmerie 24937 Wicked

Wicked: The Grimmerie is the behind-the-scenes story of the hit that has captivated Broadway—and now the world. Designed to resemble the ancient book of spells that changes Ozian history, Wicked: The Grimmerie includes profiles of the cast and creative team, the complete, illustrated lyrics to all the songs, and more than 200 full-color photographs. Packed with thrillifying details, Wicked: The Grimmerie is also full of bonus features that will delight fans of the show, from an Ozian Glossararium and an Oz travelogue to a step-by-step look at how Elphaba gets green. No need for innuendo or outuendo: This is a must-have for Wicked fans of all ages.]]> 191 David Cote 1401308201 Denise 5 4.19 2005 Wicked: The Grimmerie
author: David Cote
name: Denise
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2005
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[The Gospels of Mary: The Secret Tradition of Mary Magdalene, the Companion of Jesus]]> 8126753 The Da Vinci Code, Marvin Meyer (The Ancient Mysteries) delves into the earliest texts available to reveal a disciple of great spiritual maturity who was extremely influential in the survival of Christianity. Although he is doubtful of the grand conspiracies laid out in The Da Vinci Code, Meyers does believe that it was institutionalized sexism that caused Mary to be deliberately "marginalized" as a prostitute in the New Testament. "The portrait of Mary in literature and art as a reformed whore is impressive, but it is mistaken in terms of historical accuracy and literary interpretation," he asserts. "…It was not until the late sixth century that Po! pe Gregory the Great formally identified Mary Magdalene with the prostitute of Luke 7, and the identification stuck." In fact, Meyer claims that there is no convincing documentation to link Mary with the unnamed prostitute who washes Jesus' feet with her tears. Using his scholarly authority as well as extensive research supplied by Esther A. De Boer, Ph.D. (Mary Magdalene: Beyond the Myth), he helps Mary emerge from the shadows of Orthodox Church and gain her rightful place as the highly influential disciple and apostle of Jesus. He believes that Mary had a physical love relationship with Jesus, and was probably the mysterious "beloved" disciple that is mentioned in the Gospel of John. Furthermore, he believes that Jesus may have seen Mary as the most spiritually evolved disciple. Much of the book includes quotes and interpretations of the earliest literary sources available, including the recently discovered Gospel of Mary (written in the second century), as well as the Gospels of Mark, Matthew, Luke, John, Peter, Thomas, and Phillip. --Gail Hudson]]> 154 Marvin W. Meyer Denise 0 currently-reading 4.00 The Gospels of Mary: The Secret Tradition of Mary Magdalene, the Companion of Jesus
author: Marvin W. Meyer
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]]> <![CDATA[Limerence Lessons: Fifty Dazzling Secrets From Unrequited Love (Limerence Recovery Book 3)]]> 75560854 limerence is, undeniably, a living nightmare. It plays tricks on your mind, swinging you back and forth between euphoria and the depths of despair. There is no stable endpoint, only borrowing energy that you end up paying back with much higher interest. Any time you try to escape the emotional turmoil, it seemingly doubles down in intensity � tugging at you like crabs in a bucket.

In the active grip of limerence, you'd do just about anything to get some affection from your LO. But whatever you chase can never align with you, so this affection perpetually eludes you - as do seemingly ALL of the positive emotions you used to experience. Until you realise that your bond with your LO has never really existed, and they've never really been the key to positive emotions. And that obsessive love has always been about you, meaning it's your responsibility to conquer the illusion and realign with YOUR personal sense of bliss.

In my first book, The Limerent Mind , I lay out everything you need to know about limerence � the brain science, the psychological factors that make you fall for your LO, and the exact steps to build lasting immunity.

A burst of inspiration compelled me to write this book, Limerent Lessons , to complement it. My job is to help you overcome limerence as swiftly and enjoyably as you possibly can. This book is a precious resource comprising the 50 most life-changing lessons that limerence teaches us, so that you can learn them now.

Why is it important that you assimilate these lessons? Because they will expose you to ideas, beliefs and attitudes that will fast-track your recovery. So far, you have relied on your own ‘best thinking� to free yourself from the conundrum of unrequited love � but it has not worked. So from now on, bathing your brain in new powerful narratives is absolutely non-negotiable.

This is the third and final book I will be writing about this condition. These 50 lessons make it dramatically easier for you ‘Admit defeat� and stop chasing your LOJettison emotional baggage that no longer serves youSoothe your heartbreakBe more spontaneous and have a lot more funView reality far more rationally than you have ever doneExperience a much broader, richer array of positive emotionsUnderstand how you must view life to free yourself from limerence (and stay free forever)Create a beautiful vision for your life that doesn’t involve unfulfilling loveCommit to creating a new self-concept who CANNOT be impacted by LOs (the basis of limerence recovery, as explained in The Limerent Mind).
Consider these 50 lessons secrets of nature. Once you fully grasp them, you will be able to waltz with your heart - for you will be its master, rather than the punchline of its jokes. Every single limerent is capable of alignment with their heart, self-compassion, and emotional freedom. You are no exception.

So open your mind, feed it with new ideas, and keep your crystal-clear goal in mind at all times: a long, happy limerence-free life.

It's going to take some work, but you CAN achieve your precise desired outcome!]]> 204 Lucy Bain Denise 5 4.86 Limerence Lessons: Fifty Dazzling Secrets From Unrequited Love (Limerence Recovery Book 3)
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name: Denise
average rating: 4.86
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]]> <![CDATA[Twenty Disastrous Limerence Errors: & Exactly How to Avoid Them (Limerence Recovery Book 2)]]> 59059208 Are you trying your hardest to recover from unrequited love, but feel trapped in an irrational, depressive headspace...craving someone you cannot be with?Twenty Disastrous Limerence Errors is a book to read alongside or after The Limerent Mind; it will grant you profound insight into how you are currently perpetuating your state of lovesickness without realising. This supplementary resource is an in-depth analysis of the subtle, insidious ways in which virtually every single limerent unknowingly delays and complicates their own recovery, and practical, foolproof ways to avoid committing these errors yourself, despite your afflicted brain trying to persuade you that they are the most logical things to do and think.You will learn how to rapidly tweak your attitude, thinking process and actions in order to stop tripping yourself up and permit your own seamless recovery - in other words, to guarantee that you see rapid and permanent results from the subconscious mind techniques detailed in The Limerent Mind.The TWENTY WAYS in which you are probably keeping yourself limerent fall into five main into ideas and convictions that are ultimately delusional (albeit often subtly so) failing to accept the truth that your emotions are not ‘more meaningful� than anyone else who has endured unrequited love, nor your love for your limerent object (LO) more profound. And, by extension, failing to believe that most of your current thoughts concerning your LO are part of the stereotypic array of harmful delusions that plagues every limerent entertaining negative thought loops and coming to pessimistic conclusions about life that feel sensible and realistic, but which are both inaccurate and sneakily complicating (or actively impeding) your recovery acting in problematic ways towards your LO (and other people) that have subtle social repercussions, rendering you a weak, resentful and unhappy version of yourself making flawed decisions in realms of life that have nothing to do with limerence or your LO.As we explore our twenty limerent errors in depth throughout the course of this book, you will learn exactly what you need to stop committing each one. Assimilate the information presented to you in each chapter, and then assess your personal experience with limerence. Do not be impartial about it. Elucidate which of these errors (or problematic states of being) YOU have fallen prisoner to, so that you can coherently and seamlessly ‘catapult� yourself away from them—mentally, emotionally, and physically.Clearing your path of obstacles in this way will leave you perfectly poised to cure your limerence pattern once and for all, since there will be nothing blocking you from gaining momentum and gliding towards your much deserved emotional freedom - towards a version of yourself that is one hundred percent immune to obsessive unrequited love, and can thrive as your truest self without repressing any aspects of your uniquely passionate nature.]]> 180 Lucy Bain Denise 5 4.42 Twenty Disastrous Limerence Errors: & Exactly How to Avoid Them (Limerence Recovery Book 2)
author: Lucy Bain
name: Denise
average rating: 4.42
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]]> <![CDATA[How to Be an Adult: A Handbook on Psychological and Spiritual Integration]]> 39349923 132 David Richo Denise 0 4.50 1991 How to Be an Adult: A Handbook on Psychological and Spiritual Integration
author: David Richo
name: Denise
average rating: 4.50
book published: 1991
rating: 0
read at: 2023/03/16
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]]> Babel 57945316 From award-winning author R. F. Kuang comes Babel, a historical fantasy epic that grapples with student revolutions, colonial resistance, and the use of language and translation as the dominating tool of the British Empire

Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal.

1828. Robin Swift, orphaned by cholera in Canton, is brought to London by the mysterious Professor Lovell. There, he trains for years in Latin, Ancient Greek, and Chinese, all in preparation for the day he’ll enroll in Oxford University’s prestigious Royal Institute of Translation—also known as Babel. The tower and its students are the world's center for translation and, more importantly, magic. Silver-working—the art of manifesting the meaning lost in translation using enchanted silver bars—has made the British unparalleled in power, as the arcane craft serves the Empire's quest for colonization.

For Robin, Oxford is a utopia dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge. But knowledge obeys power, and as a Chinese boy raised in Britain, Robin realizes serving Babel means betraying his motherland. As his studies progress, Robin finds himself caught between Babel and the shadowy Hermes Society, an organization dedicated to stopping imperial expansion. When Britain pursues an unjust war with China over silver and opium, Robin must decide . . .

Can powerful institutions be changed from within, or does revolution always require violence?]]> 544 R.F. Kuang 0063021420 Denise 0 4.17 2022 Babel
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average rating: 4.17
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]]> <![CDATA[The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life]]> 28257707 Alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780062457738

In this generation-defining self-help guide, a superstar blogger cuts through the crap to show us how to stop trying to be "positive" all the time so that we can truly become better, happier people.

For decades, we’ve been told that positive thinking is the key to a happy, rich life. "F**k positivity," Mark Manson says. "Let’s be honest, shit is f**ked and we have to live with it." In his wildly popular Internet blog, Manson doesn’t sugarcoat or equivocate. He tells it like it is—a dose of raw, refreshing, honest truth that is sorely lacking today. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is his antidote to the coddling, let’s-all-feel-good mindset that has infected American society and spoiled a generation, rewarding them with gold medals just for showing up.

Manson makes the argument, backed both by academic research and well-timed poop jokes, that improving our lives hinges not on our ability to turn lemons into lemonade, but on learning to stomach lemons better. Human beings are flawed and limited�"not everybody can be extraordinary, there are winners and losers in society, and some of it is not fair or your fault." Manson advises us to get to know our limitations and accept them. Once we embrace our fears, faults, and uncertainties, once we stop running and avoiding and start confronting painful truths, we can begin to find the courage, perseverance, honesty, responsibility, curiosity, and forgiveness we seek.

There are only so many things we can give a f**k about so we need to figure out which ones really matter, Manson makes clear. While money is nice, caring about what you do with your life is better, because true wealth is about experience. A much-needed grab-you-by-the-shoulders-and-look-you-in-the-eye moment of real-talk, filled with entertaining stories and profane, ruthless humor, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is a refreshing slap for a generation to help them lead contented, grounded lives.]]> 212 Mark Manson Denise 5 3.87 2016 The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life
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name: Denise
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2016
rating: 5
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]]> The Birds: and Other Stories 19521168 The Observer (UK)

A classic of alienation and horror, The Birds was immortalised by Hitchcock in his celebrated film. The five other chilling stories in this collection echo a sense of dislocation and mock man's dominance over the natural world. The mountain paradise of 'Monte Verità' promises immortality, but at a terrible price; a neglected wife haunts her husband in the form of an apple tree; a professional photographer steps out from behind the camera and into his subject's life; a date with a cinema usherette leads to a walk in the cemetery; and a jealous father finds a remedy when three's a crowd . . .]]> 293 Daphne du Maurier Denise 4 4.16 1952 The Birds: and Other Stories
author: Daphne du Maurier
name: Denise
average rating: 4.16
book published: 1952
rating: 4
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]]> <![CDATA[Black Library Celebration 2019]]> 44082282
"Endurance" by Chris Wraight
"A Company of Shadows" by Rachel Harrison
"Gods' Gift" by David Guymer
"Hallowed Knights: Ghosts of Demesnus" by Josh Reynolds
"The Board is Set" by Gav Thorpe
"Grandfather's Gift" by Guy Haley]]> 192 Chris Wraight 1784969141 Denise 4 3.71 2019 Black Library Celebration 2019
author: Chris Wraight
name: Denise
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2019
rating: 4
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]]> In the Shadow of Lakecrest 32945388
After exchanging wedding vows, Kate quickly discovers that something isn’t quite right with her husband—or her new family. As Mrs. Matthew Lemont, she must contend with her husband’s disturbing past, his domineering mother, and his overly close sister. Isolated at Lakecrest, the sprawling, secluded Lemont estate, she searches desperately for clues to Matthew’s terrors, which she suspects stem from the mysterious disappearance of his aunt years before. As Kate stumbles deeper into a maze of family secrets, she begins to question everyone’s sanity—especially her own. But just how far will she go to break free of this family’s twisted past?]]> 284 Elizabeth Blackwell Denise 5 3.71 2017 In the Shadow of Lakecrest
author: Elizabeth Blackwell
name: Denise
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2017
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[Feeling Good: Overcome Depression and Anxiety with Proven Techniques]]> 19986488 The good news is that anxiety, guilt, pessimism, procrastination, low self-esteem, and other ′black holes� of depression can be cured without drugs. In Feeling Good, eminent psychiatrist David D. Burns, M.D. outlines the remarkable, scientifically proven techniques that will immediately lift your spirits and help you develop a positive outlook on life.

Now, in this updated edition, Dr Burns adds an all-new Consumer′s Guide To Antidepressant Drugs, as well as a new introduction to help answer your questions about the many options available for treating depression.

Recognise what causes your mood swings.

Nip negative feelings in the bud.

Deal with guilt.

Handle hostility and criticism.

Overcome addiction to love and approval.

Build self-esteem.

Feel good everyday.

Some text and images that appeared in the print edition of this book are unavailable in the electronic edition due to rights reasons.

]]> 790 David D. Burns Denise 4 4.17 1980 Feeling Good: Overcome Depression and Anxiety with Proven Techniques
author: David D. Burns
name: Denise
average rating: 4.17
book published: 1980
rating: 4
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]]> <![CDATA[All Minus One: John Stuart Mill's Ideas on Free Speech Illustrated]]> 51321767 76 John Stuart Mill Denise 5 4.36 All Minus One: John Stuart Mill's Ideas on Free Speech Illustrated
author: John Stuart Mill
name: Denise
average rating: 4.36
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]]> Ten Days to Self-Esteem 17788838 Do you feel ciscouraged with what you've accomplished in life?
Do you want greater self-esteem, productivity, and joy in daily living?

If so, you will benefit from this revolutionary way of brightening your moods without drugs or lengthy therapy. All you need is your own common sense and the easy-to-follow methods revealed in this book by one of the country's foremost authorities on mood and personal relationship problems.

In Ten Days to Self-esteem, Dr. David Burns presents innovative, clear, and compassionate methods that will help you identify the causes of your mood slumps and develop a more positive outlook on life. You will learn that

You feel the way you think: Negative feelings like guilt, anger, and depression do not result from the bad things that happen to you, but from the way you think about these events. This simple but revolutionary idea can change your life!

You can change the way you feel: You will discover why you get depressed and learn how to brighten your outlook when you're in a slump.

You can enjoy greater happiness, productivity, and intimacy—without drugs or lengthy therapy.

Can a self-help book do all this? Studies show that two thirds of depressed readers of Dr. Burns's classic bestseller, Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy, experienced dramatic felief in just four weeks without psychotherapy or antidepressant medications. Three-year follow-up studies revealed that readers did not relapse but continued to enjoy their positive outlook. Ten Days to Self-esteem offers a powerful new tool that provides hope and healing in ten easy steps. The methods are based on common sense and are not difficult to apply. Research shows that they really work!

Feeling good feels wonderful. You owe it to yourself to feel good!]]> 336 David D. Burns Denise 5 3.80 1993 Ten Days to Self-Esteem
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name: Denise
average rating: 3.80
book published: 1993
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[How To Draw Your Boundaries: and why no one else can save you (How to Be Ferociously Happy Book 11)]]> 55551928 288 Dushka Zapata Denise 5 4.35 How To Draw Your Boundaries: and why no one else can save you (How to Be Ferociously Happy Book 11)
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average rating: 4.35
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]]> <![CDATA[Demote Yourself: and other ways to show your ego who's boss (How to Be Ferociously Happy Book 13)]]> 59381903 347 Dushka Zapata Denise 5 4.43 Demote Yourself: and other ways to show your ego who's boss (How to Be Ferociously Happy Book 13)
author: Dushka Zapata
name: Denise
average rating: 4.43
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rating: 5
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]]> The Ballad of Black Tom 26975675 One of NPR's Best Books of 2016, winner of the Shirley Jackson Award, the British Fantasy Award, the This is Horror Award for Novella of the Year, and a finalist for the Hugo, Nebula, Locus, World Fantasy, and Bram Stoker Awards

People move to New York looking for magic and nothing will convince them it isn't there.

Charles Thomas Tester hustles to put food on the table, keep the roof over his father's head, from Harlem to Flushing Meadows to Red Hook. He knows what magic a suit can cast, the invisibility a guitar case can provide, and the curse written on his skin that attracts the eye of wealthy white folks and their cops. But when he delivers an occult tome to a reclusive sorceress in the heart of Queens, Tom opens a door to a deeper realm of magic, and earns the attention of things best left sleeping.

A storm that might swallow the world is building in Brooklyn. Will Black Tom live to see it break?]]> 154 Victor LaValle 0765386615 Denise 0 4.06 2016 The Ballad of Black Tom
author: Victor LaValle
name: Denise
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2016
rating: 0
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]]> <![CDATA[Underground Warfare, 1914�1918]]> 19485566 543 Simon Jones 1844684717 Denise 0 currently-reading 3.89 2010 Underground Warfare, 1914–1918
author: Simon Jones
name: Denise
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2010
rating: 0
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]]> Mental Power! 33361433 stop worrying about life?


We all experience negative thoughts. But if these thoughts overwhelm you and start to limit you as if they are a handbrake on your life, then you need to know there is a better way.

Our minds try to play games with us and if we let them, life can pass you by while you stay stuck in your daily routines. Every week looks like the previous and the next one. That’s why so many people hit a plateau and get stuck.

Yet, you’ve seen people who keep advancing. They are seemingly unbothered by negativity. They are happy and growing on a daily basis.

What’s their secret?

DOWNLOAD : Mental Power! - How to Stop Feeling Overwhelmed, Stop Worrying, Get Rid of Unwanted Anxiety, End Negative Thinking

The goal of this book is simple: You’ll learn the techniques, examples and action steps you can take to release the handbrake on your life.

You will learn:
Why “Positive thinking� is not the answer
How to react to ALL of Your Negative Thoughts
The One Question that Shapes your Success or Failure
How to tame that negative voice that tries to discourage you
Dealing with ANY obstacle life throws at you
The Most powerful ritual limitless people use (don’t worry, it’s not spiritual woo woo)
The Benefit of Meditation and Focused Deep Breathing (and How to Do Both)
How to escape the 9 to 5 rat race

Mental Power! is full of exercises that will have an immediate, positive impact on your mindset, on your love life and your relationships. Instead of just telling you to do something, we provide practical, science-backed actions that can create real and lasting change if practiced regularly.

Would You Like To Know More?

Download now to stop feeling overwhelmed by life. There is a better way.

Scroll to the top of the page and select the buy now button.

]]> 126 Brian Nox Denise 5 4.57 Mental Power!
author: Brian Nox
name: Denise
average rating: 4.57
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2022/12/31
date added: 2022/12/31
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]]> <![CDATA[Love Yourself: and Other Insurgent Acts That Recast Everything (How to Be Ferociously Happy Book 9)]]> 48847417 336 Dushka Zapata Denise 0 4.57 Love Yourself: and Other Insurgent Acts That Recast Everything (How to Be Ferociously Happy Book 9)
author: Dushka Zapata
name: Denise
average rating: 4.57
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2022/08/05
date added: 2022/08/05
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]]> <![CDATA[Feelings are Fickle: and Other Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me (How to Be Ferociously Happy Book 10)]]> 53757831 363 Dushka Zapata Denise 0 4.71 Feelings are Fickle: and Other Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me (How to Be Ferociously Happy Book 10)
author: Dushka Zapata
name: Denise
average rating: 4.71
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2022/07/18
date added: 2022/07/18
shelves:
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]]> <![CDATA[The Secret Commonwealth (The Book of Dust #2)]]> 49476956 Return to the world of His Dark Materials—now an HBO original series starring Dafne Keen, Ruth Wilson, Andrew Scott, and Lin-Manuel Miranda—in the second volume of Philip Pullman’s new bestselling masterwork The Book of Dust.

The windows between the many worlds have been sealed and the momentous adventures of Lyra Silvertongue’s youth are long behind her—or so she thought. Lyra is now a twenty-year-old undergraduate at St. Sophia’s College and intrigue is swirling around her once more. Her daemon Pantalaimon is witness to a brutal murder, and the dying man entrusts them with secrets that carry echoes from their past.

The more Lyra is drawn into these mysteries, the less she is sure of. Even the events of her own past come into question when she learns of Malcolm Polstead’s role in bringing her to Jordan College.

Now Lyra and Malcolm will travel far beyond the confines of Oxford, across Europe and into the Levant, searching for a city haunted by daemons, and a desert said to hold the truth of Dust. The dangers they face will challenge everything they thought they knew about the world, and about themselves.]]> 641 Philip Pullman Denise 5 4.22 2019 The Secret Commonwealth (The Book of Dust #2)
author: Philip Pullman
name: Denise
average rating: 4.22
book published: 2019
rating: 5
read at: 2019/10/23
date added: 2019/12/19
shelves:
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]]> Equoid (Laundry Files, #2.9) 18583436
At the publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management software (DRM) applied.]]> 98 Charles Stross Denise 5 4.03 2013 Equoid (Laundry Files, #2.9)
author: Charles Stross
name: Denise
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2013
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2019/12/07
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ]]> 9670554 A thought-provoking retelling of the Gospel story from an atheist perspective. Upon its hardcover publication, renowned author Philip Pullman’sThe Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christprovoked heated debates and stirred a frenzy of controversy throughout the clerical and literary worlds alike with its bold retelling of the life of Jesus Christ. In this remarkable piece of fiction, famously atheistic author Philip Pullman challenges the events of the Gospels and puts forward his own compelling and plausible version of the life of Jesus. Written with unstinting authority,The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christis a pithy, erudite, subtle, and powerful book by a beloved author, a text to be read and reread, studied and unpacked, much like the Good Book itself. “The erudite fantasy author, Philip Pullman, makes explicit his complaint against Christian dogma with [this] challenging deconstruction of the Gospels.� —Entertainment Weekly “Inspiring... Again and again, [Pullman] displays a marvelous sense of the elemental power of Jesus’s instructions and parables.� —The Washington Post]]> 257 Philip Pullman 0802196985 Denise 0 currently-reading 3.68 2009 The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ
author: Philip Pullman
name: Denise
average rating: 3.68
book published: 2009
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2019/10/23
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Dunwich Horror and Other Stories]]> 3539006
This edition is part of the Penguin Gothic Horror series designed by Coralie Bickford-Smith.]]> 201 H.P. Lovecraft 0141038764 Denise 5 4.03 1929 The Dunwich Horror and Other Stories
author: H.P. Lovecraft
name: Denise
average rating: 4.03
book published: 1929
rating: 5
read at: 2014/10/03
date added: 2019/10/04
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Geist Krieger: The Western Front]]> 42054584
This is the Watchmakers Paradise, a world of steam and competition, where men may earn their places at the ‘table of prosperity� so speaketh the Divine, the Watchmaker.

In this world, an industrialist from the Americas has put a secret plan into motion which will open up the isolated Europa Markets for free-trade. These plans will bring one of the largest city-states fighting for supremacy upon the continental gears in a Six Hundred Year War to its very knees.

Soldiers will die. Fortunes will be lost. The wealth of nations will be gambled by men of inscrutable power. To some, this might sound cruel, but in this world, such matters are merely numbers on a board.

[As a starting Indie author I have zero connections. Reviews are greatly appreciated even if they are negative.]]]> 291 J.C. Denton Denise 0 currently-reading 2.00 Geist Krieger: The Western Front
author: J.C. Denton
name: Denise
average rating: 2.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2019/08/26
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> The Witches: Salem, 1692 28449076 Pulitzer Prize winner Stacy Schiff, author of the #1 bestseller Cleopatra, provides an electrifying, fresh view of the Salem witch trials.

The panic began early in 1692, over an exceptionally raw Massachusetts winter, when a minister's niece began to writhe and roar. It spread quickly, confounding the most educated men and prominent politicians in the colony. Neighbors accused neighbors, husbands accused wives, parents and children one another. It ended less than a year later, but not before nineteen men and women had been hanged and an elderly man crushed to death.

Speaking loudly and emphatically, adolescent girls stood at the center of the crisis. Along with suffrage and Prohibition, the Salem witch trials represent one of the few moments when women played the central role in American history. Drawing masterfully on the archives, Stacy Schiff introduces us to the strains on a Puritan adolescent's life and to the authorities whose delicate agendas were at risk. She illuminates the demands of a rigorous faith, the vulnerability of settlements adrift from the mother country, perched-at a politically tumultuous time-on the edge of what a visitor termed a "remote, rocky, barren, bushy, wild-woody wilderness."

With devastating clarity, the textures and tensions of colonial life emerge; hidden patterns subtly, startlingly detach themselves from the darkness. Schiff brings early American anxieties to the fore to align them brilliantly with our own. In an era of religious provocations, crowdsourcing, and invisible enemies, this enthralling story makes more sense than ever.

The Witches is Schiff 's riveting account of a seminal episode, a primal American mystery unveiled-in crackling detail and lyrical prose-by one of our most acclaimed historians.]]> 512 Stacy Schiff Denise 3 Understandably, a lot of the records are damaged or incomplete or a record was never made, but surely a woman of that kind of investigative prowess could have gone around to psychiatrists, psychologists, feminists, and behavioral theorists to find out what would have made girls suddenly go into fits and manifest wounds onto their bodies.
The author MENTIONS these phenomenon, but takes more pleasure in the men who took what the girls were doing and ran with it, rather than give us an in depth look into what happened to make seemingly good girls go bad.
With a title like Witches, you would think that would be the subject matter in the pages. It kind of is, but not so there's any meaningful knowledge to gain out of it. And, while the book was interesting, and brought to light tidbits of information new to me, it definitely was a disappointing bait and switch. ]]> 3.22 2015 The Witches: Salem, 1692
author: Stacy Schiff
name: Denise
average rating: 3.22
book published: 2015
rating: 3
read at: 2017/04/01
date added: 2019/03/15
shelves:
review:
I really feel like, for a Pulitzer Prize winning author, this book should have spent less time on the men of Salem and more time dissecting what might have made the girls--Ann Putnam Jr. and her cohorts--start convulsing and accusing an entire town of witchcraft.
Understandably, a lot of the records are damaged or incomplete or a record was never made, but surely a woman of that kind of investigative prowess could have gone around to psychiatrists, psychologists, feminists, and behavioral theorists to find out what would have made girls suddenly go into fits and manifest wounds onto their bodies.
The author MENTIONS these phenomenon, but takes more pleasure in the men who took what the girls were doing and ran with it, rather than give us an in depth look into what happened to make seemingly good girls go bad.
With a title like Witches, you would think that would be the subject matter in the pages. It kind of is, but not so there's any meaningful knowledge to gain out of it. And, while the book was interesting, and brought to light tidbits of information new to me, it definitely was a disappointing bait and switch.
]]> <![CDATA[Leviathan Wakes (The Expanse, #1)]]> 38213061 From a New York Times bestselling and Hugo award-winning author comes a modern masterwork of science fiction, introducing a captain, his crew, and a detective as they unravel a horrifying solar system wide conspiracy that begins with a single missing girl. Humanity has colonized the solar system—Mars, the Moon, the Asteroid Belt and beyond—but the stars are still out of our reach.

Jim Holden is XO of an ice miner making runs from the rings of Saturn to the mining stations of the Belt. When he and his crew stumble upon a derelict ship, the Scopuli, they find themselves in possession of a secret they never wanted. A secret that someone is willing to kill for—and kill on a scale unfathomable to Jim and his crew. War is brewing in the system unless he can find out who left the ship and why.

Detective Miller is looking for a girl. One girl in a system of billions, but her parents have money and money talks. When the trail leads him to the Scopuli and rebel sympathizer Holden, he realizes that this girl may be the key to everything.

Holden and Miller must thread the needle between the Earth government, the Outer Planet revolutionaries, and secretive corporations—and the odds are against them. But out in the Belt, the rules are different, and one small ship can change the fate of the universe.]]> 577 James S.A. Corey Denise 5 4.48 2011 Leviathan Wakes (The Expanse, #1)
author: James S.A. Corey
name: Denise
average rating: 4.48
book published: 2011
rating: 5
read at: 2019/03/03
date added: 2019/03/03
shelves:
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]]> Heart of the Sun 25439596
A healer’s hands restore life, even to those undeserving–that’s what Helti’s grandmother taught her. Taken captive by the Argonel and forced to heal their dying commander, a human healer holds the life of one of the most brutal killers of men in her hands, just as he holds hers.

Helti wishes she could hate him for the things he’s done to her people, but she embraced Taven’s soul when she brought him back from the veil between life and death, and she knows there is beauty yet within.

A single act of mercy could turn the tides of war. A healer’s compassion could touch the heart of a monster who doesn’t believe he deserves peace or redemption. If the sun could descend from his throne to give his heart to a human girl, surely an elf can find it in himself to love outside his race� even if only for a little while.]]> 87 Jennifer Melzer Denise 0 3.80 2015 Heart of the Sun
author: Jennifer Melzer
name: Denise
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2019/03/03
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]]> Hero Handlers 25314514 The handler.

All of the blood, guts, and stomach wrenching terror. Broken dates, sudden departures, drinks in the lap. Sleep deprivation. FBI surveillance on your internet traffic because of the drone thing...

And ye gods, the clean up.

All of the crap.

None of the glory.

My name is Rhys Ivar.

I'm that guy.

And compared to me, that dude with the knife at the gunfight is a lucky bastard.]]> 259 S.W. Sondheimer Denise 0 4.00 2015 Hero Handlers
author: S.W. Sondheimer
name: Denise
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2019/03/03
shelves:
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]]> Boys Don't Cry 25966511
Then she meets Nate Thorne.

From the moment she first spied Nate playing guitar on his front porch, Tali was drawn to him. The sorrow in his songs, the deep sadness in his beautiful eyes... she can feel Fate pulling her to him.

Something haunts him. He never talks about the sins of his past, but she knows he doesn’t trust himself, especially not with her heart. Tali can’t imagine the sweet, loving boy she’s come to know being the awful monster he thinks he is, but what if he’s right? What if learning his secrets changes the way she feels about him?

Tali doesn’t know if their whirlwind of bliss is just a summer fling, or something much more, but she does know falling in love with Nate is going to leave the kind of mark you can never erase.]]> 228 Jennifer Melzer Denise 0 4.00 2015 Boys Don't Cry
author: Jennifer Melzer
name: Denise
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2019/03/03
shelves:
review:

]]> Meddling Kids 33858890 John Dies at the End and Welcome to Night Vale comes a tour de force of horror, humor, and H.P. Lovecraft. The surviving members of a forgotten teenage detective club (and their dog) must reunite as broken adults to finally solve the terrifying case that ruined them all…and sent the wrong man to prison. Scooby Doo and the gang never had to do this!

1990. The teen detectives once known as the Blyton Summer Detective Club (of Blyton Hills, a small mining town in the Zoinx River Valley in Oregon) are all grown up and haven’t seen each other since their fateful, final case in 1977. Andy, the tomboy, is twenty-five and on the run, wanted in at least two states. Keri, one-time kid genius and budding biologist, is bartending in New York, working on a serious drinking problem. At least she’s got Sean, an excitable Weimeraner descended from the original canine member of the team. Nate, the horror nerd, has spent the last thirteen years in and out of mental health institutions, and currently resides in an asylum in Arhkam, Massachusetts. The only friend he still sees is Peter, the handsome jock turned movie star. The problem is, Peter’s been dead for years.

The time has come to uncover the source of their nightmares and return to where it all began in 1977. This time, it better not be a man in a mask. The real monsters are waiting.

With raucous humor and brilliantly orchestrated mayhem, Edgar Cantero’s Meddling Kids taps into our shared nostalgia for the books and cartoons we grew up with, and delivers an exuberant, eclectic, and highly entertaining celebration of horror, life, friendship, and many-tentacled, interdimensional demon spawn.]]> 330 Edgar Cantero 0385542003 Denise 0 3.60 2017 Meddling Kids
author: Edgar Cantero
name: Denise
average rating: 3.60
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at: 2018/11/29
date added: 2018/11/29
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]]> <![CDATA[The Dungeon Master: The Disappearance of James Dallas Egbert III]]> 35566366 318 William C. Dear Denise 0 4.10 1984 The Dungeon Master: The Disappearance of James Dallas Egbert III
author: William C. Dear
name: Denise
average rating: 4.10
book published: 1984
rating: 0
read at: 2018/09/10
date added: 2018/09/10
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]]> Critical Failures 15701981
One minute, they're drinking away the dreariness of their lives, escaping into a fantasy game and laughing their asses off. The next minute, they're in a horse-drawn cart surrounded by soldiers pointing crossbows at them.

Tim now has the voice and physique of a prepubescent girl. Dave finds that while he lost a foot or two in height, he somehow acquired a suit of armor and a badass beard. Julian's ears have grown ridiculously long and pointy. And Cooper... well Cooper has gotten himself a set of tusks, a pair of clawed hands, and a bad case of the shits. He also finds that he's carrying a bag with a human head in it - a head that he had chopped off when they were still just playing a game.

Shit just got real, and if they want to survive, these four friends are going to have to tap into some baser instincts they didn't even know existed in their fast-food and pizza delivery world.

It's fight, flight, or try to convince the people who are trying to kill them that they don't really exist.

Meanwhile, a sadistic game master sits back in the real world eating their fried chicken.]]> 316 Robert Bevan Denise 5 3.80 2012 Critical Failures
author: Robert Bevan
name: Denise
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2012
rating: 5
read at: 2018/09/04
date added: 2018/09/04
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]]> Spider-Gwen (2015-2015) #3 25753589 23 Jason Latour Denise 5 3.92 2015 Spider-Gwen (2015-2015) #3
author: Jason Latour
name: Denise
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2018/02/23
shelves:
review:

]]> Spider-Gwen (2015-2015) #2 25753555 23 Jason Latour Denise 5 3.87 2015 Spider-Gwen (2015-2015) #2
author: Jason Latour
name: Denise
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2018/02/23
shelves:
review:

]]> Spider-Gwen (2015-2015) #1 25753553 23 Jason Latour Denise 5 3.92 2015 Spider-Gwen (2015-2015) #1
author: Jason Latour
name: Denise
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2018/02/23
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Werewolf of Bamberg (The Hangman's Daughter, #5)]]> 25149799 610 Oliver Pötzsch Denise 5 4.19 2014 The Werewolf of Bamberg (The Hangman's Daughter, #5)
author: Oliver Pötzsch
name: Denise
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at: 2017/09/26
date added: 2017/09/26
shelves:
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]]> Starship Troopers 9990585 ]]> 292 Robert A. Heinlein Denise 5 4.15 1959 Starship Troopers
author: Robert A. Heinlein
name: Denise
average rating: 4.15
book published: 1959
rating: 5
read at: 2017/09/11
date added: 2017/09/11
shelves:
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]]> <![CDATA[All Quiet on the Western Front]]> 355697
In 1914 a room full of German schoolboys, fresh-faced and idealistic, are goaded by their schoolmaster to troop off to the ‘glorious war�. With the fire and patriotism of youth they sign up. What follows is the moving story of a young ‘unknown soldier� experiencing the horror and disillusionment of life in the trenches.]]> 296 Erich Maria Remarque 0449213943 Denise 5 4.04 1928 All Quiet on the Western Front
author: Erich Maria Remarque
name: Denise
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1928
rating: 5
read at: 2017/09/09
date added: 2017/09/09
shelves:
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]]> <![CDATA[The Poisoned Pilgrim (The Hangman's Daughter, #4)]]> 17429022
Two monks at the monastery experiment with cutting edge technology, including a method of deflecting the lighting that has previously set the monastery ablaze. When one of the monks disappears and his lab is destroyed, foul play is suspected. Who better to investigate than the famed hangman Jakob Kuisl? But as the hangman and his family attempt to solve the mystery of the missing monk, they must deal with both the eccentric denizens of the monastery and villagers who view the monks� inventions as witchcraft that must be destroyed at all costs.

This thrilling fourth entry of The Hangman’s Daughter series features scheming monks, murderous robots, and the action and intrigue that never seem to cease when the Kuisls are on a case.]]> 512 Oliver Pötzsch 1477856129 Denise 5 3.97 2012 The Poisoned Pilgrim (The Hangman's Daughter, #4)
author: Oliver Pötzsch
name: Denise
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2012
rating: 5
read at: 2017/07/15
date added: 2017/07/15
shelves:
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]]> <![CDATA[The Beggar King (The Hangman's Daughter, #3)]]> 15776904 514 Oliver Pötzsch 1611090865 Denise 5 4.01 2010 The Beggar King (The Hangman's Daughter, #3)
author: Oliver Pötzsch
name: Denise
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2010
rating: 5
read at: 2017/07/09
date added: 2017/07/09
shelves:
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]]> <![CDATA[Tyrant's Throne (Greatcoats, #4)]]> 34836594 After years of struggle and sacrifice, Falcio val Mond, First Cantor of the Greatcoats, is on the brink of fulfilling his dead king's dream: Aline, the king's daughter, is about to take the throne and restore the rule of law once and for all.

But for the Greatcoats, nothing is ever that simple. In the neighboring country of Avares, an enigmatic new warlord is uniting the barbarian armies that have long plagued Tristia's borders--and even worse, he is rumored to have a new ally: Trin, who's twice tried to kill Aline to claim the throne of Tristia for herself. With the armies of Avares at her back, led by a bloodthirsty warrior, she'll be unstoppable.

Falcio, Kest, and Brasti race north to stop her, but in those cold and treacherous climes they discover something altogether different, and far more dangerous: a new player is planning to take the throne of Tristia, and with a sense of dread the three friends realize that the Greatcoats, for all their skill, may not be able to stop him.

As the nobles of Tristia and even the Greatcoats themselves fight over who should rule, the Warlord of Avares threatens to invade. With so many powerful contenders vying for power, it will fall to Falcio to render the one verdict he cannot bring himself to utter, much less enforce. Should he help crown the young woman he vowed to put on the throne, or uphold the laws he swore to serve?]]> 613 Sebastien de Castell 1681441934 Denise 5 4.53 2017 Tyrant's Throne (Greatcoats, #4)
author: Sebastien de Castell
name: Denise
average rating: 4.53
book published: 2017
rating: 5
read at: 2017/07/01
date added: 2017/07/01
shelves:
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]]> Shirtless Bear-Fighter! #1 35482860 31 Jody LeHeup Denise 5 4.08 Shirtless Bear-Fighter! #1
author: Jody LeHeup
name: Denise
average rating: 4.08
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2017/06/23
date added: 2017/06/23
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]]> Aenid 9581366 304 Virgil Denise 5 3.66 -19 Aenid
author: Virgil
name: Denise
average rating: 3.66
book published: -19
rating: 5
read at: 2017/06/23
date added: 2017/06/23
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]]> <![CDATA[The Dark Monk (The Hangman's Daughter, #2)]]> 18652482

Following a trail of riddles, hangman Jakob Kuisl, his headstrong daughter, Magdalena, and the town physician’s son team up with the priest’s aristocratic sister to investigate. What they uncover will lead them back to the Crusades, unlocking a troubled history of internal church politics and sending them on a chase for a treasure of the Knights Templar.

But they’re not the only ones after the legendary fortune. A team of dangerous and mysterious monks is always close behind, tracking their every move, speaking Latin in the shadows, giving off a strange, intoxicating scent. And to throw the hangman off their trail, they have ensured he is tasked with capturing a band of thieves roving the countryside attacking solitary travellers and spreading panic.

Delivering on the promise of the international bestseller The Hangman’s Daughter, Oliver Pötzsch takes us on a whirlwind tour through the occult hiding places of Bavaria’s ancient monasteries. Once again based on prodigious historical research into Pötzsch’s family tree, The Dark Monk brings to life an unforgettable, compassionate hangman and his tenacious daughter, painting a robust tableau of a seventeenth-century Bavaria and quickening our pulses with a gripping, mesmerizing mystery

]]> 514 Oliver Pötzsch 1611090849 Denise 5 4.01 2009 The Dark Monk (The Hangman's Daughter, #2)
author: Oliver Pötzsch
name: Denise
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2009
rating: 5
read at: 2017/06/22
date added: 2017/06/22
shelves:
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]]> <![CDATA[Sword of Destiny (The Witcher #2)]]> 35062427 The New York Times bestselling series that inspired the international hit video game: The Witcher.
Geralt is a witcher, a man whose magic powers, enhanced by long training and a mysterious elixir, have made him a brilliant fighter and a merciless assassin. Yet he is no ordinary murderer: his targets are the multifarious monsters and vile fiends that ravage the land and attack the innocent.

This is a collection of short stories, following the adventures of the hit collection THE LAST WISH. Join Geralt as he battles monsters, demons and prejudices alike...
Witcher collectionsThe Last WishSword of Destiny
Witcher novelsBlood of Elves
The Time of Contempt
Baptism of Fire The Tower of SwallowsLady of the Lake
The Malady and Other Stories: An Andrzej Sapkowski Sampler (e-only)

Translated from original Polish by David French]]> 384 Andrzej Sapkowski 0316389714 Denise 5 4.29 1992 Sword of Destiny (The Witcher #2)
author: Andrzej Sapkowski
name: Denise
average rating: 4.29
book published: 1992
rating: 5
read at: 2017/06/19
date added: 2017/06/19
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Sword of Destiny (The Witcher, #0.7)]]> 25454056
This is a collection of short stories, following the adventures of the hit collection THE LAST WISH. Join Geralt as he battles monsters, demons and prejudices alike...]]> 405 Andrzej Sapkowski Denise 5 4.25 1992 Sword of Destiny (The Witcher, #0.7)
author: Andrzej Sapkowski
name: Denise
average rating: 4.25
book published: 1992
rating: 5
read at: 2017/06/18
date added: 2017/06/18
shelves:
review:

]]> Shield and Crocus 20791883
The city of Audec-Hal sits among the bones of a Titan. For decades it has suffered under the dominance of five tyrants, all with their own agendas. Their infighting is nothing, though, compared to the mysterious "Spark-storms" that alternate between razing the land and bestowing the citizens with wild, unpredictable abilities. It was one of these storms that gave First Sentinel, leader of the revolutionaries known as the Shields of Audec-Hal, power to control the emotional connections between people'a power that cost him the love of his life.

Now, with nothing left to lose, First Sentinel and the Shields are the only resistance against the city's overlords as they strive to free themselves from the clutches of evil. The only thing they have going for them is that the crime lords are fighting each other as well--that is, until the tyrants agree to a summit that will permanently divide the city and cement their rule of Audec-Hal.

It's one thing to take a stand against oppression, but with the odds stacked against the Shields, it's another thing to actually triumph.

In this stunning, original tale of magic and revolution, Michael R. Underwood creates a cityscape that rivals Ambergris and New Crobuzon in its depth and populates it with heroes and villains that will stay with you forever.]]> 416 Michael R. Underwood 1477823905 Denise 3 3.34 2014 Shield and Crocus
author: Michael R. Underwood
name: Denise
average rating: 3.34
book published: 2014
rating: 3
read at: 2017/06/02
date added: 2017/06/04
shelves:
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]]> <![CDATA[Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant]]> 29459135 176 Tony Cliff 1626726973 Denise 5 3.90 2011 Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant
author: Tony Cliff
name: Denise
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2011
rating: 5
read at: 2017/06/02
date added: 2017/06/02
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Alan Moore's Writing for Comics]]> 59704 48 Alan Moore 1592910122 Denise 5 3.98 2003 Alan Moore's Writing for Comics
author: Alan Moore
name: Denise
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2003
rating: 5
read at: 2017/05/27
date added: 2017/05/27
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Autumnlands, Vol. 1: Tooth and Claw]]> 23862438 Collects THE AUTUMNLANDS: TOOTH & CLAW #1-6]]> 184 Kurt Busiek 1632152770 Denise 4 3.84 2015 The Autumnlands, Vol. 1: Tooth and Claw
author: Kurt Busiek
name: Denise
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2017/05/20
date added: 2017/05/20
shelves:
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]]> The Ghost in the Shell 7143642
This edition includes a new Introduction from Dark Horse publisher Mike Richardson, and a fascinating Postscript from author Masamune Shirow.]]> 368 Masamune Shirow 1935429019 Denise 5 3.95 1989 The Ghost in the Shell
author: Masamune Shirow
name: Denise
average rating: 3.95
book published: 1989
rating: 5
read at: 2017/05/07
date added: 2017/05/07
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Necropolis (Case Files of the Undead Book 1)]]> 31823087
But one can’t put a genie back in a bottle.

Quickly, the secrets of necromancy spread far and wide. Only a handful of years later, raising the dead becomes illegal in every civilized nation. But illegal and nonexistent are two very different things.
Marcus Sage, veteran of the war and private investigator in the Necropolis, the undead ghetto of Chicago, takes a case that is supposed to be a simple one of a missing briefcase. However, this case propels Sage into the underbelly of Chicago’s world of organized crime, politics and the dark world of necromancy itself.
In the process, the trail leads to a plot that may set the entire city ablaze, and, if successful, there will be nowhere to hide. Not even for the already-dead of the Necropolis!]]> 223 James Silverstein Denise 5 These stories are noir at their finest. The first is a bit choppy, but smoothed out quickly and takes you by the back of the neck, pulls you in by the suicide door, and doesn't let you go.

Truly, there is something special about noir and James hits it on the money.

Normally, I am not one for zombie books of any kind, but James makes it work, and really, the whole premise is quite clever. James pulls off a post WWII, undead infested Chicago with a deft hand and a serious amount of talent. The private eye is hard boiled and James doesn't shy away from racism nor the whole thing with the Renfields, that impressed me to no end. The devil is truly in the details.

I only hope the next book comes out soon. ]]> 4.00 Necropolis (Case Files of the Undead Book 1)
author: James Silverstein
name: Denise
average rating: 4.00
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2017/05/05
date added: 2017/05/06
shelves:
review:
In true fashion -- Raymond Chandler and like-- James Silverstein has shown he has some serious writing chops.
These stories are noir at their finest. The first is a bit choppy, but smoothed out quickly and takes you by the back of the neck, pulls you in by the suicide door, and doesn't let you go.

Truly, there is something special about noir and James hits it on the money.

Normally, I am not one for zombie books of any kind, but James makes it work, and really, the whole premise is quite clever. James pulls off a post WWII, undead infested Chicago with a deft hand and a serious amount of talent. The private eye is hard boiled and James doesn't shy away from racism nor the whole thing with the Renfields, that impressed me to no end. The devil is truly in the details.

I only hope the next book comes out soon.
]]> <![CDATA[Spellslinger (Spellslinger, #1)]]> 33787347 MAGIC IS A CON GAME.

Kellen is moments away from facing his first mage's duel and the start of four trials that will make him a spellcaster. There's just one problem: his magic is gone.

As his sixteenth birthday approaches, Kellen falls back on his cunning in a bid to avoid total disgrace. But when a daring stranger arrives in town, she challenges Kellen to take a different path.

Ferius Parfax is one of the mysterious Argosi—a traveller who lives by her wits and the three decks of cards she carries. She's difficult and unpredictable, but she may be Kellen's only hope...

The first in a rich and compelling fantasy series bursting with tricks, traps and a devious talking squirrel cat.]]> 323 Sebastien de Castell Denise 5 I started this book 05May, and by God, had I not needed to sleep, I would have finished it the same damn day.
The book is fun, it's smart, and just when you think you have the whole thing figured out, it sucker punches you and you don't even care cos you wanna find out what happens next. I could not put this book down.
The characters were all there, written so you feel like you've known them and so you squirm when horrible decisions are made. Sebastien has a quick mind and a deft pen and neither of these things go to waste with this book. It really does bait and switch you in the best possible, most plot serving, absolutely thorough way.
These are all good things. The last time I had a bait and switch pulled on me, I about busted my wall throwing the book at it.
By far, one of my favorite things about Sebastien's books are the humor. The dry wit comes right when it needs to and had me burst out laughing, not to mention how everything comes back around to dueling and swordplay. Yes, even the magic. It's a wonderful thing and I am so happy the next book comes out in October.

Don't miss the Spellslinger series. It's a blend of high fantasy and the Wild West. You want it in your collection.]]> 4.12 2017 Spellslinger (Spellslinger, #1)
author: Sebastien de Castell
name: Denise
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2017
rating: 5
read at: 2017/05/06
date added: 2017/05/06
shelves:
review:
Like his Greatcoats series, Sebastien deCastell spins one helluva yarn.
I started this book 05May, and by God, had I not needed to sleep, I would have finished it the same damn day.
The book is fun, it's smart, and just when you think you have the whole thing figured out, it sucker punches you and you don't even care cos you wanna find out what happens next. I could not put this book down.
The characters were all there, written so you feel like you've known them and so you squirm when horrible decisions are made. Sebastien has a quick mind and a deft pen and neither of these things go to waste with this book. It really does bait and switch you in the best possible, most plot serving, absolutely thorough way.
These are all good things. The last time I had a bait and switch pulled on me, I about busted my wall throwing the book at it.
By far, one of my favorite things about Sebastien's books are the humor. The dry wit comes right when it needs to and had me burst out laughing, not to mention how everything comes back around to dueling and swordplay. Yes, even the magic. It's a wonderful thing and I am so happy the next book comes out in October.

Don't miss the Spellslinger series. It's a blend of high fantasy and the Wild West. You want it in your collection.
]]> <![CDATA[The Last Wish (The Witcher, #0.5)]]> 1128434 384 Andrzej Sapkowski 0575077832 Denise 5 4.19 1993 The Last Wish (The Witcher, #0.5)
author: Andrzej Sapkowski
name: Denise
average rating: 4.19
book published: 1993
rating: 5
read at: 2017/05/03
date added: 2017/05/03
shelves:
review:

]]> Crazy Eights 34715018
Existing for eons beneath our earth, these aren’t your garden variety spiders. They’re bloodthirsty monsters that will rip apart anything—and anyone—in their path, and while a town fights to survive Emily and her team will have to do everything they can to beat back the terror before there’s a new species at the top of the food chain!
]]> 184 James Melzer Denise 4 B-Movie goodness!

Giant spiders? Clandestine military operation? Small town in the middle of nowhere setting?
This book has it all!
And it's a lot of fun!
Emily Nite is an expert in the weird and the urban legend. Think X-Files meets Ancient Aliens and you get the gist. When a man named Tempo contacts her about giant spiders in a West Virginia town, Emily is skeptical at first, and a believer by the end. She is given a team and a dossier and told to go forth and figure out what the hell is going on and to stop the threat at all costs.
What follows is really a great little ride into everything a B-movie promises to be: over the top ridiculous with action, explosions, and monsters!
The book was great fun. It's everything I wanted it to be, right down to groan-worthy jokes.
It's a quick read and the pages do keep turning. The only fault I found was the author did quite a bit of telling in the narration when, perhaps, a little more dialogue would have done.
Otherwise, the book is fun. Straight up fun.
You won't be sorry for putting this one on your shelf! ]]> 3.99 Crazy Eights
author: James Melzer
name: Denise
average rating: 3.99
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2017/04/09
date added: 2017/04/09
shelves:
review:
B-Movie goodness!

Giant spiders? Clandestine military operation? Small town in the middle of nowhere setting?
This book has it all!
And it's a lot of fun!
Emily Nite is an expert in the weird and the urban legend. Think X-Files meets Ancient Aliens and you get the gist. When a man named Tempo contacts her about giant spiders in a West Virginia town, Emily is skeptical at first, and a believer by the end. She is given a team and a dossier and told to go forth and figure out what the hell is going on and to stop the threat at all costs.
What follows is really a great little ride into everything a B-movie promises to be: over the top ridiculous with action, explosions, and monsters!
The book was great fun. It's everything I wanted it to be, right down to groan-worthy jokes.
It's a quick read and the pages do keep turning. The only fault I found was the author did quite a bit of telling in the narration when, perhaps, a little more dialogue would have done.
Otherwise, the book is fun. Straight up fun.
You won't be sorry for putting this one on your shelf!
]]> Rebecca 594139 Alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780380730407.

"Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again. . ."

With these words, the reader is ushered into an isolated gray stone mansion on the windswept Cornish coast, as the second Mrs. Maxim de Winter recalls the chilling the chilling events that transpired as she began her new life as the young bride of a husband she barely knew. For in every corner of every room were phantoms of a time dead but not forgotten—a past devotedly preserved by the sinister housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers: a suite immaculate and untouched, clothing laid out and ready to be worn, but not by any of the great house's current occupants. With an eerie presentiment of evil tightening her heart, the second Mrs. de Winter walked in the shadow of her mysterious predecessor, determined to uncover the darkest secrets and shattering truths about Maxim's first wife—the late and hauntingly beautiful Rebecca.

This special edition of Rebecca includes excerpts from Daphne du Maurier's The Rebecca Notebook and Other Memories, an essay on the real Manderley, du Maurier's original epilogue to the book, and more.]]> 410 Daphne du Maurier Denise 5 4.25 1938 Rebecca
author: Daphne du Maurier
name: Denise
average rating: 4.25
book published: 1938
rating: 5
read at: 2017/03/02
date added: 2017/03/02
shelves:
review:

]]> The Samurai 25225 272 Shūsaku Endō 0811213463 Denise 5 4.03 1980 The Samurai
author: Shūsaku Endō
name: Denise
average rating: 4.03
book published: 1980
rating: 5
read at: 2017/02/19
date added: 2017/02/19
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Mother Aegypt and Other Stories]]> 1858838
Skyhorse Publishing, under our Night Shade and Talos imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of titles for readers interested in science fiction (space opera, time travel, hard SF, alien invasion, near-future dystopia), fantasy (grimdark, sword and sorcery, contemporary urban fantasy, steampunk, alternative history), and horror (zombies, vampires, and the occult and supernatural), and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller, a national bestseller, or a Hugo or Nebula award-winner, we are committed to publishing quality books from a diverse group of authors.]]> 249 Kage Baker 1892389754 Denise 5 3.89 2004 Mother Aegypt and Other Stories
author: Kage Baker
name: Denise
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2004
rating: 5
read at: 2017/01/31
date added: 2017/01/31
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Star Wars: Catalyst: A Rogue One Novel]]> 32995517
Galen’s energy-focused research has captured the attention of both Krennic and his foes, making the scientist a crucial pawn in the galactic conflict. But after Krennic rescues Galen, his wife, Lyra, and their young daughter, Jyn, from Separatist kidnappers, the Erso family is deeply in Krennic’s debt. Krennic then offers Galen an extraordinary opportunity: to continue his scientific studies with every resource put utterly at his disposal. While Galen and Lyra believe that his energy research will be used purely in altruistic ways, Krennic has other plans that will finally make the Death Star a reality. Trapped in their benefactor’s tightening grasp, the Ersos must untangle Krennic’s web of deception to save themselves and the galaxy itself.]]> 330 James Luceno 0425286908 Denise 4 3.84 2016 Star Wars: Catalyst: A Rogue One Novel
author: James Luceno
name: Denise
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at: 2017/01/06
date added: 2017/01/06
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Life Debt (Star Wars: Aftermath, #2)]]> 26895161 Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, the never-before-told story that began with Star Wars: Aftermath continues in this thrilling novel, the second book of Chuck Wendig s New York Times bestselling trilogy.

"It is a dark time for the Empire. . . ."

The Emperor is dead, and the remnants of his former Empire are in retreat. As the New Republic fights to restore a lasting peace to the galaxy, some dare to imagine new beginnings and new destinies. For Han Solo, that means settling his last outstanding debt, by helping Chewbacca liberate the Wookiee's homeworld of Kashyyyk.

Meanwhile, Norra Wexley and her band of Imperial hunters pursue Grand Admiral Rae Sloane and the Empire's remaining leadership across the galaxy. Even as more and more officers are brought to justice, Sloane continues to elude the New Republic, and Norra fears Sloane may be searching for a means to save the crumbling Empire from oblivion. But the hunt for Sloane is cut short when Norra receives an urgent request from Princess Leia Organa. The attempt to liberate Kashyyyk has carried Han Solo, Chewbacca, and a band of smugglers into an ambush resulting in Chewie's capture and Han's disappearance.

Breaking away from their official mission and racing toward the Millennium Falcon's last known location, Norra and her crew prepare for any challenge that stands between them and their missing comrades. But they can't anticipate the true depth of the danger that awaits them or the ruthlessness of the enemy drawing them into his crosshairs.]]> 430 Chuck Wendig 1101966939 Denise 5 3.71 2016 Life Debt (Star Wars: Aftermath, #2)
author: Chuck Wendig
name: Denise
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2016/12/26
date added: 2016/12/26
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul (Dirk Gently, #2)]]> 357 307 Douglas Adams 0671742515 Denise 5 4.05 1988 The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul (Dirk Gently, #2)
author: Douglas Adams
name: Denise
average rating: 4.05
book published: 1988
rating: 5
read at: 2016/12/06
date added: 2016/12/06
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Command Decisions (Empire of Bones Saga, #3)]]> 25161964
After winning a hard-fought victory, Commander Jared Mertz and Princess Kelsey discover another insidious foe blocking their way home. A remnant of the Old Empire still exists and seems allied with the savage, AI-dominated Pale Ones.

With the existence of the Terran Empire at stake, another enemy, this one from Jared’s past, threatens everything they’ve worked so hard to achieve. Jared and Kelsey must fight for survival while the fate of humanity hangs in the balance.]]> 304 Terry Mixon Denise 5 4.28 2015 Command Decisions (Empire of Bones Saga, #3)
author: Terry Mixon
name: Denise
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2016/11/27
date added: 2016/11/27
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Hangman's Daughter (The Hangman's Daughter, #1)]]> 11160742
Jakob Kuisl is charged with extracting a confession from her and torturing her until he gets one. Convinced she is innocent, he, Magdalena, and her would-be suitor race against the clock to find the true killer. Approaching Walpurgisnacht, when witches are believed to dance in the forest and mate with the devil, another tattooed orphan is found dead and the town becomes frenzied. More than one person has spotted what looks like the devil—a man with a hand made only of bones. The hangman, his daughter, and the doctor’s son face a terrifying and very real enemy.

Taking us back in history to a place where autopsies were blasphemous, coffee was an exotic drink, dried toads were the recommended remedy for the plague, and the devil was as real as anything, The Hangman’s Daughter brings to cinematic life the sights, sounds, and smells of seventeenth-century Bavaria, telling the engrossing story of a compassionate hangman who will live on in readers� imaginations long after they’ve put down the novel.]]> 435 Oliver Pötzsch 054774501X Denise 4 3.72 2008 The Hangman's Daughter (The Hangman's Daughter, #1)
author: Oliver Pötzsch
name: Denise
average rating: 3.72
book published: 2008
rating: 4
read at: 2016/11/27
date added: 2016/11/27
shelves:
review:

]]> Comics and Sequential Art 33476 163 Will Eisner Denise 4 4.11 1985 Comics and Sequential Art
author: Will Eisner
name: Denise
average rating: 4.11
book published: 1985
rating: 4
read at: 2016/09/27
date added: 2016/09/27
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Exorcist (The Exorcist, #1)]]> 179780 385 William Peter Blatty Denise 4 4.20 1971 The Exorcist (The Exorcist, #1)
author: William Peter Blatty
name: Denise
average rating: 4.20
book published: 1971
rating: 4
read at: 2016/09/12
date added: 2016/09/12
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Mycroft Holmes (Mycroft Holmes and Sherlock, #1)]]> 24458231
Mycroft’s comfortable existence is overturned when Douglas receives troubling reports� from home. There are rumors of mysterious disappearances, strange footprints in the sand, and spirits enticing children to their deaths, their bodies found drained of blood. Upon hearing the news, Georgiana abruptly departs for Trinidad. Near panic, Mycroft convinces Douglas that they should follow her, drawing the two men into a web of dark secrets that grows more treacherous with each step they take...


Written by NBA superstar Kareem Abdul- Jabbar and screenwriter Anna Waterhouse, Mycroft Holmes reveals the untold story of Sherlock’s older brother. This harrowing adventure changed his life, and set the� stage for the man Mycroft would become: founder of the famous Diogenes Club and the hidden power behind the British government.]]> 336 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 1783291532 Denise 5 3.67 2015 Mycroft Holmes (Mycroft Holmes and Sherlock, #1)
author: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
name: Denise
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2016/08/30
date added: 2016/08/30
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Delilah Dirk and the King's Shilling (Delilah Dirk, #2)]]> 25332007 272 Tony Cliff 1626721556 Denise 5 4.10 2016 Delilah Dirk and the King's Shilling (Delilah Dirk, #2)
author: Tony Cliff
name: Denise
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2016/08/27
date added: 2016/08/27
shelves:
review:

]]> The Haunting of Hill House 89717 182 Shirley Jackson 0143039989 Denise 5 3.85 1959 The Haunting of Hill House
author: Shirley Jackson
name: Denise
average rating: 3.85
book published: 1959
rating: 5
read at: 2016/08/24
date added: 2016/08/24
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, #1)]]> 9460487 9781594744761

A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of very curious photographs. It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow-impossible though it seems-they may still be alive. A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.]]> 352 Ransom Riggs 1594744769 Denise 4 3.92 2011 Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, #1)
author: Ransom Riggs
name: Denise
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2011
rating: 4
read at: 2016/08/17
date added: 2016/08/17
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Journal of Vincent Du Maurier II (Book 2)]]> 25850298 There are alternate cover/title editions for this ASIN here and here.

After discovering the artifact on the Esja, a dig was set up near the site and a team assigned to excavate. They searched for months without success. Two years later, however, near the same ravine, a group of geologists came upon this artifact, sitting atop a mound of stones. Despite its seemingly intended discovery, it also dates from the period of the Red Death. We have confirmed that the handwriting matches that of the previous journal’s author, and this narrative picks up where the other left off, even as this one is different for its added content. Tucked safely inside the leather binding, inserted between specific pages, is another diary of sorts, written in a different hand and using a graphite ink. We call this interior document “The Notes of Evelina Caro� since the writer names herself at several points in the text. We believe these loose sheets are the writings of the girl mentioned in the first notebook. She recounts her story, as does the writer of the first diary, Vincent Du Maurier. The two stories coincide and someone has gone to great lengths to align her pages with his, as though attempting to weave their storylines together. Her entries do not offer us dates, but each is marked and numbered. The following chronicle is the contents of the two texts translated in their entirety. We have not strayed from the page ordering or altered the document in any way.

Dagur Bijarnarson
270 P.C.E. (Post Common Era)]]> 268 K.P. Ambroziak Denise 5 First, I was given this book in exchange for an honest review. It is that honest review which I am giving you now.
The first book saw us following Vincent through diary entries in a future world where humanity is basically screwed. On one side you have zombies. On the other, you have vampires. Both sides want to eat you. Except the vampires are smart enough to figure out that, in order for their species to keep going, humanity has to keep going.
The second book has Evelina taking center stage in her own diary entries, picking up where Vincent left off; telling her own story and joining it with Vincent's.
Like the first book, the strength lies within the characters. It's a compulsion to keep going because the characters are so well written, so interesting, that you want to keep going just to find out what happens.
Oh, there's a plot, of course, but plot takes a back seat to the intricacies of Evelina's training and just what she and Vincent mean to each other. This book is character and world building at its finest, though it leans heavier on character and holds back on the world just enough to make you wonder what the hell is going on.
A page turner, to say the least, and another wonderfully written, highly entertaining installment in the duMaurier series. ]]> 4.55 2015 The Journal of Vincent Du Maurier II (Book 2)
author: K.P. Ambroziak
name: Denise
average rating: 4.55
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2016/07/24
date added: 2016/08/08
shelves:
review:
This review has been a minute in coming, and for that I apologize.
First, I was given this book in exchange for an honest review. It is that honest review which I am giving you now.
The first book saw us following Vincent through diary entries in a future world where humanity is basically screwed. On one side you have zombies. On the other, you have vampires. Both sides want to eat you. Except the vampires are smart enough to figure out that, in order for their species to keep going, humanity has to keep going.
The second book has Evelina taking center stage in her own diary entries, picking up where Vincent left off; telling her own story and joining it with Vincent's.
Like the first book, the strength lies within the characters. It's a compulsion to keep going because the characters are so well written, so interesting, that you want to keep going just to find out what happens.
Oh, there's a plot, of course, but plot takes a back seat to the intricacies of Evelina's training and just what she and Vincent mean to each other. This book is character and world building at its finest, though it leans heavier on character and holds back on the world just enough to make you wonder what the hell is going on.
A page turner, to say the least, and another wonderfully written, highly entertaining installment in the duMaurier series.
]]> <![CDATA[The Journal of Vincent Du Maurier (Book 1)]]> 22805269 EVELINA IS THE LAST HUMAN ON EARTH.
EVELINA IS TRAPPED IN A ZOMBIE-PLAGUED, VAMPIRE-INFESTED WORLD.

This journal recounts the last days of Vincent Du Maurier, an ancient vampire who tries to save his kind from starvation during the plague of 2052. At the time, a lone survivor remains, a pregnant girl left to defend herself against the bloodless. Her only hope is Vincent.

But he’s conflicted about saving her, and must choose between making her his last supper or turning her into his salvation.]]> 268 K.P. Ambroziak 1500405353 Denise 5 First, I was given this book in exchange for an honest review. It is that honest review which I am giving you now.
Aside from a stint in my teenage years, when I was TOTALLY IN LOVE WITH ANNE RICE, I am not big on vampire books. Jeanne Kalogridis is about the only woman I will go back to for my vampire fix. The same can be said for zombies. Not my favorite.
This books, however, I may just have to return to every now and again. I'll definitely pick up the second book.
We follow Vincent through diary entries in a future world where humanity is basically screwed. On one side you have zombies. On the other, you have vampires. Both sides want to eat you. Except the vampires are smart enough to figure out that, in order for their species to keep going, humanity has to keep going.
The strength of the book lies in the main character.
Vincent is everything a vampire should be; smart, cunning, disdainful of humanity, cruel, but possessing of enough conscience and feeling to humanize and make him relatable without going into hyper/sexual, maudlin romanticism. It's a nice change to be interested in the main character, but not necessarily to LIKE him.
This alone will make me pick up the second book.
The characters in this one were really well fleshed out and the story good enough to make me keep pushing forward. It faltered in places, but not enough to make me want to put it down and resign myself to never reading another vampire/zombie novel again.
I felt Dracula was a bit forced. The author could have used the opportunity to do something original with this particular character and yet chose to go with the Impaler. Not a bad choice, but given the cliffhanger ends with a vampire wholly of the author's making, and Vincent's own origin story, I felt like the opportunity was wasted in deference to a more familiar name.
Overall, the book was great. That the next one picks up on the female MC will definitely add another dimension to what I hope will be a series of at least three books.]]> 3.85 2013 The Journal of Vincent Du Maurier (Book 1)
author: K.P. Ambroziak
name: Denise
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2013
rating: 5
read at: 2016/06/15
date added: 2016/08/08
shelves:
review:
This review has been a minute in coming, and for that I apologize.
First, I was given this book in exchange for an honest review. It is that honest review which I am giving you now.
Aside from a stint in my teenage years, when I was TOTALLY IN LOVE WITH ANNE RICE, I am not big on vampire books. Jeanne Kalogridis is about the only woman I will go back to for my vampire fix. The same can be said for zombies. Not my favorite.
This books, however, I may just have to return to every now and again. I'll definitely pick up the second book.
We follow Vincent through diary entries in a future world where humanity is basically screwed. On one side you have zombies. On the other, you have vampires. Both sides want to eat you. Except the vampires are smart enough to figure out that, in order for their species to keep going, humanity has to keep going.
The strength of the book lies in the main character.
Vincent is everything a vampire should be; smart, cunning, disdainful of humanity, cruel, but possessing of enough conscience and feeling to humanize and make him relatable without going into hyper/sexual, maudlin romanticism. It's a nice change to be interested in the main character, but not necessarily to LIKE him.
This alone will make me pick up the second book.
The characters in this one were really well fleshed out and the story good enough to make me keep pushing forward. It faltered in places, but not enough to make me want to put it down and resign myself to never reading another vampire/zombie novel again.
I felt Dracula was a bit forced. The author could have used the opportunity to do something original with this particular character and yet chose to go with the Impaler. Not a bad choice, but given the cliffhanger ends with a vampire wholly of the author's making, and Vincent's own origin story, I felt like the opportunity was wasted in deference to a more familiar name.
Overall, the book was great. That the next one picks up on the female MC will definitely add another dimension to what I hope will be a series of at least three books.
]]> <![CDATA[The Substitute Sleuth (Genrenauts, #4)]]> 30356608 She’s a Wacky Comedian. He’s a Gruff Detective. They Fight Crime!
It was supposed to be a simple training mission in the Police Procedural region of Crime World. But there’s always a twist � when the precinct’s favorite wacky private eye is shot, Leah and King must fill the shoes of Odd Couple Detectives to investigate a pair of nested mysteries.

Leah and King work against the clock to fix the breach before falling too deep into their respective roles and losing themselves to the story. And there's more going on here than a simple crime of passion...]]> 101 Michael R. Underwood Denise 4 The Substitute Sleuth reunites us with the Genrenauts as the breaches get bigger and the plot thickens into a London pea souper. Leah and the team are sent off to the Detective genre where everyone falls into three categories: victim, killer, suspect. And the line between them is razor thin. Mike Underwood has a great talent for pointing out how each genre works in both book and television form which is actually great fun to read. Sadly, I found myself wondering why he didn't push the detective envelope further and throw the gang into the middle of a 1940s/20s Noir story where technology would have been a dead giveaway and the mystery of who shot whom a little bit deeper. Some of the dialogue felt forced trying to work in current references and humor. A little bit of easing up in this area would not hurt the story at all, in fact it might give the characters a chance to breathe a little, rather than throwing in topical discussion (or humor) in for its own sake.
Overall, the Genrenauts series is a fun, quick read. The characters are well written and growing into themselves and their complexities and the plot is thickening with the addition of a new twist. Things are getting interesting for the Genrenauts in its first series. I can't wait to see what happens next! ]]> 4.17 2016 The Substitute Sleuth (Genrenauts, #4)
author: Michael R. Underwood
name: Denise
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at: 2016/08/08
date added: 2016/08/08
shelves:
review:
The only thing holding the author back with this series is his reluctance to dive deeper into the featured genre.
The Substitute Sleuth reunites us with the Genrenauts as the breaches get bigger and the plot thickens into a London pea souper. Leah and the team are sent off to the Detective genre where everyone falls into three categories: victim, killer, suspect. And the line between them is razor thin. Mike Underwood has a great talent for pointing out how each genre works in both book and television form which is actually great fun to read. Sadly, I found myself wondering why he didn't push the detective envelope further and throw the gang into the middle of a 1940s/20s Noir story where technology would have been a dead giveaway and the mystery of who shot whom a little bit deeper. Some of the dialogue felt forced trying to work in current references and humor. A little bit of easing up in this area would not hurt the story at all, in fact it might give the characters a chance to breathe a little, rather than throwing in topical discussion (or humor) in for its own sake.
Overall, the Genrenauts series is a fun, quick read. The characters are well written and growing into themselves and their complexities and the plot is thickening with the addition of a new twist. Things are getting interesting for the Genrenauts in its first series. I can't wait to see what happens next!
]]> <![CDATA[The Journal of Vincent Du Maurier III (Book 3)]]> 21898043 There are alternate cover editions for this ASIN here and here.

The second book in The Fifth Empire trilogy, The Harvest of Vincent du Maurier, continues to tell the story of the vampire’s struggle to keep humanity alive. Living in the hill town, building a life from whatever they can find, the small clan remain vigilant in their fight to ward off the dead. But Vincent is soon confronted with insurmountable challenges that just may prevent him from saving the only thing he has come to love: Evelyn’s blood.

Almost half a century has passed since the bloodless have been seen. What’s left of the land is now populated with a resilient breed of men not born of woman. But one original man remains, and Vincent has come for his blood.

Trailed by an invincible foe, Vincent’s end is near, and he’s left with hours to leave his legacy. But will it be enough to save those most dear to him?]]> 273 K.P. Ambroziak Denise 5 4.29 2016 The Journal of Vincent Du Maurier III (Book 3)
author: K.P. Ambroziak
name: Denise
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2016/08/02
date added: 2016/08/02
shelves:
review:

]]> The Mummy (The Mummy, #1) 1293881
Rick O'Connell, dashing American and legionnaire, is in Egypt looking for a good time. His discovery of the Lost City of the Dead is a fluke—but to British librarian Evelyn Carnahan it's the archaeological find of the century. The city contains all the treasures of Egypt and possibly the secrets of life and death. Leading Evelyn's expedition deep into the Sahara isn't exactly easy money, though, as Rick must dodge death traps, escape the jaws of man-eating beetles, and even duel a hook-handed mercenary. And just when he's caught his breath, a long ago evil returns from the grave—with a taste for human flesh...]]> 258 Max Allan Collins 0425169480 Denise 4 4.08 1999 The Mummy (The Mummy, #1)
author: Max Allan Collins
name: Denise
average rating: 4.08
book published: 1999
rating: 4
read at: 2016/05/26
date added: 2016/05/26
shelves:
review:

]]> Bloodline (Star Wars) 27209239 Witness the birth of the Resistance

When the Rebellion defeated the Empire in the skies above Endor, Leia Organa believed it was the beginning to a lasting peace. But after decades of vicious infighting and partisan gridlock in the New Republic Senate, that hope seems like a distant memory.

Now a respected senator, Leia must grapple with the dangers that threaten to cripple the fledgling democracy—from both within and without. Underworld kingpins, treacherous politicians, and Imperial loyalists are sowing chaos in the galaxy. Desperate to take action, senators are calling for the election of a First Senator. It is their hope that this influential post will bring strong leadership to a divided galaxy.

As the daughter of Darth Vader, Leia faces with distrust the prospect of any one person holding such a powerful position—even when supporters suggest Leia herself for the job. But a new enemy may make this path Leia’s only option. For at the edges of the galaxy, a mysterious threat is growing...]]> 13 Claudia Gray 0451486080 Denise 5 4.07 2016 Bloodline (Star Wars)
author: Claudia Gray
name: Denise
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2016/05/09
date added: 2016/05/09
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (Indiana Jones #2)]]> 407224
A novelization of the major motion picture

The time is 1935. Through a series of misadventures in Shanghai—and a narrow escape from death—Indiana Jones finds himself in a remote village in India. A mysterious old shaman tells him that his arrival has been foreseen—and that he and his companions are destined to save the villagers.

So begins the most daring, dark, and dangerous quest of Indiana Jones’s career.]]> 224 James Kahn 0345314573 Denise 4 4.10 1984 Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (Indiana Jones #2)
author: James Kahn
name: Denise
average rating: 4.10
book published: 1984
rating: 4
read at: 2016/05/05
date added: 2016/05/05
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (Indiana Jones #1)]]> 76742
Indiana Jones, archaeology professor and swashbuckling adventurer, has unearthed many ancient treasures. But now the very future of the world depends on his finding one special the Ark of the Covenant, the ornate chest that holds the Ten Commandments.

With his trusty bullwhip in hand and his beautiful former lover at his side, Jones journeys from Nepal to Cairo to the Mediterranean, dodging poisons, traps, and snakes, outwitting Nazis, and battling rivals old and new—all in pursuit of an ancient artifact rumored to give invincible power to its possessor.

It’s a battle to the startling finish—a finish dictated by the magic, the light, and the glorious power of the lost Ark.]]> 181 Campbell Black 0345353757 Denise 5 4.23 1981 Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (Indiana Jones #1)
author: Campbell Black
name: Denise
average rating: 4.23
book published: 1981
rating: 5
read at: 2016/04/27
date added: 2016/04/27
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Indiana Jones and the Hollow Earth (Indiana Jones: Prequels, #11)]]> 270351 336 Max McCoy 0553561952 Denise 3
Ulla was a fantastic character, lots of fun and very smart. The fact Indy DIDN'T take her to bed is just plain weird. Not that it should be the normal, but Indiana Jones is supposed to be the James Bond of the archaeological world. To have him pine over a woman is odd. And the whole 'true love lasts forever' speech.
Really?
Erm.
Kay.
Not that it wasn't sweet, but if Indy's going to declare his love, he's going to do it in the Crystal Skull 'they weren't you' way, not bring-a-woman-back-from-the -dead-borderline-creeper-I'll-love-you-forever-teenage-angst way.
Maybe it's a young Indiana Jones I'm reading, I don't know.
Anyway, I'm not saying Indy HAS to go to bed with every woman, it's actually sort of refreshing that he didn't, but he's INDIANA JONES, the femme fatale is built in. Not to mention you can have a fully realized female character go to bed with a man and not have to change her character at all. Plus, I mean, Indiana Jones, man.

Expository and clunky dialogue. WAY too much. Holy crap on a cracker. If ever one needs a lesson in how NOT to write dialogue, here you go. Like I said, there were flashes of Indiana Jones, but for the most part, the dialogue seemed there as nothing more than a way to explain what could have just as easily been thrown into the story itself.

Talking of the story, I'm not sure what Max was trying to do here, but it seems to me he was writing three stories at once and couldn't figure out which way he wanted to go. This book drug its heels in a long romp across the states just to get to the Arctic circle and an anticlimax ending. The history lesson was fun, though. ]]> 3.78 1997 Indiana Jones and the Hollow Earth (Indiana Jones: Prequels, #11)
author: Max McCoy
name: Denise
average rating: 3.78
book published: 1997
rating: 3
read at: 2016/04/25
date added: 2016/04/25
shelves:
review:
I had fun with this book, but I'm not sure Max got Indy right. Now, bear in mind I haven't read the first ten prequel books, but characterization is characterization and while there were glimpses of Indiana Jones inside the book, the whole thing felt off to me.

Ulla was a fantastic character, lots of fun and very smart. The fact Indy DIDN'T take her to bed is just plain weird. Not that it should be the normal, but Indiana Jones is supposed to be the James Bond of the archaeological world. To have him pine over a woman is odd. And the whole 'true love lasts forever' speech.
Really?
Erm.
Kay.
Not that it wasn't sweet, but if Indy's going to declare his love, he's going to do it in the Crystal Skull 'they weren't you' way, not bring-a-woman-back-from-the -dead-borderline-creeper-I'll-love-you-forever-teenage-angst way.
Maybe it's a young Indiana Jones I'm reading, I don't know.
Anyway, I'm not saying Indy HAS to go to bed with every woman, it's actually sort of refreshing that he didn't, but he's INDIANA JONES, the femme fatale is built in. Not to mention you can have a fully realized female character go to bed with a man and not have to change her character at all. Plus, I mean, Indiana Jones, man.

Expository and clunky dialogue. WAY too much. Holy crap on a cracker. If ever one needs a lesson in how NOT to write dialogue, here you go. Like I said, there were flashes of Indiana Jones, but for the most part, the dialogue seemed there as nothing more than a way to explain what could have just as easily been thrown into the story itself.

Talking of the story, I'm not sure what Max was trying to do here, but it seems to me he was writing three stories at once and couldn't figure out which way he wanted to go. This book drug its heels in a long romp across the states just to get to the Arctic circle and an anticlimax ending. The history lesson was fun, though.
]]> <![CDATA[The Pearl of the Soul of the World (Darkangel Trilogy, #3)]]> 92719 301 Meredith Ann Pierce 015201800X Denise 4 3.99 1990 The Pearl of the Soul of the World (Darkangel Trilogy, #3)
author: Meredith Ann Pierce
name: Denise
average rating: 3.99
book published: 1990
rating: 4
read at: 2016/04/21
date added: 2016/04/21
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[A Gathering of Gargoyles (Darkangel Trilogy, #2)]]> 92718 333 Meredith Ann Pierce 0152018018 Denise 5 4.13 1984 A Gathering of Gargoyles (Darkangel Trilogy, #2)
author: Meredith Ann Pierce
name: Denise
average rating: 4.13
book published: 1984
rating: 5
read at: 2016/04/20
date added: 2016/04/20
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Mirror Empire (Worldbreaker Saga, #1)]]> 20697501
On the eve of a recurring catastrophic event known to extinguish nations and reshape continents, a troubled orphan evades death and slavery to uncover her own bloody past . . . while a world goes to war with itself.

In the frozen kingdom of Saiduan, invaders from another realm are decimating whole cities, leaving behind nothing but ash and ruin. At the heart of this war lie the pacifistic Dhai people, once enslaved by the Saiduan and now courted by their former masters to provide aid against the encroaching enemy.

As the dark star of the cataclysm rises, an illegitimate ruler is tasked with holding together a country fractured by civil war; a precocious young fighter is asked to betray his family to save his skin; and a half-Dhai general must choose between the eradication of her father's people or loyalty to her alien Empress. Through tense alliances and devastating betrayal, the Dhai and their allies attempt to hold against a seemingly unstoppable force as enemy nations prepare for a coming together of worlds as old as the universe itself.In the end, one world will rise—and many will perish.

Stretching from desolate tundras to steamy, semi-tropical climes seething with sentient plant life, this is an epic tale of blood mages and mercenaries, emperors and priestly assassins, who must unite to save a world on the brink of ruin.

File Under : Fantasy [ Orphaned Child | World at War | Blood Magic | The Fluidity of Gender]]]> 538 Kameron Hurley 0857665561 Denise 5 3.62 2014 The Mirror Empire (Worldbreaker Saga, #1)
author: Kameron Hurley
name: Denise
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at: 2016/04/18
date added: 2016/04/18
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Saint's Blood (Greatcoats, #3)]]> 23899193 How do you kill a Saint?

Falcio, Kest, and Brasti are about to find out, because someone has figured out a way to do it and they've started with a friend.

The Dukes were already looking for ways out of their agreement to put Aline on the throne, but with the Saints turning up dead, rumours are spreading that the Gods themselves oppose her ascension. Now churches are looking to protect themselves by bringing back the military orders of religious soldiers, assassins, and (especially) Inquisitors - a move that could turn the country into a theocracy. The only way Falcio can put a stop to it is by finding the murderer. He has only one clue: a terrifying iron mask which makes the Saints vulnerable by driving them mad. But even if he can find the killer, he'll still have to face him in battle.

And that may be a duel that no swordsman, no matter how skilled, can hope to win.

]]> 576 Sebastien de Castell 1782066802 Denise 5 I mean, Jesus Criminey.

Let me explain. Actually, let me be honest. Two or three years ago my dear friend Shiri told me about a book by a man named Sebastien deCastell.

Yes, I told her, I’ll read the book.

I did not read the book. Because I’m dumb. Also because I didn’t make the time.

Making time is important, kids. You never know what you’ll miss. And my dumbass missed out on one of the best trilogies I have ever read.

Speed up two (or three) years and my other dear friend Jenny paid attention and actually read the books. Feeling left out and curious about what they were raving about, I picked up the first book in what was then a twosome, soon to become a trilogy.
Oh my God.

Oh my God.

Oh my God.

I was hooked. I gobbled Traitor’s Blade from the first page and immediately went to Amazon for Knights Shadow. In one click I had the Precious. In six hours I fully realized I would have ONE WHOLE YEAR to wait for the next book.

So I waited

And I waited.

And I then I FINALLY had the Precious. And in the course of a day and a half I was sobbing in my car waiting for the laundry to get done, devastated the book had come to an end.

Seriously, you guys.

This series, you guys.
I’m pretty sure I’m secretly in love with Brasti.
I mean, I love all three of them, but Brasti is my favorite of the trio.

Saint’s Blood is one of those rare, special books which sinks you in and makes you regret coming back to reality when it’s done. That Sebastien has a way with words is an understatement to the talent contained within the pages. Saint’s Blood thrusts us once again with Falcio, Brasti, and Kest as their world is, once again, turned around, chewed up, and spit out. All through Tristia, Saints are dying and no one knows why, but each hand is pointed to the Greatcoats and the girl they would see put on the throne. But death and betrayal are nothing new to the Trattari. Already hated for betraying their King, blame for the murder of Saints is another notch on their considerably long bedpost. Except the Greatcoats aren’t killing anyone, and whoever is has set their sights on someone close to the Greatcoats. But our trio isn’t the same. Falcio is still recovering from the Lament, Kest is a shadow of his former self, and Brasti still doesn’t know how to shut up. Death lingers ever on the fringes, ready to sink its claws into our heroes and drag them down into forever. Only Tristia remains the same. Dark, fraught with strife and political upheaval, and just waiting for someone to start another war.

What follows is a ride straight into madness, with enough twists and turns to make a roller coaster jealous.

Saint’s Blood brings Tristia and all her characters, her politics, her religions, her drama and lays her out like a dissected frog. All of her darkness unwrapped for the reader to ogle. I was drawn in from the first sentence and played like a well-tuned violin, easily and willingly sunk into Tristia’s dark, malformed heart. As much as I wanted to make the book last, I had to know what happened next.

Sebastien deCastell is a master. He has built his world and what roles the Saints draw their swords (or bows) in to a T. Saint’s Blood is a merging of faith and reality. The way religion and politics are woven together make Tristia all the more real for the reactions of its people and what they do in the name of their God and their Saints. Sebastien holds nothing back and tears your heart out while doing it. There are plans within plans, schemes within schemes and no one inside Tristia’s borders is innocent. Well, maybe one or two, but we’re not going to talk about them. It hurts me too much. For the others, each character is a testament to Tristia’s changing climates and it seems as though the best and brightest of lights have the worst things happen to them. Only the strongest come out on the other side and, Jesus tap dancing Christ, Falcio, man. This freaking guy.

Fitting then, that Saint’s Blood is littered with humor of the dry, acerbic kind. Dark humor. Funny dark humor. The sort which makes you snort laugh.

Like a duel between master swordsmen, Saint’s Blood keeps you guessing what will come next. Each character moves across the page, caught in a deadly game of cat and mouse and for Falcio, putting the pointy end of his blade into the bad guy might not be enough this time.

Sebastien makes you feel for these characters, makes you root for them, and want to strangle them at the same time. He makes you laugh, makes you cry.

Very few authors can achieve this special sort of magic. I don’t know, exactly, how Sebastien deCastell does it, but I hope he never stops.

This man is forever on my pull list.
]]> 4.23 2016 Saint's Blood (Greatcoats, #3)
author: Sebastien de Castell
name: Denise
average rating: 4.23
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2016/04/08
date added: 2016/04/11
shelves:
review:
Jesus Criminey.
I mean, Jesus Criminey.

Let me explain. Actually, let me be honest. Two or three years ago my dear friend Shiri told me about a book by a man named Sebastien deCastell.

Yes, I told her, I’ll read the book.

I did not read the book. Because I’m dumb. Also because I didn’t make the time.

Making time is important, kids. You never know what you’ll miss. And my dumbass missed out on one of the best trilogies I have ever read.

Speed up two (or three) years and my other dear friend Jenny paid attention and actually read the books. Feeling left out and curious about what they were raving about, I picked up the first book in what was then a twosome, soon to become a trilogy.
Oh my God.

Oh my God.

Oh my God.

I was hooked. I gobbled Traitor’s Blade from the first page and immediately went to Amazon for Knights Shadow. In one click I had the Precious. In six hours I fully realized I would have ONE WHOLE YEAR to wait for the next book.

So I waited

And I waited.

And I then I FINALLY had the Precious. And in the course of a day and a half I was sobbing in my car waiting for the laundry to get done, devastated the book had come to an end.

Seriously, you guys.

This series, you guys.
I’m pretty sure I’m secretly in love with Brasti.
I mean, I love all three of them, but Brasti is my favorite of the trio.

Saint’s Blood is one of those rare, special books which sinks you in and makes you regret coming back to reality when it’s done. That Sebastien has a way with words is an understatement to the talent contained within the pages. Saint’s Blood thrusts us once again with Falcio, Brasti, and Kest as their world is, once again, turned around, chewed up, and spit out. All through Tristia, Saints are dying and no one knows why, but each hand is pointed to the Greatcoats and the girl they would see put on the throne. But death and betrayal are nothing new to the Trattari. Already hated for betraying their King, blame for the murder of Saints is another notch on their considerably long bedpost. Except the Greatcoats aren’t killing anyone, and whoever is has set their sights on someone close to the Greatcoats. But our trio isn’t the same. Falcio is still recovering from the Lament, Kest is a shadow of his former self, and Brasti still doesn’t know how to shut up. Death lingers ever on the fringes, ready to sink its claws into our heroes and drag them down into forever. Only Tristia remains the same. Dark, fraught with strife and political upheaval, and just waiting for someone to start another war.

What follows is a ride straight into madness, with enough twists and turns to make a roller coaster jealous.

Saint’s Blood brings Tristia and all her characters, her politics, her religions, her drama and lays her out like a dissected frog. All of her darkness unwrapped for the reader to ogle. I was drawn in from the first sentence and played like a well-tuned violin, easily and willingly sunk into Tristia’s dark, malformed heart. As much as I wanted to make the book last, I had to know what happened next.

Sebastien deCastell is a master. He has built his world and what roles the Saints draw their swords (or bows) in to a T. Saint’s Blood is a merging of faith and reality. The way religion and politics are woven together make Tristia all the more real for the reactions of its people and what they do in the name of their God and their Saints. Sebastien holds nothing back and tears your heart out while doing it. There are plans within plans, schemes within schemes and no one inside Tristia’s borders is innocent. Well, maybe one or two, but we’re not going to talk about them. It hurts me too much. For the others, each character is a testament to Tristia’s changing climates and it seems as though the best and brightest of lights have the worst things happen to them. Only the strongest come out on the other side and, Jesus tap dancing Christ, Falcio, man. This freaking guy.

Fitting then, that Saint’s Blood is littered with humor of the dry, acerbic kind. Dark humor. Funny dark humor. The sort which makes you snort laugh.

Like a duel between master swordsmen, Saint’s Blood keeps you guessing what will come next. Each character moves across the page, caught in a deadly game of cat and mouse and for Falcio, putting the pointy end of his blade into the bad guy might not be enough this time.

Sebastien makes you feel for these characters, makes you root for them, and want to strangle them at the same time. He makes you laugh, makes you cry.

Very few authors can achieve this special sort of magic. I don’t know, exactly, how Sebastien deCastell does it, but I hope he never stops.

This man is forever on my pull list.

]]> <![CDATA[Rapture (Bel Dame Apocrypha, #3)]]> 13575986
Not everyone likes this tenuous and unpredictable "peace," however, and somebody has kidnapped a key politician whose death could trigger a bloody government takeover. With aliens in the sky and revolution on the ground, Nyx assembles a team of mad magicians, torturers,and mutant shape-shifters for an epic journey across a flesh-eating desert in search of a man she's not actually supposed to kill.

Trouble is, killing is the only thing Nyx is good at. And she already left this man to die...

Skyhorse Publishing, under our Night Shade and Talos imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of titles for readers interested in science fiction (space opera, time travel, hard SF, alien invasion, near-future dystopia), fantasy (grimdark, sword and sorcery, contemporary urban fantasy, steampunk, alternative history), and horror (zombies, vampires, and the occult and supernatural), and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller, a national bestseller, or a Hugo or Nebula award-winner, we are committed to publishing quality books from a diverse group of authors.]]> 392 Kameron Hurley 1597804312 Denise 4 4.03 2012 Rapture (Bel Dame Apocrypha, #3)
author: Kameron Hurley
name: Denise
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2012
rating: 4
read at: 2016/04/11
date added: 2016/04/11
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Dorothy Must Die (Dorothy Must Die, #1)]]> 18053060 I didn't ask for any of this. I didn't ask to be some kind of hero.

But when your whole life gets swept up by a tornado—taking you with it—you have no choice but to go along, you know?

Sure, I've read the books. I've seen the movies. I know the song about the rainbow and the happy little bluebirds. But I never expected Oz to look like this. To be a place where Good Witches can't be trusted, Wicked Witches may just be the good guys, and winged monkeys can be executed for acts of rebellion. There's still a yellow brick road—but even that's crumbling.

What happened? Dorothy.

They say she found a way to come back to Oz. They say she seized power and the power went to her head. And now no one is safe.

My name is Amy Gumm—and I'm the other girl from Kansas.

I've been recruited by the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked.

I've been trained to fight.

And I have a mission.]]> 452 Danielle Paige 0062280678 Denise 4 3.80 2014 Dorothy Must Die (Dorothy Must Die, #1)
author: Danielle Paige
name: Denise
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2014
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2016/04/10
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter]]> 12545818
"My baby boy..." she whispers before dying.

Only later will the grieving Abe learn that his mother's fatal affliction was actually the work of a vampire.

When the truth becomes known to young Lincoln, he writes in his journal, " henceforth my life shall be one of rigorous study and devotion. I shall become a master of mind and body. And this mastery shall have but one purpose ..." Gifted with his legendary height, strength, and skill with an ax, Abe sets out on a path of vengeance that will lead him all the way to the White House.

While Abraham Lincoln is widely lauded for saving a and freeing millions of slaves, his valiant fight against the forces of the undead has remained in the shadows for hundreds of years. That is, until Seth Grahame-Smith stumbled upon The Secret Journal of Abraham Lincoln , and became the first living person to lay eyes on it in more than 140 years.

Using the journal as his guide and writing in the grand biographical style of Doris Kearns Goodwin and David McCullough, Seth has reconstructed the true life story of our greatest president for the first time-all while revealing the hidden history behind the Civil War and uncovering the role vampires played in the birth, growth, and near-death of our nation.]]> 433 Seth Grahame-Smith 1455510181 Denise 4 3.70 2010 Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter
author: Seth Grahame-Smith
name: Denise
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2010
rating: 4
read at: 2016/04/05
date added: 2016/04/05
shelves:
review:

]]> Unholy Night 12954783 New York Times bestselling Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, comes UNHOLY NIGHT, the next evolution in dark historical revisionism.

They're an iconic part of history's most celebrated birth. But what do we really know about the Three Kings of the Nativity, besides the fact that they followed a star to Bethlehem bearing strange gifts? The Bible has little to say about this enigmatic trio. But leave it to Seth Grahame-Smith, the brilliant and twisted mind behind Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies to take a little mystery, bend a little history, and weave an epic tale.

In Grahame-Smith's telling, the so-called "Three Wise Men" are infamous thieves, led by the dark, murderous Balthazar. After a daring escape from Herod's prison, they stumble upon the famous manger and its newborn king. The last thing Balthazar needs is to be slowed down by young Joseph, Mary and their infant. But when Herod's men begin to slaughter the first born in Judea, he has no choice but to help them escape to Egypt.

It's the beginning of an adventure that will see them fight the last magical creatures of the Old Testament; cross paths with biblical figures like Pontius Pilate and John the Baptist; and finally deliver them to Egypt. It may just be the greatest story never told.]]> 270 Seth Grahame-Smith Denise 3 3.84 2012 Unholy Night
author: Seth Grahame-Smith
name: Denise
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2012
rating: 3
read at: 2016/03/29
date added: 2016/03/29
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Lords of the North (The Saxon Stories, #3)]]> 68526 317 Bernard Cornwell 0060888628 Denise 5 4.34 2007 Lords of the North (The Saxon Stories, #3)
author: Bernard Cornwell
name: Denise
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2007
rating: 5
read at: 2016/02/04
date added: 2016/02/04
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Pale Horseman (The Saxon Stories, #2)]]> 68528
This is the exciting—yet little known—story of the making of England in the 9th and 10th centuries, the years in which King Alfred the Great, his son and grandson defeated the Danish Vikings who had invaded and occupied three of England’s four kingdoms.

At the end of The Last Kingdom, The Danes had been defeated at Cynuit, but the triumph of the English is not fated to last long. The Danish Vikings quickly invade and occupy three of England’s four kingdoms—and all that remains of the once proud country is a small piece of marshland, where Alfred and his family live with a few soldiers and retainers, including Uhtred, the dispossessed English nobleman who was raised by the Danes. Uhtred has always been a Dane at heart, and has always believed that given the chance, he would fight for the men who raised him and taught him the Viking ways. But when Iseult, a powerful sorceress, enters Uhtred’s life, he is forced to consider feelings he’s never confronted before—and Uhtred discovers, in his moment of greatest peril, a new-found loyalty and love for his native country and ruler.]]> 349 Bernard Cornwell 0061144835 Denise 5 4.30 2006 The Pale Horseman (The Saxon Stories, #2)
author: Bernard Cornwell
name: Denise
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2006
rating: 5
read at: 2016/01/31
date added: 2016/01/31
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[A Murder of Crows (Adventures of the X Pirates #3)]]> 20895517
A Murder of Crows is the possibly true life story of Benjamin Nightthorn, the deadliest pirate and criminal mastermind to ever sail the high seas, and the principal villain in the novella series Adventures of the X Pirates. This first installment tells the origin story of Nightthorn’s spiral into madness, the indoctrination of his cutthroat crew, the creation of the eerie ship they sail, and the night of violence and murder that bore them all.

Turn off the lights, burn a single candle bright, and embark if you dare on this voyage of frights.]]> 49 Edward Medina Denise 3 3.67 2012 A Murder of Crows (Adventures of the X Pirates #3)
author: Edward Medina
name: Denise
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2012
rating: 3
read at: 2012/06/04
date added: 2016/01/26
shelves:
review:

]]> Waking in Dreamland 1124828 390 Jody Lynn Nye 0671878751 Denise 5 3.77 1998 Waking in Dreamland
author: Jody Lynn Nye
name: Denise
average rating: 3.77
book published: 1998
rating: 5
read at: 2016/01/25
date added: 2016/01/25
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Last Kingdom (The Saxon Stories, #1)]]> 68527
The story is seen through the eyes of Uhtred, a dispossessed nobleman, who is captured as a child by the Danes and then raised by them so that, by the time the Northmen begin their assault on Wessex (Alfred’s kingdom and the last territory in English hands) Uhtred almost thinks of himself as a Dane. He certainly has no love for Alfred, whom he considers a pious weakling and no match for Viking savagery, yet when Alfred unexpectedly defeats the Danes and the Danes themselves turn on Uhtred, he is finally forced to choose sides. By now he is a young man, in love, trained to fight and ready to take his place in the dreaded shield wall. Above all, though, he wishes to recover his father’s land, the enchanting fort of Bebbanburg by the wild northern sea.

This thrilling adventure—based on existing records of Bernard Cornwell’s ancestors—depicts a time when law and order were ripped violently apart by a pagan assault on Christian England, an assault that came very close to destroying England.]]> 333 Bernard Cornwell 0060887184 Denise 5 4.27 2004 The Last Kingdom (The Saxon Stories, #1)
author: Bernard Cornwell
name: Denise
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2004
rating: 5
read at: 2016/01/19
date added: 2016/01/19
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Shootout Solution (Genrenauts, #1)]]> 25514394 Leah Tang just died on stage.
Not literally.
Not yet.

Leah's stand-up career isn't going well. But she understands the power of fiction, and when she's offered employment with the mysterious Genrenauts Foundation, she soon discovers that literally dying on stage is a hazard of the job!

Her first job takes her to a Western world. When a cowboy tale slips off its rails, and the outlaws start to win, it's up to Leah - and the Genrenauts team - to nudge the story back on track and prevent major ripples on Earth.

But the story's hero isn't interested in winning, and the safety of Earth hangs in the balance...]]> 164 Michael R. Underwood 1466891947 Denise 4
The framework is familiar, and has a Leverage or even 24 feel, where there is a secret organization funded by shadowy people who may or may not be shady who gathers a team to go out and save the world from a threat to home, hearth, and internet cat videos everywhere. The characters themselves could be plucked from action/adventure/thriller television serials and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with it. Genrenauts is the fun kind of brain candy you go to favorite television series for. They’re familiar and ridiculously enjoyable.

There are a few things I picked up on whilst reading, however. The quickness by which I was thumbing through the pages was a bit of a bummer. I would have liked to stay in the story a bit longer, gotten more of an immersion in the Western World. Ultimately, of course, this is a novella so it is going to be a quick read, but throughout I found I really wanted to see more of the genre (tropes and all) come to life. There’s so much Michael Underwood can do with these genre worlds, so much he can expand on and poke fun at, it was a shame the Western World wasn’t built up before the story ended.

Michael Underwood has a knack for inclusive characters and pop culture references. It’s refreshing to see an author write strong characters from every walk of life and have no problems with sticking them into a story. There isn’t that sense of ‘token-ism� or self-consciousness found when many authors try to write out of their comfort zone. In Genrenauts, the characters are fun and well done. Characters are at their best when you can feel right along with them. Leah’s ‘death on stage� was painful to read. I winced throughout. Bad is an understatement. If I have any criticism, it’s the pop culture references seemed forced at times, the dialogue stilted and trying too hard when it didn’t need to.

Genrenauts is a great story. A fun, quick read when you find yourself with a moment and a need to pass the time. If it were a television show, I’d be tuning in every week to see which world came next and what happened in it. As it is, I’ll have to wait for the next book to get my fix. Something I’m more than happy to do.]]> 3.81 2015 The Shootout Solution (Genrenauts, #1)
author: Michael R. Underwood
name: Denise
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2016/01/11
date added: 2016/01/12
shelves:
review:
I came to this series with mixed excitement and trepidation. Genrenauts sounded a really cool idea, but I’ve been burned by cool sounding ideas before. Happily, I was not disappointed. Genrenauts is a fun story with a strong backbone. The characters are well defined and are interesting. As I’ve said, the concept is enjoyable; different worlds all based on story genres. When something goes wrong in the story, there are repercussions felt on earth. I find myself hoping, as the series goes on, the rifts in the genre worlds get bigger and bigger with potentially cataclysmic results for the rest of us poor saps ignorant of the world’s existences.

The framework is familiar, and has a Leverage or even 24 feel, where there is a secret organization funded by shadowy people who may or may not be shady who gathers a team to go out and save the world from a threat to home, hearth, and internet cat videos everywhere. The characters themselves could be plucked from action/adventure/thriller television serials and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with it. Genrenauts is the fun kind of brain candy you go to favorite television series for. They’re familiar and ridiculously enjoyable.

There are a few things I picked up on whilst reading, however. The quickness by which I was thumbing through the pages was a bit of a bummer. I would have liked to stay in the story a bit longer, gotten more of an immersion in the Western World. Ultimately, of course, this is a novella so it is going to be a quick read, but throughout I found I really wanted to see more of the genre (tropes and all) come to life. There’s so much Michael Underwood can do with these genre worlds, so much he can expand on and poke fun at, it was a shame the Western World wasn’t built up before the story ended.

Michael Underwood has a knack for inclusive characters and pop culture references. It’s refreshing to see an author write strong characters from every walk of life and have no problems with sticking them into a story. There isn’t that sense of ‘token-ism� or self-consciousness found when many authors try to write out of their comfort zone. In Genrenauts, the characters are fun and well done. Characters are at their best when you can feel right along with them. Leah’s ‘death on stage� was painful to read. I winced throughout. Bad is an understatement. If I have any criticism, it’s the pop culture references seemed forced at times, the dialogue stilted and trying too hard when it didn’t need to.

Genrenauts is a great story. A fun, quick read when you find yourself with a moment and a need to pass the time. If it were a television show, I’d be tuning in every week to see which world came next and what happened in it. As it is, I’ll have to wait for the next book to get my fix. Something I’m more than happy to do.
]]> <![CDATA[The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings, #1)]]> 34
One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkeness bind them

In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, The Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others. But the One Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-earth, it remained lost to him. After many ages it fell into the hands of Bilbo Baggins, as told in The Hobbit.

In a sleepy village in the Shire, young Frodo Baggins finds himself faced with an immense task, as his elderly cousin Bilbo entrusts the Ring to his care. Frodo must leave his home and make a perilous journey across Middle-earth to the Cracks of Doom, there to destroy the Ring and foil the Dark Lord in his evil purpose.
--back cover]]> 398 J.R.R. Tolkien 0618346252 Denise 4 4.36 1954 The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings, #1)
author: J.R.R. Tolkien
name: Denise
average rating: 4.36
book published: 1954
rating: 4
read at: 2016/01/10
date added: 2016/01/10
shelves:
review:

]]>